KR20130090594A - Mobile terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

A front case including a front surface on which a display unit is disposed, a side wall protruding rearwardly from the periphery of the front surface, and an inner space surrounded by the front side and side walls; A rear case coupled to the side wall of the front case at the rear of the front case to cover the inner space; And a side key disposed between the side wall of the front case and the rear case, the side key including a button portion exposed to the outside and a coupling portion positioned in the inner space, wherein the front case side wall has a fixing groove on the inside thereof. The mobile terminal includes a flange extending in the front case direction and a fixing protrusion protruding from the flange and inserted into the fixing groove, and having a side key coupled to the front case so as not to be separated during the assembly process. Stable assembly process is possible.

Description

Mobile terminal

The present invention relates to a mobile terminal having a side key coupled to the mobile terminal so as not to be separated during the assembly process of the mobile terminal.

The terminal can move And can be divided into a mobile / portable terminal and a stationary terminal depending on whether the mobile terminal is a mobile terminal or a mobile terminal. The mobile terminal can be divided into a handheld terminal and a vehicle mount terminal according to whether the user can directly carry the mobile terminal.

Such a terminal has various functions, for example, in the form of a multimedia device having multiple functions such as photographing and photographing of a moving picture, reproduction of a music or video file, reception of a game and broadcasting, etc. .

In order to support and enhance the functionality of such terminals, it may be considered to improve the structural and / or software parts of the terminal.

In the case of a mobile terminal, a key may be provided on the front side, but side keys may be disposed on the side of the case using side spaces to secure display space.

The present invention is to provide a mobile terminal having a side key coupled to the mobile terminal so as not to be separated during the assembly process of the mobile terminal.

In addition, to provide a mobile terminal that can omit the step of temporarily attaching and detaching a separate member such as a fixing tape to prevent the separation of the side key during the assembly process.

The mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a front case including a front surface on which a display unit is disposed, a side wall protruding rearwardly from the periphery of the front surface, and an inner space surrounded by the front side and side walls; A rear case coupled to the side wall of the front case at the rear of the front case to cover the inner space; And a side key disposed between the side wall of the front case and the rear case, the side key including a button portion exposed to the outside and a coupling portion positioned in the inner space, wherein the front case side wall has a fixing groove on the inside thereof. The coupling part has a flange extending in the front case direction and a fixing protrusion protruding from the flange and inserted into the fixing groove.

The coupling part may further include a rib supporting the fixing protrusion between the fixing protrusion and the flange. In addition, the inlet of the fixing groove may be inclined in a shape corresponding to the rib.

The fixing protrusion, the size is greater than or equal to the size of the inlet of the fixing groove, can be coupled to the fixing groove in the interference fit method.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a mobile terminal includes: a front case including a front surface at which a display unit is disposed, a side wall protruding rearward from the periphery of the front surface, and an inner space surrounded by the front side and side walls; A rear case coupled to the side wall of the front case at the rear of the front case to cover the inner space; And a side key disposed between the side wall of the front case and the rear case, the side key including a button portion exposed to the outside and a coupling portion positioned in the inner space, wherein the front case side wall extends forwardly to an end portion. A first fixing groove and a second fixing groove extending laterally from the first fixing groove, the coupling part having a flange extending in the front case direction and a fixing protrusion protruding laterally from the flange; The flange is coupled to the first fixing groove, and the fixing protrusion is coupled to the second fixing groove.

The coupling part may be pressed into the first fixing groove and the second fixing groove by pressing in the extending direction of the first fixing groove from the side wall end of the front case.

The fixing protrusion, one side adjacent to the end of the flange forms a gentle inclination, the other side may be manufactured to protrude at a vertical or acute angle with the flange.

The present invention provides a stable assembly process is provided with a side key coupled to the front case so that the mobile terminal is not separated during the assembly process.

In addition, it is not necessary to use a fixing tape or the like in order to prevent the separation of the side key during the assembly process has the advantage that it can be omitted by temporarily attaching a tape or the like to remove the tape.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2a is a front perspective view of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2b is a rear perspective view of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a cross-sectional view showing a side key structure of a conventional mobile terminal.
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a side key structure of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a perspective view showing a side key of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a perspective view showing a side key of a mobile terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a mobile terminal related to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The suffix "module" and " part "for the components used in the following description are given or mixed in consideration of ease of specification, and do not have their own meaning or role.

The mobile terminal described in this specification may include a mobile phone, a smart phone, a laptop computer, a digital broadcasting terminal, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a PMP (Portable Multimedia Player), navigation and the like.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The mobile terminal 100 includes a wireless communication unit 110, an A / V input unit 120, a user input unit 130, a sensing unit 140, an output unit 150, a memory 160, and an interface. The unit 170, the controller 180, and the power supply unit 190 may be included. The components shown in FIG. 1 are not essential, and a mobile terminal having more or fewer components may be implemented.

Hereinafter, the components will be described in order.

The wireless communication unit 110 may include one or more modules for enabling wireless communication between the mobile terminal 100 and the wireless communication system or between the mobile terminal 100 and the network in which the mobile terminal 100 is located. For example, the wireless communication unit 110 may include a broadcast receiving module 111, a mobile communication module 112, a wireless Internet module 113, a short range communication module 114, and a location information module 115 .

The broadcast receiving module 111 receives a broadcast signal and / or broadcast related information from an external broadcast management server through a broadcast channel.

The broadcast channel may include a satellite channel and a terrestrial channel. The broadcast management server may refer to a server for generating and transmitting broadcast signals and / or broadcast related information, or a server for receiving broadcast signals and / or broadcast related information generated by the broadcast management server and transmitting the generated broadcast signals and / or broadcast related information. The broadcast signal may include a TV broadcast signal, a radio broadcast signal, a data broadcast signal, and a broadcast signal in which a data broadcast signal is combined with a TV broadcast signal or a radio broadcast signal.

The broadcast-related information may refer to a broadcast channel, a broadcast program, or information related to a broadcast service provider. The broadcast related information may also be provided through a mobile communication network. In this case, it may be received by the mobile communication module 112.

The broadcast related information may exist in various forms. For example, it may exist in the form of Electronic Program Guide (EPG) of Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (DMB) or Electronic Service Guide (ESG) of Digital Video Broadcast-Handheld (DVB-H).

For example, the broadcast receiving module 111 may be a Digital Multimedia Broadcasting-Terrestrial (DMB-T), a Digital Multimedia Broadcasting-Satellite (DMB-S), a Media Forward Link Only And a Digital Broadcasting System (ISDB-T) (Integrated Services Digital Broadcast-Terrestrial). Of course, the broadcast receiving module 111 may be adapted to other broadcasting systems as well as the digital broadcasting system described above.

The broadcast signal and / or broadcast related information received through the broadcast receiving module 111 may be stored in the memory 160.

The mobile communication module 112 transmits and receives radio signals to at least one of a base station, an external terminal, and a server on a mobile communication network. The wireless signal may include various types of data depending on a voice call signal, a video call signal or a text / multimedia message transmission / reception.

The wireless internet module 113 refers to a module for wireless internet access and may be embedded or external to the mobile terminal 100. Wireless Internet technologies may include Wireless LAN (Wi-Fi), Wireless Broadband (Wibro), World Interoperability for Microwave Access (Wimax), High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA), and the like.

The short range communication module 114 refers to a module for short range communication. Bluetooth, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), infrared data association (IrDA), Ultra Wideband (UWB), ZigBee, and the like can be used as a short range communication technology.

The location information module 115 is a module for obtaining a location of a mobile terminal, and a representative example thereof is a GPS (Global Position System) module.

Referring to FIG. 1, an A / V (Audio / Video) input unit 120 is for inputting an audio signal or a video signal, and may include a camera 121 and a microphone 122. The camera 121 processes image frames such as still images or moving images obtained by the image sensor in the video call mode or the photographing mode. The processed image frame can be displayed on the display unit 151. [

The image frame processed by the camera 121 may be stored in the memory 160 or transmitted to the outside through the wireless communication unit 110. [ Two or more cameras 121 may be provided depending on the use environment.

The microphone 122 receives an external sound signal through a microphone in a communication mode, a recording mode, a voice recognition mode, or the like, and processes it as electrical voice data. The processed voice data can be converted into a form that can be transmitted to the mobile communication base station through the mobile communication module 112 when the voice data is in the call mode, and output. Various noise reduction algorithms may be implemented in the microphone 122 to remove noise generated in receiving an external sound signal.

The user input unit 130 generates input data for a user to control the operation of the terminal. The user input unit 130 may include a key pad dome switch, a touch pad (static pressure / capacitance), a jog wheel, a jog switch, and the like.

The sensing unit 140 detects the current state of the mobile terminal 100 such as the open / closed state of the mobile terminal 100, the position of the mobile terminal 100, the presence or absence of user contact, the orientation of the mobile terminal, the acceleration / deceleration of the mobile terminal, and the like. To generate a sensing signal for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 100. For example, if the mobile terminal 100 is in the form of a slide phone, it may sense whether the slide phone is opened or closed. In addition, whether the power supply unit 190 is supplied with power, whether the interface unit 170 is coupled to the external device may be sensed. Meanwhile, the sensing unit 140 may include a proximity sensor 141.

The output unit 150 is for generating output related to the visual, auditory or tactile sense and includes a display unit 151, an audio output module 152, an alarm unit 153, and a haptic module 154 .

The display unit 151 displays (outputs) information processed by the mobile terminal 100. For example, when the mobile terminal is in the call mode, a UI (User Interface) or a GUI (Graphic User Interface) associated with a call is displayed. When the mobile terminal 100 is in the video communication mode or the photographing mode, the photographed and / or received video or UI and GUI are displayed.

The display unit 151 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), a thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED), a flexible display display, and a 3D display.

Some of these displays may be transparent or light transmissive so that they can be seen through. This can be referred to as a transparent display, and a typical example of the transparent display is TOLED (Transparent OLED) and the like. The rear structure of the display unit 151 may also be of a light transmission type. With this structure, the user can see an object located behind the terminal body through the area occupied by the display unit 151 of the terminal body.

There may be two or more display units 151 according to the embodiment of the mobile terminal 100. For example, in the mobile terminal 100, a plurality of display portions may be spaced apart from one another or may be disposed integrally with each other, or may be disposed on different surfaces.

When the display unit 151 and a sensor for detecting a touch operation (hereinafter, referred to as a touch sensor) form a mutual layer structure (hereinafter referred to as a touch screen), the display unit 151 may be configured in addition to an output device. Can also be used as an input device. The touch sensor may have the form of, for example, a touch film, a touch sheet, a touch pad, or the like.

The touch sensor may be configured to convert a change in a pressure applied to a specific portion of the display unit 151 or a capacitance generated in a specific portion of the display unit 151 into an electrical input signal. The touch sensor can be configured to detect not only the position and area to be touched but also the pressure at the time of touch.

If there is a touch input to the touch sensor, the corresponding signal (s) is sent to the touch controller. The touch controller processes the signal (s) and transmits the corresponding data to the controller 180. As a result, the controller 180 can know which area of the display unit 151 is touched.

Referring to FIG. 1, a proximity sensor 141 may be disposed in an inner region of a mobile terminal surrounded by the touch screen or near the touch screen. The proximity sensor refers to a sensor that detects the presence or absence of an object approaching a predetermined detection surface or a nearby object without mechanical contact using the force of an electromagnetic field or infrared rays. The proximity sensor has a longer life span than the contact sensor and its utilization is also high.

Examples of the proximity sensor include a transmission photoelectric sensor, a direct reflection photoelectric sensor, a mirror reflection photoelectric sensor, a high frequency oscillation proximity sensor, a capacitive proximity sensor, a magnetic proximity sensor, and an infrared proximity sensor. And to detect the proximity of the pointer by the change of the electric field along the proximity of the pointer when the touch screen is electrostatic. In this case, the touch screen (touch sensor) may be classified as a proximity sensor.

Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the act of allowing the pointer to be recognized without being in contact with the touch screen so that the pointer is located on the touch screen is referred to as a "proximity touch", and the touch The act of actually touching the pointer on the screen is called "contact touch." The position where the pointer is proximately touched on the touch screen means a position where the pointer is vertically corresponding to the touch screen when the pointer is touched.

The proximity sensor detects a proximity touch and a proximity touch pattern (e.g., a proximity touch distance, a proximity touch direction, a proximity touch speed, a proximity touch time, a proximity touch position, a proximity touch movement state, and the like). Information corresponding to the detected proximity touch operation and the proximity touch pattern may be output on the touch screen.

The sound output module 152 may output audio data received from the wireless communication unit 110 or stored in the memory 160 in a call signal reception, a call mode or a recording mode, a voice recognition mode, a broadcast reception mode, and the like. The sound output module 152 also outputs sound signals related to functions (e.g., call signal reception sound, message reception sound, etc.) performed in the mobile terminal 100. [ The audio output module 152 may include a receiver, a speaker, a buzzer, and the like.

The alarm unit 153 outputs a signal for notifying the occurrence of an event of the mobile terminal 100. Examples of events occurring in the mobile terminal include call signal reception, message reception, key signal input, and touch input. The alarm unit 153 may output a signal for notifying the occurrence of an event in a form other than the video signal or the audio signal, for example, vibration. The video signal or the audio signal may be output through the display unit 151 or the audio output module 152 so that they may be classified as a part of the alarm unit 153.

The haptic module 154 generates various tactile effects that the user can feel. A typical example of the haptic effect generated by the haptic module 154 is vibration. The intensity and pattern of vibration generated by the haptic module 154 can be controlled. For example, different vibrations may be synthesized and output or sequentially output.

In addition to vibration, the haptic module 154 may be configured to provide a pin array that vertically moves with respect to the contact skin surface, a jetting force or suction force of air through an injection or inlet port, grazing to the skin surface, contact of an electrode, electrostatic force, and the like. Various tactile effects can be generated, such as effects by the endothermic and the reproduction of a sense of cold using the elements capable of endotherm or heat generation.

The haptic module 154 can be implemented not only to transmit the tactile effect through the direct contact but also to allow the user to feel the tactile effect through the muscular sensation of the finger or arm. The haptic module 154 may include two or more haptic modules 154 according to the configuration of the portable terminal 100.

The memory 160 may store a program for the operation of the controller 180 and temporarily store input / output data (e.g., a phone book, a message, a still image, a moving picture, etc.). The memory 160 may store data on vibration and sound of various patterns outputted when a touch is input on the touch screen.

The memory 160 may be a flash memory type, a hard disk type, a multimedia card micro type, a card type memory (for example, SD or XD memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), SRAM (Static Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), PROM A disk, and / or an optical disk. The mobile terminal 100 may operate in association with a web storage that performs a storage function of the memory 160 on the Internet.

The interface unit 170 serves as a path for communication with all external devices connected to the mobile terminal 100. The interface unit 170 receives data from an external device or supplies power to each component in the mobile terminal 100 or transmits data to the external device. For example, a wired / wireless headset port, an external charger port, a wired / wireless data port, a memory card port, a port for connecting a device having an identification module, an audio I / O port, A video input / output (I / O) port, an earphone port, and the like may be included in the interface unit 170.

The identification module is a chip for storing various information for authenticating the use right of the mobile terminal 100 and includes a user identification module (UIM), a subscriber identity module (SIM), a general user authentication module A Universal Subscriber Identity Module (USIM), and the like. Devices with identification modules (hereinafter referred to as "identification devices") can be manufactured in a smart card format. Accordingly, the identification device can be connected to the terminal 100 through the port.

The interface unit may be a passage through which power from the cradle is supplied to the mobile terminal 100 when the mobile terminal 100 is connected to an external cradle, or various command signals input from the cradle by a user may be transferred. It may be a passage that is delivered to the terminal. The various command signals or the power source input from the cradle may be operated as a signal for recognizing that the mobile terminal is correctly mounted on the cradle.

The controller 180 typically controls the overall operation of the mobile terminal. For example, voice communication, data communication, video communication, and the like. The control unit 180 may include a multimedia module 181 for multimedia playback. The multimedia module 181 may be implemented in the control unit 180 or may be implemented separately from the control unit 180. [

The controller 180 may perform a pattern recognition process for recognizing handwriting input or drawing input performed on the touch screen as characters and images, respectively.

The power supply unit 190 receives an external power source and an internal power source under the control of the controller 180 to supply power for operation of each component.

The various embodiments described herein may be embodied in a recording medium readable by a computer or similar device using, for example, software, hardware, or a combination thereof.

According to a hardware implementation, the embodiments described herein include application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and the like. It may be implemented using at least one of processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, and electrical units for performing other functions.

2A is a front perspective view of an example of a mobile terminal or a mobile terminal according to the present invention.

The disclosed mobile terminal 100 has a bar-shaped terminal body. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and can be applied to various structures such as a slide type, a folder type, a swing type, and a swivel type in which two or more bodies are relatively movably coupled.

The body includes a case (a casing, a housing, a cover, and the like) which forms an appearance. In this embodiment, the case may be divided into a front case 101 and a rear case 102. Various electronic components are built in the space formed between the front case 101 and the rear case 102. At least one intermediate case may be further disposed between the front case 101 and the rear case 102.

The cases may be formed by injecting synthetic resin or may be formed of a metal material, for example, a metal material such as stainless steel (STS) or titanium (Ti).

The display unit 151, the audio output unit 152, the camera 121, the user input unit 130/131, 132, the microphone 122, the interface 170, etc. may be disposed in the terminal body, mainly the front case 101. Can be.

The display unit 151 occupies most of the main surface of the front case 101. A sound output unit 151 and a camera 121 are disposed in an area adjacent to one end of both ends of the display unit 151 and a user input unit 131 and a microphone 122 are disposed in an area adjacent to the other end. The user input unit 132 and the interface 170 may be disposed on side surfaces of the front case 101 and the rear case 102.

The user input unit 130 is operated to receive a command for controlling the operation of the portable terminal 100 and may include a plurality of operation units 131 and 132. The operation units 131 and 132 may be collectively referred to as a manipulating portion and may be employed in any manner as long as the user operates in a tactile manner.

The contents inputted by the first or second operation unit 131 or 132 may be variously set. For example, the first operation unit 131 receives commands such as start, end, scroll, and the like, and the second operation unit 132 controls the size of the sound output from the sound output unit 152 or the size of the sound output from the display unit 151 To the touch recognition mode of the touch screen.

FIG. 2B is a rear perspective view of the portable terminal shown in FIG. 2A.

Referring to FIG. 2B, a camera 125 may be additionally mounted on the rear of the terminal body, that is, the rear case 102. The camera 125 has a photographing direction substantially opposite to that of the camera 121 (see FIG. 2A), and may be a camera having different pixels from the camera 121.

For example, the camera 121 has a low pixel so that the user's face is photographed and transmitted to the counterpart in case of a video call, and the camera 125 often photographs a general subject and does not immediately transmit it. It is desirable to have a high pixel. The cameras 121 and 125 may be installed in the terminal body to be rotatable or pop-up.

A flash 127 and a mirror 126 are further disposed adjacent to the camera 125. The flash 127 shines light toward the subject when the subject is photographed by the camera 125. The mirror 126 allows the user to see his / her own face or the like when he / she wants to photograph himself (self-photographing) using the camera 125.

The sound output unit 154 may be further disposed on the rear surface of the terminal body. The sound output unit 154 may implement a stereo function together with the sound output unit 152 (refer to FIG. 2A) disposed on the front surface, and may be used to implement a speakerphone mode during a call.

In addition to the antenna for talking and the like, a broadcast signal reception antenna 116 may be additionally disposed on the side of the terminal body. The antenna 116, which forms part of the broadcast receiving module 111 (see FIG. 1), can be installed to be able to be drawn out from the terminal body.

A power supply unit 190 for supplying power to the portable terminal 100 is mounted on the terminal body. The power supply unit 190 may be embedded in the terminal body or may be directly detachable from the outside of the terminal body. When detached from the outside of the terminal body is generally mounted on the rear rear case 102 of the terminal body, and further comprising a battery cover 104 to cover the power supply unit 190 to prevent the separation and to protect from the outside Can be.

The battery cover 104 may partially cover the rear case 102 as shown in FIG. 2B, or may cover the entire rear case 102. When covering the front of the rear case 102 includes an opening for exposing the camera 125 or the sound output unit 154 to the outside.

The mobile terminal 100 of the present invention has a side key 132 coupled to the front case so as not to be separated during the assembling process of the mobile terminal, thereby enabling a stable assembly process. 4 and 5 are cross-sectional views and perspective views of the mobile terminal 100 according to the present invention. Hereinafter, the mobile terminal 100 of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.

The mobile terminal 100 of the present invention includes a front case 101, a rear case 102 and a side key 102.

The front case 101 includes a front surface on which a display unit is disposed, a side wall protruding rearward from the periphery of the front surface, and an inner space surrounded by the front side and side walls. The electronic component of the mobile terminal 100 is mounted in the inner space.

The rear case 102 is coupled to the side wall of the front case 101 at the rear of the front case 101 to cover the inner space. The rear case 102 may be coupled to a circumference of a rear surface for covering the electronic component of the inner space and an end portion of the side wall of the front case 101, and includes a side wall protruding forward from the circumference of the rear surface. It may be coupled to the side wall of the front case 101.

The side key 132 is disposed between the side wall of the front case 101 and the rear case 102, and includes a button portion 133 exposed to the outside and a coupling portion positioned in the inner space. Side key 132 is located on the side of the mobile terminal 100, such as the user input unit 132 located on the side shown in Figures 2a and 2b for receiving commands such as volume control or mode change Means.

The side key 132 is generally mounted on the side wall of the front case 101 in the process of mounting the electronic component on the front case 101 when the mobile terminal 100 is assembled.

The conventional side key 32 is exposed to the outside of the front case 11 and the rear case 12 as shown in FIG. 3 so that a user can directly apply pressure to input a command 33 And a coupling part 34 positioned in the inner space and fixed to the front case 11 and the rear case 12.

The coupling part 34 couples the flange 35 extending along the circumference of the button part 33 to the inside of the side wall of the front case 11 and the inside of the rear case 12. This conventional structure is a structure in which the flange 35 is slightly fitted to the front case 11 before the rear case 12 is coupled, the rear case 12 by the weight of the button portion 33 or during operation The side key 132 is easily detached from the front case 11 by being caught by the flange 35 extending to the side.

In order to prevent the problem, a tape 40 is generally used to fix the outside of the side wall of the front case 11 and the button portion 33 of the side key 32. In particular, when the button part 33 protrudes from the front case 111, the tape 40 is not easily adhered to and the tape 40 is fixed in order to fix the side key 32 using the tape 40. There is a problem that the attachment and removal process of 40) is additionally required.

Therefore, there is a need for a structure in which the side key 32 can be stably fixed to the front case 11 during the assembling process without adding a step of attaching and removing a separate member.

Accordingly, the side key 132 of the present invention, as shown in Figure 4 and 5, is composed of a button portion 133 and the coupling portion 134.

The button unit 133 is a key that the user presses to input a specific signal as the button unit 33 of FIG. 3, and the front case when combined with the front case 10 so that the user can easily press the side key. It may be formed so as to protrude from the (101).

The coupling part 134 is formed at one side of the button part, and is a protrusion for coupling the side key 132 to the front case 101. The coupling part 134 includes a flange 135 extending toward the front case 101 and a fixing protrusion 136 protruding from the flange 135. The fixing protrusion 136 is coupled to the fixing groove 105 formed in the front case 101 so that the side key 132 is stably fixed to the front case 101 even before the rear case 102 is coupled.

The fixing protrusion 136 is provided to prevent the separation of the side key 132 during the assembling process, so that the fixing protrusion 136 has a fixing protrusion 136 protruding in a direction different from the extension direction of the flange 135, preferably in a vertical direction. do. The fixing groove 105 is formed on the sidewall of the front case 101 at the inner space side. The fixing protrusion 136 of the side key is coupled by applying a force in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 4, that is, from the inner side to the outer side of the front case.

In this case, the fixing protrusion 136 may be formed to be smaller than the size of the fixing protrusion 136 so as to fit in the fixing groove 105.

Meanwhile, in order to prevent the fixing protrusion 136 from being damaged, a rib 137 may be further provided as shown in FIG. 5 to support the fixing protrusion 136. The rib 137 is a triangular plate-shaped member positioned between the fixing protrusion 136 and the flange 135 to prevent the fixing protrusion 136 from being broken.

At this time, the inlet of the fixing groove 105 is inclined 150a is formed in a shape corresponding to the rib 137 to provide a space in which the rib 137 can be located. That is, the inclined 150a prevents the rib 137 from being formed so that the fixing protrusion 136 is not inserted into the fixing groove 105.

In addition, the fixing protrusion 136 may be formed to have a larger cross section than the size of the fixing groove 105 so as to fit in the fixing groove 105. When the fixing protrusion 136 is inserted into the fixing groove 105 by a predetermined force, the side key 132 is not separated in the assembling process because the fixing protrusion 136 is not easily separated from the fixing groove 105.

In addition, the button unit 133 may be manufactured to protrude from the side wall of the front case 101 as shown in FIG. 4. It protrudes from the sidewall of the front case 101 so that a user can easily press the side key 132.

The button unit 133 is coupled to the electronic component of the terminal on the other side of the button unit 133 so that a signal such as volume control is applied by a force pressed by the user.

6 is related to another embodiment of the mobile terminal 100 of the present invention, the shape of the coupling portion is a flange 135 and the flange 135 extending in the direction of the front case 101 similar to the above-described embodiment It consists of a fixing protrusion 138 protruding laterally from).

However, in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 6, the sidewall of the front case 101 is not a method of inserting the fixing protrusion 138 in the inward direction of the sidewall of the front case 101 as in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4. The side key 132 is coupled to the front case 101 by inserting the flange 136 and the fixing protrusion 138 of the side key 132 toward the front of the mobile terminal 100 at the end.

In this case, the front case 101 sidewall has a first fixing groove 107 extending in the front direction of the terminal and a second fixing groove 108 extending laterally from the first fixing groove 107. Equipped. The flange 135 is coupled to the first fixing groove 107, and the fixing protrusion 138 is coupled to the second fixing groove 108.

That is, by pressing in the extending direction of the first fixing groove 107 from the end of the side wall of the front case 101 by forcing the first fixing groove 107 and the second fixing groove 108, the front The side key 132 is coupled to the case 101.

As shown in FIG. 6 so as not to be separated after the interference fit, the fixing protrusion 138 has a sloping slope of one side 138a adjacent to the end of the flange 135, and the other side 138b of the flange 135 It may be formed to protrude at a perpendicular or acute angle to the).

Due to the shape of the fixing protrusion 136, the fixing protrusion 136 inserted into the second fixing groove 108 does not escape, but is stably coupled to the front case 101.

The present invention described above is provided with a mobile terminal 100 is provided with a side key 132 coupled to the front case 101 so as not to be separated during the assembly process is a stable assembly process.

In addition, there is no need to use a fixing tape or the like to prevent the separation of the side key 132 during the assembly process, there is an advantage that the process of temporarily attaching and detaching a separate member can be omitted.

A mobile terminal having a side key as described above is not limited to the configuration and method of the embodiments described above, the embodiments are all or part of each of the embodiments is optional so that various modifications can be made It may be configured in combination.

100: mobile terminal 101: front case
102: rear case 104: battery cover
105, 107, 108: fixing groove 132: side button
133: button portion 134: coupling portion
135: flange 136, 138: fixing protrusion
137: rib

Claims (8)

A front case including a front surface on which a display unit is disposed, a side wall protruding rearwardly from the periphery of the front surface, and an inner space surrounded by the front side and side walls;
A rear case coupled to the side wall of the front case at the rear of the front case to cover the inner space; And
A side key disposed between the side wall of the front case and the rear case, the side key including a button part exposed to the outside and a coupling part located in the inner space;
The front case side wall, the fixing groove is formed on the inside,
The coupling part, the mobile terminal characterized in that it comprises a flange extending in the front case direction and a fixing protrusion protruding from the flange and inserted into the fixing groove. The method of claim 1,
The coupling portion
And a rib supporting the fixing protrusion between the fixing protrusion and the flange. The method of claim 2,
The inlet of the fixing groove is a mobile terminal, characterized in that the inclination is formed in a shape corresponding to the rib. The method of claim 1,
Wherein,
Mobile terminal, characterized in that the size is greater than or equal to the size of the inlet of the fixing groove, coupled to the fixing groove in the interference fit method. The method of claim 1,
The button unit includes:
Mobile terminal, characterized in that protruding from the side wall of the front case. A front case including a front surface on which a display unit is disposed, a side wall protruding rearwardly from the periphery of the front surface, and an inner space surrounded by the front side and side walls;
A rear case coupled to the side wall of the front case at the rear of the front case to cover the inner space; And
A side key disposed between the side wall of the front case and the rear case, the side key including a button part exposed to the outside and a coupling part located in the inner space;
The front case side wall has a first fixing groove extending forward at the end and a second fixing groove extending laterally from the first fixing groove,
The coupling part includes a flange extending in the front case direction and a fixing protrusion protruding laterally from the flange,
The flange is coupled to the first fixing groove, the fixing projection is a mobile terminal, characterized in that coupled to the second fixing groove. The method according to claim 6,
The coupling portion
And pressurizes from the side wall end of the front case in an extension direction of the first fixing groove so as to be pressed into the first fixing groove and the second fixing groove. The method according to claim 6,
Wherein,
One side adjacent to the end of the flange forms a gentle slope,
The other side of the mobile terminal, characterized in that protruding to form a vertical or acute angle with the flange.

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