JPS63131412A - Manufacture of push switch - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (a) Industrial Application Field This invention utilizes the reversal action of a plate-like elastic conductive thin plate to turn on/off the continuous state of a central contact and a peripheral contact. The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a push switch.

(BL Conventional Technology As shown in FIG. 5, a conventional push switch has a center contact 103 and a peripheral contact 104 provided on the bottom surface of a recess 102 of a body 101, and a plate-like elastic conductive thin plate. An actuator 108 whose outer edge 105 is overlapped with the peripheral contact 104 and inserted into an opening 107 of the cover 106
The convex portion 109 of the actuator 108 is in contact with the top of the conductive thin plate 105, and the flange 110 of the actuator 108, which is constantly pushed upward by the restoring force of the conductive thin plate 105, is supported by the cover 106. there were.

A conventional method for manufacturing such a push switch is described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 56-43573. In this method, a hoop material in which a center contact 103 and a peripheral contact 104 are integrally formed is introduced into a mold to form a body 10.
1 is insert-molded with an insulating resin, and after cutting the molded product from the hoop material, the conductive thin plate 105 is stored in the recess 102 of the body 101, and its outer edge is placed on the peripheral contact 104, and then , the cover 106 and the actuator 108 are attached.

(C) Problems to be Solved by the Invention In the conventional manufacturing method described in the above publication, the central contact 1
03 and the peripheral contact 104, and the process of assembling the conductive thin plate 105 into the body 101 are essential, resulting in a problem that the production process becomes complicated.

Further, in a push switch manufactured by a conventional manufacturing method, the conductive thin plate 105 is only placed on the peripheral contact 104 and is not fixed to the peripheral contact 104. The conductive thin plate 1 slips on the top, shifts its position, and is applied to the actuator 108.
There was a problem in that not only the restoring force of 05 fluctuated and the operational feeling was likely to deteriorate, but also poor contact between the two was likely to occur. Furthermore, since the recess 102 of the body 101 communicates with the outside through the opening 107 of the cover 106 when the actuator 108 is pushed in, foreign objects such as dust can
In addition, when mounting the push switch on a wiring board, solder flux and washing water may enter the recess 102 when the push switch is mounted on a wiring board. There were problems such as the risk of contact failure.

This invention solves the above problems by keeping the outer edge of the conductive thin plate buried in the body together with the peripheral contacts when insert molding the body, thereby preventing misalignment of the conductive thin plate, dust, etc. To provide a push switch that does not cause contact failure due to adhesion of foreign matter or solder flux during mounting, and is free from the risk of deterioration of an operation window.

+d1 Means for Solving the Problem The push switch of the present invention has peripheral contacts arranged around a central contact having a transparent hole in the center, and a plate-like elastic conductive plate that covers the central contact. A conductive circuit component formed by overlapping the outer edge of the thin plate with the peripheral contacts is set in a mold, and by injecting insulating resin into the molding space of the mold, the outer edge of the conductive thin plate and the peripheral contacts are The invention is characterized in that an insulating body is molded, the overlapping portion of which is held in a buried state, and which has a space that communicates with the internal space of the R electric circuit member through the through hole.

(c1 action) According to the push switch manufacturing method of the present invention, by performing the insulating body forming process, the conductive thin plate and the peripheral contacts, which are conductive circuit components, are fixed, and at the same time, the central contact and the peripheral contacts are connected to each other. The inner space of the conductive circuit member and the space of the body are communicated with each other by the through hole of the central contact point.

(f) Embodiment FIG. 1 shows a step of setting a conductive circuit component 2 into a mold 1 included in a manufacturing method according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the above manufacturing method, after performing such a setting step, the molding space S of the molding die 1 is opened.

+kTh by injecting insulating resin into SR
I&S body inserts are molded,
To facilitate understanding, the push switch itself manufactured by the above manufacturing method will be described first, and then the manufacturing method will be described in detail.

Figure 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the push switch, Figure 3 (A) is a plan view of the push switch, and Figure C
B) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 1--1 in FIG. 1A, FIG. 1C is a cross-sectional view taken along the n-tr line in FIG.

In the push switch shown in these figures, the conductive circuit component 2 includes a circular central contact 3, a peripheral contact 4 arranged around the central contact 3, and a plate-shaped elastic member that covers the middle and central contacts 3. The center contact has a through hole 6 in its center, and terminals 7, 7.
It has an integrated structure. Further, the peripheral contact 4 is formed in a rectangular shape with a circular opening 8 in the center, and
It has a terminal 9.9 integrally. Reference numeral 10 denotes an insulating body, which includes an outer wall portion 11 and support portions 12 for the central contact 3 and peripheral contact 4, and has a recess-shaped space between the outer wall portion 11 and the support portion 12. And this space v
I is covered with a flexible film 13. Note that although the space V in the illustrated example has a semicircular shape, the shape may be circular or other shapes. Further, as shown in detail in FIG. 3(E), the outer edge 5a of the conductive thin plate 5 is overlapped with the peripheral contact 4, and the overlapping portion of both is on the upper end of the outer wall 11 of the body 10. It is kept buried.

According to such a push switch, the peripheral contact 4 and the conductive thin plate 5 are fixed by the body 10 and positioned reliably, so that there is no possibility of deterioration of the operating feeling or poor contact between the two due to misalignment of the four conductive thin plate 5. does not occur. In addition, the center contact 3
The internal space v2 of the four-current circuit component 2 surrounded by the peripheral contacts 4 and the conductive thin plate 5 is connected to the body 1 through the through hole 6.
0 space v1, and a large volume air pocket is formed. Therefore, fluctuations in back pressure when the conductive thin plate 5 deforms during on/off are extremely small, and the fluctuations in back pressure have almost no effect on the operational feeling, resulting in a good operational feeling. Furthermore, since the internal space v2 of the conductive circuit component 2 and the space V of the body 10 are completely sealed by the conductive thin plate 5 and the film 13, foreign matter such as dust, solder flux during mounting, and cleaning during washing with water are completely sealed. There is no possibility that water or the like will enter the inside of the body 5, and there is no fear of poor contact between the peripheral contact 4 and the conductive thin plate 5 or between the central contact 3 and the conductive thin plate 5. It is also possible to increase safety by injecting an inert gas into the air pocket.

In the push switch described above, an example has been shown in which the peripheral contacts 4 are arranged around the entire circumference of the central contact 3 by placing the central contact 3 in the center of the circular opening 8 of the peripheral contact 4. The range in which they are arranged does not necessarily have to be around the entire circumference of the center contact 3 (the peripheral contacts 4 may be arranged partially around the center contact 3).

FIG. 4(A) shows a peripheral contact 4 partially surrounding the central contact 3.
A plan view showing an example of a push switch with
B) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line m-m of the same figure (A), and the same figure (C) is a cross-sectional view of the same figure (A)! '/-IV line sectional view. In the push switches shown in these figures, FIGS. 3(A) to (D)
The points that differ from those described above are that the peripheral contact 4 has a notch-shaped opening 8, and that the support portion 12 of the body 10 is raised so as to cover a part of the central contact 3 and the peripheral contact 4,
The only difference is that the peripheral edge of the conductive thin plate 5 is supported by the raised portion 12a. Therefore, Fig. 3(A)~
Components that are the same as those of the push switch in (D) are designated by the same reference numerals, thereby omitting a detailed explanation of each component.

Next, the manufacturing method will be explained.

The molding die 1 includes an upper mold 20 and a lower mold 21, and the molding spaces S, S2 are formed in the lower mold 21.

Note that S is a molding space for molding the outer wall portion 11 of the body 10, and Sz is a molding space for molding the support portion 12. The upper shape 20 is formed with a link 2-shaped protrusion 22 and a bulge 23 surrounded by the protrusion 22.

° When the conductive circuit component 2 is in a closed state, the overlapping portion of the peripheral contact 4 and the outer edge 5a of the conductive thin plate 5 is sandwiched between the lower mold 21 and the protrusion 22 of the upper mold 20, as shown in the figure. and the end of the overlapping portion is in the molding space S.
It protrudes inside the l. Further, the central portion of the conductive thin plate 5 is pressed by the bulging portion 23 and deformed into a flat shape, and comes into contact with the central contact 3. From this state, the molding spaces S,, S.

Insulating resin is injected in a molten state and released from the mold after hardening.
Furthermore, if the space V is closed with the film 13 after release from the mold, the push switch described above is obtained. In this case,
When injecting an inert gas into the air pocket formed by the internal space v2 of the conductive circuit component 2 and the space v1 of the body 10, after injecting the inert gas, fill the space v with the film 13.
Of course, block 1.

When manufacturing a push switch by such insert molding, the hoop material in which the central contact 3 and the peripheral contact 4 are integrally formed and the hoop material in which the conductive thin plate 5 is formed are intermittently fed, and these hoop materials are overlapped. If the above-mentioned insert molding is carried out, push switches can be easily mass-produced and productivity is improved. When such means are employed, the center contact 3, peripheral contact 4, and conductive thin plate 5 can be separated from the hoop material at the time of mold closing.

(ff) Effects of the Invention According to the method for manufacturing a push switch of the present invention, the conductive circuit components consisting of the center contact, peripheral contacts, and conductive thin plate are all set in a molding die, and the body is insert-molded. Since a push switch can be manufactured, the process of assembling a conductive thin plate into the body, which was indispensable in the past, is omitted, simplifying the production process.

In addition, in the push switch manufactured by this manufacturing method, the peripheral contacts and the conductive thin plate are fixed by the body and positioned reliably, so the operational feeling may deteriorate due to the temporary positional deviation of the conductive iA, and the contact between the two may be poor. There is no risk of this occurring. In particular, fluctuations in back pressure due to deformation of the conductive thin plate during on/off times, which have a large impact on the operational feel, communicate with the internal space of the conductive circuit component through the through hole of the central contact. The large volume air pocket formed by the space in the body reduces the operating feel to a very small size, which not only prevents deterioration of the operating feel but also improves it compared to push switches manufactured using conventional methods. This has the advantage of making it better. In addition, since the internal space of the conductive circuit components and the space of the body are sealed with a conductive thin plate, contact failure may occur due to adhesion of foreign matter such as dust, solder flux during mounting, and washing water during washing. The manufacturing method of the present invention is superior to conventional methods from these points as well.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing how four electric circuit components are set in a mold included in a manufacturing method that is an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 2 shows a part of a push switch manufactured by the above method. 3(A) is a plan view of the push switch, 3(B) is a sectional view taken along line 1-1 of 3(A), and 3(C) is 3(A). The sectional view taken along the line nn of the same figure (CD) is the bottom view of the same push switch, the same figure (IE)
4(A) is a plan view showing another example of the push switch manufactured by the above method, and FIG. 4(B) is an enlarged sectional view showing the main parts of the push switch. -m
FIG. 5C is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV--IV of FIG. 5A, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a bushing switch manufactured by a conventional manufacturing method. 1-molding mold, 2-conductive circuit component, 3-center contact,
4-peripheral contact, 5-conductive thin plate, 5a-outer edge of conductive thin plate, 6-through hole, 10-body, 13-film, S
,, S, - molding space, V, - body space, v2 - internal space of conductive circuit component.

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) A conductive circuit in which peripheral contacts are arranged around a central contact that has a through hole in the center, and the outer edge of a plate-like elastic conductive thin plate that covers the central contact is superimposed on the peripheral contacts. The component is set in a molding die, and an insulating resin is injected into the molding space of the molding die to hold the overlapping portion of the outer edge of the conductive thin plate and the peripheral contact in a buried state, and A method for manufacturing a push switch, comprising molding an insulating body having a space communicating with the internal space of the conductive circuit component through the through hole. (2) Molding the insulating body so that the space in the insulating body has a concave shape, and after molding the insulating body,
The method of manufacturing a push switch according to claim 1, wherein the opening of the space is closed with a flexible film. (3) A patent for injecting an inert gas into the internal space of the conductive circuit component, the through hole, and the concave-shaped space of the insulating body, and then closing the opening of the space of the insulating body with a flexible film. A method for manufacturing a push switch according to claim 2.