Interconnect structures for electronic devices with component arrays

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9769929-B1
Application number	US-201514720248-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	May 22, 2015
Priority date	Sep 30, 2014
Publication date	Sep 19, 2017
Grant date	Sep 19, 2017

Abstract

An array of electrical components may be mounted in openings in an electronic device housing. The housing may have a cylindrical shape or other curved shape. A support structure such as a hollow cylindrical tube may be mounted within the interior of the housing. The electrical components may have terminals that mate with corresponding contacts on a flexible printed circuit. Interconnect paths on the flexible printed circuit may be used to route signals for the electrical components. The flexible printed circuit may be wrapped into the shape of a cylindrical tube and may be mounted on an interior surface of the cylindrical housing or on the exterior surface of the support structure.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic device, comprising:
a housing having a curved housing wall with a housing wall opening;
a flexible printed circuit attached to a curved inner surface of the curved housing wall, the flexible printed circuit comprising a flexible substrate defining a flexible printed circuit opening that is aligned with the housing wall opening, wherein the flexible printed circuit has metal traces that form signal lines and flexible printed circuit contacts; and
an electrical component that is aligned within and extends through the flexible printed circuit opening and the housing wall opening, wherein the electrical component has terminals that mate with the flexible printed circuit contacts.

2. The electronic device defined in claim 1 further comprising a layer of adhesive that attaches the flexible printed circuit to the curved inner surface of the curved housing wall.

3. The electronic device defined in claim 2 wherein the housing wall opening comprises one of a plurality of housing wall openings in the housing wall and wherein the electrical component comprises one of a plurality of electrical components that are respectively aligned with the housing wall openings.

4. The electronic device defined in claim 3 wherein the curved housing wall is cylindrical.

5. The electronic device defined in claim 4 wherein the electrical components comprise components selected from the group consisting of: light sources, light detectors, speakers, and sensors.

6. The electronic device defined in claim 5 wherein the terminals comprise springs.

7. The electronic device defined in claim 5 wherein the flexible printed circuit comprises a cylindrical tube attached to the curved inner surface with the layer of adhesive.

8. An electronic device, comprising:
a cylindrical housing having a housing wall defining a housing wall opening;
an electrical component aligned with the housing wall opening and having terminals; and
a flexible printed circuit, comprising:
a flexible substrate defining a flexible circuit opening aligned with the housing wall opening, and
contacts mated with the terminals,

wherein the electrical component extends through the flexible circuit opening and into the housing wall opening.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 8 , wherein the electrical component comprises a component selected from the group consisting of: a light source, a light detector, a speaker, and a sensor.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 8 , further comprising a layer of adhesive that attaches the flexible printed circuit to an interior surface of the cylindrical housing.

11. The electronic device defined in claim 10 wherein the terminals comprise compressible conductive structures that are compressed against the contacts.

12. The electronic device defined in claim 11 wherein the housing wall opening comprises one of a plurality of housing wall openings in the housing wall and wherein the electrical component comprises one of a plurality of electrical components aligned with the housing wall openings.

13. An electronic device, comprising:
a cylindrical housing defining a plurality of housing openings;
a flexible printed circuit that contains metal traces that carry signals for the electrical components, the flexible printed circuit defining flexible printed circuit openings aligned with corresponding housing openings of the plurality of housing openings; and
a plurality of electrical components, each electrical component extending through a housing opening of the plurality of housing openings and a corresponding one of the flexible printed circuit openings.

14. The electronic device defined in claim 13 wherein the electrical components comprise components selected from the group consisting of: light sources, light detectors, speakers, and sensors.

15. The electronic device defined in claim 14 further comprising a layer of adhesive that attaches the flexible printed circuit to an interior surface of the cylindrical housing.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Stanley Craig M
• Hobson Phillip Michael
• Bosscher Nathan P
• Baker John J
• Boozer Brad G

Classifications

• H05K2201/10151

  Sensor · CPC title

• H05K1/184

  associated with components inserted in holes through the PCBs and wherein terminals of the components are connected to printed contacts on the walls of the holes or at the edges thereof or protruding over or into the holes · CPC title

• H05K3/0058

  Laminating printed circuit boards onto other substrates, e.g. metallic substrates (H05K1/0281 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G06F1/183

  Internal mounting support structures, e.g. for supporting printed circuit boards · CPC title

• G06F1/1658

  related to the mounting of internal components, e.g. disc drive or any other functional module · CPC title