Patent Publication Number: US-2010123372-A1

Title: Motor integrated to electronic device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of Taiwan Patent Application No. 097144117 filed on Nov. 14, 2008, which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a motor integrated to an electronic device, and more particularly to a motor, in which rotating parts and fixed parts of the motor are directly integrated to a structural part and an electronic substrate of an electronic device. 
     2. Related Art 
     Usually, in an electronic device, if a motor (or an electric motor) needs to be placed as a source of motive power of a heat sink fan or a source of vibration, the complete motor product is placed in the electronic product. In addition, in order to save the space, the circuit board needs to be manufactured to an appropriate shape, so as to match the shape of the motor product (for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 7,248,473), or the motor is independently designed and manufactured. Moreover, a mounting portion needs to be considered after the motor is already manufactured, and then the motor is connected to the circuit of the electronic device on which the motor is mounted (for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,943,214). Further, a miniature fan motor is directly mounted on a printed circuit board (PCB) (for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,478,221), in which a complete motor product is directly mounted on the circuit board through a bearing base in an axial direction or a radial direction. The adopted motor product is still independently designed and manufactured, such that it is rather difficult to thin the motor in space, and the cost is increased due to the repeated use of the resources. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed to a motor integrated to a structural part and an electronic substrate of an electronic device, in which rotating parts of the motor are directly combined with the structural part, and fixed parts of the motor are formed on the electronic substrate. 
     In order to solve the above problem, the present invention provides a motor integrated to a structural part of an electronic device and an electronic substrate correspondingly mounted on the structural part. The motor includes a based formed on the structural part, a rotor having at least one load, and a stator having a plurality of winding coils and a driving circuit respectively shaped on the electronic substrate, for driving the rotor. 
     In the present invention, the base of the motor component is directly formed on the structural part of the electronic device, and the motor is integrated to the existing structure of the electronic product, such that the motor is further thinned in space. In the present invention, the rotating parts (such as the bearing, the shaft, and the rotor) of the motor and a load (such as a fan blade or an eccentric block) are integrated to the structural part or a case of the existing electronic product, so as to relatively enhance the stability of the structure, reduce the parts, thus facilitating assembling and mass production. In the present invention, the winding and the driving circuit of the stator of the motor are integrated to the circuit board of the electronic product, so as to form a motor module correspondingly with the rotor portion on the electronic product component, such that the manufacture in the same batch is easily performed, the entire cost is reduced, and a thickness and number of the parts of the motor are reduced. In addition, the electronic device may be a heat sink module, an optical disc drive spindle motor, a hard disk drive, a solid-state drive (SSD), a micro-generator, a micro-pump, a cell phone, a mobile Internet device, a notebook computer, or a mini notebook computer. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below for illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional (3D) exploded view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which a rotor is located between a base and a stator; 
         FIG. 2  is a combined cross-sectional view of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which a rotor is located between a base and a stator, and a shaft is connected to an electronic substrate; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which a stator is located between a base and a rotor; 
         FIG. 5A  is a 3D exploded view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the motor is integrated to a cell phone; 
         FIG. 5B  is a cross-sectional view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the rotor is disposed between a main board and an upper case of the cell phone; 
         FIG. 5C  is a cross-sectional view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which one rotor is disposed between a main board and a bottom case of the cell phone and the other rotor is disposed between a main board and an upper case of the cell phone; 
         FIG. 6A  is a 3D exploded view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the motor is integrated to a display card having a front heat dissipation part; 
         FIG. 6B  is a 3D exploded view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the motor is integrated to a display card having a back heat dissipation part; 
         FIG. 6C  is a 3D exploded view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the motor is integrated to a display card having a front heat dissipation part and a back heat dissipation part; and 
         FIG. 7  is a 3D exploded view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the motor is integrated to a notebook computer. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Preferred embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with accompanying drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional (3D) exploded view of a motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which a rotor is located between a base and a stator, and  FIG. 2  is a combined cross-sectional view of  FIG. 1 . Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , a motor  20  integrated to an electronic device  10  according to an embodiment of the present invention is integrated to a structural part  11  of the electronic device  10  and an electronic substrate  12  correspondingly mounted on the structural part  11 . The motor  20  includes a base  21  directly shaped on the structural part  11 , a rotor  22  having at least one load, a bearing  23  disposed between and connected to the rotor  22  and the base  21 , and making the rotor  22  to rotate relative to the base  21 , and a stator  24  respectively shaped on the electronic substrate  12 , in which the stator  24  has a plurality of winding coils  241  and a driving circuit  242 , for driving the rotor  22 . 
     Usually, the electronic device  10  includes the structural part  11  and an electronic part, the structural part  11  is, for example, a case, a heat sink, a press button, and the like, and the electronic part is the electronic substrates  12  such as a print circuit board (PCB) and a print circuit board assembly (PCBA) having electronic components mounted thereon. In the present invention, rotating parts of the motor  20 , such as the base  21 , the bearing  23 , and the rotor  22  (and a fan blade, an eccentric block, or other loads), are directly integrated to the structural part, and the winding coils  241  and the driving circuit  242  of the stator  24  of the motor  20  are directly integrated to the electronic substrate  12 , and manufactured in the process of manufacturing the electronic substrate  12 . The driving circuit  242  according to one embodiment may not have a sensor, or may further include a sensing unit  2421 , in which the sensing unit  2421  may be a sensing circuit shaped on the electronic substrate  12  or a Hall element. The rotor  22  includes a permanent magnet  221  and a yoke  222  disposed corresponding to the permanent magnet  221 . The base  21  may have two different types, for example, the base  21  includes a bearing seat  211  formed on the structural part  11  and a shaft  212  disposed on the bearing seat  211 , an inner diameter of the bearing  23  is connected to the shaft  212 , an outer diameter of the bearing  23  is connected to the rotor  22 , and the shaft  212  of the structure does not rotate. In one embodiment, the base  21  includes a bearing seat  211  formed on the structural part  11 , the rotor  22  includes a shaft  212 , an outer diameter of the bearing  23  is connected to the bearing seat  211 , an inner diameter of the bearing  23  is connected to the shaft  212 , and the shaft  212  of the structure rotates together with the rotor  22 . An appropriate type of the bearing  23  in the embodiments may be selected according to the type of the motor, for example, a ball bearing or an oil-retaining bearing, but it is not limited here. For example, a lube layer having a lubricating effect is disposed between the rotor  22  and the base  21 , and the lube layer may be grease, Teflon, or other metal plating layer, depending on the different aspects of the bearing  23 . 
     According to different configuration structures of the electronic device  10 , stacking positions of the rotor  22 , the stator  24 , and the base  21  may have different changes, for example, the rotor  22  is disposed between the base  21  and the stator  24  (as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 ), in this embodiment, one end of the shaft  212  is connected to the bearing seat  211 , and the other does not contact with or is connected to the electronic substrate  12 , as shown in  FIG. 3 .  FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the motor according to one embodiment of the present invention, in which the rotor is located between the base and the stator, and the shaft is connected to the electronic substrate. In addition, the stator  24  may also be disposed between the base  21  and the rotor  22 , and the electronic substrate  12  has a through hole  121  allowing the shaft  212  of the base  21  to pass through, such that the base  21  is assembled with the rotor  22  through the bearing  23 , as shown in  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the motor according to the embodiment of the present invention, in which the stator is located between the base and the rotor. 
     Referring to  FIG. 5A , a 3D exploded view of the motor according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which the motor is integrated to a cell phone. Particularly, in this embodiment, the motor  20  is integrated to the electronic device  10  of a cell phone. The structural part  11  is a case, the electronic substrate  12  is a main board  124 , the load of the rotor  22  is an eccentric block  223 , and the configuration manner thereof is the same as the type as shown in  FIG. 2 . In addition, as shown in  FIG. 5A , the rotor  22  is disposed between the main board  124  and a bottom case of the cell phone. The rotor  22  may possibly be disposed between the main board  124  and an upper case of the cell phone as shown in  FIG. 5B . Moreover, there may have two rotors  22 . One rotor is disposed between the main board  124  and a bottom case of the cell phone, and the other one is disposed between the main board  124  and an upper case of the cell phone as shown in  FIG. 5C . 
     Referring to  FIG. 6A , a 3D exploded view of the motor according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which the motor is integrated to a display card having a front heat dissipation part. In this embodiment, mainly the motor  20  is integrated to the electronic device  10  of a display card. The electronic substrate  12  of the display card has a front side and a back side, and main electronic components are mounted on the front side. A front heat dissipation part  122  is disposed on the front side, and the front heat dissipation part  122  is the structural part  11  of this embodiment. The base  21  of this embodiment is formed in the front heat dissipation part  122 , and the rotor  22  may be completely disposed in the front heat dissipation part  122 . The stator  24  of this embodiment is formed on the electronic substrate  12  (that is, the PCBA) of the display card. The configuration manners of the base  21 , the rotor  22 , and the stator  24  may be obtained with reference to the embodiment of  FIG. 2 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 6B , a 3D exploded view of the motor according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which the motor is integrated to a display card having a back heat dissipation part. In addition, there is another type of the display card in which the back side of the display card has a back plate or a back heat dissipation part  123  disposed thereon. In the embodiment of the present invention corresponding to this type, the base  21  is formed on the back plate or the back heat dissipation part  123 , the rotor  22  is located on the front side of the electronic substrate  12  of the display card, and the stator  24  is still formed on the electronic substrate  12  of the display card. The configuration manners of the base  21 , the rotor  22 , and the stator  24  may be obtained with reference to the embodiment of  FIG. 4 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 6C , a 3D exploded view of the motor according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which the motor is integrated to a display card having a front heat dissipation part and a back heat dissipation part. In the embodiment of  FIG. 6B , the front heat dissipation part  122  may be further disposed on the front side of the electronic substrate  12  of the display card, and the rotor  22  is located in a heat sink  1221  of the front heat dissipation part  122  (referring to  FIG. 4 ). 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , a 3D exploded view of the motor according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown, in which the motor is integrated to a notebook computer. Particularly, in this embodiment, the motor  20  is integrated to the electronic device  10  of a notebook computer. The electronic substrate  12  is a main board  124 , the structural part  11  is a case, and the load of the rotor  22  is a fan blade  224 . The configuration manners may be obtained with reference to the embodiment of  FIG. 4 . 
     In the present invention, the base of the motor component is directly formed on the structural part of the electronic device, such that an entire thickness is thinned. In the present invention, the rotating parts of the motor and the load are integrated to the structure or the case of the existing electronic product, so as to relatively enhance the stability of the structure, reduce the parts, thus facilitating assembling and mass production. In the present invention, the winding and the driving circuit of the stator of the motor are integrated to the circuit board of the electronic product, so as to form a motor module correspondingly with the rotor portion on the electronic product component, such that the manufacture in the same batch is easily performed, the entire cost is reduced, and a thickness and number of the parts of the motor are reduced. 
     The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.