Patent Application
20130249658
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magnetic keyswitch assembly and a keyboard therewith, and more specifically, to a magnetic keyswitch assembly and a keyboard therewith capable of recovering a keycap by magnetic force wherein a direction of magnetic force to attract or exclude the keycap by a magnetic element is perpendicular to a movement direction of the keycap.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Since modern technology trends to small size and light weight, a notebook computer has been more and more popular in computer industry. Accordingly, a keyboard equipped for the notebook computer also trends to thin size. There are many kinds of mechanical design of the keyboard in the market. For example, Taiwan patent no. M416801 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,453,148 disclose keyboards with magnetic components. Alternatively, an elastic component, such as a rubber dome, is often disposed inside a convention keyswitch for not only recovering a keycap as the keycap is undepressed but also providing a tactile sensation to a user at timing maintaining an operation feeling of the user. However, it is needed to reserve more mechanical space for the conventional elastic component with larger height, resulting in disadvantage to the recent trend of thin and small size of the notebook computer.
The present invention provides a magnetic keyswitch assembly and a keyboard therewith with reduced height.
For achieving the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention provides a keyswitch assembly capable of recovering a keycap by magnetic force.
For achieving the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention further provides a keyswitch assembly capable of providing a tactile sensation similar to a rubber dome by magnetic attractive force or magnetic repulsive force.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, a magnetic keyswitch assembly includes a movable keycap, a support plate, a magnetic element, a frame and a switch component. The movable keycap includes a pivot and a metal part. The movable keycap selectively rotates relative to the pivot. The support plate supports the pivot. The magnetic element attracts the metal part, and a direction of a magnetic attractive force between the magnetic element and the metal part is perpendicular to a movement direction of the movable keycap. The frame is for accommodating the magnetic element. The switch component is disposed beneath the movable keycap. The magnetic element attracts the metal part so as to make the switch component in an OFF state as the movable keycap is undepressed. The movable keycap moves downward to trigger the switch component as the movable keycap is depressed to exceed a force threshold.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, a magnetic keyswitch assembly includes a movable keycap. The movable keycap includes a pivot and a first magnetic element. The movable keycap selectively rotates relative to the pivot. The magnetic keyswitch assembly further includes a second magnetic element for attracting the first magnetic element. A direction of a magnetic attractive force between the second magnetic element and the first magnetic element is perpendicular to a movement direction of the movable keycap. The magnetic keyswitch assembly further includes a frame for accommodating the second magnetic element, and a switch component disposed beneath the movable keycap. The second magnetic element attracts the first magnetic element so as to make the switch component in an OFF state as the movable keycap is undepressed, and the movable keycap moves downward to trigger the switch component as the movable keycap is depressed to exceed a force threshold.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, a magnetic keyswitch assembly includes a movable keycap with a pivot and a first magnetic element. The movable keycap selectively rotates relative to the pivot. The magnetic keyswitch assembly further includes a second magnetic element for excluding the first magnetic element. A direction of a magnetic repulsive force between the second magnetic element and the first magnetic element is perpendicular to a movement direction of the movable keycap. The magnetic keyswitch assembly further includes a support plate for supporting the pivot and accommodating the second magnetic element, and a switch component disposed beneath the movable keycap. The first magnetic element excludes the second magnetic element so as to make the switch component in an OFF state as the movable keycap is undepressed, and the movable keycap moves downward to trigger the switch component as the movable keycap is depressed to exceed a force threshold.
These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings.
In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention maybe practiced. In this regard, directional terminology, such as “top,” “bottom,” “front,” “back,” etc., is used with reference to the orientation of the Figure (s) being described. The components of the present invention can be positioned in a number of different orientations. As such, the directional terminology is used for purposes of illustration and is in no way limiting. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.
Please refer to
The magnetic element 117 is for attracting the metal part 119 disposed on the end of the first portion 101H of the movable keycap 101, and a direction of a magnetic attractive force between the magnetic element 117 and the metal part 119 is perpendicular to a movement direction of the movable keycap 101. The switch component 109 is disposed beneath the movable keycap 101. The magnetic element 117 attracts the metal part 119 so as to make the switch component 109 in an OFF state as the movable keycap 101 is undepressed, such as the left and right magnetic keyswitch assemblies being undepressed in the initial condition. The movable keycap 101 moves downward to trigger the switch component 109, as the movable keycap 101 is depressed to exceed a force threshold for overcoming the magnetic attractive force between the magnetic element 117 and the metal part 119 so that the metal part 119 of the movable keycap 101 can separate from the magnetic element 117, such as the middle magnetic keyswitch assembly being depressed downward. It also can provide a tactile sensation for the user to be aware that the switch component 109 has been triggered. A protrusion 111 can be formed on a lower surface of the movable keycap 101 for triggering the switch component 109. The switch component 109 can be a membrane switch. The movable keycap 101 can be made of plastic material. The movable keycap 101 and the metal part 119 can be combined in an insert molding method.
Please refer to
The second magnetic element 227 is for attracting the first magnetic element 217, and a direction of a magnetic attractive force between the first magnetic element 217 and the second magnetic element 227 is perpendicular to a movement direction of the movable keycap 201. The switch component 209 is disposed beneath the movable keycap 201. The first magnetic element 217 attracts the second magnetic element 227 so as to make the switch component 209 in an OFF state as the movable keycap 201 is undepressed. The movable keycap 201 moves downward to trigger the switch component 209, as the movable keycap 201 is depressed to exceed a force threshold for overcoming the magnetic attractive force between the first magnetic element 217 and the second magnetic element 227. It also can provide a tactile sensation for the user to be aware that the switch component 209 has been triggered. A protrusion 211 can be formed on a lower surface of the movable keycap 201 for triggering the switch component 209. The switch component 209 can be a membrane switch. The first magnetic element 217 and the second magnetic element 227 can be an iron element or a magnet alternatively. The mechanism for generating the magnetic attractive force between the first magnetic element 217 and the second magnetic element 227 is within the scope of the present invention. The movable keycap 201 can be made of plastic material. The movable keycap 201 and the first magnetic element 217 can be combined in an insert molding method. Similarly, the frame 207 can be made of plastic material, and the frame 207 and the second magnetic element 227 can be combined in an insert molding method.
Please refer to
The second magnetic element 327 is for excluding the first magnetic element 317, and a direction of a magnetic repulsive force between the first magnetic element 317 and the second magnetic element 327 is perpendicular to a movement direction of the movable keycap 301. The first magnetic element 317 and the second magnetic element 327 can be magnets. The switch component 309 is disposed beneath the movable keycap 301. The first magnetic element 317 excludes the second magnetic element 327 so as to make the switch component 309 in an OFF state as the movable keycap 301 is undepressed. The movable keycap 301 moves downward to trigger the switch component 309, as the movable keycap 301 is depressed to exceed a force threshold for overcoming the magnetic repulsive force between the first magnetic element 317 and the second magnetic element 327. It also can provide a tactile sensation for the user to be aware that the switch component 309 has been triggered. A protrusion 311 can be formed on a lower surface of the movable keycap 301 for triggering the switch component 309. As the movable keycap 301 is undepressed, the magnetic repulsive force between the first magnetic element 317 and the second magnetic element 327 recovers the movable keycap 301 upward in an arrow direction as shown in
Please refer to
Please refer to
In another embodiment of the present invention, a keyboard can include different combinations of the above-mentioned magnetic keyswitch assemblies.
In contrast with the prior art, the present invention provides the magnetic keyswitch assembly and the keyboard therewith capable of recovering the keycap by magnetic force. It should be noticed that the direction of magnetic force to attract or exclude the keycap is perpendicular to the movement direction of the keycap. It can reserve mechanical space for the magnetic keyswitch assembly, which meets the recent trend of thin and small size of the notebook computer.
Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 101205132 | Mar 2012 | TW | national |
