ITTO970640A1 - SIMPLIFIED INSTRUMENT PANEL. - Google Patents

Description

DESCRIPTION

of the patent for Industrial Invention

An instrument panel, such as that of a motor vehicle, also called combined, may include, inter alia, a front face, indicator movements, such as a speedometer, a tachometer, an odometer and other indicators fixed behind the front face, a screen-printed mask, applied in front of the front face and representing, across the openings obtained in the front face, symbols (lights) and other indication characters, lighting sources arranged in light points and intended to illuminate the symbols and characters in specific circumstances for attract the driver's attention, often a flexible connection or power supply circuit and, behind, a printed circuit board, with conductive tracks, electrical and electronic components, bulbs and connectors for connecting to the flexible circuit and to an interface of the vehicle, the whole being covered with a piece called, in the language of the trade, applied profile and e being protected, at the front, by a transparent glass mounted on the profile and, at the back, by a cover.

The printed circuit therefore ensures, on the one hand, the power supply of the lighting sources, the power supply of the motors of the movements and the connection with the flexible circuit and the interface and, on the other hand, of other electronic functions called noble and protected against electromagnetic waves, such as the functions of calculation, driving motors and other LEDs. For reasons of standardization, more and more often, the printed circuit board is reduced to a small board, called the heart board, which ensures the noble functions, and another support for the other power and connection functions.

The screen printed faceplate is often made on a thin polycarbonate film, generally of the Lexan trademark.

The flex circuit is often made of a thin polyester film.

In short, an instrument panel today comprises numerous elements and supports, or substrates in the etymological sense of the term. There are too many and the Applicant has thus tried to reduce the number.

For this purpose, the present invention refers to a simplified instrument panel, in particular for motor vehicles, comprising at least:

- means of indicators;

- media screen-printed with indication characters;

- means of illumination of the indication characters;

- means for supporting conductive tracks and electronic components,

instrument panel characterized in that it includes a common substrate for conductive tracks, on the one hand, and for silk-screened indication characters, on the other hand.

The invention has therefore made it possible to get rid of the classic screen printing support. It is the printed circuit board that is directly silk-screened.

Preferably, the indication characters are silk-screened on one side of the substrate, the other side of the substrate supporting the conductive tracks.

Preferably, always, the means for illuminating the characters, indicating the common substrate are in front of the common substrate.

Advantageously, an ornament profile is provided which forms a light environment with the common substrate for the means for illuminating the indicating characters of the common substrate.

The invention will be better understood with the help of the following description of the preferred embodiment of the instrument panel, with reference to the single attached figure which represents a cross-sectional view thereof.

The instrument panel which will now be described is that of a motor vehicle. It comprises, from front to back, a front protective glass 1, an ornamental profile 2, a dual-function printed circuit board 3, an indicator movement motor 4 and other components.

The printed circuit board 3 is fixed behind a central area 6 of the profile through which an indication window 7 is visible. The board 3, in the area of the window 7, from the forward side, supports a screen printing layer 8 to make the indication characters appear, in particular the scales of the dial associated with the needle indicator 9 of movement 4.

The lateral skirt of the profile, in its upper part 10 and in front of the board 3, comprises a recess 11 for receiving a light source 12, for the illumination from the front of the screen printing 8 and of the needle 9, here not luminous, the shell of the profile 10 and the printed circuit board 3 forming an environment, or box, for the light 13 for the source 12.

The motor 4 is fixed behind the board 3, such as a connector 14, a heart box 15 of electronic components for the noble functions of the instrument panel and, here, an illumination LED 16 of a silkscreen of symbols 17 supported on the printed circuit board 3, facing the front, next to LED 16.

The board 3 thus also forms a substrate for a circuit of conductive tracks 20 printed on the rear side.

The glass 1 is simply clipped onto the casing of the ornamental profile 10.

The power supply of the source 12, here a game of CMS or LEO lamps, is carried out with the help of a flexible circuit 5, fixed to the shell 10 of the ornamental profile 2 and clamped on the board 3 in the zone 19 of the border of the zone central 6 of the ornamental profile 2.

Claims (1)

CLAIMS 1. Simplified instrument panel, in particular for motor vehicles, comprising at least: - indicating means (4, 9); - means (3) silk-screened with indication characters (B); - means (12) for illuminating the indication characters (B); - means (3) for supporting conductive tracks (20) and electronic components (4, 14-16), instrument panel characterized in that it comprises a common substrate (3) for conductive tracks (20), on one side and for silkscreened indication character (8), on the other hand. 2.- Simplified instrument panel according to claim 1, in which the indication characters (8) are silk-screened on one side of the substrate (3), the other side of the substrate (3) supporting the conductive tracks (20). Simplified instrument panel according to one of Claims 1 and 2, in which the means (12) for illuminating the display characters (8) of the common substrate (3) are in front of the common substrate (3). 4.- Simplified instrument panel according to one of claims 1 to 3, in which an applied ornamental profile (2) is provided which forms with the common substrate (3) an environment for the light C13) for the lighting means (12) of the indication characters (8) of the common substrate (3).