TW201528911A - Electroing device and casing thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A casing of an electronic device is provided. The casing includes a shell and a sensing component. The shell includes a button portion. The sensing component includes a first conductive line and two first contacts. The first conductive line is disposed on an inner surface of the shell, and formed a strain sensing pattern on the button portion. The first contacts are disposed on the inner surface of the shell, and connected to two ends of the first conductive line. The strain sensing pattern is adapted to result a variation of resistance accompanied with the deformation of the button portion while button portion deforms and produce an electrical signal.

Description

Electronic device and its outer casing

The present application relates to a housing and an electronic device thereof, and more particularly to an electronic device having a seamless button design and an outer casing thereof.

In recent years, technology products are mostly based on mobility and functionality, so portable electronic devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), smart mobile phones, tablet PCs, and Products such as notebooks (NB) have become the mainstream of today's consumer.

In general, a portable electronic device is usually provided with a button on a housing, and a switching element corresponding to the button is provided in the housing. The button and the switching element are coupled to each other, and the function of the power switch, the volume adjustment, the recording of the image, or the scrolling of the control display page is achieved by pressing the button to control the switching element. Therefore, the housing of the portable electronic device must be configured with a corresponding external opening to set a button for the user to operate.

However, the foregoing configuration manner may cause excessive waste of the internal configuration space of the portable electronic device, and the assembly process thereof is also complicated, so that it is difficult to manufacture. High degree of manufacturing, long manufacturing hours, and low assembly yield. On the other hand, dust and moisture easily enter the inside of the electronic device through the gap between the button and the external opening, which greatly reduces the life of the electronic component and affects its normal operation function.

The present application provides an electronic device and an outer casing thereof, which can simplify process steps, reduce assembly time, reduce manufacturing cost, and improve assembly yield, and achieve a seamless button design to maintain the appearance integrity of the electronic device, and It can prevent dust or moisture from entering the inside of the electronic device and ensure the service life and reliability of the electronic device.

The housing of the electronic device proposed by the present application includes a housing and an inductive component. The housing has a button portion. The sensing component includes a first wire and two first contacts. The first wire is disposed on an inner surface of the housing, and the first wire forms a strain sensing pattern on the button portion. The first contact is disposed on an inner surface of the housing and is respectively connected to both ends of the first wire. The strain sensing pattern is adapted to generate an electrical signal when the button portion is deformed, and the resistance value changes as the button portion is deformed.

The present application further proposes an electronic device to which the foregoing housing is applied. The outer casing covers the body of the electronic device.

Based on the above, the present application fabricates a strain sensing component on the inside of a button portion (ie, a button) of a housing by a Laser Direct Structuring (LDS) technology, so that the user can press the button of the housing. The function of the button is implemented. In other words, the application does not need to additionally set the button on the outer casing of the electronic device. Buttons or other independent sensing components enable key functions, which greatly simplifies process steps, reduces assembly time, reduces manufacturing costs, and improves assembly yield. On the other hand, since the electronic device of the present application adopts a seamless button design, there is no gap between the housing and the area where the function of the button is implemented, which not only maintains the integrity of the appearance of the electronic device, but also avoids dust or water. The gas intrudes into the interior of the electronic device, thereby ensuring the service life and reliability of the electronic device.

The above features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description.

50‧‧‧Electronic devices

60‧‧‧ body

62‧‧‧ boards

62a‧‧‧ pads

64‧‧‧Flexible joints

100‧‧‧ Shell

110‧‧‧shell

110a‧‧‧ bottom

110b‧‧‧ sidewall

110c‧‧‧ outer surface

110d‧‧‧ seed metal layer

110e‧‧‧Electroplated metal layer

112, 114‧‧‧ button

116, 118‧‧‧ blocks

119‧‧‧Protective layer

120, 130‧‧‧Induction components

122, 132‧‧‧ first wire

122a, 132a‧‧‧Induction pattern

124, 134‧‧‧ first joint

140‧‧‧Antenna coil

142‧‧‧second junction

P‧‧‧ Press zone

1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application

Figure 2 is a schematic illustration of the outer casing of Figure 1.

3A is a partial enlarged view of the outer casing of FIG. 2.

Figure 3B is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of Figure 3A taken along line I-I.

Figure 3C is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of Figure 3A taken along the line J-J.

4A is a schematic view of the inner surface of the outer casing of FIG. 3A coated with a protective layer.

4B is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of FIG. 4A taken along line A-A.

4C is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of FIG. 4A taken along line B-B.

FIG. 5 is a partial enlarged view of the electronic device of FIG. 1. FIG.

1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 is a schematic illustration of the outer casing of Figure 1. 3A is a partial enlarged view of the outer casing of FIG. 2. Referring to FIG. 1 to FIG. 3A , in the embodiment, the electronic device 50 includes a body 60 and a housing 100 . The outer casing 100 covers the body 60. The housing 100 includes a housing 110 and sensing assemblies 120 and 130. The housing 110 has button portions 112 and 114. The sensing component 120 includes a first wire 122 and two first contacts 124, and the sensing component 130 includes a first wire 132 and two first contacts 134. The first wires 122 and 132 are disposed on the inner surface of the housing 110, and the first wires 122 and 132 form strain sensing patterns 122a and 132a at the button portions 112 and 114, respectively. The first contacts 124 and 134 are disposed on the inner surface of the housing 110 and connect the two ends of the first wires 122 and 132, respectively. The first contacts 124 and 134 are electrically connected to the body 60, respectively. The strain sensing patterns 122a and 132a are adapted to generate an electrical signal when the button portions 112 and 114 are deformed to change the resistance value, respectively, when the button portions 112 and 114 are deformed. More specifically, the housing 110 includes a bottom portion 110a and a side wall 110b that surrounds the bottom portion 110a, wherein the button portions 112 and 114 are, for example, located on the side wall 110b, and the first contacts 124 and 134 are located on the bottom portion 110a.

Generally, the electronic device 50 is, for example, a smart phone, a personal digital assistant or a tablet computer, and the housing 110 of the outer casing 100 is, for example, a plastic casing or a carbon fiber casing, or a composite casing made of plastic and metal. On the other hand, the materials of the sensing components 120 and 130 are, for example, metals having good electrical conductivity such as copper, nickel or silver, and are formed on the inner surface of the casing 110 by laser direct structuring (LDS) technology. 110a, where the laser is directly formed (Laser Direct Structuring (LDS) is a 3D-Molded Interconnect Device (3D-MID) production technology for laser processing, injection and electroplating processes. This technology is commonly used in mobile phone antennas, automotive electronic circuits, and withdrawals. Machine casing and medical grade hearing aids.

The method of manufacturing the outer casing having the sensing components 120 and 130 described above is roughly described below. First, the housing 110 is formed by an injection molding technique in which the button portions 112 and 114 are defined on the housing 110. In the subsequent process, the sensing components 120 and 130 are plated on the inner surface 110a of the housing 110 corresponding to the button portions 112 and 114. The layout and configuration of the sensing components 120 and 130 can be referred to the above description. This will not go into details.

The following is a further description of the method of electroforming the sensing components 120 and 130 on the inner surface 110a of the housing 110. First, the inner surface 110a of the casing 110 is roughened, for example, by laser activation, to facilitate the subsequent plating process. The inner surface 110a has a microstructure corresponding to the sensing component 120 (including the first wire 122 and the first contact 124) and the sensing component 130 (including the first wire 132 and the first contact 134) to be formed in a subsequent process. (not shown), so that the traces and contacts formed in the subsequent process can be fixed on the inner surface 110a.

Figure 3B is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of Figure 3A taken along line I-I. Figure 3C is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of Figure 3A taken along the line J-J. Thereafter, the casing 110 is placed in a solution containing metal fine particles, and the metal fine particles may be metal ions such as tin, silver, copper, chromium or nickel to adhere the metal fine particles to the roughened and activated inner metal particles. The surface 110a forms a seed metal layer 110d. Finally, the case 110 is placed in the plating solution, and the plated metal layer 110e is formed on the seed metal layer 110d by electroplating (e.g., electroless plating). The plating metal layer 110e is attached to the seed metal layer 110d, and the sensing components 120 and 130 may have two layers of the seed metal layer 110d and the plating metal layer 110e (as shown in FIG. 3B and FIG. 3C, respectively), and The microstructure of the roughened inner surface 110a is stably fixed to the housing 110. So far, the fabrication of the outer casing 100 is substantially completed.

Here, the strain sensing patterns 122a and 132a formed by the first wires 122 and 132 are, for example, zigzag-arranged grid patterns. In addition, compared with the thickness of the general strain gauge of about 200 to 300 micrometers, the thickness of the sensing components 120 and 130 obtained by the above manufacturing method is about 0.5 to 50 micrometers, which is more compatible with existing electronic components. The design requirements for thin and light products.

In the embodiment, the outer casing 100 further includes a second wire and a second contact 142, wherein the second wire is, for example, the antenna coil 140. The antenna coil 140 is disposed on the inner surface 110a of the housing 110. The second contacts 142 are respectively connected to both ends of the antenna coil 140. Specifically, the material of the antenna coil 140 and the second contact 142 is, for example, a metal having good conductivity such as copper, nickel or silver, and can be formed in the shell by laser direct structuring (LDS) technology. On the inner surface 110a of the body 110.

In other words, the antenna coil 140 and the second contact 142 may be formed on the inner surface 110a of the housing 110 by electroplating to form the sensing components 120 and 130, and the sensing components 120 and 130 are formed in the housing 110 in the same manner as the electroplating. table The surface 110a is formed on the inner surface 110a of the casing 110. Therefore, the antenna coil 140 and the second contact 142 may also have the seed metal layer 110d and the plated metal layer 110e as shown in FIGS. 3B and 3C, and the thickness thereof is also between 0.5 and 50 micrometers. .

In the present embodiment, the housing 110 has spacers 116 and 118. In general, the spacers 116 and 118 are integrally formed with the housing 110, for example, and protrude from the inner surface of the bottom portion 110a of the housing 110. The first contacts 124 and 134 are respectively disposed on the top surfaces of the pads 116 and 118, and the first wires 122 and 132 extend along the inner surface 110a of the housing 110 and the sides of the pads 116 and 118, respectively, to the spacers. The top surfaces of 116 and 118 are connected to first contacts 124 and 134.

On the other hand, the second contact 142 is disposed on the top surface of the pad 118 together with the first contact 134, and the first wire 132 and the antenna coil 140 are respectively along the inner surface 110a of the housing 110 and the spacer. The sides of the 118 extend to the top surface of the spacer 118 to connect the first contact 134 and the second contact 142, respectively. Of course, in other possible embodiments, the configuration of the first contacts 124 and 134 and the second contact 142 may be adjusted according to actual needs, for example, the second contact 142 and the first contact 124 are disposed together on the pad. On the top surface of the block 116, or the first contacts 124 and 134 and the second contact 142 are disposed on the same pad, the first contacts 124 and 134 and the second contact 142 may be respectively disposed differently. On the top surface of the spacer, this application does not limit this. Specifically, the design of the spacer can increase the height of the arrangement of the aforementioned contacts, so that the electrical connection between the contacts and the body is more reliable.

Please continue to refer to FIG. 1 to FIG. 3A. In this embodiment, the sensing component 120 The pair 130 is disposed in pairs on the housing 110. In addition, the outer surfaces 110c of the housings 110 corresponding to the button portions 112 and 114 of the sensing assemblies 120 and 130 collectively serve as the pressing regions P of a group of buttons. In more detail, the rigidity of the housing 110 corresponding to the button portions 112 and 114 of the sensing components 120 and 130 is less than the rigidity of other adjacent portions of the housing 110, wherein the rigidity means Moulus of Elasticity or Bending stiffness. That is, when the same force is applied to the housing 110 corresponding to the button portion 112 of the sensing component 120 or the button portion 114 of the sensing component 130 (ie, the pressing region P) and other adjacent portions of the housing 110, corresponding to The button portion 112 of the sensing assembly 120 and the housing 110 of the button portion 114 of the sensing assembly 130 can generate a large amount of deformation. At this time, the strain sensing pattern 122a of the button portion 112 or the strain sensing pattern 132a of the button portion 114 is, for example, in a stretched state, so that the first wire 122 located at the first wire 122 or the button portion 114 of the button portion 112 is narrowed and The length is increased so that the strain sensing pattern 122a of the button portion 112 or the strain sensing pattern 132a of the button portion 114 changes in resistance value as the housing 110 is deformed to generate an electrical signal.

When the body 60 detects the electrical signal, the control unit (not shown) disposed in the body 60 can generate a control signal according to the electrical signal to enable the electronic device 50 to perform a corresponding operational function. Specifically, the sensing components 120 and 130 are, for example, related components for volume adjustment, and may also be related components for controlling a power switch, recording an image, or controlling scrolling of a display page. It is worth mentioning that compared with the capacitive button design, the seamless button design of the strain sensing pattern of the present application can greatly reduce the accidental accidental touch of the user.

On the other hand, the aforementioned electrical signal can reflect the degree of deformation of the corresponding strain sensing pattern 122a or 132a after the user applies the force on the button portion 112 or 114. That is, when the user continues to apply force to the button portion 112 or 114 and the pressing force is greater, the corresponding strain sensing pattern 122a or 132a changes with the resistance of the housing 110 to generate a continuous telecommunication. number. At this time, the strain sensing pattern 122a or 132a can be used not only as a switch, but also as a continuity controller, for example, on a mobile phone software of a browser to control the scrolling of the display page, so when the user continues to apply When the force of the button portion 112 or 114 is pressed and the pressing force is increased, the speed of scrolling the display page can be accelerated, thereby increasing the flexibility of the user's operation.

In the present embodiment, the thickness of the button portions 112 and 114 of the housing 110 is, for example, smaller than the thickness of other adjacent portions of the housing 110, that is, in the case where the same material constitutes the housing 110, by changing the housing. The thickness of the body 110 is such that the structural strength or rigidity of the housing 110 at different locations is differentiated. In other words, when the same force is applied to the thinner button portion 112 or 114 of the housing 110, a larger amount of deformation can be generated to improve the sensitivity of the sensing assemblies 120 and 130.

4A is a schematic view of the inner surface of the outer casing of FIG. 3A coated with a protective layer. 4B is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of FIG. 4A taken along line A-A. 4C is a cross-sectional view of the outer casing of FIG. 4A taken along line B-B. Referring to FIG. 4A, in the embodiment, the housing 110 further includes a protective layer 119. The protective layer 119 is coated on the inner surface 110a of the housing 110 to cover the first wires 122 and 124 and the antenna coil 140 (not shown), and exposes the first contacts 24 and 134 and the second contacts 142. Further, the protective layer 119 can prevent signal interference between the respective lines on the housing 110. The oxidation of the wiring can be avoided, wherein the material of the protective layer 119 is, for example, tantalum oxide, tantalum nitride, niobium oxynitride, non-conductive plastic or non-conductive polymer material.

Referring to FIG. 4B and FIG. 4C, after the sensing components 120 and 130, the antenna coil 140, and the second contact 142 are formed on the inner surface of the casing by laser direct structuring, the protective layer 119 is, for example, fully coated. On the inner surface 110a of the housing 110, wherein the sensing component 130 is taken as an example, the protective layer 119 varies with the undulating surface between the first wire 132 and the housing 110. Of course, the protective layer 119 also covers the top surface of the spacer 118 at the same time, wherein the thickness of the protective layer 119 is based on the height of the first contact 134.

FIG. 5 is a partial enlarged view of the electronic device of FIG. 1. FIG. Referring to FIG. 4A and FIG. 5, in the embodiment, the body 60 includes a circuit board 62 and a plurality of elastic contacts 64. The elastic contacts 64 are disposed on the circuit board 62, and the elastic contacts 64 abut against the first contacts 124 and 134, respectively. Generally, the elastic contact 112 is, for example, a conductive spring, and can be fixed to the plurality of pads 62a on the circuit board 62 by soldering, locking or embedding. Specifically, when the body 60 and the outer casing 100 are engaged with each other, the elastic contact 64 is, for example, in a compressed state, and the electrical connection between the first contacts 124 and 134 and the circuit board 62 can be effectively ensured.

In summary, the outer casing of the present application and the electronic device using the same are three-dimensional mold interconnection devices for laser processing, injection and electroplating processes by Laser Direct Structuring (LDS) technology (3D-Molded Interconnect Device, 3D-MID) production technology, forms a strain sensing component on the inside of the button (ie, the button) of the housing to achieve a seamless button design. In addition, The fabrication of the antenna coil can also be performed simultaneously with the fabrication of the strain sensing assembly. This greatly simplifies the process steps, reduces assembly time, reduces manufacturing costs, and improves assembly yield. In addition, since the electronic device of the present application adopts a seamless button design, since there is no gap between the housing and the button portion, not only the integrity of the appearance of the electronic device can be maintained, but also dust or moisture can be prevented from intruding into the electronic device. In turn, to ensure the life of the electronic device and its reliability.

Although the present application has been disclosed in the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present application, and those skilled in the art can make some modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. The scope of protection of this application is subject to the definition of the scope of the appended claims.

100‧‧‧ Shell

110‧‧‧shell

110a‧‧‧ bottom

110b‧‧‧ sidewall

112, 114‧‧‧ button

116, 118‧‧‧ blocks

120, 130‧‧‧Induction components

122, 132‧‧‧ first wire

124, 134‧‧‧ first joint

140‧‧‧Antenna coil

142‧‧‧second junction

Claims (14)

An outer casing of an electronic device includes: a casing having a button portion; and an inductive component comprising: a first wire disposed on an inner surface of the casing, and the first wire is formed at the button portion a strain sensing pattern; and two first contacts disposed on the inner surface of the housing and respectively connected to opposite ends of the first wire, the strain sensing pattern being adapted to be deformed when the button portion is deformed The deformation of the button portion changes the resistance value to generate a signal. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the housing has a spacer protruding from the inner surface, the first contacts are disposed on a top surface of the spacer, and the first A wire extends along the inner surface and a side of the spacer to connect the two first contacts. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 1, further comprising a protective layer covering the inner surface of the casing to cover the first wire and exposing the first contacts. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 1, further comprising: a second wire disposed on an inner surface of the casing, wherein the second wire is an antenna coil; and two second contacts are respectively connected At both ends of the antenna coil. The housing of the electronic device of claim 4, wherein the housing has a spacer protruding from the inner surface, the first contacts and the second connections Points are disposed on the top surface of the pad, and the first wire and the antenna coil extend along the inner surface and the side of the pad to respectively connect the first contacts and the second contacts . The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 4, further comprising a protective layer covering the inner surface of the casing to cover the first wire and the antenna coil, and exposing the first connections Points and the second contacts. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the rigidity of the button portion of the housing is less than the rigidity of other adjacent portions of the housing. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 7, wherein the thickness of the button portion of the housing is less than the thickness of other adjacent portions of the housing. The outer casing of the electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the number of the sensing components is two, and is disposed in pairs on the casing, and the outer surfaces of the two button portions corresponding to the two sensing components are jointly The pressing area of a group of buttons. The casing of the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the casing comprises a bottom portion and a side wall standing around the bottom portion, the button portion is located on the side wall, and the first contacts are located at the bottom portion. on. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the inner surface of the casing has a microstructure corresponding to the first wire to fix the first wire to the inner surface. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the first wire has a sub-metal layer and a plated metal layer, the seed metal layer is attached to the inner surface, and the plating metal layer is attached to the Seed metal layer. The outer casing of the electronic device of claim 1, wherein the electrical signal reflects a degree of deformation of the strain sensing pattern. An electronic device comprising: a body; and an outer casing according to claim 1, covering the body.