SIM Card Connecting Device With Patterned Contacts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional SIM card connecting devices for portable electronic devices suffer from increased thickness due to protruding connectors, which cause friction and damage to the SIM card, leading to poor contact over time and increased device thickness.
Innovation Solution
A SIM card connecting device with patterned contacts on a printed circuit board and a housing that presses the SIM card to maintain electrical contact, eliminating the need for protruding connectors and minimizing device thickness by allowing the SIM card to be inserted and extracted easily, with dome-shaped or coplanar contacts ensuring stable engagement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If protruding connectors are used to maintain stable electrical contact with the SIM card, then contact reliability is improved, but the device thickness increases and friction damage occurs to the SIM card
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of having connectors protrude outward to contact the SIM card, the invention inverts the approach by having the SIM card's contacts protrude into recessed cavities in the housing to contact the printed circuit board. This eliminates the need for outward-protruding connectors while maintaining stable electrical contact, thereby reducing device thickness and preventing friction damage to the SIM card.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the protruding connectors from the housing structure and relocates the contact function to the SIM card itself. By removing the unnecessary connectors and using the SIM card's own contacts to protrude into housing cavities, the design eliminates the source of friction damage and reduces overall device thickness while preserving electrical contact reliability.
2Reliability
If protruding connectors are used to ensure stable contact, then electrical connection reliability is improved, but friction damage occurs to the SIM card patterns
Solution Approach 1:
The invention reverses the contact mechanism: instead of connectors protruding and sliding against the SIM card (causing friction), the SIM card contacts protrude into pre-formed recessed cavities. This inversion eliminates relative motion and friction during insertion, preventing damage to the SIM card patterns while maintaining stable electrical contact.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing cavities are pre-formed with dimensions that accommodate the SIM card contacts, providing a cushioning effect that absorbs insertion forces. This beforehand preparation prevents excessive friction and damage during the insertion process, protecting the SIM card patterns while ensuring reliable electrical connection.
3Reliability
If conventional socket structure with protruding connectors is used, then electrical contact is maintained, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates the complex socket structure with protruding connectors, simplifying the housing design to include only recessed cavities. This reduction in structural complexity lowers manufacturing costs and assembly difficulty while maintaining electrical contact reliability through the SIM card's own contacts.
Solution Approach 2:
The SIM card contacts serve multiple functions: they provide electrical connection and simultaneously act as the protruding element that engages with the printed circuit board. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate connectors, simplifying the overall structure and reducing manufacturing complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card connecting device for a portable electronic device which is adapted to further reduce a thickness of the portable electronic device by limiting the height of the SIM card connecting device. The device includes: a printed circuit board (PCB); one or more patterned contacts provided on the PCB and being coupled with one or more contacts formed on the SIM card; and a housing mounted on the PCB for allowing the SIM card to be inserted into/extracted from the housing. The housing presses the inserted SIM card so that the contacts of the SIM card and the patterned contacts come into substantial pressurized contact and/or pressurized contact with each other, depending on a shape of the patterns. According to the present invention, the SIM card mounting space can be reduced, and the portable electronic device can have a further reduction in thickness.