JPH0853009A - Vanity mirror - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To miniaturize a switch in an illumination part provided on a vanity mirror to be lit as a cover is opened and closed, while reducing a switch operating force and providing a high reliability switch hardly to meet any trouble. CONSTITUTION:One of a pair of flat plate-like conductive pieces connected electrically respectively to an illumination part provided on a mirror body 21 is constituted as a fixed contact piece 40 having a pierced part and the other is constituted as a tongue-like movable contact piece 41 so that the movable contact piece 41 is constituted to touch the fixed contact piece 40 with its elastic force. Thus, a space occupied by both contact pieces 40, 41 is reduced and the durability of the movable contact piece 40 is improved. Also, a cam part 44 provided on a cover 32 is inserted through a pierced part in the fixed contact piece 40 and abuts against the tip of the movable contact piece 41, so that the elastic force of the movable contact piece 41 may exert less affect on the opening and closing operation of the cover 32.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

This invention relates to vanity mirrors,
In particular, it relates to a vanity mirror having an openable and closable cover for protecting the mirror surface and configured to illuminate when the cover is opened.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in automobiles, there is a sun visor provided in a driver's seat or a passenger seat with a vanity mirror. In such a vanity mirror, a structure is provided so that the surface of the mirror is not always exposed and a cover is provided so as to be openable and closable in order to protect the mirror surface. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a conventional vanity mirror, in which a vanity mirror 2 is provided on an inner surface of a sun visor 1 provided in an automobile, that is, a surface facing a passenger when the sun visor is rotated downward. Has been.

In this vanity mirror, the illumination unit is integrally provided, and the mirror body 2 formed by resin molding is used.
A horizontally long rectangular mirror 25 is held on one side of the mirror 1, and an illumination unit 26 is provided on the other side adjacent to the mirror 25. A cover 32 is rotatably supported on the upper end portion of the mirror body 21 by a bearing portion 50, and an occupant can manually open and close the cover 32 to open and close it. The illumination section 26 is exposed, and at the same time, the illumination section 26 is turned on so that an occupant can use the mirror. The cover 32 is made of resin, and in some cases, its surface is made of the same material as the surface of the sun visor 1.

In such a vanity mirror, the cover 3
When the switch 2 is opened, the switch of the illuminating unit 26 is operated to supply power to the illuminating unit 26. As a configuration for this, a limit switch is provided in a part of the mirror body, although not shown. The switch knob is turned on and off in conjunction with the opening and closing operation of the cover 32. For example, the limit switch is provided on a part of the front surface of the mirror body, and when the cover 32 is closed, the inner surface of the cover pushes the knob of the limit switch to turn off the switch.

In the vanity mirror having such a structure, a limit switch is required as an individual component in addition to the illumination unit, so that there is a problem that the number of constituent components is increased. Further, in the case where the limit switch is arranged in front of the mirror body as described above, the limit switch is exposed when the cover is opened, so that there is a problem that the appearance is deteriorated. In this case, when attempting to place the limit switch in a location that is not exposed, it is required to place it near the shaft support of the cover.
Since the bearing structure is arranged in the shaft support portion and the space is small, it is difficult to secure the arrangement space.

For this reason, the applicant of the present invention previously found that
As described in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 53611, a switch is proposed that uses a leaf spring. As shown in FIG. 10, this switch is composed of a contact piece composed of a pair of strip-shaped leaf springs 50 and 51, and one of the contact pieces 50 is bent into a U-shape to generate an elastic force. The contact piece 50 is generated, and the one contact piece 50 is brought into contact with the other contact piece 51 by utilizing this elastic force to perform electrical conduction. The one contact piece 50 is elastically deformed by the projection 52 provided on a part of the cover 32 to turn on the switch.
It is configured to turn off.

With this switch structure, the limit switch is not required, and the switch can be composed of the leaf springs 50 and 51. Therefore, the space for arranging the switch in the vanity mirror can be reduced, and the switch can be housed inside the mirror body. It is possible to improve the appearance.

[0008]

However, in the case of this construction, one of the contact pieces 50 bent to obtain the elastic force is used.
A space for accommodating the switch is required by the bending dimension (curvature radius) of the above, which is an obstacle to miniaturization of the switch and the vanity mirror. Further, since the protrusion 52 provided on the cover 32 elastically deforms the contact piece 50 while first contacting the bending side portion of the contact piece 50 during the opening operation, when the repulsive force at that time begins to open the cover 32. And becomes a hindrance when trying to open / close the cover 32 with a light force. Further, since each of the contact pieces 50, 51 is formed by a thin strip-shaped leaf spring, there is a problem that the contact piece 50 is easily fatigued due to repeated use and is likely to cause a failure.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a vanity mirror having a highly reliable switch which is capable of reducing the size of the switch, reducing the switch operating force, and being hard to cause a failure.

[0010]

A vanity mirror of the present invention is a vanity mirror having a structure in which a power switch of an illumination unit provided on a mirror body is turned on and off in conjunction with opening and closing of a cover. A pair of flat plate-shaped conductive pieces that are electrically connected to the lighting section are supported in a state of being opposed to each other with a minute interval, and one conductive piece is partially supported by a fixed penetrating portion, and is fixedly supported as a fixed contact piece. The other conductive piece is formed in the shape of a tongue and is supported as a movable contact piece so that it can contact the fixed contact piece by its own elastic force. Further, the cover is integrally provided with a cam portion which is arranged so as to pass through the penetrating portion of the fixed contact piece and which is brought into contact with the tip end portion of the movable contact piece at the turning position where the cover is closed. The portion biases the movable contact piece against the elastic force in a direction to separate it from the contact state with the fixed contact piece.

[0011]

The fixed contact piece and the movable contact piece are arranged so as to face each other, and the tongue-shaped movable contact piece is elastically brought into contact with the fixed contact piece having the penetrating portion so that both contact pieces are occupied. The space can be reduced, the switch can be downsized, and especially the durability of the movable contact piece can be improved to improve the reliability. Further, since the cam portion of the cover is brought into contact with the tip end portion of the movable contact piece, the elastic force of the movable contact piece less affects the opening and closing of the cover.

[0012]

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a partially exploded perspective view of an embodiment of a vanity mirror of the present invention. A sectional structure of the vanity mirror assembled to a sun visor is shown in FIG. 2 and a rear view thereof is shown in FIG. The external appearance of the assembled state is shown in FIG.
It is almost the same as that of. In FIG. 2, a rectangular shallow recess 1a capable of accommodating a vanity mirror is provided on the inner surface of the sun visor 1, and the vanity mirror 2 is provided inside the recess 1a and a lance 2 provided on the vanity mirror 2 is provided.
It is fixed to the sun visor by a. The sun visor 1 is formed by covering a core 11 made of resin with a cushion material 12 and covering the outside with a sheet material 13. The core 11 is fitted with the lance 2a.

The vanity mirror 2 is mainly composed of a resin-molded mirror body 21 as shown in FIG. 1, and an annular groove 22 is formed in the mirror body 21 along the outer periphery thereof. In the inner area, a horizontally long rectangular window 23 and a small rectangular window 24 are arranged side by side. On the back side of the large rectangular window 23, a plurality of lances 23a are formed integrally with the mirror body 21 so as to face the opening edge portion thereof. The mirror 25 is fitted from the back side of the mirror body 21, The peripheral portion is the lance 23
It is engaged and supported by a. An illumination unit 26 is formed on the small rectangular window 24. This lighting unit 26 has a rectangular window 2
3 of the electrode plates 27, 28, 29 supported in the four, the illumination lamp 30 straddled between the two electrode plates 27, 28 of these electrode plates, and the rectangular window 24. The lens 31 is fitted and attached to the opening.

Further, a cover 32 formed in a vertical and horizontal dimension slightly smaller than the mirror body 21 is provided so as to cover the front surface side of the mirror body 21, that is, the mirror 25 and the illumination section 26. The body 21 is rotatably supported in the vicinity of both sides of the upper edge of the body 21. Here, the cover 32 is formed by resin molding, and a frame-shaped rib 33 is formed along the periphery thereof. The rib 33 is formed so as to correspond to the annular groove 22 of the mirror body 21, and at least a portion 33a of the rib 33 along one end edge of the cover 32 is configured as a shaft portion having an outer surface close to a circumferential surface. To be done. Further, in the vicinity of both sides of the shaft portion 33a composed of the rib at the one end edge, a part of the rib is formed to have a small diameter to form the locking shaft 32. The locking jig 34 may be formed of a resin or metal thin shaft separately formed by insert molding or the like when the cover 32 is resin molded.

On the other hand, in the annular groove 22 provided in the mirror body 21, a semicircular surface-shaped recess capable of supporting the shaft portion 33a is provided at a portion corresponding to the shaft portion 33a of the cover 32. A portion 35 is formed and slidably contacts the circumferential surface of the shaft portion 33a. Further, a through hole 36 is formed in the annular groove 22 in a portion corresponding to the locking shaft 34 so as to penetrate to the rear surface of the mirror body 21, and the rear surface portion of the mirror body facing the through hole 36 is formed. As will be described later, the engaging projection 37 is integrally formed (see FIG. 4). Further, a window 38 penetrating from the front surface to the back surface is formed in the annular groove 22 at the upper end edge of the mirror body 21 at a position facing the illumination unit 26.

The cover 3 is shown in FIGS. 4 (a) and 4 (b).
As shown in the perspective view and the cross-sectional view of the shaft support portion of No. 2, the locking shaft 34 of the cover 32 and the mirror body 21 are provided in the through hole 36.
A leaf spring 39 is hung between the engaging protrusion 37 and the engaging protrusion 37, and by the leaf spring 39, the locking shaft 34 and the engaging protrusion 37.
And are connected. The leaf spring 39 is formed by bending a strip-shaped leaf spring material, and one end portion 39a thereof is formed into a substantially semicircular shape along the outer periphery of the locking shaft 34, and the other end portion 39 is formed.
B is formed by bending in a substantially U-shape along the convex surface of the engaging projection 37. The one end portion 39a is fitted to the locking shaft 34 while being elastically deformed to the outside, and the other end portion 39b is also fitted to the engaging projection 37 while being elastically deformed to the outside. As a result, the elastic restoring force of the leaf spring 39 applies a force to the locking shaft 34 and the engaging projection 37 to each other. Therefore, the leaf spring 39 has the other end 39b.
At the end of the mirror body 21, one end is supported by the mirror body 21 by the engagement with the engagement protrusion 37.
In 9a, since the locking shaft 34 of the cover 32 is attracted by the spring force, the peripheral surface of the shaft portion 33a as the center of rotation of the cover is elastically contacted with the recessed portion 35 by this force.

According to the structure of the shaft support portion of this vanity mirror, as shown in FIG. 5, when an occupant manually rotates the cover 32 to open and close it, the cover 32 is provided at the upper edge. The peripheral surface of the shaft portion 33a is slid along the inner peripheral surface of the recessed portion 35, so that the cover 32 is covered with the shaft portion 33a.
It is possible to rotate the mirror body 21 in the up-down direction with respect to a, and the opening / closing operation can be performed. At this time, the cover 32 is supported by being attracted to the mirror body 21 side by the leaf spring 39 at the locking shaft 34. This attraction force causes the peripheral surface of the shaft portion 33a and the inner surface of the recessed portion 35 to be supported. A frictional force will be generated between and. Therefore, if a force equal to or greater than this frictional force is applied to the cover, the shaft portion 33a can be rotated on the surface of the recessed portion 35 against the frictional force, whereby the cover 32 can be opened and closed.

On the other hand, if the force applied to the cover 32 is made smaller than the above-mentioned frictional force, the cover 32 will not rotate, and at that time, friction at the sliding contact surface between the shaft portion 33a and the recessed portion 35 will occur. The force can hold the cover 32 in its pivoted position. In other words, the cover 32 can be held not only at its fully closed position but also at any position on the way to fully open as shown in FIG. In this case, the shaft portion 33a and the recessed portion 35
Since each of them is formed as a circumferential surface, a frictional force acts evenly between the shaft portion 33a and the sliding contact surface of the recessed portion 35 at any position in the rotating direction, so that the cover 32 can be opened and closed. It is possible to hold the position in a stepless position.
Of course, it is needless to say that the cover can be held in that state even at the fully open position and the fully closed position of the cover 32.

Therefore, when the occupant uses the vanity mirror, the cover 32 can be held at the desired open / close position, and the utility value of the vanity mirror can be increased. In addition, as a structure for holding the cover 32 in an arbitrary open / close position in this way, the locking shaft 34 can be formed integrally with the cover 32, and the recessed portion 35 can also be formed in the mirror body 2.
Since it can be integrally formed with 1, the leaf spring 39 is only required as the other component, so that the number of components is small, the structure is simple, and the size can be reduced. It is effective for the built-in vanity mirror.

On the other hand, in the illuminating section 26, as shown in the rear view of FIG. 3, the rectangular window 24 of the mirror body 21 is provided with the above-mentioned three electrode plates, here, metal plates, from the rear side. The electrode plates 27, 28, 29 to be formed are caulked and fixed. Of these, the first electrode plate 27 and the second electrode plate 28 are vertically spaced apart from each other, and the cut-and-raised pieces 27a and 28a provided on each electrode plate are used to connect both electrodes of the in-line type illumination lamp 30. Hold each, and each electrode plate 27, 2
8 and the illumination lamp 30 are electrically connected.

Further, as shown in an enlarged perspective view and a sectional view of a part thereof in FIGS. 6 and 7, a part thereof is provided in the upper end region of the first electrode plate 27 by a spacer (not shown) or the like. The third electrode plates 29 are arranged so that the electrodes are stacked in the thickness direction at predetermined intervals. Then, these electrode plates 27, 29 are
The fixed contact piece 40 formed in the shape of a rectangular frame is formed on the electrode plate 27 of FIG.
A movable contact piece 41 formed in a tongue shape is formed on the conductive plate 29. The fixed contact piece 40 and the movable contact piece 41 are arranged so as to face the window 38 opened at a part of the upper edge of the mirror body 21, and at this time, the fixed contact piece 40 is at the peripheral edge of the window 38. Fixedly attached along the
The movable contact piece 41 is configured to elastically contact the upper frame portion of the fixed contact piece 40 from the back side by its own elastic force.

Further, a switch cam portion in which a part of the circumference of the rib 33 is projected in a substantially tapered shape in the radial direction so that the rib 33 of the cover 32 facing the window 38 can project into the window 38. 44 is integrally formed. The switch cam portion 44 is capable of contacting the movable contact piece 41 in the window 38 while penetrating the inside of the frame of the fixed contact piece 40. That is, the fixed contact piece 40 has vertical and horizontal dimensions in which the switch cam portion 44 is inserted and the switch cam portion 44 is rotatable inside the frame-shaped portion as the cover 32 rotates. In addition, the movable contact piece 41
Has a size such that its tip portion can elastically contact the upper frame portion of the fixed contact piece 40, and is given an elastic force so as to be tilted toward the fixed contact piece 40 side. In a normal state of the piece 41, the tip end portion of the piece 41 is configured to contact the fixed contact piece 40.

Incidentally, the second electrode plate 28 and the third electrode plate 2
Connector pieces 42 and 43 are integrally formed at the respective ends of the connector 9, and the connector 3 on the sun visor side shown by a chain line is shown.
And cord 4 electrically connect to the power supply. Therefore, when the fixed contact piece 40 of the first electrode plate 27 and the movable contact piece 41 of the third electrode plate 29 are brought into contact with each other, the connector piece 42,
The electric power supplied to the first electrode plate 27 and the second electrode plate 2 is
8 to the illumination lamp 30, and the illumination lamp 30
Will be turned on.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, when the cover 32 is closed, the switch cam portion 44 is attached to the movable contact piece 41.
Contact with each other to elastically deform the movable contact piece 41, so that the movable contact piece 41 is separated from the fixed contact piece 40, the switch is turned off, and the illumination lamp 30 is turned off. Also, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4, when the cover 32 is opened, the switch cam portion 44 is retracted from the contact state with the movable contact piece 41, so that the movable contact piece 41 abuts the fixed contact piece 40 by the elastic force to operate the switch. It is turned on and the illumination lamp 30 is turned on. Therefore, when the cover 32 is opened / closed, the illumination lamp 30 is turned on when the cover 32 is opened in conjunction with the opening / closing operation.

In this switch, when the cover 32 is closed, the switch cam portion 44 forcibly separates the movable contact piece 41 from the fixed contact piece 40 against its elastic force to turn off the switch. As long as the movable contact piece 41 is closed, the movable contact piece 41 does not come into contact with the fixed contact piece 40, and therefore the switch is not turned on unexpectedly, and overheating due to continuous lighting of the illumination lamp 30 and the vanity mirror associated therewith. It is possible to prevent accidents such as the burnout of fire. In addition, since the first and second electrode plates 27 and 28 are extended in a relatively large area in the lighting unit 26, the heat radiation effect from the back surface thereof is enhanced, and the first and second electrode plates 27 and 28 serve as a heat radiation plate of the illumination lamp 30. Also works.

Further, in this switch, the movable contact piece 41 forms a part of the third electrode plate 29 having a flat plate shape into a tongue shape, and imparts an elastic force by inclining this portion at a slight angle. Since the elastic force causes the fixed contact pieces 40 of the first electrode plate 27, which are arranged to face each other at a minute interval, to come into contact with or separate from each other, the ON / OFF operation is performed. The occupied space can be reduced as compared with a configuration in which the metal is bent and formed, and the durability is higher than that in which a strip-shaped metal is bent and formed, and failure due to fatigue can be prevented.

Further, in this embodiment, since the switch cam portion 44 is in contact with the free end side of the movable contact piece 41 when the cover 32 is closed, the elastic force received from the movable contact piece 41 is relatively small. It may be small and thus the force required to start opening the cover 32 may be small. Immediately after opening the cover 32, the switch cam portion 44 overcomes the contact state with the movable contact piece 41, but the force at that time may be small, and after that, it is affected by the elastic force of the movable contact piece 41. Rather, on the contrary, a force in the opening direction is applied by the elastic return force of the movable contact piece 41. Thus, the elastic force of the movable contact piece 41 hardly affects the opening / closing operation force of the cover 32.

Here, the fixed contact piece 40 is formed in the shape of a rectangular frame, but it is not necessarily rectangular or frame-shaped, and has a penetrating portion through which the movable contact piece 41 and the switch cam portion 44 are inserted. If it is one, for example, L-shaped, U-shaped,
Various shapes can be applied.

[0029]

As described above, according to the present invention, as a switch for turning on and off the illumination portion, a fixed contact piece having a penetrating portion and a tongue shape are brought into contact with the fixed contact piece by its elastic force. Since the movable contact piece is provided so as to face each other, the space occupied by both contact pieces can be reduced by designing the facing dimension to be small, and the switch can be miniaturized. Further, since the movable contact piece is formed in the shape of a tongue piece and is provided with an elastic force, it is strong against repeated operation, the durability of the movable contact piece is enhanced, and the reliability of the switch can be improved. Further, since the cam portion that operates the movable contact piece in accordance with the opening / closing operation of the cover contacts the tip end portion of the movable contact piece when the cover is closed, the elastic force of the movable contact piece affects the opening / closing of the cover. It is possible to improve the operability of the cover by reducing the operating force particularly when the cover is opened.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially exploded perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the vanity mirror of the present invention mounted on a sun visor.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the vanity mirror of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of a bearing portion.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the bearing portion.

FIG. 6 is a partially exploded perspective view of a main part of the switch of the lighting unit of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the switch unit of the illumination unit with the cover closed.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the switch unit with a cover open.

FIG. 9 is an external view of a vanity mirror to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of an example of a switch of a conventional illumination unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 sun visor 2 vanity mirror 21 mirror body 25 mirror 26 illumination part 27 first electrode plate 28 second electrode plate 29 third electrode plate 32 cover 33 rib 40 fixed contact piece 41 movable contact piece 44 switch cam part

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A illuminating unit comprising a mirror body supporting a mirror and an illuminating unit, and a cover rotatably supported with respect to the mirror body and capable of being opened and closed. In the vanity mirror configured to turn on / off the power switch of, a pair of flat plate-shaped conductive pieces electrically connected to the lighting unit are supported in the mirror body so as to face each other at a minute interval. The conductive piece is partially provided with a penetrating portion and is fixedly supported as a fixed contact piece, and the other conductive piece is formed as a tongue piece and can contact the fixed contact piece by its own elastic force as a movable contact piece. A cam portion which is supported by the cover and is disposed so as to pass through the penetrating portion of the fixed contact piece, and which is brought into contact with the tip end portion of the movable contact piece at the turning position where the cover is closed. Have, A vanity mirror characterized in that the cam portion urges the movable contact piece against its elastic force in a direction of separating from the contact state with the fixed contact piece.