JPH11144568A - Multi-way switch - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a multi-way switch giving very good operation feeling. SOLUTION: A multi-way switch has switch elements 2 on a substrate 1, an operating member 5 arranged over each switch element 2, having an operating lever 5b for driving each switch element and a semi-spherical base part 5a, and a case 6 having a cover part 6b covering the base part of the operating member, four semi-column-shaped projections 5c positioned on the plane perpendicularly crossing to the center axis of the operating lever are arranged at almost the equal intervals on the outer circumferential surface of the base part, four guide grooves are formed in the inner wall of the cover part of the case, the projections are inserted into the guide grooves, a pair of projections facing on one side slides along a pair of guide grooves on one side by the operation of an operating lever to selectively turn on the switch element, and a pair of projections on the other side form a bearing so as to turn within a pair of guide grooves on the other side.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a multi-directional switch for selectively turning on a plurality of switch elements in a case by tilting an operation lever protruding from a case in a predetermined direction. The present invention relates to a multidirectional switch suitable for being mounted and used at a place where vibration is applied.

[Prior art]

A conventional multidirectional switch of this type is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 1-14333. This configuration is a multidirectional switch that performs switching by using the flexible elastic force of a leaf spring, and will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a conventional multidirectional switch, FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 6, and FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing the conventional multidirectional switch.

As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, openings 12 having four notches 12a are formed at regular intervals of 90 degrees in a top plate portion of a case 11 formed by bending a metal plate into a box shape. Each notch 12a extends toward the center of each side of the top panel. A cover member 13 made of a synthetic resin is placed on the top surface of the top plate portion of the case 11, and the cover member 13 is provided with an annular bulging wall 14. Four notches 13a are formed at regular intervals (for example, 90 degrees) corresponding to the notches 12a. The bulging wall 14 is formed with through holes 15 having regulating portions 14a at four corners. In a leaf spring 16 having an opening 17 in the center, pressing portions 16a are bent at four corners, and mounting holes 16b are formed. The leaf spring 16 is disposed on the lower surface of the top plate portion of the case 11, and each of the projections 13 b suspended at four corners of the cover member 13 is
The mounting hole 16b is inserted through the hole 11a
By swaging, the cover member 13 and the leaf spring 1
6 are fixed to the upper and lower surfaces of the top plate portion of the case 11, respectively.

A conical support member 19 is fixed by caulking at the center of the printed circuit board 18, and four push switches 20 are provided around the support member 19.
It is mounted at equal intervals of 90 degrees. Printed circuit board 18
The case 11 is formed by the leg pieces 11b on the side wall of the case 11.
It is fixed to the lower part. A knob 21a is provided at the upper part of the operation lever 21, and a rectangular pillar-shaped regulating wall 2 is provided at its base.
1b, and a hemispherical portion 21c is further formed therebelow. On the peripheral surface of the hemispherical portion 21c, four driving portions 22 having a rectangular cross section are radially protruded at equal intervals in the circumferential direction, and four spring receiving portions 23 are similarly provided below the driving portions 22. Radially protruding from the drive unit 22 at an equal interval of 90 degrees in a state shifted by 45 degrees.

A conical recess 2 is provided on the bottom surface of the operation lever 21.
1d is formed, and the operating lever 21 is swingably supported by the support member 19 by engaging the center of the concave portion 21d with the support member 19. In this state, the knob 21a is inserted through the through hole 15 of the bulging portion 14 and protrudes to the outside. It opposes the regulation part 14a (refer FIG. 6). Each drive unit 22 is provided with an operation unit 20 of the push switch 20.
a, and on the upper surface of each spring receiving portion 23,
The pressing portions 16a of the leaf spring 16 are in elastic contact with each other, and the operating lever 21 is maintained in a neutral (standing) state by the spring force of these pressing portions 16a. In the neutral state, the drive unit 22 faces the notch 12a with a predetermined clearance.

Next, the operation of the multidirectional switch configured as described above will be described. Knob 2 of operation lever 21
When 1a is tilted in an arbitrary direction among the four drive units 22, the operation lever 21 rotates about the support member 19 in, for example, the direction of arrow B in FIG. As a result, the drive unit 22 on the tilted side presses the operation unit 20a of the push switch 20 thereunder, and one of the four push switches 20 is turned on. At this time, the operation lever 21
Of the drive units 22, the drive unit 22 arranged in the direction perpendicular to the arrow B direction is rotated in the direction perpendicular to the center axis of the operation lever 21. In order for the drive unit 22 to rotate,
Since the drive unit 22 is rectangular, a predetermined clearance must be necessarily provided between the drive unit 22 and the notch 12a.

Here, when the pressing force on the knob 21a is removed, the operating lever 21 returns to the neutral state in FIG. 7 by the restoring force of the pressing portion 16a that has been bent earlier. In this case, since a uniform spring force of each pressing portion 16a acts on each spring receiving portion 23, the operation lever 21 is maintained in a neutral state. In the neutral state, each drive unit 22 is located within the notch 12a, thereby preventing the operation lever 21 from rotating in the circumferential direction.

[0008] In addition to the above-mentioned direction, the operation lever 21
Can be tilted in a total of four directions, that is, up, down, and left of the paper surface, and by selecting this tilt direction, one of the four push switches 20 can be turned on. However, when the operation lever 21 is pressed in directions other than the above four directions, each corner (corner) of the restriction wall 21b collides with one of the restriction portions 14a located in the tilted direction, and the swing of the operation lever 21 is restricted. Therefore, the two push switches 20 are not turned on at the same time.

[0009]

However, in the multi-directional switch having the above-described structure, the regulating wall 21b of the operation lever 21 at the neutral position is in contact with the regulating portion 14a of the bulging portion 14 disposed on the cover member 13. Are not engaged, so that the rotation direction of the knob 21a at the neutral position in the rotation direction about the axis is controlled exclusively by the side surface of the drive portion 22 of the operation lever 21 by the side wall of the notch 12a of the case 11. It is done by that. However, when the operation lever 21 is tilted, two of the four drive units 22 rotate in the notch 12a, but the drive unit 22 having a rectangular cross section is caught in the notch 12a. In order to rotate without driving, it is necessary to provide a sufficient clearance between the width of the drive unit 22 and the width of the notch 12a. With this configuration, the rotation direction of the knob 21a at the neutral position cannot be sufficiently restricted,
When the operator picks the knob 21a, the knob 21a can rattle in the rotational direction, giving the operator an unstable feel.

When the operating lever 21 is tilted by operating the knob 21a, the restricting wall 21b of the operating lever 21 is not engaged with the restricting portion 14a of the bulging portion 14 disposed on the cover member 13. From the state, the operation lever 21
Is operated to engage the regulating wall 21b with the regulating portion 14a, and further move the regulating wall 21b along the regulating portion 14a. As described above, the knob 21a and the case 11
There is a large play in the rotation direction about the axis of the knob 21a, and therefore, naturally, between the regulating wall 21b integral with the knob 21a and the regulating portion 14a provided on the cover member 13 attached to the case 11. The play must be large, and the regulating wall 21 b
However, there is a problem that the end portion of the restricting portion 14a is likely to collide with the end portion of the regulating portion 14a, and the operational feeling is significantly impaired. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a solution to the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a multidirectional switch with a good operational feeling.

[0011]

According to the present invention, a multi-directional switch comprises a plurality of switch elements mounted on a substrate,
An operation member having an operation lever and a hemispherical base that are disposed above the switch elements and selectively driving the switch elements, and a case that has a cover that covers the base of the operation member, On the outer peripheral surface of the base, four cylindrical or semi-cylindrical projections on a plane orthogonal to the center axis of the operation lever are formed at substantially equal intervals, and four projections are formed on the inner wall of the cover part of the case. The guide grooves are formed, and the protrusions are inserted into the guide grooves, respectively, and one of the pair of opposed protrusions slides along the one pair of the guide grooves by operating the operation lever. The switch element is selectively turned on, and the other pair of the projections is rotatable in the other pair of the guide grooves serving as a bearing.

Further, in the present invention, a holding member is arranged between the substrate and the operating member, a pressing member held by the holding member is interposed between the operating member and the switch element, and the operating member is operated by operating the operating lever. The member selectively turned on the switch element via the pressing member. Further, in the present invention, the switch element of the multidirectional switch is formed of a rubber switch, and the operation member is returned by the elastic force of the rubber.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A multidirectional switch according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG.
1 is an exploded perspective view showing a multidirectional switch according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a multidirectional switch according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a multidirectional switch according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a case of the multidirectional switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, on a printed circuit board 1 made of an insulating substrate, a pair of fixed contacts formed by a printed wiring pattern are radially equidistant (for example, 90 degrees), although not shown. And four sets are provided. A push switch 2 as a switch element made of an elastic material such as rubber includes a pressing portion 2a protruding upward, and a pressing portion 2a.
, And a movable contact 2c is disposed inside the pressing portion 2a. The movable contacts 2c of the push switch 2 are arranged at positions facing four fixed contacts arranged on the printed circuit board 1.
The push switch 2 presses a pressing portion 2a protruding from the upper surface, so that a movable contact 2c provided therein comes into contact with a fixed contact formed on a printed circuit board, for example, with a click feeling. When the pressure is removed, the movable contact is separated from the fixed contact by its own restoring force, and is known as a rubber switch.

The slider 3 as a pressing member made of a molding material includes a disc-shaped flange 3a at a lower end and a columnar rod 3b extending upward from the center of the flange 3a. Further, four sliders 3 are arranged.

A holder 4 as a holding member made of a molding material has a support portion 4a having a cross-shaped cross section at the center and extends laterally from the support portion 4a at predetermined regular intervals (for example, 90 degrees). It has a bridging part 4b and four cylindrical parts 4c provided at each end of the bridging part 4b. The outer peripheral portion of the cylindrical portion 4c is connected by a side wall 4d surrounding the four sides, and a convex portion 4e is disposed on the side of the lower end of the cylindrical portion 4c so as to protrude outward. Also, the support portion 4a
Is formed in a semicircular shape, protrudes upward from the upper end of the cylindrical portion 4c, and the lower end of the support portion 4a protrudes downward from the lower end of the cylindrical portion 4c.

As shown in FIG. 3, an operating member 5 made of a molding material includes a substantially hemispherical base 5a, a cylindrical operating lever 5b projecting upward from the base 5a, and a lower end of the base 5a. For example, four protruding portions 5c having a substantially semi-cylindrical shape protruding radially outward at predetermined regular intervals (for example, 90 degrees) and having a substantially semi-cylindrical arc surface facing upward. And The central axis of the projection 5c is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the central axis of the operation lever 5b and on a plane crossing the center of the hemispherical base 5a.
In addition, from the end surface of the lower end portion of the base portion 5a to the lower surface of the protrusion 5c, there is an inclined portion 5f inclined toward the central axis of the operation lever 5b. On the inner wall of the substantially hemispherical inner space of the base 5a, a cross-shaped wall 5d is formed so as to connect between the protruding portions 5c opposed to each other. A recess 5e is provided in the center of the wall 5d. Although the projection 5c has been described as being substantially semi-cylindrical, it may be cylindrical.

As shown in FIG. 4, the case 6 made of a molding material comprises a flat base 6a and a substantially dome-shaped cover 6b projecting upward from the base 6a. A circular hole 6c is formed at the upper end of 6b. The cover 6b includes an arc-shaped upper wall 6f and a substantially cylindrical side wall 6g, and is provided below the inner wall of the upper wall 6f at equal intervals (for example, 90 degrees). Each of the guide grooves 6d is formed to extend halfway in the vertical (meridian) direction, and is a concave portion 6e having a substantially circular arc-shaped cross section that is provided on the inner wall of the side wall 6g and below the guide groove 6d. Are formed so as to bulge the outer wall. The width of the guide groove 6d is substantially equal to the diameter of the protrusion 5c of the operation member 5, and serves as a bearing for rotating the substantially semi-cylindrical protrusion 5c.

Next, the assembly of the multidirectional switch having the above configuration will be described. First, the case 6 is turned upside down, and the base 6a is turned up, and the hole 6c of the cover 6b is turned down, and the case 6 is held in a predetermined jig (not shown). Then, the operation member 5 is inserted into the internal space formed by the cover 6b of the case 6, and the operation lever 5b of the operation member 5 is inserted into the center of the hole 6c, so that the operation lever 5b is inserted into the hole 6c. From outside (downward). At this time, the protrusion 5 c of the operation member 5 is
d is engaged and held with almost no clearance (play).

Next, the holder 4 is placed in the space by the support 4a.
Insert and position with the tip on the semicircle facing downward. At this time, the cylindrical portion 4c of the holder 4 is inserted into the concave portion 6e of the case 6, and the tip of the support portion 4a of the holder 4 is attached to the concave portion 5e provided on the lower surface of the base 5a of the operation member 5.
Abuts the central part of the In this state, the upper end of the protrusion 4 e of the holder 4 is in contact with the lower surface of the base 6 a of the case 6.

Next, the rod-shaped portion 3b of the slider 3 is inserted into the cylindrical portion 4c of the holder 4 from the lower end surface side of the cylindrical portion 4c, and the upper surface of the flange portion 3a of the slider 3 abuts on the lower end surface of the cylindrical portion 4c. Is done. In this state, the tip of the rod 3b is in contact with the lower end of the projection 5c of the operation member 5, respectively. Next, the push switch 2 provided on the printed circuit board 1 is disposed so as to contact the lower surface of the flange 3a of the slider 3 with the pressing portion 2a of the push switch 2 facing downward. Next, in a state where the hole (not shown) provided in the printed board 1 and the screw hole (not shown) provided in the base 6a of the case 6 face each other,
The case 6 and the printed circuit board 1 are fixed by screws (not shown). When the multidirectional switch assembled in this state is turned upside down, the lower end of the support portion 4a of the holder 4 is disposed on the printed circuit board 1 by fixing the case 6 and the printed circuit board 1, and the upper end of the support portion 4a The lower end of the operating lever 5b of the operating member 5 is brought into contact with the operating lever 5b.
Are arranged to protrude upward from the hole 6 c of the case 6.

The reason why the holder 4 and the slider 3 are used is to secure a predetermined distance from the operation member 5 to the push switch 2. For example, this multi-directional switch is combined with another switch. When used as a unit switch, the dimensions of the holder 4 and the slider 3 can be adjusted to easily match the height dimensions of the other switches.

Next, the operation of the multidirectional switch of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, when the operation lever 5 b of the operation member 5 is tilted by applying a pressing force in the left direction (direction of arrow A), for example, the operation lever 5 b becomes a semicircular shape of the support portion 4 a of the holder 4. The upper end is rotated leftward.
The operation lever 5b is rotated by a pair of protrusions 5c extending in the left-right direction of the drawing of FIG. Then, the right protrusion 5c slides upward. At this time, the outer peripheral surface of the base 5a of the operation member 5 moves while sliding on the inner peripheral surface of the cover 6b of the case 6. And this protrusion 5
The sliding of c in the vertical direction in the guide groove 6d can be performed without play since the diameter of the protrusion 5c is substantially the same as the groove width of the guide groove 6d. On the other hand, one pair of protrusions 5c provided to extend in a direction penetrating the drawing of the drawing of the operation member 5 is rotated while being inserted into the guide groove 6d of the case 6, and the protrusion 5c has a semi-cylindrical shape. Because of this, the guide groove 6d functions as a bearing when the projection 5c rotates.

The projecting portion 5c of the left operating member 5 tilted down pushes down the upper end of the rod portion 3b of the slider 3 downward, and the flange portion 3a of the slider 3 is pushed down.
Pushes down the pressing portion 2a of the push switch 2 downward, and the corresponding push switch 2 is reliably turned on.
The upper end of the rod 3b is pushed down stably by the inclined portion 5f of the protrusion 5c. The operation lever 5b
When the pressing force is removed, the operating lever 5b operates to return to the neutral position by the restoring force of the holding portion 2b of the push switch 2. When the operation lever 5b is at the neutral position, the protrusion 5c engaged in the guide groove 6d is locked in the guide groove 6d without clearance, so that there is no rotation in the circumferential direction. , Stable switching operation can be performed.

The operation lever 5b is moved in the direction shown in FIG.
Can be tilted in a total of four directions, that is, the front / rear direction and the right direction of the paper surface of FIG.
One of the push switches 2 can be turned on. However, when the operation lever 5b is tilted in a direction other than the above four directions, the outer peripheral surface of each projection 5c becomes a guide groove 6d.
And the tilting of the operation lever 5b is restricted.
From this, the tilting direction of the operation lever 5b is such that each push switch 2 is positioned by the protrusion 5c of the operation member 5 being guided by the guide groove 6d provided on the inner wall of the cover 6b of the case 6. Since the push switch 2 is restricted to only four directions, the two push switches 2 are not accidentally turned on at the same time.

Further, the slider 3 is pushed upward by the elastic force of the holding portions 2b of the four push switches 2, and the upper end of the slider 3 is stably abutted against the outer peripheral surface of the projection 5c of the operation member 5. Touched. From this, even if vibration is applied to the multidirectional switch of the embodiment of the present invention,
Since the above-mentioned components do not individually vibrate due to this vibration, the problem of generating a vibration sound can be solved.

[0027]

As described in detail above, the multidirectional switch of the present invention has four cylindrical or semi-cylindrical protrusions on the outer peripheral surface of the base, which are on a plane perpendicular to the center axis of the operation lever. Parts are formed at substantially equal intervals, four guide grooves are formed in the inner wall of the cover part of the case, the protrusions are inserted into the guide grooves, and one of a pair of opposing ones is operated by operating the operation lever. The protrusion slides along the one pair of the guide grooves to selectively turn on the switch element, and the other pair of the protrusions has the other pair of the guide grooves as bearings. Since it is configured to rotate in the guide groove, even in the neutral position, even during tilting, the clearance between the protrusion and the guide groove hardly changes, and a small clearance is sufficient.
In the neutral position, the play of the operation lever is held down to a minimum, and even at the start of tilting of the operation lever, a smooth operation without a feeling of being caught can be realized, and an effect that an extremely good operation feeling can be obtained. Play.

Further, in the multidirectional switch according to the present invention, the holding member is disposed between the substrate and the operating member, and the pressing member held by the holding member is interposed between the operating member and the switch element. By adjusting the dimensions of the holding member and the pressing member, it is possible to easily set the distance between the operation member and the switch element to a predetermined size.

In the multidirectional switch according to the present invention, the switch element is formed of a rubber switch, and the operating member is returned by the elastic force of the rubber. Therefore, the operating member 5 is urged upward by the elastic force of each rubber switch. Therefore, the operation lever 5b can be stably held at the neutral position without play without using a separate member such as a leaf spring of a conventional multidirectional switch.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a multidirectional switch according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a multi-directional switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing an operation member of the multidirectional switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a case of the multidirectional switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining an operation of the multi-directional switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a conventional multidirectional switch.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing a conventional multidirectional switch.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printed circuit board 2 Push switch (switch element) 3 Slider (pressing member) 3b Bar-shaped part 4 Holder (holding member) 4a Support part 4c Tube part 5 Operating member 5a Base 5b Operation lever 5c Projection 6 Case 6b Cover 6c Hole 6d Guide groove (bearing) 6e recess

Claims (3)

[Claims] An operation member having a plurality of switch elements mounted on a substrate, an operation lever disposed above each of the switch elements, and an operation lever for selectively driving each of the switch elements, and a hemispherical base. And a case having a cover that covers the base of the operating member, and four cylindrical or semi-cylindrical protrusions on an outer peripheral surface of the base, which are on a plane orthogonal to the central axis of the operating lever. Are formed at substantially equal intervals, four guide grooves are formed on the inner wall of the cover portion of the case, the protrusions are inserted into the guide grooves, and one of the pair of opposing ones is operated by operating the operation lever. The protrusion slides along the one pair of the guide grooves to selectively turn on the switch element, and the other pair of the protrusions has the other pair of the guide grooves as bearings, and Rotating in the groove A multi-directional switch. 2. An operation of the operation lever, wherein a holding member is disposed between the substrate and the operation member, and a pressing member held by the holding member is interposed between the operation member and the switch element. 2. The multidirectional switch according to claim 1, wherein the operation member selectively turns on the switch element via the pressing member. 3. The multi-directional switch according to claim 1, wherein the switch element comprises a rubber switch, and the operation member is returned by an elastic force of the rubber.