JPH01132018A - Key switch - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make it possible to obtain freedom of design of switch body arrangement by making it possible to arrange the switch body not only just below a key top body but also below the arm member. CONSTITUTION:Due to the relationship of a support position of a shaft 6c, an arm member 6b is parallel to a circuit board 2 and is horizontal when a key top 6 is not operated, and any part of an arm member 6b is in the same height with that of a key top body 6a, namely of a switch body 3. The switch body 3 can be accordingly arranged not only just below key top body 6a but also at any required position below the arm member 6b. The click feeling an operator feels when operating a key top 6 can be freely set by selecting the position of the switch body 3. This provides the freedom of design of the switch body arrangement with a simple and inexpensive structure.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a key switch provided as an operation input means in various electronic devices, and in particular, the present invention relates to a key switch provided as an operation input means in various electronic devices. The present invention relates to a key switch having a so-called swing type key top which is swingably provided to operate the switch body.

[Prior Art] Fig. 8 explains the structure of a conventional key switch of this type, and is a side sectional view of the periphery of a key switch of an electronic device incorporating the switch.

In FIG. 8, reference numeral 1 is an exterior cover of an electronic device;
Reference numeral 2 denotes a circuit board on which an electronic circuit including a key input circuit of an electronic device is provided.

Reference numeral 3 denotes a switch body constituting the key switch, which is mounted and fixed on the circuit board 2. As this switch body 3, for example, a so-called tact switch of a button type with a short operation stroke is used, and the switch is turned on by pressing the operating portion 3a and turned off by releasing the press.

Next, reference numeral 4 is a key top that constitutes a key switch together with the switch body, and the operating section 3 of the switch body 3 is
It is provided so as to be in contact with a.

The main body 4a of the key top 4 is loosely fitted into a guide hole 1a formed in the exterior cover 1 with an appropriate clearance, and is arranged such that its upper surface protrudes above the exterior cover 1. Further, a straight arm member 4b is provided on one side of the lower part of the main body 4a of the key top 4 so as to be inclined downward in the figure with respect to the main body 4a, that is, toward the circuit board 2. A shaft 4C is provided at the tip of the arm member 4b, and a bearing provided between the exterior cover 19 and the circuit board 2 is fitted into a groove 5a formed at the lower end of the member 5, and is in contact with the circuit board 2. It is rotatably supported on a bearing.

With this structure, the key top 4 is provided so as to be able to swing in the direction indicated by the arrow in which it approaches the circuit board 2 and in the direction indicated by the arrow in which it moves away from the circuit board 2 with the arm member 4b as its center of swing. Then, when the operator of the electronic device presses down the main body 4a of the key top 4 and swings it in the D direction, the main body 4a presses down the operating part 3a of the switch main body 3, and the key is operated manually. ing.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, according to such a conventional structure, the arm member 4b of the key top 4 is inclined toward the circuit board 2 side, and the pivot center of the key top 4, that is, the shaft 4C is aligned with the circuit board. Since it is on the second side, there were the following problems.

First, since the inclined arm member 4b becomes an obstacle, the position where the switch body 3 is provided is limited to just below the body 4a of the key top 4. In other words, the degree of freedom in design regarding the position of the switch body 3 is restricted.

Furthermore, since the center of swing of the key top 4 is away from the exterior cover 1, the path along which the main body 4a of the key top 4 moves is inclined with respect to the exterior cover 1, increasing the clearance between the public figure 1a and the main body 4a. I have to take it. However, if the clearance, that is, the gap is large, it becomes easy for foreign matter such as external dust to enter the electronic device through the gap, and the appearance deteriorates.

Furthermore, according to the above structure, when the key top 4 is pressed, the shaft 4c
The bearing presses the member 5 upward. In order to absorb and stop this force, the exterior cover 1 needs to have a certain degree of mechanical strength.

In order to avoid these problems, it may be possible to support the shaft 4C, which is the center of swing of the key top 4, near the exterior cover 1, but if a support member is provided for this purpose, the number of parts increases accordingly, which increases cost. There is a problem.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve these problems, according to the present invention, a switch is provided on a switch body mounted on a circuit board so as to be swingable in directions toward and away from the board. A key switch having a key top for operating the switch body,
The key top is swingable about a shaft provided at the tip of an arm member protruding from the side thereof,
A support member is integrally provided at a distal end of the arm member and supports the shaft at a position away from the base plate by a distance approximately equal to a distance from the base plate of the key top body when the key top is not operated. The structure was adopted.

[Function] According to this structure, if the arm member is straight, the arm member will be approximately parallel to the circuit board due to the distance relationship between the axis and the circuit board. Therefore, the switch body is not limited to being directly below the main body of the key top, but can also be provided under the arm member, providing a degree of freedom in design regarding the position of the switch body. In addition, due to the above distance relationship, the axis of the key top's swing center will be close to the exterior cover of the electronic device in which the key switch is installed, so the movement path of the key top body will be close to the direction perpendicular to the exterior cover. Therefore, the clearance between the guide hole provided in the exterior cover and the key top body can be reduced.

[Example] Hereinafter, details of an example of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7.

FIG. 1 explains the structure of a key switch according to an embodiment of the present invention, and is a side sectional view of the vicinity of the key switch of an electronic device incorporating the key switch.

In FIG. 1, the structures of an exterior cover 1, a circuit board 2, and a switch body 3, which are indicated by the same reference numerals as in FIG. 8 of the conventional example, are the same as those of the conventional example, and their explanations will be omitted.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the structure of the key top 6 is different from the conventional key top 6 as follows. i.e. key top 6
On one side of the lower end of the main body 6a, a straight arm member 6b for swingably supporting the key top 6 is provided integrally with the main body 6a or separately, as in the case of the conventional example. A shaft 6C, which is the center of swing, is provided integrally with the arm member 6b, but the shaft 6C is supported near the exterior cover 1, and the main body 6a of the key top 6 is not operated when the key top 6 shown in the figure is not operated. It is supported at a position away from the circuit board 2 by a distance approximately equal to the distance from the circuit board 2, that is, at a position on the circuit board 2 at the same height as the main body 6a.

For this reason, the arm member 6b is provided to protrude at right angles to the main body 6a instead of being inclined downward as in the conventional case. A support member 6d for supporting the shaft 6c at the illustrated position is provided integrally with the arm member 6b below the shaft 6C at the tip of the arm member 6b. The support member 6d has a fan-shaped cross section, and when its bottom surface slides on the circuit board 2,
It swings as shown by arrow a and can rotatably support the shaft 6C. Also, the circuit board 2 of the support member 6d
The height at the top is the same as the height of the main body 6a of the key top 6 when it is not operated.

The shaft 6C is supported in the illustrated position by the support member 6d, and the substantially U-shaped bearing provided on the exterior cover 1 side is fitted into the groove 7a formed in the member 7 and rotatably supported. Ru. The key top 6 is swingably provided on the switch body 3 in the direction of the arrow D', which approaches the circuit board 2, and in the direction of the arrow U', which moves away from the circuit board 2, about the shaft 6c. The operator presses the main body 6a of the key top 6.
By pressing , the key top 6 swings in the D' direction, and the main body 6a presses the operating portion 3a of the switch main body 3, thereby applying manual force to the key. When the operator releases the button, the operation part 3a of the switch body 3 pushes up the body 6a of the key top 6 due to the bias of an elastic member (not shown) inside the switch body 3, and the key top 6 swings in the U' direction. and return to the position shown.

According to the structure of this embodiment, the shaft 6C is supported very close to the exterior cover 1 due to the above-mentioned relationship of the support position of the shaft 6c. The movement path of the main body 6a of the moving key top 6 becomes nearly perpendicular to the exterior cover 1. Therefore, the clearance between the hole 1a of the exterior cover 1 for guiding the main body 6a and the main body 6a can be made smaller than in the conventional example shown in FIG. 8. It is possible to prevent dirt and dust from entering the electronic device from the outside through the clearance gap, thereby protecting the electronic circuits, etc. inside the electronic device, and also preventing the external appearance of the electronic device from becoming unsightly due to the clearance. .

Further, according to this embodiment, due to the above-mentioned support position of the shaft 6C, the arm member 6b is parallel to and horizontal with the circuit board 2 when the key top 6 is not operated, and the height of any part of the arm member 6b is 6a, that is, the same as the height of the switch body 3, as shown in FIG.
not only directly below the main body 6a of the key top 6 but also the arm member 6
It can be placed at any position below b. By selecting the position of the switch body 3, the click feeling that the operator feels in his hand when operating the key top 6 can be freely set.

Furthermore, according to this embodiment, in the force relationship around the shaft 6c when the key top 6 is operated, the force applied upward from the shaft 6c as indicated by the arrow r in FIG. The mechanical strength of the first side can be reduced. Furthermore, even if the force applied downward from the shaft 6c becomes larger as shown by the arrow R in FIG. 3, if the bottom surface of the support member 6d can easily slide against the circuit board 2, The force does not prevent the key top 6 from swinging.

In order to improve the slippage of the bottom surface of the support member 6d and to improve the swingability of the key top 6, a sliding member made of a material with a small coefficient of friction, indicated by reference numeral 8 in FIG. It is conceivable to install it by laying it in between.

Further, according to this embodiment, since the support member 6d is integrated with the arm member 6b, the provision of the support member 6d does not substantially increase the number of parts and does not cause an increase in manufacturing costs.

Note that in the above structure, the switch body 3 is not limited to the above-mentioned tact switch, but may also be a rubber contact switch shown by the reference numeral 9 in FIG. 5, for example, or other bush type switches. It is.

Furthermore, the structure of the bearing for supporting the shaft 6C of the key top 6 is not limited to the above-mentioned structure, for example, as shown in FIG.
The bearing is provided in the form of a book rod and protrudes from the sheathing bar 1, and as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to support the bearing by sandwiching C. By simplifying the structure of the bearing member in this way, the bearing member can be relatively easily molded and its dimensional accuracy can be reduced.

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the switch body is provided on a switch body mounted on a circuit board so as to be swingable in directions toward and away from the board, and the switch body is operated. In a key switch having a key top that
The key top is swingable about a shaft provided at the tip of an arm member protruding from the side thereof,
A support member is integrally provided at a distal end of the arm member and supports the shaft at a position away from the base plate by a distance approximately equal to a distance from the base plate of the key top body when the key top is not operated. Because the structure is easy and inexpensive to implement, flexibility in the layout of the switch body can be obtained, the click feeling when operating the key top can be freely set, and the key switch is incorporated. Excellent effects such as the ability to reduce the clearance between the key top body and the guide hole of the exterior cover that guides the key top body of the electronic device can be obtained.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side cross-sectional view of the vicinity of a key switch of an electronic device incorporating a key switch according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of the arrangement of the switch body in the same switch, and FIG.
The figure is an explanatory diagram of the force relationship around the pivot axis of the switch, Figure 4 is a side cross-sectional view of the area around the key switch of an embodiment with a sliding member, and Figure 5 is an embodiment using a rubber contact switch. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the structure of other bearing members, FIG. 7 is a side sectional view of the vicinity of the key switch according to an embodiment using the same bearing member, and FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of the vicinity of the key switch. FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the vicinity of a conventional key switch. 1...Exterior cover 2...Circuit board 3...Switch body 6...Key top 6a...Body
6b...Arm member 6c...Shaft 6d
...Supporting member 7.10...Bearing is member 8...Sliding member 9...Rubber contact switch key Small T,! Investigating the harm of T' in the darkness
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Claims (1)

[Claims] A key switch having a key top that is swingably provided on a switch body mounted on a circuit board in directions toward and away from the board and operates the switch body, wherein the key top is provided protruding from a side thereof. The arm member is provided so as to be swingable about a shaft provided at the tip of the arm member, and the tip of the arm member has a distance between the key top body and the substrate when the key top is not operated. A key switch characterized in that a support member is provided integrally with the arm member and is supported at a position apart from the substrate by a distance approximately equal to .