Thin electromagnetic handwriting pen and method of manufacturing the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9535513-B2
Application number	US-201414280650-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 18, 2014
Priority date	Jan 29, 2014
Publication date	Jan 3, 2017
Grant date	Jan 3, 2017

Abstract

A thin electromagnetic handwriting pen includes a casing unit, a circuit unit, an electromagnetic unit and a pen core unit. The casing unit includes a thin pen-shaped casing structure. The circuit unit includes a circuit substrate disposed inside the thin pen-shaped casing structure. The electromagnetic unit includes a hollow holder and an electromagnetic coil wound around the hollow holder. Both the hollow holder and the electromagnetic coil are embedded in the thin pen-shaped casing structure, and the electromagnetic coil is fixed between the thin pen-shaped casing structure and the hollow holder and electrically connected to the circuit substrate. The pen core unit includes a pen core structure movably disposed inside the thin pen-shaped casing structure and passing through the hollow holder, and one portion of the pen core structure is exposed outside the thin pen-shaped casing structure.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A thin electromagnetic handwriting pen, comprising:
a casing of a thin pen-shaped casing structure including a first hollow outer tube, a second hollow outer tube, and a pen tail cover, the second hollow outer tube having two opposite lateral portions respectively mated with the first hollow outer tube and the pen tail cover, the second hollow outer tube having a stop portion disposed on the inner surface thereof;
circuitry including a circuit substrate disposed inside the thin pen-shaped casing structure, the circuit substrate having an abutting portion abutted against the stop portion of the second hollow outer tube, the circuit substrate having at least two positioning holes and at least one positioning groove;
an electromagnetic unit including a hollow holder and an electromagnetic coil wound around the hollow holder, wherein the electromagnetic unit is received in the thin pen-shaped casing structure, the hollow holder includes two coil guiding grooves extending along an axis of the thin pen-shaped casing structure, and the electromagnetic coil is fixed between the thin pen-shaped casing structure and the hollow holder and electrically connected to the circuit substrate with two end portions of the electromagnetic coil guided through the two coil guiding grooves, respectively, and connected to the circuit substrate;
a pen core including a metal pen core structure, which is movably disposed inside the thin pen-shaped casing structure and passing through the hollow holder, and a plastic pen head connected to a distal end of the metal pen core structure, wherein a distal portion of the plastic pen head is exposed outside the first hollow outer tube of the thin pen-shaped casing structure;
a connector including a connection structure disposed inside the thin pen-shaped casing structure and positioned on the circuit substrate, wherein a radial footprint of the connection structure, transverse to the axis of the thin pen-shaped casing structure, is substantially equal to a radial footprint of the pen core, the connection structure has at least two positioning posts respectively passing through the at least two positioning holes of the circuit substrate and at least one positioning block received in the at least one positioning groove of the circuit substrate, the connection structure has a convex post extending along the axis; and
an elastic structure disposed inside the thin pen-shaped casing structure and disposed between the metal pen core structure and the convex post of the connection structure, wherein a radial footprint of the elastic structure is substantially equal to the radial footprint of the pen core, the elastic structure including a first elastic element disposed around the convex post and a second elastic element disposed in contact with the first elastic element and between the convex post and the metal pen structure.

2. The thin electromagnetic handwriting pen of claim 1 , wherein the hollow holder has a coil winding portion and a coil guiding portion adjacent to each other along the axis, the coil winding portion has a coil winding space, and the coil guiding portion has the two coil guiding grooves communicated with the coil winding space, wherein the electromagnetic coil has a main coil portion wound around the coil winding portion and received in the coil winding space and the two end portions respectively connected to two opposite ends of the main coil portion and respectively received in the two coil guiding grooves, the main coil portion of the electromagnetic coil is completely enclosed inside the first hollow outer tube, and each of the two end portions of the electromagnetic coil has a soldering portion exposed outside the first hollow outer tube to electrically connect to the circuit substrate.

3. The thin electromagnetic handwriting pen of claim 1 , wherein the hollow holder is made of high temperature resistant material.

4. The thin electromagnetic handwriting pen of claim 1 , wherein the electromagnetic coil is an enamel-insulated wire.

5. The thin electromagnetic handwriting pen of claim 1 , wherein the first hollow outer tube is formed by an injection molding process.

6. The thin electromagnetic handwriting pen of claim 1 , wherein the casing has a radial cross-sectional shape that is oval.

7. The thin electromagnetic handwriting pen of claim 1 , wherein the casing has a radial cross-sectional shape that is rectangular with chamfered corners.

8. A method of manufacturing a thin electromagnetic handwriting pen, comprising:
winding an electromagnetic coil around a hollow holder, the hollow holder including two coil guiding grooves extending along an axial direction of the hollow holder;
guiding two end portions of the electromagnetic coil wound around the hollow holder through the two coil guiding grooves of the hollow holder, respectively;
providing a first hollow outer tube and positioning the electromagnetic coil between the first hollow outer tube and the hollow holder, wherein the two end portions of the electromagnetic coil respectively guided through the two coil guiding grooves each has a soldering portion exposed outside the first hollow outer tube;
sequentially inserting a metal pen core structure, an elastic structure, a connection structure and a distal portion of a circuit substrate into the first hollow outer tube, wherein a radial footprint of each of the elastic structure and the connection structure, transverse to an axis of the thin electromagnetic handwriting pen, is substantially equal to a radial footprint of the metal pen core structure, a distal portion of a plastic pen head connected to a distal end of the metal pen core structure is exposed outside the first hollow outer tube, the connection structure has at least two positioning posts respectively passing through at least two positioning holes defined in the circuit substrate, has at least one positioning block received in at least one positioning groove of the circuit substrate, and has a convex post extending along the axis, the elastic structure is disposed between the metal pen core structure and the convex post of the connection structure, and the elastic structure includes a first elastic element disposed around the convex post and a second elastic element disposed in contact with the first elastic element and between the convex post the metal pen core structure;
electrically connecting the two soldering portions of the two end portions of the electromagnetic coil to the circuit substrate; and
mating a second hollow outer tube with the first hollow outer tube and mating a pen tail cover with the second hollow outer tube, wherein the circuit substrate has an abutting portion abutted against a stop portion disposed on the inner surface of the second hollow outer tube.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the first hollow outer tube is formed by an injection molding process, the first hollow outer tube, the second hollow outer tube and the pen tail cover are mated with each other to form a thin pen-shaped casing structure for the thin electromagnetic handwriting pen, and the metal pen core structure is movably disposed inside the thin pen-shaped casing structure and passing through the hollow holder.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the hollow holder is made of high temperature resistant material.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the electromagnetic coil is an enamel-insulated wire.

12. The method of claim 8 , wherein the first hollow outer tube has a radial cross-sectional shape that is oval.

13. The method of claim 8 , wherein the first hollow outer tube has a radial cross-sectional shape that is rectangular with chamfered co

Assignees

• Wacom Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lien Chien-Chia
• Wang Hung-I
• Liu Cheng-Lu

Classifications

• G06F3/03545 Primary

  Pens or stylus · CPC title

• G06F3/046

  by electromagnetic means · CPC title

• G06F3/044

  by capacitive means · CPC title

• G06F3/0393

  Accessories for touch pads or touch screens, e.g. mechanical guides added to touch screens for drawing straight lines, hard keys overlaying touch screens or touch pads · CPC title

• G06F3/0442

  using active external devices, e.g. active pens, for transmitting changes in electrical potential to be received by the digitiser · CPC title