JPH0227154B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an operation display. Here, the operation display means various objects on which the operation position or input information is displayed, such as a switch board, a keyboard, an input device, a tablet input device, etc.

A push button switch is used in keyboards of small electronic computers, etc., which is an example of an operation display, and is made of a dome-shaped push button switch made of rubber elastic material with a contact member attached to the center of the back surface. Generally, symbols such as numbers and operation symbols are printed on the top of the key to indicate the role of the key. This code is printed by applying ink to the key top surface. However, in this type of conventional printing, printing is difficult if the key top surface of the push button switch is not flat. Furthermore, since the rubber is printed in an embossed manner on the key top surface, there are disadvantages in that the printed code is likely to peel off and the appearance of the push button switch board is impaired. Furthermore, silicone rubber, which has excellent durability, heat resistance, cold resistance, etc., has good colorability, and has characteristics such as less change in properties such as height and elasticity due to temperature changes, is used as a material for the rubber push button switch. However, if the rubber push button switch plate is made of silicone rubber, printing is difficult because the non-adhesive nature of the silicone rubber makes printing ink difficult to adhere to. Furthermore, since printing is performed on vulcanized silicone rubber, the printed undried ink tends to bleed into the surrounding area, making it difficult to maintain extremely fine lines. Therefore, a drastic solution has been desired for printing on an operation display body whose main body is made of silicone rubber.

The present invention has been proposed in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to provide an operation display body on which the above-mentioned code is well printed using silicone rubber or silicone type elastomer. be.

The object of the present invention is to provide an operation display body having a body made of silicone rubber or a silicone elastomer made of the silicone rubber and other synthetic rubber, the body having a smooth surface;
a pre-printed indicator layer embedded flush with the surface, the indicator layer having a vulcanization mechanism similar to that of the silicone rubber or a silicone-based elastomer made of the silicone rubber and another synthetic rubber. The body is a thin body preprinted with printing ink on a separate transfer material, and the body to which the thin body is integrated during molding is silicone rubber made of unvulcanized silicone rubber or the silicone rubber and other synthetic rubber. This is achieved by an operation display body characterized by being made of an elastomer.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. As mentioned above, the present invention can be used in various applications such as switch boards and keyboards, but the following will explain the case where the present invention is applied to a push button switch as an example.

In FIG. 1, which is a sectional view showing the configuration of a mold for explaining a push button switch, reference number 1
is a mold, which includes an upper mold 2, a middle mold 3 that functions as a female mold, a lower mold 4 that functions as a male mold, and an upper mold 2.
The transfer material 5 is inserted between the medium mold 3 and the transfer material 5. 2', 3', 4', and 5' are guide holes provided on both sides of the upper mold 2, middle mold 3, lower mold 4, and transfer plate 5, respectively, so that they overlap each other. It is provided. Reference numeral 6 denotes a guide pin, and the upper mold 2, middle mold 3, lower mold 4, and transfer plate 5 are connected to this guide pin 6 through their guide holes 2', 3', 4',
5' are fitted and stacked as shown in the figure. Also,
As shown in the figure, the middle mold 3 and the lower mold 4 have molds formed by recesses 7 and projections 8 for mutually molding a switch body. As shown in the figure, when the middle mold 3 and the lower mold 4 are stacked, the convex portion 8 faces the concave portion 7. Further, a portion of the transfer plate 5 held between the upper mold 2 and the middle mold 3 covers the upper part of the recessed part 7 of the lower mold 3, and is given the role of forming a smooth upper surface of the switch body.

The structure of the mold 1 is as described above. Next, a method for manufacturing a rubber push button switch according to the present invention using the mold 1 will be explained.

First, as shown in FIG. 2, a code 9 is printed embedded in a push button switch at a predetermined portion 5a of the transfer plate 5 exposed inside the mold from the recess 7 of the medium mold 3.
is applied in advance by screen printing with printing ink. Therefore, the attached code 9 is the transfer plate 5.
It stands out (protrudes) from above by the thickness of the wall.
In this case, the printing ink used is a mixture of a polyxyloxane polymer and a pigment for coloring. The transfer plate 5 on which the reference numeral 9 has been printed in advance as described above is held between the upper mold 2 and the middle mold 3 by overlapping them (FIG. 3), and this state is fixed by appropriate means. Next, silicone rubber 10 of a predetermined size, which will become the pigment of the push button switch, is placed on the convex portion 8 of the lower mold 4, and the upper mold 2, the transfer material 5, and the middle mold 3
are overlapped and fixed together, and then passed through the guide pin 6 and overlapped. Further, the superimposed molds 1 are heated and pressurized using a press machine shown in FIG.

In Fig. 4, 11 is a press machine;
2 is a guide post, 13 is a heating plate fixed to the upper part of the guide post 12, 14 is a heating plate movably attached below the guide post 12, and 15 is a pressure machine that moves the heating plate 14 up and down. If the mold 1 is mounted on the hot platen 14 of the press machine 11 as shown in the figure, and the hot platen 14 is raised by the pressure machine 15, the mold 1 is pressurized by the hot platen 13 and the hot platen 14. Heating takes place.

By pressurizing and heating the mold 1 as described above, the silicone rubber 10 is molded into the medium mold 3 as shown in FIG.
It is then molded into a rubber push button switch using pressure and heat in the lower mold 4. At the same time, the reference numeral 9 consisting of a thin body on the transfer plate 5 has a vulcanization mechanism similar to that of the silicone rubber 10, so the silicone rubber 10 is used as shown in the figure.
It is embedded inside and is vulcanized together with the silicone rubber that forms the body of the switch. Therefore, the printed layer (thin body) 9 and the silicone rubber 10 are integrated. Therefore, after vulcanization, if the mold 1 is removed and the transfer plate 5 is peeled off, the code 9 embedded in the key top surface of the push button switch 16 is vulcanized together with the silicone rubber 10, so the transfer plate 5 is removed. It is torn off from the body (Figure 6).

As described above, according to the present invention, a code made of polysiloxane having a vulcanization mechanism similar to that of the body is embedded in the display surface of the operation display body, and then the two are vulcanized and integrated, so that the code is printed on the transfer material. The code will be transferred to an operation display such as a key top. Therefore, it is possible to provide an excellent product in which the appearance of the operation display body is not impaired and the code does not peel off. Furthermore, the symbols can be attached regardless of the shape of the display surface. Further, since the symbols can be attached at the same time as the operation display body is formed, it is efficient and the operation is extremely easy.

Although the above embodiments have been explained using silicone rubber as an example, it goes without saying that the present invention can also be practiced with a silicone type elastomer which is a mixture of silicone rubber and synthetic rubber.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of a mold for forming a push button switch (rubber push button part) according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view of a transfer plate placed in the mold, Figure 3 is a sectional view showing the operation of the mold, Figure 4 is an overview diagram showing an example of a press machine, Figure 5 is a sectional view showing the state in which silicone rubber is pressed in the mold, and Figure 6 is a presser. It is a side sectional view showing an example of a button switch. In the figure, 1... Mold, 2... Upper die, 3... Middle die, 4... Lower die, 5... Transfer plate, 6... Guide pin, 9... Code, 1
0...Silicone rubber, 11...Press machine, 12...
Guide post, 13, 14...heat plate, 15...pressure machine, 16...push button switch.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An operation display body having a body made of silicone rubber or a silicone elastomer made of the silicone rubber and other synthetic rubber, including: the body having a smooth surface; and a body embedded flush with the surface. The display layer is a separate transfer material made of a printing ink having a vulcanization mechanism similar to that of the silicone rubber or a silicone elastomer made of the silicone rubber and another synthetic rubber. The thin body is preprinted on the thin body, and the body with which the thin body is integrated during molding is characterized by being made of unvulcanized silicone rubber or a silicone elastomer made of the silicone rubber and another synthetic rubber. Operation display body.