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Keyboard switch assembly including actuator member with three active positions

  • US 6,525,278 B2
  • Filed: 11/14/2001
  • Issued: 02/25/2003
  • Est. Priority Date: 11/30/2000
  • Status: Expired due to Term
First Claim
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1. An actuator member of the multifunction key type, in particular of the navigation key type, comprising:

  • a rigid button, mounted with limited mobility in rotation, and a separate detector component having a plurality of active sites, wherein said button has underside formations each intended to come into contact with a respective one of said active sites as a function of the location, magnitude and/or direction of pressure exerted by a user on the button, wherein the plurality of active sites includes three active sites which are disposed in a triangle formation, so as to be disposed at the corners of the triangle formation, and wherein a non-active bearing site is disposed between a first two of said active sites as viewed along one leg of the triangle formation, and wherein said button tilts by pivoting on said non-active site toward one of said first two active sites situated on respective sides thereof until one of the underside formations comes into contact with one of said active sites to activate said one of said active sites by depressing said one of said active sites, and wherein activation threshold pressure values for the first two active sites are substantially identical, while an activation threshold pressure value for the third active site is at least twice that of said first two active sites.

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