JPS59199251A - Preparation of keyboard with pattern such as character or mark - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To attain to enhance efficiency and to prevent the erroneous attachment of key caps by dispensing with the discrimination of the indivisual patterns of the key caps, by forming patterns on the key caps in such a state that the key caps having no pattern preformed thereto are attached to the keyboard. CONSTITUTION:Key caps 1 are set to a keyboard 2 and a far infrared ray reflective plate 3 is placed so as to cover the parts other than the key caps 1. In the next step, only the key caps are heated and a transfer sheet 4 is placed on the key caps 1 so as to contact the pattern layer 5 with the surfaces to be transferred of the caps 1. Subsequently, when the transfer sheet 4 is pressed from the substrate sheet side 7 thereof by using a transfer pad 8 and the surfaces to be transferred of the caps 1 are brought into close contact with the pattern layer 5, the thermally transferrable dye in the pattern layer 5 is activated by the heat of the caps 1 and, when this contact state is held for a definite time, the dye is transferred into the key caps to form a pattern such as a character or a mark to the surface of each cap. As mentioned above, because it is unnecessary to discriminate the surface pattern of each key cap, no erroneous attachment is generated.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] This invention relates to a method for manufacturing a keyboard, and more specifically, a keyboard with patterns such as letters and symbols is formed by forming a pattern on the surface of the keycap with the keycap 7 set in the keyfod. It relates to a manufacturing method.

Conventionally, keyboards for button-type telephones, electronic desk calculators, typewriters, word processing sensors, personal computers, etc. are manufactured by first manufacturing individual keycaps using the so-called two-color molding method or the so-called pouring method, and then molding the keys. It was manufactured by inserting the caps one by one into predetermined positions on the keyboard. There were the following problems with the cent. In other words, when setting a patterned keycap onto a keyboard, ■If it is done manually, it is necessary to identify the pattern of each keycap one by one before setting it, which requires a lot of time and effort. Furthermore, there is the problem that it is extremely difficult to avoid erroneous key camp installation, and ■When attempting to do this by machine, it is necessary to identify the pattern of each key camp one by one, just as when doing it manually. There are problems such as the fact that the mechanical equipment itself has to be expensive because it has to be decentralized, and because it has to be large-scale, it is hardly used industrially. there were.

Therefore, in view of the above-mentioned problems, the inventors of the present invention have carried out various studies based on the viewpoint that all the above-mentioned problems can be solved by forming a pattern on the keycap while a key camp without a pre-formed pattern is installed on the key chain. As a result of experiments, the present invention was finally completed. That is, in the present invention, after placing a far-infrared reflector so as to cover the parts other than the keycaps set on the keyboard, only the key camp is heated by far-infrared radiation, and then a heat-transferable dye is placed on the base sheet. A transfer sheet having a pattern layer of characters, symbols, etc. formed using an ink containing as one constituent layer of the transfer layer is placed so that the pattern layer is in contact with the transfer surface of the keycap, and then By pressing the transfer sheet from the base sheet side using a transfer pad to bring the pattern layer and the transfer surface of the keycap into close contact, the heat-transferable dye in the pattern layer is transferred to the key cap. This method of manufacturing a keyboard with a pattern of characters, symbols, etc. is characterized in that a desired pattern of characters, symbols, etc. is formed on the transferred surface of the camp, and then the base sheet is removed.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in more detail using the drawings.

In the present invention, the keycap 1 is first placed on the keychain 2. This process differs from the conventional case of setting keycaps on a keyboard, in that there is no need to identify each keycap pattern one by one.

After setting the key camp, a far-infrared reflector 3 made of a material that reflects far-infrared rays is placed so as to cover the parts other than the key cap (see FIG. 2). This is to prevent parts other than the keycap from being heated during the heating process of the key camp, which will be described later. Such materials include aluminum, copper, or various metals plated with chrome. Further, the shape thereof is made to correspond to the arrangement of the keycaps.

Next, only the keycap 1 is heated. As a method of heating in this manner, there is a heating method using far-infrared radiation. This heater that uses far infrared rays serves as a heating source only for substances that absorb far infrared rays, and in the present invention only heats the keycap 1.

The wavelength of the far infrared rays is 1.5 μm to 1000 μm.
, preferably one that emits electromagnetic waves of 4 μm to 50 μm. In addition, as heating conditions, the irradiation ratio Mft30
mm to 500its and irradiation time to 50 seconds to 360 seconds are preferable, but needless to say, they are not limited to these. The transfer surface of the keycap is heated to about 160° C. to 230° C. by the heating method.

The material for the key camp according to the present invention may be any material that absorbs the far-infrared rays and can be dyed with the heat-transferable dye described below (for example, polybutylene terephthalate, polycarbonate, etc.) .

Next, the keyboard 2 with the transfer sheet 4 fixed at the transfer position
The key cap is placed on the upper key cap 1 so that the pattern layer 5 and the transfer surface of the key camp are in contact with each other. At this time, it is necessary to accurately fix the keyboard and the transfer sheet at a predetermined transfer position in order to prevent the pattern formed on the keycap from being misaligned or misregistered. To do this, for example, a guide pin 6 or the like may be used (the guide pin for fixing the transfer sheet is not shown).

The transfer sheet 4 used in the present invention can be made of paper, metal foil, a sheet made of paper and metal foil laminated, paper coated or laminated with a heat-resistant resin on the back side, plastic films, etc. The basic layer structure is formed by laminating a pattern N5 consisting of characters, symbols, etc. on a base sheet 7 (see FIG. 1). The pattern layer 5 consisting of characters, symbols, etc. is formed using ink containing a heat-transferable dye. When forming the pattern, it is preferable to form it so as to correspond to the pattern displayed on the keyboard of the final product. The heat-transferable dye is one that thermally diffuses when heated and can dye the surface of the key camp.

Note that at the stage when the transfer sheet 4 is placed on the keycap 1, the pattern layer 5 and the transfer surface of the key camp 1 are not brought into contact with each other to prevent the heat transferable dye in the pattern layer from transferring to the key camp. I'll keep it. When the pre-transfer transfer sheet comes into contact with a heated keycap that has reached the transfer temperature, the heat-transferable dye on the transfer sheet is transferred and printed on the contact area, resulting in a new keycap. This is because characters, symbols, etc. may be duplicated, or areas that should not be transferred may be contaminated, resulting in a significant loss of product value.

Next, using the transfer pad 8, the transfer sheet 4 is pressed from the base sheet and the door side to completely bring the transfer surface of the keycap 1 and the pattern layer 5 into close contact (see FIG. 3). By doing so, the heat from the heated key gear knob causes the heat-transferable dye in the pattern layer to thermally transfer, forming a pattern of desired characters, symbols, etc. on the surface of the key camp. That is, when the transfer sheet 4 is placed on the transferred surface of the keycap 1 heated to about 160°C to 230"c and brought into close contact with the transfer pad 8, the transfer sheet 4 is transferred by the heat of the keycap 1. pattern layer 5
When the heat-transferable dye inside is activated and this state is maintained for a certain period of time (approximately 5 seconds to 120 seconds), the dye migrates into the inside of the keycap, forming a pattern of desired characters, symbols, etc. on the surface of the keycap. It will be done. Therefore, in the case of the present invention, special heat treatment is not required at the time of transfer, but in cases where it takes a relatively long time to transfer after heating the keycap, or where the transfer pad is large, keys that are heated during transfer may be used. Needless to say, if the temperature drop in the camp is severe, it will be necessary to take measures such as heating the transfer pad.

The transfer pad 8 used in the present invention is preferably made of an elastic material such as silicone rubber, and has a plurality of protrusions each having a curved tip. The number of protrusions corresponding to the arrangement of the keycaps is provided. Furthermore, if there are any steps or inclinations in the key camps set on the keyboard, this protrusion forms the height and inclination in accordance with the arrangement of the key caps, so that the same amount of pressure is applied to all key camps. put.

Furthermore, if the key camp descends due to the pressure of the transfer band, it may damage the key camp, the housing of the key camp, the keyboard, etc., so in order to prevent the impact of the key cap's descent, It is preferable to install a support such as a support stand 9 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) or a support rod 10 (see FIG. 4) on the side.

Thereafter, by removing the base sheet 7, a keyfod according to the present invention is obtained.

Since the method for manufacturing a keychain according to the present invention has the above-described configuration, it has the following effects. That is, the present invention uses a transfer sheet and a transfer pad to heat dye the surface of the keycap, and heats it using far infrared rays during the heat dyeing. It is possible to form a pattern on the surface of the key camp while the key cap is placed on the keyboard, which is not possible with the pouring method. Therefore, when setting the keycaps on the keyboard, please use 1 (1)
1d Since it is not necessary to identify the pattern formed on the surface of one key camp, it is possible to manufacture a key chain with patterns such as letters and symbols easily and without any incorrect installation of the key camp. In addition, in the present invention, only the key camp is heated by installing a far-infrared reflector when forming a pattern on the key cap, so the key cap can be heated even when the key cap is set on the keyboard. Even if the keyboard body is not made of heat-resistant resin, heat will not have an adverse effect on the keyboard body.Therefore, even if the keyboard body is not made of heat-resistant resin, thermal expansion will not occur, and characters and symbols can be placed in precise positions without causing any misalignment or misregistration. It is possible to form patterns such as

Therefore, the method of manufacturing a keyboard with patterns of characters, symbols, etc. according to the present invention has extremely excellent industrial utility value.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the transfer sheet in the present invention, and FIG.
Figures 4 through 4 each show schematic cross-sectional views of manufacturing steps in the present invention. In the figure, 1-----key cap, 2----m-keyboard 3-----far infrared reflector, 4----transfer sheet, 5-----pattern layer, 6---- --Guide pin, 7-Binding sheet, 8--Transfer panod, 9-
Support stand, 10--Support rod, 11- Contact, 1
2---One groove. Patent applicant Nissha Printing Co., Ltd. No. 3 Gap 1

Claims (1)

[Claims] 16 After placing a far-infrared reflector so as to cover the parts other than the keycaps set on the keyboard, only the keycaps are heated by far-infrared radiation, and then the heat is transferred onto the base sheet. A transfer sheet having a pattern layer of characters, symbols, etc. formed using an ink containing a sexual dye as a constituent layer of the transfer layer is placed so that the pattern layer is in contact with the transfer surface of the key camp, Next, by pressing the transfer sheet from the base sheet side using a transfer pad to bring the pattern layer and the transfer surface of the key camp into close contact, the heat-transferable dye in the pattern layer is thermally transferred. A method for manufacturing a keychain with a pattern of characters, symbols, etc., characterized in that a pattern of desired characters, symbols, etc. is formed on the transferred surface of the key camp, and then the base sheet is removed. 2. The transfer pad has a plurality of elastic protrusions with curved tips, and the elastic protrusions correspond to the arrangement of the keycaps so that the same pressure is applied to the transfer surface of all key camps. 2. A method for manufacturing a keyboard with patterns of characters, symbols, etc. as claimed in claim 1, wherein the keyboard is formed by: 3. When pressing the transfer pad, a keycap support is inserted between the keycap and the keyboard so that the keycap does not move even when the transfer pad is pressed. A method of manufacturing a keyboard with a pattern of characters, symbols, etc. described.