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AssigneeLRE Relays & Electronics Limited
InventorsMaurice D. Fuller, David B. Joyce
Estimating the term…
A keyboard, particularly for control of electronics in vehicles, has at least one key mounted in a recess in the keyboard and pivotable about a pivot to press against a shaped portion of a rubber gasket to operate an electrical switch. A display, preferably a multiple character LCD, for labellingthe switch is visible through a transparent member and connected to a p.c.b. by zebra striped members. The display is not obscured by a finger operating the key. The key has a transverse bore in which a compression spring is mounted with balls at the end of the spring to co-operate with stepped generally cylindrical members mounted with their axes perpendicular to the pivot pin and forming detent means to give the key a tactile operation. Preferably the key operates three switches by way of three shaped portions.
A keyboard having a front face, a recess in said front face, a side wall in said recess, at least one key mounted in said recess, a pivot axis for said key, said pivot axis extending substantially parallel to said front face of the keyboard, an electrical switch and biased detent means, wherein said key is pivotable about said pivot axis by an operator against the bias of said detent means to operate said electrical switch and wherein a transverse bore is provided in said key extending parallel to said pivot axis of said key and said biased detent means comprises a compression spring mounted in said bore and two balls one mounted in each end of said bore and biased outwardly by the force of the compression spring, each of the two balls co-operating with a respective profiled member located in the side wall of the recess, and comprising a stepped generally cylindrical member mounted with its longitudinal axis perpendicular to said pivot axis of said key.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.