Single-piece top surface display layer and integrated front cover for an electronic device

• US 7,348,964 B1
• Filed: 05/22/2001
• Issued: 03/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Palm, Inc. (TCL Technology Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Lam, Lawrence, Gettemy, Shawn R., Hanson, William R., Slothower, Anna P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hjerpe; Richard
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Jennifer T.
• Application Number:
  US09/863,706
• Time in Patent Office: 2,499 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-179, 345/156, 345/182, 345/183, 345/905, 345/161, 178 1801- 1811, 178/18.19, 361/600, 361/625, 361/681
• US Class Current: 345/173
• 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 1/1643 the display being associated to a digitizer, e.g. laptops that can be used as penpads details related to the relative motion of the display enclosure with respect to the body enclosure, e.g. to move between laptop and tablet PC configuration G06F1/1615
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1698 the I/O peripheral being a sending/receiving arrangement to establish a cordless communication link, e.g. radio or infrared link, integrated cellular phone details of antennas disposed inside a computer H01Q1/2266
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04142 the force sensing means being located peripherally, e.g. disposed at the corners or at the side of a touch sensing plate
• 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: Y10S 345/905 Display device with housing structure

Abstract

A single-piece top surface display and integrated front cover for an electronic device. In one embodiment, the cover comprises a thin, flexible, transparent layer coupled with a supporting structure. The flexible layer is supported above a display screen which is coupled with pressure activated sensors located under the display screen. The cover is dust-free, waterproof, and has a flat outer surface that is free of any steps or indentations. Users input data by applying pressure on the cover which causes the display screen to deflect and activate the sensors. The pressure exerted on the sensors is triangulated to register the position of the user input. In another embodiment, the cover is transparent, rigid, and directly contacts the pressure activated sensors which are located in front of the display screen or in the housing behind it. When pressure is applied to the cover, the cover deflects and activates the sensors. In both embodiments, an accelerometer identifies valid input events.

Claims

1. A display assembly for a handheld electronic device comprising:

a display mechanism;

a plurality of pressure activated sensors; and

a housing for enclosing said display mechanism, said housing comprising;

an external surface that defines a body of said handheld electronic device,

a single-piece bezel-less top cover that forms a portion of the external surface and allows mechanical transfer between said top cover and said plurality of pressure activated sensors, wherein said pressure activated sensors can be activated by mechanical pressure applied to said single-piece bezel-less top cover, and

a back cover that forms another portion of the external surface, wherein a transition of the external surface to each of said back cover and said single-piece bezel-less top cover is flush.

2. The display assembly of claim 1, wherein said display mechanism is disposed beneath said single-piece bezel-less top cover, and above said plurality of pressure activated sensors.

3. The display assembly of claim 1, wherein said display mechanism is in direct contact with said plurality of pressure activated sensors.

4. The display assembly of claim 1, further comprising a fixed electronic circuit layer and wherein said pressure activated sensors are disposed between said circuit layer and said display mechanism.

5. The display assembly of claim 1, wherein said single-piece bezel-less top cover further comprises:

a transparent flexible thermoplastic outer film; and

a supporting structure that is co-molded to said transparent flexible thermoplastic outer film.

6. The display assembly of claim 5, wherein said transparent flexible thermoplastic outer film has sufficient deflection under external pressure to apply mechanical pressure to said display mechanism which applies pressure to said plurality of pressure activated sensors.

7. The display assembly of claim 5, wherein said plurality of pressure activated sensors are operable to register a position where contact is made with said transparent flexible thermoplastic outer film.

8. The display assembly of claim 1, wherein said single-piece bezel-less top cover is a flat top surface free of any indentation.

9. The display assembly of claim 1, wherein said plurality of pressure activated sensors comprise an accelerometer operable to identify the parameters of a valid input event.

10. The display assembly of claim 1, wherein said single-piece bezel-less top cover is a transparent rigid cover.

11. The display assembly of claim 1, wherein the plurality of pressure activated sensors are integrated with the external surface.

12. A display assembly for a handheld electronic device comprising:

a display mechanism of flat panel display technology;

a transparent single-piece cover that is bezel-less and is disposed over a top surface of said display mechanism and operable to allow mechanical transfer of pressure to said display mechanism;

a plurality of pressure activated sensors disposed under said display mechanism and, responsive to said mechanical transfer of said display mechanism, operable for registering a contact point on said transparent single-piece cover; and

a housing for enclosing said display mechanism and said pressure activated sensors, said housing comprising;

an external surface that defines body of said handheld electronic device,

said transparent single-piece cover, and

a back cover connected to said transparent single-piece cover such that an area, which represents transition between said back cover and said transparent single-piece cover, of said external surface is flush.

13. The display assembly of claim 12, further comprising a supporting structure and wherein said transparent single-piece cover is a flexible thermoplastic outer film co-molded to said supporting structure.

14. The transparent single-piece cover of claim 13, wherein said flexible thermoplastic outer film has sufficient deflection under external pressure to transfer said pressure to said display mechanism.

15. The display assembly of claim 12, wherein said transparent single-piece cover is a flat surface free of any indentations.

16. The display assembly of claim 15, wherein said single-piece bezel-less top cover is disposed around said display mechanism to contact said plurality of pressure activated sensors, which are disposed between said single-piece bezel-less-top cover and said back cover.

17. The display assembly of claim 16, wherein said single-piece bezel-less top cover has sufficient range of motion to allow mechanical transfer between said top cover and said plurality of pressure activated sensors.

18. The display assembly of claim 16, wherein said plurality of pressure activated sensors are operable to register a position where contact is made with said single-piece bezel-less top cover.

19. The display assembly of claim 16, wherein said single-piece bezel-less top cover is a flat top surface free of any indentation.

20. The display assembly of claim 16, wherein said single-piece bezel-less top cover has indentations to indicate button functions.

21. The display assembly of claim 12, wherein said plurality of pressure activated sensors comprise an accelerometer operable to perform thresholding to identify a valid input event.

22. The display assembly of claim 12, wherein an in-mold decoration is located under said transparent single-piece bezel-less cover and above said flat panel display.

23. A display assembly for a handheld electronic device comprising:

a display mechanism of flat panel display technology;

a housing comprising;

an external surface that defines body of said handheld electronic device;

a back cover; and

a transparent single-piece cover that is bezel-less, wherein said back cover is connected to said transparent single-piece cover such that an area, which represents transition between said back cover and said transparent single-piece cover, of said external surface is flush; and

a plurality of pressure activated sensors that are integrated with said transparent single-piece cover;

and wherein, responsive to pressure asserted on said transparent single-piece cover, the plurality of pressure activated sensors are operable for registering a contact point on said transparent single-piece cover.

24. The display assembly of claim 23, wherein said plurality of pressure activated sensors comprise an accelerometer operable to identify a valid input area.

25. The display assembly of claim 23, wherein said transparent single-piece cover is a flat surface free of any indentations.

26. The display assembly of claim 23, wherein an in-mold decoration is located under said transparent single-piece bezel-less cover and above said flat panel display.

27. A handheld electronic device comprising:

a display mechanism;

a plurality of sensors; and

a housing for enclosing said display mechanism, said housing comprising;

an external surface that defines a body of said handheld electronic device,

a single-piece bezel-less top cover that forms a portion of the external surface;

wherein at least some of the plurality sensors are activatable by user-contact that exceeds a threshold when the contact is applied to the single-piece bezel-less top cover, and

a back cover that forms another portion of the external surface, wherein a transition of the external surface to each of said back cover and said single-piece bezel- less top cover is flush.

28. The device of claim 27, wherein the plurality of sensors include an accelerometer.

29. The device of claim 28, wherein the accelerometer is configured to detect whether the user-contact exceeds the threshold.

30. The device of claim 27, wherein the display mechanism includes a liquid crystal display.

31. The device of claim 27, wherein the top cover includes one or more indentations that are each activatable with pressure to cause the device to perform a corresponding function.

32. The device of claim 27, wherein the plurality of sensors include an accelerometer, and wherein the top cover includes one or more indentations that are each activatable with pressure to cause the device to perform a corresponding function.

33. The device of claim 27, wherein the plurality of sensors include an accelerometer, wherein the display mechanism includes a liquid crystal display and wherein the top cover includes one or more indentations that are each activatable with pressure to cause the device to perform a corresponding function.