JP6079245B2 - Operating device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation device suitable for application to, for example, a display switching operation of a display unit in a vehicle display device.

  For example, a conventional operation device applied to a vehicle meter is provided with a rod-shaped knob, and each time the user pushes the knob, the display contents such as the travel distance, fuel consumption, outside air temperature, and time are sequentially switched. Change. In addition, the brightness of meter illumination and the time of a clock can be adjusted by the user turning the knob.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a structure in which a switch is turned on and off by such a rotation operation. That is, the knob is provided with an elastic piece. When the knob is rotated, the elastic piece is pressed against the switch to be elastically deformed, and the switch is pushed by the elastic piece. Therefore, when the switch is pushed, an elastic force by the elastic piece is applied to the knob as an operation reaction force. As a result, the user who rotates the knob can feel a response (operation reaction force), and the rotation operability of the knob can be improved.

JP 2003-194588 A

  However, in the conventional structure described in Patent Document 1, the elastic piece has a shape extending in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the knob, that is, in a direction parallel to the display surface of the meter (display surface direction). Therefore, if the elastic piece is lengthened to give a sufficient operation reaction force, the operating device becomes larger in the display surface direction.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an operating device that is miniaturized in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the knob.

  The disclosed invention employs the following technical means to achieve the above object. In addition, the code | symbol in the parenthesis described in the claim shows the correspondence with the specific means as described in embodiment mentioned later as one aspect, Comprising: The technical scope of the disclosed invention is limited Not what you want.

One of the disclosed invention, the operating device of rod-like knob (110) to enable input to the switch (122) by being operated to rotate (100) arranged eccentrically to the axis of the knob, rotation a rotation mechanism portion that rotates together with the engineered Ru knob (114) is pushed by the rotation mechanism section you rotate elastically deformed to impart to the elastic force and the operational reaction force to the rotating mechanism portion elastic A member (130) ,
Elastic member, Ri shape der extending in the axial direction of the knob,
The rotation mechanism
A protrusion (114a) protruding in the radial direction of the knob and rotating together with the knob;
An extension (114b) extending in the axial direction from the tip of the protrusion at a position eccentric with respect to the axis of the knob;
Have
The extending portion has a reaction force receiving portion (114p) to which an elastic force is applied from the elastic member, and a pushing portion (114q) for moving the switch,
Pushing portion is characterized that you located on the opposite side of the projecting portion with respect to the reaction force receiving portion of the axial direction.

  According to this, since the elastic member has a shape extending in the axial direction of the knob, even if the elastic member is elongated in the longitudinal direction so as to give a sufficient operation reaction force, the elastic member is operated in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction. The equipment will not be enlarged. Therefore, for example, when the knob is mounted on the display device so that the axis direction of the knob is perpendicular to the display surface of the display device, the operating device can be downsized in the display surface direction.

The cross-sectional perspective view which shows the whole structure of the combination meter for vehicles. The perspective view which shows the whole knob. Sectional drawing which shows the front-end | tip part vicinity of a knob.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of an operating device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The operating device 100 shown in FIG. 1 is applied to, for example, a vehicle combination meter 10 (display device), and the display state on the display unit 13 is changed by a pushing operation or a rotating operation to the knob 110 performed by a user. It is a device to change.

  The vehicle combination meter 10 is attached to an instrument panel in the passenger compartment. As shown in FIG. 1, the meter 10 is formed in a case formed by a bottomed box-like case main body 11 that is on the back side of the user and a transparent cover 12 that is on the near side of the user. The display unit 13 and the printed circuit board 14 are provided, and the knob 110 is formed so as to penetrate the cover unit 12, the display unit 13, and the printed circuit board 14.

  The display unit 13 displays, for example, a speedometer, an engine tachometer, a water temperature gauge, a fuel fuel gauge, and various operating states of the vehicle on a display board formed by the display board part 13a and the display design part 13b. An information display portion or the like is provided and formed. A speedometer, an engine tachometer, a water temperature gauge, and a fuel fuel gauge are, for example, pointer-type meters, and are illuminated at night by light emitting elements such as LEDs (not shown) provided on the printed circuit board 14. Yes. In addition, the information display unit is formed by, for example, a liquid crystal display, and displays a travel distance, a cruising distance, an instantaneous fuel consumption, an average fuel consumption, an outside air temperature, a time, etc. as characters, numbers, etc. as vehicle operating state information. It is possible.

  The printed circuit board 14 is a plate-like member to which the pointers of the various instruments and various control units for controlling the display state in the information display unit are fixed. Various control units and the like are connected to each other to form an electronic circuit. Further, one push switch 121 that is turned on by a push operation of the knob 110 is provided on a surface on the user side of the printed circuit board 14 (hereinafter referred to as a front surface), and the user of the printed circuit board 14 is also provided. A pair of rotation switches 122 that are turned on by a rotation operation of the knob 110 are provided on a surface opposite to the side (hereinafter referred to as a back surface). A notch (insertion hole) 14a is formed between the pair of rotation switches 122 of the printed circuit board 14 so that a rotation mechanism 114 (extension 114b) of the knob 110 described later is inserted. It has become.

  The push switch 121 is a switch that sequentially switches the operation state information in the information display unit by being turned on. For example, each time the push switch 121 is pressed, the operation state information is switched in the following order: travel distance → cruising distance → instant fuel efficiency → average fuel efficiency → outside air temperature → time → travel distance. The push switch 121 is disposed on the front surface of the printed circuit board 14 at a position facing a tip portion 111 of the knob 110 described later.

  The rotation switch 122 is a switch that adjusts the brightness of various instruments in the display unit 13 and the information display unit by being turned on. When one rotation switch 122 of the pair of rotation switches 122 is turned on, the display unit 13 becomes bright, and when the other rotation switch 122 is turned on, the display unit 13 becomes dark. The pair of rotation switches 122 are disposed on the back surface of the printed circuit board 14 so as to face each other so as to sandwich a rotation mechanism portion 114 of the knob 110 described later via a gap. The rotation switch 122 corresponds to the “switch” of the present invention. The formation of the ON state by the rotation operation corresponds to “input to the switch” of the present invention.

  The operating device 100 is formed by providing a knob 110 for each of the switches 121 and 122. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the knob 110 is an elongated rod-shaped member made of resin. One end portion in the longitudinal direction is a tip portion 111, and the other end portion is an operation portion 112. The knob 110 is integrally formed with a flange portion 113 and a rotation mechanism portion 114. The knob 110 is disposed such that the tip 111 faces the push switch 121, the operation unit 112 faces the user side, and penetrates the cover unit 12 and the display unit 13.

  An elastic member (not shown) (for example, a spring portion integrally formed from the tip portion 111) is interposed between the tip portion 111 and the push switch 121. In a non-operating state, the position of the knob 110 is restricted with respect to the direction toward the user while a predetermined sliding gap is secured between the tip portion 111 and the push switch 121. When the user pushes the operation unit 112, the tip end portion 111 comes into contact with the push switch 121 to be turned on, and when the push on the operation portion 112 is released, the knob 110 (tip end portion 111) is controlled. It comes to return to the position.

  The flange portion 113 is a disk-shaped portion that protrudes outward in the radial direction (direction orthogonal to the axis) of the knob 110, and is near the tip portion 111 when the knob 110 is disposed in the case. It is provided at a position corresponding to the display unit 13.

  The rotation mechanism 114 has a protrusion 114a that protrudes in a radial direction from a predetermined position in the circumferential direction of the flange 113, and an extension that extends from the tip of the protrusion 114a toward the tip 111 along the axial direction of the knob 110. Part 114b. Therefore, the extending part 114 b is arranged eccentrically with respect to the axis of the knob 110. The leading end side of the extending part 114 b extends through the notch part 14 a of the printed circuit board 14 so as to be positioned between the two rotary switches 122. The rotation mechanism 114 (projection 114a and extension 114b) is formed integrally with the knob 110.

  The rotation mechanism part 114 is a part that forms an L-shaped arm that branches off from the flange part 113 of the knob 110. Therefore, when the knob 110 is rotated by the user, the extension part 114b Is rotated together with the knob 110 around the axis (see the one-dot chain line in FIGS. 2 and 3). An arrow R <b> 1 in FIG. 2 indicates the rotation direction of the operation unit 112. An arrow R2 in FIG. 2 indicates the rotation direction of the extending part 114b of the rotation mechanism part 114.

  Therefore, when the operation unit 112 is rotated in the clockwise direction, the extending portion 114b rotates upward, and the upper rotation switch 122 is pushed to the on state. Further, when the operation portion 112 is rotated counterclockwise, the extension portion 114b rotates downward, and the lower rotation switch 122 is pushed to the on state.

  The display board part 13a is resin, and the elastic member 130 is extended from the surface of the back side of the display board part 13a. The elastic member 130 is made of resin, and is molded integrally with the display plate portion 13a. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the elastic members 130 are respectively disposed on both sides of the extending portion 114b in the rotation direction.

  The elastic member 130 includes a deforming portion 131 that extends in the axial direction (left and right direction in FIG. 3) along the longitudinal direction of the extending portion 114b, and a protruding portion 132 that protrudes from the tip of the deforming portion 131 toward the extending portion 114b. Have.

  The protruding part 132 contacts the extending part 114b. The deforming portion 131 has a plate shape having a thickness indicated by a symbol t in FIG. 3, and is bent and deformed (elastically deformed) in the rotation direction R2, as illustrated by a one-dot chain line in the drawing. Specifically, the deforming portion 131 is elastically deformed around an axis extending in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. The direction perpendicular to the paper surface is a direction in which the rotation mechanism 114 is eccentric with respect to the axis of the knob 110.

  Therefore, for example, when the operation portion 112 is rotated clockwise and the upper rotation switch 122 is pushed, the protruding portion 114b of the upper elastic member 130 is pushed by the extension portion 114b, as shown by the one-dot chain line. The deformation part 131 is elastically deformed. Therefore, the elastic force generated in the deforming part 131 is applied to the extending part 114b as an operation reaction force. Thereby, the user who rotates the knob 110 can feel a response (operation reaction force), and the rotation operability of the knob 110 can be improved.

  Even when the user is not operating the knob 110, the elastic member 130 is disposed so that the protruding portion 132 contacts the extending portion 114b. Further, the elastic member 130 is arranged so that the deformable portion 131 is elastically deformed in any of the pair of elastic members 130 during the non-operation. That is, when not being operated, the extending portion 114 b of the knob 110 is sandwiched from both sides by the pair of elastic members 130. In other words, when the hand is released from the knob 110 while being rotated, the extending portion 114b returns to the solid line position (return position) in FIG. 3 by the elastic force of the elastic member 130.

  Of the extended portion 114b, a portion that contacts the protruding portion 132 is referred to as a reaction force receiving portion 114p, and a portion that contacts the pushing surface 122a of the rotation switch 122 is referred to as a pushing portion 114q. When the knob 110 is in the return position, the reaction force receiving portion 114p is in contact with the protruding portion 132, while the pushing portion 114q is separated from the pushing surface 122a of the rotary switch 122 by a predetermined distance. It becomes a state.

  Therefore, even when the vibration of the vehicle propagates to the knob 110 during non-operation, the knob 110 is sandwiched between the pair of elastic members 130, so that the knob 110 is prevented from rotating due to the vibration. Therefore, it is possible to suppress a problem that the pressing portion 114q comes into contact with the pressing surface 122a of the rotation switch 122 due to vibration, and it is possible to suppress a possibility that the rotation switch 122 malfunctions.

  Next, the operation of the operating device 100 formed as described above will be described.

  In the operating device 100, when the user pushes the knob 110, the tip end portion 111 comes into contact with the push switch 121, the push switch 121 is turned on, and the operation state information in the information display unit is switched. When the knob 110 is repeatedly pushed in, various operation state information (travel distance, cruising distance, instantaneous fuel consumption, average fuel consumption, outside air temperature, time, etc.) is sequentially switched, and the user can select the desired operation state. You can see information.

  In addition, when the user rotates the knob 110 while the display unit 13 is illuminated by the light emitting element, the rotation mechanism unit 114 (extension unit 114b) is rotated, and a pair of the rotation units 114 according to the rotation direction. One of the rotation switches 122 is turned on, and the brightness of the display unit 13 (speed meter, engine tachometer, water temperature meter, fuel remaining amount meter, information display unit, etc.) is changed. For example, when the extending portion 114b is rotated upward in FIG. 4, the upper rotation switch 122 is turned on and the display portion 13 is brightened. Conversely, the extending portion 114b is rotated downward in FIG. Then, the lower rotation switch 122 is turned on and the display unit 13 becomes dark.

  In short, the present embodiment described above has the characteristics listed below. And the effect demonstrated below is exhibited by each of those characteristics.

<Feature 1>
The deformable portion 131 included in the elastic member 130 has a shape extending in the axial direction of the knob 110. Therefore, even if the deforming portion 131 is elongated in the longitudinal direction so as to apply a sufficient operation reaction force, the size of the knob 110 increases in the axial direction, but the operating device 100 increases in the direction perpendicular to the axial direction. Do not turn. Therefore, the operating device 100 can be reduced in size in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the knob 110.

<Feature 2>
The elastic member 130 is arranged so as to be in contact with the rotation mechanism 114 even when the knob 110 is not operated. According to this, even when the vibration of the vehicle propagates to the knob 110 when the knob 110 is not operated, the knob 110 is in contact with the elastic member 130, so that the knob 110 is prevented from rotating due to the vibration. Is done. Therefore, the malfunction that the elastic member 130 contacts the switch 122 due to vibration can be suppressed, and the malfunction of the switch 122 can be suppressed. Further, it is possible to suppress the generation of abnormal noise due to the elastic member 130 coming into contact with the switch 122 due to vibration.

<Feature 3>
The elastic member 130 is disposed so as to be in contact with the rotating mechanism 114 in an elastically deformed state even when the knob 110 is not operated. According to this, even when the vibration of the vehicle propagates to the knob 110 when the knob 110 is not operated, the vibration of the knob 110 is suppressed by the elastic force. Therefore, the malfunction that the elastic member 130 contacts the switch 122 due to vibration can be suppressed, and the malfunction of the switch 122 can be suppressed.

<Feature 4>
The elastic members 130 are respectively arranged on both sides of the rotation mechanism 114 in the rotation direction. According to this, the rotation mechanism part 114 is clamped from both sides by the pair of elastic members 130. Therefore, in the case where the switches 122 are arranged on both sides of the rotation direction of the rotation mechanism unit 114, the elastic force is applied to the rotation mechanism unit 114 as an operation reaction force when any switch 122 is operated. it can. Moreover, since the elastic member 130 is sandwiched from both sides of the rotation mechanism unit 114, the above-described effect of suppressing a problem that the elastic member 130 contacts the switch 122 due to vibration can be improved.

<Feature 5>
The knob 110 is mounted on the display device 10 so that the axial direction of the knob 110 is perpendicular to the display surface of the display device 10.

  Now, since the knob 110 is arranged perpendicular to the display surface, the fact that the operating device 100 can be miniaturized in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction means that the control device 100 is parallel to the display surface of the display device 10. This means that the operating device 100 can be reduced in size. In a display device such as the meter 10 attached to the instrument panel, the demand for downsizing in the direction parallel to the display surface is more severe than the demand for downsizing in the direction perpendicular to the display surface. Therefore, the operation device 100 capable of realizing downsizing in a direction parallel to the display surface is preferable because the effect is remarkably exhibited when applied to a vehicle display device.

<Feature 6>
The rotation mechanism unit 114 includes a reaction force receiving unit 114p to which an elastic force is applied from the elastic member 130, and a pushing unit 114q that pushes and moves the switch 122. In short, it can be said that the rotation mechanism unit 114 has both functions of the reaction force receiving unit 114p and the pushing unit 114q. Therefore, the structure of the knob 110 can be simplified as compared with the case where the reaction force receiving portion 114p and the pushing portion 114q are configured by separate rotating mechanism portions.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention is not limited to the description of the above embodiment, and may be modified as follows. Moreover, you may make it combine the characteristic structure of each embodiment arbitrarily, respectively.

  In the example shown in FIG. 3, the protruding portion 132 is formed on the elastic member 130, but the protruding portion 132 is abolished and protrudes toward the deforming portion 131 on the extending portion 114 b of the rotating mechanism portion 114. Protruding portions that come into contact with each other may be formed.

  In addition, the operation device 100 is used for switching the operation state information of the information display unit of the vehicle combination meter 10 or adjusting the brightness of the display unit 13, but is not limited thereto. As an operating device for performing two different types of inputs by pressing and rotating the knob 110, it can be widely applied to various devices.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Display apparatus, 100 ... Operation apparatus, 110 ... Knob, 114 ... Turning mechanism part, 114p ... Reaction force receiving part, 114q ... Pushing part, 130 ... Elastic member, 122 ... Rotary switch (switch).

Claims (5)

In the operating device (100) that enables input to the switch (122) by rotating the rod-shaped knob (110),
A rotating mechanism (114) that is eccentrically arranged with respect to the axis of the knob and rotates together with the knob operated to rotate;
An elastic member (130) that is pressed by the rotating mechanism part to be elastically deformed and applies an elastic force as an operation reaction force to the rotating mechanism part;
With
The elastic member, Ri shape der extending in the axial direction of said knob,
The rotation mechanism unit is
A protrusion (114a) protruding in the radial direction of the knob and rotating together with the knob;
An extension (114b) extending in the axial direction from the tip of the protrusion at a position eccentric with respect to the axis of the knob;
Have
The extending portion includes a reaction force receiving portion (114p) to which the elastic force is applied from the elastic member, and a pushing portion (114q) for moving the switch.
The pressing portion, the operating device which is characterized that you located on the opposite side of the projecting portion relative to the reactive force receiving portion of the axial direction.   The operating device according to claim 1, wherein the elastic member is disposed so as to be in contact with the turning mechanism portion even when the knob is not operated.   The operating device according to claim 2, wherein the elastic member is disposed so as to come into contact with the rotating mechanism portion in an elastically deformed state when the knob is not operated.   The operating device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the elastic members are disposed on both sides of the rotation mechanism unit in the rotation direction. The operating device according to claim 1, wherein the operating device is mounted on the display device such that an axial direction of the knob is perpendicular to a display surface of the display device (10). .

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