Touch sensor assembly
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing touch sensor assemblies for household appliances face challenges in accurately sensing movement displacement during touch operations and maintaining high recognition rates, particularly due to issues with static electricity and structural support, which can lead to damage and reduced sensitivity.
Innovation Solution
A touch sensor assembly with a hole-shaped sensor support portion on a printed circuit board, an elastic member at the rear surface, and a copper coating film on a plastic material, where the touch sensor is supported by the circumference but not the center, allowing for concentrated force application and improved sensitivity, along with a separated sensor controller to prevent static electricity damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If the touch sensor is fully supported by the sensor PCB, then the structural stability is improved, but the sensitivity to touch displacement deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor support structure is segmented into two distinct zones: a circumferential support region that provides structural stability, and a central unsupported region that allows for touch-induced displacement. This segmentation enables the sensor PCB to maintain overall rigidity while permitting localized flexibility at the touch sensing area.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor PCB exhibits different mechanical properties at different locations: the peripheral regions are designed with higher rigidity for structural support, while the central region is designed with lower rigidity to enable displacement during touch operations. This local differentiation of mechanical properties resolves the contradiction between stability and sensitivity.
2Device complexity
If the sensor controller is integrated with the touch sensor assembly, then the device complexity is reduced, but the reliability deteriorates due to static electricity damage
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor controller is extracted from the touch sensor assembly and positioned in a separate location within the display assembly. This physical separation removes the vulnerable controller from the static electricity-prone environment of the touch sensor, thereby improving reliability without significantly increasing overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
A cable connection serves as an intermediary between the touch sensor assembly and the sensor controller. This intermediary connection allows signal transmission while providing electrical isolation that protects the controller from static electricity discharge at the touch sensor interface.
3Measurement precision
If the touch sensor assembly is pressed against the exterior member, then the recognition rate of touch operations is improved, but the risk of static electricity damage to the controller increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor controller is extracted from proximity to the touch sensor assembly, removing it from the high-risk zone where static electricity discharge could occur during touch operations. This spatial extraction maintains touch recognition accuracy while eliminating the controller from exposure to harmful static electricity.
Solution Approach 2:
The cable connection acts as an intermediary that transmits touch signals from the pressed sensor assembly to the controller while providing electrical isolation. This intermediary protection allows the sensor assembly to maintain contact with the exterior member for accurate recognition without exposing the controller to static electricity damage.
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 solution enhances the sensitivity and recognition rate of touch operations by accurately sensing displacement and preventing damage from static electricity, while also improving the structural integrity and recognizability of the display window.
Implementation Method 1
an elastic member which applies elastic force so as to maintain a state in which the touch sensor assembly is pressed against the exterior member
Implementation Method 2
since the circumference of the touch sensor is supported, a ceramic material of the center of the touch sensor is easily elastically deformed, and thus, an effect that a sensitivity of the touch sensor is improved can be expected
Data Source
AI summary
In a sensor assembly, a hole-shaped sensor support portion is formed at a sensor printed circuit board (PCB), a touch sensor is disposed at the sensor support portion, and an elastic member is installed at a rear surface of the sensor PCB. In addition, a sensor assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a sensor PCB on which a copper coating film which constitutes a circuit is printed on a top surface of a plastic material, a touch sensor seated on a sensor support portion formed at the sensor PCB, and a cover member which is attached onto a rear surface of the sensor PCB and covers the sensor support portion.