Key module with touch function and keyboard

Abstract

The utility model relates to a key module with a touch function and a keyboard, the key module comprises a bottom plate, a flexible circuit board, a scissor foot structure, a pressing piece and a key cap, the scissor foot structure is arranged on the bottom plate, the key cap is arranged on the scissor foot structure, and the pressing piece is arranged between the key cap and the flexible circuit board; the flexible circuit board is attached to the upper surface, facing the scissor foot structure, of the bottom plate, key contacts and a touch network area are arranged on the flexible circuit board, and when the key cap descends due to pressure applied to the key cap, the pressing piece extrudes and triggers the key contacts to achieve the key function. And the touch network area is used for sensing the capacitance change at the surface of the keycap so as to realize a touch function.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application belongs to the technical field of keyboards and relates to a key module with a touch function and a keyboard with the key module. Background Art

[0002] Keys are widely used in keyboards, which are common input devices for electronic products such as computers. Characters can be input through the keyboard, and the operation of the computer can also be controlled. With the rapid development and widespread use of electronic products, keyboards, as a bridge for human-computer interaction, have occupied an important position in daily life and work.

[0003] At present, most keyboards on the market can only realize character input and do not have touch function. To realize the touch function of the keyboard, it is necessary to set an independent touch panel on the keyboard. The split solution of setting the touch panel independently on the keyboard occupies a large area of ​​the keyboard and makes the keyboard very large. A solution that can realize the touch function on the key module is needed. Utility Model Content

[0004] In order to overcome the problems existing in the related art, the present application aims to provide a key module with a touch function.

[0005] The present application is implemented through the following technical solutions.

[0006] The technical solution is to provide a key module with a touch function, comprising a base plate, a flexible circuit board, a scissor foot structure, a pressing piece and a key cap, wherein the scissor foot structure is arranged on the base plate, the key cap is arranged on the scissor foot structure, and the pressing piece is arranged between the key cap and the flexible circuit board;

[0007] The flexible circuit board is attached to the upper surface of the base plate facing the scissor leg structure. The flexible circuit board is provided with key contacts and a touch network area. When the keycap is pressed down, the pressing member squeezes and triggers the key contacts to realize the key function. The touch network area is used to sense the capacitance change on the surface of the keycap to realize the touch function.

[0008] The technical effect of this technical solution is to place a flexible circuit board (FPC) with integrated touch function and key function on a base plate of metal material, and then process it through an external chip mainboard to realize the touch input function and key input function of the key module; the flexible circuit board is directly attached to the base plate, and a scissor foot structure is used to make the thickness of the key module smaller.

[0009] In a specific implementation of this technical solution, the flexible circuit board is adhered to the upper surface of the base plate through an adhesive layer.

[0010] In a specific implementation of the technical solution, a protective sheet is further provided above the flexible circuit board, and the protective sheet is provided with a through hole for the pressing member to trigger the key contact.

[0011] In a specific implementation of this technical solution, the pressing piece is a silicone particle or a silicone shell.

[0012] In a specific implementation of the technical solution, the middle portion of the scissor-leg structure has a hollow portion, the pressing member is located in the hollow portion, and the key cap presses the pressing member when it descends.

[0013] In a specific implementation of the technical solution, four hooks are provided on the bottom plate, the scissor leg structure is connected to the four hooks, and a first avoidance hole for avoiding the hooks is also provided on the flexible circuit board.

[0014] In a specific implementation of the technical solution, the bottom plate is further provided with a protrusion facing the scissor leg structure, and the hook is provided on the protrusion.

[0015] In a specific embodiment of the technical solution, it also includes a light board arranged under the base plate, the light board is provided with a light-emitting element, the base plate and the flexible circuit board are provided with a second avoidance hole for avoiding the light-emitting element, and the light-emitting element is used to generate light to irradiate the keycap.

[0016] In a specific implementation of the technical solution, the light board is a flexible light board, the light-emitting element is an LED light-emitting chip, and the light board is adhered to the lower surface of the base plate through an adhesive layer.

[0017] Another technical solution of the present application is to provide a keyboard, including a key module with touch function as described above, the base plates of each key module are the same base plate, and the flexible circuit board is on the same circuit board, and the flexible circuit board is provided with key contacts and touch network areas at the position of each key module.

[0018] It should be understood that the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present application will become more apparent through a more detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein the same reference numerals generally represent the same components in the exemplary embodiments of the present application.

[0020] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of a key module shown in an embodiment of the present application.

[0021] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of a key module shown in an embodiment of the present application.

[0022] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the exploded structure of a key module shown in an embodiment of the present application.

[0023] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of a flexible circuit board shown in an embodiment of the present application.

[0024] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the base plate shown in one embodiment of the present application.

[0025] Figure 6 It is a partial structural schematic diagram of a flexible circuit board of a keyboard shown in one embodiment of the present application.

[0026] Description of reference numerals:

[0027] 11-bottom plate; 111-hook; 112-raised portion; 12-flexible circuit board; 121-key contact; 122-touch network area; 123-first avoidance hole; 124-second avoidance hole; 13-scissor foot structure; 14-pressing piece; 15-key cap; 16-protective sheet; 161-through hole; 17-light board; 171-light-emitting element; 18-glue layer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The following will be combined with the drawings in some embodiments of the present application to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in some 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 creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0029] The technical solution of the embodiments of the present application is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0030] like Figures 1 to 5 As shown in , this embodiment is a key module with a touch function, including a base plate 11, a flexible circuit board 12, a scissor foot structure 13, a pressing member 14 and a key cap 15, the scissor foot structure 13 is arranged on the base plate 11, the key cap 15 is arranged on the scissor foot structure 13, and the pressing member 14 is arranged between the key cap 15 and the flexible circuit board 12;

[0031] The flexible circuit board 12 is attached to the upper surface of the base plate 11 facing the scissor leg structure 13. The flexible circuit board 12 is provided with a key contact 121 and a touch network area 122. When the keycap 15 is pressed down, the pressing member 14 squeezes and triggers the key contact 121 to realize the key function, and the touch network area 122 is triggered to sense the capacitance change on the surface of the keycap to realize the touch function.

[0032] In this way, a flexible printed circuit board (FPC) integrating touch function and key function is placed on a metal base plate 11, and then processed by an external chip motherboard to realize the touch input function and key input function of the key module; the flexible printed circuit board is directly attached to the base plate 11, and a scissor foot structure 13 is used to make the thickness of the key module smaller.

[0033] When the user presses down the keycap 15 vertically, the keycap 15 is lowered by squeezing the scissor foot structure 13 and the pressing member 14, and the pressing member 14 contacts the key contact 121 on the flexible circuit board 12, thereby triggering the key input signal to realize the key function.

[0034] When the user's finger touches or slides on the surface of the keycap 15, since the surface of the keycap 15 is very close to the touch network area 122 of the flexible circuit board 12, usually 2-3 mm, the capacitance will change when it approaches the touch network area 122. The touch network area 122 can sense the change in capacitance above, and the touch network area 122 generates a touch input signal, i.e., coordinate information, and sends it to the chip motherboard for processing to locate the touch position.

[0035] The touch network area 122 is arranged around the key contact 121, and the flexible circuit board 12 is electrically connected to an external chip motherboard to receive key or touch input signals, and send them to the electronic device after processing, so as to distinguish between touch operation and press operation. The working principle and structure of the touch network area 122 are similar to those of the existing touch screen, and belong to the prior art, so they will not be described in detail here.

[0036] In this embodiment, the bottom plate 11 is made of metal material, and the bottom plate 11 mainly plays a supporting role. The flexible circuit board 12 is attached to the upper surface of the bottom plate 11 through the adhesive layer 18. The key module also includes a protective sheet 16 arranged above the flexible circuit board 12, and the protective sheet 16 is provided with a through hole 161 for the pressing member 14 to trigger the key contact 121. The protective sheet 16 can be a transparent PET polyester film sheet, and the protective sheet 16 is mainly used to protect the flexible circuit board 12 and prevent the scissor foot structure 13 and the key cap 15 from scratching the circuit on the flexible circuit board 12.

[0037] In this embodiment, the pressing member 14 is a silicone particle, which has the characteristics of good elasticity and low cost. The silicone particles are bonded to the surface of the protective sheet 16, and conductive carbon particles are provided at the contact ends of the silicone particles. When the pressing member 14 is squeezed, the conductive carbon particles contact the key contact 121, so that the circuits at both ends of the key contact 121 are in contact, generating an electrical signal for key input.

[0038] In this embodiment, the middle of the scissor leg structure 13 has a hollow portion, and the pressing member 14 is located in the hollow portion. When the key cap 15 descends, it presses the pressing member 14 .

[0039] In this embodiment, four hooks 111 are provided on the bottom plate 11, the scissor leg structure 13 is connected to the four hooks 111, and the flexible circuit board 12 and the protective sheet 16 are also provided with first avoidance holes 123 for avoiding the hooks 111. In other embodiments, such as Figure 5 As shown in , the bottom plate 11 may further be provided with a protruding portion 112 protruding toward the scissor leg structure 13 , and the hook 111 is provided on the protruding portion 112 .

[0040] In this embodiment, the key module further includes a light board 17 disposed below the bottom plate 11, on which a light emitting element 171 is disposed, and a second avoidance hole 124 for avoiding the light emitting element 171 is disposed on the bottom plate 11, the protective sheet 16 and the flexible circuit board 12, and the light emitting element 171 is used to generate light to irradiate the key cap 15. In this way, the light emitted by the light emitting element 171 can make the key position and the key cap 15 position more obvious, and the light-transmitting area or transparent area disposed on the key cap 15 can achieve the effect of key character backlighting.

[0041] Exemplarily, the light board 17 is a flexible light board 17 , the light emitting element is an LED light emitting chip, and the light board 17 is adhered to the lower surface of the base plate 11 through an adhesive layer 18 .

[0042] Another embodiment of the present application is a keyboard, including the key modules in the above embodiment, each key module is arranged and combined to form a keyboard capable of surface touch input, the bottom plate 11 of each key module is the same bottom plate 11, and the flexible circuit board 12 is on the same circuit board, and the flexible circuit board 12 is provided with a key contact 121 at the position of each key module, such as Figure 6 As shown in , the touch network area 122 is a part or all of the area disposed on the flexible circuit board 12 , and the touch network area 122 of each key module is continuous with each other to form a touch area.

[0043] The embodiments of the present application have been described above, and the above description is exemplary, not exhaustive, and is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and changes will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The selection of terms used herein is intended to best explain the principles of the embodiments, practical applications, or improvements to the technology in the market, or to enable other persons of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A key module with touch function, characterized in that: It comprises a bottom plate, a flexible circuit board, a scissor foot structure, a pressing piece and a key cap, wherein the scissor foot structure is arranged on the bottom plate, the key cap is arranged on the scissor foot structure, and the pressing piece is arranged between the key cap and the flexible circuit board; The flexible circuit board is attached to the upper surface of the base plate facing the scissor leg structure. The flexible circuit board is provided with key contacts and a touch network area. When the key cap is pressed down, the pressing member squeezes and triggers the key contact to realize the key function. The touch network area is used to sense the capacitance change on the key cap surface to realize the touch function.

2. The key module with touch function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible circuit board is adhered to the upper surface of the base plate through an adhesive layer.

3. The key module with touch function according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a protection sheet arranged above the flexible circuit board, and the protection sheet is provided with a through hole for the pressing member to trigger the key contact.

4. The key module with touch function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The pressing piece is a silica gel particle or a silica gel shell.

5. The keypad module with touch function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The middle part of the scissor leg structure has a hollow part, the pressing piece is located in the hollow part, and the key cap presses the pressing piece when it descends.

6. The keypad module with touch function according to claim 1, characterized in that: The bottom plate is provided with four hooks, the scissor leg structure is connected with the four hooks, and the flexible circuit board is also provided with a first avoidance hole for avoiding the hooks.

7. The key module with touch function according to claim 6, characterized in that: The bottom plate is also provided with a protrusion facing the scissor leg structure, and the hook is arranged on the protrusion.

8. The keypad module with touch function according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a light board arranged below the base plate, on which a light-emitting element is arranged, and second avoidance holes for avoiding the light-emitting element are arranged on the base plate and the flexible circuit board, and the light-emitting element is used to generate light to irradiate the keycap.

9. The key module with touch function according to claim 8, characterized in that: The light board is a flexible light board, the light emitting element is an LED light emitting chip, and the light board is adhered to the lower surface of the base plate through an adhesive layer.

10. A keyboard, characterized in that: The invention comprises a key module with touch function as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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