Encapsulated liquid crystal and method
First Claim
1. A liquid crystal apparatus, comprising liquid crystal material having positive dielectric anisotropy, and surface means for affecting the natural structure of said liquid crystal material to induce a distorted alignment thereof in the absence of an electric field to reduce optical transmission independent of polarization, said liquid crystal material being responsive to the presence of an electric field to increase such optical transmission.
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Reexamination
Accused Products
Abstract
Briefly, according to one aspect of the invention, liquid crystal material, and especially nematic material, is encapsulated; according to another aspect the encapsulated liquid crystal material is used in liquid crystal devices, such as relatively large size visual display devices; and according to further aspects there are provided methods for encapsulating liquid crystal material and for making a liquid crystal device using such encapsulated liquid crystal material.
528 Citations
111 Claims
- 1. A liquid crystal apparatus, comprising liquid crystal material having positive dielectric anisotropy, and surface means for affecting the natural structure of said liquid crystal material to induce a distorted alignment thereof in the absence of an electric field to reduce optical transmission independent of polarization, said liquid crystal material being responsive to the presence of an electric field to increase such optical transmission.
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2. A liquid crystal apparatus, comprising liquid crystal material having positive dielectric anisotropy, surface means for affecting the natural structure of said liquid crystal material to induce a distorted alignment thereof in the absence of an electric field to reduce optical transmission independent of polarization, said liquid crystal material being responsive to the pesence of an electric field to increase such optical transmission, and pleochroic dye contained in said liquid crystal material.
- 4. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of said liquid crystal material, said material having positive dielectric anisotropy, said medium having dielectric constant that is no less than the lower dielectric constant value of said material, and wherein when exposed to an electric field the electrical impedance of said medium and liquid crystal material exposed to such field along an electrical path through both said medium and liquid crystal material are related such that the electrical impedance of said medium is less than the electrical impedance of said liquid crystal material exposed to such field.
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6. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of said liquid crystal material, said material having positive dielectric anisotropy, said medium having a dielectric constant that is no less than the lower dielectric constant value of said material, wherein said medium is an encapsulating medium for said liquid crystal material, and wherein said liquid crystal material and said encapsulating medium have electrical properties such that upon application of an electric field across a capsule along an electrical path through said encapsulating medium and liquid crystal material there is a greater voltage drop across said liquid crystal material than across said encapsulating medium.
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8. A material comprising a containment medium having an index of refraction, and optically anisotropic liquid crystal means contained in said containment medium and having an ordinary index of refraction in the presence of an electric field substantially equal to the index of refraction of said containment medium for maximizing optical transmission in the presence of an electric field.
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9. A method of making encapsulated nematic liquid crystals, comprising mixing at least an encapsulating medium, a nematic liquid crystal material, and a pleochroic dye.
- 10. A method of making encapsulated nematic liquid crystals, comprising mixing at least an encapsulating medium and a nematic liquid crystal material, and further comprising selecting such liquid crystal material and such encapsulating medium such that the liquid crystal material has a positive dielectric anisotropy and the dielectric constant of such encapsulating medium is at least as great as the lower dielectric constant of such liquid crystal material.
- 12. A method of making encapsulated nematic liquid crystals, comprising mixing at least an encapsulating medium and a nematic liquid crystal material, and further comprising selecting such liquid crystal material and such encapsulating medium such that the liquid crystal material has an ordinary index of refraction substantially the same as the index of refraction of the encapsulating medium.
- 14. A method of making encapsulated nematic liquid crystals, comprising mixing at least an encapsulating medium and a nematic liquid crystal material, and further comprising causing such liquid crystal material to perform substantially independently of the optical polarization direction of incident light, including confining such liquid crystal material in a capsule formed by such encapsulating medium that causes distortion of the direction of the liquid crystal molecules when no electric field is applied thereto.
- 26. A method of causing nematic liquid crystal material to perform substantially independently of the optical polarization direction of incident light, comprising confining such nematic liquid crystal material in a capsule which causes distortion of the direction of the liquid crystal material.
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28. A method of causing liquid crystal material to perform substantially independently of the optical polarization direction of incident light, comprising combining pleochroic dye with the liquid crystal material and confining such dyed liquid crystal material as a suspension in a confining medium.
- 29. Liquid crystal apparatus, comprising liquid crystal material, and containment means for inducing a distorted alignment of said liquid crystal material which in response to such alignment at least one of scatters and absorbs light and which in response to a prescribed input reduces the amount of such scattering or absorption.
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59. The invention of clim 29, said containment means comprising means for containing discrete quantities of such liquid crystal material causing the structure of such material to fold in on itself creating storage of elastic energy in such structure.
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60. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of said liquid crystal material, said liquid crystal material having positive dielectric anisotropy, and wherein when exposed to an electric field the electrical impedance of said medium and liquid crystal material exposed to such field along an electrical path through both said medium and liquid crystal material are related such that the electrical impedance of said medium is less than the electrical impedance of said liquid crystal material exposed to such field.
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61. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of said liquid crystal material, said liquid crystal material having positive dielectric anisotropy, wherein said medium is an encapsulating medium for said liquid crystal material, and wherein said liquid crystal material and said encapsulating medium have electrical properties such that upon application of an electric field across a capsule along an electrical path through said encapsulating medium and liquid crystal material there is a greater voltage drop across said liquid crystal material than across said encapsulating medium.
- 62. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of such liquid crystal material, said material having positive dielectric anisotropy, and mixed with the liquid crystal material a pleochroic dye that is soluble in the liquid crystal material.
- 64. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of such liquid crystal material, said material having positive dielectric anisotropy, said liquid crystal material having an ordinary index of refraction substantially the same as the index of refraction of said medium.
- 66. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of such liquid crystal material, said material having positive dielectric anisotropy, said liquid crystal material comprising nematic liquid crystal material, and said medium comprising means for aligning the liquid crystal material to achieve a substantially maximum absorption of light energy under a no field condition.
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68. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of said liquid crystal material, said material comprising nematic liquid crystal material having positive dielectric anisotropy, said medium having a dielectric constant that is no less than the lower dielectric constant value of said material.
- 70. The combination of nematic liquid crystal material contained in a generally spherical capsule of encapsulating medium, said encapsulating medium having a wall, and wherein the ordinary index of refraction of said liquid crystal material is approximately the same as the index of refraction of the encapsulating medium.
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77. Liquid crystal material and a medium for containing discrete quantities of such liquid crystal material, said material comprising an operationally nematic material having positive dielectric anisotropy, and said medium comprising means for tending physically to align said liquid crystal material with respect to said medium, said medium comprising encapsulating means for substantially encapsulating said material in substantially spherical capsules, and said means for tending physically to align comprising wall means of said capsules for tending to align said liquid crystal material generally in parallel with said wall means in the absence of an electric field.
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78. An operationally nematic liquid crystal material and a containment means for containing discrete quantities of such liquid crystal material causing said material to fold in on itself creating storage of elastic energy in said material.
- 79. A display device comprising a substrate and supported thereby encapsulated liquid crystal which is operationally nematic and has a positive dielectric anisotropy.
- 81. A liquid crystal apparatus comprising an operationally nematic liquid crystal material contained in discrete quantities by a matrix formed of an emulsion of such liquid crystal material and a further medium.
- 84. Liquid crystal apparatus, comprising liquid crystal material, and containment means for inducing a distorted alignment of said liquid crystal material which in response to such alignment absorbs light and which in response to a prescribed input reduces the amount of such absorption.
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104. A liquid crystal device comprising liquid crystal material and containment means, said containment means forming a plurality of capsules each having a curved interior wall surface, said capsules containing said liquid crystal material;
- which liquid crystal material in the absence of an applied electric field at least one of scatters or absorbs incident light independently of the polarization of said light, and which device in the presence of an applied electric field displays decreased scattering or absorption at least in the direction of the applied electric field.
- View Dependent Claims (105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110)
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111. Liquid crystal apparatus, comprising nematic liquid crystal material having positive dielectric anisotropy, and a plurality of containment means with curved surfaces for inducing a distorted alignment of said liquid crystal material which in response to such distortion at least one of scatters and absorbs light when pleochroic dye is present in the liquid crystal material and which in response to a prescribed input reduces the amount of such scattering or absorption.
Specification