Electronic device with NFC antenna adjacent display and related methods

• US 8,676,116 B2
• Filed: 10/07/2011
• Issued: 03/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Zhu, Lizhong, Zhu, Libo, Dill, Scott Leonard, Dikun, Raymond Michael, Ooi, Soo Liam, Wiessner, Randy Alan, Nguyen, Pha Cong
• Primary Examiner(s): GONZALES, APRIL GUZMAN
• Application Number:
  US13/269,054
• Publication Number:
  US 20130090073A1
• Time in Patent Office: 893 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.1, 455/41.2
• US Class Current: 455/41.1
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/24 with receiving set
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/526 Electromagnetic shields
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/28 Combinations of substantially independent non-interacting antenna units or systems multiple beam H01Q25/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/00 Loop antennas with a substantially uniform current distribution around the loop and having a directional radiation pattern in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the loop
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3888 Arrangements for carrying or protecting transceivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/26 using coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/026 Details of the structure or mounting of specific components
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0266 for a display module assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/04 including near field communication means, e.g. RFID
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49018 with other electrical component

Abstract

An electronic device may include a housing having a display opening therein, processing circuitry within the housing, and wireless transceiver circuitry within the housing and coupled to the processing circuitry. The electronic device may also include NFC transceiver circuitry within the housing and coupled to the processing circuitry, a display within the housing and coupled to the processing circuitry, the display having an external surface exposed through the display opening and having an internal surface within the housing, and an NFC antenna positioned within the housing behind and aligned with the internal surface of the display and coupled to the NFC transceiver circuitry.

Claims

1. An electronic device comprising:

a housing having a display opening therein;

processing circuitry within said housing;

wireless transceiver circuitry within said housing and coupled to said processing circuitry;

near field communications (NFC) transceiver circuitry within said housing and coupled to said processing circuitry;

a display within said housing and coupled to said processing circuitry, said display having an external surface exposed through said display opening and having an internal surface within said housing; and

an NFC antenna positioned within said housing behind, aligned with and extending across the internal surface of said display, and coupled to said NFC transceiver circuitry.

2. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said NFC antenna comprises a substrate and electrically conductive traces thereon defining a plurality of loops.

3. The electronic device of claim 2 wherein said substrate has a rectangular shape;

and wherein said plurality of loops is adjacent a periphery of said substrate.

4. The electronic device of claim 1 further comprising a flexible circuit coupling said NFC antenna to said NFC transceiver circuitry.

5. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said substrate comprises a ferrite layer.

6. The electronic device of claim 1 further comprising a frame within said housing and behind the internal surface of said display;

and wherein said NFC antenna is mounted on said frame.

7. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said NFC antenna is mounted to the internal surface of said display.

8. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said display comprises a touch screen display.

9. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said wireless transceiver circuitry comprises at least one of cellular transceiver circuitry, WiMAX transceiver circuitry, and wireless local area network (WLAN) transceiver circuitry.

10. The electronic device of claim 1 wherein said processing circuitry comprises tablet computer processing circuitry.

11. A tablet computing device comprising:

a housing having a display opening therein;

tablet computing circuitry within said housing;

wireless transceiver circuitry within said housing and coupled to said tablet computing circuitry;

near field communications (NFC) transceiver circuitry within said housing and coupled to said tablet computing circuitry;

a display within said housing and coupled to said tablet computing circuitry, said display having an external surface exposed through said display opening and having an internal surface within said housing;

an NFC antenna positioned within said housing behind, aligned with and extending across the internal surface of said display, and coupled to said NFC transceiver circuitry; and

a flexible circuit coupling said NFC antenna to said NFC transceiver circuitry.

12. The tablet computing device of claim 11 wherein said NFC antenna comprises a substrate and electrically conductive traces thereon defining a plurality of loops.

13. The tablet computing device of claim 12 wherein said substrate comprises a ferrite layer.

14. The tablet computing device of claim 11 further comprising a frame within said housing and behind the internal surface of said display;

and wherein said NFC antenna is mounted on said frame.

15. The tablet computing device of claim 11 wherein said NFC antenna is mounted to the internal surface of said display.

16. The tablet computing device of claim 11 wherein said display comprises a touch screen display.

17. The tablet computing device of claim 11 wherein said wireless transceiver circuitry comprises at least one of cellular transceiver circuitry, WiMAX transceiver circuitry, and wireless local area network (WLAN) transceiver circuitry.

18. A method of making an electronic device comprising:

forming a housing having a display opening therein;

coupling processing circuitry within the housing;

coupling wireless transceiver circuitry within the housing and to the processing circuitry;

coupling near field communications (NFC) transceiver circuitry within the housing and to the processing circuitry;

coupling a display within the housing and to the processing circuitry, the display having an external surface exposed through the display opening and having an internal surface within the housing;

positioning an NFC antenna within the housing behind, and aligned with and extending across the internal surface of the display; and

coupling the NFC antenna to the NFC transceiver circuitry.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the NFC antenna comprises a substrate and electrically conductive traces thereon defining a plurality of loops.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the substrate has a rectangular shape and wherein the plurality of loops is adjacent a periphery of the substrate.

21. The method of claim 18 further comprising coupling a flexible circuit between the NFC antenna and the NFC transceiver circuitry.

22. The method of claim 18 wherein the substrate comprises a ferrite layer.

23. The method of claim 18 further comprising coupling a frame within the housing and behind the internal surface of the display, and mounting the NFC antenna on the frame.

24. The method of claim 18 further comprising mounting the NFC antenna to the internal surface of the display.