Double-action push switch slims for handsets

Horizontal-type double-action push switch has been developed for small mobile devices such as mobile phones with cameras and digital cameras.

Alps Electric will commence mass production of its new SPEE Series horizontal-type double-action push switch this month.

The SPEE Series has been developed for small mobile devices such as mobile phones with cameras and digital cameras.

The trend toward smaller, flatter mobile phones, digital cameras and other mobile devices with a wider variety of functions is continuing unabated.

For instance, new mobile phone models with high-resolution cameras, which allow users to shoot high-quality pictures, are being released in quick succession.

In step with increasing picture resolution, there is a growing demand for auto-focus camera functions that enable users to focus their cameras on both close-up objects and infinity.

The SPEE Series can accommodate such autofocus functions by means of its double-action mechanism: the first action, which involves lightly pressing the shutter button (the "first position"), determines the object being photographed; the second action takes the picture when the button is pressed down (to the "second position").

The SPEE Series is the industry's smallest double-action push switch, measuring 4.0 x 5.0 x 1.22mm.

Being a horizontal type, the switch operates horizontally against the circuit board on which it is embedded.

On recent mobile phones with high-resolution cameras, shutter buttons have increasingly been positioned on the side of the camera casings.

This feature enables more stable picture shooting, allowing users to hold their mobile phones firmly with their both hands, in the same way as a digital camera.

Using a vertical-type switch for a mobile phone with the shutter button on the side would require space to accommodate the switch's length and width as well as cause problems in making mobile phones even flatter.

The horizontal motion against the circuit board and lower profile of the SPEE Series provide a solution that results in flatter mobile phone casings.

To satisfy user demands for a more realistic feel when operating the shutter, despite the small casing, the SPEE Series provides a total travel of 0.9mm and an overtravel of 0.19mm.

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