Electricity: circuit makers and breakers – Multiple circuit control – Pivoted contact
Reexamination Certificate
2001-01-25
2002-03-19
Luebke, Renee (Department: 2833)
Electricity: circuit makers and breakers
Multiple circuit control
Pivoted contact
Reexamination Certificate
active
06359243
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a multi-direction operating switch for use in an electronic device such as an air-conditioning control device for an automobile and the like. The invention also relates to an electronic device using the same.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 6
is a front view of an air-conditioning control device equipped with a typical operating switch of the prior art. In the past, an operating switch of this kind had a push-to-operate type configuration, and it was provided with operating buttons
17
for a number of pushbutton switches corresponding to a plurality of functions if it is adapted for switching a plurality of functions such as a blowing-out mode for delivering air into an interior space, and so on.
In recent years, multi-directional operating switches of a type that switches a plurality of functions with manipulation of one operating button instead of the operating buttons
17
of the plurality of pushbutton switches have come into use. With reference to FIG.
7
and
FIG. 8
, a conventional multi-directional operating switch of this kind will be described hereinafter.
FIG. 7
is a sectioned side view of a multi-directional operating switch of the prior art, and
FIG. 8
is an exploded perspective view of the same. In the Figures, there is a substrate
1
made of insulation resin having an open top. The substrate
1
is provided on its bottom center surface with an upwardly projecting boss
1
B having a hole-like receptacle
1
A at an upper end of it. The receptacle
1
A houses a supporting rod
3
, which is biased upwardly by a coil spring
2
, and serves as an inner support with a semispherical top end. There are two screw bosses
1
C located adjacent to the boss
1
B.
Six pushbutton switches
5
defining switch units are disposed in a circular configuration on an upper surface of a wiring substrate
4
made of insulation board. A center through hole
4
A is inserted around the boss
1
B of the substrate
1
, and the wiring substrate
4
is secured to the screw bosses
1
C of the substrate
1
with two screws
6
. Lead wires
7
connected with the wiring substrate
4
are drawn out through a slit
1
D in an outer periphery of the substrate
1
, and connected electrically to an electronic circuit of an automobile (not shown in the figures).
A bowl-shaped tilting body
8
is disposed above the wiring substrate
4
. The tilting body
8
is provided with a concavity
8
A having a spherical upper end under a center portion of a bowl-shaped section
8
D of the tilting body
8
. Depressing bosses
8
C, each located on a lower surface of each of six fringe arms
8
B extending radially outward from a bottom edge of the bowl-shaped section
8
D are in contact with their respective upper surfaces of the pushbuttons
5
C of the pushbutton switches
5
. There is a manipulation shaft
8
E with a stepped diameter having a large diameter at its lower portion, and projecting upwardly from an upper part of the bowl-shaped section
8
D.
A box-shaped case
9
having an open bottom is mounted over the substrate
1
to cover the opening on top of it. The case
9
has an opening
9
A in its upper center surface in a position concentric with the supporting rod
3
, which serves as an inner support of the substrate
1
. There is a contact face
9
B provided under a periphery of the opening
9
A, the contact face
9
B being in contact with an outer surface of the bowl-shaped section
8
D of the tilting body
8
, and serving as an outer support with its inwardly concaved semispherical shape. There are guide posts
9
C projecting downward from the periphery of the contact face
9
B in a such positional arrangement as to provide a predetermined space with respect to perimeters of the fringe arms
8
B so as to prevent the tilting body
8
from turning about the manipulation shaft
8
E.
A manipulation knob
10
has a disk-shaped manipulation surface
10
A, which covers the opening
9
A in the case
9
, and a connection post
10
B on a lower side, with which the manipulation knob
10
is connected and secured to the manipulation shaft
8
E of the tilting body
8
. With the foregoing structure, the manipulation knob
10
can be tiltably manipulated toward any of a plurality of directions shown by an indicator
9
D, or a marking printed on the case
9
.
In the multi-directional operating switch of the above-described structure, when the manipulation surface
10
A of the manipulation knob
10
is tilted toward a given direction, a depressing boss
8
C under one of the fringe arms
8
B of the tilting body
8
corresponding to the given direction depresses a pushbutton
5
C of the respective pushbutton switch
5
, and opens or closes the pushbutton switch
5
, while the upper end of the supporting rod
3
functions as the fulcrum, since the tilting body
8
is supported in a tiltable manner between the contact face
9
B serving as the outer support provided under a periphery of the opening
9
A of the case
9
and the supporting rod
3
serving as the inner support placed in the substrate
1
.
The multi-directional operating switch of the prior art is so designed that by tilting the manipulation shaft
8
E of the tilting body
8
correctly toward a direction where a predetermined pushbutton switch
5
is positioned, the depressing boss
8
C corresponding to that direction shifts downward, and turns the predetermined pushbutton switch
5
into an ON state. During this manipulation, other depressing bosses next to that depressing boss
8
C also shift downward slightly, but other pushbutton switches are not normally turned into ON state.
There has been a problem, however, that another pushbutton switch is also depressed unintentionally into its ON state at, the same time, when the manipulation shaft
8
E is being tilted to the direction where a predetermined pushbutton switch
5
is positioned, if it is tilted inadvertently in a slightly deviated direction toward the another pushbutton switch next to the predetermined switch
5
.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention was made in consideration of the above problem of the prior art, and it aims at providing a multi-directional operating switch of excellent operability, as it avoids adjoining pushbutton switch from being depressed and turned into an ON state unintentionally even if a manipulation shaft is tilted inadvertently in a slightly deviated direction toward the adjoining pushbutton switch, and providing an electronic device using this multidirectional operating switch.
The multi multi-directional operating switch of the present invention comprises:
(a) a box-shaped case having an opening in an upper surface and an outer support provided under an outer periphery of the opening;
(b) a substrate disposed under the case and provided with an inner support in a position concentric with the opening;
(c) a tilting body provided with a bowl-shaped section supported tiltably between the inner support and the outer support, and a manipulation shaft projecting upwardly from the bowl-shaped section to the outside through the above opening; and
(d) a plurality of switch units disposed in a circular configuration, and turned on and off by a depressing boss provided on a bottom fringe of the bowl-shaped section.
Further, an inner peripheral wall of the opening is provided with (1) a plurality of recessed grooves elongated in an axial direction, in positions corresponding with respective directions where the plurality of switch units are disposed, and (2) heaped-up portions projecting inwardly and elongated along the axial direction between the plurality of recessed grooves.
Furthermore, an outer periphery of the manipulation shaft is provided with (1) a plurality of raised protuberances for engaging with corresponding one of the plurality of recessed grooves in response to a tilting movement of the manipulation shaft, and (2) clearance slots, each provided on both sides of each of the plurality of protuberances for clearing the heaped-up portions during the tilting movement.
The electronic device of this inve
Matsui Naoaki
Nakade Yoshiyuki
Shitanaka Hitokazu
Umezawa Shigeyoshi
Luebke Renee
Matsushita Electric - Industrial Co., Ltd.
Wenderoth , Lind & Ponack, L.L.P.
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