KR101595362B1 - Portable terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a mobile terminal comprising: a terminal body; And at least one key button mounted on the terminal body for inputting information by a pressing operation, the key button comprising: a base; A support film disposed on a front surface of the base and having a first color layer and a second color layer on a front surface and a back surface, respectively; And a cover layer covering the support film and having pattern holes having a specific pattern formed thereon to expose hues of the first and second color layers through the pattern holes.

Description

[0001] PORTABLE TERMINAL [0002]

The present invention relates to a portable terminal having a key button in which patterns are embodied in a plurality of colors.

A portable terminal is a portable device that is portable and has one or more functions such as voice and video call function, information input / output function, and data storing function.

As the functions of the portable terminal are diversified, for example, the portable terminal has complicated functions such as photographing and photographing of a moving picture, reproduction of music or video file, reception of a game and broadcasting, and is implemented as a multimedia device .

In order to implement complex functions in multimedia devices, various new attempts have been made in terms of hardware or software. For example, a user interface environment is provided for a user to easily and conveniently search for or select a function.

In addition, a portable terminal is regarded as a personal portable product for expressing its own personality, and various designs are required. As described above, since the tasteful element is emphasized to the user, various design elements are added to the keypad applied to the portable terminal.

For example, in recent years, numbers, letters, symbols, and the like displayed on the key buttons of the keypad have been implemented in various colors. This not only makes the design of the portable terminal look good but also implements numbers and letters (or symbols) in different colors so that the user can easily identify them.

The present invention provides a structure of a key button or a keypad that can implement different colors for numbers, characters, and symbols displayed on a single key button, and improve the visibility of the colors.

According to an aspect of the present invention, And at least one key button mounted on the terminal body for inputting information by a pressing operation, the key button comprising: a base; A support film disposed on a front surface of the base and having a first color layer and a second color layer on a front surface and a back surface, respectively; And a cover layer covering the support film and having pattern holes having a specific pattern formed thereon to expose hues of the first and second color layers through the pattern holes.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the support film has first and second regions formed along a plane direction, and the first and second color layers may be formed in the first and second regions, respectively.

As one example of the present invention, the support film may be integrally formed with the base by insert injection molding.

The present invention having such a structure can prevent the boundary lines or steps between different colors from appearing outside the cover layer and improve the visibility of the colors by arranging the color layers close to the rear of the pattern holes.

Further, in the present invention, by using the color layer and the supporting film as a light-transmitting material in the above-described structure, it is possible to illuminate the back surface and improve the visibility of the illuminated color upon illumination.

In addition, the present invention has an advantage of simplifying a manufacturing process and providing a keypad with a slim thickness by manufacturing a keypad through an insert injection process.

Hereinafter, a portable terminal according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 is a perspective view of an example of a mobile terminal 100 according to the present invention as viewed from the front.

The portable terminal of the present invention includes a first body 110 and a second body 120 that is slidable along at least one direction on the first body 110. In this embodiment, the slide type portable terminal is exemplified, but the present invention is not limited thereto, but can be applied to various types of portable terminals such as a bar type, a folder type, a swivel type, and a swing type.

The first body 110 may be referred to as a closed configuration in which the first body 110 and the second body 120 are overlapped with each other and the first body 110 may be referred to as a second body 120 ) May be referred to as an open configuration.

The mobile terminal operates mainly in the standby mode in the closed state, but the standby mode is also released by the user's operation. Then, the portable terminal 100 operates mainly in a communication mode in an open state, but is also switched to a standby mode by a user's operation or after a predetermined time elapses.

The casing (housing, housing, cover, etc.) constituting the outer appearance of the first body 110 is formed by the front case 111 and the rear case 112. Various electronic components are embedded in the space formed by the front case 110 and the rear case 120. [

At least one intermediate case may be additionally disposed between the front case 111 and the rear case 112.

The cases may be formed by injection molding a synthetic resin or may be formed to have a metal material such as stainless steel (STS) or titanium (Ti) or the like.

The display unit 113, the first sound output unit 114, the first image input unit 115, or the first operation unit 116 may be disposed in the first body 110, specifically, the front case 111. [

The display unit 113 includes a liquid crystal display (LCD) module, an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes) module, etc. that visually express information, and the display unit 113 further includes a touch screen, It may also be possible to input information.

The first sound output unit 114 may be implemented in the form of a receiver or a speaker. The first image input unit 115 may have a form such as a camera module for photographing an image or a moving image of a user, . ≪ / RTI >

The first operation unit 116 receives a command for controlling the operation of the portable terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The front case 121 and the rear case 122 may form the case of the second body 120, as in the case of the first body 110. [ The second operation unit 123 may be disposed on the front surface of the second body 120, specifically, the front case 121.

At least one of the front case 121 and the rear case 122 may include a third operating unit 124, an acoustical input unit 125, and an interface 126.

The first to third operating portions 116, 123, and 124 may be collectively referred to as a manipulating portion and may be employed in any manner as long as the user operates in a tactile manner.

For example, the operation unit may be implemented by a dome switch or a touch screen, a touch pad, or a wheel, a jog type, a joystick, or the like, As shown in FIG.

In terms of functions, the first operation unit 116 is for inputting commands such as start, end, and scrolling, and the second operation unit 123 is for inputting numbers, characters, symbols, and the like. In addition, the third operation unit 124 may operate as a hot-key for performing a special function such as activation of the first image input unit 15 or the like.

The sound input unit 125 may be implemented in the form of a microphone, for example, to receive a user's voice, other sounds, and the like.

The interface 126 is a path through which the portable terminal related to the present invention can exchange data with an external device. For example, the interface 126 may be a wired or wireless connection terminal for connecting to an earphone, a port for short range communication (for example, an IrDA port, a Bluetooth port, a wireless LAN port a wireless Lan port), or power supply terminals for supplying power to the portable terminal.

The interface 126 may be a card socket that accepts an external card such as a subscriber identification module (SIM) or a user identity module (UIM), a memory card for information storage, and the like.

A power supply 127 for supplying power to the portable terminal is mounted on the rear case 122 side. The power supply 127 may be detachably coupled, for example, for charging, as a rechargeable battery, for example.

2 is a rear perspective view of the portable terminal of FIG.

Referring to FIG. 2, a second image input unit 128 may be additionally mounted on the rear surface of the rear case 122 of the second body 120. The second image input unit 128 may have a photographing direction substantially opposite to that of the first image input unit 15 (see FIG. 1), and may be a camera having different pixels from the first image input unit 115.

For example, the first image input unit 115 has low pixels so that the face of the user can be photographed and transmitted to the other party in case of a video call or the like, and the second image input unit 128 photographs a general object, It is preferable to have a high pixel because it is often not transmitted.

A flash 129 and a mirror 130 are further disposed adjacent to the second image input unit 128. The flash 129 illuminates the subject when the subject is photographed by the second image input unit 128. The mirror unit 130 allows the user to illuminate the user's own face or the like when the user intends to take a picture of himself / herself (self-photographing) using the second image input unit 128.

And the second sound output unit 131 may be further disposed in the rear case 122. [

The second sound output unit 131 may implement a stereo function together with the first sound output unit 114 (see FIG. 1), and may be used for talking in a speakerphone mode.

Further, on one side of the rear case 122, a broadcast signal receiving antenna 132 may be disposed in addition to an antenna for communication. The antenna 132 may be installed to be detachable from the second body 120.

A part of the slide module 133 which slidably couples the first body 110 and the second body 120 is disposed on the rear case 112 side of the first body 110.

The other part of the slide module 133 may be disposed on the front case 121 side of the second body 120 and may not be exposed to the outside as in this figure.

In the above description, the second image input unit 128 and the like are disposed in the second body 120, but the present invention is not limited thereto. At least one of the configurations 128 to 132 described as being arranged in the rear case 122 such as the second image input unit 128 may include at least one of the first body 110 and the rear case 112, As shown in FIG. In such a case, there is an advantage that the configuration (s) disposed in the rear case 112 in the closed state is protected by the second body 120. Further, the first image input unit 115 may be rotatably formed so that the second image input unit 128 can be photographed up to the second image input unit 128, even if the second image input unit 128 is not separately provided.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the portable terminal according to line IV-IV of FIG.

The second operation unit 123 is implemented in the form of a keypad having a plurality of key buttons. Hereinafter, the second operation unit 123 will be referred to as a 'keypad 140'.

The front case 121 of the second body 120 is formed with a keypad mounting portion 135 in the form of a through hole and the keypad 140 is fixed to the rear case 121 of the keypad mounting portion 135, As shown in Fig.

The keypad 140 includes at least one key button 150 that can be pressed. The key buttons 150 are integrally formed to form the keypad 140. However, the key buttons 150 formed separately may be provided on a support such as a sheet or a plate, A keypad 140 may be formed as an attached form.

Between the front case 121 and the rear case 122, a printed circuit board 136 on which electronic parts for operating the portable terminal are mounted is mounted.

The printed circuit board 136 is mounted with dome keys 137 for generating a signal in accordance with the depressing operation of the key button 150. On the rear surface of the keypad 140, pushing protrusions 141 for pushing the dome keys 137 are formed. These push projections 141 are formed at positions corresponding to the key buttons 150 and the dome keys 137 are also formed at positions corresponding to the push projections 141. [

The pushing protrusions 141 press the dome key 137 and the signal is generated as the dome key 137 is pressed.

Between the domes 137 of the printed circuit board 136 is mounted a lighting unit 138 for illuminating the key buttons 150. The illumination unit 138 illuminates numbers, characters, symbols, and the like displayed on the key buttons 150 so that the user can identify them at night. A light emitting diode (LED) may be used to reduce the power loss and the manufacturing cost of the lighting unit 138.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a key button showing any one of the key buttons shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the key button taken along a line VI-VI of FIG.

Each of the key buttons 150 displays numbers, letters, symbols, and the like. Numbers, letters, symbols, and the like displayed on the single key button 141 are implemented in different colors. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, a numeral '2' is embodied as a first color (I, for example, red), and a character (abc ' , E.g., green).

Referring to FIG. 6, the key button 150 includes a base 151, a support film 152, and a cover layer 153.

The base 151 has a pushable push area and is formed in the form of a key button 150. The push protrusion 141 described above may be formed on the back surface of the base 151.

The base 151 may be formed of a light-transmissive material so that light generated in the illumination unit 138 can pass therethrough, and may be formed of a material that can be elastically deformed during a pressing operation. Examples of such materials include synthetic resin, silicone, and the like.

The support film 152 is disposed on the front surface of the base 151 and includes a first color layer 154 and a second color layer 155, respectively. First and second color layers 154 and 155 may be formed on the front and rear surfaces of the support film 152, respectively. The support film 152 may be formed of a light-transmitting material (for example, a urethane material) so that the color of the second color layer 155 can be seen from the outside.

7 is a plan view of the support film shown in Fig.

7, the support film 152 includes a first region (1) and a second region (2) formed along the planar direction and includes a first color layer 154 and a second color layer 155, Are formed in the first region (1) and the second region (2), respectively.

The first color layer 154 and the second color layer 155 may have a first color I and a second color II so as to implement the colors of the numbers '2' and 'abc' Respectively. The first and second color layers 154 and 155 may be formed of a transparent material so that light generated in the illumination unit 138 is transmitted. The number '2' of the key button 150 and the character 'abc' are illuminated with the first and second colors I and II by illumination of the illumination unit 138.

The cover layer 153 is formed to cover the support film 152 and pattern holes 156 and 157 having a specific pattern are formed in the cover layer 153. The cover layer 153 has a third color (e.g., black or white) different from the first and second colors I and II so that the cover layer 153 can be distinguished from the first and second colors I and II. .

The pattern holes 156 and 157 may include a first pattern hole 156 formed at a position corresponding to the first region 1 and a second pattern hole 157 formed at a position corresponding to the second region 2 . The pattern holes 156 and 157 are formed in the form of numbers, letters, symbols, and the like to be displayed. The present embodiment illustrates that the first pattern hole 156 is formed in the shape of a numeral '2' and the second pattern hole 157 is formed in the shape of a character 'abc'.

The first and second colors I and II of the first and second color layers 154 and 155 are exposed to the outside through the pattern holes 156 and 157. [ The first color I is exposed to the outside through the first pattern hole 156 located on the front surface of the first color layer 154 and the second color II is exposed to the outside through the support film 152 and the second pattern hole 157 To be exposed to the outside.

It is also possible that the first color layer 154 and the second color layer 155 are formed together on the same plane (e.g., front surface or back surface) of the support film 152. However, in order to prevent the boundary lines or stepped portions (occurring when the color layers have different thicknesses) formed at the boundaries of the first and second color layers 154 and 155 from appearing fine to the outside of the cover layer 153 One color layer 154 and the second color layer 155 may be formed on different surfaces of the support film 152. [

According to the structure of the key button 150 as described above, it is possible to prevent the boundary lines (or fine steps) between the hues I and II from appearing outside the cover layer 153, (I, II) can be improved by disposing them in close proximity to the rear of the first and second color filters (156, 157). In addition, backlighting is enabled by using the color layers 154 and 155 and the supporting film 152 of a light transmitting material.

Hereinafter, a method of manufacturing a key button (or a keypad) related to the present invention will be described.

8A to 8D are cross-sectional views illustrating a manufacturing process of a key button according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, a first color layer 154 and a second color layer 155 are formed on the front and rear surfaces of the support film 152, respectively, as shown in FIG. 8A. This can be done by printing or spraying with paints having the first and second colors (I, II).

As shown in FIG. 8B, the cover layer 153 is formed on the entire surface of the support film 152 on which the first and second color layers 154 and 155 are formed. The cover layer 152 may also be formed by printing or spraying with paints having a third color as well as the first and second color layers 154 and 155.

The first and second color layers 154 and 155 are formed on the support film 152 and then the cover layer 153 is formed on the support film 152. The first color layer 154 and the cover layer 153 A second color layer 155 may be formed first or a first color layer 154 and a cover layer 153 may be formed after the second color layer 155 is formed first something to do.

After the first and second color layers 154 and 155 and the cover layer 153 are formed on the support film 152, the key button 150 is formed by insert injection molding. 8C, the support film 152 is placed on a mold 160 having a groove in the form of a key button 150, and then a liquid raw material 151a constituting the base 151, for example, silicon To perform insert injection molding.

Accordingly, the support film 152, on which the first and second color layers 154 and 155 and the cover layer 153 are formed, and the base 151 may be integrally formed.

Next, after the key button 150 is separated from the mold 160 as shown in FIG. 8D, pattern holes 156 and 157 are formed in the cover layer 153. Pattern holes 156 and 157 may be formed by laser cutting.

9 is a cross-sectional view of a keypad in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

The above processes can be applied to the case where the key buttons 150 are formed separately, but the present invention is also applicable to the case of manufacturing the keypad 140 in which a plurality of key buttons are integrally formed.

For example, after a combination of the first and second color layers 154 and 155 is formed at a plurality of portions of the support film 152, a cover layer 153 is formed on the entire surface. When insert injection molding and laser cutting are performed after the mold is placed in a mold having a plurality of key button holes (or grooves), manufacturing of the keypad 140 as shown in FIG. 9 is completed.

In this case, since the keypad 140 having a plurality of key buttons can be formed by a single process, the manufacturing process can be simplified and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

In the above description, the number and the character of the key button 150 are embodied in two different colors. However, by using the above-described structure and manufacturing method, letters, numbers, symbols, It is also possible to implement.

10 is a block diagram of a portable terminal according to the present invention.

10, a portable terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a wireless communication module 181, operation units 116, 123 and 124, image input units 115 and 128, an acoustic input unit 125, a display unit 113, A sensing unit 186, an interface 126, a broadcast receiving module 185, a memory 184, a power supply unit 127, and a control unit 180.

The control unit 180 typically controls the overall operation of the portable terminal. For example, voice communication, data communication, video communication, and the like.

The wireless communication module 181 transmits / receives a wireless signal to / from a mobile communication base station through an antenna. A transmission unit 182 for transmitting and receiving voice data, character data, video data, and control data under the control of the control unit 190 and for modulating and transmitting a signal to be transmitted for this purpose; 183).

The operation units 116, 123, and 124 are configured as shown in FIG. 1, and provide the control unit 180 with key input data that the user inputs for controlling the operation of the terminal. The operation units 116, 123, and 124 include a dome switch, a touch pad (static / static), a jog wheel, a jog switch, and the like.

The image input units 115 and 128 process image frames such as still images or moving images obtained by the image sensor in the video communication mode or the photographing mode. The processed image frame is converted into image data that can be displayed on the display unit 113 and output to the display unit 113.

The image frames processed by the image input units 115 and 128 are stored in the memory 184 under the control of the control unit 180 or transmitted to the outside through the wireless communication module 181. [

The sound input unit 125 receives an external sound signal by a microphone in a communication mode, a recording mode, a voice recognition mode, and the like, and processes it as electrical voice data. The processed voice data is converted into a form that can be transmitted to the mobile communication base station through the wireless communication module 181 in the communication mode, and is output to the wireless communication module. In the record mode, the processed voice data is output to be stored in the memory 184. [

The sound input unit 125 may be implemented with various noise reduction algorithms for eliminating noise generated in the process of receiving an external sound signal.

The display unit 113 displays and outputs information processed in the portable terminal. For example, when the portable terminal is in the call mode, the control unit 180 displays a UI (User Interface) or a GUI (Graphic User Interface) associated with the call. If the portable terminal is in the video communication mode or the photographing mode, the control unit 180 displays and displays the photographed image, the UI, and the GUI. When the display unit 113 includes a touch screen, the display unit 113 is used as an input device in addition to the output device.

The sound output units 114 and 131 receive sound data received from the wireless communication module 181 under control of the control unit 180 in a call signal reception mode, a communication mode or a recording mode, a voice recognition mode, Converts the stored sound data and outputs it to the outside.

In addition, the sound output units 114 and 131 output sound signals related to functions (e.g., call signal reception sound, message reception sound, etc.) performed in the portable terminal. The sound output units 114 and 131 include a speaker, a receiver, a buzzer, and the like.

The sensing unit 186 senses the current state of the portable terminal, such as the open / close state of the portable terminal, the position of the portable terminal, whether or not the user touches the portable terminal, and generates a sensing signal for controlling the operation of the portable terminal. For example, if the portable terminal is in the form of a slide phone, it senses whether the slide phone is opened or closed, and outputs the sensing result to the controller 180 so that the operation of the terminal is controlled. And a sensing function related to whether or not the power supply 127 is powered on, whether the interface 126 is coupled to an external device, and the like.

The interface 126 may be any type of interface card such as a wired / wireless headset, an external charger, a wired / wireless data port, a card socket (e.g. a memory card, a SIM / UIM card) It serves as an interface with the device. The interface 126 receives data from an external device or receives power from the external device, transfers the data to each component in the portable terminal, or transmits data in the portable terminal to an external device.

The memory 184 may store a program for processing and controlling the control unit 180 and may have a function for temporarily storing input / output data (e.g., a phone book, a message, a still image, .

In addition, a program for controlling the operation of the portable terminal related to the present invention is stored in the memory 184

Such memory 184 includes the concept of a generally known hard disk, card type memory (e.g., SD or XD memory), flash memory, RAM, ROM, and the like.

The broadcast receiving module 185 receives broadcast signals transmitted through satellite or terrestrial waves and converts the received broadcast signals into broadcast data types that can be output to the sound output units 114 and 131 and the display unit 113 and outputs the broadcast data formats to the controller 180. In addition, the broadcast receiving module 185 receives additional data (e.g., EPG (Electric Program Guide), channel list, etc.) related to broadcasting. The broadcast data and the additional data converted by the broadcast receiving module 185 may be stored in the memory 184. [

The power supply unit 127 receives external power and internal power under the control of the controller 180 and supplies power necessary for operation of the respective components.

The above-described portable terminal is not limited to the configuration and method of the embodiments described above, but all or some of the embodiments may be selectively combined so that various modifications may be made to the embodiments.

1 is a front perspective view of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a rear perspective view of a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is an exploded perspective view of a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4 is a cross-sectional view of the portable terminal according to line IV-IV in FIG. 3;

5 is a plan view of a key button showing any one of the key buttons shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Fig.

6 is a sectional view along the line VI-VI of the key button shown in Fig. 5; Fig.

7 is a plan view of the support film shown in Fig.

8A to 8D are cross-sectional views illustrating a manufacturing process of a key button according to an embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a cross-sectional view of a keypad in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

10 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (5)

Terminal body; And And at least one key button mounted on the terminal body for inputting information by a pressing operation, The key button comprises: a base; A support film disposed on a front surface of the base and having a first color layer and a second color layer formed on a front surface and a rear surface, respectively; A color layer including the first color layer formed on the front surface and the second color layer formed on the rear surface; And And a cover layer covering the support film and having pattern holes having a specific pattern formed therein to expose hues of the first and second color layers through the pattern holes. The method according to claim 1, Wherein the support film has first and second regions formed along a plane direction, Wherein the first and second color layers are formed in the first and second regions, respectively. The method according to claim 1, Wherein the support film is integrally formed with the base by insert injection molding. The method according to claim 1, Wherein the first color layer and the second color layer are spaced apart from each other by a thickness of the support film in a direction perpendicular to the support film. delete

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