Patent Application
20220180847
The present application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2020-204073 filed in Japan on Dec. 9, 2020, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The present disclosure relates to a switch device, an electronic apparatus, and an electronic musical instrument.
For example, disclosed is a configuration that a switch device (push button device) of JP 2006-302555 A has a rubber switch in which a light guide portion for transmitting light from an LED is formed, and a resin button formed so as to cover a part of an outer wall surface from a light guide surface of the light guide portion of the rubber switch, in which the light guide portion is formed into a shape concentrating and guiding light from the LED to a part of an operation surface of the resin button.
A switch device according an embodiment includes: a cap including, on a top surface, a first region and a second region corresponding to a position where an internal light is disposed and being thinner than the first region; and a switch to which the cap is mounted.
An electronic apparatus according to an embodiment includes: the above switch device; and a processor for executing processing corresponding to an operation to the switch device to be detected.
Embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.
The keyboard instrument 1 includes an exterior case 11, where an opening provided in a part of the exterior case 11 is provided with the key 2 and an operation unit 12. The sound generated by the key pressing operation is emitted from an internal speaker positioned in the rear of the key 2 and emitted to the outside through an opening, which is not illustrated in the figure, provided on the upper surface of the exterior case 11. The operation unit 12 is disposed on the rear side of the key 2. The operation unit 12 includes a power button 121, a dial 3, switch devices 4 and 5 serving as operation buttons (push buttons) for selecting and determining various settings, and an indicator 122. The switch device 4 includes a light emitting element 133 to be described below. The switch device 4 emits light, for example, during a depression operation. The switch device 5 does not have a light emitting function, but the appearance exposed from the exterior case 11 is constituted in the same manner as the switch device 4. The use of one or a plurality of switch devices 4 and 5 in the operation unit 12 enables the tone of a piano, an organ or other musical instruments to be changed and the changed tone to be registered. A plurality of the indicators 122 notify information set by the switch devices 4 and 5 or other devices, by lighting by light emitting elements such as LEDs disposed inside.
As illustrated in an exploded perspective view of the switch devices 4 and 5 in
The circuit board 13 is provided with a mounting portion 134 serving as an opening and a mounting portion 135 serving as a notch. The circuit board 13 is fixed to the exterior case 11 from its inside by the mounting portion 134, using a screw member. The rubber switch array 6 is also fastened together with the mounting portion 135 of the circuit board 13 by a screw member through a mounting portion 642 serving as a notch and fixed to the exterior case 11.
The rubber switch array 6 can be formed of an insulating elastic material such as natural rubber or synthetic rubber. The rubber switch array 6 is formed long in the right and left direction (a part of the left end portion side is illustrated in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
The switch 61 illustrated in
The housing portion 615 positioned above the light side light guide portion 614 is formed to have a larger diameter than the inner diameter of the upper end portion of the light side light guide portion 614. The inner diameter of the housing portion 615 is provided to have substantially the same diameter over the vertical direction. The housing portion 615 can house a cylindrical portion 74 (top surface side light guide portion 741) of a cap 7 to be described below. The inner diameter of the housing portion 615 is provided to be larger than the outer diameter of the cylindrical portion 74.
The switch 61 has a columnar contact 616 projecting from the lower surface to the downward side (i.e., the circuit board 13 side) at a position different from the light side light guide portion 614 on the lower surface of the base portion 611. The contacts 616 are provided at two positions facing the contact electrodes 131. A conductor portion is provided on the surface of the contact 616 facing the contact electrode 131 by, for example, plating or vapor deposition. Therefore, when the contact 616 comes into contact with the contact electrode 131, the open ends of the contact electrode 131 on the positive electrode side and the negative electrode side can be short-circuited.
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
At the upper portion of the head portion 623 of the switch 62 illustrated in
The switch 62 has a columnar contact 626 projecting from the lower surface to the downward side (i.e., the circuit board 13 side) at a position substantially on the axis on the lower surface of the base portion 621. The contact 626 is provided facing the contact electrode 132. A conductor portion is provided on the surface of the contact 626 facing the contact electrode 132 by, for example, plating or vapor deposition. Therefore, when the contact 626 comes into contact with the contact electrode 132, the open ends of the contact electrode 132 on the positive electrode side and the negative electrode side can be short-circuited.
A part of the side wall portion 64 in
The cap 7 illustrated in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
The cap 7 of the present embodiment is made of a black translucent resin material and contains a diffusion material. For example, inorganic or organic fine particles can be used as the diffusion material. The diffusion material may be contained in the second region 71b and may not be contained in other parts (e.g., the side surface portion 72). The top surface 71 is embossed. The embossing can be formed, for example, on the external surface of the top surface 71 by fine unevenness of about 0.1 mm.
As illustrated in
In the switch device 4, a tip portion of the cylindrical portion 74 abuts on a step portion between the housing portion 615 and the light side light guide portion 614. In the state where the cap 7 is mounted to the switch 61, the inner diameter of the top surface side light guide portion 741 is formed to be smaller than the inner diameter at the upper end of the light side light guide portion 614. The center axes of the light side light guide portion 614 and the top surface side light guide portion 741 substantially coincide with an optical axis of the light L emitted from the light emitting element 133 (see
In the switch device 5, the tip portion of the cylindrical portion 74 abuts on the bottom portion of the housing portion 625. The center axis of the top surface side light guide portion 741 in the cylindrical portion 74 substantially coincides with the center axis of the contact 626.
The operations of the switch device 4 and the switch device 5 will then be described. In the initial state (state where no external force is applied) of the switch device 4 illustrated in
As illustrated in
When the switch device 4 detects that the depression operation has been performed, a processor, which is not illustrated in the figure, such as the circuit board 13 causes the light emitting element 133 to emit light. The processor executes processing corresponding to the operation to the switch device 4 to be detected. The light emitting element 133 has an optical axis substantially perpendicular to the surface of the circuit board 13 and emits light L having a predetermined directivity (or, a half-value angle or a directional angle) upward. A part of the light L emitted from the light emitting element 133 is directly irradiated to the second region 71b of the top surface 71, and the other part is reflected by one or both inner surfaces of the light side light guide portion 614 and the top surface side light guide portion 741 and then irradiated to the second region 71b. Therefore, the light side light guide portion 614 and the top surface side light guide portion 741 can guide the light L emitted from the light emitting element 133 to the thin-walled portion 711 of the second region 71b.
The thin-walled portion 711 of the present embodiment is made of a black resin material having translucency (or having a wall thickness that is thick enough to allow light to pass through). Therefore, the light L emitted to the inner surface side of the thin-walled portion 711 passes through the thin-walled portion 711 and is emitted to the outside from the surface side of the top surface 71. Therefore, the user can visually recognize the light emission of the cap 7 caused by the depression operation of the switch device 4 even in the playing position.
Since the surface side of the thin-walled portion 711 is embossed, the diffusion angle of the light L emitted from the surface of the top surface 71 can be widened while increasing the diameter of the substantially circular light L visually recognized on the surface of the top surface 71 when viewed from the top surface 71 side (e.g., with the diameter of the light being approximately the same as that of the top surface side light guide portion 741). Since the thin-walled portion 711 contains a diffusion material, the emitting angle of the light L emitted from the surface of the top surface 71 can be further widened. Further, since the switch device 4 guides the light L to the top surface 71 side by the relatively hard top surface side light guide portion 741, the circular light L having a clear contour can be emitted from the surface of the top surface 71 (thin-walled portion 711).
When the depression operation of the switch device 4 is released, the switch 61 and the cap 7 are raised by the elastic force of the skirt portion 612, and the switch device 4 returns to the state in
In the initial state (state where no external force is applied) of the switch device 5 illustrated in
As illustrated in
When the depression operation of the switch device 5 is released, the switch 62 and the cap 7 are raised by the elastic force of the skirt portion 622, and the switch device 5 returns to the state in
Although the configuration of the present embodiment has been described above with reference to
The cap 7 may be configured not to provide a cylindrical portion 74 protruded to the light emitting element 133 side. For example, the inner surface side of the second region 71b of the cap 7 may be provided as a concave portion thinner than the inner surface of the first region 71a, so that the top surface side light guide portion 741 may be constituted by the inner peripheral surface of the concave portion. Even in this case, the shape of the inner peripheral surface of the top surface side light guide portion 741 allows light L having a clear contour to be emitted from the top surface 71.
The configuration of the second region 71b thinner than the first region 71a on the top surface 71 is not limited to a configuration in which the thin-walled portion 711 is provided, but may be a configuration in which a through-hole is provided (i.e., a configuration in which the second region 71b has a thickness of zero). In this case, the switch 61 may have a convex portion to be inserted into the through-hole of the top surface 71. The convex portion of the switch 61 is made translucent, so that the light L of the light emitting element 133 from the second region 71b can be emitted from the external surface of the top surface 71. On the other hand, in the configuration in
The present embodiment describes an example that the top surface side light guide portion 741 provided in the cap 7 and the light side light guide portion 614 of the switch 61 are separately configured, but the top surface side light guide portion 741 and the light side light guide portion 614 may be integrally configured. For example, in the switch device 4 illustrated in
Although an example in which the light emitting element 133 is disposed as an internal light in the switch device 4 is illustrated, light guided by a light guide member such as an optical fiber may be configured such as to emit the light L to the light side light guide portion 614 side by disposing the emitting side end portion or the leakage portion of the light guide member at the position of the light emitting element 133 illustrated in
Conventionally, there has been proposed a switch device which includes a light emitting portion and emits light by a switch operation. For example, disclosed is a configuration that a switch device (push button device) of JP 2006-302555 A has a rubber switch in which a light guide portion for transmitting light from an LED is formed, and a resin button formed so as to cover a part of an outer wall surface from a light guide surface of the light guide portion of the rubber switch, in which the light guide portion is formed into a shape concentrating and guiding light from the LED to a part of an operation surface of the resin button.
However, in the switch device of JP 2006-302555 A, the resin button positioned on the light guide surface is thick, and the lighting pattern visually recognized on the operation surface side is unclear.
However, the switch devices 4 and 5 of the present embodiment includes: a cap 7, on the top surface 71, including a first region 71a and a second region 71b which corresponds to a position where an internal light (133) is disposed and is thinner than the first region 71a; and switches 61 and 62 to which the cap 7 is mounted. Thus, a clear contour is formed at the boundary between the first region 71a and the second region 71b, and the light L can be emitted from the second region 71b. Therefore, the switch devices 4 and 5 can be configured to allow good visibility of the lighted light L.
The switch devices 4 and 5, in which the second region 71b corresponds to the thin-walled portion 711 provided in a region on the center side on the top surface 71 and the first region 71a corresponds to the thick-walled portion 712 provided outside the second region 71b in the top surface 71, do not emit light L from the thick-walled portion 712, but can emit light L having a clear contour from the thin-walled portion 711, and therefore allow good visibility of the lighted light L.
The cap 7 has, at the boundary between the second region 71b and the first region 71a on its inside, a top surface side light guide portion 741 surrounding the outer periphery of the second region 71b with an inner wall. Thus, the light L from the internal light (133) can be guided to the second region 71b side while being reflected by the inner wall of the top surface side light guide portion 741.
In the switch device 4 having a housing portion 615, in which the top surface side light guide portion 741 is cylindrically extended from the top surface 71 side toward the internal light (133) side and for which the switches 61 and 62 house the top surface side light guide portion 741, the cap 7 can be stably mounted to the switch 61 while constituting a light guide path.
The switches 61 and 62 have contacts 616 and 626 for detecting the depression operation by contacting with the contact electrodes 131 and 132, and the switch devices 4 and 5 provided vertically movably can detect the depression operation in response to the vertical movement by the depression operation of the switch devices 4 and 5.
The switch device 4 in which the top surface 71 is embossed can widen the diffusion angle of the light L emitted from the surface of the top surface 71 while increasing the diameter (in the present embodiment, a substantially circular diameter) of the light L visually recognized on the surface of the top surface 71.
The switch device 4 in which the cap 7 contains a diffusion material can widen the emitting angle of the light L emitted from the surface of the top surface 71.
The electronic apparatus, which includes switch devices 4 and 5 and a processor for executing processing corresponding to an operation to the switch devices 4 and 5 to be detected, can perform lighting control of the switch devices 4 and 5 which allow good visibility, and execute processing corresponding to an operation of the switch devices 4 and 5.
The embodiments described above are presented by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These new embodiments may be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and the gist of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-204073 | Dec 2020 | JP | national |
