Camera Assembly Mounting with Spring Finger and Compression Block
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable electronic devices face challenges in maintaining precise positioning of internal components like cameras and sensors due to impact from drops, leading to potential misalignment and damage.
Innovation Solution
The use of a sensor retention assembly with a spring finger and compression block that biases the camera assembly away from the sidewall, allowing it to separate during impact and return to its original position, preventing contact with adjacent components and maintaining proper functioning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the camera assembly is rigidly fixed to the housing, then manufacturing precision and assembly alignment are improved, but reliability under impact conditions deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The camera assembly is mounted on a compliant mechanism that allows dynamic movement during impact events. The spring finger and compression block create a flexible mounting system that adapts to impact forces while maintaining precise positioning during normal operation, resolving the contradiction between rigid fixation for precision and flexibility for impact resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The spring finger and compression block are pre-configured to provide cushioning force before impact occurs. These components are biased in advance to absorb and mitigate impact forces when the device is dropped, preventing the camera assembly from suffering damage while maintaining its precisely engineered position during normal use.
2Reliability
If the camera assembly is allowed to move freely, then reliability under impact conditions is improved, but manufacturing precision and assembly alignment deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting mechanism transitions from a static rigid connection to a dynamic system that constrains the camera assembly during normal operation but allows controlled movement during impact. The spring finger and compression block create a constrained dynamic system that maintains precision positioning while providing impact protection.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the mechanical constraints on the camera assembly based on operational conditions. During normal operation, the spring finger and compression block maintain precise positioning through controlled elastic deformation. During impact, these same components allow greater movement by absorbing impact energy, effectively changing the mechanical parameters of the mounting system in response to external forces.
3Reliability
If compliant mounting components are added, then reliability under impact conditions is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The spring finger and compression block utilize flexible elastic components to provide impact protection. These thin, compliant elements absorb impact forces through elastic deformation without requiring complex mechanical structures, reducing the overall complexity of the mounting mechanism while maintaining reliability under impact conditions.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution effectively absorbs impact forces, prevents misalignment, and ensures the camera and sensor components remain functional by allowing protective displacement during drops and returning to their precise positions post-impact.
Implementation Method 1
a spring finger biasing the camera assembly away from the sidewall
Implementation Method 2
a compression block disposed between the camera assembly and the sidewall
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic device includes a housing having a sidewall defining an internal volume, a display secured to the housing, a camera assembly disposed in the internal volume between the display and the sidewall, a spring finger biasing the camera assembly away from the sidewall, and a compression block disposed between the camera assembly and the sidewall.