Disclosure of utility model
The utility model provides a key structure, wherein a lifting mechanism of the key structure can provide better support for a key cap, can effectively transmit pressing force and is beneficial to stable up-and-down movement of the key cap.
In order to achieve the above-mentioned objective, the present utility model further provides a key structure, the key structure comprises a bottom plate, a key cap and a lifting mechanism, wherein the projection of the key cap on the bottom plate comprises a rectangular portion and a protruding portion, the protruding portion protrudes from a long side of the rectangular portion, the key cap has a plurality of support connecting portions, the lifting mechanism supports the key cap on the bottom plate in a vertical direction, the projection of the lifting mechanism on the bottom plate overlaps with the protruding portion, the lifting mechanism comprises a first inner support, a second inner support and an outer support, the outer support and the first inner support are pivoted to each other relative to a first rotation axis, the outer support and the second inner support are pivoted to each other relative to a second rotation axis, the outer support comprises a first outer frame portion, a second outer frame portion and a central frame, the central frame is located between the first outer frame portion and the second outer frame portion, the first inner support and the second inner support are pivoted to the inner side of the first outer frame portion and the second outer frame portion, respectively, wherein the key cap is pivoted to the inner side of the first outer support, the first inner support and the second inner support, the second inner support and the second shaft groove are pivoted to the second shaft groove respectively.
As an alternative solution, the first rotation axis and the second rotation axis are parallel to the long side of the rectangular portion.
As an alternative solution, the projection of the first inner bracket on the bottom plate overlaps the protruding portion, and the projection of the outer bracket on the bottom plate is located in the rectangular portion.
As an alternative solution, the projection of the first axial slot on the bottom plate overlaps the protruding portion.
As an alternative solution, the projection of the outer bracket on the bottom plate overlaps the protruding portion, and the projection of the first inner bracket and the projection of the second inner bracket on the bottom plate are located in the rectangular portion.
As an alternative solution, the projection of the first axial slot on the bottom plate and the protruding portion are respectively located at two opposite sides of the projection of the first rotation axis on the bottom plate, and the projection of the second axial slot on the bottom plate and the protruding portion are respectively located at two opposite sides of the projection of the second rotation axis on the bottom plate.
As an alternative solution, the outer bracket has an abutment portion, a projection of which on the bottom plate is located in the protruding portion, and the abutment portion contacts the bottom surface of the key cap when the key cap is not pressed.
As an alternative technical scheme, the projection of the key cap on the bottom plate is L-shaped as a whole.
As an alternative solution, the first rotation axis and the second rotation axis are not collinear.
As an optional technical solution, the first outer frame portion has a key cap connecting portion and a bottom plate connecting portion opposite to the key cap connecting portion, the first outer frame portion is connected with the key cap via the key cap connecting portion, the first outer frame portion is connected with the bottom plate via the bottom plate connecting portion, the key cap connecting portion and the bottom plate connecting portion are both extended parallel to the rotation axis, and a ratio of an extension width of the bottom plate connecting portion to an extension width of the key cap connecting portion is between 0.5 and 0.8.
As an optional technical solution, the first outer frame portion has a key cap connecting portion and a bottom plate connecting portion opposite to the key cap connecting portion, the first outer frame portion is connected with the key cap via the key cap connecting portion, the first outer frame portion is connected with the bottom plate via the bottom plate connecting portion, the key cap connecting portion and the bottom plate connecting portion are both parallel to the rotation axis and extend, and the bottom plate connecting portion is a plastic connecting portion.
As an alternative technical scheme, the first inner bracket, the second inner bracket and the outer bracket are plastic brackets.
The utility model provides a key structure, which is characterized in that the position of a bracket connecting part is changed to be arranged in the direction of a structural weak area so as to improve the pressing hand feeling, and meanwhile, an inner bracket and an outer bracket of a lifting mechanism are designed in an overlapped mode, so that the bracket connecting part is as close to the structural weak area as possible, the inner bracket extends towards the structural weak area as far as possible, the pressing hand feeling is further improved, the pressing force is effectively transmitted, and the key cap can stably move up and down.
Detailed Description
In order to more clearly illustrate the present utility model, the present utility model will be further described with reference to preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings. Like parts in the drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals. It is to be understood by persons skilled in the art that the following detailed description is illustrative and not restrictive, and that this utility model is not limited to the details given herein.
Please refer to fig. 1 to 4. According to the key structure 600 of the first embodiment, unlike general rectangular keys (e.g., numeric keys, letter keys, space keys, function keys, etc. of a keyboard), for example, but not limited to, the Enter key of a keyboard may be used. The key structure 600 includes a key cap 610, a base 620, a lifting mechanism 630, a switch circuit board 640 and an elastic member 650. The key cap 610 is disposed on the bottom plate 620. The lifting mechanism 630 is connected between the key cap 610 and the base plate 620 to support the key cap 610 on the base plate 620 in a vertical direction Dv6 (shown by a double-headed arrow) such that the key cap 610 can move up and down (i.e., parallel to the vertical direction Dv 6) with respect to the base plate 620 via the lifting mechanism 630. The switch circuit board 640 is stacked on the bottom plate 620 and under the key cap 610. In practical applications, the switch circuit board 640 may be, but is not limited to, a thin film circuit board (for example, a laminated board structure, in which a switch circuit is formed on an upper substrate and a lower substrate, and an insulating layer is interposed between the upper substrate and the lower substrate), and is shown as a single plate-like member in order to simplify the drawing. The switch circuit board 640 has a switch 6401 (positions shown in the drawing as hatched circles). The pair Ji Kaiguan of elastic members 650 and 6401 are disposed between the key cap 610 and the switch circuit board 640 and pass through the lifting mechanism 630. In practice, the elastic member 650 may be, but is not limited to, a rubber knob. The key cap 610 may be pressed to move toward the bottom plate 620 and press the elastic member 650 such that the elastic member 650 activates the switch 6401.
The lifting mechanism 630 includes an outer bracket 6301, a first inner bracket 6302, and a second inner bracket 6303. The outer bracket 6301 and the first inner bracket 6302 are pivoted to each other with respect to a first rotation axis 630a (shown in the drawing by a chain line), and are pivoted to each other with respect to a second rotation axis 630b (shown in the drawing by a chain line) of the second inner bracket 6303, and the first rotation axis 630a and the second rotation axis 630b are parallel. The key cap 610 has a plurality of bracket connection portions 6101, 6102, 6103 on a bottom surface 6104 thereof. The key cap 610 is pivotally connected to the shaft portion 6304 of the first inner bracket 6302 via two of the bracket connection portions 6101, and pivotally connected to the shaft portion 6305 of the second inner bracket 6303 via the other two bracket connection portions 6101. In the first embodiment, the bracket connection portion 6101 is implemented by two hooks disposed opposite to each other, and a shaft groove 6101a is formed between the two hooks. The shaft portions 6304, 6305 are cylindrically and rotatably accommodated in the shaft groove 6101a (e.g., the outer diameters of the shaft portions 6304, 6305 are the same as the inner diameter of the shaft groove 6101 a), so as to achieve the pivoting of the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303 with the bracket connection portion 6101 (wherein the shaft groove 6101a pivoted with the first inner bracket 6302 may be defined as a first shaft groove, and the shaft groove 6101a pivoted with the second inner bracket 6303 may be defined as a second shaft groove). In addition, the key cap 610 is rotatably and slidably connected to the outer bracket 6301 via bracket connection portions 6102, 6103. The bracket connection 6102, 6103 are slightly different in structure, but each provide a sliding groove to allow the outer bracket 6301 to rotatably and slidably connect thereto. In addition, in the first embodiment, the first rotation axis 630a and the second rotation axis 630b are collinear, but the present invention is not limited thereto.
The base plate 620 has a plurality of bracket attachment portions 6201, 6202. The bottom plate 620 is rotatably and slidably connected to the first inner bracket 6302 via two of the bracket connecting portions 6201 and rotatably and slidably connected to the second inner bracket 6303 via the other two bracket connecting portions 6201, and the bottom plate 620 is rotatably and slidably connected to the outer bracket 6301 via the bracket connecting portions 6202. In addition, the base plate 620 further has a plurality of limiting portions 6203, and the limiting portions 6203 are adjacent to the bracket connecting portions 6202. The spacing portion 6203 can prevent the outer bracket 6301 from being disengaged from the bracket attachment portion 6202. In addition, in the first embodiment, the bracket connecting portions 6201, 6202 are slightly different in structure, but each of the bracket connecting portions provides a sliding groove so that the outer bracket 6301, the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303 can be rotatably and slidably connected thereto. Wherein, the slidable range provided by the bracket connecting portion 6201 (in the horizontal direction Dh6 (indicated by the double-headed arrow in the figure) perpendicular to the first rotation axis 630a, the second rotation axis 630b and the vertical direction Dv 6) is larger than the slidable range provided by the bracket connecting portion 6202. The bracket connecting portion 6202 and the limiting portion 6203 can cooperate to provide an approximately pivotally connecting structure of the outer bracket 6301, which helps to stabilize the movement of the lifting mechanism 630 relative to the base 620 (including being stationary, the lifting mechanism 630 is not easy to shake along the horizontal direction Dh6 relative to the base 620).
Please refer to fig. 5, which is a top view of the base 620, wherein a projection profile of the lifting mechanism 630 on the base 620 is shown by a thin solid line, a projection 6105 profile of the key cap 610 on the base 620 is shown by a chain line, and projection 6109, 6110, 6111 profiles of the bracket connection portions 6101, 6102, 6103 of the key cap 610 on the base 620 are simply illustrated by chain line blocks. It is added that the aforementioned projection onto the base 620 logically refers to the projection of the aforementioned components onto a virtual plane containing the upper surface of the base 620. As shown in fig. 5, the projection 6105 of the key cap 610 on the base 620 is slightly L-shaped, and logically can be considered as including a rectangular portion 6106 and a protruding portion 6107, and the boundary therebetween is indicated by a dashed line. Both the rectangular portion 6106 and the protruding portion 6107 are long rectangles extending parallel to the first rotation axis 630a (or the second rotation axis 630 b) or the projection 630c (or the projection 630 d) thereof (shown in the figure as chain lines), and the protruding portion 6107 protrudes from the long side 6108 (parallel to the first rotation axis 630a or the second rotation axis 630 b) of the rectangular portion 6106. The projection of the entire lifting mechanism 630 (including the projection 6306 of the outer bracket 6301, the projection 6307 of the first inner bracket 6302, and the projection 6308 of the second inner bracket 6303) overlaps the projection 6107, wherein the projection 6306 of the outer bracket 6301 onto the base 620 overlaps the projection 6107, and the projection 6307 of the first inner bracket 6302 and the projection 6308 of the second inner bracket 6303 are all located within the rectangular portion 6106. The projections 6109, 6110, 6111 of the bracket connection 6101, 6102, 6103 on the base 620 are also located in the rectangular portion 6106, and the projection 6109 (corresponding to the projection of the first axis slot and the projection of the second axis slot) of the bracket connection 6101 on the base 620 and the projection 6107 are located at opposite sides of the projection 630c (or the projection 630 d) of the first rotation axis 630a (or the second rotation axis 630 b) on the base 620. In addition, the outer contour of the projection 6306 of the outer bracket 6301 on the base 620 is entirely similar to the outer contour of the projection 6105 of the key cap 610 on the base 620.
Please refer to fig. 6 and 7, which are schematic diagrams of the outer bracket 6301 and the first inner bracket 6302, respectively. As shown in fig. 6, the outer bracket 601 has a substantially mesh shape as a whole. The outer frame 6301 includes a first outer frame portion 6309, a second outer frame portion 6310, and a center frame 6311 (each shown in fig. 6 by a dashed frame), and the center frame 6311 is located between the first outer frame portion 6309 and the second outer frame portion 6310 along the first rotation axis 630a (or the second rotation axis 630 b). The first inner bracket 6302 is pivotally connected to the inner side of the first outer frame 6309, and the second inner bracket 6303 is pivotally connected to the inner side of the second outer frame 6310 (see fig. 2). When the outer frame 6301 overlaps the first inner frame 6302 and the second inner frame 6303 (see fig. 5), the first inner frame 6302 and the second inner frame 6303 are located inside the outer frame 6301 (i.e., inside the first outer frame 6309 and the second outer frame 6310, respectively).
As shown in fig. 6, the first outer frame portion 6309 of the outer frame 6301 includes a key cap connection portion 6312 (the structural range of which is indicated by a chain frame) and a bottom plate connection portion 6313 (the structural range of which is indicated by a chain frame) with respect to the key cap connection portion 6312, each extending parallel to the first rotation axis 630 a. The second outer frame portion 6310 is similar to the first outer frame portion 6309, so the connection portions between the second outer frame portion 6310 and the key cap 610, the bottom plate 620 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. The outer bracket 6301 is connected to the bracket connection portions 6102, 6103 of the key cap 610 via the key cap connection portion 6312, and to the bracket connection portion 6202 of the base 620 via the base connection portion 6313. The key cap connection portion 6312 may be regarded as extending parallel to the first rotation axis 630a with the same width as the key cap connection portion 6312 except for a structure of the key cap connection portion 6312 for engaging with the frame connection portions 6102, 6103 of the key cap 610, and the base plate connection portion 6313 may be regarded as extending parallel to the first rotation axis 630a with the same width as the base plate connection portion 6313 except for a structure of the base plate connection portion 6313 for engaging with the frame connection portion 6202 and the stopper portion 6203 of the base plate 620 and a structure of the frame connection portion 6101 for avoiding the key cap 610. The extending widths 6314, 6315 (as shown in fig. 6; corresponding to the first outer frame portion 6309 and the second outer frame portion 6310, respectively) of the key cap connecting portion 6312 are larger than the extending width 6316 (as shown in fig. 6) of the base plate connecting portion 6313, which is helpful to relatively improve the structural stability of the outer frame 6301 after assembly under the condition that the overall structural size is limited, and further improve the stability of the outer frame 6301 for supporting the key cap 610. For example, when a portion of the key cap 610 corresponding to the key cap connection part 6312 (particularly, a corner of the key cap 610) is pressed, the key cap connection part 6310 may effectively transmit a pressing force in an extending direction thereof (i.e., a direction parallel to the first rotation axis 630a or the second rotation axis 630 b). In practical applications, the ratio of the extension width 6316 of the bottom plate connection portion 6313 to the extension width 6314 (or the extension width 6315) of the key cap connection portion 6310 may be designed to be between 0.5 and 0.8. In addition, in the key structure 600, the bottom plate 620 is a stationary member, the connection between the outer bracket 6301 (via the bottom plate connecting portion 6313) and the bottom plate 620 is relatively easy to keep stable, so that in practical applications, the bottom plate connecting portion 6313 may be free of metal members (e.g. contains no elements for strengthening the structure thereof), and similarly, the key cap 610 is a movable member, and the key cap connecting portion 6312 of the outer bracket 6301 may be metal members in practical applications (e.g. by embedding metal members into plastic injection members to achieve structural strengthening thereof), so as to improve its structural stability and also improve the connection stability with the key cap 610.
Further, as shown in fig. 7, the first inner bracket 6302 has a key cap connection portion 6317 (the structural range of which is illustrated by a chain wire frame), and the first inner bracket 6302 extends parallel to the first rotation axis 630 a. The first inner bracket 6302 is connected to the key cap 610 via a key cap connection portion 6317 (i.e., the shaft portion 6304 is rotatably accommodated in the shaft groove 6101 a). In addition, in the first embodiment, the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303 have the same structure, so the foregoing description about the first inner bracket 6302 is also applicable to the second inner bracket 6303, and is not repeated.
In addition, as shown in fig. 2, 6 and 7, in the first embodiment, in the horizontal direction Dh6, the first outer frame portion 6309 of the outer bracket 6301 has an abutment portion 6318, and a projection (refer to fig. 5) thereof on the bottom plate 620 is located in the protruding portion 6107 (or at least partially located in the protruding portion 6107). The abutment 6318 increases the overall volume of the outer bracket 6301 (compared to a simple rectangular frame for an outer bracket in a typical scissor bracket), helping to increase the structural rigidity of the outer bracket 6301. In the first embodiment, the outer bracket 6301 is designed such that the abutting portion 6318 contacts the bottom surface 6104 (shown in fig. 8) of the key cap 610 when the key cap 610 is not pressed, so as to support the key cap 610, and the structure is also helpful for the lifting mechanism 630 to stably support the key cap 610. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.
In addition, as shown in fig. 2 to 4 and 6, in the first embodiment, the center frame 6311 has an opening 6319. The lifting mechanism 630 may define a central space 630e (shown in phantom in fig. 2) throughout the entire lifting mechanism 630, with the central space 630e extending vertically through the entire lifting mechanism 630 to accommodate the elastic member 650. The central space 630e passes through the opening 6319 and is located between the first outer frame portion 6309 and the second outer frame portion 6310 (or the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303).
In addition, in the first embodiment, the outer bracket 6301, the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303 are all made of a single material, for example, plastic injection molding, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the outer bracket 6301, the first inner bracket 6302, or the second inner bracket 6303 may be a composite structure, such as a plastic injection molding with a reinforcing member (e.g., a metal member, in a buried injection molding manner).
In the first embodiment (see fig. 1 to 8), the lifting mechanism 630 of the key structure 600 still maintains the scissor bracket, which can improve the assembly efficiency. The key structure 600 does not use a balance bar (which is commonly used in a common long key, such as a blank key, is shaped like a Chinese U, and connects a key cap and a bottom plate to help the key cap move up and down smoothly), so that impact noise (such as a sound generated by the impact of the balance bar with other components) can be reduced. In addition, the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303 of the lifting mechanism 630 are separately disposed, and the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303 do not overlap with the outer bracket 6301, so that the outer bracket 6301 may be structurally reinforced to improve rigidity, for example, part of the structure (as shown by a dashed frame in fig. 6) of the outer bracket 6301 is structurally rigid. The first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303 may be designed in the same or different ways according to the design requirement. In addition, in the first outer frame portion 6309 and the second outer frame portion 6310 of the outer bracket 6301, the width of the key cap connection portion 6312 is increased (i.e., the extending widths 6314, 6315 thereof are larger than the extending width 6316 of the bottom plate connection portion 6313), so that the structural rigidity of the key cap connection portion 6312 of the outer bracket 6301 can be relatively enhanced, and the pressing feeling of the structurally weak region can be improved. Accordingly, the structural rigidity of the key structure 600 is improved, and the problems of the effective structural weakness region are overcome or effectively suppressed. In addition, the lifting mechanism 630 provides a space (i.e. the central space 630 e) for placing the elastic element 650, so that the elastic element 650 can be elastically adjusted in the setting position according to the requirement, for example, the elastic element 650 is located as close to the upper left corner of the keycap 610 as possible, so as to improve the pressing feeling. In addition, in the key structure 600, the shaft groove 6101a is pivoted with the first inner bracket 6302 and the second inner bracket 6303, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the first inner bracket 6302 is connected to the bracket connection portions 6102 and 6103, the outer bracket 6301 is connected to the bracket connection portion 6101, and the abutting portion 6318 of the outer bracket 6301 is formed on the first inner bracket 6302, and other structures are also modified in a matching manner, which is not described herein.
Please refer to fig. 9 to 11. According to the key structure 700 of the second embodiment, unlike general rectangular keys (e.g., numeric keys, letter keys, space keys, function keys, etc. of a keyboard), for example, but not limited to, the Enter key of a keyboard may be used. The key structure 700 includes a key cap 710, a base plate 720, a lifting mechanism 730, a switch circuit board 740, and an elastic member 750. The key cap 710 is disposed on the base plate 720. The lifting mechanism 730 is coupled between the key cap 710 and the base plate 720 to support the key cap 710 on the base plate 720 in a vertical direction Dv7 (shown by a double arrow) such that the key cap 710 can move up and down (i.e., parallel to the vertical direction Dv 7) relative to the base plate 720 via the lifting mechanism 730. The switch circuit board 740 is stacked on the bottom plate 720 and under the key cap 710. In practical applications, the switch circuit board 740 may be, but is not limited to, a thin film circuit board (for example, a laminated board structure, in which a switch circuit is formed on an upper substrate and a lower substrate, and an insulating layer is interposed between the upper substrate and the lower substrate), and is shown as a single plate in the figure, so as to simplify the drawing. The switch circuit board 740 has a switch 7401 (positions shown in the figure as hatched circles). The elastic member 750 is aligned with the switch 7401 and disposed between the key cap 710 and the switch circuit board 740, and passes through the elevating mechanism 730. In practical applications, the elastic member 750 may be, but is not limited to, a rubber knob. The key cap 710 may be pressed to move toward the base plate 720 and press the elastic member 750 such that the elastic member 750 activates the switch 7401.
The lifting mechanism 730 includes an outer bracket 7301, a first inner bracket 7302, and a second inner bracket 7303. The outer bracket 7301 and the first inner bracket 7302 are pivoted to each other with respect to a first rotation axis 730a (shown in the drawing by a chain line), and are pivoted to each other with respect to a second rotation axis 730b (shown in the drawing by a chain line) of the second inner bracket 7303, and the first rotation axis 730a and the second rotation axis 730b are parallel. The key cap 710 has a plurality of bracket connection portions 7101, 7102, 7103 on a bottom surface 7104 thereof. The key cap 710 is pivotally coupled to the shaft portion 7304 of the first inner bracket 7302 via two of the bracket connecting portions 7101, and pivotally coupled to the shaft portion 7305 of the second inner bracket 7303 via the other two bracket connecting portions 7101. In the second embodiment, the bracket connection portion 7101 is implemented by two opposite hooks, and a shaft groove 7101a is formed between the two hooks. The shaft portions 7304 and 7305 are cylindrically shaped and rotatably received in the shaft grooves 7101a (e.g., the outer diameters of the shaft portions 7304 and 7305 are the same as the inner diameter of the shaft groove 7101 a), thereby pivoting the first and second inner brackets 7302 and 7303 to the bracket connecting portion 7101 (wherein the shaft groove 7101a pivoted to the first inner bracket 7302 may be defined as a first shaft groove, and the shaft groove 7101a pivoted to the second inner bracket 7303 may be defined as a second shaft groove). Further, the key cap 710 is rotatably and slidably coupled to the outer bracket 7301 via bracket coupling portions 7102, 7103. The bracket connection portions 7102, 7103 are slightly different in structure but each provide a slide groove to allow the outer bracket 7301 to be rotatably and slidably connected thereto. In addition, in the second embodiment, the first rotation axis 730a and the second rotation axis 730b are not collinear, but the present invention is not limited thereto.
The base plate 720 has a plurality of bracket connection portions 7201, 7202. The base plate 720 is rotatably and slidably connected to the first inner bracket 7302 via two of the bracket connecting portions 7201 and rotatably and slidably connected to the second inner bracket 7303 via the other two of the bracket connecting portions 7201, and the base plate 720 is rotatably and slidably connected to the outer bracket 7301 via the bracket connecting portions 7202. In addition, the base plate 720 further has a plurality of limiting portions 7203, and the limiting portions 7203 are adjacent to the bracket connecting portions 7202. The stopper 7203 prevents the outer bracket 7301 from being separated from the bracket connecting portion 7202. In addition, in the second embodiment, the bracket connecting portions 7201, 7202 are slightly different in structure, but each of them is provided with a sliding groove so that the outer bracket 7301, the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303 can be rotatably and slidably connected thereto. Wherein, the slidable range provided by the bracket connection portion 7201 (in the horizontal direction Dh7 (shown in the figure as a double-headed arrow) perpendicular to the first rotation axis 730a, the second rotation axis 730b and the vertical direction Dv 7) is larger than the slidable range provided by the bracket connection portion 7202. The bracket connection portion 7202 and the limiting portion 7203 can cooperate to provide an approximately pivotally-connected connection structure of the outer bracket 7301, which can help to stabilize the movement of the lifting mechanism 730 relative to the base plate 720 (including being stationary, the lifting mechanism 730 is not prone to shaking relative to the base plate 720 along the horizontal direction Dh 7).
Please refer to fig. 12, which is a top view of the base plate 720, wherein a projection profile of the lifting mechanism 730 on the base plate 720 is shown with a thin solid line, a projection 7105 of the key cap 710 on the base plate 720 is shown with a chain line, and projections 7109, 7110, 7111 of the bracket connecting portions 7101, 7102, 7103 of the key cap 710 on the base plate 720 are shown with chain line blocks. It is added that the aforementioned projection onto the base plate 720 logically refers to the projection of the aforementioned members onto a virtual plane containing the upper surface of the base plate 720. As shown in fig. 12, the projection 7105 of the key cap 710 on the bottom plate 720 is slightly L-shaped, and logically can be considered as including a rectangular portion 7106 and a protruding portion 7107, the boundary between which is indicated by a dotted line. The rectangular portion 7106 and the protruding portion 7107 are long rectangles extending parallel to the first rotation axis 730a (or the second rotation axis 730 b) or the projection 730c (or the projection 730 d) thereof (shown in the figure by chain lines), and the protruding portion 7107 protrudes from a long side 7108 (parallel to the first rotation axis 730a or the second rotation axis 730 b) of the rectangular portion 7106. The projection of the entire elevating mechanism 730 (including the projection 7306 of the outer bracket 7301, the projection 7307 of the first inner bracket 7302, and the projection 7308 of the second inner bracket 7303) overlaps the projection 7107, wherein the projection 7307 of the first inner bracket 7302 overlaps the projection 7107, and the projection 7306 of the outer bracket 7301 on the base plate 720 and the projection 7308 of the second inner bracket 7303 are all located within the rectangular portion 7106. The projection 7109 of the bracket connecting portion 7101 connected to the first inner bracket 7302 on the bottom plate 720 (i.e., the projection corresponding to the first axial slot) overlaps the protruding portion 7107, and the projections 7109, 7110, and 7111 of the other bracket connecting portions 7101, 7102, and 7103 on the bottom plate 720 (i.e., the projections 7109 corresponding to the second axial slot) are all located in the rectangular portion 7106. The projection 7109 of the bracket connection 7101 on the base plate 720 is located on the same side of the projection 730c (or the projection 730 d) of the first rotation axis 730a (or the second rotation axis 730 b) on the base plate 720 as the projection 7107.
Please refer to fig. 13-15, which are schematic diagrams of the outer bracket 7301, the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303, respectively. As shown in fig. 13, the outer bracket 701 has a substantially mesh shape as a whole. The outer bracket 7301 includes a first outer frame portion 7309, a second outer frame portion 7310, and a center frame 7311 (each shown in fig. 13 by a dashed frame), and the center frame 7311 is positioned between the first outer frame portion 7309 and the second outer frame portion 7310 along the first rotation axis 730a (or the second rotation axis 730 b). The first inner bracket 7302 is pivotally connected to the inner side of the first outer frame portion 7309, and the second inner bracket 7303 is pivotally connected to the inner side of the second outer frame portion 7310 (see fig. 9). When the outer bracket 7301 overlaps the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303 (see fig. 12), the first inner bracket 7302 partially overlaps the first outer frame portion 7309, and the second inner bracket 7303 is entirely located inside the outer bracket 6301 (i.e., inside the second outer frame portion 7310).
As shown in fig. 13, the first outer frame portion 7309 of the outer frame 7301 includes a key cap connecting portion 7312 (the structural range of which is indicated by a chain frame) and a bottom plate connecting portion 7313 (the structural range of which is indicated by a chain frame) with respect to the key cap connecting portion 7312, each extending parallel to the first rotation axis 730 a. The second outer frame portion 7310 has a similar structure to the first outer frame portion 7309, and therefore, the connection portions of the second outer frame portion 7310 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. The outer bracket 7301 is connected to the bracket connection portions 7102, 7103 of the key cap 710 via a key cap connection portion 7312, and is connected to the bracket connection portion 7202 of the base plate 720 via a base plate connection portion 7313. The key cap connecting portion 7312 may be regarded as extending parallel to the first rotation axis 730a with the same width as the key cap connecting portion 7312 except for the structure of the key cap connecting portion 7312 for fitting with the bracket connecting portions 7102 and 7103 of the key cap 710, and the base plate connecting portion 7313 may be regarded as extending parallel to the first rotation axis 730a with the same width as the base plate connecting portion 7313 except for the structure of the base plate connecting portion 7313 for fitting with the bracket connecting portion 7202 and the stopper portion 7203 of the base plate 720. The extended width 7314 (as indicated in fig. 13) of the key cap connection portion 7312 is greater than the extended width 7316 (as indicated in fig. 13) of the base plate connection portion 7313, which contributes to relatively improving the structural stability of the outer bracket 7301 after assembly in a case where the overall structural size is limited, thereby improving the stability of the outer bracket 7301 to support the key cap 710. For example, when a portion of the key cap 710 corresponding to the key cap connection part 7312 (particularly, a corner of the key cap 710) is pressed, the key cap connection part 7310 may effectively transmit a pressing force in an extending direction thereof (i.e., a direction parallel to the first rotation axis 730a or the second rotation axis 730 b). In practical applications, the ratio of the extension width 7316 of the bottom plate connecting portion 7313 to the extension width 7314 of the key cap connecting portion 7310 may be designed to be between 0.5 and 0.8. In addition, the bottom plate 720 is a stationary member, the outer bracket 7301 is connected to the bottom plate 720 (via the bottom plate connecting portion 7313) more easily and stably, so that in practical applications, the bottom plate connecting portion 7313 may be free of metal members (e.g. without reinforcing the structure), and similarly, the key cap 710 is a movable member, and the key cap connecting portion 7312 of the outer bracket 7301 may be metal members in practical applications (e.g. by embedding metal members into plastic injection members to realize structural reinforcement), so as to improve its structural stability and also improve its connection stability to the key cap 710.
Further, as shown in fig. 14, the first inner bracket 7302 has a key cap connecting portion 7317 (the structural range of which is indicated by a chain wire frame table), and the key cap connecting portion 7317 extends parallel to the first rotation shaft 730 a. The first inner bracket 7302 is connected to the key cap 710 via a key cap connecting portion 7317 (i.e., the shaft portion 7304 is rotatably accommodated in the shaft groove 7101 a). As shown in fig. 9 and fig. 12 to 15, in the second embodiment, when the outer bracket 7301 overlaps the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303 (refer to fig. 12), the first inner bracket 7302 protrudes from the outer bracket 7301 in the horizontal direction Dh7, which helps to improve the structural strength of the first inner bracket 7302 (e.g., relative to the second inner bracket 7303). In addition, the projection of the key cap connection portion 7317 (or the connection portion between the first inner bracket 7302 and the key cap 710) on the bottom plate 720 overlaps the protruding portion 7107, and this configuration is also beneficial for improving the stability of the support of the key cap 710 (the portion corresponding to the protruding portion 7107) by the lifting mechanism 730, and for improving the stability of the support of the key cap 710 by the lifting mechanism 730. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.
In addition, as shown in fig. 9 to 11 and 13, in the second embodiment, when the outer bracket 7301 overlaps with the first inner bracket 7302 (refer to fig. 13), the first inner bracket 7302 is partially overlapped on the outer bracket 7301. The outer bracket 7301 has a recess structure 7319 formed on one side of the outer bracket 5301 with respect to the first rotation axis 730a and simultaneously distributed on the first outer frame portion 7309 and the center frame 7311, and the first inner bracket 7302 also has a recess structure 7320 correspondingly. The concave structure 7319 of the outer bracket 7301 is matched with the concave structure 7320 of the first inner bracket 7302, so that when the outer bracket 7301 overlaps with the first inner bracket 7302, the outer bracket 7301 and the first inner bracket 7302 are engaged with each other through the concave structure 7319 and the concave structure 7320. Thereby, the outer bracket 7301 and the first inner bracket 7302 are horizontally placed. For example, after the outer bracket 7301 is overlapped with the first inner bracket 7302, the overall thickness is not greater than the thickness of the outer bracket 7301 or the first inner bracket 7302.
In addition, as shown in fig. 9 to 11 and 13, in the second embodiment, the center frame 7311 has an opening 7321. The entire lifting mechanism 730 may define a central space 730e (shown in phantom in fig. 9), and the central space 730e extends vertically through the entire lifting mechanism 730 to accommodate the elastic member 750. The central space 730e passes through the opening 7321 and is located between the first outer frame portion 7309 and the second outer frame portion 7310 (or the first inner frame 7302 and the second inner frame 7303).
In addition, in the second embodiment, the outer bracket 7301, the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303 are all made of a single material, for example, plastic injection molding, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the outer bracket 7301, the first inner bracket 7302 or the second inner bracket 7303 may be a composite structure, such as a plastic injection molding with a reinforcement member (e.g., a metal member, in a buried injection molding manner).
In the second embodiment (see fig. 1 to 15), the lifting mechanism 730 of the key structure 700 still maintains the scissor bracket, which can improve the assembly efficiency. The key structure 700 does not use a balance bar (which is commonly used in common long keys, such as a blank key, is shaped like a Chinese U, connects a key cap and a bottom plate, and is used for helping the key cap to stably move up and down), so that impact noise (such as sound generated by impact of the balance bar with other components) can be reduced. By utilizing the characteristic that the driving property of the bracket connection portion 7101 (realized by two opposite hooks, which form an axial groove 7101a therebetween to provide a rotational connection), i.e., the stability of the bracket connection portion 7101 in conjunction with the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303, is superior to that of the bracket connection portions 7102 and 7103 (realized by a chute structure while providing a rotational and sliding connection), i.e., the stability of the bracket connection portions 7102 and 7103 in conjunction with the outer bracket 7301, i.e., the bracket connection portion 2101 for pivoting has more structural restrictions than the bracket connection portion 2102 for sliding/rotating, which is advantageous for driving, the stability of the pivoting structure is also higher by changing the stability of the bracket connection portion 7101 in conjunction with the bracket connection portion 7102, 7103 is positioned such that the bracket connection 7101 for pivoting is positioned in the direction of the structural weakness (e.g., the upper left corner of the key cap 710 in fig. 12), which can enhance the pressing feel. The outer bracket 7301 and the first inner bracket 7302 of the lifting mechanism 730 are designed to overlap (e.g., when the outer bracket 7301 and the first inner bracket 7302 are both disposed horizontally, the first inner bracket 7302 is overlapped on the outer bracket 7301) such that the bracket connection portion 7101 (connected to the first inner bracket 7302) is located as close as possible to the structural weakness (e.g., the upper left corner of the key cap 710 as shown in fig. 12), and generally, the inner bracket is located entirely inside the outer bracket, and is located farther from the protruding portion. Accordingly, the structural rigidity of the key structure 700 is improved, and the problems of the effective structural weakness region are overcome or effectively suppressed. In addition, the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303 of the lifting mechanism 730 are separately disposed, so that the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303 can be designed in the same or different designs according to the design requirement. In addition, in the first outer frame portion 7309 and the second outer frame portion 7310 of the outer frame 7301, the width of the key cap connecting portion 7312 is increased (i.e., the extending width 7314 is larger than the extending width 7316 of the bottom plate connecting portion 7313), so that the structural rigidity of the key cap connecting portion 7312 of the outer frame 7301 can be relatively enhanced, and the pressing feeling of the structurally weak region can be advantageously improved. Accordingly, the structural rigidity of the key structure 600 is improved, and the problems of the effective structural weakness region are overcome or effectively suppressed. In addition, the lifting mechanism 730 provides a space (i.e. the central space 730 e) for placing the elastic member 750, so that the elastic member 750 can be elastically adjusted in the set position according to the requirement, for example, the elastic member 750 is located as close to the upper left corner of the key cap 710 as possible, so as to improve the pressing feeling. In addition, in the key structure 700, the shaft groove 7101a is pivoted to the first inner bracket 7302 and the second inner bracket 7303, but the present utility model is not limited thereto. For example, the first inner bracket 7302 is connected to the bracket connecting portions 7102 and 7103, the outer bracket 7301 is connected to the bracket connecting portion 7101, and other structures are also modified in a matching manner, which is not described in detail.
In summary, the present utility model provides a key structure, in which the position of the support connecting portion is changed to be located in the direction of the structural weak area, so as to improve the pressing feeling, and meanwhile, the inner support and the outer support of the lifting mechanism are designed to overlap, so that the support connecting portion is as close to the structural weak area as possible, and the inner support extends toward the structural weak area as far as possible, so as to further improve the pressing feeling, effectively transmit the pressing force, and facilitate the stable up-down movement of the key cap.
It should be understood that the foregoing examples of the present utility model are provided merely for clearly illustrating the present utility model and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present utility model, and that various other changes and modifications may be made therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present utility model as defined by the appended claims.