The present invention relates to a keyboard and particularly to a thin and light keyboard equipped with multipoint press positions to provide multiple points contact.
With rapid growth of information technology electronic equipments also become very popular. Take the commonly used computers as example, they can be grouped to desktop computers, notebook computers and tablet computers. To increase computer document processing speed most computers are incorporated with a keyboard to facilitate data entry operation of users. The keyboard generally has keycaps and a baseboard. Each keycap and the baseboard are bridged by a key strut. When the keycap is stricken by a user the key strut supports the keycap to form vertical movement against the baseboard. Thus, when the keycap is pressed a switch on the baseboard can be triggered to transmit a reference signal to the processor to output a desired output signal. In addition, to avoid the keycap from being stricken by the user at two sides rather than in the center and result in tilting and unstable, or unable to trigger the switch, a high sensitive keyboard has been developed in the industry to enable the user to strike the key even on corners and still can trigger the switch.
For instance, Taiwan patent No. 1346965 discloses a high sensitive key structure. It mainly provides a plurality of protruding units on outer sides of a keycap and a plurality of suspending arm units on a baseboard. When a user presses the edges of the keycap the protruding units touch the suspending arm units to make the free end of suspending arm units to set on a circuit switch via the lever principle. Hence even if the key is being pressed unevenly the circuit switch still can be activated, thus can achieve high sensitivity.
In addition, Taiwan patent No. 1396218 also proposes a keyboard which mainly has a plurality of trigger portions on a keycap and a plurality of switches on a thin film circuit board corresponding to the trigger portions. A user can press merely any corner of the keycap to touch and set on a switch to output a signal, therefore can improve the sensitivity of the keycap.
The aforesaid keyboards use an elastic support rack to support the keycap, then through a press point protruding sideward from the elastic support rack to touch a switch on a circuit board that is located on a corresponding press point. Furthermore, all the aforesaid keyboards include an elastic support rack. The press point of the keycap generates a relative swing about the elastic support rack as a fulcrum. However, the elastic support rack makes shrinking the size of the keyboard difficult. Moreover, user has to forcefully press the keycap to deform the elastic support rack to make the press point to touch the switch. If the user lightly touches the corners of the keycap set-on connection could fail. All this shows that to design a high sensitivity multipoint contact keyboard that also is thin and light still is an issue pending to be resolved.
The primary object of the present invention is to solve the problems of the conventional keyboards of bulky in size and inferior in contact sensitivity.
To achieve the foregoing object the invention provides a keyboard equipped with multipoint press positions. It comprises at least a baseboard, a keycap assembly and a command trigger assembly triggered by the keycap assembly to output keyboard commands. The keycap assembly includes a support frame to hold a plurality of keycaps. The command trigger assembly includes a command circuit board and a plurality of elastic switches. The command circuit board includes a plurality of trigger portions corresponding to the keycap press positions and triggered by the keycaps to output the keyboard commands, and at least one primary command circuit electrically connected to each trigger portion. Each trigger portion includes at least one primary trigger switch located corresponding to a central position of each keycap and at least two secondary trigger switches spaced from the primary trigger switch at a preset distance. Each secondary trigger switch has a first auxiliary trigger switch and a second auxiliary trigger switch opposing each other relative to the primary trigger switch. The primary trigger switch and the secondary trigger switches are interposed by at least one secondary command circuit to form electrical connection thereof. The elastic switches are located corresponding to the keycap press positions and depressible by the keycaps to trigger the trigger portions to output the keyboard commands. Each elastic switch includes a base, a primary movement portion located on the base and corresponding to the primary trigger switch, a secondary movement portion located on the base and corresponding to the first auxiliary trigger switch, and a second secondary movement portion located on the base and corresponding to the secondary auxiliary trigger switch.
In one embodiment of the invention each keycap has four sides and four corners formed respectively by joining any two of the four sides. The first auxiliary trigger switch is corresponding to any two opposing sides and located between one of the two opposing sides and the primary trigger switch. The second auxiliary trigger switch correspond the two opposing sides and being located between another one of the two sides and the primary trigger switch.
In another embodiment of the invention each keycap has four sides and four corners formed respectively by joining any two of the four sides. The first auxiliary trigger switch is corresponding to any two opposing corners and located between one of the two opposing corners and the primary trigger switch. The second auxiliary trigger switch correspond the two opposing corners and being located between another one of the two corners and the primary trigger switch.
In yet another embodiment of the invention the primary movement portion includes a primary movement strut depressible by the keycap to move toward the command circuit board to trigger the primary trigger switch and a primary deformation section connected to the primary movement strut to provide a return action force to the primary movement strut. The first secondary movement portion includes a first secondary movement strut depressible by the keycap to move toward the command circuit board to trigger the first auxiliary trigger switch and a first secondary deformation section connected to the first secondary movement strut to provide a return action force to the first secondary movement strut. The second secondary movement portion includes a second secondary movement strut depressible by the keycap to move toward the command circuit board to trigger the second auxiliary trigger switch and a second secondary deformation section connected to the second secondary movement strut to provide a return action force to the second secondary movement strut.
In yet another embodiment of the invention the primary movement portion is formed at a length greater than that of the first and second secondary movement sections.
In yet another embodiment of the invention the first secondary movement strut includes a first press plane facing the keycap and a first press sloped surface connected to the first press plane and located at one side thereof remote from the primary movement strut. The second secondary movement strut includes a second press plane facing the keycap and a second press sloped surface connected to the second press plane and located at one side thereof remote from the primary movement strut.
In yet another embodiment of the invention the command circuit board includes a lower circuit board and an upper circuit board that hold respectively the primary trigger switch and the secondary trigger switches, and a spacer located between the lower circuit board and the upper circuit board and included a plurality of openings corresponding to the primary trigger switch and the secondary trigger switches.
In yet another embodiment of the invention the support frame includes a plurality of installation apertures defined by a plurality of bracing stems which are formed in a staggered manner to hold the keycaps. Each keycap has four sides and four corners formed respectively by joining any two of the four sides. The bracing stems include a plurality of wall surfaces facing the four sides. The four sides and the wall surfaces are bridged by four movable racks respectively. The four movable racks and the keycaps and the bracing stems are integrally formed by injection. Each movable rack has a first stem connecting section connected to any one of the corners and a bracing arm section connected to the first stem connecting section and connected to the any one of the corners via a first bend spot towards another corner to connect to another bracing stem.
In yet another embodiment of the invention the support frame includes a plurality of installation apertures defined by a plurality of bracing stems which are formed in a staggered manner to hold the keycaps. Each keycap has four sides and four corners formed respectively by joining any two of the four sides. The bracing stems include a plurality of wall surfaces facing the sides. The four sides and the wall surfaces are bridged by four movable racks respectively. The four movable racks and the keycaps and the bracing stems are integrally formed by injection. Each movable rack has a first stem connecting section, a second stem connecting section and a bracing arm section to bridge the first stem connecting section and the second stem connecting section. The first stem connecting section is connected to any one of the corners. The bracing arm section is connected to the first stem connecting section via a first bend spot and extending between the side and the bracing stem toward another corner to form the second stem connecting section by extending from the another corner via a second bend spot to connect to the bracing stem.
The keyboard equipped with multipoint press positions of the invention thus formed, compared with the conventional keyboards, provides features as follows:
1. Through the keycaps and the elastic switches total size of the keyboard can be shrunk as desired, therefore the keyboard can be made thinner and lighter in weight.
2. With the elastic switches and the trigger switches included in the keyboard, any spot of the keycaps can be pressed to trigger the elastic switches and set on the trigger switches, therefore achieve higher press sensitivity.
The foregoing, as well as additional objects, features and advantages of the invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.
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The command trigger assembly 3 includes a command circuit board 4 and a plurality of elastic switches 5. The command circuit board 4 includes a plurality of trigger portions 41 corresponding to press positions of the keycaps 22 and triggered by the keycaps 22 to output the keyboard commands, and at least one primary command circuit 42 electrically connected to each trigger portion 41. Each trigger portion 41 includes at least one primary trigger switch 411 corresponding to a central position of each keycap 22 and at least two secondary trigger switches 412 spaced from the primary trigger switch 411 at a preset distance. Each secondary trigger switch 412 has a first auxiliary trigger switch 413 and a second auxiliary trigger switch 414. In other words, the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 and the second auxiliary trigger switch 414 are located respectively at two sides of the primary trigger switch 411 such that the primary trigger switch 411 is located between the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 and the second auxiliary trigger switch 414. As a result, the first auxiliary trigger switch 413, the primary trigger switch 411 and the second auxiliary trigger switch 414 are arranged in a column. Moreover, the primary trigger switch 411 and the secondary trigger switches 412 are interposed by at least one secondary command circuit 415 to form electrical connection thereof. Also referring to
In this embodiment the relative positions of the secondary trigger switches 412 of the trigger portion 41 can be implemented in two types of approaches, although they are not the limitation of the invention. In a first embodiment, the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 and the second auxiliary trigger switch 414 are located respectively on the sides 221 corresponding to the keycap 22. Namely, the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 is corresponding to any two corresponding sides 221 and located between the corresponding sides 221 and the primary trigger switch 411. The second auxiliary trigger switch 414 is located at another side 221 opposing the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 between the another side 221 and the primary trigger switch 411. In a second embodiment, the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 and the second auxiliary trigger switch 414 are located respectively in corresponding to the corners 222 of the keycap 22. In other words, the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 is corresponding to any two corresponding corners 222 and located between the corresponding corners 222 and the primary trigger switch 411. The second auxiliary trigger switch 414 is located opposing another corner 222 of the first auxiliary trigger switch 413 between the another corner 222 and the primary trigger switch 411.
In addition, in this embodiment the primary trigger switch 411 and secondary trigger switches 412 of the trigger portion 41 can be electrically connected, but not limited to, in two types of embodiments. In a first embodiment the secondary command circuits 415 between the primary trigger switch 411 and the secondary trigger switches 412 are wired in a M-shaped layout to form mutual electrical connection as shown in
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In this embodiment the elastic switches 5 can be implemented in two types of fashions. In a first fashion, the primary movement portion 52 is formed at a length same as that of the first secondary movement portion 53 and the second secondary movement portion 54 as shown in
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As a conclusion, the keyboard equipped with multipoint press positions of the invention includes a baseboard, a keycap assembly and a command trigger assembly triggered by the keycap assembly to output keyboard commands. The command trigger assembly includes a command circuit board and a plurality of elastic switches. Through the keycaps and the elastic switches total size of the keyboard can be reduced to make the keyboard thinner and lighter in weight. In addition, through the elastic switches and the trigger switches any spot of the keycap can be pressed to make the elastic switches to set on the trigger switches, therefore achieve higher press sensitivity.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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4256931 | Palisek | Mar 1981 | A |
6525279 | Sato | Feb 2003 | B2 |
7094979 | Kurokawa | Aug 2006 | B2 |
7872202 | Na | Jan 2011 | B2 |
8476542 | Hagiwara | Jul 2013 | B2 |
20140166459 | Armendariz | Jun 2014 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
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I346965 | Aug 2011 | TW |
I396218 | May 2013 | TW |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20160079012 A1 | Mar 2016 | US |