Alps Electric Co., Ltd.

Masahiro Takata

Masahiro Soma

Yasuji Hagiwara

Takahiro Murakami

Yoshibumi Abe

Hideto Matsufusa

Kunio Sato

Kunio Hosono

Takashi Kondo

Yu Watanabe

Kazunori Nakano

Daihei Nakayama

An oscillator-type switch includes a base, an elastic member mounted on the base and flexible in an up-down direction, an oscillation member having a base portion mounted on the elastic member and a driving section connected from the base portion in a first horizontal direction along an upper surface of the base, a key top set on the oscillation member, a reversal spring applying a reaction force to a downward movement of the driving section, and a pressure-sensitive switch sheet detecting the downward movement of the driving section. The elastic member is arranged for a center line in the first horizontal direction within a range in which the elastic member is mounted on the oscillation member to be positioned outside a projection area of the operation unit in the first horizontal direction.

Oscillator-type switch

A touch pad input device includes a movable element having an operation surface that serves as an upper surface, a first sensing unit for sensing a touch or proximity of an operating object on or to the operation surface, a stationary element disposed under the movable element, a rotation support mechanism rotatably supporting the movable element, a second sensing unit for sensing rotation of the movable element, and a retaining mechanism retaining the movable element. The rotation support mechanism includes fulcrum portions arranged on one of the movable element and the stationary element and abutment portions arranged on the other one of the movable element and the stationary element. The retaining mechanism is positioned under the movable element in an area covered by the operation surface when viewed from above. The retaining mechanism urges the movable element downward to hold the fulcrum portions in pressure contact with the abutment portions.

Touch pad input device

A connection portion extends from an operation substrate, and a retaining groove of an elastic body is retained in a retaining hole of the connection portion. When a shaft portion of a retaining member is inserted into a through hole of the elastic body and screwed into an internally-threaded hole of a panel, an upper elastic portion of the elastic body is interposed between the connection portion and a support portion of the panel, and a lower elastic portion of the elastic body is interposed between the connection portion and an facing member. When an operation surface of the operation substrate is pressed, the connection portion rotates in a direction and the upper elastic portion and the lower elastic portion of the elastic body are compressed, whereby an appropriate operation reaction force and an elastic return force can be exerted.

Input device

An input device capable of easily achieving a high performance is provided. The input device includes an input unit in which an input detecting unit of an electrostatic sensor is disposed on an input portion and an illumination unit in which an illumination portion is disposed on a rear surface of the input portion of the input unit. The input detecting unit of the electrostatic sensor is formed such that it can perform instruction display by illuminating light from the illumination unit.

A coordinate input device includes a housing containing a movable member, a resilient member formed of a coil spring, and first and second detectors for detecting the sliding direction and the sliding distance of the movable member. The movable member in an initial position before a sliding operation faces a supporter of a first cover provided in the housing. When the movable member is slid in a certain direction, the resilient member is stretched in the certain direction and the first and second detectors detect the sliding direction and the sliding distance of the movable member. When the sliding operation of the movable member is finished, a resilient force of the resilient member stretched in the certain direction forces the movable member to return automatically to the initial position.

Coordinate input device

A switch device is provided that includes a first switch portion in which an upper electrode and lower electrodes face each other at a predetermined gap and a second switch portion having metal domes which are disposed at a lower side facing the first switch portion and expand to a predetermined height. A first spacer having a predetermined thickness A is disposed in the first switch portion to form a gap between the upper electrode and the lower electrodes, a second spacer having a thickness B equal to or greater than the expanded height of the metal domes is disposed in the second switch portion, and the thickness of the second spacer is greater than that of the first spacer.

Switch device

A multistep switch includes a first input device, a second input device, and a third input device. The first input device is a capacitive type sensor. The second input device is disposed behind the first input device and capable of switching by pressure when the first input device is depressed. The third input device is disposed behind the second input device and capable of switching by pressure when the first input device is depressed and the second input device is depressed.

Growing community of inventors

Fukushima-ken, Japan

Masahiro Takata