CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a national stage of International Application No. PCT/CN2019/097253, filed on Jul. 23, 2019, which claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 201810862039.2, filed on Aug. 1, 2018. Both of the aforementioned applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to the field of touchscreen electronic device technologies, and in particular, to an optical proximity sensor component and an electronic device.

BACKGROUND

Touchscreen is widely used in the field of electronic technologies, for example, in a product with a display requirement, such as a mobile phone, a wearable device, or navigation. The touchscreen may be operated directly by touching. When a user answers a call on a touchscreen mobile phone, a screen is usually unlocked, and the user's face may touch the touchscreen, easily causing false screen touch. In the prior art, a sensing apparatus is added to a mobile phone with a touchscreen. Usually, the sensing apparatus is placed where a black border of the touchscreen is located, to facilitate the placement of a light hole. The sensing apparatus is electrically connected to a mainboard of the mobile phone. When the sensing apparatus detects that an obstruction approaches the light hole on the screen, the screen is turned off, to prevent a mis-operation from being performed when a user's face touches the screen when the user answers a call. In the prior art, to enable the sensing apparatus to detect a change in light instantly, the sensing apparatus is installed at the back of a touch module. However, the prior art sensing apparatus requires a support structure and a connecting piece connected to a circuit board. Such structure is complex and difficult to assemble, not favored in an existing market with fierce competition.

SUMMARY

The present invention provides an optical proximity sensor component that is easy to assemble and an improved terminal with such optical proximity sensor.

An embodiment of the present invention provides an optical proximity sensor component, which is used in a terminal such as a mobile phone to sense infrared light brightness or a distance between infrared light and the terminal, so as to implement control of a circuit mainboard on screen-on and screen-off of a screen. The optical proximity sensor component includes an optical proximity sensor and a light guide body. The light guide body includes a first end face. The light guide body is fixed on the optical proximity sensor, and the light guide body is configured to transfer, to the optical proximity sensor, light that enters from the first end face, and send out, through the first end face, light that is emitted by the optical proximity sensor. The light guide body in this embodiment is a cylinder. The optical proximity sensor uses the light guide body to transfer light. The light guide body may be designed based on an actual required size, and may be manufactured as a standard component. When being installed in a mobile phone, the optical proximity sensor is directly installed on a circuit mainboard, and the light guide body may be directly in contact with a light hole on a screen, and is responsible for transferring light. In this way, there is no need to design additional support structures, no additional sensor circuit board is required, and no intermediate connecting piece is even required, thereby implementing easy assembly and reducing production time.

Further, the light guide body includes a second end face disposed opposite to the first end face, a light-shielding separating rib is disposed inside the light guide body, the light-shielding separating rib extends from the first end face to the second end face, the light-shielding separating rib divides the light guide body into a first light guide part and a second light guide part, the first light guide part is configured to guide, into the optical proximity sensor, light that enters from the first end face, and the second light guide part is configured to guide, out of the first end face, light that is emitted by the optical proximity sensor. The light-shielding separating rib is disposed approximately on a middle line of the light guide body along a length direction of the light guide body, to divide the light guide body into two independent light guide parts, thereby preventing the scenario in which the light reflected back during emission of the light emitted by the optical proximity sensor is absorbed by the optical proximity sensor by mistake, and ensuring that the light entering from the first end face does not enter the second light guide part. The light-shielding separating rib is integrally formed with the first light guide part and the second light guide part of the light guide body. The light-shielding separating rib may be made of metal, or plastic that is dark and does not transmit light. When the light-shielding separating rib is made of a metal material, strength of the light guide body can be enhanced.

The optical proximity sensor includes a light sensing module and a light emitting module that is connected to the light sensing module. The light sensing module is opposite to the first light guide part, and the light emitting module is opposite to the second light guide part. Light emitted by the light emitting module does not enter the light sensing module during emission, therefore, the optical proximity sensor does not perform incorrect determination. In addition, it can be ensured that light entering from the first end face is completely absorbed by the sensing module, thereby ensuring light sensing performance of the sensing module, and avoiding crosstalk with the emitted light.

In this embodiment, an end of the light-shielding separating rib near the first end face is a bent section. The bent section bends towards the second light guide part, to form a light guide slope facing the first end face, where the light guide slope is configured to guide light entering the first end face into the first light guide part. When the light guide body receives the light reflected back from the outside, the light guide slope can direct the light incident to the first end face from the outside to enter the first light guide part, thereby enhancing light transfer efficiency and further increasing the sensitivity of the light sensing module.

Further, the light-shielding separating rib is made of a metal material, thereby enhancing the strength of the light guide body.

The light guide body is made of a transparent light guide material, for example, an infrared high-transmittance material.

Further, the light guide body includes an outer peripheral surface. The first end face and the second end face are separately connected to the outer peripheral surface, and the outer peripheral surface is a light shielding surface. The light shielding surface can ensure that the light entering the light guide body is all used for work, thereby increasing the light intensity of the transferred light and further improving sensitivity of the optical proximity sensor.

Further, a light converging layer is disposed on the first end face, and the light converging layer is configured to converge outside light to the first end face and transfer the outside light to the light guide body. This enhances light transfer efficiency and further increases the sensitivity of the light sensing module.

Further, a light converging layer is disposed in the first light guide part, and configured to converge light entering the light guide body and then transfer the light to the optical proximity sensor. This ensures light transfer efficiency.

In this embodiment, the optical proximity sensor includes a working face, the light guide body is fixedly connected to the working face through the second end face, and the light transferred by the light guide body passes through both the working face and the second end face. The working face may be surfaces of the light emitting module and the light sensing module, or may be a transparent surface of an apparatus that accommodates the light emitting module and the light sensing module. Emitted light of the light emitting module is emitted through the working face, enters the light guide body from the second end face, and then is transferred out from the first end face. A transmission path is comparatively short, thereby improving light transfer efficiency.

The area of the working face is greater than or equal to the area of the second end face. Provided that light transfer is not affected, the dimension of the light guide body in a transverse direction may be further reduced as much as possible.

In an implementation, a light shielding plate is disposed at a peripheral edge of the second end face of the light guide body, a slot is disposed at a peripheral edge of the working face, the light shielding plate is inserted into the slot, and the second end face and the working face are in contact with each other. The light guide body and the optical proximity sensor are fixed by using the light shielding plate and the slot, thereby facilitating detaching of the light guide body and the optical proximity sensor, and facilitating replacement. The working face and the second end face are in contact with each other, thereby enhancing light utilization, and preventing light leakage before light enters the light guide body.

In another implementation, the light guide body and the optical proximity sensor are fixedly connected using an optical adhesive. This can play a role of fixing the light guide cylinder, and can also implement light transfer.

An embodiment of the present invention provides an electronic device, including a housing, a circuit board accommodated in the housing, a touchscreen disposed on a side of the housing, and the optical proximity sensor component, where there is space between a non-display area at one end of the touchscreen and the circuit board, a gap is disposed at a position opposite to the space in the non-display area, the optical proximity sensor component is accommodated in the space, the optical proximity sensor in the optical proximity sensor component is fixed to and electrically connected to the circuit board, the light guide body supports the screen and is fixed to the screen by using the first end face, and the first end face and the gap are disposed completely opposite to each other. The electronic device in this embodiment of the present invention may be an electronic product such as a mobile phone, a palmtop computer, or a smartwatch. The light guide body can not only implement screen-off and screen-on to save power and avoid a touch, but also work as the housing to support the screen. In this way, no additional step needs to be disposed in the housing to support the screen, thereby reducing the width of a part that is of the non-display area and that is in contact with the step, that is, implementing a narrow bezel. In addition, a sectional area of the light guide cylinder may also be within a control range, thereby further ensuring that the non-display area of the screen has a small width. Further, the optical proximity sensor may be directly installed on the circuit board, thereby ensuring circuit stability, not requiring an intermediate connecting piece, and eliminating a need of disposing a supporting piece to push the sensor against the back of the screen. In this case, the light guide body can also be in contact with outside light at a shortest distance, thereby ensuring sensitivity of the optical proximity sensor.

The first end face of the light guide body and the non-display area of the touchscreen are fixed to each other by using an optically clear adhesive. The housing includes a side wall, and the light guide body and an inner surface of the side wall are attached to each other using glue. This ensures robustness of the optical proximity sensor component and light transmittance.

In an implementation, the housing includes a side wall. An inner surface of the side wall extends towards an interior of the housing to a step, and the step and the light guide body jointly support the touchscreen. This ensures that there is sufficient supporting force to support the screen and creates a stable assembly.

The optical proximity sensor component according to the present invention uses the light guide body to transfer light emitted and received by the optical proximity sensor, and can be directly installed on a circuit board of an electronic product, without the need of a connecting piece or a supporting piece, featuring a simple structure and making it easy to assemble.

