FLEXIBLE TOUCH SCREEN PANEL AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING THE SAME

• US 20140145977A1
• Filed: 03/11/2013
• Published: 05/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Display Company Limited (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Display Company Limited (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: KANG, Sung-Ku
• Granted Patent: US 9,582,087 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04102 Flexible digitiser, i.e. constructional details for allowing the whole digitising part of a device to be flexed or rolled like a sheet of paper
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04103 Manufacturing, i.e. details related to manufacturing processes specially suited for touch sensitive devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes
• 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

There is provided a flexible touch screen panel capable of being bent or folded. The flexible touch screen panel includes a film substrate and sensing electrodes formed in an active area of at least one surface of the film substrate. The film substrate is divided into a plurality regions so that elongation ratios differ between regions of the film substrate. Also provided is a method of manufacturing a flexible touch screen panel including providing a supporting substrate including a plurality of distinct regions, coating a plurality of film materials onto the supporting substrate, the distinct regions of the supporting substrate being coated with different film materials, hardening the film materials to form a film substrate, forming touch sensing patterns including sensing electrodes on the film substrate, and separating the supporting substrate and the film substrate from each other.

Claims

1. A flexible touch screen panel, comprising:

a film substrate; and

sensing electrodes formed in an active area of at least one surface of the film substrate,

the film substrate being divided into a plurality of regions, the regions differing in their elongation ratios.

2. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 1, the film substrate comprising:

a first region provided in a predetermined central region and having an elongation ratio that allows bending of the first region; and

second regions provided on at least one side of the first region, the second regions having a smaller elongation ratio than that of the first region and being formed to be harder than the first region.

3. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 2, the film substrate being formed to be bendable or foldable when a bending axis is positioned in the first region.

4. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 2, the first region being formed of at least one selected from polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and polyurethane.

5. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 2, the second regions being formed of at least one material selected from poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), polyimide and polyethersulfone.

6. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 2, the second regions being provided on at least one side of the first region, that is, above and below the first region or on at least one side of the first region, that is, on left and right of the first region.

7. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 2, the film substrate further comprising third regions provided between the first region and the second regions and having an elongation ratio between that of the first region and that of the second regions.

8. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 7, the third regions being formed of a polymer film material having a hardness gradient in which hardness gradually increases from a low extreme on one side adjacent to the first region to a high extreme on other sides adjacent to the second regions.

9. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 1, ductile opaque metal being patterned to a mesh network to form the sensing electrodes.

10. The flexible touch screen panel as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a functional coating layer provided over an entire surface opposite to the at least one surface of the film substrate on which sensing electrodes are formed.

11. A method of manufacturing a flexible touch screen panel, comprising:

providing a supporting substrate, a plurality of regions of the supporting substrate being distinguished from each other;

coating a plurality of film materials onto the supporting substrate, the distinct regions of the supporting substrate being coated with different film materials;

hardening the film materials to form a film substrate;

forming touch sensing patterns including sensing electrodes on the film substrate; and

separating the supporting substrate and the film substrate from each other.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, the coating step further comprising coating the distinct regions of the supporting substrate with different film materials using a multi slit coater.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11, the flexible touch screen panel comprising a predetermined central region that is referred to as a first region and regions provided on at least one side of the first region that are referred to as second regions, the providing step further comprising identifying distinct regions of the supporting substrate that correspond to the first region and the second regions of the flexible touch screen, the coating step further comprising coating the first region and the second regions of the supporting substrate with different film materials, the hardening step further comprising forming a film substrate having a first region corresponding to the first region of the supporting substrate and second regions corresponding to the second regions of the supporting substrate, the second regions of the film substrate having a hardness that is greater than that of the first region of the film substrate.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13,

the first region being coated with at least one selected from polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and polyurethane, and

the second regions being coated with at least one film material selected from poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), polyimide, and polyethersulfone.

15. The method as claimed in claim 13, the flexible touch screen panel further comprising third regions between the first region and the second regions, the providing step further comprising identifying third regions of the supporting substrate corresponding to the third regions of the flexible touch screen, the coating step further comprising coating the third regions of the supporting substrate with a film material that is different from the film materials used to coat the first region of the supporting substrate and the second regions of the supporting substrate, the hardening step further comprising forming a film substrate having third regions corresponding to the third regions of the supporting substrate, the third regions of the film substrate being formed of a polymer film material that is harder than the film material forming the first region of the film substrate and softer than the film material forming the second regions of the film substrate.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, the film material used to coat the third regions of the supporting substrate being a polymer film material, the third regions of the film substrate having a hardness gradient such that hardness gradually increases from a low extreme on the side of the first region of the film substrate to a high extreme on the sides of the second regions of the film substrate.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, the coating step further comprising coating the third regions of the supporting substrate with a film material in which the concentration of one of a hardener and a photoinitiator gradually increases from a low extreme on the side of the first region of the supporting substrate to a high extreme on the sides of the second regions of the supporting substrate, the hardening step being accomplished by means selected from thermal means and ultraviolet light exposure.