Portable computer housing with integral display

• US 8,408,780 B2
• Filed: 01/21/2010
• Issued: 04/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Mathew, Dinesh C., Wilson, Thomas W. Jr., Yin, Victor H., Posner, Bryan W., Ligtenberg, Chris, Degner, Brett W., Augenbergs, Peteris K., Garelli, Adam
• Primary Examiner(s): CARTER, WILLIAM JOSEPH
• Application Number:
  US12/691,714
• Publication Number:
  US 20110103041A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,167 Days
• Field of Search: 362632-634
• US Class Current: 362/632
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0011 the light guides being planar or of plate-like form
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0031 Reflecting element, sheet or layer
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0033 Means for improving the coupling-out of light from the light guide
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0073 Light emitting diode [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• 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: Y10T 29/49002 Electrical device making

Abstract

An electronic device such as a portable computer may have a housing with a rectangular recess in which layers of display structures such as a light guide panel layer and other light guide structures are directly mounted without intervening chassis members. Mating alignment features in the housing and display structures may be used to align the display structures relative to the housing. A display may be formed from glass layers such as a color filter glass layer and a thin-film transistor glass layer. Backlight for the display may be generated by an array of light-emitting diodes. The light guide panel may direct light from the light-emitting diodes through the glass layers. A clamp may be used to hold the light-emitting diodes and light guide structures in place in the recess. An undercut in the housing may also hold the light guide structures in place.

Claims

1. Apparatus, comprising:

a computer housing having a substantially rectangular recess with four edges;

a substantially rectangular light guide panel disposed in the rectangular recess, wherein the light guide panel has four edges that are adjacent to the four edges of the rectangular recess without any intervening chassis structures;

an array of light-emitting diodes that emit light into one of the edges of the light guide panel;

a flex circuit on which the light-emitting diodes are mounted;

reflective tape that covers at least part of the flex circuit;

a metal clamp over that light-emitting diode array; and

a strip of reflective material disposed between the light-emitting diode array and the metal clamp.

2. The apparatus defined in claim 1 further comprising a clamp structure disposed over an edge of the light guide panel.

3. The apparatus defined in claim 2 wherein the clamp structure comprises a sheet of metal.

4. The apparatus defined in claim 2 wherein the clamp structure comprises a strip of stainless steel that is screwed into the computer housing.

5. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein the light guide panel comprises at least one alignment tab and wherein the computer housing has at least one mating tab-shaped recess into which the alignment tab protrudes.

6. The apparatus defined in claim 5 further comprising a reflective coating in the rectangular recess that reflects light back into the light guide panel.

7. The apparatus defined in claim 6 wherein the reflective coating comprises white paint in the rectangular recess.

8. The apparatus defined in claim 6 wherein the reflective coating comprises a layer of metal.

9. The apparatus defined in claim 1 further comprising a white reflective sheet disposed between the light guide panel and the recess in the computer housing, wherein the white reflective sheet has portions that cover at least one of the edges of the light guide panel.

10. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein the computer housing comprises machined aluminum.

11. The apparatus defined in claim 1 further comprising:

a thin-film transistor glass layer; and

a color filter glass layer, wherein the thin-film transistor glass layer and the color filter glass layer are positioned above the rectangular recess and wherein light from the light guide panel passes through the thin-film glass layer and the color filter glass layer.

12. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein the light guide panel comprises at least one alignment tab, wherein the computer housing has at least one mating tab-shaped recess into which the alignment tab protrudes, wherein the apparatus further comprises layers of optical films including a diffuser layer, and wherein the layers of optical films each include at least one alignment tab that protrudes into the tab-shaped recess in the computer housing.

13. The apparatus defined in claim 12 further comprising a plastic reflective sheet under the light guide panel, wherein the plastic reflective sheet has bent edges that cover at least two of the edges of the light guide panel.

14. The apparatus defined in claim 1 further comprising:

glass layers through which light from the light guide panel passes; and

a bezel that covers at least part of the glass layers.

15. The apparatus defined in claim 1 further comprising a sheet of reflective material under the light guide panel, wherein at least a portion of the sheet of reflective material covers the flex circuit.

16. A computer, comprising:

a housing having a base unit hingedly connected to a display housing wherein the display housing comprises a machined rectangular recess having four recess edges and having alignment notches disposed along at least two of the four recess edges; and

a rectangular light guide panel having at least four light guide panel edges and having alignment tabs disposed along at least two of the four light guide panel edges, wherein the alignment taps protrude into and mate with the alignment notches in the display housing;

a color filter glass layer through which light from the rectangular light guide panel passes;

a white reflective sheet with tabs that mate with the alignment notches;

at least one optical film layer on the light guide panel, wherein the at least one optical film layer includes a diffuser layer with tabs that mate with the alignment notches;

light-emitting diodes that emit light into a given one of the edges of the light guide panel; and

a metal clamp structure that is screwed into the housing along one of the four recess edges and that covers the light-emitting diodes and the given one of the edges of the light guide panel.