JPH05173679A - Keyboard device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve economy by making a key sheet, where dome parts corresponding to key tops are formed, common even if an array of the key tops is changed and reducing the cost of a metallic mold for the key sheet. CONSTITUTION:The common key sheet 2 which has the dome parts 5-8 corresponding to the key tops and a 1st noncommon key sheet 3 which has dome parts 4 corresponding to key tops differing in array are formed separably on one key sheet 1; and dome parts in a desired array are formed at the positions of the 1st noncommon key sheet 3 which is separated and a 2nd noncommon key sheet almost in the same contour shape with the 1st noncommon key sheet 3 is fitted. A V-shaped groove and a cut are formed along a tearing guide line so as to separate the common sheet 2 and 1st noncommon sheet 3, thereby facilitating the tearing operation. Thus, the metallic mold for key sheet molding is made common to reduce the facility cost. Further, the tearing efficiency is improved because of the V-shaped groove and.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a keyboard device used for an input device such as a calculator, and more particularly to a keyboard device having a key sheet for elastically supporting a key top so that it can move up and down.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A keyboard device having a key sheet that elastically supports a key top so that it can move up and down is used for an input device such as a calculator 22 shown in FIG. The calculator 22 has a keyboard surface 2 on which a plurality of key tops 400 and the like are arranged.
3, a display device 24, a printing device 25, and the like.
Predetermined numerical values, operators, etc. are input by pressing down the key top 400, etc., a prescribed arithmetic operation is performed by an arithmetic circuit (not shown) provided inside the calculator 22, and the result is displayed on the display 24. At the same time, the printing device 25 prints on the recording paper. FIG. 10 shows a detailed structure of a portion with which the key top 400 and the like are engaged. The key top 400 and the like are vertically movably mounted in the key top housing hole 27 of the case 26 forming the keyboard surface 23. The case 26 is supported on a printed circuit board 29 on which a circuit pattern 28 is formed, and the case 26 and the printed circuit board 2
The key sheet 1 made of a highly elastic material such as silicone rubber is sandwiched between the nine sheets. Key top 40 on the key sheet 1
The dome portion 4 is formed to project in correspondence with 0. Dome part 4
Is composed of a hollow protrusion as shown in the drawing, and is elastically deformable. Conductive rubber 30 is fixed to the dome portion 4,
The conductive rubber 30 is a circuit pattern 2 which serves as a pair of fixed contacts.
It is arranged at a position facing 8 and 28. Key top 4
When 00 is pushed down, the dome portion 4 is elastically deformed downward, the conductive rubber 30 hits the circuit pattern 28 and short-circuits the bridge, and key input is performed. By releasing the pressing down of the key top 400, the restoring force of the dome portion 4 acts and the key top 400 returns to the original position.

As shown in FIG. 11, on the keyboard surface 23, for example, key tops 4 representing numbers 0, 1, 2, 3 are displayed.
00, 500, 600, 700 and a key top 800 representing a decimal point are arranged, and + =,-=, x, ÷
Key tops, etc. representing the are arranged. Further, in FIG. 12, 0:00 key tops 900 and 1000 are arranged instead of the key top 400 of the number 0 in FIG. Comparing FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the key top 400 of FIG.
The other key tops 500, 600, 700, 800 ... Except for the key top 900, 1000 of 2, 00, have the same content and arrangement.

[0004]

As described above, the key sheet 1 is integrally formed with the dome portion 4 and the like corresponding to the key top 400 and the like. The key sheet 1 having the dome portion 4 and the like is usually manufactured by heat-vulcanizing and molding a rubber material such as silicone rubber in a mold by compression molding. Therefore, in the case of configuring the device of the key top arrangement shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, even if most of the key top arrangements are the same as described above, some of them are different, so that different molds are used. It is necessary to prepare and heat vulcanize and mold the key sheet. Although the mold for vulcanization molding is generally expensive, it was necessary to manufacture the corresponding mold as a whole whenever a part of the key top arrangement changed. Furthermore, the management cost increases because of the management and storage of many molds.

The present invention solves the above problems, and can be manufactured with the same mold even if the arrangement of the keyboard is slightly changed, and the manufacturing cost and the management cost are reduced to improve the economical efficiency. At the same time, it is an object of the present invention to provide a keyboard device in which a common key sheet and a non-common key sheet can be easily and accurately separated without special jigs and tools, and a desired non-common key sheet can be easily attached. ..

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has a keyboard having a key sheet having a protruding dome portion elastically supporting the key tops arranged on the keyboard surface so as to be vertically movable. In the device, a common key sheet having dome portions corresponding to key tops arranged in a fixed arrangement and a first non-common key sheet having dome portions corresponding to key tops having different arrangements are provided as a single key. A keyboard that is formed so as to be separable along a tearing guide line on a sheet, and that a second non-common key sheet having dome portions of a desired arrangement is attached to the position of the separated first non-common sheet. A keyboard device that constitutes the device and has a tearing guide wire for separating the first and second non-common key sheets into a shape that is easy to tear. Than it is.

[0007]

Out of the common key sheet and the non-common key sheet formed on one key sheet, the unnecessary first non-common key sheet is separated along the tear guide line. The tear guide wire has a notch and a V-groove wire, so that the tear guide wire is easily and accurately separated. A second non-common key sheet in which a desired dome portion is arranged is attached to a blank portion due to the separation of the first non-common key sheet. As described above, a single key sheet molding die can be used to form and use a non-common key sheet having a key top arrangement.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First Embodiment FIGS. 1 to 4 are drawings for explaining a first embodiment. FIG. 1 shows a key sheet 1 corresponding to the key top arrangement shown in FIG.
Only the dome portions 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 corresponding to 500, 600, 700, 800 are shown. Note that FIG.
12, the dome portions 9 and 10 corresponding to the key tops 900 and 1000 arranged in the same position as the key top 400 of FIG.
Are shown in FIG. That is, in the key sheet 1 of FIGS. 11 and 12, only the dome portion 4 and the dome portions 9 and 10 are different, and the other dome portions 5 and the like are the same. As shown in FIG. 3, the second non-common key sheet 11 in which the dome portions 9 and 10 are arranged is previously heat-vulcanized and molded by another mold. In this case, the positioning holes 12 and 13 are simultaneously through-molded.
The tearing guide wire 15 is substantially the same as the outer contour 14 of the second non-common key sheet 11 and is formed from a slightly larger contour line. The key sheet 1 is divided into a common key sheet 2 and a first non-common key sheet 3. That is, the dome portions 5, 6, 7, and 8 are formed on the common key sheet 2, and the dome portion 4 is formed on the first non-common key sheet 3. FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional formation of the tear guide wire 15, which is formed from a V-groove wire having a V-groove 16 inserted from below.
In the case of the keyboard device having the key tops in the arrangement shown in FIG. 11, the key sheet 1 as shown in FIG. 1 is applied as it is. That is, it is not necessary to separate the first non-common key sheet 3. On the other hand, for the keyboard device having the key tops arranged as shown in FIG. 12, first, the first non-common key sheet 3 shown in FIG. 1 is separated and cut along the tearing guide wire 15. Since the tear guide wire 15 is a V-groove wire, it can be easily and surely separated without a special jig or tool. Next, the positioning holes 12 and 13 of the second non-common key sheet 11 are fitted into the two positioning pins (not shown) which are provided in advance at predetermined positions of the case 26 shown in FIG. The non-common key sheet 11 is correctly positioned and fixed at a predetermined position. FIG. 4 shows the state. As described above, the key sheet 1a having the dome portion corresponding to the keyboard arrangement of FIG. 12 is arranged. In the case of this embodiment, the common key sheet 2 is used as it is even if the arrangement of the key tops is changed except that another second non-common key sheet 11 forming the dome portions 9 and 10 is prepared.

Second Embodiment FIG. 5 shows a key sheet 1 having a key top arrangement which is almost the same as that shown in FIG.
However, the shape of the tear guide wire 15a is different.
In the case of the present embodiment, the tear guide wire 15a is formed from a V groove wire having V grooves 17 and 18 from above and below as shown in FIG. 6, and the tear guide wire 15a and the key sheet 1 are formed.
A V-shaped notch 19 is formed at a portion intersecting with the outer periphery of b. When the first non-common key sheet 3 is separated by forming the notch 19, the tearing force concentrates on the tip of the notch 19 and is torn along the tearing guide line 15a, so that other unintended portions are torn. There is no sex. In addition, the V-grooves 17 and 18 from above and below form a constricted shape symmetrical with respect to the thickness direction of the key sheet,
Stable separation can be performed easily and quickly regardless of the direction in which force is applied during separation work. The key sheet 1c of FIG. 7 shows the same key top arrangement as the key sheet 1 shown in FIG. 1, and is different from the notch 19 of FIG. 5 at the intersection of the tear guide wire 15 and the outer periphery of the key sheet 1c. A cut 20 is shown. The notch 20 is formed by intersecting two circular arcs, and is intended to make the trigger for separation more reliable. The arcuate notch 20 can be easily formed by rotary cutting such as milling in the case of machining a die.

Third Embodiment FIG. 8 shows the common key sheet 2 and the first and second non-common key sheets 3 and 11 formed on a single key sheet 1d. A dome portion 4 is formed on the first non-common key sheet 3 which is partitioned from the common key sheet 2 by the tear guide wire 15. In addition, the second non-common key sheet 1 partitioned from the first non-common key sheet 3 by the tearing guide wire 15b.
1, dome portions 9 and 10 and positioning holes 12 and 13 are formed, respectively. Further, the tear guide wire 15b is formed with a notch 21 for facilitating the tear. Of course, in the case of the present embodiment, the V-grooves 16, 17, 18 and the notches 19, 20 shown in the above-mentioned embodiment may be formed. According to this embodiment, the key sheet 1d from which the second non-common key sheet 11 is removed by the tearing guide wire 15b may be used for the keyboard device of the key top arrangement shown in FIG. 11, and the keyboard shown in FIG. For the device, the first non-common key sheet 3 and the second non-common key sheet 11 are torn off by the guide wires 15, 15 respectively.
After separating by b, the second non-common key sheet 11 can be dealt with by positioning and fixing the second non-common key sheet 11 at a predetermined position adjacent to the common key sheet 2. In the present embodiment, unlike the case of the previous embodiment, the second non-common key sheet 1 is previously prepared.
It is not necessary to create 1 with a separate mold, and only a single mold for a single key sheet 1d can be used. As described above, the manufacturing cost can be further reduced.

In the above embodiment, the case where the arrangement of the key tops is different at only one place has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the feature of the present invention resides in that the non-common portion is formed in a separated structure, and the one having a dome portion matching the arrangement of the key tops is arranged at a predetermined position. Also,
The shapes of the V-grooves and the notches are not limited to those in the above embodiment.

[0013]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the common key sheet and the non-common key sheet are formed on one key sheet so as to be separable along the tearing guide line, and the necessary non-common key sheet is formed. The sheets are arranged in combination corresponding to the arrangement of the key tops, which can greatly reduce the manufacturing cost of the mold. Further, the management of the mold can be facilitated. Further, by forming the tear guide wire in a shape having a V-groove and a notch that are easy to tear, smooth and reliable tear can be performed. Further, by forming the positioning hole in the non-common key sheet for replacement, the non-common key sheet can be attached accurately and quickly.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a key sheet according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a second non-common key sheet attached to the key sheet of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a state in which a second non-common key sheet of FIG. 1 is positioned and arranged at a position where the first non-common key sheet is separated and removed.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a key sheet for showing another embodiment of the tear guide wire.

6 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a key sheet for showing another embodiment of the tear guide wire.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of a key sheet according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the overall structure of a calculator to which this embodiment is applied.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing a detailed structure of a key top and a dome portion that abuts and engages with the key top.

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing a keyboard surface having a key top arrangement to which this embodiment is applied.

FIG. 12 is a plan view showing a keyboard surface having a key top arrangement to which this embodiment is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 key sheet 1a key sheet 1b key sheet 1c key sheet 1d key sheet 2 common key sheet 3 first non-common key sheet 4 dome portion 5 dome portion 6 dome portion 7 dome portion 8 dome portion 9 dome portion 10 dome portion 11th 2 non-common key sheet 12 positioning hole 13 positioning hole 14 outer contour 15 tearing guide wire 15a tearing guide wire 15b tearing guide wire 16 V groove 17 V groove 18 V groove 19 notch 20 notch 21 notch 400 key top 500 key top 600 key Top 700 Key Top 800 Key Top 900 Key Top 1000 Key Top

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A keyboard device having a key sheet formed by projecting a dome portion for elastically supporting vertically movable key tops arranged on a keyboard surface, the dome portion corresponding to the key tops arranged in a fixed arrangement. And a first non-common key sheet having dome portions corresponding to key tops having different arrangements are formed on one key sheet so as to be separable along the tearing guide line and separated. A keyboard device, wherein a second non-common key sheet having dome portions in a desired arrangement is attached to the position of the first non-common sheet formed. 2. The tear guide wire for separating the first and / or the second non-common key sheet comprises a V-groove wire formed on an upper surface and / or a lower surface of the key sheet. Keyboard device. 3. The keyboard device according to claim 1, wherein a notch is formed at a portion where the tearing guide wire and an outer periphery of the key sheet intersect.