Key Unit With Reinforcing Plate

• US 20070272534A1
• Filed: 03/07/2005
• Published: 11/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sunarrow Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Sunarrow Ltd.
• Inventors: Iohara, Yuichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,348,512 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 200/512
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 13/704 characterised by the layers, e.g. by their material or structure H01H13/703 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2209/006 Force isolators
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2209/01 Increasing rigidity; Anti-creep
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2221/012 Joy stick type
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2229/048 Insertion moulding

Abstract

The object of the present invention is to utilize a. reinforcing plate formed out of a metal or a hard resin introduced into a key unit in order to overcome the weak point that conventional rubber keypads are too soft and lack shape stability, as a design element of equipment including a key unit into which the plate is incorporated.

For example, a part of metal reinforcing plate 4 is positively exposed to a position which can be seen from the outside of key unit 1, and various decorations are applied to the exposed part 7 so as to allow it to function as a decorated component. As a location where the reinforcing plate is exposed, there can be cited a part between each key on the key face or an annular part which encircles a plurality of key clusters. A mode may be considered in which the part of the exposed reinforcing plate 4 surrounds each individual key top 2 like a key frame, so as to substitute a key frame which has been conventionally realized by the equipment casing. The shape of the exposed part of the reinforcing plate 4 is arbitrary. For example, letters, symbols, or the like may be formed.

Claims

1. A key unit with reinforcing plate comprising a keypad in which a key operation part is formed out of a rubber elastic body and in which other parts are formed out of or reinforced by a reinforcing plate formed out of a metal or a hard resin plate, wherein a part of said reinforcing plate is exposed on the key-arrayed surface, and a decoration is applied to said exposed part.

2. The key unit with reinforcing plate according to claim 1, wherein said part of the reinforcing plate is exposed between the keys on the key-arrayed surface;

exposed on the key-arrayed surface in such a manner as to encircle each individual key;

or exposed on the key-arrayed surface in such a manner as to encircle a plurality of key clusters.

3. The key unit with reinforcing plate according to claim 1, wherein said part of the exposed reinforcing plate is formed into the shape of an arbitrary letter or a symbol.

4. The key unit with reinforcing plate according to claim 1, wherein said reinforcing plate is formed using one or a plurality of metal materials selected from magnesium, aluminum, stainless steel, titanium, copper, gold, and an alloy thereof.

5. The key unit with reinforcing plate according to claim 1, wherein said reinforcing plate is formed using one or two kinds of resins selected from a group of transparent hard resins including PC (polycarbonate resin), PET (polyethylene terephthalate resin), and PMMA (polyacrylate resin).

6. The key-unit with reinforcing plate according to claim 1, wherein a decoration is applied to said part of the exposed reinforcing plate using an arbitrary method selected from a group of methods including printing (including hot stamping), painting, and film-forming methods (including plating, CVD, vapor deposition, sputtering, and ion plating) with a metal or a nonmetal.