JP2010057094A - Electronic device and its housing - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic device and its housing capable of improving space efficiency in the housing. <P>SOLUTION: The electronic device includes a display housing 11, an insulating film 21 covering the outer side 13 and the inner side 14 of the display housing 11, a decorating layer formed on the insulating film 21 while covering at least a part of the outer side 13 of the display housing 11, and an antenna unit 20 formed on the insulating film 21 covering at least a part of the inner side 14 of the display housing 11. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic device including an antenna and a housing thereof, and more particularly to an electronic device having an antenna incorporated in the housing and the housing thereof.

  Electronic devices such as notebook personal computers are generally equipped with one or more wireless communication functions. Such an electronic device is provided with an antenna that transmits and receives radio waves. The antenna is preferably built in the housing rather than projecting outside the main body from the viewpoint of design and safety.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an exterior housing with an antenna in which an exterior housing and an antenna are combined is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this exterior casing with an antenna, the outer surface of a resin molded product constituting the exterior casing body is covered with a decorative film. In addition, the film substrate formed of a conductive antenna and a film substrate formed of a member separate from the decorative film is sandwiched between the resin molded product and the decorative film, thereby providing practicality. It constitutes an exterior housing with a high antenna.
JP 2007-221610 A

  Today's electronic devices such as notebook personal computers are becoming difficult to secure a space for mounting an antenna due to various factors such as miniaturization, thinning, and an increase in the size of a display panel. For this reason, it is important to design the structure to meet the demands for miniaturization and the like.

  The exterior housing with an antenna disclosed in Patent Document 1 does not take into consideration the space efficiency in the housing due to the built-in antenna and the efficiency at the time of manufacture.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an electronic device capable of improving the space efficiency in the housing and the housing thereof.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an electronic device according to the present invention includes a housing having an outer surface and an inner surface opposite to the outer surface, and one insulation covering the outer surface and the inner surface of the housing. A decorative layer formed on the insulating film covering at least a part of the outer surface, and an antenna unit formed on the insulating film covering at least the inner surface. To do.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an electronic device casing according to the present invention is formed on one insulating film covering an outer surface and an inner surface and the insulating film covering at least a part of the outer surface. A decoration layer and an antenna unit formed on the insulating film covering at least the inner surface are provided.

  In the electronic device and the casing thereof according to the present invention, the space efficiency in the casing can be improved.

  Embodiments of an electronic apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a notebook personal computer, which is an example of an electronic apparatus according to the present invention, in an open state. FIG. 2 is an external perspective view when the personal computer shown in FIG. 1 is closed.

  In the personal computer 1, a display unit 3 is connected to a main body 2 via a hinge unit 4 so as to be opened and closed (rotated). On the upper surface of the main body 2, a keyboard 5, a touch pad 6 as a pointing device, and buttons 7 are provided. The display unit 3 includes a display panel 8 made of, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display).

  The main body 2 has a main body housing 9 made of non-conductive resin. Electronic components such as a wireless drive unit (see FIG. 5) that implements a wireless communication function are mounted inside the main body housing 9. In the present embodiment, descriptions of electronic components other than the wireless drive unit are omitted. The display unit 3 has a resin display unit housing 11 as with the main body 2. The display unit housing 11 has an exposure opening 12 for accommodating and exposing the display panel 8.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the display unit housing outer surface 13 of the display unit housing 11 constituting the upper surface of the display unit 3 with the personal computer 1 closed has a desired pattern, color, etc. on at least a part of the surface thereof. Is decorated (not shown). Further, the antenna unit 20 is arranged from the free end side 15 of the display unit housing outer surface 13 to the fixed end side 16 of the display unit housing inner surface 14. The display unit housing inner surface 14 is a surface facing the display unit housing outer surface 13 and is not exposed in FIGS. 1 and 2.

  The decoration of the display unit housing outer surface 13 and the antenna unit 20 are formed on one insulating film 21.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the insulating film covering the display unit housing of the notebook personal computer according to the present embodiment is developed. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a bent state when the insulating film illustrated in FIG. 3 is fixed to the display unit housing.

  The insulating film 21 is a single film having a smaller surface area than the display unit casing outer surface 13 and the display unit casing inner surface 14 of the display unit casing 11. As the material of the insulating film 21, for example, polycarbonate, polyamide, polyether ketone engineering plastics, acrylic, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate resin films, or the like can be used.

  The insulating film 21 has a multilayer structure, and includes a decoration layer on which a desired pattern, color, or the like for decorating the display unit housing outer surface 13 is printed. The decoration layer should just be provided in the predetermined position which coat | covers the display part housing | casing outer surface 13 of the insulating film 21. FIG. However, for ease of manufacturing, the insulating film 21 in which the decorative layer is formed not only in the region covering the display unit housing outer surface 13 but also in the entire region including the region covering the display unit housing inner surface 14. Is preferably used.

  When the decorative layer of the insulating film 21 is a colored ink layer, a urethane resin, a polycarbonate resin, a vinyl resin, a polyester resin, or the like, in particular, a urethane resin, or a pigment of an appropriate color using the elastomer as a binder or A colored ink containing a dye as a colorant may be used. As a method for forming the colored ink layer, a printing method such as an offset printing method, a gravure printing method or a screen printing method, or a coating method such as a gravure coating method, a roll coating method or a comma coating method can be employed.

  In the antenna unit 20 formed on the insulating film 21, radio wave resonance portions 22a and 22b, ground portions 23a and 23b, antenna patterns 24a and 24b, and a feed line contact portion 25 are formed. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and demonstrated to each part of the antenna unit 20 provided in order to utilize the same radio | wireless communication system.

  The antenna unit 20 is provided to realize wireless communication using one or a plurality of wireless communication methods. In the present embodiment, an example will be described in which an antenna unit 20 for using two types of wireless communication schemes is provided as shown in FIG. As an example, the wireless communication method employed includes the IEEE 802.11a method, the IEEE 802.11b method, the Bluetooth (registered trademark) method, the third generation (3G) method, and the like for wireless LAN. Note that the antenna unit 20 to be mounted is not limited to one that is applied to two types of wireless communication systems, but may be one type or two or more types.

  The shapes and dimensions of the radio wave resonating units 22a and 22b are determined so that radio waves having a predetermined wavelength corresponding to the employed wireless communication method can be transmitted and received. Also, ground portions 23a and 23b having a ground area of a size corresponding to the wavelength for transmission and reception are connected to the radio wave resonance portions 22a and 22b.

  Antenna patterns 24 a and 24 b extend from the radio wave resonance portions 22 a and 22 b along the longitudinal direction of the insulating film 21. The lengths of the antenna patterns 24a and 24b are determined according to the wavelength of the wireless communication method used.

  The feeder contact point 25 is provided along the short side direction of the insulating sheet 21 that is the terminal position of each antenna pattern 24a, 24b. The feed line contact portion 25 is connected to a wireless drive unit housed in the main body housing 9 via a feed line described later.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the radio wave resonance units 22 a and 22 b are the display unit casing outer surface 13 and the display unit casing inner surface 14 that are the positions 26 when the insulating film 21 is fixed to the display unit casing 11. Is generally arranged at a position crossing the boundary of the display unit, and is folded when it is folded when being fixed to the display unit casing 11. At this time, the radio wave resonance portions 22a and 22b do not overlap the ground portions 23a and 23b.

  Each part of the antenna unit 20 is not particularly limited as long as it is made of a conductive material having an antenna function. Examples of the conductive material include gold, platinum, silver, copper, aluminum, nickel, zinc, lead and the like in the case of metal. In addition, a high molecular compound having conductivity such as a conductive polymer is also applicable. The antenna unit 20 made of these conductive materials is formed at a predetermined position on the insulating film 21 by using various methods such as printing, plating, laminating, sputtering, and vapor deposition.

  Next, the structure of each part when the insulating film 21 is fixed to the personal computer 1 will be described.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic front view when an insulating film is fixed to the notebook personal computer according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 5, the display panel 8 is indicated by a dotted line, and shows a state where the display unit housing inner surface 14 covered with the insulating film 21 is exposed. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of the notebook personal computer of FIG.

  The display unit casing 11 of the personal computer 1 is covered with an insulating film 21. The insulating film 21 coats the outer surface of the display unit housing outer surface 13 to give a desired decoration to the display unit housing outer surface 13. The insulating film 21 that covers the outer surface 13 of the display unit casing is integrally formed when the display unit casing 11 is molded, thereby being fixed to the outer surface 13 of the display unit casing and being decorated. Specifically, the display unit casing 11 integrally formed with the insulating film 21 is formed by insert molding in a molding die using the insulating film 21 provided with the decorative layer as an insert film. Manufactured.

  At this time, the insulating film 21 is an area for forming the antenna unit 20 to cover the inner surface 14 of the display unit casing, and the like, and is provided with a protruding portion that is folded back and fixed to the display unit casing 11. It has become. The protruding portion of the insulating film 21 on which the antenna unit 20 is formed is fixed so as to be wound around the display unit casing inner surface 14 from the boundary with the region fixed to the display unit casing outer surface 13. This protruding portion is fixed to the display unit casing 11 by bonding with an adhesive or the like.

  In FIG. 6, the radio wave resonating unit 22a is illustrated in a region indicated by an arrow. Similarly, the ground portion 23a is also shown in the region indicated by the arrow. In FIG. 6, the portion of the insulating film 21 in which the radio wave resonance part 22 a (22 b) of the antenna unit 20 is formed is radio wave resonance so as to straddle the boundary 17 between the display unit housing outer surface 13 and the display unit housing inner surface 14. The part 22a (22b) is arranged. In addition, the portion of the insulating film 21 on which the ground portion 23a (23b) is formed extends from one side of the radio wave resonance portion 22a (22b) disposed on the outer surface 13 of the display portion housing to the fixed end side of the display portion 3. The ground portion 23a (23b) is arranged so as to extend in 16 directions. Further, the radio wave resonance unit 22 a is disposed on the free end side 15 of the display unit 3 with respect to the display panel 8 housed in the display unit housing 11. That is, the radio wave resonance units 22a and 22b are arranged on the free end side 15 of the display unit 3 with respect to the ground units 23a and 23b and the display panel 8, so that the radiation characteristics are less likely to be deteriorated due to the influence of the conductor. can do.

  Further, the feed line contact portion 25 formed at the terminal portions 29 of the antenna patterns 24 a and 24 b is provided in the vicinity of the fixed end side 16 of the display portion 3. For this reason, the power supply lines 28 a and 28 b that connect the wireless drive units 30 a and 30 b housed in the main body housing 9 and the power supply line contact unit 25 pass through the hinge part 4 from the fixed end side 16 of the display unit 3. It is sufficient to extend to the wireless driving units 30a and 30b. For example, the arrangement space of the coaxial cable can be reduced as compared with the case where the coaxial cable is extended from the free end side 15 of the display unit 3.

  The wireless drive units 30a and 30b are arranged on the system board 31, and radio waves received by the antenna unit 20 are supplied via the feeder lines 28a and 28b during reception, and are supplied from the wireless drive units 30a and 30b during transmission. Radio waves are supplied to the antenna unit 20 via the electric wires 28a and 28b. The wireless drive units 30a and 30b are connected to the power supply lines 28a and 28b at the connection points 32a and 32b.

  According to the personal computer 1, by providing a protruding portion on the insulating film that decorates the display housing 11 and forming the antenna unit 20 at the protruding portion, the number of components can be reduced. In particular, when an antenna unit for using a plurality of wireless communication systems is arranged, it is effective in that the number of parts can be greatly reduced.

  Further, even when the radio wave resonance portions 22a and 22b of the antenna unit 20 are arranged on the free end side 15 of the display unit 3, the antenna patterns 24a and 24b are extended to the fixed end side 16 to provide the feed line contact portion 25. Thus, the wireless drive units 30a and 30b can be connected on the fixed end side 16 of the display unit 3. For this reason, since it is not necessary to extend the wiring to the free end side 15 of the display unit 3 in order to connect the antenna unit 20 and the wireless driving units 30a and 30b, space efficiency can be improved.

  Furthermore, the performance as the antenna unit 20 can be maintained by arranging each part of the antenna unit 20 in consideration of deterioration of radiation characteristics due to surrounding conductive substances.

  Furthermore, since the antenna unit 20 can be formed on one thin insulating film 21 by printing or the like, the display housing 11 can be reduced in size and thickness.

  The electronic device according to the present invention can be applied to various electronic devices in addition to the notebook personal computer described above, and has a wireless communication function such as a desktop computer, a word processor, a game device, and an audio device. It can be applied to other electronic devices.

  In addition, the fixing method of the insulating film 21, the molding method of the display unit housing 11, the configuration of the antenna unit 20, and the forming method described in the present embodiment are examples, and the effects described in the present embodiment are achieved. If possible, other configurations and methods may be used.

  Furthermore, although the display part housing | casing 11 demonstrated the example which consists of resin materials, if a required surface insulation process is performed, it is also possible to use metal housings, such as magnesium.

FIG. 11 is an external perspective view of a notebook personal computer that is an example of the electronic apparatus according to the invention in an open state. FIG. 2 is an external perspective view when the personal computer shown in FIG. 1 is closed. The figure which shows the state which the insulating film which coat | covers the display part housing | casing of the notebook type personal computer in this embodiment expand | deployed. The figure which shows the state by which the insulating film shown in FIG. 3 was fixed to the display part housing | casing. The schematic front view at the time of the insulating film being fixed to the notebook type personal computer in this embodiment. Sectional drawing between VI-VI of the notebook-type personal computer of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Personal computer 2 Main body 3 Display part 4 Hinge part 5 Keyboard 6 Touchpad 7 Button 8 Display panel 9 Main body housing | casing 11 Display part housing | casing 12 Exposed opening part 13 Display part housing | casing outer surface 14 Display part housing | casing inner surface 20 Antenna unit 21 Insulating films 22a, 22b Radio wave resonance parts 23a, 23b Ground parts 24a, 24b Antenna pattern 25 Feed line contact parts 28a, 28b Feed lines 30a, 30b Wireless drive part 31 System board

Claims (12)

A housing having an outer surface and an inner surface opposite to the outer surface;
One insulating film covering the outer surface and the inner surface of the housing;
A decorative layer formed on the insulating film covering at least a part of the outer surface;
An electronic device comprising: an antenna unit formed on the insulating film covering at least the inner surface. A display unit including a display panel;
The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the casing is a display unit casing that houses the display panel. A main body rotatably connected to the display unit;
A main body housing provided in the main body;
The electronic device according to claim 2, further comprising a wireless drive unit housed in the main body casing and connected to the antenna unit via a feeder line. The antenna unit includes a radio wave resonance part, a ground part connected to the radio wave resonance part, an antenna pattern extending from the radio wave resonance part, and a feed line contact part provided at an end of the antenna pattern The electronic device according to claim 3. The electronic device according to claim 4, wherein the power supply line contact portion is provided in the vicinity of a fixed end side of the display portion. The electronic device according to claim 5, wherein the radio wave resonance unit is disposed on a free end side of the ground unit and the display panel in the display unit. The insulating film covers the display unit casing with the radio wave resonance unit straddling the boundary between the outer surface and the inner surface of the display unit casing, and the ground portion is positioned on the outer surface. The electronic device of Claim 6 which coat | covered the said display part housing | casing. The electronic device according to claim 7, wherein the insulating film has a decorative layer formed in the entire region. The electronic device according to claim 8, wherein the display unit housing is made of a resin material. A partial region of the insulating film that covers and decorates the outer surface of the display unit casing is integrally formed and fixed when the display unit casing is molded,
The electronic device according to claim 9, wherein a part of the insulating film on which the antenna unit is formed is bonded after the display unit casing is molded. In a housing of an electronic device incorporating an antenna unit, the housing having an outer surface and an inner surface opposite to the outer surface,
An insulating film covering the outer surface and the inner surface;
A decorative layer formed on the insulating film covering at least a part of the outer surface;
An electronic device casing, comprising: an antenna unit formed on the insulating film covering at least the inner surface. The case of the electronic device according to claim 11, wherein the case is a display unit case that houses a display panel.

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