Electronic apparatus having switch contacts

• US 20060159448A1
• Filed: 12/13/2005
• Published: 07/20/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Terashima, Jun
• Granted Patent: US 7,645,950 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 396/542
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/02 Bodies
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 25/041 having a generally flat operating member depressible at different locations to operate different controls

Abstract

At least one exemplary embodiment is directed to an electronic apparatus includes a switch contact and a control unit. The switch contact is constituted of a fixed contact and a movable contact. The fixed contact includes a plurality of detection contacts and a common contact. The movable contact can be moved to a contact/noncontact state. The control unit detects a signal generated when all of the contacts in the fixed contact are simultaneously made conductive by contact of the movable contact.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus comprising:

a fixed contact including a plurality of detection contacts arranged in a noncontact state from one another, and a common contact;

a movable contact operable to make conductive all of the plurality of detection contacts and the common contact simultaneously by a user'"'"'s operation generating a switch signal in a switch contact, wherein the switch contact includes the fixed contact and the movable contact; and

a control unit configured to operate in accordance with the switch signal.

2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the switch contact includes a plurality of sub switch contacts, and wherein a given sub switch contact among the plurality of sub switch contacts shares a detection contact with at least one of adjacent sub switch contacts.

3. The electronic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the common contact is shared by all of the plurality of sub switch contacts.

4. The electronic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the plurality of sub switch contacts are annularly arranged.

5. The electronic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the total number of detection contacts is a natural number n of 3 or more, the number of detection contacts belonging to each switch contact is a natural number r greater than or equal to 2 and less than n, and the switch contacts are arranged by a number represented by _nC_r, and

wherein the control unit is configured to operate in accordance with an independent switch signal from each sub switch contact.

6. The electronic apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a minimum natural number n satisfying T≦

_nC_r is set as the total number of detection contacts, T indicating the number of sub switch contacts needed to be arranged, and the number of detection contacts belonging to each sub switch contact being a natural number r greater than or equal to 2 and less than the natural number n, and

wherein the control unit is configured to operate in accordance with an independent switch signal from each sub switch contact.

7. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the switch contact includes a plurality of sub switch contacts, and wherein at least one of the plurality of detection contacts belongs to two or more sub switch contacts.

8. The electronic apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the common contact is shared by all of the plurality of sub switch contacts.

9. The electronic apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the plurality of sub switch contacts are annularly arranged.

10. The electronic apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the total number of detection contacts is a natural number n of 3 or more, the number of detection contacts belonging to each switch contact is a natural number r greater than or equal to 2 and less than n, and the switch contacts are arranged by a number represented by _nC_r, and

wherein the control unit is configured to operate in accordance with an independent switch signal from each sub switch contact.

11. The electronic apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a minimum natural number n satisfying T≦

_nC_r is set as the total number of detection contacts, T indicating the number of switch contacts needed to be arranged, and the number of detection contacts belonging to each switch contact being a natural number r greater than or equal to 2 and less than the natural number n, and

wherein the control unit is configured to operate in accordance with an independent switch signal from each sub switch contact.

12. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of detection contacts are arranged to face one another across the common contact.

13. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the number of the plurality of detection contacts is a predetermined number, and wherein the control unit is configured not to operate in accordance the switch signal caused by conduction of a number of detection contacts other than the predetermined number of detection contacts.