The present invention relates to a keyboard, and more particularly to a luminous keyboard with an illuminating function.
Generally, the widely-used peripheral input device of a computer system includes for example a mouse device, a keyboard, a trackball device, or the like. Via the keyboard, characters and symbols can be inputted into the computer system directly. As a consequence, most users and most manufacturers of input devices pay much attention to the development of keyboards.
With the maturity of the computing technologies, the keyboard manufacturers make efforts in designing novel keyboards with special functions in order to meet diversified requirements of different users. For this reason, luminous keyboards are favored by users. The outer appearance of the conventional luminous keyboard is substantially similar to the outer appearance of the conventional keyboard 1. Since the luminous keyboard provides the function of illuminating the keys, the inner structure of the luminous keyboard is different from the inner structure of the keyboard without the illuminating function. Hereinafter, the inner structure of the luminous keyboard will be illustrated in more details.
The membrane switch circuit member 21 comprises an upper wiring board 211, a separation layer 212, and a lower wiring board 213. The upper wiring board 211, the separation layer 212 and the lower wiring board 213 are all made of a light-transmissible material. The light-transmissible material is for example polycarbonate (PC) or polyethylene (PE). The upper wiring board 211 has plural upper contacts 2111. The separation layer 212 is located under the upper wiring board 211, and comprises plural perforations 2121 corresponding to the plural upper contacts 2111. The lower wiring board 213 is located under the separation layer 212, and comprises plural lower contacts 2131 corresponding to the plural upper contacts 2111. The plural lower contacts 2131 and the plural upper contacts 2111 are collectively defined as plural key switches 214.
The backlight module 23 comprises a light guide plate 230, a circuit board 231, plural light-emitting elements 232, a reflecting plate 233 and a light-sheltering plate 234. For clarification and brevity, only two light-emitting elements 232 are shown in the drawing. The light guide plate 230 is located under the supporting plate 22. The circuit board 231 is located under the membrane switch circuit member 21 and electrically connected with the light-emitting elements 232. The circuit board 231 provides electric power to the plural light-emitting elements 232. The plural light-emitting elements 232 are disposed on the circuit board 231. In addition, the plural light-emitting elements 232 are inserted into plural reflecting plate openings 2331 of the reflecting plate 233 and plural light guide plate openings 2301 of the light guide plate 230, respectively. By acquiring the electric power, the plural light-emitting elements 232 are driven to emit plural light beams B. Moreover, the plural light beams B are introduced into the light guide plate 230. After portions of the light beams B are exited from the light guide plate 230, the light beams B are reflected back into the light guide plate 320 by the reflecting plate 233. The light-sheltering plate 234 is located over the light guide plate 230 for sheltering the light beams B. For example, the plural light-emitting elements 232 are side-view light emitting diodes. After the light beams B are introduced into the light guide plate 230, the light beams B are subjected to total internal reflection within the light guide plate 230. Then, the light beams B are guided to the keycap 201 by the light guide plate 230.
From top to bottom, the keycap 201, the scissors-type connecting element 202, the elastic element 203, the membrane switch circuit member 21, the supporting plate 22, the light-sheltering plate 234, the light guide plate 230 and the reflecting plate 233 of the conventional luminous keyboard 2 are sequentially shown. For example, the conventional luminous keyboard 2 is a keyboard for a notebook computer (not shown).
In the conventional luminous keyboard 2, each keycap 201 has a light-outputting zone 2011. The light-outputting zone 2011 is located at a character region or a symbol region of the keycap 201. Moreover, the position of the light-outputting zone 2011 is aligned with the position of a corresponding light-guiding dot 2302 of the light guide plate 230. The light beams can be guided upwardly to the light-outputting zone 2011 by the corresponding light-guiding dot 2302. The light-sheltering plate 234 comprises plural light-sheltering plate openings 2341. The plural light-sheltering plate openings 2341 are aligned with the corresponding light-guiding dots 2302 and the corresponding light-outputting zones 2011. Consequently, the light beams B are transmitted through the light-sheltering plate openings 2341 of the light-sheltering plate 234. Similarly, the supporting plate 22 comprises plural supporting plate openings 221. The plural supporting plate openings 221 are aligned with the corresponding light-guiding dots 2302 and the corresponding light-outputting zones 2011. Consequently, the light beams B are transmitted through the supporting plate openings 221 of the supporting plate 22.
On the other hand, since the membrane switch circuit member 21 is made of the light-transmissible material, the plural light beams B can be transmitted through the membrane switch circuit member 21. Consequently, after the plural light beams B are guided by the light-guiding dots 2302, the plural light beams B are sequentially transmitted through the plural supporting plate openings 221 and the membrane switch circuit member 21 and directed to the plural light-outputting zones 2011, thereby illuminating the character region or the symbol region of the keycap 201. Under this circumstance, the illuminating function is achieved.
Please refer to
Therefore, there is a need of providing a luminous keyboard with reduced volume and capable of solving the lateral light leakage problem.
An object of the present invention provides a luminous keyboard with reduced volume and capable of solving the lateral light leakage problem.
In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a luminous keyboard. The luminous keyboard includes at least one key, a membrane switch circuit member, a supporting plate and a backlight module. The at least one key is exposed outside the luminous keyboard. The membrane switch circuit member is located under the at least one key, and includes an upper wiring plate, a lower wiring plate and a separation plate. When the membrane switch circuit member is triggered by the at least one key, a corresponding key signal is generated. The upper wiring plate is contacted with the at least one key. The lower wiring plate is located under the upper wiring plate. The separation layer is arranged between the upper wiring plate and the lower wiring plate. The upper wiring plate and the lower wiring plate are separated from each other by the separation layer. The supporting plate is located under the membrane switch circuit member and connected with the at least one key. The backlight module is located under the supporting plate. The backlight module generates a light beam and projects the light beam to the at least one key. A periphery region of at least one of the upper wiring plate, the lower wiring plate and the separation plate is extended over the supporting plate and bent to cover a periphery region of the supporting plate and a periphery region of the backlight module. Consequently, the light beam is not leaked out through the periphery region of the backlight module.
From the above descriptions, the present invention provides the luminous keyboard. The periphery region of the at least one of the upper wiring plate, the lower wiring plate and the separation layer of the membrane switch circuit member is extended over the supporting plate. The periphery region is bent to cover the periphery region of the supporting plate and the periphery region of the backlight module. Consequently, the light beams are not leaked out through the periphery region of the backlight module. Since the periphery region of the at least one of the upper wiring plate, the lower wiring plate and the separation layer is attached on the lateral edge and the bottom surface of the backlight module, the attaching structure of the conventional technology is omitted. Under this circumstance, the available space within the luminous keyboard is increased. In other words, the volume of the luminous keyboard can be further reduced.
The above objects and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art after reviewing the following detailed description and accompanying drawings, in which:
For overcoming the drawbacks of the conventional technology, the present invention provides a luminous keyboard.
The structure of the luminous keyboard will be described with reference to
As shown in
In this embodiment, the connecting element 302 is a scissors-type connecting element, and the elastic element 303 is a rubbery elastomer. Preferably but are not exclusively, the plural keycaps 301 of the plural keys are moved upwardly or downwardly with the connecting elements 302, and the membrane switch circuit member 31 is depressed by the elastic elements 303 through the connecting elements 302. In another embodiment, the connecting elements are non-scissors connecting elements for controlling movements of the keys. For example, a crater-shaped connecting element for a desktop computer is one of the non-scissors connecting elements. In a further embodiment, the keycaps are moved upwardly or downwardly in response to magnetic forces.
The structure of the membrane switch circuit member 31 will be described as follows. The membrane switch circuit member 31 comprises an upper wiring plate 311, a lower wiring plate 312 and a separation layer 313. The upper wiring plate 311 is contacted with the elastic elements 303 of the keys 30. The upper wiring board 311 has plural upper contacts 3111. The lower wiring plate 312 is located under the upper wiring plate 311. The lower wiring plate 312 comprises plural lower contacts 3121 corresponding to the plural upper contacts 3111. The separation layer 313 is arranged between the upper wiring plate 311 and the lower wiring plate 312. When the key 30 is not depressed, the upper wiring plate 311 and the lower wiring plate 312 are separated from each other by the separation layer 313. Consequently, the upper contact 3111 and the corresponding low contact 3121 are not erroneously contacted. The separation layer 313 comprises plural perforations 3131 corresponding to the plural upper contacts 3131. The plural upper contacts 3131, the plural lower contacts 3121 and the plural perforations 3131 are collectively defined as plural key switches 314. When the membrane switch circuit member 31 is pressed by the elastic element 303, the corresponding upper contact 3111 is inserted into the corresponding perforation 3131 and contacted with the corresponding lower contact 3121. Consequently, the corresponding key signal is generated.
The structure of the backlight module 33 will be described as follows. The backlight module 33 comprises a light guide plate 331, plural light-emitting elements 332, a reflecting plate 333 and a circuit board 334. The light guide plate 331 is located under the supporting plate 32. The light guide plate 331 is used for guiding the light beams B to the light-outputting zones 3011. The light guide plate 331 comprises plural light guide plate openings 3311 and plural light-guiding parts (not shown). Each light guide plate opening 3311 is aligned with one of the plural light-emitting elements 332. The light-guiding parts are used for guiding the light beams B to be exited from the light guide plate 331 and projected to the light-outputting zones 3011. The reflecting plate 333 is located under the light guide plate 331. After portions of the light beams B are exited from the light guide plate 331, the light beams B are reflected back into the light guide plate 331 by the reflecting plate 333. Consequently, the utilization efficiency of the light beam B is enhanced. The reflecting plate 333 comprises plural reflecting plate openings 3331 corresponding to the plural light-emitting elements 332. The light-emitting elements 332 emit the light beams B. In addition, the plural light-emitting elements 332 are inserted into the corresponding reflecting plate openings 3331 and the corresponding light guide plate openings 3311. Consequently, the light beams B can be introduced into the light guide plate 331. The circuit board 334 is located under the reflecting plate 333 and electrically connected with the light-emitting elements 332. The plural light-emitting elements 332 are supported on the circuit board 334. The circuit board 334 provides electric power to the plural light-emitting elements 332. By acquiring the electric power, the plural light-emitting elements 332 are driven to emit plural light beams B. In this embodiment, the light-emitting element 332 is a side-view light emitting diode, the light-guiding part is one of a light-guiding microstructure, a light-guiding dot, a light-guiding ink and a light-guiding texturing structure, and the circuit board 334 is a flexible printed circuit (FPC).
When the light-emitting elements 332 are driven to emit the light beams B, the light beams B are introduced into the light guide plate 331. The light beams B are guided by the light-guiding parts and exited from the light guide plate 331. Then, the light beams B are transmitted through the corresponding supporting plate openings 322 and the membrane switch circuit member 31. Consequently, the light beams B are projected to the light-outputting zones 3011 of the keycaps 301. Moreover, portions of the light beams B are exited from the light guide plate 331 but not guided by the light-guiding parts. The portions of the light beams B that are exited from the light guide plate 331 are reflected back into the light guide plate 311 by the reflecting plate 333 and further guided to the light-outputting zones 3011 by the light-guiding parts.
The operations of depressing the keycap 301 of the luminous keyboard 3 will be described as follows. Please refer to
The following three aspects should be specially described. Firstly, a periphery region 3112 of the upper wiring plate 311 (i.e., the region circumscribed by dotted lines as shown in
Secondly, a first light-sheltering structure 34 as shown in
Thirdly, a second light-sheltering structure 35 is formed on an inner region 3113 of the upper wiring plate 311. The second light-sheltering structure 35 is arranged between the plural keycaps 301 and the backlight module 33 to shelter the light beams B. Moreover, the second light-sheltering structure 35 is not aligned with the plural light-outputting zones 3011. Consequently, the light beams B can be transmitted through the lower wiring plate 312, the separation layer 313 and the upper wiring plate 311 and projected to the light-outputting zones 3011. Due to the arrangement of the second light-sheltering structure 35, it is not necessary to install a light-sheltering plate in the luminous keyboard of the present invention. In an embodiment, the first light-sheltering structure 34 and the second light-sheltering structure 35 are produced by printing or spraying light-sheltering ink. It is noted that the position of the second light-sheltering structure is not restricted to the inner region of the upper wiring plate. In another embodiment, the second light-sheltering structure is formed on an inner region of the lower wiring plate or an inner region of the separation layer.
The present invention further comprises a second embodiment, which is distinguished from the first embodiment.
The structure of the membrane switch circuit member 41 will be described as follows. In this embodiment, a periphery region 4122 of the lower wiring plate 412 (i.e., the region circumscribed by dotted lines as shown in
The light-sheltering plate 435 of the backlight module 43 is arranged between the light guide plate 431 and the supporting plate 42 to shelter the light beams B. Consequently, the light beams B are allowed to be projected to the light-outputting zones 4011 only. The light-sheltering plate 435 comprises plural light-sheltering plate openings 4351 corresponding to the light-outputting zones 4011. The light beams B are transmitted through the light-sheltering plate openings 4351 of the light-sheltering plate 435 and projected to the light-outputting zones 4011.
As shown in
In the above embodiments, the periphery region of the upper wiring plate or the periphery region of the lower wiring plate is bent to cover the backlight module. It is noted that numerous modifications may be made while retaining the teachings of the present invention. For example, in another embodiment, the periphery region of the separation layer is bent to cover the backlight module.
From the above descriptions, the present invention provides the luminous keyboard. The periphery region of at least one of the upper wiring plate, the lower wiring plate and the separation layer of the membrane switch circuit member is extended over the supporting plate. The periphery region is bent to cover the periphery region of the supporting plate and the periphery region of the backlight module. Consequently, the light beams are not leaked out through the periphery region of the backlight module. Since the periphery region of the at least one of the upper wiring plate, the lower wiring plate and the separation layer is attached on the lateral edge and the bottom surface of the backlight module, the attaching structure of the conventional technology is omitted. Under this circumstance, the available space within the luminous keyboard is increased. In other words, the volume of the luminous keyboard can be further reduced.
While the invention has been described in terms of what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention needs not be limited to the disclosed embodiment. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims which are to be accorded with the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all modifications and similar structures.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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106130841 | Sep 2017 | TW | national |