Forming electromagnetic communication circuit components using densified metal powder

• US 6,816,125 B2
• Filed: 03/01/2003
• Issued: 11/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company (3M Company)
• Original Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company (3M Company)
• Inventors: Koskenmaki, David C., Kuhns, David W.
• Primary Examiner(s): LAM, CATHY FONG FONG
• Application Number:
  US10/377,960
• Publication Number:
  US 20040174257A1
• Time in Patent Office: 619 Days
• Field of Search: 340/508, 340/509, 343/728, 343/729, 343/880, 343/895, 428/209
• US Class Current: 343/880
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/02 characterised by the selection of materials, e.g. to avoid wear during transport through the machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/027 the material being suitable for use as a textile, e.g. woven-based RFID-like labels designed for attachment to laundry items markings attached to laundry items in general D06F93/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/067 Record carriers with conductive marks, printed circuits or semiconductor circuit elements, e.g. credit or identity cards also with resonating or responding marks without active components
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0672 with resonating marks
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0739 the incapacitated circuit being part of an antenna
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07749 the record carrier being capable of non-contact communication, e.g. constructional details of the antenna of a non-contact smart card
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07758 arrangements for adhering the record carrier to further objects or living beings, functioning as an identification tag
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07779 the inductive antenna being a coil
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07783 the coil being planar
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2224/83 using a layer connector
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/102 by bonding of conductive powder, i.e. metallic powder H05K3/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 156/10 Methods of surface bonding and/or assembly therefor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24917 including metal layer

Abstract

Manufacturing techniques are described for forming electrical components. For example, a layer of a metal powder composition is deposited onto at least a portion of a substrate. Pressure is applied to the metal powder composition by hydraulic press that has one or more projections in order to capture a pattern on the substrate. The metal powder composition compressed by the projections of the hydraulic press adhere to the substrate to form the captured pattern. The metal powder composition in regions not compressed by the projections of hydraulic press do not adhere to the substrate and may be removed. The metal powder composition may be compressed to form electrical components, such as antennae, capacitor plates, conduction pads and the like, for use in an electronic surveillance system (EAS), a radio frequency identification (RFID) system, or the like.

Claims

1. An article comprising a conductive pattern on a substrate that forms an electrical component of an electromagnetic communication circuit, wherein the conductive pattern comprises a densified metal powder composition compressed into at least a portion of the substrate, and wherein the substrate is selected from a group consisting of paper and materials that are at least about 10% compressible.

2. The article of claim 1, wherein the article comprises a resonant label.

3. The article of claim 1, wherein the article comprises a radio frequency identification tag.

4. The article of claim 1, wherein the article comprises a radio frequency identification reader.

5. The article of claim 1, wherein the electrical component includes at least one of a capacitor, a resistor, an inductive coil, a loop antenna, a dipole antenna, a connector, a connector pad, a capacitor pad, a via, and a fuse.

6. The article of claim 1, wherein the electrical component is all or part of an antenna.

7. The article of claim 6, wherein the conductive pattern forms the antenna to include a plurality of loops.

8. The article of claim 7, wherein the conductive pattern forms the plurality of loops of the antenna as a continuous trace.

9. The article of claim 7, wherein the conductive pattern forms at least one conduction pad electrically coupled to at least one loop of the antenna.

10. The article of claim 7, wherein the conductive pattern forms a bridge that electrically couples ends of the antenna loops to close a circuit.

11. The article of claim 7, wherein the conductive pattern forms a capacitor plate coupled to at least one of the loops of the antenna.

12. The article of claim 1, wherein the conductive pattern forms an integrated circuit connection site.

13. The article of claim 1, wherein the densified metal powder composition is formed by depositing the metal powder composition on the substrate and densifying the metal powder composition to obtain the conductive pattern.

14. The article of claim 1, wherein the metal powder composition includes at least one of copper, tin, lead, silver, gold, platinum, graphite, aluminum, nickel, iron, and zinc.

15. The article of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises paper.

16. The article of claim 1, wherein the conductive pattern comprises one of a plurality of conductive patterns formed on more than one plane of the article.

17. The article of claim 1, wherein the conductive pattern consists essentially of the densified metal powder composition.

18. The article of claim 1, wherein the article comprises one of a radio frequency identification label, a ticket containing an integrated circuit, and a card containing an integrated circuit.

19. The article of claim 1, further comprising at least one of integrated circuits, metal foils, conductive inks, conductive adhesives, magnetic storage media, magnetic security media, solder, wire, saturants, films, laminating adhesives, mechanical fasteners, and discrete electrical components.

20. The article of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the conductive pattern is compressed into the substrate.

21. The article of claim 1, wherein the conductive pattern contains agents that comprise no more than 5% of the conductive pattern by weight.

22. The article of claim 1, wherein the conductive pattern contains agents that comprise no more than 3% of the conductive pattern by weight.

23. The article of claim 1, wherein the conductive pattern contains agents that comprise no more than 1% of the conductive pattern by weight.

24. An article comprising:

at least one loop that forms an antenna; and

at least one capacitor plate electrically coupled to the loop of the antenna,

wherein at least one of the antenna or the capacitor plate is defined by a conductive pattern of densified metal powder composition on a substrate, and at least a portion of the conductive pattern is compressed into the substrate, and wherein the substrate is selected from a group consisting of paper and materials that are at least about 10% compressible.

25. The article of claim 24, further comprising connection pads that are in electrical communication with opposite ends of the loop, wherein at least one of the connect pads is defined by the conductive pattern.

26. The article of claim 24, further comprising a bridge that conductively bonds to the connection pads to close the circuit between the ends of the loop.

27. The article of claim 24, wherein the metal powder composition includes at least one of copper, tin, lead, silver, gold, platinum, graphite, aluminum, nickel, iron, and zinc.

28. An article comprising a conductive pattern on a substrate, wherein the conductive pattern forms all or part of one or more electrical components, wherein the conductive pattern consists essentially of a densified metal powder composition, and wherein the substrate is selected from the group consisting of paper and materials that are at least about 10% compressible.

29. The article of claim 28, wherein the article is one of an antenna, a resonant coil, a resonant label, a ticket, a card, a fuse and a resistor.

30. The article of claim 28, wherein the article comprises at least one of a loop antenna, a dipole antenna, a connector pad, a bridge, a fuse and a resistor.

31. The article of claim 30, wherein the loop antenna includes a plurality of loops.

32. The article of claim 30, where the conductive pattern forms a bridge that electrically connects to each end of the antenna loop.

33. The article of claim 30, further comprising at least one capacitor plate electrically connected to the loop antenna.

34. The article of claim 28 wherein more than one plane of the article comprises a conductive pattern.

35. The article of claim 28 further comprising at least one of a metal foil, a conductive ink, a conductive adhesive, magnetic storage media, magnetic security media, solder, wire, saturants, films, laminating adhesives, and mechanical fasteners.

36. An article comprising a conductive pattern on a substrate, wherein the conductive pattern forms all or part of one or more electrical components, wherein the conductive pattern consists essentially of a densified metal powder composition, wherein the substrate is selected from the group consisting of paper and materials that are at least about 10% compressible, and wherein the article further comprises at least one component that is not formed by a conductive pattern consisting essentially of a densified metal powder.

37. The article according to claim 36 which is a label providing direct-contact connection to at least one of an integrated circuit, a battery, a display and a sensor.

38. The article of claim 36 which comprises at least one of a connector pad, a resistor and a fuse.

39. The article of claim 36 wherein more than one plane of the article comprises a conductive pattern.

40. The article of claim 36 further comprising at least one of an integrated circuit, a metal foil, a conductive ink, a conductive adhesive, magnetic storage media, magnetic security media, solder, wire, saturants, films, laminating adhesives, mechanical fasteners and discrete electrical components.