Patent Publication Number: US-2022240393-A1

Title: Shell structure and electronic device with shell structure

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) to Patent Application No. 110102745 filed in Taiwan, R.O.C. on Jan. 25, 2021, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Technical Field 
     The instant disclosure relates to a shell, and in particular, to a shell structure with a shielding cover. 
     Related Art 
     Components of a large number of products on the market are accommodated inside a shell to protect the components from external interference by virtue of the shell. For example, when a product is impacted by an external force (for example, the product falls to the ground or during an impact test of the product), the shell absorbs an impact force to avoid direct impact on the components, thus achieving protection. 
     Based on the above, although the components can be protected by the shell to avoid direct impact of an external force, an impact force generated at the moment the product is impacted is likely to cause the components to move relative to the shell. As a result, a plurality of components or the component and the shell collide with each other, causing damage to the product. In view of the above, the inventor concentrated on studies, and finally completes the instant disclosure which can effectively overcome the deficiencies of the conventional technology. 
     SUMMARY 
     A primary objective of the instant disclosure is to provide a shell structure, which can limit relative degrees of freedom of a shell and a shielding cover and avoid product damage as a result of collisions. 
     Another objective of the instant disclosure is to provide an electronic device, which can limit relative degrees of freedom of a shell and a shielding cover and avoid product damage as a result of collisions. 
     To achieve the above objectives, the shell structure of the instant disclosure includes a shell and a shielding cover. The shell has an accommodating space, the accommodating space has an inner wall, and the inner wall has a first buckling portion. The shielding cover is arranged in the accommodating space, and the shielding cover has an outer wall. The outer wall corresponds to the inner wall, and the outer wall has a second buckling portion corresponding to the first buckling portion. The first buckling portion and the second buckling portion are buckled with each other to limit relative degrees of freedom of the shell and the shielding cover. The electronic device of the instant disclosure includes a shell, a shielding cover, and a circuit board. The shell has an accommodating space, the accommodating space has an inner wall, and the inner wall has a first buckling portion. The shielding cover is arranged in the accommodating space, and the shielding cover has an outer wall. The outer wall corresponds to the inner wall, and the outer wall has a second buckling portion corresponding to the first buckling portion. The circuit board is arranged within and enclosed by the shielding cover, and the circuit board and the shielding cover are fixed to each other. The first buckling portion and the second buckling portion are buckled with each other to limit relative degrees of freedom of the shell and the shielding cover. 
     Based on the above, in the shell structure and the electronic device of the embodiments of the instant disclosure, the first buckling portion of the shell and the second buckling portion of the shielding cover are buckled with each other to limit the relative degrees of freedom of the shell and the shielding cover, so that elements (such as the circuit board) fixed to the shielding cover can be prevented from moving when impacted by an external force, thereby avoiding product damage as a result of collisions between the elements or between the elements and the shell. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional view of an electronic device according to a first embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 2  is a three-dimensional exploded view of the electronic device according to the first embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 3  is a partial three-dimensional exploded view of the electronic device according to the first embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the electronic device according to the first embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a second embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a third embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a fourth embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a fifth embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a sixth embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 10  is a three-dimensional exploded view of an electronic device according to a seventh embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional view of the electronic device according to the seventh embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
         FIG. 12  is a three-dimensional exploded view of an electronic device according to an eighth embodiment of the instant disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Various embodiments are described in detail below. However, the embodiments are merely used as examples for description and do not limit or reduce the protection scope of the instant disclosure. In addition, some elements are omitted in the drawings in the embodiments to clearly show the technical features of the instant disclosure. The same reference numeral is used to indicate the same or similar elements in all of the drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional view of an electronic device according to a first embodiment of the instant disclosure.  FIG. 2  is a three-dimensional exploded view of the electronic device according to the first embodiment of the instant disclosure. As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 2 , an electronic device  1  includes a shell structure  10  and a circuit board  20 . The circuit board  20  is mounted inside the shell structure  10 , so that the circuit board  20  can be protected by the shell structure  10 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 2 , the electronic device  1  in this embodiment is a power supply. For example, the power supply may be a switched-mode power supply, a linear power supply, a high-power power supply, a desktop power supply, or the like. Electronic elements such as a battery, a capacitor, a resistor, or the like may be provided on the circuit board  20 . In some embodiments, the electronic device  1  may also be a home appliance, a mobile device, or other consumer electronics. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 2 , the shell structure  10  includes a shell  30  and a shielding cover  40 . The shell  30  may be a hard shell made of metal, plastic, rubber, other insulators, or the like. The shell  30  is hollowed for accommodating elements in a product, so that the elements are protected from external interference. In some embodiments, an outer shape of the shell  30  may have a square shape, a rectangular shape, an oval shape, a round shape, or other irregular shapes, which is not limited. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 2 , the shell  30  has an accommodating space. The accommodating space has a plurality of inner walls  31 , and at least one of the plurality of inner walls  31  has a first buckling portion  32 . In this embodiment, the accommodating space has four inner walls  31 . Two of the inner walls  31  both have the first buckling portion  32 , and the two inner walls  31  having the first buckling portion  32  are located on opposite sides of the accommodating space. In some embodiments, alternatively, the inner walls  31  of the accommodating space each may have a first buckling portion  32 , or two adjacent inner walls  31  of the accommodating space have a first buckling portion  32 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 2 , the shielding cover  40  of the shell structure  10  is disposed in the accommodating space of the shell  30 . In some embodiments, the shielding cover  40  may be configured to enclose electronic elements in a product to isolate the elements from electromagnetic interference (EMI) generated by other external electrical products. The shielding cover  40  may be made of metal (such as aluminum, copper, iron, cobalt, or the like), other conductive materials, or the like. 
       FIG. 3  is a partial three-dimensional exploded view of the electronic device according to the first embodiment of the instant disclosure. As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 3 , the shielding cover  40  may be an assembled structure. For example, in this embodiment, the shielding cover  40  consists of two U-shaped sheets  401  opposite to each other. One sides of the U-shaped sheets  401  may be assembled through a buckle or in other assembling manners, and the other sides may be engaged through bonding or other fixed engagement. Alternatively, the two sides of each of the U-shaped sheets  401  may also be assembled to each other, which is not limited. The two U-shaped sheets  401  are engaged to form an accommodating space. The circuit board  20  is arranged within the accommodating space of the shielding cover  40  and enclosed by the shielding cover  40 . The circuit board  20  and the shielding cover  40  are fixed to each other. In this way, the circuit board  20  is isolated from electromagnetic interference generated by other external electrical products. In some embodiments, the shielding cover  40  may also be integrally formed. For example, the shielding cover  40  may be integrally formed by metal parts or through fixed engagement. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2  to  FIG. 3 , the shielding cover  40  has a plurality of outer walls  41 . At least one of the plurality of outer walls  41  corresponds to the inner wall  31  of the shell  30  having the first buckling portion  32 . For example, in this embodiment, two opposite outer walls  41  of the shielding cover  40  are respectively oriented toward the two inner walls  31  having the first buckling portion  32  and correspond to each other, and each of the outer walls  41  of the shielding cover  40  corresponding to each of the inner walls  31  has the second buckling portion  42  corresponding to the first buckling portion  32 . 
       FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the electronic device according to the first embodiment of the instant disclosure. As shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 4 , in this embodiment, the first buckling portion  32  of the inner wall  31  of the shell  30  and the second buckling portion  42  of the outer wall  41  of the shielding cover  40  are buckled with each other to limit relative degrees of freedom of the shell  30  and the shielding cover  40 . In some embodiments, one of the first buckling portion  32  and the second buckling portion  42  is a protrusion, and the other is a recess. The protrusion may be a protruding rib, a post, a bump, a pillar, or the like, and the recess may be a groove, a blind hole, a through hole, or the like. The protrusion or the recess may be integrally formed with the shell  30  or the shielding cover  40  through stamping, casting, injection molding, machining, or the like. Alternatively, the protrusion may be spliced with the shell  30  or the shielding cover  40 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 4 , shapes of the first buckling portion  32  and the second buckling portion  42  match each other. For example, in this embodiment, the first buckling portion  32  includes two short rectangular pillars  321  and one long rectangular pillar  322 . The two short rectangular pillars  321  are spaced apart from each other, and the long rectangular pillar  322  is connected between ends of the two short rectangular pillars  321  to form a U-shaped pillar. The second buckling portion  42  of the shielding cover  40  is a U-shaped through hole corresponding to the first buckling portion  32 , and a cross-sectional size of the first buckling portion  32  is less than that of the second buckling portion  42 , so that the first buckling portion  32  can be accommodated in the second buckling portion  42 , and the relative degrees of freedom of the first buckling portion  32  and the second buckling portion  42  are limited by each other. In some embodiments, protrusions or recesses of the first buckling portion  32  and the second buckling portion  42  may also be in other shapes such as an F shape, a C shape, a W shape, a round shape, or the like. 
     Based on above, in the shell structure  10  and the electronic device  1  of the embodiments of the instant disclosure, the first buckling portion  32  of the shell  30  and the second buckling portion  42  of the shielding cover  40  are buckled with each other to limit the relative degrees of freedom of the shell  30  and the shielding cover  40 , so that the circuit board  20  (or other electronic elements) fixed to the shielding cover  40  can be prevented from moving when impacted by an external force, thereby avoiding product damage as a result of collisions between elements or between the elements and the shell  30 . 
     In addition, the first buckling portions  32  are respectively located on two opposite inner walls  31 , and the outer walls  41  and the second buckling portions  42  respectively correspond to the inner walls  31  and the first buckling portions  32 . Therefore, a buckling force between the shielding cover  40  and the shell  30  can be evenly allocated to the first buckling portions  32  and the second buckling portions  42 , further preventing the product from being damaged as a result of an excessively concentrated buckling force. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 2 , in this embodiment, the shell structure  10  further includes a first cover plate  50  and a second cover plate  51 . The shell  30  has a first opening  33  and a second opening  34 . The first cover plate  50  and the second cover plate  51  respectively cover the first opening  33  and the second opening  34 . The first opening  33  and the second opening  34  are respectively located on two opposite sides of the shell  30 . The first cover plate  50  and the second cover plate  51  may be respectively fixed to two sides of the shell  30  through ultrasonic welding, locking, buckling, or the like and respectively cover the first opening  33  and the second opening  34 . In some embodiments, the first opening  33  and the second opening  34  may also be respectively located on two adjacent surfaces of the shell  30 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 1  to  FIG. 4 , the shape and the size of the first buckling portion  32  of the shell  30  are designed to match the shape and the size of the second buckling portion  42  of the shielding cover  40 , to limit relative degrees of freedom of the first buckling portion  32  and the second buckling portion  42  in a direction in which the first opening  33  extends toward the second opening  34 . For example, as shown in  FIG. 4 , in this embodiment, each of the short rectangular pillars  321  of the first buckling portion  32  extends from the first opening  33  toward the second opening  34 , and the long rectangular pillar  322  is mated with the second buckling portion  42  to increase a surface contact area of the first buckling portion  32  and the second buckling portion  42  in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the first opening  33  extends toward the second opening  34 , thereby increasing a restraining force in the direction. Moreover, the short rectangular pillar  321  is mated with the second buckling portion  42 , so that a support capability of the shell structure  10  in the direction in which the first opening  33  extends toward the second opening  34  could be enhanced. 
     In this way, by virtue of the matching between the shape and the size of the first buckling portion  32  and the shape and the size of the second buckling portion  42 , damage to the first cover plate  50  or the second cover plate  51  or disengagement of the first cover plate  50  or the second cover plate  51  from the shell  30  as a result of collision with the first cover plate  50  or the second cover plate  51  of the shell  30  can be avoided when the circuit board  20  (or other electronic elements) is impacted by an external force. In addition, in terms of design, a space reserved for the circuit board  20  (or other electronic elements) to move inside the shell  30  when impacted can be saved, thereby miniaturizing a volume of the electronic device  1 . 
     Buckling between the first buckling portion  32  of the shell  30  and the second buckling portion  42  of the shielding cover  40  further has a plurality of implementations, which are respectively described below by using mating ways in various embodiments. 
       FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a second embodiment of the instant disclosure. A difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment as follows. In this embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 5 , a first buckling portion  32   a  of a shell  30   a  is a long rectangular pillar, and a second buckling portion  42   a  of the shielding cover  40   a  is a long rectangular through hole. Since the first buckling portion  32   a  and the second buckling portion  42   a  are linear shapes, which require no cumbersome processing for formation, manufacturing costs of a shell structure  10   a  can be reduced, thereby reducing production costs of the electronic device la. In some embodiments, the first buckling portion  32   a  and the second buckling portion  42   a  may also be respectively a recess and a protrusion, which depends on product requirements and is not limited. 
       FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a third embodiment of the instant disclosure. A difference between this embodiment and the second embodiment is as follows. In this embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 6 , a first buckling portion  32   b  of a shell  30   b  includes a long rectangular pillar  322   b  and a short rectangular pillar  321   b . The short rectangular pillar  321   b  extends in a direction from the first opening  33  toward the second opening  34  from a middle part of the long rectangular pillar  322   b  to form a T-shaped pillar. The second buckling portion  42   b  of the shielding cover  40   b  is a T-shaped through hole corresponding to the first buckling portion  32   b . Since the first buckling portion  32   b  has one more short rectangular pillar  321   b  than that in the second embodiment, manufacturing yields and support capabilities of the shell structure  10   b  and the electronic device  1   b  are improved. In some embodiments, the first buckling portion  32   b  and the second buckling portion  42   b  may also be respectively a recess and a protrusion, which depends on product requirements and is not limited. 
       FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a fourth embodiment of the instant disclosure. A difference between this embodiment and the second embodiment is as follows. In this embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 7 , a first buckling portion  32   c  of a shell  30   c  is a square pillar, and a second buckling portion  42   c  of the shielding cover  40   c  is a square through hole corresponding to the first buckling portion  32   c . Since shapes and sizes of the first buckling portion  32   c  and the second buckling portion  42   c  are more evenly distributed than those in the second embodiment, a support capability of the shell structure  10   c  can be improved, thereby increasing a yield of the electronic device  1   c . In some embodiments, the first buckling portion  32   c  and the second buckling portion  42   c  may also be respectively a recess and a protrusion, which depends on product requirements and is not limited. 
       FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a fifth embodiment of the instant disclosure. A difference between this embodiment and the above embodiments is as follows. In this embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 8 , a first buckling portion  32   d  of a shell  30   d  includes two side-by-side square pillars, and a second buckling portion  42   d  of the shielding cover  40   d  is two side-by-side square through holes corresponding to the first buckling portion  32   d . Since the shapes and sizes of the first buckling portion  32   d  and the second buckling portion  42   d  are smaller than those in the above embodiments, materials used for manufacturing of the shell  30   d  can be reduced, thereby reducing production costs of the shell structure  10   d  and the electronic device  1   d . In some embodiments, the first buckling portion  32   d  and the second buckling portion  42   d  may also be respectively a recess and a protrusion, which depends on product requirements and is not limited. 
       FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a sixth embodiment of the instant disclosure. A difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is as follows. In this embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 9 , a first buckling portion  32   e  of a shell  30   e  includes three side-by-side short rectangular pillars  321   e  and one long rectangular pillar  322   e . The long rectangular pillar  322   e  is connected between ends of the short rectangular pillars  321   e  to form an E-shaped pillar. A second buckling portion  42   e  of the shielding cover  40   e  is an E-shaped through hole corresponding to the first buckling portion  32   e . Since the first buckling portion  32   e  has one more short rectangular pillar  321   e  than that in the above first embodiment, a support capability of the shell structure  10   e  can be improved, thereby increasing a yield of the electronic device  1   e . In some embodiments, the first buckling portion  32   e  and the second buckling portion  42   e  may also be respectively a recess and a protrusion, which depends on product requirements and is not limited. 
       FIG. 10  is a three-dimensional exploded view of an electronic device according to a seventh embodiment of the instant disclosure.  FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional view of an electronic device according to a seventh embodiment of the instant disclosure. As shown in  FIG. 10  to  FIG. 11 , a difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is as follows. In this embodiment, a first buckling portion  32   f  of a shell  30   f  is a U-shaped groove, and a second buckling portion  42   f  of the shielding cover  40   f  is a U-shaped pillar. Cross-sectional shapes of the first buckling portion  32   f  and the second buckling portion  42   f  match with each other, and a cross-sectional size of the first buckling portion  32   f  is greater that of the second buckling portion  42   f , so that the first buckling portion  32   f  can be accommodated in the second buckling portion  42   f , and relative degrees of freedom of the first buckling portion  32   f  and the second buckling portion  42   f  are limited by each other. 
     Therefore, in the shell structure  10   f  and the electronic device if in this embodiment, the first buckling portion  32   f  of the shell  30   f  and the second buckling portion  42   f  of the shielding cover  40   f  are respectively set as a recess and a protrusion. A plurality of design techniques are provided to meet different usage requirements. 
       FIG. 12  is a three-dimensional exploded view of an electronic device according to an eighth embodiment of the instant disclosure. A difference between the eighth embodiment and the first embodiment is as follows. As shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 12 , in this embodiment, a shell structure  10   g  of the electronic device  1   g  further includes a heat sink  60 . The heat sink  60  is made of, for example, metal, aluminum, copper, ceramics, or the like through stamping, casting, or the like, and the heat sink  60  is fixed to the shielding cover  40  through bonding, locking, riveting, welding, or the like. 
     Based on the above, as shown in  FIG. 12 , in this embodiment, the heat sink  60  includes a heat sink  61  and a heat sink  62 . The heat sink  61  and the heat sink  62  are respectively fixed on two adjacent outer walls  41  of a shielding cover  40 . The heat sink  61  and the heat sink  62  are respectively located between an inner wall  31  of a shell  30  and an outer wall  41  of the shielding cover  40 , and the heat sink  62  has a positioning portion  63 . The positioning portion  63  of the heat sink  62  corresponds to a first buckling portion  32  and a second buckling portion  42 . For example, in this embodiment, the positioning portion  63  of the heat sink  62  is a rectangular through hole, and is sleeved on the first buckling portion  32  together with the second buckling portion  42 . In some embodiments, the positioning portion  63  of the heat sink  62  may also be a circular through hole, an oval through hole, a square through hole, or other through holes, and the instant disclosure is not limited to the shapes. 
     In some embodiments, the heat sink  60  may also be fixed on and enclosed by all outer walls  41  of the shielding cover  40 , or the heat sink  60  may be fixed on and enclosed by only one of the outer walls  41  of the shielding cover  40 , which depends on heat dissipation requirements of the electronic device  1  and is not limited. 
     Therefore, the heat sink  60  is fixed to the shielding cover  40 , and the heat sink  60  is located between the shielding cover  40  and the shell  30 , so that heat energy generated by the circuit board  20  (or other heating elements) enclosed by the shielding cover  40  can be dissipated to outside of the shell  30  through the heat sink  60 , thereby achieving heat dissipation. In addition, the positioning portion  63  of the heat sink  62  corresponds to the first buckling portion  32  and the second buckling portion  42  to strengthen a restraining force of the heat sink  62  and the shielding cover  40 , so that the heat sink  62  fixed to the shielding cover  40  can be prevented from moving when impacted by an external force, thereby closely attaching the heat sink  62  and the shielding cover  40  to each other. In this way, a heat dissipation capacity of the product can still remain under an improper operation. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2  to  FIG. 3 , in this embodiment, the shielding cover  40  further includes two opposite insulating sheets  43 . Each of the insulating sheets  43  may be fixed on an inner surface of each of the U-shaped sheets  401  through bonding, riveting, locking, or the like. The insulating sheet  43  is made of, for example, rubber, plastic, cotton yarn, ceramics, or the like. The insulating sheet  43  may be manufactured through stamping, casting, or the like. In some embodiments, the insulating sheet  43  may also be fixed on only the inner surface of one of the U-shaped sheets  401 , which depends on product requirements and is not limited. 
     Although the instant disclosure has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, the disclosure is not for limiting the scope of the invention. Persons having ordinary skill in the art may make various modifications and changes without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the appended claims should not be limited to the description of the preferred embodiments described above.