Techniques for strengthening glass covers for portable electronic devices
First Claim
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1. A consumer electronic product, comprising:
- a housing having a front surface, a back surface and side surfaces;
electrical components provided at least partially internal to the housing, the electrical components including at least a controller, a memory, and a display, the display being provided at or adjacent the front surface of the housing; and
a cover glass provided at or over the front surface of the housing such that it is provided over the display, the cover glass comprising;
a first planar surface;
a second planar surface opposite the first planar surface; and
an edge surface extending between the first planar surface and the second planar surface and defining an edge geometry including a rounded transition to each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface,wherein the cover glass is chemically strengthened by ion exchange so that a compressive stress along the entire edge surface is no more than 10% lower than a compressive stress at each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface.
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Abstract
Apparatus, systems and methods for improving strength of a thin glass cover for an electronic device are disclosed. In one embodiment, the glass member can have improved strength by forming its edges with a predetermined geometry and/or by chemically strengthening the edges. Advantageously, the glass member can be not only thin but also adequately strong to limit susceptibility to damage. In one embodiment, the glass member can pertain to a glass cover for a housing for an electronic device. The glass cover can be provided over or integrated with a display, such as a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) display.
268 Citations
23 Claims
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1. A consumer electronic product, comprising:
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a housing having a front surface, a back surface and side surfaces; electrical components provided at least partially internal to the housing, the electrical components including at least a controller, a memory, and a display, the display being provided at or adjacent the front surface of the housing; and a cover glass provided at or over the front surface of the housing such that it is provided over the display, the cover glass comprising; a first planar surface; a second planar surface opposite the first planar surface; and an edge surface extending between the first planar surface and the second planar surface and defining an edge geometry including a rounded transition to each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface, wherein the cover glass is chemically strengthened by ion exchange so that a compressive stress along the entire edge surface is no more than 10% lower than a compressive stress at each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 20)
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16. A consumer electronic product, comprising:
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a housing; a display provided at least partially internal to the housing; and a cover glass positioned over the display, the cover glass comprising; a first planar surface; a second planar surface opposite the first planar surface; and an edge surface extending between the first planar surface and the second planar surface and defining an edge geometry including a rounded transition to each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface, wherein the cover glass is chemically strengthened by ion exchange so that a compressive stress along the entire edge surface is no more than 10% lower than a compressive stress at each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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21. A cover glass member suitable for attachment to a housing for a handheld electronic device, the cover glass member being produced and strengthened by a process of:
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forming a plurality of cover glass members, each of the cover glass members being suitably sized to be provided on an exposed surface of the handheld electronic device, each of the cover glass members including a first planar surface, a second planar surface opposite the first planar surface, and an edge surface extending between the first planar surface and the second planar surface; manipulating each of the cover glass members so that the edge surface of each cover glass member defines an edge geometry including a rounded transition to each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface and chemically strengthening each of the cover glass members by ion exchange so that a compressive stress along the entire edge surface is no more than 10% lower than a compressive stress at each of the first planar surface and the second planar surface. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23)
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Specification