KR20100116453A - Key input apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A key input apparatus is provided to prevent the malfunction thereof by recognizing a touch input on a single-side. CONSTITUTION: A first plate member(110) is placed at a lower portion of a substrate and includes first and second contact units(111,113) on the vertical and horizontal axes thereof to correspond to text or numbers. A touch pad is placed at a lower portion of the first plate member and comprises a second plate member at which a ground pattern(121) is formed. If the object is touched on an upper portion of the substrate, a touch pad driving device is connected to the first and second contact units and scans the horizontal and vertical axes to the crossing points of the vertical and horizontal axes as a touch position.

Description

Key input apparatus

The present invention relates to a key input device, and more particularly, a plurality of first contact parts and second contact parts may be disposed together in a plate member, or a biaxial pattern and a ground pattern may be disposed together in a second plate member. The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a key input device which can reduce manufacturing cost while reducing the cost.

In general, a key input device, a touch pad, has a technology of performing a predetermined driving operation by a touch of a finger. Such touch pads include cathode ray tubes (CRTs), liquid crystal displays (LCDs), field emission displays (FEDs), plasma display panels (PDPs), and electroluminescent devices (Electro Luminescence). It is installed on the display surface of a display device such as a device (LCD) and a mobile phone, and the user presses the touch panel while looking at the display device to input predetermined information.

In order to efficiently use various electronic devices, a touch pad for inputting a signal on a display surface of a display device without a remote controller or a separate input device is widely used. That is, the touch pad is provided on the display surface of an electronic organizer, a flat panel display device such as an LCD, a PDP, an EL, and an image display device such as a CRT. Accordingly, when the user presses the surface with a pen or finger on the screen of the image display device, information corresponding to the position is input.

The touch pad may be classified into a resistive type, a capacitive type, an electro-magnetic type, and the like according to a method of sensing a touch.

The basic structure of the capacitive touch pad among the touch pads is as follows. After forming a transparent electrode on the back side of the substrate made of a transparent material and applying a voltage at each corner or corner of the substrate to generate a uniform electric field on the transparent electrode, when a finger or a conductive stylus contacts It is a device that finds the position coordinate where the finger is in contact by causing the drop to occur.

In general, the touch pad driving semiconductor chip (touch pad driving chip) reads the amount of charge transferred according to whether the touch pad is touched or not to determine whether a specific terminal of the touch pad is touched, and thus the data is read. It plays a role.

Conventional technology for such a touch pad is disclosed in Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2009-0019881 (capacitive touch panel and keypad integrated communication terminal device including the same). As shown in FIG. 1, the prior art has a plurality of transparent electrode layers 314 formed on the substrate 310 and a connection line connecting the plurality of transparent electrode layers 314 to terminals 316 of the flexible circuit board, respectively. A circuit pattern consisting of 315 is included. According to the related art, a transparent electrode layer is connected to an IC chip of a touch pad driving device through a connection line. In this case, a plurality of leads are disposed on the IC chip. There is a problem that is difficult to choose. That is, in order to recognize 12 letters or numbers, 12 transparent electrode layers are required. Therefore, since at least 12 leads are required to be provided on the chip, it is difficult to select a chip having fewer or less leads or fewer leads. There is a problem such as using a plurality of chips.

This problem is solved by Korea Patent No. 8010501 (transparent touch switch keypad). The conventional driving scheme is to reduce the number of leads of the IC chip. In order to reduce the number of leads of the IC chip, a plurality of circuit patterns 4 and 5 are present on the vertical axis of the horizontal axis, respectively. When is selected, the terminal unit in the vertical axis direction is sequentially scanned to determine at which position the finger is touched. That is, the position where the finger first touched is determined by the combination of the horizontal axis and the vertical axis. For example, if you want to recognize 12 letters or numbers, such as letters or numbers on the intersection of 4 horizontal axes and 3 vertical axes, only 7 leads that can recognize 4 horizontal axes and 3 vertical axes It is desirable to need this.

However, in the above technique, since both the horizontal circuit pattern and the vertical circuit pattern are formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the transparent plate, the coating layers must be formed on both the upper and lower surfaces to protect the respective horizontal circuit pattern and the vertical circuit pattern. This is undesirable in terms of cost as well as overall labor costs and other overall thicknesses.

In the case of this technology, the touch of the human body such as a finger is detected on both the upper and lower surfaces, in which case there is a risk of malfunction. For example, when the user touches the upper surface of the mobile phone with the finger of the right hand while the user holds the back of the mobile phone with the left hand, a predetermined input operation should be performed only by the touch of the right hand. The palm of the left hand touches the mobile phone. This affects the operation of the pad, which causes a problem that a user cannot input a desired number or letter. In particular, such a problem may occur in the case of a slim mobile phone having a thin thickness of the mobile phone.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and more particularly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a key input device capable of recognizing a touch on only one surface, without fear of malfunction.

Key input device of the present invention for achieving the above object is a substrate of a transparent material formed in a matrix form of a predetermined letter or number consisting of a plurality of horizontal axis and vertical axis,

A first plate member disposed below the substrate, the first plate member having a plurality of first and second contact portions formed on the horizontal axis and the vertical axis to correspond to the letter or number;

A touch pad disposed under the first plate member and including a second plate member having a ground pattern formed thereon; And

When an object having a capacitance, such as a human body, is in contact with a predetermined position on the upper surface of the substrate, the touch is electrically connected to the first contact portion and the second contact portion so as to determine the intersection point as the touch position while scanning the horizontal axis and the vertical axis. It consists of a pad driving device.

The key input device may be arranged to be spaced apart from each other so as not to overlap the first contact portion and the second contact portion disposed at a position corresponding to any one letter or number.

The key input device may include a plurality of two connecting lines connected to the first plate member to the touch pad driving device and extending in a vertical axis direction and spaced apart from each other in a horizontal axis direction, each connecting line in a vertical axis direction. It is preferable to be connected with the contacts arranged in the

In the key input device, a plurality of second connection lines are formed on the first plate member to connect the first contact portion to the touch pad driving apparatus, and each connection line is connected to each first contact portion.

The key input device of the present invention for achieving the above object is a substrate of a transparent material formed in a matrix form of a predetermined letter or number consisting of a plurality of horizontal axis and vertical axis, and disposed below the substrate, each of the horizontal axis and vertical axis A first plate member formed on the plurality of first contact portions corresponding to the letters or numbers;

A plurality of second contact parts disposed on a lower side of the first plate member and arranged in a form corresponding to the letter or number on each of the horizontal and vertical axes and corresponding to the first contact part in an area other than the second contact part; A touch pad including a second plate member including a ground pattern disposed to cover an area; And

When an object having a capacitance, such as a human body, is in contact with a predetermined position on the upper surface of the substrate, the touch is electrically connected to the first contact portion and the second contact portion so as to determine the intersection point as the touch position while scanning the horizontal axis and the vertical axis. It consists of a pad driving device.

The key input device may include a plurality of first connection lines formed in the first plate member to connect the first contact unit to the touch pad driving device and extend in a horizontal axis direction and spaced apart from each other in a vertical axis direction. It is preferable to be connected to the first contact portions arranged in the horizontal axis direction.

The key input device may include a plurality of second connection lines connected to the first plate member to the touch pad driving device and extending in a horizontal axis direction and spaced apart from each other in a vertical axis direction, respectively. Is preferably connected to the second contact portions arranged in the longitudinal axis direction.

In the key input device, the ground pattern is preferably formed in a lattice form.

In the key input device, the first plate member and the second plate member is made of a flexible film material, the lower side of the second plate member is preferably formed of a key base made of a rigid synthetic resin material.

In the key input device, the first plate member is made of a flexible film material, and the second plate member is preferably made of a hard synthetic resin material.

According to the key input device according to the present invention, there are the following advantages.

First, by forming the first contact portion and the second contact portion or the second contact portion and the ground pattern in one plate member, the number of plate members as a whole can be reduced, there is an advantage that can effectively reduce the thickness of the key input device.

In addition, by arranging the ground pattern on the other side of the touch pad, the touch of the human body can be sensed only on one side, and the touch or approach of the human body on the other side does not work, so there is an advantage that a desired function can be performed without a malfunction.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

3 is a cross-sectional view of a key input device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 4 is a view showing a first plate member in the key input device of FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is a key input device of FIG. 2 is a view showing a second plate member, Figure 6 is a view showing a state in which the first plate member and the second plate member of Figs.

The key input means 100 according to the present embodiment includes a touch pad including a substrate 101, a first plate member 110, and a second plate member 120, and a touch pad driving device (not shown). .

The substrate 101 is a substrate of a transparent material in which a predetermined letter or number is printed in a matrix form consisting of a plurality of horizontal and vertical axes. Predetermined light emitting means may be disposed together on the substrate 101, and the letters or numbers may be fluorescent materials or phosphors formed on the rear surface of the light emitting means. Therefore, when light is incident from one side of the light emitting means, a predetermined letter or number may be recognized by the user's eyes by being reflected by the fluorescent material printed in the form of the letter or number.

The first plate member 110 is located on the rear surface of the substrate 101, and includes a transparent material, preferably made of a polyethylene resin, such as a flexible synthetic resin material.

In the first plate member 110, a first contact portion 111, a second contact portion 113, a first connection line 112, and a second connection line 114 are formed by printing or etching in a predetermined pattern. Each of them includes a transparent conductive material, and preferably, may be made of indium tin oxide (ITO), antimony tin oxide (ATO), or the like. Here, when an object having a capacitance such as a finger touches the upper surface of the substrate 101, the capacitance is induced between the substrate, which is a dielectric, and the first contact portion 111 and the second contact portion 113. In this case, the touch pad driving device (not shown) detects the coordinates of the position touched on the upper surface of the substrate through the induced change in capacitance, which will be described later.

In this case, the first contact portion 111 is disposed to have a predetermined shape at a position corresponding to a letter or a number. The second contact portion 113 is disposed in a form corresponding to the letter or number so as not to overlap with the first contact portion 111. In the present embodiment, the first contact portion 111 is formed in the shape of a square with one side opened, the second contact portion 113 is provided in the first contact portion 111 and is made in the form of a trident, but such It is not limited to form.

The first connection line 112 connects each of the first contact portions 111 to the touch pad driving device, and a plurality of the first connection lines 112 are disposed. Specifically, the same number is formed to be connected to each of the first contact portions 111. In the case of the first connection line 112 connecting the first contact portion 111 disposed on the same horizontal axis among the first connection lines 112, a predetermined IC is connected to the same line in the touch pad driving device. Connected to the chip. That is, in the present embodiment, four horizontal axes may be formed, and three first contact parts are placed on the same horizontal axis, and the first connection line connected to the three first contact parts lying on the same horizontal axis is in the touch pad driving device. Can be connected in the same line.

The second connection line 114 connects the second contact portion 113 to the touch pad driving device, and a plurality of second connection lines 114 are provided to extend in the vertical axis direction and to be spaced apart in the horizontal axis direction. Each of the second connection lines 114 connects the second contact portion 113 placed in the longitudinal axis direction together.

The second plate member 120 is disposed below the first plate member 110 and may be made of polyethylene resin, which is a flexible synthetic resin material. The ground pattern 121 is formed on the upper surface of the second plate member 120. The ground pattern 121 is for preventing the capacitance from being induced in the first contact portion 111 or the second contact portion 113 due to contact of the human body on the lower side of the second plate member 120. The ground pattern 121 has a size that covers the first contact portion 111 and the second contact portion 113, but is printed or etched on the second plate member 120 in the form of a fine mesh. Formed The ground pattern 121 may be made of a transparent conductive material, and specifically, indium tin oxide, antimony tin oxide, or the like may be used.

A key base 130 made of a hard synthetic resin material may be formed below the second plate member 120. Specifically, glass, PMMA, PC or the like can be used. The key base 130 is to serve to protect the rigidity of the first plate member 110 and the second plate member 120.

The touch pad driving means includes a circuit board or the like including a predetermined control IC chip, and since such a configuration is a known technique, a specific technique is omitted. However, as described above, the touch pad driving means includes a circuit pattern formed by collecting a part of the first connection lines and forming a single line.

The first connection line 112 and the second connection line 114 are connected to the flexible substrate 170 having a predetermined terminal.

In addition, the bonding between the substrate 101, the first plate member 110, the second plate member 120, and the key base 130 may be an optically clear adhesive (OCA) or an ultraviolet curing agent. have.

The key input device according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention has the following effects.

First, when a user touches a finger on an upper surface of a substrate 101 used as a keytop, capacitance is induced between the substrate 101, which is a dielectric, and the first contact portion 111 and the second contact portion 113. Specifically, the touch pad driving means recognizes on which of the four horizontal axes the touch has been made, and also recognizes on which of the vertical axes the touch has been made. If one of the horizontal axis and the vertical axis is distinguished, it recognizes whether a finger touches a position corresponding to each intersection and performs a predetermined function.

In such a key input device, since both the first contact portion and the second contact portion are disposed together on one surface of one plate member, the plate member including a predetermined ground pattern or the like is attached to the lower surface of the plate member. There is no need to form a separate coating layer has the effect of reducing the overall thickness and manufacturing costs.

In addition, in the present embodiment, since the ground pattern is formed, the back of the mobile phone or the like is supported by the palm or the finger, and when the touch is performed by the other hand, the finger or the palm on the back side is abnormal for detecting the capacitance. This can be prevented from occurring.

On the other hand, in the prior art, since the horizontal axis circuit pattern and the vertical axis circuit pattern are formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the transparent plate, the ground pattern is formed as in the present embodiment.

A key input device according to another embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 7 to 9, specifically as follows.

In the above-described embodiment, the first contact portion and the second contact portion are formed on the first plate member. In the present embodiment, the first contact portion is formed on the first plate member, but the second contact portion and the ground pattern are formed on the second plate member. I was.

In detail, the first plate member 110 is disposed below the substrate 101 and is formed to correspond to the letters or numbers on each of the horizontal and vertical axes. The first plate member 110 is formed with a plurality of first connection lines 112 connecting the first contact portion 111 to the touch pad driving device and extending in the horizontal axis direction and spaced apart from each other in the vertical axis direction. The connection line 112 is connected to the first contact portions 111 arranged in the horizontal direction.

The second plate member 120 is disposed below the first plate member 110 and includes a plurality of second contact parts 113 disposed on the horizontal axis and the vertical axis in a form corresponding to the letter or number. The ground pattern 121 is disposed in an area other than the second contact part 113 to cover an area corresponding to the first contact part 111. In addition, the second plate member 120 is formed with a plurality of second connection lines 114 connecting the second contact portion 113 to the touch pad driving device and extending in the horizontal axis direction and spaced apart from each other in the vertical axis direction. The second connection line 114 is connected to the second contact portion 113 arranged in the vertical direction.

Operations and effects according to the present embodiment are similar to those of the first embodiment described above, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Meanwhile, in the above-described embodiments, the first plate member 110 and the second plate member 120 are both formed of a flexible film, but the present invention is not limited thereto. As illustrated in FIG. It is also possible to configure the second plate member 120 with a key base made of a hard synthetic resin material.

Although the embodiments of the key input device according to the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the claims and the detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings. Belong.

1 is a view showing a key input device according to the prior art.

2 is a view showing a key input device according to another prior art.

3 is a cross-sectional view of a key input device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

4 to 6 are separated views of a key input device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

7 to 9 are separated views of a key input device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

10 is a cross-sectional view of a key input device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

<Detailed Description of Drawings>

100 ... Key Input Device 101 ... Substrate

110 First plate member 111 First contact portion

112 ... 1st connection line 113 ... 2nd contact part

114.2nd connection line 120 ... 2nd plate member

121 ... ground pattern 130 ... keybase

170.Flexible Circuit Board

Claims (10)

A transparent material substrate having a predetermined letter or number formed in a matrix having a plurality of horizontal and vertical axes; A first plate member disposed below the substrate, the first plate member having a plurality of first and second contact portions formed on the horizontal axis and the vertical axis to correspond to the letter or number; A touch pad disposed under the first plate member and including a second plate member having a ground pattern formed thereon; And When an object having a capacitance, such as a human body, is in contact with a predetermined position on the upper surface of the substrate, the touch is electrically connected to the first contact portion and the second contact portion so as to determine the intersection point as the touch position while scanning the horizontal axis and the vertical axis. Key input device comprising a pad driving device. The method of claim 1, Wherein the first contact portion and the second contact portion disposed at positions corresponding to any one of the letters or numbers are spaced apart from each other so as not to overlap each other. The method of claim 1, The first plate member is formed with a plurality of two connecting lines connecting the second contact portion to the touch pad driving device and extending in the vertical axis direction and spaced apart from each other in the horizontal axis direction, each connecting line being connected to the contact portions arranged in the vertical axis direction. Is connected to the key input device. The method of claim 3, The first plate member is provided with a plurality of second connection lines for connecting the first contact portion to the touch pad driving device, each second connection line is connected to each of the first contact portion. A transparent material substrate having a predetermined letter or number formed in a matrix having a plurality of horizontal and vertical axes; A first plate member disposed below the substrate and formed with a plurality of first contact portions corresponding to the letters or numbers on each of the horizontal and vertical axes; A plurality of second contact parts disposed on a lower side of the first plate member and arranged in a form corresponding to the letter or number on each of the horizontal and vertical axes and corresponding to the first contact part in an area other than the second contact part; A touch pad including a second plate member including a ground pattern disposed to cover an area; And When an object having a capacitance, such as a human body, is in contact with a predetermined position on the upper surface of the substrate, the touch is electrically connected to the first contact portion and the second contact portion so as to determine the intersection point as the touch position while scanning the horizontal axis and the vertical axis. Key input device comprising a pad driving device. The method of claim 5, The first plate member is provided with a plurality of one connecting lines connecting the first contact unit to the touch pad driving device and extending in a horizontal axis direction and spaced apart from each other in a vertical axis direction, each of the first connecting lines being arranged in a horizontal axis direction. Key input device, characterized in that connected to the one contact. The method of claim 6, The second plate member is formed with a plurality of second connection lines connecting the second contact portion to the touch pad driving device and extending in the horizontal axis direction and spaced apart from each other in the vertical axis direction, and each second connection line is arranged in the vertical axis direction. Key input device, characterized in that connected to the second contact. 6. The method according to claim 1 or 5, The ground pattern is a touch pad, characterized in that formed in a lattice form. 6. The method according to claim 1 or 5, The first plate member and the second plate member is made of a flexible film material, the lower side of the second plate member is a touch pad, characterized in that a key base made of a rigid synthetic resin material is formed. 6. The method according to claim 1 or 5, Wherein the first plate member is made of a flexible film material and the second plate member is made of a hard synthetic resin material.

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