Electronic apparatus providing a vibrating function to give operation feeling to an operator
View Patent ↗In an electronic apparatus having a touch panel and pair of vibrating elements for vibrating the touch panel, pair of fixing cushions are fixed on a rear surface of the touch panel along right and left edges of the touch panel. The vibrating elements are fixed to the rear surface of the touch panel along upper and lower edges of the touch panel. The fixing cushions are also fixed to a fixing frames and thereby the touch panel is supported by the fixing frame. The fixing cushions are parallel to each other and stably support the touch panel against the fixing frame. Furthermore, the cushions allow the touch panel to greatly vibrate according to expansion and contraction of the vibrating elements.
1. An electronic apparatus including a flat vibrating body and a pair of vibrating elements used for vibrating said flat vibrating body, comprising:
a pair of elongated fixing cushions which are parallel to each other and disposed on a surface of said flat vibrating body to support said flat vibrating body, and
a fixing frame to which said flat vibrating body is fixed with said fixing cushions, wherein said fixing cushions are located at positions other than the four corners of said flat vibrating body and at positions away from said vibrating elements,
wherein said flat vibrating body has first and second pairs of parallel edges, and
wherein said vibrating elements are disposed on said surface of said flat vibrating body only along said first pair of parallel edges while said fixing cushions are disposed on said surface of said flat vibrating only along said second pair of parallel edges.
2. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said fixing frame does not touch said vibrating elements.
3. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said vibrating body comprises a touch panel.
4. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said fixing frame comprises a liquid crystal display panel.
5. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said fixing cushions have a thickness to leave a space between said flat vibrating body and said fixing frame.
6. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein said fixing cushions have a thickness to leave a space between said vibrating elements and said fixing frame.
7. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a first vibrating element and second vibrating element are disposed parallel to one another and are offset from one another in a direction parallel to said first pair of parallel edges.
8. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein each vibrating element of said pair of vibrating elements comprises at least two vibrating elements only along said first pair of parallel edges and each elongated fixing cushion of said pair of fixing cushions comprises at least two elongated fixing cushions only along said second pair of parallel edges.
9. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , where said pair of fixing cushions are further fixed to a liquid crystal display (LCD), said LCD further supporting the flat vibrating body.
10. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the pair of fixing cushions allow the flat vibrating body to vibrate without dampening the vibration of the flat vibrating body.
11. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the pair of fixing cushions are made of high density micro cell polyurethane foam with 40 to 50 degrees of hardness.
12. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the pair of fixing cushions have are made of a material that has 40 degrees of hardness.
13. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 10 , wherein said space extends between an entire bottom surface of a first one of said pair of vibrating elements and said fixing frame, and
wherein said space extends between an entire bottom surface of a second one of said pair of vibrating elements and said fixing frame.