CN100350312C - Flat panel display and its backlight module - Google Patents

Abstract

A backlight module comprises an outer frame, a flexible circuit board and at least one electric connection port. The flexible circuit board is surrounded by the outer frame. The electric connection port is arranged on the flexible circuit board and is used for connecting the flexible circuit board with an external circuit.

Description

Flat panel display and its backlight module

technical field

The invention relates to a backlight module, in particular to a backlight module of a flat panel display, which can save circuit board space and reduce production cost.

Background technique

As far as the current electronic devices are concerned, the flexible printed circuit board (FPCB) has been widely used in the electrical connection between different circuits. The internal space of the electronic device facilitates the assembly process.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a conventional backlight module 10 . The backlight module 10 includes a frame 11 , a flexible circuit board 12 , a light source (not shown) and other components. Generally speaking, the flexible circuit board 12 with an elongated structure is arranged on the front face F' of the backlight module 10, and a part of the flexible circuit board 12 protrudes from the outer frame 11, and this protruding part is used to communicate with other components in the flat panel display. The circuit boards are connected so as to provide the power and signals required by the light source. In addition, the signal sent or received by the backlight module 10 can also be transmitted to other interfaces of the flat panel display via the flexible circuit board 12 . The following will provide relevant explanations for the two connection methods often used between the flexible circuit board 12 and other circuit boards in the flat panel display in conjunction with FIGS. 2A and 2B:

2A shows a combined side view of the circuit board 15 and the backlight module 10 of the conventional flat panel display 100 , and FIG. 2B shows another combined side view of the circuit board 15 and the backlight module 10 of the conventional flat panel display 100 .

As shown in FIG. 2A , the flat panel display 100 includes a circuit board 15 , and its backlight module 10 is disposed on the circuit board 15 . The flexible circuit board 12 for the light source protrudes from the outer frame of the backlight module 10 , and the flexible circuit board 12 is connected to the circuit board 15 through a connector 16 .

However, the disadvantage of the above method is that the cost of the connector 16 itself is high and the volume is large, which will occupy part of the available space of the circuit board 15 or the flexible circuit board 12, and because the assembly process must be carried out manually, the man-hours and costs cannot be effectively reduced.

FIG. 2B shows that the flexible circuit board 12 for the light source and the bare copper (not shown) of other circuit boards 15 of the flat panel display 100 are soldered by using solder 17 . Although this method can save the cost of components, it still cannot reduce the man-hours and costs of assembly. In addition, the soldering quality is easily affected by the worker's soldering skill level (for example: pull soldering step), or the pressure welding parameters, machine parameters, tin plating thickness, etc., making the connection quality difficult to control. In addition, when the product needs to be repaired or reassembled, the flexible circuit board may be deformed or even damaged due to excessive heating, so that it will not be able to be used again. At the same time, it will also cause assembly failure, waste materials, increase assembly time, and fail to effectively reduce assembly costs. cost and other issues.

It should be noted that since the flexible circuit board must protrude from the outer frame to connect with the external circuit, this will cause insufficient rigidity and deformation of the outer frame structure, thereby affecting the image quality of the entire flat-panel display.

Contents of the invention

In view of this, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a flat panel display and its backlight module, the connection method of which can save space on the circuit board, facilitate rework, save cost, have high quality control and increase the structural strength of the frame of the backlight module.

The invention provides a backlight module, which includes an outer frame, a flexible circuit board and at least one electrical connection port. The flexible circuit board is surrounded by an outer frame. The electrical connection port is arranged on the flexible circuit board for connecting the flexible circuit board with an external circuit.

In a preferred embodiment, the outer frame includes at least one opening corresponding to the electrical connection port, and the electrical connection port is exposed to the outer frame through the opening.

Also, the electrical connection port is an elastic conductor.

Also, the elastic conductor is a metal shrapnel.

Also, the electrical connection port is curved.

Also, the electrical connection port is bare copper.

The invention also provides a flat panel display, which includes a rigid circuit board, a first electrical connection port, a backlight module and a display panel. The first electrical connection port is located on the surface of the rigid circuit board. The backlight module is electrically connected with the rigid circuit board. The backlight module includes an outer frame, a flexible circuit board and a second electrical connection port. The flexible circuit board is surrounded by an outer frame. The second electrical connection port is located on the surface of the flexible circuit board, and the first electrical connection port is in contact with the second electrical connection port to electrically connect the flexible circuit board to the rigid circuit board. The display panel is electrically connected with the flexible circuit board.

In order to make the above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention more comprehensible, a preferred embodiment will be described in detail below together with the accompanying drawings.

Description of drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an existing backlight module;

FIG. 2A is a combined side view of a circuit board and a backlight module of an existing flat panel display;

Fig. 2B is another combined side view of the circuit board and the backlight module of the conventional flat panel display;

3A is a schematic front view of the first embodiment of the backlight module of the present invention;

3B is a schematic view of the back of the first embodiment of the backlight module of the present invention;

FIG. 3C is a partially enlarged schematic diagram of FIG. 3B;

4 is a schematic diagram of the combination of the circuit board and the backlight module of the first embodiment of the flat panel display of the present invention; and

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the combination of the circuit board and the backlight module of the second embodiment of the flat panel display of the present invention.

Detailed ways

【The first embodiment】

3A is a schematic view of the front F of the first embodiment of the backlight module 20 of the present invention, and FIG. 3B is a schematic view of the rear B of the first embodiment of the backlight module 20 of the present invention.

Since the present invention mainly proposes improvements to the connection structure between the flexible circuit board for the light source in the flat panel display or liquid crystal display and the external circuit board, and at the same time in order to clearly show the connection relationship between the outer frame and the flexible circuit board, in Fig. 3A to Fig. 3B omits the light source and other related components in the flat panel display.

As shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B , the backlight module 20 includes an outer frame 21 , a flexible circuit board 22 and at least one electrical connection port 26 . The flexible circuit board 22 is electrically connected to the light source (not shown) to provide power to the light source. The flexible circuit board 22 is surrounded by the outer frame 21, that is, the flexible circuit board 22 of the present invention does not protrude or pass through the outside Frame 21, therefore, there is no need to set any gaps for the flexible circuit board 22 on the outer frame 21, so the structural strength of the outer frame 21 can be increased. On the back side B of the backlight module 20 , electrical connection ports 26 are provided on the flexible circuit board 22 for connecting the flexible circuit board 22 with an external circuit or a rigid circuit board (not shown) of a flat panel display. It should be noted that FIG. 3B only depicts two electrical connection ports 26, which are respectively located on two ends of the flexible circuit board 22. However, the number, location, and size of the electrical connection ports 26 are not limited to this embodiment. related disclosures.

Please refer to FIG. 3C , which shows a partially enlarged schematic diagram of FIG. 3B . The back side B of the frame 21 includes at least one opening 27 through which the electrical connection port 26 is exposed to the frame 21 . The electrical connection port 26 can be an elastic conductor, such as a metal dome or a curved metal dome.

Furthermore, FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of the combination of the circuit board 25 and the backlight module 20 of the first embodiment of the flat panel display 200 of the present invention. It should be noted that in this figure, the upper and lower casings of the flat-panel display, the display panel and other components are omitted for convenience of illustration, wherein the display panel may be a liquid crystal display panel. In this embodiment, the circuit board of the flat-panel display 200 is a rigid circuit board (PCB) 25, which includes a first electrical connection port 251, which can be bare copper. 25, because the electrical connection port (second electrical connection port) 26 of the backlight module 20 is a metal shrapnel, it is exposed to the outer frame 21 through the opening of the outer frame 21, and protrudes toward the rigid circuit board 25, and passes through the backlight module 20. The contact between the electrical connection port 26 and the bare copper portion 251 of the rigid circuit board 25 further makes the flexible circuit board 22 and the rigid circuit board 25 electrically connected.

This embodiment can save the space occupied by the connector or the welding place, and can also reduce the man-hours required for overlapping the connector or soldering. The cost of metal shrapnel is lower than that of connectors, and the quality control is also higher. In addition, since the flexible circuit board and the rigid circuit board do not need to be connected by welding, there is no obstacle to the rework of the product. At the same time, since the flexible circuit board is surrounded by the outer frame, there is no part exposed to the outer frame. , so the cost of materials can be saved and the structural strength of the outer frame can be improved.

【Second Embodiment】

FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of the combination of the circuit board 35 and the backlight module 30 of the flat panel display 300 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. For the convenience of description and to highlight the flexible circuit board and the rigid circuit board of the present invention, other components of the backlight module 30 and the flat panel display 300 are omitted here.

In this embodiment, the backlight module 30 also includes an outer frame, a panel, a flexible circuit board and at least one second electrical connection port 33, the second electrical connection port 33 is located on the surface of the flexible circuit board, and the plane The rigid circuit board 35 of the display includes a first electrical connection port 36. The difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is that the first electrical connection port 36 of the rigid circuit board 35 is an elastic conductor, such as a metal shrapnel or a curved The metal shrapnel protrudes toward the backlight module 30 , and the second electrical connection port 33 is bare copper. The first electrical connection port 36 is in contact with the second electrical connection port 33 to electrically connect the flexible circuit board (not shown) in the backlight module 30 to the rigid circuit board 35 of the flat panel display 300 .

To sum up, through the improvement of the structure of the flexible circuit board of the present invention, through the contact between the first electrical connection port 36 and the second electrical connection port 33, the space of the circuit board can be saved, the rework is easy, the cost is saved, and the quality is controlled. It is higher and can increase the structural strength of the outer frame of the backlight module.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in conjunction with the above preferred embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person familiar with the art may make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention The scope of protection should be defined by the claims.

Claims (13)

1. backlight module comprises:

One housing has at least one opening;

One flexible circuit board is surrounded by this housing; And

At least one electrical connection port is arranged on this flexible circuit board, and it is corresponding to this opening, and is electrically connected this flexible circuit board and an external circuit via this opening.

2. backlight module as claimed in claim 1, wherein, this electrical connection port is an elastic conductor.

3. backlight module as claimed in claim 2, wherein, this elastic conductor is a metal clips.

4. backlight module as claimed in claim 1, wherein, this electrical connection port is a bending.

5. backlight module as claimed in claim 1, wherein, this electrical connection port is a naked copper.

6. flat-panel screens comprises:

One rigid circuit board;

One first is electrically connected port, is positioned at the surface of this rigid circuit board;

One backlight module is electrically connected with this rigid circuit board, and this backlight module comprises:

One housing has at least one opening;

One flexible circuit board is surrounded by this housing; And

One second is electrically connected port, be positioned at the surface of this flexible circuit board, and it is corresponding to this opening, and connecting this flexible circuit board and an external circuit via this opening, this first is electrically connected port and contacts with this second electrical connection port via this opening and then the rigid circuit board of this flexible circuit board and this is electrically connected; And

One display panel is electrically connected with this flexible circuit board.

7. flat-panel screens as claimed in claim 6, wherein, this second electrical connection port is a bending.

8. flat-panel screens as claimed in claim 6, wherein, first to be electrically connected port be naked copper for this, and this second to be electrically connected port be elastic conductor, outstanding towards this rigid circuit board.

9. flat-panel screens as claimed in claim 8, wherein, this elastic conductor is a metal clips.

10. as claim 6 a described flat-panel screens, wherein, this first electrical connection port is an elastic conductor, and is outstanding towards this backlight module, and this second electrical connection port is a naked copper.

11. flat-panel screens as claimed in claim 10, wherein, this elastic conductor is a metal clips.

12. flat-panel screens as claimed in claim 6, wherein, this first electrical connection port is a bending, and is outstanding towards this backlight module, and this second electrical connection port is a naked copper.

13. flat-panel screens as claimed in claim 6, wherein, this display panel is a display panels.

Images