This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. ยง119(a) from Korean Patent Application No. 10-2007-0075874, filed on Jul. 27, 2007, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present general inventive concept relates to an electronic device, and more particularly, to an electronic device having an electrostatic discharge function to prevent damage due to static electricity.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones, MP3 players, and the like, include a connector for connecting with other electronic devices such as computers, and the like. For example, a portable electronic device may include a USB (universal serial bus) connecting jack, which is a type of a male connector, and a computer may include a USB slot, which is a type of a female connector. When such connectors are connected to each other to exchange signals or the connection is released, static electricity may occasionally occur.
Meanwhile, since the portable electronic devices have been becoming compact and lighter, it is difficult to secure enough ground to discharge such static electricity. Accordingly, the static electricity flows into a main circuit substrate of the electronic device, so that main functions of the electronic device are negatively affected or cause malfunctions to sometimes occur. Accordingly, methods of solving the above-described problems are required.
The present general inventive concept provides a portable electronic device that can secure enough ground so that static electricity does not flow into a main circuit substrate.
Additional aspects and utilities of the present general inventive concept will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the general inventive concept.
The foregoing and/or other aspects and utilities of the general inventive concept may be achieved by providing an electronic device including a housing, a main circuit substrate disposed in one side of the housing, a connector unit disposed in an other side of the housing and is electrically connected to the main circuit substrate, and a discharging sheet disposed in the one side of the housing and is conductively connected to the connector unit to discharge static electricity generated in the connector unit.
The electronic device may include a battery disposed in the one side of the housing to supply power, and a battery gasket to cover at least a portion of the battery in order to protect the battery and to conductively adhere to the discharging sheet.
The connector unit may include a first frame which is made of metals and may include a first guide hole extending in a reciprocating direction, a second frame which includes a push button elastically biased in a protruding direction from a lateral portion of the housing and a second guiding hole that overlaps with the first guiding hole when the push button is pressed and has a first locking groove portion and a second locking groove portion in both end portions thereof, a pin which is made of metal and is accommodated in the first and second guiding holes so that the pin can reciprocate along the first and second guiding holes, a connector member fixedly coupled to the pin, a link that elastically presses the pin in a direction in which the connector member protrudes from the housing, and a connector circuit substrate which is mounted on the connector member and is conductively connected to the pin.
The first frame and the pin may be made of stainless steel.
The link may be made of metal and be conductively coupled to the first frame and the pin.
The link may be made of stainless steel.
The connector circuit substrate may include an opening formed to accommodate an end portion of the pin protruding towards the connector circuit substrate, a discharging terminal formed around the opening, and a pin contacting sheet which is connected to the discharging terminal and to conductively contact the end portion of the pin.
A first frame of the connector unit and the discharging sheet may be connected to each other by a screw.
The main circuit substrate and the connector circuit substrate may be connected to each other by a flexible printed circuit.
The foregoing and/or other aspects and utilities of the general inventive concept may also be achieved by providing an electronic device including a main circuit substrate, a connector unit electrically connected to the main circuit through a connector, and a static electricity path conductively connected to the connector unit to prevent static electricity from being conducted from the connector unit to the main circuit substrate through the connector.
The foregoing and/or other aspects and utilities of the general inventive concept may also be achieved by providing an electronic device including a housing, a main circuit substrate disposed in the housing, a discharging sheet spread-apart from the main circuit substrate in the housing, and a connector unit connected to the main circuit substrate, movable between a first position and a second position where the connector unit protrudes from the housing to be connected to an external device, and connected to the discharging sheet to discharge static electricity from the connector unit to the discharging sheet.
The main circuit substrate and the discharging sheet can be disposed in a first side of the housing, and the connector unit can be disposed in a second side of the housing.
The connector unit can include a connector circuit substrate to be connected to the external device, a connector member to accommodate the connector circuit substrate, and a frame unit to move the connector member between the first position and the second position with respect to the housing.
The connector unit can include a link unit to movably link the connector member and the frame unit.
The connector unit can include a connection bracket formed on the frame unit, and a terminal formed on the connector circuit substrate and electrically connected to the discharging sheet through the connection bracket.
Static electricity generated in a connector unit does not flow into a main circuit substrate by securing enough ground. Accordingly, damage of the main circuit substrate or malfunction of the electronic device due to the static electricity can be prevented.
These and/or other aspects and utilities of the present general inventive concept will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:
Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the present general inventive concept, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present general inventive concept by referring to the figures.
Referring to
The connector unit 104 is inserted in the housing and includes the connector circuit substrate 143 that protrudes so as to connect with other electronic devices. Referring to
A first through hole 103 is formed in a front surface of the base member 101 and a second through hole 102 is formed in one side surface of the base member 101. A protruding portion 136 of the connector member 135 protrudes through the first through hole 103, and a push button 116, included in the second frame 115, protrudes to be elastically pressed through the second through hole 102.
The first frame 105 is made of metal and, for example, may be made of stainless steel. The first frame 105 includes a first guiding hole 106 extending in a reciprocating direction of the connector member 135 and a pair of guide rails 111 extending in the same reciprocating direction parallel to the first guiding hole 106. The pair of guide rails 111 are slidably coupled to a pair of guide slits 137 formed in a lower surface of the connector member 135. The first frame 105 also includes four second frame coupling brackets 108 that slidably support the second frame 115 and a connection bracket 113 to connect with the discharging sheet 150 (see
The second frame 115 is coupled to the second frame coupling brackets 108 so that the second frame 115 is slidably coupled to the first frame 105 in a perpendicular direction to the reciprocating direction of the connector member 135. The second frame 115 is elastically biased in a direction in which the push button 116 protrudes to a side of the housing by a compression spring 124. An end of the compression spring 124 is supported by a compression spring bracket 112 formed in the first frame 105 and the other end of the compression spring 124 is supported by a compression spring bracket 118 formed in the second frame 115.
The second frame 115 includes a second guiding hole 120 that overlaps with the first guiding hole 106 when the push button 116 is pressed to move the second frame 115 with respect to the first frame 105. The second guiding hole 120 includes a first locking groove portion 121 and a second locking groove portion 122, which are concavely grooved in both ends thereof in a direction in which a compression force to the push button 116 is applied. The second guiding hole 120 also includes a V-shaped lateral portion 123 that slants in the direction in which a compression force to the push button 116 is applied towards a center of the second guiding hole 120. The second frame 115 may be also formed of metal, and, for example, may be formed of stainless steel.
The link 125 includes a first joint 126 that is connected to the first frame 105, and a second joint 128 that is connected to the first joint 126 and the pin 140. The first joint 126 is rotatably mounted on the first frame 105 by a first stud 130 which is inserted through a first end portion 126a of the first joint 126 into a first stud inserting hole 114 formed in the first frame 105. Also, a second joint 128 is rotatably mounted on the first joint 126 by a second stud 132, which is sequentially inserted into a first end portion 128a of the second joint 128 and a second end portion 126b of the first joint 126. The link 125 may be also formed of metal, and, for example, may be formed of stainless steel.
The pin 140 is sequentially inserted into a pin accommodating through hole 138 of the connector member 135, a second end portion 128b of the second joint 128, the first guiding hole 106, and the second guiding hole 120, and is fixed with respect to the connector member 135 by a pin cover 139 that covers the pin accommodating through hole 138. The connector circuit substrate 143, including a connecting terminal 144 to connect with a connector unit (not illustrated) of another electronic device (not illustrated), is attached to an upper surface of the connector member 135. Referring to
The pin 140 may be formed of metal, and, for example, may be formed of stainless steel. An upper end portion 140a of the pin 140 protrudes towards the connector circuit substrate 143. Referring to
The pin contacting sheet 147 is made of a conductive sheet, and, for example, may be made of a conductive sheet used to shield the electronic device 100 from electromagnetic interference (EMI). The pin contacting sheet 147 shields an opening 145, however, since the pin contacting sheet 147 is made of a flexible sheet, the pin contacting sheet 147 shields from upper end portion 140a of the pin 140 protruding and accommodated in the opening 145. Accordingly, regardless of a reciprocating motion of the pin 140, a secure contact between the pin contacting sheet 147 and the upper end portion 140a can be maintained.
Referring to
The operations of the connector unit 104, which is protrusible, having the above-described structure will now be described.
Referring to
When the push button 116 is pressed, the first locking groove portion 121 moves so as to release the pin 140 from its lock state. Accordingly, the pin 140 moves towards the outside of the housing along the first guiding hole 106 and the V-shaped lateral portion 123 of the second guiding hole 120 by the elastic restoration force of the torsion spring 133. Accordingly, the protruding portion 136 of the connector member 135 protrudes to the outside of the housing. Thus, the connecting member 144 protrudes from the base member 101 to be connected to an external device to transmit data or exchange data with the external device.
Referring to
In order to re-insert the protruding portion 136 into the housing, the locked state of the pin 140 accommodated in the second locking groove portion 122 is released by pressing the push button 116 so that the protruding portion 136 can be pushed into the housing. Thus, the pin 140 moves back along the first guiding hole 106 and the second guiding hole 120, and as illustrated in
Referring to
The main circuit substrate 160, to process main functions (for example, producing music or image files, and a sound-recording or video-recording) of the electronic device 100, is disposed on the discharging sheet 150. The display panel 162, for example a liquid crystal display (LCD), is mounted on the main circuit substrate 160. The main circuit substrate 160 and the connector circuit substrate 143 are connected to each other by the flexible printed circuit 148.
The battery 155, supplying power to realize functions of the electronic device 100, is interposed between the main circuit substrate 160 and the discharging sheet 150, and may be a secondary cell capable of being recharged. The electronic device 100 includes a conductive battery gasket 157 covering at least a portion of the battery 155 in order to protect the battery 155. In the present embodiment of the present general inventive concept, the battery gasket 157 may be made of a conductive sheet used to shield from EMI, similarly to the pin contacting sheet 147. Also, the battery gasket 157 has an adhesive property in both sides thereof, so that one side of the battery gasket 157 covers and adheres to the battery 155 and the other side of the battery gasket 157 adheres to the discharging sheet 150. Accordingly, the battery gasket 157 and the discharging sheet 150 are conductively connected to each other.
Referring to
Although various embodiments of the present general inventive concept have been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the general inventive concept, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2007-75874 | Jul 2007 | KR | national |