JP2012009162A - Switch device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a switch device which can detect the rotational operation of a tilting control knob and allows smooth switching operation even when an operator of a switch element is obliquely pressed, and which prevents multiple switch elements from being turned on simultaneously.SOLUTION: A disk-like control knob 4 is arranged in a circular opening 3a of a switch case 3 such that the control knob 4 can be operated by pressing (tilting). Pressing parts 7 for turning on tact switches 9 to 12 are arranged on a rear face of the control knob 4. Each of the pressing parts 7 is provided with an elastic member 13 made of a flexible material at its tip end. When the control knob 4 is operated by tilting, the elastic member 13 is elastically deformed in a direction that allows it to be depressed by a predetermined amount, and then operators 9a to 12a of the tact switches 9 to 12 are turned on by pressing.

Description

  The present invention relates to a switch device having an operation knob that is tilted by a pressing operation.

  For example, as an operation device for adjusting the angle of an electric door mirror provided in an automobile, there is known a four-direction tilt type switch device configured to operate four switch elements by tilting an operation knob in four directions, up, down, left and right. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1). This switch device includes an operation knob that can be tilted in four directions, up, down, left, and right, with a central portion as a fulcrum, inside an opening of a switch case. The operation knob is positioned at a neutral position during normal operation (in an unoperated state). On the surface of the operation knob, operation parts are provided at four locations on the upper, lower, left, and right sides of the outer peripheral part, and a total of four convex parts forming a hemisphere are integrally provided on the back side of each operation part.

  Then, four switch elements are provided in the switch case, and the rod of each switch element is in contact with the tip of the convex portion. Thus, for example, if the user presses the right operation portion of the operation knob and tilts the operation knob to the right side, the right convex portion presses the rod of the right switch element and presses the switch element. It is designed to be turned on.

JP 2005-340010 A

  By the way, in this kind of switch device, not only the usage of simply pressing the operation part of the operation knob to instruct the four directions (turning on or off one of the four switch elements), the user can Rotation is detected by changing the ON / OFF state of multiple switch elements at the same time while rotating the operation knob while sequentially pushing the outer circumference of the operation knob. In other words, the number of types of operations that can be performed with one switch device increases.

  As a specific example, for example, in the field of automobiles, this kind of tilting switch device can be adopted for the instruction operation of the screen display of the car navigation device, and at this time, the tilting operation of the operation knob in four directions is performed. It is possible to use it to instruct the map scroll direction and to use the operation of rotating the operation knob to instruct the display mode change (scale change) or the like.

  However, in the tilt type switch device of the conventional configuration, when the operation knob is rotated as described above, the operation element (rod) of the switch element is not pushed straight but pushed from an oblique direction. As a result, a smooth switch operation (pressing operation of the operating element) cannot be performed, and the operational feeling of the rotation operation for the user is poor, making it difficult to operate. Also. There is a possibility that an unintended switch may be turned on, such as two switch elements being turned on at the same time during the rotation of the operation knob, thereby hindering rotation detection.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to make it possible to detect a rotation operation of a tilting type operation knob, and even if an operation element of a switch element is pressed from an oblique direction, the operation is smooth. An object of the present invention is to provide a switch device that can perform a simple switch operation and that can prevent a plurality of switch elements from being turned on simultaneously.

  The switch device of the present invention has a switch case and a disk shape having a plurality of operation portions along the outer peripheral portion on the surface side, is supported to be tiltable by the switch case, and is positioned in a neutral position in a non-operation state, An operation knob that tilts so that the pressing operation portion is pushed inward of the switch case by pressing the outer peripheral portion on the front surface side, and a portion corresponding to each operation portion on the back side of the operation knob. A plurality of pressing portions provided in a protruding shape, and an operation that is provided in the switch case so as to face each pressing portion of the operation knob and is pressed by the pressing portion according to a tilting operation of the operation knob. A plurality of switch elements having a child, wherein each pressing portion is configured in two layers of different materials on the base end side and the tip end side, of which the tip side layer is Is it softer than the base end? The elastic member is in contact with the operation element of the switch element, and when the operation knob is tilted, the elastic member is elastically deformed in a direction to be crushed by a certain amount, and then the operation element is pressed to operate the switch. It is characterized in that the element is configured to operate.

  According to the switch device of the present invention, when one of the operation portions on the outer peripheral portion of the surface of the operation knob is pressed, the operation knob tilts with respect to the switch case, and corresponds to the operation portion on the back surface of the operation knob. The pressing unit presses the operating element of the switch element to turn on the switch element. At this time, the pressing portion is configured in two layers, and a soft elastic member is provided on the distal end side thereof, and the operating element is pressed through this elastic member, so that the switch element is turned on immediately after the pressing operation of the operating knob. In other words, the elastic member is turned on after a certain amount of elastic deformation.

  When the user performs a rotation operation that sequentially shifts the pressing position (tilting position) in the rotation direction while pushing the outer periphery of the operation knob, the switch device of the present invention is in an on-operation state at that time. On the basis of detecting that the switch elements sequentially change, it is possible to detect that the operation knob is rotated and the rotation direction thereof. In this case, since the portion of the operation knob that contacts the operation element of each switch element is a soft elastic member, the operation element can be smoothly pressed from any direction, and the user's operational feeling is also improved. In addition, since an elastic member is interposed between the operation knob and the operation element, a space corresponding to the elastic member is provided, so that it is possible to prevent two switch elements from being turned on simultaneously without intention. it can.

  Therefore, in the switch device that can detect the rotation operation in the tilt type operation knob, smooth switch operation is possible even when the operation element of the switch element is pressed from an oblique direction, and a plurality of switch elements Can be prevented from being simultaneously turned on. As the soft material constituting the elastic member, various elastically deformable materials such as sponge-like soft resin and rubber can be adopted, and the spring biasing the operation element of the switch element What is necessary is just to have the elasticity which deform | transforms in the direction crushed with force smaller than force.

The longitudinal cross-sectional front view of the switch apparatus which shows one Example of this invention and shows the state (a) in which an operation knob is in a neutral position, and the state (b) by which tilting operation was carried out Top view of switch device Perspective view showing the operation knob upside down Longitudinal front view for explaining how one switch element is turned on Diagram showing electrical configuration schematically

  Hereinafter, an embodiment embodying the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, the switch device 1 is incorporated, for example, in a steering wheel portion of an automobile, and is provided for operation of an in-vehicle device 2 (see FIG. 5) such as a car navigation device, a car audio device, and an in-vehicle telephone. Hereinafter, the configuration of the switch device 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. In the drawings, for the sake of convenience, the switch device 1 is shown with the surface side of the operation knob facing upward, and in the following description, when referring to directions such as up and down, left and right, and front and back, FIG. Based on the state of

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the switch device 1 includes a synthetic resin operation knob 4 on the upper surface of a synthetic resin switch case (cover) 3. At this time, the switch case 3 is formed with a circular opening 3a, and the operation knob 4 is formed in a disk shape having a slightly smaller diameter corresponding to the circular opening 3a. At this time, the operation knob 4 is configured by joining the divided bodies 4a and 4b divided into two in the vertical direction (the front surface side and the back surface side) by screwing, bonding or the like in FIG. As shown, the rubber sheet 5 is sandwiched between the divided bodies 4a and 4b at the time of coupling. The rubber sheet 5 is configured to protrude to the outer peripheral side of the operation knob 4.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the switch case 3 includes, for example, screwing a substrate portion 3 b and an upper surface plate 3 c disposed so as to overlap the upper surface of the substrate portion 3 b around the circular opening 3 a. The rubber sheet 5 is sandwiched between the substrate portion 3b and the upper surface plate 3c with the outer peripheral portion thereof being tightly pinched. Thus, the operation knob 4 is positioned in the circular opening 3a and supported by the switch case 3 so as to be tiltable.

  In this case, in a normal state, that is, in a non-operation state in which no operation force is applied by the user to the operation knob 4, the operation knob 4 is in a neutral position parallel to the outer surface of the switch case 3, as shown in FIG. Located in position. On the other hand, when the outer peripheral portion on the surface side of the operation knob 4 is pressed downward in the figure against the holding force of the rubber sheet 5, as shown in FIG. The pressed portion is tilted so as to be lowered (pressed inward of the switch case 3). When the pressing operation force by the user is released, the operation knob 4 is returned to the neutral position by the elasticity of the rubber sheet 5.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of triangular marks 6 indicating the position to be pressed are formed on the surface (upper surface) of the operation knob 4 so as to form an annular shape along the outer periphery, in this case, front, rear, left, right 4 are provided by printing or the like, and these four marks 6 function as an operation unit. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, on the back surface (lower surface) side of the operation knob 4, four pressing portions in the front, rear, left, and right sides corresponding to the respective mark 6 portions are provided. 7 is provided. These pressing portions 7 operate switch elements, and will be described later in detail.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1, a wiring board 8 is provided in the switch case 3 below the operation knob 4, and a plurality of switching elements in this case, four switching elements are provided on the wiring board 8. The tact switches 9, 10, 11, and 12 having a known configuration are incorporated. As shown in FIG. 2, these tact switches 9 to 12 are provided directly below the four pressing portions 7, that is, sequentially in front, left, rear, and right.

  In FIG. 4, the tact switch 12 on the right side is shown as a representative, but these tact switches 9 to 12 are configured to have operation elements 9 a to 12 a protruding from the upper surface of the main body, respectively. The contacts in the main body are turned on when 9a to 12a are pressed downward. In this case, the operating elements 9a to 12a are urged in a direction protruding upward from the main body by the spring force, and when the pressing force is released, the operating elements 9a to 12a return to the original protruding positions, and the off operation is performed. To do.

  Now, the pressing portion 7 provided on the back side of the operation knob 4 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, in the present embodiment, each of the pressing portions 7 is configured in a columnar shape (round bar shape) as a whole, but on the base end side (upper half portion). And it is comprised by the two-layer shape from which a material differs by the front end side (lower half part). That is, the pressing portion 7 is provided by a relatively hard plastic convex portion 7a provided by integral molding on the back surface portion of the operation knob 4 (divided body 4b) and the tip of the convex portion 7a by, for example, adhesion. And an elastic member 13 made of a soft material.

  More specifically, the elastic member 13 is made of, for example, a rubber material, and is elastic so as to be deformed in a direction to be crushed by a force smaller than a spring force that urges the operation elements 9a to 12a of the tact switches 9 to 12. (Hardness). At this time, the pressing portion 7 is provided so that the lower surface of the elastic member 13 is in contact with the tips of the operating elements 9a to 12a of the tact switches 9 to 12, and as shown in FIG. After the elastic member 13 is elastically deformed in a direction in which the elastic member 13 is crushed by a certain amount, the operation elements 9a to 12a are pressed and the tact switches 9 to 12 are operated.

  FIG. 5 schematically shows an electrical configuration of the switch device 1 portion. Here, the signals of the four tact switches 9 to 12 of the switch device 1 are respectively input to the four input terminals of the control circuit 14 mainly composed of a CPU (computer). And the control circuit 14 controls the vehicle equipment 2 (for example, the display screen of the display apparatus of a car navigation system) according to the input signal from these tact switches 9-12.

  At this time, in the present embodiment, the user can perform a pressing operation on the switch device 1 by pressing and tilting any one of the mark 6 portions of the operation knob 4 downward. In addition to this, the user can rotate the operation knob 4. This rotation operation means that an arbitrary position on the outer peripheral portion of the surface of the operation knob 4 is pressed and the finger is slid to draw a circle along the outer periphery of the surface of the operation knob 4 while the pressing operation force is applied. This is an operation of shifting the pressing operation position in the rotation direction in order.

  The control circuit 14 constantly monitors the input signals from the tact switches 9 to 12, and determines that a pressing operation has been performed when an on signal is input from any one of the tact switches 9 to 12, For example, the map displayed on the display device is scrolled by the amount of movement corresponding to the time during which the ON signal is input from the tact switches 9 to 12. At this time, it goes without saying that the direction in which the operation knob 4 is pressed (either forward / backward / left / right) corresponds to the scroll direction (up / down / left / right). For example, when the right tact switch 12 is turned on. Scroll right.

  Further, when the ON signal is sequentially input from the plurality of tact switches 9 to 12, the control circuit 14 determines that the operation knob 4 has been rotated, and changes the mode of the map display on the screen of the display device (for example, Change the scale). In this case, the user performs a clockwise operation (clockwise as viewed from above) or a counterclockwise (counterclockwise) rotation operation as indicated by an arrow B in FIG. be able to. When the tact switch 9, the tact switch 10, the tact switch 11, the tact switch 12, and the tact switch 9 are turned on in this order, the control circuit 14 determines that it is clockwise. On the other hand, when the tact switch 12, the tact switch 11, the tact switch 10, the tact switch 9, and the tact switch 12 are turned on in this order, it is determined that the counterclockwise direction.

  In the switch device 1 configured as described above, when any one of the operation sections 6 of the operation knob 4 is pressed by the user, the operation knob 4 tilts with respect to the switch case 3 from the neutral position, and The pressing unit 7 presses the operating elements 9a to 12a of the tact switches 9 to 12 to turn them on. As a result, the ON operation signals of the tact switches 9 to 12 are input to the control circuit 14, and the in-vehicle device 2 (for example, a display device of a car navigation system) is controlled. When the user releases the operation force on the operation knob 4, the operation knob 4 returns to the neutral position, and the tact switches 9 to 12 are turned off.

  In the example shown in FIG. 1, when the right portion of the operation knob 4 is pressed in the direction of arrow A, the right tact switch 12 is turned on, and an on operation signal of the tact switch 12 is input to the control circuit 14. At this time, an elastic member 13 is provided at the tip of the pressing portion 7 of the operation knob 4, and the operator 12 a of the tact switch 12 is pressed via the elastic member 13, so that immediately after the operation knob 4 is pressed. In addition, the tact switch 12 is not turned on, and is turned on after a certain amount of elastic deformation of the elastic member 13.

  Further, as described above, in the switch device 1 according to the present embodiment, the user can perform a rotation operation in which the pressing position (tilting position) is sequentially shifted in the rotation direction while pressing the outer periphery of the operation knob 4. . In this case, since the ON operation signals of the tact switches 9 to 12 are sequentially input to the control circuit 14 in accordance with the rotation direction, the control circuit 14 indicates that the operation knob 4 has been rotated and that The rotation direction can be detected, and the in-vehicle device 2 can be controlled accordingly.

  Here, as exemplified by the tact switch 12 in FIG. 4, when the operation knob 4 is rotated, the operator 12 a of the tact switch 12 is not pushed straight, but obliquely. There is a situation in which a state of being pushed from the direction occurs. For this reason, there is a possibility that a smooth switch operation (pressing operation of the operation element 12a) cannot be performed, or that the operation feeling of the rotation operation of the operation knob 4 for the user is poor and difficult to operate.

  However, in this embodiment, the portion of the operation knob 4 that comes into contact with the operation element 12a is the soft elastic member 13, so that the elastic member 13 is first inclined and crushed as shown in FIG. Deformation is performed (see FIG. 4B), and then the operation element 12a is pushed in a state of maintaining a biased crushing state (see FIG. 4C). Thereby, even when a force is applied from an oblique direction, the operator 12a can be smoothly pressed from directly above, and the operational feeling of the user can be improved.

  In addition, the elastic members 13 are interposed between the operation knob 4 (convex portion 7a) and the operation elements 9a to 12a, and the operation elements 9a to 12a are not activated until the elastic member 13 is crushed by a predetermined amount (predetermined height dimension). Is configured to be displaced by pressing, so that a space corresponding to that is formed, and it is possible to prevent the two tact switches 9 to 12 from being simultaneously turned on unintentionally.

  Therefore, according to this embodiment, the switch device 1 having the tilting operation knob 4 can detect the rotation operation of the operation knob 4, and can be detected by one switch device 1. It is possible to meet the demand for increasing the types (number) of simple operations. When the operation knob 4 is rotated, even if the operation elements 9a to 12a of the tact switches 9 to 12 are pressed from an oblique direction, a smooth switch operation is possible, and a plurality of tact switches 9 to 12 can be simultaneously operated. It is possible to obtain an excellent effect that the on-operation can be suppressed.

  In the above embodiment, rubber is used as the material of the elastic member 13 provided at the tip of the pressing portion 7. However, as the soft material constituting the elastic member, various elastically deformable materials such as sponge-like soft resin can be used. This material may be used, and it should be elastic so that it can be deformed in the direction of being crushed by a force smaller than the spring force urging the operating element of the switch element. Further, the number of switch elements (and projections) incorporated in the switch device is not limited to four, and may be three or five (6, 8).

  In addition, various modifications can be made to the specific structure such as the shape of the switch case and the operation knob, the support structure of the operation knob, and the shape and structure of the switch element. In the above embodiment, the switch device of the present invention is applied to the display control of the display device of the automobile navigation system. However, the present invention can be applied to various other purposes. The present invention can be implemented with appropriate modifications within a range that does not deviate.

  In the drawings, 1 is a switch device, 3 is a switch case, 4 is an operation knob, 5 is a rubber sheet, 6 is a mark (operation portion), 7 is a pressing portion, 7a is a convex portion, and 9 to 12 are tact switches (switch elements). ), 13 is an elastic member, and 14 is a control circuit.

Claims (1)

A switch case,
By forming a disk shape having a plurality of operation parts along the outer peripheral part on the surface side, supported by the switch case so as to be tiltable, and positioned in a neutral position in a non-operating state, and by pressing the outer peripheral part on the surface side An operation knob that tilts so that the pressing operation portion is pushed inward of the switch case;
A plurality of pressing portions provided in a protruding shape in portions corresponding to the respective operation portions on the back side of the operation knob;
A switch comprising a plurality of switch elements provided in the switch case so as to face each pressing portion of the operation knob and having an operation element that is pressed by the pressing portion according to a tilting operation of the operation knob. A device,
Each of the pressing portions is configured in a two-layer shape with different materials on the base end side and the tip end side, and a layer on the tip end side is made of a softer material than the base end side and serves as an operator of the switch element. The elastic member is in contact, and is configured such that, when the operation knob is tilted, the switch is operated by pressing the operating element after the elastic member is elastically deformed in a direction to be crushed by a certain amount. A switch device characterized by that.

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