JP4924946B2 - Combination switch - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a combination switch.

  Conventionally, a combination type switch using a contact type switch is used as an operation switch for a vehicle or the like. The contact type combination switch consists of a mechanical part inside the lever and a contact is provided on the substrate side to configure the switch.However, since multiple contacts are integrated on the substrate, the contact area is limited, Therefore, there is a problem that the current capacity is limited. In addition, there is a problem of short life due to wear or contact failure of the contact portion or seizure. As a method for solving this problem, a combination switch capable of detecting a lever operation without contact is known (for example, Patent Documents 1, 2, and 3).

The combination switch of Patent Document 1 includes a support substrate, an operation lever that is arranged perpendicular to the support substrate and has one end coupled to the support substrate, and at least a pair of levers fixed to the side surface of the intermediate portion. The strain gauge detects a strain of the lever and outputs it as an electrical signal. By directly attaching the strain gauge to the lever, the strain of the lever can be detected with high sensitivity without contact.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-302161 JP-A-8-273492 Japanese Patent No. 3875562

  However, according to the conventional combination switch, there is a problem that it is impossible to detect other than the distortion in the tilt direction of the lever. Also, depending on the operation situation, a combination switch that operates by moving the lever greatly or a combination switch that operates by moving the lever finely is required, but the strain gauge is optimally strained according to the size of the lever operation. As described above, since it is necessary to change the installation location of the strain gauge, it is necessary to prepare a plurality of levers, and productivity is low.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a combination switch that can detect various lever movements without limiting the current capacity without contact and can easily cope with the magnitude of lever operation.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a lever, an elastic member, an action member connected to the lever and rotatably supported for transmitting the operation of the lever to deform the elastic member. A combination switch is provided that includes a force sensor that is disposed in the elastic member and detects a displacement of the elastic member.

  According to the above configuration, since the movement of the lever is transmitted to the elastic member and the displacement of the elastic member is detected by the force sensor, any movement of the lever that deforms the elastic member can be detected by the force sensor. By changing the material, it is possible to handle various lever operation sizes.

  According to the present invention, a contactless combination switch corresponding to various movements can be achieved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a combination switch of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Embodiment
(Combination switch configuration)
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a combination switch according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The combination switch C is installed in the cover 6 near the handle 7 of the automobile. The combination switch C is provided on a PCB (Print Circuit Board) 3 and is a first lever combination switch 1 that controls the operation of a wiper, a wiper washer nozzle, or the like, or a second lever combination that controls the turn-on of a blinker or a light. Switch. The PCB 3 includes a handle angle sensor 4 that detects the steering angle of the handle 7, a connector 5 that is connected to a connector 7 a of the handle 7, and a connector 8 that is connected to an ECU (Electronic Control Unit) described later.

  The first lever combination switch and the second lever combination switch are different in the object to be controlled, but have the same configuration. Therefore, the first lever combination switch will be described below as a representative.

  The first lever combination switch 1 has a lever 1B that can rotate around a lever fulcrum 1A, and a rotation switch 13 at one end of the lever 1B.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the combination switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The first lever combination switch 1 includes a lever 1B, a columnar action member 10 provided at one end of the lever 1B, and an elastic member 11 made of silicone resin formed so as to embed a part of the action member 10. And a force sensor 12 that is embedded in the elastic member 11 and detects the distortion of the elastic member 11.

  The lever 1 </ b> B can be turned by inserting the turning hole 1 </ b> A of the action member 10 into the turning shaft pin 60 protruding from the cover 6. Further, the lever 1B is provided with holes 10a to 10e in the action member 10, and is rotated stepwise by fitting with the ball 61c via the ball stopper 61a protruding from the cover 6 and the spring 61b. The lever 1B is rotatable at an angle of 10 to 15 ° in the vertical direction of FIG.

  The lever 1 </ b> B has a rotation shaft 13 </ b> A inside, one end of the rotation shaft 13 </ b> A is connected to the rotation switch 13, and the other end is embedded in the elastic member 11 via the action member 10.

  The elastic member 11 is formed using, for example, an elastic material such as silicone resin, and the depth, width, and thickness are about 1 to 2 cm. The elastic member 11 and the force sensor 12 are arranged on a support plate 3A installed on the PCB 3.

  By operating the lever 1B, the action member 10 transmits the movement of the lever 1B to the elastic member 11, and deforms the elastic member 11. Similarly, by operating the rotation switch 13, the rotation shaft 13 </ b> A transmits the movement of the rotation switch 13 to the elastic member 11 via the action member 10 to deform the elastic member 11. The force sensor 12 detects the displacement of the elastic member 11 and outputs a signal based on the detected displacement to the outside via the support plate 3A and the PCB 3.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing details of the combination switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The action member 10 of the lever 1B has a plurality of action plates 10A embedded in the elastic member 11, and efficiently transmits the movement of the lever 1B to the elastic member 11. Further, the rotating shaft 13 </ b> A transmits the operation to the action portion 13 </ b> B via the action member 10. The action part 13 </ b> B transmits the movement of the lever 1 </ b> B together with the action plate 10 </ b> A to the elastic member 11 and transmits the movement of the rotary switch 13 to the elastic member 11.

  The force sensor 12 has a diaphragm shape in which a central portion has a concave portion and a mass 12b having a cylindrical force detecting portion 12a in the concave portion. The mass 12b is supported at the center of the recess by the four strain gauges 12c. The force sensor 12 has a size of about 5 × 5 mm.

  The force detector 12a moves following the displacement of the elastic member 11, and the movement of the force detector 12a is transmitted to the four strain gauges 12c via the mass 12b. The strain gauge 12c is a piezoresistive element that generates resistance based on strain, and outputs a voltage proportional to the resistance by inputting a constant voltage from the outside. The displacement that can be detected by the force detector 12a is about several hundred μm, and it is possible to detect displacement in the rotational direction in addition to the front-rear, left-right, and vertical directions.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the combination switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The four strain gauges 12c of the force sensor 12 are independent of each other, and each output a voltage based on the strain. The voltage output from the strain gauge 12c is input to the ECU 15, analyzed in the ECU 15, and the movement of the lever 1B is specified. The ECU 15 has an operation signal table (described later) in the built-in storage unit 150, collates with the movement of the lever 1B as an analysis result, and transmits the collation result to the wiper drive system 16 as an operation command. The wiper drive system 16 operates according to an operation command.

  FIG. 5 is a table showing an example of the operation signal table according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The operation signal table 150 defines a wiper operation corresponding to the position of the lever 1B. For example, when the ECU 15 analyzes the output of the force sensor 12 and determines that the action member 10 of the lever 1B is at the position of the hole 10a, the ECU 15 refers to the operation signal table 150 and refers to the wiper drive system 16. Output the operation signal for wiper operation "stop".

  When the action member 10 is at the position of the hole 10c, the ECU 15 refers to the operation signal table 150 and outputs an operation signal for the wiper drive system 16 to operate the wiper at intervals of 1 second.

  When the rotation switch 13 is rotated in the direction B, which will be described later, the ECU 15 refers to the operation signal table 150 and outputs an operation signal to the wiper drive system 16 so as to inject from the wiper washer nozzle.

(Operation)
The operation of the combination switch according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  When the driver operates the lever 1B, the action member 10 rotates around the lever fulcrum 1A. The lever 1B rotates stepwise by fitting a ball 61c attached to the ball stopper 61a via a spring 61b into the holes 10a to 10e. The action member 10 deforms the elastic member 11 corresponding to the positions of the holes 10a to 10e.

  The force sensor 12 detects the displacement of the elastic member 11, the strain gauge 12c of the force sensor 12 outputs its own strain as a voltage, and the output voltage signal is input to the ECU 15.

  The ECU 15 analyzes the voltage signals input from the plurality of strain gauges 12c and specifies the position of the lever 1B.

  Next, the ECU 15 compares the specified position of the lever 1 </ b> B with the operation signal table 150 and outputs an operation signal to the wiper drive system 16. The wiper drive system 16 operates based on the input operation signal.

  FIGS. 6A to 6C are schematic views showing the operation of the combination switch according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  FIG. 6A shows a state where the lever 1B is operated and the ball 61c is fitted in the hole 10b. By operating the lever, the action member 10 rotates and the elastic member 11 is deformed so as to follow the action plate 10A. The force detector 12a moves in accordance with the displacement of the elastic member 11, and the movement of the force detector 12a is transmitted to the strain gauge 12c. Similarly, FIG. 6B shows a state in which the ball 61c is fitted in the hole 10a.

  FIG. 6C shows a state where the rotary switch 13 is rotated in the B direction. By rotating the rotation switch 13 in the B direction, the rotating shaft 13A rotates, and the action portion 13B is similarly rotated in the B direction. The action part 13B twists the elastic member 11 in the rotation direction. The force detector 12a rotates in accordance with the twist of the elastic member 11, and the rotation of the force detector 12a is transmitted as strain to the strain gauge 12c.

(Effect of embodiment)
According to the above-described embodiment, since the movement of the lever 1B is transmitted to the force sensor 12 through the elastic member 11, various movements of the lever can be detected without contact. Further, by selecting the elastic member 11 whose hardness and deformation amount are optimized in accordance with the magnitude of the movement of the lever 1B, it is possible to cope with specification changes without changing other members, and productivity. Is expensive.

  Note that the rotation direction of the lever 1B is not limited to one direction, and the lever 1B may be operated in combination with two-direction rotation.

It is a schematic perspective view which shows the combination switch which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the combination switch which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the detail of the combination switch which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the combination switch according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a table | surface which shows the example of the operation signal table which concerns on embodiment of this invention. (A)-(c) is the schematic which shows operation | movement of the combination switch which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

C ... Combination switch, 1 ... First lever combination switch, 1A ... Rotating hole (lever fulcrum), 1B ... Lever, 2 ... Second lever combination switch, 2A ... Lever fulcrum, 3 ... PCB, 3A ... Support plate, 4 ... handle angle sensor, 5 ... connector, 6 ... cover, 7 ... handle, 7a ... connector, 8 ... connector, 10a-10e ... hole, 10 ... action member, 10A ... action plate, 11 ... elastic member, 12 ... force Sensor, 12a ... Force detection unit, 12b ... Mass, 12c ... Strain gauge, 13 ... Rotation switch, 13A ... Rotating shaft, 13B ... Action unit, 15 ... ECU, 16 ... Wiper drive system, 60 ... Rotating shaft pin, 61a ... Ball stopper, 61b ... Spring, 61c ... Ball, 150 ... Storage section (operation signal table)

Claims (3)

Lever,
An elastic member;
An action member coupled to the lever and rotatably supported to transmit the operation of the lever to deform the elastic member;
A combination switch having a force sensor disposed in the elastic member and detecting displacement of the elastic member.   The combination switch according to claim 1, wherein the lever has a rotation shaft inside, and the rotation shaft deforms the elastic member via the action member.   The combination switch according to claim 1, wherein the force sensor includes a plurality of strain gauges.

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