JP2003218558A - Electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily change the continuity or insulation between a casing and a circuit board in an electronic apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: In a telematics ECU 100 including a radio module board 1, a casing 50, and rubber fixing parts 9 for fixing the radio module board 1 to the casing 50, the rubber fixing parts 9 lie as a conductive medium or an insulating medium between a conduction portion of the radio module board 1 and a conduction portion of the casing 50 in the state of the radio module board 1 assembled in the casing 50. For the rubber fixing parts 9 use is made of a conductive material or an insulating material based upon the necessity of electrical continuity between the radio module board 1 and the casing 50 or the necessity of electrical insulation between the same members. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic device and is suitable for use in, for example, a telematics ECU.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an ECU or the like mounted on a vehicle is generally realized by a circuit board housed in a housing. As described above, the selection as to whether the ground of the circuit board housed in the housing and the housing are in the conductive state or the insulated state changes depending on the specification of the ECU incorporated in the vehicle. In addition, the determination of the effectiveness of the electromagnetic noise countermeasure, which is one of the criteria for this selection, is not clear at the initial design stage, and it may be necessary to make a determination after evaluating the assembled vehicle. It is not possible to determine the conductivity and insulation specifications of the ECU until the final stage of.

[0003]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention
It is desired that the electronic device be capable of easily switching the electrical connection and the electrical insulation between the housing and the ground of the circuit board.

A solution to this problem is to assemble the circuit board and the housing, which are electrically connected to the screw holes, with conductive screws, and to insulate the circuit board and the housing when insulation is required. It is conceivable to sandwich the washer between the screw and the circuit board, and when conduction is required, directly fix the screw without sandwiching the washer.

As one example of this idea, a perspective view of one step of assembling the ECU when using conductive screws and washers is shown in FIG. This ECU includes a metal housing 50 including a housing case 2 and a housing cover 5, a wireless module 10, a control module 20, and a screw 6 for fixing the housing cover 5 to the housing case 2. , And an insulating washer 13.

The wireless module 10 includes a wireless module board 1 on which circuits are arranged and the wireless module board 1 from both sides.
Of the metal shield case 4 fixed to the wireless module substrate 1 so as to surround the sides other than the sides, and the wireless module substrate 1
And a communication antenna connector 12 attached to the connection connector 7a. Further, the communication antenna connector 12 is adapted to fit into the connector notch 11 provided in the housing case 2 when assembled. Also,
A ground wire from the circuit extends through the screw hole provided in the wireless module board 1.

The control module 20 comprises a vehicle interface board 3, a connector 7b attached to the vehicle interface board 3, and control interfaces 8a and 8b for interfacing with external devices. It is in a state of being assembled to the housing case 2. The connection connector 7b is adapted to be fitted to the connection connector 7b of the control unit 20 during assembly to electrically connect the wireless module board 1 and the vehicle interface board 3 to each other.

FIG. 4 shows a part of the cut surface of the ECU taken along the line S--S shown in FIG. 3 when the assembly is completed.

In the case where the ECU 50 insulates the housing 50 from the wireless module substrate 1, the insulating washer 13 is used as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.
The electrical connection between the ground wire and the screw 6 is cut off. In this state, even if the screw 6 and the housing case 2 are electrically connected, the housing case 2 and the wireless module board 1 are insulated.

Further, in order to establish a conduction state between the wireless module board 1 and the housing case 2, the washer 6 may be removed and the screw 6 may be directly fastened to the wireless module board 1 and the housing case 2. . In this way, the ground wire extending to the wireless module board has a conductive screw 6
It will be electrically connected to the housing case 2 via.

As described above, it is possible to easily switch the insulating property and the conductive property between the wireless module substrate 1 and the housing 50 by using or not using the washer.

However, when an insulating washer is used, a problem such as loosening of screws may occur. Further, when the board is directly screw-fastened, the stress of the tightening is directly applied to the board, and there is a risk of disconnection, breakage of the board or the like. Therefore, the above method is not sufficient to achieve the purpose of easily switching the electrical conductivity and the electrical insulation between the housing and the circuit board in the electronic device.

An object of the present invention is to make it possible to easily switch the electrical conductivity and the electrical insulation between the housing and the circuit board in the electronic device.

[0014]

In order to achieve the above object, an electronic circuit according to claim 1 comprises a circuit board (1),
A housing (50) and a spacer (9) for fixing the circuit board to the housing are provided, and the spacer and the conductive portion of the circuit board in the state where the circuit board is assembled to the housing. It is characterized in that it is interposed between the body and the conducting part as either a conducting medium or an insulating medium.

As a result, only the spacer is made of a conductive material,
Alternatively, it is possible to switch between conduction and insulation between the circuit board and the housing simply by replacing the insulating material with an insulating material, which facilitates the switching.

According to a second aspect of the invention, in the electronic device according to the first aspect, the spacer is made of an elastic material.

By doing so, there is an effect that an unreasonable force is not applied during assembly due to the elasticity of the spacer.
Further, even after the assembling, there is an effect that the elasticity of the spacer plays a role of absorbing the shock of the electronic circuit.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the electronic device according to the first or second aspect, the spacer is positioned so as to sandwich the end portion of the circuit board in a state where the circuit board is assembled in the housing. It is characterized by

By positioning and mounting the spacers in this manner, the spacers can be easily attached and detached, so that the electrical conductivity and insulating property between the circuit board and the housing can be easily changed.

The reference numerals in parentheses for each means described above are examples showing the correspondence with specific means described in the embodiments described later.

[0021]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION (First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows a telematics E mounted on a vehicle, which is an embodiment of the present invention.
The perspective view in one process of the assembly stage of CU100 is shown.

Telematics is a general term for systems that provide various services by using GPS, wireless mobile phones, the Internet, etc. in an integrated manner. Examples of telematics services include a stolen vehicle location notification service that notifies the current location of a stolen vehicle to the owner of the vehicle using GPS, and a remote vehicle horn to make it easier to find your vehicle in a parking lot. There is a remote horn sounding service that rings. For these services, the in-vehicle device side, which received a command from a service center outside the vehicle via a radio in the vehicle, transmits the signal to the in-vehicle information device such as a GPS positioning device or a horn sounding device according to the command It is realized by exchanging information and returning information to a service center etc. if necessary.

The telematics ECU 100 is an ECU module that performs wireless communication and serves as the on-vehicle device side of this telematics for processing. This telematics ECU
Reference numeral 100 denotes a wireless module 1 for performing wireless communication with a housing 50 composed of a housing case 2 and a housing cover 5 and a housing 50 made of a conductive material such as an aluminum alloy.
0, a control module 20 for interacting with various information devices and control devices for telematics, a screw 6 for fixing the housing cover 5 to the housing case 2, and a wireless module 10 on the housing cover 5. It is composed of a conductive or insulating rubber fixing part 9 for fixing.

The control module 20 includes a vehicle interface board 3 on which an electronic circuit for control is mounted, a connector 7b attached to the vehicle interface board 3, and a control interface for connecting to information equipment and control equipment in the vehicle. 8a and 8b.

The wireless module 10 has a wireless module board 1 on which an electronic circuit for communication is mounted, and a metal or a conductive material fixed to the wireless module board 1 so as to surround portions other than the sides of the wireless module board 1 from both sides. Material of
For example, a shield case 4 made of magnesium alloy,
Connector 7 attached to the wireless module board 1
and a communication antenna connector 12. The connection connector 7a is adapted to be fitted to the connection connector 7b of the control unit 20 at the time of assembly so as to electrically connect the wireless module board 1 and the vehicle interface board 3 to each other. Further, the communication antenna connector 12 is adapted to fit into the connector notch 11 provided in the housing case 2 when assembled.

Further, the rubber fixing part 9 is mounted so as to sandwich the end of the wireless module substrate 1 at the time of assembling, and is compact and easily removable.

When the telematics ECU 100 is mounted on a vehicle, it is desirable that the housing 50 be used as a ground and the wireless module board 1 be electrically connected depending on conditions such as the structure of the vehicle and the mounting position. In some cases, it may be desirable to insulate the housing 50 from the wireless module substrate 1. Moreover, the determination of the effectiveness of the electromagnetic noise countermeasure, which is one of the criteria for determining which is preferable, may not be clear at the initial design stage, and it may be necessary to make a later determination by evaluating the assembled vehicle. Telematics ECU1 until the final stage of vehicle design
It is impossible to determine the continuity and insulation of 00.

In order to solve such a problem, in the telematics ECU 100 in this embodiment, a method of replacing the rubber fixing part 9 which can be easily replaced on the basis of the requirement of conduction and insulation at the stage of assembly is adopted.

FIG. 2 is a view of a cut end of the telematics ECU 100 taken along the line S--S shown in FIG. 1 when the assembly is completed. As shown in FIG. 2, the U-shaped rubber fixing part 9 is in contact with the housing cover 5 at its upper portion, and is in contact with the housing case 2 at its left and lower portions. Is in contact with the wireless module 10.

The wireless module 10 is sandwiched between the four ends of the wireless module 10 by the U-shaped inner side of the rubber fixing component 9, whereby the wireless module 10 is fixed inside the housing 50. The wireless module board 1 is provided with a conductive contact surface 14 extending from the GND line on the board at a contact portion with the upper shield case 4. When the rubber fixing component 9 is conductive, that is, when it is interposed as a conductive medium, the wireless module substrate 1 and the housing 50 are brought into a conductive state via the conductive contact surface 14 and the shield case 4. When the rubber fixing part 9 is insulative, that is, when it is interposed as an insulating medium,
The insulating material blocks conduction from the conductive contact surface 1 to the housing 50, so that the wireless module substrate 1 and the housing 50 are in an insulating state.

As described above, the insulation and conductivity between the radio module board 1 and the housing 50 can be switched by simply replacing the compact and easily attachable / detachable rubber fixing component 9.

Further, by using the rubber fixing parts for the assembling as described above, there is an effect that the elastic force of the rubber does not apply an unreasonable force at the assembling and the assembling can be done without using a special tool. . Further, even after the assembling, there is an effect that the elasticity of the rubber plays a role of absorbing vibration and shock of the wireless module 10.

In order to exert these effects, the rubber fixing part 9 does not necessarily have to be made of rubber, and may be another elastic body. Further, for the effect that the conductivity and the insulation can be switched, the rubber fixing component 9 does not need to be an elastic body, but a solid body interposed between the wireless module substrate 1 and the housing 50. It may be.

In this embodiment, the wireless module board 1 is a circuit board, and the rubber fixing parts 9 are spacers.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a telematics ECU 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

2 is an S of the telematics ECU 100 shown in FIG.
It is a -S sectional view.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an ECU that switches between conduction and insulation by using a screw and a washer.

4 is an S of the telematics ECU 100 shown in FIG.
It is a -S sectional view.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Wireless module substrate, 2 ... Housing case, 3 ... Vehicle interface board, 4 ... Wireless module shield case, 5 ... Housing cover, 6 ... Screws, 7a, 7b ... Connection connector, 8a, 8b ... Control interface, 9 … Rubber fixing parts, 10… Radio part, 11… Notches for connectors,
12 ... Communication antenna connector, 13 ... Washer, 14
... conductive contact surface, 20 ... control unit, 50 ... housing, 100 ...
Telematics ECU.

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A circuit board (1), a housing (50), and a spacer (9) for fixing the circuit board to the housing.
An electronic device including a conductive medium and an insulating medium between the conductive portion of the circuit board and the conductive portion of the housing in a state where the circuit board is assembled to the housing. An electronic device characterized by intervening as either. 2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the spacer is made of an elastic material. 3. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the spacer is positioned so as to sandwich an end portion of the circuit board when the circuit board is assembled to the housing. .