Electronic device comprising magnet array

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12436575-B2
Application number	US-202318149497-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 3, 2023
Priority date	Jul 16, 2020
Publication date	Oct 7, 2025
Grant date	Oct 7, 2025

Abstract

An electronic device is provided. The electronic device includes a foldable housing which has a hinge structure including a first housing and a second housing, the first housing is connected to the hinge structure and includes a first surface facing a first direction, a second surface facing a second direction opposite the first direction, and a first side surrounding the space between the first second surface, and the second housing is connected to the hinge structure and includes a third surface facing a third direction, a fourth surface facing a fourth direction opposite the third direction, and a second side, the first surface facing the third surface when the electronic device is in a folded state, and the third direction being the same as the first direction when the electronic device is in an unfolded state, a flexible display extending from the first and third surface, and a magnet array.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic device, comprising:
a foldable housing comprising:
a hinge structure,
a first housing connected to the hinge structure, the first housing including:
a first surface facing in a first direction;
a second surface facing in a second direction opposite to the first direction; and
a first side surface surrounding at least a portion between the first surface and the second surface, and

a second housing connected to the hinge structure, the second housing including:
a third surface facing in a third direction;
a fourth surface facing in a fourth direction opposite to the third direction; and
a second side surface surrounding at least a portion between the third surface and the fourth surface, in a folded state, the first surface facing the third surface and, in an unfolded state, the third direction being a same direction as the first direction and the fourth direction being a same direction as the second direction;

a flexible display extending from the first surface to the third surface;
a magnet array comprising a plurality of magnets in a three-dimensional multipolar magnetic array, the magnet array including a first magnet array disposed on an edge of the first housing and a second magnet array disposed on an edge of the second housing;
a first guide member disposed between the first side surface of the first housing and the first magnet array and configured to guide a magnetic field formed by the first magnet array toward the first side surface of the first housing; and
a second guide member disposed between the second side surface of the second housing and the second magnet array and configured to guide a magnetic field formed by the second magnet array toward the second side surface of the second housing,
wherein, in the folded state, the first magnet array corresponds to the second magnet array.

2. The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the first guide member protrudes from the first magnet array in the first direction, and
wherein the second guide member protrudes from the second magnet array in the third direction.

3. The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the first magnet array comprises:
at least one 1-1th magnet forming a 1-1th magnetic field towards the first surface;
at least one 1-2th magnet forming a 1-2th magnetic field towards the second surface;
at least one 1-3th magnet disposed between the 1-1th magnet and the 1-2th magnet and forming a 1-3th magnetic field towards an end in a sixth direction of the first magnet array; and
at least one 1-4th magnet disposed between the 1-1th magnet and the 1-2th magnet and forming a 1-4th magnetic field towards an end in a fifth direction of the first magnet array, and

wherein the second magnet array comprises:
at least one 2-1th magnet forming a 2-1th magnetic field towards the fourth surface;
at least one 2-2th magnet forming a 2-2th magnetic field towards the third surface;
at least one 2-3th magnet disposed between the 2-1th magnet and the 2-2th magnet and forming a 2-3th magnetic field towards the end in the sixth direction of the second magnet array; and
at least one 2-4th magnet disposed between the 2-1th magnet and the 2-2th magnet and forming a 2-4th magnetic field towards the end in the fifth direction of the second magnet array.

4. The electronic device of claim 3 , wherein in the folded state, the 1-1th magnet corresponds to the 2-1th magnet, the 1-2th magnet corresponds to the 2-2th magnet, the 1-3th magnet corresponds to the 2-4th magnet, and the 1-4th magnet corresponds to the 2-3th magnet.

5. The electronic device of claim 3 ,
wherein the 1-1th magnet is configured to transfer the 1-1th magnetic field to the first surface at a first designated angle, and
wherein the 2-1th magnet is configured to transfer the 2-1th magnetic field to the third surface at a second designated angle.

6. The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the first side surface is perpendicular to the first direction or the second direction,
wherein the second side surface is perpendicular to the third direction or the fourth direction,
wherein the first magnet array comprises a fifth surface towards the first side surface and a sixth surface opposite to the fifth surface, and
wherein the second magnet array comprises a seventh surface towards the second side surface and an eighth surface opposite to the seventh surface.

7. The electronic device of claim 6 , further comprising:
a shielding member disposed on at least a portion of the sixth surface and at least a portion of the eighth surface.

8. The electronic device of claim 7 , wherein the shielding member comprises a first shielding member surrounding at least a portion between the fifth surface and the sixth surface of the first magnet array and a second shielding member surrounding at least a portion between the seventh surface and the eighth surface of the second magnet array.

9. The electronic device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a pen driving circuit disposed under the flexible display.

10. The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the first side surface is perpendicular to the first direction or the second direction,
wherein the second side surface is perpendicular to the third direction or the fourth direction,
wherein the first guide member is disposed between the first side surface and the first magnet array disposed along the first side surface, and
wherein the second guide member is disposed between the second side surface and the second magnet array disposed along the second side surface.

11. The electronic device of claim 10 ,
wherein the first magnet array comprises a 1-1th magnet array and a 1-2th magnet array disposed along the first side surface,
wherein the second magnet array includes a 2-1th magnet array and a 2-2th magnet array disposed along the second side surface, and
wherein, in the folded state, the 1-1th magnet array and the 2-1th magnet array overlap each other and the 1-2th magnet array and the 2-2th magnet array overlap each other.

12. The electronic device of claim 10 ,
wherein the first magnet array comprises a 1-1th magnet array arranged along the first side surface,
wherein the second magnet array comprises a 2-1th magnet array and a 2-2th magnet array arranged along the second side surface,
wherein, in the folded state, the 1-1th magnet array and the 2-1th magnet array overlap each other, and
wherein the electronic device further comprises:
a magnetic substance disposed in the first housing and overlapping at least a portion of the 2-2th magnet array in the folded state of at least a portion thereof.

13. The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first guide member or the second guide member comprises one of a ferritic stainless steel or a martensitic stainless steel.

14. The electronic device of claim 1 ,
wherein the magnet array comprises a plurality of end magnets forming two opposite ends of the magnet array and a plurality of center magnets disposed between the plurality of end magnets, and
wherein a second width of the plurality of center magnets is larger than a first width of the plurality of end magnets.

15. The electronic device of claim 14 ,
wherein the three-dimensional multipolar magnetic array includes a Halbach array, and
wherein the plurality of end magnets and the plurality of center magnets form various magnetic field directions in which a direction of the magnetic field formed by the plurality of end magnets is perpendicular to or opposite from a direction of the magnetic field formed by the plurality of center magnets.

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Park Sangil
• Park Myeongsil
• Park Juwan
• Park Hyein
• You Jaehyoung
• Yoon Shinhyuk
• Lim Jaedeok
• Cho Gyuyeong
• CHOI Seungbum
• Hong Hyunju

Classifications

• H01F7/0278

  for generating uniform fields, focusing, deflecting electrically charged particles (for magnetic separation by Lorentz force B03C1/023; specially adapted for NMR applications G01R33/383) · CPC title

• G06F1/1681

  Details related solely to hinges (hinge details related to the transmission of signals or power are classified in G06F1/1683) · CPC title

• G06F1/1656

  Details related to functional adaptations of the enclosure, e.g. to provide protection against EMI, shock, water, or to host detachable peripherals like a mouse or removable expansions units like PCMCIA cards, or to provide access to internal components for maintenance or to removable storage supports like CDs or DVDs, or to mechanically mount accessories (mounting of accessories to a computer display G06F1/1607; display hoods G06F1/1603; cooling arrangements for portable computers G06F1/203) · CPC title

• G06F1/1652

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

• G06F1/1616 Primary

  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 title