JP2006172478A - Thin usb electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thin structure USB electronic device, to prevent unnecessary exposure of a contact between a connector and the electronic device and to also prevent erroneous insertion. <P>SOLUTION: The thin USB electronic device and includes a substrate and a housing enclosing the substrate. The substrate includes a circuit board and an extended connector. Electrically conductive metal strips are adhered to the connector, and integrated circuit elements are mounted on the substrate. The housing has openings, through which the corresponding metal strips are exposed and electrically connected with the contacts of an USB receptacle. In another example of the USB electronic device, a plurality of metal film are used instead of electrically conductive strips, the integrated circuits are allocated beneath the substrate and bulges are formed upon the lower housing to sustain the extended connector. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a USB electronic device, and more particularly to a thin USB electronic device.

  With the development of the information electronics (IT) industry, portable electronic devices are becoming popular. Among them, a flash drive or a small memory card is connected to a host (PC or notebook computer) through a specific interface such as the most popular universal serial bus (USB). Currently, USB is the most popular I / O interface in personal computers, and therefore many electronic devices employ USB as a data transmission interface. The advantage of using USB is that it reduces the use of card readers for portable devices with different I / O interfaces.

  In general, a connector of a USB electronic device is separate from a circuit board and is connected to an electronic circuit by a method such as soldering. However, due to restrictions on the thickness of the USB connector, the thickness of the USB electronic device must be increased, making it inconvenient to carry. As shown in FIG. 1, the USB connector housing 100 affects the USB electronic device and increases its thickness and volume. The usual solution to reduce the thickness of all electronic elements between USB electronic devices as much as possible is to improve the structure of the USB connector, or adopt a connectorless design to make the USB electronic device thinner. See FIGS. 2A and 2B. Patent Document 1 describes a USB storage device, in which a connector 202 is extended from a circuit board and encapsulated in an upper housing 200 and a lower housing 201. The USB storage device can form a circuit loop with the host by bringing the contact of the USB port into contact with the metal film 204 electroplated directly on the connector 202. However, most parts of the connector 202 are exposed from the device housing due to external objects, and it is easy to form a contact (formed with a metal film) short circuit, which shortens the life of the electronic device.

  FIG. 3 shows a simplified structure of the small USB connector described in Patent Document 2, in which the connector 30 and the circuit board 31 are manufactured integrally and disposed in the lower housing 38. The upper housing 37 hardly covers the connector 30 and forms a device housing together with the lower housing 38. In addition, four metal strips 33 are joined to the connector 30 to be contact points for connection with a USB port (not shown). However, the connector 30 is still too exposed to the external environment. In addition, the connector 30 must be drilled prior to joining the metal strip 33, and a U-shaped metal housing 39 is also required to protect the connector 30, thus further complicating the construction of the USB electronic device and making it As a result, it is difficult to reduce production costs.

  As described above, the two well-known inventions can achieve the purpose of thin USB electronic devices, but still have some disadvantages to overcome. Therefore, there is a need to further reduce the thickness of USB connectors and USB electronic devices to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks and provide additional protection for connectors (especially USB electronic device contacts).

Taiwan Patent No. 570242 Taiwan Patent No. 565026

  In view of the shortcomings of known USB electronic devices in the prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide a USB electronic device having a thin structure.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a USB electronic device, in which the substrate and other electronic elements are substantially encapsulated to prevent unnecessary exposure of the connector and USB electronic device contacts. Protection shall be obtained.

  It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved USB electronic device, of which each opening enhances the functionality of the improved USB electronic device in response to a metal strip to connect each contact of the USB port. Guides it in the correct position and prevents short circuit caused by mutual influences or external objects between the two metal strips.

  For the foregoing purposes of the present invention, a USB electronic device is disclosed that comprises a circuit board and a connector extending from the circuit board. A plurality of metal strips are joined to the connector, and the connector is then electrically connected to the circuit board. At least one integrated circuit is secured to the substrate, the housing has an opening through which the metal strip is exposed and electrically connected to the USB port.

  In another embodiment, a metal film is used in place of the metal strip, and the internal integrated circuit components are placed in the center under the circuit board. Also, a bulge section is formed on the lower housing to support the substrate and increase the structural stability.

  Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred but non-limiting examples. This description is made with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  The present invention achieves several advantages. That is, it achieves the main purpose of thin USB electronic devices. A specially designed opening that exposes the required metal strip / membrane protects the connector and the contacts joined thereto over the prior art. Further, the structure / shape of the housing is designed so that a hole for fixing the USB electronic device is selectively provided on the housing, or at least one inclined surface is formed as an erroneous insertion prevention mechanism. In other embodiments of the present invention, the location of the contacts and internal components of the USB electronic device of the present invention can be changed to obtain different advantages. Therefore, the USB electronic device of the present invention is superior to the prior art, and the present invention has novelty and inventive step.

  Preferred embodiments of the invention are now described in detail. However, the present invention can be carried out in a wide range of embodiments other than those described explicitly, and the scope of the present invention is not particularly limited except as described in the appended claims.

  FIG. 4A shows a thin USB electronic device, which is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and in particular this USB port is a USB storage device. The arrow indicates the insertion direction of the USB electronic device into the USB port. The described USB electronic device is encapsulated in a housing 4 which has a plurality (four in this embodiment) of openings for exposing the internal metal strip 46 as contacts for connection to a host USB port. 402 is established.

  FIG. 4B is an exploded view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 4A. FIG. 4B clearly discloses the internal structure, in which each component of the USB electronic device is substantially encapsulated in an upper housing 40 and a lower housing 41. The component includes a board 43, which further comprises a circuit board 431 having the required circuit layout and a connector 432 extending from the circuit board 431. A preferred material for the substrate 43 in this embodiment is a printed circuit board (PCB).

  A metal strip 46, such as a bronze strip, is joined to the connector 432 and electrically connected to the circuit on the circuit board 431. There is no limitation on the means for fixing the metal strip 46 to the connector 432, and in this embodiment, surface mounting technology (SMT) is preferably used. By adopting SMT, the metal strip 46 is directly joined to the connector 432 to be a contact point for connection to the USB port, so that a hole in the connector 432 can be avoided to simplify manufacturing and reduce costs.

  A memory 44 such as a flash RAM for storing data is fixed below the substrate 43. Further, on the bottom of the substrate 43, the input USB signal is converted into data and stored in the memory 44, or the data stored in the memory 44 is converted into a USB signal and connected to the host via the metal strip 46. A USB controller 45 is provided.

  In particular, it should be noted that elements other than the memory 44 and the USB controller 45 can be fixed on the substrate 43. Furthermore, the memory 44 and the USB controller 45 can be replaced with other types of integrated circuits. In other words, the application of the present invention is not limited to the storage device, but can be applied to electronic devices for other purposes.

  In order to achieve the purpose of a thin USB electronic device, the memory 44, USB controller 45, and metal strip 46 are designed to be as thin as possible. The memory 44, the USB controller 45, or other elements are installed on the same side (bottom surface in this embodiment) of the substrate 43, so that an increase in thickness can be avoided as compared with the installation on both sides of the substrate 43. According to FIG. 4C, the memory 44 is fixed under the circuit board 431, and the USB controller 45 is fixed under the connector 432 so that the space can be used effectively.

  In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the openings 402 in the upper housing 40 are four strips, the width of each opening and the distance between two adjacent openings being in accordance with the USB standard. Only the metal strip 46 is exposed from the upper housing 40 through the opening 402. In other words, each metal strip corresponds to one opening and is partially exposed from the upper housing 40 to be a contact for electrical connection with the USB port. Since the height of the metal strip 46 is lower than that of the upper housing 40, the thickness of the present invention does not increase and a flatter structure of the USB electronic device is obtained. In addition, a slope is formed in the upper housing 40 near the front end of each opening 402, which has the advantage that the USB port contacts more smoothly contact the metal strip 46.

  Compared to the prior art, the main difference is that the device housing has a plurality of openings that expose only the metal strip and not the other areas of the connector. The special design of the device housing is advantageous in many ways. First, the exposed metal strips are separated from each other by the upper housing 40, and a short circuit due to an external object is less likely to be caused between the two metal strips. Secondly, the other area of the connector 432 excluding a part of the metal strip 46 is entirely encapsulated in the housing 4, so that the exposed area of the connector 432 of the present invention is less than in the prior art. In addition, the height of the metal strip 46 is lower than the surface of the upper housing 40, so that the USB connector is less likely to be pressed by external objects, thus providing further protection. In addition, the upper housing 40 isolates each metal strip with a relatively high surface and guides the USB port contacts to the corresponding metal strip so that two or more contacts of the USB port accidentally contact the same metal strip. Can be prevented.

  In addition, the housing 4 can have several design changes to achieve additional functions, for example, further holes 408 are formed in the upper housing 40. FIG. 4D is a side view of the present invention and USB port, according to which a preferred embodiment of the present invention is inserted into the USB port from right to left. USB port 49 has a greater depth and internal volume, which is convenient for inserting bolt 495 into hole 408. According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention inserted into the USB port 49, it is convenient to stop the bolt 495 in the hole 408. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention inserted into the USB port 49, the bolt 495 and the contact 492 are slightly lifted until the USB electronic device is in the correct position. Among them, the contact 492 contacts the metal strip through the opening 402 and the bolt 495 is inserted into the hole 408 to secure the electronic device, thereby achieving a stronger connection with the USB port 49.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4A, slopes 405 and 406 are formed on the side surface of the housing 4, thereby providing an asymmetric electronic device. For the USB port of the shape shown in FIG. 4E, when the electronic device is turned over, triangular corners 497, 498 block the bottom surface of the electronic device (417, 418). That is, the inclined surfaces 405 and 406 provide a mechanism for preventing erroneous insertion, thereby reliably rejecting reverse insertion. It should be emphasized that the slopes 405 and 406 are not limited to being formed on the top surface of the housing 4, but can be formed on the bottom surface, the top of the side surface and the bottom, or only one slope 405 is formed. Is done. For a compatible USB port, the USB electronic device of the present invention achieves an erroneous insertion prevention function. Furthermore, the installation of the hole 408 and the inclined surfaces 405 and 406 is arbitrary, and the designer of the electronic device can determine by himself whether or not it is necessary to adopt the above-described design.

  FIG. 5A depicts the appearance of a thin USB electronic device with another embodiment of the present invention. And FIG. 5B is an exploded view of FIG. 5A showing the internal components and structure of the USB electronic device. The original inclined structure on the side surface of the housing is replaced with various designs (L-shaped structures 505 and 506) shown in FIG. 5A, and an erroneous insertion prevention mechanism is also provided. Four openings 502 are still arranged in the upper housing 50. Since the structure, form, and function of these four openings are the same as in the previous embodiment, a duplicate description will not be given.

  Similarly, the electronic device is divided into an upper housing 50, a lower housing 51, and an intermediate substrate 53. The board 53 is further divided into a circuit board 531 and an extended connector 532. As in the previous embodiment, the preferred material for substrate 53 is a printed circuit board. In this embodiment, one side of the connector 532 has a plurality of contacts (golden fingers), which are formed on rectangular electronic conductive metal films perpendicular to each other and connected to a USB port, and the other side is a circuit board 531. Electrically connected to the above circuit. A plurality of integrated circuit components such as a plurality of memories 54 and a USB controller (not shown) are disposed under the board 53, particularly the circuit board 531 to store input data.

  The difference from the previous embodiment is that a metal film is used to form the contacts of the USB electronic device and that most of the components are located in the center below the circuit board 531. One advantage of using a metal film is the low unit cost (compared to a metal strip). Furthermore, the metal film 56 can be manufactured at the same time as the transmission line is arranged on the circuit board 531 (in other words, the metal film 56 is directly stretched from the circuit of the circuit board 531), and therefore the manufacturing process can be simplified. It is. Furthermore, by disposing both the memory 54 and the USB controller under the circuit board 531, the length of the transmission line on the circuit board can be reduced, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost.

  The connector 532 is not supported in the housing 5 and is floating in the air. Therefore, the bulge section 512 is formed on the inner surface of the lower housing 51 to increase the structural stability. The thickness of the bulge section 512 is substantially equal to the height of the memory 54 (or USB controller), and the shape and number of the bulge sections 512 are not limited to this embodiment.

  The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope thereof. It can be recognized and carried out by a person having ordinary knowledge in the field to which the technology of the present invention belongs. Accordingly, many modifications may be made to this embodiment without departing from the spirit of the invention as falling within the scope of the claims.

It is a figure which displays the conventional USB connector. It is a figure which displays the structure of the conventional USB connector. It is an exploded view of the structure of the conventional USB connector. It is an exploded view of another conventional USB connector. FIG. 2 is a display diagram of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an exploded view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side view of a substrate according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention and a USB port. FIG. 2 is a front view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention and a USB port. FIG. 4 is a display diagram of another preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5B is an exploded view of FIG. 5A.

Explanation of symbols

4 Housing 46 Metal strip 402 Opening 40 Upper housing 41 Lower housing 43 Board 431 Circuit board 432 Connector 44 Memory 45 USB controller 408 Hole 49 USB port 495 Bolt 492 Contact point 405, 406 Slope 497, 498 Triangular corner 417, 418 Electronic device 505 , 506 L-shaped structure 50 Upper housing 502 Opening 51 Lower housing 53 Board 531 Circuit board 532 Connector 54 Memory 5 Housing 512 Bulge section

Claims (19)

A USB electronic device that can be removably inserted into a USB port,
A board comprising a circuit board and a connector extended from the circuit board;
A plurality of metal strips joined to the connector and electrically connected at the ends to the circuit board;
At least one integrated circuit fixed on the substrate;
A housing having a plurality of openings, the metal strip being exposed through the openings and electrically connected to corresponding contacts of the USB port;
A USB electronic device characterized by comprising:   2. The USB electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one integrated circuit is fixed on the same surface of the substrate.   2. The USB electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one integrated circuit comprises a data storage memory.   4. The USB electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the at least one integrated circuit further converts the data in the memory into a USB signal compatible with the USB standard or, conversely, converts an input USB signal and converts it. A USB electronic device comprising a USB controller for storing the input USB signal of the memory in the memory.   5. The USB electronic device according to claim 4, wherein the USB controller forms an electrical loop with the housing.   The USB electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is substantially encapsulated in a housing.   2. The USB electronic device according to claim 1, wherein a width of each opening and a distance between adjacent openings coincide with a USB standard.   The USB electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the opening is disposed on an upper surface of the housing and extends forward toward a front end of the housing.   9. The USB electronic device according to claim 8, further comprising a slope along the opening at the front end of the housing.   The USB electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a hole disposed on an upper surface of the housing.   The USB electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising at least one inclined surface formed on an upper surface or a bottom surface on both sides of the housing.   2. The USB electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the metal strip is fixed on the substrate by surface mounting technology (SMT). A USB electronic device that can be removably inserted into a USB port,
A board comprising a circuit board and a connector extended from the circuit board;
A plurality of metal films joined to the connector, disposed above and parallel to the connector, and electrically connected to the circuit board;
At least one integrated circuit component fixed on the substrate;
An upper housing and a lower housing are provided to encapsulate the substrate, the upper housing has a plurality of openings, each opening corresponding to one of the plurality of metal films, and the plurality of metal films having the plurality of openings. A housing that is exposed through an opening of the USB to form a contact of the USB electronic device;
A USB electronic device characterized by comprising:   14. The USB electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the plurality of metal films are integrally stretched from the circuit board.   14. The USB electronic device of claim 13, further comprising bulge sections formed in upper and lower housings to support the connector.   14. The USB electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the integrated circuit component comprises a memory and a USB controller.   14. The USB electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the integrated circuit component is disposed under the circuit board.   14. The USB electronic device according to claim 13, wherein each of the openings near the front surface of the housing further forms a slope. 14. The USB electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the upper housing forms an L-shaped structure as an erroneous insertion prevention mechanism above a side surface of the upper housing.

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