Bracket for a circuit board component, circuit board component for a household appliance, and household appliance

Abstract

The utility model relates to the technical field of household appliances, and specifically, to a bracket for a circuit board assembly. The circuit board assembly includes a circuit board having a conductive contact pin and an electrical connector configured to be connected to the conductive contact pin. The bracket includes an accommodating portion configured to accommodate the circuit board and a limiting portion configured to prevent the circuit board from being separated from the bracket. The limiting portion includes a first limiting structure. The first limiting structure at least cooperates with the electrical connector to limit displacement of the circuit board in at least one direction in the accommodating portion. The utility model further relates to a circuit board assembly for a household appliance, and a household appliance. Therefore, the bracket can effectively limit the circuit board in the accommodating portion of the bracket, and prevent the circuit board from being displaced or falling off during use in at least one direction, thereby improving reliability and stability of the circuit board assembly. In addition, adverse stress caused to the circuit board during assembly can be avoided, thereby reducing a damage risk of the circuit board, and improving assembly efficiency and a product yield.

Description

[0001] BRACKET FOR CIRCUIT BOARD ASSEMBLY, CIRCUIT BOARD ASSEMBLY FOR HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE, AND HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The utility model relates to the technical field of household appliances, and specifically, to a bracket for a circuit board assembly, a circuit board assembly for a household appliance, and a corresponding household appliance.

[0004] BACKGROUND

[0005] With the rapid development of electronic technologies and continuous increase of requirements of people for intelligent and high-performance household appliance products, a circuit board in a household appliance is developing toward a high speed, a high frequency, and a high density. It also brings new challenges to assembly and connection technologies for the circuit board. A buckling connection manner is one of the most commonly used connection manners in the circuit board of the household appliance. A buckle structure is arranged on the circuit board, and the circuit board and a carrying component are mechanically fixed through elastic deformation and locking of a buckle. This connection manner has advantages such as simple assembly, low costs, and easy maintenance, and is widely used in a medium and low speed circuit board. However, with improvement of a circuit board velocity and increase of a component density, the buckling connection manner gradually exposes some inherent defects and limitations. During assembly, the buckle structure needs a specific amount of elastic deformation and extrusion force to achieve locking. This process causes large mechanical stress to the circuit board and electronic components on the circuit board. In particular, for some precise electronic components, such as a field-effect transistor and an insulated gate bipolar transistor, excessive stress during the assembly may cause these electronic components to be damaged and failed, which seriously affects reliability and a service life of a high-speed circuit board. Another connection manner of the circuit board is a stamp encapsulation technology or a stamp hole encapsulation technology. However, such an advanced encapsulation and interconnection technology significantly increases production costs and a technical threshold of the circuit board.

[0006] Therefore, there is still a real requirement for continuous improvement in assembly and a connection structure of a circuit board assembly.

[0007] SUMMARY

[0008] Based on this, an objective of the utility model is to provide an improved bracket for a circuit board assembly, an improved circuit board assembly for a household appliance, and an improved household appliance, to at least resolve some problems in the existing technologies and / or overcome other possible disadvantages not mentioned in this specification.

[0009] According to a first aspect of the utility model, a bracket for a circuit board assembly is provided. The circuit board assembly includes a circuit board having a conductive contact pin and an electrical connector configured to be connected to the conductive contact pin, the bracket includes an accommodating portion configured to accommodate the circuit board and a limiting portion configured to prevent the circuit board from being separated from the bracket, the limiting portion includes a first limiting structure, and the first limiting structure at least cooperates with the electrical connector to limit displacement of the circuit board in at least one direction in the accommodating portion. Therefore, the bracket can effectively limit the circuit board in the accommodating portion of the bracket, and prevent the circuit board from being displaced or falling off during use in at least one direction, thereby improving reliability and stability of the circuit board assembly. In addition, through a design in which the first limiting structure cooperates with the electrical connector, adverse stress caused to the circuit board during assembly can be avoided, thereby reducing a damage risk of the circuit board, and improving assembly efficiency and a product yield.

[0010] According to an optional embodiment, the first limiting structure includes an upper limiting member and / or a lower limiting member for limiting the electrical connector in a thickness direction of the circuit board. Therefore, the first limiting structure can further limit displacement of the electrical connector in a direction perpendicular to a plane of the circuit board, thereby more effectively fixing a relative location of the electrical connector and the circuit board.

[0011] According to an optional embodiment, the first limiting structure includes limiting side edges that limit the electrical connector on two sides. Therefore, the first limiting structure can further limit displacement of the electrical connector in a direction parallel to the plane of the circuit board, thereby more effectively fixing the relative location of the electrical connector and the circuit board. In addition, the limiting side edges are arranged on the two sides, so that the electrical connector can be prevented from offsetting or sliding in a horizontal direction with reference to the plane of the circuit board, and it is ensured that the electrical connector always maintains an accurate alignment and connection state with the conductive contact pin on the circuit board, thereby improving electrical connection reliability and signal transmission quality of the circuit board assembly.

[0012] According to an optional embodiment, the first limiting structure further includes a hook protruding from the upper limiting member. Therefore, the hook may be engaged with a housing of the electrical connector, to form a firmer and reliable fixing effect. In addition, after the hook is engaged with the electrical connector, the displacement of the electrical connector in the direction parallel to the plane of the circuit board can be further limited, to prevent the electrical connector from falling off when being subjected to a pulling force. In addition, the hook has a simple structure and can be conveniently manufactured in a manner such as by mold forming, which is beneficial to reducing production costs and improving assembly efficiency.

[0013] According to an optional embodiment, the first limiting structure further includes a stop portion protruding from the lower limiting member. Therefore, the stop portion can abut against a bottom of the electrical connector toward the circuit board, thereby limiting further displacement of the electrical connector toward the circuit board in the direction parallel to the plane of the circuit board, and playing a supporting and positioning role. In addition, the stop portion abuts against the bottom of the electrical connector, so that when the electrical connector is subjected to an extrusion force, the force can be transmitted to the bracket, and the extrusion force can be prevented from directly acting on the circuit board, thereby effectively protecting the circuit board, and reducing a risk of failure of precision electronic components on the circuit board.

[0014] According to an optional embodiment, the first limiting structure further includes limiting strips protruding from the limiting side edges. Therefore, the limiting strip can increase a limiting area of the limiting side edge on the electrical connector, thereby providing a more stable and reliable limiting effect.

[0015] According to an optional embodiment, the first limiting structure further includes limiting bottom ribs protruding from the limiting side edges toward each other. Therefore, the limiting bottom rib can limit the displacement of the electrical connector in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the circuit board, and in particular, prevent the electrical connector from floating in a bottom orientation, thereby improving supporting stability of the electrical connector. In addition, the limiting bottom ribs toward each other may also form a groove at a bottom of the limiting side edges, to accommodate a partial structure, such as a cable, extending from the bottom of the electrical connector. According to an optional embodiment, the hook is configured as an elastic hook. Therefore, an elastic characteristic of the hook may be used to deform the hook in a process of being engaged with the electrical connector, to obtain a better cooperating and fixing effect. In addition, the elastic hook also facilitates assembly and disassembly of the electrical connector.

[0016] According to an optional embodiment, the stop portion is configured as a stop contour portion matching a partial outer contour of the electrical connector. Therefore, the stop contour portion can sufficiently match the partial outer contour of the electrical connector, thereby providing a more stable and reliable supporting and limiting effect.

[0017] According to an optional embodiment, a gap is provided between the limiting side edge and the electrical connector. In this way, clearance fit is formed between the limiting side edge and the electrical connector, so that tolerance and size errors in a manufacturing and assembly process of the electrical connector are allowed, and interference or jamming with the limiting side edge caused by size deviation of the electrical connector is avoided, thereby improving assembly efficiency and a product yield of the circuit board assembly.

[0018] According to an optional embodiment, a gap is provided between the limiting bottom rib and the electrical connector. In this way, clearance fit is formed between the limiting bottom rib and the electrical connector, to avoid that the limiting bottom rib is in direct contact with the electrical connector, so that the tolerance and the size errors in the manufacturing and assembly process of the electrical connector are allowed, and the interference or jamming with the limiting bottom rib caused by the size deviation of the electrical connector is avoided, thereby improving the assembly efficiency and the product yield of the circuit board assembly.

[0019] According to an optional embodiment, the limiting portion further includes a second limiting structure, and the second limiting structure at least cooperates with the circuit board to limit the displacement of the circuit board in at least one direction in the accommodating portion. Therefore, in addition to the first limiting structure cooperating with the electrical connector, the second limiting structure can limit the circuit board in more orientations, thereby forming a comprehensive and reliable limiting effect.

[0020] According to an optional embodiment, the bracket further includes at least one vacancy located on a peripheral side of the accommodating portion. Therefore, the vacancy not only can reduce an entire volume and weight of the bracket, but also can facilitate implementing miniaturization and lightweight of the circuit board assembly. In addition, the vacancy is provided on the peripheral side of the accommodating portion, so that it is also convenient for an assembly person to take out or put in the circuit board by using fingers or a tool.

[0021] According to an optional embodiment, the second limiting structure includes a bottom side retaining wall opposite to the first limiting structure. Therefore, the bottom side retaining wall can form a supporting and limiting plane at a bottom of the circuit board, and form an up-down fitting with the first limiting structure, so that a location of the circuit board can be more precisely and reliably limited, especially when the circuit board assembly is mounted on the household appliance in a vertical manner.

[0022] According to an optional embodiment, the second limiting structure includes a peripheral side retaining wall that limits the circuit board at a side edge. Therefore, the peripheral side retaining wall can form a protecting and limiting frame around the circuit board, to prevent the circuit board from greatly displacing or deflecting in the plane.

[0023] According to an optional embodiment, the second limiting structure includes a positioning column configured to cooperate with a through-hole of the circuit board. Therefore, the original through-hole on the circuit board is used to implement precise positioning and reliable fixing of the location of the circuit board, and there is no need to provide an additional positioning hole or a structure on the circuit board, thereby simplifying a design and a manufacturing process of the circuit board. In addition, the positioning column cooperates with the through- hole, so that not only movement of the circuit board in the plane can be limited, but also prepositioning of the circuit board can be assisted, thereby improving assembly efficiency and consistency.

[0024] According to an optional embodiment, the second limiting structure further includes a first angle limiting member and / or a second angle limiting member located at an end of the bottom side retaining wall. Therefore, the first angle limiting member and / or the second angle limiting member may provide an additional limiting and protecting function at a comer portion of the circuit board. In addition, the first angle limiting member and the second angle limiting member cooperate with the comer portion of the circuit board, so that multi-point limiting of the circuit board in the plane may be implemented, thereby improving reliability and stability of the circuit board assembly.

[0025] According to an optional embodiment, the second limiting structure further includes a limiting rib protruding from the bottom side retaining wall and cooperating with a notch of the circuit board. Therefore, the original notch on the circuit board is used to cooperate with the limiting rib of the second limiting structure, to limit movement and rotation of the circuit board in the plane, thereby improving a limiting effect of the circuit board in the plane.

[0026] According to an optional embodiment, the first angle limiting member and the second angle limiting member are configured in mirror images of each other. Therefore, angle limiting members configured in mirror images may be symmetrically distributed at two comer portions of the circuit board. When the circuit board is subjected to an external force, symmetric distribution and balanced transmission of stress may be implemented, to avoid stress concentrated at a certain comer portion of the circuit board, thereby improving reliability and stability of the circuit board assembly. In addition, the mirror image configuration is beneficial to simplifying the design of the bracket and mold manufacturing, and production costs may be reduced and production efficiency may be improved through mold reuse or a symmetrical layout.

[0027] According to an optional embodiment, the first angle limiting member and / or the second angle limiting member has a protrusion protruding toward the circuit board in a thickness direction of the circuit board. Therefore, the limiting effect of the circuit board at the comer portion location is improved. In addition, there is the protrusion protruding toward the circuit board instead of the entire angle limiting member toward a surface of the circuit board, so that an impact area of the circuit board can be reduced when the circuit board is subjected to impact or vibration in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the circuit board, thereby reserving a sufficiently large mounting space for sensitive electronic components.

[0028] According to an optional embodiment, the protrusion is configured as a linear pointed angle, and a gap is provided between the linear pointed angle and the circuit board. Therefore, when the circuit board is subjected to impact or vibration in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the circuit board, the linear pointed angle can reduce an impact area of the circuit board. In addition, the circuit board being damaged due to an excessively large impact force is avoided. A reserved gap between the protrusion and the circuit board can avoid excessive stress concentration caused by the protrusion to the circuit board, reduce abrasion caused by the protrusion to the surface of the circuit board, and can also compensate for size errors in a manufacturing and assembly process of the circuit board to some extent, thereby improving assembly efficiency and a product yield of the circuit board assembly.

[0029] According to a second aspect of the utility model, a circuit board assembly for a household appliance is provided. The circuit board assembly includes: a circuit board, the circuit board having a conductive contact pin; an electrical connector configured to be connected to the conductive contact pin; and the bracket for a circuit board assembly provided by any one of the optional embodiments of the first aspect. Therefore, the bracket having a specific limiting structure provided in the foregoing embodiments is used, so that reliability and stability of the circuit board assembly can be effectively improved, a reliable connection between the circuit board and the electrical connector can be ensured, and the circuit board can be protected from being affected and damaged by external environmental factors such as vibration and impact. According to an optional embodiment, the circuit board is electrically connected to a control panel of the household appliance through the electrical connector. Therefore, a reliable electrical connection and signal transmission between the circuit board and the control panel can be implemented, thereby ensuring normal operation and function implementation of the household appliance.

[0030] According to an optional embodiment, the circuit board includes a field-effect transistor and / or an insulated gate bipolar transistor and / or an antenna element. Therefore, the bracket having a specific limiting structure provided in the foregoing embodiments is used, so that a damage risk of these sensitive electronic components can be effectively reduced.

[0031] According to an optional embodiment, the electrical connector has a spring-type engaging contact pin that clamps to the conductive contact pin. Therefore, a reliable electrical connection and mechanical fixing between the electrical connector and the circuit board can be implemented by using the spring-type engaging contact pin, thereby ensuring integrity and stability of the signal transmission. In addition, the spring-type structural design can provide necessary contact pressure and elasticity compensation in a process of plugging and unplugging, and effectively adapt to size tolerance and a location deviation between the circuit board and the electrical connector, thereby improving reliability of electrical connection.

[0032] According to an optional embodiment, the electrical connector has an outer contour at least partially matching a shape of the first limiting structure. Therefore, through a matching design of the outer contour of the electrical connector and the first limiting structure of the bracket, a stable and reliable limiting and fixing effect can be formed between the electrical connector and the bracket, to prevent the electrical connector from being loosened, falling off, or location offsetting during use, thereby improving reliability and a service life of the circuit board assembly, and facilitating the first limiting structure that cooperates with the electrical connector to reliably limit the circuit board.

[0033] According to a third aspect of the utility model, a household appliance is provided. The household appliance includes: a control panel configured to control running of the household appliance; and the circuit board assembly for a household appliance that is provided in any one of the optional embodiments of the second aspect. The circuit board assembly is electrically connected to the control panel. Therefore, various sensitive components of the household appliance that need to be arranged on the circuit board are advantageously protected by using the circuit board assembly provided in the foregoing embodiments and using the bracket having a specific limiting structure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] The following describes the utility model in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, to better understand principles, features, and advantages of the utility model. The accompany drawings include:

[0035] FIG. 1 shows a household appliance according to an exemplary embodiment of the utility model, and the household appliance is shown in a form of a drum washing machine;

[0036] FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded view of a control panel of the household appliance shown in FIG. 1 and a circuit board assembly connected to the control panel;

[0037] FIG. 3 is a plane view of the circuit board assembly shown in FIG. 2;

[0038] FIG. 4 is a three-dimensional exploded view of the circuit board assembly shown in FIG. 3;

[0039] FIG. 5 is a plane view of a circuit board of the circuit board assembly shown in FIG. 4;

[0040] FIG. 6 is a partial three-dimensional exploded view of the circuit board assembly shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4;

[0041] FIG. 7 is a plane view of the circuit board assembly shown in FIG. 3 again;

[0042] FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line A- A in FIG. 7;

[0043] FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line B-B in FIG. 7;

[0044] FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line C-C in FIG. 7;

[0045] FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line D-D in FIG. 7;

[0046] FIG. 12 is an enlarged partial view at E in FIG. 11;

[0047] FIG. 13 is a schematic partial three-dimensional view viewed from a view direction F in FIG. 12; and

[0048] FIG. 14 is a schematic plane view viewed from a view direction G in FIG. 7.

[0049] Reference numerals:

[0050] 2000: Household appliance; 2001: Control panel; 1000: Circuit board assembly; 900: Circuit board; 901: Conductive contact pin; 902: Through-hole; 903: Notch; 904: Corresponding concave portion; 910: Lower side edge; 920: Upper side edge; 800: Electrical connector; 801 : Spring-type engaging contact pin; 700: Bracket; 710: Accommodating portion; 720: Limiting portion; 730: Vacancy; 100: First limiting structure; 110: Upper limiting member; 111: Hook; 120: Lower limiting member; 121: Stop portion; 130: Limiting side edge; 131: Limiting strip; 132: Limiting bottom rib; 200: Second limiting structure; 210: Bottom side retaining wall; 211: First angle limiting member; 212: Second angle limiting member; 213: Limiting rib; 220: Peripheral side retaining wall; 230: Positioning column; 10: Protrusion; x: Width direction of the circuit board; y: Length direction of the circuit board; z: Thickness direction of the circuit board.

[0051] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0052] To make the technical problems to be resolved, the technical solutions, and the beneficial technical effects of the utility model clearer and more comprehensible, the following further describes the utility model in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and a plurality of exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that, the specific embodiments described herein are merely used for explaining the utility model, but are not intended to limit the protection scope of the utility model. In addition, the embodiments may share the same view or a plurality of views for description, but not all features appearing in the same figure cannot be configured as features that the embodiments need to have.

[0053] Before starting the description, it should be noted that, for convenience, orientation terms or directional terms may be used herein for description. The orientation terms or directional terms are relative to a common use state of a household appliance or a circuit board thereof, and a person skilled in the art may make this clear from the descriptions of the utility model without causing any confusion. In this case, the orientation terms and the directional terms should not be simply interpreted as an orientation or a direction in any state. In other words, in the descriptions of the utility model, orientation or location relationships indicated by the terms such as "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", "longitudinal", "horizontal", "height", "forward", and "backward" in the descriptions of the utility model is based on orientation or location relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are used only for ease and brevity of illustration and descriptions, rather than indicating or implying that the mentioned device or component needs to have a specific orientation or needs be configured and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, such terms should not be understood as limiting of the utility model.

[0054] For ease of understanding, the descriptions made in the background of the utility model may be traced back or recalled herein. One of objectives of the utility model is to provide an improved bracket for a circuit board assembly. The circuit board assembly includes a circuit board having a conductive contact pin and an electrical connector configured to be connected to the conductive contact pin. The bracket includes an accommodating portion configured to accommodate the circuit board and a limiting portion configured to prevent the circuit board from being separated from the bracket. The limiting portion includes a first limiting structure. The first limiting structure at least cooperates with the electrical connector to limit displacement of the circuit board in at least one direction in the accommodating portion. Therefore, the bracket can effectively limit the circuit board in the accommodating portion of the bracket, and prevent the circuit board from being displaced or falling off during use in at least one direction, thereby improving reliability and stability of the circuit board assembly. In addition, through a design in which the first limiting structure cooperates with the electrical connector, adverse stress caused to the circuit board during assembly can be avoided, thereby reducing a damage risk of the circuit board, and improving assembly efficiency and a product yield. FIG. 1 shows a household appliance 2000 according to an exemplary embodiment of the utility model, and the household appliance 2000 is shown in a form of a drum washing machine. However, it should be understood that, the embodiments of the utility model may further be applied to another household appliance such as a washer-dryer, a dishwasher, or a cooker hood. FIG. 1 schematically shows an xyz coordinate system of the household appliance 2000, where x represents a width direction of the household appliance 2000, y represents a height direction of the household appliance 2000, and z represents a depth direction of the household appliance 2000. For the purpose of clarity, the presentations and descriptions are provided with reference to the xyz coordinate system basically in some of the accompanying drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the household appliance 2000 includes a control panel 2001, and the control panel 2001 is configured to control running of the household appliance 2000.

[0055] FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded view of a control panel 2001 of the household appliance 2000 shown in FIG. 1 and a circuit board assembly 1000 connected to the control panel 2001. FIG. 3 is a plane view of the circuit board assembly 1000 shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is an exploded three dimensional view of the circuit board assembly 1000 shown in FIG. 3.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 2, the household appliance 2000 further includes the circuit board assembly 1000. The circuit board assembly 1000, for example, may be configured to transmit (send and / or receive) a radio signal (such as a Wi-Fi signal). The circuit board assembly 1000 is electrically connected to the control panel 2001, to perform signal transmission with another electronic component of the control panel 2001. As shown in FIG. 3 with reference to FIG. 4, the circuit board assembly 1000 includes a circuit board 900, an electrical connector 800, and a bracket 700. The circuit board 900 is electrically connected to the control panel 2001 of the household appliance 2000 through the electrical connector 800. Herein, the circuit board 900 is, for example, constructed as a high-speed circuit board, and the electrical connector 800 is, for example, constructed as a plug or a terminal, and is configured to supply power or perform signal transmission with another electronic device of the control panel 2001. It can be seen from FIG. 1 to FIG. 4, the xyz coordinate system may also be understood as: x also represents a width direction of the circuit board 900, y represents a length direction of the circuit board 900, and z represents a thickness direction of the circuit board. As schematically shown in FIG. 4, the bracket 700 may be configured as an integrally molded member made of plastic.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 3 with reference to FIG. 4, the circuit board 900 has a conductive contact pin 901, and the electrical connector 800 is connected to the conductive contact pin 901. For example, the electrical connector 800 has a spring-type engaging contact pin 801 that cooperates with the conductive contact pin 901. These spring-type engaging contact pins 801 are elastically and retractably clamped to the conductive contact pin 901, thereby implementing a stable mechanical and electrical connection between the electrical connector 800 and the circuit board 900. It can be seen from FIG. 4 that, the bracket 700 has an accommodating portion 710 configured to accommodate the circuit board 900. To prevent the circuit board 900 from falling off of the bracket 700, the bracket 700 further has a limiting portion 720. The limiting portion 720 includes a first limiting structure 100. The first limiting structure 100 at least cooperates with the electrical connector 800 to limit displacement of the circuit board 900 in at least one direction in the accommodating portion 710. To better cooperate with the first limiting structure 100, the electrical connector 800 preferably has an outer contour at least partially matching a shape of the first limiting structure 100.

[0058] FIG. 5 is a plane view of a circuit board 900 of the circuit board assembly 1000 shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is a partial three-dimensional exploded view of the circuit board assembly 1000 shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4. FIG. 7 is a plane view of the circuit board assembly 1000 shown in FIG. 3 again. FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line A- Ain FIG. 7. FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line B-B in FIG. 7. FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line C-C in FIG. 7. FIG. 11 is a schematic cross-sectional view sectioned along a sectional line D-D in FIG. 7. FIG. 12 is an enlarged partial view at E in FIG. 11. FIG. 13 is a schematic partial three- dimensional view viewed from a view direction F in FIG. 12. FIG. 14 is a schematic plane view viewed from a view direction G in FIG. 7.

[0059] As shown in FIG. 8 with reference to FIG. 3 and FIG. 7, the first limiting structure 100 may include an upper limiting member 110 and a lower limiting member 120. Both the upper limiting member 110 and the lower limiting member 120 can limit the electrical connector 800 in the thickness direction z of the circuit board 900, that is, limit movement of the electrical connector 800 in the thickness direction z of the circuit board 900. It can be seen from FIG. 8 that, the first limiting structure 100 may further include a hook 111 protruding from the upper limiting member 110, to hook the electrical connector 800, and prevent the electrical connector 800 (which is upward based on an orientation in FIG. 8) from falling off the bracket 700. Correspondingly, the first limiting structure 100 may further include a stop portion 121 protruding from the lower limiting member 120, to support the electrical connector 800, and prevent the electrical connector 800 (which is downward based on an orientation shown in FIG. 8) from moving toward the circuit board 900 to unexpectedly transmit stress that the electrical connector 800 is subjected to the circuit board 900. When the circuit board assembly 1000 is electrically connected to the control panel 2001 of the household appliance 2000 in FIG. 1 in the orientation shown in FIG. 2, the stop portion 121 can also play a role of carrying at least a part of a weight of the electrical connector 800. Therefore, a translational motion of the electrical connector 800 in the length direction y of the circuit board 900 is limited through the hook 111 and the stop portion 121 of the first limiting structure 100. Herein, the hook 111 is preferably configured as an elastic hook, and the stop portion 121 is preferably configured as a stop contour portion (as shown in FIG. 8 with reference to FIG. 4) matching a partial outer contour of the electrical connector 800.

[0060] Herein, because the electrical connector 800 usually has a plastic housing, the electrical connector 800 can bear a clamping force from the hook 111, and especially because of a stop performed by the stop portion 121, the clamping force is not transmitted to the circuit board 900, thereby protecting delicate electronic components on the circuit board 900 from being damaged and failed.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 14 with reference to FIG. 3 and FIG. 7, the first limiting structure 100 may include limiting side edges 130 that limit the electrical connector 800 on two sides. The two limiting side edges 130 can limit movement of the electrical connector 800 in the width direction x of the circuit board 900. As shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 6, and FIG. 10, the first limiting structure 100 may further include limiting strips 131 protruding from the limiting side edges 130. In addition, the limiting strip 131 cooperates with a corresponding concave portion 904 (also refer to FIG. 5) of the circuit board 900. As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 14, the first limiting structure 100 may further include limiting bottom ribs 132 protruding from the limiting side edges 130 toward each other. In particular, it can be seen from FIG. 14 with reference to FIG. 8 that, five of six degrees of motion freedom of the electrical connector 800 are limited through the upper limiting member 110 and the two limiting side edges 130 of the first limiting structure 100 and the limiting bottom ribs 132 protruding toward each other. It can be schematically seen from FIG. 14 that, both of the limiting side edges 130 on the two sides and the limiting bottom ribs 132 below have gaps with the electrical connector 800. In this way, although five degrees of motion freedom of the electrical connector 800 are limited, serious interference does not occur around the electrical connector 800, thereby facilitating mounting and disassembly. In addition to limiting, as shown in FIG. 8, the translational motion of the electrical connector 800 in the length direction y of the circuit board 900 through the hook 111 and the stop portion 121 of the first limiting structure 100, six degrees of motion freedom of the electrical connector 800 are all limited. Because the electrical connector 800 is clamped to the conductive contact pin 901 of the circuit board 900 through the spring-type engaging contact pin 801, six degrees of motion freedom of the circuit board 900 are also limited to some extent.

[0062] It can be seen from FIG. 6 that, the bracket 700 further includes at least one vacancy 730 located on a peripheral side of the accommodating portion 710, and a minimum size of the vacancy 730 may correspond to, for example, a size of a finger pulp, so that a mounting person can take out or put in the circuit board 900 by using fingers or a small tool. Therefore, when the peripheral side of the accommodating portion 710 protects various peripheral sensitive electronic components on the circuit board 900 as much as possible, a machine or a person is still allowed to act, through the vacancy 730 (and an opposite completely open side edge as exemplarily shown in FIG. 6), on a side edge portion of the circuit board 900 that does not have sensitive electronic components.

[0063] It can be seen from FIG. 4 and FIG. 6 that, in addition to the first limiting structure 100 that cooperates with the electrical connector 800, the limiting portion 720 further includes a second limiting structure 200. The second limiting structure 200 cooperates with at least the circuit board 900, and is configured to, together with the first limiting structure 100, limit the displacement of the circuit board 900 in at least one direction in the accommodating portion 710. The second limiting structure 200 may specifically include a bottom side retaining wall 210, a peripheral side retaining wall 220, and a positioning column 230. As shown in FIG. 4, the bottom side retaining wall 210 is opposite to the first limiting structure 100, and the peripheral side retaining wall 220 limits the circuit board 900 at the side edge. With reference to FIG. 9, the positioning column 230 is configured to cooperate with a through-hole 902 of the circuit board 900, that is, penetrate into the through-hole 902. FIG. 5 exemplarily shows a location of the through-hole 902 of the circuit board 900. As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the second limiting structure 200 may further include a first angle limiting member 211 and a second angle limiting member 212. The first angle limiting member 211 and the second angle limiting member 212 are preferably respectively located at two opposite ends of the bottom side retaining wall 210 and are configured in mirror images of each other. It can be seen from FIG. 11, FIG. 12, and FIG. 13 that, the first angle limiting member 211 and / or the second angle limiting member 212 has a protrusion 10 protruding toward the circuit board 900 in the thickness direction z of the circuit board 900. The protrusion 10 is preferably configured as a linear pointed angle as shown schematically in FIG. 13 and has a gap with the circuit board 900. A length of the gap herein is, for example, 0.1 mm to 0.2 mm.

[0064] Further preferably, the second limiting structure 200 may further include a limiting rib 213. As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 11, the limiting rib 213 protrudes from the bottom side retaining wall 210 and cooperates with the notch 903 of the circuit board 900. FIG. 5 exemplarily shows a location of the notch 903 of the circuit board 900. The through-hole 902, the notch 903, and the corresponding concave portion 904 of the circuit board 900 are, for example, configured as originally required assembly portions of the circuit board 900 in a production line. It can be seen from FIG. 5 that, the circuit board 900 includes a field-effect transistor and / or an insulated gate bipolar transistor and / or an antenna element. These electronic components are not only densely assembled, but also are extremely sensitive.

[0065] In a preferred embodiment, assembly of the circuit board assembly 1000 may be implemented through the following steps: first, a lower side edge 910 of the circuit board 900 and that is opposite to the conductive contact pin 901 is obliquely inserted toward the first angle limiting member 211 and the second angle limiting member 212 until the lower side edge 910 abuts against the bottom side retaining wall 210, in this case, the limiting rib 213 also cooperates with the notch 903 of the circuit board 900; then, an upper side edge 920 on which the conductive contact pin 901 is located is placed toward the accommodating portion 710 of the bracket 700, so that the positioning column 230 of the bracket 700 passes through the through-hole 902 of the circuit board 900 and the limiting strip 131 is inserted into the corresponding concave portion 904, to complete cooperation between the circuit board 900 and the bracket 700; and finally, the electrical connector 800 cooperates with the first limiting structure 100 and the circuit board 900, that is, the electrical connector 800 is inserted into a space formed by the upper limiting member 110, the lower limiting member 120, and the limiting side edge 130 of the first limiting structure 100 until the spring-type engaging contact pin 801 of the electrical connector 800 is clamped to the conductive contact pin 901 of the circuit board 900. In this way, displacement of the circuit board 900 in the accommodating portion 710 of the bracket 700 is limited in all six degrees of motion freedom, so that the circuit board assembly 1000 implements stable assembly of the circuit board assembly 1000. Herein, in addition to that the spring-type engaging contact pin 801 of the electrical connector 800 needs to be clamped to and cooperating with the conductive contact pin 901 of the circuit board

[0066] 900 originally, during assembly of the circuit board assembly 1000, there is no buckling manners that may damage precise electronic components on the circuit board 900. Therefore, the bracket 700 provided in the embodiments of the utility model is used, so that the circuit board 900 carrying these dense electronic components can be limited in the accommodating portion 710 of the bracket 700 without directly buckling the circuit board 900, thereby significantly reducing a possibility of failure of these extremely sensitive electronic components.

[0067] Other advantages and alternative implementations of the utility model are obvious to a person skilled in the art. Therefore, in a broader sense, the utility model is not limited to the specific details, the representative structure, and the exemplary implementation manners shown and described. A person skilled in the art can make various modifications and replacements without departing from the basic spirit and scope of the utility model.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is claimed is:

1. A bracket for a circuit board assembly, the circuit board assembly (1000) comprising a circuit board (900) having a conductive contact pin (901) and an electrical connector (800) configured to be connected to the conductive contact pin (901), characterized in that the bracket (700) comprises: an accommodating portion (710) configured to accommodate the circuit board (900); and a limiting portion (720) configured to prevent the circuit board (900) from being separated from the bracket (700), the limiting portion (720) comprising a first limiting structure (100), and the first limiting structure (100) at least cooperating with the electrical connector (800) to limit displacement of the circuit board (900) in at least one direction in the accommodating portion (710).

2. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the first limiting structure (100) comprises: an upper limiting member (110) and / or a lower limiting member (120) for limiting the electrical connector (800) in a thickness direction (z) of the circuit board (900); and / or limiting side edges (130) that limit the electrical connector (800) on two sides.

3. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that the first limiting structure (100) further comprises: a hook (111) protruding from the upper limiting member (110); a stop portion (121) protruding from the lower limiting member (120); limiting strips (131) protruding from the limiting side edges (130); and / or limiting bottom ribs (132) protruding from the limiting side edges (130) toward each other.

4. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that the hook (111) is configured as an elastic hook; the stop portion (121) is configured as a stop contour portion matching a partial outer contour of the electrical connector (800); and / or a gap is provided between the limiting side edge (130) and the electrical connector (800), and / or a gap is provided between the limiting bottom rib (132) and the electrical connector (800).

5. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the limiting portion (720) further comprises a second limiting structure (200), and thesecond limiting structure (200) at least cooperates with the circuit board (900) to limit the displacement of the circuit board (900) in at least one direction in the accommodating portion (710); and / or the bracket (700) further comprises at least one vacancy (730) located on a peripheral side of the accommodating portion (710).

6. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that the second limiting structure (200) comprises: a bottom side retaining wall (210) opposite to the first limiting structure (100); a peripheral side retaining wall (220) that limits the circuit board (900) at a side; and / or a positioning column (230) configured to cooperate with a through-hole (902) of the circuit board (900).

7. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that the second limiting structure (200) further comprises: a first angle limiting member (211) and / or a second angle limiting member (212) located at an end of the bottom side retaining wall (210); and / or a limiting rib (213) protruding from the bottom side retaining wall (210) and cooperating with a notch (903) of the circuit board (900).

8. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that the first angle limiting member (211) and the second angle limiting member (212) are configured in mirror images of each other; and / or the first angle limiting member (211) and / or the second angle limiting member (212) has a protrusion (10) protruding toward the circuit board (900) in a thickness direction (z) of the circuit board (900).

9. The bracket for a circuit board assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the protrusion (10) is configured as a linear pointed angle, and a gap is provided between the linear pointed angle and the circuit board (900).

10. A circuit board assembly for a household appliance, characterized in that the circuit board assembly (1000) comprises: a circuit board (900), the circuit board (900) having a conductive contact pin (901); an electrical connector (800) configured to be connected to the conductive contact pin (901); and the bracket for a circuit board assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. The circuit board assembly for a household appliance according to claim 10, characterized in thatthe circuit board (900) is electrically connected to a control panel (2001) of the household appliance (2000) through the electrical connector (800); the circuit board (900) comprises a field-effect transistor and / or an insulated gate bipolar transistor and / or an antenna element; and / or the electrical connector (800) has a spring-type engaging contact pin (801) that clamps to the conductive contact pin (901); and / or the electrical connector (800) has an outer contour at least partially matching a shape of the first limiting structure (100).

12. A household appliance, characterized in that the household appliance (2000) comprises: a control panel (2001) configured to control running of the household appliance (2000); and the circuit board assembly for a household appliance according to claim 10 or 11, the circuit board assembly (1000) being electrically connected to the control panel (2001).

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