Electronic timepiece

• US 4,238,848 A
• Filed: 01/17/1977
• Issued: 12/09/1980
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/1976
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Nakazawa, Akira, Yamaguchi, Isao, Sugihara, Hirosige, Hashizume, Heiji
• Primary Examiner(s): Miska, Vit W.
• Application Number:
  US05/760,123
• Time in Patent Office: 1,422 Days
• Field of Search: 58/23 R, 58/23 BA, 58/50 R, 58/88 R, 58/90 R
• US Class Current: 368/276
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 17/02 Component assemblies
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 9/06 using light valves, e.g. liquid crystals
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 9/12 using light valves, e.g. liquid crystals
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/05599 Material
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/45124 Aluminium (Al) as principal constituent
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/45144 Gold (Au) as principal constituent
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/48 of an individual wire connector
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 24/45 of an individual wire connector
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00014 the subject-matter covered by the group, the symbol of which is combined with the symbol of this group, being disclosed without further technical details
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01013 Aluminum [Al]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01014 Silicon [Si]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01028 Nickel [Ni]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01046 Palladium [Pd]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0105 Tin [Sn]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01078 Platinum [Pt]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/01079 Gold [Au]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/14 Integrated circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/19041 being a capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/144 Stacked arrangements of planar printed circuit boards
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/325 by abutting or pinching, i.e. without alloying process; mechanical auxiliary parts therefor adaptations of leads inserted in holes for press-fit connections H05K3/308

Abstract

An electronic timepiece comprising a module structure, the module structure comprising circuit board means including a plurality of circuit boards, display means having a display panel disposed on one surface and input terminals disposed on the other surface, resilient connector means having resiliency and conductivity, and an assembling casing for assembling the circuit board means, the display means and the resilient connector means. The resilient connector means affords the electric interconnection of said plurality of circuit boards and said display means and prevents damage of the module structure by shocks.

Claims

1. An electronic timepiece module to be assembled in a watch case comprising:

a first wiring board having first and second principal surfaces at opposite sides thereof, said first principal surface having electronic parts and interconnections for constituting a timepiece circuit, said second principal surface being substantially flat, and said first wiring board having a hole at a portion thereof for mounting a battery therethrough for energizing said timepiece circuit;

a second wiring board having first and second parallel principal surfaces, said second wiring board being substantially sized to said first wiring board and being positioned spaced apart from said first wiring board so as to oppose said first principal surface thereof to said first principal surface of the first wiring board, said first principal surface of the second wiring board having a power source terminal at a portion thereof corresponding to said portion of said first wiring board for connecting said battery and an integrated circuit for said timepiece circuit, said second principal surface of the second wiring board having output wiring terminals for deriving electric output signals of said timepiece circuit, the distance between said first principal surface of the second wiring board and said second principal surface of the first wiring board being substantially equal to the thickness of said battery mounted through said hole of the first wiring board, and said second principal surface of the second wiring board being substantially flat;

a first resilient member having first contact means located at said first principal surface of said first wiring board and second contact means located at said first principal surface of the second wiring board for electrically and elastically connecting said first wiring board to said second wiring board;

display means for displaying the time of the timepiece including a first principal surface having a display panel for giving display and a second principal surface having input wiring terminals for receiving said electric output signals of the timepiece circuit;

a second resilient member having first contact means located at said input wiring terminals of the display means and second contact means located at said output wiring terminals of the second wiring board to said display means; and

assembling means for stacking said first and second wiring boards and said display means for elastically holding them together in cooperation with said first and second resilient members.

2. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 1, wherein said display means is substantially sized to said second wiring board, and wherein said first and second wiring boards and said display means having substantially the same elongated plane shape, said first wiring board having said hole for mounting the battery at said portion in a longitudinal direction thereof, and the electronic parts at another portion in longitudinal direction thereof, said first principal surface of the second wiring board having said power source terminal at said portion corresponding to said portion thereof corresponding to said another portion of the first wiring board.

3. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 1, wherein said display means is substantially sized to said second wiring board, and wherein said first and second wiring boards and said display means having substantially the same elongated plane shape, said first wiring board having said hole for mounting the battery at said portion in a longitudial direction thereof and the electronic parts at another portion in longitudinal direction thereof said first principal surface of the second wiring board having said power source terminal at said portion corresponding to said portion of the first wiring board and said integrated circuit at another portion of the first wiring board and said integrated circuit at another portion thereof corresponding to said another portion of the first wiring board.

4. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 1, wherein said assembling means includes easing means for positioning said first and second wiring boards and said display means in a predetermined positional relation, and restraining means for holding said first wiring board, said first resilient member, said second wiring board, said second resilient member and said display means which are stacked in that order in compression.

5. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 1, wherein said assembling means comprises a wall member defining an interior cavity which is occupied by said first wiring board, said first resilient member, said second wiring board, said second resilient member, and said display means which are stacked in that order, and supporting means extending from said wall member for at least partially receiving peripheral portions of the second principal surface of said first wiring board and the first principal surface of said display means.

6. An electronic timepiece module to be assembled in a watch case comprising:

a first wiring board having first and second principal surfaces at opposite sides thereof, said first principal surface having electronic parts and interconnections for constituting a timepiece circuit, said second principal surface being substantially flat, and said first wiring board having a hole at a portion thereof for mounting a battery therethrough for energizing said timepiece circuit;

a second wiring board having first and second parallel principal surfaces, said second wiring board being substantially sized to said first wiring board and being positioned spaced apart from said first wiring board so as to oppose said first principal surface thereof to said first principal surface of the first wiring board, said first principal surface of the second wiring board having a power source terminal at a portion thereof corresponding to said portion of said first wiring board for connecting said battery and an integrated circuit for said timepiece circuit, said second principal surface of the second wiring board having output wiring terminals for deriving electric output signals of said timepiece circuit, and second second principal surface of the second wiring board being substantially flat;

a first resilient member having first contact means located at said first principal surface of said first wiring board and second contact means located at said first principal surface of the second wiring board for electrically and elastically connecting said first wiring board to said second wiring board;

display means for displaying the time of the timepiece including a first principal surface having a display panel for giving display and a second principal surface having input wiring terminals for receiving said electric output signals of the timepiece circuit;

a second resilient member having first contact means located at said input wiring terminals of the display means and second contact means located at said output wiring terminals of the second wiring board to said display means; and

assembling means for stacking said first and second wiring boards and said display means for elastically holding them together in cooperation with said first and second resilient members, wherein said assembling means includes easing means for positioning said first and second wiring boards and said display means in a predetermined positional relation, and restraining means for holding said first wiring board, said first resilient member, said second wiring board, said second resilient member and said display means which are stacked in that order in compression, wherein said casing means comprises a side wall member disposed around the end portion of each of said first and second wiring boards and adjacent to at least part of each end portion thereof, and a support member extending perpendicularly from said side wall member for receiving said first wiring board, and wherein said restraining means comprises a support frame member for supporting the peripheral portion of said first principal surface of the display means and flexible arms extending from said support frame member and engaging with said side wall member.

7. In an electronic timepiece module including display means having a viewing surface for giving display and a back surface having a plurality of input wiring terminals arranged to receive electric display signals;

wiring board means for constituting a timepiece circuit, said wiring board means having plural output wiring terminals arranged corresponding to said input wiring terminals, and having electronic parts for the timepiece circuit;

resilient connector means for electrically and elastically connecting said output wiring terminals to said input wiring terminals, and holding means for holding said display means, said resilient connector means and said wiring board means together in compression;

the improvement wherein said wiring board means comprises first and second wiring boards which are positioned spaced apart from and in parallel with each other with the substantially same shape thereof, said first and second wiring boards respectively having said electronic parts at oppositely facing sides thereof and respectively having substantially flat surfaces at the other sides thereof, said second wiring board having a power source terminals for connecting a battery at a portion of said opposite side thereof, said first wiring board having a hole for mounting therethrough said battery at a portion thereof corresponding to said portion of said second wiring board, the distance between said opposite side of the second wiring board and said other side of the first wiring board being substantially equal to the thickness of said battery mounted through said hole of the first wiring board.

8. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 7, wherein said wiring board means further comprises a second resilient member, disposed between said first and second wiring boards, for electrically and elastically connecting said first wiring board to said second wiring board.

9. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 8, wherein said second wiring board has an integrated circuit at said opposite side thereof, said integrated circuit having at least output terminals corresponding to said plural input wiring terminals of the display means, and said first wiring board has the other electronic parts at said opposite side thereof.

10. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 7, wherein said display means is substantially sized to said first and second wiring boards in the plane shape.

11. An electronic timepiece module according to claim 10, wherein said holding means comprises spring clip means adapted between said display mens and said wiring board means.