KR100768902B1 - Side key for electronic device and preparing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a side key assembly of an electronic device and a method of manufacturing the same. More particularly, a rubber contact for transmitting a signal by contacting a metal dome formed on a substrate of the electronic device and receiving the rubber contact on a rear surface thereof are provided. And a side key assembly of the electronic device in which plastic injection moldings protruding on one side of a cover of the electronic device are combined, wherein the rubber contact is made of silicone rubber, and the plastic injection molding has a symbol, letter, or Signs and letters are imprinted, and then the side key assembly of the electronic device, characterized in that the coating with an ultraviolet (UV) curable paint and a method of manufacturing the same.

Side key assembly according to the present invention is possible in a variety of designs, there is an advantage that can be manufactured environmentally and economically.

Site keys, electronics, rubber contacts, plastics, UV light, mobile phones

Description

Side key assembly of electronic device and manufacturing method thereof

1 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of a side key formed in a general portable electronic device;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a cross section of the side key taken along the line A-A of FIG. 1.

Figure 3 is a perspective view schematically showing the coupling state of the side key assembly consisting of a plastic injection molding and a rubber contact according to the present invention.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the plastic injection molding according to the present invention from the back.

<Description of Symbols for Main Parts of Drawings>

10: mobile phone 20: main body

22: keypad 30: folder

32: liquid crystal 40: side key

42: side key assembly 44: rubber contact

46: plastic injection molding 50: metal dome

60: upper cover 62: printed circuit board

70: lower cover 72: battery

74: support

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a side key assembly of an electronic device and a method for manufacturing the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for manufacturing an environment-friendly and economically manufactured side key assembly formed on the side of a portable electronic device such as a mobile phone. will be.

Portable electronic devices such as mobile phones, MP3 players, and PSPs include a number of side keys, namely side keys, along with a keypad formed on the front of the main body. It is configured to adjust the resizing and camera operation of options.

Looking at the prior art associated with such a side key, Korean Utility Model Application No. 99-30469 discloses a side key assembly fixing structure of a portable wireless terminal, and Korean Patent Application No. 2004-32397 discloses a light emitting side of a mobile communication terminal A key is disclosed, and Korean Patent Application No. 2003-14096 discloses a side key assembly structure of a portable terminal.

The above technologies are all related to a structure that can simplify the structure of the side key to reduce the number of components or prevent malfunction of the device, and there is no mention of environmentally friendly technologies.

1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example in which a side key is formed on a side of a conventional mobile phone. Referring to this, a structure of a conventional side key will be described below.

In general, the mobile phone 10 is configured by combining a main body 20 having a keypad 22 and a folder 30 having a liquid crystal 32 through a hinge. The side of the main body 20 is provided with a plurality of side keys 40 to assist the function of the keypad 22 installed on the front of the main body 20 to serve as a function key.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating a cross section of a side key taken along line AA of FIG. 1, wherein the side key 40 is directly formed with a metal dome 50, which is a connecting means installed inside the main body, when the side key 40 is formed of only a rubber material. The side key assembly may be in contact with each other, but the rubber contact 44 contacting the metal dome 50 and the plastic injection molding 46 receiving the rubber contact 44 on the back may be coupled to each other according to various needs of the user. 42). The side key assembly 42 is mounted on the inner side of the upper cover 60 so that a portion thereof is protruded on one side of the upper cover 60, and the rubber contact 44 is the metal dome 50. The pressing projection (not shown) is formed in contact with the coupling is coupled to the state that can be assembled on the back of the plastic injection molding (46).

On the other hand, the plastic injection molding 46 of the conventional side key is mainly manufactured by injecting ABS resin, the upper surface of the plastic injection molding 46 is stamped letters and / or symbols by the mold core processing, for metal texture Electrolytic plated with nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr) and the like. The side key assembly 42 is then manufactured by inserting a thermoplastic polyurethane rubber into the back of the plastic injection 46.

However, nickel (Ni) and chromium (Cr), in particular chromium, in the developed countries, such as the United States, Japan, and the like, the use of it as an environmental regulatory substance causing cancer, etc. is limited, the surface of the plastic injection molding The nickel (Ni) and chromium (Cr) plated on are not only environmentally harmful to the electrolytic plating process but also have a disadvantage in that the plating is peeled off due to poor durability.

Accordingly, the present invention has devised a structure of the side key assembly and a method of manufacturing the same, which can beautifully maintain the appearance of the side key assembly for a long time while excluding metal harmful to the human body, and the present invention has been completed based on this.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a side key assembly which is environmentally friendly and has a beautiful appearance.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing the side key assembly in an economical manner.

The side key assembly of the electronic device according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a rubber contact for transmitting a signal in contact with the metal dome formed on the printed circuit board of the electronic device and accommodates the rubber contact on the back, the cover of the electronic device In the side key assembly of the electronic device is a plastic injection-molded to one side mutually coupled,

The rubber contact is made of silicone rubber;

The plastic injection molding is characterized in that a symbol, a letter, or a symbol and a letter are imprinted on the rear surface thereof, and an ultraviolet (UV) curable paint is coated thereon.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a side key assembly of an electronic device, wherein a rubber contact and a rubber contact are formed in contact with a metal dome formed on a printed circuit board of the electronic device to receive a signal, In the manufacturing method of the side key assembly of the electronic device which the plastic injection-molding projecting on one side of the device cover are mutually coupled,

Providing a rubber contact composed of silicone rubber;

Injecting plastic using a mold having a core and a side polished, and the other side being matt, to imprint a symbol, a character, or a symbol and a character on the back of the injection molded product;

Coating the sign, character, or the back of the plastic injection molding symbol and character with an ultraviolet (UV) curable paint; And

And coupling the rubber contact to the back side of the plastic injection molding.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As described above, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating an inner configuration in which a general side key assembly 42 is installed in a mobile phone, and the side key assembly 42 is formed on a metal dome 50 formed on a printed circuit board of an electronic device. The rubber contact 44 which contacts and transmits a signal, and the plastic injection molding 46 which receives the rubber contact 44 on the back thereof are coupled to each other.

Referring to FIG. 2, one side of the flexible printed circuit board FPC is fixed to the lower side of the printed circuit board 62 by soldering, and the other side of the flexible printed circuit board FPC is disposed on the lower cover 70. It is fixed to the support 74 protruding at a height. The metal dome 50 is attached to the flexible printed circuit board FPC fixed to the support 74 by the adhesive sheet, and the side key assembly 42 is inserted into the side key coupling hole of the lower cover 70. At the time of assembly, the rubber contact 44 is positioned outside the metal dome 50 to operate the metal dome 50 by manipulating the side key assembly 42.

On the other hand, the side key assembly according to the present invention is the same structure and operation method of the general side key assembly. However, the present invention is characterized in that the side key assembly can be environmentally friendly and economically manufactured. In addition, the durability and appearance of the side key assembly has a beautiful feature.

Figure 3 is a schematic perspective view of a side key assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 4 is a perspective view schematically showing the back of the plastic injection molding of the side key assembly according to the present invention.

Referring to Figures 3 to 4, it will be described with respect to the side key assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The side key assembly 142 of the electronic device according to the present invention accommodates a rubber contact 144 and the rubber contact 144 on the rear surface in contact with a metal dome formed on a substrate of the electronic device to transmit a signal, and covers the electronic device. The plastic injection moldings 146 protruding to one side of the have a structure in which they are mutually coupled.

In the present invention, the rubber contact 144 is made of an environmentally friendly silicone rubber, the plastic injection molding 146 is imprinted symbols, letters, or symbols and letters on the back, and then on the human body thereon It is coated with UV-curable paint that is harmless to.

The rubber contact 144 may generally use a transparent silicone rubber, and in addition, a fluorescent pigment, a luminescent pigment, a photochromic pigment, or a general pigment may be added to the silicone rubber within a day or night within a range well known to those skilled in the art. Various colors can be expressed. The silicone rubber is not only harmless to the human body but also has an advantage of expressing various colors.

On the other hand, symbols and / or letters stamped on the back of the plastic injection molding 146 may be achieved by mold core technology. The core of the mold and the symbol and / or letters formed on the side of the mold is polished (mirror surface finishing), and the rest of the mold except for the polished portion is injected into the plastic by using a mold having a matte treatment (corrosion processing). By virtue of the symbols and / or letters are clearly imprinted on the back of the plastic injection molding, the signs and / or letters are visually easily distinguished from the top surface of the plastic injection molding. 4 shows the symbols and / or letters stamped on the back of the plastic injection of the side key assembly according to the invention.

When the symbols and / or letters are engraved on the upper surface of the plastic injection molding as in the prior art, the symbols and / or letters are worn or corroded according to the use of the site key, so that the identification is poor. In particular, by plating nickel and chromium on the plastic injection molding, the plated coating is peeled off, and the identification of the letters and / or symbols tends to be lower.

Accordingly, the present invention solves the problem caused by wear by stamping the symbols and / or letters on the back of the transparent or translucent plastic injection molding 146. In addition, the plastic injection molding may select a transparent or translucent material, and may improve the discriminating ability of the sign and / or letters by glossing and matting the back surface of the plastic injection molding by a mold core technology.

Then, the plastic injection molding 146 is seated on the jig exposed only on its back side, and coated with an ultraviolet (UV) curable paint in the coating apparatus. The coating is carried out by spraying an ultraviolet (UV) curable paint, and the coating is cured by ultraviolet light. The spray spraying method of such an ultraviolet (UV) curable paint is well known to those skilled in the art, and in addition to this method, all methods known to those skilled in the art can be applied. The ultraviolet (UV) curable paint is not only excellent in productivity and workability by being cured in a short time, but also energy saving, low cost, beautiful appearance, and environmentally friendly paint. In addition, the ultraviolet (UV) curable paint has a variety of colors.

The ultraviolet (UV) curable paint applied to the present invention may use a commercially available product, for example, may use a commercially available product from Samsung Chemical, Aekyung Chemical.

In addition, the plastic injection-molded product 146 can be any transparent plastic, and is preferably an environmentally friendly polycarbonate resin or an acrylic resin. The plastic injection molding is transparent because the texture of the coating material can be expressed as much as possible. However, according to the needs of consumers, various colors can be expressed by adding fluorescent pigments, light-emitting pigments, photochromic pigments, or general pigments to the plastics within a range well known to those skilled in the art. In this case as well, since the plastic injection molding exhibits a translucent form, the color of the ultraviolet (UV) curable paint and the silicone rubber may be reflected.

That is, in the present invention, in consideration of the combination of the color of the plastic injection molding, the color of the coating coated on the back, and the color of the silicone rubber, it is possible to produce a luxurious atmosphere in terms of design. If necessary, the plastic injection molding is transparent, the paint is colored, such as gold, and the silicone rubber can be manufactured in a high quality product by imparting a color of a similar color to gold that can complement the paint coating.

Meanwhile, the side key assembly according to the present invention may be applied to a portable electronic device such as a mobile phone, an MP3 player, a PSP, an electronic device such as a keyboard or a remote controller, and may be applied to all types of buttons of the electronic device.

As described above, the side key assembly according to the present invention can be various designs, there is an advantage that can be manufactured environmentally and economically.

Claims (6)

delete delete delete Side key assembly of an electronic device in which a rubber contact, which contacts a metal dome formed on a printed circuit board of the electronic device, transmits a signal and receives the rubber contact on a rear surface thereof, and a plastic injection molded product protruding from one side of the electronic device cover is mutually coupled. According to the manufacturing method of Providing a rubber contact composed of silicone rubber; Injecting plastic using a mold having a core and a side polished, and the other side being matt, to imprint a symbol, a character, or a symbol and a character on the back of the injection molded product; Coating an ultraviolet (UV) curable paint on the back of the symbol, letter, or plastic injection molding symbol and letter; And Coupling the rubber contact to a rear surface of the plastic injection molding; The manufacturing method of the side key assembly of the electronic device comprising a. The method of claim 4, wherein the silicone rubber is a fluorescent pigment, a luminescent pigment, a photochromic pigment, or a general pigment. The method of claim 4, wherein the plastic injection molding product is a polycarbonate resin or an acrylic resin, and a fluorescent pigment, a light emitting pigment, a photochromic pigment, or a general pigment is added.

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