KR20210043257A - Buttonless Electronic Terminal Including Force-Touch Sensor Having Cushion Material on Touch Panel - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a buttonless terminal having a force-touch sensor having a cushioning material under a touch panel. The buttonless terminal of the present invention comprises: a touch panel including a side part bent in an edge and extended from the upper surface of a terminal; and a force-touch panel provided between a terminal frame and the side part to recognize pressure. Without a physical button on the side part of the terminal, a button function is performed by touch input to the touch panel and pressure to the force-touch panel in the side part.

Description

Buttonless terminal equipped with a force-touch sensor having a cushioning material under the touch panel {Buttonless Electronic Terminal Including Force-Touch Sensor Having Cushion Material on Touch Panel}

The present invention relates to a structure of a terminal, and to a buttonless terminal that performs a button function using a force-touch sensor having a cushioning material (eg, foam tape) under a touch panel extending to the side.

Most terminals such as smartphones are equipped with a number of physical buttons for volume, power, and home keys. These physical buttons include a method of pressing the protruding metal and a method of recognizing pressure using a piezo sensor. Recently, there is a case of using a force touch sensor.

However, in the conventional operation of the terminal button, there is a problem in that the button is operated by a drop impact, a twist of the frame, other external pressure, pressing, etc. irrespective of the user's intention.

Accordingly, the present invention has been conceived to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cushioning material under the touch panel (eg, including both the side-extended and non-extended display panel) It is to provide a buttonless terminal without a physical button, which has a force-touch sensor having (eg, a foam tape) and performs a button function by recognizing a touch position at the same time as a touch pressure.

First, summarizing the features of the present invention, a buttonless terminal according to an aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object includes a touch panel including a side portion curved and extending from an edge from an upper surface of the terminal, and a terminal frame, and the Includes a force-touch panel provided between side portions to recognize pressure, and performs a button function by a touch input to the touch panel and pressure to the force-touch panel at the side portion without a physical button on the side of the terminal do.

And a method of applying a curved display panel in which a display is performed from an upper surface of the terminal to the side portion curved and extended from an edge of the terminal, or a method of applying a flat panel display panel in which a display is provided only on the upper surface of the terminal.

The touch panel includes a first cushion material and a second cushion material on the terminal frame, and the force-touch panel is provided between the first cushion material and the second cushion material.

The force-touch panel includes a plurality of force-touch button portions that perform the button function.

The force-touch panel performs a preset button function at a corresponding position when a pressure equal to or higher than a threshold is received at one or more touch positions.

The force-touch panel includes: a first substrate; A second substrate; A piezoelectric resistor member disposed on the first substrate and on a surface opposite to the second substrate; An electrode structure formed on the second substrate and on a surface opposite to the first substrate; And a support member separating the first substrate and the second substrate, wherein a thickness of the support member is formed to be 10 to 30 μm larger than a sum of a thickness of the piezoelectric resistor member and a thickness of the electrode structure.

The buttonless terminal according to the present invention includes a force-touch sensor having a cushioning material (eg, foam tape) under a touch panel (eg, including both side-extended and non-extended display panels) extending to the side. It is equipped to perform a button function by recognizing the touch position at the same time as the touch pressure, so even without a physical button, it malfunctions due to a drop impact, a twist of the frame, other external pressure, pressing, etc. irrespective of the user's intention. Without this, it can provide a stable button function. In particular, since the upper and lower substrates of the force-touch panel are in a flexible form such as PET film, there is a concern that pressing may occur or the recognition rate of the force touch may be lowered.However, in the present invention, the force-touch panel is supported by the upper and lower cushioning materials. It prevents the pressure from being pressed and improves the recognition rate.

The accompanying drawings, which are included as part of the detailed description to aid in understanding of the present invention, provide embodiments of the present invention and describe the technical spirit of the present invention together with the detailed description.
1 is a schematic perspective view of a buttonless terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along AB of FIG. 1.
3 is a view for explaining the function of the cushioning material of the present invention.
Figure 4 is an experimental data confirming the function of the cushioning material of the present invention.
5 shows a schematic structure of the force-touch panel of FIG. 1.
6 is a cross-sectional view of the force-touch panel of FIG. 1.
7 is a view for explaining a current flow in the force-touch panel of FIG. 1.
FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating contact of a force touch portion between a piezoelectric resistor member and an electrode structure in the force-touch panel of FIG. 1.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this case, the same components in each drawing are indicated by the same reference numerals as possible. In addition, detailed descriptions of already known functions and/or configurations will be omitted. In the following, a portion necessary for understanding an operation according to various embodiments will be mainly described, and descriptions of elements that may obscure the subject matter of the description will be omitted. In addition, some elements of the drawings may be exaggerated, omitted, or schematically illustrated. The size of each component does not fully reflect the actual size, and therefore, the contents described herein are not limited by the relative size or spacing of the components drawn in each drawing.

In describing the embodiments of the present invention, when it is determined that a detailed description of a known technology related to the present invention may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. In addition, terms to be described later are terms defined in consideration of functions in the present invention, which may vary according to the intention or custom of users or operators. Therefore, the definition should be made based on the contents throughout the present specification. The terms used in the detailed description are only for describing the embodiments of the present invention, and should not be limiting. Unless explicitly used otherwise, expressions in the singular form include the meaning of the plural form. In the present description, expressions such as "comprising" or "feature" are intended to refer to certain features, numbers, steps, actions, elements, some or combination thereof, and one or more It should not be construed to exclude the presence or possibility of other features, numbers, steps, actions, elements, any part or combination thereof.

In addition, terms such as first and second may be used to describe various components, but the components are not limited by the terms, and the terms are used to distinguish one component from other components. Is only used.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a buttonless terminal 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a buttonless terminal 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a touch panel of a touch screen panel 200 including a side portion curved and extended at an edge from an upper surface of the terminal 1000, and It includes a force-touch panel 100 provided between the terminal frame 500 and a side portion of the touch panel to recognize pressure.

In the present invention, for a touch on the side of the terminal 1000, through a control device (not shown), recognition of the touch position by the touch panel of the touch screen panel 200 and the force-touch panel 100 By recognition of the pressure, the button function was performed. That is, even if a physical button is not provided on the side of the terminal 1000, a corresponding signal generated by a touch input to the touch panel of the touch screen panel 200 and a force-touch panel according to a touch operation at the side of the terminal 1000 By generating a corresponding signal by the pressure to (100), a button function was performed for a touch at a number of parts on the side of the terminal 1000 on the force-touch panel 100. The control device (not shown) may be implemented by hardware such as a semiconductor processor, software such as an application program, or a combination thereof.

Here, the buttonless terminal 1000 may be various electronic communication devices such as a smart phone, a personal information terminal (PDA), a game device, a tablet PC, and a wearable device, and the screen includes a display device having a touch screen panel 200. It may be a terminal including.

The touch screen panel 200 has a structure in which a display panel and a touch panel are combined. The touch screen panel 200 includes a side portion curved and extended from an edge from the upper surface of the display, and both the display panel and the touch panel may be formed to extend from the upper surface of the display in the same manner. It is a flat plate shape, and only the touch panel may be curved from the upper surface of the display to extend from the upper surface of the display.

That is, a method in which a curved display panel in which display is performed from the upper surface of the terminal 1000 to the side portion curved and extended from the edge of the terminal 1000 is applied, or a method in which a flat panel display panel in which display is performed only on the upper surface of the terminal 1000 is applied is included. .

The display panel may be a variety of flat panel display panels such as LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), and the like, and the touch panel is coupled to detect a touch position (such as a finger) on the display panel. The touch panel may have a structure driven by various methods such as a capacitive method, a resistive method, an ultrasonic method, and an optical method. Through a control device (not shown), an image signal is processed to drive the display panel to display the screen, and in order to recognize the touch position touched on the touch panel, it is connected to a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB). By transmitting a transmission signal to the touch panel and receiving a received signal from the touch panel, a signal for a touch position touched on the touch panel may be generated. Since such display panels and touch panels are well known, detailed descriptions are omitted.

In addition, in particular, the force-touch panel 100 uses a flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) in order to recognize a change in resistance and generate an electrical signal with respect to the touch of the side portion of the terminal 1000. It can be connected to a control device (not shown) through. The control device (not shown) transmits the necessary signal(s) to the force-touch panel 100 or receives from the force-touch panel 100 through this. The electrical signal generated from the force-touch panel 100 may be transmitted to a control device (not shown) and processed to perform pressure recognition.

In the present invention, without a physical/mechanical button, volume, increase/decrease (+/-), power, and The recognition of the touch position by the touch panel of the touch screen panel 200 and the recognition of the pressure above the threshold value by the force-touch panel 100 are fused so that various button functions such as a home key can be performed. For example, such a button function is designed so that a simple on-off function is performed, and in some cases, when the touch is made for a predetermined time with a pressure above a threshold value, a predetermined complex function is executed immediately in the form of a shortcut key. It could be.

In the present invention, the force-touch panel 100 is used, but the button function is performed only when the touch position is recognized at the same time as the touch pressure, so as in the prior art, a fall shock or a twist of the frame, and other user intentions and relationships. It is possible to stably provide a button function to a user's touch without malfunction due to other pressing or the like.

Hereinafter, an arrangement and operation between the force-touch panel 100 and the touch screen panel 200 of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along AB of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 2, the force-touch panel 100 of the present invention includes a first cushion material 150 on the lower surface of the touch panel of the touch screen panel 200 and a second cushion material on the terminal frame 500 so as to prevent being pressed. It is provided between the 160, and is configured to receive the support of the cushioning (150, 160). The cushioning materials 150 and 160 may be in the form of a foam tape having adhesiveness on both sides of a material such as acrylic foam or rubber foam that can act as a buffer against pressure.

As described below, since the upper and lower substrates of the force-touch panel 100 are in a flexible form such as PET film, in the process of attaching the force-touch panel 100 to the touch screen panel 200, as shown in FIG. 3, the force-touch There is a fear that the panel 100 may be pressed, resulting in a coarse appearance, and the recognition rate of the force touch may also decrease. To prevent this, the force-touch panel 100 was supported by the upper and lower cushioning members 150 and 160.

As shown in FIG. 4, as the cushioning materials 150 and 160 are supported, the resistance value changes between the two electrodes of the force-touch panel 100 according to the load, so that the pressure recognition rate of the force-touch panel 100 is On the other hand, when the force-touch panel 100 is supported only by the PET film of the upper and lower substrates, two electrodes may be generated because the structure of the force-touch panel 100 is not subjected to pressure due to the pressing portion as described above. From the fact that the change in the resistance value between the two is very small, it can be seen that the cushioning members 150 and 160 play a large role in supporting the pressure pressed against the force-touch panel 100 so as to exceed a threshold value.

The force-touch panel 100 may be manufactured to have a corresponding structure individually for each button portion (force-touch button portion) that performs a button function, or extends entirely or partially in the longitudinal direction of the side of the terminal 1000 The portion may be configured to perform the role of a plurality of button portions (force-touch button portions). That is, when a pressure of more than a threshold value is applied to a touch at multiple locations of the elongated force-touch panel 100, it may be configured to perform a predetermined button function at the corresponding location. Recognition of the location is possible through the operation of the touch screen panel 200.

5 shows a schematic structure of the force-touch panel 100 of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 5, the force-touch panel 100 according to the present invention includes an upper layer 100A and a bottom layer 100B, and the upper layer 100A is a first layer. A substrate 10, a piezoresistive member 20, a support member 30 connecting the first substrate 10 and the second substrate 50, and the lower layer 100B includes an electrode structure 40 and And a second substrate 50. Meanwhile, the electrode structure 40 of the lower layer 100B includes a first electrode (for power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and a second electrode (for ground GND or reception signal R _x ) 44. They are spaced apart and alternately arranged.

The first substrate 10 of the upper layer 100A may be a transparent or colored plastic material. Examples of the transparent or colored plastic material include polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), and polyether (PES). sulfone), polynorborneen (PNB), polypropylene (PP), polyimide (PI), and the like.

The second substrate 50 of the lower layer 100B is made of the same material as the first substrate 10 and is positioned to face the lower surface of the first substrate 10.

The piezoelectric resistor member 20 is provided on the lower surface of the first substrate 10. The piezoresistor member 20 may be a variable resistive material having adhesiveness while having a property of decreasing a resistance value as the contact area with the electrode structure 40 increases. For example, a pressure-sensitive adhesive material based on any one of quantum tunneling composites (QTC), electro-active polymer (EAP), acrylic and rubber-based solvents, or piezoresistive -resistive) series of materials may be used. The piezoresistive material has a piezoelectric resistance effect in which conduction energy is generated when an external force is applied to a silicon semiconductor crystal, and charges move to a conduction band, thereby changing a specific resistance.

Meanwhile, the electrode structure 40 is provided on the upper surface of the second substrate 50. The electrode structure 40 may be plural, and the electrode structure 40 may be made of a metal material, and as an example, may be made of silver (Ag).

The support member 30 is configured to space the first substrate 10 and the second substrate 50 apart, and the support member 30 includes an adhesive layer on its upper and lower surfaces, and the first substrate (10) and the second substrate 50 may be bonded. As an embodiment, the adhesive layer may be a gasket. The thickness of the support member 30 is a factor that affects the air-gap between the piezoresistive member 20 and the electrode structure 40 to be minimized. It will be described with reference.

6 is a cross-sectional view of the force-touch panel 100 of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 6, the force-touch panel 100 according to the present invention includes a first substrate 10, a second substrate 50, and an opposite surface of the second substrate 50 on the first substrate. The piezoelectric resistor member 20, the electrode structure 40 formed on the opposite surface of the first substrate 10 on the second substrate 50, and the first substrate 10 and the second substrate 50 Including a spacer 30 to be spaced apart, the thickness of the support member 30 is slightly larger than the sum of the thickness of the piezoelectric resistor member 20 and the thickness of the electrode structure 40. Have a structure.

Here, the positions of the first substrate 10 and the second substrate 50 are named in an arbitrary order to specify the structure of the present invention, and the vertical directions of both substrates may be mutually changed.

In the force-touch panel 100 according to the present invention, a support member 30 having a thickness slightly larger than the sum of the thickness of the piezoelectric resistor member 20 and the thickness of the electrode structure 40 is applied to the piezoelectric resistor member ( It can be implemented by forcibly and physically contacting the electrode structure 40 with 20). The electrode structure 40 includes a first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and a second electrode (ground GND or reception signal R _x ) 44.

On the other hand, the force-touch panel 100 according to the present invention includes a support member 30 connecting the first substrate 10 and the second substrate 50, the piezoresistor member 20 mentioned above. In order to minimize the air-gap between the and the electrode structure 40, the thickness (a) of the support member 30 must be adjusted.

The support member 30 has adhesive properties to support and fix the first substrate 10 and the second substrate 50, and has a thickness of more than a predetermined value as described above, so that the electrode structure is less than a predetermined pressure. It is preferable that the electrodes of 40 and the piezoresistive member 20 do not contact each other.

For example, the thickness (a) of the support member 30 is greater than the sum of the thickness (b) of the piezoelectric resistor member 20 and the thickness (c) of the electrode structure 40, but is greater than the summed value. It is preferable to configure it to be 10 to 30 μm larger.

7 is a diagram for explaining the flow of current in the force-touch panel 100 of FIG. 1. FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating a contact of a force touch portion between the piezoelectric resistor member 20 and the electrode structure 40 in the force-touch panel 100 of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 7, the electrode structure 40 of the force-touch panel 100 according to the present invention includes a first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and a second electrode (ground GND or reception signal R). _x ) (44) are spaced apart from each other and are alternately arranged. The electrode structure 40 is a piezoelectric resistor member 20-between the first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and the second electrode (ground GND or reception signal R _{x) 44 at any one position.} 1) may be located. Current is transferred from the first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 through the second substrate 50 to the second electrode (ground GND or reception signal R _x ) 44 through the piezoelectric resistor member 20. Flows.

8 is a plan view showing a contact between the piezoresistive member 20 and the electrode structure 40. The piezoresistive member 20 and the electrode structure 40 are the piezoresistive member when a pressure higher than a threshold value is applied by force touch. The first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and the second electrode (ground GND or reception signal R _x ) 44 included in the electrode structure 40 are electrically connected to each other. do.

Referring to FIG. 8, the piezoresistive member 20 is included in the electrode structure 40, the first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and the second electrode (ground GND or reception signal R). _x ) 44, the contact to be electrically connected, the piezoelectric resistor member 20, the first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and the second electrode ( It can be seen that it has a shape of contacting to cover the ground GND or the reception signal R _{x) 44 upwardly.}

Meanwhile, the electrode structure 40 is a piezoelectric resistor member 20 between the first electrode (power VCC or transmission signal T _x ) 42 and the second electrode (ground GND or reception signal R _{x) 44 at any one position.} -1) is formed. Since a resistance change occurs in the piezoresistor member 20-1 according to a temperature change, an index that checks the change in resistance according to the contact of the piezoresistor member 20 of the first substrate 10 to the electrode structure 40 in real time Can be used as. In addition, air is used to prevent contact between the upper and lower electrodes during the process of attaching the force touch sensor and the flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) through the contact form between the piezoresistive member 20 and the electrode structure 40 as described above. -Make it possible to maintain the air-gap. Through the contact form of the piezoresistive member 20 and the electrode structure 40 as described above, reliable force-touch sensing may be performed.

As described above, the buttonless terminal 1000 according to the present invention has a force-touch between the cushioning material under the touch panel extended to the side (eg, including both extended and non-extended side of the display panel). It is equipped with a sensor to perform the button function by recognizing the touch position at the same time as the touch pressure, so that even without a physical button, it is malfunctioning due to a drop impact, a twist of the frame, or other pressing that is irrelevant to the user's intention. Without, it can provide a stable button function.

As described above, in the present invention, specific matters such as specific components, etc., and limited embodiments and drawings have been described, but this is provided only to help a more general understanding of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. , Anyone with ordinary knowledge in the field to which the present invention pertains will be able to make various modifications and variations without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the spirit of the present invention is limited to the described embodiments and should not be determined, and not only the claims to be described later, but also all technical ideas that are equivalent or equivalent to the claims are included in the scope of the present invention. Should be interpreted as.

Force-Touch Panel(100)
Touch Screen Panel(200)
Cushioning material (150, 160)
Terminal frame 500

Claims (6)

A touch panel including a side portion curved and extended from the upper surface of the terminal at an edge; And
A force-touch panel provided between the terminal frame and the side portion to recognize pressure,
A terminal performing a button function without a physical button on the side of the terminal, by a touch input to the touch panel and a pressure to the force-touch panel at the side portion. The method of claim 1,
A method of applying a curved display panel in which display is performed from the upper surface of the terminal to the side portion curved and extended from the edge, or
A terminal comprising a method of applying a flat panel display panel in which a display is formed only on the upper surface of the terminal. The method of claim 1,
Including a first cushion material and a second cushion material on the terminal frame on the lower surface of the touch panel,
The force-touch panel is a terminal provided between the first cushioning material and the second cushioning material. The method of claim 1,
The force-touch panel,
Terminal comprising a plurality of force-touch button portions performing the button function. The method of claim 1,
The force-touch panel, when receiving a pressure greater than or equal to a threshold at one or more touch positions, performs a predetermined button function at the corresponding position. The method of claim 1,
The force-touch panel,
A first substrate;
A second substrate;
A piezoelectric resistor member disposed on the first substrate and on a surface opposite to the second substrate;
An electrode structure formed on the second substrate on a surface opposite to the first substrate; And
And a support member separating the first substrate and the second substrate,
The thickness of the support member is 10 to 30 μm larger than the sum of the thickness of the piezoelectric resistor member and the thickness of the electrode structure.

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