Touch sensor assembly and door including the same

• US 10,352,552 B2
• Filed: 04/13/2018
• Issued: 07/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kim, Minchel, Park, Jinseung
• Primary Examiner(s): Ellis, Suezu
• Application Number:
  US15/952,941
• Publication Number:
  US 20180231236A1
• Time in Patent Office: 459 Days
• CPC Class Codes: F21V 33/0044 Household appliances, e.g. washing machines or vacuum cleaners
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 2400/361 Interactive visual displays
• CPC Class Codes: F25D 29/005 Mounting of control devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 13/22 electroluminescent electroluminescent light sources per se H05B33/00
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 2013/222 with LEDs
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 3/208 Electronic labels, Labels integrating electronic displays
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/962 Capacitive touch switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960755 Constructional details of capacitive touch and proximity switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960785 with illumination

Abstract

A household appliance according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes a front panel forming an exterior, a display window formed with a plurality of through holes having minute or fine sizes formed at the front panel, and the plurality of through holes are filled with a coating liquid including an anti-foaming agent.

Claims

1. A household appliance comprising:

a metallic front panel forming an exterior of the household appliance;

a display window area having a plurality of through holes formed on the front panel to display information through the plurality of through holes;

a display assembly provided at a rear of the front panel corresponding to the display window area and includes a plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs) which emit light toward the plurality of through holes;

a coating layer which is screen printed on a rear surface of the front panel corresponding to the display window area and includes an anti-foaming agent, an acryl polyol, and a curing agent;

a first black coating layer provided over the coating layer except the plurality of through holes; and

a display cover in contact against the first black coating layer, wherein the display cover includes;

a through hole formed at a position corresponding to the plurality of through holes, through which light emitted toward the plurality of through holes passes; and

a second black coating layer which is printed on a front surface of the display cover, wherein the display assembly is positioned at a through hole of the display cover.

2. The household appliance of claim 1, wherein:

the anti-foaming agent is included in a coating liquid forming the coating layer at 0.5 to 1.5 wt %;

the acryl polyol is included in the coating liquid at 33 wt %; and

the curing agent is included in the coating liquid at 1 wt %.

3. The household appliance of claim 2, wherein coating layer further includes a silicon acryl polyol included in the coating liquid at 33 wt %.

4. The household appliance of claim 3, wherein coating layer further includes a leveling agent and an attachment enhancement agent.

5. The household appliance of claim 1, wherein the display window area includes a window having eighty eight segments form formed by a group of the plurality of through holes.

6. The household appliance of claim 1, wherein the display window area includes an area to display one of a text, a drawing, or a symbol formed by a group of the plurality of through holes.

7. The household appliance of claim 1, wherein a thickness of the coating layer is in a range of 35 to 55 m.

8. The household appliance of claim 1, further comprising an anti-fingerprint coating layer attached onto a front surface of the front panel.

9. The household appliance of claim 1, wherein the coating layer has prescribed transparency such that light transmitted through the plurality of through holes has a brightness of at least equal to 40 nit.