CN102214812B - Battery pack and electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses a battery pack with electrostatic discharge protection function and an electronic device, wherein the electronic device comprises: a conductive shell and a circuit board. Wherein, the circuit board sets up in electrically conductive shell to contain a power grounding point and a conditional conduction route, wherein conditional conduction route still further contains: a conductive element and an electrostatic discharge element. One end of the conductive element is electrically connected to the conductive shell, and the electrostatic discharge element is electrically connected between the other end of the conductive element and the power ground point. When the voltage difference between the two ends of the electrostatic discharge element meets a preset condition, the electrostatic discharge element is conducted, otherwise, the electrostatic discharge element is equivalent to a high impedance element to the power grounding point. In addition, the power grounding point is electrically connected with a battery so as to achieve the effect of electrostatic discharge protection by utilizing the battery.

Description

Battery pack and electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function

technical field

The invention relates to a battery pack and electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function, in particular to a battery pack and electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function designed by using a conditional conduction path.

Background technique

Substances in nature gain or lose electrons through certain processes (such as friction or induction electrification), and this type of charge is called static electricity. When the positive charge or negative charge gradually accumulates to generate a potential difference with the surrounding environment, and then through the discharge path to produce a transfer phenomenon between different potentials, it is called Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) phenomenon. The large current generated by this instantaneous discharge will cause permanent damage to electronic components, which will affect the circuit function of the electronic system and make the product operate abnormally.

However, the occurrence of electrostatic discharge is difficult to avoid. During the manufacturing, production, assembly, testing, storage and handling of electronic components or electronic systems, static electricity will naturally accumulate on the human body, instruments and storage equipment, and even electronic components. within the component itself. In this way, without knowing it, when these objects contact each other and form a discharge path, electronic components or electronic systems will be damaged by electrostatic discharge. In addition, since more and more electronic products are adopting metal shells in order to meet the specification requirements (such as shielding electromagnetic interference) and even design considerations, it is easy to accumulate static charges on the metal shells. , resulting in the phenomenon of electrostatic discharge.

At present, in addition to strictly controlling the accumulation of static electricity in their own manufacturing environment, it is more important for various businesses to add related designs to protect electronic products from electrostatic discharge damage, so as to avoid electrostatic damage to electronic products at the user's end. In terms of protection design, in addition to strengthening the tolerance of the integrated circuit itself to electrostatic discharge, the most fundamental way is to improve the way of electrostatic discharge.

For example, the new patents No. M345272 and No. M345273 announced by Taiwan, China on November 21, 2008. These two patents disclose a composite housing structure capable of isolating and releasing static charges, and discharge static charges through the design of the housing structure (electroplating a layer of non-conductive anodic film coating and setting a conductor). It is worth noting that the venting channels designed in these two patents are to contact the grounding of the applied system through the conductor, so as to release static charges. Furthermore, as stated in the new patent No. M339787 published in Taiwan, China on September 1, 2008, it discloses a thin battery, and the system grounding is formed by exposing the upper cover or the lower cover of the battery cover, so as to achieve The effect of electrostatic discharge protection.

In actual design, the grounding of the system is usually conducted through the power converter (Adapter) to conduct static electricity to the ground terminal of the power socket. In this way, when the system is not connected to the power converter, or the power converter is not actually plugged into the power outlet, the electrostatic discharge generated may still cause damage to the product's own circuit board and related components on the circuit board.

Therefore, there is still room for further improvement in terms of the current design of the discharge pathways for electrostatic discharge in electronic products.

Contents of the invention

In view of this, the technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to use the design of the conditional conduction path to form a discharge path for electrostatic discharge without greatly increasing the complicated process and product cost, effectively disabling all the static electricity on the conductive shell. The accumulated static charge is conducted to the power ground of the electronic product.

According to a solution proposed by the present invention, a battery pack with electrostatic discharge protection function is provided, including: a conductive case, a circuit board and a battery. Wherein, the circuit board is arranged in the conductive shell, and the circuit board includes a power ground point and a conditional conduction path, and the conditional conduction path is coupled between the conductive shell and the power ground point, and includes: a Conductive element and an electrostatic discharge element. One end of the conductive element is electrically connected to the conductive casing, and the electrostatic discharge element is electrically connected between the other end of the conductive element and the grounding point of the power supply. When the change in the voltage difference across the electrostatic discharge element meets a preset condition, the electrostatic discharge element is turned on; when the change in the voltage difference across the electrostatic discharge element does not meet the preset condition, the electrostatic discharge element is equal to the power grounding point It is effective for a high-impedance element, and the element characteristics of the electrostatic discharge element determine the preset condition. One electrode of the battery is electrically connected to the ground point of the power supply, so as to provide ESD protection when the ESD element is turned on.

According to another solution proposed by the present invention, an electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function is provided, including: a conductive casing and a circuit board. Wherein, the circuit board is arranged in the conductive shell, and the circuit board includes a power ground point and a conditional conduction path, and the conditional conduction path is coupled between the conductive shell and the power ground point, and includes: A conductive element and an electrostatic discharge element. One end of the conductive element is electrically connected to the conductive casing, and the electrostatic discharge element is electrically connected between the other end of the conductive element and the grounding point of the power supply. When the change in the voltage difference across the electrostatic discharge element meets a preset condition, the electrostatic discharge element is turned on; when the change in the voltage difference across the electrostatic discharge element does not meet the preset condition, the electrostatic discharge element is equal to the power grounding point It is effective for a high-impedance element, and the element characteristics of the electrostatic discharge element determine the preset condition. Wherein, the power grounding point is electrically connected to a battery, so as to use the battery to achieve the effect of electrostatic discharge protection.

Therefore, through the design of the present invention, when electrostatic discharge has not occurred, the electrostatic discharge element has infinite impedance to the ground point of the power supply, so that the conductive shell of the electronic device is prevented from being equipped with electrodes, and when the conductive shell When the body generates electrostatic discharge instantaneously due to the accumulated electrostatic charge, the electrostatic discharge element will form a conduction state to effectively conduct the electrostatic charge to the ground point of the power supply for venting. Therefore, the design of the present invention can realize electrostatic discharge protection and increase the safety of electronic devices without greatly increasing product cost.

The above overview, the following detailed description and accompanying drawings are all for further explaining the ways, means and effects of the present invention to achieve the intended purpose. Other purposes and advantages of the present invention will be described in the subsequent description and drawings.

Description of drawings

1 is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of an electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function of the present invention;

2 is an exploded schematic diagram of an embodiment of the structure of an electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function of the present invention; and

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a protection method for an electronic device with an electrostatic discharge protection function according to the present invention.

Wherein, the reference signs are explained as follows:

1 conductive shell

11 top cover

12 lower cover

2 circuit boards

20 insulating surface

200 power grounding point

201 Electrostatic discharge component fixed connection area

2011 The first fixed point

2012 The second fixed point

202 Conductive element fixed point

21 Conditional conduction paths

211 Electrostatic discharge components

212 Conductive elements

3 batteries

S301 to S309 flow chart step description

Detailed ways

The invention is aimed at the design of electrostatic discharge protection for electronic devices with conductive shells. In the circuit design, use the grounding point of the power supply of the electronic device to match the electrical characteristics of the electronic components to complete the discharge channel of the electrostatic discharge. In this way, in the normal state where the conductive shell has not yet generated electrostatic discharge, an open circuit is formed between the conductive shell and the ground point of the power supply; and when the conductive shell generates electrostatic discharge, the electrostatic charge accumulated on the conductive shell Venting can then be done via the power ground point.

In addition, in circuit design, ground points with different functions are usually planned, which can be roughly divided into power ground points and data signal ground points. And because the present invention is to provide electrostatic discharge protection, so in design, it is better to select the grounding point of the power supply as the venting way of electrostatic discharge, so as to avoid electrostatic discharge from damaging the electronic components on the electronic device, which will be described here .

Please refer to FIG. 1 , which is a schematic block diagram of an embodiment of the electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the electronic device shown in this embodiment is designed as an example of a battery pack for application in an application system as a power supply source for the application system, which includes: a conductive casing 1, A circuit board 2 and at least one battery 3 . Wherein, the conductive shell 1 can be directly designed with conductive material (such as metal) in actual design, and of course can also be made of non-conductive material (such as plastic), but the conductive shell 1 is formed by electroplating or other known techniques.

The circuit board 2 is disposed in the conductive casing 1 and used as a circuit substrate of the electronic device. In addition, a power ground point 200 and a conditional conducting path (Conditional Conducting Path) 21 are formed on the circuit board 2 . Wherein, the power grounding point 200 belongs to the grounding circuit provided in the power supply source of the electronic device. It can be understood that the battery pack shown in this embodiment uses the battery 3 (such as a lithium battery) as the power supply source, so the power ground point 200 is electrically connected to a negative pole of the battery 3 .

Of course, in addition to the design form of the battery pack, those skilled in the art can understand that electronic devices generally used to provide specific functions can also be divided into directly receiving power from the battery 3 in the design of the power supply source, or It uses different power conversion components such as voltage regulators, DC/DC converters, and AC/DC converters to receive power from external power sources (such as: Universal Serial Bus (USB), mains power) to convert them into the power required for the operation of electronic devices. required power. Regardless of the design form of the power supply source, the power ground point 200 is directly used as a ground circuit required by the power supply source through circuit wiring.

The conditionally conducting path 21 further includes: an electrostatic discharge element 211 and a conductive element 212 . Wherein, one end of the electrostatic discharge element 211 is electrically connected to the power ground point 200, so as to form a parallel connection ground circuit form with the power supply source of the electronic device (the negative pole of the battery 3 in this embodiment). In terms of characteristics, when the voltage difference across the electrostatic discharge element 211 changes to meet a preset condition (for example, higher than a voltage level), the electrostatic discharge element 211 is turned on; and when the voltage difference across the electrostatic discharge element 211 changes When the preset condition is not met, the electrostatic discharge element 211 is equivalent to a high impedance element for the power ground point 200 . In other words, the conduction and short circuit phenomenon of the electrostatic discharge element 211 occurs with the overvoltage. Incidentally, the aforementioned preset condition of the ESD device 211 is determined by the device characteristics of the ESD device 211 . As for the specifications of the preset conditions used in the design, different ESD components 211 are selected according to the actual ESD protection required, which is not limited in this embodiment.

A fixed end of the conductive element 212 is electrically connected to the other end of the electrostatic discharge element 211 , and a contact end of the conductive element 212 is physically and electrically contacted with the conductive casing 1 . Thus, the conditional conduction path 21 is used as a conduction path between the conductive housing 1 and the power ground point 200 .

It is worth noting that if the conductive shell 1 is directly connected to the negative pole of the battery 3, this design will cause the shell conductive shell 1 to be negatively charged, which may not meet the safety regulations of the product, and is prone to damage due to current flow between different potentials. Heat can cause safety problems. Since safety is the first priority of battery products, the present invention proposes the aforementioned circuit architecture on the premise of safety considerations. As far as the circuit characteristics of the circuit structure are concerned, when the electrostatic discharge element 211 is in a preset state, that is, when the voltage difference between the two ends of the electrostatic discharge element 211 does not meet the preset condition, the electrostatic discharge element 211 is opposite to the power ground point 200. In other words, it forms a high-impedance open circuit state. Therefore, by virtue of the conditional conduction characteristic of the electrostatic discharge element 211, the conditional conduction path 21 can effectively block the direct connection between the conductive case 1 and the power ground point 200 in the state where the conductive case 1 has not yet generated electrostatic discharge, avoiding The conductive shell 1 has an electrode potential substantially equal to the power ground point 200; and when the electrostatic discharge phenomenon occurs on the conductive shell 1 and the voltage difference from the power ground point 200 satisfies the preset condition of the electrostatic discharge element 211, conditionally lead The conduction path 21 can effectively conduct the electrostatic charge accumulated on the conductive casing 1 to the power ground point 200 to discharge through the negative electrode of the battery 3 to achieve electrostatic discharge protection.

To further illustrate, the electrostatic discharge element 211 can be designed by using one of capacitors, varistors (Varistors), and transient voltage suppressors (Transient Voltage Suppressors, TVS). However, the above examples are not limiting to the present invention, as long as known elements capable of conducting conditionally as described in the present invention can be adopted in the present invention.

The capacitor is made of metal material at both ends, and an insulating material (medium) is separated in the middle, so that an open circuit can be formed between the conductive case 1 and the power grounding point 200 . The medium has its dielectric strength (Dielectric Strength), which refers to the maximum voltage value that the unit thickness of the medium can withstand, that is, the so-called breakdown voltage (Breakdown Voltage), which is converted into a calculation unit, which is one unit The voltage change over time (that is, the aforementioned preset condition of the electrostatic discharge device 211 ). Therefore, when the electrostatic discharge occurs instantaneously after the electrostatic charge is accumulated in the conductive shell 1 , the sudden increase in voltage will cause the electrostatic charge accumulated on the conductive shell 1 to pass through the medium, and the capacitor will be turned on. Thus, the electrostatic charges accumulated on the conductive casing 1 are conducted to the power ground point 200 .

Varistor (also known as varistor), when the received voltage is normal (not exceeding the voltage level), the varistor is a good insulator with high impedance, so that an open circuit is formed between the conductive shell 1 and the power ground point 200 . However, when the electrostatic discharge is generated instantaneously after the conductive shell 1 accumulates electrostatic charges, the sudden increase in voltage will cause the varistor to collapse (with low impedance) to form a conduction, and a voltage level of its collapse is the aforementioned electrostatic discharge element 211 preset conditions. Therefore, the turned-on varistor at this time can conduct the static charge accumulated on the conductive casing 1 to the power ground point 200 .

A transient voltage suppressor is a voltage-dependent varistor, and its principle is roughly the same as that of a varistor. When the voltage increases to a voltage level (the preset condition of the aforementioned electrostatic discharge element 211), it will cause the impedance of the transient voltage suppressor to drop rapidly, so that the electrostatic charge accumulated on the conductive shell 1 can pass through the transient voltage suppressor and be discharged. Conducted to the power ground terminal 200 . In addition, compared with the varistor, the transient voltage suppressor has a lower clamping voltage, and can conduct static charge to the power ground terminal 200 more quickly.

On the other hand, the conductive element 212 can be designed by using one or any combination of elastic pieces, thimbles, screws, and springs, for example. One end of the conductive element 212 is firmly connected (eg welded) to the circuit board 2 to electrically connect with the electrostatic discharge element 211 , and the contact end of the conductive element 212 can electrically contact the conductive housing 1 .

Of course, the types of the electrostatic discharge element 211 and the conductive element 212 mentioned above are not limitations of the present invention, and any elements with the same characteristics and functions fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Therefore, through the detailed description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can understand how to implement the present invention.

Next, in order to further clearly illustrate the design form of the electronic device of the present invention on the actual hardware architecture, please further refer to FIG. 2 , which is an exploded schematic diagram of an embodiment of the architecture of the electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the conductive casing 1 may further include an upper cover 11 and a lower cover 12 , and the circuit board 2 is disposed between the upper cover 11 and the lower cover 12 . And because the circuit board 2 of the present embodiment is illustrated with the upper surface, so in the design of the conductive housing 1, the part of the upper cover 11 is designed to be a cover made of a conductive material or electroplated with a conductive material, and the lower cover 12 part without limitation. However, those skilled in the art can design the material of the lower cover 12 as a conductive material or a cover plated with a conductive material according to the disclosure of the present invention, while the upper cover 11 does not need to be limited, and other equal changes also belong to the present invention. the scope to be protected.

The circuit board 2 is formed by a printed circuit board process on an insulating surface 20 of the circuit board 2 to form a power grounding point 200 , an electrostatic discharge element fixing area 201 and a conductive element fixing area 202 . Wherein, the ESD component fixing area 201 further has a first fixing point 2011 and a second fixing point 2012 . Moreover, the first fixed point 2011 and the second fixed point 2012 are respectively electrically connected to the power ground point 200 and the conductive element fixed point 202 through the original circuit wiring.

Furthermore, the circuit board 2 undergoes an electronic component assembly process, such as a surface mount technology (SMT Process), to firmly connect (for example, weld) the two ends of the electrostatic discharge element 211 to the first fixed point 2011 and the second fixed point 2012 respectively, And firmly connect the fixed end of the conductive element 212 to the fixed point 202 of the conductive element. However, other known methods for stably connecting the electrostatic discharge element 211 and the conductive element 212 can be adopted by the present invention.

The electronic device of this embodiment still uses the battery 3 as a power supply source for illustration. Those skilled in the art can understand that the battery 3 is connected to the circuit board 2 by a known method (such as welding). In addition, since the present invention uses the power grounding point 200 to discharge the static charge, only the power grounding point 200 is indicated in FIG. Label and describe otherwise. Certainly, if the power supply source of the electronic device adopts the power conversion element to receive the external power, then the power conversion element can be firmly connected through the SMT process.

As mentioned above, through the architecture design of this embodiment, when the electronic device is assembled as a whole, the upper cover 11 will physically and electrically contact the contact end of the conductive element 212, and the positive contact formed by the conductive element 212 and the electrostatic discharge element 211 will The conditionally conductive path 21 is electrically connected to the power ground point 200 . Thus, the design of the electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function of the present invention is completed.

To further illustrate with the actual form of the battery pack, since insulation is very important in the design of the battery pack, if the conductive casing 1 of the battery pack is charged, it may cause a short circuit and cause danger. Therefore, through the design of the present invention, when the potential difference between the conductive shell 1 and the power ground point 200 is higher than a preset voltage level, the conditional conduction path 21 will form a conduction state, so as to use the power ground point 200 to effectively When the potential difference is not higher than the preset voltage level, the conditional conduction path 21 will form an open circuit state, so that the conductive shell 1 will not have the potential of the power ground point 200 . Therefore, the safety of the battery pack is enhanced.

It is added that since the electronic device of this embodiment uses the conductive casing 1, when the electronic device needs to be embedded in the application system (for example: the above-mentioned battery pack is installed inside the application system when in use) ), then electrical contact can be further made with a conductive part (not shown) of the application system through the conductive shell 1, so as to serve as another discharge way of electrostatic discharge through the grounding design of the application system. In this regard, all related additional designs are within the applicable scope of the present invention.

Finally, please refer to FIG. 3 , which is a protection method for an electronic device with electrostatic discharge protection function of the present invention. The steps include: first, constructing a conditional conduction path to electrically connect a power ground point and a conductive between housings (S301). Wherein, the conditionally conducting path includes an electrostatic discharge element, and the electrostatic discharge element is an element that is turned on when the voltage difference between its two ends meets a preset condition (for example: higher than a voltage level). Therefore, when the voltage difference between the conductive shell and the power ground point is not higher than the voltage level, the electrostatic discharge element will not conduct, so for the power ground point, the conditional conduction path forms a high impedance The open circuit state (S303) to isolate the conductive shell and the grounding point of the power supply.

Next, the conditional conduction path is maintained in an open state until the voltage difference between the conductive shell and the power ground point is higher than the voltage level, the conditional conduction path forms a conduction state (S305), so that the conductive shell The electrostatic charge accumulated on the battery is conducted to the ground point of the power supply (S307).

After the step (S307), the instantaneously generated high voltage makes the voltage difference between the conductive housing and the power ground point lower than the voltage level after the discharge of the electrostatic charge, so the conditional conduction path is restored due to the characteristics of the electrostatic discharge element into a preset open state (S309). Finally, step ( S305 ) and subsequent steps are repeatedly executed to complete the protection method provided by this embodiment for electrostatic discharge.

However, the above descriptions are only detailed descriptions and drawings of specific embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The entire scope of the present invention should be based on the scope of the claims. Within the scope of the present invention, easily conceivable changes or modifications can all be covered within the scope of protection defined by the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. the battery pack of a tool electro-static discharge protection function is characterized in that, comprising:

One conductive shell;

One circuit board is arranged in this conductive shell, and this circuit board comprises a power ground point and a guiding path of having ready conditions, and wherein this guiding path of having ready conditions is coupled between this conductive shell and this power ground point, and comprises:

One conducting element, an end of this conducting element is electrically connected this conductive shell; And

One electrostatic discharging element, this electrostatic discharging element is electrically connected between the other end and this power ground point of this conducting element, when changing, the voltage difference at these electrostatic discharging element two ends is satisfied with one when pre-conditioned, this electrostatic discharging element conducting, when changing, the voltage difference at these electrostatic discharging element two ends is not content with this when pre-conditioned, this electrostatic discharging element is equivalent to a high-impedance component to this power ground point, and the element characteristic of this electrostatic discharging element determines that this is pre-conditioned; And

One battery, one electrode are electrically connected this power ground point, with when this electrostatic discharging element conducting, provide electrostatic discharge protective.

2. the battery pack of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 1 is characterized in that, described electrode is negative pole, and this negative pole and this electrostatic discharging element form the circuit form of an earth.

3. the battery pack of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 1 is characterized in that, described electrostatic discharging element is a capacitor, a rheostat or an instantaneous voltage suppressor.

4. the battery pack of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 3, it is characterized in that, when this electrostatic discharging element is this capacitor, this pre-conditioned change in voltage that refers in the unit interval, and when this electrostatic discharging element is this rheostat or this transient voltage suppresser, this pre-conditioned voltage quasi position that refers to.

5. the battery pack of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 1 is characterized in that, described conducting element comprises one of them or combination in any of shell fragment, thimble, screw and spring.

6. the electronic installation of a tool electro-static discharge protection function is characterized in that, comprising:

One conductive shell; And

One circuit board is arranged in this conductive shell, and this circuit board comprises a power ground point and a guiding path of having ready conditions, and wherein this guiding path of having ready conditions is coupled between this conductive shell and this power ground point, and comprises:

One conducting element, an end of this conducting element is electrically connected this conductive shell; And

One electrostatic discharging element, this electrostatic discharging element is electrically connected between the other end and this power ground point of this conducting element, when changing, the voltage difference at these electrostatic discharging element two ends is satisfied with one when pre-conditioned, this electrostatic discharging element conducting, when changing, the voltage difference at these electrostatic discharging element two ends is not content with this when pre-conditioned, this electrostatic discharging element is equivalent to a high-impedance component to this power ground point, and the element characteristic of this electrostatic discharging element determines that this is pre-conditioned;

Wherein this power ground point is electrically connected a battery, reaches the effect of electrostatic discharge protective to utilize this battery.

7. the electronic installation of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 6 is characterized in that, a negative pole of described battery is electrically connected this power ground point, makes the negative pole of this battery and the circuit form that this electrostatic discharging element forms an earth.

8. the electronic installation of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 6 is characterized in that, described electrostatic discharging element is a capacitor, a rheostat or an instantaneous voltage suppressor.

9. the electronic installation of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 8, it is characterized in that, when this electrostatic discharging element is this capacitor, this pre-conditioned change in voltage that refers in the unit interval, and when this electrostatic discharging element is this rheostat or this transient voltage suppresser, this pre-conditioned voltage quasi position that refers to.

10. the electronic installation of tool electro-static discharge protection function as claimed in claim 6 is characterized in that, described conducting element comprises one of them or combination in any of shell fragment, thimble, screw and spring.

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