JPH08287776A - Control switch - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To prevent such malfunction that the current conduction state of a switching mechanism is switched to an undesirable-state when an operation lever is unconsciously slightly pushed down during swing or turning operation without obstructing making small and thin, ease of operation, and switching feeling. CONSTITUTION: A control switch in which a different kind of signal is outputted by swing or turning an operation lever 42, and a current conduction state of a switching mechanism 5 is switched by pushing down the operation lever 42 is arranged. A turning over plate pushing down member 51 of a switching mechanism 5 is formed with an elastic material which elastically deforms by pushing force smaller than pushing down force necessary to start turning over operation of a turning over plate 52. As the elastic material, rubber or elastomer can be used.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a control switch capable of setting different energization states by swinging or turning an operating lever.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a control switch used for a pointer of a navigation system and a remote controller of various electronic devices which are often mounted on automobiles recently, a position of a point moved on a monitor is set. As a control switch capable of performing such an operation, there is one described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 6-43975 proposed by the applicant of the present application.

This control switch is shown in cross section in FIG. In the control switch shown in the figure, on the base 100 on which the common terminal 101 and the terminal pattern 102 corresponding to the common terminal 101 are arranged,
A movable body 104 having a contact piece member (not shown) that straddles the common terminal 101 and the terminal pattern 102 is provided so as to be slidable in all directions. And this movable body 104
Mechanism 110 for sliding the camera in all directions
Is provided with a sphere 111 and an operating lever 112 protruding from the sphere 111. In addition, the operating mechanism 11 is attached to the cylindrical holder 105 provided in the center of the base 100.
0 sphere 111 is held rotatably and displaceably in the axial direction of the holder 105 (vertical direction in FIG. 5), and at a position of the holder 105 facing the sphere 111,
The reversing plate 121 of the switch mechanism 120 that is switched between the energized states by the reversing operation of the reversing plate 121 is provided, and the reversing plate pressing member 130 is interposed between the reversing plate 121 and the sphere 111. With this configuration, the sphere 111 is moved to the holding body 10 by operating the operation lever 112.
It is possible to push the reversal plate 121 in the direction of approaching the reversal plate 121 in the axial direction of 5 (downward in FIG. 5), and push the reversal plate 121 by the sphere 111 to invert it. The movable body 104 is constantly urged toward the neutral position by the force of the plurality of springs 141, and the operating mechanism 110 is driven by the force of the spring 142.
It is always urged in a direction away from 21 (upward).

In such a control switch, the spherical body 111 and the operating lever 112 of the operating mechanism 110 are made of metal. On the other hand, in the conventional control switch, the reversal plate pressing member 130 is formed of a hard synthetic resin (for example, PPS resin) molded body having no elasticity.

[0005]

By the way, in the control switch described in FIG. 5, there is a demand for downsizing and thinning of the control switch. In addition, it is necessary to invert the operability of the operating lever 112 and the reversing plate 121 of the switch mechanism 120. There is a demand for maintaining a good feel when making it. In order to meet these requirements, conventionally, the facing distance L between the reversing plate pressing member 130 and the sphere 111 of the operating mechanism 110 is extremely narrowed, or in some cases, the sphere 111 of the operating mechanism 110.
Further, the reversal plate pressing member 130 is always in contact. Also, the reversing stroke of the reversing plate 121 when the energization state is switched by reversing the reversing plate 121 is set to be extremely small.

On the other hand, in the control switch, when the operation lever 112 is swung or turned, the operation lever 112 may be unintentionally pushed. However, as described above, in the conventional control switch, the spherical body 111 and the operation lever 112 of the operation mechanism 110 are made of metal, and moreover, the reversal plate pressing member 1 is used.
Since the hard synthetic resin molded body is used for 30, the sphere 111 pushed together with the operating lever 112 pushes down the reversing plate pushing member 130 even if the operating lever 112 is pushed a little, and as a result, the reversing plate pushing down is performed. In some cases, the reversal plate 121 was pushed and reversed by the member 130 and the energized state was inadvertently switched.

The present invention has been made under the above circumstances. That is, the present invention ensures that the size and thickness of the control lever are comparable to the conventional control switch in terms of the operability of the operating lever and the touch when reversing the reversing plate of the switch mechanism. Even if the operation lever can be swung or swung, even if it is unintentionally pushed in a little while the operation lever is swung or swung, such a pushing operation of the operation lever is well absorbed by the deformation of the reversing plate pressing member. It is an object of the present invention to provide a control switch that is less likely to cause a malfunction such that the energized state of the switch mechanism is inadvertently switched by taking such measures.

[0008]

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control switch, wherein a common terminal and a terminal pattern corresponding to the common terminal are arranged on a base on which the common terminal and the terminal pattern extend. A movable body provided with a contact piece member is provided so as to be slidable in all directions, and an operation mechanism for sliding the movable body in all directions includes a sphere and an operation lever projected from the sphere, and A sphere of the operating mechanism is rotatably and displaceably held in the axial direction of the holder on a cylindrical holder provided in the center, and a reversal plate of the reversal plate is provided at a position of the holder facing the sphere. The reversing plate of the switch mechanism that switches the energized state by the reversing operation is provided, and between the reversing plate and the sphere, the sphere approaches the reversing plate in the axial direction of the holding body. In a control switch in which a reversing plate pressing member that is pressed by the sphere when pressed down and presses the reversing plate to reverse the reversing plate is arranged, the reversing plate pressing member starts the reversing operation of the reversing plate. It is made of an elastic material that is elastically deformed by a pressing force smaller than the pressing force required for the above.

In such a control switch, as in the second aspect of the present invention, the reversing plate pressing member is provided with a small-diameter protrusion, and the tip end surface of the protrusion is in contact with the center of the reversing plate. It is desirable to adopt this configuration.

As the elastic material forming the reversing plate pressing member, rubber or elastomer can be used as in the invention according to claim 3.

Further, as in the invention according to claim 4, it is desirable that the spherical body of the operating mechanism is made of a material harder than the reversing plate pressing member.

[0012]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the operation lever is swung or swung, it is unintentionally pushed in a little and the sphere presses the reversal plate pressing member accordingly. Even if the reversing plate pressing member hits the reversing plate, even if the reversing plate pressing member is in contact with the reversing plate, the pressing force of the sphere against the reversing plate is less than the pressing force required to start the reversing operation. Since the displacement due to the pushing operation of the sphere is absorbed (displacement absorbing action) by the elastic deformation of the reversal plate pressing member, it is possible to prevent the reversal plate from reversing and switching the energization state of the switch mechanism.

When the operating lever is consciously pushed in, the pressing force of the sphere against the reversing plate pressing member exceeds the pressing force required to start the reversing operation of the reversing plate. The pressing force of the sphere is applied to the reversing plate via the reversing plate pressing member, and the reversing plate is reversed to switch the energized state of the switch mechanism.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the small-diameter projection provided on the reversing plate pressing member is in contact with the reversing plate,
Moreover, since the projections are more elastic than the other parts of the reversing plate pressing member, when the pressing force of the sphere is applied to the reversing plate pressing member, the projections are easily elastically deformed to exhibit the above-described displacement absorbing action. It is easy to be done. Nevertheless, since the protrusion is in contact with the center of the reversing plate, when the operation lever is consciously pushed in, the pressing force of the sphere is efficiently transmitted to the reversing plate via the reversing plate pressing member and the reversing plate is reversed. The reversal operation of the plate is surely performed.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the feeling when the reversing plate is reversed is transmitted to the sphere and the operating lever via the reversing plate pressing member. In addition, the service life of the reversal plate pressing member is extended.

According to the invention of claim 4, the pushing force when the operating lever is consciously pushed is efficiently transmitted to the reversing plate pushing member via the spherical body.

[0017]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a control switch according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIGS. 2 and 3 are enlarged sectional views of the essential parts thereof, and FIG. 4 is a schematic external view of the control switch.

In this control switch, the bottom wall of the box-shaped body 1 is a rectangular base 2, and the side walls 11 of the box-shaped body 1 are integrally raised on each of the four sides of the base 2.

A square tubular (or cylindrical) holder 3 is integrally erected at the center of the base 2.
An annular projection 31 is provided in the vicinity of the upper end of the holding body 3, and the lower surface of the annular projection 31 is a spherical surface 32 that is smoothly continuous with the hole wall surface of the through hole 31.

Reference numeral 4 denotes an operating mechanism. The operating mechanism 4 is held inside the holding body 3 so as to be slidably displaced in the axial direction of the holding body 3 within a certain short range and above the holding body 3. And a control lever 42 projecting from the sphere 41 toward the front, and the control lever 42 projects above the box-shaped body 1 as can be seen in FIG. The operating mechanism 4 is a rigid body made of metal. The diameter of the spherical body 41 is larger than the inner diameter of the annular protrusion 31 of the holding body 3, and the spherical body 4
1 is provided with a downward protruding portion 43 and a recessed spring seat 44 around the downward protruding portion 43, and a laterally provided protrusion 45 has a slit-like shape formed in the holding body 3 and extending in the axial direction. It is fitted in the engaging hole portion 33 so as to be slidable only in the axial direction. With this configuration, the spherical body 41 of the operation mechanism 4 can slide in the axial direction of the holding body 3, but cannot rotate in the circumferential direction of the holding body 3.

The switch mechanism 5 is fitted and held in a recess 21 formed in the center of the base 2. Switch mechanism 5
Is a key switch, and a reversing plate pressing member 51 as an actuator facing the inside of the holding body 3 in a protruding state is constantly biased in the protruding direction by a spring force of a dome-shaped reversing plate 52 also serving as a contact. Has been done. Then, the housing 53 of the switch mechanism 5 and the spring seat 44 of the spherical body 41.
A compression coil spring 6 is interposed between the spherical body 4 and the spherical body 32 of the ring-shaped projection 31 by the force of the compression coil spring 6 so that the surface of the spherical body 41 is slidably pressed.
1 is locked to the annular protrusion 31. In the switch mechanism 5, when the reversing plate pressing member 51 is pressed with a force of a certain level or more, the reversing plate 52 is reversed by the force and enters the on state (see FIG. 3), and the pressing force of the reversing plate pressing member 51 is released. Alternatively, or when the pushing force of the reversing plate pressing member 51 becomes smaller than a certain magnitude, the reversing plate 52 returns to the original dome shape and becomes the cut state (see FIG. 2).

Reference numeral 7 is a movable body. The movable body 7 is formed in a box shape and is constantly urged toward the center position (neutral position) of the base 2 by the force of the plurality of compression coil springs 71. A common terminal and a terminal pattern corresponding to the common terminal are arranged on the surface of the base 2, and a contact piece member (not shown) extending over the common terminal is provided on the movable body 7.

Here, the reversing plate pressing member 51 is made of an elastic material which is elastically deformed by a pressing force smaller than the pressing force required to start the reversing operation of the reversing plate 52. Further, a small-diameter projection 54 is integrally provided at the center of the lower surface of the reversing plate pressing member 51, and the tip end surface of this projection 54 is in contact with the center of the reversing plate 52.

As the elastic material forming the reversal plate pressing member 51, for example, rubber having excellent abrasion resistance and slipperiness such as silicon rubber can be preferably adopted, and has elasticity similar to rubber. An elastomer, which is a material, can be preferably used. In this embodiment, since the reversing plate pressing member 51 is made of such an elastic material, the metallic sphere 41 of the operating mechanism 4 is made of a material that is significantly harder than the reversing plate pressing member 51. It will be.

Switching by the control switch having the above configuration is performed as follows, for example. Movable body 7
Is set to the neutral position on the base 2 shown in FIG. 1, the contact piece member provided on the movable body 7 straddles the electrically insulating portion of the common terminal and the electrically insulating portion of the terminal pattern, The terminal pattern, which is the opposite of the terminal pattern, is electrically disconnected from the terminal pattern.

When the operating lever 42 is swung and the movable body 7 is slid in the direction away from the neutral position, the common terminal and the terminal pattern are electrically connected by the contact piece member which extends between them, and the common terminal and the terminal pattern are electrically connected to each other. Signal is output. Therefore, by utilizing such a principle, it is possible to distinguish and output the energized state corresponding to the X-axis direction and the energized state corresponding to the Y-axis direction. The same applies when the operation lever 42 is turned.

Further, the operation lever 42 is pushed in and the sphere 4 is pressed.
1 is pushed down inside the holder 3, the reversal plate pressing member 5
1 is pushed down by the projecting portion 43 of the sphere 41, and the reversing plate 52 is pushed and reversed by the reversing plate pushing member 51, and the energized state of the switch mechanism 5 is switched from the off state to the on state. When the pushing force of the operating lever 42 is released, the reversing plate 52 returns to the original dome shape due to its own property, and the energized state of the switch mechanism 5 is switched from the on state to the off state.

By the way, although the operation lever 42 may be slightly pushed unintentionally during the swinging or turning operation, the reversing plate pressing member 51 is used to start the reversing operation of the reversing plate 52. Since it is made of an elastic material that is elastically deformed by a pressing force smaller than the required pressing force, when the operating lever 42 is unintentionally pressed and the projecting portion 43 of the spherical body 41 presses the reversal plate pressing member 51, Before the reversing plate 52 starts reversing, the reversing plate pressing member 51 elastically deforms to absorb the displacement of the protrusion 43 of the spherical body 41 to some extent. That is, even if the magnitude of the pressing force of the protrusion 43 of the sphere 41 against the reversing plate pressing member 51 is less than the pushing force required to start the reversing operation of the reversing plate 52, even if the pressing force of FIG. Even if the reversal plate pressing member 51 hits and presses the reversal plate 52 as described above, the displacement due to the pressing operation of the protrusion 43 of the spherical body 41 is absorbed (displacement absorbing action) by the elastic deformation of the reversal plate pressing member 51. Therefore, it does not occur that the reversing plate 52 is reversed and the energization state of the switch mechanism 5 is switched. In this way, the function of preventing the energization of the switch mechanism 5 from being accidentally switched is reliably exhibited by providing the reversing plate pressing member 51 with the small-diameter projection 54 that is easily elastically deformed.

On the other hand, when the operation lever 42 is consciously pushed in, the sphere 4 with respect to the reversing plate pushing member 51 is pushed.
Since the magnitude of the pressing force by the protruding portion 52 of No. 1 exceeds the magnitude of the pushing force required for the reversing plate 52 to start the reversing operation, the pressing force by the sphere is applied to the reversing plate via the reversing plate pressing member. In addition, the reversing plate 52 is reversed and the energization state of the switch mechanism is switched. In this case, even if the small-diameter projection 54 provided on the reversing plate pressing member 51 hits the reversing plate 52, the projection 54 is in contact with the central portion of the reversing plate 52, so that The pressing force of the projecting portion 43 is efficiently transmitted to the reversing plate 52 via the reversing plate pressing member 51, so that the reversing operation of the reversing plate 52 is reliably performed. In addition, the feeling when the reversing plate 52 is reversed is transmitted to the sphere 41 and the operating lever 42 via the reversing plate pressing member 51.

[0030]

According to the control switch of the first aspect of the present invention, even if the operating lever is slightly pushed unintentionally during the swinging or turning motion, the displacement of the sphere due to the pushing is not reversed. Is absorbed by the elastic deformation of the switch mechanism, and thus the accidental malfunction of the switch mechanism, in which the reversing plate is reversed and the energization state of the switch mechanism is switched, is prevented. Nevertheless, since the reversing plate pressing member and the operating mechanism can be made to have the same shapes as those of the conventional one, the control switch can be made smaller and thinner, and the operation lever can be made smaller. It is possible to ensure that the controllability and the feel when reversing the reversing plate of the switch mechanism are comparable to those of the conventional control switch.

According to the control switch of the second aspect of the present invention, the small-diameter projection provided on the reversing plate pressing member is more likely to be elastically deformed than other parts, so that the above-mentioned accidental malfunction of the switch mechanism is caused. In addition to being able to prevent it more reliably, there is an advantage that the reversing action of the reversing plate is surely performed when the operation lever is consciously pushed in because the projection is in contact with the center of the reversing plate. .

According to the third aspect of the invention, the feeling when the reversing plate is reversed is improved, the service life of the reversing plate pressing member is extended, and the durability of the control switch is improved. .

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, there is an advantage that the pushing force when the operating lever is pushed intentionally is efficiently transmitted to the reversing plate pushing member via the spherical body.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a control switch according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of FIG. 1 in a state where a reversal plate is not reversed.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part when the reversal plate is reversed.

FIG. 4 is an external view of a control switch.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a conventional control switch.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 base 3 holder 4 operation mechanism 5 switch mechanism 7 movable body 41 sphere 42 operation lever 51 reversal plate pressing member 52 reversal plate 54 protrusion

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A movable body provided with a contact member extending over the common terminal and the terminal pattern on a base on which a common terminal and a terminal pattern corresponding to the common terminal are arranged so as to be slidable in all directions. An operating mechanism for sliding the movable body in all directions includes a sphere and an operating lever projecting from the sphere, and the operating mechanism is provided on a cylindrical holder provided in the center of the base. The sphere is held rotatably and displaceably in the axial direction of the holder, and at the location of the holder facing the sphere, the reversing plate of the switch mechanism for switching the energized state by the reversing operation of the reversing plate is provided. It is provided between the reversing plate and the sphere, and when the sphere is pushed down in the axial direction of the holding body in a direction approaching the reversing plate, it is pushed by the sphere and pushes the reversing plate. In a control switch in which a reversing plate pressing member for reversing a rolling plate is arranged, the reversing plate pressing member is made of an elastic material that is elastically deformed by a pressing force smaller than a pressing force required to start the reversing operation of the reversing plate. A control switch characterized by being configured. 2. The control switch according to claim 1, wherein a protrusion having a small diameter is provided on the reversing plate pressing member, and a tip end surface of the protrusion abuts on a central portion of the reversing plate. 3. The control switch according to claim 1, wherein the elastic material forming the reversal plate pressing member is rubber or elastomer. 4. The control switch according to claim 1, wherein the sphere of the operating mechanism is made of a material harder than that of the reversing plate pressing member.