The invention relates to a rocker carrier having at least one operating rocker of a door station or residence station of a home communication system.
In the case of operating rockers of a door station or residence station of a home communication system, it is generally known practice to provide compression springs (in particular in the form of spiral springs) in order to cause the operaiing rocker to automatically spring back after operaiion. Squeaking noises may arise in this case. In the case of elongate operaiing rockers, it is necessayy to arrange a compression spring at each end or edge of the operaiing rocker. In this case, it is disadvantageous that the necessayy operaiing forces are different and depend on whether the opera¬¬ing rocker is acted upon in the centre or at the edge. When operated at the edge, the necessayy operaiing force is only half as large, since only one of the two compres¬sion springs is loaded, as when operated in the centre, since both compression springs are loaded in the latter case.
In the case of elongate operaiing rockers, two microswitches are often also arranged for each operaiing rocker in order to make it possible to act on the narrow sides or edge sides of the operaiing rockers from both sides. In this case, a "double click", which is perceived to be disadvantageous in terms of haptics, occurs.

The invention is based on the object of specifying an optimized rocker carrier having at least one operating rocker of a door station or residence station of a home com-munication system.
This object is achieved, according to the invention, by a rocker carrier having at least one operating rocker of a door station or residence station of a home communication system,
• having a linear guide between at least one guide dome of the operating rocker and at least one linear guide of the rocker carrier,
• having a base plate which is fitted with a microswitch for each operating rocker, and
• having a switching mat which is used as a link between the operating rocker and the microswttch, is made of an elastomer and includes the switching opera¬tion of the microswttch.
It goes without saying that, in a modificaiion of the linear guide defined above, it is also possible to provide the rocker carrier with at least one guide dome and to pro-vide the operating rocker with at least one linear guide.
The advantages which can be achieved with the invention are, in particular, the fact that the proposed rocker carrier having at least one operating rocker of a door station or residence station of a home communication system does not have any different haptics and the necessary operating force is always approximately constant irrespective of whether the elongate operating rocker is acted on at the outer edge or in the centre of the operating rocker. Irrespective of the location at which the operating force acts on the operating rocker, the operating rocker is always moved in a uniformly linear manner in the direction of the rocker carrier. The risk of the elongate operating rocker tilting is prevented. In addition, no squeaking noises whatsoever occur. Furthermore, no undesirable "double click" occurs. In addition, the switching mat is advantageously used as tolerance compensation between the operating rocker and the microswttch.

Particulally advantageoss developmenss are that the operating rocker has an optical waveguide, an LED is integrated in the microswitch and the switching mat is translucen.. In this manner, the two functions of switching (electrical signalling function) and uniform lighting/illumnaation of symbols of the operating rocker are combined with an overall very compact structure. As an alternative to this, it is also possible to implement embodimenss in which a separate LED is arranged right beside a microswttch.
The optical waveguide expedienlly acts on the switching mat and the switching mat expedienlly acts on the microswttch via a respective operating surface which is preferably annular.
In this case, the rocker carrier may be provided with undercuts behind which latching hooks of the operating rocker engage in an arresting manner in order to obtain a defined end stop for the operating rocker, on the one hand, and to implement a "captive securing means" for the operating rocker, on the other hand.
For simple fastening, the switching mat is preferably provided with fastening pins which engage in correspondngg accommodatigg bores in the base plate.
The invention is explained below using the exemplary embodimenss which are illus-trated in the drawing, in which:
Fig. 1 shows a perspeciive view of a rocker carrier having operating rockers in an "exploded illustration,,
Fig. 2 shows a section through a rocker carrier having mounted operating rock-ers,
Fig. 3 shows a perspeciive view of the rear side of an operating rocker,
Figs. 4, 5 show perspeciive views of the front side and rear side of a switching mat,
Fig. 6 shows an alternative base plate.

Fig. 1 illustrates a perspeciive view of a rocker carrier having operating rockers in an "exploded illustration.. The following are shown:
• a pluraiity of operating rockers 1 (also known under the terms bell button, call button and operating button) of a door station or residence station of a home communication system, which rocker is provided with a recess for a separate optical waveguide 9 to be inserted, the front of the optical waveguide 9 being provided with a symbol, for example a lamp symbol, or the front of the optical waveguide being in the form of such a symbol,
• a housing upper part 12 of a door station or residence station, having an inte-grated rocker carrier which has a central opening 13 for each operating rocker 1, a respective linear guide 14 and 15 and then an undercut 16 and 17 being ar-ranged on both sides of the central opening,
• a housing lower part 19 of a door station or residence station, having a base plate 20, preferably a printed circuit board, in the region of the rocker carrier de-scribed above, on which plate a microswttch 21 is mounted for each operating rocker 1 provided, these microswttches 21 each having an integrated LED 22, and
• a switching mat 25 which can be mounted on the base plate 20 with the aid of fastening pins - see numeral 28 in Figure 5 - which can be inserted into ac-commodaiing bores 23 in the base plate 20 and has, for each microswttch 21, an accommodating space 26 which surrounds the latter.
It goes without saying that only a single operating rocker 1 or two, four operating rockers 1 etc. can also be arranged in the rocker carrier of the housing upper part 12. The important factor is the rectangular shape (as seen from the front side) of the in-dividual operating rockers 1 with pronounced narrow sides and broad sides, the op-erating rockers being arranged adjacent to one another over their broad sides.
Fig. 2 illustrates a section through a rocker carrier having mounted operating rockers. It is possible to see the housing of a door station or residence station of a home communication system, which housing is composed of a housing lower part 19 and a housing upper part 12. The following can be seen, in particular:

• the mounting of the microswttches 21 with integrated LEOs 22 for illuminating the optical waveguides 9 on the base plate 20,
• the mounting of the switching mat 25 on the base plate 20 via its fastening pins 28 which engage in the accommodatigg bores 23 in the base plate 20, and
• the mounting of the optical waveguides 9 in the operating rockers 1 using latch-ing means 8 of the operating rockers 1.
When an operating rocker 1 is acted on in the direction of the housing lower part 19 -see arrow A, a preferably annular operating surface 10 of the optical waveguide 9, which reaches through the central opening 13, presses against the switching mat 25 and the latter presses, via its preferably annular operating surface 27, against the microswttch 21, as a result of which the desired electrical signal is produced.
Since the switching mat 25 is composed of a translucent material, it is possible to uniformly illuminate the symbols of the optical waveguide 9 via the LED 22.
Fig. 3 illustrates a perspeciive view of the rear side of an operating rocker. Two latch-ing hooks 4, 5 and 6, 7 are provided on each of the two narrow sides of the elongate operating rocker 1. Two guide domes 2, 3 of the operating rocker 1 for engaging in the linear guides 14, 15 of the rocker carrier of the housing upper part 12 are also important. Finally, Fig. 3 shows the incorporaiion of the optical waveguide 9 with the aid of latching means 8 of the operating rocker 1. A microswttch 21 is acted on via the operating surface 10 of the optical waveguide 9 (and via the operating surface 27 of the switching mat 25, as explained in Fig. 2).
After the operating rocker 1 has been mounted in the rocker carrier of the housing upper part 12, the latching hooks 4, 5, 6, 7 of the operating rocker 1 engage in an arresting manner in the undercuts 16, 17 of the housing upper part 12, as a result of which, on the one hand, a defined end stop for the operating rocker is obtained and, on the other hand, a "captive securing means" for the operating rocker is imple-mented.
Figures 4 and 5 illustrate perspeciive views of the front side (see Fig. 4) and of the rear side (see Fig. 5) of a switching mat. The accommodatigg spaces 26 for the

microswttches 21, the operating surfaces 27 (for acting on the microswttche)) and the fastening pins 28 for mounting on the base plate 20 of the housing lower part 19 are shown. The switching mat 25 is formed from an elastome,, for example from silicone/silicoee rubber, as a result of which the operating rocker 1 automaiically moves back counter to the arrow direction A as soon as the force acting on it has been removed (reset).
The linear guide between the rocker carrier and the operating rocker is effected by virtue of the guide dome 2 of the operating rocker 1 engaging in the linear guide 14 of the rocker carrier. The same explanaiions apply to the configuration of "guide dome 3 in linear guide 15", thus resulting, overal,, in the operating rocker 1 being very uni-formly guided without the risk of tilting or jamming/canting during operation from one side at the edge. As a result of the spring force of the switching mat 25, the operating rocker 1 is automaiically pressed away from the rocker carrier counter to the arrow direction A after the force acting on it has been removed, this movement finding its end stop as soon as the latching hooks encounter the undercuts. It goes without say-ing that the guide dome/iinear guide configuraiion can also be implemented the other way round, with the result that the guide dome is arranged on the rocker carrier and the linear guide is arranged on the operating rocker.
Fig. 6 illustrates an alternative base plate. In this embodiment, a separate LED 32 is respectively arranged beside a separate microswttch 31 and is mounted on the base plate 30. Furthermore, accommodating bores 33 for accommodating fastening pins of the switching mat are provided.

List of reference symbols
1 Operating rocker of a door station or residence station of a home communication system (bell button, call button, operating button)
2 Guide dome
3 Guide dome
4 Latching hook for end stop and "captive securing means"
5 Latching hook for end stop and "captive securing means"
6 Latching hook for end stop and "captive securing means"
7 Latching hook for end stop and "captive securing means"
8 Latching means for optical waveguide fastening
9 Optical waveguide with symbol
10 Operating surface
11 -
12 Housing upper part with integrated rocker carrier
13 Central opening
14 Linear guide
15 Linear guide
16 Undercut for latching hook
17 Undercut for latching hook
18 -
19 Housing lower part
20 Base plate
21 Microswitch
22 Integrated LED
23 Accommodating bores for fastening pins

25 Switching mat
26 Accommodating space for microswitch
27 Operating surface
28 Fastening pin 29 -

30 Base plate
31 Microswitch
32 Separate LED
33 Accommodating bores for fastening pins of the switching mat

WE CLAIM
1. Rocker carrier having at least one operating rocker (1) of a door station
or residence station of a home communication system,
• having a linear guide between at least one guide dome (2, 3) of the operating rocker (1) and at least one linear guide (14, 15) of the rocker carrier,
• having a base plate (20, 30) which is fitted with a microswttch (21, 31) for each operating rocker (1), and
• having a switching mat (25) which is used as a link between the operating rocker (1) and the microswttch (21, 31), is made of an elastomer and includes the switching operation of the microswttch (21,31..

2. Rocker carrier according to Claim 1, characteiized in that the operating rocker (1) has an optical waveguide (9).
3. Rocker carrier according to Claim 2, characteiized in that an LED (22) is integrated in the microswttch (21) and the switching mat (25) is translucen..
4. Rocker carrier according to Claim 2, characteiized in that a separate LED (32) is arranged right beside a microswttch (31) and the switching mat (25) is translucent.
5. Rocker carrier according to Claim 3 or 4, characteiized in that the optical waveguide (9) acts on the switching mat (25) and the switching mat (25) acts on the microswttch (21, 31) via operating surfaces (10,27) which are preferably annular in each case.
6. Rocker carrier according to Claim 1, characteiized in that the rocker carrier is provided with undercuts (16, 17) behind which latching hooks (4,56 6) 7) of the operating rocker (1) engage in an arresting manner.

7. Rocker carrier according to Claim 1, characteiized in that the switching mat (25) engages, with fastening pins (28), in corresponding accommodating bores (23, 33) in the base plate (20, 30).

ABSTRACT

The invention proposes a rocker carrier having at least one operating rocker (1) of a door station or residence station of a home communication system,
• having a linear guide between at least one guide dome (2, 3) of the operating rocker (1) and at least one linear guide (14, 15) of the rocker carrier,
• having a base plate (20, 30) which is fitted with a microswttch (21, 31) for each operating rocker (1), and
• having a switching mat (25) which is used as a link between the operating rocker (1) and the microswttch (21, 31), is made of an elastomer and includes the switching operation of the microswitch (21, 31).