JP7487979B1 - Linear sliding potentiometer - Google Patents

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a linear sliding potentiometer that can obtain multiple independent electrical outputs and can reduce the installation area. [Solution] A linear sliding potentiometer 1 includes multiple resistor units 2, a cylindrical case 3, a shaft 4, and multiple connecting pins 5. Each of the multiple resistor units 2 has a resistor 212 and a conductor 213, and a slider 22 that slides on the resistor 212 and the conductor 213. The case 3 has multiple outer wall surfaces to which the multiple resistor units 2 are fixed. The shaft 4 is inserted into a cylindrical hole in the case 3. The multiple connecting pins 5 connect the sliders 22 of the multiple resistor units 2 to the shaft 4. The case 3 has pin through grooves through which the multiple connecting pins 5 pass. [Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a linear sliding potentiometer that can produce multiple independent electrical outputs by operating a single shaft.

Conventionally, potentiometers are known that change the resistance of a resistor by sliding a moving member (slider) that has a slider that contacts a resistor and a conductor, thereby obtaining a desired output voltage. Also known is a linear sliding potentiometer that has a case that guides the movement of the slider, and that obtains a desired output voltage by moving the slider linearly along the longitudinal direction of the case (Patent Document 1).

Figure 4 is a perspective view of a conventional linear sliding potentiometer. Figure 5 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional linear sliding potentiometer. As shown in Figure 4, the conventional linear sliding potentiometer 100 includes a detection board 101, a slider 102, and a case 103.

As shown in FIG. 5, the detection board 101 has a rectangular board body 111, a resistor 112 and a conductor 113 formed on the board body 111, a first terminal 114, a second terminal 115, and a third terminal 116. The resistor 112 and the conductor 113 extend linearly along the longitudinal direction of the board body 111. The resistor 112 and the conductor 113 are arranged parallel to each other. The second terminal 115 is connected to one longitudinal end of the conductor 113. The third terminal 116 is connected to one longitudinal end of the resistor 112.

The slider 102 has a slider body 121 and a slider 122. The slider 122 is fixed to the underside of the slider body 121 using a fixing screw 123. The slider 122 has a mounting bracket 128 fixed to the slider body 121 and contacts 129a and 129b provided at the tip of the mounting bracket 128. The contacts 129a and 129b slide while making contact with the resistor 112 and conductor 113 of the detection board 101.

The case 103 is composed of a bottom 131 made of a rectangular plate, and side plate portions 132 protruding from both sides in the short direction of the bottom 131. The board body 111 of the detection board 101 is fixed to the bottom 131 using fixing screws 134. A sliding groove 133 is formed on the inner surfaces of the side plate portions 132, 132 that face each other, into which the slider 102 (slider body 121) slidably engages.

When an input voltage is applied to the first terminal 114 and the third terminal 116 of the detection board 101 via the external input/output lead wire, the voltage is detected by the contact 129a that slides on the resistor 112. The voltage detected by the contact 129a is transmitted in the order of the mounting bracket 128, the contact 129b that slides on the conductor 113, the conductor 113, and the second terminal 115, and is output from the external input/output lead wire connected to the second terminal 115. In this way, the linear sliding potentiometer 100 can obtain an output voltage that corresponds to the amount of operation of the slider 102.

JP 2018-182037 A

When detecting multiple independent electrical outputs by operating a single shaft in a linear sliding potentiometer, it is possible to arrange linear sliding potentiometers in parallel for the number of electrical outputs required. In this case, it is necessary to connect the sliders of each linear sliding potentiometer to a single shaft to form a multi-connected linear sliding potentiometer. However, because multiple linear sliding potentiometers are arranged in parallel in such a multi-connected linear sliding potentiometer, the installation area increases in proportion to the number of linear sliding potentiometers.

The object of the present invention is to provide a linear sliding potentiometer that can obtain multiple independent electrical outputs and can reduce the installation area.

In order to solve the above problems and achieve the object of the present invention, a linear sliding potentiometer, which is one aspect of the present invention, comprises multiple resistor units, a cylindrical case, a shaft, and multiple connecting pins. Each of the multiple resistor units has a resistor and a conductor, and a slider that slides on the resistor and the conductor. The case has multiple outer wall surfaces to which the multiple resistor units are fixed. The shaft is inserted into a cylindrical hole in the case. The multiple connecting pins connect the sliders of the multiple resistor units to the shaft. The case has a pin through groove through which the multiple connecting pins pass.

According to the linear sliding type potentiometer having the above configuration, it is possible to obtain a plurality of independent electrical outputs and to realize space saving in the installation area.
Problems, configurations and effects other than those described above will become apparent from the following description of the embodiments.

1 is a perspective view of the appearance of a linear sliding type potentiometer according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a linear sliding potentiometer according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a resistor unit in the linear sliding potentiometer according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional linear sliding potentiometer. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a conventional linear sliding type potentiometer.

[Structure of a Linear Slide Potentiometer]
Hereinafter, the configuration of a linear sliding type potentiometer according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. Note that the same reference numerals are used to designate common members in each figure.

Figure 1 is an external perspective view of a linear sliding potentiometer. Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of a linear sliding potentiometer.

As shown in FIG. 1, the linear sliding potentiometer 1 includes multiple resistor units 2, a case 3, a shaft 4, and multiple connecting pins 5. In this embodiment, the number of resistor units 2 and the number of connecting pins 5 are set to seven. Note that the number of resistor units according to the present invention is not limited to seven, and can be set appropriately as long as it is two or more. Also, the number of connecting pins is set according to the number of resistor units.

As shown in FIG. 2, the case 3 is formed in the shape of an octagonal cylinder in a cross section perpendicular to the axial direction. The case 3 has eight outer wall surfaces 31. The eight outer wall surfaces 31 are formed in a rectangular shape that is long in the axial direction of the case 3. Seven resistor units 2 are fixed to seven outer wall surfaces 31a of the eight outer wall surfaces 31 using fixing screws 61. Pin through grooves 32 are formed in the seven outer wall surfaces 31a. The pin through grooves 32 extend in the axial direction of the case 3.

The mounting plate 33 is fixed to one of the eight outer wall surfaces 31, the outer wall surface 31b, using a fixing screw 62. The mounting plate 33 is a rectangular plate with an appropriate thickness. The mounting plate 33 has a screw through hole 33a through which the fixing screw 62 passes, and a through hole 33b to avoid interference with the head of the fixing screw 63 described below.

A shaft guide 34 is fixed to the inner wall surface 31c, which is the surface opposite the outer wall surface 31b, using a fixing screw 63. The shaft guide 34 guides the shaft 4 in the axial direction of the case 3 (the axial direction of the shaft 4). This shaft guide 34 has a base plate 36 and two protrusions 37 that protrude approximately perpendicularly from the base plate 36. The base plate 36 is made of a rectangular plate that is long in the axial direction of the case 3. The base plate 36 has a screw through hole 38 through which the fixing screw 63 passes.

One flat surface of the base plate 36 faces the inner wall surface 31c. A shaft slider 44 (described later) slides on the other flat surface of the base plate 36. The two protrusions 37 protrude approximately perpendicularly from both sides in the short direction on the other flat surface of the base plate 36. An engagement groove 39 with a rectangular cross section is formed at each of the two corners formed by the two protrusions 37 and the other flat surface of the base plate 36.

The shaft 4 has a rectangular column portion 41 and an operating portion 42. The rectangular column portion 41 is formed as an octagonal column that is a rectangular column shape corresponding to the case 3. The rectangular column portion 41 is inserted into the shaft hole of the case 3. The slider 22 (described later) of the resistor unit 2 is connected to the seven side surfaces 41a of the rectangular column portion 41 using the connecting pin 5. The seven side surfaces 41a have screw holes 43 into which the connecting pin 5 is screwed.

The shaft slider 44 is fixed to one side surface 41b of the rectangular column portion 41 using a fixing screw 64. The shaft slider 44 has a fixing portion 46 and two protrusion portions 47 that are continuous with the fixing portion 46. The fixing portion 46 is made of a rectangular plate that is long in the axial direction of the shaft 4. One flat surface of the fixing portion 46 abuts against the side surface 41b of the rectangular column portion 41. The fixing portion 46 has a screw through hole 48 through which the fixing screw 64 passes.

The two protrusions 47 protrude approximately perpendicularly from both sides in the short direction on the other plane of the fixed portion 46. Each of the two protrusions 47 is provided with an engagement protrusion 49. The engagement protrusions 49 protrude approximately perpendicularly outward from the protrusions 47. The engagement protrusions 49 of the two protrusions 47 slidably engage with the engagement grooves 39 of the shaft guide 34 attached to the case 3. That is, the shaft 4 moves in the axial direction while being guided by the shaft guide 34.

The operating part 42 is formed in a cylindrical shape coaxial with the rectangular column part 41. The diameter of the operating part 42 is smaller than the diameter of an imaginary circle where the eight corners of the rectangular column part 41 meet. The shaft 4 is moved in the axial direction by grasping and pushing (PUSH) or pulling (PULL) the operating part 42.

[Configuration of resistor unit]
Next, the configuration of the resistor unit 2 will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the resistor unit 2. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3, the resistor unit 2 has a detection board 21 and a slider 22.

The detection board 21 has a board body 211, a resistor 212 and a conductor 213 formed on the board body 211, a first terminal 214, a second terminal 215, and a third terminal 216.

The substrate body 211 is made of a rectangular plate. The substrate body 211 is made of, for example, resin. A through groove 217 is provided in the substrate body 211. The through groove 217 penetrates the substrate body 211 in the thickness direction. The through groove 217 is formed in a roughly rectangular shape and extends in the longitudinal direction of the substrate body 211.

When the resistor unit 2 is fixed to the outer wall surface 31a of the case 3 (see FIG. 2), the through groove 217 faces the pin through groove 32 of the case 3. The connecting pin 5 (see FIG. 2) passes through the through groove 217 and the pin through groove 32. The widths of the through groove 217 and the pin through groove 32 are sufficiently larger than the diameter of the connecting pin 5.

Guide grooves 218 are formed on both side surfaces of the substrate body 211 that are perpendicular to the short side direction. The guide grooves 218 extend in the longitudinal direction of the substrate body 211. The slider 22 slidably engages with the guide grooves 218. The guide grooves 218 guide the slider 22 in the longitudinal direction of the substrate body 211.

The resistor 212 and the conductor 213 are formed on one flat surface of the substrate body 211, for example, by transfer molding. The resistor 212 and the conductor 213 are made of, for example, a conductive plastic (conductive resin) resistance element. The substrate body 211 and the conductor 213 extend linearly along the longitudinal direction of the substrate body 211. The resistor 112 and the conductor 113 are arranged in parallel with a through groove 217 in between.

The first terminal 214, the second terminal 215, and the third terminal 216 are disposed at one end of the substrate body 211 in the longitudinal direction. The first terminal 214, the second terminal 215, and the third terminal 216 are arranged at appropriate intervals in the short direction of the substrate body 211.

A first terminal electrode 219a, a second terminal electrode 219b, and a third terminal electrode 219c are provided on one plane of the substrate body 211.

The second terminal electrode 219b is connected to one end of the conductor 213 in the longitudinal direction. The second terminal 215 is fixed to the second terminal electrode 219b by crimping. The electrical connection between the second terminal 215 and the second terminal electrode 219b is reinforced with a conductive adhesive or the like.

The third terminal electrode 219c is connected to one end of the resistor 212 in the longitudinal direction. The third terminal 216 is fixed to the third terminal electrode 219c by crimping. The electrical connection between the third terminal 216 and the third terminal electrode 219c is reinforced with a conductive adhesive or the like.

The first terminal electrode 219a is connected to the other longitudinal end of the resistor 212. A lead wire that penetrates the substrate body 211 is connected to the first terminal electrode 219a. The lead wire extends along the other flat surface of the substrate body 211, penetrates the substrate body 211, and is connected to the first terminal 214. The electrical continuity between the first terminal 214 and the lead wire, and between the lead wire and the first terminal electrode 219a are each reinforced with a conductive adhesive or the like.

The slider 22 has a slider body 221 and a slider 222.

The slider body 221 is made of an insulating material. When viewed from the front, the slider body 221 is roughly U-shaped and has an upper plate portion 224 and two side plate portions 225.

The upper plate portion 224 is made of a substantially rectangular plate and has an upper surface 224a and a lower surface 224b. The lower surface 224b of the upper plate portion 224 faces one flat surface (the flat surface on which the resistor 212 and the like are formed) of the board body 211 of the detection board 21. The slider 222 is fixed to the lower surface 224b of the upper plate portion 224 using a fixing screw 65.

The upper plate portion 224 also has a through hole 226 that penetrates in the thickness direction. The connecting pin 5 passes through the through hole 226.

The two side plate portions 225 are continuous with two opposing sides of the upper plate portion 224, and protrude approximately perpendicularly from the upper plate portion 224. The opposing surfaces of the two side plate portions 225 face both side surfaces perpendicular to the short side direction of the board body 211. An engaging protrusion 227 is provided on each of the opposing surfaces of the two side plate portions 225. The engaging protrusion 227 slidably engages with the guide groove 218 of the detection board 21.

The slider 222 is composed of a mounting bracket 228 and two contacts 229a, 229b. The mounting bracket 228 is fixed to the slider body 221 using a fixing screw 65. The two contacts 229a, 229b are each welded to a protrusion of the mounting bracket 228. The mounting bracket 228 biases the two contacts 229a, 229b toward the opposite side to the upper plate portion 224. As a result, the contact 229a comes into contact with the resistor 212, and the contact 229b comes into contact with the conductor 213.

[Operation of linear sliding potentiometer]
Next, the operation of the linear sliding type potentiometer 1 will be described.

The sliders 22 of each resistor unit 2 are connected to the shaft 4 of the linear sliding potentiometer 1 by connecting pins 5. This allows multiple sliders 22 to be operated (moved) simultaneously by moving the shaft 4 in the axial direction. As a result, multiple independent electrical outputs can be obtained from the multiple resistor units 2.

When the shaft 4 is displaced in the axial direction (PUSH/PULL direction), the two contacts 229a, 229b of the slider 222 in each resistor unit 2 slide on the resistor 212 and the conductor 213. The two contacts 229a, 229b then move a distance that corresponds to the amount of displacement of the shaft 4.

When an input voltage (Vin) is applied to the first terminal 214 and the third terminal 216 of the detection board 21 in each resistor unit 2 via the external input/output lead, the voltage is detected by the contact 229a that slides on the resistor 212. The voltage detected by the contact 229a is then transmitted in the order of the mounting bracket 228, the contact 229b that slides on the conductor 213, the conductor 213, and the second terminal 215, and is output from the external input/output lead. In this way, the axial displacement of the shaft 4 is converted into an electrical signal (voltage) in each resistor unit 2 and output. The input voltage (Vin) of each resistor unit 2 can be set to any value.

The multiple resistor units 2 of the linear sliding potentiometer 1 are attached to the outer wall surface 31a of the case 3, which is formed in a square cylindrical shape. This allows the multiple resistor units 2 to be arranged side by side around the axis of the shaft 4. As a result, the linear sliding potentiometer 1 is prevented from becoming larger in the planar direction (the direction parallel to the plane of the mounting plate 33), and the installation area can be reduced.

In addition, the detection board 21 of the resistor unit 2 has a guide groove 218 that guides the movement of the slider 22. Therefore, there is no need to provide a member for guiding the slider 22 separately from the detection board 21. This allows the number of parts to be reduced. In addition, the resistor unit 2 and the linear sliding potentiometer 1 can be made smaller.

The resistor 112 and conductor 113 provided on the substrate body 211 are arranged in parallel with the through groove 217 in between. This allows the through groove 217 to be positioned in the center of the substrate body 211 in the short direction. As a result, the substrate body 211 can be made smaller while maintaining its strength. This can also contribute to making the resistor unit 2 and linear sliding potentiometer 1 more compact.

The prism portion 41 of the shaft 4 is an octagonal prism with the same number of corners as the case 3. Therefore, when the prism portion 41 of the shaft 4 is inserted into the cylindrical hole of the case 3, each side of the prism portion 41 faces each inner wall surface of the case 3. This causes the prism portion 41 to face each resistor unit 2 across each inner wall surface of the case 3. As a result, the work of connecting the slider 22 of each resistor unit 2 to the prism portion 41 of the shaft 4 using the connecting pin 5 can be simplified.

The case 3 also has a shaft guide 34 that guides the shaft 4 in the axial direction. This allows the shaft 4 to be easily moved in the axial direction. It also prevents the shaft 4 from wobbling. As a result, the contacts 229a, 229b of each slider 22 are prevented from separating from the resistor 212 and the conductor 213.

The case 3 is also formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape. This allows the cylindrical case 3 to have an outer wall surface on which the resistor unit 2 is attached efficiently.

The linear sliding type potentiometer of the present invention has been described above, including its effects. However, the linear sliding type potentiometer of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the gist of the invention described in the claims.

For example, the case 3 according to the embodiment described above is formed in an octagonal cylindrical shape in a cross section perpendicular to the axial direction. However, the case according to the present invention is not limited to an octagonal cylindrical cross section perpendicular to the axial direction, and the cross section perpendicular to the axial direction can be set to an appropriate number of corners, such as a square or hexagon, for example. In other words, the shape of the cross section perpendicular to the axial direction of the case can be set according to the number of resistor units to be provided.

The maximum number of resistor units according to the present invention that can be attached is one less than the number of corners of the case. In other words, the number of resistor units according to the present invention that can be attached can be set arbitrarily within the range of the number that can be attached.

The case according to the present invention is not limited to a rectangular cylindrical shape. The case according to the present invention may have multiple outer wall surfaces formed on a plane on which the resistor unit is attached, and may have a curved side surface, such as an elliptical cross section perpendicular to the axial direction.

1...Linear sliding type potentiometer, 2...Resistor unit, 3...Case, 4...Shaft, 5...Connecting pin, 21...Detection board, 22...Slider, 31...External wall surface, 32...Pin through groove, 33...Mounting plate, 34...Shaft guide, 36...Base plate, 37...Protrusion portion, 38...Through hole, 39...Engagement groove, 41...Rectangular column portion, 42...Operation portion, 43...Screw hole, 44...Shaft slider, 46...Fixed portion, 47...Protrusion portion, 48...Through hole, 49...Engagement protrusion, 211...Board body, 212...Resistor, 213...Conductor, 214...First terminal, 215...Second terminal, 216...Third terminal, 217...Through groove, 218...Guide groove, 219a...First terminal electrode, 219b...second terminal electrode, 219c...third terminal electrode, 221...slider body, 222...slider, 224...upper plate portion, 225...side plate portion, 226...through hole, 227...engagement protrusion, 228...mounting bracket, 229a, 229b...contacts.

Claims (6)

a plurality of resistor units each having a resistor and a conductor, and a slider that slides on the resistor and the conductor;
a cylindrical case having a plurality of outer wall surfaces to which the plurality of resistor units are fixed;
a shaft inserted into a cylindrical hole of the case;
a plurality of connecting pins connecting the sliders of the plurality of resistor units to the shaft,
The case has a plurality of pin through grooves through which a plurality of connecting pins pass. Each of the resistor units includes a substrate body, and the resistor and the conductor provided on the substrate body.
2. The linear sliding potentiometer according to claim 1, wherein a guide portion with which the slider slidably engages is provided on a side surface of the substrate body. the substrate body has a through groove through which the connecting pin passes,
3. The linear sliding potentiometer according to claim 2, wherein the resistor and the conductor are arranged in parallel with each other across the through groove. The shaft is
a prism portion to which the slider is connected;
An operating portion continuous with the prismatic portion,
The linear sliding type potentiometer according to claim 1 , wherein the prism portion has the same number of sides as the case. 2. The linear sliding type potentiometer according to claim 1, wherein the case has a shaft guide for guiding the shaft in an axial direction. 2. The linear sliding type potentiometer according to claim 1, wherein the case is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape.

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