Fabric Layer Laser Ablation for Keyboard Key Stiffness Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Manufacturing variations in electronic device structures, such as overly stiff fabric layers, can lead to yield issues and require discarding parts if not addressed with suitable rework techniques.
Innovation Solution
The use of laser ablation and other processing techniques to adjust the stiffness of fabric layers by selectively removing material from border regions surrounding keys in electronic devices, ensuring keys exhibit desired stiffness levels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If laser ablation is used to remove fabric material to reduce stiffness, then key flexibility is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Laser ablation is performed on the fabric layer during the manufacturing process before final assembly, pre-adjusting the stiffness characteristics of border regions to ensure keys meet flexibility specifications without requiring post-assembly adjustments or rework
Solution Approach 2:
Laser ablation is applied selectively to specific border regions surrounding individual keys that exhibit excessive stiffness, rather than uniformly processing the entire fabric layer, thereby achieving localized stiffness modification only where needed
2Reliability
If manufacturing variations cause overly stiff fabric layers, then product quality deteriorates, but with rework techniques parts can be salvaged instead of discarded
Solution Approach 1:
The laser ablation process modifies the physical parameters of the fabric layer by removing material in controlled patterns, changing the stiffness parameter from an unacceptable state (too stiff) to an acceptable state (within specification), thereby salvaging parts that would otherwise be discarded due to manufacturing variations
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 approach allows for the effective modification of fabric stiffness, reducing manufacturing variations and preventing part discard, thereby improving manufacturing yield and key performance.
Implementation Method 1
laser ablation techniques or other processing techniques may be used to ablate portions of a fabric layer, thereby removing fabric and reducing fabric stiffness in the border regions
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic device such as a cover for a portable device or other electronic equipment may have circuitry mounted in a housing. The housing may be formed from layers of material such as fabric and polymer layers. The circuitry of the electronic device may include components mounted on a printed circuit. The components may include movable components such as keys in a keyboard. A fabric layer may overlap the keys. Border regions of the fabric layer that surround each key may be characterized by a stiffness. To ensure that the keys or other movable components in the device exhibit satisfactory stiffness levels, the keys can be tested and selected border regions or other fabric layer portions may be laser ablated or otherwise processed to locally reduce fabric layer stiffness.