JP2018142872A - Touch panel module - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a touch panel module in which reliability can be improved by reducing a mechanical connection portion and the overall size of a housing can be reduced.SOLUTION: A touch panel module includes: a transparent substrate including sensing electrode patterns in two directions intersecting to each other in plan view on one surface of a viewing side or front and back surfaces, respectively; and cover glass or a cover film stuck to the transparent substrate. The transparent substrate has an antenna pattern outside the sensing electrode patterns in two directions, and also has a region extending from an end in at least one direction of the cover glass or cover film. The antenna pattern exists in the extending region, and a region in which the transparent substrate extends from an end of the cover glass or cover film has a structure curved in cross-sectional view.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a touch panel module provided in an information processing apparatus.

  In recent years, an information processing apparatus having a touch panel function in an image display unit of a display apparatus has been developed and provided to the market. In a display device provided with a touch panel, the device can be operated by touching a position on a pattern such as a figure or character displayed on the screen with a finger or a pen. It is often used in portable information processing devices.

  FIG. 9 is a bird's-eye view of a general smartphone 40. The smartphone 40 includes a housing 45 formed of a frame (sometimes referred to as a case, a housing, or the like) that constitutes an external appearance, and electronic components such as a display panel and a printed circuit board are accommodated in the housing 45. . In addition, a sensor area 42 for detecting a touch position, which is displayed in a display area (touch area) 48 and covers the display area 48 and surrounded by a dotted line, constitutes a touch panel.

  In order to acquire external information and transmit information to the outside as part of the functions of the information processing apparatus, it is necessary to have a wireless communication function. That is, a radio transceiver (radio module) and an antenna for transmitting information to the outside and acquiring necessary information from the outside are required. The antenna is disposed in a place where an electromagnetic wave such as the outer periphery of the information processing apparatus is likely to be emitted or captured easily in order to emit an electromagnetic wave in the space or to induce a current from the electromagnetic wave in the space.

  In the portable information processing apparatus, for example, in the case of the smartphone 40 of FIG. 9, an accessory device such as a speaker, a camera, or various sensors is often attached to the one end 40a, but an antenna is also installed in the one end 40a. Can extend the distance that radio waves can reach. In this way, one end part of many portable information processing devices becomes an interface for various accessories, but conversely, the one end part is made as small as possible to reduce the size, improve convenience of carrying, etc. It is possible to bring out special features.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2016-111669 JP, 2006-184277, A

For example, in Patent Document 1, a proposal has been made to realize the miniaturization of a housing by using a metal frame that forms an external part of a mobile terminal as an antenna. However, in the configuration in which the metal frame itself is an antenna, a process of attaching a metal antenna as a very fine part to the housing is required. Alternatively, when a metal frame is used as an antenna, the characteristics of the antenna may change when the metal frame is touched.

On the other hand, in Patent Document 2, the inventors of the present invention have a touch panel integrated type in which an antenna pattern and a transmission line are formed on a transparent film substrate on which an electrode pattern of a touch panel is formed, and mechanical connection portions are reduced to improve reliability. Proposed mounting of film antenna.
Also in this technology, in the case of a dipole antenna pattern, it is necessary to arrange it in two places, and when patterning a monopole antenna, it is also necessary to arrange a ground pattern on the touch panel film. In other words, there has been a problem that the entire casing tends to be enlarged.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems. The object of the present invention is to provide a touch panel module capable of reducing the mechanical connection portion and improving the reliability and miniaturizing the entire housing. Is to provide.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 includes a transparent substrate provided with sensing electrode patterns in two directions intersecting each other in a plan view on one side of the viewing side or each of the front and back surfaces, and the transparent substrate A touch panel module having a cover glass or a cover film bonded to a conductive substrate,
The transparent substrate has an antenna pattern outside the sensing electrode pattern in the two directions;
And having an area extending from an end of at least one direction of the cover glass or the cover film,
And the antenna pattern exists in a region where the transparent substrate extends from an end of the cover glass or cover film,
And the area | region which the said transparent substrate extended from the edge part of the said cover glass or a cover film is a touchscreen module characterized by having the structure curved in sectional view.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transparent substrate provided with sensing electrode patterns in two directions intersecting each other in a plan view on one side of the viewing side or each of the front and back surfaces, and a cover glass bonded to the transparent substrate. Or a touch panel module having a cover film,
The transparent substrate has an antenna pattern outside the sensing electrode pattern in the two directions;
And having an area extending from an end of at least one direction of the cover glass or the cover film,
And the antenna pattern exists in a region where the transparent substrate extends from an end of the cover glass or cover film,
And the area | region which the said transparent substrate extended from the edge part of the said cover glass or a cover film has a structure which has a notch part, and was bent from the said notch part by sectional view, It was set as the touch panel module characterized by the above-mentioned It is.

The invention according to claim 3 has a ground pattern on a surface opposite to the viewing side before the transparent substrate is bent or bent.
3. The touch panel module according to claim 1, wherein after being bent or bent, the ground pattern has a structure in which the ground pattern is grounded to a metal frame constituting a housing of the touch panel module. .

Invention of Claim 4 has a ground pattern in the surface which becomes a visual recognition side before the said transparent substrate curves or bends,
3. The touch panel module according to claim 1, wherein after being bent or bent, the ground pattern has a structure in which the ground pattern is grounded to a metal frame constituting a housing of the touch panel module. .

  According to the present invention, a transparent substrate provided with sensing electrode patterns in two directions intersecting each other in plan view on one side of the viewing side or on the front and back surfaces, and a cover glass or a cover film bonded to the transparent substrate. The transparent substrate has an antenna pattern outside the sensing electrode pattern in two directions, and has a region extending from at least one end of the cover glass or the cover film. The area where the transparent substrate extends from the edge of the cover glass or cover film is a touch panel module that has a curved or bent structure in cross-sectional view. Touch panel module that can improve the performance and downsize the entire housing Yuru is obtained.

It is a disassembled schematic diagram of a general display device with a touch panel. It is the schematic diagram which decomposed | disassembled the touchscreen module part and liquid crystal type display panel module part of the display apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which illustrates the (a) cross-sectional schematic diagram (b) bird's-eye view which concerns on the form in the middle of manufacture of the touchscreen module of this invention. FIG. 4 is an exploded schematic view of FIG. 3. It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram which concerns on 1st Embodiment of the touchscreen module of this invention. It is the (a) cross-sectional schematic diagram (b) bird's-eye view which concerns on the modification of 1st Embodiment. It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of the touchscreen module of this invention. It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram which concerns on 3rd Embodiment of the touchscreen module of this invention. It is a bird's-eye view of a general smart phone.

  Hereinafter, a touch panel module according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the same component unless there is a reason for convenience, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted. Also, in the drawings used in the following description, in order to make the features easy to understand, the portions that become the features may be shown in an enlarged manner, and the dimensional ratios of the respective constituent elements are not the same as the actual ones.

  In order to describe an embodiment of the present invention, first, a configuration of a general liquid crystal display device with a touch panel used for a smartphone or the like will be described. FIG. 1 is an exploded schematic view of a general display device 70 with a touch panel. The display device 70 includes a front metal frame 65 (also referred to as a front case) and a rear metal frame 66 (also referred to as a rear case). The display device 70 includes a touch panel module 50, a display panel module 60, and a print. It has a configuration in which a substrate (not shown), a light guide plate (not shown) and the like are accommodated. The touch panel module and the display panel module may be collectively referred to as a display panel module, but are distinguished in the present application.

  One or more intermediate metal frames (not shown) are usually arranged in the housing. The intermediate metal frame fixes the display panel module 60 (and / or the touch panel module 50). The front metal frame 65, the back metal frame 66, and the intermediate metal frame are usually formed of a metal such as SUS so that sufficient rigidity can be maintained even if the metal frame is thin. A printed circuit board (not shown, which may be a flexible circuit board) is a circuit that supplies a signal voltage to the display panel for control, and a circuit that processes a radio signal (or radio electromagnetic wave) transmitted and received by an antenna. Is formed.

FIG. 2 is an exploded schematic view of the touch panel module 50 and the liquid crystal display panel module 60 of the display device of FIG. As described above, the display panel module 60 includes the liquid crystal layer 64, the TFT array substrate 63, the color filter substrate 62, and the pair of polarizing plates 61, and the viewing side which is the display surface side through the air gap 69, A transparent substrate 51 made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or the like provided with electrode patterns 52 and 53 in two directions (horizontal direction and vertical direction) intersecting each other in plan view, and a frame-shaped decorative portion layer 56 is formed on the front surface thereof. It is bonded to the touch panel module 50 provided with a transparent cover sheet for protecting the surface represented by the cover glass 55 and the cover film.

  Here, the electrode patterns 52 and 53 in two directions (lateral direction and vertical direction) intersecting each other in plan view may be provided on the front and back surfaces of the transparent substrate 51 as shown in FIG. However, in the following description, it is assumed that they are on the front and back surfaces as in FIG. 2, and 52 and 53 (and 2 and 3 to be described later) are referred to as a horizontal electrode pattern and a vertical electrode pattern, respectively. Touch detection is performed by using a vertical electric field when they are on the front and back surfaces, and using a horizontal electric field when they are on one side of the viewing side.

  The decorative portion layer 56 is formed by forming a pattern made of a highly light-shielding material on the cover glass 55 in order to hide peripheral wiring and the like. Various colors and patterns can be applied to the decoration layer 56 according to the design of the device. When applying a color or a pattern to a decoration part layer, it is common to form a decoration part layer by screen printing. Since many kinds of colors and patterns are applied to the decoration part layer, which leads to an increase in cost, the decoration part layer is mainly black. As the ink or resist used when forming the black decorative layer, a material in which carbon or titanium is dispersed as a pigment is generally used.

  The side electrode pattern 52 side of the transparent substrate 51 of the touch panel module 50 is usually bonded to the cover glass 55 (or cover film) via an adhesive layer. In addition, the vertical electrode pattern 53 side of the transparent substrate 51 is usually bonded to a protective layer made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or the like via an adhesive layer. In FIG. 2, these adhesive layer and protective layer are illustrated. Is omitted.

  FIG. 3 illustrates (a) a schematic cross-sectional view (b) a bird's-eye view according to a form during the manufacture of the touch panel module of the present invention. The touch panel module 10 in the form of manufacturing is made of a transparent substrate 1 having a lateral electrode pattern 2 and a longitudinal electrode pattern 3 made of copper (Cu) or the like and intersecting each other in plan view, respectively, and transparency. It has a cover glass 5 (or a cover film. Only the cover glass is described below) bonded to the substrate 1. Further, a dipole antenna pattern 9a is provided outside the horizontal electrode pattern 2 or the vertical electrode pattern 3 (transverse electrode pattern 2 in FIG. 3) of the transparent substrate 1, and the transparent substrate 1 includes a cover glass 5 A region extending from an end in at least one direction.

  In the region of the transparent substrate 1 extending from the end of the cover glass 5, other dipole antenna pattern 9a is not necessarily present, and other accessory devices such as speakers and various sensors may be present, as shown in FIG. Thus, it is preferable in terms of characteristics that the dipole antenna pattern 9a exists. Hereinafter, a mode in which an antenna pattern exists in the extension region will be described.

  The lateral electrode pattern 2 side of the transparent substrate 1 is bonded to the cover glass 5 via an adhesive layer 4 made of an optical adhesive sheet OCA (Optically Clear Adhesive) or the like, and the vertical electrode pattern 3 side is also made of OCA or the like. It is bonded to a protective layer 7 made of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or the like through an adhesive layer 4. A decorative portion layer 6 is formed on the cover glass 5 by a printing method or the like.

  4 is an exploded schematic view of the touch panel module according to the tenth embodiment in the middle of manufacture in FIG. That is, the positional relationship is shown by separating the cover glass 5 and the touch panel portion. The transparent substrate 1 of the touch panel portion is provided with the horizontal electrode pattern 2 and the vertical electrode pattern 3 in the area corresponding to the display area (touch area) 8 of the cover glass 5 on both sides, and the decorative portion layer 6 of the cover glass 5. The wiring to the electrode pattern and the input / output terminal portion are formed on the two or three sides of the region facing each other.

  Further, a dipole antenna pattern 9a is patterned as an antenna area 1a on the remaining one or two sides that are not used for the wiring and input / output terminal portions, and the antenna area 1a extends from the cover glass 5 so as to cover the cover glass. 5 is pasted. In FIG. 4B, a microstrip line connected to the antenna pattern 9a is formed outside the wiring and the input / output terminal portion as in FIG. 1 of Patent Document 2 by the present inventors. Is omitted.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view according to the first embodiment. In the touch panel module 11 of this example, the region (antenna area 1b) in which the transparent substrate 1 extends from the end of the cover glass 5 has a curved structure in a sectional view. By arranging it in such a curved manner, it is possible to design the housing portion of the smartphone, particularly the upper end portion, to be small.

  6A and 6B are (a) a schematic cross-sectional view and (b) a bird's-eye view according to a modification of the first embodiment. In the touch panel module 12 of this example, the area (antenna area 1c) where the transparent substrate 1 extends from the end of the cover glass 5 is cut into a position closest to the display area (touch area) 8 (slit S). And has a structure bent from the slit S in a cross-sectional view (FIG. 6 (b) shows the appearance before bending). By having the slits S in this way, a more stable bending structure is obtained, and it is possible to design the housing portion of the smartphone, particularly the upper end portion, to be small.

  3 to 6 described above are embodiments having a dipole antenna. The dipole antenna does not need to be grounded, but for example, it is necessary to create an antenna pattern that forms two pairs in the X direction. The antenna patterns 9a, 9b, and 9c are in contact with the front metal frame, the back metal frame, the intermediate metal frame, and the like constituting the housing in any of the forms in the middle of manufacture, the first embodiment, and the modified example of the first embodiment. In order to avoid this, an insulating region (not shown) is appropriately interposed.

  The following FIGS. 7 and 8 show a form having a monopole antenna. A monopole antenna requires a ground pattern in addition to one antenna pattern.

  FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view according to the second embodiment of the touch panel module of the present invention. The touch panel module 20 according to the second embodiment includes a monopole antenna pattern 9d on the lateral electrode pattern 2 side of the transparent substrate 1 and a vertical electrode pattern 3 side of the transparent substrate 1 (in other words, the transparent substrate is curved or bent). The ground pattern 1G has a structure in which the ground pattern 1G is grounded at the ground connection portion 1G0 and the metal frame constituting the housing of the touch panel module. .

  More specifically, the touch panel module 20 has a slit S at the end of the antenna area 1d and is bent from the slit S in a cross-sectional view, like the touch panel module 12 of the modification of the first embodiment. Yes. Accordingly, the ground pattern 1G originally on the vertical electrode pattern 3 side is present inside the three-dimensional body formed by the transparent substrate 1 after bending, and it is easy to make a ground connection with the intermediate metal frame 68. When the ground pattern 1G itself is bent as shown in FIG. 7, it can be grounded to the bottom surface of the intermediate metal frame 68.

  FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view according to a third embodiment of the touch panel module of the present invention. The touch panel module 30 of the third embodiment includes a monopole antenna pattern 9e on the vertical electrode pattern 3 side of the transparent substrate 1 and a lateral electrode pattern 2 side of the transparent substrate 1 (in other words, the transparent substrate is curved or bent). The ground pattern 2G is provided on the surface side that becomes the visual recognition side), and the ground pattern 2G is connected to the metal frame that constitutes the casing of the touch panel module.

  More specifically, the touch panel module 30 has a slit S at the end of the antenna area 1e and is bent from the slit S in a cross-sectional view, like the touch panel module 12 of the modified example of the first embodiment. Yes. Therefore, the ground pattern 2G originally on the lateral electrode pattern 2 side exists outside the three-dimensional body formed by the transparent substrate 1 after bending, and as shown in FIG. It becomes possible to do.

  7 and 8, the monopole antenna patterns 9d and 9e have been described with respect to the transparent substrate 1 on the side opposite to the ground patterns 1G and 2G. However, the same side as the ground patterns 1G and 2G has been described. It may be. However, the monopole antenna patterns 9d and 9e are configured by interposing insulating regions as appropriate so as not to contact the intermediate metal frame 68 and the back metal frame 66, respectively.

  As described above, the touch panel module according to the present invention includes an antenna pattern outside the two-directional sensing electrode pattern on the transparent substrate and a microstrip line connected to the antenna pattern, as in Patent Document 2 by the present inventors. Therefore, the mechanical connection part is reduced and the reliability is improved. Furthermore, since the transparent substrate has a region extending from the end of at least one direction of the cover glass or the cover film, it becomes possible to obtain a touch panel module that is curved or bent to downsize the entire housing. .

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 51 ... Transparent substrate 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, 1e ... Antenna area 2, 52 ... Horizontal direction electrode pattern 3, 53 ... Vertical direction electrode pattern 4 ... Adhesive layer 5, 55 ... Cover glass 6, 56 ... Decorating part layer 7 ... Protective layer 8, 48 ... Display area (touch area)
9a, 9b, 9c... Dipole antenna patterns 9d, 9e... Monopole antenna patterns 1G, 2G... Ground pattern 1G0. In the middle of manufacturing the touch panel module of the invention 11... The first embodiment of the touch panel module of the present invention 12... Modification 20, 20, 30 of the first embodiment of the touch panel module of the present invention Second and third embodiments 40 of the touch panel module of the present invention: Smartphone 40a ... Smartphone one end 42 ... Touch sensor region 45 ... Housing 50 ... ... Touch panel module 60 ... Display panel module 61 ... Polarizing plate 62 ... Color filter substrate 63 ... T T array substrate 64 ... liquid crystal layer 65 ... front metal frame 66 ... back metal frame 67 ... back cover 68 ... intermediate metal frame 69 ... ··· Air gap 70 ··· Display device S with touch panel ··· Slit

Claims (4)

A touch panel module having a transparent substrate provided with sensing electrode patterns in two directions intersecting each other in a plan view on one side of the viewing side or each of the front and back surfaces, and a cover glass or a cover film bonded to the transparent substrate. And
The transparent substrate has an antenna pattern outside the sensing electrode pattern in the two directions;
And having an area extending from an end of at least one direction of the cover glass or the cover film,
And the antenna pattern exists in a region where the transparent substrate extends from an end of the cover glass or cover film,
And the area | region where the said transparent substrate extended from the edge part of the said cover glass or a cover film is a structure curved by sectional view, The touch panel module characterized by the above-mentioned. A touch panel module having a transparent substrate provided with sensing electrode patterns in two directions intersecting each other in a plan view on one side of the viewing side or each of the front and back surfaces, and a cover glass or a cover film bonded to the transparent substrate. And
The transparent substrate has an antenna pattern outside the sensing electrode pattern in the two directions;
And having an area extending from an end of at least one direction of the cover glass or the cover film,
And the antenna pattern exists in a region where the transparent substrate extends from an end of the cover glass or cover film,
And the area | region which the said transparent substrate extended from the edge part of the said cover glass or a cover film has a notch part, and is a structure bent from the said notch part by sectional view, The touch panel module characterized by the above-mentioned. Before the transparent substrate is bent or bent, it has a ground pattern on the surface opposite to the viewing side,
3. The touch panel module according to claim 1, wherein, after being bent or bent, the ground pattern has a structure in which the ground pattern is grounded and connected to a metal frame constituting a housing of the touch panel module.   A structure in which the transparent substrate has a ground pattern on the surface on the viewing side before being bent or bent, and after being bent or bent, the ground pattern is grounded and connected to a metal frame constituting the casing of the touch panel module The touch panel module according to claim 1, wherein the touch panel module is a touch panel module.