Silicone key achieving earlier conduction and longer service life, and keyboard structure

Abstract

Disclosed in the present invention are a silicone key achieving earlier conduction and a longer service life, and a keyboard structure. A trigger portion on the axial inner side of a pressing portion of the silicone key is provided with a trigger extension portion, and the bottom of a recess on the axial outer side of the pressing portion is provided with a deepened recess. The silicone key of the described structure is applied to a keyboard structure, a support portion is connected to a key cap, the pressing portion is connected to a thin film circuit switch, and the radius of the pressing portion is greater than the radius of a spacer hole of a middle partition plate. When the silicone key of the present invention is used for assembly of a key structure, the trigger extension potion of the silicone key can be effectively controlled to touch the thin film circuit switch when the silicone key is pressed down, so that a triggered FP and S2 almost overlap, thereby greatly improving the conductivity sensitivity. Moreover, the circumferential space corresponding to a bending point is large, so that more silicone can bear the force borne by the bending point at the inclined wall when the silicone key is pressed down, thereby effectively prolonging the service life.

Description

Silica gel key and keyboard structure with advanced conduction and improved service life TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of keyboard, in particular to a silica gel key and keyboard structure with advanced conduction and improved service life. BACKGROUND

[0002] As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional membrane keyboard for notebook computer mainly comprises a key cap 30 and a bottom plate 50, an X-shaped support 40 arranged between the key cap 30 and the bottom plate 50, a layer of membrane circuit switch 10 arranged on the bottom plate 50, and a silica gel key 20 arranged between the key cap 30 and the membrane circuit switch 10, the X-shaped support 40 is used to fix and stabilize the key cap 30; wherein the membrane circuit switch 10 comprises an upper layer circuit, a lower layer circuit, and a middle layer partition plate arranged between the upper layer circuit and the lower layer circuit.

[0003] As shown in FIG. 2, the silica gel key 20 of the conventional structure in the above-mentioned membrane keyboard is in the shape of an inverted bowl, which mainly comprises a supporting part 21, an elastic connecting part 22, and a pressing part 23, the pressing part 23 has a protruding trigger part 231 on the inner side of the axial direction, and the outer side of the axial direction of the pressing part 23 is provided with a flat-bottomed groove 232 to overcome the problem of large deformation force caused by simply lengthening the trigger part 231, and the supporting part 21 is further provided with an exhaust groove 211 penetrating in and out, the bowl-mouth-shaped supporting part 21 is installed on the membrane circuit switch 10 to play a supporting role, and the bowl-bottom-shaped pressing part 23 is used to contact the key cap 30. As shown in FIG. 3, when the key cap 30 is pressed, the axial outer end of the pressing part 23 of the silica gel key 20 first contacts the key cap 30 and is driven by the key cap 30 and triggers downward along the axial direction, then the trigger part 231 of the axial inner end of the pressing part 23 presses the inner membrane circuit switch 10 to drive the electrode contact point 11 of the upper layer circuit and the lower layer circuit in the membrane circuit switch 10 to contact each other through the partition hole corresponding to the position of the middle layer partition plate to realize conduction, and after the pressing is cancelled, the pressing part 23 is reset by the elastic connecting part 22 of the silica gel key 20 to reset the pressing part 23 and drive the key cap 30 to reset.

[0004] The silicone button 20 is usually integrally injection molded with silicone material. When the silicone button 20 is pressed as shown in FIG. 3, the trigger portion 231 at the axial inner end of the pressing portion 23 exerts pressure on the inner thin film circuit switch 10 to drive the electrode contact points 11 in the thin film circuit switch 10 to contact each other to realize conduction. The power conduction point FP generally falls after F2 shown in FIG. 4. The reason is that the trigger portion 231 at the axial inner end of the pressing portion 23 is too far from the surface of the thin film circuit switch 10 (wherein the spacing between the axial end of the trigger portion 231 and the surface of the thin film circuit switch 10 is a, the spacing between the axial upper surface of the supporting portion 21 and the surface of the thin film circuit switch 10 is h, and a > h). A long distance needs to be pressed to trigger the thin film circuit switch 10. The longer the pressing distance is, the greater the deformation at A of the silicone button 20 is. The excessive deformation at A of the silicone button 20 leads to delayed conduction or even failure to conduct, especially when the corner conduction performance is tested, which is more likely to cause corner conduction failure. In addition, the silicone button 20 of the prior art shown in FIG. 2 has a relatively concentrated bending point at the top neck of the silicone button 20 (as shown at A in FIG. 3) when F1 is generated by bending downward during life test. The corresponding circumferential space of the bending point is small, and the life is poor.

[0005] To solve the above problems and improve the conduction, the conventional way is to reduce the trigger force of the thin film circuit switch 10. However, if the trigger force of the thin film circuit switch 10 is simply reduced to improve the conduction performance, it is easy to cause oversensitivity.

[0006] SUMMARY

[0007] To solve the above problems and improve the conduction, the conventional way is to reduce the trigger force of the thin film circuit switch 10. However, if the trigger force of the thin film circuit switch 10 is simply reduced to improve the conduction performance, it is easy to cause oversensitivity.

[0008] The bottom of the groove has a deepening groove extending to the axial inner end. The trigger portion has a trigger extension extending to the axial outer end and located in the groove.

[0009] The axial spacing between the axial end of the trigger portion and the axial lower surface of the supporting portion is a. The axial spacing between the axial upper surface of the supporting portion and the axial lower surface of the supporting portion is h, and a > h.

[0010] The axial height of the trigger extension is c. The sum of the depth of the groove and the deepening groove is d, and d > c.

[0011] The support part, the elastic connecting part, the pressing part, the trigger part and the trigger extension part are integrally formed by using silica gel material.

[0012] The axial height of the trigger part is b, and b>c.

[0013] The axial depth of the deepening groove is e, and c>e.

[0014] The sidewall of the deepening groove has an acute angle inclination β relative to the horizontal groove bottom.

[0015] The application further provides a keyboard structure comprising a key cap and a bottom plate, an X-shaped support arranged between the key cap and the bottom plate, a thin film circuit switch arranged on the bottom plate, and a silica gel key arranged between the key cap and the thin film circuit switch.

[0016] The silica gel key is a silica gel key capable of improving the service life and facilitating the conduction.

[0017] The support part of the silica gel key is connected to the key cap, and the pressing part of the silica gel key is connected to the thin film circuit switch.

[0018] The radius of the pressing part is greater than the radius of the partition hole of the middle layer partition plate.

[0019] Further, a positioning ring is arranged on the inner side of the key cap, the inner diameter of the positioning ring is consistent with the outer diameter of the support part, and the silica gel key is clamped in the positioning ring through the support part to realize the connection between the silica gel key and the key cap.

[0020] Through the above technical solution, the silica gel key with the trigger extension part opposite to the trigger part has the following beneficial effects when used in the key structure assembly:

[0021] 1. When the key cap is pressed, the inner side of the key cap first contacts the trigger part through the elastic deformation of the elastic connecting part, and then the trigger extension part on the other side is driven to move downward by the trigger part, and the end of the trigger extension part contacts and hits the thin film circuit switch. Since the diameter of the partition hole of the thin film circuit switch is smaller than the diameter of the pressing part, the trigger extension part of the silica gel key can effectively touch and trigger the FP of the thin film circuit switch when pressed, so that the FP and S2 are almost simultaneous, which can greatly improve the conduction sensitivity and improve the conduction delay phenomenon when measuring the corner. The reaction is more sensitive in use.

[0022] 2. Because silicone buttons are glued to the membrane circuit switch in reverse compared to existing technologies, the keycaps have better support, making the corner pressing pressure of silicone buttons more precise.

[0023] 3. When F1 is generated by pressing down and bending, the bending point at the sloping wall is the same as that in the existing technology and is located at the upper position. Therefore, the circumferential space corresponding to the bending point of the silicone button with the reverse setting is larger, and more silicone volume can be used to withstand the force on the bending point at the sloping wall when pressed, thereby effectively improving the service life. Attached Figure Description

[0024] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below.

[0025] Figure 1 is a schematic axial cross-sectional view of the keyboard structure of the prior art before pressing;

[0026] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the axial cross-sectional structure of the existing silicone button shown in Figure 1;

[0027] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the axial cross-sectional structure of the keyboard structure shown in Figure 1 when it is pressed.

[0028] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing the correspondence between the pressing pressure and the stroke of the silicone button with the existing structure shown in Figure 2;

[0029] Figure 5 is a schematic axial cross-sectional view of the keyboard structure disclosed in this invention before pressing.

[0030] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the axial cross-sectional structure of the silicone button disclosed in this invention as shown in Figure 5;

[0031] Figure 7 is an axial cross-sectional view of the keyboard structure disclosed in this invention as shown in Figure 5 when pressed.

[0032] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram showing the correspondence between the pressing pressure and the travel of the silicone button structure shown in Figure 6.

[0033] The numbers in the diagram represent: 10. Membrane circuit switch; 11. Electrode contact point; 20. Silicone button; 21. Support part; 211. Vent groove; 22. Elastic connection part; 23. Pressing part; 231. Trigger part; 232. Groove; 2321. Deepened groove; 233. Trigger extension part; 30. Keycap; 40. X-shaped bracket; 50. Base plate; 60. Positioning ring. Detailed Implementation

[0034] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, so that the advantages and features of the present invention can be more easily understood by those skilled in the art, thereby providing a clearer and more explicit definition of the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0035] Embodiment 1:

[0036] Referring to FIG. 6, the embodiment 1 provides a silicone key with early conduction and improved service life, comprising a support portion 21, an elastic connecting portion 22 and a pressing portion 23 connected in sequence, the pressing portion 23 has a columnar trigger portion 231 on the inner side in the axial direction, the pressing portion 23 is provided with a groove 232 on the outer side in the axial direction, and the support portion 21 is provided with an exhaust groove 211 penetrating through the inside and outside; the bottom of the groove 232 has a deepened groove 2321 extending to the inner end in the axial direction, the sidewall of the deepened groove 2321 has an acute angle inclination β relative to the horizontal groove bottom, the trigger portion 231 has a trigger extension 233 extending to the outer end in the axial direction and located in the groove 232; the support portion 21, the elastic connecting portion 22, the pressing portion 23, the trigger portion 231 and the trigger extension 233 are integrally formed by using silicone material.

[0037] Wherein, the axial distance between the axial end of the trigger portion 231 and the lower surface of the support portion 21 is a, the axial distance between the upper surface of the support portion 21 and the lower surface of the support portion 21 is h, and a > h; the axial height of the trigger extension 233 is c, the sum of the depth of the groove 232 and the deepened groove 2321 is d, and d > c; the axial height of the trigger portion 231 is b, and b > c; the axial depth of the deepened groove 2321 is e, and c > e.

[0038] Embodiment 2:

[0039] Referring to FIG. 5, the embodiment 2 provides a keyboard structure, comprising a keycap 30 and a bottom plate 50, an X-shaped support 40 arranged between the keycap 30 and the bottom plate 50, a thin film circuit switch 10 arranged on the bottom plate 50, and a silicone key 20 arranged between the keycap 30 and the thin film circuit switch 10; wherein, the thin film circuit switch 10 comprises an upper layer circuit, a lower layer circuit, and a middle layer partition plate arranged between the upper layer circuit and the lower layer circuit.

[0040] Wherein, the silicone key 20 is a silicone key with early conduction and improved service life as described in the embodiment 1; the support portion 21 of the silicone key 20 is connected to the keycap 30, and the pressing portion 23 of the silicone key 20 is connected to the thin film circuit switch 10; the radius of the pressing portion 23 is greater than the radius of the partition hole of the middle layer partition plate.

[0041] In this embodiment 2, as shown in Fig. 7, when the key cap 30 is pressed, the inner side of the key cap 30 first contacts the trigger portion 231 through the elastic deformation of the elastic connecting portion 22, and then the trigger extension portion 233 on the other side is driven to move downward by the trigger portion 231, and the end of the trigger extension portion 233 contacts and hits the membrane circuit switch 10. Since the diameter of the spacer hole of the membrane circuit switch 10 is smaller than the diameter of the pressing portion 23, the trigger extension portion 233 of the control silica gel button 20 can effectively touch the membrane circuit switch 10 and trigger the FP when pressed, so that the FP and S2 can be almost simultaneous (as shown in Fig. 8), which can greatly improve the conductive sensitivity and improve the conductive delay phenomenon when measuring the corners. It is more sensitive in use; when F1 is bent downward, the bending point of the inclined wall is the same as the prior art and is in the upper position, therefore, the bending point of the silica gel button 20 is correspondingly larger in the circumferential space, and more volume of silica gel can be used to withstand the force on the bending point of the inclined wall when pressed, thereby effectively improving the service life.

[0042] Embodiment 3:

[0043] Based on embodiment 2, the positioning ring 60 is arranged on the inner side of the key cap 30 in this embodiment 3, the inner diameter of the positioning ring 60 is consistent with the outer diameter of the supporting portion 21, and the silica gel button 20 is clamped in the positioning ring 60 through the supporting portion 21 to realize the connection between the silica gel button 20 and the key cap 30.

[0044] In this embodiment 3, the pressing portion 23 on one side of the silica gel button 20 is reversely pasted on the membrane circuit switch 10, and the other side uses the positioning ring 60 around the key cap 30 to position the supporting portion 21 of the silica gel button 20 (the supporting portion 21 of the silica gel button 20 can also be pasted on the key cap 30), the supporting force of the key cap 30 is better, and the corner pressing force of the silica gel button is more accurate.

[0045] The above description of the disclosed embodiments enables those skilled in the art to carry out or use the present application. Various modifications to the above-described embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present application. Therefore, the present application will not be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but will conform to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A silicone key with advanced conduction and improved service life, comprising a support part (21), an elastic connecting part (22) and a pressing part (23) connected in sequence, the pressing part (23) having a columnar trigger part (231) on the inner side in the axial direction, the pressing part (23) being provided with a groove (232) on the outer side in the axial direction, and the support part (21) being provided with an exhaust groove (211) penetrating through the inner and outer sides, characterized in that: the bottom of the groove (232) has a deepened groove (2321) extending to the inner end in the axial direction, and the trigger part (231) has a trigger extension part (233) extending to the outer end in the axial direction and located in the groove (232); the axial distance between the axial end of the trigger part (231) and the lower surface of the support part (21) is a, the axial distance between the upper surface of the support part (21) and the lower surface of the support part (21) is h, and a > h; the axial height of the trigger extension part (233) is c, and the sum of the depths of the groove (232) and the deepened groove (2321) is d, and d > c. The support part (21), the elastic connecting part (22), the pressing part (23), the trigger part (231) and the trigger extension part (233) are integrally formed by using silicone material. The axial height of the trigger part (231) is b, and b > c. The axial depth of the deepened groove (2321) is e, and c > e.

2. The silicone button of claim 1, wherein, The sidewall of the deepened groove (2321) has an acute angle inclination β relative to the horizontal groove bottom.

3. The silicone button of claim 1, wherein, The thin film circuit switch (10) comprises an upper layer circuit, a lower layer circuit, and a middle layer partition plate arranged between the upper layer circuit and the lower layer circuit; 4. The silicone button of claim 3, wherein, The silicone key (20) is the silicone key with advanced conduction and improved service life according to any one of claims 1-5.

5. The silicone button of claim 1, wherein, The support part (21) of the silicone key (20) is connected to the key cap (30), and the pressing part (23) of the silicone key (20) is connected to the thin film circuit switch (10).

6. A keyboard structure comprising a key cap (30) and a bottom plate (50), an X-shaped support (40) disposed between the key cap (30) and the bottom plate (50), a layer of a membrane circuit switch (10) disposed on the bottom plate (50), and a silica gel key (20) disposed between the key cap (30) and the membrane circuit switch (10); wherein, The radius of the pressing part (23) is greater than the radius of the partition hole of the middle layer partition plate. A positioning ring (60) is arranged on the inner side of the key cap (30), the inner diameter of the positioning ring (60) is consistent with the outer diameter of the support part (21), and the silicone key (20) is clamped in the positioning ring (60) through the support part (21) to realize the connection between the silicone key (20) and the key cap (30). ​ ​ 7. The keyboard structure of claim 6, wherein ​

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