JPH0455928A - keyboard device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a keyboard device used in a computer.

[Conventional technology]

In addition to general keys for entering letters and numbers, conventional keyboards have a plurality of function keys, ie, F keys, which are manually operated keys for activating certain operations on the computer.

When the application software starts up itself, it assigns operational roles to some or all of these F keys that are valid only during its operation. There is no standard for this assignment method, and the operations required for software vary, so if the software changes, the operations assigned to the F key will also change.

If there is only a small amount of software that is used on a daily basis, the user can relatively easily memorize the role that each software is assigned to the F key, but if the software that is used on a daily basis is wide-ranging, such as word processors, spreadsheets, databases, diagramming, etc. It is very difficult to memorize each F key operation in every case, and it is necessary to refer to the manual each time, which is very inefficient in terms of operation.

To solve this problem, prepare a template in the software package that describes the operation of the F key used in that software, and use that template as the F key on the keyboard.
There is a way to place it near the key string and refer to it as needed.

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention 1] However, with this method, as the number of software used increases, the number of templates also increases, making management and storage difficult, and the possibility of losing templates becomes very high. Furthermore, it is extremely inefficient to search for a desired template each time depending on the software used and replace it with the existing template.

The present invention is intended to solve these conventional problems.The purpose of the present invention is to provide a keyboard device that has a mechanism for collectively managing and holding a plurality of templates and instantly selecting a desired template from among them. It is to provide.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The keyboard device of the present invention has the following features: (1) One or more openable and closable ring mechanisms are mounted on the keyboard device near both ends of the F key row in an upward vertical direction from the keyboard device. The F-key reference template group is connected to the ring mechanism, and is arranged in parallel with the F-key.

(2) The ring mechanism is removable from the keyboard device.

(3) The ring mechanism is foldable relative to the keyboard device, and has a space on the keyboard device to accommodate the ring mechanism.

[Embodiment] Fig. 1 is an overall view of an embodiment of the present invention of a keyboard in which F keys are arranged horizontally in a row above the keyboard, and Fig.
1 is an overall view of an embodiment of the invention in a keyboard with keys arranged on the left side of the keyboard; FIG. In the figure, 100 is the entire keyboard device, 101 is a normal character and number key.
1102 is an F key, 103 is a ring mechanism, 104 is a ring mechanism storage space, 105a is a selected template, and 105b is another template. In the figure, templates 105a and 105b have a plurality of holes, and by passing a ring mechanism through the holes, they are connected to each other, and can be turned over freely around the holes. !
! The selected template 105a is arranged in parallel with the F keys 102 and corresponds to each F key. Other templates that are currently not in use are used templates 10
5a is stacked and covered or held inside out on the opposite side of the ring mechanism.

When the software used changes, by flipping through these templates, the newly required template can be selected immediately.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the collapsible ring mechanism. In the same figure, 300 is a ring mechanism, 301 is a rotation center shaft, and 302
303a is a stop key, 303a is a keyhole when standing upright, 303b is a keyhole when stored, 304 is a ring opening/closing part, 305 is a ring mechanism storage part, and 306 is a keyboard device. This figure shows the ring mechanism position when the keyboard is in use, that is, the stop key 302 is held in the key hole position when the keyboard is upright. In this state, it stands almost perpendicularly above the keyboard surface, allowing multiple templates to be connected. When there is a risk of damage during transportation of the keyboard, the ring mechanism 300 is housed in a ring housing provided on the keyboard so that it does not protrude from the surface of the keyboard. This storage operation is performed by rotating the central shafts 301 at both ends of the ring mechanism.
This is achieved by pressing the vicinity inward with your finger to remove the stop key 302 from the key hole 303a when standing upright, and then rotating the stop key 302 in that state to the position of the key hole 303b when stored. Addition and removal of the template is performed by opening and closing the ring opening/closing portion 304.

4 and 5 are enlarged views of two examples of removable ring mechanisms. FIG. 4 shows an example in which both ends of the ring mechanism are attached to the top surface of the keyboard device, and FIG. 5 shows an example in which one end of the ring mechanism is attached to the top surface of the keyboard device, and the other end is attached to the back side of the keyboard device. In the figure, 400 is a ring mechanism, 401 is a mounting claw, 402 is a keyboard device, 403
404 is a mounting hole, 404 is an F key, and 405 is a back surface.

Since the ring mechanism 400 is made of a material with some degree of elasticity, it is inserted into the mounting hole 403 while pressing both sides of the ring mechanism with fingertips. After fitting, use the mounting claw 4
01 is fixed to the keyboard device 402 by the force that spreads from side to side. Addition and removal of templates is done using the ring mechanism 40.
0 from the keyboard device and from the mounting end. Fifth
As shown in the figure, when one end of the ring mechanism is located on the back side of the keyboard device 402, unused templates are stored vertically along this back side so that they do not get in the way of operation.

FIG. 6 shows a transparent bag for storing templates. In the figure, 600 is a transparent storage bag, 601 is a ring hole, and 60
2 is a template insertion slot, and 603 is a template. This transparent bag for storing templates can be used when there is no room for the ring mechanism attachment hole in the template that comes with general commercial software, place the template in a transparent bag, and attach it to the ring mechanism through the ring hole 601 in the bag. It is versatile and can be used. In addition, if you prepare a large number of the same transparent bags and install them in the ring mechanism in advance, and use these transparent bags to install all the templates in the ring mechanism, you can easily add and replace templates without touching the ring mechanism. ,
It is removable and convenient.

[Effects of the Invention] The keyboard device according to the present invention has the following effects due to the above structure.

By connecting multiple templates to this ring mechanism, you can manage the templates all at once and there is no risk of losing them. Also, you can easily select the template you need by flipping through the templates, so you can easily refer to them whenever you need them. Therefore, there is no need to memorize the F key operations for each software (and work efficiency is extremely high.Furthermore, when moving the keyboard device, the ring mechanism must be housed in the keyboard device itself or removed from the keyboard device. There is no risk of damage by removing it from the holder.This is because the more software and templates you use, the more the operability improves, and the effect is tremendous.

[Brief explanation of the drawing] FIGS. 1 and 2 show embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial view of the foldable ring mechanism. Figures 4 and 5 are enlarged partial views of the removable ring mechanism 6 Figure 6 shows a transparent bag for storing templates. 100...Keyboard device main body 101 ・ ・ ・ 102 ・ ・ ・ 103 ・ ・ ・ 104 ・ ・ ・ 105 a・・ 105 b・・ 300・・・・ 301 ・ ・ ・ 302 ・ ・ ・ 303a・・ 303 b・・ 304 ・ ・ ・ 305 ・ ・ ・ 306 ・ ・ ・ 400・・・・ 401 ・ ・ ・ 402 ・ ・ ・ 403・・・・ 404 ・ ・ ・ 405 ・ ・ ・ ・7-character oyster ・F key ・Ring mechanism ・Ring mechanism storage space ・Selected template ・Other templates ・Ring mechanism ・Rotation center axis ・Stop key ・Key hole when standing upright ・Key hole when storing ・Ring opening/closing part ・Ring mechanism storage section ・Keyboard device ・Ring mechanism ·Mounting holes ・Keyboard device ·Mounting holes ・F key ・Dorsal side Transparent bag for storage 601・ hole for ring 602 ・ ・Template insertion slot 603・ ·template Below Up

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) In a keyboard device used in a computer, one or more openable and closable ring mechanisms are placed on the keyboard device near both ends of a row of function keys (hereinafter referred to as F keys) and upwardly from the keyboard device. A keyboard device, characterized in that the keyboard device is arranged in a vertical direction, and a group of F-key reference templates are connected to the ring mechanism, and arranged in parallel with the F-key. (2) The keyboard device according to claim 1, wherein the ring mechanism is removable from the keyboard device. (3) The keyboard device according to claim 1, wherein the ring mechanism is foldable relative to the keyboard device and has a space on the keyboard device to accommodate the ring mechanism.