PROXIMITY SENSOR DEVICE FOR AN OPERATING DEVICE

The invention relates to a proximity sensor device (1) for an operating device (6), which is designed to detect the approach of an object to the operating device (6) and is arranged, for example, in a vehicle interior. The proximity sensor device (1) has a light source (3), a light guide (2), a light sensor (4), and a control unit (5), wherein the control unit (5) is electrically connected to the operating device (6) and the control unit (5) is designed to evaluate electrical signals from the light sensor (4). The light guide (2), formed substantially as an elongated prism, has four largely planar lateral surfaces, each running nearly parallel to the longitudinal axis of the light guide (2), and two largely planar end faces (14a, 14b), which each run nearly perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the light guide (2). One of the lateral surfaces is designed as a light coupling-in surface (10) and one of the lateral surfaces, which is opposite to the light coupling-in surface (10), is designed as a light coupling-out surface (13). The light coupling-in surface (10) has a first outer light coupling-in region (11a), which is arranged at the first of the end faces (14a), a second outer light coupling-in region (11b), which is arranged at the second of the end faces (14b), and an inner light coupling-in region (12), which is arranged between the outer light coupling-in regions (11a, 11b).