Patent Application
20070241940
Accordingly, the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 mainly provides functions of waterproof and air permeable. When the user carelessly spills water on the air permeable keyboard module 100, the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 can block water, and prevent water from flowing inside the electronic apparatus and thereby protect the electronic devices of the portable electronic apparatus. In another aspect, as the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 has good air permeability, the heat generated by a heat source located below the air permeable keyboard module 100 may easily penetrate through the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 and dissipated to the outside. That is, compared with the conventional PET waterproof layer, the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 can improve the heat dissipation effect of the air permeable keyboard module 100.
In the present embodiment, the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 is a hydrophobic fiber layer comprising, for example, a micro-pore structure. Therefore, water drops cannot pass through the micro-pore structure, and thus the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 is provided with the waterproof property. In another aspect, air molecules can pass through the micro-pore structure to carry away the heat, such that the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 has an air permeable property. However, the material and structure of the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 are not limited to those described in the present invention. For example, the material of the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 may comprise a Gore-tex fiber.
Referring to
When being pressed, the key cap 132 will forcefully deform the elastic protrusion 136, and get depressed such that the circuit of the touch portion 122 of the flexible PCB 120 is conducted by contact, thereby actuating the corresponding circuit operation. When the external force on the key cap 132 is released, the deformed elastic protrusion 136 generates a restoring force such that the key cap 132 springs back to the original position. However, the key 130 having the key cap 132, support structure 134, and elastic protrusion 136 is exemplified herein as an example to illustrate the embodiment of the present invention, and the constitution of the key 130 will not be limited thereto. The constitution of the key 130 is not limited to those described above.
Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the flexible PCB 120 is a thin film switch which comprises, for example, an upper conductive layer, a lower conductive layer, and an insulating plate between the upper and lower conductive layers. When the two conductive layers are pressed together (by pressing the key 130) through holes in the insulating plate, the switch is turned on. However, the type of the flexible PCB 120 is not limited in the present invention. For example, the flexible PCB 120 can also be a piezoelectric switch which mainly produces piezoelectric effect when an external force is applied to a piezoelectric chip to make the piezoelectric chip generate a practicable switching voltage or switching charge. Moreover, the flexible PCB 120 can also be a capacitance sensing switch or other suitable switch devices.
A notebook computer is exemplified below for illustrating the portable electronic apparatus of the present invention. However, the portable electronic apparatus of the present invention is not limited to a notebook computer, the present invention may also be applied to any other portable electronic devices, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA), mobile phone, and so on.
Particularly, the unidirectional air permeable material layer 230 is disposed on the bottom surface of the keyboard 220 and mainly provides waterproof and air permeable functionalities. When the user carelessly spills water onto the keyboard 200, the unidirectional air permeable material layer 140 can block water and prevent water from flowing inside the portable electronic apparatus 200, and thereby protect the control unit 212 or other devices in the host 210. In another aspect, as the unidirectional air permeable material layer 230 is air permeable, the heat generated by the control unit 212 or other devices in the host 210 may easily penetrate the unidirectional air permeable material layer 230 and get dissipated to the outside from the keyboard 220. Therefore, the portable electronic apparatus 200 of the present invention has a better waterproof and heat dissipation effects.
In addition, as the portable electronic apparatus 200 has a better heat dissipation effect, electronic devices with better operating performance can be disposed in the portable electronic apparatus 200 to enhance the performance thereof.
In view of the above, the air permeable keyboard module and portable electronic apparatus of the present invention have at least the following advantages.
1. As the unidirectional air permeable material layer is characterized by its air permeability, the air permeable keyboard module and portable electronic apparatus have a better heat dissipation effect.
2. Electronic devices with better operating performance can be disposed in the portable electronic apparatus, thus enhancing the performance thereof.
Though the present invention has been disclosed above by the preferred embodiments, they are not intended to limit the invention. Anybody skilled in the art can make some modifications and variations without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the protecting range of the invention falls in the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 95113332 | Apr 2006 | TW | national |
