JP2014041028A - Electronic equipment having communication function - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide electronic equipment having a communication function which achieves increased communication accuracy and communication distance, without increasing its size.SOLUTION: An electronic wristwatch 1 includes: an LCD 35; a battery 51, provided on a back surface side of the LCD 35, for supplying power to the LCD 35; an antenna 37 used to perform communication; and an exterior case 2 which contains the LCD 35, the battery 51, and the antenna 37. On a back surface side of the exterior case 2 is formed an opening 12 which allows the battery 51 to be installed and removed from the back surface side of the exterior case 2, and is also provided a metal back lid 13 which blockades the opening 12. In the electronic wristwatch 1, the exterior case 2 is dividable, at a portion serving as the LCD 35, to its front and back directions, so that the exterior case 2 includes: a first case 3 positioned on its front side and a second case 4 positioned on its back side. Further, on a contact surface where the first case 3 faces the second case 4 is provided the antenna 37.

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic device with a communication function.

Generally, in an electronic timepiece, a display unit (liquid crystal display panel) for displaying time and the like, a battery for driving the display unit, and the like are housed in an exterior case (clock case). An opening is formed on the front side of the outer case so that the display unit is exposed to the outside. And many things are equipped with the cover glass (watch glass) so that this opening part may be obstruct | occluded.
On the other hand, on the back side of the exterior case, there is formed an opening that can accommodate a display unit, a battery, or the like in the exterior case, and a back cover is often mounted so as to close the opening. The back cover is often formed of stainless steel in order to ensure rigidity while being thin and to ensure high corrosion resistance.

  Here, in a timepiece having a communication function among electronic timepieces, an antenna for performing non-contact wireless communication such as RF-ID (Radio Frequency IDentification) is provided in the exterior case with a display unit. It is stored so as to overlap in the thickness direction. The antenna is formed in a loop shape, and wireless communication is performed using a magnetic flux passing through an opening of the antenna generated by supplying a current to the antenna (for example, see Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-292428 A

However, in the above-described conventional technology, there is a problem that the magnetic flux passing through the opening of the antenna is blocked by the stainless steel back cover, and communication accuracy and communication distance are reduced.
Even if it is attempted to increase the diameter of the antenna in order to improve the communication accuracy and the communication distance, the opening area on the back side of the exterior case increases accordingly, and the back cover that closes the opening also increases. For this reason, it is difficult to improve the communication accuracy and the communication distance only by increasing the size of the electronic timepiece.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and provides an electronic device with a communication function that can improve communication accuracy and communication distance without increasing the size.

  In order to solve the above problems, an electronic device with a communication function according to the present invention includes a display unit on which characters and symbols are displayed, and a battery that is disposed on the back side of the display unit and supplies power to the display unit. And an antenna for performing communication, and an outer case for housing the display unit, the battery, and the antenna, and an opening that allows the battery to be attached to and detached from the rear side of the outer case. And an electronic device with a communication function provided with a metal back cover that closes the opening, and the outer case is divided into front and back directions at a portion corresponding to the display unit. The first case is arranged on the front side and the second case is arranged on the back side, and the antenna is arranged on the mating surface of the first case and the second case. And

With this configuration, the display unit can be disposed between the first case and the second case, and the area of the opening on the back side of the outer case is large enough to allow the battery to be attached and detached. Can be set. For this reason, the size of the back cover can be reduced, and communication accuracy and communication distance can be improved without increasing the size of the outer case.
Further, by arranging the antenna on the mating surface of the first case and the second case, the antenna can be enlarged without increasing the size of the exterior case. For this reason, the magnetic flux generated by the antenna is not completely blocked by the back cover, and the communication accuracy and communication distance of the electronic device with a communication function can be improved.

  The electronic device with a communication function according to the present invention is characterized in that the antenna is formed so as to surround an outer periphery of the display unit.

  With this configuration, it is possible to increase the size of the antenna while preventing an increase in the thickness of the electronic device with a communication function.

  In the electronic device with a communication function according to the present invention, a first packing is provided on a mating surface of the first case with the second case, and a second packing is provided on the mating surface of the second case with the first case. And the antenna is disposed between the first packing and the second packing, and the outer peripheral portion of the antenna extends radially outward from the first packing and the second packing. And

With this configuration, it is possible to increase the size of the antenna while preventing an increase in the size of the exterior case, and it is possible to improve communication accuracy and communication distance.
Further, even when the antenna is enlarged, the sealing property between the first case and the second case can be reliably ensured.

According to the present invention, the display unit can be disposed between the first case and the second case, and the area of the opening on the back side of the outer case is made large enough to allow the battery to be attached and detached. Can be set. For this reason, the size of the back cover can be reduced, and communication accuracy and communication distance can be improved without increasing the size of the outer case.
Further, by arranging the antenna on the mating surface of the first case and the second case, the antenna can be enlarged without increasing the size of the exterior case. For this reason, the magnetic flux generated by the antenna is not completely blocked by the back cover, and the communication accuracy and communication distance of the electronic device with a communication function can be improved.

It is a top view of the electronic wristwatch in a 1st embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing which follows the AA line of FIG. It is sectional drawing which follows the BB line of FIG. It is sectional drawing which follows the CC line of FIG. It is a top view of the antenna in 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is principal part sectional drawing of the electronic wristwatch in 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

(First embodiment)
(Electronic wristwatch with communication function)
Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
1 is a plan view of an electronic wristwatch with a communication function (hereinafter simply referred to as an electronic wristwatch) that is an electronic device with a communication function, FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line C-C in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the communication function of the electronic wristwatch 1 includes a wireless communication function such as a personal computer communication function, a mobile phone function, and a non-contact IC card function. In the following description, when the electronic wristwatch 1 is worn on the wrist and used, the side viewed by the user is represented as the front side, and the side opposite to the front side is represented as the back side.
The electronic wristwatch 1 includes an exterior case 2 including a first case 3 disposed on the front side and a second case 4 disposed on the back side, and a movement 30 is accommodated inside the exterior case 2. Yes.

(Exterior case)
The first case 3 of the outer case 2 is made of resin, and an opening 5 penetrating in the thickness direction is formed in the center of the first case 3. An inner flange portion 6 is formed slightly on the front side of the center of the opening 5 in the thickness direction. The front side of the inner flange portion 6 is configured as a cover storage portion 5a in which the cover glass 8 is stored. A cover glass 8 is fitted into the cover housing portion 5 a via a resin packing 7.

  On the other hand, the back side of the opening 5 from the inner flange portion 6 is configured as a unit storage portion 5b for storing a drive unit 31 described later. In addition, a receiving recess 9 capable of receiving the second case 4 is formed at the opening edge of the back side of the unit storage portion 5b. Further, on the back side of the first case 3, a case female screw portion 19 is engraved on the outside of the receiving recess 9. When the bolt 20 is screwed into the case female screw portion 19 from the second case 4 side, the first case 3 and the second case 4 are fastened and fixed.

The second case 4 of the exterior case 2 is made of resin, and on the front side, a spigot portion 10 that fits into the receiving recess 9 of the first case 3 is formed. When the spigot portion 10 of the second case 4 is fitted into the receiving recess 9 of the first case 3, the bottom surface 9 a of the receiving recess 9 and the front end surface 10 a of the spigot portion 10 overlap each other.
A packing groove 41 is formed on the outer peripheral side of the distal end surface 10a, and a packing 42 is provided here. Further, an antenna housing portion 43 for housing an antenna 37 to be described later is recessed in the inner peripheral edge of the tip surface 10a of the inlay portion 10.

In addition, a unit storage portion 11 is recessed inward of the inlay portion 10 in the radial direction. The unit storage portion 11 and the antenna storage portion 43 are continuously formed by steps.
The unit storage portion 11 forms a space for storing a drive unit 31 described later in cooperation with the unit storage portion 5b of the first case 3. The unit storage portion 11 is formed to correspond to the unit storage portion 5b of the first case 3 in a plan view in the thickness direction, and the inner side surface of the unit storage portion 11 and the unit storage portion 5b of the first case 3 are It is flush with the inner surface.

An opening 12 that penetrates in the thickness direction is formed at the center of the second case 4. A battery unit 32 (to be described later) is accommodated in the opening 12, and the opening area is set smaller than the opening area of the unit accommodating part 11.
A stainless steel back cover 13 is provided on the back side of the second case 4 so as to close the opening 12. Here, the size of the back cover 13 only needs to be large enough to close the opening 12. Specifically, the size of the back cover 13 is set to be smaller than the opening area of the unit storage portion 11 formed on the front side of the second case 4.

  Further, four through holes 14 are formed in the outer peripheral portion of the back cover 13, while a cover female screw portion 15 is engraved in a portion corresponding to the through hole 14 on the back side of the second case 4. Has been. The back cover 13 is fastened and fixed to the second case 4 by screwing bolts 16 into the cover female screw portion 15 from the back cover 13 side.

Further, on the back side of the second case 4, a packing groove 17 is formed radially inward from the through hole 14, and a packing 18 is provided here. Thereby, the sealing performance between the 2nd case 4 and the back cover 13 is ensured.
A through hole 21 is formed in the outer peripheral portion of the second case 4 at a site corresponding to the case female screw portion 19. The bolt 20 is inserted into the through hole 21 from the back side of the second case 4, and the bolt 20 is screwed into the case female screw portion 19 of the first case 3, whereby the first case 3 and the second case 4. And are fastened and fixed.

  Band attachment portions 22 and 22 for attaching bands (not shown) are formed on the outer surface of the second case 4 on the 12 o'clock side and the 6 o'clock side, respectively. Further, on the outer surface of the second case 4, four switches 23 a to 23 d of an A switch 23 a, a B switch 23 b, a C switch 23 c, and a D switch 23 d so as to avoid the cover female screw portion 15 and the through hole 21. Is provided. An E switch 23e is provided on the outer periphery of the second case 4 on the 9 o'clock side. These switches 23a to 23e are for switching contents displayed on a liquid crystal display (hereinafter abbreviated as LCD) 35 to be described later.

  On the outer periphery of the second case 4, through-holes 24 that penetrate in the radial direction are formed at locations corresponding to the switches 23 a to 23 e. In these through holes 24, shafts 25a to 25e constituting the switches 23a to 23e are inserted so as to be slidable. The shafts 25a to 25e are formed so as to protrude to the outside and the inside of the second case 4, respectively.

  Buttons 26a to 26e are provided at the ends of the shafts 25a to 25e that protrude outward. On the other hand, contacts 27a to 27e are provided at the ends protruding inside the shafts 25a to 25e, and the shafts 25a to 25e are prevented from coming off from the second case 4 slightly before the ends. Retaining rings 28a to 28e are provided. And when each switch 23a-23e is pressed, each contact 27a-27e will contact the movement 30, and various signals will be output.

(Movement)
The movement 30 is configured by connecting a drive unit 31 arranged on the front side and a battery unit 32 arranged on the back side by a battery presser 33.
The drive unit 31 includes an LCD holding frame 34 made of resin, and is fixed in a state where the LCD 35 is accommodated in a recess formed in the upper part of the LCD holding frame 34.

The LCD 35 digitally displays an image such as time, and is disposed so as to face the cover glass 8. That is, the user can see the image displayed on the LCD 35 through the cover glass 8.
Here, the LCD 35 is a well-known technique and will not be described in detail. However, the glass substrates 35a and 35b disposed opposite to each other with the liquid crystal interposed therebetween, and polarizing filters 35c and 35d disposed outside the glass substrates 35a and 35b. It consists of and.

  The LCD 35 and the LCD holding frame 34 configured as described above are arranged in a space formed by the unit storage portion 5 b of the first case 2 and the unit storage portion 11 of the second case 4. In other words, the exterior case 2 can be divided in the front and back directions at a position corresponding to the LCD 35, and is constituted by the first case 3 disposed on the front side and the second case 4 disposed on the back side. It has become.

  A circuit board 36 is attached to the back side of the LCD holding frame 34. The circuit board 36 controls the LCD 35, and the LCD 35 is electrically connected. Further, an antenna 37 is connected to the circuit board 36.

(antenna)
FIG. 5 is a plan view of the antenna.
As shown in the figure, the antenna 37 is for receiving radio waves from the outside or transmitting information acquired by the electronic wristwatch 1 to the outside as radio waves. The antenna 37 has a film substrate 38 formed in a substantially annular shape, and the film substrate 38 is disposed in the antenna housing portion 43 of the second case 4.

That is, the film substrate 38 is formed so as to surround the outer periphery of the LCD 35, in other words, the opening 38 a is larger than the outer shape of the LCD 35.
An antenna pattern 39 is formed in a loop shape on the film substrate 38. Further, the film substrate 38 is formed with a tongue piece 38b extending radially inward, and the terminal portions 39a and 39a of the antenna pattern 39 are formed therein. The terminal portions 39a and 39a are connected to the circuit board 36.

Returning to FIG. 2, the battery unit 32 fixed to the back side of the drive unit 31 via the battery retainer 33 includes a button-type battery 51 and a resin battery case 52 that houses the battery 51. .
The battery retainer 33 includes a terminal portion 33a that contacts the positive terminal of the battery 51, a battery case 52, and a plurality of arms 33b that extend along the side surface of the LCD holding frame 34. The tip of each arm 33b is the LCD holding frame. The drive unit 31 and the battery unit 32 are connected to each other by being engaged with the side portion 34.

(Assembly of electronic watch)
Here, when assembling the electronic wristwatch 1, the first case 3 and the second case 4 are in separate states in advance. Then, the movement 30 is assembled from the front side of the second case 4, and then the first case 3 is assembled to the front side of the second case 4. Further, by assembling the case back 13 on the back side of the second case 4, the assembly of the electronic wrist watch 1 is completed.
On the other hand, when removing the battery 51 from the assembled electronic wristwatch 1, the back cover 13 may be removed. That is, the battery 51 can be replaced simply by removing the back cover 13 without disassembling the first case 3 and the second case 4.

  Thus, since the movement 30 is assembled from the front side of the second case 4, the size of the opening 12 of the second case 4 can be set to a size that can accommodate only the battery unit 31. That is, the opening area of the opening portion 12 of the second case 4 can be set smaller than the opening area of the unit storage portion 11 in which the drive unit 31 is stored.

  Under such a configuration, when communication is performed between the electronic wristwatch 1 and the outside, a current is supplied to the antenna 37. Then, a magnetic flux passing through the opening 38a of the film substrate 38 of the antenna 37 is generated. That is, a magnetic flux is generated along the thickness direction of the outer case 2 (the vertical direction in FIG. 2), and communication is performed between the electronic wristwatch 1 and the outside using this magnetic flux.

  Here, the size of the back cover 13 is set smaller than the opening area of the unit storage portion 11. The film substrate 38 of the antenna 37 is formed so that the size of the opening 38 a is larger than the outer shape of the LCD 35 housed in the unit housing portion 11. For these reasons, the magnetic flux generated by the antenna 37 is not completely blocked by the back cover 13.

(effect)
Therefore, according to the above-described first embodiment, the exterior case 2 can be divided in the front and back direction at locations corresponding to the LCD 35, and the first case 3 disposed on the front side and the second case 4 disposed on the back side. The size of the opening 12 of the second case 4 can be reduced, and as a result, the size of the back cover 13 can be reduced.
On the other hand, the antenna housing portion 43 is formed on the tip surface 10a of the spigot portion 10 which is a mating surface of the second case 4 with the first case 3, and the antenna 37 is disposed here. For this reason, the antenna 37 can be formed sufficiently large so as to surround the outer periphery of the LCD 35.
As a result, the magnetic flux generated by the antenna 37 is not completely blocked by the back cover 13, and the communication accuracy and communication distance of the electronic wristwatch 1 can be improved. Further, since the antenna 37 can be arranged on the same plane as the LCD 35, the antenna 37 can be enlarged while preventing the outer case 2 from being thickened.

  Further, by providing the switches 23a to 23e in the second case, the opening 5 (5a, 5b) can be formed so as to occupy most of the first case 3. Therefore, it is possible to provide an easy-to-use electronic wristwatch 1 that can increase the size of the LCD 35 and can perform good communication while preventing an increase in the size of the exterior case 2.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and demonstrated to the same aspect as 1st Embodiment.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the electronic wrist watch 101 in the second embodiment, and corresponds to FIG. 4 of the first embodiment.

  In the second embodiment, the electronic wristwatch 101 includes an exterior case 102 including a first case 103 disposed on the front side and a second case 104 disposed on the back side, and the movement 30 is provided inside the exterior case 102. The movement 30 is configured such that the drive unit 31 disposed on the front side and the battery unit 32 disposed on the back side are connected by the battery retainer 33, the first case 103. And the second case 104 are formed so as to overlap each other at a position corresponding to the LCD 35 of the drive unit 31, and on the front end surface 110 a of the inlay portion 110 that becomes a mating surface with the first case 103 of the second case 104. The antenna 137 is disposed, and the opening 112 formed in the second case 104 accommodates the battery unit 32. That it is formed on the ability of sizes, so as to close the opening 112, the basic configuration of a point such as stainless steel back cover 13 is provided is the same as the first embodiment.

Here, the difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment is that the shape of the mating surface of the first case 103 and the second case 104 in the second embodiment and the first case 3 in the first embodiment. The shape of the mating surface with the second case 4 is different.
That is, as shown in FIG. 6, in the receiving recess 109 of the first case 103 in the second embodiment, a packing groove 61 is formed on the bottom surface 109a, and a packing 62 is provided here. Further, the packing groove 61 is disposed so as to face the packing groove 41 formed on the front end surface 110 a of the spigot part 110 of the second case 104.

On the other hand, an antenna storage portion 143 for storing the antenna 137 is recessed in the front end surface 110 a of the spigot portion 110 of the second case 104. The antenna housing part 143 is formed between the outer peripheral edge of the unit housing part 11 and the radially outer side than the packing groove 41.
On the other hand, the antenna 137 is formed in such a size that the outer peripheral portion 137 a extends radially outward from the packing groove 41 so as to correspond to the antenna housing portion 11.

  Here, since the packing groove 61 is formed in the first case 103 so as to face the packing groove 41 of the second case 104, the antenna 137 is formed by the packings 42 and 62 provided in the packing grooves 41 and 61. It becomes the form which clamps the outer peripheral part. For this reason, even if the outer peripheral part of the antenna 137 extends radially outward from the packing grooves 41, 61, the sealing performance between the first case 103 and the second case 104 is ensured.

Therefore, according to the second embodiment described above, the antenna 137 can be formed larger in addition to the same effects as those of the first embodiment described above. For this reason, it is possible to further improve the communication accuracy and communication distance of the electronic wristwatch 101 while preventing the outer case 102 from being enlarged.
Further, even when the antenna 137 is enlarged, the sealing performance between the first case 103 and the second case 104 can be reliably ensured.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and includes various modifications made to the above-described embodiment without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
For example, in the above-described embodiment, the electronic wristwatch 1 has been described as the electronic device with a communication function. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to a timepiece larger than the electronic wristwatch 1 and various electronic devices with communication functions that do not have a timepiece function.
In the above-described embodiment, the case where the back cover 13 is formed of stainless steel has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when the back cover 13 is formed, the present invention can be suitably used when the back cover 13 is formed of various metals that block magnetic flux.

1,101 Electronic timepiece 2,102 Exterior case 3,103 First case 4,104 Second case 9,109 Receiving recess 9a, 109a Bottom (mating surface)
10,110 Inlay portion 10a, 110a Tip surface (mating surface)
12, 112 Opening 13 Back cover 35 LCD (display unit)
37,137 Antenna 137a Outer peripheral portion 42 Packing (second packing)
62 Packing (first packing)
51 battery

Claims (3)

A display where characters and symbols are displayed,
A battery disposed on the back side of the display unit and supplying power to the display unit;
An antenna for communication;
The display unit, the battery, and an exterior case that houses the antenna,
An opening that allows the battery to be attached and detached from the back side of the exterior case is formed on the back side of the exterior case, and a metal back cover that closes the opening is provided. Electronic equipment,
The exterior case can be divided in a front and back direction at a portion corresponding to the display unit, and includes a first case disposed on the front side and a second case disposed on the back side,
An electronic apparatus with a communication function, wherein the antenna is arranged on a mating surface between the first case and the second case.   The electronic device with a communication function according to claim 1, wherein the antenna is formed so as to surround an outer peripheral portion of the display unit. Providing a first packing on the mating surface of the first case with the second case, and providing a second packing on the mating surface of the second case with the first case;
The antenna is disposed between the first packing and the second packing,
The electronic device with a communication function according to claim 2, wherein an outer peripheral portion of the antenna is extended radially outward from the first packing and the second packing.

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