Large stroke key device

Abstract

A large stroke key device includes a substrate, a mounting module disposed on the substrate, a flexible circuit board disposed above the substrate, an elastic member disposed above the flexible circuit board, a support module disposed on the mounting module, and a key cover disposed on the support module. The substrate includes a plate body and a retraction portion connected to the plate body. The retraction portion is formed by punching the substrate to protrude downward relative to the plate body in a vertical direction. The plate body has a first top surface and a step surface connected between the first top surface and the retraction portion. The retraction portion has a second top surface connected to the step surface and defining a retraction space with the step surface. When the key cover is pressed, the elastic member is pressed against the flexible circuit board and then moves into the retraction space to increase the pressing stroke and the pressing feedback.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to a button device, and more particularly to a long-stroke button device. Background Technology

[0002] A scissor-switch support bracket and button structure are disclosed in Taiwan Patent Publication No. TW201939552A. The button structure includes a base plate, a thin-film circuit board disposed above the base plate, an elastic member disposed above the thin-film circuit board, a scissor-switch support bracket disposed on the base plate, and a keycap disposed on the scissor-switch support bracket. When the keycap is pressed, the keycap drives the elastic member to compress the thin-film circuit board, generating a pressed electronic signal.

[0003] As laptops become increasingly thinner and lighter, it is quite difficult to increase the press travel while maintaining the overall height of the key structure. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide a long-stroke button device with a large pressing stroke.

[0005] This utility model relates to a long-stroke keypad device, comprising a substrate, a mounting module disposed on the substrate, a thin-film circuit board disposed above the substrate, an elastic member disposed above the thin-film circuit board, a support module disposed on the mounting module, and a key cover disposed on the support module. The substrate includes a plate body and a retractable portion connected to the plate body. The retractable portion is formed by stamping the substrate and protrudes downward relative to the plate body in a vertical direction. The plate body has a first top surface and a stepped surface connecting the first top surface and the retractable portion. The retractable portion has a second top surface connected to the stepped surface and defining a retractable space together with the stepped surface. The bottom of the elastic member is projected onto the substrate within the second top surface of the retractable portion.

[0006] The present invention relates to a long-stroke button device, wherein the retraction space has two first notches arranged oppositely along a first axis perpendicular to the vertical direction.

[0007] The present invention relates to a long-stroke key device, wherein the thin film circuit board includes a pressing part located between the elastic element and the retracting part, a ring frame part surrounding the pressing part, and two connecting parts extending from two opposite sides of the pressing part to the ring frame part along a second axis perpendicular to the vertical direction and the first axis.

[0008] The present invention relates to a long-stroke button device, wherein the touch-sensitive part has two contour segments arranged opposite to each other along the first axis and connected between the connecting parts, and the contour segments extend along the first notch respectively.

[0009] The present invention relates to a long-stroke button device, wherein the retraction space further comprises a second notch located between the first notch and the retraction space.

[0010] The present invention relates to a long-stroke key device, wherein a through hole is formed on the second top surface of the retracted portion, which communicates with the retracted space; the elastic member has a cover that abuts against the thin film circuit board and the key cover, and a protrusion extending downward from the cover and aligned with the through hole in the vertical direction.

[0011] In this utility model, the outline of the second top surface of the retracted part of the long-stroke button device is circular.

[0012] The present invention provides a large travel button device, which further includes a backlight module disposed below the substrate and an adhesive layer disposed between the backlight module and the board body. The adhesive layer, the substrate and the backlight module together define a gap, and the retracted portion abuts against the backlight module through the gap.

[0013] In this utility model, the long-stroke button device has a substrate made of a metal with a hardness greater than that of aluminum.

[0014] The present invention relates to a long-stroke button device, wherein the substrate is made of stainless steel and has a thickness of 0.15 to 0.2 mm.

[0015] The beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows: by forming the retraction space on the substrate, and the projection of the bottom of the elastic member along the vertical direction is located in the retraction space, when the key cover is pressed, the elastic member can move further toward the retraction space after squeezing the thin film circuit board, so as to increase the pressing stroke and increase the pressing feedback. Attached Figure Description

[0016] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of an embodiment of the large travel button device of this utility model;

[0017] Figure 2 This is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment described above;

[0018] Figure 3 This is a top view of a backlight module, a substrate, a thin-film circuit board, and an elastic element assembled according to the embodiment; and

[0019] Figure 4 It is along Figure 3 The sectional view obtained from line IV-IV in the diagram. Detailed Implementation

[0020] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0021] See Figure 1 and Figure 2 An embodiment of the large travel key device of this utility model includes a backlight module 1, an adhesive layer 2 connected above the backlight module 1 along a vertical direction Z, a substrate 3 located above the backlight module 1 and bonded to the adhesive layer 2, a mounting module 4 disposed on the substrate 3, a thin film circuit board 5 disposed above the substrate 3, an elastic member 6 disposed above the thin film circuit board 5, a support module 7 disposed on the mounting module 4, and a key cover 8 disposed on the support module 7.

[0022] See Figures 2 to 4 The backlight module 1, the adhesive layer 2, the substrate 3, and the thin-film circuit board 5 are stacked along the vertical direction Z. The substrate 3 includes a plate 31 bonded to the adhesive layer 2 and a recessed portion 32 connected to the plate 31 and located at the center of the plate 31. The recessed portion 32 is formed by stamping the substrate 3 and protrudes downward relative to the plate 31 along the vertical direction Z.

[0023] The plate 31 has a first top surface 311, a step surface 313 connecting the first top surface 311 and the retracted portion 32, and a first bottom surface 312 opposite to the first top surface 311. The retracted portion 32 has a second top surface 321 connecting to the step surface 313 and defining a retracted space 33 together with the step surface 313, and a second bottom surface 322 opposite to the second top surface 321.

[0024] The retraction space 33 has two first notches 331 and a second notch 332 located between the first notches 331 and angularly spaced from the first notches 331. The first notches 331 are arranged opposite to a first axis X perpendicular to the vertical direction Z.

[0025] The outline of the second top surface 321 of the retracted portion 32 is circular. A through hole 323 is formed on the second top surface 321 of the retracted portion 32, extending through to the second bottom surface 322 and communicating with the retracted space 33.

[0026] The second bottom surface 322 of the retracted portion 32 and the first bottom surface 312 of the plate 31 define a protrusion height h1 along the vertical direction Z. The second top surface 321 of the retracted portion 32 and the first top surface 311 of the plate 31 define a retraction depth h2 along the vertical direction Z. The adhesive layer 2, the substrate 3, and the backlight module 1 together define a gap 10 between the backlight module 1 and the plate 31. The second bottom surface 322 of the retracted portion 32 abuts against the backlight module 1 through the gap 10.

[0027] In this embodiment, the substrate 3 is made of aluminum, and its thickness along the vertical direction Z is 0.3 mm. The retracted portion 32 is retracted downwards by 0.05 mm after stamping, but its thickness remains unchanged. Therefore, the protrusion height h1 and the retraction depth h2 of the retracted portion 32 are the same, both being 0.05 mm. Since the thickness of the adhesive layer 2 is 0.05 mm, the second bottom surface 322 of the retracted portion 32 can just abut against the backlight module 1, thereby improving the support between the substrate 3 and the backlight module 1.

[0028] The installation module 4 includes four hooks 41 connected to the plate 31.

[0029] The thin-film circuit board 5 includes a pressing portion 51 located between the elastic member 6 and the retracting portion 32, a ring frame portion 52 surrounding the pressing portion 51, and two connecting portions 53 extending from two opposite sides of the pressing portion 51 to the ring frame portion 52 along a second axis Y perpendicular to the vertical direction Z and the first axis X. The thin-film circuit board 5 defines two cutout areas 54 located on two opposite sides of the pressing portion 51 along the first axis X.

[0030] The pressing part 51 has two contour segments 511 arranged opposite to each other along the first axial direction X and connected between the connecting part 53, and the contour segments 511 extend along the first notch 331 respectively.

[0031] The elastic member 6 has a cover 61 that abuts against the thin film circuit board 5 and the key cover 8, and a protrusion 62 that extends downward from the cover 61 and is aligned with the through hole 323 in the vertical direction Z.

[0032] The bottom of the cover 61 of the elastic member 6 is projected onto the substrate 3 within the second top surface 321 of the retracted portion 32.

[0033] The support module 7 is a scissor-type structure that engages with the hook 41, and the key cover 8 engages with the support module 7. Through the support module 7, the key cover 8 can move relative to the substrate 3 in the vertical direction Z.

[0034] When the key cover 8 is pressed, the elastic member 6, together with the pressing part 51, moves toward the retracting part 32 and sinks into the retracting space 33, thereby increasing the pressing stroke. Since the contour segments 511 extend along the first notch 331, that is, the first notch 331 provides space for the contour segments 511 to move downward, and the second notch 332 also provides space for the connection between the pressing part 51 and the corresponding connecting part 53 to move downward, so that the pressing part 51 can move more smoothly into the retracting space 33 when it moves downward.

[0035] Furthermore, the protruding post 62 can further abut against the pressing part 51 and move into the through hole 323 to enhance the pressing feedback.

[0036] Because aluminum has low hardness, the thickness of the substrate 3 made of aluminum is generally not less than 0.3 mm in order to accommodate the pull-out force of the button device. In other variations of this embodiment, the substrate 3 can be made of a metal with higher hardness than aluminum but thinner by stamping, thereby reducing the overall thickness of the button device while maintaining the shape and strength of the substrate 3. For example, the substrate 3 can be stainless steel with a thickness of 0.15 to 0.2 mm, which reduces the thickness by 0.1 to 0.15 mm compared to aluminum with a thickness of 0.3 mm. In other words, compared to aluminum, using a metal material with higher hardness and thinner thickness as the substrate 3 for stamping can further reduce the overall thickness of the button device while maintaining the same pressing stroke.

[0037] In summary, the large-stroke button device of this utility model defines the retraction space 33 by the retraction portion 32 of the substrate 3 and the plate body 31. The projection of the bottom of the elastic member 6 onto the substrate 3 is located on the second top surface 321 of the retraction portion 32. When the key cover 8 is pressed, causing the elastic member 6 to squeeze the thin film circuit board 5, the elastic member 6 can move further toward the retraction portion 32 and sink into the retraction space 33 along with the thin film circuit board 5, thereby increasing the pressing stroke and enhancing the pressing feedback. The retraction portion 32 is formed by stamping the substrate 3, which is simple to process and low in cost. Furthermore, the substrate 3 has a wide hardness range, making it suitable for stamping thin and hard stainless steel to form the retraction portion 32. This allows for a further reduction in the overall thickness of the large-stroke button device while maintaining the same pressing stroke, thus effectively achieving the purpose of this utility model.

[0038] The above description is merely an embodiment of this utility model and should not be construed as limiting the scope of this utility model. Any simple equivalent changes and modifications made in accordance with the claims and description of this utility model shall still fall within the scope of this utility model.

Claims

1. A long-stroke keypad device, comprising a substrate, a mounting module disposed on the substrate, a thin-film circuit board disposed above the substrate, an elastic member disposed above the thin-film circuit board, a support module disposed on the mounting module, and a key cover disposed on the support module; characterized in that: The substrate includes a plate body and a retractable portion connected to the plate body. The retractable portion is formed by stamping the substrate and protrudes downward relative to the plate body in the vertical direction. The plate body has a first top surface and a step surface connected between the first top surface and the retractable portion. The retractable portion has a second top surface connected to the step surface and defining a retractable space together with the step surface. The bottom of the elastic member is projected onto the substrate within the second top surface of the retractable portion.

2. The long-stroke keypad device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The retraction space has two first notches arranged oppositely along a first axis perpendicular to the vertical direction.

3. The long-stroke button device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The thin-film circuit board includes a pressing portion located between the elastic member and the retracting portion, a ring frame portion surrounding the pressing portion, and two connecting portions extending from two opposite sides of the pressing portion to the ring frame portion along a second axis perpendicular to the vertical direction and the first axis.

4. The long-stroke button device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The pressing part has two contour segments arranged opposite to each other along the first axis and connected between the connecting parts, and the contour segments extend along the first notch respectively.

5. The long-stroke keypad device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The retraction space also has a second gap located between the first gaps.

6. The long-stroke keypad device according to claim 1, characterized in that: A through hole communicating with the retracted space is formed on the second top surface of the retracted portion. The elastic member has a cover that abuts against the thin film circuit board and the key cover, and a protrusion extending downward from the cover and aligned with the through hole in the vertical direction.

7. The long-stroke button device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The outline of the second top surface of the retracted portion is circular.

8. The long-stroke keypad device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a backlight module disposed below the substrate, and an adhesive layer disposed between the backlight module and the board body, wherein the adhesive layer, the substrate and the backlight module together define a gap, and the retracted portion abuts against the backlight module through the gap.

9. The long-stroke keypad device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The substrate is a metal with a hardness greater than that of aluminum.

10. The long-stroke keypad device according to claim 9, characterized in that: The substrate is made of stainless steel and has a thickness of 0.15 to 0.2 mm.

Images