JP4207889B2 - Operation unit structure - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation unit structure, and more particularly to an operation unit structure used as a shutter button of an electronic still camera.

As an operation unit structure of an electronic still camera, a combination of a push button and a rotary dial is used. For example, Patent Document 1 describes an operation unit structure including a central press button and a surrounding rotary dial. In this operation portion structure, the rotary dial is engaged and held by the holding member with the base interposed therebetween, and a sliding electric contact piece is attached to the holding member. Then, by rotating the rotation dial, the electric contact piece rotates and slides on the pattern on the substrate. As a result, the desired pattern is short-circuited, and the operation mode is set and the push button is locked.
JP 2003-16879 A

  By the way, since Patent Document 1 has a large number of parts of the operation unit structure, there is a problem that the entire apparatus is increased in size and an assembly man-hour is increased. Further, Patent Document 1 has a problem that the fixing strength between the rotating dial and the holding member, and further the fixing strength between the holding member and the electric contact piece are weak, and rattling is likely to cause failure.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an operation unit structure with a small number of parts.

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a base and a rotation operation member that is formed in a substantially ring shape and moves in a rotation direction with respect to the base by being rotated. And a pressing operation member that is inserted into the rotation operation member and moves in the pressing direction with respect to the base by being pressed, and on the opposite side of the rotation operation member with respect to the base And a click member that rotates together with the rotation operation member and positions the rotation operation member by a click operation. The click member is attached to the rotation operation member and is attached to the pressing operation member. engaged, the also serves as a retaining means from the base of the rotating operation member and the pressing member, the inner peripheral surface of the rotating operation member, said click member is fixed by screws Fixing portion is protruded, the screw fixing portion by rotating operation of the rotating operation member, characterized in that it is disposed in locking position mechanically locks the pressing operation of the pressing member .

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the rotation operation member is attached to the click member and the click member is engaged with the press operation member, the click member prevents the pressing operation member and the rotation operation member from coming off. Also used as a means. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide a retaining member for the pressing operation member and the rotation operation member, and the number of parts can be reduced. As a result, the number of assembling steps can be reduced, and the size of the apparatus can be reduced.

According to the invention 請 Motomeko 1, since screwing, compared to welding or bonding, can be stably to secure a large strength, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of rattling. In addition, since the screw fixing portion of the rotating operation member is formed to protrude, the thickness of the screw fixing portion can be ensured even when the rotating operation member is formed small.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the screw fixing portion also serves as a mechanical locking means, and the number of parts of the operation portion structure can be further reduced.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, the pressing operation member includes a protruding portion that contacts the screw fixing portion at the locked position, and the screw fixing is performed at a position where the protruding portion is interrupted. The lock is released by arranging the portion.

  According to the operation unit structure of the present invention, the click member or the electrical contact member is attached to the rotation operation member so as to be used as the rotation operation member retaining means. Need not be provided separately, and the number of parts can be reduced. As a result, the number of assembling steps can be reduced, and the size of the apparatus can be reduced.

  A preferred embodiment of an operation unit structure according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a camera 10 in which an operation unit structure according to the present invention is applied to a shutter button. A camera 10 shown in the figure is a digital camera that forms a subject image on a solid-state image sensor via a photographing lens 12 and acquires the subject image as electronic data. A lens barrel 16 that holds the photographing lens 12 is provided in the front portion of the camera body 14 of the camera 10. Photographing is performed by manually rotating a focus ring 18 that is rotatably provided on the lens barrel 16. The focus lens of the lens 12 is moved and a focusing operation is performed.

  In addition, a hot shoe 20 to which an external strobe device is attached is provided at the upper part of the camera body 14, and a pop-up type strobe 22 is provided in the camera body 14 so as to be raised and lowered in front of the hot shoe 20. When the pop-up button 24 is pressed, the strobe 22 is released from the engagement with the camera body 14 side, and the strobe light emitting unit faces forward. Further, a shooting mode selection dial 26 and a command dial 28 are arranged close to each other on the upper surface of the camera body 14.

  An electronic viewfinder (not shown) is provided on the back surface of the camera body 14, and a speaker 30 and a strap attachment portion 32 are disposed on the side surface of the camera body 14.

  A shutter button unit 34 to which the operation unit structure according to the present invention is applied is disposed on the upper surface of the grip portion 33 of the camera body 14. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of the shutter button unit 34, and FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the shutter button unit 34.

  As shown in these drawings, the shutter button unit 34 includes a center button (corresponding to a push operation button) 40, a rotation lever (corresponding to a rotation operation member) 42, a base 44, and a click plate 46 (corresponding to a click member). ) And the switch unit 48.

  The base 44 is a member that forms the case of the camera body 14 of FIG. 1, and has a through hole 44A through which the shaft portion 50 of the center button 40 is inserted, and an arc shape around the through hole 44A within a predetermined angle range. A pair of formed guide holes 44B and 44B is provided. A notch groove 44C is formed in the through hole 44A, and a protrusion 50C formed on the shaft portion 50 is engaged with the notch groove 44C, thereby preventing the center button 40 from rotating. Click grooves 44D, 44D... Are formed on the back surface of the base 44, and a click feeling is obtained by engaging the leaf springs 46D, 46D of the click plate 46 with the click grooves 44D, 44D. .

  The rotation lever 42 is formed in a substantially ring shape and is supported by the base 44 so as to be rotatable. A knob 54 is formed on the rotating lever 42 so as to project outward, and the knob 54 allows the user to rotate the rotating lever 42. Further, the rotation lever 42 is formed with screw fixing portions 56 and 56 protruding from the inner peripheral surface and the lower surface. That is, the screw fixing portions 56 and 56 are formed so as to protrude from the inner peripheral surface of the rotating lever 42 and to protrude from the lower surface of the rotating lever 42. The screw fixing portions 56 and 56 are inserted into the guide holes 44 </ b> B and 44 </ b> B of the base 44 when the rotation lever 42 is attached to the base 44. Female screws 56A and 56A are formed in the screw fixing portions 56 and 56, and screws 60 and 60 described later are screwed into the female screws 56A and 56A.

  The click plate 46 is formed of a metal plate, and an insertion hole 46A through which the shaft portion 50 of the center button 40 is inserted is formed in a substantially semicircular shape at the center portion thereof. The insertion hole 46A includes a notch 46F for inserting a flange portion 50F at the tip of the shaft portion 50 described later. Plate spring portions 46C and 46C are extended in the circumferential direction on the outer peripheral portion of the click plate 46, and engaging portions 46D and 46D are formed on the tip thereof so as to be curved upward in an arc shape. Further, the click plate 46 has holes 46B and 46B through which the screws 60 are inserted. The screw 60 is inserted into the hole 46B, and then screwed into the female screw 56A of the screw fixing portion 56 disposed in the guide hole 44B. Thereby, the click plate 46 and the rotation lever 42 are fixed, and the rotation lever 42 is prevented from falling off the base 44. The fixed click plate 46 and the rotation lever 42 are rotatable within an angular range in which the screw fixing portions 56 and 56 move inside the guide holes 44B and 44B. Then, the click plate 46 can be rotated by rotating the rotation lever 42. When the click plate 46 is rotated, the click portions 46D, 46D at the tips of the leaf spring portions 46C, 46C are engaged with the click grooves 44D, 44D... Of the base 44 by the elastic force of the leaf spring portions 46C, 46C. In addition, positioning in the rotational direction is achieved and a click feeling is obtained.

  The center button 40 includes a substantially disk-shaped pressing operation portion 52 and a shaft portion 50 projecting downward from the pressing operation portion 52. The shaft part 50 has a substantially D-shaped cross section, and a D-shaped collar part 50F is provided at the lower end (tip) thereof. A part of the flange portion 50F protrudes from the shaft portion 50, and this protruding portion acts as an engaging portion that engages with the click plate 46 (see FIG. 4). A projecting portion 50G protruding in a hemispherical shape is formed on the lower end surface (front end surface) of the shaft portion 50 so that an electric contact piece 62 described later can be pressed at one point.

  FIG. 4 shows the center button 40 and the rotation lever 42 from below. As shown in the figure, convex portions 58 and 58 are formed in a predetermined angle range along the outer edge on the lower surface of the pressing operation portion 52. A mechanical locking mechanism for the pressing operation of the central button 40 is configured by the protrusions 58 and 58 of the central button 40 and the screw fixing portions 56 and 56 of the rotating lever 42 described above. That is, if the rotation lever 42 is rotated and the screw fixing portions 56 and 56 are arranged directly below the protrusions 58 and 58 (that is, the mechanical lock position), the protrusions are pressed when the center button 40 is pressed. The parts 58, 58 and the screw fixing parts 56, 56 are in contact with each other, and the pressing operation is restricted. Further, when the rotation lever 42 is rotated and the screw fixing portions 56 and 56 are arranged at positions where the protrusions 58 and 58 are interrupted as shown in FIG. 4, the center button 40 can be pressed. Become.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the switch unit 48 includes three electrical contact pieces 62, 62, 62 made of a metal plate, and the three electrical contact pieces 62, 62, 62 are arranged vertically. Is arranged in. The electrical contact pieces 62, 62, 62 are provided such that their tips are disposed below the shaft portion 50 of the central button 40. Further, the base end portion of the electric contact piece 62 is supported by a resin block 64, and the block 64 is fixed to the base 44 by a screw 70. The block is provided with terminals 66, 66, 66, and each terminal 66 is electrically connected to the electrical contact pieces 62, 62, 62, respectively. These terminals 66 are wired by attaching a flexible substrate 68 to the support block 64. In the switch unit 48 configured as described above, when the center button 40 is half-pressed, the upper electrical piece 62 and the intermediate electrical contact piece 62 come into contact with each other, and thereby focusing is performed. Further, when the center button 40 is fully pressed, the middle electrical contact piece 62 and the lower electrical contact piece 62 come into contact with each other, thereby performing photographing.

  Next, the operation of the shutter button unit 34 configured as described above will be described.

  When assembling the shutter button unit 34, first, the center button 40 and the rotation lever 42 are arranged on the base 44. That is, by inserting the screw fixing portions 56 and 56 of the rotation lever 42 into the guide holes 44B and 44B of the base 44, the rotation lever 42 is disposed on the base 44, and the shaft portion 50 of the center button 40 is further provided. Is inserted into the through hole 44 </ b> A of the base 44 to place the central button 40 on the base 44. At that time, the center button 40 is prevented from rotating in the circumferential direction by inserting the protruding portion 50C of the shaft portion 50 into the notch groove 44C of the through hole 44A.

  Next, the click plate 46 is disposed below the base 44. That is, the insertion hole 46 </ b> A of the click plate 46 is inserted through the shaft portion 50 of the center button 40 protruding from the through hole 44 </ b> A of the base 44. At that time, the protruding portion of the flange portion 50 provided at the lower end of the shaft portion 50 is aligned with the position of the notch 46F of the insertion hole 46A, and the shaft portion 50 is inserted into the insertion hole 46A. Next, by rotating the click plate 46, the positions of the holes 46B and 46B and the female screws 56A and 56A of the screw fixing portions 56 and 56 are aligned. Then, after inserting the screws 60, 60 into the holes 46B, 46B, they are screwed into the female screws 56A, 56A. As a result, the click plate 46 is attached to the screw fixing portions 56, 56, and the click plate 46 and the rotation lever 42 are fixed. Therefore, the click plate 46 functions as a retaining means for preventing the rotating lever 42 from falling off the base 44.

  Further, when the click plate 46 is fixed to the rotation lever 42, the collar portion 50F of the center button 40 is displaced from the position of the notch 46F of the insertion hole 46A, and thus the collar portion 50F is engaged with the click plate 46. Therefore, the click plate 46 functions as a retaining means for preventing the center button 40 from falling off the base 44.

  As described above, according to the shutter button unit 34 of the present embodiment, the click plate 46 is also used as a retaining means for preventing the rotation lever 42 and the center button from falling off the base 44. It is not necessary to separately provide a moving lever 42 or a central button retaining means, and the number of parts can be reduced. Therefore, the apparatus can be miniaturized and the number of assembly steps can be reduced.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, since the rotation lever 42 and the click plate 46 are fixed by screws, the rotation lever 42 and the click plate 46 are compared with the case where they are fixed by a method such as welding or engagement. Can be firmly fixed. Therefore, it is possible to prevent rattling from occurring due to insufficient fixing strength and damage to the fixed portion.

  Furthermore, according to the present embodiment, the pressing operation of the center button 40 is locked using the screw fixing portions 56, 56 which are protruded and thickened for screw fixing. There is no need to provide a means separately, and the apparatus can be miniaturized.

  In the above-described embodiment, the pressing operation of the central button 40 is locked by rotating the rotating lever 42. However, the function operated by the rotating lever 42 is not limited to this. For example, the operation mode such as the photographing mode or the reproduction mode may be switched by a rotation operation of the rotation lever 42. In this case, as shown in FIG. 5, it is preferable to provide electric contact pieces 46 </ b> E and 46 </ b> E on the click plate 46. Electric contact pieces 46 </ b> E and 46 </ b> E shown in FIG. 5 are integrally formed on the outer peripheral portion of the click plate 46. The tips of the electrical contact pieces 46E, 46E are formed so as to protrude downward, and slide on the patterns 76, 76,... Of the substrate 74 by rotating the click plate 46. When the electrical contact piece 46E and the pattern 76 come into contact with each other and the circuit is connected, the control device 78 controls the operation mode to be switched. As described above, in the present invention, the rotation lever 42 may be attached to a member that exhibits a mechanical or electrical function by rotating. The pressing operation of the center button 40 may be electrically locked.

The perspective view of the camera to which the operation part structure concerning this invention was applied 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of the shutter button unit of FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the shutter button unit of FIG. Bottom view of center button and rotary dial A perspective view showing a click plate having an electrical section

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Camera, 34 ... Shutter button unit, 40 ... Center button, 42 ... Turning lever, 44 ... Base, 46 ... Click plate, 48 ... Switch unit, 56 ... Screw fixing part, 58 ... Leaf spring part, 60 ... screw

Claims (2)

The base,
A rotation operation member formed in a substantially ring shape and moved in a rotation direction with respect to the base by being rotated;
A pressing operation member that is inserted into the rotation operation member and moves in the pressing direction with respect to the base by being pressed, and
A click member that is disposed on the opposite side of the rotation operation member with respect to the base, rotates together with the rotation operation member, and positions the rotation operation member by a click operation;
The click member is attached to the rotation operation member and engaged with the pressing operation member, and is also used as a means for preventing the rotation operation member and the pressing operation member from coming off from the base ,
On the inner peripheral surface of the rotation operation member, a screw fixing portion for fixing the click member with a screw is projected and formed,
The operation portion structure according to claim 1, wherein the screw fixing portion is disposed at a lock position for mechanically locking the pressing operation of the pressing operation member by rotating the rotating operation member . The pressing operation member includes a ridge portion that contacts the screw fixing portion at the lock position, and the lock is released by disposing the screw fixing portion at a position where the protrusion portion is interrupted. The operation unit structure according to claim 1.

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