TWM613569U - Touchpad mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

A touchpad mechanism is provided, including a housing, a touchpad module, a frame, a fixed member, and a resilient element. The frame is affixed to a bottom surface of the touchpad module, the fixed member is affixed to the housing, and the resilient element connects the housing with the frame. A switch element is disposed on the bottom surface of the touchpad module. When an external force is applied to the touchpad module, the fixed member contacts the switch element.

Description

Touchpad mechanism

This creation is about a touchpad mechanism, especially about a touchpad mechanism with elastic elements.

In common notebook computers, the mechanical design of the touchpad is mostly based on the use of the elasticity of a cantilever bracket as the feedback and reset mechanism when the finger is pressed. The design of this touchpad has a simple structure. Features, so it has been adopted by most notebook computers for a long time.

However, as electronic devices are gradually becoming lighter, thinner, shorter and smaller, the thickness and structural strength of the shell materials have also declined. Therefore, the aforementioned traditional touch panel design methods will encounter structural deformation caused by insufficient strength of the shell. problem.

In view of the aforementioned conventional problems, an embodiment of the present invention provides a touch panel mechanism, which includes a housing, a touch module, a bracket, a fixing member, and an elastic element. The housing is formed with an opening and a groove, wherein the groove communicates with the opening. The touch module has a bottom surface and a switch element, wherein the switch element is disposed on the bottom surface. The bracket is fixed on the bottom surface of the touch module, and the bracket has a protruding portion, wherein the protruding portion extends into the groove.

The fixing member is fixed on the housing and adjacent to a first side of the opening. The fixing member has an abutting portion. When an external force acts on the touch module in a first direction, the touch The module moves toward the fixing member, and the abutting portion abuts and triggers the switch element. The elastic element is connected to the housing and the bracket, and applies an elastic force to the touch module and the bracket in a second direction, wherein the second direction is opposite to the first direction.

In one embodiment, the touch panel mechanism further includes a pivoting member, and the bottom surface of the touch module is provided for pivotally connecting the touch module and the housing, wherein the pivoting member is adjacent to the opening A second side, and the second side is opposite to the first side.

In one embodiment, the housing has a pivotal portion, and the pivotal member and the pivotal portion are pivotally connected to each other, wherein the pivotal portion is adjacent to a third side of the opening, and the third side is adjacent to the aforementioned The first side and the aforementioned second side.

In one embodiment, the bracket further has a perforation, and the elastic element has a zigzag structure, wherein the zigzag structure extends through the perforation.

In one embodiment, the bracket further has a clamping block, and the elastic element further has an opening, wherein the clamping block is integrated in the opening.

In one embodiment, the protrusion and the groove are adjacent to the first side of the opening.

In one embodiment, the touch panel mechanism further includes a locking member, which passes through the elastic element and the fixing member, and is locked on the housing.

In one embodiment, the fixing member and the elastic element are locked to the first side of the opening.

In one embodiment, the touch module includes a circuit board and a protective layer connected to each other, and the switch element is disposed on the circuit board.

In one embodiment, the bracket further has a recessed portion corresponding to the abutting portion of the fixing member.

The touchpad mechanism of this creative embodiment will be described below. However, it is easy to understand that this authoring embodiment provides many suitable authoring concepts and can be implemented in a wide variety of specific backgrounds. The specific embodiments disclosed are only used to illustrate the use of the creation in a specific method, and are not used to limit the scope of the creation.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meanings as commonly understood by the general artisans to whom the disclosure belongs. It is understandable that these terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the relevant technology and the background or context of this disclosure, and not in an idealized or overly formal way. Interpretation, unless specifically defined here.

The aforementioned and other technical content, features and effects of this creation will be clearly presented in the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment with reference to the drawings. The directional terms mentioned in the following embodiments, for example: up, down, left, right, front or back, etc., only refer to the directions of the attached drawings. Therefore, the directional terms used in the embodiments are used for explanation and not for limiting the creation.

First, please refer to Figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, where Figure 1 shows an exploded view of the touchpad mechanism 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 2 shows the touch control in Figure 1. A perspective view of the panel mechanism 100 after assembly. Figure 3 shows a perspective view of the touch panel mechanism 100 of Figure 2 after the touch module 20 is removed. Figure 4 shows a perspective view of the touch panel mechanism 100 of Figure 2 being removed. Another perspective view after the touch module 20, Figure 5 shows a cross-sectional view along the line A1-A2 in Figure 2, and Figure 6 shows the touch panel mechanism 100 in Figure 2 after the housing 10 is removed. Another perspective view.

As shown in Figures 1-6, the touchpad mechanism 100 of this embodiment can be applied to a notebook computer, and it mainly includes a housing 10, a touch module 20, a bracket 30, and is fixed to the housing. A fixing member 40, an elastic element 50, and at least one pivoting member H on the body 10, wherein the housing 10 can be used as a shell of a notebook computer, and an opening 101 and a plurality of holes are formed on the housing 10 102. The aforementioned opening 101 can be used to accommodate the touch module 20, and the aforementioned hole 102 can be used to accommodate keys on a QWERTY keyboard.

In this embodiment, a switch element 201 (FIG. 1) is provided on the bottom surface of the touch module 20, and the switch element 201 is adjacent to the first side 1011 of the opening 101. For example, the aforementioned switch element 201 may be a metal dome switch, and when the touch panel mechanism 100 is assembled, the top surface of the touch module 20 may be pressed downward to fix it. An abutting portion 41 on the component 40 abuts and triggers the switch element 201, so that the user can use the touch module 20 to perform actions such as clicking or inputting instructions.

On the other hand, it can also be seen from Figures 1, 3, 4, and 6, that the two pivotal members H are glued and fixed to the bottom surface of the touch module 20, and are connected to the two pivotal members on the housing 10. The parts 11 are pivotally connected to each other, so that the touch module 20 can rotate relative to the housing 10. It should be understood that one of the aforementioned pivoting portions 11 is located at the corner adjacent to the second side 1012 and the third side 1013 of the opening 101, and the other is located at the second side 1012 and the fourth side of the opening 101 The adjacent corners of 1014 can be used for connecting and accommodating the aforementioned pivoting members H respectively. In this embodiment, the third side 1013 and the fourth side 1014 are adjacent to the first side 1011 and the second side 1012.

The aforementioned bracket 30 is attached and fixed to the bottom surface of the touch module 20, and its position is adjacent to the first side 1011 of the opening 101; as shown in Figures 1, 5, and 6, the bracket 30 of this embodiment is formed with at least one card A block 31, at least one protruding portion 32, and at least one perforation R. Furthermore, it can be seen from Figure 3 that the aforementioned protrusion 32 extends into the groove 12 on the housing 10 to prevent the touch module 20 and the bracket 30 from falling off the opening 101 of the housing 10. The aforementioned groove 12 communicates with the opening 101, and the positions of the aforementioned protrusion 32 and the groove 12 are also adjacent to the first side 1011 of the opening 101; it should be understood that the height of the aforementioned groove 12 is greater than that of the protrusion 32 This thickness allows the touch module 20 and the support 30 to move up and down in the vertical direction on the first side 1011 of the opening 101.

The aforementioned elastic element 50 is mainly used to connect the housing 10 and the bracket 30 to facilitate the user to press the touch module 20. Specifically, when the user wants to use the touch module 20 to perform a click action, he can apply an external force downward (first direction) with his hand to press the top surface of the touch module 20, so that the bracket 30 and the touch The part of the control module 20 close to the first side 1011 of the opening 101 can move from an initial position toward the fixing member 40 to a trigger position relative to the housing 10, at this time the abutting portion 41 on the fixing member 40 is The switch element 20 can be abutted and triggered, and the elastic element 50 will be deformed by force; then, when the aforementioned external force is released, the elastic element 50 will apply an elastic force to the bracket 30 and the touch module 20 upward (in the second direction), In this way, the bracket 30 and the touch module 20 are restored to their original initial positions.

Please continue to refer to Figures 1 and 5. During actual assembly, at least one locking member S (such as a screw) can be passed through the hole 52 on the elastic element 50 and the hole 42 on the fixing member 40 in order, so as to fix the fixing member 40 And the elastic element 50 are locked to the first side 1011 of the opening 101 on the housing 10; in one embodiment, the aforementioned fixing member 40 and the elastic element 50 can also be fixed on the housing 10 by means of heat fusion or riveting. It is not limited to what is disclosed in this embodiment.

In addition, the abutting portion 41 of the aforementioned fixing member 40 has an arc-shaped structure and corresponds to a recessed portion 33 on the bracket 30 (Figure 4). In addition, as can be seen from Figures 1, 5, and 6, the aforementioned elastic element 50 is formed with at least one zigzag structure P, wherein the zigzag structure P extends through the perforation R on the support 30 and is located on the support 30 The blocking block 31 will be embedded and clamped in the opening 51 of the elastic element 50.

As shown in Figures 5 and 6, the aforementioned touch module 20 includes a protective layer 21 and a circuit board 22 connected to each other. The bracket 30 is attached to the bottom surface of the circuit board 22, and the end of the elastic element 50 is transparent. Glue or Surface Mount Technology (SMT) is fixed on the bottom surface of the circuit board 22. In addition, the switching element 201 shown in Figure 1 can also be mounted on the circuit board by means of Surface Mount Technology (SMT). The underside of 22.

In summary, the present invention provides a touch panel mechanism 100, in which a housing 10 is formed with an opening 101 for accommodating the touch module 20, a bracket 30 is fixed on the bottom surface of a touch module 20, and a flexible The component 50 is connected to the aforementioned housing 10 and the bracket 30, and a fixing member 40 is fixed to the housing 10; in this way, when the user wants to use the touch module 20 to perform a click action, he can turn his hand An external force is applied from the bottom (first direction) to press the top surface of the touch module 20, so that the bracket 30 and the touch module 20 move from an initial position toward the fixing member 40 and descend to a trigger position. At this time, the fixing member 40 The upper abutting portion 41 will abut and trigger the switch element 20, and the elastic element 50 will be deformed by force; then, when the aforementioned external force is released, the elastic element 50 can apply an elastic force to the bracket 30 upward (in the second direction) And the touch module 20, so that the bracket 30 and the touch module 20 return to their original initial positions.

In one embodiment, the aforementioned fixing member 40 and elastic element 50 are adjacent to the first side 1011 of the opening 101, and the touch module 20 is pivotally connected to the second side 1012 of the opening 101 (as opposed to the second side 1012 of the opening 101). One side 1011). Since the touch module 20 on the second side 1012 of the opening 101 only has the function of rotating relative to the housing 10, and does not have the function of touch-press rebound, the mechanism design can be simplified and the touch panel mechanism 100 can be effectively improved The overall mechanical strength prevents the touch panel mechanism 100 from being deformed after assembly, thereby greatly improving the service life and reliability of the product.

Although the embodiments and advantages of this creation have been disclosed above, it should be understood that any person with ordinary knowledge in the relevant technical field can make changes, substitutions and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of this creation. In addition, the scope of protection of this creation is not limited to the manufacturing process, machinery, manufacturing, material composition, device, method, and steps in the specific embodiments described in the specification. Anyone with ordinary knowledge in the technical field can disclose the content from this creation. Understand the current or future developed processes, machines, manufacturing, material composition, devices, methods and steps, as long as they can implement substantially the same functions or obtain substantially the same results in the embodiments described herein, they can all be used according to this creation. Therefore, the protection scope of this creation includes the above-mentioned manufacturing processes, machines, manufacturing, material composition, devices, methods and steps. In addition, the scope of each patent application constitutes an individual embodiment, and the protection scope of this creation also includes the scope of each patent application and the combination of the embodiments.

Although this creation has been disclosed above in a preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit this creation. Anyone who is familiar with this craft can make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of this creation. Therefore, The scope of protection of this creation shall be subject to the scope of the attached patent application.

100: Touchpad mechanism 10: Shell 101: opening 1011: first side 1012: second side 1013: third side 1014: Fourth side 102: Hole 11: Pivot 12: Groove 20: Touch module 201: Switching element 21: protective layer 22: circuit board 30: bracket 31: card block 32: Protruding part 33: Depressed part 40: fixed parts 41: Buttress 42: Hole 50: elastic element 51: Hole 52: Hole H: pivot P: Z-shaped structure R: Piercing S: lock firmware

FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of the touch panel mechanism 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the touch panel mechanism 100 in FIG. 1 after being assembled. FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the touch panel mechanism 100 of FIG. 2 after the touch module 20 is removed. FIG. 4 shows another perspective view of the touch panel mechanism 100 of FIG. 2 after the touch module 20 is removed. Figure 5 shows a cross-sectional view along the line A1-A2 in Figure 2. FIG. 6 shows another perspective view of the touch panel mechanism 100 in FIG. 2 after the casing 10 is removed.

100: Touchpad mechanism

10: Shell

101: opening

1011: first side

1012: second side

1013: third side

1014: Fourth side

102: Hole

11: Pivot

20: Touch module

201: Switching element

30: bracket

31: card block

32: Protruding part

33: Depressed part

40: fixed parts

41: Buttress

42: Hole

50: elastic element

51: Hole

52: Hole

H: pivot

P: Z-shaped structure

R: Piercing

Claims (10)

A touch panel mechanism includes: A housing formed with an opening and a groove, wherein the groove communicates with the opening; A touch module is disposed in the opening and has a bottom surface and a switch element, wherein the switch element is disposed on the bottom surface; A bracket fixed on the bottom surface of the touch module, and the bracket has a protruding part, wherein the protruding part extends into the groove; A fixing member is fixed on the housing and adjacent to a first side of the opening, wherein the fixing member has an abutting portion. When an external force acts on the touch module in a first direction, the touch The control module moves toward the fixing member, and the abutting portion abuts and triggers the switch element; and An elastic element is connected to the casing and the bracket, and applies an elastic force to the touch module and the bracket along a second direction, wherein the second direction is opposite to the first direction. For example, the touch panel mechanism of claim 1, wherein the touch panel mechanism further includes a pivot member, and the bottom surface of the touch module is provided for pivotally connecting the touch module and the casing, wherein the pivot The connecting member is adjacent to a second side of the opening, and the second side is opposite to the first side. The touch panel mechanism of claim 2, wherein the housing has a pivotal portion, and the pivotal member and the pivotal portion are pivotally connected to each other, wherein the pivotal portion is adjacent to a third side of the opening, and The third side is adjacent to the first side and the second side. Such as the touch panel mechanism of claim 1, wherein the bracket further has a perforation, and the elastic element has a zigzag structure, wherein the zigzag structure extends through the perforation. For example, the touch panel mechanism of claim 4, wherein the bracket further has a clamping block, and the elastic element further has an opening, wherein the clamping block is integrated in the opening. The touch panel mechanism of claim 1, wherein the protrusion and the groove are adjacent to the first side of the opening. Such as the touch panel mechanism of claim 1, wherein the touch panel mechanism further includes a locking member that passes through the elastic element and the fixing member, and is locked on the housing. Such as the touch panel mechanism of claim 7, wherein the fixing member and the elastic element are locked on the first side of the opening. According to the touch panel mechanism of claim 1, wherein the touch module includes a circuit board and a protective layer connected to each other, and the switch element is disposed on the circuit board. Such as the touch panel mechanism of claim 1, wherein the bracket further has a recessed portion corresponding to the abutting portion of the fixing member.

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