Modularized control panel capable of being adjusted and replaced

Abstract

A modular control panel capable of being adjusted and replaced comprises a bearing base and at least one control unit. The bearing base comprises a main connecting part and a plurality of containing areas, each containing area is provided with a first connector and a plurality of first positioning parts, and the first connector of each containing area is electrically connected to the main connecting part. The at least one control unit is in butt joint with one of the accommodating areas, the top surface of each control unit is provided with a control switch, and the bottom surface of each control unit is provided with a second connector and a plurality of second positioning parts. The control switch is electrically connected to the second connector, the second connector is selectively in butt joint with the first connector, and the plurality of second positioning parts can be positioned on the plurality of first positioning parts.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an adjustable and replaceable modular control panel, and in particular to such a modular control panel, which has a plurality of adjustable and replaceable control units to flexibly allocate different control functions. Background Art

[0002] For the convenience of control, various conditions in the same occasion (such as microphone sound reception, sound volume or display screen) are usually integrated into the same central control panel. Various control units (such as buttons, knobs, lights or slide rails, etc.) of the current central control panel are usually fixed.

[0003] When adding additional items that need to be controlled (such as adding light sources or speakers) or adjusting other items that need to be controlled in the same occasion, the existing central control panel lacks the flexibility to adjust. Usually, different control units are set up additionally, which makes the control desk messy. Replacing the entire set of central control panels is not environmentally friendly and also costs a lot of money.

[0004] Therefore, how to improve the flexibility of adjusting and replacing the control panel through structural design improvement, thereby overcoming the above-mentioned defects and even allowing users to customize the central control panel by themselves has become an important issue to be solved in this technical field. Summary of the invention

[0005] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an adjustable and replaceable modular control panel in view of the deficiencies in the prior art to solve the above-mentioned defects.

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, one of the technical solutions adopted by the present invention is to provide an adjustable and replaceable modular control panel, which includes a supporting base and at least one control unit. The supporting base includes a main connection part and multiple accommodating areas, each of which has a first connector and multiple first positioning parts, and the first connector of each accommodating area is electrically connected to the main connection part. The at least one control unit is connected to one of the accommodating areas, and the top surface of each of the control units is provided with a control switch, and the bottom surface of each of the control units is provided with a second connector and multiple second positioning parts, and the control switch is electrically connected to the second connector, and the second connector can be selectively connected to the first connector, and the multiple second positioning parts can be positioned at the multiple first positioning parts.

[0007] One of the beneficial effects of the present invention is that the adjustable and replaceable modular control panel provided by the present invention can be selectively connected to any first connector of the supporting base through the second connector of the control unit, wherein the control unit can be rotated at an angle, thereby adjusting or replacing the control unit to enhance the adjustability and expandability of the modular control panel of the present invention.

[0008] To further understand the features and technical contents of the present invention, please refer to the following detailed description and drawings of the present invention. However, the drawings provided are only for reference and description and are not intended to limit the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 It is a three-dimensional combination diagram of the adjustable and replaceable modular control panel of the present invention.

[0010] Figure 2 It is a three-dimensional exploded view of the adjustable and replaceable modular control panel of the present invention.

[0011] Figure 3 for Figure 2 A partial enlarged view of .

[0012] Figure 4 for Figure 1 A three-dimensional combination diagram of another configuration method of the modular control panel.

[0013] Figure 5 for Figure 1 A three-dimensional combination diagram of another configuration method of the modular control panel. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0014] The following is an explanation of the disclosed embodiments of the present invention through specific embodiments. Those skilled in the art can understand the advantages and effects of the present invention from the contents disclosed in this specification. The present invention can be implemented or applied through other different specific embodiments, and the details in this specification can also be modified and changed based on different viewpoints and applications without departing from the concept of the present invention. In addition, it should be stated in advance that the drawings of the present invention are only simple schematic illustrations and are not depicted according to actual sizes. The following embodiments will further explain the relevant technical contents of the present invention in detail, but the disclosed contents are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0015] See also Figures 1 to 5As shown, an embodiment of the present invention provides an adjustable and replaceable modular control panel, which includes a supporting base 10 and a plurality of control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d. In this embodiment, the supporting base 10 is used as a USB hub, and the plurality of control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d can be connected to a USB host control unit (USBHost, figure omitted). The control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d are movable small control units, which have the same connector as the USB interface and are respectively connected to the supporting base 10.

[0016] like Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the carrier base 10 includes a main connection portion 16 and a plurality of accommodating areas 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d. The main connection portion 16 is used to connect to a USB host control unit (not shown), such as a USB control unit (USB Controller) of a computer or an electrical device. In the present embodiment, the main connection portion 16 can be a cable connected to the outside. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and for example, it can also be an external connector, such as a USB connector, which is then connected to the host control unit (not shown) through a cable. The upper surface of the carrier base 10 is inclined, wherein a stop protruding wall 14 is provided around the carrier base 10, and the stop protruding wall 14 encloses a plurality of accommodating areas 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d. In the present embodiment, each accommodating area 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d has the same configuration. Taking the accommodating area 10a as an example, the accommodating area 10a has a first connector 11 and a plurality of first positioning portions 13. The first connector 11 of each accommodation area 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d is electrically connected to the main connection portion 16. The details of the first connector 11 will be described with examples later. The first positioning portion 13 of this embodiment is a circular concave shape and can be used as a positioning hole.

[0017] In addition, at least one serial connector 17, such as a standard USB connector, can be provided around the supporting base 10, so that other supporting bases 10 or control units can be serially connected, so that the modular control panel of the present invention is expandable. In addition, the shape of the stop protrusion wall 14 of the supporting base 10 is not limited to a square, and can also be a rectangle, that is, four control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d can be placed side by side.

[0018] These control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d are connected to these accommodating areas 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d one by one. In the present embodiment, the control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d are rectangular, preferably square, and their four sides can be adjacent to each other. For example, the control unit can be a key panel, a push button panel, a knob panel, a small display panel, a touch panel, a joystick panel, etc. However, the present invention is not limited to the above examples.

[0019] The top surface of each control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d is provided with a control switch 22a, 22b, 22c, 22d, such as a button, a small knob, a linear push button or a large knob, etc., but the present invention is not limited thereto. The bottom surface of each control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d has the same structure. Taking the control unit 20c as an example, the control unit 20c has a second connector 21 and a plurality of second positioning portions 23, and the control switch 22c of the control unit 20c is electrically connected to the second connector 21. Through the second connector 21 docking with the first connector 11, the control signal of the control switch 22c can be output to the outside through the main connection portion 16 of the supporting base 10. The plurality of second positioning portions 23 of this embodiment are in the shape of circular protrusions, which can be correspondingly positioned at the plurality of first positioning portions 13, so that the control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d are respectively positioned in these accommodating areas 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d.

[0020] One feature of the present invention is that any control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d can be rotated to different orientations and can be adjusted to be placed in any different accommodation area 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d. To match the above feature, more specifically, the second connector 21 is located at the center of the bottom surface of the control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d. In this embodiment, the bottom surface of each control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d is roughly square, and the second connector 21 is located at the geometric center of the bottom surface of the control unit, in other words, at the position where two diagonal lines intersect. The multiple first positioning portions 13 of each accommodating area 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d are in a concave shape and are respectively distributed at the four corners of the accommodating areas 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d; the second positioning portion 23 is in a protruding shape and is distributed at the four corners of the bottom surface of the control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, and the shape of the second positioning portion 23 corresponds to the shape of the first positioning portion 13. However, the above example is only one feasible embodiment and is not used to limit the present invention. The bottom surface of the control unit is not limited to a square, for example, the control unit can also be a circle, and the second connector 21 is located at the center of the circle. In addition, the control unit can also be a rectangle, a rhombus, an L shape, a T shape, etc. including two squares, like building blocks of different shapes, and can be spliced ​​with each other. The bottom surface of the control unit is also not limited to one second connector, and the number can be more than one.

[0021] In a more specific example, the first connector 11 has a plurality of elastic terminals 111 arranged in a straight line. For example, the elastic terminals 111 may be pogo pins. The second connector 21 is circular and has a plurality of conductive contact rings 211. The plurality of contact rings 211 are annular and arranged in a concentric manner, and the plurality of elastic terminals 111 are arranged in a straight line and contact the plurality of contact rings 211 correspondingly, so that the control units 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d can be docked with the accommodation areas 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d in different orientations.

[0022] In this embodiment, there are four elastic terminals 111, which are a power supply terminal, a pair of signal terminals for differential signals, and a grounding terminal, which can correspond to the USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface.

[0023] Correspondingly, the second connector 21 of this embodiment includes a central circular ring and three circular rings with different diameters, a total of four contact rings 211, which respectively serve as a power supply ring, a pair of differential signal signal rings and a grounding ring.

[0024] In this embodiment, the first connector 11 further includes a first magnetic ring 112, which surrounds the plurality of elastic terminals 111. In addition, the second connector 21 further includes a second magnetic ring 212, which surrounds the plurality of contact rings 211, and the first magnetic ring 112 can absorb the second magnetic ring 212. The magnetic ring can be made of a magnetic material or a magnetic attraction material. Through the above two magnetic rings, an attraction force can be provided to the control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d to be fixed in the accommodating area 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d.

[0025] In addition, each accommodating area 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d of the supporting base 10 may also include at least one Hall sensor H1, and at least one positioning magnet M1 may be set on the bottom surface of the control unit 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d. The Hall sensor H1 uses the Hall Effect to monitor the magnetic field changes of the positioning magnet M1. In a feasible embodiment, two Hall sensors H1 and H2 are provided in each accommodation area, and the two Hall sensors are sandwiched 90 degrees along the center of the first connector 11 and are located on the same circumference. The control unit is provided with two positioning magnets M1 and M2, and the two positioning magnets are sandwiched 90 degrees along the center of the second connector 21 and are located on the same circumference. Therefore, when the control units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d are rotated to different angles, the two Hall sensors H1 and H2 and the two positioning magnets M1 and M2 can respectively sense four states, such as sensing two positioning magnets M1 and M2, or sensing one of the positioning magnets M1 or M2, or not sensing the positioning magnet at all, which respectively represent that the control units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d are located at four different angles. In other words, the supporting base 10 can also determine at which angle (or orientation) the control units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d are located.

[0026] like Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, compared to Figure 1 , Figure 4 The control units 20a, 20b, 20c, and 20d are placed at different positions on the supporting base 10. Figure 5 The control units 20 a, 20 b, 20 c, 20 d can be adjustably placed at different positions on the supporting base 10 .

[0027] [Beneficial Effects of Embodiments]

[0028] One of the beneficial effects of the present invention is that the adjustable and replaceable modular control panel provided by the present invention can be selectively connected to any first connector of the supporting base through the second connector of the control unit, wherein the control unit can be rotated at an angle, thereby adjusting or replacing the control unit to enhance the adjustability and expandability of the modular control panel of the present invention.

[0029] Furthermore, different users can choose different control units or replace or expand the control unit according to their needs. For example, they can control the volume, light, microphone, etc. They can even customize the required modular control panel.

[0030] The contents disclosed above are only feasible embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Therefore, all equivalent changes and modifications made using the description and drawings of the present invention are included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An adjustable and replaceable modular control panel, characterized in that: include: A carrier base, the carrier base comprising a main connection portion and a plurality of accommodating areas, each of the accommodating areas having a first connector and a plurality of first positioning portions, the first connector of each of the accommodating areas being electrically connected to the main connection portion; and At least one control unit is connected to one of the accommodating areas. The top surface of each control unit is provided with a control switch. The bottom surface of each control unit is provided with a second connector and a plurality of second positioning portions. The control switch is electrically connected to the second connector. The second connector is selectively connected to the first connector. The plurality of second positioning portions can be positioned at the plurality of first positioning portions.

2. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 1, characterized in that: The upper surface of the bearing base is inclined, wherein a stop protruding wall is provided around the bearing base.

3. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second connector is located at the center of the bottom surface of the control unit.

4. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 3, characterized in that: The multiple first positioning portions of each accommodating area are concave and distributed at the corners of the accommodating area; wherein the second positioning portion is protruding and distributed at the corners of the bottom surface of the control unit, and the shape of the second positioning portion corresponds to the shape of the first positioning portion.

5. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first connector has a plurality of elastic terminals arranged in a straight line, the second connector is circular and has a plurality of contact rings, the plurality of contact rings are in annular shape and arranged in a concentric circle manner, the plurality of elastic terminals are in contact with the plurality of contact rings correspondingly, so that the control unit can be docked with the accommodating area in different orientations.

6. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 5, characterized in that: There are four elastic terminals, namely a power supply terminal for power supply, a pair of signal terminals for differential signals and a grounding terminal for grounding.

7. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 5, characterized in that: The first connector further includes a first magnetic ring, which surrounds the multiple elastic terminals. The second connector further includes a second magnetic ring, which surrounds the multiple contact rings. The first magnetic ring can absorb the second magnetic ring.

8. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the accommodating areas of the supporting base further includes at least one Hall sensor. At least one positioning magnet may be disposed on the bottom surface of the control unit. The at least one Hall sensor is used to monitor the change of the magnetic field of the at least one positioning magnet.

9. The adjustable and replaceable modular control panel according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the accommodating areas has two Hall sensors located on the same circumference and 90 degrees apart along the center of the first connector, and the control unit has two positioning magnets located on the same circumference and 90 degrees apart along the center of the second connector, so that when the control unit is rotated to different angles, the two Hall sensors and the two positioning magnets can respectively sense different states.

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