MULTIPOINT NANOSTRUCTURE-FILM TOUCH SCREEN

• US 20090085894A1
• Filed: 09/16/2008
• Published: 04/02/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Unidym, Inc. (Wisepower Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Gandhi, Shripal, Thomas, David JR.
• Granted Patent: US 8,587,559 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/175
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04166 Details of scanning methods, e.g. sampling time, grouping of sub areas or time sharing with display driving Synchronisation with the driving of the display or the backlighting unit to avoid interferences generated internally G06F3/04184
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0445 using two or more layers of sensing electrodes, e.g. using two layers of electrodes separated by a dielectric layer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes

Abstract

A touch screen comprising at least one nanostructure film and capable of detecting multiple touches occurring at the same time at distinct locations in a plane of the touch screen is described. The touch screen may comprise a sensing layer, a driving layer and/or a shielding layer. At least one of these layers may comprise a nanostructure film, and at least two of these layers may be formed on a common substrate.

Claims

1. A touch screen, comprising:

a sensing layer;

a driving layer; and

a substrate, wherein the touch screen can detect multiple touches or near touches that occur at the same time and at distinct locations in a plane of the touch screen and produce distinct signals representative of the location of the touches on the plane of the touch screen for each of the multiple touches,

wherein at least one of the sensing layer and the driving layer comprises a first nanostructure film, and

wherein the first nanostructure film is optically transparent and electrically conductive.

2. The touch screen of claim 1, further comprising a shielding layer, wherein at least two of the sensing layer, the driving layer and the shielding layer are formed on the substrate.

3. The touch screen of claim 2, wherein at least one of the sensing layer, the driving layer and the shielding layer comprises a second nanostructure film, and

wherein the second nanostructure film is optically transparent and electrically conductive.

4. The touch screen of claim 3, wherein the first and second nanostructure films each comprise at least one interconnected network of nanotubes.

5. The touch screen of claim 4, wherein the first and second nanostructure films are formed on the substrate.

6. The touch screen of claim 5, wherein the sensing layer and the driving layer are separated by a first insulating layer, and

wherein the sensing layer and the shielding layer are separated by a second insulating layer.

7. The touch screen of claim 6, wherein one of the first insulating layer and the second insulating layer is the substrate.

8. The touch screen of claim 7, wherein the first and second nanostructure films are formed on opposite sides of the substrate.

9. The touch screen of claim 6, wherein neither the first insulating layer nor the second insulating layer is the substrate.

10. The touch screen of claim 9, wherein at least one of the first and second nanostructure films is deposited on at least one of the first insulating layer and the second insulating layer.

11. The touch screen of claim 1, wherein the sensing layer, the driving layer and the shielding layer are all formed on the substrate.

12. The touch screen of claim 1, wherein the first nanostructure film comprises at least one interconnected network of nanotubes.

13. The touch screen of claim 1, wherein the sensing layer and the driving layer are formed on the substrate, and

wherein the sensing layer and the driving layer are separated by a first insulating layer.

14. The touch screen of claim 13, wherein the first insulating layer is the substrate.

15. The touch screen of claim 14, wherein the first insulating layer is not the substrate.

16. A method of forming a touch screen, comprising depositing at least two of a sensing layer, a driving layer and a shielding layer on a substrate, wherein at least one of the layers deposited on the substrate comprises a nanostructure film, and

wherein the touch screen can detect multiple touches or near touches that occur at the same time and at distinct locations in the plane of the touch screen and produce distinct signals representative of the location of the touches on the plane of the touch screen for each of the multiple touches.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising depositing an insulating layer over at least one of the sensing layer, the driving layer and the shielding layer;

and

depositing the nanostructure film over the insulating layer.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the insulating layer and the nanostructure film are deposited using solution-based deposition methods.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein at least two of the sensing layer, the driving layer and the shielding layer comprise nanostructure films.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein at least two of the sensing layer, the driving layer and the shielding layer comprise nanostructure films, and

wherein at least two of the sensing layer, the driving layer and the shielding layer are deposited on opposite sides of the substrate simultaneously.