JP2021044609A - Electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an electronic device that can properly connect an antenna to a substrate without taking up more space.SOLUTION: The electronic device includes an antenna, a circuit board, and a connection member 8 that electrically connects between the antenna and the circuit board. The connection member 8 has a telescopic portion 82 that includes a first coil spring that can be extended and retracted and a columnar foundation 81 that is connected in series to the telescopic portion 82.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to electronic devices.

Some small electronic devices mainly used for portable applications, especially wearable devices, receive radio waves from the outside to acquire information or communicate with external devices. An antenna is required for transmitting and receiving radio waves. In such an electronic device, a substrate having an antenna and a receiving circuit is arranged so as to be able to improve reception sensitivity while avoiding the influence of electromagnetic noise of parts.

In a small electronic device, it is difficult to fixly connect the antenna and the board by signal wiring or the like. Conventionally, in such a wristwatch-type electronic device, by using a leaf spring, the leaf spring is compressed when the inside is sealed by the back cover, and the antenna and the substrate are stably connected. The configuration is known (Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-56660

However, since the leaf spring takes a place in the direction perpendicular to the separation direction between the antenna and the substrate, there is a problem that the efficiency is inferior to that of the narrow internal space of the electronic device.

An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device capable of appropriately connecting an antenna and a substrate without taking up more space.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention
With the antenna
With the circuit board
A connecting member that electrically connects the antenna and the circuit board,
With
The connecting member is an electronic device having a first portion including a stretchable first coil spring and a columnar second portion connected in series with the first portion.

According to the present invention, there is an effect that the antenna and the substrate can be appropriately connected in an electronic device without taking up more space.

It is sectional drawing of the electronic clock of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the connecting member. It is a figure which shows the modification 1 and 2 of the connection member. It is a figure which shows the modification 3 and 4 of the connection member. It is a figure which shows the modification 5 and 6 of the connection member. It is a figure which shows the modification 7 of the connection member.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an electronic clock 1 which is an embodiment of an electronic device.

The electronic clock 1 is of a wristwatch type, and a display unit 11, a circuit board 12, a battery 13, and the like are located in an internal space surrounded by a casing 2, a back cover 3, and a windshield 4. ing. The positional relationship of these internal configurations is defined by the support member 21 (housing). The bezel 6 is located on the outside of the casing 2.

The back cover 3 is screwed to the casing 2 via the waterproof ring 31. Here, the back cover 3 is a metal member (conductive member), and may form a grounding surface (housing grounding) with respect to the electronic circuit related to the operation of the electronic timepiece 1. The windshield 4 is a transparent member, and the display on the display screen of the internal display unit 11 is transparent and exposed to the outside. The windshield 4 is fitted into the casing 2 via the packing 41. One of the cylindrical casings 2 has an insertion portion for the antenna 7, and the antenna 7 is inserted between the casing 2 and the windshield 4. The antenna 7 and the casing 2 are in contact with each other via a waterproof member 51 (packing). The antenna 7 and the circuit board 12 are electrically connected by a connecting member 8.

The display unit 11 has a display screen and performs digital display. The display screen is not particularly limited, but is, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD). As described above, the display screen is visibly exposed from the outside through the windshield 4.

The circuit board 12 is attached with electronic components 14 such as a microcomputer, a memory, and an oscillator that control the operation of the electronic clock 1, and performs various operations.

The battery 13 stores and outputs electric power to be supplied to the circuit board 12 and the like. The battery 13 is, for example, a rechargeable battery, and may be charged by electric power supplied from the outside via a terminal (not shown) or the like. Further, the battery 13 may be capable of charging the electric power generated by the solar panel provided around the display screen of the display unit 11.

The bezel 6 is a member that covers the display screen and the windshield 4 in an annular shape, and may be rotatable. Here, the bezel 6 is a dielectric material such as a resin.

The antenna 7 has an antenna wire 71 and a base 72. The antenna wire 71 is located on both sides from the base 72 in an arc shape along the upper edge of the windshield 4. The length of the antenna wire 71 may be appropriately determined according to the wavelength of the received radio wave and the like. The antenna 7 is a radio wave receiving circuit located on the circuit board 12, for example, a radio wave from a positioning satellite and / or a communication radio wave related to a short-range radio wave such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), particularly in a high frequency band (GHz band, etc.). ) Receives radio waves.

The base 72 of the antenna 7 located at the upper part of the casing 2 and the circuit board 12 are connected by a connecting member 8. The antenna 7 is a conventionally known conductor member. The base 72 may be surrounded by a dielectric material such as resin at a contact portion with the casing 2 and a connection portion with the waterproof member 51.

The connecting member 8 is a conductive member that extends perpendicularly to the circuit board 12 and electrically connects the circuit board 12 and the base portion 72. The surface of the conductive member may be plated with gold, silver, or the like. The position of the connecting member 8 may be defined by a through hole (positioning hole) or a notch provided in the support member 21.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the connecting member 8.
As shown in FIG. 2A, the connecting member 8 is a coil spring in which a continuous conductive wire extends spirally, and has a base portion 81 (second portion) and an expansion / contraction portion 82 (first portion). It is classified. The coil diameter of the base portion 81 is constant, and the coil diameter of the telescopic portion 82 gradually decreases from the coil diameter of the base portion 81 toward the tip from the boundary portion with the base portion 81 (the farther away from the boundary portion). ing. That is, here, a single conductive wire is continuously connected to a region where the coil diameter gradually decreases from a constant coil diameter portion.

Since the elastic modulus of the coil spring increases as the coil diameter decreases, the elastic modulus of the base portion 81 is smaller than the elastic modulus of the telescopic portion 82. That is, when a force is applied so as to compress the connecting member 8, the base portion 81 contracts before the expansion / contraction portion 82.

In the state of being incorporated in the electronic clock 1 (the state of being located between the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12), as shown in FIG. 2B, the base portion 81 has a coil spring portion (second coil spring). The conductive wire that circulates in a spiral shape is completely compressed (closely adhered) so as to come into contact with the front and rear laps in the direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the conductive wire (the extending direction of the connecting member 8). As a result, the foundation portion 81 uses a hollow cylindrical shape (substantially cylindrical shape. In the following, a “cylinder” is used regardless of whether or not it is hollow and whether or not the outer peripheral surface (outer surface) has irregularities. The spiral shape when the conductive wires of the coil spring are not in close contact with each other is not included in the cylinder), and is electrically connected not only in the conductive wire direction but also in the extending direction of the connecting member 8. Therefore, since the current can flow along the outer surface of the foundation portion 81 without going around, the current flows spirally along the conductive wire only in the expansion / contraction portion 82.

Since the coil spring portion (first coil spring) of the expansion / contraction portion 82 has a small coil diameter, it has a larger elastic modulus than the foundation portion 81, and even when the foundation portion 81 is incorporated in the electronic clock 1 and the foundation portion 81 is cylindrical. Since the spiral conductive wire is not completely contracted (a part of the spiral conductive wire may be in contact with each other in the extending direction of the connecting member 8) and can be expanded and contracted, the connecting member 8 can be expanded and contracted. The length along the extending direction can be finely adjusted according to the distance between the base 72 of the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12. Further, since the inductance is small as the coil diameter is small, the influence of the inductance on the received radio wave by the antenna 7 can be suppressed.

Here, the narrowed tip of the telescopic portion 82 (one end) is located on the side of the base portion 72 and contacts the antenna 7, and the tip of the cylindrical base portion 81 is located on the side of the circuit board 12. Since the conductive member, particularly the base 72, which is a metal member, has higher strength than the thin film of the wiring and the resin substrate of the circuit board 12, arranging the conductive member in this direction prevents the pattern wiring and the circuit board 12 from being scraped. It can be suppressed. Further, when the surface of the base portion 72 is in contact with the tip of the elastic portion 82 and rubbed, a passivation film is less likely to be formed on the contact surface, and it is possible to suppress a decrease in conductivity.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing modified examples 1 and 2 of the connecting member 8.
The outer side of the connecting member 8a of the modified example 1 shown in FIG. The surface of 81a is covered with a conductor member (conductive layer) to form a cylindrical shape. The conductor member is not particularly limited, but for example, various solders and the like may be used. Since the signal in the high frequency band flows along the surface of the conductor, it is possible to suppress the loss at the bending point or the like by making the entire surface flat (curved in the circumferential direction). Further, since the conductive wires are fixed in contact with each other from the beginning, a current bottleneck is unlikely to occur in the base portion 81a, and a current flows stably and with low loss. The base portion 81a may be another columnar member instead of the close contact coil spring.

In the connecting member 8b of the second modification shown in FIG. 3B, the base portion 81b is a cylindrical (hollow in this case) conductive member 812 inside the coil spring 811 along the extending direction of the connecting member 8b. (Cylindrical member) is inserted. As a result, the current can flow stably along the surface of the conductive member 812 with low loss and low inductance. Here, the upper end of the conductive member 812 protrudes above the upper end of the coil spring 811, but the coil spring 811 may be contained inside the coil spring 811 in a completely compressed state. Further, the upper end or the lower end of the coil spring 811 and the conductive member 812 may be joined to each other.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing modifications 3 and 4 of the connecting member 8.
In the connecting member 8c of the modified example 3 shown in FIG. 4A, the coil spring 811 of the base portion 81c and the coil spring of the expansion / contraction portion 82c are different. Here, an annular or circular intermediate member 813 for connection is joined to the base portion 81c at the end on the connection side with the expansion / contraction portion 82c.

Here, the coil spring of the telescopic portion 82c has a larger thickness (diameter) of the conductive wire than the coil spring 811. Since the elastic modulus becomes larger as the conductive wire becomes thicker, the elastic modulus becomes further larger than that of the expansion / contraction portion 82 of the above embodiment. Further, since the wire resistance of the conductive wire becomes small, it may be appropriately set according to the characteristic impedance of the antenna 7.

In the connecting member 8d of the modified example 4 shown in FIG. 4B, the conductive wire of the telescopic portion 82d is thicker than the conductive wire of the base portion 81c, similarly to the telescopic portion 82c of the connecting member 8c of the modified example 3. The coil diameters are equal. As described above, since there is a difference in elastic modulus depending on the thickness (diameter) of the conductive wire, it is not necessary to change the coil diameter to change the elastic modulus.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing modified examples 5 and 6 of the connecting member.
The connecting member 8e of the modified example 5 shown in FIG. 5 (a) has base portions 814 and 815 at the upper and lower ends, and has an expansion / contraction portion 82e at the center. The base portions 814 and 815 have a columnar shape as described above. The telescopic portion 82e has a coil diameter smaller than that of the base portions 814 and 815, and is the smallest in the center.

In such a shape, since both ends are in contact with the base 72 of the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12 in a wider range than the above, stable signal transmission is possible. Further, since it expands and contracts at the center, the connecting member 8 can be bent at the central portion. As a result, even when the connection position of the base 72 and the connection position of the circuit board 12 are not completely opposed to each other, or when an obstacle such as a support or a shaft such as a crown or a push button switch is inserted between them. , It is possible to bypass and perform signal transmission.

In the connecting member 8f of the modified example 6 shown in FIG. 5B, columnar base portions 814f and 815f are located on both sides of the telescopic portion 82f, respectively. When the base portions 814f and 815f do not expand and contract, it is not necessary to change the elastic modulus of the expansion and contraction portion 82f. Therefore, the expansion and contraction portion 82f may be a coil spring having the same coil diameter as the foundation portions 814f and 815f.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a modified example 7 of the connecting member 8.
In the connecting member 8g of the modified example 7, the conductive wires 83 and 84 (linear portions) extend laterally (perpendicular to the extending direction of the connecting member 8g) from the tips of the base portion 81 and the telescopic portion 82, respectively. .. Similar to the above-described modifications 5 and 6, the base 72 and the circuit board 12 are affected when the connection position of the base 72 and the connection position of the circuit board 12 do not completely correspond to each other, or due to the influence of other circuits and components. When it is difficult to connect the wires in a straight line with the connecting member 8, the conductive wires 83 and 84 at both ends may be electrically connected to the base 72 and the circuit board 12, respectively. In this case, both ends of the connecting member 8 are provided at positions where contact can be maintained with respect to the insulating portion of the base portion 72 and the circuit board 12, so that the degree of freedom of arrangement is improved.

As described above, the electronic clock 1 of the present embodiment includes an antenna 7, a circuit board 12, and a connecting member 8 that electrically connects the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12. The connecting member 8 is a telescopic portion 82 including a coil spring that can be expanded and contracted while being located between the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12 in the electronic clock 1, and a columnar base portion connected in series with the telescopic portion 82. 81 and.
In this way, as a partially expandable coil spring in the electrical connection between the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12, where it is difficult to fix the antenna wire directly in an electronic device (especially a small one) by soldering or the like. By using a connecting member having a columnar structure in which the current does not flow spirally in other parts, it is possible to exchange the transmission / reception signal of the antenna 7 with the circuit board 12 without taking the width while reducing the inductance. it can.

Further, the foundation portion 81 includes a cylindrical portion. By connecting the cylindrical base portion 81 to the coil spring of the telescopic portion 82, it is possible to reduce the loss in the connection between the base portion 81 and the telescopic portion 82.

Further, the telescopic portion 82 is located at one end of the connecting member 8, and the coil diameter becomes smaller as the distance from the connecting position with the base portion 81 increases. As a result, the elastic modulus of the telescopic portion 82 becomes large, so that the elastic modulus 82 has an appropriate elasticity, an appropriate repulsive force is generated when the electronic timepiece 1 is assembled, and the connecting member 8 can be easily incorporated.

Further, the tip of the telescopic portion 82 is in contact with the antenna 7. By setting the side where the tip is thin and the force is applied to a narrow range to the side of the antenna 7 which is a conductor member such as metal, the circuit board 12 cannot be scraped by the pressure of the connecting member 8. Further, by rubbing the metal surface with the elastic portion 82, a passivation film is less likely to be formed, and resistance loss at the connecting portion can be suppressed.

Further, in the modified examples 5 and 6, the connecting member 8 has the foundation portions 81 located on both sides of the telescopic portion 82, respectively. Since the width (coil diameter) of the connecting member 8 is wide at the connecting portion between the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12, stable connection is achieved. Further, since the telescopic portion 82 is provided at the center, the telescopic portion 82 may be slightly bent, and a shaft member such as a support or a crown is inserted between the connection position of the antenna 7 and the connection position of the circuit board 12. However, it is possible to exchange transmission / reception signals by the antenna 7 while bypassing this.

Further, the base portion 81 also has a coil spring, and the coil spring portion has a smaller elastic modulus than the coil spring portion of the expansion / contraction portion 82, and is spiral when located between the antenna 7 and the circuit board 12. The conductive wires that orbit in a shape are in close contact with each other to form a hollow columnar shape.
That is, the base portion 81 may be a coil spring as long as it has a columnar shape in use. Therefore, by setting the elastic modulus of the base portion 81 to be smaller than the elastic modulus of the telescopic portion 82, the electronic timepiece 1 can be contracted before the telescopic portion 82 to be in a close contact state when the electronic timepiece 1 is assembled.

Further, since the coil diameter at the connection position of the telescopic portion 82 with the base portion 81 is equal to the coil diameter of the base portion 81, the base portion 81 and the telescopic portion 82 can be connected appropriately and stably.

Further, the base portion 81 and the expansion / contraction portion 82 are a single coil spring continuous by a single conductive wire. By adjusting the shape and size of a single coil spring without joining a plurality of members, it is possible to easily obtain a connecting member 8 having a desired structure at the time of use.

Further, as described in the modified examples 1 and 6, the foundation portion 81 may be a cylindrical member. Since the length when the coil spring of the base portion 81 is compressed and brought into close contact with each other is fixed, a cylindrical member having the same length may be prepared from the beginning. There is no need to make a spring structure, and current can flow more stably and with lower loss than a spring.

Alternatively, as in the second modification, the conductive member 812 may be inserted inside the coil spring 811 of the base portion 81 along the extending direction of the coil spring 811. As a result, it is possible to utilize expansion and contraction as a coil spring at the time of assembly, and at the portion of the conductive member 812, it is possible to suppress the current loss more stably.

Further, as described in the first modification, the base portion 81 may have a close contact coil spring and a conductive layer that embeds a recess along the outer peripheral surface of the close contact coil spring. That is, by forming the coil spring and then flattening the surface of the close contact coil spring portion to be the base portion 81 with a conductive member, the entire structure can be easily formed with a single screw. The surface can be treated as needed to enable more appropriate signal exchange.

Further, the connecting member 8 has linear conductive wires 83 and 84 extending from at least one of the tips. As a result, even if there is a slight deviation between the connection position of the antenna 7 and the connection position of the circuit board 12, it is possible to adjust so that they are properly connected to each other.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made.
For example, in the above embodiment, the coil diameter of the telescopic portion 82 is shown to be tapered, but if it is smaller than the coil diameter of the base portion 81, the shape is similar to that of the telescopic portion 82e of the modified example 5. Alternatively, it may have another shape such that the coil diameter becomes constant near the tip.

Further, in the above-mentioned modification 1, the coil diameter of the expansion / contraction portion 82 is made smaller toward the tip, but when the base portion 81 does not expand / contract, the coil diameter of the expansion / contraction portion 82 is constant as in the deformation examples 4 and 6. It may be.

Further, in the above modification 2, the conductive member 812 is inserted inside the coil spring 811. However, the coil spring 811 may be housed inside the hollow conductive member 812, or the conductive sheet or the like may be housed inside the coil spring 811. It may be wrapped around the.

Further, in the above-mentioned modifications 3 and 4, the coil spring of the base portion 81 and the coil spring of the expansion / contraction portion 82 having different thicknesses are connected with the intermediate member 813 sandwiched between them, but they may be directly connected.

Further, in the above embodiment, the case where the tapered tip is arranged so as to be located on the side of the antenna 7 is shown, but the opposite direction may be used.

Further, when the foundation portions 81 are located on both sides of the expansion / contraction portion 82 as in the modified examples 5 and 6, only one of them may be a coil spring and the other may be a normal (rigid body) cylindrical member.

Further, if the foundation portion 81 is columnar, it does not need to be a columnar member. The base portion 81 may be a prism, or may be conical or trapezoidal. That is, here, the columnar shape is not limited to the one having a constant external area in a cross section perpendicular to the extending direction of the connecting member. Further, a plurality of columnar members may be attached to the upper side of the telescopic portion 82 at predetermined angular intervals, and the plurality of columnar members may be mutually fixed by support members to form a frame-like structure. The support member may be an annular shape or a square frame. The support member in this case is not limited to the conductor.

Further, in the above-mentioned modification 7, it has been described that the conductive wires 83 and 84 extend to both the upper and lower ends, but only one of them may be used.
In addition, the specific details of the configuration and structure shown in the above-described embodiment can be appropriately changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but includes the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.
The inventions described in the claims originally attached to the application of this application are added below. The claims in the appendix are as specified in the claims originally attached to the application for this application.

[Additional Notes]
<Claim 1>
With the antenna
With the circuit board
A connecting member that electrically connects the antenna and the circuit board,
With
The connecting member is an electronic device having a first portion including a stretchable first coil spring and a columnar second portion connected in series with the first portion.
<Claim 2>
The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the second portion includes a cylindrical portion.
<Claim 3>
The electron according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first portion is located at one end of the connecting member, and the coil diameter of the first coil spring becomes smaller as the distance from the connection position with the second portion increases. machine.
<Claim 4>
The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the tip of the first coil spring is in contact with the antenna.
<Claim 5>
The electronic device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the connecting member has the second portion located on both sides of the first portion.
<Claim 6>
The second portion has a second coil spring and
The second coil spring has a smaller elastic modulus than the first coil spring, and when it is located between the antenna and the circuit board, the conductive wires that circulate spirally are in close contact with each other to form a hollow columnar shape. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the electronic device is characterized by the above.
<Claim 7>
The electron according to claim 6, wherein the first portion has a coil diameter at a connection position of the first coil spring with the second portion equal to the coil diameter of the second coil spring of the second portion. machine.
<Claim 8>
The electronic device according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the second coil spring and the first coil spring are continuous by a single conductive wire.
<Claim 9>
The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the second portion has a cylindrical member.
<Claim 10>
The second portion has a cylindrical member and has a cylindrical member.
The electronic device according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the cylindrical member is located inside the second coil spring along the extending direction of the second coil spring.
<Claim 11>
The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the second portion has a close contact coil spring and a conductive layer for embedding a recess along the outer peripheral surface of the close contact coil spring. ..
<Claim 12>
The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the connecting member has a linear portion extending from at least one of the tips.

1 Electronic clock 2 Casing 3 Back cover 4 Windshield 6 Bezel 7 Antenna 8, 8a-8g Connecting member 11 Display 12 Circuit board 13 Battery 14 Electronic component 15 Circuit board 21 Support member 31 Waterproof ring 41 Packing 51 Waterproof member 71 Antenna wire 72 Base 81, 81a to 81c Base 812 Conductive member 813 Intermediate member 814, 814f, 815, 815f Base 82, 82a, 82c to 82f Telescopic part 83, 84 Conductive wire

Claims (12)

With the antenna
With the circuit board
A connecting member that electrically connects the antenna and the circuit board,
With
The connecting member is an electronic device having a first portion including a stretchable first coil spring and a columnar second portion connected in series with the first portion. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the second portion includes a cylindrical portion. The electron according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first portion is located at one end of the connecting member, and the coil diameter of the first coil spring becomes smaller as the distance from the connection position with the second portion increases. machine. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the tip of the first coil spring is in contact with the antenna. The electronic device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the connecting member has the second portion located on both sides of the first portion. The second portion has a second coil spring and
The second coil spring has a smaller elastic modulus than the first coil spring, and when it is located between the antenna and the circuit board, the conductive wires that circulate spirally are in close contact with each other to form a hollow columnar shape. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the electronic device is characterized by the above. The electron according to claim 6, wherein the first portion has a coil diameter at a connection position of the first coil spring with the second portion equal to the coil diameter of the second coil spring of the second portion. machine. The electronic device according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the second coil spring and the first coil spring are continuous by a single conductive wire. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the second portion has a cylindrical member. The second portion has a cylindrical member and has a cylindrical member.
The electronic device according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the cylindrical member is located inside the second coil spring along the extending direction of the second coil spring. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the second portion has a close contact coil spring and a conductive layer for embedding a recess along the outer peripheral surface of the close contact coil spring. .. The electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the connecting member has a linear portion extending from at least one of the tips.

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