WO2022056699A1

WO2022056699A1 - Pushbutton and electrical device

Info

Publication number: WO2022056699A1
Application number: PCT/CN2020/115462
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jianlin KUANG; Jianqi LIN; Jien SU
Original assignee: Abb Schweiz Ag
Priority date: 2020-09-16
Filing date: 2020-09-16
Publication date: 2022-03-24

Abstract

It relates a pushbutton (100) and an electrical device comprising the pushbutton (100). The pushbutton (100) comprises a first sleeve (4) adapted to receive a contact assembly (6); an actuator (1) comprising a top cover (11) adapted to be pressed and a driving member (12) coupled to the top cover (11) and inserted into the first sleeve (4), the driving member (12) being adapted to trigger the contact assembly (6) upon the top cover (11) being pressed; and a sealing member (3) arranged between the driving member (12) of the actuator (1) and an inner wall (41) of the first sleeve (4) and being capable of sliding together with the driving member (12) with respect to the inner wall (41) of the first sleeve (4), the sealing member (3) comprising a sealing lip (31) squeezed against the inner wall (41) of the first sleeve (4). The sealing performance of the pushbutton (100) could be improved.

Description

PUSHBUTTON AND ELECTRICAL DEVICE

FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of pushbuttons, and more particularly, to a pushbutton with an improved waterproof structure and an electrical device including the pushbutton.

BACKGROUND

A pushbutton is a simple switch mechanism for controlling a machine or a process. A sealing device is typically utilized in the pushbutton to prevent water from reaching and damaging a contact assembly to be triggered.

Patent publication Nos. US6717082B1, CN207517592U, DE19950367C1, JPS58225513A, JPH06314528A, and CN1129155C describe pushbuttons with a similar waterproof structure, which is composed of an elastic seal, a hollow housing and a movable actuating element. The elastic seal generally includes an outer flange at its outer circumference and an inner flange at its inner circumference. The outer flange is mounted on the hollow housing and the inner flange is mounted in a groove of the movable actuating element. The working principle of such a waterproof structure is that the elastic seal can be stretched when the movable actuating element is pushed into the hollow housing, and the outer flange of the elastic seal can still stay on the hollow housing. In this way, the stretchable elastic seal would prevent water leakage to some extent. However, a disadvantage of the above waterproof structure is that the inner flange of the elastic seal is typically leaky because of deformation of the elastic seal. Moreover, a part line on the actuating element cannot be totally removed because of specific manufacturing processes, which further deteriorates the waterproof performance of the elastic seal. Thus, the elastic seal would probably leak at the inner flange side, such that the above pushbuttons cannot pass IPX6 and IPX7 testing.

Patent publication Nos. US2011036698A1, JP2019175822A, EP2299462A1, DE102009008537B3, US2002134656A1, CN108807023A, CN202363326U, JP2009163916A, and CN104685596A describe some similar waterproof structures using a lip seal inside. The lip seal is often used on an emergency stop switch which further includes a hollow housing or a handle and a shaft or an inner sleeve. An inner circumference of the lip seal is held down and deformed in a groove of the shaft/inner sleeve. An outer circumference of the lip seal is a sealing lip, which is squeezed and rubbed by the hollow housing/handle. The working principle of the waterproof structures is that the sealing lip can be fit on the hollow housing/handle by deformation and water pressure. However, a disadvantage of such waterproof structures is also the part line on the shaft/inner sleeve cannot be totally removed because of specific manufacturing processes. Thus, the lip seal would leak at the inner circumference of the lip seal, such that the above waterproof structures also cannot pass IPX7 testing.

Thus, there is a need for a solution for improve the waterproof performance of the pushbutton.

SUMMARY

In view of the foregoing problems, various example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a pushbutton with improved waterproof performance.

In a first aspect of the present disclosure, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a pushbutton. The pushbutton comprises a first sleeve adapted to receive a contact assembly; an actuator comprising a top cover adapted to be pressed and a driving member coupled to the top cover and inserted into the first sleeve, the driving member being adapted to trigger the contact assembly upon the top cover being pressed; and a sealing member arranged between the driving member of the actuator and an inner wall of the first sleeve and being capable of sliding together with the driving member with respect to the inner wall of the first sleeve, the sealing member comprising a sealing lip squeezed against the inner wall of the first sleeve.

In some embodiments, the driving member comprises a mounting part adapted to support the sealing member and arranged near to an end of the driving member opposite to the top cover.

In some embodiments, the sealing member further comprises: a tubular part surrounding the mounting part and comprising a bottom end and a top end closer to the top cover than the bottom end; and a protrusion arranged at an inner surface of the tubular part, wherein the sealing lip is arranged at an outer surface of the tubular part opposite to the inner surface.

In some embodiments, the mounting part comprises: a first supporting surface adapted to support the top end of the tubular part; a second supporting surface facing the first supporting surface and adapted to support the protrusion; and a sealing surface against which a portion of the inner surface of the tubular part near to the bottom end is squeezed.

In some embodiments, the sealing lip is bent towards the top cover of the actuator.

In some embodiments, a thickness of the sealing lip is substantially uniform from its inner side to its outer side.

In some embodiments, a thickness of the sealing lip is gradually decreased from its inner side to its outer side.

In some embodiments, the pushbutton further comprises a second sleeve coupled to the first sleeve, wherein the top cover of the actuator is arranged in the second sleeve.

In some embodiments, the first sleeve comprises a first connecting part, and the actuator further comprises a second connecting part adapted to be snapped by the first connecting part such that the actuator is mounted on the first sleeve.

In some embodiments, lubricant is provided between the sealing lip and the inner wall of the first sleeve.

In a second aspect of the present disclosure, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide an electrical device comprising a pushbutton according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the sealing member including the sealing lip is used for the pushbutton instead of the conventional elastic seal. The sealing member can slide together with the actuator, avoiding deformation of the sealing member due to pulling of the actuator. In this way, the sealing performance between the sealing member and the actuator would be maintained at a high level when the actuator is pressed.

Moreover, in some embodiments, the sealing member including the sealing lip is arranged near to the end of the driving member opposite to the top cover. The sealing surface near to the bottom of the driving member can be formed in a single mold, avoiding the part line on the sealing surface. In this way, the sealing surface on the actuator can be in close contact with the portion of the inner surface of the sealing member near to the bottom end, further improving the sealing performance between the sealing member and the actuator.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Through the following detailed descriptions with reference to the accompanying drawings, the above and other objectives, features and advantages of the example embodiments disclosed herein will become more comprehensible. In the drawings, several example embodiments disclosed herein will be illustrated in an example and in a non-limiting manner, wherein:

Fig. 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a pushbutton, taken along a first direction, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the pushbutton as shown in Fig. 1, taken along a second direction normal to the first direction;

Fig. 3 illustrates a perspective view of a sealing member of the pushbutton as shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 illustrates a front view of the sealing member as shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the sealing member as shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the sealing member in accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 7 illustrates a perspective view of an actuator of the pushbutton as shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 illustrates a front view of the actuator as shown in Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 illustrates a relative arrangement between the actuator and the sealing member as shown in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 10 illustrates a front view of the actuator and the sealing member as shown in Fig. 9.

Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference symbols are used to indicate the same or similar elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to several example embodiments shown in the drawings. Though example embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated in the drawings, it is to be understood that the embodiments are described only to facilitate those skilled in the art in better understanding and thereby achieving the present disclosure, rather than to limit the scope of the disclosure in any manner.

The term “comprises” or “includes” and its variants are to be read as open terms that mean “includes, but is not limited to. ” The term “or” is to be read as “and/or” unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term “based on” is to be read as “based at least in part on. ” The term “being operable to” is to mean a function, an action, a motion or a state can be achieved by an operation induced by a user or an external mechanism. The term “one embodiment” and “an embodiment” are to be read as “at least one embodiment. ” The term “another embodiment” is to be read as “at least one other embodiment. ” The terms “first, ” “second, ” and the like may refer to different or same objects. Other definitions, explicit and implicit, may be included below. A definition of a term is consistent throughout the description unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms “mounted, ” “connected, ” “supported, ” and “coupled” and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass direct and indirect mountings, connections, supports, and couplings. Furthermore, “connected” and “coupled” are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings. In the description below, like reference numerals and labels are used to describe the same, similar or corresponding parts in the figures. Other definitions, explicit and implicit, may be included below.

As discussed above, the inner flange of the elastic seal cannot be held on the current actuating element tightly enough, because the inner flange is deformed when the elastic seal is stretched; moreover, the part line of the current actuating element cannot be totally removed because of the groove design and specific manufacturing processes, further deteriorating the waterproof performance of the pushbutton. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, to improve the sealing performance of the pushbutton, the sealing member capable of sliding together with the actuator is used for the pushbutton instead of the conventional elastic seal, avoiding deformation of the sealing member due to the pulling of the actuator. Moreover, the sealing member is arranged near to the bottom of the driving member, and the sealing surface near to the bottom of the driving member can be formed in a single mold, avoiding the part line on the sealing surface. The above idea may be implemented in various manners, as will be described in detail in the following paragraphs.

Hereinafter, the principles of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to Figs. 1-10. Referring to Figs. 1-2 first, Fig. 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of a pushbutton, taken along a first direction, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, and Fig. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the pushbutton as shown in Fig. 1, taken along a second direction normal to the first direction. As shown in Figs. 1-2, the pushbutton 100 described herein generally includes a first sleeve 4, an actuator 1, and a sealing member 3 arranged between the actuator 1 and the first sleeve 4.

The first sleeve 4 is adapted to receive a contact assembly 6. Upon being triggered, a state of the contact assembly 6 may be changed, for example from an open state to a close state, or vice versa, or between other states. The present disclosure is intended to improve the sealing performance of the pushbutton 100, and does not involve improvements of the contact assembly 6 per se. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the contact assembly 6 may be of various known configurations or other configurations available in the future. The construction and operating principle of the contact assembly 6 would not be described in detail herein.

The actuator 1 includes a top cover 11 adapted to be pressed and a driving member 12 coupled to the top cover 11. The driving member 12 is inserted into the first sleeve 4, and may slide with respect to an inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4 upon the top cover 11 being pressed. When the top cover 11 is pressed by an operator, the driving member 12 would move downwards and trigger the contact assembly 6, such that the state of the contact assembly 6 is changed accordingly.

The sealing member 3 is arranged between the driving member 12 of the actuator 1 and the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4 so as to fill a gap therebetween. The sealing member 3 includes a sealing lip 31 squeezed against the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4. The sealing member 3 is supported by the driving member 12 of the actuator 1 and capable of sliding together with the driving member 12 with respect to the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4. When the top cover 11 is pressed by the operator, the driving member 12 would move downwards together with the sealing member 3, avoiding the deformation of the sealing member 3 due to the pulling of the actuator 1. In this way, the sealing lip 31 may be in close contact with the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4 and the inner side of the sealing member 3 may be in close contact with the driving member 12 of the actuator 1, such that the sealing performance between the sealing member 3 and the actuator 1 can be maintained at a high level when the actuator 1 is pressed.

In some embodiments, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the driving member 12 includes a mounting part 121 adapted to support the sealing member 3. The mounting part 121 is arranged near to an end of the driving member 12 opposite to the top cover 11. In other words, the mounting part 121 is arranged near to the bottom of the driving member 12. The sealing member 3 is arranged around the mounting part 121 and supported by the mounting part 121.

In some embodiments, as shown in Figs. 1-2, the sealing lip 31 is bent towards the top cover 11 of the actuator 1 and squeezed against the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4. With such an arrangement, the water from the external environment may be blocked by the sealing lip 31 reliably and thus cannot get inside the pushbutton 100. In other embodiments, the sealing lip 31 may be arranged in other manners. For example, the sealing lip 31 may be in contact with the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4 in a substantially horizontal direction. Likewise, the water from the external environment may be blocked by such a sealing lip 31. It is to be understood that the sealing lip 31 may be arranged in other orientations. The scope of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, lubricant is provided between the sealing lip 31 and the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4 so as to reduce friction between the sealing lip 31 and the inner wall 41 of the first sleeve 4.

In some embodiments, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the pushbutton 100 further includes a second sleeve 2 coupled to the first sleeve 4. The top cover 11 of the actuator 1 is arranged in the second sleeve 2. As an example, the second sleeve 2 may be coupled to the first sleeve 4 through threads. As another example, the second sleeve 2 may be formed integrally with the first sleeve 4. It is to be understood that the second sleeve 2 may be coupled to the first sleeve 4 in other manners. The scope of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, as shown in Fig. 1, the first sleeve 4 includes a first connecting part 42. Accordingly, the actuator 1 includes a second connecting part 13 adapted to be snapped by the first connecting part 42. With such an arrangement, the actuator 1 may be mounted onto the first sleeve 4 conveniently and reliably. It is to be understood that the actuator 1 may be mounted onto the first sleeve 4 in other manners. The scope of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the pushbutton 100 further includes an anti-rotation gasket 5 arranged on the first sleeve 4. A nut (not shown) may be screwed onto the first sleeve 4 against the anti-rotation gasket 5 so as to mount the pushbutton 100 onto an electrical device.

Hereinafter, example implementations of the sealing member 3 will be described in detail further in conjunction with Figs. 3-6.

Referring to Figs. 3-5 first, Fig. 3 illustrates a perspective view of the sealing member of the pushbutton as shown in Fig. 1, Fig. 4 illustrates a front view of the sealing member as shown in Fig. 3, and Fig. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the sealing member as shown in Fig. 3.

In some embodiments, as shown in Figs. 1-5, in addition to the sealing lip 31, the sealing member 3 further includes a tubular part 30 and a protrusion 32 arranged on the tubular part 30. The tubular part 30 surrounds the mounting part 121 of the driving member 12 and includes a top end 303 and a bottom end 304. The top end 303 is closer to the top cover 11 than the bottom end 304. The tubular part 30 further includes an inner surface 301 facing the mounting part 121 of the driving member 12 and an outer surface 302 opposite to the inner surface 301. The protrusion 32 is arranged at the inner surface 301 of the tubular part 30 so as to fix the sealing member 3 onto the mounting part 121 of the driving member 12. The sealing lip 31 is arranged at the outer surface 302 of the tubular part 30.

In some embodiments, as shown Figs. 3-5, the sealing lip 31 may have substantially uniform thickness from its inner side to its outer side. In an original state (not squeezed) of the sealing member 3, the sealing lip 31 may be inclined towards the top cover 11 of the actuator 1, such that the sealing lip 31 is easy to be bent towards the top cover 11 of the actuator 1.

Fig. 6 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the sealing member in accordance with another embodiment of the present disclosure. The construction of the sealing member 3 as shown in Fig. 6 is similar to that of the sealing member 3 as shown in Figs. 3-5, except that the thickness of the sealing lip 31 as shown in Fig. 6 is gradually decreased from its inner side to its outer side, and the sealing lip 31 extends in a substantially horizontal direction with respect to the tubular part 30 in the original state of the sealing member 3.

Hereinafter, example implementations of the mounting part 121 on the actuator 1 will be described in detail with reference to Figs. 7-10. Fig. 7 illustrates a perspective view of an actuator of the pushbutton as shown in Fig. 1, Fig. 8 illustrates a front view of the actuator as shown in Fig. 7, Fig. 9 illustrates a relative arrangement between the actuator and the sealing member as shown in Fig. 1, and Fig. 10 illustrates a front view of the actuator and the sealing member as shown in Fig. 9.

In some embodiments, as shown in Figs. 7-10, the mounting part 121 includes a first supporting surface 1211, a second supporting surface 1212, a sidewall 1213, and a sealing surface 1214. The first supporting surface 1211 is adapted to support the top end 303 of the tubular part 30 of the sealing member 3. The second supporting surface 1212 faces the first supporting surface 1211 and is adapted to support the protrusion 32 of the sealing member 3. The first supporting surface 1211, the second supporting surface 1212, and the sidewall 1213 form a recess together, such that the protrusion 32 of the sealing member 3 may be arranged in the recess and supported by the second supporting surface 1212. The sealing surface 1214 adjoins the second supporting surface 1212. A portion of the inner surface 301 of the tubular part 30 near to the bottom end 304 is squeezed against the sealing surface 1214. During assembling, the sealing member 3 may be pressed onto the actuator 1 from the bottom of the driving member 12.

Since the sealing surface 1214 is arranged at the bottom of the driving member 12, the sealing surface 1214 can be formed in a single mold, avoiding the part line on the sealing surface 1214. In this way, the sealing surface 1214 on the actuator 1 can be in close contact with the portion of the inner surface 301 of the sealing member 3 near to the bottom end 304, further improving the sealing performance between the sealing member 3 and the actuator 1.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the new sealing structure may provide higher waterproof performance for the pushbutton 100, such that the pushbutton 100 can achieve high waterproof level, for example, IPX6, IPX7, and IPX9K.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the sealing member 3 may be made of any available sealing materials, for example, rubber, silicone, and so on.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the pushbutton 100 as described above with reference to Figs. 1-10 may be used in various electrical devices.

While several inventive embodiments have been described and illustrated herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily envision a variety of other means and/or structures for performing the function and/or obtaining the results and/or one or more of the advantages described herein, and each of such variations and/or modifications is deemed to be within the scope of the inventive embodiments described herein. More generally, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations described herein are meant to be exemplary and that the actual parameters, dimensions, materials, and/or configurations will depend upon the specific application or applications for which the inventive teachings is/are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific inventive embodiments described herein. It is, therefore, to be understood that the foregoing embodiments are presented by way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereto, inventive embodiments may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described and claimed. Inventive embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to each individual feature, system, article, material, kit, and/or method described herein. In addition, any combination of two or more such features, systems, articles, materials, kits, and/or methods, if such features, systems, articles, materials, kits, and/or methods are not mutually inconsistent, is included within the inventive scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

A pushbutton (100) comprising:

a first sleeve (4) adapted to receive a contact assembly (6) ;

an actuator (1) comprising a top cover (11) adapted to be pressed and a driving member (12) coupled to the top cover (11) and inserted into the first sleeve (4) , the driving member (12) being adapted to trigger the contact assembly (6) upon the top cover (11) being pressed; and

a sealing member (3) arranged between the driving member (12) of the actuator (1) and an inner wall (41) of the first sleeve (4) and being capable of sliding together with the driving member (12) with respect to the inner wall (41) of the first sleeve (4) , the sealing member (3) comprising a sealing lip (31) squeezed against the inner wall (41) of the first sleeve (4) .
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 1, wherein the driving member (12) comprises a mounting part (121) adapted to support the sealing member (3) and arranged near to an end of the driving member (12) opposite to the top cover (11) .
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 2, wherein the sealing member (3) further comprises:

a tubular part (30) surrounding the mounting part (121) and comprising a bottom end (304) and a top end (303) closer to the top cover (11) than the bottom end (304) ; and

a protrusion (32) arranged at an inner surface (301) of the tubular part (30) ,

wherein the sealing lip (31) is arranged at an outer surface (302) of the tubular part (30) opposite to the inner surface (301) .
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 3, wherein the mounting part (121) comprises:

a first supporting surface (1211) adapted to support the top end (303) of the tubular part (30) ;

a second supporting surface (1212) facing the first supporting surface (1211) and adapted to support the protrusion (32) ; and

a sealing surface (1214) against which a portion of the inner surface (301) of the tubular part (30) near to the bottom end (304) is squeezed.
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 1, wherein the sealing lip (31) is bent towards the top cover (11) of the actuator (1) .
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 1, wherein a thickness of the sealing lip (31) is substantially uniform from its inner side to its outer side.
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 1, wherein a thickness of the sealing lip (31) is gradually decreased from its inner side to its outer side.
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 1, further comprising a second sleeve (2) coupled to the first sleeve (4) ,

wherein the top cover (11) of the actuator (1) is arranged in the second sleeve (2) .
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 1, wherein the first sleeve (4) comprises a first connecting part (42) , and

wherein the actuator (1) further comprises a second connecting part (13) adapted to be snapped by the first connecting part (42) such that the actuator (1) is mounted on the first sleeve (4) .
The pushbutton (100) according to claim 1, wherein lubricant is provided between the sealing lip (31) and the inner wall (41) of the first sleeve (4) .
An electrical device comprising a pushbutton (100) according to any of claims 1-10.