Card-type media, and method for manufacturing card-type media

Abstract

The card-type medium according to a mode of the present invention comprises a card body, an exposed part accommodated inside an opening formed on the surface of the card body and placed with a part thereof exposed to the surface; and a circuit board embedded in the card body and having the exposed part mounted thereto. The exposed part includes a first exposed part mounted to the circuit board via an intermediate spacer. The first exposed part and the intermediate spacer are bonded to each other by a first conductive bonding material. The circuit board and the intermediate spacer are bonded to each other by a second conductive bonding material. The bonding formation temperature of the first conductive bonding material and the bonding formation temperature of the second conductive bonding material are different from each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a card-type medium and a method for manufacturing the card-type medium. This application claims priority based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2021-004389 filed in Japan on January 14, 2021, and incorporates its content herein by reference.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, many types of card-type media have been developed, such as credit cards, cash cards, prepaid cards, membership cards, gift cards, membership certificates, and the like. Furthermore, in recent years, card-type media (hereinafter simply referred to as "IC cards") that realize various functions by embedding an IC (Integrated Circuit) module having a communication function or the like have also become widespread. In such an IC card with a communication function, for example, non-contact communication with a reader / writer is also performed using a communication technology of an electromagnetic induction method such as RFID (Radio Frequency IDentifier).

[0003] In an IC card, a circuit board, elements such as an IC module and an antenna mounted on the circuit board, are embedded in a card body. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration including a secure element and a fingerprint processing unit connected to a flexible circuit board, and a contact pad electrically connected to the secure element. In the configuration described in Patent Document 1, the contact pad is arranged so as to be exposed on the surface (front surface) of the card body. The contact pad is housed inside an opening formed on the surface of the card body.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

[0005] Exposed components, such as contact terminals and fingerprint sensors, which are partially exposed on the card surface, may be attached to a circuit board embedded within the card body via an intermediate spacer to ensure proper height alignment. However, in such cases, the positional accuracy of the exposed components may decrease due to misalignment between the exposed components and the intermediate spacer.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a card-type medium having a structure that can improve the positioning accuracy of exposed components attached to a circuit board via an intermediate spacer, and a method for manufacturing such a card-type medium. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A card-type medium according to an aspect of the present invention comprises a card body, an exposed component housed inside an opening formed on the surface of the card body and positioned so as to be partially exposed on the surface, and a circuit board embedded in the card body to which the exposed component is attached, wherein the exposed component includes a first exposed component attached to the circuit board via an intermediate spacer of uniform thickness, the first exposed component and the intermediate spacer are joined by a first conductive bonding material, and the circuit board and the intermediate spacer are joined by a second conductive bonding material. The bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material is higher than the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material.

[0008] A method for manufacturing a card-type medium according to an aspect of the present invention is a method for manufacturing a card-type medium, comprising a configuration in which the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material is higher than the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material, the method comprising: a step of bonding a first exposed component and the intermediate spacer with the first conductive bonding material; and a step of bonding the intermediate spacer bonded to the first exposed component and the circuit board with the second conductive bonding material. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the above-described aspect of the present invention, a card-type medium that can stably arrange its components in desired positions, and a method for manufacturing the card-type medium can be provided. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] This is an external view of an IC card according to an embodiment of the present invention, as seen from the front side. [Figure 2] This is a cross-sectional view of an IC card according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] This is a cross-sectional view showing part of the procedure for joining exposed components in an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] This is a cross-sectional view of an IC card in a first modified example of an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] This is a cross-sectional view showing part of the procedure for joining exposed components in a second modified embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] In this embodiment, the bonding temperature of the bonding material refers to the minimum temperature at which bonding can be achieved by the bonding material. For example, in the case of a metal bonding material such as solder, the bonding temperature is approximately synonymous with the melting point. In the case of a material in which conductive particles are dispersed in a thermoplastic resin such as anisotropic solder, the bonding temperature is a temperature determined by the physical properties of the constituent resin and conductive particles.

[0013] The bonding temperature of the bonding material can be determined, for example, by performing various tests on card-type media subjected to different temperatures and examining those in which the electrical and mechanical bonding meets predetermined requirements. In this embodiment, in addition to continuity verification, tests are performed based on JIS X 6305-1 (Test methods for identification cards - Part 1: General properties) 5.8 Dynamic bending force and 5.9 Dynamic torsional force, and tests are performed based on IEC 60749-25 (Semiconductor devices - Mechanical and weathering test methods - Part 25: Temperature cycling).

[0014] Hereinafter, an IC card according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 5. Figure 1 is an external view of the IC card according to an embodiment of the present invention, as seen from the front side. Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the IC card according to an embodiment of the present invention. The IC card 1 of this embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2 is a dual-interface IC card equipped with a contact terminal 22, which is a contact-type interface, and an antenna 50 (see Figure 2), which is a non-contact-type interface. Furthermore, the IC card 1 of this embodiment has a biometric authentication function using a fingerprint sensor 21. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the IC card 1 (card-type medium) comprises a card body 10, an exposed component 20, an enclosed component 30, a circuit board 40, and an antenna 50. In this embodiment, the exposed component 20 includes a fingerprint sensor 21 and a contact terminal 22.

[0015] The card body 10 is plate-shaped and formed in a rectangular shape when viewed from the card thickness direction Dt (see Figure 2), which is perpendicular to its surface 10f. Here, the card thickness direction Dt is the direction perpendicular to the surface 10f and back surface 10g of the card body 10. The surface 10f is the upper end surface of the card body 10 located in the card thickness direction Dt in Figure 2. The back surface 10g is the lower end surface of the card body 10 located in the card thickness direction Dt in Figure 2. In the following description, "surface 10f side" means the upper side in Figure 2, and "back surface 10g side" means the lower side in Figure 2.

[0016] The card body 10 is formed with a thickness Dt in the card thickness direction, for example, about 0.5 to 1.0 mm. If the IC card 1 is a credit card, the thickness of the card body 10 is 0.76 mm. As shown in Figure 2, the card body 10 is constructed by laminating multiple sheet-like card base materials 401 and 402 in the card thickness direction Dt.

[0017] On the card base material 401 disposed on the surface 10f side of the card body 10, openings 410 for accommodating the exposed components 20 are formed. In this embodiment, two openings 410 are formed. In each opening 410, a fingerprint sensor 21 and a contact terminal 22 are respectively accommodated. The openings 410 are formed to penetrate the card base material 401 in the card thickness direction Dt.

[0018] In this embodiment, the card base material 401 is formed of a metallic material having conductivity, such as stainless steel or titanium alloy. In the card base material 401, the plate thickness in the card thickness direction Dt is, for example, 100 μm or more and 500 μm or less. The card base material 401 may be formed using a plastic base material.

[0019] In the card base material 401, a recess 420 is formed on the base material back surface 401g facing the back surface 10g side in the card thickness direction Dt. The recess 420 is formed to be recessed from the base material back surface 401g toward the surface 10f side in the card thickness direction Dt. An encapsulated component 30 is accommodated in the recess 420. When the card base material 401 is formed of a metallic material, the openings 410 and the recess 420 are formed by laser processing or cutting processing.

[0020] The card base material 402 disposed on the back surface 10g side of the card body 10 is formed using an insulating plastic base material such as a polyester-based material such as amorphous polyester, a vinyl chloride-based material such as PVC (polyvinyl chloride), a polycarbonate-based material, or PET-G (polyethylene terephthalate copolymer).

[0021] On the surface 10f side of the card substrate 401 and the back surface 10g side of the card substrate 402, exterior resin layers 403 and 404 are respectively formed. The exterior resin layer 403 forms the surface 10f of the card body 10. The exterior resin layer 404 forms the back surface 10g of the card body 10. The exterior resin layer 403 covers the entire surface of the card substrate 401 on the 10f side except for the opening 410. The exterior resin layer 404 covers the entire surface of the card substrate 402 on the 10g side. The exterior resin layers 403 and 404 are formed by, for example, laminating (films).

[0022] In this embodiment, the card substrate 401 and the card substrate 402 are integrated by conversion processing using hot press lamination, adhesives, etc. The card substrate 401 and the card substrate 402 may be integrated by cold press lamination using a two-component curable resin, a room temperature curable resin, or a UV curable resin. In this embodiment, a ferrite layer 405 is disposed between the card substrate 401 and the card substrate 402.

[0023] The circuit board 40 is embedded in the card body 10. In this embodiment, the circuit board 40 is located between the card substrate 401 and the card substrate 402 in the card thickness direction Dt. More specifically, the circuit board 40 is sandwiched between the ferrite layer 405 and the card substrate 402 in the card thickness direction Dt. Although not shown, the circuit board 40 is disposed inside the outer edge of the card body 10 when viewed from the card thickness direction Dt. Although not shown, the circuit board 40 has a rectangular outer shape when viewed from the card thickness direction Dt. The thickness of the circuit board 40 in the card thickness direction Dt is, for example, 15 μm or more and 50 μm or less. In this embodiment, the circuit board 40 is disposed in a plane orthogonal to the card thickness direction Dt along the surface 10f side of the card substrate 402 disposed on the back surface 10g side of the card body 10.

[0024] In this embodiment, the circuit board 40 is made of a flexible circuit board. The circuit board 40 has a base substrate 40a made of an insulating material such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polycarbonate (PC), polyimide (PI), or glass epoxy. Although not shown in the figures, a predetermined wiring pattern made of a conductive thin film such as aluminum or copper, formed by etching or the like, is arranged on the surface of the base substrate 40a of the circuit board 40. In this embodiment, for example, the wiring pattern is arranged on the surface 10f side of the base substrate 40a.

[0025] The internal component 30 is embedded within the card body 10. In this embodiment, the IC card 1 has an IC chip 31 as the internal component 30. The IC chip 31 is bonded to the substrate surface 40f of the circuit board 40 facing the surface 10f side. The IC chip 31 is housed in a recess 420. A gap is provided between the IC chip 31 and the inner surface of the recess 420. In this embodiment, the IC chip 31 is bonded to the surface 10f side (substrate surface 40f) of the circuit board 40 by a conductive bonding material 450a. The conductive bonding material 450a is, for example, an anisotropic solder with a bonding temperature of 180°C or lower. In the present invention, anisotropic solder refers to a material in which conductive solder particles are dispersed in a thermoplastic resin.

[0026] The IC chip 31 is a so-called secure IC microcontroller, and exemplified, has a fingerprint authentication function using a fingerprint sensor 21 and a communication function with the outside world via contact terminals 22 or an antenna 50. Known configurations having contact-type communication functions and contactless communication functions can be used for the IC chip 31. Although not shown in the figures, the IC chip 31 is formed in a rectangular shape when viewed from the card thickness direction Dt.

[0027] The IC chip 31 is electrically connected to the fingerprint sensor 21, the contact terminals 22, and the antenna 50 via wiring patterns formed on the circuit board 40. In other words, the circuit board 40 has a fingerprint sensor wiring section that electrically connects the IC chip 31 and the fingerprint sensor 21, a contact terminal wiring section that electrically connects the IC chip 31 and the contact terminals 22, and an antenna wiring section that electrically connects the IC chip 31 and the antenna 50.

[0028] The exposed component 20 is housed inside an opening 410 formed on the surface 10f of the card body 10, with a portion of it exposed to the surface 10f. As described above, in this embodiment, the exposed component 20 includes a fingerprint sensor 21 (first exposed component) and a contact terminal 22 (second exposed component). The fingerprint sensor 21 and the contact terminal 22 are mounted on the substrate surface 40f of the circuit board 40. That is, the exposed component 20 is attached to the circuit board 40.

[0029] In this embodiment, the fingerprint sensor 21 is a first exposed component attached to the circuit board 40 via an intermediate spacer 471. The fingerprint sensor 21 is formed in a rectangular shape when viewed from the card thickness direction Dt. Although not shown in the figures, the fingerprint sensor 21 has a configuration in which a protective film is provided to cover a number of electrodes. As shown in Figure 1, the fingerprint sensor 21 is positioned on one side (RH side) of the long side direction D1 of the card body 10 with respect to the center of the surface 10f of the card body 10.

[0030] The intermediate spacer 471 has connecting electrodes (not shown) made of copper foil or the like formed on the front and back surfaces of an insulating base substrate such as glass epoxy. The connecting electrodes on the front and back surfaces of the intermediate spacer 471 are electrically connected by through holes or vias formed by copper plating or the like. The intermediate spacer 471 is electrically connected to the circuit board 40 and the fingerprint sensor 21 via the connecting electrodes.

[0031] The intermediate spacer 471 allows the surface position of the fingerprint sensor 21 in the card thickness direction Dt to be aligned with the surface position of the contact terminal 22 in the card thickness direction Dt, even if the component thickness of the fingerprint sensor 21 in the card thickness direction Dt is different from that of the contact terminal 22, by selecting the height of the intermediate spacer 471.

[0032] The fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 are joined by a first conductive bonding material 451a. The circuit board 40 and the intermediate spacer 471 are joined by a second conductive bonding material 451b. The bonding formation temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the bonding formation temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b are different from each other. In this embodiment, the bonding formation temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a is higher than the bonding formation temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b. The first conductive bonding material 451a is, for example, an Ag paste with a bonding formation temperature of 220°C, and the second conductive bonding material 451b is, for example, an anisotropic solder with a bonding formation temperature of 180°C or lower. In this embodiment, the second conductive bonding material 451b is the same material as the conductive bonding material 450a used to bond the IC chip 31.

[0033] The bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a is lower than the heat resistance temperature of the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 to be bonded. For example, in this embodiment, when glass epoxy is used for the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471, a material with a bonding temperature of 250°C or less is selected as the first conductive bonding material 451a. The bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a is preferably 200°C or higher and 250°C or lower. The bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b is lower than the heat resistance temperature of the circuit board 40. The bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b is, for example, 120°C or higher and 180°C or lower. The bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b is preferably 120°C or higher and 170°C or lower. The difference between the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b is, for example, 20°C or more. The difference between the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b is preferably 30°C or more.

[0034] Furthermore, the card dimensions are defined by standards; for example, if IC card 1 is a credit card, the thickness of the card body 10 is 0.76 mm. Therefore, there is an appropriate range for the thickness of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the thickness of the second conductive bonding material 451b. In this embodiment, the thickness of the first conductive bonding material 451a is preferably 5 μm or more and 100 μm or less, and the thickness of the second conductive bonding material 451b is preferably 5 μm or more and 100 μm or less.

[0035] In this embodiment, the contact terminal 22 is a second exposed component that is directly bonded to the circuit board 40. The contact terminal 22 is formed in a rectangular shape when viewed from the card thickness direction Dt. The contact terminal 22 is made electrically connectable by contacting an external contact terminal provided on a contact-type external device such as an ATM. The contact terminal 22 is made of an insulating substrate such as glass epoxy or polyimide (PI), on which a conductive pattern is formed by etching or the like, and then plated with nickel, palladium, gold, or the like. In this embodiment, the contact terminal 22 is located on the other side (LH side) of the long side direction D1 along the surface 10f of the card body 10, relative to the center of the surface 10f of the card body 10.

[0036] In this embodiment, the contact terminal 22 is bonded to the surface 10f side (substrate surface 40f) of the circuit board 40 by a conductive bonding material 450b. In this embodiment, the conductive bonding material 450b is the same material as the second conductive bonding material 451b, and is, for example, an anisotropic solder with a bonding temperature of 180°C or lower.

[0037] The fingerprint sensor 21, contact terminals 22, and intermediate spacer 471 are positioned with a gap C between them and the inner circumferential surface of the opening 410. When a metal material is used for the card body 10, the gap C is designed to prevent electrical short circuits between the exposed components 20, the intermediate spacer 471, and each conductive bonding material and the card body 10.

[0038] The antenna 50 is formed in a rectangular shape along the periphery of the circuit board 40, as viewed from the card thickness direction Dt. The antenna 50 is formed with one or more turns along the periphery of the circuit board 40. The antenna 50 is formed, for example, as part of a wiring pattern formed on the circuit board 40. The antenna 50 may be a separate component from the circuit board 40. If the antenna 50 is a separate component from the circuit board 40, it can be formed, for example, by arranging a metal plate, metal foil, or metal wires formed into a predetermined antenna shape. In this case, the antenna 50 and the wiring pattern of the circuit board 40 are joined by soldering, welding, pressure bonding, or the like.

[0039] Next, a method for manufacturing the IC card 1 according to this embodiment will be described. Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view showing part of the procedure for joining the fingerprint sensor 21 as the first exposed component. The method for manufacturing the IC card 1 according to this embodiment includes a first joining step of joining the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 with a first conductive bonding material 451a, and a second joining step of joining the intermediate spacer 471 joined to the fingerprint sensor 21 and the circuit board 40 with a second conductive bonding material 451b. That is, after the step of joining the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 with the first conductive bonding material 451a (pre-step) is performed, the step of joining the intermediate spacer 471 and the circuit board 40 with the second conductive bonding material 451b (post-step) is performed.

[0040] As shown in Figure 3, in the second bonding step, the bonded assembly, in which the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 are bonded, is brought close to the circuit board 40 from above, and the intermediate spacer 471 is bonded to the substrate surface 40f. The bonding of the intermediate spacer 471 and the substrate surface 40f is performed using a second conductive bonding material 451b. After the intermediate spacer 471 and the substrate surface 40f are brought into contact via the second conductive bonding material 451b, which has been heated to a state where bonding can be formed, the intermediate spacer 471 and the substrate surface 40f are bonded together as the second conductive bonding material 451b hardens.

[0041] Here, when joining the intermediate spacer 471 and the circuit board 40 with the second conductive bonding material 451b, it is necessary to apply heat to the second conductive bonding material 451b to make it ready for bonding. Therefore, conventionally, the heat applied when joining the intermediate spacer 471 and the circuit board 40 may cause at least a portion of the first conductive bonding material 451a that joins the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 to melt, causing the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 to shift. Consequently, the fingerprint sensor 21 may be misaligned relative to the circuit board 40.

[0042] In contrast, in the IC card 1 according to this embodiment, the fingerprint sensor 21, which is a first exposed component, and the intermediate spacer 471 are joined by a first conductive bonding material 451a, and the circuit board 40 and the intermediate spacer 471 are joined by a second conductive bonding material 451b, and the bonding formation temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the bonding formation temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b are different from each other. For this reason, a pre-process is performed in which the conductive bonding material with the higher bonding formation temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the second conductive bonding material 451b is used for bonding, and a post-process is performed in which the conductive bonding material with the lower bonding formation temperature is used for bonding. This allows the post-process to be performed at a lower temperature than the temperature required to bond using the conductive bonding material in the pre-process. Therefore, when heat is applied in the post-process, it is possible to suppress the melting of the conductive bonding material used for bonding in the pre-process. Consequently, even when heat is applied in the post-process, it is possible to suppress the loosening or detachment of the bond between the members that were bonded in the pre-process. In other words, in a subsequent process using the conductive bonding material with the lower bonding temperature, heat is applied so that the conductive bonding material with the lower bonding temperature becomes ready for bonding, while the conductive bonding material with the higher bonding temperature does not melt. This allows bonding to be performed in the subsequent process without the bonding between the members bonded in the previous process becoming loose or detached. As a result, the subsequent process can be carried out while ensuring the bonding from the previous process, and even when the intermediate spacer 471 is used, the relative positional displacement between the exposed component 20 and the intermediate spacer 471 can be suppressed. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the placement accuracy of the exposed component 20 attached to the circuit board 40 via the intermediate spacer 471 can be improved. Furthermore, because the placement accuracy of the exposed component 20 can be improved, interference between the exposed component 20 and the inner surface of the opening 410 can be suppressed.

[0043] Specifically, in the IC card 1 according to this embodiment, the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a is higher than the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b. Therefore, as described above, after performing the step of bonding the fingerprint sensor 21 as a first exposed component and the intermediate spacer 471 with the first conductive bonding material 451a (pre-step), the intermediate spacer 471 bonded to the fingerprint sensor 21 and the circuit board 40 are bonded with the second conductive bonding material 451b (post-step). This suppresses loosening or detachment of the bond between the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471, while simultaneously bonding the intermediate spacer 471 and the circuit board 40 with the second conductive bonding material 451b. This prevents the fingerprint sensor 21 from being misaligned when mounted on the circuit board 40. Consequently, the positioning accuracy of the fingerprint sensor 21 mounted on the circuit board 40 via the intermediate spacer 471 can be improved. Furthermore, in subsequent processes, the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 can be treated as a single mounting component, making it easier to mount the fingerprint sensor 21 onto the circuit board 40.

[0044] The difference between the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b is, for example, 20°C or more. Preferably, the difference between the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a and the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b is 30°C or more. By using two types of conductive bonding materials with such a temperature difference, the temperature applied when bonding in a subsequent process can be made sufficiently lower than the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a. Therefore, the effect of heating the second conductive bonding material 451b on the first conductive bonding material 451a can be further reduced. Consequently, even if heat is applied when bonding using the second conductive bonding material 451b in a subsequent process, the loosening or detachment of the bond between the members bonded in the previous process can be more effectively suppressed.

[0045] In this embodiment, the IC card 1 includes a contact terminal 22 as a second exposed component that is directly bonded to the circuit board 40. In other words, in this embodiment, a portion of the exposed component 20 is attached to the circuit board 40 without using an intermediate spacer 471. Therefore, the total number of components and the total man-hours during manufacturing can be reduced compared to the case where an intermediate spacer 471 is used for all exposed components 20.

[0046] In this embodiment, the IC card 1 includes a fingerprint sensor 21 as a first exposed component and contact terminals 22 as a second exposed component. The fingerprint sensor 21 tends to be relatively thinner than the contact terminals 22. Therefore, an intermediate spacer 471 is often required to match the height of the fingerprint sensor 21 with the height of the contact terminals 22. In contrast, in this embodiment, as described above, even when using the intermediate spacer 471, the displacement of the fingerprint sensor 21 can be suppressed, so the fingerprint sensor 21 can be positioned with high positional accuracy. Therefore, when the first exposed component is the fingerprint sensor 21, the effect of improving the positional accuracy of the exposed components 20 described above can be obtained more effectively.

[0047] On the other hand, the contact terminal 22 tends to be relatively thicker than the fingerprint sensor 21. Therefore, even if the contact terminal 22 is attached to the circuit board 40 without the intermediate spacer 471, it is easy to match its height with the fingerprint sensor 21 which is attached to the circuit board 40 via the intermediate spacer 471. Consequently, there is no need to use the intermediate spacer 471 for the contact terminal 22, and the increase in the number of components of the IC card 1 can be suppressed.

[0048] As described above, by joining the fingerprint sensor 21, which tends to be relatively thin, to the circuit board 40 using an intermediate spacer 471, and by directly joining the contact terminals 22, which tend to be relatively thick, to the circuit board 40, it is possible to suppress an increase in the number of components of the IC card 1 while arranging each exposed component 20 with high precision.

[0049] (First variation) Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the IC card 2 in the first modified example. In the above embodiment, the fingerprint sensor 21 is bonded to the circuit board 40 via an intermediate spacer 471, and the contact terminal 22 is directly bonded to the circuit board 40. However, the bonding configuration of exposed components is not limited to this. As shown in Figure 4, the contact terminal 23 may also be attached to the circuit board 40 via an intermediate spacer 472. In other words, the exposed component 20 does not have to include a second exposed component that is directly bonded to the circuit board 40. In this modified example, the contact terminal 23 is the first exposed component. The other configurations of the contact terminal 23 are the same as those of the contact terminal 22. The intermediate spacer 472 is similar to, for example, the intermediate spacer 471 used in the fingerprint sensor 21.

[0050] In this modified example, as shown in Figure 4, the contact terminal 23 is joined to the intermediate spacer 472 by a first conductive bonding material 452a. The intermediate spacer 472 is joined to the circuit board 40 by a second conductive bonding material 452b. In this modified example, the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 452a is higher than that of the second conductive bonding material 452b. Therefore, by using a bonding method similar to the bonding method of the fingerprint sensor 21 described in the above embodiment, the positioning accuracy of the contact terminal 23 attached to the circuit board 40 via the intermediate spacer 472 can be improved.

[0051] The first conductive bonding material 452a is, for example, the same material as the first conductive bonding material 451a used to bond the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471. The second conductive bonding material 452b is, for example, the same material as the second conductive bonding material 451b used to bond the intermediate spacer 471 and the circuit board 40. The first conductive bonding material 452a may be made of a different material than the first conductive bonding material 451a, and its bonding temperature may also be different from that of the first conductive bonding material 451a. The second conductive bonding material 452b may be made of a different material than the second conductive bonding material 451b, and its bonding temperature may also be different from that of the second conductive bonding material 451b.

[0052] With these intermediate spacers 472 and 471, even if the component thickness of the fingerprint sensor 21 in the card thickness direction Dt differs from the component thickness of the contact terminal 23, the surface positions of the fingerprint sensor 21 and the contact terminal 23 in the card thickness direction Dt can be suitably aligned by selecting the heights of the intermediate spacers 472 and 471, respectively.

[0053] (Second variation) Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view showing part of the procedure for joining the fingerprint sensor 21 as the first exposed component in the second modified example. In the above embodiment, the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a is higher than the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 451b. However, the embodiment is not limited to this, and the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material may be higher than the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material.

[0054] As shown in Figure 5, the method for manufacturing an IC card according to a second modified example of this embodiment includes the steps of joining a circuit board 40 and an intermediate spacer 471 with a second conductive bonding material 453b, and joining the intermediate spacer 471 joined to the circuit board 40 and the fingerprint sensor 21 as a first exposed component with a first conductive bonding material 453a. That is, after the step of joining the intermediate spacer 471 and the circuit board 40 with the second conductive bonding material 453b (pre-step) is performed, the step of joining the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 with the first conductive bonding material 453a (post-step) is performed. At this time, the bonding formation temperature of the second conductive bonding material 453b is higher than the bonding formation temperature of the first conductive bonding material 453a. The first conductive bonding material 453a can be selected in the same way as the second conductive bonding material 451b described above. The first conductive bonding material 453a is, for example, an anisotropic solder with a bonding temperature of 180°C or lower, and the second conductive bonding material 453b is, for example, an Ag paste with a bonding temperature of 220°C.

[0055] As described above, in this modified example, the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 453b is higher than the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 453a. Therefore, when bonding the fingerprint sensor 21 and the intermediate spacer 471 using the first conductive bonding material 453a in a later process, even if heat is applied to the first conductive bonding material 453a to make it ready for bonding, it is possible to suppress the loosening or detachment of the bond between the intermediate spacer 471 and the circuit board 40. Consequently, it is possible to suppress the shifting of the fingerprint sensor 21 relative to the circuit board 40 and improve the placement accuracy of the fingerprint sensor 21.

[0056] Although each embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and modifications and combinations of the configuration are also included without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0057] For example, the components mounted as enclosed components 30 and exposed components 20 are not limited to the IC chip 31, fingerprint sensor 21, and contact terminals 22; other components may be mounted as appropriate. Also, in the above embodiments, the exposed components 20 are provided as two types: the fingerprint sensor 21 and the contact terminals 22, but this is not limited to this. The types and number of exposed components 20 and enclosed components 30 can be changed as appropriate. Furthermore, while an IC card 1 used as a credit card is given as an example of a card-type medium, its form and use are not limited in any way.

[0058] The combination of bonding temperatures for each conductive bonding material is not particularly limited, as long as it is appropriate for the combination of manufacturing processes. For example, in the first modified example, the bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material 451a may be higher than that of the second conductive bonding material 451b, and the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material 452b may be higher than that of the first conductive bonding material 452a. In this case, the fingerprint sensor 21 is bonded to the circuit board 40 by the bonding method shown in Figure 3, and the contact terminals 23 are bonded to the circuit board 40 by the bonding method shown in Figure 5.

[0059] Furthermore, the conductive bonding materials for directly joining exposed components to the circuit board, and conductive bonding materials for directly joining enclosed components to the circuit board, are not limited to the embodiments described above. For example, the conductive bonding material for directly joining exposed components to the circuit board may be the same material as the conductive bonding material with the higher bonding temperature among the first and second conductive bonding materials, or it may be a different material from both the first and second conductive bonding materials. Also, the conductive bonding material with the higher bonding temperature is not limited to Ag paste, but may be other ACF (Anisotropic Conductive Film) or ACP (Anisotropic Conductive Paste), for example. ACF and ACP are, for example, film-like or paste-like materials in which conductive particles are dispersed in a thermoplastic resin. In addition, the first and second conductive bonding materials may be solders having only alloys. In this case, the conductive bonding material with the higher bonding temperature may be a solder with a relatively high melting point, and the conductive bonding material with the lower bonding temperature may be a solder with a relatively low melting point, such as a low-temperature solder. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0060] 1,2…IC card (card-type medium), 10…Card body, 10f…Surface, 20…Exposed component, 21…Fingerprint sensor (first exposed component), 22…Contact terminal (second exposed component), 23…Contact terminal (first exposed component), 40…Circuit board, 410…Opening, 451a,452a,453a…First conductive bonding material, 451b,452b,453b…Second conductive bonding material, 471,472…Intermediate spacer

Claims

1. The card itself, An exposed component is housed inside an opening formed on the surface of the card body and is positioned such that a portion of it is exposed on the surface, The card body comprises a circuit board embedded within it and to which the exposed component is attached, wherein the exposed component includes a first exposed component attached to the circuit board via an intermediate spacer of uniform thickness. The first exposed component and the intermediate spacer are joined together by a first conductive bonding material. The circuit board and the intermediate spacer are joined together by a second conductive bonding material. The bonding temperature of the first conductive bonding material is higher than the bonding temperature of the second conductive bonding material. Card-type media.

2. The exposed component includes a second exposed component that is directly bonded to the circuit board. The card-type medium according to claim 1.

3. The first exposed component includes a fingerprint sensor, The second exposed component includes contact terminals, The card-type medium according to claim 2.

4. A step of joining the first exposed component and the intermediate spacer with the first conductive bonding material, The process includes the step of joining the intermediate spacer, which is joined to the first exposed component, and the circuit board with a second conductive bonding material, A method for manufacturing a card-type medium according to claim 1.

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