JPH09204844A - Hot-water supply device remote control operating switch - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make display bright and make the confirmation of an operating state easy by focusing the light generated in a light source on a display ring and displaying it. SOLUTION: When a button part 3 which is made of a resin mold and elastically deforms is vertically pushed, a light transmission body 5 is pushed down and moves. By the movement of the light transmission body 5, a projecting part 5a comes in contact with a step difference part 6a of a guide 6, and further movement of the light transmission body 5 is suppressed. In the lower part of the light transmission body 5, a light emitting body 7 is lowered at the same time, a switch within a switch with light source 8 is turned on, and the light emitting body 7 emits light. The emitted light comes in from the lower surface of the light emitting body 5, is extended, and transmitted to a display ring 3a. Since the light transmitting body 5 is made of a transparent resin, by the light reached, the display ring 3a is lit. By using a diffusion plate in the display ring 3a, the incident light is diffused, emitted also in the slant direction in addition to the front direction, and thereby, the lighting of the display ring 3a can be confirmed from every direction.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a remote control device for remotely controlling a water heater or the like used at home, and more particularly to a remote control operation switch using a button having a ring-shaped display portion in its periphery. is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in water heaters for supplying hot water to a bath kettle by gas ignition, a remote control device has been widely used for remote operation from a kitchen or the like. In recent years, microcomputers have come to be used as control devices, and the number of elements that can be controlled by remote control devices has increased dramatically. As a result, the number of buttons on the remote control device for setting the operating conditions of the water heater has also increased. An indicator lamp is always required for remote control of water heaters. With remote control devices for TVs and air conditioners, the operator can easily check whether the switch operation was successful by the sound of the TV screen or the air conditioner, whereas the water heater that supplies hot water to the bathtub etc. This is because it is often installed and the operator cannot directly confirm the operation.

Therefore, in a remote control device such as a water heater, a display lamp is generally provided in the immediate vicinity of the button. However, as the number of types of buttons increases, the number of buttons and indicator lamps increases, and the buttons and indicator lamps are confused.Therefore, the number of troubles that the operator mistakenly recognizes the correspondence between the indicator lamps and the buttons increases. ing. On the other hand, at home, there are many cases where an old man or a child operates a remote controller of a bathtub or a water heater, and there are especially many troubles in which the old man or the child makes a mistake in the correspondence between the display lamp and the button. As a means for solving such a problem, in a remote control device such as a water heater, the buttons and the display means are arranged at the same position so that the correspondence between the display lamps and the buttons is prevented from being mistaken. Is being considered.

Therefore, an example of a conventional remote control device will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, respectively. FIG. 6 shows a sectional view of a first example of a conventional remote controller. First,
In the remote control device of this example, a circular button 50 is fixed to a remote control case 55, and the remote control case 55 also has a circular hollow side portion 55a of a predetermined depth formed under the button 50. The button 50 is formed of a resin molded product, and is composed of a transparent display portion 51 in the central portion and an opaquely colored peripheral portion 52. Inside the side portion 55a formed of a hollow cylinder, a light transmitting body 53 formed of a translucent milky white resin is attached. The light transmitting body 53 has a solid cylindrical shape, and a lower end portion thereof forms a disk portion 53a that projects to the outer diameter of the guide 55. The light transmitting body 53 has a length from the lower end position of the guide 55a to the contact with the peripheral portion 52 of the button 50.

Further, a switch 60 with a light source, which is fixedly mounted on the remote controller board 59, constitutes a button switch by arranging the light emitting body 54 on the upper part so as to be vertically movable. On the other hand, the switch 60 with a light source has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the light emitter 54 has a cylindrical shape. The light transmitter 53 is placed concentrically on the light emitter 54, and the light emitter 54 is fixedly mounted on the concentric core of the button 50. The remote control switch having such a structure operates as follows. Button 5
By pressing 0 with a finger, the light transmitting body 53 is pushed down and the light emitting body 54 also moves down. Then, the switch 60 with a light source is turned on and the light emitter 54 emits light.

The light emitted from the light emitter 54 is
Light that is diffusely reflected inside the light transmitter 53 and is uniform in each direction is formed. The operator confirms that the switch is turned on by the light passing through the display section 51. However, this type of button switch is inconvenient because the central portion of the button pressed by the finger illuminates and is displayed, so that the switch is turned on until the finger is removed once. That is, in a water heater or the like, when starting combustion of gas with a button, until the start of gas combustion is confirmed, 2.
It is necessary to press the button for 3 seconds, but it is not possible to confirm that it is okay to remove the finger after the gas combustion is started, because the display cannot be seen.

Therefore, in the second conventional example, the periphery of the button is illuminated so that the display can be seen even when the finger is pressed. FIG. 7 shows a second example of a conventional remote control device, FIG. 7 (a) is a plan view, and FIG. 7 (b).
Shows a side sectional view. First, like the first example, the button 50 is fixed to the remote control case 55. Remote control case 5
The reference numeral 5 is formed with a predetermined distance H from the remote control board 59. The button 50 is formed of a translucent milky white resin and has a button portion 57 protruding to the outside, and a disk-shaped opaque mask 58 attached to the center of the surface of the button portion 57.
And is fixed to the light transmitter 56. The light transmitter 56 is formed of a translucent milky white resin and has an elastically deforming portion 56a in the periphery. Then, the light transmitter 56 is
The elastic deforming portion 56a is fixed at a predetermined position by a side portion 55a fixed to the remote control case 55 on the outer peripheral portion thereof.

Further, a switch 60 with a light source, which is fixedly mounted on the remote controller board 59, constitutes a button switch by a light emitting member 54 provided vertically movable in the center of the upper surface thereof. The light emitter 54 is in close contact with the light transmitter 56 inside the device on the same axis as the button 50. The remote control switch having such a structure operates as follows. By pressing the button 50 with a finger, the elastically deformable portion 56a is deformed and the light transmitter 56 is pushed down. Then, the light emitter 54 is pushed down together with the light transmitter 56.
Then, a switch (not shown) of the light source switch 60 is turned on, and the light emitting body 54 emits light. The light emitted from the light-emitting body 54 is diffusely reflected inside the light-transmitting body 56 and the button portion 57 in order to form light that is uniform in each direction. The operator can confirm that the switch is turned on by the light emitted from the part that is not blocked by the mask 58.

[0009]

However, the button structure of such a conventional remote control device has the following problems. (1) Since the translucent milky white resin molded product is used for the light transmitter so that the display can be seen not only from the front direction but also from the oblique direction, 50% or more of the light emitted from the light source is used. It had decayed. On the other hand, in the remote control device that remotely controls the water heater installed in the bathroom and installed outdoors, the display is harder to see than usual because steam is rising or glasses are removed. There are many. Therefore, the light source must be enlarged to increase the wattage of the light source, which hinders the downsizing of the remote controller. Moreover, the cost increased. (2) In any of the conventional examples, since the remote control case is not supported at the portion forming the button structure, the remote control case may be elastically deformed by a button operation or the like, and the distance H to the remote control board may change. . The variation in the distance from the surface of the remote control to the remote control board greatly affected the difference in feeling when pressing the switch. Therefore, there is a problem that it is not possible to determine whether or not the switch operation is properly performed during the daytime when it is difficult to check the light of the switch, unlike the feeling of pressing a normal switch. In other words, although the button should have been pressed, the switch may not have been turned on properly, and it may remain in the OFF state.

(3) In any of the conventional button structures, the light transmitter is not positioned when it is moved, which causes misalignment between the light emitter and the light transmitter and the button.
That is, in both of the above-mentioned conventional examples, when the end of the button is pressed instead of the center, a tilting force is applied to the light transmitting body, and the light emitting body is pushed in the tilted state of the light transmitting body. Therefore, there is a problem that the light emitted from the light emitting body is incident on the light transmitting body with an inclination and the light transmitting efficiency is deteriorated. Also, it was hard to say that the switch would definitely turn on. (4) When the button is strongly pressed, there is nothing that restricts the downward movement of the light transmitting member, and there is a problem that the light emitting member is damaged due to excessive pressing and other components are adversely affected.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned various problems, and by making the ON state display ring of the button switch bright, hot water can be used safely by the elderly and children. The purpose is to provide a remote control device such as a control device, and to ensure proper operation by securing the distance from the surface of the remote control to the remote control board, to prevent other parts from being destroyed due to over-pressing the remote control, and to position the light transmitter for efficient light It is an object of the present invention to provide a switch for remote control operation of a water heater, which enables transmission of water.

[0012]

To achieve this object, a remote control operation switch of the present invention is a remote control operation switch used in a remote control device for remotely controlling a water heater or a bathtub with a water heater. Button for setting the operating conditions of the water heater or bath tub with a water heater, a switch with a light source that is fixed to the remote control board inside the device concentrically with the button, and on the light source a predetermined centering around the light source The same taper as the light transmitter having a substantially conical light-transmitting body that spreads at a taper angle and a locking portion that restricts the movement of the light-transmitting body and that maintains a constant distance from the remote control surface to the remote control board. And a guide member formed with a corner.

[0013]

By pressing the button of the remote control device of the present invention having such a structure with a finger, the operator sets the operating conditions of the water heater or the bathtub with a water heater for automatic operation or the like. When the button is pressed, the light transmitting body moves downward, and the light transmitting body pushes down the light emitting body on the light source forming the switch. At this time, the light transmission body to be pushed down is guided to a predetermined position by the guide member having a taper angle, and the movement is stopped by the locking portion. At this time, the switch is energized by the light emitting body that is pushed down, and the light emitting body emits light. The emitted light is incident on the light transmitting body which is in close contact with the light emitting body from the lower surface and is emitted from the upper surface of the button.

[0014]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, FIG. 5 is a front view of a remote control device 15 provided in a bathroom for remotely operating a bathtub with a water heater installed outdoors. Such a recent remote control device 15 has a structure in which switches that are rarely used are hidden by a cover so that mistakes do not easily occur when used by an old man or a child, and a clean structure is provided as shown in the figure. Has become. As the surface switch, the button 2 and its display ring 3 for automatically performing hot water supply, heat retention, etc.
a is attached. Further, a display ring 3a and the like are provided along with a warm button for circulatingly heating the hot water in the bathtub to raise the hot water temperature, and a button for calling from the bathroom to the remote control device in the kitchen. Similarly, these have a display ring 3a formed around the remote control switch button.

Next, the first embodiment of the remote control switch button will be described in detail. FIG. 1 is a view showing a button for a remote control switch, FIG. 1 (a) is a front view of the button, and FIG. 1 (b) is a view showing a cross section of the button. Button 2 is fixed to remote control case 1. The button 2 is formed of a button portion 3 and a display ring 3a. The button portion 3 is made of a circular opaque resin sheet, and the central portion thereof has a spherical shape. Further, the display ring 3a is formed of a translucent milky white diffusion plate formed in a ring shape around the button portion 3. On the other hand, a switch 8 with a light source is fixedly provided coaxially with the button portion 3 on a remote control board 9 inside the device having a predetermined distance H from the remote control case 1. The switch 8 with a light source has a light-emitting body 7 provided on the upper surface thereof so as to be vertically movable to form a button switch. A light transmitter 5 formed of transparent resin is attached between the light emitter 7 and the display ring 3a.

FIG. 2 shows a sectional view of the light transmitter 5. The entire shape of the light transmitting body 5 is a substantially conical shape, and in particular, the cross-sectional shape of the portion through which light is transmitted is a substantially V shape, and an overhanging portion 5a having an outward spread is provided at the top. A center plate 4 corresponding to the button portion 3 is fitted in the center thereof. The center plate 4 has a spherical centrally raised portion. In the light transmitter 5 having a substantially V-shaped cross-sectional shape, the angle formed by the outer side of the substantially V-shape and the angle formed by the inner side of the substantially V-shape are both about θ degrees. Therefore, the outer side and the inner side are parallel to each other, and the thickness thereof is a constant width of a. The upper surface of the light transmitter 5 has a ring shape having a width corresponding to the display ring 12, and the lower surface has a circular shape. Such a light transmitter 5 is
The center plate 4 and the projecting portion 5 are placed on the upper surface of the light emitting body 7.
a is in contact with the back surface of the button 2. The display ring 3a, the light transmitter 5 and the light emitter 7 are arranged concentrically.

Further, in the remote control switch button of this embodiment, the four guides 6 are narrowed toward the center so that the cross section of the guides 6 has a V shape so as to surround the conical light transmitter 5. It is made of resin integrally with the remote control case 1. FIG. 3 is a view showing a cross section of the guide 6, and FIG.
3A is a front view, and FIG. 3B is a sectional view taken along line AA. The guide 6 includes the remote control case 1 to the remote control board 9
It is provided so as to surround the light transmitter 5, the light emitter 7, and the switch 8 with a light source. The angle of the slope of the inner wall forming the cross section is about θ, like the light transmitting member 5, the outer wall is formed parallel to the inner wall, and also has an inclination of about θ. Further, a step portion 6a corresponding to the projecting portion 5a provided on the light transmitting body 5 is formed on the inner wall sloped surface at a connecting portion with the remote control case 1, and the projecting portion 5a and the step portion 6a form a locking portion. Are configured. The inner wall of the guide 6 forms an inclined surface of about θ degrees as described above, but forms a vertical surface in the lower part where the switch with light source 8 fixed to the remote control board 9 and the light emitter 7 are present. ing.

Next, the operation of the remote control switch button of this embodiment having the above structure will be described. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the remote control switch button showing a state in which the operator has actually pressed the button. Before the button 2 is pressed, the light transmitter 5 is in equilibrium with the upper surface of the light emitter 5 being in contact with the button 2 on the light emitter 7. At this time, the projecting portion 5a and the step portion 6a are not in contact with each other and have a predetermined dimension interval. Then, in such a state, when the switch of the remote control device is operated, the switch is turned on by the following operation. First, the button portion 3 is a resin molded product and is elastically deformed by being pressed by a finger. Therefore, by pressing the button portion 3 vertically with a finger, the light transmitting member 5 is pushed downward and moved. Then, by the downward movement of the light transmitting body 5, the overhanging portion 5a hits the stepped portion 6a of the guide 6, and the downward movement of the light transmitting body 5 is suppressed.

In the lower part of the light transmitting body 5, the light emitting bodies 7 are simultaneously pushed and lowered to turn on a switch (not shown) in the switch 8 with a light source, and the light emitting body 7 on the switch 8 with a light source is energized. Emits light. The light emitted from the light emitting body 7 enters the light transmitting body 5 from the lower surface of the light transmitting body 5.
Here, as shown in FIG. 1, when the diameter of the light emitting body 7 is d and the inner diameter of the ring of the display ring 3a is D, d is D
The light emitted from the light emitter 7 is smaller than that of the light transmitter 5.
To spread it and transmit it to the display ring 3a. Therefore, the light that has entered the light transmitter 5 reaches the display ring because the light transmitter 5 is made of transparent resin, and the display ring is illuminated.

By the way, when the operator pushes the corner of the button 2, the light transmitting body 5 is tilted by a lateral force. However, at that time, before the light transfer member 5 reaches the lowest point, the light transfer member 5 hits the inner wall surface of the guide 6 to correct the inclination, and the slope of the light transfer member 5 becomes the inner wall surface of the guide 6. Touch and slide down. Since the slanting surface of the light transmissive body 5 and the inner wall surface of the guide 6 have the same inclination, the light transmissive body 5 that slides down maintains a vertical state. Therefore, the tilting force applied to the light transmitter 5 by the operator is applied to the light emitter 7 as a force in the concentric direction when the slope of the light transmitter 5 contacts the inner wall surface of the guide 6 and slides down. . Further, FIG. 4 shows a state in which the light transmitting body 5 is located at the lowest point, but at this time, the projecting portion 5 a of the light transmitting body 5 is the stepped portion 6 a of the guide 6.
, And the light emitter 7 is pushed down while keeping the light transmitter 5 itself in parallel. Then, a switch (not shown) in the switch with light source 8 is pressed, and the light emitted from the light emitting body 7 is transmitted to the display ring 12 by the light transmitting body 5 and the display ring 3a is turned on.

The following effects can be obtained by the remote control switch button of this embodiment described in detail above. A diffusion plate is used for the display ring 3a, and the incident light is diffused. As a result, the light is emitted not only in the front direction but also in an oblique direction, so that the operator can confirm the lighting of the display ring 3a from an oblique direction. Therefore, it is possible to confirm that the switch is turned on by the display while pressing the button 2 with a finger. In addition, since the brightness of the display ring 3a that is turned on is high, an elderly person or a child can easily confirm the ON state of the switch. By providing the guide 6 from the remote control case 1 to the remote control board 9, the guide 6 functions as a spacer and supports the remote control case 1, so that elastic deformation of the remote control surface is eliminated. Therefore, the distance H between the remote control case 1 and the remote control board 9 can always be kept constant, the difference in touch when turning the buttons on and off is eliminated, and there is no failure to switch on or failure to switch off. I was able to.

Further, since the projecting portion 5a of the light transmitting member 5 and the step portion 6a of the guide 6 are provided, the downward movement of the light transmitting member 5 can be restricted at a predetermined position. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the light emitting body 7 from being damaged due to excessive force applied to the button 2 by the user. Furthermore, since both the light transmitter 5 and the guide 6 are V-shaped, even if a biased force is applied to the light transmitter 5, the balance of the light transmitter 5 itself can be maintained. Therefore, it becomes possible to prevent clogging of the light emitting body 7. Further, since the outer circumference of the switch with light source 8 is surrounded by the four guides 6, the positioning of the guide 6 with respect to the switch with light source 8 becomes reliable. This prevents misalignment between the switch with light source 8 and the light transmitter 5.

The present invention has been described in detail above.
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications and improvements can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, although the projecting portion is provided on the upper portion of the light transmitting body in the above-described embodiment, it may be provided on the lower end portion. Further, for example, in the above embodiment, when the light transmitting body is pushed to the lowest point, there is a gap between the light transmitting body and the guide, but at that time, both members may be in contact with each other over the entire surface. Then, the inclined surface of the guide serves as a stopper, and the light transmitter can reliably push the light emitter on the same axis.

[0024]

The remote control operation switch of the present invention is a remote control operation switch used in a remote control device for remotely controlling a water heater or a bath tub with a water heater, and the operating conditions of the water heater or the bath tub with a water heater. A switch for setting the light source, a switch with a light source that is fixed to the remote control board inside the device concentrically with the button, and a substantially conical light that spreads on the light source with a predetermined taper angle around the light source. A transmitter, and a locking portion that restricts movement of the light transmitter,
Since the light transmitter has a guide member formed with the same taper angle to maintain a constant distance from the surface of the remote control to the remote control board, the light emitted from the light source can be concentrated on the display ring and displayed, thus making the display brighter. Even the elderly and children can easily check the driving status.Also, ensure the distance from the surface of the remote control to the remote control board for proper operation, and prevent the remote control from being damaged by over-pressing. Positioning of the light transmitter enables efficient light transmission.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of buttons of a remote control device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a shape of a light transmitter.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a shape of a guide.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a use state of buttons of the remote control device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a surface of a remote controller.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a configuration of buttons of a remote control device of a first conventional example.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration of buttons of a remote control device of a second conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Remote Control Case 2 Button 3 Button Part 3a Display Ring 4 Center Plate 5 Light Transmitter 5a Overhanging Part 6 Guide 6a Step Part 7 Light Emitting Element 8 Light Source Switch 9 Remote Control Board

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A remote control operating switch used in a remote control device for remotely controlling a water heater or a bath kettle with a water heater, wherein a button for setting operating conditions of the water heater or the bath kettle with a water heater is provided. A switch with a light source that is fixed to the remote control board inside the device coaxially with the button, a substantially conical light-transmitting body that spreads on the light source at a predetermined taper angle around the light source, A remote controller for a water heater, comprising: a locking member that restricts movement of the remote controller; and a guide member formed with the same taper angle as the light transmitter that maintains a constant distance from the remote controller surface to the remote controller board. Operation switch.