×

Operation unit and game machine

  • US 10,043,338 B2
  • Filed: 08/27/2014
  • Issued: 08/07/2018
  • Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2013
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
Patent Images

1. An operation unit comprising:

  • a touch panel that senses a press;

    a button plate disposed above the touch panel, and having a plurality of push buttons, each of which protrudes on a side opposite to a side where the touch panel is disposed;

    a transparent light guide plate in which light is guided disposed between the touch panel and the button plate;

    a luminous substrate, provided on one side of the touch panel, wherein the one side is along the longitudinal direction of the touch panel, and wherein the luminous substrate comprises a light source which supplies light to a side of the light guide plate; and

    a light emission pattern provided on a surface of the light guide plate in a display area of the light guide plate,wherein the light emission pattern has a pattern through which light having been supplied into the light guide plate is emitted outside and in accordance with which an image is formed by the emitted light,wherein the button plate is provided along a surface of the touch panel and comprises;

    a transparent base section comprising apertures at respective positions where the plurality of push buttons are formed,top surface sections, each of which constitutes corresponding one of the plurality of push buttons and serving as an operation surface,bending deformable sections, each of which connects, in a freely elastically deformable manner, a peripheral section of corresponding one of the top surface sections and an edge of corresponding one of the apertures formed in the base section, andprotrusions disposed on back sides of the top surface sections,wherein one or more of the protrusions come into contact with the surface of the touch panel at the time when any one of the top surface sections is pushed down toward the touch panel and corresponding one of the bending deformable sections is subjected to bending deformation,wherein the one or more of the protrusions corresponds to the one top surface section pushed down,wherein the light guide plate comprises apertures at respective positions corresponding to the plurality of push buttons, andwherein the apertures of the light guide plate are formed so as to allow passage of the protrusions provided to the plurality of push buttons.

View all claims
  • 1 Assignment
Timeline View
Assignment View
    ×
    ×