JP2008237527A - Radio control transmitter for model - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a radio control transmitter for a model capable of securing reliability in remote control of a controlled object by radio without an operator being conscious about the direction of an antenna. <P>SOLUTION: A pole antenna 50 is placed inside a grip 40 in a case body 20 of the radio control transmitter 10 for the model in a state that the antenna shaft is orthogonal to, or is tilted at an arbitrary angle with respect to a center line along a height direction of the case body 20. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a model radio control transmitter that wirelessly transmits a steering signal to a steered object by operating an operation unit in a model radio control apparatus that remotely steers a steered object such as a model. .

A model radio control device for remotely maneuvering a piloted object such as a model airplane, helicopter, car, boat, etc. by radio is a model radio that wirelessly transmits a steering signal to the piloted object by the operator operating the operation unit. A control transmitter (hereinafter referred to as a radio control transmitter) is provided.
Conventionally, as this type of radio control transmitter, one disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. The radio control transmitter disclosed in Patent Document 1 is configured by a substantially box-shaped casing, and a pole-shaped antenna such as a rod antenna is provided at the center of the upper surface thereof. Two stick levers that serve as the main operation unit are provided at the left and right center of the front of the housing, and various levers and switches that serve as auxiliary operation units are provided around and around the stick lever. It has been. The state of the stick lever shown in the figure is a neutral position, and each of the stick levers can be tilted in the vertical and horizontal directions around the position. These stick levers, various levers, and switches are individually connected to the pivot shafts of the potentiometers. By operating these stick levers and various levers to control the amount of rotation of the potentiometer, the stick levers, various levers, and switches can be adjusted according to the operation amount Thus, a plurality of control signals to the controlled object are formed and transmitted as radio waves from the radio control transmitter. Note that a circuit board on which various electronic components are arranged, a battery, and the like are housed inside the housing.

  In such a radio control transmitter, the operator supports both sides and the back of the casing with his / her hands so that the front of the casing is facing forward, and operates the stick lever using each thumb. Thereby, a control signal from the radio control transmitter to the controlled object is generated and transmitted as a radio wave. The steered body is equipped with a receiver that receives the steering signal transmitted from the radio control transmitter and a servo mechanism that operates the movable part of the steered body. Based on the steering signal received by the receiver The object to be steered is remotely controlled by controlling the operation amount of the servo mechanism or the like.

JP 63-267383 A

  By the way, in recent years, in such a radio control transmitter, the 2.4 GHz band, which is more convenient and safer (noise resistance) than the frequency band that has been conventionally used as a model, has been used overseas as an oscillation frequency. It is used in the center. In a radio control transmitter using the 2.4 GHz band as an oscillation frequency, a dipole antenna having a length corresponding to a half wavelength is usually used in order to increase the gain at the antenna.

  As shown in FIG. 6, this dipole antenna has an eight-shaped directivity in which the electric field strength is remarkably reduced in the axial direction of the antenna, and the 2.4 GHz band radio wave has a strong directivity. A region where the electric field strength decreases, that is, a so-called null point is generated. For this reason, some conventional radio control transmitters are equipped with an antenna outside the housing so that the operator can change the direction of the antenna as appropriate. It was done.

However, many pilots do not always use it with consciousness every time they control, and even if they are conscious, changing the direction of the antenna is troublesome.
Further, as shown in FIG. 7, in general, many pilots tend to steer the antenna upright, and as a result, the antenna axis is directed toward the steered body, and the Was to be used in a direction where the electric field strength is weak. As a result, there is a risk that the control target will fall out of control.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a radio control transmitter that can ensure reliability in remote control of an object to be controlled by radio without the driver being aware of the direction of the antenna.

  The above-mentioned subject is achieved by the present invention of the following (1) to (4).

(1) In a model radio control transmitter that has a substantially box-shaped housing and wirelessly transmits a steering signal to a steered object such as a model in accordance with an operation of an operation unit disposed on the housing. The housing has a handle on the upper surface side, and a pole-shaped antenna is disposed inside the handle with its axis inclined at an angle or an arbitrary angle with respect to a center line along the height direction of the housing. A radio control transmitter for models.

(2) The handle is interposed between the pair of support portions extending at an arbitrary angle with respect to a center line along the height direction of the housing, and the height of the housing. The radio control for a model according to (1), wherein the radio control for a model according to (1) is configured by a handle portion provided perpendicular to a center line along a direction, and the pole-shaped antenna is disposed on the support portion. Transmitter.

(3) The model radio control transmitter according to (2), wherein the support portion extends at an arbitrary inclination toward the back side of the housing.

(4) The model radio control transmitter according to any one of (1) to (3) above, wherein the pole antenna is a dipole antenna.

  According to the present invention, a pole-shaped antenna is tilted orthogonally or at an arbitrary angle with respect to the center line along the height direction of the casing in the handle of the model radio control transmitter casing. It is possible to avoid the antenna axis from facing the direction of the steered object during maneuvering, and to ensure the reliability of the remote control of the steered object wirelessly without the pilot being aware of the antenna orientation. There is an advantage that you can.

  The inventor of the present application paid attention to the antenna arrangement in the model radio control transmitter and implemented the present invention in the following form. According to the inventor's verification, the utility of the antenna placed in the handle in the housing is recognized, and the following embodiments are based on this technical idea.

Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as the present embodiment) will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an external view showing a schematic configuration of a model radio control transmitter (hereinafter referred to as a radio control transmitter) according to the present embodiment, FIG. 1 (a) is a front view, and FIG. 1 (b) is a right side view. FIG. 1 and FIG. 1C are perspective views. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement state of pole antennas in the radio control transmitter according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the radio control transmitter 10 has a housing 20 having a substantially box-shaped outer shape. The housing 20 includes a front surface 20a, a back surface 20b, left and right side surfaces 20c and 20d, an upper surface 20e, and a bottom surface 20f. And left and right shoulder surfaces 20g, 20h. The casing 20 has a thickness dimension T far smaller than the width dimension W and the height dimension H.

  Two stick levers 30 serving as main operation units are provided at the left and right centers of the front surface 20a of the housing 20. The stick lever 30 is in a neutral position as shown in the figure, and each can be tilted in the vertical and horizontal directions around the position.

  Further, the upper surface 20 e of the housing 20 has a generally U-shaped handle 40 in front view. The handle 40 has a pair of support portions 40a and 40b extending at an angle of about 30 ° toward the back side with respect to the center line C along the height direction of the housing 20, and a space between the support portions 40a and 40b. The handle 40c is interposed and provided substantially orthogonal to the center line C. Note that the handle 40 may be formed integrally with the housing 20 or may be formed of a separate member.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the radio control transmitter 10 according to the present embodiment, a pole-shaped antenna 50 is disposed inside a handle 40 of the housing 20. More specifically, the pole-shaped antenna 50 is disposed inside a support portion 40b that constitutes a part of the handle 40.

The pole-shaped antenna 50 is an antenna having an 8-shaped directivity in which a region having a low electric field strength, that is, a so-called null point is generated in the axial direction, as described in the background art. It is a dipole antenna.
However, as described above, the support portion 40b of the handle 40 extends with an inclination of approximately 30 ° toward the back side with respect to the center line C along the height direction of the housing 20, and a pole is formed inside the support portion 40b. A shaped antenna 50 is arranged. For this reason, the pole-shaped antenna 50 is also arranged with its axis inclined in the same manner as the support portion 40b.
Therefore, when the pilot steers (operates) the steered object with the radio control transmitter 10, it can be avoided that the antenna axis of the pole-shaped antenna 50 is directed in the direction in which the steered object exists. Yes.
Note that a circuit board on which various electronic components are arranged, a battery, and the like are housed inside the housing 20.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a basic configuration in the housing of the radio control transmitter according to the present embodiment.

  As shown in the figure, a potentiometer 52 and a modulation circuit 53 are electrically connected to a control IC 51 that controls the operation of the entire radio control transmitter.

  The modulation circuit 53 is electrically connected to the high-frequency oscillation circuit 54 and is also electrically connected to the pole antenna 50 via the high-frequency amplification circuit 55. The control IC 51, the potentiometer 52, the modulation circuit 53, the high frequency transmission circuit 54, and the high frequency amplification circuit 55 are connected to a battery (power source) (not shown).

  The potentiometer 52 is incorporated in the stick lever 30 and detects the operation amount (rotation amount) of the stick lever 30.

  The control IC 51 determines the operation amount based on the detection value of the potentiometer 52 and outputs a signal corresponding to the operation amount to the modulation circuit 53 as a steering signal.

  The modulation circuit 53 modulates the carrier wave signal generated by the high frequency oscillation circuit 54 with the control signal generated by the control IC 51. The modulation method may be any of frequency modulation (FM), pulse code modulation (PCM), amplitude modulation (AM), or spread spectrum (SS) modulation.

  The high frequency amplifier circuit 55 amplifies the steering signal modulated by the modulation circuit 53 for transmission, and outputs the amplified steering signal to the pole antenna 50.

  In such a radio control transmitter 10, the operator supports the side surfaces 20 c and 20 d and the back surface 20 b of the housing 20 with his / her hands so that the front surface 20 a of the housing 20 faces forward, and uses each thumb. Then, the stick lever 30 is operated. As a result, a steering signal corresponding to the pilot's steering (operation) is generated and transmitted from the pole-shaped antenna 50 disposed inside the handle 40 in the housing 20.

Here, the pole-shaped antenna 50 is disposed inside the support portion 40b that extends at an angle of about 30 ° to the back side with respect to the center line C along the height direction of the housing 20, so that the antenna The axis is similarly inclined.
For this reason, in the radio control transmitter 10 according to the present embodiment, the antenna axis of the pole-shaped antenna 50 does not face the direction of the steered object during maneuvering, and the influence of the null point on the steered object can be avoided. It is possible to prevent the steered body from becoming unmanageable due to the influence of the null point in the antenna 50.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a usage state of the radio control transmitter according to the present embodiment. In the figure, A indicates a controlled body such as a model airplane that is remotely controlled by a radio control transmitter.

  In FIG. 4, the to-be-steered object A exists on an extension of the center line along the height direction of the casing of the radio control transmitter. In this case, in the conventional radio control transmitter, the steered object is present in an area where a null point is generated in the pole antenna. For this reason, the electric field strength to the steered object becomes weak, and in some cases, the steered object cannot receive the control signal.

However, in the radio control transmitter according to the present embodiment, since the pole-shaped antenna is disposed in the handle support, the antenna axis is directed downward (on the ground side) from the center line along the height direction of the housing. Null points are also generated in the same direction.
For this reason, the null point does not occur in the direction in which the steered object is present, and the influence of the null point can be avoided. Therefore, the pilot can stably remote the steered object by radio without being aware of the direction of the antenna. Steering is possible.

Furthermore, the radio control transmitter according to the present embodiment has a configuration in which the pole-shaped antenna is disposed inside the handle of the casing and does not appear outside the casing.
For this reason, even when the pilot accidentally contacts the radio control transmitter with a person or an object, accidental breakage of the pole-shaped antenna can be avoided.

  The preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and includes design changes and the like within a scope not departing from the gist of the present invention. It is.

For example, in the above embodiment, the pole-shaped antenna 50 is disposed on the support portion 40b of the handle 40, but the present invention is not necessarily limited to such a form.
The pole-shaped antenna 50 may be disposed on the other support portion 40a of the pair of support portions 40a and 40b constituting the handle 40.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the pole-shaped antenna 50 may be disposed in the handle portion 40 c of the handle 40. The handle portion 40 c of the handle 40 is provided substantially orthogonal to the center line C along the height direction of the housing 20. For this reason, even when a pole-shaped antenna is disposed at the part, the antenna axis of the pole-shaped antenna does not face the direction of the steered body when the pilot steers the steered body.

  Further, the handle support portion is provided with an inclination of approximately 30 ° toward the back side with respect to the center line C along the height direction of the housing. However, the inclination angle may not be approximately 30 °. Moreover, the inclination direction may be the front side.

  In other words, a pole-shaped antenna is arranged inside the handle of the radio control transmitter casing in a state where the antenna axis is orthogonal or inclined at an arbitrary angle with respect to the center line along the height direction of the casing. However, it is sufficient that the pole-shaped antenna does not face the direction of the steered body when maneuvering the steered object. The effect of can be produced.

  The pole-shaped antenna is a dipole antenna, but other pole-shaped antennas having the same directivity, such as a rod antenna (whipped antenna), can be similarly applied. However, by using a dipole antenna, a high antenna gain can be obtained, and stable remote control of the controlled object can be performed wirelessly.

It is an external view which shows schematic structure of the radio control transmitter for models by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the arrangement | positioning state of the pole-shaped antenna in the radio control transmitter for models by this embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the fundamental structure in the housing | casing in the radio control transmitter for models by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the use condition of the radio control transmitter for models by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the arrangement | positioning state of the pole-shaped antenna in the radio control transmitter for models by other embodiment. It is a figure which shows the directional characteristic of a dipole antenna. It is a figure which shows the use condition of the conventional radio control transmitter for models.

Explanation of symbols

10 radio control transmitter for model 20 housing 30 stick lever 40 handle 40a, 40b support portion 40c handle portion 50 pole antenna

Claims (4)

In a model radio control transmitter that has a substantially box-shaped housing and wirelessly transmits a steering signal to a steered object such as a model in accordance with an operation of an operation unit disposed on the housing.
The housing has a handle on the upper surface side, and a pole-shaped antenna is disposed inside the handle with its axis inclined at an angle or an arbitrary angle with respect to a center line along the height direction of the housing. A radio control transmitter for models. The handle includes a pair of support portions extending at an arbitrary angle with respect to a center line along the height direction of the housing, and
It is interposed between the support parts, and is composed of a handgrip part provided perpendicular to the center line along the height direction of the casing,
The model radio control transmitter according to claim 1, wherein the pole-shaped antenna is disposed on the support portion.   The model radio control transmitter according to claim 2, wherein the support portion extends at an arbitrary inclination toward the back side of the housing.   The model radio control transmitter according to claim 1, wherein the pole-shaped antenna is a dipole antenna.

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