Capacitive microswitch
By introducing a capacitor structure into the microswitch and monitoring changes in capacitance to determine the button state, the problem of insufficient response speed and flexibility of existing microswitches is solved, achieving faster response and more flexible button control.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- 河南皓泽电子股份有限公司昆山分公司
- Filing Date
- 2025-08-05
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-07
AI Technical Summary
Existing microswitches lack structural designs that use capacitors for triggering, resulting in insufficient response speed and flexibility.
The microswitch design employs a capacitor structure, which determines the on/off state of the button by monitoring the change in capacitance between the transmitting and receiving plates, and uses a capacitance detection chip to control the button state.
It enables the determination of button status by changes in capacitance value, improving response speed and flexibility, and is suitable for various electronic products.
Smart Images
Figure CN224473300U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This utility model belongs to the field of electronic product technology, and specifically relates to a capacitive micro switch. Background Technology
[0002] Microswitches are widely used in various electronic products such as electrical appliances, machinery, communications, digital audio-visual equipment, and building automation due to their advantages such as compact structure, flexible operation, and fast response speed.
[0003] Existing microswitches typically employ a mechanical force-triggered circuit switching principle, lacking existing structures that utilize capacitors for triggering. Utility Model Content
[0004] The present invention addresses the aforementioned technical problems by providing a capacitive micro switch.
[0005] A capacitive micro switch includes a base and a cover plate, the base and the cover plate being connected to form a hollow cavity, and the following is disposed within the hollow cavity:
[0006] shrapnel;
[0007] A button, the top of which extends out of the cover plate and the bottom of which abuts against or connects to the top of the spring piece;
[0008] The emitter plate has its bottom end serving as a power-on pin connected to an external circuit for power supply, and its top end connected to one end of the spring piece, making the spring piece an extension of the emitter plate.
[0009] The receiving electrode plate has a bottom end that serves as a power-on pin connected to an external circuit for power supply. The upper part of the receiving electrode plate is a horizontal part of a horizontal structure, which is located below the spring piece. A capacitor structure is formed between the horizontal part and the spring piece.
[0010] When the button is pressed down, it causes the spring to move down and move closer to the horizontal part, which reduces the distance between the two plates of the capacitor structure and increases the capacitance value of the capacitor structure. The activation state of the capacitor micro switch is determined by monitoring the capacitance value of the capacitor structure.
[0011] Optionally, the top of the base is connected to the cover plate by rivets.
[0012] Optionally, both the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode are embedded in the base.
[0013] Optionally, the energizing pin at the bottom of the transmitting electrode extends out of the hollow cavity, and the energizing pin at the bottom of the receiving electrode extends out of the hollow cavity.
[0014] Optionally, the top end of the emitting electrode is welded to one end of the spring sheet.
[0015] Optionally, the spring sheet adopts a disc-shaped structure with an upward convex center, the edge of the spring sheet abuts against the bottom surface of the hollow cavity, and the top of the center of the spring sheet abuts against or connects to the bottom of the button.
[0016] Optionally, the top of the emitting electrode is connected to one end of the edge of the spring sheet.
[0017] Optionally, the bottom of the button is provided with a downward protruding button protrusion, and the middle of the spring is provided with a vertically connected connection port, and the button protrusion abuts against or is connected to the connection port.
[0018] Beneficial effects: This utility model monitors the change in capacitance value between the transmitting and receiving plates by changing the distance between the plates, and uses this change in capacitance value to determine the activation state of the button, thereby achieving the purpose of controlling the button's on / off state through the capacitor structure. Attached Figure Description
[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of this utility model;
[0020] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Top view;
[0021] Figure 3 for Figure 2 AA section view;
[0022] Figure 4 for Figure 1 Exploded view;
[0023] Figure 5 for Figure 4 Further exploded view;
[0024] Figure 6 for Figure 4 Another angle of the exploded view;
[0025] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of one possible structure of the button of this utility model. Detailed Implementation
[0026] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, so as to better understand the purpose, features and advantages of the present invention. It should be understood that the embodiments shown in the drawings are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, but are only for illustrating the essential spirit of the technical solution of the present invention.
[0027] In the following description, certain specific details are set forth for the purpose of illustrating various disclosed embodiments in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various disclosed embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that embodiments may be practiced without one or more of these specific details. In other instances, well-known apparatuses, structures, and techniques associated with this application may not have been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the embodiments.
[0028] Throughout this specification, references to "an embodiment" or "an embodiment" indicate that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Therefore, the appearance of "in an embodiment" or "an embodiment" in various places throughout the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be combined in any manner in one or more embodiments.
[0029] In the following description, in order to clearly demonstrate the structure and working method of this utility model, a number of directional terms will be used. However, terms such as "front", "back", "left", "right", "outside", "inside", "outward", "inward", "up", and "down" should be understood as convenient terms and not as limiting terms.
[0030] Reference Figures 1 to 7 This embodiment provides a capacitive micro switch to control the on / off state of a button (switch) through a capacitor structure. The capacitive micro switch of this embodiment includes a base 10, a cover plate 20, a spring contact 30, a button 40, and a capacitor structure assembly, which includes a transmitting electrode 50 and a receiving electrode 60.
[0031] The base 10 and the cover plate 20 are connected to form a hollow cavity. The spring plate 30, the button 40, the transmitting electrode plate 50 and the receiving electrode plate 60 are all disposed in the hollow cavity.
[0032] The spring piece 30 is horizontally positioned inside the hollow cavity, meaning that the spring piece 30 has elastic deformation capability and reset capability in the vertical direction, i.e., up and down.
[0033] Button 40 is confined within the hollow cavity, with its top protruding from cover plate 20 to allow for external downward pressing pressure. The bottom of button 40 abuts against or connects to the top of spring 30. When downward pressing pressure is applied to the top of button 40, it causes spring 30 to move downward. Upon removal of the pressing pressure, button 40 returns to its initial position under the reset action of spring 30.
[0034] The bottom end of the emitting plate 50 serves as a power-on pin, connecting to an external circuit for power supply. In specific implementations, the bottom end of the power-on pin of the emitting plate 50 extends outside the hollow cavity to facilitate connection with the external circuit. The top end of the emitting plate 50 is connected to one end of the spring 30, making the spring 30 an extension of the emitting plate 50. In this case, the spring is a metal-structured spring to form a capacitor structure with the receiving plate 60 after power is applied.
[0035] The bottom end of the receiving plate 60 serves as a power-on pin, connecting to an external circuit for power supply. Similarly, in practical implementation, the bottom end of the power-on pin of the receiving plate 60 extends outside the hollow cavity to facilitate connection with an external circuit. The upper part of the receiving plate 60 is a horizontal section 60a, located below the spring contact 30, forming a capacitor structure between the horizontal section 60a and the spring contact 30. Because the spring contact 30 is horizontally positioned, the horizontal section 60a of the receiving plate 60 is also horizontal, so that the horizontal section 60a and the spring contact 30 are positioned opposite each other to form a capacitor structure.
[0036] When button 40 is pressed down, it causes spring 30 to move downward, bringing it closer to the horizontal part 60a. This reduces the distance between the two plates of the capacitor structure, increasing the capacitance value. The activation state of the capacitor microswitch is determined by monitoring the capacitance value. After button 40 is released, spring 30 returns to its original position due to its elasticity, and button 40 also resets, facilitating the next press-to-activate operation.
[0037] The working principle of this utility model is as follows:
[0038] A capacitor structure is formed by setting up an energized transmitting plate and a corresponding energized receiving plate. The open / closed state of button 40 is determined by changing the capacitance value of this capacitor structure.
[0039] The specific operation is as follows: The capacitance value of the capacitor structure is monitored by a capacitance detection chip. This chip can be a directly adopted capacitance detection chip used in existing technology for detecting the capacitance value between two electrode plates. When the capacitance value of the capacitor structure increases to a set threshold, the capacitance detection chip determines that button 40 is in the activated state. It sends a switch activation signal to the microswitch user device. After receiving the switch activation signal, the microswitch user device completes its own circuit connection, causing the microswitch user device to enter the activated state. The principle is similar when turning it off. When used on a computer host or mouse, it can also be automatically turned off by the computer system or by default after a period of inactivity.
[0040] The factors that alter the capacitor structure include the facing area between the emitter and receiver plates, the distance between the emitter and receiver plates, and the dielectric constant between the emitter and receiver plates (i.e., the conductivity of the material between the emitter and receiver plates). The specific calculation formulas are as follows:
[0041]
[0042] Where C represents the capacitance, ε represents the dielectric constant between the two plates, S represents the effective area of the two plates facing each other, D represents the distance between the two plates, and K represents the electrostatic constant (approximately 8.99 x 10⁹ N·m). 2 / C 2 )
[0043] As can be seen from the above formula, the larger the effective area facing the capacitor, the larger the capacitance value of the capacitor structure; the smaller the distance between the two plates, the larger the capacitance value of the capacitor structure; and the larger the dielectric constant, the larger the capacitance value of the capacitor structure.
[0044] If other parameters remain constant, a change in the distance between the two plates will alter the capacitance value of the capacitor structure. In this invention, a capacitance detection chip is connected to both the transmitting plate 50 and the receiving plate 60. The chip detects the capacitance value between the transmitting plate 50 and the receiving plate 60. When the distance between the transmitting plate 50 and the receiving plate 60 changes, the capacitance value of the capacitor structure also changes. When the capacitance value increases to a set threshold, button 40 is considered to be in the activated state. When the capacitance value returns to the initial threshold, button 40 is considered to be in the deactivated state. The aforementioned set threshold and initial threshold can be a single set value or a range of set thresholds.
[0045] In one embodiment, reference is made to Figure 1 , Figure 2 , Figures 4 to 6 The top of the base 10 is detachably connected to the cover plate 20 by rivets 70.
[0046] Of course, other existing detachable connection methods such as screw connection or snap-fit can also be used between the base 10 and the cover plate 20.
[0047] In one embodiment, the cover plate 20 is provided with a button hole 21 that is vertically connected, and the top of the button 40 extends out from the button hole 21.
[0048] In one embodiment, reference is made to Figure 3 The transmitting electrode 50 and the receiving electrode 60 are both embedded in the base 10.
[0049] In a capacitor structure, it is necessary to avoid direct contact between the transmitting plate 50 / spring piece 30 and the receiving plate 60, as direct contact would prevent the formation of a capacitor structure. In this embodiment, since the receiving plate 60 is embedded in the base 10, the horizontal part 60a is also embedded in the base 10. The horizontal part 60a and the spring piece 30 are separated by the base 10 to avoid direct contact between the transmitting plate 50 and the receiving plate 60.
[0050] In practice, the top of the emitting electrode 50 embedded in the base 10 extends out of the base 10 and is connected to one end of the spring. Therefore, the emitting electrode 50 is an electrode with a vertical length direction.
[0051] In one embodiment, the energizing pin at the bottom of the transmitting electrode 50 extends out of the hollow cavity, and the energizing pin at the bottom of the receiving electrode 60 extends out of the hollow cavity.
[0052] In one embodiment, the top end of the emitting electrode 50 is welded to one end of the spring 30.
[0053] In one embodiment, reference is made to Figures 3 to 6 The spring 30 adopts a disc-shaped structure with the center protruding upward. The edge of the spring 30 abuts against the bottom surface of the hollow cavity, and the top of the center of the spring 30 abuts against or connects with the bottom of the button 40.
[0054] In this embodiment, the spring 30 adopts a disc-shaped structure with an upward convex center, which can increase the elastic deformation capability and the reset capability of the spring 30.
[0055] In one embodiment, reference is made to Figure 3 The top of the launching plate 50 is connected to one edge of the shrapnel 30.
[0056] In one embodiment, reference is made to Figure 3 , Figure 6 and Figure 7 The bottom of the button 40 is provided with a downward protruding button protrusion 41, and the middle of the spring 30 is provided with a vertically connected connection port 31, and the button protrusion 41 abuts against or connects to the connection port 31.
[0057] In this embodiment, by setting the connection port 31, a more stable contact or connection position is provided for the button 40, and the elastic deformation capability and reset capability of the spring 30 are also increased.
[0058] In the capacitor structure described above in this utility model, the positions of the emitting plate and the receiving plate can be interchanged without affecting the formation of the capacitor structure.
[0059] The preferred embodiments of this utility model have been described in detail above. However, it should be understood that after reading the above teachings, those skilled in the art can make various alterations or modifications to this utility model. These equivalent forms also fall within the scope defined by the appended claims.
Claims
1. A capacitive micro switch, characterized in that, The system includes a base and a cover plate, which are connected to form a hollow cavity. Within the hollow cavity, the following components are provided: shrapnel; A button, the top of which extends out of the cover plate and the bottom of which abuts against or connects to the top of the spring piece; The emitter plate has its bottom end serving as a power-on pin connected to an external circuit for power supply, and its top end connected to one end of the spring piece, making the spring piece an extension of the emitter plate. The receiving electrode plate has a bottom end that serves as a power-on pin connected to an external circuit for power supply. The upper part of the receiving electrode plate is a horizontal section with a horizontal structure located below the spring contact. A capacitor structure is formed between the horizontal section and the spring contact.
2. The capacitive micro switch as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The top of the base is connected to the cover plate by rivets.
3. The capacitive micro switch as described in claim 1, characterized in that, Both the transmitting electrode and the receiving electrode are embedded in the base.
4. The capacitive micro switch as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The energizing pin at the bottom of the transmitting electrode extends out of the hollow cavity, and the energizing pin at the bottom of the receiving electrode extends out of the hollow cavity.
5. The capacitive micro switch as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The top of the transmitting electrode plate is welded to one end of the spring sheet.
6. The capacitive micro switch as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The spring sheet adopts a disc-shaped structure with an upward convex center. The edge of the spring sheet abuts against the bottom surface of the hollow cavity, and the top of the middle part of the spring sheet abuts against or connects with the bottom end of the button.
7. The capacitive micro switch as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The top of the transmitting electrode is connected to one end of the edge of the spring sheet.
8. The capacitive micro switch as described in claim 6, characterized in that, The bottom of the button has a downward protruding button protrusion, and the middle of the spring sheet has a connecting port that connects the top and bottom. The button protrusion abuts against or connects to the connecting port.