JP6066080B2 - Switch device - Google Patents

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to a switch device that performs lighting display in response to a switch operation.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is a switch device such as a wall switch that lights up and displays a load switching state in response to a switch operation for switching a load state.

  In such a switch device, for lighting display, a light source is disposed on a substrate in the housing, and light from the light source is guided to the front side of the housing by a light guide and displayed. There is something. Further, there is a type in which a plurality of light sources are used to switch the lighting display according to the switch operation, and the light from these light sources is guided and displayed on the front side of the housing with an integrated light guide. . In this integrated light guide, the front ends of a plurality of light guides that respectively guide light from a plurality of light sources are integrally connected by a connecting part, and a horizontally long display part is provided in front of the connecting part in the width direction. Provided.

Japanese Patent No. 4530072

  However, in the case of a light guide that connects a plurality of light guides with a horizontally long connection part, when viewing the display part from the front side, the visibility of the lit display by light guided by the light guide part is good, When the display unit is viewed obliquely along the width direction, the light guided from the light guide unit to the connection unit is diffused in the width direction in the connection unit, and the visibility of the lit display decreases. There is.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a switch device capable of improving the visibility of lighting display.

  The switch device of the embodiment includes a housing, a substrate, an operation unit, and a light guide. The substrate is disposed in the housing, and is mounted with a switch body and a plurality of light sources that are lit and displayed according to the operation of the switch body. The operation unit is disposed on the front side of the housing and operates the switch body. The light guide is disposed on the front surface side of the housing, and includes a plurality of light guides that guide light from the light source, and a connecting portion that is formed horizontally along the width direction of the housing and connects the front end of the light guide The display unit formed on the front surface of the coupling unit, and the reflection unit provided in the coupling unit along the side portion in the width direction of the light guide unit.

  According to the present invention, since the reflection portion is provided along the side portion in the width direction of the plurality of light guide portions at the connection portion of the light guide body, the display portion is viewed obliquely along the width direction of the display portion. In this case, it is possible to visually recognize the light reflected by the reflecting portion, and it can be expected that the visibility of the lighting display is improved.

It is BB sectional drawing of FIG. 5 of the switch apparatus which shows one Embodiment. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. 5 of a switch apparatus same as the above. It is CC sectional drawing of FIG. 5 of a switch apparatus same as the above. It is a perspective view of the decomposition | disassembly state of a switch apparatus same as the above. It is a perspective view of a switch apparatus same as the above. It is a block diagram of the illumination control system using a switch apparatus same as the above.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.

  FIG. 6 shows a block diagram of the illumination control system 11. The lighting control system 11 controls lighting for each of a plurality of lighting groups such as floors and areas in a facility such as an office or a store. For example, the lighting control system 11 is installed in a management room of the facility and controls the entire system. A plurality of control panels 12 that control lighting control states such as on / off and dimming of a plurality of lighting devices 14 according to commands from the main control panel 12 via the two transmission lines 13. The terminal device 15 and a plurality of switch devices 16 for manually operating the illumination control state of the illumination device 14 are connected so as to be able to transmit signals to each other.

  Each terminal device 15 has a unique address, and can transmit and receive signals transmitted to and from the main operation panel 12 using this address.

  In advance, a plurality of lighting devices 14 are assigned to each of a plurality of lighting groups via each terminal 15 and are registered in the main operation panel 12. The assignment of the lighting groups and the like can be arbitrarily set by a setting device 17 that is detachably connected to the switch device 16.

  The switch device 16 has a unique address, and can manually operate the lighting control state of the lighting device 14 for each lighting group.

  Next, the switch device 16 is shown in FIGS. Although not shown, the switch device 16 is configured to be screwed and installed in a wiring box installed on the back side of the wall surface material through an installation hole provided in the wall surface material.

  The switch device 16 is assembled from a housing 23 having a cover body 21 and a rear cover 22 attached to the rear surface side of the cover body 21, a substrate 24 disposed in the housing 23, and a front surface side of the housing 23. A plurality of light guide bodies 25, a plurality of operation bodies 26, and a decorative cover 27 are provided. In the present embodiment, four wide light guides 25 and four operation bodies 26 are used in the width direction of the housing 23, and these light guide bodies 25 and operation bodies 26 are arranged vertically on the front side of the housing 23. The four types of switch devices 16 arranged in the above are shown. In FIG. 4, the substrate 24 is not shown.

  The cover main body 21 is integrally formed with a support for screwing to the wiring box using a synthetic resin material having insulating properties. The cover body 21 has a flat front part 30 that is long in the vertical direction, and a pair of attachment holes 31 for screwing to the wiring box are formed in the upper and lower ends of the front part 30.

  The front surface portion 30 of the cover main body 21 is formed with a plurality of recess portions 32 that are arranged from the front with one light guide 25 and one operation body 26 as a set. Each recess 32 is formed horizontally long along the width direction of the housing 23 at a plurality of positions spaced apart in the vertical direction on the front surface 30. In each recess 32, a plurality of insertion holes 33 are formed so that parts of the light guide 25 and the operation body 26 are inserted into the housing 23, respectively. Further, an insertion hole 34 is formed in the front surface portion 30.

  On the rear surface of the cover main body 21, a quadrangular frame portion 35 to which the rear cover 22 is combined is projected and formed.

  Further, the rear cover 22 is formed in a box shape opened to the front surface with an insulating synthetic resin material. A plurality of locking pieces 38 for locking to the frame portion 35 are formed on the periphery of the rear cover 22 in a state where the rear cover 22 is combined with the frame portion 35 of the cover main body 21. A rear surface of the rear cover 22 is formed with a pair of terminal arrangement holes 39 in which terminals (not shown) for connecting the transmission line 13 are arranged.

  Further, the substrate 24 is fitted inside the rear cover 22, and is sandwiched between the cover main body 21 and the rear cover 22 in a state where the rear cover 22 is combined with the frame portion 35 of the cover main body 21, and the housing 23 Positioned and held inside. On the front surface of the substrate 24 are a plurality of light sources 42 that emit light facing each light guide 25, a plurality of switch bodies 43 that are operated by each operation body 26, and a setting device 17 that is inserted from the insertion hole 34. A connector or the like (not shown) to which the plug is electrically connected is mounted. A terminal (not shown) for connecting the transmission line 13 is disposed on the rear surface of the substrate 24. Other electronic devices are omitted.

  The board 24 transmits a signal corresponding to the operation of the switch body 43 together with an address to the main operation panel 12 via the transmission line 13, or receives a signal at its own address transmitted from the main operation panel 12 as a light source. Is provided with a control circuit for lighting and displaying.

  A pair of light sources 42 is used corresponding to each light guide 25. For the pair of light sources 42, LEDs of different luminescent colors are used.

  The switch main body 43 is a tact switch in which the contact of the switch mechanism is switched by a pushing operation and the contact of the switch mechanism is restored by releasing the pushing operation. The switch main body 43 has a base 44 mounted on the front surface of the substrate 24 and a pushing portion 45 that protrudes from the front surface of the base 44 and can be pushed. The pushing portion 45 can be pushed with respect to the base 44 within a predetermined pushing range a, and is urged in a direction protruding from the base 44 by urging means of a switch mechanism or the like. Then, the contact of the switch mechanism is switched when the pushing portion 45 is pushed.

  The light guide 25 is made of a transparent light guide material such as acrylic resin. The light guide 25 includes a pair of light guides 48, an incident surface 49 formed on the rear surface of the light guides 48, a connection part 50 that connects the front ends of the pair of light guide parts 48, and a front surface of the connection part 50. The display unit 51 is an emission surface formed on the surface. The connecting part 50 and the display part 51 are formed wide along the width direction, and a pair of light guide parts 48 are connected to both sides of the connecting part 50 in the width direction. Further, a mounting portion 52 projects from the periphery of the rear end of the connecting portion 50, and a plurality of locking pieces 53 project from the mounting portion 52 rearward.

  In the connecting portion 50, a groove portion 54 is formed along side surfaces of the pair of light guide portions 48 facing each other. The groove 54 is formed to be longer than at least half of the length of the connecting portion 50 in the front-rear direction. Further, a reflecting portion 55 is formed that allows the side portion facing the groove portion 54 to reflect the light guided from the light guide portion 48 to the connecting portion 50.

  Then, the mounting portion 52 is fitted into the recessed portion 32 of the cover main body 21 from the front, and the plurality of locking pieces 53 are locked to the cover main body 21, whereby the light guide 25 is fixed to the housing 23. . Each light guide 48 protrudes into the housing 23 through the insertion hole 33 of the cover body 21, and the incident surface 49 of each light guide 48 is opposed to each light source 42 of the substrate 24.

  The operation body 26 is integrally formed of, for example, an insulating synthetic resin material. The operation body 26 includes an operation unit 58 that is wide in the width direction and is formed to have the same width as the display unit 51 of the light guide 25. The front surface of the operation unit 58 is formed as an inclined surface with the lower side protruding forward from the upper side.

  Protruding pieces 59 project from both sides of the operation portion 58 in the width direction, and locking pieces 61 each having a claw 60 at the tip project from the projecting pieces 59. Further, the projecting pieces 59 are formed with a substantially L-shaped elastic portion 62 projecting upward from the operating portion 58 and the projecting pieces 59. A groove 63 into which the connecting portion 50 of the light guide 25 is inserted is formed between the elastic portion 62 and the operation portion 58 and the projecting piece 59.

  A pushing piece 64 protrudes from the center of the rear portion of the operation portion 58, and a pair of guide pieces 65 protrudes from both sides of the rear portion of the operation portion 58. The pushing piece 64 protrudes rearward from the guide piece 65, and the tip of the pushing piece 64 is formed in a substantially triangular shape with the center protruding from both sides.

  Then, the rear part of the operation part 58 and the projecting piece 59 are fitted into the recessed part 32 of the cover body 21 from the front, the locking pieces 61 on both sides are inserted through the insertion holes 33 of the cover body 21, and the claw 60 is attached to the cover body 21. The operation body 26 is moved in the front-rear direction on the front side of the housing 23 by being locked to the rear surface side, and the pushing piece 64 and the guide piece 65 projecting into the housing 23 through the insertion hole 33 of the cover body 21. It is attached to be movable.

  The elastic portion 62 is disposed between the front surface of the cover main body 21, the front surface of the mounting portion 52 of the light guide 25, and the rear surface of the decorative cover 27, and can contact these. The front surface of the cover main body 21, the front surface of the mounting portion 52 of the light guide 25, and the rear surface of the decorative cover 27 are configured as a contact portion 67 with which the elastic portion 62 contacts.

  The tip of the pressing piece 64 is in contact with the pressing portion 45 of the switch body 43. When the operating body 26 is not pushed, the pusher 45 of the switch body 43 is biased so as to protrude forward from the base 44, so that the operating body 26 is moved via the pushing piece 64. It has been moved forward.

  When the operation body 26 is pushed backward, the rear portion of the operation body 26 contacts the front surface of the cover body 21 within the push range a of the switch body 43. Accordingly, the rear portion of the operating body 26 and the front surface of the cover body 21 are configured as a restricting means 68 that restricts the backward movement of the operating body 26 within the pushing range a of the switch body 43. In the state where the tip of the pushing piece 64 is in contact with the pushing portion 45 of the switch body 43 and the operating body 26 is moved forward, the distance b between the rear portion of the operating body 26 and the front surface of the cover body 21 is The switch body 43 has a narrower relationship than the pushing range a.

  The decorative cover 27 includes an attachment frame 71 and a panel 72 attached to the attachment frame 71. A plurality of locking pieces 73 that are attached to the cover main body 21 protrude from the periphery of the attachment frame 71. A plurality of openings 74 through which the display unit 51 of the light guide 25 and the operation unit 58 of the operation body 26 are inserted are formed on the front surface of the mounting frame 71. Abutting pieces 75 project from the upper central position and both side positions of each opening 74, and these abutting pieces 75 constitute the abutting portion 67. The panel 72 is formed with a plurality of window portions 76 through which the display portion 51 of the light guide 25 and the operation portion 58 of the operation body 26 are respectively inserted.

  Thus, when the switch device 16 is assembled, the light guide 25 and the operation body 26 are sequentially assembled from the front surface of the cover main body 21 and attached. A substrate is assembled in the rear cover 22, and the rear cover 22 is attached to the frame portion 35 of the cover main body 21. Finally (at the time of construction), the decorative cover 27 is attached to the front surface of the cover body 21.

  In the assembled state of the switch device 16, the substrate 24 is sandwiched between the cover main body 21 and the rear cover 22 and is positioned and held in the housing 23.

  The light guide 25 is locked to the cover main body 21, the incident surface 49 of the light guide 48 faces the light source 42, and the light from the light source 42 can enter the light guide 48.

  The operating body 26 is attached to the cover main body 21 so as to be movable in the front-rear direction within a predetermined range, and the pressing piece 64 is in contact with the pressing portion 45 of the switch main body 43. In a state where the operating body 26 is not pushed, the pusher 45 of the switch body 43 is biased so as to protrude forward from the base 44, so that the operating body 26 is interposed via the pushing piece 64. It has been moved forward. In this state, the distance b between the rear portion of the operating body 26 and the front surface of the cover body 21 is narrower than the pushing range a of the switch body 43. The elastic portion 62 is disposed between the front surface of the cover body 21 and the front surface of the mounting portion 52 of the light guide 25 and the rear surface of the decorative cover 27 (the contact piece 75 of the mounting frame 71).

  The display part 51 of the light guide 25 and the operation part 58 of the operation body 26 are projected forward from the window part 76 of the decorative cover 27 in a state where the operation part 58 is arranged vertically. Further, the operation unit 58 protrudes forward from the display unit 51.

  Then, by pushing the operating portion 58 of the operating body 26, the operating body 26 moves backward, and the pushing piece 45 of the switch body 43 is pushed by the pushing piece 64, and the switch mechanism of the switch body 43 The point of contact switches.

  At this time, even if the operation portion 58 is strongly pushed, the rear portion of the operation body 26 comes into contact with the front surface of the cover body 21 within the pushing range a of the switch body 43, and the operation body 26 moves backward. Therefore, excessive force is not applied to the switch body 43 and the substrate 24.

  When the center of the operation unit 58 is pushed, the operation body 26 is easy to move backward in a state parallel to the front surface of the cover body 21, but when one side of the operation unit 58 is pushed. In this case, the operating body 26 is easy to move in a state where it is inclined with respect to the front surface of the cover body 21. If the operating body 26 is greatly inclined with respect to the front surface of the cover body 21, when the one side of the operating body 26 abuts on the front surface of the cover body 21 and the movement is restricted, the other side of the operating body 26 is covered. There is a possibility that the push piece 64 is away from the front surface of the main body 21 and cannot push the push portion 45 of the switch main body 43 until the contact of the switch mechanism is switched. Since the operating body 26 of the present embodiment is provided with elastic portions 62 on both sides in the width direction, when the operating body 26 is inclined, the elastic portion 62 is attached to the front surface of the cover body 21 and the mounting portion of the light guide 25. The operation body 26 is prevented from being inclined with respect to the front surface of the cover main body 21 by contacting the front surface of 52 and the contact piece 75 of the mounting frame 71. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the operation body 26 from being inclined with respect to the front surface of the cover main body 21, and the operation body 26 can reliably push the switch main body 43.

  Further, in addition to the action of the elastic portion 62, the operation body 26 is inclined with respect to the front surface of the cover body 21 because the one end side of the operation portion 58 is pushed and operated. When the side is not pushed into the cover body 21 and tries to move up so that it floats to the front side of the cover body 21, the claw 60 of the locking piece 61 on the other side is caught on the rear side of the cover body 21, so that location becomes the fulcrum The push piece 64 can facilitate the push operation of the push portion 45 of the switch body 43.

  Further, according to the operation of the switch body 43, for example, one of the pair of light sources 42 is turned on and the other is turned off. Light emitted from the lit light source 42 enters the light guide 48 from the incident surface 49 of the light guide 25, is guided through the light guide 48, and is emitted from the display 51 through the connecting part 50.

  When the display unit 51 is viewed from the front, the visibility of the lit display on the front side of the light guide unit 48 is good.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the visibility of the lit display on the front side of the light guide 48 is good even when the display unit 51 is viewed obliquely in the width direction. If the groove portion 54 is not formed in the connecting portion 50, the light guided from the light guide portion 48 to the connecting portion 50 is diffused in the width direction in the connecting portion 50. When viewed from an oblique direction, the visibility of the lit display is reduced. In the present embodiment, the groove portion 54 is formed along the mutually opposing side surfaces of the light guide portion 48, and the side surface portion facing the groove portion 54 becomes the reflection portion 55 and is guided from the light guide portion 48 to the connecting portion 50. In order to reflect the light, the visibility of the lit display on the front side of the light guide 48 is good even when the display unit 51 is viewed obliquely in the width direction.

  As described above, in the switch device 16 of the present embodiment, the restricting means 68 restricts the backward movement of the operating body 26 within the pushing range a of the switch body 43, so that the switch body 43 and the substrate 24 cannot be forced. Can be prevented, less trouble occurs, and reliability can be improved.

  Moreover, since the operating body 26 is structured to be attached from the front side of the housing 23, the restricting means 68 can be controlled by the contact between the front portion of the housing 23 and the rear portion of the operating body 26. The configuration can be simplified. As the restricting means 68, a protrusion (stopper) may be provided on one of the front part of the housing 23 or the rear part of the operating body 26.

  Further, since the elastic portions 62 are provided on both sides in the width direction of the operating body 26, the operating body 26 is brought into contact with the housing 23 by contact with the contact portion 67 provided at the fixed position on the housing 23 side. In contrast, it is possible to prevent the switch body 43 from being inclined, and the switch body 43 can be reliably pushed.

  Further, since the reflection part 55 is provided in the connecting part 50 of the light guide 25 along the side part in the width direction of the light guide part 48, the display part 51 is viewed obliquely along the width direction of the display part 51. In this case, the light reflected by the reflecting portion 55 can be visually recognized, and the visibility of the lighting display can be improved.

  Moreover, by forming the groove portion 54 in the connecting portion 50 along the side portion in the width direction of the light guide portion 48, the reflecting portion 55 can be easily configured.

  Furthermore, even if the operation unit 58 of the operation body 26 and the display unit 51 of the light guide 25 are arranged side by side, the operation unit 58 protrudes forward from the display unit 51. Operability can be improved. In addition, since the front surface of the operation unit 58 is inclined so that the lower side protrudes forward from the upper side, the angle of the finger operated by a person is close to the angle of the front surface of the operation unit 58, making it easy to operate.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

16 Switch device
23 Enclosure
24 substrates
25 Light guide
42 Light source
43 Switch body
48 Light guide
50 connection
51 Display
54 Groove
55 Reflector
58 Operation section

Claims (3)

A housing;
A board on which the switch body and a plurality of light sources that are lit and displayed in accordance with the operation of the switch body are mounted;
An operation unit disposed on the front side of the housing and operating the switch body;
A plurality of light guides that are arranged on the front side of the casing and guide light from the light source; a connecting part that is formed horizontally along the width direction of the casing and connects the front end of the light guide; A light guide having a display portion formed on the front surface of the connecting portion, and a reflecting portion provided in the connecting portion along a widthwise side portion of the light guiding portion;
A switch device comprising: The said light guide has the groove part formed in the said connection part along the side part of the width direction of the said light guide part, The said reflection part is formed by this groove part. The switch device described. The switch device according to claim 1, wherein the operation unit and the display unit of the light guide are arranged side by side, and the operation unit protrudes forward of the display unit. .

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