FR2741306A1 - DEVICE WITH CONTROLLED CONTROLLING ELEMENTS - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a device with control elements which can be illuminated. In this device comprising a front plate (1) carrying control elements (2a, 2b, 2c), a base plate (9) connected to the front plate forming an intermediate luminous box (8), and feed-through elements in which penetrate the control elements, are integral with the base plate, as well as a light source located in the light box, each passage element is transparent in the part passing through the box between the front plate (1) and a socket associated support of the base plate. Application in particular to heating and air conditioning systems for passenger cars.

Description

1 2741306

  The invention relates to a control element device which can be illuminated, in particular for a heating or air-conditioning installation of a mobile vehicle, comprising a front plate, on the front side of which is disposed at least one control element, a base plate, which is connected to the front plate forming an intermediate light box, at least one passage element, which on the one hand is connected to a control element and on the other hand is mounted in a support sleeve associated with the base plate, for transmitting the actuating movement of the control element to the rear side of the base plate, and a light source

  arranged in the light box.

  Control element devices of this type, manufactured and marketed by the applicant of the present application, are already known for heating and air-conditioning installations for motor vehicles and comprising a plurality of rotary knob control elements, and in which the elements bushing are formed by drive shafts, which are formed on control disks, which are attached to the rear face of the base plate and pass through the light box in the direction of the front plate. On drive shafts extending into the area of the front plate are plugged, with rotational locking, the associated control elements, agencies in the form of rotary knobs. Since the drive shafts are made to some extent with the same opaque material as the control disks, in the case of the use of a single lamp in the light box there is the problem of creating respectively in the area opposite the source

  of light in connection with a drive shaft.

  The associated nonuniform illumination obtained at the surface of the front plate is particularly troublesome when symbols to be illuminated are located in the areas on which the

  drive shafts carry a shadow.

  As a possible solution for eliminating this difficulty, it is envisaged to use two light sources arranged at different locations in the light box, which however does not always frequently still lead to satisfactory uniform illumination of the rotary knobs and rotors. display symbols associated with them. In addition, the fact of providing a second lamp entails an additional expense. As other possibilities for illuminating such control element devices, it has already been proposed to use light guide fibers or a self-illuminating sheet. The latter generally requires a high voltage of, for example, 110 V, which moreover is not necessary precisely in motor vehicles. The use of fiber forming guides

  light is relatively expensive.

  According to the German patent DE 31 45 264 C2 there is known an illuminable control element device of the type indicated, in which the front plate is made of a plastic material which conducts the light well and on the front side of which are placed in superposition a transparent clear varnish and, in front of the latter, a dark opaque varnish. The symbols intended to be illuminated and the surfaces masked by the rotary knobs are released in the dark varnish, the rotary knobs being constituted at least in part by a transparent material. The rotary knobs are plugged, by means of a longitudinal axial hollow shaft, onto opaque drive shafts, which pass through the light box extending from the rear face of the base plate to the front plate and are supported in base plate support bushes. The problem of the formation of shadows produced by the traversing elements which consist of the drive shafts and the associated hollow shafts of the rotary knobs is solved, by using the material, which guides the light, from the front plate, to which the configuration and material of the front plate and the arrangement of the light source as well as the symbols to be illuminated and zones of the rotary knobs must be carefully tuned between them, since otherwise there is

  the risk of non-uniform illumination.

  The object of the invention is, as a technical problem, to indicate an illuminable control element device, of the type indicated above, which can be produced with comparatively low expenditure and allows uniform illumination of the areas to be illuminated.

  illuminated at the front plate.

  This problem is solved by means of a control element device, which can be illuminated, of the type indicated above, thanks to the fact that the respective bushing element is arranged so as to be transparent at least in its part which crosses the light box between the

  front plate and the support socket.

  The transparent arrangement of the at least one passage element, by means of which the actuating displacement of the control elements is transmitted to the rear face of the base plate, at least in its portion which passes through the light box between the front plate and the support sleeve, avoids the formation of shadows by these elements and allows a comparatively uniform illumination of the light box already with the use of a single light source. Shadows caused by the support sleeves, which generally extend a certain distance inside the light box, are avoided by the fact that the light source is arranged in the light box so that the light rays , which it emits towards the area to be illuminated from the front plate, are not blocked by the support bushings. According to an alternative embodiment of the invention, the traversing elements consist of drive shafts formed integrally on control elements arranged in the form of rotary knobs and which extend from the front plate to at the rear face of the base plate, o then for example control discs can be plugged onto the drive shafts. This procedure can be advantageous, from the point of view of the mounting technique, compared to the usual procedure, which consists in forming the drive shafts on control disks and after mounting them on the base plate. , insert the rotary knobs at the front plate onto the drive shafts. At the same time, you can get a

  uniform illumination of specific areas of the buttons

  pushers for example thanks to the fact that the respective rotary knob is formed of a transparent material at its front face and covered with an opaque coating, except

  at the desired areas to be illuminated.

  In an alternative embodiment of the device with control elements according to the invention, the particular configuration of the rear face of the base plate is advantageous for obtaining a uniform illumination inside the light housing, by the fact that the base plate is reflective at its inner face and that in its marginal area, it is arranged not with a simply angular shape, but so as to

form a reflector.

  According to another embodiment of the invention, the front plate is arranged with a flat shape, at its inner face, to avoid the formation of significant shadows and is painted white to promote the uniformity of the illumination and, on its outer side, is covered by an opaque layer, in

  areas that should not be lit.

  Other features and benefits of the

  present invention will emerge from the description given

  BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front view of an illuminable control element device for an air-conditioning installation of a motor vehicle; FIG. 2 represents a plan view of the control element device of FIG. 1; FIG. 3 shows a sectional view of a base plate used in the control element device of FIGS. 1 and 2; FIG. 4 shows a sectional view of a front plate used in the control element device of FIGS. 1 and 2; FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of one of the rotary knob control elements used in the control element device of FIGS. 1 and 2; and - Figure 6 shows a plan view, from the rear, of the control element with buttons

rotary devices of FIG.

  FIG. 1 shows a view of the front face of a front plate 1 of a control element device, which can be illuminated, for setting adjustment parameters of the two types of operation for an air conditioning installation of a motor vehicle by a user. On this front face of the front plate are arranged, as control elements, three rotary knobs 2a, 2b, 2c, which are located side by side, and a group of pushbutton switches 6 comprising a first switch push-button switch 6a for activating airflow operation, a second push-button switch 6b for activating an air-conditioning operation, and a third push-button switch 6c for activating defrosting operation. In an end zone of a respective rotary handle of each rotary knob 2a, 2b, 2c is disposed a position identification slot 4a, 4b, 4c, which can be illuminated and by means of which the position of the respective rotary knob also in the case of a dark environment of the passenger compartment of the vehicle. Each rotary knob 2a, 2b, 2c is associated with a surrounding annular zone of the front plate, which contains the symbols 3a, 3b and 3c which can be illuminated, which indicate the respective functions of the air-conditioning system, triggered by means of the considered position of rotary knobs. Thus, the left rotary knob 2a, which serves for the regulation of the temperature, is associated with red and blue colored bands 3a which can be illuminated, while at the central rotary knob 2b, which is used for the regulation of the power of the air conditioning system fan, are associated numbers as symbols 3b, which represent the set power of the fan. The right rotary knob 2c is used to control the various air control flaps of the air conditioning installation for sending air into the zones of the interior space, which are respectively marked by the associated symbols 3c. The illumination of the symbols 3a, 3b, 3c, which are associated with the rotary knobs 2a, 2b, 2c, as well as slots 4a, 4b, 4c for identifying the positions of the rotary knobs is achieved with the aid of a single light source 5 disposed in a light box located behind the front plate 1 and which is not visible in the view of Figure 1, but is shown in this figure 1 by lines formed by dashes to represent its position by report

to the extent of the front plate 1.

  In the case of the usual arrangement mentioned above of the control element device, the rotary knobs are plugged onto drive shafts, which are made of an opaque material and extend from the rear face of the device to the control elements. control up to the front plate while passing through the intercalated light box. Therefore, in the case where, with this usual arrangement, only a light source 5 in the position shown is used, problem areas appear due to the formation of shadows in the areas of the annular surfaces of the symbols, which surround the rotary knobs and are located opposite the light source relative to the drive shafts. For the left rotary knob 2a, the zone 7, which is concerned with such shadow formation, of the temperature symbol ring 3a present at this location is explicitly marked. Corresponding areas of occurrence of shading problems exist for the central rotary knob 2b in the area surrounding the digit "2" of the fan stage, and for the right rotary knob 2c in the symbol area located top right, position of the defrost air flap. This problem of shadowing is avoided in the case of the present control element device, as will be apparent from

the description given below.

  FIG. 2 represents, in a plan view, the illuminable control element device, in which the base plate 9 is recognized, which, by forming an intermediate light box 8, is connected by means of lateral edges cooperating between them in a light-tight manner, with the front plate 1, on which

  are arranged the group 6 of switches with buttons-

  pushbuttons and three rotary knobs 2a, 2b, 2c. The rotational movement occurring during the actuation of the respective rotary knob 2a, 2b, 2c is transmitted through bushing elements which will be described later in more detail, to the rear face of the base plate 9 , on which are arranged formed control disk units O10a, 10b, 10c which are coupled Bowden cables for controlling the adjustment drive members considered to trigger the desired functions of the air conditioning system, as is known in the devices

  conventional control elements of this type.

  FIG. 3 shows the base plate 9 in the form of a sectional view arranged so that it passes on both sides at the height of the longitudinal axis of the two lateral rotary knobs 2a, 2b, 2c, whereas, in the central part, it passes, making an elbow, at the height of the light source 5 which, as shown, is retained, by its associated mount, on the base plate 9. On the rear face of the base plate 9 are formed a plurality of clips 11, which serve to retain the control disks and coupled Bowden cables. For the traversing drive shafts, which connect with rotational locking rotary levers rotary knobs control disks, the base plate 9 comprises associated support sleeves 12a, 12b, which are visible in Figure 3 those which concern the

  left rotary knob and right rotary knob.

  The support bushings 12a, 12b extend forwardly from the base plate 9, penetrating into the light box 8 formed between the base plate 9 and the front plate 1 and ending with one end. front

free 13a, 13b.

  To prevent the formation of annoying shadows associated, the arrangement of the light source 5 is chosen so that its portion 5a, which emits light and is marked with a cross in Figure 3, is located in the direction of the plate forward, forward or at least at the front end end terminations 13a, 13c of the support bushings 12a, 12b. Uniform illumination of the light box 8 and therefore the areas to be illuminated of the front plate 1 is further facilitated by the fact that the inner face 9a of the base plate 9 does not form a right angle, in its marginal area. 14 between the front wall and the side wall, but is arranged in the form of a reflector and is designed as a whole so as to form a reflective surface. FIG. 4 shows the front plate 1 in the form of a section in the plane of the three longitudinal axes 22a, 2b, 22c of the rotary knobs, in its position corresponding to the position shown in FIG. base plate, the front plate 1 can be snapped onto the base plate 9 by means of clip connections 17 forming the intermediate light box 8. The side surfaces 15, 16, which engage one into the other , the base plate 9 on the one hand and the front plate 1 on the other hand sealingly close the light housing 8 towards the sides. As can be seen in FIG. 4, the front plate 1 is arranged with a relatively flat shape in the zone of its front face, which receives the rotary knobs, so that there is no shadow due to the housing of the buttons In contrast, the three housings 18a, 18b, 18c for the rotary knobs are only slightly recessed with respect to the front end of the front plate and are made of a black and opaque ABS plastic. , which allows to obtain a reliable blocking of the light in this zone. In the remainder of the zone 17 of the front face, the front plate 1 is made of a plastic material, such as polyvinyl chloride, having the transparency of the glass and which is covered, at its front side by an opaque sheet , except at the level of the symbols to be illuminated 3a, 3b, 3c. The inner surface of the front zone of the front plate 1 is white, which is necessary for obtaining a

  uniform illumination in the light box 8.

  In Figures 5 and 6, there is shown the configuration of the left rotary knob 2a. The rotary knob 2a is constituted by a rotating lever portion 20 located in front and on which is formed a solid drive shaft 21, which extends rearwardly along the longitudinal axis 22a of the rotary knob and has a cross section in cross section. For assembly, the rotary knob 2a is inserted from the front, as can be seen with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, in the associated housing 18a of the rotary knob, situated in the front plate 1, the drive shaft 21. being plugged into the associated support sleeve 12a formed in the rear plate 9 and emerging, by its free end, on the rear face of the base plate. On this free end of the drive shaft is then inserted, with rotational locking, the associated control disk, and for this purpose it has a corresponding cruciform central recess. The rotary knob 2a is made, together with the drive shaft 21, which is used as a passage member for transmitting the rotational movement of the control element to the associated control disc, in a transparent material so that the drive shaft 21, which passes through the light box 8, can be illuminated by the light of the single light source 5, without the drive shaft 21 producing a shadow and thus leading to illumination. Uniform symbols on the front plate 1, in areas with it

  problems mentioned above with reference to Figure 1.

  What has been said above for the left rotary knob 2a is valid analogously for the two other rotary knobs 2b, 2c, which are not shown here in detail which can have an identical configuration. On the front face, the rotary joystick portion 20 may be painted black so as to be opaque except at the position identification slot 4b, which is visible in FIG. 1 and which is painted white, so that that the position identification slots 4a, 4b, 4c of the rotary knobs 2a, 2b, 2c are also illuminated from the inside by the illumination of the light box 8, next to the display symbols 3a, 3b, 3c. A cam 24 formed on the rear edge (23) of the rotary lever portion 20 is used, in the case of the left rotary knob 2a and the central rotary knob 2b, in association with a stop not shown, formed on the associated housing of the button

  rotary, as a rotation limitation system.

  From the description of the example of

  As previously indicated, it will be seen that the invention provides a control element device which can be manufactured and mounted by means of a small expense and in which symbols and controls arranged on the front plate can be illuminated with in a very uniform manner and without noticeable formation of shadows through the use of a single point light source. It is obvious that apart from the control element device for heating or air-conditioning installations of motor vehicles, also control element devices, which can be illuminated, other systems can be arranged in the manner indicated in accordance with FIG. the invention. What is characteristic is respectively the arrangement of the area of the light source, which emits light, forward or at least at the level of the support bushes, as well as the transparent embodiment of the crossing elements, which pass through the light box and are mounted in the support bushings, for the transmission of the actuating movement of the control elements on the rear face of the base plate, the traversing element being arranged in the form of a single element and being able to to be formed of a

  alone holding on the control element.

Claims (4)

  1. Device with control elements, which can be illuminated, in particular for a heating or air-conditioning installation of a mobile vehicle, comprising - a front plate (1), on the front of which is disposed at least one control element (2a, 2b, 2c), - a base plate (9), which is connected to the front plate (8) forming a spacer light housing (8), - at least one passage element, which on the one hand is connected to a control element and on the other hand is mounted in an associated support socket (12a, 12b) of the base plate, for transmitting the actuating movement of the control element to the rear side of the base plate, and - a light source (5) arranged in the light box, characterized in that - the respective bushing element (21) is arranged to be transparent at least in its portion which passes through the light box (8) between the front plate (1) and the support sleeve (12a, 12b).   An illuminable control element device according to claim 1, further characterized in that the passage member is integrally formed as a drive shaft (21), which is formed on the associated control element, arranged in the form of a rotary knob (2a, 2b, 2c) made of a transparent material. 3. Device with control elements, capable of   illuminated according to one of claims 1 or 2,   further characterized in that the base plate (9) is reflective on its inner face and is arranged in   reflector shape in its lateral marginal portion (14).   4. Device with control elements, capable of   being illuminated, according to any one of claims 1 to   3, further characterized in that the front plate (1) is arranged with a flat shape in the part of its front face, is white on its inner face and is covered, on its outer face, by an opaque sheet, in the areas not to be lit.