LED (Light Emitting Diode) display touch module with ITO (Indium Tin Oxide) touch and method

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of display touch modules, in particular to an LED display touch module with an ITO touch function and a method. The module comprises an induction panel, a PCBA board and a shell. The induction panel is of a three-layer transparent structure (a display panel, an ITO touch layer and a cover plate), functional icons are arranged on the lower portion of the display panel, and the ITO touch layer is provided with a capacitance induction conductive area corresponding to the icons and is connected with an MCU of the PCBA board through a traceless transparent silver paste circuit. The PCBA board is integrated with an MCU and a double-color LED lamp. During working, the touch times correspond to LED lamp color switching. According to the invention, accurate touch control-display cooperation is realized, and the method has high durability, high optical performance and flexible adaptability, and is suitable for scenes of household appliances, industrial control and the like.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the technical field of display touch modules, specifically to an LED display touch module and method with ITO touch. Background Technology

[0002] As a core component of human-computer interaction, display touch modules are widely used in consumer electronics (smartphones, tablets), home appliances (washing machines, refrigerators, air conditioners), industrial control terminals (machine tool control panels, IoT controllers), and outdoor display devices (advertising screens, information query terminals). However, with users' increasing demands for interactive experience, device durability, and environmental adaptability, traditional display touch modules are gradually revealing numerous technical pain points, making it difficult to meet the diverse usage needs of various scenarios. Specific problems include: 1. Insufficient touch accuracy and response efficiency; traditional display touch modules have significant performance shortcomings. Touch modules trigger signals through physical contact between two conductive films, requiring pressure during operation. This not only results in a stiff feel but also easily leads to wear and tear on the conductive films with prolonged pressure. For example, in home appliances like washing machines, when users operate with wet hands, sweat or moisture can seep into the gaps between the films, causing short circuits in the conductive layers and leading to issues such as "not triggering" or "accidentally triggering adjacent functions." Furthermore, if the finger touches off-center from the icon edge, it's easy to miss touches, requiring repeated adjustments to the touch angle, severely impacting operational efficiency. Moreover, the transmission path often uses metal wires, which have high resistance, causing touch signal transmission delays. In industrial control terminals with densely packed icons, the delay can reach 0.5 to 1 second, requiring users to wait for feedback after touching, resulting in extremely poor interaction smoothness.

[0003] 2. Poor display effect; the main shortcomings of traditional display touch modules in terms of optical performance are low light transmittance and weak resistance to ambient light interference. On the one hand, the surface panel of traditional modules is mostly made of single-layer glass or resin. Resin panels have low light transmittance and are prone to yellowing and aging after long-term use, resulting in blurred function icons. In addition, under strong light environments (such as direct sunlight outdoors or strong LED lighting indoors), the panel surface is prone to specular reflection, making it difficult for users to see the icons clearly. On the other hand, the touch layer and circuit design of traditional modules significantly obstruct the optical display. Early capacitive modules used metal electrodes in the sensing conductive area. The electrodes were dark in color and directly exposed to the display area, forming obvious "black spots." The signal transmission circuits mostly used copper foil wires, with a wire width of 0.5~1mm and an opaque color, forming visible textures on the panel surface, further compromising the integrity of the display.

[0004] 3. Insufficient structural durability and weak environmental adaptability: The structural design of traditional display touch modules is ill-suited to the durability requirements of complex environments, primarily manifested in poor damage resistance and significant susceptibility to temperature and humidity fluctuations in stability. Regarding damage resistance, the surface panel of traditional modules is often made of unreinforced single-layer glass or resin. Resin panels have low Mohs hardness, making them easily scratched by hard objects such as fingernails and keys during daily use. In terms of environmental adaptability, the touch layer and circuitry of traditional modules are susceptible to corrosion from temperature and humidity. Moisture easily penetrates the touch layer, causing oxidation of the ITO conductive film, reduced conductivity, and touch function failure, severely impacting device usability.

[0005] The shortcomings of traditional modules in terms of touch accuracy, optical performance, and durability have severely restricted their application in emerging fields. Developing a new type of display touch module that can solve the above pain points has become an urgent need for the industry. Summary of the Invention

[0006] To address the shortcomings of existing technologies, this invention provides an LED display touch module and method with ITO touch, which solves the problems mentioned in the background art. Technical solution

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: an LED display touch module with ITO touch, comprising a sensing panel and a PCBA board; characterized in that: the sensing panel comprises a transparent display panel, an ITO touch layer, and a cover plate arranged sequentially from front to back; the display panel has a plurality of function icons evenly arranged horizontally in the left-right direction at its lower part; the ITO touch layer has a 9-shaped conductive area corresponding to each function icon, and the end of each conductive area is connected to a silver paste circuit; the PCBA board integrates an MCU, and its lower surface has a plurality of LEDs corresponding to each function icon.

[0008] Preferably, it also includes a housing; the PCBA board is fixed inside the housing, and a slot for mounting a sensor panel is provided inside the housing below the PCBA board; the sensor panel is T-shaped, installed in the slot, and the area of ​​several function icons at the bottom is exposed outside the housing.

[0009] Preferably, both ends of the slot are provided with L-shaped blocks, and the upper part of the T-shaped sensing panel is fixed on the blocks.

[0010] Preferably, the function icon is located in the central area of ​​the lower part of the conductive area, and its area is smaller than the area of ​​the lower part of the conductive area.

[0011] Preferably, the principle of the inductive conductive area is touch capacitive sensing, and both it and the silver paste circuit are seamlessly transparent.

[0012] Preferably, the lower part of the PCBA board has two LEDs at the position corresponding to each function icon, namely a blue LED and a white LED, which are arranged in a front-to-back direction.

[0013] Preferably, the MCU includes a driving module and a control module, the other end of each of the plurality of silver paste circuits is connected to the top of the ITO touch layer and connected to the control module of the MCU, and the plurality of LEDs are connected to the driving module of the MCU.

[0014] A touch method for an LED display with ITO touch, characterized in that it is implemented based on the aforementioned LED display touch module with ITO touch, and includes the following steps: S1: When a finger touches the corresponding function icon on the display panel once, the corresponding ITO touch layer's conductive area generates a touch signal and transmits the touch signal to the MCU via the silver paste circuit. S2: The control module inside the MCU processes the touch signal of the corresponding function icon through electrical signal processing, and then transmits it to the drive module. After electrical signal processing, the blue light at the position of the corresponding function icon is turned on, illuminating the function icon below it in blue. S3: When a finger touches the corresponding function icon on the display panel twice, the white light at the corresponding function icon position is turned on according to the methods in S1 and S2, illuminating the function icon below it in white. S4: When a finger touches the corresponding function icon on the display panel three times, the LED light at the corresponding function icon position is turned off according to the methods in S1 and S2.

[0015] This invention provides an LED display touch module and method with ITO touch, which has the following advantages: 1. Both the display panel and cover are made of chemically strengthened tempered glass with high Mohs hardness and strong scratch resistance, making them less prone to scratches during daily use; impact resistance is also improved. The housing ensures long-term stable operation of the module and a long service life.

[0016] 2. The ITO touch layer expands the sensing range by increasing the conductive area of ​​the touch layer. Combined with the capacitive sensing principle, it provides high touch accuracy, low false touch rate, fast response speed, no operation delay, and smooth interaction.

[0017] 3. The three-layer transparent structure of the sensor panel has high light transmittance, with no significant loss of LED light after penetration, ensuring clear icon display. The tempered glass surface can be additionally coated with an anti-reflective and anti-fingerprint coating, further reducing reflectivity. Even in strong light, icons remain clearly visible, solving the problem of glare and obstruction in traditional modules. Furthermore, the sensing conductive area and silver paste circuit of the ITO touch layer are both seamlessly transparent, visually completely invisible, and do not obscure function icons. This avoids the "black dots" and "black lines" of traditional metal electrodes or copper foil wires, enhancing the panel's aesthetics.

[0018] 4. The three-layer structure of the sensing panel is sealed with optical adhesive, which can resist the infiltration of moisture in high humidity environments and prevent the oxidation of the ITO touch layer; the ITO conductive film has excellent stability, and its conductivity does not decrease significantly in the temperature range of -20℃ to 70℃, solving the problems of low temperature failure and high temperature instability of traditional modules, making it suitable for long-term continuous working scenarios, such as self-service terminals that operate 24 hours a day. Attached Figure Description

[0019] Figure 1 This is an exploded view of the three-dimensional structure of the sensor panel; Figure 2 This is the front view of the present invention; Figure 3 for Figure 2 Top view; Figure 4 for Figure 3 Sectional view of AA; Figure 5 This is a schematic front view of the sensor panel. Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the circuit structure of the MCU driver module; Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the circuit structure of the MCU control module; Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the circuit structure for external connections to the MCU control module; In the diagram: 1. Sensing panel; 101. Display panel; 102. ITO touch layer; 103. Cover plate; 104. Function icons; 105. Sensing conductive area; 106. Silver paste circuit; 107. Lighting icon; 108. Drying icon; 109. AI icon; 110. Fan icon; 111. Power icon; 2. PCBA board; 201. MCU; 202. LED light; 3. Housing; 301. Slot; 302. Stop. Detailed Implementation

[0020] The technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments.

[0021] In this application, the terms "upper," "lower," "inner," "middle," "outer," "front," and "rear," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. These terms are primarily for the purpose of better describing this application and its embodiments, and are not intended to limit the indicated device, element, or component to having a specific orientation, or to be constructed and operated in a specific orientation.

[0022] Furthermore, in addition to indicating location or positional relationship, some of the aforementioned terms may also have other meanings. For example, the term "above" may also be used in some cases to indicate a certain dependency or connection relationship. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of these terms in this application based on the specific circumstances.

[0023] Example 1: Please refer to Figures 1 to 8 An LED display touch module with ITO touch is provided, comprising a sensing panel (1) and a PCBA board (2). The sensing panel (1) comprises a transparent display panel (101), an ITO touch layer (102), and a cover plate (103) arranged sequentially from front to back. The display panel (101) and the cover plate (103) are in direct contact with the outside or the user. They are made of chemically strengthened tempered glass with an anti-reflective and anti-fingerprint coating, which has excellent scratch and impact resistance and can withstand daily collisions and oil stains. The panel has high light transmittance, ensuring that the light from the LED lamp (202) can penetrate evenly without affecting the display effect, while protecting the ITO touch layer (102) from dust and moisture. The ITO touch layer (102) is located in Between the display panel (101) and the cover plate (103), the core is an ITO conductive film; the three can be bonded together with optical adhesive, and the sealing performance is good; the display panel (101) has several function icons (104) evenly arranged horizontally in the left and right direction at its lower part, which can be manufactured by laser engraving; the ITO touch layer (102) has a 9-shaped sensing conductive area (105) at the position corresponding to each function icon (104), and the end of each sensing conductive area (105) is connected to a silver paste circuit (106); the PCBA board (2) integrates an MCU (201), and its lower surface has several LED lights (202) at the position corresponding to each function icon (104).

[0024] It also includes a housing (3); the PCBA board (2) is fixed inside the housing (3) by adhesive, and the housing (3) has a slot (301) for mounting the sensor panel (1) located below the PCBA board (2); the sensor panel (1) is T-shaped and is mounted in the slot (301) by adhesive, with the area of ​​several function icons (104) at the bottom exposed in the housing (3). The housing (3) provides structural support and mounting positioning for the module and connects it to external devices, such as a washing machine.

[0025] Both ends of the slot (301) are provided with L-shaped blocks (302), and the upper part of the T-shaped sensing panel (1) is fixed on the blocks (302). This can effectively prevent the sensing panel (1) from loosening or shifting, and the module can still work stably even in a vibrating environment (such as an industrial machine tool); the blocks (302) do not block the connection between the silver paste circuit (106) and the MCU (201), ensuring that signal transmission is not affected.

[0026] The function icon (104) is located in the center of the lower part of the figure-9 shaped conductive area (105), and its area is smaller than the area of ​​the lower part of the conductive area (105). This expands the sensing range and increases the touch area while effectively preventing accidental or missed touches.

[0027] The principle of the inductive conductive area (105) is touch capacitive sensing, which has a fast response speed, low touch delay, and relatively mature technology; and both it and the silver paste circuit (106) are seamlessly transparent, completely invisible to the eye, and do not obscure the icon display.

[0028] The PCBA board (2) has two LEDs (202) at the bottom corresponding to each function icon (104), namely a blue light and a white light, which are arranged in a front-to-back direction. The blue light can be selected to correspond to "low power operation", and the white light can be selected to correspond to "full operation". The two colors are highly distinguishable and the user can intuitively judge the function status. The light is evenly illuminated after passing through and refracting through the transparent sensor panel (1), without uneven brightness or interference with other icons.

[0029] The MCU (201) includes a driver module and a control module, which communicate via pins and an interface to achieve collaborative operation of "display-touch". The other ends of the plurality of silver paste circuits (106) are all connected to the top of the ITO touch layer (102) and to the control module of the MCU (201). The plurality of LEDs (202) are connected to the driver module of the MCU (201). The LEDs (202) and the MCU (201) can be optionally soldered using pins, resulting in high soldering stability and a low defect rate.

[0030] A touch method for an LED display with ITO touch, implemented based on the aforementioned LED display touch module with ITO touch, includes the following steps: S1: When a finger touches the position of the corresponding function icon (104) on the display panel (101) once, the sensing conductive area (105) of the corresponding ITO touch layer (102) generates a touch signal and transmits the touch signal to the MCU (201) through the silver paste circuit (106). S2: The control module in the MCU (201) processes the touch signal of the corresponding function icon (104) through electrical signal processing, and then transmits it to the drive module. After electrical signal processing, the blue light at the position of the corresponding function icon (104) is turned on, illuminating the function icon (104) below it in blue. S3: When the finger touches the corresponding function icon (104) on the display panel (101) twice, the white light at the corresponding function icon (104) is turned on according to the methods in S1 and S2, illuminating the function icon (104) below it as white; S4: When the finger touches the corresponding function icon (104) on the display panel (101) three times, the LED light (202) at the corresponding function icon (104) is turned off according to the methods in S1 and S2.

[0031] In this embodiment, there are five icons installed on the washing machine, from left to right: a lighting icon (107), a drying icon (108), an AI icon (109), a fan icon (110), and a power icon (111). Figure 2 As shown. The LED lights (202) consist of ten lights in two columns, front and back. From left to right at the top, they are blue lights (B2, B4, B6, B8, B10) and white lights (W1, W3, W5, W7, W9), as shown. Figure 3 As shown, from left to right, they correspond to the five function icons mentioned above (104), as follows: Figure 4 As shown. The control module of the MCU (201) can be an FPC terminal. Its pins 10 and 11 communicate with the outside through pins 2 and 3 of the CN1 terminal, and obtain 5V power supply through its pins 1 and 4. The specific circuit is as follows. Figure 8 As shown; the control module CON2 terminal is connected to the silver paste circuit (106) corresponding to the 5 function icons (104). From left to right, the lighting icon (107), drying icon (108), AI icon (109), impeller icon (110), and power icon (111) correspond to TK1, TK2, TK3, TK4, and TK5 respectively. The specific circuit is as follows. Figure 7As shown. The driver module for the MCU (201) can be SH79F326P, with pins 23, 24, 25, 26, and 27 respectively connected to the control module. Figure 7 The circuits for TK1, TK2, TK3, TK4, and TK5 are connected accordingly. Their outputs are as follows: Power icon (111) is driven by pin 13 (B10) and pin 29 (W9); Windmill icon (110) is driven by pin 15 (B8) and pin 32 (W7); AI icon (109) is driven by pin 31 (B6) and pin 30 (W5); Drying icon (108) is driven by pin 14 (B4) and pin 28 (W3); Lighting icon (107) is driven by pin 22 (B2) and pin 21 (W1). The specific circuit is as follows: Figure 6 As shown.

[0032] For example, when a user touches the lighting icon (107) on the display panel (101) once, the finger acts as a conductor and forms a capacitance with the corresponding figure-9 shaped conductive area (105) of the ITO touch layer (102), causing a change in the capacitance of the sensing area and generating a touch signal. The touch signal is transmitted to the control module of the MCU (201) on the PCBA board (2) through a seamless transparent silver paste circuit (106); the control module processes the signal through circuit control and generates corresponding control commands. After receiving the control command, the drive module of the MCU (201) controls the blue light B2 of the LED (202) at the position of the corresponding function icon (104) to turn on, and the blue light shines through the transparent sensing panel (1) to illuminate the lighting icon (107). When touched a second time, the circuit of white light W1 is turned on and the circuit of blue light B2 is turned off. White light W1 is turned on and white light shines through the transparent sensor panel (1) to illuminate the lighting icon (107). When touched a third time, both circuits of white light W1 and blue light B2 are turned off and the light is turned off.

[0033] Working process: The sensing panel (1) is embedded in the slot (301) of the housing (3) through a T-shaped structure. Its upper part is fixed on the L-shaped blocks (302) at both ends of the slot (301), and the lower part of the function icon (104) area is exposed in the housing (3); the PCBA board (2) is fixed inside the housing (3), and the control module of the MCU (201) on it is connected to the ITO touch layer (102) through the silver paste circuit (106). The LED light (202) is initially in the off state.

[0034] When a finger touches the function icon (104) of the target function on the display panel (101) (such as the lighting icon 107), the 9-shaped conductive area (105) of the corresponding position of the ITO touch layer (102) generates a touch signal due to the change in capacitance. The signal is transmitted to the control module of the MCU (201) via the silver paste circuit (106). After the control module performs electrical signal processing on the signal, it recognizes it as a "one-time touch", generates a "turn on blue light" command and transmits it to the drive module. After receiving the command, the drive module controls the blue light circuit in the LED light (202) at the position of the corresponding function icon (104) to be turned on. The blue light shines through the transparent display panel (101) to illuminate the function icon (104), making it blue, indicating that the function is activated at low power (such as weak light).

[0035] When a finger touches the same function icon (104) twice, the sensing conductive area (105) of the ITO touch layer (102) generates a touch signal again, which is transmitted to the control module of the MCU (201) via the silver paste circuit (106). The control module recognizes it as a "second touch", generates a "turn on white light" command and transmits it to the drive module. The drive module switches the state of the LED light (202), disconnects the blue light circuit and turns on the white light circuit. The white light shines through the display panel (101) to illuminate the function icon (104), making it white, indicating that the function is fully working (such as strong light illumination).

[0036] When a finger touches the same function icon (104) for the third time, the touch signal generated by the sensing conductive area (105) is transmitted to the control module of the MCU (201) via the silver paste circuit (106). The control module recognizes the touch as "three touches", generates the "turn off LED" command and transmits it to the driver module. After receiving the command, the driver module disconnects the blue and white light circuits of the corresponding LED (202), the light goes out, the function icon (104) stops emitting light, and the function is turned off (such as the lighting is off).

[0037] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any equivalent substitutions or modifications made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in the present invention, based on the technical solution and inventive concept of the present invention, should be covered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. An LED display touch module with ITO touch, comprising a sensing panel (1) and a PCBA board (2); characterized in that: The sensing panel (1) includes a transparent display panel (101), an ITO touch layer (102), and a cover plate (103) arranged sequentially from front to back. The display panel (101) has several function icons (104) evenly arranged horizontally in the left-right direction at its lower part. The ITO touch layer (102) has a 9-shaped sensing conductive area (105) at the position corresponding to each function icon (104), and the end of each sensing conductive area (105) is connected to a silver paste circuit (106). The PCBA board (2) integrates an MCU (201), and its lower surface has several LEDs (202) at the position corresponding to each function icon (104).

2. The LED display touch module with ITO touch according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a housing (3); the PCBA board (2) is fixed inside the housing (3), and the housing (3) has a slot (301) for installing the sensor panel (1) located below the PCBA board (2); the sensor panel (1) is T-shaped, installed in the slot (301), and the area of ​​several function icons (104) at the bottom is exposed outside the housing (3).

3. The LED display touch module with ITO touch according to claim 2, characterized in that: Both ends of the slot (301) are provided with L-shaped blocks (302), and the upper part of the T-shaped sensing panel (1) is fixed on the blocks (302).

4. The LED display touch module with ITO touch according to claim 1, characterized in that: The function icon (104) is located in the central area below the conductive area (105), and its area is smaller than the area below the conductive area (105).

5. An LED display touch module with ITO touch according to claim 4, characterized in that: The principle of the inductive conductive area (105) is touch capacitive sensing, and both it and the silver paste circuit (106) are made transparent without leaving a trace.

6. The LED display touch module with ITO touch according to claim 5, characterized in that: The PCBA board (2) has two LEDs (202) at the bottom corresponding to each function icon (104), namely a blue light and a white light, which are arranged in a front-to-back direction.

7. An LED display touch module with ITO touch according to claim 6, characterized in that: The MCU (201) includes a driving module and a control module. The other end of each of the several silver paste circuits (106) is connected to the top of the ITO touch layer (102) and connected to the control module of the MCU (201). The several LEDs (202) are connected to the driving module of the MCU (201).

8. A touch method for an LED display with ITO touch, characterized in that, This is implemented based on an LED display touch module with ITO touch as described in any one of claims 1-7. Includes the following steps: S1: When a finger touches the position of the corresponding function icon (104) on the display panel (101) once, the sensing conductive area (105) of the corresponding ITO touch layer (102) generates a touch signal and transmits the touch signal to the MCU (201) through the silver paste circuit (106). S2: The control module in the MCU (201) processes the touch signal of the corresponding function icon (104) through electrical signal processing, and then transmits it to the drive module. After electrical signal processing, the blue light at the position of the corresponding function icon (104) is turned on, illuminating the function icon (104) below it in blue. S3: When the finger touches the corresponding function icon (104) on the display panel (101) twice, the white light at the corresponding function icon (104) is turned on according to the methods in S1 and S2, illuminating the function icon (104) below it as white; S4: When the finger touches the corresponding function icon (104) on the display panel (101) three times, the LED light (202) at the corresponding function icon (104) is turned off according to the methods in S1 and S2.

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