Pressure sensor and electronic device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11023069-B2
Application number	US-201916592931-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 4, 2019
Priority date	Aug 21, 2017
Publication date	Jun 1, 2021
Grant date	Jun 1, 2021

Abstract

A pressure sensor that includes a piezoelectric film having a flat part and a curved part and having opposed first and second main surfaces, a first electrode on the first main surface of the piezoelectric film, and a second electrode on the second main surfaces of the piezoelectric film. When the flat part of the piezoelectric film receives a pressing operation a first output is generated, and when the curved part of the piezoelectric film receives a pressing operation a second output different from the first output is generated.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A pressure sensor comprising:
a piezoelectric film having a flat part and a curved part in an initial state without an externally applied force, and does not generate a charge in the initial state, and the piezoelectric film having opposed first and second main surfaces; and
a first electrode on the first main surfaces of the piezoelectric film; and
a second electrode on the second main surfaces of the piezoelectric film, wherein
when the flat part receives a pressing operation a first output is generated, and when the curved part receives a pressing operation a second output is generated, the first output being different than the second output, and
the curved part includes a first curved part and a second curved part that are respectively disposed on each of opposed ends of the flat part that face each other such that the flat part is between the first curved part and the second curved part, and the first curved part and the second curved part curve in the same direction relative to the flat part.

2. The pressure sensor according to claim 1 , wherein the first output and the second output have different polarities.

3. The pressure sensor according to claim 2 , wherein the piezoelectric film includes a chiral polymer.

4. The pressure sensor according to claim 3 , wherein the chiral polymer is selected from uniaxially stretched polylactic acid and poly-L-lactic acid.

5. The pressure sensor according to claim 4 , wherein the chiral polymer is uniaxially stretched polylactic acid, and the uniaxial stretching direction is at an angle of substantially 45° with respect to a direction of curvature of the curved part.

6. The pressure sensor according to claim 1 , wherein the curved part extends continuously around the flat part.

7. The pressure sensor according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first electrode and the second electrode includes a plurality of electrodes.

8. The pressure sensor according to claim 7 , wherein the plurality of electrodes are located on the first main surface of the piezoelectric film and along the curved part of the piezoelectric film.

9. The pressure sensor according to claim 8 , wherein the plurality of electrodes are spaced apart along a length of the curved part of the piezoelectric film, the piezoelectric film includes a uniaxially stretched chiral polymer, and a uniaxial stretching direction thereof extends along the length of the curved part.

10. The pressure sensor according to claim 7 , wherein the plurality of electrodes include a first set of electrodes located on the first main surface of the piezoelectric film and along the first curved part of the piezoelectric film and a second set of electrodes located on the first main surface of the piezoelectric film and along the second curved part of the piezoelectric film.

11. The pressure sensor according to claim 10 , wherein the first set of electrodes are spaced apart along a length of the first curved part of the piezoelectric film, the second set of electrodes are spaced apart along a length of the second curved part of the piezoelectric film, the piezoelectric film includes a uniaxially stretched chiral polymer, and a uniaxial stretching direction thereof extends along the length of the first curved part.

12. An electronic device comprising:
a housing defining an open surface;
a panel having a flat part and a curved part located within the open surface of the housing; and
the pressure sensor according to claim 1 adjacent the panel such that the curved part of the piezoelectric film is adjacent the curved part of the panel and the flat part of the piezoelectric film is adjacent the flat part of the panel.

13. The electronic device according to claim 12 , further comprising a capacitive sensor adjacent the panel.

14. The electronic device according to claim 13 , wherein the capacitive sensor is located between the pressure sensor and the panel.

Assignees

• Murata Manufacturing Co

Inventors

• Kano Hidekazu
• Kitada Hiroaki
• NAGAMORI Shiori

Classifications

• G01L9/008 Primary

  using piezoelectric devices (piezoelectric resonators G01L9/0022; surface acoustic waves G01L9/0025) · CPC title

• G06F1/1652

  the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable · CPC title

• G06F1/1643

  the display being associated to a digitizer, e.g. laptops that can be used as penpads (details related to the relative motion of the display enclosure with respect to the body enclosure, e.g. to move between laptop and tablet PC configuration G06F1/1615) · CPC title

• G06F3/04146

  using pressure sensitive conductive elements delivering a boolean signal and located between crossing sensing lines, e.g. located between X and Y sensing line layers · CPC title

• G06F2203/04105

  Pressure sensors for measuring the pressure or force exerted on the touch surface without providing the touch position · CPC title