TWI674608B - Optical keyswitch with adjustable triggering function and related optical keyboard - Google Patents

Abstract

An optical key capable of adjusting a pressing trigger point and an optical keyboard thereof. The optical key includes a bottom plate, a support base, a sleeve member, and an adjusting member. An optical transmission channel is formed between a light transmitter and a light receiver on the bottom plate. One of the support bases enters or exits the optical transmission channel to generate a trigger signal. The elastic arm element undergoes bending deformation as the sleeve member moves. The adjusting member has a stopping portion which can be moved relative to the light transmission channel to be positioned in a first position or a second position. The spring arm element generates the trigger signal by shielding the optical transmission channel with a first deformation amount when the adjustment member is in the first position, and shielding the light transmission channel by a second deformation amount when the adjustment member is in the second position. The optical transmission channel generates the trigger signal.

Description

Optical key with adjustable trigger point and its optical keyboard

The invention provides an optical key and an optical keyboard, in particular, an optical key and an optical keyboard capable of adjusting a pressing trigger point.

In actual applications, in order to provide users with different tactile feedback of the key press structure, it is necessary to design key structures of different specifications for users to purchase; for example, adjustment of the travel distance of the key press. That is, the existing key structure can only provide a fixed pressing feel, and cannot be used by the user to adjust the pressing feel; therefore, when the user needs a different key pressing feel, it is necessary to purchase a new keyboard or replace the old keyboard with the old one. The key structure is removed and replaced with a new key structure; this is costly, which greatly limits the flexibility and ease of operation of the key structure.

The present invention provides an optical key and an optical keyboard capable of adjusting a pressing trigger point to solve the above-mentioned problems.

The patent application scope of the present invention discloses an optical button with adjustable pressing trigger point, which includes a bottom plate, a support base, a sleeve member and an adjustment member. The bottom plate includes a light transmitter and a light receiver, and an optical transmission channel is formed between the light transmitter and the light receiver. The support base is disposed on the bottom plate. The support base has a spring arm element, and the spring arm element enters or exits the optical transmission channel to generate a trigger signal. The sleeve member is movably disposed in the support seat. The elastic arm element undergoes bending deformation as the sleeve member moves. The adjusting member is movably disposed on the bottom plate. The adjusting member has a stopper, which can be moved relative to the light transmission channel and positioned in a first position or a second position to cooperate with the elastic arm element to shield the light transmission channel. The spring arm element generates the trigger signal by shielding the optical transmission channel with a first deformation amount when the adjustment member is in the first position, and shielding the light transmission channel by a second deformation amount when the adjustment member is in the second position. The trigger signal is generated by an optical transmission channel, and the first deformation amount is different from the second deformation amount.

The patent application scope of the present invention also discloses an optical keyboard with adjustable pressing trigger point, which includes a bottom plate and a plurality of optical keys. The base plate includes a plurality of optical transmitters and a plurality of optical receivers. An optical transmission channel is formed between each optical transmitter and its corresponding optical receiver. The plurality of optical keys are disposed on the base plate. Each optical button includes a support base, a sleeve member and an adjustment member. The bottom plate includes a light transmitter and a light receiver, and an optical transmission channel is formed between the light transmitter and the light receiver. The support base is disposed on the bottom plate. The support base has a spring arm element, and the spring arm element enters or exits the optical transmission channel to generate a trigger signal. The sleeve member is movably disposed in the support seat. The elastic arm element undergoes bending deformation as the sleeve member moves. The adjusting member is movably disposed on the bottom plate. The adjusting member has a stopping portion, which can be moved relative to the light transmission channel to be positioned in a first position or a second position for stopping the elastic arm element. The spring arm element generates the trigger signal by touching the stopper with a first deformation amount when the adjustment member is in the first position, and touches the stopper by a second deformation amount when the adjustment member is in the second position. The stop signal generates the trigger signal, and the first deformation amount is different from the second deformation amount.

The optical keys and the optical keyboard of the present invention use a movable adjusting member to change the width of the light transmission channel, thereby pressing the trigger point position of the stroke. Optical buttons with a wider light transmission channel provide a long range of working depth, which means that the optical button is pressed to a deeper stroke to generate a trigger signal; optical buttons with a narrow light transmission channel provide a short range of working depth. A light press on the optical button can generate a trigger signal. The front release implementation mode uses a spring arm element to shield the optical transmission channel to generate a trigger signal. However, the spring arm element can be used to remove the optical transmission channel so that the optical receiver can receive the optical signal of the optical transmitter as a trigger signal generation mechanism. In different embodiments, the adjustment member can be placed above or below the bottom plate; the adjustment member provided above the bottom plate is controlled by an actuation plate under the bottom plate to switch its position, and the adjustment member provided below the bottom plate passes the stopper Pass the backplane to shield or keep away from the light transmission channel.

Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the appearance of the optical keyboard 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the components of the optical button 12 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The optical keyboard 10 may include a plurality of optical keys 12, a bottom plate 14 and an actuation plate 16. The optical buttons 12 are respectively disposed at different positions on the bottom plate 14. The actuation plate 16 is movable relative to the bottom plate 14 and is used to switch the actuation mode of the optical button 12. The bottom plate 14 is further provided with a plurality of light detection modules 17. Each light detection module 17 has a light transmitter 18 and a light receiver 20. A light transmission channel is formed between the light transmitter 18 and the light receiver 20 to detect whether the corresponding optical button 12 is pressed.

The optical button 12 may include a support seat 22, a sleeve member 24, an adjustment member 26, a reset member 28, and a keycap 30. The support base 22 may include an upper support portion 32 and a lower support portion 34 that are engaged with each other. The keycap 30 is disposed on the sleeve member 24, and the sleeve member 24 is slidably disposed between the upper support portion 32 and the lower support portion 34. The lower support portion 34 is provided on the bottom plate 14 and supports the upper support portion 32. The lower support portion 34 has a spring arm member 36; when the user presses the keycap 30, the pushing portion 38 of the sleeve member 24 can move up and down with the sleeve member 24 to drive the spring arm member 36 to bend and deform, and the spring arm member 36 can Entering or exiting the optical transmission channel of the light detection module 17 generates a trigger signal when the optical button 12 is triggered. The reset element 28 is disposed between the base plate 14 and the sleeve member 24. After the pressure is applied to remove the force outside the keycap 30, the elastic restoring force of the reset element 28 can drive the sleeve member 24 relative to the bottom plate 14 to return to the initial position. The adjusting member 26 is movably disposed on the bottom plate 14. The adjusting member 26 may include a stop portion 40 and an extension portion 42. The extending portion 42 passes through the first hole 44 of the bottom plate 14 to fit the positioning hole 46 of the actuating plate 16. The actuation plate 16 moves relative to the bottom plate 14, and the stopper portion 40 can be pulled synchronously to change its position.

Please refer to FIG. 3 to FIG. 8, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are schematic diagrams of the sleeve member 24 and the elastic arm element 36 in different operation stages according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are The optical keypad 12 of the first embodiment of the present invention is a partial structural diagram of the optical keypad 12 at different operating stages in the first hair-emitting mode. Figs. 7 and 8 show the optical key 12 of the first embodiment of the present invention at the second stage. Schematic diagram of part of the structure in different operating stages under the hair-emitting mode. In this embodiment, the adjusting member 26 is disposed above the bottom plate 14, and the actuation plate 16 is disposed below the bottom plate 14. As shown in FIG. 3, the optical button 12 has not been pressed, and the pushing portion 38 of the sleeve member 24 does not stop against the spring arm element 36, or the pushing portion 38 contacts the spring arm element 36 without driving it to elastically deform, The pushing portion 38 presses the elastic arm element 36 to deform slightly, so that the elastic arm element 36 does not block or partially block the light transmission channel of the light detection module 17. If the optical button 12 is pressed, as shown in FIG. 4, the pushing portion 38 pushes against the elastic arm element 36 and bends and deforms greatly. The elastic arm element 36 can block the light transmission channel of the light detection module 17 to generate Trigger signal.

As shown in FIG. 5, the adjusting member 26 is located at the first position, which means that the adjusting member 26 does not overlap or overlaps slightly with the light transmission channel P1 of the light detection module 17; at this time, the sleeve member 24 has not been pressed down. The elastic arm element 36 is not bent and deformed by being pushed by the pushing portion 38, and the light transmission channel P1 is unblocked without generating a trigger signal. If the pushing portion 38 of the sleeve member 24 is pushed down and pushed against the elastic arm element 36 to cause a bending deformation of the first deformation amount V1, as shown in FIG. 6, the elastic arm element 36 shields the light transmission channel P1 by the first deformation amount V1. , So that the optical button 12 generates a trigger signal. It can be seen that the light transmission channel P1 in the first emission mode is wide, and the sleeve member 24 needs to be pressed down deeply to drive the elastic arm element 36 to have sufficient bending deformation to shield the light transmission channel P1.

To switch the optical button 12 from the first firing mode to the second firing mode, it is only necessary to translate the actuation plate 16, and the extension portion 42 is pulled by the actuation plate 16 to pull the stop portion 40 to the second position. Between the light transmitter 18 and the light receiver 20, it is partially shielded to form a narrower light transmission channel P1 '. As shown in Fig. 7, the sleeve member 24 has not been pressed down, and the elastic arm member 36 is not bent and deformed without shielding the light transmission channel P1 '. If the user depresses the sleeve member 24, the pushing portion 38 is pushed against the elastic arm member 36 to produce a bending deformation of the second deformation amount V2, as shown in FIG. The optical transmission channel P1 'has a narrower range due to the adjustment member 26 moved to the second position. The elastic arm element 36 can shield the optical transmission channel P1' by a small second amount of deformation V2, so that the optical button 12 is triggered. Signal. In other words, the user can change the position of the adjusting member 26 relative to the light detection module 17 by translating the actuating plate 16. The light transmission channel P1 ′ of the second emission mode is compared with the light of the first emission mode. The transmission channel P1 has a small width, and the elastic arm element 36 needs only a slight deformation to cover the light transmission channel P1 ′, which means that the second deformation amount V2 is smaller than the first deformation amount V1; Pressing the keycap 30 can cause the electroluminescent button 12 to generate a trigger signal.

Please refer to FIG. 9, which is an exploded view of a component of an optical button 12 'according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, the elements having the same numbers as those in the first embodiment have the same structure and functions, and will not be repeated here. The adjusting member 26 'of the optical button 12' is disposed below the bottom plate 14. The adjusting member 26 'may include a stop portion 40' and a bridge portion 48. The bridge portion 48 is warped upward from the body of the adjusting member 26 'to pass through the second hole 50 of the bottom plate 14. The stopper portion 40 'is connected to an end of the bridge portion 48 opposite to the body of the adjusting member 26', that is, the bridge portion 48 supports the stopper portion 40 ', so that the stopper portion 40' protrudes from the upper surface of the body of the adjustment member 26 '. With the movement of the adjusting member 26 'relative to the bottom plate 14, the stopper 40' can enter or exit the light transmission channel of the light detection module 17, and then actuate the optical button 12 'to generate a trigger signal.

Please refer to FIG. 10 and FIG. 11. FIG. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a part of the optical button 12 ′ in the first firing mode according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is an optical diagram of the second embodiment of the present invention. Partial structure diagram of the key 12 'in the second firing mode. As shown in FIG. 10, the adjusting member 26 'is located at the first position, and the stopper portion 40' does not overlap or only slightly overlap the light transmission channel P2 of the light detection module 17. When not pushed by the pushing portion 38, the elastic arm element 36 is not elastically deformed (as shown by the solid line range in the figure), and does not cover the light transmission channel P2; if the pushing portion 38 moves with the sleeve member 24 down, the bomb is driven The arm element 36 is elastically deformed (as shown by the dotted line in the figure). The elastic arm element 36 shields the light transmission channel P2 through the first deformation amount V1, so that the optical button 12 'generates a trigger signal. In addition, the user can translate the adjustment member 26 'to move the adjustment member 26' from the first position shown in Fig. 10 to the second position shown in Fig. 11; the stopper 40 'is located at the light emitter 18 and the light receiver Between 20, a narrower light transmission channel P2 'is formed. In the second firing mode, the user presses the optical button 12 'lightly, and the elastic arm element 36 can shield the light transmission channel P2 through a small range of the second deformation amount V2.

In summary, the optical keys and the optical keyboard of the present invention use a movable adjusting member to change the width of the light transmission channel, thereby pressing the position of the trigger point of the stroke. Optical buttons with a wider light transmission channel provide a long range of working depth, which means that the optical button is pressed to a deeper stroke to generate a trigger signal; optical buttons with a narrow light transmission channel provide a short range of working depth. A light press on the optical button can generate a trigger signal. The front release implementation mode uses a spring arm element to shield the optical transmission channel to generate a trigger signal. However, the spring arm element can be used to remove the optical transmission channel so that the optical receiver can receive the optical signal of the optical transmitter as a trigger signal generation mechanism. In different embodiments, the adjustment member can be placed above or below the bottom plate; the adjustment member provided above the bottom plate is controlled by an actuation plate under the bottom plate to switch its position, and the adjustment member provided below the bottom plate passes the stopper Pass the backplane to shield or keep away from the light transmission channel. Compared with the prior art, the present invention can quickly switch the optical key and its optical keyboard's hair generation mode through the translation of the adjustment member, eliminating the tedious steps of disassembling the old one and replacing the new one, which helps to improve the product structure stability and operation. Convenience. The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and all equivalent changes and modifications made in accordance with the scope of patent application of the present invention shall fall within the scope of the present invention.

10‧‧‧ Optical keyboard

12, 12’‧‧‧Optical buttons

14‧‧‧ floor

16‧‧‧actuation plate

17‧‧‧light detection module

18‧‧‧ light emitter

20‧‧‧ Optical Receiver

22‧‧‧ support

24‧‧‧ Sleeve

26、26’‧‧‧Adjustment pieces

28‧‧‧ Reset element

30‧‧‧Keycap

32‧‧‧ Upper support

34‧‧‧ Lower support

36‧‧‧Bomb Arm Elements

38‧‧‧ Promotion Department

40, 40’‧‧‧ stop

42‧‧‧ extension

44‧‧‧ The first hole

46‧‧‧ Positioning hole

48‧‧‧Bridge Department

50‧‧‧ second hole

P1, P1 ’, P2, P2’ ‧‧‧ optical transmission channels

V1‧‧‧First deformation amount

V2‧‧‧Second deformation amount

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an appearance of an optical keyboard according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded view of components of the optical button according to the first embodiment of the present invention. 3 and 4 are schematic diagrams of the sleeve member and the elastic arm element in different operation stages according to the first embodiment of the present invention, respectively. FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are partial structural diagrams of the optical button according to the first embodiment of the present invention in different operation stages in the first firing mode. 7 and 8 are partial structural diagrams of the optical button according to the first embodiment of the present invention in different operation stages under the second firing mode. FIG. 9 is an exploded view of components of an optical button according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a part of an optical button in a first hair-emitting mode according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 11 is a schematic structural view of a part of an optical button in a second hair-emitting mode according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (18)

An optical button with adjustable pressing trigger point includes: a base plate including a light transmitter and a light receiver, the light transmitter and the light receiver form a light transmission channel; a support base, Arranged on the bottom plate, the support base has a spring arm element, the spring arm element enters or exits the optical transmission channel to generate a trigger signal; a sleeve member is movably disposed in the support base, the spring arm The element is deformed with the movement of the sleeve member; and an adjusting member is movably disposed on the bottom plate, and the adjusting member has a stopper portion which can be moved relative to the light transmission channel to be positioned in a first position or a A second position for cooperating with the elastic arm element to shield the light transmission channel; wherein the elastic arm element generates the trigger signal by covering the optical transmission channel with a first deformation amount when the adjusting member is in the first position, In addition, the trigger signal is generated by shielding the optical transmission channel by a second deformation amount when the adjusting member is located in the second position, and the first deformation amount is different from the second deformation amount. The optical button according to claim 1, wherein the adjusting member is disposed above the bottom plate, and the adjusting member further has an extension portion that passes through a first hole of the bottom plate, and the extension portion is pulled by a thrust force. The stopper is switched to the first position or the second position. The optical button according to claim 2, further comprising: a uniform moving plate movably disposed below the bottom plate, and the extension is fitted into a positioning hole of the actuating plate. The optical button according to claim 1, wherein the adjustment member is disposed below the bottom plate, and the adjustment member further has a bridge portion, which passes through a second hole of the bottom plate to support the stop portion, the bridge The stopper is pulled to switch to the first position or the second position by a thrust force. The optical button according to claim 1, wherein the movement of the stop portion changes a width of one of the optical transmission channels. The optical button according to claim 1, wherein the sleeve member includes a pushing portion, and the pushing portion pushes the elastic arm element to cause the bending deformation as the sleeve member moves. The optical button according to claim 1, further comprising: a reset element disposed between the bottom plate and the sleeve member, and an elastic restoring force of the reset member drives the sleeve member to move relative to the bottom plate. The optical button according to claim 1, further comprising: a keycap provided on the sleeve member. The optical button according to claim 1, wherein the support base includes an upper support portion and a lower support portion which are engaged with each other, the lower support portion is disposed on the bottom plate and supports the upper support portion, and the sleeve member Slidably disposed between the upper support portion and the lower support portion. An optical keyboard with adjustable pressing trigger point includes: a base plate including a plurality of optical transmitters and a plurality of optical receivers, and an optical transmission channel is formed between each optical transmitter and its corresponding optical receiver; and a plurality of An optical button is disposed on the base plate, and each optical button includes: a support base provided on the base plate, the support base having a spring arm element, the spring arm element entering or exiting the optical transmission channel is generated A trigger signal; and a sleeve member movably disposed in the support base, the elastic arm element being bent and deformed as the sleeve member moves; and an adjustment member movably disposed on the bottom plate, the The adjusting member has a stopper, which can be moved relative to the light transmission channel and positioned in a first position or a second position to cooperate with the elastic arm element to shield the light transmission channel; wherein the elastic arm element is in the adjustment The trigger signal is generated by shielding the light transmission channel by a first deformation amount when the element is in the first position, and by a second deformation when the adjustment element is in the second position. The shielding of the light transmission path to generate the trigger signal, and different from the second amount of deformation of the first deformation amount. The optical keyboard according to claim 10, wherein the adjusting member is disposed above the bottom plate, the adjusting member further has an extension portion, passes through a first hole of the bottom plate, and the extension portion is pulled by a thrust force. The stopper is switched to the first position or the second position. According to the optical keyboard described in claim 11, the optical key further includes a uniform moving plate, which is movably disposed below the bottom plate, and the extension is fitted into a positioning hole of the actuating plate. The optical keyboard according to claim 10, wherein the adjustment member is disposed below the bottom plate, and the adjustment member further has a bridge portion that passes through a second hole in the bottom plate to support the stop portion, the bridge The stopper is pulled to switch to the first position or the second position by a thrust force. The optical keyboard according to claim 10, wherein the movement of the stop portion changes a width of one of the optical transmission channels. The optical keyboard according to claim 10, wherein the sleeve member includes a pushing portion, and the pushing portion pushes the elastic arm element to cause the bending deformation as the sleeve member moves. The optical keyboard according to claim 10, wherein the optical key further includes a reset element disposed between the base plate and the sleeve member, and an elastic restoring force of the reset member drives the sleeve member to move relative to the base plate . According to the optical keyboard described in claim 10, the optical key further includes a keycap disposed on the sleeve member. The optical keyboard according to claim 10, wherein the support base includes an upper support portion and a lower support portion which are engaged with each other, the lower support portion is disposed on the bottom plate and supports the upper support portion, and the sleeve member Slidably disposed between the upper support portion and the lower support portion.