Electricity: circuit makers and breakers – Multiple circuit control – Combined pivoted and reciprocating contact
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-06
2001-05-08
Luebke, Renee (Department: 2833)
Electricity: circuit makers and breakers
Multiple circuit control
Combined pivoted and reciprocating contact
C200S517000, C200S305000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06229103
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF TECHNOLOGY
The present invention relates to an operation type electronic component with built-in push switch driven by rotating operation and push operation of an operating knob, which operation type electronic component being a component mainly used in remote controllers of various electronic appliances or in portable electronic devices.
BACKGROUND TECHNOLOGIES
A rotary encoder with built-in push switch, which is an embodiment of a prior art operation type electronic component with push switch, is described hereunder referring to
FIGS. 9 through 13
.
A prior art rotary encoder with built-in push switch comprises, as shown in
FIG. 9
(cross sectional view) and
FIG. 10
(partially cutaway top view), a movable member
1
affixed movable to a base board
2
in holding part
1
C, a rotary contact wheel
3
attached revolvable on the movable member
1
and disposed at the middle part of the base board
2
, and a switch
4
disposed at a rear part of base board
2
(at the right in FIGS.
9
-
10
).
The rotary contact wheel
3
is provided at the bottom surface with contact plates
3
A disposed in a radial arrangement for accepting contacts from elastic contact reeds
5
of the base board
2
, and held revolvable at the central hole
3
B by a pillar
1
A of the movable member
1
, with the top covered with an operating knob
6
that rotates together.
As shown in a perspective view of
FIG. 11
, the base board
2
comprises a hole
2
A provided in a side part for holding the movable member
1
movable, a hollow
2
C having a stop wall
2
B for fixing the switch
4
, elastic contact reeds
5
for generating electric signal by having contact with the bottom surface of rotary contact wheel
3
, and terminals
7
for taking the generated electric signal out.
A coil spring
8
, which is positioned by an extrusion
2
D located on the base board
2
at a rear part, pushes a side of the movable member
1
in horizontal direction so that push rod
1
B of the movable member
1
is usually kept off the switch
4
. Switch
4
is, as shown in
FIG. 9
, fixed in the hollow
2
C of base board
2
with the rear end touching to the stop wall
2
B, and a button
4
A facing to the push rod
1
B of movable member
1
.
The operation of the above prior art rotary encoder having push switch is described in the following.
The rotary contact wheel
3
rotates with the pillar
1
A of movable member
1
as the axis when the knob
6
attached on the rotary contact wheel
3
is rotated by a force given in tangential direction indicated with an arrow F in FIG.
10
. The radial contact plates
3
A disposed on the bottom surface of rotary contact wheel
3
slide on the elastic contact reeds
5
of base board
2
, and pulse signals are generated. The pulse signals are outputted through the terminals
7
, thus it works as a rotary encoder.
While the operating knob
6
is being rotated, a pushing force is also given to the knob, but the spring force of said twisted coil spring
8
prevents the push rod
1
B of movable member
1
from pushing the button
4
A of switch
4
.
When the operating knob
6
is pressed in the direction of an arrow G in
FIG. 10
with more force than the force due to the coil spring
8
, the entire part of the movable member
1
including the rotary contact wheel
3
is moved to the direction of an arrow H with the holding part
1
C of movable member
1
, or a hole
2
A of the base board
2
, as the axis of movement, causing the push rod
1
B of movable member
1
push the button
4
A to actuate the switch
4
. As soon as the force given to the knob
6
is withdrawn, the force of twisted coil spring
8
pushes the movable member
1
back to the original position.
The above described prior art rotary encoder having push switch employs an independent completed switch for the switch
4
that works on a push of the operating knob
6
, and comprises the coil spring
8
disposed at a rear part of the base board
2
for preventing the push rod
1
B of movable member
1
from pushing the switch
4
while the operating knob
6
is being rotated, as well as for restoring the movable member
1
to the original position when the pushing operation on the operating knob
6
is finished. These result in a higher cost and an increased body size of a rotary encoder having push switch.
In the general trends towards the more compact and lower price of electronic appliances, those electronic components to be incorporated in such appliances are likewise requested to be compact yet have advanced functions, coming in low price. A means to meet the requirement is to make the components available on an automatic production line. A popular solution is introduction of an insert-shaping technique, wherein contact points, terminals and other conductive members are formed on a hoop of metal sheet to be inserted into a resin molded base board, for the later assembly on an automatic assembly machine.
Now in the following, a method of manufacturing a base board containing contacts, terminals and other conductive members is described with reference to
FIG. 12
, using the above mentioned prior art rotary encoder having push switch as the vehicle.
FIG. 12
illustrates a metal sheet hoop showing a set of conductive members formed on the metal sheet and a resin molded base board with the set of conductive members inserted therein. Numeral
9
denotes an electro-conductive metal sheet hoop provided with frame alley
9
A, and
10
conductive members stamped in flat sheet form with each of the members remaining connected with the frame alley
9
A at connecting sections
9
B. Numeral
2
denotes a resin molded base board with the conductive members
10
inserted therein.
In the next step, the base board
2
undergoes a cutting at the joints
10
A of conductive members
10
, and then the conductive members
10
are formed to become elastic contact reeds
5
. Then, the sections
9
B connecting with the frame alley
9
A are cut at cutting lines
9
C, and the terminals
7
are bent downward to complete a base board
2
as shown in FIG.
11
.
The cut surface
11
of electro-conductive metal sheet
9
is exposed out of the surface of base board
2
in the above prior art method. When a rotary encoder
12
having push switch
12
assembled with the above base board
2
is mounted on a circuit board
14
with a part of the operating knob
6
extruding out of outer casing
13
, and the cut surface is positioned at a vicinity of the operating knob
6
, a static electricity generated while the operating knob
6
is rotated with a finger discharges to the cut surface
11
. The discharge affects the signals to be outputted from a rotary encoder having push switch
12
, producing possible causes of erroneous operation of an apparatus.
In prior art methods, therefore, the cut surface
11
had to be covered with a separate metal board
15
electrically coupled with a ground sector
16
of apparatus by means of soldering etc., whenever there is a possibility of the electrostatic problem. This is a substantial drawback that results in an extra parts count and additional assembly steps.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is intended to solve the above described problems the prior arts had, and to present an operation type electronic component which has a simple structure enabling the reduction of the total dimensions and cost, wherein the grounding work is completed at a same time with a mounting work.
An operation type electronic component according to the present invention comprises a switch which is constituted by providing a dome shape moving contact point on a fixed contact point prepared on base board, and an L-shaped actuator disposed between the switch and a movable member; wherein the elastic force of the dome shape moving contact point is utilized to prevent the movable member from actuating the switch while an operating knob is being rotated, the elastic force is also used to return the movable member to the original position after a push operation to the knob is finished. Further, according to the present invention
Inoue Hiroto
Kaizaki Keiji
Matsui Hiroshi
Tamano Koji
Yamamoto Tamotsu
Luebke Renee
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
McDermott & Will & Emery
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