TWM679170U - Electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

An electronic device is provided, including a housing, a keycap assembly, a movable member, and a supporting member. The keycap assembly is disposed on the housing, and includes a plurality of keycaps. The movable member is movably connected to the housing, and includes an opening. The supporting member is disposed on the movable member, and includes a first protruding portion. The first protruding portion passes through the opening and includes an inclined surface. When the movable member is in a first position relative to the housing, the keycaps protrude from a top surface of the supporting member. When the movable member moves along a first direction from the first position to a second position, the movable member pushes the supporting member along the inclined surface, and top surfaces of the keycaps are coplanar with the top surface of the supporting member.

Description

Electronic devices

This invention relates to an electronic device. More specifically, this invention relates to an electronic device with buttons.

Benefiting from advancements in semiconductor and display technologies, electronic devices are constantly evolving towards miniaturization, multifunctionality, and portability. Common portable electronic devices include smartphones and laptops. Taking laptops as an example, most laptops consist of a keyboard and a display, which can be linked together. Users can close the laptop by rotating the keyboard and display relative to each other for easy portability.

However, in order to miniaturize laptops, the keyboards that come with them cannot meet the needs of users who require greater feedback from keyboard use, and accidental keystrokes are common. Therefore, how to solve the aforementioned problems has become an important issue.

This invention provides an electronic device including a housing, a button assembly, a movable element, and a support element. The button assembly is disposed on the housing and includes a plurality of buttons. The movable element is movably connected to the housing and includes an opening. The support element is disposed on the movable element and includes a first protrusion. The first protrusion passes through the opening and includes a ramp. When the movable element is in a first position relative to the housing, the buttons protrude from the top surface of the support element. When the movable element moves from the first position to a second position relative to the housing along a first direction, the movable element pushes the support element along the ramp, and the top surface of the buttons is flush with the top surface of the support element.

In some embodiments, the aforementioned inclined plane tilts along the first direction.

In some embodiments, the aforementioned opening has a surface facing the inclined plane, and the slope of the surface is approximately the same as the slope of the inclined plane.

In some embodiments, in a second direction, the first protrusion is disposed between the two buttons, and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction.

In some embodiments, the aforementioned support element further includes a second protrusion disposed between the two buttons in a first direction.

In some embodiments, the distance by which the second protrusion protrudes from the bottom surface of the support element is less than the distance by which the first protrusion protrudes from the bottom surface of the support element.

In some embodiments, the aforementioned second protrusion has an elongated structure, and the long axis of the second protrusion extends along the second direction.

In some embodiments, the aforementioned movable element includes a positioning portion, and the housing includes a first positioning structure and a second positioning structure. When the movable element is in a first position relative to the housing, the positioning portion engages with the first positioning structure. When the movable element is in a second position relative to the housing, the positioning portion engages with the second positioning structure.

In some embodiments, the aforementioned movable element includes an operating part, and the operating part is exposed outside the housing.

In some embodiments, a gap is formed between the aforementioned buttons, and at least a portion of the movable element is disposed in the gap.

The following describes the electronic device of this invention embodiment. However, it is readily apparent that this invention embodiment provides many suitable creative concepts that can be implemented in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specific embodiments disclosed are merely illustrative of the use of this invention in a particular manner and are not intended to limit the scope of this invention.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein (including technical and scientific terms) have the same meaning as commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this disclosure pertains. It is understood that these terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the background or context of the relevant technology and this disclosure, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal manner, unless specifically defined herein.

The following disclosures in this specification are specific examples of the components and their arrangement to simplify the explanation. Of course, these specific examples are not intended to limit the invention. For example, if the following disclosures describe a first feature formed on or above a second feature, it means that it includes embodiments where the first and second features are in direct contact, as well as embodiments where additional features may be formed between the first and second features, so that the first and second features may not be in direct contact. Furthermore, to facilitate the description of the relationship between one feature and another in the drawings, spatial terms such as "below," "below," "under," "above," "above," and similar terms may be used. In addition to the orientations shown in the drawings, spatial terms cover different orientations of the device during use or operation. The device can also be positioned elsewhere (rotated 90 degrees or in other orientations), and the spatial description used herein can be interpreted accordingly.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an electronic device E according to an embodiment of the present invention, which may include an input module 10 and a display module 20. The input module 10 and the display module 20 may be linked to each other or detachably connected. When the input module 10 and the display module 20 are connected, the input module 10 may input signals to the display module 20 to control the display content of the display module 20. For example, the electronic device E may be a laptop computer, and the display module 20 may be a monitor or a tablet computer, but is not limited thereto.

Figure 2 is an exploded view of the aforementioned input module 10, and Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view along the A-A direction in Figure 1. As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the input module 10 mainly includes a housing 100, a button assembly 200, a movable element 300, and a support element 400.

The housing 100 may include a sidewall 110 and a top wall 120. The sidewall 110 may surround a receiving space 101, and the top wall 120 may connect to the sidewall 110 and shield the receiving space 101. The top wall 120 may have a lower surface 121 and an upper surface 122, with the lower surface 121 facing the receiving space 101 and the upper surface 122 opposite to the lower surface 121. The top wall 120 may further include a plurality of perforations 123 extending from the upper surface 122 to the lower surface 121, thereby connecting the receiving space 101 to the external environment.

In some embodiments, the input module 10 may further include additional electronic components (not shown) that are electrically connected to the key assembly 200 and may be housed in the receiving space 101 for their protection. For example, the additional electronic components may include a central processing unit (CPU), circuit boards, memory (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, or random access memory (RAM)), transformers, busbars, hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), graphics processing units (GPUs), graphics cards, sound cards, and/or input/output connectors, etc.

The key assembly 200 may include a plate-like portion 210 and a plurality of keys 220. The plate-like portion 210 may be fixed to the lower surface 121 of the top wall 120 of the housing 100. The keys 220 are connected to the plate-like portion 210 and may pass through a perforation 123 in the top wall 120 and protrude from the upper surface 122 of the top wall 120. The user may send a signal to the input module 10 toward the display module 20 by pressing or touching the keys 220.

The movable element 300 may be disposed on the upper surface 122 of the top wall 120 of the housing 100, and may slide back and forth relative to the housing 100 along a first direction D1. The movable element 300 may have at least one opening 310, and the inner wall of the opening 310 may have a surface 311 inclined along the first direction D1. In order to facilitate the sliding of the movable element 300 on the housing 100, the movable element 300 and the housing 100 may be made of the same material, such as plastic.

A support element 400 may be disposed on a movable element 300 and may have a first protrusion 410 protruding from the bottom surface 401 of the support element 400. This first protrusion 410 may pass through the opening 310 of the movable element 300 and may have a slope 411 inclined along a first direction D1. The surface 311 on the inner wall of the opening 310 may face the slope 411 of the first protrusion 410. For example, the slope of the slope 411 of the first protrusion 410 may be approximately the same as the slope of the surface 311 of the opening 310.

In this embodiment, the top wall 120 of the housing 100 may have at least one hole 124, the position of which may correspond to the position of the opening 310 of the movable element 300, and at least a portion of the first protrusion 410 of the support element 400 may be accommodated in this hole 124.

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view along the B-B direction in Figure 1. As shown in Figure 4, the support element 400 may further include at least one second protrusion 420 protruding from the bottom surface 401 of the support element 400. The second protrusion 420 may have an elongated structure, and the long axis of the second protrusion 420 may extend along a second direction D2, which is perpendicular to the first direction D1. The second protrusion 420 may be disposed between the two buttons 220 of the button assembly 200 in the first direction D1, and in contrast, the first protrusion 410 may be disposed between the two buttons 220 of the button assembly 200 in the second direction D2. Furthermore, the distance T2 from which the second protrusion 420 protrudes from the bottom surface 401 can be less than the distance T1 from which the first protrusion 410 protrudes from the bottom surface 401.

Referring to Figure 5, in this embodiment, the movable element 300 may further include an operating part 320 and a positioning part 330. The operating part 320 is connected to the section of the movable element 300 disposed between the support element 400 and the housing 100, and is not obscured by the support element 400 and the housing 100. Therefore, the operating part 320 is exposed, and the user can apply external force to the operating part 320 to move the movable element 300 relative to the housing 100.

The positioning part 330 is connected to the operation part 320, and a first positioning structure 130 and a second positioning structure 140 corresponding to the positioning part 330 can be formed on the housing 100. In this embodiment, the positioning part 330 can be a positioning protrusion, and the first positioning structure 130 and the second positioning structure 140 can be positioning grooves, but it is not limited to these. In some embodiments, the positioning part 330 can be a positioning groove, and the first positioning structure 130 and the second positioning structure 140 can be positioning protrusions.

As shown in Figures 1 to 5, when the input module 10 of the electronic device E is assembled, the buttons 220 of the button assembly 200 can pass through the movable element 300 and the support element 400, and the support element 400 can fill the gaps between the buttons 220.

The following describes how to use the aforementioned input module 10. As shown in Figures 3 to 5, when the movable element 300 is in a first position relative to the housing 100, the buttons 220 of the button assembly 200 can protrude from the top surface 402 of the support element 400. This allows the user to easily confirm the position of each button 220 and facilitates pressing or touching the buttons 220. The second protrusion 420 of the support element 400 can contact the top wall 120 of the housing 100. Therefore, it can provide support in positions where there is no movable element 300 between the support element 400 and the housing 100, preventing the support element 400 from bending towards the housing 100 when the user presses these positions.

The positioning part 330 of the movable element 300 can be coupled with the first positioning structure 130 on the housing 100, so that the movable element 300 can be fixed in the first position.

Please refer to Figures 6 and 7. When a user wishes to avoid accidentally touching button 220 or to use the input module 10 as a placement platform, they can push the operating part 320 of the movable element 300 along the first direction D1. After being subjected to the aforementioned external force, the movable element 300 can move from a first position to a second position along the first direction D1. At this time, the surface 311 of the movable element 300 can push the support element 400 along the inclined surface 411 of the first protrusion 410, causing the support element 400 to move upward in the direction away from the housing 100. When the movable element 300 is in the second position, the top surface 402 of the support element 400 can be substantially flush with the top surface 221 of the key 220, thereby allowing external components (such as an external keyboard) to be placed on the input module 10 and preventing accidental touches of the key 220.

When the movable element 300 moves from the first position to the second position, the positioning part 330 of the movable element 300 can leave the first positioning structure 130 and engage with the second positioning structure 140, so that the movable element 300 can be fixed in the second position.

Furthermore, it should be noted that during the movement of the movable element 300, the first protrusion 410 remains contained within the hole 124 of the housing 100 (for example, as shown in Figure 6, when the movable element 300 moves to the second position, the first protrusion 410 is still contained within the hole 124). Therefore, lateral movement of the support element 400 when the movable element 300 is pushed can be avoided.

When the user wants to reuse the button 220 of the button assembly 200, a reverse external force can be applied to the operating part 320 of the movable element 300, so that the movable element 300 moves from the second position back to the first position, thereby the support element 400 can move downward and the button 220 can protrude again from the top surface 402 of the support element 400.

In summary, this invention provides an electronic device including a housing, a button assembly, a movable element, and a support element. The button assembly is disposed on the housing and includes a plurality of buttons. The movable element is movably connected to the housing and includes an opening. The support element is disposed on the movable element and includes a first protrusion. The first protrusion passes through the opening and includes a slope. When the movable element is in a first position relative to the housing, the buttons protrude from the top surface of the support element. When the movable element moves from the first position to a second position relative to the housing along a first direction, the movable element pushes the support element along the slope, and the top surface of the buttons is flush with the top surface of the support element.

While the embodiments and advantages of this invention have been disclosed above, it should be understood that anyone skilled in the art can make modifications, substitutions, and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. Furthermore, the scope of protection of this invention is not limited to the processes, machines, manufacturing, material composition, apparatus, methods, and steps described in the specific embodiments of this invention. Anyone skilled in the art who can understand from the disclosure of this invention the current or future development of processes, machines, manufacturing, material composition, apparatus, methods, and steps, and whoever can implement substantially the same function or obtain substantially the same results in the embodiments described herein, may use this invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of this invention includes the above-mentioned process, machine, manufacturing, material composition, device, method and steps. In addition, each patent application constitutes a separate embodiment, and the scope of protection of this invention also includes the combination of each patent application and embodiment.

Although the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to several preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the invention. Those skilled in the art to which this invention pertains may make some modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of this invention shall be determined by the appended claims. Furthermore, each claim constitutes an independent embodiment, and all combinations of claims and embodiments are within the scope of this invention.

10: Input module 20: Display module 100: Housing 101: Storage space 110: Side wall 120: Top wall 121: Lower surface 122: Upper surface 123: Perforation 124: Hole 130: First positioning structure 140: Second positioning structure 200: Button assembly 210: Plate-like part 220: Button 221: Top surface 300: Movable element 310: Opening 311: Surface 320: Operating part 330: Positioning part 400: Support element 401: Bottom surface 402: Top surface 410: First protrusion 411: Inclined surface 420: Second protrusion D1: First direction D2: Second direction E: Electronic device T1: Distance T2: Distance

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is an exploded view of the input module according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view along the A-A direction in Figure 1, wherein the movable element is in a first position relative to the housing. Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view along the B-B direction in Figure 1, wherein the movable element is in a first position relative to the housing. Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing the positioning part and the first positioning structure combined when the movable element is in the first position relative to the housing in an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of the input module according to an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the movable element moves to a second position relative to the housing. Figure 7 is a schematic diagram showing the positioning part and the second positioning structure combined when the movable element is in the second position relative to the housing in an embodiment of the present invention.

10: Input Module

100: Shell

110: Side wall

120:top wall

123: Perforation

200: Keyboard Components

210: Plate-like part

220: Key

300: Movable Components

400: Support Components

Claims (10)

An electronic device includes: a housing; a button assembly disposed on the housing and including a plurality of buttons; a movable element movably connected to the housing and including an opening; and a support element disposed on the movable element and including a first protrusion passing through the opening and including a ramp, wherein when the movable element is in a first position relative to the housing, the buttons protrude from the top surface of the support element, wherein when the movable element moves from the first position to a second position relative to the housing along a first direction, the movable element pushes the support element along the ramp, and the top surfaces of the buttons are flush with the top surface of the support element. The electronic device as described in claim 1, wherein the ramp is inclined along the first direction. The electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the opening has a surface facing the inclined plane, and the slope of the surface is substantially the same as the slope of the inclined plane. The electronic device as described in claim 1, wherein the first protrusion is disposed between the two keys in a second direction, the second direction being perpendicular to the first direction. The electronic device as described in claim 4, wherein the support element further includes a second protrusion disposed between the two of the buttons in the first direction. The electronic device as described in claim 5, wherein the distance by which the second protrusion protrudes from the bottom surface of the support element is less than the distance by which the first protrusion protrudes from the bottom surface of the support element. The electronic device as described in claim 5, wherein the second protrusion has an elongated structure and the long axis of the second protrusion extends along the second direction. The electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the movable element includes a positioning portion, and the housing includes a first positioning structure and a second positioning structure, wherein when the movable element is in the first position relative to the housing, the positioning portion engages with the first positioning structure, and when the movable element is in the second position relative to the housing, the positioning portion engages with the second positioning structure. The electronic device as described in claim 1, wherein the movable element includes an operating portion that is exposed outside the housing. The electronic device as claimed in claim 1, wherein a gap is formed between the keys, and at least a portion of the movable element is disposed in the gap.