Portable Mouse Cantilever Key Plate Arm Actuation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current gaming mice with plastic key triggers suffer from high actuation force requirements, leading to finger fatigue and inaccurate key presses due to molding and assembly tolerances, which result in delayed responses during rapid gameplay.
Innovation Solution
A portable mouse design featuring a hinge assembly with a cantilever key plate arm, a plunger, a top cover with a compression spring, and a microswitch, where the compression spring exerts a reduced force to maintain contact with the microswitch actuator, allowing for lower actuation force and precise key presses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If a plastic spring back mechanism is used in the key trigger, then the key plate can return to its original position, but the actuation force increases causing finger fatigue
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the plastic spring back mechanism from the key trigger assembly. Instead of relying on the plastic arm's elastic deformation to return the key plate, the design uses a separate plunger component that can be independently actuated by the user, eliminating the need for the plastic structure to provide spring back force.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a plunger as an intermediary component between the key plate and the microswitch. The plunger serves as a dedicated actuating element that transfers force from the user's finger to the microswitch actuator, separating the return function from the actuation function and allowing for optimized force characteristics.
2Ease of manufacture
If molding and assembly tolerances are present in the plastic key plate structure, then manufacturing is easier, but gaps form between the key plate and microswitch actuator increasing travel distance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the alignment and positioning function from the molded plastic key plate structure. By using a separate plunger component with its own positioning features, the design isolates the tolerance accumulation that would otherwise occur in an integrated plastic assembly, allowing each component to be manufactured and assembled with independent tolerance control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the key trigger assembly into separate functional components: the key plate, the plunger, and the microswitch assembly. This segmentation allows for independent manufacturing and assembly of each component, reducing the cumulative effect of molding and assembly tolerances that would exist in a fully integrated plastic structure.
3Speed
If the plunger maintains continuous contact with the microswitch actuator, then response speed improves, but the spring force must be precisely controlled
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs the plunger and spring assembly to automatically maintain optimal contact with the microswitch actuator through the spring's inherent mechanical properties. The spring provides continuous gentle pressure that ensures the plunger remains in contact with the actuator without requiring active control or complex adjustment mechanisms, allowing the system to self-regulate the contact force.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design reduces finger fatigue and improves response speed by lowering the actuation force and maintaining precise contact with the microswitch, enhancing gaming performance by minimizing the distance required for key presses.
Implementation Method 1
a compression spring coupled to the top cover such that the compression spring is positioned between a portion of the top cover and the end plate of the plunger
Implementation Method 2
the compression spring exerts a first force on the end plate of the plunger such that the end plate of the plunger maintains contact with the microswitch actuator
Data Source
AI summary
A portable mouse, including a hinge assembly; a cantilever key plate arm rotationally coupled to the hinge assembly at a first end of the cantilever key plate arm, the cantilever key plate arm including: a plunger at a second end of the cantilever key plate arm, the second end opposite to the first end, the plunger including an end plate; a top cover that is positionally fixed with respect to the cantilever key plate arm; a compression spring coupled to the top cover such that the compression spring is positioned between a portion of the top cover and the end plate of the plunger; and a microswitch including a microswitch actuator, wherein the compressions spring exerts a first force on the end plate of the plunger such that the end plate of the plunger maintains contact with the microswitch actuator.