Description:Complete Specification:

The following specification describes and ascertains the nature of this invention and the manner in which it is to be performed.
Field of the invention
[0001] This invention is related to a device for improving vibration robustness in a control unit.

Background of the invention

[0002] In existing design of PCB, the soldered electronic components are being failed during vibration test In PCB assembly as they are supported only by its soldered joints. There are electronic components populated, which are prone to get affected by the vibration load, from external environment.

[0003] A patent application US20140273641A1 discloses an electrical connector having a substrate and movable electrical contacts which are mounted to the substrate and extend a distance D from the substrate. A layer of compressible material (such as a foam or elastomeric material) is positioned on the substrate adjacent at least some of the electrical contacts and ideally has an uncompressed thickness slightly greater than the distance D to provide for protection of the electrical contacts. When a mating electrical device such as an electrical connector or other circuit member is mated to the electrical connector with its electrical contacts and its layer of compressible material, the layer of compressible material is compressed to a thickness less than the distance D, allowing the contacts to make a suitable electrical interconnection to the mating electrical device. The compressible material can function to prevent damage to the movable electrical contacts from handling, packing, shipping, assembly, testing, connection and/or mating of the connector.

Brief description of the accompanying drawings
[0004] Figure 1 illustrates a device for improving vibration robustness in a control unit according to one embodiment of the invention.

Detailed description of the embodiments
[0005] Figure 1 illustrates a device for improving vibration robustness in a control unit in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The control unit 12 comprises a printed circuit board (PCB) 14 having multiple soldered components 16 and a cover 18 enclosed on the PCB 14 and the multiple soldered components 16. The device 10 comprises a component support frame 20 enclosing an open end of the multiple soldered components 16 on the PCB 14. The device 10 comprises a first connecting element 22 positioned between a top surface 24 of the component support frame 20 and a bottom surface 26 of the cover 18. The device 10 further comprises a second connecting element 28 positioned between a bottom surface 30 of the component support frame 20 and a top surface 32 of at least one the component 16.

[0006] Further the construction of the device in the control unit 12 and the other components of the control unit 12 is explained in detail. According to one embodiment of the invention, the control unit 12 is related to a DC-DC converter in the vehicle. However, it is to be understood that the control unit 12 can be any other control unit that is used to operate at least one component of the vehicle, or any can be another control unit in general. The control unit 10 is a logic circuitry and software programs implemented as one or more microprocessors, microcomputers, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, central processing units, state machines, logic circuitries, and/or any component that operates on signals based on operational instructions. The PCB 14 and the cover 18 of the control unit 12 is bound together with at least one binding techniques such as screws. Due to the presence of the pins on the PCB 14 , the components 16 are fitted onto the pins for different operations related to the components of the vehicle. And the cover 18 is enclosed on the components 16 that are embedded on the PCB 14.

[0007] Due to the gap present between the bottom surface 28 of the cover 18 and the top surface 32 of the components 16, during the vibrational test, the components 16 gets damaged and, in some cases, they will be broken. Therefore, to avoid failure (e.g., Solder joint break, pin break, component dismounting or the like) due to vibration load, an additional mechanical component 16 in the form of the device 10 is introduced in the assembly which provides additional support for electronic components as disclosed in the present invention. This acts as a supporting medium between the electronic components 16 and cover 18 / housing of the control unit 12.

[0008] The component support frame 20 is made in accordance with dimensions of each of the multiple components 16 of the PCB 14. The component support frame 20 is customized as per the requirement from any of the OEM’s, such that, it completely encloses and provides an additional support to the components 16 that are present on the PCB 14. The component support frame 20 is made as a single unit and is fitted to the cover 18 using any one of the fitting techniques comprising a snap fit, a screw fit , a fastener , an adhesive. According to one embodiment of the invention, the component support frame 20 and the cover 18 enclosed on the components of the PCB 14 are bound together using an adhesive material, one such material is a 3M double side tape. The component support frame 20 is customized for different layouts against same enclosure components 16 thus avoiding the need for customized enclosures for every layout. The disclosed component support frame 20 does not affect the layout on the PCB 14 but acts to improve upon system robustness without major space implications.

[0009] The first connecting element 22 and the second connecting element 28 are chosen from a group of connecting elements comprising a soft glue, a hard glue, an adhesive tape, a screw. However, the connecting elements (22,28) are not restricted to above mentioned one’s but can be any other elements that are known to the person skilled in the art.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the invention, the first connecting element 22 that is present in the air gap which is formed between the top surface 32 of the component support frame 20 and the bottom surface 30 of the cover 18 is a glue material. The glue material can be either a hard glue or soft glue. During the assembly process, upon experiencing the pressure on the cover 18, the glue material gets extends in the airgap formed between the top surface 24 of the component support frame 20 and the bottom surface 26 of the cover 18.

[0011] This provides a robust design and provides better stability for the electronic components 16 to withstand required vibration load. For an instance, the component support frame 20 is attached to the cover 18 through an adhesive which may be dispensed or on an adhesive tape. The adhesive maybe soft or hard depending upon the requirement, soft glue maybe used when load damping is required, hard glue maybe used when stiffening of system is required. This system improves the overall robustness of system against vibration loads.

[0012] As mentioned above, the connecting elements (22 & 28) can be anything from the above disclosed list. However, for ease of understanding, the second connecting element 28 is an adhesive which provides the required dampening to the multiple components 16 of the PCB 14 during the vibrational test. The second connecting element 28 is positioned on the top surface 24 of the multiple components 16 and below to the component support frame 20.

[0013] The assembling process of the device in the control unit 10 is explained in detail. The multiple components 16 that are related to a working of the any one of the component of the vehicle, is embedded onto the PCB 14 . The second connecting element 28 is positioned and fitted on the multiple components 16 of the PCB 14 , such that, the second connecting element 28 provides a dampening effect during the vibrational test. Once the second connecting element 28 is fixed on the top surfaces of the multiple components 16, then the component support frame 20 is fitted onto the multiple components 16 of the PCB 14 above the second connecting element 28. The component support frame 20 and the second connecting element 28 is positioned on the open end of the multiple components 16 of the PCB 14.

[0014] Once the component support frame 20 is fitted, then the first connecting element 22 is positioned in between the bottom surface 30 of the cover 18 and the top surface 32 of the component support frame 20. The first connecting element 22 is positioned in the air gap created between the above two disclosed components. During the assembly process of fitting the cover 18 on the component support frame 20 , the first connecting element 22 will get spread and fill the air gap as disclosed above, thus providing the robustness to the components 16 of the PCB 14 during the vibrational test.

[0015] With the above disclosed device, the damage to the components 16 of the PCB 14 can be reduced. In addition to that, the robustness is improved, and the dampening effect is effectively increased.

[0016] It should be understood that embodiments explained in the description above are only illustrative and do not limit the scope of this invention. Many such embodiments and other modifications and changes in the embodiment explained in the description are envisaged. The scope of the invention is only limited by the scope of the claims.
, Claims:We Claim:
1. A device (10) for improving vibration robustness in a control unit (12), said control unit (12) comprising a printed circuit board (PCB) (14) having multiple soldered components (16), a cover (18) enclosed on said PCB (14) and said multiple soldered components (16) ,
characterized in that :
said device (10) comprising :
- a component support frame (20) enclosing an open end of said multiple soldered components (16) on said PCB (14);
- a first connecting element (22) positioned between a top surface (24) of said component support frame (20) and a bottom surface (26) of said cover (18);
- a second connecting element (28) positioned between a bottom surface (30) of said component support frame (20) and a top surface (32) of at least one said component (16).

2. The device (10) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said component support frame (20) is made in accordance with dimensions of each of said multiple components (16) of the PCB (14).

3. The device (10) as claimed in claim 2, wherein said component support frame (20) is made as a single unit and is fitted to said cover (18) using any one of the fitting techniques comprising a snap fit, a screw fit , a fastener, an adhesive.

4. The device (10) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first connecting element (22) and said second connecting element (28) are chosen from a group of connecting elements comprising a soft glue, a hard glue, an adhesive tape, a screw.

5. The device (10) as claimed in claim 4, wherein said first connecting element (22) is a soft glue, that will be extended in an airgap formed between said top surface (24) of said component support frame (20) and said bottom surface (30) of said cover (20), during an assembly process.

6. The device (10) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second connecting element (28) is an adhesive which provides the required dampening to the multiple components (16) of the PCB (14) during the vibrational test.