Touch panel

• US 20040061688A1
• Filed: 06/25/2003
• Published: 04/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SMK Corporation
• Original Assignee: SMK Corporation
• Inventors: Egami, Takehiro, Nakayama, Naomi, Imai, Kazuo, Yago, Takeshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,227,537 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04164 Connections between sensors and controllers, e.g. routing lines between electrodes and connection pads
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/045 using resistive elements, e.g. a single continuous surface or two parallel surfaces put in contact

Abstract

A touch panel of the present invention in which a piezoelectric substrate is fixed to a movable plate or a supporting substrate has a reduced weight, size, and thickness by providing simpler wiring. The touch panel comprises: a movable plate having an input manipulation surface; a supporting substrate, disposed with a slight insulation gap from the movable plate, for supporting the movable plate from a back surface thereof; conductive layers on the movable plate and the supporting substrate on their respective opposing surfaces; and a piezoelectric substrate fixed to the movable plate or the supporting substrate. A pair of driving electrodes on the piezoelectric substrate are fixed to respective opposing surfaces of the piezoelectric substrate. A conductive layer electrode of the movable plate, a conductive layer electrode of the supporting substrate, and the pair of driving electrodes of the piezoelectric substrate are withdrawn integrally using a single connector tail.

Claims

1. A touch panel comprising:

a movable plate having an input manipulation surface on a main surface thereof;

a supporting substrate, disposed with a slight insulation gap from said movable plate, for supporting said movable plate from a back surface thereof;

conductive layers formed on said movable plate and said supporting substrate on their respective opposing surfaces; and

a piezoelectric substrate fixed to at least one of said movable plate and said supporting substrate and provided with a pair of driving electrodes fixed to respective opposing surfaces thereof,

wherein a conductive layer electrode of said movable plate, a conductive layer electrode of said supporting substrate, and said pair of driving electrodes of said piezoelectric substrate are withdrawn integrally using a single connector tail.

2. The touch panel according to claim 1, wherein the electrodes are withdrawn integrally by providing a cut to a tail base material of said connector tail to be divided into a portion to be connected to the conductive layer electrodes of said movable plate and said supporting substrate and a portion to be connected to the pair of driving electrodes formed on the respective opposing surfaces of said piezoelectric substrate.

3. The touch panel according to claim 2, wherein one of said pair of driving electrodes formed on the respective opposing surfaces of said piezoelectric substrate is folded back at one end in a longitudinal direction to be provided on a same surface of said piezoelectric substrate where the other one of said pair of driving electrodes is provided, with a gap in between.

4. The touch panel according to claim 2, wherein a notch portion is provided in an edge portion of said supporting substrate and said piezoelectric substrate is provided in said notch portion.

5. The touch panel according to claim 2, wherein a concave portion is formed in a side portion of said supporting substrate and said piezoelectric substrate is provided in said concave portion.

6. The touch panel according to claim 2, wherein:

one of said pair of driving electrodes formed on the respective opposing surfaces of said piezoelectric substrate is folded back at one end in a longitudinal direction to be provided on a same surface of said piezoelectric substrate where the other one of said pair of driving electrodes is provided, with a gap in between;

a pair of lead wiring patterns is formed on a back surface of said supporting substrate through conductive printing; and

said pair of driving electrodes of said piezoelectric substrate is bonded to one end of said pair of lead wiring patterns using a conductive bonding agent, and said connector tail is connected to the other end of said pair of lead wiring patterns through thermocompression.

7. A touch panel comprising:

a movable plate having an input manipulation surface on a main surface thereof;

a supporting substrate, disposed with a slight insulation gap from said movable plate, for supporting said movable plate from a back surface thereof;

conductive layers formed on said movable plate and said supporting substrate on their respective opposing surfaces; and

a piezoelectric substrate fixed to at least one of said movable plate and said supporting substrate and provided with a pair of driving electrodes fixed to respective opposing surfaces thereof, wherein;

a conductive layer electrode of one of said movable plate and said supporting substrate is connected to the driving electrodes of said piezoelectric substrate, and

leads from at least one of said movable plate and said supporting substrate are formed using a connector tail.