UICC ENCAPSULATED IN PRINTED CIRCUIT BOARD OF WIRELESS TERMINAL

• US 20130294041A1
• Filed: 05/03/2013
• Published: 11/07/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sierra Wireless Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Sierra Wireless Incorporated
• Inventors: SYAL, Ashish
• Application Number:
  US13/886,431
• Publication Number:
  US 20130294041A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 361/764
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0275 Security details, e.g. tampering prevention or detection
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0293 Individual printed conductors which are adapted for modification, e.g. fusable or breakable conductors, printed switches
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/185 Components encapsulated in the insulating substrate of the printed circuit or incorporated in internal layers of a multilayer circuit semiconductor chips encapsulated by interconnect and support structures H01L23/5389, H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10098 Components for radio transmission, e.g. radio frequency identification [RFID] tag, printed or non-printed antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10181 Fuse
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/4697 having cavities, e.g. for mounting components H05K3/4691 takes precedence

Abstract

A multilayer circuit board of a wireless terminal, a circuit assembly comprising the circuit board and a wireless terminal comprising the circuit assembly are provided. The wireless terminal is of a type which utilizes a UICC. The multilayer circuit board is configured to accommodate a UICC encapsulated within one or more interior layers of the multilayer circuit board, for example as a semiconductor die. The multilayer circuit board is further configured to accommodate one or more additional components integral to functionality of the wireless terminal, optionally also embedded within the circuit board. Integration of components into the interior layers may facilitate theft deterrence and/or tamper resistance. A physical programming interface to the encapsulated UICC may be rendered inaccessible after initial programming.

Claims

1. A multilayer circuit board of a wireless terminal, the wireless terminal utilizing a UICC, the multilayer circuit board comprising one or more interior layers and configured to accommodate:

a.) a UICC encapsulated within at least one of the one or more interior layers of the multilayer circuit board; and

b.) one or more additional components integral to functionality of the wireless terminal.

2. The multilayer circuit board according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the one or more additional components is encapsulated within at least one of the one or more interior layers of the multilayer circuit board.

3. The multilayer circuit board according to claim 1, wherein the UICC is provided as one or more integrated circuit dies.

4. The multilayer circuit board according to claim 1, wherein the multilayer circuit board is an interposer board forming part of a stacked board assembly.

5. The multilayer circuit board according to claim 1, wherein the UICC is electrically coupled via one or more electrical channels to one or more contacts on a surface of the multilayer circuit board, and wherein said electrical channels are interior to the multilayer circuit board and comprise fuses which can be open-circuited.

6. The multilayer circuit board according to claim 1, wherein the multilayer circuit board comprises circuit traces, circuit attachment points, or an internal component, located adjacent to the UICC and on or underneath a surface of the multilayer circuit board.

7. A circuit assembly of a wireless terminal utilizing a UICC, the circuit assembly comprising a multilayer circuit board as described in claim 1, the circuit assembly further comprising the UICC and the additional components operatively coupled to the multilayer circuit board.

8. The circuit assembly according to claim 7, wherein a physical programming interface operatively coupled to the UICC is rendered inaccessible after initial programming of the UICC.

9. The circuit assembly according to claim 7, wherein a physical programming interface operatively coupled to the UICC is decoupled from the UICC after initial programming of the UICC.

10. The circuit assembly according to claim 7, wherein the additional components comprise one or more components selected from the group comprising:

near field communications devices, microcontrollers, energy harvesting devices, solid state batteries and memory.

11. A wireless terminal comprising the multilayer circuit board as described in claim 1.

12. The wireless terminal according to claim 11, wherein the wireless terminal is an unattended M2M terminal.

13. The wireless terminal according to claim 11, wherein an encryption function provided by the UICC is re-used as an encryption function for one or more other operations provided by the wireless terminal.

14. A set of printed circuit assemblies of a wireless terminal, the wireless terminal utilizing a UICC, the set of printed circuit assemblies comprising:

a.) a first circuit board comprising a UICC disposed on a first surface thereof;

b.) a second circuit board comprising a mating surface configured for mating interconnection with the first surface of the first circuit board, the first surface and the mating surface comprising aligning contacts for facilitating interconnection of the first circuit board with the second circuit board;

c.) a cavity formed on one or both of the first circuit board and the second circuit board, the cavity configured to physically accommodate the UICC, thereby facilitating close contact of the first surface and the mating surface for permanent interconnection; and

d.) one or more additional components integral to functionality of the wireless terminal, the one or more additional components disposed on one or both of the first circuit board and the second circuit board.

15. The set of printed circuit assemblies according to claim 14, wherein at least one of the one or more additional components is encapsulated within the cavity.

16. The set of printed circuit assemblies according to claim 14, wherein the UICC is provided as one or more integrated circuit dies.

17. The set of printed circuit assemblies according to claim 14, wherein the UICC is electrically coupled via one or more electrical channels to one or more contacts on a surface of the first circuit board, and wherein said electrical channels are interior to the first circuit board and comprise fuses which can be open-circuited.

18. The set of printed circuit assemblies according to claim 14, comprising circuit traces, circuit attachment points, or an internal component, located adjacent to the UICC in the cavity.