HK1148813B - Inclination sensor and its installation structure - Google Patents

Description

Inclination sensor and mounting structure thereof

The present application is a divisional application entitled "tilt sensor", having an international application date of 20/11/2006, an international application number of PCT/JP2006/323088, and a national application number of 200680043281.2

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a tilt sensor for detecting a tilt direction of, for example, a digital still camera, and a mounting structure thereof.

Background

Fig. 14 and 15 show an example of a conventional tilt sensor. Fig. 14 is a longitudinal sectional view of the tilt sensor, and fig. 15 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the XV-XV line of fig. 14. The tilt sensor X shown in these figures includes a housing 91, 1 pair of light receiving elements 92a, 92b, a light emitting element 93, a ball 94, and leads 95, 96. As shown in fig. 15, the pair of 1 light receiving elements 92a and 92b and the light emitting element 93 are disposed to face each other with a gap 91a formed in the case 91 interposed therebetween. The ball 94 is accommodated in the space 91 a.

The 1 pair of light receiving elements 92a and 92b are mounted on the lead 95. The light emitting element 93 is mounted on the lead wire 96. The portions of the leads 95 and 96 exposed from the case 91 are external leads 95a and 96 a. The outer leads 95a and 96a are portions for mounting the tilt sensor X on the circuit substrate S. When receiving the light emitted from the light emitting element 93, the 1-pair light receiving elements 92a and 92b output light receiving signals indicating the received light.

As shown in fig. 14, if the circuit board S on which the tilt sensor X is mounted is substantially parallel to the horizontal plane, the ball 94 is positioned at the bottom of the space 91a in fig. 14, and light emitted from the light-emitting element 93 is received by both the pair of 1 light-receiving elements 92 because the light is not blocked by the ball 94.

On the other hand, when the circuit board S is rotated clockwise by the inclination angle θ or more in fig. 14, the ball 94 moves to the position of the circle a indicated by the two-dot chain line in the gap 91 a. In this position, the ball 94 is positioned on the front surface of the light receiving element 92b, and therefore, of the light emitted from the light emitting element 93, the light reaching the light receiving element 92b is blocked by the ball 94. Conversely, when the circuit board S is rotated counterclockwise by the inclination angle θ or more in fig. 14, the ball 94 moves to the position of the circle B indicated by the two-dot chain line in the gap 91 a. In this position, the ball 94 is positioned on the front surface of the light receiving element 92a, and therefore, of the light emitted from the light emitting element 93, the light reaching the light receiving element 92a is blocked by the ball 94.

Therefore, by monitoring the light reception signals output from the 1 pair of light receiving elements 92a and 92b, it is possible to detect in which direction the circuit board S, that is, the tilt sensor X, is tilted in a plane parallel to the paper plane of fig. 14, that is, in a vertical plane.

The tilt sensor X is mounted on the circuit substrate S via external leads 95a, 96a extending from the case 91. Therefore, as shown in fig. 14, the tilt sensor X is mounted in a posture of standing on the circuit board S. Therefore, a surface including the direction of the tilt detected by the tilt sensor X (hereinafter, this surface is referred to as a "detection target surface") is a surface perpendicular to the mounting surface of the circuit board S. Therefore, when the circuit board S rotates in a plane substantially parallel to the mounting surface, the tilt sensor X cannot detect such a movement of the circuit board S.

However, in a digital still camera having a main body in the shape of a horizontally long rectangular parallelepiped, for example, a function of detecting whether a photographing screen is a horizontally long screen or a vertically long screen by a tilt sensor and automatically switching the display direction of a liquid crystal display portion based on the detection result has been proposed. That is, in general, when the digital video camera is held so that the camera body is horizontally long, the image pickup screen is horizontally long, and when the digital video camera is held so that the camera body is vertically long, the image pickup screen is vertically long, and therefore, the tilt sensor is mounted on the circuit board incorporated in the digital video camera, and the tilt sensor mounted on the circuit board detects the tilt of the camera body in the vertical plane, thereby detecting whether the camera body is horizontally long or vertically long, and automatically switching the display direction of the display image so that the image displayed on the liquid crystal display portion matches the image pickup screen based on the detection result.

However, the circuit board on which the tilt sensor is mounted is generally mounted in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the camera body, and when the camera body is tilted in a vertical plane during photographing, for example, the circuit board is rotated and moved only in a state where the mounting surface is held substantially vertically. Since the detection target surface of the conventional tilt sensor X is a surface perpendicular to the mounting surface of the circuit board S as described above, when the circuit board S on which the tilt sensor X is mounted is incorporated in the camera body, the detection target surface of the tilt sensor X is a surface substantially parallel to the horizontal plane in the posture of the camera body at the time of photographing. Therefore, even if the camera body is tilted in the vertical plane at the time of photographing, the ball 94 in the tilt sensor X is not properly moved to the a or B position in fig. 14, so that the conventional tilt sensor X is not suitable for use in detecting the photographing posture of the digital camera.

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. Hei 11-14350

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned matters. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a tilt sensor capable of solving the above-described problems.

A tilt sensor according to the present invention is a tilt sensor that has a rotating body movably housed in a gap portion of a housing, is attached to a tilt detection target device, and detects a tilt of the tilt detection target device by changing a position of the rotating body in the gap portion based on a change in a direction of gravity of a tilt of the tilt detection target device, the tilt sensor including: a substrate which is provided on one side surface of the housing parallel to the surface on which the rotating body moves, and on which 1 pair of light receiving elements are disposed at a predetermined interval on the surface facing the gap, and a light emitting unit which irradiates the 1 pair of light receiving elements with light. The gap portion of the case is formed in a shape that the rolling body is moved to a 1-pair light-shielding position overlapping with the 1-pair light-receiving elements and a neutral position not overlapping with any of the 1-pair light-receiving elements by the change of the gravity direction, and the substrate is formed with a plurality of terminals for surface mounting on a surface opposite to a surface on which the 1-pair light-emitting elements are arranged.

Preferably, the light emitting unit includes 1 light emitting element disposed between the 1 pair of light receiving elements and at a position on the same line as the 1 pair of light receiving elements on a surface of the substrate on which the 1 pair of light emitting elements are disposed, and a reflecting surface that reflects light from the light emitting element is provided on a surface of the void portion of the case opposite to the substrate.

Preferably, the rotating body has a cylindrical shape having a central axis perpendicular to a plane on which the rotating body moves.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a tilt sensor according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the tilt sensor shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the tilt sensor shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line iv-iv of fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken along line V-V of fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a front view showing a state in which the tilt sensor shown in fig. 1 is in a neutral posture.

Fig. 7 is a front view showing a state in which the inclination sensor shown in fig. 1 is inclined in the normal rotation direction.

Fig. 8 is a front view showing a state in which the tilt sensor shown in fig. 1 is tilted in the reverse direction.

Fig. 9 is a front view showing a tilt sensor according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a front view showing a tilt sensor according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 11 is a front view showing a state in which the inclination sensor shown in fig. 10 is inclined in the normal rotation direction.

Fig. 12 is a front view showing a state in which the tilt sensor shown in fig. 10 is in an inverted posture.

Fig. 13 is a sectional view showing a tilt sensor according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 14 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing an example of a conventional tilt sensor.

Fig. 15 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line XV-XV of fig. 14.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 to 5 are views showing a tilt sensor according to a first embodiment of the present invention. More specifically, fig. 1 is a sectional perspective view showing a part of a tilt sensor, fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the same tilt sensor, fig. 3 is a front view of the tilt sensor, fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line iv-iv of fig. 1, and fig. 5 is a sectional view taken along line V-V of fig. 3.

The tilt sensor a1 of the first embodiment, as shown in fig. 1, includes: the substrate 1, the case 2, the cover 3, and the 1 are opposed to the light receiving elements 4A and 4B, the light emitting element 5, the rotor 6, and the terminals 7a, 7B, and 7 c. The inclination sensor a1 is used to detect the rotation direction of the circuit board S on the mounting surface of the circuit board S in a state of surface mounting on the circuit board S, for example. That is, the detection target surface of the tilt sensor a1 is a surface substantially parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board S. The dimensions of tilt sensor a1 are approximately 5.6mm in width, 4.5mm in height, and 3.7mm in thickness. In fig. 3, the cover 3 is omitted.

The substrate 1 is a rectangular insulating substrate, and is made of, for example, glass epoxy resin. The dimensions of the substrate 1 are approximately 5.6mm wide, 4.5mm high and 0.6mm thick. As shown in fig. 2, 6 wiring patterns 7 are formed on the substrate 1. The wiring pattern 7 is made of copper, for example, and is formed by etching a thin film made of copper. Of the 6 wiring patterns 7, 2 wiring patterns 7 are formed extending from the front surface of the substrate 1 to the back surface of the base 1 through the left side surface in fig. 2, the other 2 wiring patterns 7 are formed extending from the front surface of the substrate 1 to the back surface of the substrate 1 through the right side surface in fig. 2, and the remaining 2 wiring patterns 7 are formed extending from the front surface of the substrate 1 to the back surface of the substrate 1 through the lower side surface in fig. 2.

In fig. 2, the light receiving element 4A and the light receiving element 4B are die-bonded to 2 wiring patterns 7 formed on both upper sides of the front surface of the substrate 1. The light-emitting element 5 is die-bonded to the wiring pattern 7 formed on the left side among the 2 wiring patterns 7 formed on the lower portion of the front surface of the substrate 1.

The 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B are, for example, PIN photodiodes. When light of infrared rays is received by the light receiving elements 4A and 4B, 1 generates a corresponding photoelectromotive force, and outputs a light receiving signal based on the photoelectromotive force. As shown in fig. 2, 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B are arranged at the same height position on the substrate 1 with a predetermined interval. The 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B are connected to 2 wiring patterns 7 formed below the respective die-bonded wiring patterns 7 via wires 8. The size of 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A, 4B is about 0.6mm square.

The light emitting element 5 is constituted by an infrared light emitting diode or the like that emits infrared light, and constitutes a light emitting unit in the present invention. As shown in fig. 2, the light emitting element 5 is disposed at a position shifted downward in the drawing from the intermediate position between the 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B. The light emitting element 5 is connected to a wiring pattern 7 formed on the right side of the wiring pattern 7 of the die-bonding light emitting element 5 via a wire 8. The size of the light emitting element 5 is about 0.25mm square.

The case 2 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole, and is made of, for example, epoxy resin. The case 2 is formed by casting. The dimensions of the housing 2 are approximately 5.6mm in width, 4.5mm in height and 2.5mm in thickness. A void portion 20 is formed in the housing 2. The void portion 20 is formed by a hollow portion having a predetermined shape. The gap 20 is composed of a rotor housing portion 20a, 3 windows 20b, and 3 element housing portions 20c, as shown in fig. 2.

The rolling body accommodating portion 20a is a portion that accommodates the rolling body 6. The rolling member accommodating portion 20a causes the rolling member 6 to roll to a predetermined position corresponding to the posture of the inclination sensor a 1. The rotor housing portion 20a is formed in a shape in which 2 hollow portions having an elliptical cross section are connected to each other at right angles (a core shape as a whole). The rolling body accommodating portion 20a has a depth dimension capable of accommodating the rolling body 6. The width of each oval-shaped hollow portion was about 2.2mm, and the radius of the circular arc portions at both ends was about 1.1 mm. The rotor receiving portion 20a has a depth of about 1.7 mm. As shown in fig. 3 and 5, the 3 windows 20b are connected to the rotor accommodating portion 20 a.

The 2 windows 20b located at the upper side in fig. 3 are connected to the protruding portion at the upper side of the rotor accommodating portion 20 a. The window 20b located at the lower side is connected to the central portion of the rotor accommodating portion 20 a. Each of the 3 windows 20b has a circular cross-sectional shape. The 3 windows 20B allow light to reach 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B or allow light from the light emitting element 5 to pass therethrough. The windows 20b located at the left and right ends in fig. 5 have a sectional size of about Φ 1.3mm and a depth of 0.3 mm. Further, the cross-sectional dimension of the window 20b at the center is about Φ 0.8mm and the depth is 0.3 mm. The 3 element housing portions 20c are connected to the 3 windows 20b, respectively.

As shown in fig. 5, the 3 element housing portions 20c are portions for housing the 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B and the light emitting element 5. As shown in fig. 4, 2 element housing portions 20c for housing 1 the pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B are formed in a shape in which 2 hollow portions having a rectangular cross section are connected. The element housing portion 20c for housing the light emitting element 5 is formed in a rectangular shape in cross section. The depth of the element receiving portion 20c is about 0.5 mm.

As shown in fig. 2, the housing 2 has 3 projections 21b formed on the front surface and 3 projections 21a formed on the rear surface. 3 projections 21a, 21b are formed at the center of the upper part and at both end parts of the lower part of each surface, respectively. These projections 21a, 21b are used to align the housing 2 with the substrate 1 and the cover 3. The 3 projections 21a are fitted in the 3 holes 11 of the substrate 1. The 3 protrusions 21b are fitted in the 3 holes 31 formed in the cover 3.

The cover 3 forms the void portion 20 by being engaged with the housing 2. The cover 3 is made of, for example, epoxy resin. As shown in fig. 5, a reflective film 30 is formed on the lower surface of the cover 3. The reflective film 30 reflects light emitted from the light emitting element 5 and makes the light incident on the pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B 1. The reflective film 30 is made of, for example, aluminum. The dimensions of the lid 3 are approximately 5.6mm in width, 4.5mm in height and 0.6mm in thickness.

The rotor 6 is formed in a cylindrical shape and is made of, for example, stainless steel. The rolling member 6 rotates in the rolling member accommodating portion 20a in accordance with the posture of the tilt sensor a 1. The rolling member 6 appropriately prevents the light emitted from the light emitting element 5 from reaching the pair of 1 light receiving elements 4A and 4B by rolling. The cross-sectional dimension of the rotor 6 is about Φ 2.0mm and the height 1.5 mm.

The terminals 7a, 7b, and 7c are used for surface mounting the tilt sensor a1 on the circuit board S shown in fig. 1, for example. As shown in fig. 5, the terminals 7a, 7b, and 7c are constituted by portions of the wiring pattern 7 located on the lower surface side of the substrate 1 (portions formed on the rear surface of the wiring pattern 7 in fig. 2).

Next, detection of the tilt direction by the tilt sensor a1 will be described with reference to fig. 6 to 8. Fig. 6 to 8 are views of the tilt sensor a1 from the front side in a state where the board 1 to which the tilt sensor a1 is attached is disposed such that the attachment surface thereof is parallel to the vertical surface. Accordingly, in fig. 6 to 8, the lower side in the drawings is the direction of gravity. For convenience of explanation, fig. 6 to 8 omit the cover 3.

Fig. 6 shows a state in which the tilt sensor a1 is in a neutral position. In this neutral posture, the rotating body 6 remains near the center of the rotating body accommodating portion 20a in accordance with the gravity. This position will be referred to as "neutral position" hereinafter.

When the rolling member 6 is at the neutral position, only the window 20b facing the light emitting element 5 is closed by the rolling member 6, so that light from the light emitting element 5 is not incident on the rolling member housing portion 20 a. Therefore, light from the light emitting element 5 is reflected by the reflection film 30 of the rotor accommodating portion 20a and does not enter 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B, so that light is not detected by 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B. Therefore, the light receiving signal is not output from 1 to either of the light receiving elements 4A and 4B. If the light receiving signals are not output from 1 to the light receiving elements 4A and 4B, it can be recognized that the tilt sensor a1 is in the neutral posture.

Next, when the tilt sensor a1 is rotated clockwise in fig. 6, the state shown in fig. 7 is formed. In this state, the rolling body 6 is rotated to the right end vicinity portion in the rolling body accommodating portion 20a in accordance with the gravity. Hereinafter, this position is referred to as "forward rotation light-shielding position".

When the rolling member 6 is in the normal rotation light-shielding position, only the window 20B facing the light-receiving element 4B is covered by the rolling member 6. Therefore, light from the light emitting element 5 enters the rolling element housing portion 20a and is reflected by the reflection film 30, but the reflected light enters the light receiving element 4A but does not enter the light receiving element 4B, so that the light from the light emitting element 5 is received not by the light receiving element 4B but only by the light receiving element 4A.

Thus, only the light receiving element 4A outputs the light receiving signal. If the light receiving signal is output from the light receiving element 4A and the light receiving signal is not output from the light receiving element 4B, it can be recognized that the tilt sensor a1 is in the posture shown in fig. 7.

In fig. 6, when the tilt sensor a1 is rotated counterclockwise, the state shown in fig. 8 is formed. In this state, the rolling body 6 is rotated to the left end vicinity portion in the rolling body accommodating portion 20a in accordance with the gravity. Hereinafter, this position is referred to as "reverse light-shielding position".

When the rotating body 6 is in the reverse light-shielding position, only the window 20b opposed to the light-receiving element 4A is covered by the rotating body 6. Therefore, light from the light emitting element 5 enters the rolling element housing portion 20a and is reflected by the reflection film 30, but the reflected light enters the light receiving element 4B but does not enter the light receiving element 4A, so that the light from the light emitting element 5 is received not by the light receiving element 4A but only by the light receiving element 4B.

Thus, only the light receiving element 4B outputs the light receiving signal. If the light receiving signal is output from the light receiving element 4B and the light receiving signal is not output from the light receiving element 4A, it can be recognized that the tilt sensor a1 is in the posture shown in fig. 8.

Next, the operation of the tilt sensor a1 will be described.

According to the first embodiment, as shown in fig. 1, the rotation of the circuit board S in a plane substantially parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board S can be detected by the inclination sensor a 1. Therefore, when the circuit board S to which the tilt sensor a1 is attached is incorporated in the camera body of the digital camera, for example, when the camera body is tilted in the vertical plane during shooting, the circuit board S rotates in the vertical plane, and the tilt sensor a1 attached to the circuit board S also rotates in the detection target plane, so that the rotation of the circuit board S, that is, the tilt of the camera body, can be detected by the proper movement of the rolling body 6 in the rolling body housing portion 20 a. That is, the tilt sensor a1 is suitable for use in applications such as automatically switching the display direction of an image displayed on the liquid crystal display unit of a digital still camera.

The surface mount type tilt sensor a1 can be collectively mounted on, for example, the circuit board S together with other electronic components. Thus, the work efficiency of mounting on the circuit board S can be improved.

The tilt sensor a1 has 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B and a light emitting element 5 mounted on the substrate 1. In fig. 1, a thin plate-like cover 3 is provided on the front side of the case 2 on the paper surface. Thus, the tilt sensor a1 is suitable for achieving thinning. Further, the thinned tilt sensor a1 can be mounted along the circuit board S. Therefore, the inclination sensor a1 can be prevented from protruding greatly from the circuit board S.

The cross-sectional dimension of the cylindrically shaped rotating body 6 of the tilt sensor a1 is larger than the cross-sectional dimension of the window 20b of the gap 20. Therefore, there is no fear that the rolling element 6 may enter the window 20b improperly when rotating in the rolling element housing portion 20 a. Therefore, the rolling member 6 can be smoothly rotated in the rolling member accommodating portion 20 a.

Furthermore, the window 20b is shielded by the rotor 6 via its circular end face. When the rotor 6 is positioned on the front surface of the window 20b, the window 20b is completely shielded by the above-mentioned circular end surface. This is appropriate for preventing the false detection of the tilt sensor a 1. Further, even if the height dimension of the rolling body 6 is made small, the rolling body 6 having a cylindrical shape can be smoothly rolled. This is advantageous for realizing the thinning of the tilt sensor a 1.

Fig. 9 to 13 show other embodiments of the present invention. In the drawings, the same or similar elements as those of the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as those of the above-described embodiment.

Fig. 9 shows a tilt sensor of a second embodiment of the present invention. In this figure, the cover 3 shown in fig. 1 is omitted.

The inclination sensor a2 of the second embodiment differs from the inclination sensor a1 of the first embodiment in the arrangement of 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A, 4B and light emitting element 5. The pair of 1 light receiving elements 4A and 4B and the light emitting element 5 are arranged such that their respective centers are on the same straight line. The 3 windows 20B are arranged so that the centers thereof are on the same straight line, corresponding to the arrangement of the 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B and the light emitting element 5.

According to the second embodiment, it is possible to appropriately detect the rotation of the circuit board S by a predetermined amount or more (for example, a rotation amount corresponding to the angle θ shown in fig. 14) within the plane substantially parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board S on which the inclination sensor a2 is mounted. In the case of manufacturing the inclination sensor a2, 1 pair of the light receiving elements 4A and 4B and the light emitting element 5 may be mounted on the substrate 1 in 1 row. Therefore, as compared with the case where the light receiving elements 4A and 4B and the light emitting element 5 are mounted so that the light receiving elements 1 form a substantially triangular shape as in the first embodiment, the manufacturing efficiency can be improved.

Fig. 10 to 12 show a tilt sensor according to a third embodiment of the present invention. In these figures, the cover 3 shown in fig. 1 is omitted.

The cross-sectional shape of the rotor accommodating portion 20a of the tilt sensor a3 of the third embodiment is different from that of the first and second embodiments. In the third embodiment, the cross-sectional shape of the void portion 20 is a diamond shape.

When the tilt sensor a3 is in the neutral position, the rotor 6 is positioned on the front surface of the light emitting element 5 as shown in fig. 10. Next, when the tilt sensor a3 rotates clockwise in the drawing, the posture thereof is the posture shown in fig. 11, and the rolling member 6 moves to the forward rotation light-shielding position on the front surface of the light-receiving element 4B. When the tilt sensor A3 is rotated clockwise, the tilt sensor A3 assumes an inverted posture as shown in fig. 12. At this time, the rolling member 6 moves to a position opposite to the neutral position in the rolling member housing portion 20 a. This position will be referred to as "inverted position" hereinafter.

When the rolling body 6 is in the inverted position, the light from the light emitting element 5 is received by both the pair of 1 light receiving elements 4A, 4B. Therefore, in the tilt sensor A3, when the light reception signals are output from 1 pair of the light receiving elements 4A and 4B, it can be detected that the tilt sensor A3 is in the inverted posture. Accordingly, the tilt sensor a3 can detect 4 states of being in the neutral posture, being in the posture of being rotated forward or reverse from the neutral posture, and being in the inverted posture.

In the case of the tilt sensor a1 shown in the first embodiment, even if the tilt sensor a1 is further rotated from the state shown in, for example, fig. 7 or 8 to an inverted posture, it is not possible to detect that it is in the inverted posture by the tilt sensor a 1. Only the posture in the forward rotation or the reverse rotation can be detected by the tilt sensor a 1. According to the tilt sensor a3, there is no problem that if the result is an inverted posture, the detection result differs depending on whether the rotational direction up to that point is the forward direction or the reverse direction.

Fig. 13 shows a tilt sensor according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. The tilt sensor a4 of the fourth embodiment is different from the first to third embodiments described above in that it includes 1 pair of light-emitting elements 5A, 5B as light-emitting means.

The 1 pair of light emitting elements 5A and 5B are disposed on the front surfaces of the 1 pair of light receiving elements 4A and 4B, respectively, on the substrate 1A. The pair of 1 light-emitting elements 5A, 5B are mounted on the wiring pattern on the substrate 1A. The wiring pattern is electrically connected to the terminal 7c by surrounding the outside of the housing 2. The wiring pattern may be electrically connected to the terminal 7c by providing a through hole (not shown). In the fourth embodiment, the inclination sensor a4 can be surface-mounted on the circuit board S (not shown). Therefore, the predetermined amount of rotation of the circuit board S (not shown) in a plane substantially parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit board S on which the inclination sensor a4 is mounted can be detected.

The tilt sensor of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. The specific structure of each part of the tilt sensor of the present invention can be variously changed in design.

The rotating body in the present invention is preferably cylindrical as in the above-described embodiment, but is not limited thereto, and may be spherical, for example. The light emitted from the light emitting element is not limited to infrared light, and light of various wavelengths can be used.

Claims (8)

1. A tilt sensor mounted on a circuit board, having a cylindrical rotor movably housed in a hollow portion having a rhombic cross-sectional shape of a housing, for detecting a rotational direction of the circuit board in a mounting surface by changing a position of the rotor in the hollow portion, comprising:

a substrate which is mounted in parallel with the mounting surface of the circuit substrate and has 1 pair of light receiving elements spaced apart from each other by a predetermined interval on the surface facing the gap; and

a light emitting element which can emit light to the pair of light receiving elements 1 and is arranged on a surface of the substrate facing the gap portion,

the gap part of the shell moves the rotating body to 1 pair of light shielding positions overlapped with any one of the 1 pair of light receiving elements by utilizing the change of the gravity direction; a neutral position that overlaps with the light emitting element but does not overlap with any of the 1 pair of light receiving elements; and 4 positions of inverted positions which do not overlap with the light emitting element and any one of the 1 pair of light receiving elements,

the moving surface of the rotating body including the 4 positions is parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit substrate,

a plurality of terminals for surface mounting on the circuit board are formed on a surface of the substrate opposite to a surface on which the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting element are arranged,

a cover having a reflection surface for reflecting light from the light emitting element is bonded to a surface of the cavity of the case opposite to the substrate.

2. The tilt sensor of claim 1, wherein:

the reflective surface of the cover is formed by a reflective film.

3. The tilt sensor of claim 1 or 2, wherein:

wiring patterns for die-bonding the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting element are formed on the surface of the substrate facing the gap, respectively, and the wiring patterns extend to the back surface of the substrate to constitute the plurality of terminals.

4. The tilt sensor of claim 1 or 2, wherein:

on the surface of the substrate facing the gap, wiring patterns to which the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting elements are die-bonded, and wiring patterns connected to the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting mechanism by wires are formed, and these wiring patterns extend to the back surface of the substrate to constitute the plurality of terminals.

5. A mounting structure of a tilt sensor including a circuit substrate and a tilt sensor mounted on a mounting surface of the circuit substrate, characterized in that the tilt sensor includes:

a housing having a space portion with a rhombic cross-sectional shape;

a cylindrical rotor movably housed in the gap of the housing;

a substrate which is mounted in parallel with the mounting surface of the circuit substrate and has 1 pair of light receiving elements spaced apart from each other by a predetermined interval on the surface facing the gap; and

a light emitting element which can emit light to the pair of light receiving elements 1 and is arranged on a surface of the substrate facing the gap,

the gap of the housing is formed such that the rotating body is moved by gravity to 1 pair of light-shielding positions overlapping with any one of the 1 pair of light-receiving elements in accordance with the rotation of the circuit board in the mounting surface; a neutral position that overlaps with the light emitting element but does not overlap with any of the 1 pair of light receiving elements; and 4 positions of inverted positions which do not overlap with any of the light emitting element and the 1 pair of light receiving elements,

the moving surface of the rotating body including the 4 positions is parallel to the mounting surface of the circuit substrate,

a plurality of terminals for surface mounting on the circuit board are formed on a surface of the substrate opposite to a surface on which the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting element are arranged,

a cover having a reflection surface for reflecting light from the light emitting element is bonded to a surface of the cavity of the case opposite to the substrate.

6. The mounting structure of a tilt sensor according to claim 5, wherein:

the reflective surface of the cover is formed by a reflective film.

7. The mounting structure of the tilt sensor according to claim 5 or 6, wherein:

wiring patterns for die-bonding the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting element are formed on the surface of the substrate facing the gap, respectively, and the wiring patterns extend to the back surface of the substrate to constitute the plurality of terminals.

8. The mounting structure of the tilt sensor according to claim 5 or 6, wherein:

on the surface of the substrate facing the gap, wiring patterns die-bonded to the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting element, and wiring patterns connected to the 1 pair of light receiving elements and the light emitting mechanism by wires are formed, and these wiring patterns extend to the back surface of the substrate to constitute the plurality of terminals.