Electricity: electrical systems and devices – Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical... – For electronic systems and devices
Reexamination Certificate
1998-12-01
2001-03-13
Picard, Leo P. (Department: 2835)
Electricity: electrical systems and devices
Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical...
For electronic systems and devices
C361S789000, C361S785000, C361S749000, C361S748000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06201689
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an electrical connecting structure of a printed substrate.
With the recent tendency of miniaturization of electronic appliances, flexible printed substrates have been widely used. The flexible printed substrate is electrically connected by means of a contact structure using thermocompression bonding with a well known anisotropic conductive bond.
Such a contact structure is disclosed, for example, in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKOKU publication No. 8-12352. The disclosed contact structure has a connecting terminal electrode at the connecting portion between a flexible printed substrate and an LCD-mounting substrate or at the connecting portion between flexible printed substrates, and the bonding strength of the substrates is increased by dividing the contact electrode into two in a recess form.
However, the connecting structure formed by means of thermocompression bonding using anisotropic conductive bond set forth in the publication has a problem in that repair cannot be made when the flexible printed substrate fails in thermocompression bonding. In other words, only one type of connecting terminal is prepared for each usage as the connecting terminal to be formed on the regularly-employed flexible printed substrate, so that if the contact terminal fails in thermocompression bonding, the substrate must be discarded as a useless article.
However, since there are many cases in which an expensive electronic part such as a microprocessor is attached to the flexible substrate, costs may increase if the expensive electronic part is discarded every time the connecting terminal of the substrate fails in thermocompression bonding.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic appliance whose printed substrate need not be discarded even if the connecting terminal of the substrate fails in thermocompression bonding.
A first object of the present invention is to provide an electronic appliance comprising:
an electronic part having a first connecting terminal;
a printed substrate having a second connecting terminal for electrically connecting to the first connecting terminal arranged on the electronic part; and
a repair terminal, which is different from the connecting terminals, arranged on at least one of the electronic part and the printed substrate.
A second object of the present invention is to provide an electric appliance comprising:
an electronic part having a first connecting terminal;
a circuit substrate having a second connecting terminal and a control circuit of the electronic part mounted thereon; and
a flexible printed substrate for electrically connecting the connecting terminal of the electronic part and the connecting terminal of the circuit substrate;
wherein a repair terminal, which is different from the connecting terminal, is provided on at least one of the electronic part, the circuit substrate, and the flexible printed substrate.
A third object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display apparatus comprising:
a liquid crystal display device having a connecting terminal;
a main substrate having a repair pattern formed thereon and a driving circuit of the liquid crystal display device mounted thereon; and
a relay flexible printed substrate for connecting the liquid crystal display device and the main substrate;
wherein the relay flexible printed substrate and the main substrate are connected to each other with an anisotropic conductive bond interposed therebetween.
A fourth object of the present invention is to provide an electric connecting device comprising:
a first printed substrate having a plurality of first electric contacts formed in line and a plurality of second electric contacts formed in line, in parallel to each other; and
a second printed substrate having a plurality of first electric contacts formed in line and a plurality of second electric contacts formed in line, in parallel to each other;
wherein either the plurality of first electric contacts or the plurality of second electric contacts of the first printed substrate are in electrical contact with either the plurality of first electric contacts or the plurality of second electric contacts of the second printed substrate.
In the present invention, at least two-row patterns are prepared as thermocompression bonding patterns which serve as the connecting terminal of the main printed substrate, one for regular thermocompression bonding operation and the other for repair thermocompression bonding operation. When the thermocompression bonding operation using the regular pattern results in failure, the thermocompression bonding operation is performed again by use of the thermocompression bonding pattern for repairing selected from the two-row patterns. By virtue of the repair pattern, the printed substrate can be reused, with the result that unnecessary increase in cost is successfully prevented.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5448387 (1995-09-01), Kurokawa et al.
patent: 5592365 (1997-01-01), Sugimoto et al.
patent: 5717556 (1998-02-01), Yanagida
patent: 5936850 (1999-08-01), Takahashi et al.
patent: 61-215528 (1986-09-01), None
patent: 8-12352 (1996-02-01), None
Bui Tung Minh
Frishauf, Holtz Goodman, Langer & Chick, P.C.
Olympus Optical Co,. Ltd.
Picard Leo P.
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