This application claims the priority benefit of Taiwan application serial no. 106143414, filed on Dec. 11, 2017. The entirety of the above-mentioned patent application is hereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of this specification.
The disclosure relates to a switch structure.
The invention of electricity has brought a complete lifestyle change to mankind, contributing to significant developments and advancements in industry and technology and bringing applications of various kinds of electronic circuits and information systems into our life. However, the climate anomalies which came along with the development in technology have gradually increased the environmental awareness of people. In response, various methods for improvement have been proposed for the energy source types and the efficiency thereof. However, regardless of any new energy source, in order to truly play an effect in carbon reduction, the principles of conservation need to be applied.
Aside from using electrical equipment with low energy consumption, the most important thing is to switch off the power of electrical equipment that is not in use to reduce the waste of unnecessary energy. In other words, not only can waste in electricity be effectively prevented by a means of good electricity management, safety in electricity usage is also provided. Therefore, for the various types of current electronic systems, in addition to proximal control, it is necessary to develop a means for performing remote control in order to increase the effectiveness in electricity management and at the same time achieving results in areas such as intelligent lifestyle and carbon reduction.
The invention is directed to a switch structure capable of improving use convenience by manual or automatic modes.
The switch structure of the invention is used for switching on or off an electronic system. The switch structure includes a base, a switch body, a first electrode, a second electrode, a torsion assembly, and a power source. The switch body is pivoted to the base. The first electrode is connected to the switch body and driven by the switch body. The second electrode is disposed on the base and corresponds to the first electrode, wherein the first electrode and the second electrode are electrically connected to the electronic system, respectively. The torsion assembly is connected to and drives the switch body, so as to drive the first electrode and the second electrode to switch between a conductive state and a non-conductive state. The power source is connected to the torsion assembly. The power source provides a torsion to the switch body via the torsion assembly in an automatic state so as to switch the switch structure between the conductive state and the non-conductive state.
In an embodiment of the invention, the switch structure further includes an engaging member. The torsion assembly includes a transmitting shaft connected between the power source and the switch body. The engaging member clamps the transmitting shaft in the automatic state, and the power source drives the switch body through the engaging member and the transmitting shaft.
In an embodiment of the invention, the engaging member is elastic, and a user applies a force on the switch body in a manual state to drive the transmitting shaft and deform the engaging member.
In an embodiment of the invention, the torsion assembly includes a reducing gear and a driving gear. The reducing gear is connected to the power source. The driving gear has an opening. The transmitting shaft is pivoted to the base and inserted to the opening. The engaging member is embedded in the driving gear and clamps the transmitting shaft. The driving gear is connected to the reducing gear.
In an embodiment of the invention, the driving gear has an accommodating slot located adjacent to the opening. The transmitting shaft has a first shaft portion, a second shaft portion and a third shaft portion which are coaxially disposed. The second shaft portion is located inside the opening. The third shaft portion is passed outside the opening. The first shaft portion is located in the accommodating slot and clamped by the engaging member.
In an embodiment of the invention, the torsion assembly further includes an interlocking piece. The third shaft portion has a turning hole. One end of the interlocking piece is inserted to the turning hole. Another end of the interlocking piece is inserted to the switch body.
In an embodiment of the invention, the torsion assembly further includes an interlocking piece. The interlocking piece is connected between the transmitting shaft and the switch body. The transmitting shaft rotates the switch body through the interlocking piece in the automatic state. The switch body rotates the transmitting shaft through the interlocking piece in the manual state.
In an embodiment of the invention, the switch structure further includes a control module electrically connected to the power source.
Based on the above, by disposing the torsion assembly in the switch structure, the torsion assembly may be connected between the switch body and the power source. Accordingly, in the automatic state, the power source drives the torsion assembly to provide the torsion to the switch body so different rotating positions of the switch body can have the first electrode and the second electrode in the base close connected to or moved away from each other. In this way, electrical conduction or electrical open circuit may be provided to switch on or off the electronic system.
To make the above features and advantages of the disclosure more comprehensible, several embodiments accompanied with drawings are described in detail as follows.
The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts.
The switch body 120 is, for example, a handle portion of a rocker switch substantially pivoted to the base 110 and can be forced to rotate and move so the first electrode A1 and the second electrode A2 can be switched between a conductive state (as shown in
Moreover, the driving gear 132 further includes an opening 132b and an accommodating slot 132a (with contour of an expanding hole), and the transmitting shaft 133 includes a first shaft portion 133a, a second shaft portion 133b and a third shaft portion 133c which are coaxially disposed and have different contours and outer diameters. The second shaft portion 133b and the third shaft portion 133c are inserted to the opening 132b. The second shaft portion 133b is located inside the opening 132b such that the third shaft portion 133c is passed outside the opening 132b, and the first shaft portion 133a leans against the accommodating slot 132a. It should be noted that, the driving gear 132 further includes fitting slots 132c located at a periphery of the accommodating slot 132a and corresponding to each other, and the engaging pieces 141 and 142 are elastic pieces embedded in the fitting slots 132c for leaning against two opposite lateral edges of the first shaft portion 133a. Here, the first shaft portion 133a may be regarded as a rectangular block, with two opposite sides clamped by the engaging members 141 and 142.
On the other hand, the transmitting shaft 133 further includes a turning hole 133d located on the third shaft portion 133c. A first end E1 of the interlocking piece 134, which is a flat piece, is inserted to the turning hole 133d (i.e., a contour of the turning hole 133d can fit in the first end E1 of the interlocking piece 134). A second end E2 of the interlocking piece 134 is inserted to a shaft hole 121 of the switch body 120. Therefore, when the transmitting shaft 133 rotates, the switch body 120 can be driven to rotate by the interlocking piece 134. Relatively, when the power source 150 conducts a backwards driving, the transmitting shaft 133, the interlocking piece 134 and the switch body 120 may also rotate backwards.
Accordingly, when the power source 150 provides power to drive the reducing gear 131 and the driving gear 132 for rotation, the transmitting shaft 133 may be driven to rotate by the engaging members 141 and 142. In this way, the switch body 120 and the first electrode A1 can be driven to move and switch between the conductive state and the non-conductive state in order to achieve the purpose of switching on or off the electronic system 20.
Referring back to
In summary, in the foregoing embodiments of the invention, by disposing the torsion assembly in the switch structure, the torsion assembly may be connected between the switch body and the power source. Accordingly, in the automatic state, the power source drives the torsion assembly to provide the torsion to the switch body so different rotating positions of the switch body can have the first electrode and the second electrode in the base close connected to or moved away from each other. In this way, electrical conduction or electrical open circuit (where current cannot pass through) may be provided to switch on or off the electronic system.
Furthermore, in the switch structure, the engaging member is disposed on the driving gear of the torsion assembly and clamps the transmitting shaft of the torsion assembly, and the transmitting shaft is further connected to the switch body by the interlocking piece. Accordingly, in the automatic state, when the power provided by the power source is driving the torsion assembly, the transmitting shaft may be clamped by the engaging member to transmit the power to the switch body. Meanwhile, because the engaging member is elastic, when the power source is not switched on yet, the user can still apply force on the switch body so the deformation of the engaging members can be overcame by the applied force, allowing the transmitting shaft to successfully rotate, thereby achieving the purpose of switching on or off the electronic system.
As a result, the switch structure is provided with operation modes such as the automatic (powered) state and the manual state to achieve effectiveness of improving use convenience and wide application range.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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106143414 A | Dec 2017 | TW | national |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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4734985 | Ozaki | Apr 1988 | A |
Number | Date | Country |
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I538002 | Jun 2016 | TW |
Entry |
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“Office Action of Taiwan Counterpart Application”, dated May 10, 2018, p.1-p.3. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20190180959 A1 | Jun 2019 | US |