Method for constructing el system in monolithic structure

• US 5,980,976 A
• Filed: 10/15/1998
• Issued: 11/09/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: 2461729 Ontario Incorporated
• Original Assignee: El Specialists Incorporated
• Inventors: Burrows, Kenneth
• Primary Examiner(s): BELL, JANYCE A
• Application Number:
  US09/173,104
• Time in Patent Office: 390 Days
• Field of Search: 427/66, 427/64, 427/162, 427/407.2, 427/407.1, 427/419.3, 427/419.5
• US Class Current: 427/66
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/04 Sealing arrangements , e.g. against humidity
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/10 Apparatus or processes specially adapted to the manufacture of electroluminescent light sources
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/12 Light sources with substantially two-dimensional radiating surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/145 Arrangements of the electroluminescent material
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/20 characterised by the chemical or physical composition or the arrangement of the material in which the electroluminescent material is embedded
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/22 characterised by the chemical or physical composition or the arrangement of auxiliary dielectric or reflective layers
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/26 characterised by the composition or arrangement of the conductive material used as an electrode
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/28 of translucent electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 428/917 Electroluminescent

Abstract

An electroluminescent system in which neighboring layers are suspended, prior to application, in advantageously a unitary carrier compound, so that after curing, the layers form active strata within a monolithic mass. The carrier compound in a preferred embodiment is a vinyl resin in gel form. The invention enables several manufacturing advantages, including the ability to silk-screen print the entire electrolumninescent system on a variety of substrates, including cloth, metals, plastics, wood or even stone.

Claims

1. A method for constructing an electroluminescent system, the method comprising:

(a) creating a first electrode suspension and a second electrode suspension, the first and second electrode suspensions each including electrically conductive materials suspended therein, at least one of the first and second electrode suspensions disposed to be translucent upon subsequent curing thereof;

(b) creating a dielectric suspension and an electroluminescent suspension; and

(c) creating a laminate, the laminate including a cured layer of the dielectric suspension and a cured layer of the electroluminescent suspension separating a cured layer of the first electrode suspension and a cured layer of second electrode suspension, at least one pair of neighboring layers in the laminate comprising suspensions in a unitary vinyl resin vehicle in gel form.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

(d) building the laminate layer upon cured layer up from a substrate surface.

3. The method of claim 1, in which one of the first and second electrode suspensions is disposed to be non-translucent upon curing thereof.

4. The method of claim 3, in which said non-translucent electrode suspension contains a material selected from the group consisting of graphite, gold, silver, zinc, aluminum and copper.

5. The method of claim 1, in which the dielectric suspension contains a material selected from the group consisting of barium-titanate, titanium dioxide, a mylar derivative, a teflon derivative and a polystyrene derivative.

6. The method of claim 1, in which the electroluminescent suspension contains an electroluminescent material and an admixture, the admixture disposed to enhance the luminescence of the electroluminescent material when said electroluminescent material is energized.

7. The method of claim 1, in which the electroluminescent suspension also contains an electroluminescent material and an admixture, the admixture disposed to diffuse the luminescence of the electroluminescent material when said electroluminescent material is energized.

8. The method of claim 1, in which the electroluminescent suspension also contains an admixture, the admixture containing barium titanate.

9. The method of claim 1, in which selected layers in step (c) are deposited via a predetermined process, the process selected from the group consisting of screen printing and spraying.

10. The method of claim 1, in which translucent ones of the first and second electrode suspensions contain a metalmetal oxide dopant.

11. The method of claim 10, in which the metal/metal oxide dopant contains a material selected from the group consisting of indium/tin oxide, tantalum/tin oxide and aluminum/tin oxide.

12. The method of claim 1, in which said at least one pair of neighboring layers comprises polymer thick film layers.

13. A method for constructing an electroluminescent system comprising:

(a) selecting a vehicle, the vehicle comprising vinyl resin in gel form;

(b) creating a translucent electrode system comprising an indium/tin oxide dopant suspended in the vehicle;

(c) creating a dielectric suspension comprising a dielectric dopant suspended in the vehicle;

(d) creating an electroluminescent suspension comprising a phosphor dopant suspended in the vehicle;

(e) creating a back electrode suspension comprising an electrically conductive dopant suspended in the vehicle; and

(f) depositing successive polymer thick film layers of said suspensions to form a substantially monolithic laminate disposed to electroluminescence;

wherein the laminate, upon subsequent curing thereof, comprises two electrically conductive strata separated by a dielectric stratum and an electroluminescent stratum, at least one of the two electrically conductive strata being translucent.

14. A method of constructing an electroluminescent lamp comprising a laminate of cured layers, the method comprising:

(a) depositing a first layer and allowing the first layer to cure, the first layer comprising a first electrically conductive material suspended in a vehicle, the vehicle comprising vinyl resin in gel form;

(b) depositing a second layer above the first layer and allowing the second layer to cure;

(c) depositing a third layer above the second layer and allowing the third layer to cure;

(d) depositing a fourth layer above the third layer and allowing the fourth layer to cure, the fourth layer comprising a second electrically conductive material suspended in the vehicle;

wherein at least one of the first and second electrically conductive materials includes a metal/metal oxide; and

wherein one of the second and third layers comprises a dielectric material suspended in the vehicle; and

wherein the second layer comprises an electroluminescent material suspended in the vehicle if the third layer comprises a dielectric material; and

wherein the third layer comprises an electroluminescent material suspended in the vehicle if the second layer comprises a dielectric material.

15. The method of claim 14, in which deposition in selected ones of steps (a), (b), (c) and (d) are performed using a screen printing process.

16. The method of claim 14, in which the metal/metal oxide is selected from the group consisting of indium/tin oxide, and tantalum/tin oxide and aluminum/tin oxide.

17. The method of claim 14, in which the dielectric material contains barium titanate.

18. The method of claim 14, in which the electroluminescent material is suspended in the vinyl resin in gel form along with an admixture containing barium titanate.