JPH0638358U - Thin keyboard - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Purpose] To reduce the thickness. [Structure] A metal plate flange 31 is integrally formed in a resin key top 21. A hinge part 33 is integrally extended from a part of the collar 31, and each hinge part 33 is integrally connected to a connecting part 34 parallel to the arrangement of the plurality of key tops.

Description

[Detailed description of the device]

[0001]

[Industrial applications]

 The present invention is applied to, for example, a keyboard of a small mobile phone, and particularly relates to a thin keyboard.

[0002]

[Prior art]

 FIG. 2 shows a conventional thin keyboard. A is an exploded perspective view of a part thereof, and B is an enlarged cross-sectional view of one switch portion. A membrane switch 12 is provided on the reinforcing plate 11, a spacer 13 is arranged on the membrane switch 12, and a circular opening 16 is formed in the spacer 13 at the contact points 14 and 15 of the membrane switch 12. The click plate 17 is arranged inside. A panel plate 18 is provided so as to face the spacer 13 with a space therebetween, a hole 19 is formed in the panel plate 18, and a key top 21 is arranged in the hole 19 so that the key top 21 can enter and exit. The key top 21 is held in contact with the inner surface of the panel plate 18 so as not to come out. Further, one end of a hinge portion 23 is integrally connected to the collar 22, and the other end of each hinge portion 23 is integrally connected to a connecting portion 24 arranged in parallel with the arrangement of the plurality of keytops 21.

When the key top 21 is pushed in, the click plate 17 is inverted, the movable contact 15 of the membrane switch 12 is pressed against the fixed contact 14, and the switch is turned on. When the pushing force is released, the click plate 17 returns to its original shape, and the key plate 21 returns to its original position by the click plate 17 so that the key top 21 does not come out of the collar 22. .

[0004]

[Problems to be solved by the device]

 In the conventional thin keyboard, the key top 21, the collar 22, the hinge portion 23, and the connecting portion 24 are integrally formed as a molded product of a synthetic resin material. For this reason, there is a limit to how thin the collar 22 can be made because it is necessary to pour the molten resin at the time of molding, and it is very difficult to reduce the thickness to less than 0.5 mm in the past. It was

Further, when a plurality of key tops 21 are connected by the connecting portion 24, the assembling work is easy, but there is a limit to reducing the thickness of the hinge portion 23 as in the above reason. , Was relatively thick. For this reason, when the key top is pressed, the force for bending the hinge portion 23 in addition to the force for reversing the click plate 17 becomes relatively large, resulting in poor operability and poor operation feeling. It was Moreover, the hinge portion 23 may be fatigued and remain deformed due to repeated use.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 According to the invention of claim 1, the key top is made of a synthetic resin molded product, the collar is made of a metal plate, and the support portion integrated with the metal plate is embedded in the key top, and the collar is the key top. Held in. According to the invention of claim 2, one end of the hinge portion is integrally connected to the brim of the metal plate, and the other ends of the hinge portions of the plurality of key tops are integrally connected to each other by the connecting portion.

[0007]

【Example】

 FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the invention of claim 2, and parts corresponding to those in FIG. In this invention, a metal plate is used as the flange 31 of the key top 21 made of a synthetic resin material, and a support portion 32 is integrally extended inside the inner peripheral edge of the metal plate. The collar 31 is held in the key top 21 by being embedded therein. Further, one end of the hinge portion 33 is integrally connected to a part of the outer peripheral edge of the collar 31, and the other end of the hinge portion 33 is integrally connected to the connecting portion 34. The connecting portion 34 is parallel to the array of the plurality of keytops 21, and the hinge portion of each keytop is connected to the connecting portion 34. In this example, in the vicinity of the connecting portion 34, the hinge portion 33 is bent in a semicircular shape having an axis parallel to the connecting portion 34 to form a fulcrum portion 33a, and the fulcrum portion 33a is almost in contact with the spacer 13, The other portion of the hinge portion 33 and the connecting portion 34 are in contact with the inner surface of the panel plate 18. The plurality of flanges 31, the plurality of supporting portions 32, the plurality of hinge portions 33, and the connecting portions 34 are integrally formed by pressing one metal plate. The press-processed product is positioned and arranged in the molding die, and a resin material is molded on each support portion 32 to integrally mold the key tops 21.

In this configuration, when the key top 21 is pushed down, the hinge portion is tilted toward the reinforcing plate 11 with the contact point of the fulcrum portion 33a with the spacer 13 as a fulcrum, and the click plate on the inner surface of the key top 21. 17 is inverted and contacts 14 and 15 contact each other. When the force on the key top is removed from that state, the click plate 17 is restored, the key top 21 is pushed up, and the flange 31 comes into contact with the inner surface of the panel plate 18. As the metal plate forming the collar 31, a stainless plate, a spring phosphor bronze plate, or the like is used.

The fulcrum portion 33 a may be omitted, the hinge portion 33 may be formed in a flat plate shape, and an appropriate spacing piece may be provided between the hinge portion and the spacer 13. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, if the hinge portion 33 and the connecting portion 34 are omitted, the embodiment of the invention of claim 1 is obtained.

[0010]

[Effect of device]

 As described above, according to this invention, since the brim of the key top is made of the metal plate, it is possible to reduce the thickness thereof to 0.1 mm or less. Considering that the overall thickness of the switch is, for example, about 2 mm, it is possible to reduce the thickness of the collar by 0.4 mm or more compared with the conventional one. It can be made very thin, which is very effective.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the plurality of key tops are connected by the hinge portion and the connecting portion, the assembling is easy, and the hinge portion can be made very thin, and the key top is depressed. In doing so, a slight amount of force needs to be applied to the force required to invert the click plate, and the operability and feel almost the same as those without the hinge portion can be obtained. Further, the durability of the hinge portion can be made higher than that of the conventional one.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1A is an exploded perspective view showing a part of an embodiment of the invention of claim 2, and B is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line YY of A.

2A is an exploded perspective view showing a part of a conventional keyboard, and FIG. 2B is an enlarged XX line sectional view of A. FIG.

Claims (2)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A key top is arranged in a hole in a panel plate so that the key top can freely move in and out, and when the key top is pushed inward, a click plate is inverted to turn on a membrane switch, and the key top is covered by the brim of the key top. In the thin keyboard in which the key board is prevented from slipping out of the panel plate, the key top is made of a synthetic resin material molded product, the collar is made of a metal plate, and the support portion integral with the metal plate is the key. A thin keyboard, wherein the brim is embedded in the top and the brim is held by the key top. 2. The hinge according to claim 1, wherein one end of the hinge portion is integrally connected to the collar, and the other ends of the hinge portions of the plurality of key tops are integrally connected to each other by the connecting portion. Thin keyboard.