TW202119159A - Folding-type electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

A folding-type electronic device including a first bracket, a pivoting mechanism, a second bracket, a sliding bracket, flexible screen, and supporting piece. The pivoting mechanism is disposed at a first side of the first bracket. The second bracket is connected to the pivoting mechanism and is adapted to pivotally rotate relative to the first bracket. The sliding bracket is slidably disposed at a second side of the first bracket. The flexible screen is disposed on the second bracket and the sliding bracket. The supporting piece is disposed between the flexible screen and the first bracket. When the first bracket and the second bracket are relatively unfolded, the flexible screen is switched to flat mode and the sliding bracket is extended outside the first bracket. When the first bracket and the second bracket are folded with each other, the flexible screen is switched to bending mode and the sliding bracket is stored in the first bracket.

Description

Folding electronic device

The present invention relates to a foldable electronic device, and particularly relates to a foldable electronic device with a supporting structure.

Existing tablet phones use touch screens to replace the previous keyboards. The tablet phones have the advantage of expanding the display range of the screen, and also have the advantages of convenient operation and user viewing. This includes the advantages of tablets and mobile phones. Tablet phones usually have a folding mode and an unfolding mode. The folding mode is close to the size of a general mobile phone, and it has the advantage of being portable. The expanded mode forms a tablet computer, which is mainly used for image display and word processing. However, in the existing phablet phone in the unfolded mode, a gap will be generated between the flexible panel and the foldable mechanism. This causes the flexible screen to have a suspended area after being flattened. This area lacks a supporting structure and is easy to Deformation occurs. When the user touches this area, a depression will occur and the touch function will be affected.

The present invention provides a foldable electronic device with a support member for supporting a flexible screen, and when a user touches the flexible screen, a recessed situation will not be generated.

The foldable electronic device of the present invention includes a first bracket, a pivoting mechanism, a second bracket, a sliding frame, a flexible screen, and a support. The pivoting mechanism is arranged on a first side of the first bracket. The second bracket is connected to the pivoting mechanism and is suitable for pivoting relative to the first bracket. The sliding frame is slidably arranged on a second side of the first bracket. The flexible screen is arranged on the second bracket and the sliding frame. The support is arranged between the flexible screen and the first bracket. When the first bracket and the second bracket are relatively unfolded, the flexible screen switches to the tablet mode and the sliding frame extends out of the first bracket. When the first bracket and the second bracket are folded, the flexible screen switches to bend Mode and the sliding frame is stored in the first bracket.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when the first support and the second support are relatively unfolded, the flexible screen drives the support into a flat state, and the support is located between the sliding frame and the second support so as to abut against each other. Flexible screen and first bracket.

In an embodiment of the present invention, when the first bracket and the second bracket are folded with each other, the flexible screen drives the supporting member into a bent state so as to be attached to an outer wall surface of the pivoting mechanism.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned first bracket has two sliding grooves, which are arranged on two opposite inner wall surfaces of the first bracket, the sliding frame has two sliding rails, and a plurality of sliding rails respectively pass through the plurality of sliding grooves. , The multiple sliding rails are suitable for linear sliding along the multiple sliding grooves.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned sliding frame has a plurality of guide grooves, the second bracket has a plurality of guide posts, and the plurality of guide posts are respectively penetrated through the plurality of guide grooves and used to limit the sliding frame The sliding distance relative to the first bracket.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned pivoting mechanism has a housing and a pivot, the pivot is rotatably disposed in the housing and the two ends of the pivot respectively pass through the housing, and the second bracket has two buckles. The parts are respectively buckled on the two ends of the pivot, so that the second bracket is suitable for driving the pivot to rotate relative to the housing.

In an embodiment of the present invention, there is a height difference between a bottom surface of the above-mentioned second bracket and the plurality of buckling portions, and when the first bracket and the second bracket are folded with each other, the first bracket is attached to the bottom surface.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned support member includes a one-piece structure, and a plurality of deformation grooves are formed on a surface of the support member facing the first bracket, and the plurality of deformation grooves are parallel to each other.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned supporting member includes a plurality of elongated structures, and the plurality of elongated structures are arranged in parallel and spaced apart.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned supporting member is made of plastic, Teflon, rubber or magnet.

Based on the above, in the foldable electronic device of the present invention, when the first bracket and the second bracket are relatively unfolded, the flexible screen drives the sliding bracket to extend out of the first bracket to switch to the tablet mode. When the brackets are folded, the sliding bracket is stored in the first bracket and the flexible screen is bent to switch to the mobile phone mode. The support is arranged between the flexible screen and the first bracket. When the foldable electronic device is switched to the tablet mode, the support is used to support the flexible screen to avoid unsupported gaps between the support and the first bracket. In the suspended area, when the user touches the flexible screen, there will be no depression and deformation.

FIG. 1A is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a foldable electronic device in an unfolded state according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1B is a perspective schematic view of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 1A in another direction. FIG. 1C is an exploded schematic view of components of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 1A. Fig. 1D is a schematic cross-sectional view of the foldable electronic device of Fig. 1A along the line A-A.

2A is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a foldable electronic device in a folded state according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2B is a perspective schematic view of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 2A in another direction. Fig. 2C is a schematic cross-sectional view of the foldable electronic device of Fig. 2A along the line B-B.

Please refer to FIG. 1A and FIG. 2A together. The foldable electronic device 100 of the present invention is, for example, a tablet phone and can be switched to a folding mode and an unfolding mode. The foldable electronic device 100 is close to the size of a general mobile phone after being folded (refer to FIG. 2A), and is mainly used for message transmission and communication purposes, and has the advantage of being carried around. The foldable electronic device 100 is unfolded to form a tablet computer (refer to FIG. 1A), which is mainly used for image display and word processing, and has the advantage of large-scale display.

1A, 1C and 1D, the foldable electronic device 100 of the present invention includes a first bracket 110, a pivoting mechanism 120, a second bracket 130, a sliding frame 140, a flexible screen 150, and A support 160.

In this embodiment, the first bracket 110 has an accommodation space AS, a first side S1, a second side S2, and an opening H. The opening H penetrates the first bracket 110 to communicate with the receiving space AS, and the opening H has a heat dissipation function. The pivot mechanism 120 is disposed on the first side S1 of the first bracket 110. The second bracket 130 is connected to the pivot mechanism 120 and is adapted to pivot in the first rotation direction T1 or the second rotation direction T2 relative to the first bracket 110, so that the second bracket 130 is relatively far away or relatively close to the first bracket 110.

The sliding frame 140 is slidably disposed on a second side S2 of the first bracket 110, and the sliding frame 140, for example, slides in a first direction D1 or a second direction D2 opposite to the first direction D1 to overlap or separate from the first架110。 Support 110. The flexible screen 150 is disposed on the second bracket 130 and the sliding frame 140 and has elastic bending characteristics. The flexible screen 150 is, for example, attached or clipped to the second bracket 130 and the sliding frame 140, and is suitable for driving sliding架140.

1A and 1D, the support 160 is made of elastic material and is disposed between the flexible screen 150 and the first support 110. In this embodiment, the support 160 is attached to the flexible screen 150, so it will Along with the flexible screen 150, elastic deformation occurs at the same time.

Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1D, when the first bracket 110 and the second bracket 130 are relatively expanded, the first bracket 110 pivots in the first rotation direction T1 until it is flush with the second bracket 130. At this time, the first support 110 and the second support 130 switch the flexible screen 150 to the tablet mode, wherein the sliding frame 140 slides in the first direction D1 to partially extend outside the first support 110 and drive the flexible screen 150 expand.

At the same time, the flexible screen 150 drives the supporting member 160 into a planar state, so that the supporting member 160 is positioned between the sliding frame 140 and the second bracket 130 so as to abut against the flexible screen 150 and the first bracket 110 respectively, wherein the supporting member 160 It is used to fill the gap between the sliding frame 140 and the second bracket 130, which can improve the structural strength of the flexible screen 150 and prevent the flexible screen 150 from being dented and deformed in the tablet mode. In addition, when the flexible screen 150 is switched to the tablet mode, its length increases accordingly, so the sliding frame 140 needs to extend outside the first bracket 110 to avoid unevenness in the center C of the flexible screen 150 situation.

Referring to FIGS. 2A to 2C, when the first bracket 110 and the second bracket 130 are folded with each other, the first bracket 110 pivots in the second rotation direction T2 until it is aligned with the second bracket 130. At this time, the first bracket 110 and the second bracket 130 switch the flexible screen 150 to the bending mode, wherein the sliding frame 140 slides in the second direction D2 to be stored in the storage space AS of the first bracket 110, and drives the flexible screen 150 The flexible screen 150 is bent. At the same time, the flexible screen 150 drives the supporting member 160 into a bent state, so that the supporting member 160 is attached to an outer wall surface OS of the pivoting mechanism 120.

Referring to FIGS. 1A to 1C, the first bracket 110 has two sliding grooves SG, which are arranged on two opposite inner wall surfaces of the first bracket 110. The sliding frame 140 has two sliding rails OB arranged in parallel. The two sliding rails OB respectively pass through the two sliding grooves SG of the first bracket 110, and the sliding rail OB is suitable for linear sliding along the two sliding grooves SG, so as to limit the sliding frame 140 to only linearly move in the first bracket 110.

The sliding frame 140 has a plurality of guide grooves IG, and the first bracket 110 has a plurality of guide posts IP, and the plurality of guide posts IP respectively pass through the plurality of guide grooves IG and are used to limit the sliding frame 140 relative to the first The sliding distance of the support 110. In addition, through the restriction of the guide groove IG and the guide post IP, the stability of the sliding frame 140 sliding in the first bracket 110 can be improved, and unnecessary shaking can be reduced.

Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2C and 1D, the pivot mechanism 120 has a housing 121 and a pivot 122. The pivot 122 is rotatably disposed in the housing 121 and the two ends P of the pivot 122 penetrate the housing 121 respectively. The second bracket 130 has two buckle portions 131, which are respectively buckled on the two ends P of the pivot 122, so that the second bracket 130 is suitable for driving the pivot 122 in the first rotation direction T1 and the second rotation direction relative to the housing 121 T2 rotates. In addition, a torsion force can be generated between the pivot 122 and the housing 121 through friction or an elastic member. When the second bracket 130 drives the pivot 122 to rotate, the rotated angle can be maintained, so that the foldable electronic device 100 is deformed The angle includes 0 degrees to 180 degrees.

Referring to FIGS. 1A, 1D and 2A, there is a height difference DF between a bottom surface BS of the second bracket 130 and the plurality of buckling portions 131. When the first support 110 and the second support 130 are folded with each other, the first support 110 is attached to the bottom surface BS to fill the height difference DF, so as to maintain the flatness of the flexible screen 150 in the folding mode.

In this embodiment, the support 160 is made of, for example, plastic, Teflon, rubber, or magnets, and the plastic, Teflon, and rubber are suitable for non-metallic foldable electronic devices. The magnet is used in a foldable electronic device made of magnetic metal material, and can improve the closeness of the support 160 with the first bracket 110 and the pivoting mechanism 120 through magnetic attraction.

The support 160 includes a plurality of elongated structures 161, and the plurality of elongated structures 161 are arranged in parallel and spaced apart, and there is a distance D between any two adjacent elongated structures 161, which serves as the foldable electronic device 100 when unfolded or folded The reserved deformation at time (see Figure 1D and Figure 2C).

Fig. 3 is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a supporting member adopting another embodiment of the present invention.

Please refer to FIGS. 1D and 3 together. In another embodiment of the present invention, the supporting member 160a includes a one-piece structure, and a plurality of deformation grooves VG are formed on a surface S of the supporting member 160a facing the first bracket 110, and The two deformation grooves VG are arranged parallel to each other. The plurality of deformation grooves VG serve as the reserved deformation amount of the foldable electronic device 100 when it is unfolded or folded.

In summary, in the foldable electronic device of the present invention, when the first bracket and the second bracket are relatively unfolded, the flexible screen drives the sliding frame to extend out of the first bracket to switch to the tablet mode. When the second bracket is folded, the sliding bracket is stored in the first bracket and the flexible screen is bent to switch to the mobile phone mode. The support is arranged between the flexible screen and the first bracket. When the foldable electronic device is switched to the tablet mode, the support is used to support the flexible screen to avoid unsupported gaps between the support and the first bracket. In the suspended area, when the user touches the flexible screen, there will be no depression and deformation.

100: Folding electronic device 110: The first bracket 120: pivot mechanism 121: Shell 122: Pivot 130: second bracket 131: buckle 140: sliding frame 150: Flexible screen 160, 160a: support 161: Long structure D: spacing H: opening P: end S: surface AS: accommodation space BS: bottom surface DF: height difference D1: First direction D2: second direction IP: guide column IG: guide groove OB: Slide rail OS: Outer wall S1: First side S2: second side SG: Chute T1: The first direction of rotation T2: second direction of rotation VG: Deformation groove

FIG. 1A is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a foldable electronic device in an unfolded state according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1B is a perspective schematic view of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 1A in another direction. FIG. 1C is an exploded schematic view of components of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 1A. Fig. 1D is a schematic cross-sectional view of the foldable electronic device of Fig. 1A along the line A-A. 2A is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a foldable electronic device in a folded state according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2B is a perspective schematic view of the foldable electronic device of FIG. 2A in another direction. Fig. 2C is a schematic cross-sectional view of the foldable electronic device of Fig. 2A along the line B-B. Fig. 3 is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a supporting member adopting another embodiment of the present invention.

100: Folding electronic device

110: The first bracket

120: pivot mechanism

130: second bracket

131: buckle

140: sliding frame

150: Flexible screen

160: Support

P: end

BS: bottom surface

D1: First direction

D2: second direction

IP: guide column

IG: guide groove

OB: Slide rail

S1: First side

S2: second side

T1: The first direction of rotation

T2: second direction of rotation

Claims (10)

A foldable electronic device, including: A first bracket; A pivoting mechanism arranged on a first side of the first bracket; A second bracket connected to the pivoting mechanism and adapted to pivot relative to the first bracket; A sliding frame slidably disposed on a second side of the first bracket; A flexible screen arranged on the second bracket and the sliding frame; and A supporting member arranged between the flexible screen and the first bracket, Wherein, when the first support and the second support are relatively unfolded, the flexible screen is switched to the tablet mode and the sliding frame extends out of the first support. When the first support and the second support are mutually When folded, the flexible screen is switched to a bending mode and the sliding frame is stored in the first bracket. According to the foldable electronic device described in claim 1, wherein, when the first support and the second support are relatively unfolded, the flexible screen drives the support into a plane state, and the support is located on the The sliding frame and the second bracket abut against the flexible screen and the first bracket respectively. According to the foldable electronic device described in claim 1, wherein when the first bracket and the second bracket are folded with each other, the flexible screen drives the supporting member into a bent state so as to be attached to the pivoting mechanism One of the outer walls. According to the foldable electronic device described in claim 1, wherein the first bracket has two sliding grooves disposed on two opposite inner walls of the first bracket, the sliding frame has two sliding rails, and the sliding rails Respectively pass through the sliding grooves, and the sliding rails are suitable for linear sliding along the sliding grooves. According to the foldable electronic device described in claim 1, wherein the sliding frame has a plurality of guiding grooves, the first bracket has a plurality of guiding posts, and the guiding posts are respectively penetrated through the guiding grooves. The groove is used to limit the sliding distance of the sliding frame relative to the first bracket. According to the foldable electronic device described in claim 1, wherein the pivoting mechanism has a housing and a pivot, the pivot is rotatably disposed in the housing, and two ends of the pivot respectively pass through In the housing, the second bracket has two buckling parts, which are respectively buckled at two ends of the pivot, so that the second bracket is suitable for driving the pivot to rotate relative to the housing. According to the foldable electronic device described in item 6 of the scope of patent application, there is a height difference between a bottom surface of the second bracket and the buckling portions, and when the first bracket and the second bracket are folded, The first bracket is attached to the bottom surface. According to the foldable electronic device of claim 1, wherein the supporting member includes a one-piece structure, and a plurality of deformation grooves are formed on a surface of the supporting member facing the first bracket, and the deformation grooves are mutually parallel. According to the foldable electronic device described in claim 1, wherein the supporting member includes a plurality of elongated structures, and the elongated structures are arranged in parallel and spaced apart. According to the foldable electronic device described in item 1 of the scope of patent application, the supporting member is made of plastic, Teflon, rubber or magnet.

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