Touch module and electronic equipment

Abstract

The utility model relates to a touch module and electronic equipment, and the touch module comprises a shell layer, a first electrode region, an elastic layer and a second electrode region which are sequentially stacked; the second electrode area is connected with the circuit board structure, the second electrode area is an edge covering structure of the circuit board structure, and the side, away from the circuit board structure, of the second electrode area is matched with the elastic layer; the first electrode area and the second electrode area are electrically connected with the control module. The second electrode area wraps the circuit board structure and is matched with the elastic layer, electrode coverage of the whole area on the circuit board structure is achieved, the effective area of the capacitor is maximized, when the capacitor is applied to electronic equipment, the capacitor is not affected by the segment difference between the circuit board structure and the shell layer, adjacent touch modules are matched more tightly, and the service life of the capacitor is prolonged. And the continuity is better during sliding.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of electronic devices, and in particular to a touch module and an electronic device. Background Art

[0002] With the development of science and technology, the types and quantity of smart electronic products on the market are increasing, and the functions of products are becoming more and more complex. In order to support the realization of more functions, electronic products need to more accurately identify the user's interactive actions, and touch modules are a commonly used means of interaction.

[0003] The current touch modules often use the capacitance effect to judge touch. The force of pressing changes the spacing between the multilayer structures forming the capacitor, and then the capacitance of the capacitor changes. After monitoring by the control module, the pressing action is judged to achieve recognition. In the touch modules in the prior art, due to the installation requirements of the circuit board structure, the overall size of the circuit board structure is smaller than the size of the shell, resulting in the layer structure forming the capacitor thereon being limited, the actual effective touch area is small, and the interval between adjacent touch units is too large, the continuity of the touch is limited, and there is an assembly step difference between the edge area of ​​the shell and the touch area, and the overall structural stability is also poor. Utility Model Content

[0004] The present application provides a touch module and an electronic device to solve the problem in the prior art that the electrode area forming the capacitor is limited by the circuit board structure, resulting in excessive spacing between adjacent touch modules and poor touch continuity.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a touch module, which is applied to an electronic device, wherein the electronic device further comprises a control module and a circuit board structure, and the touch module comprises a shell layer, a first electrode area, an elastic layer, and a second electrode area stacked in sequence;

[0006] One side of the second electrode area is connected to the circuit board structure, the other side of the second electrode area is connected to the elastic layer, and the second electrode area is an edge-wrapping structure of the circuit board structure;

[0007] The first electrode region and the second electrode region are both electrically connected to the control module.

[0008] According to some embodiments of the present application, a plurality of sensing structures are disposed in the first electrode region, and the sensing structures are arranged in parallel in pairs, and a plurality of excitation structures are correspondingly disposed in the second electrode region, and the sensing structures are arranged in parallel in pairs.

[0009] According to some embodiments of the present application, the control module transmits an excitation signal to each of the excitation structures in a polling scanning manner, and each of the sensing structures collects the amount of charge fed back by each of the excitation structures in a polling scanning manner.

[0010] According to some embodiments of the present application, the material of the first electrode region is one or more of a metal material and graphite, and / or the material of the second electrode region is a metal material.

[0011] According to some embodiments of the present application, a reinforcement layer is provided between the outer shell layer and the first electrode region, and the reinforcement layer is made of a hard material.

[0012] According to some embodiments of the present application, the reinforcement layer is a metal material, a PI material, a FR-substrate or a hard plastic.

[0013] According to some embodiments of the present application, an adhesive layer is provided between the reinforcement layer and the outer shell layer.

[0014] According to some embodiments of the present application, the thickness of the first electrode region is between 0.1 mm and 0.2 mm, the thickness of the reinforcement layer is between 0.2 mm and 0.3 mm, and the thickness of the adhesive layer is between 0.15 mm and 0.3 mm.

[0015] According to some embodiments of the present application, the elastic layer is made of soft silicone material.

[0016] In a second aspect, the present application provides an electronic device, comprising a control module and a touch module, wherein the touch module is the above-mentioned touch module, wherein the first electrode area of ​​the touch module is electrically connected to the control module through a BTB socket, a gold finger, a ZiF socket, a needle header or a female header, and the second electrode area is electrically connected to the control module through the internal routing of the circuit board structure.

[0017] The above technical solution provided by the embodiment of the present application has the following advantages compared with the prior art:

[0018] The embodiment of the present application provides a touch module and an electronic device, wherein the touch module is applied to an electronic device, the electronic device includes a control module and a circuit board structure, the touch module includes a shell layer, a first electrode area, an elastic layer and a circuit layer stacked in sequence; the circuit layer includes a second electrode area, the second electrode area is connected to the circuit board structure, and the second electrode area is an edge structure of the circuit board structure, and the side of the second electrode area away from the circuit board structure is adapted to the elastic layer; the first electrode area and the second electrode area are both electrically connected to the control module. The second electrode area wraps the circuit board structure and is adapted to the elastic layer, so that the electrode coverage of the entire area on the circuit board structure is achieved, so that the effective area of ​​the capacitor is maximized, and it will not be affected by the step difference between the circuit board structure and the shell layer. The adjacent touch modules are more closely matched, and the continuity is better when sliding. The present application effectively solves the problem in the prior art that the electrode area forming the capacitor is limited by the circuit board structure, resulting in excessive spacing between adjacent touch modules and poor touch continuity. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] The accompanying drawings herein are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present utility model, and together with the description, are used to explain the principles of the present utility model.

[0020] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the utility model or the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, for ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative labor.

[0021] One or more embodiments are exemplarily described by pictures in the corresponding drawings, and these exemplified descriptions do not constitute limitations on the embodiments. Elements with the same reference numerals in the drawings represent similar elements, and unless otherwise stated, the figures in the drawings do not constitute proportional limitations.

[0022] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a front view of a touch module provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown;

[0023] Figure 2 Shows Figure 1 A schematic side view of the touch module;

[0024] Figure 3 Shows Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the internal structure of the touch module.

[0025] The above drawings contain the following reference numerals:

[0026] 10. Shell layer; 20. First electrode area; 21. Sensing structure; 30. Elastic layer; 40. Second electrode area; 41. Excitation structure; 42. Accommodating area; 43. Contact area; 50. Reinforcement layer; 60. Adhesive layer; 70. Control module; 80. Circuit board structure; 81. First processing unit; 82. Second processing unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solution in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0028] The disclosure below provides many different embodiments or examples for realizing different structures of the present invention. In order to simplify the disclosure of the present invention, the components and settings of specific examples are described below. Of course, they are only examples, and the purpose is not to limit the present invention. In addition, the present invention may repeat reference numbers and / or letters in different examples. This repetition is for the purpose of simplification and clarity, and does not itself indicate the relationship between the various embodiments and / or settings discussed.

[0029] For ease of description, spatial relative terms may be used herein to describe the relative positional relationship or movement of one element or feature relative to another element or feature as shown in the figure, such as "inside", "outside", "inner side", "outer side", "below", "below", "above", "above", "front", "back", etc. Such spatial relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figure. For example, if the device in the figure undergoes a position flip or a posture change or a motion state change, then these directional indications also change accordingly, for example: an element described as "below other elements or features" or "below other elements or features" will subsequently be oriented as "above other elements or features" or "above other elements or features". Therefore, the example term "below..." may include both upper and lower orientations. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or in other directions) and the spatial relative descriptors used herein are interpreted accordingly.

[0030] like Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, in the first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a touch module for use in an electronic device, wherein the electronic device includes a control module 70 and a circuit board structure 80, and the touch module includes a shell layer 10, a first electrode area 20, an elastic layer 30 and a second electrode area 40 stacked in sequence, wherein one side of the second electrode area 40 is connected to the circuit board structure 80, and the other side of the second electrode area 40 is connected to the elastic layer 30, and the second electrode area 40 is a edging structure of the circuit board structure 80.

[0031] After power is turned on, there is capacitance between the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40. Based on the change in capacitance between the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40, the control module 70 can detect the change in capacitance, thereby identifying the corresponding user operation to achieve the touch sensing function of the touch module. The second electrode area 40 can also serve as the edge structure of the circuit board structure 80, reducing the components in the touch module, thereby simplifying the structure and assembly of the touch module.

[0032] The elastic layer 30 is disposed between the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40. The thickness of the elastic layer 30 can be adjusted based on actual needs to adapt to different electronic devices. The elastic layer 30 can absorb the energy transmitted based on the deformation of the outer shell layer 10, so that after the external force stops contacting the outer shell layer 10, the previously absorbed energy is released, so that the touch module rebounds to its original state.

[0033] When assembling the touch module, interference assembly can be achieved through the deformation of the elastic layer 30. At the same time, since the elastic layer 30 can be slightly deformed to match the multi-layer structure in the touch module, the assembly step difference between the circuit board structure 80 and the shell layer 10 is also eliminated. For example, if the overall assembly height of the touch module needs to be 0.9mm, but in fact the assembly space between the shell layer 10 and the circuit board structure 80 is only 0.88mm, the elastic layer 30 only needs to be compressed by 0.02mm to complete the assembly of the touch module. After the interference assembly is completed, the touch module can be pressure-sensitively calibrated again, and the zero point position of the touch module can be recalculated to eliminate the impact of the interference assembly.

[0034] It should be noted that after eliminating the influence of the step difference between the circuit board structure 80 and the outer shell layer 10, the fixed size of the touch module is also eliminated, so that the touch module can adapt to assembly spaces of more sizes, thereby further improving the assembly flexibility of the touch module and avoiding the scrapping of touch module parts due to incompatibility with the size of the assembly space.

[0035] like Figure 3As shown, in the technical solution of this embodiment, a plurality of sensing structures 21 are arranged in parallel in pairs in the first electrode region 20, and a plurality of excitation structures 41 are correspondingly arranged in parallel in pairs in the second electrode region 40, and each of the excitation structures 41 is arranged in parallel in pairs, and each sensing structure 21 corresponds to an excitation structure 41, and there is capacitance between each sensing structure 21 and each excitation structure 41. Based on the charge transfer mode in the capacitor, the excitation structure 41 is used to respond to the excitation signal emitted by the control module 70 to start the charge transfer, and the sensing structure 21 is used to receive the charge generated by the excitation structure 41, and based on the mutual capacitance effect and the self-capacitance effect of the capacitor, it is judged whether the charge amount changes and the trend of the charge amount change, so as to judge the touch action.

[0036] Further, the control module 70 transmits an excitation signal to each excitation structure 41 in a polling scanning manner, and each sensing structure 21 collects the charge of each excitation structure 41 in a polling scanning manner. The control module 70 transmits an excitation signal to the second electrode area 40 in a polling scanning manner, and at the same time, the first electrode area 20 collects the charge generated by the second electrode area 40 in a polling scanning manner, and determines whether the charge changes and the trend of the charge change, thereby determining the touch action. The outer shell 10 is used to contact the outside world. When it is pinched or squeezed, the outer shell 10 is deformed and the deformation is transmitted to the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40 in turn. At this time, the distance between the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40 changes, resulting in a change in the capacitance between the excitation structure 41 and the sensing structure 21 in a certain area. After the control module analyzes and confirms the change in capacitance, the pinching or squeezing action of the outer shell 10 can be determined. Based on the configuration of the second electrode region 40 wrapping the circuit board structure 80 , the excitation structure 41 can fully respond to the capacitance changes at each position of the touch module, and the polling scanning method can effectively improve the sensitivity of the touch response and enhance the user experience.

[0037] Furthermore, the sliding function is also realized based on the mutual capacitance effect, and the sliding function is realized by the excitation structure 41 adjacent to each excitation structure 41, and the sensing structure 21 adjacent to each sensing structure 21. Specifically, the control module transmits an excitation signal to the second electrode area 40 in a polling scanning manner, and at the same time, the first electrode area 20 collects the corresponding charge generated by the second electrode area 40 in a polling scanning manner. When the outer shell layer 10 is subjected to the sliding force, the outer shell layer 10 will also deform and have a deformation direction at the same time. The outer shell layer 10 will transmit the deformation and the deformation direction to the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40, and the capacitance value changes between the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40, between the sensing structures 21 in the first electrode area 20 located in the deformation direction, and between the excitation structures 4 in the second electrode area 40 located in the deformation direction. The control module determines the sliding direction and the continuity of the touch by detecting the capacitance value change between the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40, the time of the change, and the order of the change.

[0038] It should be noted that the solutions in the prior art usually use a combination of multi-layer signal layers and varistors, and the varistors need to be implanted into the signal layers, and the multi-layer signal layers will also be assembled as much as possible. This is costly and requires complex manufacturing processes and cumbersome assembly procedures. There are too many coordination links, so the yield of the final product is low. The technical solution of the present application directly uses a multi-layer structure to form a capacitor, and then uses the characteristic that the capacitance value changes with the distance between the electrodes to confirm and interact with the touch. The structure is easy to assemble and manufacture, and can also meet the requirements for continuous confirmation of changes caused by continuous sliding between different touch units.

[0039] In the technical solution of this embodiment (not shown in the figure), the material of the first electrode area 20 is one or more of metal materials and graphite, such as copper, silver paste printing or conductive graphite, and / or the material of the second electrode area 40 is metal material, such as copper metal edging, aluminum metal edging, etc.

[0040] The first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40 formed by the above materials have certain structural strength and good electrical conductivity, and are also easy to form or directly install. For example, metal copper or metal aluminum is used as the material of the second electrode area 40. Copper and aluminum are relatively soft and can be directly stretched, extended, bent, etc. to form the edge of the circuit board structure 80, and can also be adjusted according to actual needs during the assembly process, and the controllability is strong. For another example, the first electrode area 20 is formed by printing with silver paste made of metal silver. This production method is conducive to the precision adjustment of the first electrode area 20, and is more conducive to subsequent assembly. In addition, when the printing method is damaged or deviated during the assembly process, the defective products can be recycled for secondary processing, which reduces costs and improves yield. It should be noted that the power supply pin VCC of the touch module includes but is not limited to the control by a dedicated power supply and a controllable GPIO port.

[0041] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in the technical solution of this embodiment, a reinforcement layer 50 is provided between the shell layer 10 and the first electrode area 20, and the reinforcement layer 50 is made of a hard material. The reinforcement layer 50 is provided to maintain the rigidity of the touch module, provide the overall strength and rigidity of the touch module, play a supporting role, and better adapt to other components.

[0042] In the technical solution of this embodiment (not shown in the figure), the reinforcing layer 50 is a metal material, a PI material, a FR-4 substrate or a hard plastic. The application of the above-mentioned hard material can realize the assembly support function of each layer structure, and because of its setting position, even if it is a conductor such as metal, it will not affect the capacitance. The specific metal material can be SUS steel sheet, which has the advantages of corrosion resistance, stable structure and easy acquisition.

[0043] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in the technical solution of this embodiment, an adhesive layer 60 is provided between the reinforcement layer 50 and the outer shell layer 10 to fix the outer shell layer 10. The adhesive layer 60 is mainly provided to adhere the structure below the reinforcement layer 50 to the outer shell layer 10 to achieve the touch control requirement. The adhesive layer 60 can specifically be made of double-sided tape, UV curing glue, taffeta glue or silicone.

[0044] In the technical solution of this embodiment (not shown in the figure), the thickness of the first electrode area 20 is between 0.1 mm and 0.2 mm, the thickness of the reinforcement layer 50 is between 0.2 mm and 0.3 mm, the thickness of the adhesive layer 60 is between 0.15 mm and 0.3 mm, and the thickness of the second electrode area 40 can be adjusted based on the required edge thickness of the circuit board structure 80, which is not specified here. The thickness of each substrate layer in the above-mentioned stacked structures can be fine-tuned according to actual applications.

[0045] In a specific embodiment, the thickness of the first electrode region 20 is preferably 0.15 mm. As the carrier of the sensing structure 21, it is directly attached to the reinforcement layer 50 and requires a certain deformation ability and load recovery ability to ensure that the corresponding relationship between the change in capacitance and the touch action is sensitive. The thickness of the reinforcement layer 50 is preferably 0.2 mm, and the thickness of the adhesive layer is preferably 0.2 mm.

[0046] In the technical solution of this embodiment (not shown in the figure), the elastic layer 30 is made of soft silicone material. The setting of the soft silicone material allows the touch module to absorb the energy of the deformation after being deformed by external force, and release the energy after the external force disappears, so as to realize the rebound after the pressing function, so that the touch module can restore the shape before the force is applied. The soft silicone material has good recovery and energy absorption, and the deformation and rebound can meet the use requirements. It should be noted that the soft silicone material is generally assembled by interference, and the soft silicone material is filled with its installation space by extrusion, which can eliminate the assembly step difference between the outer shell layer 10 and the circuit board structure 80, so that the touch module can adapt to more sizes of assembly space. The elastic layer 30 can also be replaced with other soft materials, such as foam, rubber, etc., according to the actual situation of the product. It should be noted that the thickness setting of the elastic layer 30 needs to consider the actual application scenario and the range of deformation required, as well as the specific materials of the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40 on both sides thereof.

[0047] like Figure 3 As shown, in the technical solution of this embodiment, the circuit board structure 80 is a PCB board, which includes a first processing unit 81 and a second processing unit 82. The first processing unit 81 is used to receive and process the capacitance change signal generated by the first electrode area 20 and the second electrode area 40, that is, to perform signal processing and feed it back to the second processing unit 82. The second processing unit 82 identifies and matches the capacitance change signal, executes and identifies the user's operation on the screen, including but not limited to tapping, long pressing, sliding and other operations, and matches the corresponding electronic device functions, including but not limited to play, pause, fast forward, rewind, etc.

[0048] like Figure 2 As shown, in the technical solution of this embodiment, the second electrode area 40 includes a receiving area 42 and a contact area 43 which are arranged in a back-to-back manner, and the circuit board structure 80 is adapted to the receiving area 42, that is, the second electrode area 40 wraps the circuit board structure 80 through the receiving area 42, and the contact area 43 is adapted to the elastic layer 30. Specifically, the receiving area 42 is a groove body, and the inner wall and the bottom wall of the receiving area 42 are respectively attached to the circuit board structure 80. Such a setting is used to surround the circuit board structure 80. On the one hand, one side of the circuit board structure 80 can be completely wrapped to form isolation and protection. On the other hand, the remaining part can better adapt to the setting of the first electrode area 20 to improve the touch experience.

[0049] In the second aspect, the present application provides an electronic device, which includes a control module 70 and a touch module. The touch module is the touch module in the above embodiment. The first electrode area 20 of the touch module is electrically connected to the control module 70 through a BTB socket, a gold finger, a ZiF socket, a pin header or a female header, and the second electrode area 40 is electrically connected to the control module 70 through the internal wiring of the circuit board structure 80. The application of the above control module will not be affected by the circuit board structure. The touch module can be multiple, including but not limited to the application of a sliding triple touch module structure design, a single touch module structure design, a matrix touch module, etc. The adjacent touch modules are more closely matched, and the continuity is better when sliding.

[0050] It should be understood that the terms used herein are only for the purpose of describing specific example embodiments and are not intended to be limiting. Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms "one", "an" and "said" as used herein may also be meant to include plural forms. The terms "include", "comprise", "contain", and "have" are inclusive, and therefore specify the existence of stated features, steps, operations, elements and / or parts, but do not exclude the existence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, parts, and / or combinations thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not interpreted as necessarily requiring them to be performed in the specific order described or illustrated, unless the execution order is clearly indicated. It should also be understood that additional or alternative steps may be used.

[0051] Although the terms first, second, third, etc. can be used in the text to describe multiple elements, components, regions, layers and / or sections, these elements, components, regions, layers and / or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms can only be used to distinguish an element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Unless the context clearly indicates, terms such as "first", "second" and other numerical terms do not imply order or sequence when used in the text. Therefore, the first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below can be referred to as the second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teaching of the example embodiments.

[0052] The above description is only a specific embodiment of the present invention, so that those skilled in the art can understand or implement the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be obvious to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention will not be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but should conform to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features applied herein.

Claims

1. A touch module, applied to an electronic device, the electronic device further comprising a control module (70) and a circuit board structure (80), characterized in that: The touch module comprises a shell layer (10), a first electrode area (20), an elastic layer (30) and a second electrode area (40) which are stacked in sequence; One side of the second electrode area (40) is connected to the circuit board structure (80), the other side of the second electrode area (40) is connected to the elastic layer (30), and the second electrode area (40) is an edge-wrapping structure of the circuit board structure (80); The first electrode region (20) and the second electrode region (40) are both electrically connected to the control module (70).

2. The touch module according to claim 1, characterized in that: A plurality of sensing structures (21) are arranged in parallel in pairs in the first electrode region (20), and a plurality of excitation structures (41) are correspondingly arranged in parallel in the second electrode region (40). The plurality of excitation structures (41) are arranged in parallel in pairs.

3. The touch module according to claim 2, characterized in that: The control module (70) transmits an excitation signal to each of the excitation structures (41) in a polling scanning manner, and each of the sensing structures (21) collects the amount of charge fed back by each of the excitation structures (41) in a polling scanning manner.

4. The touch module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The material of the first electrode region (20) is one or more of a metal material and graphite, and / or the material of the second electrode region (40) is a metal material.

5. The touch module according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: A reinforcement layer (50) is provided between the outer shell layer (10) and the first electrode region (20), and the reinforcement layer (50) is made of a hard material.

6. The touch module according to claim 5, characterized in that: The reinforcing layer (50) is made of metal material, PI material, FR-4 substrate or hard plastic.

7. The touch module according to claim 5, characterized in that: An adhesive layer (60) is provided between the reinforcement layer (50) and the outer shell layer (10).

8. The touch module according to claim 7, characterized in that: The thickness of the first electrode region (20) is between 0.1 mm and 0.2 mm, the thickness of the reinforcement layer (50) is between 0.2 mm and 0.3 mm, and the thickness of the adhesive layer (60) is between 0.15 mm and 0.3 mm.

9. The touch module according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The elastic layer (30) is made of soft silicone material.

10. An electronic device, characterized in that: The electronic device comprises a control module (70) and a touch module, wherein the touch module is the touch module according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the first electrode area (20) of the touch module is electrically connected to the control module (70) via a BTB socket, a gold finger, a ZiF socket, a pin header or a female header, and the second electrode area (40) is electrically connected to the control module (70) via an internal wiring of the circuit board structure (80).

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