JP7047787B2 - Switch and operating device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a switch that opens and closes a circuit by blocking / transmitting light from an optical contact, and an operating device using such a switch.

As an input device to an electronic device such as a computer, an operation device such as a mouse equipped with a switch such as a micro switch has become widespread. In particular, in recent years, various characteristics are required for a mouse used for a computer game called e-sports. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a micro switch that can be applied as a mouse switch. The micro switch disclosed in Patent Document 1 has an LED and a PT mounted on a substrate, and is used as a switch by moving the light transmitting column up and down to block the light emitted from the LED and received by the PT. Function. Switches using optical contacts such as LEDs and PTs are attracting attention.

Chinese Patent Application Publication No. 106849929

However, since the switch using the optical contact is manufactured by mounting the LED and the PT formed as the axial component on the substrate, there is a problem that the assembly process may be complicated.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and the main object of the present invention is to provide a switch capable of preventing complication of the manufacturing process.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an operating device using such a switch.

In order to solve the above problems, the switch described in the present application receives an optical contact, a movable member whose second end side swings with the first end side as a swing fulcrum, and a movable member which is pressed from the outside. A pressing member for pressing and an optical contact terminal electrically connected to the optical contact are provided, and the light of the optical contact is shielded / transmitted by the swing of the movable member due to the pressing by the pressing member. A switch that opens and closes a circuit, wherein the optical contact is formed as a surface mount chip and is surface mount on the optical contact terminal.

Further, in the switch, the optical contact terminal is characterized in that a recess for mounting the optical contact on the surface is formed.

Further, in the switch, the optical contact is mounted so as to pass between a plurality of optical contact terminals.

Further, in the switch, the optical contact terminal is a movable member that is not pressed when the pressing member that moves from the first position to the second position by being pressed from the outside is located at the first position. It is characterized by having a first contact portion to which the second end side of the optics hits.

Further, in the switch, the optical contact terminal is a movable member that is pressed when the pressing member that moves from the first position to the second position by being pressed from the outside is located at the second position. It is characterized by having a second contact portion with which the second end side hits.

Further, the operation device described in the present application includes a pressing operation unit that accepts a pressing operation from the outside and the switch that transmits the pressing operation received by the pressing operation unit as an external pressure, and the switch includes the switch. It is characterized by outputting a signal based on the shielding / transmission of light of an optical contact.

The switches and operating devices described in the present application prevent the manufacturing process from becoming complicated.

In the switch and the operating device according to the present invention, an optical contact formed as a surface mount chip is surface-mounted on the optical contact terminal. This has excellent effects such as preventing the manufacturing process from becoming complicated.

It is a schematic perspective view which shows an example of the appearance of the operation apparatus described in this application. It is a schematic perspective view which shows an example of the appearance of the switch described in this application. It is a schematic exploded perspective view which shows an example of the switch described in this application. It is a schematic cross-sectional view which shows an example of the cross section of the switch described in this application. It is a schematic perspective view which shows an example of the optical contact and the optical contact terminal provided in the switch described in this application. It is a schematic enlarged view which shows a part of an example of an optical contact and an optical contact terminal provided in the switch described in this application in an enlarged manner. It is a schematic enlarged view which shows a part of an example of an optical contact and an optical contact terminal provided in the switch described in this application in an enlarged manner. It is a schematic enlarged view which shows the part of the example of the internal structure of the switch described in this application enlarged. It is a schematic enlarged view which shows the part of the example of the internal structure of the switch described in this application enlarged.

<Application example>
The operating device described in the present application is used, for example, as an operating device such as a mouse used for operating a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a personal computer). Further, the switch described in the present application is used as a micro switch in various devices such as electronic devices including an operating device. Hereinafter, the operating device 1 and the switch 2 exemplified in the drawings will be described with reference to the drawings.

<Operating device 1>
First, the operating device 1 will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the appearance of the operating device 1 described in the present application. FIG. 1 shows an example in which the operating device 1 described in the present application is applied to a mouse used for operating an electronic device such as a personal computer. The operation device 1 includes a pressing operation unit 10 such as a mouse button that accepts an operation of pressing with an operator's finger, and a rotation operation unit 11 such as a mouse wheel that accepts an operation of rotating with an operator's finger. .. The rotation operation unit 11 is configured to accept not only the rotation operation but also the pressing operation, and also functions as the pressing operation unit 10. Further, a signal line 12 for outputting an electric signal to an external device such as a personal computer is connected to the operating device 1. The operating device 1 can output an electric signal by various communication methods such as wireless communication, not limited to wired communication using the signal line 12.

A switch 2 to be described later is housed in each of the pressing operation unit 10 and the rotation operation unit 11 inside the operation device 1. When a pressing operation is performed on the pressing operation unit 10, the pressing operation unit 10 The internal part presses the corresponding switch 2. The switch 2 outputs a signal based on the pressing state from the signal line 12 to an external electronic device such as a personal computer.

That is, the operation device 1 described in the present application includes a push operation unit 10 that receives a push operation from the outside, a rotation operation unit 11 that receives an operation such as a rotation operation, and further includes a switch 2 inside. Then, the operation device 1 transmits the pressing operation received by the pressing operation unit 10 and / or the rotation operation unit 11 to the switch 2 as an external pressure, and outputs a signal based on the operation of the switch 2 to an external electronic device. do.

<Switch 2>
Next, the switch 2 described in the present application will be described. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the appearance of the switch 2 described in the present application. In the specification of the present application, the direction of the switch 2 is expressed with the left front side as the front, the right back side as the rear, the upper side as the upper side, and the lower side as the lower side in FIG. 2, but this is a direction for convenience of explanation. It does not limit the mounting direction of the switch 2. As described above, the switch 2 is housed as a micro switch inside an electronic device such as an operating device 1, and receives a pressing operation received by a portion such as a pressing operation unit 10 of the operating device 1 as an external pressing.

The switch 2 includes a housing 20 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The housing 20 is formed of a lower base 20a and an upper cover 20b. On the upper surface of the housing 20, a rectangular insertion hole 200 through which the pressing member 21 is inserted is provided at a position to the left from the center in front view. The pressing member 21 inserted through the insertion hole 200 is a member that receives pressure from the outside of the housing 20 and moves up and down in a range from the upper first position to the lower second position, and is the housing 20. The upper end of the pressing member 21 protrudes from the upper surface of the pressing member 21.

Further, from the lower surface of the housing 20, one connection terminal 22 for fixing the switch 2 to an external member such as a substrate, and an optical contact 23 (see FIG. 3 and the like) described later housed in the housing 20. The four stretched optical contact terminals 24 are projected. The connection terminal 22 projects downward from the left end side of the lower surface of the switch 2. As the optical contact terminal 24, the first optical contact terminal 240, the second optical contact terminal 241, the third optical contact terminal 242, and the fourth optical contact terminal 243 are arranged in this order from the vicinity of the center of the lower surface of the switch 2 to the right end side. I'm out.

In the switch 2 formed in this way, the pressing operation from the outside received by the operating device 1 is transmitted to the pressing member 21 as the pressing from the outside of the housing 20. The pressing member 21 moves from the upper first position to the lower second position in response to external pressure, and when the external pressure is released, the pressing member 21 moves from the lower second position to the upper first position. Moving.

Next, the internal structure of the switch 2 will be described. FIG. 3 is a schematic exploded perspective view showing an example of the switch 2 described in the present application. FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an example of a cross section of the switch 2 described in the present application. FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the optical contact 23 and the optical contact terminal 24 included in the switch 2 described in the present application. FIG. 4 shows a cross section cut along a vertical plane including the AB line segment shown in FIG. 2 from a front viewpoint. In FIG. 4, a part of the internal structure of the switch 2 surrounded by the broken line circle is shown in an enlarged manner. FIG. 5 shows the optical contact 23 and the optical contact terminal 24 from a front right diagonally upper viewpoint.

In the housing 20 of the switch 2, an area as a contact chamber for accommodating a contact mechanism for opening and closing an electric circuit is secured. An insertion hole 200 penetrating from the outside of the housing 20 is provided on the upper surface of the contact chamber, and a pressing member 21 is inserted through the insertion hole 200.

The contact mechanism housed in the contact chamber will be described. In the contact chamber of the housing 20, in addition to the above-mentioned optical contact 23, a first locking piece 25, a second locking piece 26, and a movable member 27 are housed as a contact mechanism. The optical contacts 23 are arranged side by side as a light emitting chip 230 and a light receiving chip 231 on the lower right side of the contact chamber. The first locking piece 25 is arranged on the lower left side of the contact chamber, and the second locking piece 26 is arranged on the lower center side of the contact chamber. The first locking piece 25, the second locking piece 26, and the connection terminal 22 below the housing 20 are integrally molded. The movable member 27 is arranged so as to extend left and right in the contact chamber, and is locked by the first locking piece 25 and the second locking piece 26.

The optical contact 23 includes a light emitting chip 230 that emits light and a light receiving chip 231 that receives light emitted from the light emitting chip 230. The light emitting chip 230 of the optical contact 23 is formed as a surface mount chip using a light emitting element 230a such as an LED (Light Emitting Diode). The light receiving chip 231 of the optical contact 23 is formed as a surface mount chip using a light receiving element 231a such as a PD (Photodiode) or a PT (Photo Transistor). The light emitting chip 230 has a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a part of the side surface thereof protrudes in a flat semicircular shape, and the light emitting element 230a is incorporated in the protruding portion. The light receiving chip 231 has a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape, and a part of the side surface thereof protrudes in a flat semicircular shape, and the light receiving element 231a is incorporated in the protruding portion. The light emitting element 230a of the light emitting chip 230 and the light receiving element 231a of the light receiving chip 231 are arranged so as to face each other so that the light emitting chip 231 receives the light emitted from the light emitting chip 230.

The light emitting chip 230 of the optical contact 23 passes between the first optical contact terminal 240 and the second optical contact terminal 241 arranged on the left side of the optical contact terminals 24, so that the first optical contact terminal 240 and the first optical contact terminal 240 are passed. 2 Surface-mounted on the optical contact terminal 241. The light receiving chip 231 of the optical contact 23 passes between the third optical contact terminal 242 and the fourth optical contact terminal 243 arranged on the right side of the optical contact terminals 24, so that the third optical contact terminal 242 and the third optical contact terminal 242 pass between the third optical contact terminal 242 and the fourth optical contact terminal 243. 4 Surface-mounted on the optical contact terminal 243.

6A and 6B are schematic enlarged views showing a part of an example of the optical contact 23 and the optical contact terminal 24 included in the switch 2 described in the present application in an enlarged manner. FIG. 6A is a schematic perspective view showing an enlarged mounting location of the light receiving chip 231 of the optical contact 23 mounted on the third optical contact terminal 242 and the fourth optical contact terminal 243, and FIG. 6B is a schematic perspective view showing from the left. It is a schematic side view shown from the viewpoint of. In addition, FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are shown so that the upward direction is on the left side when facing the drawing for convenience of drawing. The third optical contact terminal 242 and the fourth optical contact terminal 243 are formed with a recess 24a for mounting the light receiving chip 231, and the light receiving chip 231 has the third optical contact terminal 242 and the fourth optical contact terminal. It is surface-mounted in a state of being placed in the recess 24a of the 243. The same applies to the first optical contact terminal 240 and the second optical contact terminal 241 on which the light emitting chip 230 is surface-mounted, and a recess 24a for surface mounting with the light emitting chip 230 mounted is formed. By forming a recess 24a in the optical contact terminal 24 and mounting the optical contact 23 in the recess 24a for surface mounting, positioning at the time of surface mounting is facilitated and the thickness of the mounting portion in the front-rear direction is reduced. Is possible.

Returning to FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the optical contact terminal 24 will be further described. The upper part of the fourth optical contact terminal 243 extends upward and bends in an arm shape toward the left, and protrudes to the vicinity of the upper part of the first optical contact terminal 240 and the second optical contact terminal 241. It is bent forward to form a first contact portion 243a to which the movable contact portion 270 on the right end side of the movable member 27 hits. The upper portion of the first optical contact terminal 240 protrudes upward, and the protruding portion is bent forward to form a second contact portion 240a to which the movable contact portion 270 of the movable member 27 hits. The movable member 27 is arranged so that the movable contact portion 270 on the right end side is inserted between the first contact portion 243a and the second contact portion 240a. Then, the movable member 27 abuts on the first contact portion 243a from below when not pressed by the pressing member 21, and hits the second abutment portion 240a from above when pressed. Contact.

By energizing the light emitting chip 230 through the first optical contact terminal 240 and the second optical contact terminal 241, the light emitting element 230a of the light emitting chip 230 emits light. Since the light receiving element 231a of the light receiving chip 231 changes the energization state when light is detected, an on signal based on the change in the energization state due to the light reception is output from the third optical contact terminal 242 and the fourth optical contact terminal 243.

The movable member 27 is a metal member such as SUS that has a plate shape extending in the left-right direction in the contact chamber. The left end side of the movable member 27 is a fixed end that is locked to the first locking piece 25 and functions as a swing fulcrum 271. The right end side of the movable member 27 is a movable contact portion 270 that moves as a free end between the first contact portion 243a and the second contact portion 240a. Further, the right end side of the movable member 27 is a light-shielding piece 272 which has a substantially rectangular shape and is bent downward from the movable contact portion 270. The light-shielding piece 272 is formed so that the normal direction is the left-right direction, and a substantially rectangular transmission window 273 through which the light of the optical contact 23 is transmitted is opened. The light-shielding piece 272 is located on the right side of the light-emitting chip 230 of the optical contact 23 and on the left side of the light-receiving chip 231 of the optical contact 23, in a state of being separated from the light-emitting chip 230 and the light-receiving chip 231. It is located so as to enter between the chips 231. The movable member 27 is formed with an urging portion 274 that functions as a return spring that is punched out near the center and bent into an arc shape, and the tip of the urging portion 274 is formed near the center of the contact chamber. It is locked to the second locking piece 26. The urging portion 274 generates a reaction force that opposes the pressing of the pressing member 21.

In the contact mechanism configured in this way, the pressing member 21 receives a pressure from the outside and moves downward to press the movable member 27. When the movable member 27 is pressed, the movable contact portion 270 on the right end side, which is the free end of the movable member 27, is lowered, and the movable contact portion 270 hits the second contact portion 240a of the first optical contact terminal 240. A metallic sound is generated by the movable contact portion 270 of the metal movable member 27 colliding with the second contact portion 240a of the metal first optical contact terminal 240. The user recognizes the metallic sound generated when the movable member 27 hits the optical contact terminal 24 as a click sound. Further, when the right end side of the movable member 27 is lowered, the light-shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27 is lowered, the light of the optical contact 23 is transmitted through the transmission window 273 provided in the light-shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27, and the circuit is closed. In the state, the ON signal is output to an external electronic device.

When the pressing of the pressing member 21 is released, the movable member 27 is urged upward by the reaction force of the urging portion 274. When the movable member 27 is urged upward, the pressing member 21 moves upward. Further, when the movable member 27 is urged upward by the urging portion 274, the movable contact portion 270 located on the right end side of the movable member 27 rises, and the first contact portion 243a of the fourth optical contact terminal 243 rises. It hits. Further, when the right end side of the movable member 27 is raised, the light-shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27 is raised, the light of the optical contact 23 is blocked by the light-shielding piece 272, and the circuit is opened.

The opening and closing of the circuit by the optical contact 23, the optical contact terminal 24, and the movable member 27 will be further described. 7A and 7B are schematic enlarged views showing a part of an example of the internal structure of the switch 2 described in the present application in an enlarged manner. 7A and 7B are schematic perspective views showing the vicinity of the light-shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27 in an enlarged manner. FIG. 7A shows the pressing member 21 located at the first position, and the pressing by the pressing member 21 is released. The circuit is open and off, and FIG. 7B shows an on state in which the pressing member 21 is located at the second position and the pressing member 21 presses and the circuit is closed.

When the pressing of the pressing member 21 is released, as shown in FIG. 7A, the light-shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27 is raised, and the transmission window 273 of the light-shielding piece 272 is the light-receiving chip from the light-emitting element 230a of the light-emitting chip 230. It is out of the optical path leading to the light receiving element 231a of 231. Therefore, since the light emitted from the light emitting element 230a of the light emitting chip 230 is blocked by the light shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27, it does not reach the light receiving element 231a of the light receiving chip 231 and the circuit is in an open off state. Become.

When the pressing member 21 is pressed, as shown in FIG. 7B, the light-shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27 is lowered, and the optical path leading from the light-emitting element 230a of the light-emitting chip 230 to the light-receiving element 231a of the light-receiving chip 231 becomes the light-shielding piece 272. It will pass through the opened transparent window 273. Therefore, the light emitted from the light emitting element 230a of the light emitting chip 230 passes through the transmission window 273 provided in the light shielding piece 272 of the movable member 27, reaches the light receiving element 231a of the light receiving chip 231, and the circuit is closed. It will be turned on.

In manufacturing the switch 2 described in the present application having the above configuration, for example, one conductive metal plate is press-molded by punching or the like to form one connection terminal 22 and four optical contacts. Punch into the prototype of the terminal 24. Further, the connection terminal 22 and the optical contact terminal 24 are molded by press molding such as flange processing on the prototypes of the punched connection terminal 22 and the optical contact terminal 24. Then, the switch 2 is formed by surface-mounting the optical contact 23 on the optical contact terminal 24, molding the pressing member 21 and the movable member 27, and accommodating the optical contact 23 in the housing 20. Then, the formed switch 2 is incorporated to complete the operating device 1.

As described above, in the switch 2 described in the present application, the optical contact 23 formed as a surface mount chip is surface-mounted on the optical contact terminal 24, so that it is possible to prevent the manufacturing process from becoming complicated. It has excellent effects such as the possibility of cost reduction due to this. Further, the switch 2 described in the present application can be easily miniaturized by mounting it as a surface mount chip. Further, when the optical contact 23 is surface-mounted on the optical contact terminal 24, the manufacturer of the switch 2 can control the process from the formation of the optical contact 23 to the surface mounting and further the formation of the switch 2 by molding. Therefore, it is possible for the manufacturer of the switch 2 to integrally control the quality of the optical contact 23 serving as a sensor and the operation mechanism, suppress the variation in the operation characteristics, and stabilize the quality. It should be noted that the stabilization of quality by suppressing the variation in operating characteristics can be expected to increase the output speed. Such a stable quality switch 2 is most suitable for an operating device 1 such as a mouse for e-sports.

Further, since the switch 2 described in the present application has a recess 24a formed in the optical contact terminal 24 for mounting the optical contact 23, positioning at the time of surface mounting is easy, and the size at the time of mounting can be adjusted. It is possible to reduce the size.

Further, in the switch 2 described in the present application, the movable member 27 made of metal hits the optical contact terminal 24 made of metal to generate a metallic sound in accordance with the pressing operation of the pressing operation unit 10 of the mouse. As a result, the user can recognize the generated metallic sound as a comfortable click sound.

Further, in the switch 2 described in the present application, the movable contact portion 270 located on the right end side of the movable member 27 operates between the first contact portion 243a and the second contact portion 240a of the optical contact terminal 24. This limits the operating range of the movable contact portion 270 of the movable member 27, suppresses the warp of the movable member 27, and stabilizes the operation.

The present invention is not limited to the respective embodiments described above, and can be developed into various other embodiments. Therefore, the embodiments described above are merely exemplary in all respects and should not be construed in a limited way. The technical scope of the present invention is described by the claims and is not bound by the text of the specification. Furthermore, all modifications and modifications that fall within the equivalent scope of the claims are within the scope of the present invention.

For example, in the above embodiment, as the optical contact 23, a transmission type optical contact 23 that receives light emitted from one circuit in the other circuit is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention is not limited to this. It can be developed into various forms such as using a mold optical contact 23.

1 Operating device 2 Switch 20 Housing 21 Pressing member 22 Connection terminal 23 Optical contact 230 Light emitting chip 230a Light emitting element 231 Light receiving chip 231a Light receiving element 24 Optical contact terminal 24a Recess 240 1st optical contact terminal 240a 2nd contact part 241 2nd Optical contact terminal 242 3rd optical contact terminal 243 4th optical contact terminal 243a 1st contact part 27 Movable member 270 Movable contact part 271 Swing fulcrum 272 Light-shielding piece 273 Transmission window

Claims (4)

The optical contact, the movable member whose second end side swings with the first end side as the swing fulcrum, and the pressing member which receives pressure from the outside and presses the movable member are electrically connected to the optical contact. A switch that opens and closes a circuit by shielding / transmitting the light of the optical contact by swinging the movable member due to the pressing by the pressing member.
The optical contact terminal is
A recess is formed to mount the optical contact on the surface.
The optical contact is
It is formed as a surface mount chip with built-in optical elements .
A portion other than the optical element is placed in the recess formed in the optical contact terminal, and is placed so as to pass between the plurality of optical contact terminals.
The optical element is located between the optical contacts and
A switch characterized by being surface-mounted on the optical contact terminal. The switch according to claim 1 .
The optical contact terminal is
When the pressing member that moves from the first position to the second position in response to external pressure is located at the first position, the first contact portion that the second end side of the movable member that is not pressed hits. A switch characterized by having. The switch according to claim 1 or 2 .
The optical contact terminal is
When the pressing member that moves from the first position to the second position in response to external pressure is located at the second position, it has a second contact portion that the second end side of the pressed movable member hits. A switch that features that. A pressing operation unit that accepts pressing operations from the outside,
The switch according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the pressing operation received by the pressing operation unit is transmitted as an external pressing.
An operating device characterized by outputting a signal based on the shielding / transmission of light of the optical contact included in the switch.

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