Portable electronic device and detachable touch structure thereof

• US 8,693,179 B2
• Filed: 05/03/2012
• Issued: 04/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wistron Corporation
• Original Assignee: Wistron Corporation
• Inventors: Wei, Ren-Jing
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoffberg, Robert J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dang, Hung
• Application Number:
  US13/463,164
• Publication Number:
  US 20130027864A1
• Time in Patent Office: 705 Days
• Field of Search: 361/679.18, 361/679.19, 361/679.3, 361/679.1, 345/168, 345/169, 345/157, 345/159, 345/163, 345/164, 345/167
• US Class Current: 361/679.18
• 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 3/03547 Touch pads, in which fingers can move on a surface

Abstract

A detachable touch structure for a portable electronic device is disclosed. The detachable touch structure comprises a flexible board, a flexible touch panel, a control module, and a linkage element; the flexible touch panel is superimposedly disposed on the flexible board; the control module is connected with the flexible board and electrically connected with the flexible touch panel, and the control module comprises two sliding slot structures each comprising a first sliding slot and a second sliding slot communicated with each other; the linkage element comprises two positioning levers, the linkage element has one end pivotally connected with the flexible board and the other end movably connected with each one of the sliding slot structures via each one of the positioning levers respectively. When two ends of the flexible board are bended by force, the detachable touch structure can be in a tablet form or a mouse form.

Claims

1. A detachable touch structure for a portable electronic device, the portable electronic device comprising a containing recess for disposing the detachable touch structure, the detachable touch structure comprising:

a flexible board;

a flexible touch panel superimposedly disposed on the flexible board;

a control module connected with the flexible board, the control module being electrically connected with the flexible touch panel and comprising two sliding slot structures, each sliding slot structure comprising a first sliding slot and a second sliding slot communicated with each other; and

a linkage element comprising two positioning levers, the linkage element having one end pivotally connected with the flexible board and the other end movably connected with each one of the sliding slot structures via each one of the positioning levers respectively;

when two ends of the flexible board are bended by force, the two positioning levers move along different paths with respect to the two sliding slot structures to different positions respectively to allow the detachable touch structure to be in a tablet form or a mouse form.

2. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first sliding slot comprises a first starting end and a first communication end, the first communication end communicates with the second sliding slot;

the second sliding slot comprises a second starting end, a bending portion, and a second communication end, the second communication end communicates with the first sliding slot;

when the positioning lever moves to the first starting end, the detachable touch structure is in a tablet form, when the positioning lever moves to the second starting end, the detachable touch structure is in the mouse form.

3. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first sliding slot further comprises a first position limiting structure disposed between the first communication end and the second communication end, the first position limiting structure prevents the positioning lever from returning to the first starting end from the first communication end.

4. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 3, wherein the second sliding slot further comprises a second position limiting structure disposed between the second starting end and the bending portion, the second position limiting structure prevents the positioning lever from returning to the second starting end from the bending portion.

5. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 4, wherein the second sliding slot further comprises a third position limiting structure disposed between the second communication end and the first sliding slot, the third position limiting structure prevents the positioning lever from entering the second communication end from the first sliding slot.

6. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control module further comprises a first fixing portion for fixing the detachable touch structure in the containing recess.

7. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 6, wherein the flexible board comprises at least one second fixing portion disposed at an end neighboring to a point pivotally connected with the linkage element.

8. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control module further comprises a signal transmission unit for transmitting the control signal to the portable electronic device wirelessly.

9. The detachable touch structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the control module further comprises a battery unit for supplying power when the detachable touch structure is in the mouse form.

10. A portable electronic device, comprising:

a body comprising a containing recess;

a fastening element combined with the body; and

a touch structure detachably disposed at the containing recess, wherein the touch structure comprises;

a flexible board;

a flexible touch panel superimposedly disposed on the flexible board;

a control module connected with the flexible board, the control module being electrically connected with the flexible touch panel and comprising two sliding slot structures, each sliding slot structure comprising a first sliding slot and a second sliding slot communicated with each other; and

a linkage element comprising two positioning levers, the linkage element having one end pivotally connected with the flexible board and the other end movably connected with each one of the sliding slot structures via each one of the positioning levers respectively;

when two ends of the flexible board are bended by force, the two positioning levers move along different paths with respect to the two sliding slot structures to different positions respectively to allow the detachable touch structure to be in a tablet form or a mouse form;

when the touch structure is in the tablet form, the fastening element is used for fixing the touch structure in the containing recess.

11. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the first sliding slot comprises a first starting end and a first communication end, the first communication end communicates with the second sliding slot;

the second sliding slot comprises a second starting end, a bending portion, and a second communication end, the second communication end communicates with the first sliding slot;

when the positioning lever moves to the first starting end, the detachable touch structure is in the tablet form, when the positioning lever moves to the second starting end, the detachable touch structure is in the mouse form.

12. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 11, wherein the first sliding slot further comprises a first position limiting structure disposed between the first communication end and the second communication end, the first position limiting structure prevents the positioning lever from returning to the first starting end from the first communication end.

13. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 12, wherein the second sliding slot further comprises a second position limiting structure disposed between the second starting end and the bending portion, the second position limiting structure prevents the positioning lever from returning to the second starting end from the bending portion.

14. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the second sliding slot further comprises a third position limiting structure disposed between the second communication end and the first sliding slot, the third position limiting structure prevents the positioning lever from entering the second communication end from the first sliding slot.

15. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the control module further comprises a first fixing portion disposed with respect to the fastening element.

16. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 15, wherein the fastening element is movably combined with the body, when the fastening element is at an initial position, the touch structure in the tablet form is fixed in the containing recess by the fastening element;

when the fastening element moves from the initial position to a released position, the fastening element detaches from the first fixing portion to release the touch structure from the containing recess.

17. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 16, wherein the fastening element further comprises an elastic element, the elastic element brings the fastening element back to the initial position by a resilient restoring force.

18. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 16, wherein the first fixing portion comprises an inclined plane structure and the fastening element comprises a corresponding inclined plane structure.

19. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 15, wherein the body further comprises a concave structure disposed adjacent to the containing recess, a force can be applied on the touch structure via the concave structure so as to let the touch structure detach from the containing recess.

20. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 15, wherein the flexible board comprises at least one second fixing portion disposed at an end neighboring to a point pivotally connected with the linkage element;

the containing recess comprises at least one corresponding fixing portion, wherein the least one second fixing portion corresponds to the at least one corresponding fixing portion.

21. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the control module further comprises a signal transmission unit for transmitting the control signal to the body wirelessly.

22. The portable electronic device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the control module further comprises a battery unit for supplying power.