JP4094420B2 - Flexible wiring board and portable electronic device using the same - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a flexible wiring board for connecting boards disposed in two housings that are foldably connected to each other, and a portable electronic device such as a foldable mobile phone using the flexible wiring board.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A flexible wiring board used for a foldable mobile phone, a portable information terminal, etc., electrically connects between a key operation side case and a board arranged in each case having a display unit such as a liquid crystal. Are incorporated in a hollow portion provided in a hinge portion connecting the two.
A conventional flexible wiring board is arranged such that a spirally wound portion is disposed in a hollow portion of a hinge portion (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
In addition, the flexible wiring board wound in a spiral shape is sandwiched between holding members provided in the two casings to prevent moisture from entering through the flexible wiring board from the gap of the hinge portion, Some prevent corrosion and short-circuiting of electronic components on the board. This pinching member is made of a member having elasticity such as urethane, rubber, or sponge (see, for example, Patent Document 2).
[0003]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent No. 3093727 [Patent Document 2]
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-1224779
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, like the flexible wiring board described in Patent Document 1, in the case of a belt-like shape when viewed in plan, the hinge extends in order to guide the flexible wiring board to the boards in the two housings. When passing through the cavity of the part, it was necessary to wind in a spiral. In other words, due to the structure of the hinge portion, the openings that guide the flexible wiring board from the hollow portion into each housing are difficult to be opposed to each other and are formed at positions shifted from each other. In the case of using a strip-like flexible wiring board extending in a shape, the flexible wiring board needs to be spirally wound in the cavity of the hinge portion in order to prevent the signal line from being disconnected due to twisting or the like. Therefore, a flexible wiring board that is longer than necessary must be used, and there is a problem that it becomes expensive.
[0005]
In addition, when assembling a mobile phone, in order to wind the flexible wiring board spirally so as to be placed in the cavity of the hinge, it takes time and effort to wind the flexible wiring board one by one by human hands, and the workability is poor. There is.
Furthermore, since the winding radius of the spiral flexible wiring board varies depending on the tension acting on the opening and closing of the casing, it is necessary to prevent excessive force from acting locally on the flexible wiring board.
Further, the moisture intrusion prevention structure in Patent Document 2 is ineffective against moisture that has entered the holding member, and the function of the electronic component inside the housing may be impaired.
The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an object of the present invention is to provide a flexible wiring board and a portable electronic device that can improve workability when the flexible wiring board is incorporated into a folding portable electronic device. .
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-described object, the invention according to claim 1 is a flexible wiring board that connects substrates disposed in two housings that are connected to each other by a hinge portion so as to be foldable with each other. Two terminal portions respectively connected to the substrates, and a flexible wiring portion for connecting the two terminal portions, the flexible wiring portion extending from the two terminal portions, respectively, A connecting portion that connects the two extending portions at the end, and in a state where the two extending portions are deployed in a planar shape, the two terminal portions are respectively arranged in the same direction, and the inside of the hollow portion provided in the hinge portion in the connecting portion is accommodated by folding the extending direction perpendicular to the direction of the extending portion as an axis, the folded portion of the connecting portion, said to enable placement columnar elastic member And having an opening along the direction.
According to the present invention, since the two terminal portions of the flexible wiring board are arranged in the same direction in a state of being flattened, the waste when cutting the flexible wiring board from the original board of the flexible wiring board is reduced. In addition, it is possible to shorten the length necessary for electrically connecting the substrates disposed in the two housings that are foldably connected to each other.
[0007]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable electronic device according to the first aspect of the present invention, the flexible wiring board according to the first aspect, two casings connected to each other by a hinge portion so as to be foldable with each other, and having a, the.
[0008]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the portable electronic device according to the second aspect, the terminal receiving portions provided on the respective substrates disposed in the two housings are disposed so as to be shifted from each other in the axial direction of the hinge portion, and The connecting portion of the flexible wiring board has a length substantially equal to a length corresponding to a shift of each terminal receiving portion.
According to these inventions, since the connecting portion of the flexible wiring board is accommodated by being curved in the length direction of the extending portion, the mounting workability of the flexible wiring substrate can be improved.
[0009]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the portable electronic device according to the second or third aspect, a columnar elastic member is accommodated inside the connecting portion.
According to this invention, since the elastic member is accommodated inside the connecting portion, disconnection or the like due to breakage or the like of the flexible wiring board is less likely to occur.
[0010]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the portable electronic device according to the fourth aspect, the elastic member is formed of rubber or resin.
According to the present invention, since the elastic member disposed in the cavity of the hinge portion is made of rubber or resin that hardly allows moisture to pass therethrough, it is possible to effectively prevent moisture from entering the housing.
[0011]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a mode in which a flexible wiring board is mounted on a foldable mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The mobile phone 50 includes a first housing 2 and a second housing 3, and the first and second housings are configured by fitting front cases 21 and 31 and rear cases 22 and 32, respectively. One end of each of the front cases 21 and 31 is connected to the hinge portion 4, and the front cases 21 and 31 can be opened and closed with each other via the hinge portion 4.
The hinge portion 4 includes a pair of hinges 14 and 14 and a cylindrical portion 13 provided between the hinges 14 and 14. Cylindrical hinge bearings 14 a and 14 b forming the hinge 14 are provided on the front of each housing 2 and 3. The front case 21 and the front case 31 are connected by a shaft 14c that is provided at each of the two corners of the one end of the cases 21 and 31 and passes through the hinge bearing 14a of the front case 21 and the hinge bearing 14b of the front case 31. Yes.
The cylindrical portion 13 is provided in the front cases 21 and 31, and is provided in the front side covers 13a and 13b and the rear cases 22 and 32 having a semicircular cross section having the same diameter as the outer shape of the hinge bearings 14a and 14b. The rear side covers 13c and 13d having a semicircular cross section substantially the same diameter as the outer shape of the hinge bearings 14a and 14b are fitted together, thereby forming a hollow portion 5 having a circular cross section. Yes.
[0012]
The first housing 2 includes the substrate 7 inside the front case 21 and the rear case 22, and the liquid crystal display unit 12 installed on the surface of the substrate 7 is exposed from the front case 21. Moreover, the board | substrate 7 is equipped with the radio | wireless part (both not shown) of a speaker and an antenna, and various electronic components are electrically connected.
The second housing 3 includes the substrate 10 inside the front case 31 and the rear case 32, and the key button sheet 11 installed on the surface of the substrate 10 is exposed from the front case 31. The substrate 10 includes a microphone (not shown), and various electronic components are electrically connected. A battery 15 is attached to the rear case 32.
[0013]
Connector receiving portions 8 and 9 (terminal receiving portions) are disposed on the back surfaces of the substrate 7 and the substrate 10, respectively, and are electrically connected to the connectors (terminal portions) of the flexible wiring substrate 1, respectively. As will be described in detail later, the flexible wiring board 1 is wound around a pressing member (elastic member) 6 and accommodated in the cavity 5, and the first housing 2 and the second housing centered on the hinge portion 4. It can be freely bent according to the rotation of 3.
The pressing member (elastic member) 6 has a cylindrical shape slightly larger than the inner diameter of the cylindrical portion 13, is accommodated in the cavity portion 5 and elastically contracts, and the pressing member 6 is placed on the inner wall of the cylindrical portion 13. It comes to press. For the pressing member 6, for example, an elastic resin such as urethane, rubber, sponge, or the like can be used. In this embodiment, urethane resin is used.
[0014]
As shown in FIG. 2 (a), the flexible wiring board 1 is formed in a U-shape with a notch from the vicinity of the center of one end of a substantially rectangular plate, and the first connector is provided on one end of the notch. 1a (terminal part) and the 2nd connector 1b (terminal part) are mutually provided through the notch | incision. Further, strip-like extending portions 1d and 1d each forming a flexible wiring pattern extend from the first connector 1a (terminal portion) and the second connector 1b (terminal portion), and each extending portion 1d It is connected with no connecting part 1c. Accordingly, the first connector 1a (terminal portion) and the second connector 1b (terminal portion) are branched from the connecting portion 1c via the extending portion 1d.
In the present invention, the boundary between the connecting portion 1c and the extending portion 1d is not strictly divided, and in short, the flexible wiring from the first connector 1a (terminal portion) and the second connector 1b (terminal portion). The portion where the pattern extends is the extended portion 1d, and the portion connecting the extended portions 1d is the connecting portion 1c.
[0015]
Next, a method for assembling the cellular phone will be described with reference to FIGS.
First, as shown in FIG. 2B, the first connector 1a of the U-shaped flexible wiring board 1 is bent and bent so that the first connector 1a faces in the opposite direction with respect to the second connector 1b. That is, the connecting portion 1c is bent (wound) with a direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the extending portion 1d as an axis. Next, as shown in FIG. 3, in a folded state, the first connector 1a is connected to the connector receiving portion 8 (terminal receiving portion), and the second connector 1b is connected to the connector receiving portion 9 (terminal receiving portion). To do. Here, the first housing 2 and the second housing 3 are in an open state.
And the board | substrate 7 and the board | substrate 10 which were electrically connected with the flexible wiring board 1 are each arrange | positioned in the front case 21 of a 1st housing | casing, and the front case 31 of a 2nd housing | casing, and the connection part wound by it is wound. 1 c is accommodated in the cavity 5. Next, the pressing member 6 is assembled on the inner winding side of the connecting portion 1c. As a result, the connecting portion 1c of the flexible wiring board 1 is wound around the elastic pressing member 6, and the flexible wiring board 1 is pressed and fixed along the inner walls of the front side covers 13a and 13b.
Finally, the rear case 22 of the first housing 2 and the rear case 32 of the second housing 3 are fitted into the front cases 21 and 31, respectively. Thereby, the rear side covers 13c and 13d are attached to the outer surface of the connecting portion 1c.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the completed cellular phone 50 in the cavity 5 in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the hinge 4. Since the pressing member 6 is an elastic body such as urethane resin, the pressing member 6 extends in the illustrated arrow direction (the radial direction of the hinge portion 4) in the cavity portion 5, and the flexible wiring board 1 is brought into close contact with the inner wall of the cavity portion 5. It will be in the state.
[0016]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, one connector of the flexible wiring board is folded and connected to the board built in the housing, and the connecting portion of the flexible wiring board only needs to be incorporated into the front cover. The mounting workability of the flexible wiring board can be greatly improved.
When the flexible wiring substrate is first assembled in the front cover and then the pressing member is assembled, the flexible wiring substrate is gently bent along the curved surface of the pressing member and guided to the substrate of the housing. Therefore, even when the casing is folded, the radius of the bent portion of the flexible wiring board is difficult to be reduced, and it is difficult to cause twisting, so that disconnection is less likely to occur, and the number of times of folding durability and reliability are improved.
In addition, by placing a pressing member using elastic resin or rubber inside the hinge gap, it prevents sweat and moisture from entering through the gap and prevents corrosion and short-circuiting of electronic components on the board on the housing side. it can.
In addition, since the flexible wiring board of the present embodiment has two terminal portions in the same direction such as a U-shape when viewed in a plan view, the conventional flexible wiring board has a conventional shape when placed in the cavity of the hinge portion. There is no need to wind in a spiral. Moreover, since it is only necessary to curve the connecting portion in the length direction of the extending portion, it is not necessary to lengthen the flexible wiring board more than necessary. Therefore, cost can be suppressed.
[0017]
As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was explained in full detail with reference to drawings, the specific structure is not restricted to this embodiment, The design change etc. of the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention are included.
For example, although the U-shaped flexible wiring board is used in the above-described embodiment, any U-shaped or V-shaped branch circuit may be used.
In this embodiment, the connector 1a, 1b is provided on the flexible wiring board side, and the connector receiving parts 8, 9 are provided on the board 7, 10 side. However, the connector and the connector receiving part are provided in reverse. The structure may be different.
[0018]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the flexible wiring board of the present invention, since the two terminal portions are arranged in the same direction in a state of being flattened, when arranging in the hollow portion of the hinge portion, There is no need to wind in a spiral. Moreover, since it is only necessary to curve the connecting portion in the length direction of the extending portion, it is not necessary to lengthen the flexible wiring board more than necessary. Therefore, cost can be suppressed.
Further, according to the portable electronic device of the present invention, the connecting portion for connecting the two terminal portions of the flexible wiring board is accommodated in the cavity portion provided in the hinge portion by being bent in the length direction of the extending portion. As a result, the workability of mounting the flexible wiring board can be greatly improved, and work efficiency is improved. Further, since the flexible wiring board is not easily twisted and is not easily broken when the portable electronic device is folded, reliability can be improved.
Furthermore, according to the portable electronic device of the present invention, by arranging an elastic member made of rubber or resin inside the connecting portion of the flexible wiring board, local bending stress concentration on the flexible wiring board is prevented, and The durability and reliability of folding electronic devices are improved. In addition, it is possible to prevent perspiration and moisture from entering through the gap between the hinge portions, and to prevent corrosion of electronic components inside the housing.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view when a built-in component is mounted on a mobile phone in a foldable mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a flexible wiring board 1 in the same embodiment.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of incorporation into the internal space 5 in the same embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view in the direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the hinge portion 4 of the mobile phone according to the embodiment;
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Flexible wiring board, 1a ... 1st connector, 1b ... 2nd connector, 1c ... Connection part, 2 ... 1st housing | casing, 21 ... Front case of 1st housing | casing, 22 ... Rear of 1st housing | casing Case 3, second housing 31, front case of second housing 32, rear case of second housing 4 hinge portion 5 cavity portion 6 pressing member 7 substrate 8 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 9 ... Connector receiving part, 10 ... Board | substrate, 11 ... Key button sheet, 12 ... Liquid crystal display unit, 13 ... Cylindrical part, 13a, 13b ... Front side cover, 13c, 13d ... Rear side cover, 14 ... Hinge, 14a, 14b ... Hinge bearing, 14c ... Shaft, 15 ... Battery, 50 ... Mobile phone

Claims (5)

A flexible wiring board for connecting boards disposed in two casings connected to each other by a hinge part so as to be foldable,
Two terminal portions respectively connected to the substrates, and a flexible wiring portion for connecting these two terminal portions,
The flexible wiring portion has two extending portions extending from the two terminal portions, respectively, and a connecting portion that connects the two extending portions at the end portions, and in a state where the flexible wiring portion is developed in a planar shape, Two terminal portions are respectively arranged in the same direction, and the coupling portion is folded and accommodated around a direction perpendicular to the extending direction of the extending portion in the cavity portion provided in the hinge portion ,
The flexible wiring board , wherein the bent portion of the connecting portion has an opening along the axial direction so that a columnar elastic member can be disposed . The flexible wiring board according to claim 1;
Two housings connected to each other by a hinge so as to be foldable;
A portable electronic device comprising: a substrate disposed in each of the two housings.   The terminal receiving portions provided on each of the boards disposed in the two casings are arranged to be shifted from each other in the axial direction of the hinge portion, and the connecting portion of the flexible wiring board corresponds to the displacement of each of the terminal receiving portions. The portable electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the portable electronic device has a length substantially equal to the measured length.   The portable electronic device according to claim 2, wherein a columnar elastic member is disposed inside the connecting portion.   The portable electronic device according to claim 4, wherein the elastic member is made of rubber or resin.

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