U.S. patent application number 16/233823 was filed with the patent office on 2020-02-13 for electronic device and click pad thereof.
The applicant listed for this patent is CHICONY ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.. Invention is credited to Chia-Wei CHANG, Guo-Yu SHI, Kuang-Shen UANG.
Application Number | 20200050241 16/233823 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 68619121 |
Filed Date | 2020-02-13 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200050241 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
UANG; Kuang-Shen ; et
al. |
February 13, 2020 |
ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND CLICK PAD THEREOF
Abstract
A click pad which is applied to an electronic device includes a
top board, a circuit board, a metal elastic board, a conductive
connection layer, a bottom bracket and a restoration unit. The
circuit board is located under the top board and connected to the
top board. The metal elastic board under the circuit board includes
a metal elastic board main body and a connection part. A buffer gap
is formed between the metal elastic board main body and the circuit
board. The connection part connects to the metal elastic board main
body. The conductive connection layer connects to the circuit board
and the connection part. The bottom bracket under the metal elastic
board includes a protruding part. The protruding part supports the
metal elastic board main body. The restoration unit supports the
circuit board.
Inventors: |
UANG; Kuang-Shen; (New
Taipei City, TW) ; CHANG; Chia-Wei; (New Taipei City,
TW) ; SHI; Guo-Yu; (New Taipei City, TW) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
CHICONY ELECTRONICS CO., LTD. |
New Taipei City |
|
TW |
|
|
Family ID: |
68619121 |
Appl. No.: |
16/233823 |
Filed: |
December 27, 2018 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 1/169 20130101;
H05K 1/0215 20130101; G06F 3/03547 20130101; G06F 1/1656
20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06F 1/16 20060101
G06F001/16; H05K 1/02 20060101 H05K001/02; G06F 3/0354 20060101
G06F003/0354 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Aug 9, 2018 |
TW |
107127845 |
Claims
1. A click pad, applied to an electronic device, the electronic
device comprising an upper case and a lower case, the click pad
comprising: a top board, located under the upper case; a circuit
board, located under the top board and connected to the top board;
a metal elastic board, located under the circuit board, wherein the
metal elastic board comprises: a metal elastic board main body,
wherein a buffer gap is formed between the metal elastic board main
body and the circuit board, and the buffer gap provides a buffer
function to prevent a pressing force causing an excessive
deformation; and at least one connection part, connected to the
metal elastic board main body; at least one conductive connection
layer, connected to the at least one connection part and the
circuit board; a bottom bracket, located under the metal elastic
board and located above the lower case, wherein the bottom bracket
comprises at least one protruding part and the at least one
protruding part supports the metal elastic board main body; and a
restoration unit, supporting the circuit board.
2. The click pad as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bottom bracket
further comprises at least one hole, and the at least one hole is
located on the at least one protruding part.
3. The click pad as claimed in claim 2, further comprising at least
one ground solder pad, wherein the at least one ground solder pad
passes through the at least one hole to connect to the metal
elastic board main body.
4. The click pad as claimed in claim 3, further comprising a first
adhesive layer, and the first adhesive layer is located between the
top board and the circuit board.
5. The click pad as claimed in claim 4, further comprising a second
adhesive layer, wherein the second adhesive layer is located
between the protruding part and the metal elastic board main
body.
6. The click pad as claimed in claim 5, wherein the at least one
conductive connection layer is a solder paste attached on the at
least one connection part via executing Surface-Mount Technology to
the at least one connection part.
7. An electronic device, comprising: an upper case; a lower case;
and a click pad, comprising: a top board, located under the upper
case; a circuit board, located under the top board and connected to
the top board; a metal elastic board, located under the circuit
board, wherein the metal elastic board comprises: a metal elastic
board main body, wherein a buffer gap is formed between the metal
elastic board main body and the circuit board, and the buffer gap
provides a buffer function to prevent a pressing force causing an
excessive deformation; and at least one connection part, connected
to the metal elastic board main body; at least one conductive
connection layer, connected to the at least one connection part and
the circuit board; a bottom bracket, located under the metal
elastic board and located above the lower case, wherein the bottom
bracket comprises at least one protruding part, and the at least
one protruding part supports the metal elastic board main body; and
a restoration unit, supporting the circuit board.
8. The electronic device as claimed in claim 7, wherein the bottom
bracket further comprises at least one hole, and the at least one
hole is located on the at least one protruding part.
9. The electronic device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the click
pad further comprises at least one ground solder pad, and the at
least one ground solder pad passes through the at least one hole to
connect to the metal elastic board main body.
10. The electronic device as claimed in claim 9, wherein the click
pad further comprises a first adhesive layer, and the first
adhesive layer is located between the top board and the circuit
board.
11. The electronic device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the click
pad further comprises a second adhesive layer, and the second
adhesive layer is located between the protruding part and the metal
elastic board main body.
12. The electronic device as claimed in claim 11, wherein the at
least one conductive connection layer is a solder paste attached on
the at least one connection part via executing Surface-Mount
Technology to the at least one connection part.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention relates to a click pad; more
particularly, the present invention relates to a click pad which
has a streamlined structure such that the click pad is easy and
fast to produce.
2. Description of the Related Art
[0002] A common notebook computer usually has a click pad located
below the keyboard board for allowing the user to use a finger to
press the click pad or slide on the click pad to give a touch
instruction to the notebook computer. When producing the click pad,
a worker has to use an adhesive or fastener to combine the glass
panel, the circuit board, the dome sheet and the bottom bracket to
assemble the click pad, and also has to install an additional
grounding metal strip between the circuit board and the bottom
bracket so that excess electricity can be transferred to the
outside of the click pad via the grounding metal strip.
[0003] However, the production process of combining the glass
panel, the circuit board, the restoration unit and the bottom
bracket is very complicated. Moreover, installing the additional
grounding metal strip also increases the production cost and
assembly time.
[0004] Therefore, there is a need to provide a new click pad which
has a streamlined structure such that the click pad is easy and
fast to produce.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] It is an object of the present invention to provide a click
pad which has a streamlined structure such that the click pad is
easy and fast to produce.
[0006] To achieve the abovementioned object, a click pad of the
present invention is applied to an electronic device. The
electronic device includes an upper case and a lower case. The
click pad includes a top board, a circuit board, a metal elastic
board, at least one conductive connection layer, a bottom bracket
and a restoration unit. The top board is located under the upper
case. The circuit board is located under the top board and
connected to the top board. The metal elastic board is located
under the circuit board. The metal elastic board includes a metal
elastic board main body and at least one connection part. A buffer
gap is formed between the metal elastic board main body and the
circuit board. The connection part is connected to the metal
elastic board main body. The conductive connection layer is
connected to the connection part and the circuit board. The bottom
bracket is located under the metal elastic board and located above
the lower case. The bottom bracket includes at least one protruding
part. The protruding part supports the metal elastic board main
body. The restoration unit supports the circuit board.
[0007] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the
bottom bracket further includes at least one hole, and the hole is
located on the protruding part.
[0008] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the
click pad further includes at least one ground solder pad, and the
ground solder pad passes through the hole to connect to the metal
elastic board main body.
[0009] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the
click pad further includes a first adhesive layer, and the first
adhesive layer is located between the top board and the circuit
board.
[0010] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the
click pad further includes a second adhesive layer, and the second
adhesive layer is located between the protruding part and the metal
elastic board main body.
[0011] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the
conductive connection layer is a solder paste attached on the
connection part by Surface-Mount Technology.
[0012] Another object of the present invention is to provide an
electronic device, which has a click with a streamlined structure
such that the click pad is easy and fast to produce.
[0013] To achieve the abovementioned object, an electronic device
of the present invention includes an upper case, a lower case and a
click pad. The click pad includes a top board, a circuit board, a
metal elastic board, at least one conductive connection layer, a
bottom bracket and a restoration unit. The top board is located
under the upper case. The circuit board is located under the top
board and connected to the top board. The metal elastic board is
located under the circuit board. The metal elastic board includes a
metal elastic board main body and at least one connection part. A
buffer gap is formed between the metal elastic board main body and
the circuit board. The connection part is connected to the metal
elastic board main body. The conductive connection layer is
connected to the connection part and the circuit board. The bottom
bracket is located under the metal elastic board and located above
the lower case. The bottom bracket includes at least one protruding
part. The protruding part supports the metal elastic board main
body. The restoration unit supports the circuit board.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] These and other objects and advantages of the present
invention will become apparent from the following description of
the accompanying drawings, which disclose several embodiments of
the present invention. It is to be understood that the drawings are
to be used for purposes of illustration only, and not as a
definition of the invention.
[0015] In the drawings, wherein similar reference numerals denote
similar elements throughout the several views:
[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic drawing of the electronic
device in the first embodiment of the present invention.
[0017] FIG. 2 illustrates an exploded drawing of the click pad in
the first embodiment of the present invention.
[0018] FIG. 3 illustrates a sectional view of the click pad in the
first embodiment of the present invention along the section line AA
shown in FIG. 2.
[0019] FIG. 4 illustrates a bottom schematic drawing of the bottom
bracket when the metal elastic board main body and the protruding
part are combined in the first embodiment of the present
invention.
[0020] FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic drawing of the metal elastic
board and the bottom bracket in the second embodiment of the
present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0021] Please refer to FIG. 1 to FIG. 4, which illustrate the
electronic device and the click pad thereof in the first embodiment
of the present invention. FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic drawing of
the electronic device in the first embodiment of the present
invention. FIG. 2 illustrates an exploded drawing of the click pad
in the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3
illustrates a sectional view of the click pad in the first
embodiment of the present invention along the section line AA shown
in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 illustrates a bottom schematic drawing of the
bottom bracket when the metal elastic board main body and the
protruding part are combined in the first embodiment of the present
invention.
[0022] As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3, in the first embodiment of the
present invention, the click pad 1 is a flat plate with touching
and pressing function. The click pad 1 has a streamlined structure
which is easy and fast to produce such that this structure of click
pad 1 can save the manufacturing cost and time. The click pad 1 is
applied to an electronic device 900. The electronic device 900 of
this embodiment is a notebook computer, which has an upper case 910
and a lower case 920. The click pad 1 is embedded in the upper case
910 and located above the lower case 920. The user can use a finger
to operate the click pad 1 which is exposed out of the upper case
910. The click pad 1 includes a top board 10, a circuit board 20, a
metal elastic board 30, three conductive connection layers 40, a
bottom bracket 50, two ground solder pads 60, a restoration unit
70, a first adhesive layer 80 and a second adhesive layer 90.
[0023] In the first embodiment of the present invention, the top
board 10 is under the upper case 910. The top board 10 can be a
glass board, a metal board or a plastic board. The top board 10 is
used for allowing the user to use a finger to press, slide or
touch, and the top board 10 can also cover and protect the other
components of the click pad 1. The circuit board 20 is located
under the top board 10 and connected to the top board 10. The
circuit board 20 is used for providing the function of sensing a
touch to sense the touch action of the user's finger on the top
board 10; however, the principle of sensing a touch of the circuit
board 20 is already disclosed in the art of touch technology, it is
not the focus of the present invention, and there is no need for
furthermore description.
[0024] In the first embodiment of the present invention, the metal
elastic board 30 is located under the circuit board 20 and close to
one side of the circuit board 20. The thickness of the metal
elastic board 30 is between 0.05 and 0.2 millimeter, but the
thickness can be changed according to design requirements. The
metal elastic board 30 includes a metal elastic board main body 31
and three connection parts 32. The metal elastic board main body 31
is a flexible metal long strip. The long strip structure and
elasticity of the metal elastic board main body 31 can reduce the
deformation effect caused by compression of the assembly. A buffer
gap 100 is formed between the metal elastic board main body 31 and
the circuit board 20. The three connection parts 32 are connected
to the metal elastic board main body 31 and combine with the
circuit board 20 via the conductive connection layer 40. However,
the amount of the connection parts 32 is not limited to three; the
amount can be changed to one or more according to design
requirements.
[0025] In the first embodiment of the present invention, the
bottoms of the three conductive connection layers 40 (which are
shown as the dotted area on the three connection parts 32 shown in
FIG. 2) are connected to the three connection parts 32, and the
tops of the three conductive connection layers 40 are connected to
the circuit board 20. Each of the conductive connection layers 40
is attached with a solder paste to the connection parts 32 by
Surface-Mount Technology (SMT); however, the amount and the type of
the connection parts 32 and the method of attaching the connection
parts 32 on the conductive connection layer 40 are not limited to
the abovementioned description; for example, the conductive
connection layer 40 can also be another kind of metal paste
attached on the connection parts 32 via welding, and the amount of
the conductive connection layer 40 can be changed according to the
amount of the connection parts 32. In one embodiment which is not
shown in the drawing, the metal elastic board 30 has only two
connection parts 32, and the metal elastic board 30 is a flexible
U-shaped metal slice.
[0026] In the first embodiment of the present invention, the bottom
bracket 50 is located under the metal elastic board 30 and above
the lower case 920. The bottom bracket 50 includes a protruding
part 51 and two holes 52. The protruding part 51 is a protruding
structure formed via stamping the flat area of the bottom bracket
50. The protruding part 51 supports the metal elastic board main
body 31. The protruding part 51 enhances the rigidity of the
overall structure, raises the components stacked on the protruding
part 51 and creates a hollow space, allowing the click pad 1 to
achieve the cantilever effect and the pressing function; however,
the principle of the pressing function is already disclosed in the
art of touch technology and is not the focus of the present
invention, so there is no need for furthermore description. The two
holes 52 are located on the protruding part 51, and each of the
holes 52 is used for containing the ground solder pad 60.
[0027] As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, in the first embodiment of
the present invention, the two ground solder pads 60 respectively
pass through the two holes 52 and connect to the metal elastic
board main body 31. The two ground solder pads 60 are formed via
filling solder into each of the holes 52; the solder of the ground
solder pad 60 in the hole 52 combines the hole 52 and the metal
elastic board main body 31 to enhance the combination between the
metal elastic board 30 and the bottom bracket 50. Because the metal
material of the conductive connection layer 40 and the metal
elastic board 30 are both conductive, the excess electricity of the
circuit board 20 can be transferred to the ground solder pad 60 via
the electrical connection between the conductive connection layer
40 and the metal elastic board 30; the ground solder pad 60 can
transfer the excess electricity to the outside to provide a
grounding function. Furthermore, because the ground solder pad 60
is located in the bottom bracket 50, the ground solder pad 60 will
not occupy additional space in the electronic device 900.
[0028] As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, in the first embodiment of
the present invention, the restoration unit 70 supports the circuit
board 20. When the user uses a finger to press the top board 10,
then the top board 10 and the circuit board 20, via the cantilever
principle, will tilt downwardly on an axis which is the connection
point of the metal elastic board main body 31 and the protruding
part 51, and the buffer gap 100 provides a buffer function to
prevent the pressing force causing excessive deformation of the
overall structure; when the user no longer presses the click pad 1,
the restoration unit 70 supports the circuit board 20 and the top
board 10 via elasticity such that the circuit board 20 and the top
board 10 return to the original position; in a preferred
embodiment, the restoration unit 70 is a dome sheet, but the type
of the restoration unit 70 is not limited to that design, and the
restoration unit 70 can be another elastic component which can
provide a restoration force.
[0029] As shown in FIG. 3, in the first embodiment of the present
invention, the first adhesive layer 80 is a grid adhesive. The
first adhesive layer 80 is located between the top board 10 and the
circuit board 20. The first adhesive layer 80 is used for stably
combining the top board 10 and the circuit board 20. The second
adhesive layer 90 is a hot glue or an adhesive. The second adhesive
layer 90 is located between the protruding part 51 and the metal
elastic board main body 31. The second adhesive layer 90 is used
for stably combining the protruding part 51 and the metal elastic
board main body 31. In a preferred embodiment, the second adhesive
layer 90 is not located on the hole 52 such that the second
adhesive layer 90 will not interfere with the transfer of
electricity of the ground solder pad 60.
[0030] As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, when assembling the click pad
1 in the first embodiment of the present invention, first, during
the Surface-Mount Technology processing for the circuit board 20,
the assembly staff can also execute the Surface-Mount Technology
processing to the connection parts 32 such that the three
conductive connection layers 40 are respectively attached on the
three connection parts 32; therefore, the production processing and
time can be saved. Then the assembly staff can combine the three
connection parts 32 and the circuit board 20 via the conductive
connection layers 40, and the buffer gap 100 is formed between the
metal elastic board main body 31 and the circuit board 20. Then the
assembly staff can put the first adhesive layer 80 on the bottom
face of the top board 10 and put the top board 10 and the first
adhesive layer 80 on the circuit board 20 such that the top board
10 and the circuit board 20 are stably combined by the first
adhesive layer 80. Then the assembly staff can connect the
restoration unit 70 to the bottom face of the circuit board 20 with
the adhesive. Then the assembly staff can put the second adhesive
layer 90 on the protruding part 51 without letting the second
adhesive layer 90 contact the hole 52 and put the metal elastic
board main body 31 on the second adhesive layer 90 and the
protruding part 51 such that the protruding part 51 and the metal
elastic board main body 31 are stably combined by the second
adhesive layer 90. Finally, the assembly staff can fill the solder
into each of the holes 52 to form the ground solder pad 60 in the
hole 52 such that the ground solder pad 60 in the hole 52 can
combine with the hole 52 and the metal elastic board main body 31;
thereby, the assembly of the click pad 1 is completed. Because the
components of the click pad 1 are superposed on each other and
connected to each other along the Z axis (wherein the Z axis is the
direction which is perpendicular to the plane of the top board 10),
then during the assembly process, the assembly staff can easily
stack the components of the click pad 1 along the Z axis or operate
an automatable machine to easily execute the stacking action of the
components of the click pad 1 along the Z axis to further improve
the assembly efficiency.
[0031] Please refer to FIG. 5, which illustrates the electronic
device and the click pad thereof in the second embodiment of the
present invention. FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic drawing of the
metal elastic board and the bottom bracket in the second embodiment
of the present invention.
[0032] As shown in FIG. 5, the difference between the second
embodiment and the first embodiment is that, in the second
embodiment, the bottom bracket 50a includes two protruding parts
51a, and the two holes 52 are respectively located on the two
protruding parts 51a. The two protruding parts 51a are both located
under the metal elastic board main body 31. The two protruding
parts 51a enhance the rigidity of the overall structure. However,
the amount of the protruding parts 51a is not limited to the
abovementioned description, and the amount can be changed according
to design requirements.
[0033] Via the design of the click pad in the present invention,
there is no need to install an additional grounding metal strip for
the click pad, and the assembly staff can easily drill a hole in
the bottom bracket and fill the ground solder pad into the hole to
achieve the grounding effect; therefore, the cost of the grounding
metal strip can be saved; furthermore, because the ground solder
pad is located in the bottom bracket, the ground solder pad does
not occupy extra space in the electronic device. In addition, the
components of the click pad are superposed on each other and
connected to each other along the Z axis such that during the
assembly process, the assembly staff can stack the components of
the click pad along the Z axis or operate an automatable machine to
easily execute the stacking action of the components of the click
pad along the Z axis to easily and quickly assemble the click
pad.
* * * * *