Patent Application
20080023808
Many aspects of the present chip package and digital camera module using same can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the chip package and digital camera module using same. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.
Referring to
The chip package 20 includes a carrier 21, a chip 23, a plurality of wires 24, a supporting member 25, a first adhesive 26, and a cover 28.
The carrier 21 includes a base board 211, a sidewall 212 upwardly extending from a periphery of the base board 211, and a cavity 213 cooperatively formed by the base board 211 and the sidewall 212 for receiving electronic components. The cavity 213 defines an opening communication with ambient air. The carrier 21 further includes a plurality of top contacts 215 arranged on a top surface of the sidewall 212, and a plurality of bottom contacts 216 disposed on a bottom surface of the base board 211. The carrier 21 can have a one-piece shape, for example, the base board 211 and the sidewall 212 can be formed by injection molding. Alternatively, the carrier 21 can be assembled from a separate base board 211 and a separate sidewall 212. Each top contact 215 electrically connects with a corresponding bottom contact 216 via a respective interconnecting device (not shown). The top and bottom contacts 215, 216 are both configured for electrically connecting with other electronic components, for example the top contacts 215 can be used to electrically connect to a chip and the bottom contacts 216 can be used to electrically connect with a printed circuit board (PCB), thereby transmitting signals from the chip to the PCB via the interconnecting device. The interconnecting device can be plated through-holes or conductive leads electrically connecting the top contacts 215 to the bottom contacts 216.
The chip 23 can be, for example a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor transistor (CMOS) image sensor, or a charge coupled device (CCD) image sensor, and is received in the cavity 213, and is attached to the base board 211. A top surface of the chip 23 is arranged with an active area 231 (e.g., a photo-registering zone) and a number of pads 233 arranged around the active area 231. The pads 233 are configured for electrically connecting with other electronic components to transmit electrical signals from the chip 23 to other electronic components.
The wires 24 can be made of a conductive material with good electric conductivity, such as gold or aluminum alloy. One end of each wire 24 is connected/joined with a respective pad 233 of the chip 23, and the other end of the wire 24 is connected/joined with a respective top contact 215 of the carrier 21.
The supporting member 25 is adapted for supporting the cover 28 above the top surface of the chip 23. According to the preferred embodiment, the supporting member 25 is a frame, and is disposed on the top surface of the chip 23, between the active area 231 and the pads 233. It is to be understood that the supporting member 25 can include four columns which are disposed at respective corners of the top surface of the chip 23.
The first adhesive 26 is applied to the top surface of the chip 23 along a peripheral circumference, and covers the supporting member 25 and connecting areas where the wires 24 connect/join with the pads 233. The first adhesive 26 can be further applied to the wires 24 in a manner so as to cover the whole of each wire 23 in order to protect the wires 23 from damage due to external force.
The cover 28 is transparent plate member made of glass or plastic so as to allow light to transmit therethrough, and is disposed above the top surface of the chip 23. The cover 28 is smaller than the opening of the cavity 213 of the carrier 21, and is larger than the active area 231 of the chip 23. The cover 28 is supported by the supporting member 25 so as to be spaced from the top surface of the chip 23 to avoid damaging the wires 23, and is adhered to the first adhesive 26. The cover 28 and the first adhesive 26 cooperatively define a sealing space to enclose the active area 231 of the chip 23.
The second adhesive 40a is applied to the top surface of the sidewall 212 of the carrier 21, and covers connecting areas where the wires 24 electrically connect with the top contacts 215. The second adhesive 40b is applied to a peripheral circumference of a top surface of the cover 28.
The lens module 50 includes a barrel 51, at least one lens 52 and a filter 53. The barrel 51 is a hollow cylinder for receiving the at least one lens 52 and the filter 53 therein, and has an external thread 513 formed on an external surface thereof. One end of the barrel 51 is covered by a plate 511 which has a transparent region 512 formed in a central portion thereof so that light can be transmitted therethrough.
The holder 60 includes a cylinder portion 61 configured (i.e., structured and arranged) for receiving the lens module 50, a seat portion 63 from which the cylinder portion 61 projects, and a through hole defined by the respective interiors of the cylinder portion 61 and the seat portion 633 and penetrating therethrough. The cylinder portion 61 has an internal thread 612 formed thereon for mating with the external thread 513 of the lens module 50. The seat portion 63 has an inner circumferential wall 631, a frame section 633 and a stopper ring 635. The inner circumferential wall 631 has a dimension approximately equal to that of the peripheral circumference of the cover 28. The frame section 633 axially extends from a periphery of an end of the seat portion 63, positioned opposite to the cylinder portion 61, for mounting with the carrier 21. The stopper ring 635 radially protrudes from the inner circumferential wall 631, and has an inner periphery which is of a size smaller than that of the peripheral circumference of the cover 28.
The seat portion 63 of the holder 60 receives the chip package 20 therein, wherein an end of the frame section 633 is adhered to the sidewall 212 of the carrier 21 via the second adhesive 40a, the inner circumferential wall 631 tightly contacts with a peripheral sidewall of the cover 28, and a bottom surface of the stopper ring 635 is adhered to the cover 28 via the second adhesive 40b. The cylinder portion 61 receives the lens module 50 therein, with the internal thread 612 of the cylinder portion 61 engaging with the internal thread 513 of the barrel 51. The at least one lens 52 faces toward the active area 231 of the chip 23 to form an image thereon.
In an alternative embodiment, the lens module 50 can be omitted so long as at least one lens is received in the cylinder portion 61 of the holder 60 to form a focused image on the active area 231 of the chip 23.
In the aforesaid chip package 20 of the digital camera module 10, the cover 28 and the first adhesive 26 cooperatively form a relative small sealing space to seal the active area 231 of the chip 23. Thus, the sealing space contains relatively little dust particles therein, the pollution and/or contamination of the active area 231 is reduced and the quality and reliability of the digital camera module 10 is much improved.
In addition, the cover 28 is supported by the supporting member 25, thus there is minimal risk that of the cover 28 being mounted at a slant. Furthermore, the inner circumferential wall 631 of the seat portion 63 of the holder 60 contacts with the peripheral wall of the cover 28, thus the holder 61 can be easily and precisely mounted to the chip package 20. Accordingly, the lens module 50 received in the holder 60 can be aligned with the chip 23. Therefore, the quality of the digital camera module 10 can be further improved.
It is believed that the present embodiments and their advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be apparent that various changes may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the examples hereinbefore described merely being preferred or exemplary embodiments of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200610061870.5 | Jul 2006 | CN | national |
This application is related to two co-pending U.S. patent applications (Attorney Docket No. US11426 and US11427), respectively entitled “CHIP PACKAGE AND DIGITAL CAMERA MODULE USING SAME” and “CHIP PACKAGE AND DIGITAL CAMERA MODULE USING SAME”, by Chih-Cheng Wu et al. Such applications have the same assignee as the present application and have been concurrently filed herewith. The above-identified applications are incorporated herein by reference.
