JP7277344B2 - Tactile presentation device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a tactile presentation device.

In recent years, mobile information terminals such as smartphones, smart watches, and tablet PCs, and electronic devices such as in-vehicle navigation systems, have incorporated tactile sensation presentation devices that present tactile sensations through vibrations in response to operator operations. There are many cases.

For example, as shown in Patent Document 1 below, when a fingertip touches a contact panel arranged on the front side of a touch panel, the shape memory alloy wire is used to momentarily move the contact panel, thereby There is known a tactile sensation presentation device that simulates a dynamic operation sensation (a so-called click sensation).
In this tactile sense presentation device, the contact panel is instantaneously moved in a predetermined displacement direction by utilizing the expansion and contraction of the shape memory alloy wire that accompanies heating. As a result, a pseudo tactile sensation, such as a click sensation, can be applied to the fingertip that touches the touch panel, and it is possible to feel the tactile sensation of pressing a mechanical switch.

WO2012/023606

In this type of tactile sensation presentation device, it is important to reproduce the texture of the click sensation, ie, the tactile sensation of pressing a mechanical switch, in a simulated manner. In this respect, the use of a shape memory alloy wire has the advantage of being excellent in starting and stopping characteristics and of facilitating a good pseudo tactile sensation.
However, when a movable body such as a contact panel is moved instantaneously by utilizing the expansion and contraction of shape memory alloy wires, it is practically difficult to immediately stop the movable body. Therefore, residual vibration tends to occur before the movable body stops. As a result, although the conventional tactile sensation presentation device uses shape memory alloy wires, the quality of the pseudo tactile sensation tends to deteriorate due to the influence of residual vibration, and there is room for improvement.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a tactile sensation presentation device that is less likely to cause residual vibration and that can provide a high-quality pseudo tactile sensation.

(1) A tactile sensation presentation device according to the present invention includes a casing having an operation panel operated with a fingertip, a movable body that is movable along a movable direction, and a movable body that is disposed in the casing and moves the movable body as described above. an actuator that instantaneously displaces the movable body in a moving direction and applies an inertial force to the casing based on the displacement of the movable body; a vibration damping body for damping the vibration, wherein the vibration damping body comprises a weight, and an elastic support that is integrally combined with the weight and is elastically deformable and elastically supports the weight. and vibrating in a direction opposite to the movable direction with respect to the movable body due to the displacement of the movable body.

According to the tactile sensation presentation device of the present invention, the actuator can be used to instantaneously displace the movable body, and the movable body can be moved in the movable direction at a predetermined acceleration, for example, within the casing. . As a result, inertial force (thrust force) of the movable body can be applied to the entire casing based on rapid displacement of the movable body. Therefore, the fingertip touching the operation panel can be given a pseudo mechanical operation feeling, and a pseudo tactile sensation as if giving a click feeling can be given to the fingertip.

In particular, after the rapid displacement of the movable body ends, the elastic support body that elastically supports the weight body is displaced along the movable direction in the direction opposite to the displacement direction of the movable body due to the displacement (residual vibration) of the movable body. vibrate. Therefore, when the operation of the actuator is stopped, the displacement of the movable body can be canceled using the vibration of the vibration damping body, and the energy associated with the displacement can be quickly absorbed. Therefore, the vibration damping body can be used to quickly attenuate the residual vibration caused by the rapid displacement of the movable body, and the movable body can be immediately stopped. As a result, it is possible to clearly distinguish between the movements of the movable body at the start of displacement, at the time of displacement, and at the time of stop of displacement, and it is possible to provide a high-quality pseudo tactile sensation.

(2) The actuator and the vibration damper may be arranged in a common virtual plane along the movable direction.

In this case, since the actuator and the vibration damping body are arranged in a common virtual plane, the weight body is easily vibrated as the actuator displaces the movable body. Therefore, residual vibration can be efficiently damped. Furthermore, since the actuator and the vibration damper are arranged in a common virtual plane, they can be compactly arranged in a direction orthogonal to the virtual plane, and for example, it is possible to reduce the thickness of the entire tactile sensation presentation device. is.

(3) The vibration damping body may be arranged in the virtual plane at a position overlapping the direction of the displacement vector when the actuator displaces the movable body.

In this case, as the actuator displaces the movable body, the weight body can be vibrated more smoothly, and the residual vibration can be damped more efficiently.

(4) The vibration damping body may be thinner than the actuator in a direction orthogonal to the virtual plane.

In this case, the vibration damping body can be arranged more compactly in the direction orthogonal to the virtual plane, so that it is possible to effectively reduce the thickness of the entire tactile sensation presentation device, for example.

(5) The elastic support body is formed so that the elastic modulus in the movable direction is lower than the elastic modulus in two directions orthogonal to the movable direction, and the difference in elastic modulus causes the weight to move. It may be elastically supported in the direction.

In this case, the elastic support is likely to be elastically deformed in the movable direction and difficult to be elastically deformed in two directions perpendicular to the movable direction. Therefore, the weight body can be actively vibrated along the movable direction due to the displacement of the movable body, and the residual vibration can be effectively damped. Furthermore, since the elastic support is less likely to be elastically deformed in two directions orthogonal to the movable direction, it is possible to enhance resistance to disturbances and the like.

(6) The vibration damping body may be combined with the movable body.

In this case, since the vibration damping body is combined with the movable body that is displaced by the actuator, the vibration damping body can be vibrated quickly in response to the displacement of the movable body. Therefore, residual vibration can be effectively damped.

(7) The vibration damping body may be combined with the actuator.

In this case, for example, the vibration damping body and the actuator can be combined into a unit, so that they can be easily arranged in the casing and the maintainability and the like can be improved.

(8) The elastic support may be made of any one of rubber material, synthetic resin material, and thermoplastic elastomer.

In this case, it is possible to make an elastic support having the desired elastic modulus by utilizing the properties of each material. Therefore, it is possible to design the elastic support so as to have an optimum elastic modulus according to the shape, size, etc. of the movable body, which leads to appropriate damping of the residual vibration.

(9) The elastic support may contain reinforcing fibers.

In this case, it is possible to effectively attenuate the residual vibration at the interface between the base material and the reinforcing fiber made of any one of rubber material, synthetic resin material, and thermoplastic elastomer. Residual vibration can be damped more effectively.

(10) The reinforcing fibers may be oriented in a direction different from the movable direction.

In this case, since the elastic modulus is low in the movable direction, the elastic support can be easily elastically deformed in the movable direction, and the elastic support has a high elastic modulus along the orientation direction of the reinforcing fibers. , the elastic support can be made difficult to elastically deform in two directions orthogonal to the movable direction. Therefore, resistance to disturbance and the like can be enhanced.

(11) The weight may be made of the same material as the elastic support and integrally formed with the elastic support.

In this case, since the weight and the elastic support can be integrally molded from the same material, the manufacturing cost can be reduced, and the weight can also be elastically deformed, thereby improving vibration damping. can play a role. Therefore, it is possible to provide a vibration damping body with improved damping performance for residual vibration.

(12) The weight may be formed separately from a material different from that of the elastic support and combined with the elastic support.

In this case, the weight can be made of, for example, a metal having a large specific gravity, so that a predetermined mass can be maintained while reducing the volume of the weight. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size and thickness of the vibration damping body itself, which leads to further reduction in size and thickness of the entire tactile sensation presentation device. Moreover, even if the weight is made of a material different from that of the elastic support, the weight can be firmly combined with the elastic support by, for example, insert molding. can be operated by

(13) A natural frequency of the vibration damping body may be set based on a natural frequency of a movable system including the movable body and the actuator.

In this case, since the natural frequency of the vibration damping body is based on the natural frequency of the movable system, when the operation of the actuator is stopped, the vibration of the vibration damping body is used to obtain the energy associated with the displacement of the movable body. can be properly absorbed. Therefore, the vibration damping body can be used to appropriately attenuate the residual vibration caused by the displacement of the movable body.

(14) The lowest natural frequency of the vibration damping body may be set to be equal to or higher than the lowest natural frequency of the movable system.

In this case, the effects described above can be achieved more effectively.

(15) The actuator includes a stator, a mover attached to the movable body and disposed so as to be relatively movable in the movable direction with respect to the stator, and between the stator and the mover. and a shape memory alloy wire whose length changes according to temperature, and the shape memory alloy wire changes the distance between the mover and the stator by expansion and contraction caused by electric heating. good.

In this case, by energizing the shape memory alloy wire, the shape memory alloy wire can be contracted, for example, instantaneously, and the mover can be separated from the stator. Thereby, it is possible to instantaneously move the movable body attached to the movable element with respect to the casing along the movable direction. Therefore, the inertial force (thrust force) of the movable body can be applied to the entire casing, and a pseudo tactile sensation such as a click sensation can be applied to the fingertip touching the operation panel.
Furthermore, the heat generated by the electrical heating is dissipated from the shape memory alloy wire, so that the shape memory alloy wire can be extended, for example, momentarily, and the mover can be brought closer to the stator side. As a result, the movable body attached to the movable element can be instantaneously moved in the opposite direction along the movable direction with respect to the casing. A tactile sensation as if it were given can be made to act.

Therefore, it is possible to vibrate the movable body in the movable direction by utilizing the expansion and contraction of the shape memory alloy wire. In particular, it is possible to generate an impulse-like vibration, and for example, it is possible to apply a tactile sensation similar to that of a mechanical switch or a tactile sensation different from that of a vibration motor or the like. Furthermore, since shape memory alloys generally have excellent reproducibility of expansion and contraction and responsiveness, for example, a pseudo click feeling is given when the fingertip touches the operation panel. It is possible to stably act on the tactile sensation.

(16) The actuator may include a biasing member that biases the mover toward the stator along the movable direction.

In this case, the urging force of the urging member is used to urge the mover to approach the stator. After separating from the stator, the mover can be reliably brought closer to the stator side as the shape memory alloy wire expands and contracts.

(17) A display panel that displays information through the operation panel, and a control unit that controls display of the display panel according to operation of the operation panel may be provided.

In this case, when operating the operation panel with a fingertip while viewing information displayed on the display panel, the user can operate the operation panel while feeling a pseudo tactile sensation such as a click sensation. Therefore, it can be suitably used, for example, as a mobile information terminal such as a smart phone or a smart watch.

According to the tactile sensation presentation device of the present invention, residual vibration is unlikely to occur, and a high-quality pseudo tactile sensation can be applied.

1 is an external perspective view showing a first embodiment of a portable information terminal (tactile sensation presentation device) according to the present invention; 2 is an exploded perspective view of the portable information terminal shown in FIG. 1; FIG. FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the mobile information terminal taken along line AA shown in FIG. 1; 4 is an enlarged perspective view of the actuator shown in FIG. 3; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the portable information terminal taken along line BB shown in FIG. 3; FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the operation of the actuator shown in FIG. 4; 4 is a plan view of the vibration damping portion shown in FIG. 3; FIG. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the vibration damping portion taken along line CC shown in FIG. 7; It is a figure in the state in which the contact panel moved from the state shown in FIG. 5 so that a mover may separate from a stator. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the mobile information terminal (tactile sensation presentation device) according to the present invention, and is an exploded perspective view of the mobile information terminal. 11 is a plan view of the portable information terminal in a state in which the control board shown in FIG. 10 is accommodated in the casing; FIG. FIG. 12 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the portable information terminal taken along line DD shown in FIG. 11; FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a state in which the control board has moved from the state shown in FIG. 11 so that the mover is separated from the stator; FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a modification of the vibration damping section shown in FIG. 10; FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the mobile information terminal (tactile sensation presentation device) according to the present invention, and is an exploded perspective view of the mobile information terminal. FIG. 16 is a longitudinal sectional view of the mobile information terminal shown in FIG. 15; FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an actuator with a vibration damping section attached; 18 is a top view of the actuator and the vibration damping section shown in FIG. 17; FIG. FIG. 19 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the actuator and the vibration damping section taken along line EE shown in FIG. 18; FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a state in which the mover has moved away from the stator from the state shown in FIG. 18; 18 is a perspective view showing a modification of the actuator and the vibration damping section shown in FIG. 17; FIG. 22 is a top view of the actuator and vibration damping section shown in FIG. 21; FIG. 1 is an external view when a tactile sense presentation device according to the present invention is applied to a smartwatch; FIG.

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment of a tactile presentation device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a mobile information terminal such as a smart phone will be described as an example of a tactile sensation presentation device.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the portable information terminal 1 of the present embodiment includes a touch panel (operation panel according to the present invention) 2 that is operated with a fingertip, and a touch panel that covers the touch panel 2 and is movable ( a casing 4 having a movable body 3 according to the present invention; an actuator 5 arranged in the casing 4 for momentarily displacing the contact panel 3; and a vibration damping body 6 for damping residual vibration of the contact panel 3 .

In the present embodiment, the two directions perpendicular to the thickness direction L1 of the casing 4 in a plan view of the casing 4 are referred to as a first direction L2 and a second direction L3.
The casing 4 is formed in a rectangular shape in a plan view with the length along the first direction L2 being longer than the length along the second direction L3, and is formed in the shape of a thin bottomed cylinder. The opening 4a of the casing 4 is closed by the contact panel 3 described above.
In the thickness direction L1, the direction from the bottom wall portion 10 of the casing 4 toward the contact panel 3 is called upward, and the opposite direction is called downward.

The casing 4 is formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape having a bottom wall portion 10 and four peripheral wall portions 11 surrounding the bottom wall portion 10 and protruding upward from the bottom wall portion 10, and is open upward. ing. Of the four peripheral wall portions 11 , a pair of peripheral wall portions 11 facing each other in the first direction L<b>2 are called a front wall portion 12 and a rear wall portion 13 , and a pair of peripheral wall portions 11 facing each other in the second direction L<b>3 are called a side wall portion 14 .
Note that the casing 4 does not need to be a single component, and may be configured by combining a plurality of components into one, for example.

A control board 15 is housed inside the casing 4 .
The control board 15 is, for example, a printed board on which various electronic components (not shown) for operating the portable information terminal 1 are mounted and circuit patterns (not shown) are formed on both sides. The control board 15 is formed in a rectangular shape in plan view so that the length along the first direction L2 is longer than the length along the second direction L3 corresponding to the shape of the casing 4, and is supported inside the casing 4 by a supporting member (not shown). is steadily supported by

A control unit 16 such as a CPU for comprehensively controlling the portable information terminal 1 is mounted on the control board 15 . Further, the control board 15 is mounted with various storage units such as a flash memory, a small speaker, a small microphone, a small camera, and the like. Note that the storage unit, speaker, microphone, camera, and the like are omitted from the drawing.

Further, inside the casing 4, a power supply unit (not shown) for supplying power to various components is arranged, and a removable memory card (not shown) and the like are arranged. Note that the power supply unit is, for example, a rechargeable secondary battery or the like.

A touch panel 2 and a contact panel 3 are arranged above the control board 15 .
The touch panel 3 is a thin transparent panel made of, for example, a synthetic resin material (eg, acrylic resin, polycarbonate resin, etc.) or a glass material. is combined with the casing 4 so as to close the

The contact panel 3 has an external size slightly smaller than the opening size of the opening 4a so that a predetermined gap is formed between the contact panel 3 and the opening 4a of the casing 4. As shown in FIG. Further, the contact panel 3 is combined with the casing 4 by a support member (not shown) while being supported so as to be movable in the first direction L2, which is the longitudinal direction of the casing 4 . Therefore, the movable direction of the contact panel 3 coincides with the first direction L2.

Further, at the rear end of the contact panel 3, there is formed a panel wall portion 3a that protrudes downward and is arranged to face the rear wall portion 13 of the casing 4 in the first direction L2. . The panel wall portion 3a is arranged with a predetermined gap from the rear wall portion 13. As shown in FIG.

The touch panel 2 is arranged below the contact panel 3 so as to overlap the contact panel 3 . The touch panel 2 is a thin transparent panel made of a synthetic resin material or a glass material, and has a known contact detection function such as a resistance film method, a capacitance method, an optical method, or the like. Thereby, the touch panel 2 can detect the location touched by the fingertip through the touch panel 3 . Therefore, the upper surface of the touch panel 2 is an operation surface operated by an operator's fingertip or the like through the touch panel 3, that is, a so-called tactile sensation presentation surface.

A display panel 17 is arranged below the touch panel 2 so as to overlap the touch panel 2 . The display panel 17 is, for example, a liquid crystal display device such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), and can display various information through the touch panel 2 and the contact panel 3 . Accordingly, by touching the touch panel 2 with a fingertip through the touch panel 3 in correspondence with various information displayed on the display panel 17, an input signal (command signal) based on the operation content corresponding to the touched place is generated by the control unit. 16 can be sent.

The control unit 16 described above controls the display of the display panel 17 based on the input signal accompanying the operation of the touch panel 2 . Further, the control unit 16 applies a predetermined voltage to the shape memory alloy wire 40 to be described later based on the operation of the touch panel 2 to control the energization of the shape memory alloy wire 40 .

(actuator)
The actuator 5 plays the role of instantaneously displacing the contact panel 3 in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, and applying an inertial force (thrust force) to the casing 4 based on the displacement.
Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , the actuator 5 includes a stator 20 attached to the casing 4 and a first actuator attached to the contact panel 3 and in a movable direction with respect to the stator 20 . A mover 30 arranged to face in the direction L2 and a shape memory alloy wire 40 arranged between the stator 20 and the mover 30 and whose length changes according to temperature are provided.
In addition, in FIG. 4, the stator 20 and the mover 30 are shown in a state of being separated from each other in order to make the drawing easier to see. Also, in FIG. 5, the illustration of the touch panel 2 and the display panel 17 is omitted in order to make the drawing easier to see.

The stator 20 is fixed to the central portion of the front wall portion 12 of the casing 4 in the second direction L3. The stator 20 includes a base portion 21 extending along the second direction L3 and a plurality of projecting portions 22 projecting from the base portion 21 toward the mover 30 side. The plurality of protrusions 22 are arranged at regular intervals in the second direction L3 and are formed to protrude toward the mover 30 by a predetermined amount of protrusion. A tip portion of each protrusion 22 is formed in a rounded shape, for example, an arc shape in a plan view.
Although the stator 20 has three protrusions 22 in the illustrated example, the number of protrusions 22 is not limited to this.

The mover 30 is fixed to the lower surface 3 b of the contact panel 3 on the front edge side facing the front wall 12 of the casing 4 . The mover 30 is arranged in the center portion of the contact panel 3 in the second direction L3 and is arranged at the same height as the stator 20 . Thereby, as described above, the stator 20 and the mover 30 are arranged to face each other in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction.

The mover 30 includes a base portion 31 extending along the second direction L3 and a plurality of projecting portions 32 projecting from the base portion 31 toward the stator 20 side. The length of the base portion 31 along the second direction L3 is the same as the length of the base portion 21 of the stator 20 .
The plurality of protrusions 32 are arranged at regular intervals in the second direction L3 and are formed to protrude toward the stator 20 by a predetermined amount of protrusion. The tip of each protrusion 32 is formed in a rounded shape, for example, an arc shape in plan view, similarly to the stator 20 side.
In the illustrated example, the mover 30 has four protrusions 32, but the number of protrusions 32 is not limited to this.

The interval between the projections 22 on the stator 20 side and the interval between the projections 32 on the mover 30 side are the same interval (pitch). Furthermore, the projection amount of each projection 22 on the stator 20 side and the projection amount of each projection 32 on the mover 30 side are made equal. The stator 20 and the mover 30 are arranged to face each other so that the protrusions 22 of the stator 20 are inserted between the protrusions 32 of the mover 30 . As a result, the protrusions 32 on the mover 30 side and the protrusions 22 on the stator 20 side are arranged in a comb shape.

The shape memory alloy wire 40 is, for example, a wire made of a nickel-titanium alloy, and is interposed in a wavy shape between each protrusion 32 on the mover 30 side and each protrusion 22 on the stator 20 side. The material of the shape memory alloy wire 40 is not limited to the nickel-titanium alloy, and may be changed as appropriate.
Both ends of the shape memory alloy wire 40 are connected to connection terminals 41 provided on the lower surface 3 b of the contact panel 3 . The connection terminal 41 is electrically connected to a circuit pattern (not shown) on the control board 15 through a wiring portion (not shown). Thereby, the shape memory alloy wire 40 is electrically connected to the control substrate 15 via the connection terminal 41, and is energized by applying a predetermined voltage.

The shape memory alloy wire 40 contracts instantaneously by being heated by energization. As a result, as shown in FIG. 6, the shape memory alloy wire 40 shifts from the loosened state to the stretched state, so that the movable element 30 is moved away from the stator 20 along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction. It is possible to move
In this way, the shape memory alloy wire 40 is capable of changing the distance between the mover 30 and the stator 20 by expansion and contraction caused by heating.

Note that the stator 20 and the mover 30 described above are made of a material having a higher thermal conductivity than the shape memory alloy wire 40 . Specifically, the stator 20 and the mover 30 are made of an aluminum material, and an anodized film serving as an insulating film is formed on the surface thereof by alumite treatment or the like. Therefore, the stator 20 and the mover 30 are arranged so as to be in contact with the shape memory alloy wires 40 and also function as radiators (heat conductors) for dissipating heat from the shape memory alloy wires 40 .

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the actuator 5 configured as described above is configured such that at least the mover 30 and the shape memory alloy wires 40 overlap the contact panel 3 and the control board 15 in the thickness direction L1. are placed in

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, between the casing 4 and the contact panel 3, the contact panel 3 is moved in the first direction L2, which is the moving direction, so that the mover 30 approaches toward the stator 20 side. A coil spring (biasing member according to the present invention) 45 is provided to bias along the .
The coil spring 45 is arranged in a compressed state between the rear wall portion 13 of the casing 4 and the panel wall portion 3 a of the contact panel 3 . One end side of the coil spring 45 is connected to the rear wall portion 13 , and the other end side of the coil spring 45 is connected to the panel wall portion 3 a of the contact panel 3 . As a result, the coil spring 45 urges the entire contact panel 3 toward the stator 20 using elastic restoring force (biasing force).
Note that the number of coil springs 45 is not limited to one, and a plurality of coil springs 45 may be arranged at intervals in the second direction L3, for example.

Since the contact panel 3 is biased toward the stator 20 as described above, the shape memory alloy wire 40 is sandwiched between the mover 30 and the stator 20 as shown in FIG. It is said that Further, the contact panel 3 biased by the coil spring 45 is suppressed by the shape memory alloy wire 40 from further displacement toward the stator 20, and is positioned as shown in FIG. .

(vibration damper)
As shown in FIG. 3, the vibration damper 6 is attached to the lower surface 3b of the contact panel 3 to which the mover 30 of the actuator 5 is attached. Therefore, the actuator 5 and the vibration damper 6 are arranged within a common virtual plane V along the first direction L2 with the lower surface 3b of the contact panel 3 as a reference.

The vibration damping body 6 includes a weight 50 having a predetermined mass, and a vibration spring (elastic support according to the present invention) 51 that is integrally combined with the weight 50 and elastically deformable to elastically support the weight 50. , and can vibrate in the opposite direction to the first direction L2 with respect to the contact panel 3 due to the displacement of the contact panel 3 .

As shown in FIGS. 3, 7 and 8, the vibration damper 6 is attached to the lower surface 3b of the contact panel 3 via a base 52. As shown in FIG. The base 52 is attached to the lower surface 3b of the contact panel 3 on the rear end side, and is arranged in the central portion of the contact panel 3 in the second direction L3.
The base table 52 has a base plate 52a attached so as to overlap the lower surface 3b of the contact panel 3, and a vertical plate 52b extending downward from the base plate 52a, and is formed in an L shape when viewed from the side. However, the shape of the base 52 is not limited to this case, and may be changed as appropriate.

The base plate 52a is formed in a rectangular shape in a plan view, the length along the first direction L2 being shorter than the length along the second direction L3, and is fixed to the bottom surface 3b of the contact panel 3. As shown in FIG. However, the shape of the base plate 52a is not limited to this. do not have.
The vertical plate 52b is formed on the front end side of the base plate 52a. The length of the vertical plate 52b along the second direction L3 is the same as the length of the base plate 52a along the second direction L3.

A cylindrical guide rod 53 extending rearward along the first direction L2 is integrally formed with the vertical plate 52b. Thus, the guide rod 53 is attached to the lower surface 3b of the contact panel 3 with a gap therebetween. The guide rod 53 is formed with a length that protrudes rearward from the base plate 52a.

The weight 50 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape whose length along the first direction L2 is shorter than its length along the second direction L3, and has a predetermined mass as described above. In the illustrated example, the length of the weight 50 along the second direction L3 is the same as the length of the base plate 52a along the second direction L3. The material of the weight 50 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, metal.

A guide hole 50a is formed in the weight 50 so as to penetrate the weight 50 in the first direction L2. The weight body 50 is combined with the guide rod 53 so as to be movable in the first direction L2 with the guide rod 53 inserted into the guide hole 50a. Therefore, the weight 50 is guided by the guide rod 53 so as to be movable in the first direction L2.

The oscillating spring 51 is, for example, a coil spring, and is arranged between the weight 50 and the vertical plate 52b while being externally inserted on the guide rod 53. As shown in FIG. One end of the vibration spring 51 is fixed to the weight body 50, and the other end of the vibration spring 51 is fixed to the vertical plate 52b. Therefore, the weight body 50 is prevented from being detached from the guide rod 53 by the vibration spring 51 .

A vibration damper 6 configured as described above is associated with the contact panel 3 displaced by the actuator 5 . Therefore, as the contact panel 3 is displaced, the weight 50 is displaced in the opposite direction to the contact panel 3 while elastically deforming the vibration spring 51 . Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, the vibration damping body 6 can vibrate in a direction opposite to the displacement direction of the contact panel 3 due to the displacement of the contact panel 3 .

Further, since the vibration damping body 6 is arranged in the central portion of the contact panel 3 in the second direction L3, as shown in FIG. They are arranged at overlapping positions with respect to the direction of the displacement vector. That is, the vibration damping body 6 is arranged in the virtual plane V at a position where the shape memory alloy wire 40 overlaps the displacement vector F when the mover 30 is moved.

(Function of portable information terminal)
The operation when using the mobile information terminal 1 configured as described above will be described.
In this case, as shown in FIG. 1, by operating the touch panel 2 with a fingertip through the touch panel 3 while viewing information displayed on the display panel 17, an operation corresponding to the touched place can be performed. can. As a result, various functions of the portable information terminal 1 can be used as appropriate.

In particular, by operating the touch panel 2 through the touch panel 3, the actuator 5 can be used to instantaneously displace the touch panel 3 with respect to the casing 4. Therefore, as shown in FIG. For example, it can be moved along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, at a predetermined acceleration. As a result, the inertial force (thrust force) of the contact panel 3 can be applied to the entire casing 4 based on the rapid displacement of the contact panel 3 . Therefore, the fingertip touching the touch panel 3 can be given a pseudo mechanical operation feeling, and a pseudo tactile sensation as if giving a click feeling can be given to the fingertip.

A more detailed description will be given.
When the touch panel 2 is operated with a fingertip through the contact panel 3 , the controller 16 energizes the shape memory alloy wires 40 through the connection terminals 41 . Thereby, the shape memory alloy wire 40 can be heated and contracted instantaneously. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, the shape memory alloy wires 40 sandwiched between the protrusions 22 of the stator 20 and the protrusions 32 of the mover 30 should be stretched from the loosened state. , and the mover 30 can be separated from the stator 20 against the elastic restoring force (biasing force) of the coil spring 45 .

As a result, as shown in FIG. 9, while the coil spring 45 is elastically deformed, the contact panel 3 provided with the mover 30 is momentarily moved along the first direction L2, which is the moving direction, with respect to the casing 4. It can be moved. Therefore, the inertial force (thrust force) of the contact panel 3 can be applied to the entire casing 4, and a pseudo tactile sensation as if giving a click feeling to the fingertip touching the contact panel 3 can be applied.

Furthermore, the heat generated by the electrical heating is dissipated from the shape memory alloy wire 40, so that the shape memory alloy wire 40 can be stretched, for example, instantaneously, and can be changed from a stretched state to a loosened state. .
At this time, the contact panel 3 is urged by the elastic restoring force (biasing force) of the coil spring 45 so that the mover 30 approaches the stator 20 side. Therefore, along with the extension of the shape memory alloy wire 40 , the biasing force of the coil spring 45 can be utilized to bring the mover 30 closer toward the stator 20 without fail. Therefore, the contact panel 3 provided with the mover 30 can be instantaneously moved in the opposite direction along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, with respect to the casing 4, thereby returning to the state shown in FIG. be able to. At the time of this return, a pseudo tactile sensation as if giving a click sensation to the fingertip touching the contact panel 3 can be applied in the same manner as before.

Therefore, it is possible to vibrate the contact panel 3 in the movable direction by utilizing the expansion and contraction of the shape memory alloy wire 40 . In particular, it is possible to generate an impulse-like vibration, and for example, it is possible to apply a tactile sensation similar to that of a mechanical switch or a tactile sensation different from that of a vibration motor or the like. Furthermore, shape memory alloys generally have excellent reproducibility and responsiveness of expansion and contraction. It is possible to stably act on the tactile sensation.
In particular, in the present embodiment, the contact panel 3 itself, which is directly touched by the fingertip, is instantaneously displaced, so that the pseudo tactile sensation can be more effectively applied to the fingertip.

Furthermore, it is also possible to vibrate the casing 4, for example, by displacing the contact panel 3 as needed, independently of the operator's operation. As a result, it becomes possible to notify the operator of incoming calls or e-mails, for example, and there is no need to provide a dedicated vibration source (for example, a vibration motor, etc.) therefor. Therefore, it is also possible to simplify the configuration and reduce the cost.

Further, in the mobile information terminal 1 of the present embodiment, when the contact panel 3 is displaced by the actuator 5, the vibration damping body 6 is displaced due to the displacement of the contact panel 3 as shown in FIG. It vibrates along the first direction L2 opposite to the direction. Therefore, when the operation of the actuator 5 is stopped, the displacement of the contact panel 3 can be canceled using the vibration of the vibration damping body 6, and the energy associated with the displacement can be quickly absorbed. Therefore, the vibration damping body 6 can be used to quickly damp the residual vibration caused by the displacement of the contact panel 3, and the contact panel 3 can be immediately stopped.

As a result, it is possible to clearly distinguish the movements of the contact panel 3 when the displacement is started, when the displacement is stopped, and when the displacement is stopped. be able to.

As described above, according to the mobile information terminal 1 of the present embodiment, since the vibration damping body 6 is provided, it is difficult for residual vibration to occur, and a high-quality pseudo tactile sensation can be applied.
Specifically, it is possible to stably simulate the click feeling that you feel when you press a mechanical switch, or to apply a pseudo tactile sensation with sharp vibrations or rhythms that match music, for example. It is possible. Moreover, since the vibration damping body 6 has a simple structure that only vibrates the weight body 50 and the vibration spring 51, no special electronic control or the like is required for suppressing the residual vibration. There is no risk of inviting

Furthermore, in the mobile information terminal 1 of the present embodiment, the actuator 5 and the vibration damping body 6 are arranged in the common virtual plane V, so that they can be arranged in a direction perpendicular to the virtual plane V in a compact manner. It is possible to reduce the thickness of the portable information terminal 1 as a whole.
Furthermore, since the actuator 5 and the vibration damping body 6 are arranged in the common virtual plane V, the weight body 50 is easily vibrated as the actuator 5 displaces the contact panel 3 . Therefore, residual vibration can be efficiently damped. In particular, the vibration damping body 6 is arranged in the virtual plane V at a position overlapping the direction of the displacement vector F when the actuator 5 displaces the contact panel 3 . Therefore, as the actuator 5 displaces the contact panel 3, the weight body 50 can be vibrated more smoothly, and the residual vibration can be damped more efficiently.

In addition, since the vibration damping body 6 is combined with the contact panel 3 displaced by the actuator 5, the vibration damping body 6 can be vibrated in response to the displacement of the contact panel 3 promptly. Therefore, residual vibration can be effectively damped.

Furthermore, in the portable information terminal 1 of the present embodiment, the stator 20 and the mover 30 also function as radiators for dissipating heat from the shape memory alloy wires 40, so that the shape memory alloy wires 40 can be efficiently dissipated. The temperature of the shape memory alloy wire 40 heated by electric heating can be rapidly lowered. As a result, the shape memory alloy wire 40 can be provided with good heat dissipation characteristics, and the responsiveness of the expansion and contraction operation can be enhanced. Therefore, the tactile sensation can be applied to the fingertip with better response.

In this embodiment, the instantaneous displacement of the contact panel 3 accompanying expansion and contraction of the shape memory alloy wire 40 is performed, for example, by displacing the contact panel 3 at a speed of 4 m/s to 8 m/s and a displacement of 50 μm to 10 μm. is possible. Further, the time for which the shape memory alloy wire 40 is energized is, for example, several milliseconds to several tens of milliseconds, and the shrinkage rate of the shape memory alloy wire 40 due to the energization is, for example, several percent.

Furthermore, the actuator 5 is arranged so that the mover 30 and the shape memory alloy wire 40 overlap the contact panel 3 in the thickness direction L1. Similarly, the vibration damping body 6 is arranged so as to overlap the contact panel 3 in the thickness direction L1. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the length of the casing 4 from increasing in the first direction L2, which is the direction in which the contact panel 3 is movable, and it is easy to reduce the size of the entire portable information terminal 1 .

(Second embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of a tactile presentation device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in the second embodiment, the same reference numerals are given to the same parts as the constituent elements in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

In the first embodiment, the contact panel 3 is momentarily displaced by the actuator 5, but in the present embodiment, the control board 15 is momentarily displaced instead of the contact panel 3. FIG. Also, in the first embodiment, the vibration damper 6 is attached to the contact panel 3, but in this embodiment, the vibration damper is attached to the control board 15. FIG. Therefore, the control board 15 functions as a movable body according to the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, in the portable information terminal (tactile sensation presentation device according to the present invention) 60 of this embodiment, the contact panel 3 is formed in a thin flat plate shape. The contact panel 3 is integrally combined with the casing 4 so as to block the opening 4a of the casing 4 from above. At this time, predetermined dustproof and waterproof measures are taken between the contact panel 3 and the casing 4 . Thereby, the inside of the casing 4 is kept in a sealed state.

The control board 15 has an external size smaller than the size of the casing 4 so that a predetermined gap is formed between the control board 15 and the peripheral wall portion 11 of the casing 4 . The control board 15 is movable in the first direction L2, which is the in-plane direction of the control board 15 . Therefore, the movable direction of the control board 15 coincides with the first direction L2. Further, the control board 15 is arranged in the center of the casing 4 in the thickness direction L1 while being supported by a support member (not shown) so as to be movable in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction.
In this embodiment, the control unit 16 is mounted on the bottom surface of the control board 15 as an example.

Guidance projections 61 protruding toward the side wall portion 14 are formed on side edge portions of the control board 15 facing the side wall portion 14 of the casing 4 .
Two guide projections 61 are formed on each side edge portion with a gap therebetween in the first direction L2. Therefore, in the illustrated example, a total of four guide projections 61 are formed. However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and the number of guide protrusions 61 may be changed as appropriate.

The guide projection 61 is formed in a semicircular shape in plan view and protrudes toward the side wall portion 14 side, and is in sliding contact with the side wall portion 14 from the inside of the casing 4 . As a result, the guide protrusion 61 can slidably contact the side wall portion 14 and guide the control board 15 to be movable in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, with little rattling.
The guide projection 61 does not have to be formed integrally with the control board 15. For example, the guide projection 61 is formed so as to protrude from the side wall portion 14 side of the casing 4 toward the control board 15 side. It does not matter if it is in sliding contact with the

The actuator 5 serves to instantaneously displace the control board 15 in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, and apply an inertial force (thrust force) to the casing 4 based on the displacement.
In the actuator 5 of this embodiment, the stator 20 is fixed to the central portion of the front wall portion 12 of the casing 4 in the second direction L3, and the mover 30 is fixed to the front wall portion 12 of the casing 4 of the control board 15. It is fixed to the upper surface 15a on the front edge side facing each other. The mover 30 is arranged in the central portion of the control board 15 in the second direction L3 and is arranged at the same height as the stator 20 . As a result, the stator 20 and the mover 30 are arranged to face each other in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction.

The actuator 5 configured as described above is arranged such that at least the mover 30 and the shape memory alloy wire 40 overlap the control substrate 15 in the thickness direction L1.

The coil spring 45 of the present embodiment is arranged in a compressed state between the rear wall portion 13 of the casing 4 and the rear edge portion of the control board 15 facing the rear wall portion 13, and rotates the mover 30 to the stator. The control board 15 is urged along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, so as to approach toward the 20 side.
One end side of the coil spring 45 is connected to the rear wall portion 13 , and the other end side of the coil spring 45 is connected to the rear edge portion of the control board 15 . As a result, the coil spring 45 urges the entire control board 15 toward the stator 20 using elastic restoring force (biasing force). Note that the number of coil springs 45 is not limited to one, and a plurality of coil springs 45 may be arranged at intervals in the second direction L3, for example.

(vibration damper)
The vibration damper 70 is attached to the upper surface 15a of the control board 15 to which the mover 30 of the actuator 5 is attached. Therefore, the actuator 5 and the vibration damper 70 are arranged within a common virtual plane V along the first direction L2 with the upper surface 15a of the control board 15 as a reference.

The vibration damping body 70 includes a weight 71 having a predetermined mass, and a plurality of plate spring portions (elastic support according to the present invention) that are integrally combined with the weight 71 and elastically deformable to elastically support the weight 71 . , and can vibrate in the first direction L2 with respect to the control board 15 due to the displacement of the control board 15 .

The vibration damper 70 is made of, for example, a thermoplastic elastomer, and formed into a thin plate by injection molding using a molding die (not shown). In the illustrated example, the vibration damping body 70 has a rectangular outer shape in plan view whose length along the first direction L2 is shorter than its length along the second direction L3, and is thicker than the actuator 5. is formed to be thin.
Therefore, in this embodiment, the weight body 71 and the plate spring portion 72 are made of the same material and are integrally molded. The material of the vibration damping body 70 is not limited to a thermoplastic elastomer, and may be formed of, for example, a rubber material or a synthetic resin material.

The vibration damper 70 is arranged on the upper surface 15 a of the control board 15 on the rear end side and attached to the control board 15 via a plurality of (four) connecting pins 75 .
explain in detail.
The vibration damping body 70 includes a pair of base portions 73 spaced apart in the second direction L3, a weight 71 disposed between the pair of base portions 73, and the weight 71 and the pair of base portions 73. and a plurality (four) of leaf spring portions 72 connecting the .
The base portion 73, weight body 71 and leaf spring portion 72 are integrally formed by injection molding as described above.

The base portion 73 is formed to be thinner than the mover 30 of the actuator 5, and has a rectangular shape in plan view whose length along the first direction L2 is longer than its length along the second direction L3. formed. The base portion 73 is mounted on the upper surface 15 a of the control board 15 and fixed to the control board 15 by connecting pins 75 . Thereby, the entire vibration damping body 70 is attached to the upper surface 15 a of the control board 15 .

The weight body 71 is formed to be thinner than the base portion 73, and has a rectangular shape in a plan view so that the length along the first direction L2 is shorter than the length along the second direction L3. . The weight 71 is arranged with a gap between it and the pair of base portions 73 .
A connection projection 71a that slightly protrudes forward and backward is formed in a central portion of the weight 71 in the second direction L3.

The leaf spring portion 72 is formed in a plate shape extending along the second direction L<b>3 and is formed to have the same thickness as the weight body 71 . The leaf spring portion 72 is arranged between the base portion 73 and the weight 71 with the weight 71 interposed therebetween, and is arranged between the other base portion 73 and the weight 71 with the weight 71 interposed therebetween. Thus, a total of four are provided.
Each leaf spring portion 72 has one end connected to the base portion 73 and the other end connected to the connecting projection 71a.

Thus, the weight 71 is elastically supported by the four plate spring portions 72 . In particular, the weight 71 and the leaf spring portion 72 are formed thinner than the base portion 73 and are arranged with a gap between them and the upper surface 15 a of the control board 15 . As a result, the weight 71 and the plate spring portion 72 can vibrate without coming into contact with the control board 15 .

Note that the number of leaf spring portions 72 is not limited to four, and may be changed as appropriate. For example, one plate spring portion 72 may be formed between one base portion 73 and weight body 71 and between the other base portion 73 and weight body 71 .

In particular, the leaf spring portion 72 of this embodiment has an elastic modulus in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, in two directions perpendicular to the first direction L2, that is, the elastic moduli in the second direction L3 and the thickness direction L1. , and elastically supports the weight 71 in the first direction L2 due to the difference in elastic modulus.

The vibration damping body 70 configured as described above is combined with the control board 15 that is displaced by the actuator 5 . Therefore, the weight body 71 is displaced in the opposite direction to the control board 15 while elastically deforming the plate spring portion 72 as the control board 15 is displaced. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 13, the vibration damping body 70 can vibrate in the direction opposite to the displacement direction of the control board 15 due to the displacement of the control board 15 .

Furthermore, the vibration damping body 70 is arranged at a position overlapping the direction of the displacement vector F when the actuator 5 displaces the control board 15 in the virtual plane V, as in the first embodiment. That is, the vibration damping body 70 is arranged in the virtual plane V at a position overlapping the displacement vector F when the shape memory alloy wire 40 moves the mover 30 .

(Function of portable information terminal)
Even the portable information terminal 60 of this embodiment configured as described above can achieve the same effects as those of the first embodiment.

That is, when the touch panel 2 is operated with a fingertip through the contact panel 3 , the controller 16 energizes the shape memory alloy wires 40 through the connection terminals 41 . As a result, the shape memory alloy wire 40 sandwiched between the projections 22 of the stator 20 and the projections 32 of the mover 30 can be stretched from the loosened state. , the mover 30 can be separated from the stator 20 against the elastic restoring force (urging force).

As a result, as shown in FIG. 13, the control board 15 on which the mover 30 is provided is momentarily moved along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, with respect to the casing 4 while elastically deforming the coil spring 45 . It can be moved. Therefore, the inertial force (thrust force) of the control board 15 can be applied to the entire casing 4, and a pseudo tactile sensation as if giving a click feeling to the fingertip touching the contact panel 3 can be applied.

Furthermore, since the mobile information terminal 60 of the present embodiment has a structure in which the control board 15 accommodated in the casing 4 is displaced, there is no need to provide a gap between the contact panel 3 and the touch panel 2 and the casing 4 . Therefore, the inside of the casing 4 can be easily sealed, and the entry of dust, moisture, etc. into the casing 4 can be prevented. Therefore, a special dust-proof and waterproof structure or the like is not required, and the casing 4 can be sealed with a simple structure, and can be used for various purposes without being restricted by the usage environment. Therefore, it is easy to use and can be suitably used as the portable information terminal 60 .

Further, even in the portable information terminal 60 of the present embodiment, when the control board 15 is displaced by the actuator 5, the weight body 71 and the plate spring portion 72 of the vibration damping body 70 are displaced due to the displacement of the control board 15. It vibrates along the first direction L<b>2 opposite to the displacement direction of the control board 15 . Therefore, when the operation of the actuator 5 is stopped, the displacement of the control board 15 can be canceled using the vibration of the vibration damping body 70, and the energy associated with the displacement can be quickly absorbed.
Therefore, the vibration damper 70 can be used to quickly damp the residual vibration caused by the displacement of the control board 15, and the control board 15 can be immediately stopped.

As a result, it is possible to clearly distinguish between the movements of the control board 15 when the displacement is started, when the displacement is performed, and when the displacement is stopped. be able to.
In particular, the leaf spring portion 72 is likely to be elastically deformed in the first direction L2, and is difficult to be elastically deformed in the second direction L3 and the thickness direction L1. Therefore, the weight body 71 can be actively vibrated along the first direction L2 due to the displacement of the control board 15, and the residual vibration can be effectively damped. Furthermore, since the leaf spring portion 72 is less likely to be elastically deformed in the second direction L3 and the thickness direction L1, it is possible to enhance resistance to disturbances and the like.

Furthermore, since the vibration damping body 70 of the present embodiment is formed of a thermoplastic elastomer, the vibration damping body 70 having the desired elastic modulus can be obtained by utilizing predetermined material properties of the thermoplastic elastomer. can do. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately attenuate the residual vibration. Moreover, since the vibration damping body 70 is formed by integrally molding the base portion 73, the weight 71, and the plate spring portion 72 from the same material, the manufacturing cost can be reduced, and the weight 71 can be used as well. It can be elastically deformed, and can play the role of vibration damping. Therefore, it is possible to provide the vibration damping body 70 with improved damping performance for residual vibration.

Furthermore, even in the mobile information terminal 60 of the present embodiment, the actuator 5 and the vibration damping body 70 are arranged in the common virtual plane V, so the overall thickness of the mobile information terminal 60 can be reduced. be. In particular, since the vibration damping body 70 is thinner than the actuator 5, it is possible to effectively reduce the thickness of the portable information terminal 60 as a whole.
Furthermore, since the actuator 5 and the vibration damping body 70 are arranged in the common virtual plane V, the weight body 71 is easily vibrated as the actuator 5 displaces the control board 15 . Therefore, residual vibration can be efficiently damped. Moreover, the vibration damping body 70 is arranged in the virtual plane V at a position overlapping the direction of the displacement vector F when the actuator 5 displaces the control board 15 . Therefore, as the actuator 5 displaces the control board 15, the weight body 71 can be vibrated more smoothly, and the residual vibration can be damped more efficiently.

(Modification of Second Embodiment)
In the above-described second embodiment, the vibration damping body 70 is formed by integrally molding the base portion 73, the weight body 71 and the plate spring portion 72 from the same material, but the present invention is not limited to this case.
For example, the weight body 71 may be made of a material different from that of the base portion 73 and the leaf spring portion 72, specifically a metal having a large specific gravity. In this case, a predetermined mass can be maintained while reducing the volume of the weight 71 . Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size and thickness of the vibration damping body 70 itself, which leads to further reduction in the size and thickness of the portable information terminal 60 .
Even if the weight body 71 is made of metal, it can be firmly combined with the leaf spring part 72 by, for example, insert molding. can be made

Furthermore, in the above-described second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 14, a vibration damping body 70 containing reinforcing fibers 76 may be used. In addition, in FIG. 14, the reinforcing fiber 76 is emphasized and illustrated.
The vibration damping body 70 in this case can effectively damp the residual vibration at the interface between the base material made of the thermoplastic elastomer and the reinforcing fiber 76, so that the residual vibration can be damped more effectively. becomes possible.

In particular, the reinforcing fibers 76 are preferably oriented in a direction different from the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, for example, along the second direction L3. By doing so, the vibration damping body 70 having the plate spring portion 72 with a high elastic modulus along the orientation direction of the reinforcing fibers 76 can be obtained. Therefore, it is possible to make it difficult for the leaf spring portion 72 to elastically deform in the direction perpendicular to the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, and to further enhance the resistance to disturbances and the like.
Although the reinforcing fibers 76 are not particularly limited, for example, carbon fibers, glass fibers, potassium titanate whiskers, etc. can be suitably used.

In order to orient the reinforcing fibers 76 in a fixed direction, it is possible to use, for example, the position of the gate during injection molding. For example, a molding die is prepared so that a gate is positioned on the side of the base portion 73, and injection molding is performed so that the reinforcing fibers 76 flow into the molding die along the second direction L3 through the gate. Thus, the vibration damping body 70 shown in FIG. 14 can be obtained. In this case, a gate residue 77 remains on the side of the base portion 73, for example.

(Third embodiment)
Next, a third embodiment of a tactile presentation device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in the third embodiment, the same reference numerals are given to the same parts as the components in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

In the first embodiment, the contact panel 3 is momentarily displaced by the actuator 5, but in the present embodiment, the actuator 5 itself is attached to the control board 15, and the weight is momentarily displaced. It is Therefore, in this embodiment, the weight functions as a movable body according to the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, in a portable information terminal (tactile sensation presentation device according to the present invention) 80 of the present embodiment, the contact panel 3 is formed in a thin flat plate shape as in the second embodiment. there is The contact panel 3 is integrally combined with the casing 4 so as to block the opening 4a of the casing 4 from above. At this time, predetermined dustproof and waterproof measures are taken between the contact panel 3 and the casing 4 . Thereby, the inside of the casing 4 is kept in a sealed state.

The actuator 5 is mounted, for example, on the top surface 15a of the central portion of the control board 15 . However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and the actuator 5 may be mounted on the lower surface side of the control board 15, for example.

As shown in FIGS. 17 to 19, the actuator 5 includes a base 81, a stator 20 fixed to the base 81, and a base movable relative to the stator 20 in a first direction L2 which is a movable direction. The mover 30 placed on the table 81, the shape memory alloy wire 40 disposed between the stator 20 and the mover 30, and the mover 30 are directed toward the stator 20 in the first direction L2. and a guide rod 82 for movably guiding the mover 30 in the first direction L2.
A weight 90 is attached to the mover 30 . Therefore, the weight 90 is movable together with the mover 30 in the first direction L2. 18, illustration of the control board 15 is omitted.

The base table 81 includes a base plate 81a mounted on the upper surface 15a of the control board 15 and a back plate 81b extending upward from the base plate 81a, and is formed in an L shape when viewed from the side. However, the shape of the base table 81 is not limited to this case, and may be changed as appropriate.
The base plate 81 a is formed in a rectangular shape in a plan view with a length along the first direction L<b>2 shorter than a length along the second direction L<b>3 and fixed to the upper surface 15 a of the control board 15 . However, the shape of the base plate 81a is not limited to this. do not have.

The back plate 81b is formed on the rear end portion side of the base plate 81a located on the rear wall portion 13 side of the casing 4, and stands vertically with respect to the base plate 81a. The length of the back plate 81b along the second direction L3 is the same as the length of the base plate 81a along the second direction L3.

The stator 20 is fixed to the upper surface of the base plate 81 a on the front end portion side located on the front wall portion 12 side of the casing 4 . Although the stator 20 has four protrusions 22 in the illustrated example, the number of protrusions 22 is not limited to this.

The guide rods 82 are attached between the stator 20 and the back plate 81b. Specifically, the guide rods 82 are formed in a cylindrical shape extending in the first direction L2, and are arranged at both ends of the base portion 21 in the second direction L3. Accordingly, a pair of guide rods 82 are provided so as to sandwich the plurality of protrusions 22 therebetween.
The guide rod 82 is integrally combined with the base portion 21 and the back plate 81b while leaving a gap with respect to the upper surface of the base plate 81a.

The mover 30 is mounted on the upper surface of the base plate 81a so as to be slidable in the first direction L2, and is arranged to face the stator 20 in the first direction L2. In the illustrated example, the mover 30 has three protrusions 32, but the number of protrusions 32 is not limited to this.

Guide holes 31a penetrating through the base portion 31 in the first direction L2 are formed at both ends of the base portion 31 of the mover 30 in the second direction L3 with the plurality of protrusions 32 interposed therebetween. The mover 30 is slidably placed on the upper surface of the base plate 81a with the guide rods 82 inserted into the guide holes 31a. As a result, the mover 30 is guided by the guide rod 82 in the first direction L2, and is linearly movable in the first direction L2 with little rattling.

A housing recess 31b recessed toward the stator 20 side is formed so as to be continuous with the guide hole 31a on the rear surface side of the base portion 31 facing the back plate 81b. The accommodation recess 31b is formed in a circular shape having a larger diameter than the guide hole 31a when viewed from the back plate 81b side, and is formed coaxially with the guide hole 31a.

Both ends of the shape memory alloy wire 40 are connected to connection terminals 41 provided on the base 31 of the mover 30 . The connection terminal 41 is formed, for example, so as to protrude from the base portion 31 toward the base portion 21 on the side of the stator 20, and is positioned between the guide rod 82 and the projection portion 22 on the side of the stator 20. It is
The connection terminal 41 is electrically connected to a circuit pattern (not shown) formed on the control board 15 through the mover 30 and the base 81 .

The coil spring 45 is placed between the base 31 of the mover 30 and the back plate 81b in a compressed state while being fitted over the pair of guide rods 82 respectively. One end side of the coil spring 45 is housed in a housing recess 31b formed in the base portion 31, and the other end side of the coil spring 45 is in contact with the back plate 81b. As a result, the coil spring 45 urges the mover 30 toward the stator 20 using elastic restoring force (biasing force).

Since the mover 30 is biased toward the stator 20 as described above, the shape memory alloy wire 40 is sandwiched between the mover 30 and the stator 20 . Further, the mover 30 urged by the coil spring 45 is restrained from further displacement toward the stator 20 by the shape memory alloy wire 40, and is positioned.

The weight 90 is formed in a cuboid shape (block shape) extending along the second direction L3, and is fixed to the rear surface of the base portion 31 of the mover 30 by adhesion, welding, or the like. As a result, the weight 90 is integrally combined with the mover 30 and is movable together with the mover 30 in the first direction L2 as the shape memory alloy wire 40 expands and contracts.

The weight 90 has the same thickness as the base 31 of the mover 30 and is arranged between the pair of guide rods 82 . Further, the weight 90 is arranged so as to have an appropriate distance from the back plate 81b. This prevents the weight 90 from coming into contact with the back plate 81b during movement in the first direction L2 as the shape memory alloy wire 40 expands and contracts.

Although the material of the weight 90 is not particularly limited, for example, tungsten, which is a metal material with a large specific gravity, can be preferably used. However, the material of the weight 90 is not limited to this case, and may be formed of other metal materials. In addition, it is preferable to use a metal material having a large specific gravity and excellent workability.

(vibration damper)
As shown in FIGS. 17-19, the vibration damper 100 is combined with the actuator 5 itself. Specifically, the vibration damping body 100 is attached to the base portion 21 of the stator 20 in the actuator 5 . Accordingly, the actuator 5 and the vibration damping body 100 are arranged within a common virtual plane V along the first direction L2 with the upper surface of the base plate 81a as a reference.

The vibration damping body 100 includes a weight body 101 having a predetermined mass, and a first vibration spring (elastic support body according to the present invention) that is integrally combined with the weight body 101 and elastically deformable to elastically support the weight body 101. ) 102 and a second oscillating spring (elastic support according to the present invention) 103, which is capable of vibrating in the opposite direction to the first direction L2 with respect to the weight 90 due to the displacement of the weight 90. there is

Vibration damper 100 comprises a cylindrical guide rod 104 attached to base 21 of stator 20 .
The guide rod 104 is arranged in a portion of the front surface of the base portion 21 that is positioned in the center in the second direction L3, and is formed to extend forward along the first direction L2. At the tip of the guide rod 104, an enlarged retaining portion 104a is formed.

The weight 101 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape whose length along the first direction L2 is shorter than its length along the second direction L3, and has a predetermined mass as described above. The material of the weight 101 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, metal.
A guide hole 101a is formed in the weight 101 so as to penetrate the weight 101 in the first direction L2. The weight body 101 is combined with the guide rod 104 so as to be movable in the first direction L2 with the guide rod 104 inserted into the guide hole 101a.
Therefore, the weight 101 is guided by the guide rod 104 so as to be movable in the first direction L2.

The first oscillating spring 102 is a coil spring, and is arranged in a compressed state between the weight 101 and the base 21 of the stator 20 while being fitted over the guide rod 104 . One end side of the first vibration spring 102 is in contact with the weight body 101 , and the other end side of the first vibration spring 102 is in contact with the base portion 21 .
The second oscillating spring 103 is a coil spring, and is arranged in a compressed state between the weight body 101 and the retainer portion 104a while being fitted over the guide rod 104. As shown in FIG. One end of the second vibration spring 103 is in contact with the weight 101, and the other end of the second vibration spring 103 is in contact with the retainer 104a.

Therefore, the weight 101 is sandwiched between the first vibration spring 102 and the second vibration spring 103 and positioned in the first direction L2. Note that the elastic forces of the first vibration spring 102 and the second vibration spring 103 are made equal to each other.

In the vibration damping body 100 configured as described above, the weight body 101 elastically deforms the first vibration spring 102 and the second vibration spring 103 as the weight 90 is displaced together with the mover 30 . 90 is displaced in the opposite direction. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 20, the vibration damping body 100 can vibrate in a direction opposite to the displacement direction of the weight 90 due to the displacement of the weight 90 .

(Function of portable information terminal)
Even the portable information terminal 80 of this embodiment configured as described above can achieve the same effects as those of the first embodiment.

That is, when the touch panel 2 is operated with a fingertip through the contact panel 3 , the controller 16 energizes the shape memory alloy wires 40 through the connection terminals 41 . As a result, the shape memory alloy wire 40 sandwiched between the projections 22 of the stator 20 and the projections 32 of the mover 30 can be stretched from the loosened state. , the mover 30 can be separated from the stator 20 against the elastic restoring force (urging force).

As a result, as shown in FIG. 20, it is possible to instantaneously move the weight 90 together with the movable element 30 along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, with respect to the casing 4 while elastically deforming the coil spring 45. It is possible. Therefore, the inertial force (thrust force) of the weight 90 can be applied to the entire casing 4, and a pseudo tactile sensation as if giving a click sensation to the fingertip touching the touch panel 3 can be applied.

Furthermore, in the mobile information terminal 80 of the present embodiment, it is not necessary to provide a gap between the contact panel 3/touch panel 2 and the casing 4, as in the second embodiment. Therefore, the inside of the casing 4 can be easily sealed, and the entry of dust, moisture, etc. into the casing 4 can be prevented. Therefore, a special dust-proof and waterproof structure or the like is not required, and the casing 4 can be sealed with a simple structure, and can be used for various purposes without being restricted by the usage environment. Therefore, it is easy to use and can be suitably used as the portable information terminal 80 .

Furthermore, even in the portable information terminal 80 of the present embodiment, when the weight 90 is displaced by the actuator 5, as shown in FIG. Due to the displacement of the weight 90, the 2-vibration spring 103 vibrates along the first direction L2 in a direction opposite to the displacement direction of the weight 90. As shown in FIG. Therefore, when the operation of the actuator 5 is stopped, the displacement of the weight 90 can be canceled using the vibration of the vibration damping body 100, and the energy associated with the displacement can be quickly absorbed.
Therefore, the vibration damper 100 can be used to quickly damp the residual vibration caused by the displacement of the control board 15, and the control board 15 can be immediately stopped.

As a result, it is possible to clearly distinguish the operations of the weight 90 at the start of displacement, the displacement, and the stop of the displacement, and a high-quality pseudo tactile sensation is applied to the fingertip touching the touch panel 3. be able to.

In particular, in the case of this embodiment, since the vibration damping body 100 is combined with the actuator 5, they can be unitized, for example, so that they can be easily arranged in the casing 4, and the maintainability and the like can be improved. can.

(Modified example of the third embodiment)
In the above-described third embodiment, the vibration damping body 100 is attached to the stator 20 of the actuator 5, but the present invention is not limited to this case. I don't mind.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 21 and 22, the vibration damping body 110 may be attached to the weight 90. FIG.
The actuator 5 in this case does not have the guide rod 104 and the coil spring 45 in the third embodiment, but has a base 81 having a pair of side plates 81c. 22, illustration of the control board 15 is omitted.

The pair of side plates 81c are formed on the side end portions of the base plate 81a located on the side wall portion 14 side of the casing 4, and stand vertically with respect to the base plate 81a. Thereby, the pair of side plates 81c are arranged to face each other in the second direction L3. The length of the side plate 81c along the first direction L2 is the same as the length of the base plate 81a along the first direction L2.

Therefore, the base 81 does not have the back plate 81b in the third embodiment. However, the present invention is not limited to this case, and the base 81 may further include a back plate 81b in addition to the pair of side plates 81c.

Between the pair of side plates 81c and the mover 30, a plate spring portion (biasing member according to the present invention) that biases the mover 30 in the first direction L2 so as to approach the mover 30 toward the stator 20 side. 120 are arranged.
The plate spring portion 120 is formed, for example, to have a thickness equivalent to that of the base portion 31 of the mover 30, and is formed in a plate-like shape having a width along the first direction L2 smaller than the thickness. One end of the leaf spring portion 120 is connected to the side plate 81c, and the other end of the leaf spring portion 120 is connected to a side surface of the base portion 31 facing the side plate 81c.
Further, the leaf spring portion 120 always urges the mover 30 toward the stator 20 by using elastic restoring force (biasing force).

In particular, the leaf spring portion 120 is configured such that the elastic modulus in the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, is lower than the elastic modulus in the orthogonal direction perpendicular to the first direction L2, that is, the second direction L3 and the thickness direction L1. , and also has the function of guiding the mover 30 so as to be movable along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, due to the difference in elastic modulus.

(vibration damper)
The vibration damping body 110 is arranged on the rear side of the weight 90, and is composed of a pair of weight bodies 111 spaced apart in the second direction L3 and a center portion of the weight 90 in the second direction L3. a pair of leaf springs (elastic support portions according to the present invention) 113 that connect the weight 111 and the support 112 and elastically support the weight 111; It has

The leaf spring portion 113 is formed in a plate shape extending along the second direction L3, and is connected to the support pillar portion 112 on the base end side and connected to the weight body 111 on the tip end side. Thereby, the weight 111 is elastically supported in the first direction L2 by the plate spring portion 113 .

Even if it is configured as described above, it is possible to achieve the same effects as those of the third embodiment.
In particular, by using the plate spring portion 120, the mover 30 can be moved smoothly along the first direction L2, which is the movable direction, with little rattling, so that the desired tactile sensation can be reliably obtained with respect to the fingertip. Easy to work. Furthermore, since it is not necessary to provide the guide rod 104, it is easy to simplify the configuration. Furthermore, since the guide rod 104 is not provided, the lengths of the mover 30 and the stator 20 along the second direction L3 can be shortened.

Furthermore, since the vibration damping body 110 is attached to the weight 90, the weight 111 and the plate spring portion 113 can be vibrated in the first direction L2 with good response as the weight 90 is displaced. Therefore, residual vibration can be efficiently damped.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Embodiments and modifications thereof include, for example, those that can be easily imagined by those skilled in the art, those that are substantially the same, and those within an equivalent range.

For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the tactile sensation presentation device is applied to a mobile information terminal such as a smart phone. However, as shown in FIG. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to portable information terminals, and may be applied to, for example, car navigation systems for vehicles, and may be applied to various electronic devices, etc. that simulate a physical operational tactile sensation on fingertips when touched. I do not care.

Furthermore, in each of the above-described embodiments, the case where the shape memory alloy wire 40 is used as an example of the actuator 5 has been described, but it is not limited to this case. For example, a piezoelectric actuator using a piezoelectric element, a solenoid type electromagnetic actuator, a voice coil type electromagnetic actuator (for example, a linear actuator), or the like may be used.

Furthermore, in each of the above embodiments, it is preferable to set the natural frequency of the vibration damping body based on the natural frequency of the movable system including the movable body and the actuator.
By doing so, when the operation of the actuator is stopped, it is possible to appropriately absorb the energy associated with the displacement of the movable body using the vibration of the vibration damping body. Therefore, the vibration damping body can be used to appropriately attenuate the residual vibration caused by the displacement of the movable body.

In particular, it is more preferable to set the lowest natural frequency of the vibration damping body to be equal to or higher than the lowest natural frequency of the movable system. By doing so, the effects described above can be achieved more effectively.
The lowest natural frequency of the vibration damping body is the natural frequency corresponding to the lowest natural mode among the natural modes in which the weight body constituting the vibration damping body is displaced in the displacement direction of the movable body. Point.

V... Virtual plane L2... First direction (movable direction)
1, 60, 80... Portable information terminal (tactile presentation device)
2... Touch panel (operation panel)
3... Contact panel (movable body)
4... Casing 5... Actuator 6, 70, 100, 110... Vibration damper 15... Control board (movable body)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 17... Display panel 20... Stator 30... Mover 40... Shape memory alloy wire 45... Coil spring (biasing member)
50, 71, 101, 111... Mass 51... Vibration spring (elastic support)
76... Reinforcement fiber 90... Weight (movable body)
102... First vibration spring (elastic support)
103... Second vibration spring (elastic support)
113... Plate spring portion (elastic support)
120... Plate spring portion (biasing member)
130 ... smart watch (tactile presentation device)

Claims (17)

a casing having an operation panel operated with a fingertip;
a movable body movable along the movable direction;
an actuator disposed within the casing for instantaneously displacing the movable body in the movable direction and applying an inertial force to the casing based on the displacement of the movable body;
a vibration damping body disposed in the casing for damping residual vibration of the movable body caused by displacement of the movable body;
The vibration damping body is
a weight, and an elastic support that is integrally combined with the weight and elastically deformable to elastically support the weight, wherein the displacement of the movable body causes the displacement of the movable body A tactile presentation device characterized by vibrating in a direction opposite to a moving direction. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to claim 1,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the actuator and the vibration damper are arranged in a common virtual plane along the movable direction. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to claim 2,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the vibration damping body is arranged in the virtual plane at a position overlapping a direction of a displacement vector when the actuator displaces the movable body. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to claim 2 or 3,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the vibration damping body is thinner than the actuator in a direction orthogonal to the virtual plane. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The elastic support body is formed so that the elastic modulus in the movable direction is lower than the elastic modulus in two directions perpendicular to the movable direction, and the difference in elastic modulus makes the weight elastic in the movable direction. A tactile presentation device that supports. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The tactile sense presentation device, wherein the vibration damping body is combined with the movable body. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the vibration damping body is combined with the actuator. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the elastic support is made of any one of a rubber material, a synthetic resin material, and a thermoplastic elastomer. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to claim 8,
A tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the elastic support contains reinforcing fibers. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to claim 9,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the reinforcing fibers are oriented in a direction different from the movable direction. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the weight is made of the same material as the elastic support and is integrally formed with the elastic support. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the weight is formed separately from a material different from that of the elastic support and combined with the elastic support. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 12,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the vibration damping body has a natural frequency set based on a natural frequency of a movable system including the movable body and the actuator. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to claim 13,
A tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the lowest natural frequency of the vibration damping body is set to be equal to or higher than the lowest natural frequency of the movable system. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 14,
The actuator is
a stator;
a mover attached to the movable body and arranged to be relatively movable in the movable direction with respect to the stator;
A shape memory alloy wire that is arranged between the stator and the mover and whose length changes according to temperature,
The shape memory alloy wire is a tactile sensation presentation device that changes the distance between the mover and the stator by expansion and contraction caused by electrical heating. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to claim 15,
The tactile sensation presentation device, wherein the actuator includes a biasing member that biases the mover toward the stator along the movable direction. In the tactile sensation presentation device according to any one of claims 1 to 16,
a display panel for displaying information through the operation panel;
A tactile sensation presentation device, comprising: a control unit that controls display of the display panel according to an operation of the operation panel.

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