Clickpad Cantilever Arm Pivot Mechanism for Tactile Feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing clickpad implementations lack a desirable tactile feeling for users, especially when handling notebook information handling systems from one side, due to mechanical stresses that affect the clickpad's functionality.
Innovation Solution
A clickpad design featuring a support bracket, cantilever arm, and circuit board, where the cantilever arm pivots about a pivot axis in response to force perpendicular to the clickpad surface, and a touch sensor on the circuit board generates an electrical signal upon contact with an emboss, enhancing tactile feedback and mechanical stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If existing clickpad implementations are used, then the device structure is simple, but the tactile feeling is poor and mechanical stresses affect functionality
Solution Approach 1:
The clickpad is divided into functionally independent components: a support bracket for structural mounting, a cantilever arm for mechanical movement, and a circuit board with touch sensor for detection. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function, improving tactile feedback while maintaining manufacturing simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The cantilever arm is designed as a dynamic component that pivots about a pivot axis in response to user input. This dynamic mechanism provides tactile feedback through controlled movement and return, enhancing the user experience without requiring complex mechanical structures.
2Reliability
If the clickpad is subjected to mechanical stresses from handling, then the device remains portable, but the tactile feedback is negatively affected
Solution Approach 1:
The support bracket is mechanically coupled to the housing using multiple fasteners to provide pre-stabilization and structural support. This beforehand reinforcement ensures that the clickpad maintains its mechanical stability and tactile feedback characteristics even when subjected to handling stresses during portable use.
3Ease of operation
If a cantilever arm with pivot axis is used, then tactile feedback is improved, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cantilever arm is designed to utilize the natural pivot point formed by the interaction between the arm itself and the support bracket structure. This self-aligning mechanism reduces the need for high-precision manufacturing of the pivot axis, as the geometry of the components guides the pivot location automatically during assembly.
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
The design improves the tactile experience and mechanical stability of the clickpad, reducing the negative effects of mechanical stresses on the tactile feedback, thereby enhancing user interaction with the information handling system.
Implementation Method 1
a touch sensor configured to detect tactile events on the clickpad
Implementation Method 2
the cantilever arm may be configured to pivot about a pivot axis proximate to the pivot end in response to a force exerted on the surface of the clickpad substantially perpendicular to a surface of the clickpad
Implementation Method 3
mechanically supported at the pivot end between the support bracket and the housing by a compressive force of the plurality of fasteners applied to the support bracket and the housing
Data Source
AI summary
In accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure, a method may include mechanically supporting a cantilever arm of a clickpad between a support bracket and a housing by a compressive force of the plurality of fasteners applied to the support bracket and the housing, and free of any features for receiving any of a plurality of fasteners for coupling the support bracket to the housing, wherein the cantilever arm has a pivot end and a trigger end, and such that the cantilever arm pivots about a pivot axis proximate to the pivot end in response to a force exerted on the surface of the clickpad substantially perpendicular to a surface of the clickpad.