JPH0359530B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] () Prior Art and its Problems Recently, an extremely large number of various microswitches and the switch of the present invention are used in parts of computers, electronic audio equipment, and other various electrical equipment that require switch operation. Similar leaf switches are in use, and the number of leaf switches in use is expected to increase dramatically in the future.

Currently, various types of microswitches have a structure in which various contact mechanisms are enclosed in a case made of plastic or the like, and are highly dust-proof.However, the switch mechanism is enclosed in an extremely small case and is operated from outside the case. Due to this necessity, the structure was complicated, and as a result, it had the disadvantage of being brittle and lacking in durability, and it was also expensive.

In this respect, leaf switches have a simple switch mechanism consisting of spring pieces with contacts and are exposed, so they are more durable and functional than micro switches, and are much cheaper. However, on the other hand, since the contact area is exposed, dust tends to adhere to this area, and since voltage is applied by the contact opening/closing action, this causes dust collection, and even more so, the contact area is exposed. This promotes the adhesion of dust, resulting in problems such as poor contact and resistance due to poor conductivity, which is becoming a drawback especially in the contact action of weak currents in modern computers.

() Purpose of the present invention The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and includes the main parts of the contact mechanism of a leaf switch, namely:
Most of the contact spring piece, including the contact part, which is installed almost parallel to the insulating base, is covered with the sealing and rotatable cover of the present invention, in a state where the contact can be opened and closed from the outside. As a result, the above-mentioned dust-proofing effect is achieved especially for the contact portions, and the switch operation (opening/closing operation of the contacts) itself can be performed without any trouble as in the conventional case.

() Structure (1) That is, the present invention provides a leaf switch in which a plurality of contact spring pieces are embedded substantially parallel to each other in an insulating base, and the contact spring pieces (excluding the terminal portion) are sealed and rotatable. The cover has a space inside the cover body that corresponds approximately to the covered part of the contact spring piece, and the rear end opening area is rotatably pivoted to an insulating base. In order for the contacts to open and close when the cover rotates around the pivot when operated by an external force, the movable contact spring piece among the contact spring pieces is appropriately linked to the cover body to absorb the external force. A sealable and rotatable leaf switch characterized in that it is arranged to cooperate with the cover when operated, and the switch is opened and closed by contacting and separating the contacts of the opposing contact spring pieces by the cooperative action. It is a mold cover.

(2) Next, the specific configuration of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings. A plurality of contact spring pieces 2a, 2b, 2c, etc. are buried approximately in parallel in an insulating base 1 made of plastic (for example, by insert molding of plastic). In the leaf switch A, which is buried by processing), the contacts 5a, 5b, which protrude to one side of the insulating base 1 (excluding the terminal part which protrudes to the other side),
A sealed and rotatable cover B (hereinafter abbreviated as cover B) made of a cylindrical or other insulating material (for example, a molded plastic product) covers the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b, 2c... including the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b, 2c... The cover B has a contact spring piece 2 inside the cover body 3.
A, 2b, 2c, . The contacts 5a and 5 are rotated about the pivot D as a fulcrum when the cover B is operated by an external force such as an external pressing force or a traction force.
The movable contact spring piece (for example, 2a) among the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b, 2c... is linked to the cover body 3 by appropriate means so that the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b, 2c... open and close, and the external force When the cover B is rotated by operation, the cover B cooperates with the cover B, and the contacts of the opposing contact spring pieces come into contact and separate from each other due to the cooperative action, thereby opening and closing the switch.

Therefore, in a normally open type leaf switch (for example, the switch shown in FIGS. 1 and 5), the movable contact spring piece 2a (the contact 5a) works together with the cover B, and the contact spring piece 2b (the contact 5b) works together with the cover B. )
The contact spring moves in the direction of , contacts 5a and 5b come into contact, and the contact closes (switch ON). Conversely, in a normally closed leaf switch (for example, the switch shown in Fig. 8), the contact spring on the movable side Piece 2a (contact 5a) cooperates with cover B, and is bent away from contact spring piece 26 (contact 5b) to open the contact (switch OFF).

() Embodiments Next, embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to the drawings.

(1) The leaf switch _A1 shown in the first diagram is a so-called normally open type, that is, contact 5 is normally open.
a and 5b are open, and the contact spring piece 2 on the movable side
This is a leaf switch _A1 of a type in which contacts 5a and 5b are brought into contact (closed) by a pressing operation of a,
The present invention cover B ₁ is attached to its contact spring pieces 2a and 2b.
(excluding the terminal portion), and the vicinity of the rear end opening is pivotally connected to the insulating base 1 about a pivot D.

The cover B ₁ has a rectangular cylindrical space C ₁ formed inside the cover body 3, which almost corresponds to the covered portions of the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b, and near the base 4 of the contact spring piece 2a on the movable side. A separator 6 is provided to maintain the spacing between the two spring pieces, and a connector 7 with hemispherical protrusions 8 protruding from the left and right sides is embedded at a position slightly closer to the tip by insert molding of each insulating plastic. On the other hand, grooves 9, 9 and small holes 10, 10 or recesses are formed on the left and right side walls of the lower part of the space _C1 of the sealed cover _B1 , and the left and right side walls are formed in a semicircular shape behind the opening 11. A shaft hole 11b is formed in the protruding part 11a, and when the cover _B1 is attached, the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b are inserted into the space C1 from the opening ₁₁ while the left and right protrusions of the connector 7 are inserted. Children 8, 8 to groove 9,
9 and slide the protrusions 8, 8 into the small holes 1.
By fitting the cover B 1 into the insulating base 1 and the contact springs, the cover B 1 is fitted into the insulating base 1 and the contact spring by fitting into the insulating base 1 or the recessed portion and engaging the pivot D protruding from the insulating base ₁ into the shaft hole 11b of the protrusion 11a. It is attached to piece 2a in a rotatable and detachable manner.

At this time, the separator 6 embedded in the base 4 of the contact spring piece 2a is located near the opening 11 of the space _C1 , and maintains the distance between the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b, while also maintaining the distance between the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b. It becomes crisp and helps the attachment of the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b and the cover _B1 , and also acts like a partition plate to close the opening 11 and seal the inside of the space _C1 . This has the effect of effectively preventing dust from entering the space _C1 .

When the cover B ₁ is pressed from the outside in the above-mentioned installed state, the cover B ₁ rotates about the pivot D, and the contact spring piece on the movable side linked with the cover B ₁ by the connector 7 The contact 5 of the contact spring piece 2b which is opposed to the contact 5a of the contact 2a is bent together with the contact 5 of the contact spring piece 2b.
Contact (close) b. When the pressure is released, the cover _B1 and the contact spring piece 2a return to their original positions due to the resilient restoring force of the contact spring piece, and the contacts 5a and 5b are opened.

(2) The leaf switch A ₂ shown in Figure 5 is also a normally open type, and the cover B ₂ in this example has a rectangular cylindrical shape with a space C ₂ almost corresponding to the covered portion of the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b. A separator 6 is embedded near the base 4 of the contact spring piece 2a on the movable side, and the contact spring piece 2
An engaging pawl 12 is provided protrudingly at the tip of the cover body 3, and a slit 13 is provided below the tip of the space C2 of the cover body ₃ through which the tip of the contact spring piece 2a is inserted, and the left and right side walls are opened. The protruding part 11 protrudes in a semicircular shape or the like to the rear, and a shaft hole 11b is bored in the protruding part 11a. When the cover _B2 is attached, the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b are inserted into the space _C2 from the opening part 11. Then, the engaging claw 12 at the tip of the contact spring piece 2a
is inserted into the slit 13 and engaged with the outside of the cover main body 3, and at the same time, by engaging the pivot D protruding from the insulating base 1 into the shaft hole 11b of the protrusion 11a, the sealed cover _{B2 is} sealed. is rotatably attached to the insulating base 1 and the contact spring piece 2a. Note that the sealed cover _B2 can be removed by lowering the engaging claw 12 with a screwdriver or the like.

In the above, the separator 6 embedded in the base 4 of the contact spring piece 2a is connected to the opening 11 of the space _C2 .
While maintaining the distance between the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b near the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b, the contact spring pieces 2a, 2b and the cover are tightly arranged against the top and bottom of the opening 11.
It supports the mounting state of B ₂ and also acts like a partition plate to close the opening 11 and seal the inside of space C ₂ , effectively preventing dust from entering into space C ₂ . Demonstrate the effect of

(3) Leaf switch A ₃ shown in Figures 8 and 13
is a so-called normally closed type switch, that is, the contacts 5a and 5b are closed (in contact) under normal conditions, and the contacts 5a and 5b are separated by pressing P of the movable contact spring piece 2a. Then, as in the previous embodiment, cover B ₃ of the present invention is attached to its contact spring pieces 2a and 2b (excluding the terminal part).
It is cloaked in.

The sealed cover _B3 has contact spring pieces 2a, 2
The cover body 3 is provided in a rectangular box shape consisting of a box-shaped cover body 3 and a lid plate 14 forming a space C ₃ approximately corresponding to the covered area of b, and a separator abutment 15 is protruded near the opening 11 of the cover body 3. At the same time, near the upper end of the space _C3 , there is a tip end with an engaging claw 12 of the movable contact spring piece 2a,
Or an insulating presser 16 embedded in the tip
mate. A groove 17 with a recess 18 or a fitting recess 19 is provided, while the cover plate 14 has, for example,
The cover body 3 is integrally molded in a hinged manner on one side edge of the cover body 3, and the engagement piece 20 provided on the other side edge is attached to the cover body 3.
The engaging protrusion 21 provided on the side (Figs. 8, 10, and 11) or the engaging protrusion 22 of the separate cover plate 14 provided on the cover main body 3 side as appropriate. 21 so as to cover the entire surface of the space C3 of the cover body ₃ , and furthermore, the side wall of the cover body 3 and the cover plate 14 are protruded in a semicircular shape or the like behind the opening 11. The protrusion 11
A shaft hole 11b is bored in the shaft hole 11b.

Therefore, when installing cover B ₂ , attach contact spring piece 2.
a, 2b are inserted into the space _C3 from the side, and the engaging claw 12 or the pusher 16 at the tip of the movable contact spring piece 2a is fitted into the groove 17 with the recess 18 or the fitting recess 19, After installing the separator protrusion 15 by positioning it between the bases 4 of both contact spring pieces 2a and 2b, the engaging piece 20 or the engaging leg 22 of the cover plate 14 is engaged with the engaging protrusion 21, and The pivot shaft D of the insulating base 1 is engaged with the shaft hole 11b of each protrusion 11a of the side wall of the cover body 3 and the cover plate 14, and is rotatably connected.

Due to the above, the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b are covered.
B ₃ and also the opening 1 of space C ₃
1 is closed by the separator protrusion 15, so that it is covered in a sealed state.

Therefore, when the cover B ₃ is pressed P, the contact spring piece 2 on the movable side linked with the cover B ₃
a is bent in cooperation with the cover B ₃ , and the contacts 5a and 5b, which had been in contact with each other, are separated and opened. Also, when the pressure P is released, the cover B ₃ and the contact spring piece 2a return to their original positions. Contacts 2a and 2b are closed.

(4) Three embodiments of the cover B of the present invention have been illustrated above in relation to each leaf switch, but in addition to the above examples, a structure in which the cover B is divided into two in the axial direction is also possible.

For example, when the cover B ₄ is applied to the leaf switch A ₁ shown in the first figure (Figs. 14 to 16), the cover body is divided into two in the axial direction to form 3 and 3', and the space C is also A space C ₁ and C ₁ ′ are formed by dividing into two parts, and the contact spring pieces 2a and 2b are inserted into one space C ₁ ′.
The cover bodies 3, 3' are attached by contact adhesive or small protrusions 2.
3 is fitted and bonded into the small recess 24 to form the cover _B4 . In this case, a small hole 10 into which the protrusion 8 of the edge tie 7 fits is provided, but the groove 9 is not necessary.
If the separator 6 is integrally formed on one or both of the cover bodies 3 and 3', the separator 6 can be made unnecessary.

Therefore, this two-split type sealed cover is not limited to the above-mentioned leaf switch _A1 , but can be applied to other leaf switches by appropriately changing the detailed structure.

(5) Leaf switches A ₄ and A ₅ shown in Figures 17 and 18
The three contact spring pieces 2a, 2 are of a type that combines a normally open type and a normally closed type.
The switch _A4 is configured by pressing P on the contact spring piece 2a on the movable side, so that the spring piece 2a is bent, and the arcuate spring 26 pressed by this action is reversed and becomes a contact spring. The piece 2b is bent in the direction of the contact spring piece 2a, and its contact 5b is separated (opened) from the contact 5c of the fixed side contact spring piece 2c that had been in contact (closed) until then, and the contact spring piece 2a is moved away from the contact 5c of the fixed side contact spring piece 2c. The switch A5 contacts (closes) the contact 5a, and when the switch _A5 presses the contact spring piece 2a, the spring piece is bent and the contact 5a contacts the contact 5b of the contact spring piece 2b. At the same time, the contact spring piece 2 is pressed by the presser 16.
The contact points 5b and 5c are separated by bending of the leaf switch _A4 , _A5 , and covers _B5 and _B6 having almost the same structure as the leaf switch _A3 shown in FIG. 8 are attached to the leaf switches A4 and A5. The mounting method and other aspects are almost the same as those of the leaf switch _A3 , and the same functions and effects are achieved.

(6) In each of the above embodiments, the pivot shaft D is provided protruding from the insulating base 1, and the pivot shaft D is fitted into the shaft hole 11b drilled in the protruding portion 11a of the cover B. Although the configuration is such that the pivot is freely rotatable, contrary to the above, a pivot D is provided protruding from the inner surface of the protrusion 11a on the side of the cover B, and a shaft hole or a recess is bored on the side of the insulating base 1. Of course, it is also possible to pivot the cover B rotatably by fitting the pivot shaft D of the cover B into the hole. The specific structure is arbitrary as long as it can be pivoted freely and detachably as necessary.

(7) The leaf switches of two normally open types, one normally closed type, and two combined types described above are merely examples of leaf switch A, and the sealed cover of the present invention is insulated. The present invention can be applied to all leaf switches in which a plurality of contact spring pieces are embedded in a base in substantially parallel manner by appropriately configuring the details of each leaf switch.

Furthermore, it goes without saying that the structure of the sealing and rotatable cover of the present invention that covers the various leaf switches described above is not limited to the above-mentioned example. It forms a space approximately corresponding to the area to be covered, and is rotatably pivoted to a base near the rear end opening, and the cover can be rotated about the pivot by external force operation. In order to cause the contact to open and close when the contact moves, the movable contact spring piece of the contact spring pieces is appropriately linked to the cover body and is provided so as to cooperate with the sealed cover when the external force is operated. The technical scope includes all such devices as long as they are configured to open and close a switch by coming into contact with and separating from the contacts of the opposing contact spring pieces.

() Effect In the above configuration, the sealed and rotatable cover of the present invention seals and covers the leaf switch, especially the contact spring piece (excluding the terminal part) including the contact part, which was previously completely exposed. In particular, it effectively protects against the harmful effects of contamination of the contact area with dust, and also allows the switch to function completely in the same way as conventional switches, so it has superior durability and is lower in cost than conventional switches. By adding the sealed and dust-proof performance of a micro switch to the unique leaf switch, there are many benefits that make it possible to construct an extremely excellent leaf switch.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings are approximately 3 to 5 times larger than the actual size. Figure 1 is a partially cutaway front view of a normally open type leaf switch equipped with the cover of the present invention, and Figure 2 is a partially cutaway bottom view of the normally open leaf switch. Figure 3 shows the first and second figures.
FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway front view of the illustrated cover, FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway plan view thereof, FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway front view of another example of a normally open leaf switch equipped with the cover of the present invention, and FIG. Partial cutaway bottom view, No. 7
The figures are a front view and a left side view of the cover shown in Figures 5 and 6, Figure 8 is a front view of a normally closed type leaf switch with the cover of the present invention attached and its lid plate open, and Figure 9 is its lid. 10 is a front view with the lid plate of the cover shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 opened, and FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along line DD,
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of an example using a separate cover plate, and Figure 13 is a partial front view of a normally closed leaf switch in which an engaging pawl is formed at the tip of the contact spring piece and the cover of the present invention is attached. Figure, 14th
The figure is a partially cutaway front view of a normally open type leaf switch equipped with a two-split type cover of the present invention, Figure 15 is a sectional view along E'-E'', and Figure 16 is a cross-sectional view of F'-
F'' sectional view, Figures 17 and 18 are front views of a leaf switch of the type that combines an open type and a closed type with a lid plate type cover of the present invention attached. Codes: A, A ₁ , A ₂ , A ₃ , A ₄ , A ₅ ... leaf switch, B, B ₁ , B ₂ , B ₃ , B ₄ , B ₅ , B ₆ ... sealed and rotatable cover of the present invention, C, C ₁ , C ₂ ,′C ₂ ,
C ₃ , C ₄ , C ₅ ... Space, D ... Pivot, P ... Pressing force, 1 ... Insulation base, 2a, 2b, 2c ... Contact spring piece, 4 ... Base, 5a, 5b, 5c...Contact, 6...Separator, 7...Connector, 8...
Protrusion, 9... groove, 10... small hole, 11... opening, 11a... protrusion, 11b... shaft hole, 12...
...Engaging claw, 13...Slit, 14...Lid plate, 1
5... Separator protrusion, 16... Presser, 17
... recess, 18 ... groove with recess, 19 ... fitting recess, 20 ... engagement piece, 21 ... engagement protrusion, 22 ...
...Engagement leg, 23...Small projection, 24...Small recess, 2
5... Grooved partition plate, 26... Arcuate spring.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 In a leaf switch in which a plurality of contact spring pieces are embedded approximately parallel to each other in an insulating base, this is a sealed and rotatable cover that covers the contact spring pieces (excluding the terminal part), and the cover is attached to the cover body. A space approximately corresponding to the covered part of the contact spring piece is formed inside, and the vicinity of the rear end opening is rotatably pivoted to an insulating base with a pivot, and the cover can be operated by external force. A movable contact spring piece among the contact spring pieces is provided to cooperate with the cover body and work with the cover when the external force is operated so that the contact opens and closes by rotating around the pivot as a fulcrum. A sealed and rotatable cover for a leaf switch, characterized in that the switch is opened and closed by coming into contact with and separating from the contacts of the opposing contact spring pieces by the cooperative action.