Illuminated pushbutton switch

• US 4,346,275 A
• Filed: 08/11/1980
• Issued: 08/24/1982
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/1979
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Omron Tateisi Electronics Co. (Omron Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Omron Tateisi Electronics Co. (Omron Corporation)
• Inventors: Kiyono, Yasuhiro, Iwakiri, Norio
• Primary Examiner(s): Shepperd, John W.
• Application Number:
  US06/176,759
• Time in Patent Office: 743 Days
• Field of Search: 200/310, 200/311, 200/312, 200/313, 200/314, 200/317
• US Class Current: 200/314
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 13/023 Light-emitting indicators for multi-layer switches H01H13/83
• CPC Class Codes: H01H 2013/026 with two or more independent lighting elements located inside the push button switch that illuminate separate zones of push buttons

Abstract

An illuminated pushbutton switch including an elongated housing, a switching component accommodated within the housing, an actuating component coaxially housed in the housing for actuating the switching component in response to an external force, and an illuminating component for lightning an upper portion of the actuating component, said illuminating component comprising a lead frame, a pair of light emitting devices arranged on the lead frame, and an optically transparent member including a pair of transparent blocks corresponding to and embedding the light emitting devices, each of said blocks including a lens portion having an upper flat square surface and a nearly reverse conical side wall portion in which the light emitted from the corresponding one of the light emitting devices is defracted to radiate uniform light beams from the upper flat square surface, the upper flat square surface of the blocks constituting a continuous flat surface.

Claims

1. An illuminated pushbutton switch including an elongated housing, a switching component accomodated within said housing, an actuating component coaxially housed in said housing for actuating said switching component in response to an external force, and an illuminating component for lightning an upper portion of said actuating component,

said illuminating component comprising a lead frame,

a plurality of light emitting devices arranged on said lead frame, and

an optically transparent member including a plurality of transparent blocks corresponding to and embedding said light emitting devices,

each of said blocks including a lens portion having an upper flat polygonal surface and a nearly reverse conical side wall portion in which the light emitted from the corresponding one of said light emitting devices is reflected to radiate uniform light beams from the upper flat polygonal surface,

the upper flat polygonal surface of said blocks constituting a continuous flat surface.

2. An illuminated pushbutton switch according to claim 1, wherein said upper flat polygonal surfaces are square and constitute a flat square surface.

3. An illuminated pushbutton switch according to claim 1, wherein said lead frame includes a plurality of leads having coplanar portions.

4. An illuminated pushbutton switch according to claim 1, wherein said optically transparent member consists of a single moulded lens unit having said plurality of lens portions with axial holes, a plurality of moulded base units respectively embedding said light emitting devices, with synthetic resin filled into said axial holes to unite said base units and said lens unit.

5. An illuminated pushbutton switch according to claim 1, wherein each of said light emitting devices includes a plurality of light emitting elements.