JPH0773790A - Merchandise selecting switch device for dispenser - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a water-proof merchandise selecting switch for dispenser with the simple structure by utilizing a dielectric noise type or a static capacity detection type touch sensor circuit in a switch device to form a switch without having a sliding part. CONSTITUTION:A touch panel 5 is provided on the surface of an acrylic plate 1a of a front panel 1, and a dielectric noise type or a static capacity detection type touch sensor circuit is provided on the back surface of the acrylic plate 1a. When a human body touches the touch panel 5, in the case of the dielectric noise type touch sensor circuit, the human body works as an antenna of the touch sensor circuit, and the circuit detects the external noise to operate a switch, and in the case of the static capacity detection type touch sensor circuit, static capacity of the human body is detected to operate the switch.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a selection switch device for selecting a product etc. of a vending machine.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an automatic vending machine, a push button switch device having a mechanical contact has been generally used as a switch device for selecting a product. In this push button switch device, the switch is operated by pushing a push button provided on the front panel of the machine body, and the structure thereof will be described with reference to FIG. The push button switch device 31 includes a base member 32 made of a material such as plastic, the base member 32 and the contact switch 34.
A front case 33 made of a material such as plastic attached so as to cover the wiring board 35, a wiring board 35 provided with a contact switch 34 and fixed to the base member 32, and a front case 3
3 and a push button portion 36 which is guided by an opening edge formed on the front surface and moves freely in and out, and a base member 32 is attached to a front transparent acrylic plate 38 of a vending machine with a waterproof O-ring 37 interposed therebetween. . Considering that the vending machine is installed outdoors, a cover body 39 having a waterproof property such as silicon rubber is provided between the push button portion 36 and the switch 34 so that rainwater does not enter the contact type switch 34 portion. It is sealed in.

By the way, a conventional push button switch device 31
Is to push down the push button portion 36 to operate the contact type switch 34, and since there is a sliding portion, the waterproof structure is complicated, the assembly is complicated, and the cost is high. Further, when the push button portion 36 is pushed down diagonally, the twisting is likely to occur between the case 33 and the push button portion 36,
This twist is more likely to occur as the surface area of the push button portion 36 is increased. Therefore, the surface area of the push button portion 36 cannot be arbitrarily increased. When the surface area of the push button portion 36 is appropriately large, the operability is excellent. In addition, since there is a portion that slides and guides the push button portion 36, or because it has a waterproof structure, there is a limit in reducing the thickness of the switch device 31. Further, since the switch device 31 is of a contact type, the life of the switch device 31 is about 100,000 to 300,000 times for the pressing operation, which is not semi-permanent.

[0004]

In order to solve the problem in the case of using such a mechanical contact, there has been proposed a proximity switch which eliminates the movable part. However, if the conductive plate that constitutes this proximity switch is provided on the inner surface of the surface mounting plate made of an acrylic plate or the like, the human body does not come into direct contact with the plate, so the sensitivity level control is strictly required, Further, in order to prevent malfunction, it is necessary to cover it with a shield case or the like, which complicates the structure and increases the cost.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problem. When the human body touches the conductive electrode portion exposed on the front surface of the machine body, the human body serves as an antenna, and the presence or absence of this antenna is used to detect external noise. Type noise type touch sensor circuit, or, when the human body approaches or touches the conductive electrode portion, by using the capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit for detecting the presence or absence of the capacitance inherent to the human body in the switch device, It can be used semi-permanently, it can be waterproofed with a simple structure, and the sensitivity level is not strictly required to be controlled. Since the human body directly contacts the electrode, it is possible to lower the sensitivity setting. Therefore, it is therefore necessary to provide a product etc. selection switch device for a vending machine, which does not need to provide a shield case or the like to prevent malfunction and can achieve cost reduction. For the purpose.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 is attached to a machine body of a vending machine,
A selection switch device for selecting a product or the like, which is a dielectric noise type that operates as an antenna with a conductive electrode section that is provided as a selection switch exposed on the front surface of the machine body and a human body that is in contact with or in proximity to this conductive electrode section. Or a capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit unit for detecting the capacitance of the human body. According to the invention of claim 2, a conductive electrode part or a conductive electrode part and a waterproof sealing member are provided on the front plate of the product display part of the machine body or the front face of the selection switch mounting plate, and the back surface of the front plate or the mounting plate is dielectric. A noise type or electrostatic capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit unit is provided.
It is a product etc. selection switch device of the described vending machine. Further, the invention of claim 3 is the product etc. selection switch device of the vending machine according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a conductive resin is used as the conductive electrode portion. The invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the conductive electrode portion is configured to be attachable / detachable to / from a dielectric noise type or a capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit portion.
It is a product etc. selection switch device of the described vending machine. Further, the invention of claim 5 is the automatic vending according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a plurality of touch sensor circuits are arranged on one substrate in the dielectric noise type or capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit unit. It is a switch for selecting a product etc. of a machine. Further, in the invention of claim 6, the conductive electrode portion and the dielectric noise type or capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit portion are fixed by sandwiching the front plate or the selection switch mounting plate of the product display part from the front and back sides. Item 2 is a switch for selecting a product etc. of a vending machine according to item 1 or 2.

[0007]

According to the structure of claim 1, when the human body touches the conductive electrode portion which is the selection switch, in the case of the dielectric noise type touch sensor, the human body becomes an antenna of the dielectric noise type touch sensor circuit portion, The sensor circuit unit detects external noise and operates as a switch. In the case of a capacitance detection type touch sensor, a switch operation is performed by detecting a change in capacitance of the human body. As a result, a switch having no sliding portion can be constructed. Further, according to the configuration of claim 2, only the conductive electrode portion is exposed to the front surface of the front panel of the product display section of the machine body or the front surface of the selection switch mounting plate, so that it is possible to reduce the thickness and facilitate waterproofing. Further, according to the configuration of claim 3, it is easy to form the conductive electrode portion into an arbitrary shape, and the connection structure with the touch sensor circuit portion is also easy. Also,
According to the configuration of claim 4, it becomes easy to change only the conductive electrode portion, and the switch shape can be arbitrarily changed. Further, according to the structure of claim 5, a plurality of selection switches can be formed as a set. Further, according to the structure of claim 6, the conductive electrode portion serving as the selection switch and the touch sensor circuit portion can be fixed to the machine body with one touch.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an external view of a vending machine according to this embodiment. A product display or display unit 2 is provided on the front panel 1 of the machine body. Below the product display or display unit 2, a display unit 3 for displaying a charge or sold-out corresponding to each product, and a product are selected. A selection switch 4 is provided. In the case of a dielectric touch sensor, the selection switch 4 is a dielectric noise detection type touch sensor that operates as an antenna a human body that touches a touch panel that is a conductive electrode portion, or a capacitance detection type that detects a capacitance of the human body. A touch sensor, the touch panel of which is attached to the outer surface of the front panel 1 so as to be exposed. In addition, the panel 1 has a coin insertion slot and a bill insertion slot for paying the price of the product, an ejection port for taking out the change, a product ejection port for taking out the product, and a return lever for returning the coin and the bill. It is provided.

2, 3, and 4 show the front, plan, and side sectional configurations of the selection switch 4 according to the first embodiment. The selection switch 4 is a transparent acrylic plate 1a that constitutes the front panel 1.
The touch panel 5 is a conductive electrode portion that is exposed and attached to the outer surface of the touch panel 5, and the substrate 7 on which the touch sensor circuit portion 6 that is disposed inside the acrylic plate 1a is disposed. The touch panel 5 includes a thin flat plate portion 5a exposed on the outer surface of the acrylic plate 1a and a tubular foot portion 5b having a screw hole formed therein, and may be formed by injection molding using a conductive resin (plastic). . A through hole 1b is formed in the acrylic plate 1a at the position where the selection switch is attached. The foot portion 5b of the touch panel 5 is inserted into the through hole 1b from the front side, and the outer peripheral surface of the foot portion 5b serves as a spacer from the rear side. By fitting the insulating sleeve 8 and screwing the tapping screw 9 from the rear side into the screw hole of the foot portion 5b, the substrate 7 and the touch panel 5 are fixed by sandwiching the acrylic plate 1a from the front and back.

The touch panel 5 is electrically conductive with the circuit of the touch sensor circuit portion 6 of the substrate 7. The circuit of the touch sensor circuit unit 6 is electrically connected to a connector 10, and a cable connector from a control circuit (not shown) of the vending machine is connected to the connector 10. The touch sensor circuit unit 6 will be described in detail later, but
When the human body is of the dielectric noise type or the capacitance detection type and the human body is in contact with the flat plate portion 5a of the touch panel 5, it becomes an antenna of the circuit unit 6 when the human body is the dielectric type, and external noise is generated. Is to detect. In the case of the electrostatic type, the electrostatic capacity of the human body is detected.

A sheet metal 11 for reinforcement is provided on the back surface of the transparent acrylic plate 1a. An annular recess is formed on the inner surface of the flat plate portion 5a of the touch panel 5,
A waterproof O-ring 12 is fitted in here to prevent rainwater from entering the inside of the machine body. The flat plate portion 5a of the touch panel 5 has an elliptical shape, and two foot portions 5b are provided side by side in the lateral direction. Further, as shown in FIG. Silver metallic silk printing 13 is applied narrowly at the center position.

According to the present embodiment, since there is no sliding portion of the switch operating portion as in the conventional case, the waterproof structure is simple. Further, the touch panel 5 of the selection switch 4 can be easily attached to and detached from the circuit board 7, there is no need to perform soldering or welding for circuit connection, cost reduction can be achieved, and the vending machine renewal can be achieved. It is advantageous when used. Further, since the touch panel 5 can be formed by conductive resin molding, an arbitrary shape can be obtained at low cost, and the degree of freedom in designing the selection switch 4 is increased. Further, the touch panel 5 exposed on the front surface of the panel can be made extremely thin (about 10 mm in the conventional product and 2 mm or less in the product of this embodiment) as compared with the conventional one. Furthermore, since it is a non-contact type, it can be used semipermanently.

FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 show the cross sectional and side sectional structures of the multiple selection switch 14 according to the second embodiment. In this example, a plurality of touch panels 15 are connected to one long circuit board 17. Each touch panel 15 includes a flat plate portion 15a made of a conductive resin and a columnar foot portion 15b, and a retaining groove 15c is provided on the surface of the foot portion 15b. Further, the circuit board 17 is provided with a set of elastic joint fittings 21 corresponding to the foot portions 15b of each touch panel 15 by soldering.
The foot portion 15 of the touch panel 15 having the through hole 1b of a inserted therethrough.
By pressing b between the metal fittings 21, the retaining groove 15c and the metal fitting 21 are engaged, the touch panel 15 is fixed to the circuit board 17, and is electrically connected. Further, the circuit board 17 is fixed to the board fixing case 22, and the board fixing case 22 is attached to the back plate 23 of the front panel 1 with bolts 24.
It is fixed by. The connector 10 combines the circuits of the plurality of touch panels 15 into one.

According to the second embodiment described above, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, in constructing a plurality of selection switches, the number of parts and the number of mounting steps can be reduced, and the cost is low. Can be realized.

FIG. 7 shows a circuit configuration example of the touch sensor circuit section 6. This circuit is a method to detect dielectric noise, and the touch panels 5 and 15 described above are conductive electrodes, and the human body becomes an antenna of the same circuit by touching it with fingers, etc. Amplifies and detects external noise from the commercial AC power supply line. By examining the signal obtained at the output terminal 61 of this circuit, it is possible to know whether or not the human body has touched the touch panels 5, 15.
The function as a switch can be obtained. The touch panels 5 and 15 are preferably made of a conductive material having a resistance of 10 9 Ω · cm or less to prevent malfunction.

FIG. 8 shows another embodiment circuit of the circuit section 6. This example is a capacitance detection type touch sensor, and the touch panels 5 and 15 are conductive electrodes, and the capacitance of the human body is connected to the circuit unit 6 when a finger or the like of the human body comes into contact with or approaches the conductive electrodes. To be done. By detecting the phase delay of the output of the oscillator 62 due to this electrostatic capacitance, it can be determined whether or not the human body is in contact, and the function as a switch can be obtained.

Next, the operation of the capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit portion shown in FIG. 8 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. FIG. 9A is a state diagram in which a human body (finger) is close to the touch panel portion, and FIG. 9B is an equivalent circuit at that time. These diagrams show the sensitivity of the electrostatic capacitance detection type touch sensor. It has been shown that by raising it, operation through an insulator is possible. That is, the touch panels 5, 15
When the finger 72 of the human body wearing the gloves 71 made of an insulating material comes into contact with the human body, the electrostatic capacitance C71 and the human body electrostatic capacitance C72 through the gloves 71 are directly inserted between the touch panels 5 and 15 and the ground. It will be.

In the circuit of FIG. 8, the inverted output of the inverter 63 of the square wave oscillator 62 is input to the input end A of the AND circuit 64 on the touch panel 5, 15 connection side, and the other input end of the AND circuit 64 is input. The output of the square wave oscillator 62 is directly input to B. With this configuration, since the input end A and the input end B are normally input in opposite phases, there is no time when both the input ends A and B are at the H level. Therefore, the output of the AND circuit 64 is converted to the inverter 65.
The output of the output terminal C passed through is always at the L level. This state is shown in FIG. Now, when a capacitance is connected to the touch panels 5 and 15 from this state as described above, as shown in FIG. 10B, only the input signal waveform of the input end A causes a phase delay, and the input end A , B both become H level. Therefore, the function of the touch switch can be obtained by detecting the peak of the output of the output terminal C.

FIG. 11 shows a portion of the front panel 1 of the vending machine, in which the transparent acrylic plate 1a is provided with a blind print or a sticker on the back surface thereof, whereby the touch sensor circuit is formed. The appearance of the touch panel 5 is made clear by making the portion 6 and the like invisible from the front. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, the material of the touch panels 5 and 15 is not limited to the conductive resin, and may be a conductive metal.

[0020]

As described above, according to the inventions of claims 1 and 2, a conductive electrode portion (touch panel) serving as a product selection switch of a vending machine is provided on the outer surface of the machine body, and the electrode portion is touched. A dielectric noise type touch sensor that operates the human body as an antenna or a capacitance detection type touch sensor that detects the capacitance of the human body is used, so there is no sliding part and it is a non-contact type, so a simple structure Therefore, the switch device can be waterproofed, and the switch device can be used semipermanently. In addition, the sensitivity is better than that in which the human body does not come into direct contact with the electrodes, the sensitivity level is not strictly required to be controlled, and there is no need to provide a shield case to prevent malfunctions, resulting in cost reduction. Can be achieved. Moreover,
Even in the electrostatic capacitance detection type touch sensor, depending on the sensitivity setting, it is possible to operate via an insulator, and for example, it is possible to realize a touch switch that can operate even when wearing gloves or the like.

According to the third aspect of the invention, in addition to the above effects, the conductive electrode portion can be formed into a desired shape at low cost by molding the conductive resin, and the degree of freedom in designing the selection switch is increased. Go up. Further, according to the inventions of claims 4 and 6, in addition to the above effects, it is easy to attach and detach the selection switch to and from the machine body, which is advantageous in the renewal use of the vending machine. Further, according to the invention of claim 5, in constituting a plurality of selection switches, it is possible to reduce the number of parts and the number of mounting steps, and to reduce the cost.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external view of a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a touch panel of the selection switch device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the selection switch device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of the selection switch device according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a selection switch device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of a selection switch device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram showing a specific example of a touch sensor circuit unit of the selection switch device.

FIG. 8 is a circuit diagram showing another example of the touch sensor circuit unit.

9A is a state diagram of the circuit of FIG. 8 during operation of the touch panel unit, and FIG. 9B is an equivalent circuit diagram thereof.

10A is a signal state diagram of each part of the circuit of FIG. 8 in a normal state, and FIG. 10B is a signal state diagram of each part of the circuit of FIG. 8 when a switch is operated.

FIG. 11 is a front view of a selection switch device portion.

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional selection switch device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 front panel 1a acrylic plate 4 selection switch 5,15 touch panel (conductive electrode part) 6 touch sensor circuit part 7,17 substrate

Front page continuation (72) Inventor Suzuyama Kenzo 3-20-16 Kamishinjo, Higashiyodogawa-ku, Osaka City Komatsu Light Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Yuji Muraoka 3-20-16 Kamishinjo, Higashiyodogawa-ku, Osaka Komatsu Light Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Akihiro Morita 3-20-16 Kamishinjo, Higashiyodogawa-ku, Osaka City Komatsu Light Manufacturing Co., Ltd.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A selection switch device which is attached to a machine body of a vending machine and which is used for selecting products or the like, and which is a conductive electrode section which is exposed on the front surface of the machine machine and serves as a selection switch. Vending machine products, etc., characterized in that they are composed of a dielectric noise type that operates as a human body that is in contact with or in close proximity to an antenna, or a capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit unit that detects the capacitance of the human body Select switch device. 2. A conductive electrode portion or a conductive electrode portion and a waterproof sealing member are provided on the front plate of the product display portion of the machine body or the front surface of the selection switch mounting plate, and the back surface of the front plate or mounting plate is a dielectric noise type, or 2. The product etc. selection switch device for a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit unit is provided. 3. The product etc. selection switch device for a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein a conductive resin is used as the conductive electrode portion. 4. The vending machine product or the like according to claim 1, wherein the conductive electrode portion is configured to be attachable / detachable to / from a dielectric noise type or electrostatic capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit portion. Select switch device. 5. The dielectric noise type or electrostatic capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit unit is characterized in that a plurality of touch sensor circuits are arranged on one substrate.
Product selection switch device for the described vending machine. 6. The conductive electrode part and the dielectric noise type or capacitance detection type touch sensor circuit part are fixed by sandwiching a front plate or a selection switch mounting plate of the product display part from the front and back sides. The product etc. selection switch device of the vending machine according to claim 1 or 2.