TWI482944B - Circuit bending detection devices and methods - Google Patents

Description

Circuit board curvature detecting device and method

The invention is mainly a circuit board curvature detecting device, in particular to a circuit board curvature detecting device with a photoconductor unit.

At present, electronic devices such as smart phones, tablets or personal digital assistants can be charged via wireless charging devices. Generally, a wireless charging device provides magnetic energy by a sensing element (for example, a coil) to perform a charging process, wherein the charged electronic device converts magnetic energy into alternating current energy by receiving magnetic energy supplied from the wireless charging device by the sensing element, and then Further, by means of a rectifying element or the like, a power source is supplied to the electronic device to be charged.

In addition, when the wireless charging device performs charging on the electronic device, since the electromagnetic induction generated by the sensing element is required, the sensing element of the wireless charging device and the sensing element of the charged electronic device must be as close as possible and aligned. Improve charging efficiency. However, if the electronic device to be charged is a flexible circuit board device or a flexible circuit board such as electronic paper, it may be because some parts of the circuit board are not flat or bent, and some of the sensing elements on the circuit board are wireless. The relative distance of the charging device changes, so that the charging efficiency is lowered, resulting in a longer charging time and even a failure to charge.

Circuit board curvature detecting device according to an embodiment of the invention The device includes: a circuit board; a photoconductor unit disposed on the circuit board and having a transmitting end and a receiving end; a light emitter for emitting a light at the transmitting end; and a light receiver, Detecting whether the light is received by the receiving end, and when the light is not received, generating a warning signal, wherein the light conductor unit cannot transmit the light when one of the bending degrees of the circuit board exceeds a critical bending angle.

A method for detecting a curvature of a circuit board according to an embodiment of the invention includes: disposing a photoconductor unit to a circuit board; emitting a light at a transmitting end of the photoconductor unit; and detecting the photoconductor unit Whether the receiving end receives the light, and when the light is not received, generates a warning signal, wherein the light conductor unit cannot transmit the light when one of the bending degrees of the circuit board exceeds a critical bending angle.

The following description shows many embodiments that have been completed by the present invention. The description of the basic concepts of the invention is not intended to be limiting. The scope of the invention is best defined in the scope of the appended claims.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a circuit board curvature detecting apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. The circuit board curvature detecting device includes a circuit board 100, a photoconductor unit 110-1, an optical transmitter Tx-1, an optical receiver Rx-1, a photoconductor unit 110-2, a light emitter Tx-2, and an optical receiver. Rx-2 and wireless charging unit 120. Circuit board 100 is typically a flexible circuit device such as a flexible circuit board or electronic paper.

The photoconductor unit 110-1 is disposed on the circuit board 100 in the longitudinal direction (for example) For example, the Y direction), and the photoconductor unit 110-2 is disposed laterally on the circuit board 100 (for example, the X direction) for detecting the curvature of two different directions. The light emitter Tx-1 is disposed at one end of the photoconductor unit 110-1 and may be referred to as a transmitting end. The optical receiver Rx-1 is disposed at the other end of the photoconductor unit 110-1 and may be referred to as a receiving end. Similarly, the light emitter Tx-2 is disposed at one end of the photoconductor unit 110-2, and the photoreceiver Rx-2 is disposed at the other end of the photoconductor unit 110-2. Since the optical conductor unit is too curved, it will cause light to be transmitted from one end to the other end (for detailed reasons), it is possible to receive the light emitted by the transmitter Tx-1 according to whether the receiver Rx-1 correspondingly receives it. Whether the receiver Rx-2 receives the light emitted by the transmitter Tx-2 to detect whether the curvature in each direction is excessively large, and when the receiver Rx-1 or Rx-2 does not receive the corresponding light, Warning signal. In some embodiments, the circuit board 100 can further display a display unit to display a message that the curvature is excessive according to the warning signal, or to provide a warning sound according to the warning signal by setting the speaker unit. According to the above manner, the present invention can also detect whether the curvature of the circuit board exceeds the critical bending angle by bending the photoconductor unit along with the circuit board.

The wireless charging unit 120 is configured to receive an electromagnetic signal from the external wireless charging device 130 to provide power to the circuit board 100, such as charging the battery of the circuit board 100 or directly serving as a power supply. Generally, in wireless charging, in order to make charging more efficient, the wireless charging unit 120 and the wireless charging unit of the external wireless charging device 130 are kept as close as possible, and thus placed in parallel. Therefore, if the circuit board 100 is bent, the wireless charging unit 120 and the external wireless charging device 130 may be caused. The wireless charging unit is partially far away and may not be fully charged or waste power consumption. Therefore, when the receiver Rx-1 or Rx-2 does not receive the corresponding light, the generated warning signal may also be a stop charging signal, and the signal transmitted to the external wireless charging device 130 by the signal transmitting unit. The receiving unit, the external wireless charging device 130 then turns off the charging mechanism according to the received stop charging signal, and no longer transmits the electromagnetic signal for charging, thereby reducing unnecessary power consumption. In some embodiments, the wireless charging unit 120 can modulate the electromagnetic signal according to the warning signal to transmit the stop charging signal, and the wireless charging unit of the external wireless charging device 130 can turn off the charging mechanism according to the received modulated electromagnetic signal.

In order to more clearly understand the present invention, the following is to explain the mechanism for controlling the light conductor to conduct light of the present invention, and since the photoconductor units 110-2 and 110-1 function in the same manner, only the photoconductor unit 110-1 is used as a simplification. The representative explained.

Fig. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the photoconductor unit 110-1, in which the broken line N indicates the normal to the interface. The photoconductor unit 110-1 is generally composed of two different optical media, one of which is located inside the photoconductor unit 110-1, and the other optic m2 is coated with the optical medium m1, which is located at the photoconductor unit 110- 1 outer layer. When the light emitter Tx-1 emits a light L (for example, infrared rays) at the emitting end of the photoconductor unit 110-1, and in order to allow the light L to be reflected and propagated between the optical medium m1 and the optical medium m2, the optical medium m1 The refractive index n1 needs to be larger than the refractive index n2 of the optical medium m2, and the critical angle θ _T = sin ^-1 (n2/n1) of the total reflection can be used to understand that the light L enters the light when the incident angle θ is greater than the critical angle θ _T . When the conductor unit 110-1 is internally, total reflection is generated, so that the light L is transmitted from the transmitting end of the photoconductor unit 110-1 to the receiving end. Therefore, the magnitude of the critical angle θ _T can be changed by changing the refractive index n1 of the optical medium m1 and the refractive index n2 of the optical medium m2.

Fig. 2B is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the photoconductor unit 110-1 when it is bent, in which the broken line N indicates the normal of the unbent interface, and the broken line N' indicates the normal of the curved interface. As shown in FIG. 2B, when the light ray L is incident on the interface between the optical medium m1 and the optical medium m2, since the light conductor unit 110-1 is bent, the incident angle becomes small (the incident angle θ becomes the incident angle θ ₁ At this time, if the incident angle θ _{1 is} smaller than the critical angle θ _T , according to n ₁ sin θ ₁ =n ₂ sin θ _{2 , it is} known that a refraction angle of θ ₂ is generated at the boundary of the medium, and then the light L penetrates the light. The medium m2, and the light L cannot continue to be reflected in the optical medium m1 to proceed to the other end. It can be seen that if the receiving end of the photoconductor unit 110-1 cannot receive the light L emitted by the transmitting end, it can mean that the bending of the photoconductor unit 110-1 is at least in one of the sections, wherein the curvature is Φ. The angle between the dotted lines N and N'. In addition, as can be seen from the figure, the incident angle θ ₁ is equal to the original incident angle θ minus the curvature Φ (θ - Φ = θ ₁ ), so that when sin ^-1 (n2/n1) > θ - Φ, the light is obtained. L will refract and cannot be transmitted to the receiving end. Thereby, the present invention can control the critical bending angle Φ _T by selecting the refractive index n1 of the optical medium m1 and the refractive index n2 of the optical medium m2 and the incident angle θ, and further according to whether the receiving end of the photoconductor unit 110-1 receives. The light ray L determines whether the curvature Φ exceeds the preset critical bending angle Φ _T . In addition, since the refractive index has an inverse relationship with the optical frequency, the critical bending angle Φ _T can also be determined by changing the frequency of the light L (for example, selecting light of different wavelengths).

Although the photoconductor unit shown in FIG. 1 is disposed on the circuit board, it may be disposed on the other side of the circuit board or embedded in the circuit board (for example, the photoconductor unit is disposed on one layer of the circuit board by circuit board manufacturing technology). ). In the above embodiment, although the photoconductor units 110-1 and 110-2 are respectively disposed on the circuit board 100 in the longitudinal direction and the lateral direction, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the curvature can be detected according to the required degree. Direction The photoconductor unit is placed in any direction and arranged in any shape or number to meet the requirements. In some embodiments of the invention, the photoconductor units 110-1 and 110-2 may be an optical fiber and the light L may be an infrared ray.

Figure 3 is a diagram showing a circuit board curvature detecting device according to another embodiment of the present invention. The circuit board curvature detecting device in this embodiment includes a circuit board 300, a photoconductor unit 310, a light emitter Tx, an optical receiver Rx, and a wireless charging unit 320. Circuit board 300 is typically a flexible circuit device such as a flexible circuit board or electronic paper. The photoconductor unit 310 is also the same as the first embodiment. When the curvature is too large, the light will not be transmitted from one end to the other end. Therefore, according to whether the receiver Rx receives the light emitted by the transmitter Tx accordingly, It is detected whether the curvature of the circuit board 300 is too large, and an alarm signal is generated when the receiver Rx does not receive the corresponding light. In some embodiments, the circuit board 300 can further display a display unit to display a message whose curvature is excessive according to the warning signal, or by setting a speaker unit to sound an alarm according to the warning signal.

The wireless charging unit 320 is configured to receive an electromagnetic signal from the external wireless charging device 330 to provide power to the circuit board 300, such as a circuit board. 300 batteries are charged or used directly as a power supply. In general, in order to make the charging more efficient during wireless charging, the wireless charging unit 320 and the wireless charging unit of the external wireless charging device 330 are kept as close as possible, and thus placed in parallel. Therefore, if the bending of the circuit board 300 may cause the wireless charging unit 320 to be far away from the wireless charging unit of the external wireless charging device 330, charging may be incomplete or power consumption may be wasted. Therefore, when the receiver Rx does not receive the corresponding light, the generated warning signal may also be a stop charging signal, which is transmitted to the external wireless charging device 330 by the signal transmitting unit, and the signal receiving unit of the external wireless charging device 330 receives the signal according to the receiving. By stopping the charging signal, the charging mechanism is turned off, and the electromagnetic signal for charging is no longer sent, thereby reducing unnecessary power consumption. In some embodiments, the wireless charging unit 320 can modulate the electromagnetic signal according to the alert signal to transmit the stop charging signal, and the wireless charging unit of the external wireless charging device 330 can turn off the charging mechanism according to the received modulated electromagnetic signal.

In this embodiment, each element operates in substantially the same manner as the circuit board curvature detecting device in the first embodiment, except that in the embodiment, only a single photoconductor unit 310 is used to complete the two directions. Bending detection to reduce the use of circuit components and reduce costs. As shown, the photoconductor unit 310 is staggered in the center of the circuit board 300 to detect the curvature in two different directions. Since the light conductor unit is too large in bending, the light can not be transmitted from one end to the other end. Therefore, in the embodiment, the portion of the photoconductor unit 310 in the curved portion is controlled to have a curvature less than a critical curvature to avoid Light cannot be transmitted from the transmitting end to the receiving end. In other embodiments of the present invention, the photoconductor unit 310 may be composed of different optical media n1 and n2 in different sections such that the partial sections are different in sensitivity to curvature, whereby the bending of the photoconductor unit 310 may be caused. The segment and the straight segment may still have the same critical bending angle Φ _T . In a special case, the optical medium of the partial section of the photoconductor unit 310 can be set to be unaffected by the curvature Φ, so that the section can always undergo total reflection and conduct light to avoid the need for detection. In this way, the arrangement of the photoconductor units 310 can be more flexible and does not affect the segments to be detected. In addition, the photoconductor unit 310 can also be used for an optical medium that breaks when the curvature is greater. When the circuit board 300 may be excessively bent under the condition of no energization, the photoconductor unit 310 can be broken thereby. After the power is turned on, the receiver Rx can not receive the light and can generate an alert signal, thereby notifying the user that the circuit board 300 has caused excessive bending to notify the user that the circuit board may have partially damaged or the like, or is applied to the circuit. In the board process, the board that has been damaged due to excessive bending is eliminated to improve product quality.

Fig. 4 is a flow chart showing an embodiment of a method of the circuit board curvature detecting device shown in Fig. 3 of the present invention. In step S402, the light emitter Tx is incident on a light emitting end of the photoconductor unit 310. Then, in step S404, the optical receiver Rx continues to detect whether the light is received at the receiving end of the photoconductor unit 310. If the light is detected, the current state is not reacted, and if the light is not detected, Proceed to step S406. In step S406, the optical receiver Rx can generate an alert signal to notify the user, for example, by setting the display unit to display a message whose curvature is too large according to the warning signal, or by setting the speaker unit. The user is notified according to the warning signal to prevent the damage caused by excessive bending of the circuit board 300. In addition, when the external wireless charging device 330 is used for charging, the warning signal can also be used as a stop charging signal, and transmitted to the external wireless charging device 330 by the signal transmitting unit, and the signal receiving unit of the external wireless charging device 330 receives the signal according to the receiving. Stopping the charging signal turns off the charging mechanism, no longer sending electromagnetic signals for charging, thereby reducing unnecessary power consumption. In some embodiments, the wireless charging unit 320 can modulate the electromagnetic signal according to the alert signal to transmit the stop charging signal, and the wireless charging unit of the external wireless charging device 330 can turn off the charging mechanism according to the received modulated electromagnetic signal. Similarly, the method flow of the circuit board curvature detecting device shown in FIG. 1 is the same as the circuit board curvature detecting device shown in FIG. 3, and the difference is only in the circuit board shown in FIG. The degree detecting device has two photoconductor units that detect the curvature in different directions, and the above processes are respectively performed, and therefore will not be described again.

The present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, but it should be understood that the above description is not intended to limit the embodiments of the invention. Conversely, it encompasses a variety of variations and similar configurations (as will be apparent to those skilled in the art). In addition, the broadest interpretation is to be construed in accordance with the appended claims

100, 300‧‧‧ circuit board

110-1, 110-2, 310‧‧‧Photoconductor unit

120, 320‧‧‧ Wireless charging unit

130, 330‧‧‧ External wireless charging device

L‧‧‧Light

M1, m2‧‧‧ optical medium

N, N’‧‧‧dred line, normal

Rx, Rx-1, Rx-2‧‧‧ optical receiver

Tx, Tx-1, Tx-2‧‧‧ light emitters

θ, θ ₁ ‧‧‧ incident angle

θ ₂ ‧‧ ‧ refraction angle

Φ‧‧‧bend

The disclosure of the present invention can be more completely understood by the following detailed description of the accompanying drawings and the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a circuit board curvature detecting apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. .

Fig. 2A is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the photoconductor unit 110-1.

Fig. 2B is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the photoconductor unit 110-1 when it is bent.

Figure 3 is a diagram showing a circuit board curvature detecting device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a flow chart showing an embodiment of a method of the circuit board curvature detecting device shown in Fig. 3 of the present invention.

100‧‧‧ boards

110-1, 110-2‧‧‧Photoconductor unit

120‧‧‧Wireless charging unit

130‧‧‧External wireless charging device

Rx-1, Rx-2‧‧‧ optical receiver

Tx-1, Tx-2‧‧‧ light emitter

X, Y‧‧ direction

Claims (19)

A circuit board curvature detecting device includes: a circuit board; a first photoconductor unit disposed on the circuit board and having a first transmitting end and a first receiving end; and a first optical transmitter The first transmitting end emits a first light; the first light receiver detects whether the first receiving end receives the first light, and when the first light is not received, generates a first light a warning signal; a second photoconductor unit disposed on the circuit board and having a second transmitting end and a second receiving end; a second light emitting device for transmitting a second light to the second transmitting end And a second optical receiver, detecting whether the second receiving end receives the second light, and when the second light is not received, generating a second warning signal; wherein one of the circuit boards is curved The first photoconductor unit is unable to transmit the first light when the critical bending angle exceeds a threshold, wherein the first photoconductor unit is perpendicular to the second photoconductor unit. The circuit board curvature detecting device according to claim 1, wherein the first photoconductor unit is bent along with the circuit board. The circuit board curvature detecting device according to claim 1, wherein the first photoconductor unit has a first optical medium and a second optical medium, and the first optical medium has a first light. Refractive index, The second optical medium has a second refractive index, and the first optical refractive index is greater than the second optical refractive index. When the bending degree of the circuit board is less than the critical bending angle, the first light is The first optical medium is internally reflectively reflected by one of the first optical medium and the second optical medium to be conducted from the first transmitting end to the first receiving end, and when the bending degree of the circuit board is When the critical bending angle is greater than the above, the first light is refracted at the interface to penetrate the second optical medium. The circuit board curvature detecting device according to claim 3, wherein the critical bending angle is determined according to the first light refractive index and the second light refractive index. The circuit board curvature detecting device of claim 3, wherein the first photoconductor unit further comprises a curved section having a third optical medium and a fourth optical medium, wherein the circuit board is When the curvature is less than the critical bending angle, the first light is reflected by the curved interface of the third optical medium and the fourth optical medium in the third optical medium, and the bending of the circuit board is performed. When the degree is greater than the critical bending angle, the first light is refracted at the curved interface to penetrate the fourth optical medium. The circuit board curvature detecting device according to claim 1, wherein the critical bending angle is determined according to one of the wavelengths of the first light. The circuit board curvature detecting device according to claim 1, wherein the critical bending angle is determined according to an incident angle of the first light ray with respect to the interface. The circuit board curvature detecting device according to claim 1, further comprising a wireless charging unit that receives an electromagnetic signal of an external wireless charging device to provide power to the circuit board, wherein the wireless charging unit is configured according to The first warning signal transmits a stop charging signal to the external wireless charging device, and when the external wireless charging device receives the stop charging signal, stopping transmitting the electromagnetic signal. The circuit board curvature detecting device of claim 1, wherein the first light is an infrared light. The circuit board curvature detecting device of claim 1, further comprising a display unit for displaying a warning message according to the first warning signal. A circuit board curvature detecting method includes: disposing a first photoconductor unit to a circuit board; transmitting a first light to a first transmitting end of the first photoconductor unit; and detecting the first photoconductor unit Whether the first receiving end receives the first light, and when the first light is not received, generating a first warning signal; setting a second photoconductor unit to the circuit board; and the second photoconductor Transmitting, by the second transmitting end of the unit, a second light; and detecting whether the second receiving end of the second photoconductor unit receives the second light, and when the second light is not received, generating a first light a warning signal; wherein when one of the circuit boards has a curvature exceeding a critical bending angle, The first photoconductor unit is unable to transmit the first light, wherein the first photoconductor unit is perpendicular to the second photoconductor unit. The method of detecting a curvature of a circuit board according to claim 11, wherein the first photoconductor unit is bent along with the circuit board. The method for detecting a curvature of a circuit board according to claim 11, wherein the first optical conductor unit has a first optical medium and a second optical medium, and the first optical medium has a first light. a refractive index, wherein the second optical medium has a second refractive index, and the first optical refractive index is greater than the second optical refractive index. When the bending degree of the circuit board is less than the critical bending angle, the first a light in the first optical medium, which is forwardly reflected by one of the first optical medium and the second optical medium to be conducted from the first transmitting end to the first receiving end, and when the circuit board is When the bending degree is greater than the critical bending angle, the first light is refracted at the interface to penetrate the second optical medium. The circuit board curvature detecting method of claim 13, further comprising adjusting the first light refractive index and the second light refractive index to determine the critical bending angle. The first optical conductor unit further includes a curved section having a third optical medium and a fourth optical medium, When the curvature is less than the critical bending angle, the first light is reflected by the curved interface of the third optical medium and the fourth optical medium in the third optical medium, and the bending of the circuit board is performed. When the degree is greater than the critical bending angle, the first light is bent The interface is refracted to penetrate the fourth optical medium. The method for detecting a curvature of a circuit board according to claim 11, further comprising adjusting a wavelength of one of the first rays to determine the critical bending angle. The method for detecting a curvature of a circuit board according to claim 11, further comprising adjusting an incident angle of the first light relative to the interface to determine the critical bending angle. The method for detecting a curvature of a circuit board according to claim 11, further comprising: receiving an electromagnetic signal of an external wireless charging device to provide power to the circuit board; and when the first receiving end does not receive the above In the first light, a stop charging signal is transmitted to the external wireless charging device. The circuit board curvature detecting method of claim 11, further comprising displaying a warning message to a display unit according to the first warning signal.