JP4624329B2 - Waterproof structure of electronic equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a waterproof structure for portable electronic devices.

  In some wristwatches, a recess is provided outside the case, and a sheet key is disposed and bonded to the recess (see Patent Document 1). The electrode terminal of the sheet key is led into the inside through an insertion hole provided in the recess and is electrically connected to the circuit board.

FIG. 9 shows a waterproof structure of a side key as an example of the prior art. A side key packing 92 integrated with metal and rubber is fitted into a hole formed in the side surface of the lower case 91, and a key top 93 is attached. When pressed, the key switch 94 in the lower case 91 is pressed via the side key packing 92. In the figure, 95 is an upper case, 96 is a case packing, and 97 is a lower cover.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-23992

  However, the structure of Patent Document 1 is provided with a recess on the outside of the case, and an insertion hole through which the electrode terminal of the flat key passes is formed in the recess. Therefore, in order to achieve waterproofing, the sheet key is securely bonded to the recess. There is a need. In other words, in order to prevent water and the like from entering the recess, waterproofing cannot be achieved unless the sheet key is completely bonded over the entire circumference of the recess. This could lead to poor waterproofing.

  Further, the waterproof structure of the side key in FIG. 9 requires a compression surface for waterproof and airtightness of the side key packing 92 in the hole formed in the side surface of the lower case 91, and the thickness is increased in the stroke direction in which the key top 93 is pressed. It becomes a necessary structure, and the width of the housing increases. Therefore, a waterproof structure of a flat key is desired.

  The subject of this invention is providing a flat key, aiming at waterproofing easily and reliably, without providing a waterproof structure newly.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the invention according to claim 1 is an electrical connection in which a waterproof flat key, an electrical connection line drawn from the flat key, and another electrical connection line are assembled. A case that includes a wire, a case for fixing the flat key, and an introduction port for introducing the assembled electrical connection line, and a waterproof member that provides waterproofing between the assembled electrical connection line and the introduction port It is characterized by a waterproof structure of an electronic device having a configuration in which

  A second aspect of the present invention is the waterproof structure for an electronic device according to the first aspect, wherein the flat key is a side key provided on a side surface of the case.

  Invention of Claim 3 is the waterproof structure of the electronic device of Claim 1 or 2, Comprising: The said case is an internal case, and while arrange | positioning a key button facing the said flat key, the said The electrical connection line drawn from the flat key is routed, and the key button and the electrical connection line are fixed by overlapping the inner case with the outer case.

  Invention of Claim 4 is a waterproof structure of the electronic device as described in any one of Claim 1 to 3, Comprising: The said inlet is provided in the hinge part side which connects a foldable main body. Features.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a waterproof structure for an electronic device according to the fourth aspect, wherein the other electrical connection line electrically connects a display device inside one main body and a substrate inside the other main body. It is characterized by being connected.

  The invention according to claim 6 is the waterproof structure of the electronic device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the case is an external case, and a key button is arranged opposite to the flat key, and The electrical connection line drawn out from the flat key is routed, and the key button and the electrical connection line are fixed by overlapping the external case with another external case.

  According to the present invention, the electrical connection line drawn out from the flat key is assembled with other electrical connection lines and the existing waterproof structure is used, so that it is easily and reliably waterproofed without providing a new waterproof structure. A flat key can be provided while aiming.

Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows a mobile phone as a configuration of an embodiment of an electronic apparatus to which the present invention is applied. 1 is an operation side main body, 2 is a display side main body, 3 is a hinge portion, 4 is a key operation portion, and 5 is A side key 6 is a display device. The operation side main body 1 and the display side main body 2 are connected to each other via a hinge part 3 so as to be foldable. The operation side main body 1 is provided with a key operation part 4 on the inner surface and side keys 5 on the side surface. Is provided with a display device 6 having a screen opening on the inner surface.

  2 and 3 show the operation side main body 1. As shown in the figure, the operation side main body 1 covers a lower case 7 as an inner case with an upper case 8 and a lower cover 9 as outer cases. It is configured. In the lower case 7, the sheet key 11 and the like of the key operation unit 4 are accommodated, and a film-like case packing 12 is overlaid on the sheet key 11. The case packing 12 is integrally formed with the key button of the key operation unit 4.

  Further, in the lower case 7, a strip-like FPC (flexible wiring board) 13 in which electrical connection lines are formed is introduced. As shown in FIG. 4, the FPC 13 includes connectors 14 and 15 at both ends, and one of the connectors 14 is introduced into the inside through an introduction port 16 formed on the hinge 3 side of the lower case 7. . A waterproof member, that is, a waterproof packing 17 provided integrally with the FPC 13 is fitted into the introduction port 16. A waterproof packing 18 is also provided integrally on the other connector 15 side of the FPC 13.

The FPC 13 is integrally formed with an FPC 22 having a flat key 21 and forming an electrical connection line drawn from the flat key 21. The FPC 22 has a strip shape that is narrower than the FPC 13.
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the flat key 21 has a plurality (three in the illustrated example) of electrode terminals 24 in one half of the wide band-shaped FPC 23, and electrodes in the other half of the FPC 23. A switch unit 25 corresponding to the terminal 24 is provided. That is, the flat key 21 is a waterproof switch configured by folding the FPC 23 with the electrode terminal 24 and the switch unit 25 inside.

The electrical connection line connected to the electrode terminal 24 of the flat key 21 is formed in the integrated FPC 22. The FPC 22 is integrally continuous in the vicinity of the waterproof packing 17 at the intermediate portion of the FPC 13. That is, the electrical connection lines of the FPCs 22 and 23 are aggregated with other electrical connection lines at the FPC 13.
A key top 26 is prepared corresponding to the switch part 25 of the flat key 21.

FIG. 7 shows the waterproof structure of the side key 5, and the flat key 21 is attached to the recess 27 formed on the side surface of the lower case 7 with a double-sided tape 28. In the recess 27, a key top 26 is disposed at a position corresponding to the switch portion 25 of the flat key 21, and the key top 26 is prevented from being detached by the upper cover 8.
In the lower case 7, a circuit board 31, a shield case 32, and the like are accommodated, and a battery 33 and the like are accommodated on the opposite side, and 34 is a battery lid.

  In the above, the connector 14 of the FPC 13 is connected to the terminal portion of the circuit board 31. The FPC 13 is arranged between the waterproof packings 17 and 18 so as to surround the hinge shaft of the hinge portion 3 in a loop shape as shown in the figure, and the connector 18 side is introduced into the display-side main body 2. . The connector 18 is connected to the terminal portion of the display device 6.

As described above, in the side key 5 of the operation side main body 1, the band-shaped FPC 22 drawn out from the waterproof flat key 21 is connected to the circuit board 31 in the operation side main body 1 and the display device 6 in the display side main body 2. Are assembled (or branched) into a strip-shaped FPC 13 that is electrically connected to each other, so that the existing waterproof structure in which the assembled FPC 13 is introduced into the introduction port 16 of the case 7 via the waterproof packing 17 can be used.
Therefore, the flat key 21 can be provided as the side key 5 while easily and reliably waterproofing without providing a new waterproof structure.
Moreover, since the side key 5 is formed by the flat key 21, the width of the operation side main body 1 can be suppressed.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 8 shows the waterproof structure of the side key 5 according to the second embodiment. The flat key 21 is attached to the recess 42 formed on the side surface of the case 41 with a double-sided tape 43. In the recess 42, a key top 44 is disposed at a position corresponding to the switch portion 25 of the flat key 21, and the key top 44 is prevented from being detached by a lower cover 45.
Reference numeral 31 denotes a circuit board, 35 denotes a shield case, and 46 denotes an upper cover.
Such a waterproof structure of the side key 5 also provides the same operational effects as those of the first embodiment described above.

In the above embodiment, the cellular phone is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this and may be an electronic device such as a clock, a watch, a camera, a PDA, or a wearable personal computer.
In the embodiment, the FPC is used as the one having the electrical connection line, but it may be a substrate or an electric cord.
Further, the shape and structure of the flat key are arbitrary, and it is needless to say that other specific detailed structures can be appropriately changed.

For example, as a flat key, a key button (key top) is not necessarily required, and only a flat key may be used. In this case, a button image, a function name, or the like may be printed at an input position.
Further, the other electrical connection lines are not limited to the connection with the display device, but may be a connection with a side key on the opposite side, a speaker, a microphone, a card slot, a power supply terminal, or the like.
The flat key is not limited to the side key, and may be an operation key provided on the front surface of the apparatus.
In addition, the introduction port may be provided on a side other than the hinge portion side, and for example, the introduction port may be provided on the side surface of the case.

1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an embodiment of an electronic apparatus to which the present invention is applied, showing a mobile phone. It is the perspective view which showed only the operation side main body of FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of the operation side main body of FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of the lower case of FIG. 3, and an electrical connection line. It is an enlarged view of the electrical connection line of FIG. FIG. 6 is a development view of the flat key of FIG. 5. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the waterproof structure of the side key according to the first embodiment. It is sectional drawing which showed the waterproof structure of the side key of Embodiment 2. It is sectional drawing which showed the waterproof structure of the side key as an example of the past.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Operation side main body 2 Display side main body 3 Hinge part 4 Key operation part 5 Side key 6 Display apparatus 7 Inner case 8/9 Outer case 11 Sheet key 12 Case packing 13 FPC (electrical connection line)
14/15 Connector 16 Inlet 17/18 Waterproof member 21 Flat key 22/23 FPC (electrical connection line)
24 Electrode terminal 25 Switch part 26 Key top 27 Recessed part 28 Double-sided tape 31 Circuit board 41/45 External case 43 Double-sided tape 44 Key top

Claims (6)

Flat key with waterproofing,
An electrical connection line in which electrical connection lines drawn from the flat key and other electrical connection lines are assembled;
A case having an inlet for fixing the flat key and introducing the assembled electrical connection lines;
A waterproof structure for an electronic device, comprising a waterproof member for waterproofing between the assembled electrical connection lines and the introduction port.   The waterproof structure for an electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the flat key is a side key provided on a side surface of the case.   The case is an internal case, and a key button is disposed opposite to the flat key, and an electrical connection line drawn from the flat key is routed to connect the key button and the electrical connection line to the internal key. The waterproof structure for an electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the waterproof structure is fixed by overlapping an outer case on the case.   The waterproof structure for an electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the introduction port is provided on a hinge part side that connects the foldable main body.   The waterproof structure for an electronic device according to claim 4, wherein the other electrical connection line electrically connects a display device inside one main body and a substrate inside the other main body.   The case is an external case, and a key button is arranged opposite to the flat key, and an electrical connection line drawn from the flat key is routed to connect the key button and the electrical connection line to the external key. The waterproof structure for an electronic device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the case is fixed by overlapping another outer case on the case.

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