Patent Application
20210043399
The subject matter herein generally relates to waterproof structures, and more particularly to a waterproof button structure for an electronic device.
Electronic products require waterproof button structures, wherein O-rings made of rubber are generally used. However, structures of the O-ring may be complicated, which is not cost-effective. Furthermore, the O-ring will become loose over time.
Implementations of the present disclosure will now be described, by way of embodiments, with reference to the attached figures.
It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, where appropriate, reference numerals have been repeated among the different figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements. Additionally, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments described herein. However, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments described herein can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, methods, procedures and components have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the related relevant feature being described. The drawings are not necessarily to scale and the proportions of certain parts may be exaggerated to better illustrate details and features. The description is not to be considered as limiting the scope of the embodiments described herein.
Several definitions that apply throughout this disclosure will now be presented.
The term “coupled” is defined as connected, whether directly or indirectly through intervening components, and is not necessarily limited to physical connections. The connection can be such that the objects are permanently connected or releasably connected. The term “substantially” is defined to be essentially conforming to the particular dimension, shape, or other word that “substantially” modifies, such that the component need not be exact. For example, “substantially cylindrical” means that the object resembles a cylinder, but can have one or more deviations from a true cylinder. The term “comprising” means “including, but not necessarily limited to”; it specifically indicates open-ended inclusion or membership in a so-described combination, group, series and the like.
Referring to
Referring to
The waterproof foam 111 is formed with an opening 111x for providing a moving passage for pressing a button. The opening 111x formed by the waterproof foam 111 corresponds to a position where the button switch 130 is located, and the opening 111x of the waterproof foam 111 provides a moving passage when the button 140 is pressed.
In one embodiment, the waterproof film 112 is made of an elastic plastic, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET). In other embodiments, the waterproof film 112 may also be other plastic or elastomeric materials that are water resistant, such as silica gel. A thickness of the waterproof film 112 is equal to about 0.05 mm. In other embodiments, the thickness of the waterproof film 112 can be designed according to actual conditions.
In one embodiment, the waterproof film 112 has a substantially rectangular shape, the waterproof foam 111 has a same size as the waterproof film 112. In other embodiments, the waterproof foam 111 and the waterproof film 112 are not limited to the shape and size as described. For example, according to a design of the housing 120, the button switch 130, and the button 140, a shape of the waterproof foam 111 may be hollow square, hollow elliptical, or irregular hollow shape, and the waterproof film 112 may correspondingly be square, elliptical, or irregular shape. The button 140 and the housing 120 can be connected by a buckle or other connection structure not described herein.
Referring to
An outer surface of the housing 120 forms a groove 160 for accommodating the button switch 130. A side of the waterproof foam 111 facing the groove 160 is provided with an adhesive 111z. The waterproof foam 111 is adhered to the outer surface of the housing 120 through the adhesive 111z to surround the opening of the groove 160, and the waterproof film 112 completely covers the groove 160 to seal the button switch 130 in the groove 160. The cover plate 141 and the button 140 cover the housing 120, and the waterproof partition 110 is located between the housing 120 and the cover plate 141. In one embodiment, an opening of the waterproof foam 111 may correspond to one or more of the button switches 130.
Referring to
In the related art, in order to avoid water seepage, an O-ring is often subjected to an interference fit with the button, which decreases a tactile feeling of the button. In contrast, the thin waterproof film 112 provided by the current disclosure has better elasticity when pressed, which improves a tactile feeling of the button 140 when pressed. Further, a thickness of the waterproof foam 111 is not less than 0.5 mm, such as 0.5 mm, 0.6 mm, or 0.8 mm, which maintains elasticity of the waterproof partition 110 when pressed. Since the waterproof foam 111 has deformability, the waterproof foam 111 can compensate for assembly error of related components, thereby contributing to improvement of tactile feeling of the button 140.
Moisture is blocked by the waterproof film 112 and cannot enter the inside of the electronic device 10 through a slit of the button 140. The waterproof partition 110 has a simple structure, and thus is easy to install, disassemble, and repair, is advantageous for improving the efficiency of manufacturing and maintenance, and is advantageous for reducing the defect rate. Moreover, since the cost of the waterproof foam 111 and the waterproof film 112 is low, it is not necessary to design a complicated assembly structure for the button 140, which is advantageous for saving manufacturing and maintenance costs, and the overall system cost is low.
The embodiments shown and described above are only examples. Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present technology have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the present disclosure, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in the detail, including in matters of shape, size and arrangement of the parts within the principles of the present disclosure up to, and including, the full extent established by the broad general meaning of the terms used in the claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 201910732232.9 | Aug 2019 | CN | national |
