KR102384600B1 - Camera module - Google Patents

Abstract

The camera module is a printed circuit board; a housing disposed on the printed circuit board; an auxiliary board having one end connected to the printed circuit board and extending upwardly; a lens unit disposed in the center of the housing; and a cable housing coupled to the printed circuit board and having a cable for external connection installed at a lower portion of the printed circuit board, wherein the housing includes at least one receiving groove disposed on the auxiliary board, and the receiving The groove is disposed to overlap at least a portion of the lens unit in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis, and the auxiliary substrate is disposed in the receiving groove to overlap at least a portion of the lens unit in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis. .

Description

Camera module {Camera module}

This embodiment relates to a camera module.

As camera module miniaturization becomes possible, there is a trend that camera modules are installed in front and rear of cars as well as mobile devices such as tablet PCs and smartphones to provide drivers with blind visibility and driving convenience. Unlike camera modules mounted on mobile devices, in-vehicle camera modules have very important anti-vibration and anti-rust properties, and since the volume of the mounted vehicle is relatively larger than that of mobile devices, the design focus is on reliability and stability rather than miniaturization of the camera module. .

However, in recent years, as the number of pixels of the image sensor mounted on the camera module increases, the size of device components such as ISP (Image Signal Processor) increases, making it difficult to mount all device components on one printed circuit board. Since the substrate is configured in a laminated form, there is a problem in that the overall length of the camera module is increased.

The present embodiment provides a vehicle camera module in which a printed circuit board arrangement structure is improved for device miniaturization.

The camera module according to this embodiment includes a printed circuit board; a housing disposed on the printed circuit board; an auxiliary board having one end connected to the printed circuit board and extending upwardly; a lens unit disposed in the center of the housing; and a cable housing coupled to the printed circuit board and having a cable for external connection installed at a lower portion of the printed circuit board, wherein the housing includes at least one receiving groove disposed on the auxiliary board, and the receiving The groove is disposed to overlap at least a portion of the lens unit in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis, and the auxiliary substrate is disposed in the receiving groove to overlap at least a portion of the lens unit in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis.
In addition, the auxiliary board is connected in a direction perpendicular to the printed circuit board.
In addition, the accommodating groove includes first to fourth accommodating grooves, and the auxiliary substrates are first to fourth auxiliary substrates respectively disposed in the first to fourth accommodating grooves.
In addition, it includes a driver device mounted on the printed circuit board.
In addition, it includes an image sensor disposed on the printed circuit board, and a connector.
In addition, the image sensor is disposed in the center of the printed circuit board.
In addition, the image sensor and the lens unit are disposed to face each other in an optical axis direction, and a coupling direction of the auxiliary substrate on the printed circuit board is parallel to the optical axis direction.
In addition, the connector is provided in plurality, and is accommodated in the housing.
In addition, the printed circuit board has a rectangular shape, and the connectors are first to fourth connectors arranged in a direction parallel to each end surface of the printed circuit board.
In addition, the connectors are arranged in a direction parallel to each other, so that the auxiliary boards connected to the connector are arranged in parallel to each other.
In addition, the auxiliary substrates are accommodated in the cable housing.
In addition, the printed circuit board is provided in a rectangular shape, and the connector is a male connector protruding from each end surface of the printed circuit board in the longitudinal direction.
In addition, the auxiliary board is composed of first and second auxiliary boards connected to both ends of the printed circuit board, and the first and second auxiliary boards are first and second flexible boards with the printed circuit board. connected with a connecting cable.
In addition, the first and second connection cables are composed of a Rigid-Flex Printed Circuit Board (RF-PCB).

Since the auxiliary substrate can be disposed in the inner space of the housing constituting the camera module, it is possible to reduce the size of the camera module by the volume previously provided for installing the auxiliary substrate.

Since it is possible to modularize and install various types of printed circuit boards, it is possible to provide control modules with various functions as options.

1 is a plan view of a printed circuit board of a camera module according to a first embodiment;
2 is a view showing an example of an auxiliary board connected to a printed circuit board;
3 is an exploded view of the camera module according to the first embodiment;
4 is an assembly view of the camera module according to the first embodiment;
5 is a plan view of a printed circuit board of a camera module according to a second embodiment;
6 is a plan view of a printed circuit board of a camera module according to a third embodiment;
7 is an exploded view of a camera module according to a second embodiment;
8 is an assembly view of a camera module according to a third embodiment;
9 is a plan view of a printed circuit board of a camera module according to a fourth embodiment;
10 is a view showing an example of an auxiliary substrate applied to the fourth embodiment;
11 is an exploded view of a camera module according to a fourth embodiment;
12 is an assembly view of a camera module according to a fourth embodiment;
13 and 14 are plan views of a printed circuit board and an auxiliary board of the camera module according to the fifth embodiment, and
15 and 16 are assembly views of a camera module according to a fifth embodiment.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present embodiment will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a plan view of a printed circuit board of a camera module according to a first embodiment, FIG. 2 is a view showing an example of an auxiliary board connected to the printed circuit board, and FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the camera module according to the first embodiment , FIG. 4 is an assembly view of the camera module according to the first embodiment, FIG. 5 is a plan view of a printed circuit board of the camera module according to the second embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a printed circuit board of the camera module according to the third embodiment 7 is an exploded view of the camera module according to the second embodiment, FIG. 8 is an assembly view of the camera module according to the third embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a plan view of a printed circuit board of the camera module according to the fourth embodiment, FIG. 10 is a view showing an example of an auxiliary substrate applied to the fourth embodiment, FIG. 11 is an exploded view of the camera module according to the fourth embodiment, FIG. 12 is an assembly view of the camera module according to the fourth embodiment, FIG. 13 and FIG. 14 is a plan view of a printed circuit board and an auxiliary board of the camera module according to the fifth embodiment, and FIGS. 15 and 16 are assembly views of the camera module according to the fifth embodiment.

1 is a diagram illustrating a printed circuit board of a camera module according to a first embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1 , a plurality of driver elements are mounted on the printed circuit board 10 , and an image sensor 11 is installed near the center. In addition, the printed circuit board 10 may be provided in a rectangular shape, and first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 may be installed near each corner. The first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 may be connected to the first to fourth auxiliary boards 210 to 240 configured as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 .

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the first auxiliary board 210 , and a first connector 211 connected to the first connector 110 may be provided. In this case, the first connector 110 may be configured as a female connector, and the first connector 211 may be provided as a male connector. In this case, although not shown, the first connector 211 may be a female connector and the first connector 110 may be a male connector. A circuit component including a driver module for driving an image sensor may be installed on the first auxiliary board 210 .

Meanwhile, the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 and the first to fourth auxiliary boards 210 to 240 may be formed to have the same size as each other. Therefore, when only one first set board 210 needs to be connected, the first auxiliary board 210 can be operated by being connected to any of the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 . In this case, the remaining connector connection area is unnecessary and may not be formed.

3 is an exploded view of a camera module according to the first embodiment.

As shown, the housing 20 forming the exterior of the camera module is coupled to the upper side of the printed circuit board 10 , and the lens module 30 may be installed in the center of the housing 20 .

Meanwhile, in positions corresponding to the first and third auxiliary substrates 210 and 230 of the housing 20 , first and third auxiliary substrates 210 and 230 having a shape corresponding to those of the first to third auxiliary substrates 230 are located. 3 Receiving grooves 310 and 330 may be formed. In addition, although not shown, the second and fourth receiving grooves may be provided in corresponding shapes at positions corresponding to the second and fourth auxiliary substrates 220 and 240 .

According to this configuration, as shown in FIG. 4 , since the first to fourth auxiliary boards 210 to 240 are inserted and coupled into the inner space of the housing 20 , the auxiliary boards are installed on the printed circuit board 10 . It is possible to achieve miniaturization by lowering the height of the camera module compared to the conventional stacked configuration.

5 and 6 are views illustrating a printed circuit board of a camera module according to the second and third embodiments.

As shown, the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 presented in the first embodiment may be formed on the opposite surface of the printed circuit board 10 on which the image sensor 11 is mounted. In this case, other driver elements and circuit components other than the image sensor 11 may also be configured together with the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 .

At this time, the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 may be disposed adjacent to the end of the printed circuit board 10 as shown in FIG. 5, as in the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. As shown, it is also possible to arrange each of them in parallel in parallel. In this case, it is also possible to provide four or more connectors as shown in FIG. 6 .

According to the second embodiment, the first to second auxiliary boards 210 to 240 coupled to the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 are printed circuit board 10 as shown in the exploded view shown in FIG. 7 . It is connected to the lower side of the, and can be accommodated in the inside of the cable housing 40 supporting the cable unit (41). At this time, as shown, the first and third auxiliary substrates 210 and 230 may be accommodated in the first and third lower receiving grooves 410 and 430 formed in the cable housing 40, although not shown. The second and fourth auxiliary substrates 220 and 240 may also be accommodated in the same manner.

According to the third embodiment, the first to fourth auxiliary boards 210 to 240 may be coupled in parallel to the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140, respectively, as shown in the assembly diagram shown in FIG. In this case, when the fifth connector 150 is additionally installed, the fifth auxiliary board 250 may be connected to these connectors. In this case, a space portion in which the first to fifth auxiliary substrates 210 to 250 described above can be installed may be formed in the cable housing 40 , and these may be disposed so as not to interfere with the cable unit 41 .

9 to 12 are views illustrating an example of a camera module according to the fourth embodiment, in which first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 are protruded in the longitudinal direction on each side of the printed circuit board 10 One thing is different from the above-described first to third embodiments.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 10 , the first to fourth auxiliary boards 210 to 240 have first to fourth connecting parts 211 to 241 connected to the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 . can be provided. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 , the first to fourth connectors 110 to 140 may be formed as male connectors, and the first to fourth connectors 211 to 241 may be formed as female connectors. , although not shown, the reverse configuration is also possible.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 10 , the first to fourth connecting portions 211 to 241 are preferably disposed at a position biased toward one end of the first to fourth auxiliary substrates 210 to 240, which is a printed circuit board ( 10) to allow the first to fourth auxiliary substrates 210 to 240 to extend in one direction through connection with the ?

Accordingly, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 , the housing 20 and the lens unit 30 are coupled and fixed to the upper side of the printed circuit board 10 as in the first to third embodiments, and the The printed circuit board 10 and the first to fourth auxiliary boards 210 to 240 may be connected to the lower side so as to face downward.

According to this configuration, there is no need to form a receiving portion for the first to fourth auxiliary substrates 210 to 240 in the housing 20 as in the second and third embodiments, and the cable housing 40 The camera module can be assembled by forming a space on the side that can accommodate the first to fourth auxiliary substrates 210 to 240 .

13 to 16 show a camera module according to a fifth embodiment, and unlike the first to fourth embodiments, first and second auxiliary substrates 1210 and 1220 on the printed circuit board 10 The flexible RF-PCB (Rigid-Flex Printed Circuit Board) may be connected by first and second connecting cables 1211 and 1221.

That is, as shown in FIG. 13 , the first and second auxiliary boards 1210 and 1220 directly connected to the printed circuit board 10 form the bending of the first and second connecting cables 1211 and 1221 as shown in FIG. 14 . However, at this time, as shown in FIG. 15 , it may be bent in the opposite direction of the image sensor 11 , or it may be bent in the direction of the image sensor 11 as shown in FIG. 16 .

As shown in FIG. 15 , when the first and second auxiliary substrates 1210 and 1220 are bent in the opposite direction of the image sensor 11 , the first and second auxiliary substrates 1210 and 1220 are formed on the cable housing 40 side. First and second lower accommodating grooves 1410 and 1420 that can accommodate the In the case of bending, the first and second receiving grooves 1310 and 1320 may be formed inside the housing 20 .

According to the first to fifth embodiments described above, since a plurality of auxiliary substrates 210 to 240 are configured and connected, it is possible to mount various types of device components in a limited space. That is, when the high-pixel image sensor 11 is used, it is possible to improve the performance of the camera module by additionally installing an actuator driving driver or a graphic driver to assist image processing, as well as device parts such as necessary ISP.

In addition, in the case of the camera module of the basic option, the installation of these auxiliary boards is omitted, and only the functions required by the user can be modularized and installed on individual auxiliary boards, so it is better to selectively provide various functions. It is possible.

In addition, the auxiliary substrates 210 to 240 may be installed in a predetermined direction with respect to the substrate surface of the printed circuit board 10 , and according to the present embodiment, may be installed in a vertical direction. Then, since the inner space of the housing 20 or the cable housing 40 can be used as the installation location of the auxiliary boards 210 to 240, various functions can be provided without increasing the overall size of the camera module, of course, Since auxiliary substrates are not stacked in a direction parallel to the printed circuit board 10 as in the prior art, it is possible to reduce the size of the camera module.

Although the embodiments according to the present embodiment have been described above, it will be understood that this is merely an example, and a person skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent ranges of the embodiments are possible therefrom. Accordingly, the true technical protection scope of this embodiment should be defined by the following claims.

Claims (14)

printed circuit board;
a housing disposed on the printed circuit board;
an auxiliary board having one end connected to the printed circuit board and extending upwardly;
a lens unit disposed in the center of the housing; and
and a cable housing coupled to the printed circuit board and provided with a cable for external connection at a lower portion of the printed circuit board.
The housing includes at least one accommodating groove disposed on the auxiliary substrate,
The receiving groove is disposed to overlap at least a portion of the lens unit in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis,
The auxiliary substrate is disposed in the receiving groove, the camera module is disposed to overlap at least a portion of the lens unit in a direction perpendicular to the optical axis.
The method of claim 1,
The auxiliary board is a camera module connected in a direction perpendicular to the printed circuit board.
The method of claim 1,
The receiving groove includes first to fourth receiving grooves,
The auxiliary substrates are first to fourth auxiliary substrates respectively disposed in the first to fourth receiving grooves.
According to claim 1,
A camera module including a driver device mounted on the printed circuit board.
The method of claim 1,
A camera module including an image sensor disposed on the printed circuit board, and a connector.
6. The method of claim 5,
The image sensor is a camera module disposed in the center of the printed circuit board.
6. The method of claim 5,
The image sensor and the lens unit are disposed to face each other in an optical axis direction,
The coupling direction of the auxiliary board on the printed circuit board is parallel to the optical axis direction.
6. The method of claim 5,
The connector is provided in plurality, the camera module accommodated in the interior of the housing.
6. The method of claim 5,
The printed circuit board is composed of a square,
The connector is a camera module as first to fourth connectors disposed in a direction parallel to each end surface of the printed circuit board.
6. The method of claim 5,
The connector is disposed in a direction parallel to each other, and the auxiliary board connected to the connector is disposed parallel to each other.
The method of claim 1,
The auxiliary substrates are accommodated inside the cable housing.
6. The method of claim 5,
The printed circuit board is provided in a rectangular shape,
The connector is a camera module that is a male connector protruding in the longitudinal direction on each end surface of the printed circuit board.
According to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary substrate,
It consists of first and second auxiliary boards connected to both ends of the printed circuit board,
The first and second auxiliary boards are connected to the printed circuit board by first and second flexible connecting cables.
14. The method of claim 13,
The first and second connecting cables are a camera module composed of a Rigid-Flex Printed Circuit Board (RF-PCB).

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