Electrochromic devices having no positional offset between substrates
First Claim
1. An electrochromic device comprising:
- a front element having a front surface and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a front surface and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber;
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber; and
an electrical conductor provided to electrically couple a portion of said first conductive layer with a portion of said second conductive layer, wherein said electrical conductor is provided on an outside peripheral edge of at least one of said front and rear elements.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
To allow an electrochromic device to have little or no offset between its front and rear elements, an electrical conductor may be provided to electrically couple a portion of a first conductive layer provided on the rear surface of the front element with a portion of a second conductive layer provided on the front surface of the rear element. The electrical conductor may be in the form of a conductive portion of the seal. To prevent shorting across the electrochromic medium, at least one of the first and second conductive layers is separated into a first portion and a second portion that is electrically isolated from the first portion and is in electrical contact with the electrochromic material. An elastomeric bezel may be utilized. Also, an edge seal may optionally be employed so as to reduce the need or width of the bezel.
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Citations
80 Claims
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1. An electrochromic device comprising:
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a front element having a front surface and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a front surface and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber;
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber; and
an electrical conductor provided to electrically couple a portion of said first conductive layer with a portion of said second conductive layer, wherein said electrical conductor is provided on an outside peripheral edge of at least one of said front and rear elements. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. An electrochromic variable reflectance mirror for a vehicle, comprising:
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a front element having a front surface and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a front surface and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber;
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber; and
a bezel disposed around the periphery of at least said front element and having front lip extending over part of said front surface of said front element, said front lip of said bezel having a width of about 4 mm or less. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An electrochromic variable reflectance mirror for a vehicle, comprising:
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a front element having a front surface and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a front surface and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber;
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber; and
an elastomeric bezel disposed around the periphery of at least one of said elements. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A method of making an electrochromic device, said method comprising:
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providing a front element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
providing a rear element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
coating an electrically conductive material to at least a portion of at least one of said peripheral edges;
providing a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber; and
dispensing an electrochromic material in said chamber. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. An electrochromic device comprising:
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a front element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber;
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber; and
an electrically conductive wire or strip disposed between said first and second conductive layers and in electrical contact with at least one of said conductive layers. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36)
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37. An electrochromic device comprising:
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a front element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber, wherein said seal has at least two electrically conductive regions; and
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber. - View Dependent Claims (38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46)
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47. An electrochromic device comprising:
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a front element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided to sealably bond said elements together in a spaced-apart relationship to define a chamber, wherein said seal has at least one electrically conductive region; and
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber, wherein said electrically conductive region of said seal extends less than all of the height of said seal. - View Dependent Claims (48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54)
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55. An electrochromic device comprising:
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a front element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided on both said front and rear elements to define a sealed chamber between said front and rear elements; and
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber, wherein said seal comprises a thin member bonded to the peripheral edge of at least one of said front and rear elements. - View Dependent Claims (56, 57, 58, 59)
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60. An electrochromic device comprising:
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a front element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided on both said front and rear elements to define a sealed chamber between said front and rear elements; and
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber, wherein said seal is provided predominately on the peripheral edges of said front and rear elements. - View Dependent Claims (61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75)
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76. An electrochromic device comprising:
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a front element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface having a first layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a rear element having a peripheral edge, a front surface, and a rear surface, said front surface of said rear element having a second layer of electrically conductive material disposed thereon;
a seal provided on the peripheral edges of both said front and rear elements to define a sealed chamber between said front and rear elements, wherein said seal comprises a first material having an oxygen permeability of less than about 2.0 cm3·
ml/m2·
day·
atm; and
an electrochromic material disposed in said chamber. - View Dependent Claims (77, 78, 79, 80)
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Specification