JP2011034282A - Input function-equipped protection panel allowing obtaining of input sense - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an input function-equipped protection panel allowing obtaining of an input sense when performing touch input. <P>SOLUTION: The input function-equipped protection panel includes a switch for detecting presence/absence of indirect contact through a dome-like input sense generation mechanism in a peripheral part corresponding to decoration, or includes the dome-like input sense generation mechanism disposed in a peripheral part corresponding to decoration on the rear side in a rear side substrate. Accordingly, when performing the touch input, the input sense is imparted, it can confirm whether the input can be actually performed or is erroneously performed, so that it is not necessary to view a screen each time, and operability is improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

In the present invention, a first transparent resistive film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the first transparent resistive film, and a pair of first terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit are formed on the surface side. The back side substrate,
A second transparent resistance film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the second transparent resistance film, a pair of second terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit, are formed on the back surface side; and A surface-side substrate with a decoration on the peripheral edge on the surface side,
The back-side substrate and the front-side substrate are arranged such that the first and second transparent resistance films face each other with a predetermined interval by an air layer, and either one of the bus bars is the transparent resistance. An operation based on a touch operation on the surface-side substrate by adhering so that the other pair of bus bars are located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film in the Y-axis direction. The present invention relates to a protective panel having a touch input function that constitutes an analog coordinate input unit that detects an XY coordinate as a position by a potential gradient.

  The protective panel as described above protects the display unit of the display device included in the electronic device such as a mobile phone, a smartphone, a PDA, a car navigation device, a digital camera, a digital video camera, a portable game machine, and a tablet, In order to enable a touch input operation corresponding to the display contents, these electronic devices are provided and disclosed in Patent Document 1.

  In addition, in recent years, mobile phones and smartphones, which are examples of electronic devices provided with a protective panel as described above, have an electronic mail function or an Internet function in addition to the original call function, and those functions. In addition to the above, some have a shooting function and a music playback function. In such an electronic device with multiple functions, it is considered to improve operability by providing a switch corresponding to those functions in the protective panel, and an example thereof is disclosed in Patent Document 2. Has been.

International Publication No. 2005/064451 Pamphlet International Publication No. 2009/025269 Pamphlet

  However, the protection panel with an input function described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 has the following problems.

  In other words, since the conventional protection panel with input function does not have a sense of input when touch input is performed, it is necessary to check each time whether or not it has been input correctly or whether it has been input by mistake. The operability was bad.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a protective panel with an input function that provides an input feeling when a touch input is made.

  In order to solve the above technical problem, the present invention provides a protective panel with an input function that provides an input feeling of the following configuration.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the first transparent resistance film, the pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the first transparent resistance film, and the pair of first terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit , Is a back side substrate formed on the front side,
A second transparent resistance film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the second transparent resistance film, a pair of second terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit, are formed on the back surface side; and A surface-side substrate with a decoration on the peripheral edge on the surface side,
The back-side substrate and the front-side substrate are arranged such that the first and second transparent resistance films face each other with a predetermined interval by an air layer, and either one of the bus bars is the transparent resistance. An operation based on a touch operation on the surface-side substrate by adhering so that the other pair of bus bars are located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film in the Y-axis direction. A protective panel having a touch input function that constitutes an analog coordinate input unit that detects an XY coordinate as a position by a potential gradient,
Furthermore, a protective panel with an input function for obtaining an input feeling, characterized in that a switch for detecting the presence or absence of indirect contact via a dome-like input feeling generating mechanism is provided on the peripheral edge corresponding to the decoration. .

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in the surface-side substrate, the second transparent resistance film is adjacent to the area facing the first transparent resistance film by widening the distance between the pair of bus bars. Has an enlarged area on the decorated part,
In the back side substrate, connected to the pair of first terminals via a routing circuit so as to be in parallel with the first transparent resistance film, and by the enlarged region and the air layer of the second transparent resistance film A contact disposed to be opposed to each other with a predetermined interval, and a dome-shaped input feeling generating mechanism interposed between the contact and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film,
When the voltage is applied between the terminals on one of the back side substrate and the front side substrate by the contact, the input feeling generation mechanism, and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film, the other terminal An input function that provides a sense of input according to the first aspect, comprising a switch that detects the presence or absence of indirect contact between the contact and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistive film based on the voltage detected by A protective panel can be provided.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the surface-side substrate, the second transparent resistance film is adjacent to the area facing the first transparent resistance film by widening the distance between the pair of bus bars. Has an enlarged area on the decorated part,
In the back side substrate, the pair of first terminals are connected in parallel with the first transparent resistance film, and a predetermined interval is provided between the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film and an air layer. A strip-shaped third transparent resistance film disposed so as to face each other, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the third transparent resistance film and parallel to the bus bar, the third transparent resistance film, A dome-like input feeling generating mechanism interposed between the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film,
A voltage is applied between the terminals of one of the back-side substrate and the front-side substrate by the strip-shaped third transparent resistance film, the input feeling generating mechanism, and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film. A switch for detecting the presence or absence of indirect contact between the strip-shaped third transparent resistance film and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film based on the voltage detected by the other terminal. The protection panel with an input function which can obtain the input feeling of the 1st aspect which is comprised can be provided.

Further, according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the surface-side substrate includes a contact connected in series to the second transparent resistance film via a routing circuit so as to have a potential difference,
The back side substrate is connected in series to the first transparent resistance film through a routing circuit so as to have a potential difference, and is opposed to the contact point of the front side substrate by an air layer at a predetermined interval. A disposed contact, and a dome-shaped input feeling generating mechanism interposed between the contact and the contact of the surface-side substrate,
Based on the voltage detected by the other terminal when a voltage is applied between the terminals with respect to one of the back side substrate and the front side substrate by the contact of the back side substrate and the front side substrate, It is possible to provide a protection panel with an input function in which a switch for detecting the presence or absence of indirect contact of the contact points is configured to obtain the input feeling of the first aspect.

  Moreover, according to the 5th aspect of this invention, the said input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism can provide the protection panel with an input function in which the input feeling in any one of the 1st thru | or 4th aspect which is metal dome is obtained.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fourth aspects, the input feeling generating mechanism is a resin dome provided with a through hole and the dome front and back surfaces are connected by a conductor. It is possible to provide a protective panel with an input function that provides such an input feeling.

  According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the input feeling according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the circuit configuration on the front surface of the back side substrate and the circuit configuration on the back surface of the front side substrate are interchanged. Can be provided.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, the first transparent resistance film, the pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the first transparent resistance film, and the pair of first bars connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit. A terminal on the back side formed on the front side,
A second transparent resistance film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the second transparent resistance film, a pair of second terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit, are formed on the back surface side; and A surface-side substrate with a decoration on the peripheral edge on the surface side,
The back-side substrate and the front-side substrate are arranged such that the first and second transparent resistance films face each other with a predetermined interval by an air layer, and either one of the bus bars is the transparent resistance. An operation based on a touch operation on the surface-side substrate by adhering so that the other pair of bus bars are located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film in the Y-axis direction. A protective panel having a touch input function that constitutes an analog coordinate input unit that detects an XY coordinate as a position by a potential gradient,
Furthermore, the protective panel with an input function for obtaining an input feeling, characterized in that, in the back side substrate, a dome-like input feeling generating mechanism disposed at a peripheral edge corresponding to the decoration on the back side is provided. Can be provided.

  According to the present invention, the protective panel with an input function includes a switch that detects the presence or absence of indirect contact via a dome-shaped input feeling generating mechanism on the peripheral edge corresponding to the decoration, or on the back side Since the board has a dome-like input feeling generating mechanism arranged at the peripheral edge corresponding to the decoration on the back side, there is an input feeling when touch input is performed, Since it is possible to confirm whether or not the user has made an input by tactile sense, it is not necessary to look at the screen one by one, improving operability.

It is a perspective view of the mobile phone in a first embodiment. It is a cross-sectional bottom view of the principal part which shows the structure of the protection panel in 1st embodiment. It is a cross-sectional bottom view of the principal part which shows the structure of the protection panel in 1st embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows operation | movement of an input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism. It is the front view except the input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism of the back surface side board | substrate in 1st embodiment, and the back view of a surface side board | substrate. It is the front view except the input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism of the back surface side board | substrate in 2nd embodiment, and the back view of a surface side board | substrate. It is the front view except the input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism of the back surface side board | substrate in 3rd embodiment, and the back view of a surface side board | substrate. It is a schematic cross section which shows operation | movement of the input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism which consists of metal dome in 1st thru | or 3rd embodiment. It is a schematic cross section which shows the structure of the input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism which consists of resin dome in 1st thru | or 3rd embodiment. It is a cross-sectional bottom view of the principal part which shows the structure of the protection panel in 4th embodiment. It is a schematic cross section which shows operation | movement of the input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism which consists of resin dome in 4th embodiment.

[First Embodiment]

  Hereinafter, as an example of the best mode for carrying out the present invention, a first embodiment in which a protection panel A with an input function according to the present invention is applied to a mobile phone 1 which is an example of an electronic device B will be described with reference to the drawings. explain. In the description of the best mode, since the reference numerals are given to the respective components based on the drawings, the “first”, “second”, and “third” described in the claims are included. Ordinal numbers such as are omitted.

  In addition to the mobile phone 1, the electronic device B includes a smartphone, a PDA, a portable music player, a car navigation device, a digital camera, a digital video camera, a portable game machine, and a tablet.

  FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of the mobile phone 1. FIG. 2 is a transverse bottom view of the main part of the mobile phone 1. As shown in these drawings, the mobile phone 1 includes a casing 2 made of synthetic resin, a display device 3 having a display unit 3A such as liquid crystal or organic EL, a plurality of input keys 4, and the like. Has been. The case 2 includes a front side case 2A having a display window 2Aa and the like formed on the front surface, and a back side case 2B equipped with the display device 3 and the like. The protection panel A is provided in the display window 2Aa of the front side housing 2A so as to protect the display 3A of the display device 3.

  The display window 2Aa of the front housing part 2A is recessed so as to have a step that allows the protective panel A to be fitted. The bottom of the display window 2Aa is formed so as to have an opening 2a that allows the display unit 3A of the display device 3 equipped in the back housing 2B to face the outside, and a support frame 2b that supports the protective panel A.

  The shape and size of the display window 2Aa can be variously changed according to the shape and size of the protective panel A. Various changes can be made to the recess depth of the display window 2Aa depending on the thickness of the protective panel A and the like. The shape and size of the opening 2a in the display window 2Aa can be variously changed according to the shape and size of the display unit 3A. Here, the shapes of the display window 2Aa, the opening 2a, the display unit 3A, and the protection panel A are set to a rectangular shape or a substantially rectangular shape. Further, the recessed depth of the display window 2Aa is set so that the surface of the housing 2 and the surface of the protective panel A have the same height.

  The touch input function in the protection panel A is a function that detects an XY coordinate serving as an operation position based on a touch operation on the surface of the protection panel A based on a potential gradient.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, the protective panel A has a back substrate 5 having a rectangular transparent resistance film 5 </ b> A formed on the front surface side and a rectangular transparent resistance film 6 </ b> A formed on the back surface side. The surface-side substrate 6 is disposed so as to be opposed to each other with a predetermined interval so as to have an air layer between the transparent resistance films 5A and 6A. And the area | region where the rectangular-shaped transparent resistive films 5A and 6A oppose in the protection panel A functions as the analog coordinate input part Aa.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 5 (a), the back side substrate 5 has a polycarbonate resin (PC), a methacrylic resin (PMMA), an acrylonitrile-styrene copolymer resin (AS), and an acrylonitrile-butadiene. -Resin plates with excellent transparency, rigidity, and workability such as styrene copolymer resin (ABS), cellulose propionate resin (CP), polystyrene resin (PS), polyester resin, and polyethylene resin (PE) are used. Yes. In particular, it is preferable to use polycarbonate resin (PC) or methacrylic resin (PMMA) which is excellent in transparency. The thickness of the resin plate can be selected from the range of 0.5 to 3.0 mm, and is particularly preferably 1.0 mm.

  Moreover, you may employ | adopt the glass plate which is excellent in intensity | strength and transmittance | permeability, such as soda glass, borosilicate glass, and tempered glass, for the back surface side board | substrate 5. FIG. When a glass plate having excellent strength is used, the protective panel A can be thinned by reducing the thickness of the back substrate 5 and the mobile phone 1 including the protective panel A can be thinned. The thickness of the glass plate can be selected from the range of 0.2 to 3.0 mm, and is particularly preferably 1.0 mm.

  Four through holes 5a and 5b for energization passing through the front surface and the back surface of the back substrate 5 are arranged in a straight line at predetermined intervals in the left-right direction at the central portion of the lower edge of the peripheral portion of the back substrate 5. Are aligned and formed. On the front surface side of the back-side substrate 5, along with the transparent resistance film 5A, a pair of parallel bus bars 5B located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film 5A in the X-axis direction, the routing circuit 5C located around the above, and the bus bar 5B A pair of terminals 5D, a frame-like adhesive layer 5E, etc., which are located at positions where the through holes 5a corresponding to the above are formed, are formed.

  As the back side substrate 5, the transparent resistance film 5A, the bus bar 5B, the routing circuit 5C, the terminal 5D, the frame-like adhesive layer 5E, and the like are not directly formed on the front side, but are separately formed. By sticking the transparent insulating film that has been placed on the front side of the back side substrate 5, the transparent resistance film 5A, the bus bar 5B, the routing circuit 5C, the terminals 5D, and the frame-like adhesive are attached to the front side of the back side substrate 5. You may comprise so that the layer 5E etc. may be provided.

  When using a transparent insulation film, use an engineering plastic such as polycarbonate, polyamide or polyetherketone, resin film such as acrylic, polyethylene terephthalate or polybutylene terephthalate as the transparent insulation film. Can do.

  As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 5 (b), the surface-side substrate 6 employs a flexible transparent insulating film having a property of bending when pressed with a finger or the like. For the flexible transparent insulating film, engineering plastics such as polycarbonates, polyamides, and polyether ketones, and resin films such as acrylics, polyethylene terephthalates, and polybutylene terephthalates can be used.

  A pair of parallel bus bars 6B positioned on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film 6A in the Y-axis direction and a pair of routing circuits positioned around the transparent resistance film 6A are provided on the rear surface side of the front substrate 6 together with the transparent resistance film 6A. 6C and a pair of terminals 6D facing the through hole 5b corresponding to the bus bar 6B are formed. A design sheet 7 is bonded to the front side of the front side substrate 6.

  Each of the transparent resistance films 5A and 6A includes a metal oxide film such as tin oxide, indium oxide, antimony oxide, zinc oxide, cadmium oxide, indium tin oxide (ITO), a composite film mainly composed of these metal oxides, Or it is a transparent conductive film which consists of metal films, such as gold | metal | money, silver, copper, tin, nickel, aluminum, and palladium. In addition, you may form each transparent resistance film 5A, 6A in the multilayer of two or more layers. As a method for forming the transparent resistance films 5A and 6A, there are a vacuum deposition method, a sputtering method, an ion plating method, a CVD method, and the like.

  A plurality of fine dot-shaped spacers 8 for preventing erroneous contact when the transparent resistance films 5A and 6A are opposed to each other are formed on the surface of any one of the transparent resistance films 5A and 6A. be able to. Here, a plurality of spacers 8 are formed on the transparent resistance film 5 </ b> A of the back side substrate 5.

  The spacer 8 can be made of a transparent photocurable resin such as epoxy acrylate or urethane acrylate, or a transparent thermosetting resin such as polyester or epoxy. In addition, the method for forming the spacer 8 includes a printing method such as screen printing, a photo process, and the like.

  Each bus bar 5B, 6B, each routing circuit 5C, 6C, and each terminal 5D, 6D can be formed using a metal such as gold, silver, copper, nickel, or a conductive paste such as carbon. it can. The bus bars 5B and 6B, the routing circuits 5C and 6C, and the terminals 5D and 6D are formed by printing methods such as screen printing, offset printing, gravure printing, flexographic printing, photoresist method, brush coating method, and so on.

  Each bus bar 5B, 6B is formed at the end of the back side substrate 5 or the front side substrate 6 as much as possible, and the rectangular transparent resistance films 5A, 6A are opposed to the center of the back side substrate 5 and the front side substrate 6. It is common to secure as wide an area as possible. The area where the rectangular transparent resistance films 5A and 6A are opposed to each other, that is, the width and shape of the input area and display area, vary depending on the width and shape of the input area and display area of the electronic device B such as the cellular phone 1. It can be changed.

  The design sheet 7 has a decorative layer 7B and an adhesive layer on the back side of a transparent film 7A such as engineering plastic such as polycarbonate, polyamide, polyether ketone, acrylic, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, etc. What is formed with 7C can be used. The thickness of the transparent film 7A can be selected from a range of 25 to 200 μm. A hard coat layer (not shown) may be formed on the surface side (not shown).

  Examples of materials used for the hard coat layer include inorganic materials such as siloxane resins, and organic materials such as acrylic epoxy-based and urethane-based thermosetting resins and acrylate-based photocurable resins. The thickness of the hard coat layer is suitably about 1 to 7 μm. As a method for forming the hard coat layer, a coating method such as roll coating or spray coating, or a normal printing method such as screen printing, offset printing, gravure printing or flexographic printing may be used.

  The hard coat layer may be directly formed on the front side of the transparent film 7A on which the decorative layer 7B and the adhesive layer 7C are directly formed on the back side, and the decorative layer 7B and the adhesive layer 7C on the back side. May be formed on a transparent film different from the directly formed transparent film 7A, and both of them may be bonded together.

  The decorative layer 7B is formed in a frame shape on the periphery of the transparent film 7A. The formation part of the decoration layer 7B becomes the decoration part 7b, and the rectangular non-formation part becomes the transparent part 7a. The width and shape of the transparent portion 7a depend on the width and shape of the region where the rectangular transparent resistance films 5A and 6A face each other, that is, the width and shape of the input area and display area in the electronic device B such as the mobile phone 1. Various changes are possible.

  By forming the decoration layer 7B in this manner, the peripheral portion 6E of the front surface side substrate 6 is subjected to a decoration that covers the bus bars 5B, 6B and the like of the back surface side substrate 5 and the front surface side substrate 6. become. Accordingly, it is not necessary to form a frame portion for covering the bus bars 5B, 6B of the back surface side substrate 5 and the front surface side substrate 6 on the display window 2A of the housing 2, and accordingly the thin shape of the mobile phone 1 is reduced. Can be achieved.

  For the decorative layer 7B, polyvinyl resin, polyamide resin, polyester resin, polyacrylic resin, polyurethane resin, polyvinyl acetal resin, polyester urethane resin, alkyd resin, etc. are used as binders, and appropriate colors are used. A colored ink containing a pigment or dye as a colorant may be used. The rectangular transparent portion 7a may be formed with a decorative layer 7B using transparent ink, or may be the transparent portion 7a by not forming the decorative layer 7B.

  A normal printing method such as screen printing, offset printing, gravure printing, flexographic printing, or the like may be used as a method for forming the decoration layer 7B. In particular, the offset printing method and the gravure printing method are suitable for performing multicolor printing and gradation expression.

  The decoration layer 7B may be a metal thin film layer or a combination of a picture printing layer and a metal thin film layer. The metal thin film layer expresses metallic luster as the decorative layer 7B, and is formed by a vacuum deposition method, a sputtering method, an ion plating method, a plating method, or the like. In this case, a metal such as aluminum, nickel, gold, platinum, chrome iron, copper, tin, indium, silver, titanium, lead, or zinc, or an alloy or compound thereof is used depending on the metallic luster color to be expressed. The film thickness of the metal thin film layer is generally about 0.05 μm. Moreover, when providing a metal thin film layer, in order to improve adhesiveness with another layer, you may provide a front anchor layer and a rear anchor layer.

  For the adhesive layer 7C, a heat-sensitive or pressure-sensitive resin is appropriately used. For example, when the surface side substrate 6 and the design sheet 7 are polycarbonate or polyamide, polyacrylic resin, polystyrene resin, polyamide resin, or the like may be used. Further, when the surface side substrate 6 and the design sheet 7 are acrylic or polyethylene terephthalate, vinyl chloride, vinyl acetate, acrylic copolymer, or the like may be used.

  As a method for forming the adhesive layer 7C, a normal printing method such as screen printing, offset printing, gravure printing, flexographic printing, or the like may be used.

  The terminals 5D and 6D of the back-side substrate 5 and the front-side substrate 6 are made of a circuit made of copper foil from the back surface of the back-side substrate 5 to one side of the polyimide film using the through holes 5a and 5b of the back-side substrate 5. Is electrically connected to an interface (not shown) of the display device 3 by a flexible printed circuit (not shown) made of a film formed with a film.

  A conductive adhesive made of a conductive paste is injected into each of the through holes 5a and 5b so as to be in contact with the corresponding terminals 5D and 6D so as to be energized, and conductive pins provided upright at the end of the flexible printed circuit. Is inserted into the conductive adhesive so as to be energized.

  Instead of the flexible printed circuit with conductive pins, spring connector pins or the like may be used.

  As shown in FIG. 5B, in the surface side substrate 6, the transparent resistance film 6A is adjacent to the lower side of the region 6Aa facing the transparent resistance film 5A by widening the distance between the pair of bus bars 6B to the lower side. It is formed to have an enlarged region 6Ab. The routing circuits 6C for the pair of terminals 6D on the front side substrate 6 are formed so as to pass through the shortest paths from the pair of bus bars 6B.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, in the back side substrate 5, three contacts 5G and two resistors 5H are arranged in the X axis direction and adjacent to the contact 5G in a portion facing the enlarged region 6Ab. The resistor 5H is formed at a predetermined interval so as to be positioned therebetween. The routing circuit 5C for the pair of terminals 5D on the back substrate 5 is formed to have a circuit portion 5Ca in which the transparent resistance film 5A, the three contacts 5G, and the two resistors 5H are arranged in parallel. .

  As shown in FIG. 3, between each contact 5G and the enlarged region 6Ab of the transparent resistance film 6A, when the contact 5G is pressed with a finger or the like, it is possible to achieve vertical conduction and an input feeling. An input feeling generating mechanism 9 is formed for each of them. As shown in FIG. 3, the input feeling generating mechanism 9 has a dome shape protruding toward the surface side substrate 6. As shown in FIG. 4, when the dome surface receives a compressive load with a finger or the like, the dome buckles. It has the property of deforming and returning to its original dome shape when the pressure is released. When this buckling deformation occurs, an impact is generated, which is sensed by a finger or the like to achieve an input feeling (click feeling).

  Since the input sensation generating mechanism 9 has to be connected vertically, a through-hole 9B is provided in a metal dome or a resin dome 9A as shown in FIG. Use a good one.

  Each contact 5G is arranged to face the enlarged region 6Ab at a predetermined interval when the back side substrate 5 and the front side substrate 6 are bonded. The adhesive layer 5E of the back-side substrate 5 is formed to have an opening 5Ea that enables indirect contact between the opposing contact 5G and the enlarged region 6Ab via the input feeling generating mechanism 9.

  That is, when a voltage is applied between one terminal 5D (6D) of the back side substrate 5 and the front side substrate 6 by the opposing contact 5G, the enlarged region 6Ab, and the input feeling generation mechanism 9 interposed therebetween, Based on the voltage detected by the terminal 6D (5D), the switch 12 is configured to detect the presence or absence of indirect contact between the contact 5G and the enlarged region 6Ab.

  In the protection panel A provided with such a switch 12, when a voltage is applied between the terminals 5 </ b> D of the back surface side substrate 5, when any of the switches 12 is touched, the terminal 6 </ b> D of the front surface side substrate 6. The X coordinate of the touch-operated switch 12 can be obtained from the magnitude of the voltage output from. When the analog coordinate input unit Aa facing the transparent resistance films 5A and 6A is touched, the touch at the analog coordinate input unit Aa is determined from the magnitude of the voltage output from the terminal 6D of the surface side substrate 6. The X coordinate of the operation position can be obtained.

  Next, when a voltage is applied between the terminals 6D of the front surface side substrate 6, when any one of the switches 12 is touched, the voltage output from the terminal 5D of the back surface side substrate 5 It can be recognized that the switch 12 is in the ON state. When the analog coordinate input unit Aa is touch-operated, the Y coordinate of the touch operation position in the analog coordinate input unit Aa is obtained from the magnitude of the voltage output from the terminal 5D of the back substrate 5. it can.

  That is, when any of the switches 12 is touch-operated, the X coordinate of the touch operation position obtained by applying a voltage between the terminals 5D of the back-side substrate 5 and the terminals 6D of the front-side substrate 6 are displayed. The touch-operated switch 12 can be identified from the touch operation ON information obtained by applying a voltage between them. Further, when the analog coordinate input unit Aa is touch-operated, the X coordinate of the touch operation position obtained by applying a voltage between the terminals 5D of the back surface side substrate 5 and the terminals 6D of the front surface side substrate 6 are displayed. The touch operation position in the analog coordinate input unit Aa can be specified from the Y coordinate of the touch operation position obtained by applying a voltage therebetween.

  When any of the switches 12 is touch-operated, the touch-operated switch 12 achieves an input, and the dome of the input feeling generating mechanism 9 is buckled and deformed to generate an impact. A finger or the like senses and an input feeling is obtained (see FIG. 8). When the switch 12 detects the presence or absence of indirect contact via the dome-shaped input feeling generation mechanism 9, the presence or absence of actual input and the input feeling completely coincide. That is, when any of the switches 12 performs a touch operation, only an input feeling is obtained even though the input cannot actually be performed, or conversely, an input feeling is not obtained even though the input is actually performed. There is no such thing. Further, since the input feeling generating mechanism 9 is arranged using the interval for the switch 12, the thickness does not increase in order to give an input feeling.

  Each contact 5G can be formed using a metal such as gold, silver, copper, nickel, or a conductive paste such as carbon. As a method for forming each contact 5G, there are a printing method such as screen printing, offset printing, gravure printing, flexographic printing, a photoresist method, a brush coating method, and the like.

  Each resistor 5H includes a metal oxide film such as tin oxide, indium oxide, antimony oxide, zinc oxide, cadmium oxide, indium tin oxide (ITO), a composite film mainly composed of these metal oxides, or gold , Silver, copper, tin, nickel, aluminum, palladium, and other metal films. As a method of forming each resistor 5H, there are a vacuum deposition method, a sputtering method, an ion plating method, a CVD method, and the like.

  In the case of a metal dome, each input feeling generating mechanism 9 can be formed using a thin metal plate such as stainless steel or copper. In the case of a resin-made dome with a conductor, it can be formed using a resin such as silicone rubber, urethane rubber, or fluorine rubber. The conductor 9C connecting the front and back surfaces of the dome in the through hole 9B of the resin dome 9A may be formed by insert molding, caulking, and bonding a member made of a material such as stainless steel, copper, silver, or carbon. Alternatively, a conductive paste may be applied and filled in the through holes 9B to form the conductor 9C. The outer diameter, height, and thickness of the dome may be appropriately set according to the input stroke and the degree of click feeling to be obtained. In addition, each input feeling generating mechanism 9 is fixed by adhering the peripheral bottom of the dome to the surface of the back side substrate 5 with an adhesive or an adhesive (not shown).

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1, as for the design sheet 7, the pattern 7c which shows the switch 12 is formed in the location corresponding to each contact 5G in the decorating part 7b of the decorating layer 7B.

  The protective panel A of the first embodiment has been described above, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, if the protective panel A having a touch input function according to the present invention includes a switch that detects the presence or absence of indirect contact via a dome-shaped input feeling generation mechanism on the peripheral edge corresponding to the decoration. Other forms than the first embodiment can be taken. Other embodiments will be described below.

[Second Embodiment]

  Hereinafter, a second embodiment in which a protective panel A having a touch input function according to the present invention is applied to a mobile phone 1 as an example of an electronic apparatus B will be described with reference to the drawings. In the second embodiment, the configuration of the switch 12 in the protection panel A is different from that of the first embodiment, and the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. Therefore, the first embodiment is based on FIG. Only differences from the form will be described.

  FIG. 6B is the same diagram as FIG. 5B. As shown in FIG. 6A, in the back side substrate 5, a strip-like shape is not provided in the portion facing the enlarged region 6Ab, instead of the three contacts 5G and the two resistors 5H as in the first embodiment. A transparent resistive film 5J is formed. The routing circuit 5C for the pair of terminals 5D on the back side substrate 5 is formed such that the transparent resistance film 5A and the transparent resistance film 5J are in parallel.

  Then, between the strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J and the enlarged region 6Ab of the transparent resistance film 6A, when the top of the strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J that is to be the switch 12 is pressed with a finger or the like, vertical conduction is provided. In addition, an input feeling generating mechanism 9 is formed in each of the portions that become the switches 12 so that an input feeling can be obtained. The input feeling generating mechanism 9 can be the same as that in the first embodiment.

  The strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J is disposed so as to face the enlarged region 6Ab and the air layer at a predetermined interval when the back substrate 5 and the front substrate 6 are bonded. The adhesive layer 5E of the back side substrate 5 is formed to have an opening 5Ea that enables indirect contact between the transparent resistance film 5J and the enlarged region 6Ab via the input feeling generating mechanism 9.

  That is, a voltage is applied between one terminal 5D (6D) of the back side substrate 5 and the front side substrate 6 by the opposing strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J, the enlarged region 6Ab, and the input feeling generating mechanism 9 interposed therebetween. At this time, a switch 12 is configured to detect the presence or absence of indirect contact between the strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J and the enlarged region 6Ab based on the voltage detected by the other terminal 6D (5D). When the switch 12 is configured in this way, the same effect as in the first embodiment can be obtained.

  The strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J includes a metal oxide film such as tin oxide, indium oxide, antimony oxide, zinc oxide, cadmium oxide, indium tin oxide (ITO), a composite film mainly composed of these metal oxides, Or it is a transparent conductive film which consists of metal films, such as gold | metal | money, silver, copper, tin, nickel, aluminum, and palladium. The transparent resistance film 5J may be formed in a multilayer of two or more layers. As a method for forming the transparent resistance film 5J, there are a vacuum deposition method, a sputtering method, an ion plating method, a CVD method, and the like.

  Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1, as for the design sheet 7, the pattern 7c which shows the switch 12 is formed in the location corresponding to the opening 5Ea of the contact bonding layer 5E in the decoration part 7b of the decoration layer 7B.

[Third Embodiment]

  Hereinafter, a third embodiment in which a protection panel A having a touch input function according to the present invention is applied to a mobile phone 1 which is an example of an electronic device B will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In the third embodiment, the configuration of the switch 12 in the protection panel A is different from that of the first embodiment, and the other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment. Therefore, the first embodiment is based on FIG. Only differences from the form will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, four through holes 5 a and 5 b for energization that penetrate through the front surface and the back surface of the back substrate 5 are formed in the lower left edge portion of the peripheral portion of the back substrate 5. It is aligned and formed in a straight line at a predetermined interval in the left-right direction. On the front surface side of the back-side substrate 5, along with the transparent resistance film 5A, a pair of parallel bus bars 5B located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film 5A in the Y-axis direction, and a pair of routing circuits 5C located around the resistance film 5A A pair of terminals 5D, a frame-like adhesive layer 5E, and the like are formed.

  As shown in FIG. 7B, on the back surface side of the front surface side substrate 6, together with the transparent resistance film 6A, a pair of parallel bus bars 6B located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film 6A in the X-axis direction, the transparent resistance A pair of routing circuits 6C positioned around the film 6A, a pair of terminals 6D facing the corresponding through-holes 5b, and the like are formed.

  A pair of routing circuits 5C and 6C on each of the back side substrate 5 and the front side substrate 6 is such that one routing circuit 5C and 6C passes through the shortest path across the corresponding bus bars 5B and 6B and the terminals 5D and 6D. Is formed. The other routing circuits 5 </ b> C and 6 </ b> C are formed to have circuit portions 5 </ b> Ca and 6 </ b> Ca along the lower edges of the back-side substrate 5 and the front-side substrate 6. Each of the circuit portions 5Ca and 6Ca has a predetermined interval so that the three contacts 5G and 6G and the two resistors 5H and 6H are positioned between the adjacent contacts 5G and 6G. It is formed apart.

  That is, the back surface side substrate 5 and the front surface side substrate 6 are provided with three contacts 5G and 6G connected in series via the corresponding routing circuits 5C and 6C so as to have a potential difference between the resistance films 5A and 6A. It has been.

  An input sensation generating mechanism 9 is formed between the contact 5G and the contact 6G so that when the contact 5G, 6G is pressed with a finger or the like, vertical conduction is achieved and an input feeling can be obtained. In addition, the adhesive layer 5E of the back substrate 5 is formed to have an opening 5Ea that enables indirect contact between the contact point 5G and the contact point 6G through the input feeling generating mechanism 9.

  The contacts 5G and 6G are arranged so that the corresponding contacts 5G and 6G are opposed to each other with a predetermined interval by the air layer when the back substrate 5 and the front substrate 6 are bonded. The adhesive layer 5E of the back substrate 5 is formed to have an opening 5Ea that allows indirect contact via the input feeling generating mechanism 9 of the contact points 5G and 6G facing each other.

  That is, when a voltage is applied between one terminal 5D (6D) of the back surface side substrate 5 and the front surface side substrate 6 by the opposing contact 5G, the contact 6G and the input feeling generation mechanism 9 interposed therebetween, the other terminal Based on the voltage detected by 6D (5D), a switch 12 is configured to detect the presence or absence of indirect contact between these contacts 5G and 6G. When the switch 12 is configured in this way, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[Fourth Embodiment]

  Hereinafter, a fourth embodiment in which a protection panel A having a touch input function according to the present invention is applied to a mobile phone 1 as an example of an electronic apparatus B will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In the fourth embodiment, the formation place of the input feeling generating mechanism 9 in the protection panel A is different from that in the first embodiment, and other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment. Only differences from the first embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 10 is a transverse bottom view of the main part of the mobile phone 1. As shown in these drawings, in the back side substrate 5, a dome-like input feeling generating mechanism is not provided on the peripheral side corresponding to the decorating part 7b on the back side, not on the front side as in the first to third embodiments. 10 is arranged.

  That is, a voltage is applied between one terminal 5D (6D) of the back-side substrate 5 and the front-side substrate 6 by the opposing contact 5G and the enlarged region 6Ab or by the opposing strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J and the enlarged region 6Ab. When this occurs, based on the voltage detected by the other terminal 6D (5D), a switch for detecting the contact of the contact 5G and the enlarged region 6Ab or the contact of the strip-shaped transparent resistance film 5J and the enlarged region 6Ab 12 is configured without including the input feeling generating mechanism 10.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the input feeling generating mechanism 10 has a dome shape that protrudes toward the support frame 2 b that supports the protective panel A of the front housing portion 2 </ b> A. When any of the switches 12 is touch-operated, the entire protective panel A is pressed against the support frame 2b of the front side housing portion 2A, so that the dome of the input feeling generating mechanism 10 is buckled and deformed. Then, a finger or the like senses this to obtain an input feeling (see FIG. 11). Moreover, the input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism 10 can be arrange | positioned in the arbitrary places of the peripheral part corresponding to the decoration parts 7b, such as a corner | angular part of a protective panel A, and a side part, and the number of arrangement | positioning is one or more. In this case, unlike the first to third embodiments, the presence or absence of actual input does not completely match the input feeling.

[Another embodiment]

(1) The number of switches 12 provided in the protection panel A can be variously changed. For example, the protection panel A may be provided with a row composed of a single switch 12 or may be provided with a row composed of two or four or more switches 12. When the plurality of switches 12 are configured by the plurality of contacts 5G, a resistor 5H is provided between the contacts 5G.

  Note that, in the protection panel A including the single switch 12, unlike the first and second embodiments, it is not specified which switch 12 is touch-operated. That is, in this case, ON / OFF of the switch 12 is recognized from the magnitude of the voltage output from the terminal 5D of the back surface side substrate 5 obtained by applying a voltage between the terminals 6D of the front surface side substrate 6. It becomes only.

(2) Further, the arrangement of the switch 12 included in the protection panel A can be changed as follows. For example, the switch 12 may be formed along the upper and lower edges of the protective panel A. In other words, the transparent resistive film 6A has two enlarged regions 6Ab so as to sandwich the opposed region 6Aa with the transparent resistive film 5A, and any of the enlarged regions 6Ab has the contact 5G or strip-shaped transparent facing each other. It is set as the structure provided with the resistive film 5J. Further, the switch 12 may be formed only on the upper edge of the protective panel A.

  Further, a plurality of rows of switches 12 may be provided on one side edge of the upper and lower sides of the protective panel A. That is, the circuit portion parallel to the transparent resistance film 5A including the contact 5G is configured to be two or more rows.

  In the protection panel A having two or more rows of switches 12, when any one of the switches 12 is touch-operated, unlike the first and second embodiments, between the terminals 5D of the back substrate 5 The touch-operated switch 12 is obtained from the X coordinate of the touch operation position obtained by applying the voltage and the Y coordinate of the touch operation position obtained by applying the voltage between the terminals 6D of the surface side substrate 6. Will be specified.

(3) In the first to third embodiments described above, the circuit configuration on the front surface of the back-side substrate 5 and the circuit configuration on the back surface of the front-side substrate 6 may be interchanged.

  Although the present invention has been fully described in connection with preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, various variations and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications are to be understood as being included therein, so long as they do not depart from the scope of the present invention according to the appended claims.

  The present invention can be used for applications such as mobile phones, smartphones, PDAs, car navigation devices, digital cameras, digital video cameras, portable game machines, and tablets, and is industrially useful.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cellular phone 2 Case 2A Front side case 2Aa Display window 2B Back side case 3 Display device 3A Display 4 Input key 5 Back side substrate 5a Through hole 5b Through hole 5c Opening 5A Transparent resistance film 5B Bus bar 5C Route circuit 5Ca Circuit portion 5D terminal 5E Adhesive layer 5Ea Opening 5F Routing circuit 5G Contact 5J Transparent resistance film 5K Terminal 6 Surface side substrate 6c Opening 6A Transparent resistance film 6Aa Opposing area 6Ab Enlarged area 6B Bus bar 6C Routing circuit 6D Terminal 6E Routing circuit 6D Terminal 6E Contact 6K terminal 8 Spacer 9 Input feeling generating mechanism 9A Resin dome 9B Through hole 9C Conductor 10 Input feeling generating mechanism 12 Switch A Protection panel Aa Analog coordinate input part B Electronic equipment

Claims (8)

A back surface side on which a first transparent resistance film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the first transparent resistance film, and a pair of first terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit are formed on the front surface side A substrate,
A second transparent resistance film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the second transparent resistance film, a pair of second terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit, are formed on the back surface side; and A surface-side substrate with a decoration on the peripheral edge on the surface side,
The back-side substrate and the front-side substrate are arranged such that the first and second transparent resistance films face each other with a predetermined interval by an air layer, and either one of the bus bars is the transparent resistance. An operation based on a touch operation on the surface-side substrate by adhering so that the other pair of bus bars are located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film in the Y-axis direction. A protective panel having a touch input function that constitutes an analog coordinate input unit that detects an XY coordinate as a position by a potential gradient,
Furthermore, a protective panel with an input function for obtaining an input feeling, characterized in that a switch for detecting the presence or absence of indirect contact via a dome-like input feeling generating mechanism is provided on the peripheral edge corresponding to the decoration. . In the surface-side substrate, by expanding the distance between the pair of bus bars, the second transparent resistance film is a portion where the decoration is applied to the enlarged area adjacent to the area facing the first transparent resistance film Have
In the back side substrate, connected to the pair of first terminals via a routing circuit so as to be in parallel with the first transparent resistance film, and by the enlarged region and the air layer of the second transparent resistance film A contact disposed to be opposed to each other with a predetermined interval, and a dome-shaped input feeling generating mechanism interposed between the contact and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film,
When the voltage is applied between the terminals on one of the back side substrate and the front side substrate by the contact, the input feeling generation mechanism, and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film, the other terminal The input with which the input feeling of Claim 1 which comprises the switch which detects the presence or absence of the indirect contact of the said enlarged region of the said contact and the said 2nd transparent resistive film based on the voltage detected by this is obtained. Protection panel with function. In the surface-side substrate, by expanding the distance between the pair of bus bars, the second transparent resistance film is a portion where the decoration is applied to the enlarged area adjacent to the area facing the first transparent resistance film Have
In the back side substrate, the pair of first terminals are connected in parallel with the first transparent resistance film, and a predetermined interval is provided between the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film and an air layer. A strip-shaped third transparent resistance film disposed so as to face each other, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the third transparent resistance film and parallel to the bus bar, the third transparent resistance film, A dome-like input feeling generating mechanism interposed between the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film,
A voltage is applied between the terminals of one of the back-side substrate and the front-side substrate by the strip-shaped third transparent resistance film, the input feeling generating mechanism, and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film. A switch for detecting the presence or absence of indirect contact between the strip-shaped third transparent resistance film and the enlarged region of the second transparent resistance film based on the voltage detected by the other terminal. The protection panel with an input function which is comprised and the input feeling of Claim 1 is obtained. In the surface side substrate, provided with a contact connected in series to the second transparent resistance film through a circuit to have a potential difference,
The back side substrate is connected in series to the first transparent resistance film through a routing circuit so as to have a potential difference, and is opposed to the contact point of the front side substrate by an air layer at a predetermined interval. A disposed contact, and a dome-shaped input feeling generating mechanism interposed between the contact and the contact of the surface-side substrate,
Based on the voltage detected by the other terminal when a voltage is applied between the terminals with respect to one of the back side substrate and the front side substrate by the contact of the back side substrate and the front side substrate, The protection panel with an input function according to claim 1, wherein a switch for detecting presence or absence of indirect contact of the contacts is configured. The protective panel with an input function capable of obtaining an input feeling according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the input feeling generating mechanism is a metal dome. The protective panel with an input function for obtaining an input feeling according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the input feeling generating mechanism is a resin dome provided with a through hole and the dome front and back surfaces are connected by a conductor. . The protection panel with an input function according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the circuit configuration on the front surface of the back substrate and the circuit configuration on the back surface of the front substrate are interchanged. A back surface side on which a first transparent resistance film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the first transparent resistance film, and a pair of first terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit are formed on the front surface side A substrate,
A second transparent resistance film, a pair of bus bars located on opposite sides of the second transparent resistance film, a pair of second terminals connected from the bus bar via a routing circuit, are formed on the back surface side; and A surface-side substrate with a decoration on the peripheral edge on the surface side,
The back-side substrate and the front-side substrate are arranged such that the first and second transparent resistance films face each other with a predetermined interval by an air layer, and either one of the bus bars is the transparent resistance. An operation based on a touch operation on the surface-side substrate by adhering so that the other pair of bus bars are located on opposite sides of the transparent resistance film in the Y-axis direction. A protective panel having a touch input function that constitutes an analog coordinate input unit that detects an XY coordinate as a position by a potential gradient,
Furthermore, the said back side board | substrate was equipped with the dome-shaped input feeling generation | occurrence | production mechanism arrange | positioned in the peripheral part corresponding to the said decoration on the back side, The protection panel with an input function characterized by the above-mentioned.

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