Mobile communication device

• US 20080070635A1
• Filed: 04/04/2007
• Published: 03/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Ha-Yong, Bang, Sung-Eun, Lee, Han-Bin
• Granted Patent: US 7,792,558 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/566
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1637 Details related to the display arrangement, including those related to the mounting of the display in the housing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1656 Details related to functional adaptations of the enclosure, e.g. to provide protection against EMI, shock, water, or to host detachable peripherals like a mouse or removable expansions units like PCMCIA cards, or to provide access to internal components for maintenance or to removable storage supports like CDs or DVDs, or to mechanically mount accessories mounting of accessories to a computer display G06F1/1607; display hoods G06F1/1603; cooling arrangements for portable computers G06F1/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/045 using resistive elements, e.g. a single continuous surface or two parallel surfaces put in contact
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0266 for a display module assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041

Abstract

A mobile communication device for receiving and transmitting wireless communication signals including a body having a border portion, a display supported by the body, a touch screen adjacent the display and defining an exterior surface of the mobile communication device such that the display is visible through the touch screen, the touch screen transferring an input signal through electrodes disposed at an edge portion of the touch screen, and an electrode covering layer located above the electrodes of the touch screen. The border portion of the body and the outermost portion of the touch screen are substantially coplanar.

Claims

1. A mobile communication device for receiving and transmitting wireless communication signals comprising:

a body having a border portion;

a display supported by the body;

a touch screen adjacent the display and defining an exterior surface of the mobile communication device such that the display is visible through the touch screen, the touch screen transferring an input signal through electrodes disposed at an edge portion of the touch screen; and

an electrode covering layer located above the electrodes of the touch screen,

wherein the border portion of the body and the outermost portion of the touch screen are substantially coplanar.

2. The mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein the outermost portion of the touch screen has the same height as that of the border portion of the body.

3. The mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein a mounting step with depth corresponding to the thickness of the touch screen is provided on the body to allow the touch screen to be mounted therein.

4. The mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein the touch screen includes:

a transparent support plate;

a touch sensing layer mounted on the transparent support plate and having edges with electrodes; and

a protection film layer disposed at an upper portion of the electrode covering layer.

5. The mobile communication device of claim 4, wherein the electrode covering layer is disposed at an upper portion of the touch sensing layer.

6. The mobile communication device of claim 5, wherein one of an upper and a lower surface of the electrode covering layer includes edges formed through an opaque printing.

7. The mobile communication device of claim 4, wherein the touch sensing layer includes:

a first resistive film;

a second resistive film disposed apart from the first resistive film with a gap therebetween; and

the electrodes include first electrodes disposed at the edges of the first resistive film and second electrodes formed at the edges of the second resistive film.

8. The mobile communication device of claim 7, wherein the second electrodes are perpendicular to the first electrodes.

9. The mobile communication device of claim 4, wherein the touch sensing layer is connected with a circuitry supporting substrate installed within the body by a flexible circuitry supporting substrate.

10. The mobile communication device of claim 9, wherein the flexible circuitry supporting substrate is connected with a terminal formed perpendicular to the electrodes of the touch sensing layer.

11. The mobile communication device of claim 10, wherein the terminal penetrates the touch screen so as to extend to a lower surface of the touch screen.

12. The mobile communication device of claim 10, wherein the terminal penetrates the touch screen so as to extend through the transparent support plate.

13. The mobile communication device of claim 9, wherein one end of the flexible circuitry supporting substrate is connected with the electrodes of the touch sensing layer in a horizontal direction and the other end thereof is bent in a vertical direction and penetrates the body so as to be connected with the circuitry supporting substrate.

14. The mobile communication device of claim 3, wherein the touch screen includes:

a transparent support plate;

a touch sensing layer mounted on the transparent support plate and having edges with electrodes;

a protection film layer disposed at an upper portion of the electrode covering layer; and

the electrode covering layer is disposed at an upper portion of the touch sensing layer.

15. The mobile communication device of claim 14, wherein the touch sensing layer includes:

a first resistive film;

a second resistive film disposed apart from the first resistive film with a gap therebetween; and

the electrodes include first electrodes disposed at the edges of the first resistive film and second electrodes formed at the edges of the second resistive film, the second electrodes being perpendicular to the first electrodes.

16. The mobile communication device of claim 14, wherein the touch sensing layer is connected with a circuitry supporting substrate installed within the body by a flexible circuitry supporting substrate.

17. The mobile communication device of claim 16, wherein the flexible circuitry supporting substrate is connected with a terminal formed perpendicular to the electrodes of the touch sensing layer.

18. The mobile communication device of claim 16, wherein one end of the flexible circuitry supporting substrate is connected with the electrodes of the touch sensing layer in a horizontal direction and the other end thereof is bent in a vertical direction and penetrates the mounting step so as to be connected with the circuitry supporting substrate.

19. The mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein the touch screen may have a size corresponding to an entire upper surface of the body.

20. The mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein the touch screen includes:

a through hole; and

at least one external key exposed through the through hole.

21. The mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein the touch screen includes a touch sensing layer to discriminate a resistance value corresponding to the touched portion, and the electrode covering layer is located on an upper surface of the touch sensing layer.

22. The mobile communication device of claim 1, wherein the touch screen includes a touch sensing layer to discriminate a resistance value corresponding to the touched portion, and the electrode covering layer is located internally of the touch sensing layer.

23. A mobile communication device comprising:

a protection layer, the protection layer including a speaker hole formed in an upper surface of the protection layer and a button hole formed opposite the speaker hole in the protection layer;

a display visible through the protection layer;

a touch sensing layer located between the display and the protection layer; and

a border portion surrounding at least the edge of the touch sensing layer,

wherein the border portion and the protection layer are substantially coplanar.

24. The mobile communication device of claim 23, further comprising a printed layer located between the protection layer and the display.

25. The mobile communication device of claim 23, wherein an upper surface of the border portion is substantially coplanar with an upper surface of the protection layer.

26. A mobile communication device comprising:

a protection layer, the protection layer including a speaker hole formed in an upper surface of the protection layer and a button hole formed opposite the speaker hole in the protection layer;

a display visible through the protection layer;

a touch sensing layer located between the display and the protection layer;

a support member configured to support the touch sensing layer;

a printed circuit board located beneath the support member; and

a flexible printed circuit board connecting the touch sensing layer to the printed circuit board, the flexible printed circuit board passing through the support member.

27. The mobile communication device of claim 26, wherein the display is located between the support member and the printed circuit board.

28. The mobile communication device of claim 26, wherein the support member is a support step.

29. The mobile communication device of claim 26, wherein the support member includes a hole at an upper portion of the support member, the flexible printed circuit board passing through the hole in the support member.