Electricity: circuit makers and breakers – Solid contact – Rocking actuator
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-27
2001-06-19
Donovan, Lincoln (Department: 2832)
Electricity: circuit makers and breakers
Solid contact
Rocking actuator
C200S339000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06248966
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a lever switch for use in various electronic appliances, and a method of operating the switch.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A conventional lever switch of the category is shown in
FIG. 13
, a cross sectional front view, and
FIG. 14
, an exploded perspective view. A resin case
1
is shaped in the form of a box with the top face open. The opposing sidewalls are provided with round holes
1
A,
1
B at the upper part in a side portion. On the inner bottom surface, a common contact point
2
having a long size and an individual contact point
3
having a short size are provided. Each of the contact points
2
,
3
has its respective terminal
2
A,
3
A provided at the outside of case
1
.
A movable contact element
4
made of an elastic thin metal sheet comprises a flexed portion
4
D bent in the shape of a character U in the middle, a fixed end
4
A in one end and a contact portion, which is split into two contact points
4
B,
4
C, in the other end. The contact point
4
B normally makes an elastic contact on the common contact point
2
disposed on the bottom surface of resin case
1
, whereas the contact point
4
C is positioned on the bottom resin surface at a place on the extension of short-sized individual contact point
3
.
A resin lever
5
has in one end a rotation axis
5
A,
5
B to be fitting rotatably with the holes
1
A,
1
B and a protrusion
5
C which is to have contact with the fixed end
4
A; in the other end are an operating portion
5
D protruding upward and a contact portion
5
E which is to make contact with the upper surface of flexed portion
4
D. The contact portion
5
E is normally pushed up by the elastic force of the movable contact element
4
to be held at a certain position.
The operation of a lever switch having the above-described structure is described below. Shown in
FIG. 13
is the lever switch in OFF state. When the operating portion
5
D is pressed to the state of
FIG. 15
, a cross sectional view, the lever
5
rotates around the rotation axis
5
A,
5
B to push down and bend the flexed portion
4
D. As a result, the contact portion
4
B,
4
C slides in the direction as indicated with a character X, until the contact portion
4
C makes contact with the short-sized individual contact point
3
. Thus the common contact point
2
and the individual contact point
3
, or the terminal
2
A and the terminal
3
A, are electrically connected. The switch is brought to ON state. In the state of
FIG. 15
, as soon as the force pushing the operating portion
5
D down is withdrawn the lever
5
is pushed back by the elastic restorative force of movable contact element
4
. The switch returns to the OFF state as shown in FIG.
13
.
The conventional lever switch smoothly responds to an action of pressing the lever
5
from the top and to a force exerted on the lever from the left as indicated by an arrow mark with a character Y in FIG.
13
. However, the switch does not respond to an operation from the right side. In view of the increasingly complicated function of the recent electronic appliances, there is a strong need for a lever switch that smoothly responds to the operating forces from both the right and the left as well as to the pressing action from the top.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention addresses the above tasks and presents a lever switch that can be operated smoothly in both directions, the right and the left, as well as an operation from the up.
A lever switch in accordance with the present invention comprises a box-shaped case with the top face open, fixed contact points provided on the inner bottom surface of the case, a movable contact element of approximately reverse isosceles triangle shape in the side view, the equilateral sides forming two elastic feet are extending downward to cross and being provided with an elastic contact point for making contact with said fixed contact points at the tip end of respective two elastic feet, and an actuating body, the upper portion of which forming an operation lever and the bottom surface pressing the upper surface of the movable contact element at both corners.
With the above-described structure, the operation lever may be operated smoothly from the right, from the left, as well as from the up.
In an invented lever switch, it is preferred that the actuating body has an approximately isosceles triangle shape in the side view, and is provided with a protrusion in the bottom at a place making contact with the upper surface of the both corners of the movable contact element. The above-described actuating body ensures a smoother switching operation.
It is preferred that a cover has a long opening which allows the operation lever to come up through, and the actuating body is provided with a side ridge of the straight-line form on both sides at a place close to the bottom so as it is blocked by an edge of the long opening of the cover. Under such structure, the actuating body is supported stable being pressed down by the cover, and a gap existing between the long opening and the operation lever is kept closed. Thus a switch is provided with a good anti-dust property.
It is also preferred to provide a cam between the movable contact element and the actuating body for pushing the movable contact element on the upper surface at both corners, and to provide the actuating body on the sides with an axis portion for supporting the rotational motion at a middle point close to the bottom, the actuating body pressing the upper surface of movable contact element via the cam. Under the above-described structure, the switching operation becomes much smoother, also it becomes easy to control the deformation quantity of the movable contact element to be caused by operations from the right and left within a certain specific range.
It is also preferred that the axis portion of the actuating body has a round shape and the case is provided in the inner surface of side wall with a groove extending downward taking the form of a character U, which is to be engaged with the axis portion. The above structure facilitates a stable operation to respond to a pressing force from the up.
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patent: 3928743 (1975-12-01), Ohashi
patent: 3965319 (1976-06-01), Lockard
patent: 4004120 (1977-01-01), Lee
patent: 4012608 (1977-03-01), Lockard
patent: 4594490 (1986-06-01), McCullough
patent: 4628166 (1986-12-01), Bingo et al.
patent: 4926012 (1990-05-01), Pellerin de Beauvais
patent: 5053592 (1991-10-01), Zuercher
patent: 5068505 (1991-11-01), Inpcinski
patent: 5720379 (1998-02-01), Schwartz et al.
patent: 5746309 (1998-05-01), Neyer
patent: 5796058 (1998-08-01), Aimi et al.
patent: 24 34 272 (1976-02-01), None
patent: 2 108 319 (1983-05-01), None
European Search Report corresponding to appln. No. EP 99 30 1702 dated May 10, 2000.
Kudo Yasuchika
Nakase Masaki
Nakase Yusho
Donovan Lincoln
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
Nguyen Nhung
Ratner & Prestia
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