Transparent electroconductive film, method for manufacture thereof, and touch panel

• US 7,534,500 B2
• Filed: 10/07/2002
• Issued: 05/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/05/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Bridgestone Corporation
• Original Assignee: Bridgestone Corporation
• Inventors: Nishida, Mitsuhiro, Iwabuchi, Yoshinori, Oono, Shingo, Kusano, Yukihiro, Yoshikawa, Masato, Kobayashi, Taichi, Kotsubo, Hidefumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Chen; Vivian
• Application Number:
  US10/491,568
• Publication Number:
  US 20040265602A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,416 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 428/457
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 45/14311 using means for bonding the coating to the articles B29C45/14795 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 45/14811 Multilayered articles B29C45/14827 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2715/006 Glues or adhesives, e.g. hot melts or thermofusible adhesives
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2995/0005 Conductive
• CPC Class Codes: B29K 2995/0026 Transparent
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2264/102 Oxide or hydroxide
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2307/202 Conductive
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2310/022 Electrical resistance
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2367/00 Polyesters, e.g. PET, i.e. polyethylene terephthalate
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 2457/208 Touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 27/08 of synthetic resin
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 27/36 comprising polyesters
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04103 Manufacturing, i.e. details related to manufacturing processes specially suited for touch sensitive devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/045 using resistive elements, e.g. a single continuous surface or two parallel surfaces put in contact
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/2878 including addition polymer from unsaturated monomer
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/2891 including addition polymer from alpha-beta unsaturated carboxylic acid [e.g., acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, etc.] Or derivative thereof
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31511 Of epoxy ether
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31529 Next to metal
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31605 Next to free metal
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31609 Particulate metal or metal compound-containing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31663 : As siloxane, silicone or silane
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31678 : Of metal
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31681 : Next to polyester, polyamide or polyimide [e.g., alkyd, glue, or nylon, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31692 : Next to addition polymer from unsaturated monomers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31699 : Ester, halide or nitrile of addition polymer
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31721 : Of polyimide
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31786 : Of polyester [e.g., alkyd, etc.]

Abstract

A transparent conductive film comprising a polymer film and a transparent conductive layer provided thereon, especially a transparent conductive film improved in durability and mechanical and electrical properties, a process for the preparation thereof, and a touch panel provided with the transparent conductive film, as well as transparent conductive plate and the process for the preparation thereof. The transparent conductive film comprising a polymer film, an undercoat layer and a transparent conductive layer which are superposed in this order, and the undercoat layer contains a compound having at least one selected from an amino group and a phosphoric acid group.

Claims

1. A transparent conductive film, which comprises a polymer film having a transparent conductive layer thereon through an undercoat layer and another polymer film having a hardcoat layer thereon, the two polymer films being bonded to each other through an adhesive layer comprising polyolefin resin such that a surface having no transparent conductive layer of the polymer film and a surface having no hardcoat layer of another polymer film face each other,

wherein the undercoat layer is formed from a photo-curable resin containing a compound having at least one selected from an amino group and a phosphoric acid group,

wherein the transparent conductive layer comprises at least one compound selected from indium oxide, tin oxide, zinc oxide, indium oxide-tin oxide (ITO), antimony oxide-tin oxide (ATO) and zinc oxide-aluminum oxide (ZAO), and

wherein a protective layer comprising a polymeric compound is provided on the transparent conductive layer.

2. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the polyolefin resin of the adhesive layer comprises copolymer of ethylene and vinyl acetate and/or (meth)acrylate.

3. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the polyolefin resin of the adhesive layer comprises a film formed by curing copolymer of ethylene and vinyl acetate and/or (meth)acrylate.

4. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the transparent conductive layer comprises a first transparent conductive layer comprising a first metal oxide and a second transparent conductive layer comprising a second metal oxide, and the second transparent conductive layer is formed under the condition different from the condition for forming the first transparent conductive layer.

5. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 4, wherein the first and second transparent conductive layers comprise indium oxide-tin oxide (ITO), zinc oxide-aluminum oxide (ZAO) or antimony oxide-tin oxide (ATO).

6. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 4 or 5, wherein the first and second transparent conductive layers are formed by a vapor deposition process selected from a sputtering process and a reactive sputtering process.

7. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 6, wherein target material used in the vapor deposition process is a ceramic target formed by sintering mixed metal oxides or an alloy target made of metal oxide.

8. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 4 wherein the second transparent conductive layer comprising the second metal oxide is different from the first transparent conductive layer comprising the first metal oxide in at least one selected from oxygen content, nitrogen content, crystalline state and surface shape.

9. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 8, wherein the condition for forming the second transparent conductive layer comprising the second metal oxide by a sputtering process is different in pressure and deposition rate in the sputtering from that for forming the first transparent conductive layer comprising the first metal oxide.

10. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the photo-curable resin comprises (meth)acrylate monomer, (meth)acrylate oligomer, and a photopolymerization initiator.

11. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the photo-curable resin comprises (meth)acrylate monomer, urethane (meth)acrylate oligomer, and a photopolymerization initiator.

12. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein a hardcoat layer is provided on a surface having no transparent conductive layer of the polymer film.

13. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the compound having amino group is derived from a compound selected from dialkylaminoalkyl methacrylate and a silane-coupling agent having an amino group, and the compound having phosphoric acid group is derived from a compound selected from 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphate and diphenyl-2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphate.

14. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the polymer film comprises polyethylene terephthalate.

15. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the polymeric compound is a resin composition containing at least one resin selected from acrylic resin, polyester resin, epoxy resin, urethane resin, phenol resin, maleic acid resin, melamine resin, urea resin, polyimide resin and silicon-containing resin.

16. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the protective layer comprises a film formed by curing amino-containing alkoxy-silane.

17. A transparent conductive film as defined in claim 1, wherein the protective layer comprises a film formed by curing UV-curable resin.

18. A touch panel comprising an upper electrode having a hard coat layer, a first polymer film, a first undercoat layer and a first transparent conductive layer superposed in this order, and a lower electrode having a plastic or glass plate, a second polymer film, a second undercoat layer and a second transparent conductive layer superposed in this order, the upper electrode and the lower electrode being bonded to each other through spacers such that both of the transparent conductive layers face each other,

wherein for at least one of the upper electrode and the lower electrode:

the undercoat layer is formed from a photo-curable resin containing a compound having at least one selected from an amino group and a phosphoric acid group,

the transparent conductive layer comprises at least one compound selected from indium

oxide, tin oxide, zinc oxide, indium oxide-tin oxide (ITO), antimony oxide-tin oxide (ATO) and zinc oxide-aluminum oxide (ZAO), and

a protective layer comprising a polymeric compound is provided on the transparent conductive layer.

19. A touch panel as defined in claim 18, wherein the lower electrode has a transparent plate, an adhesive layer, a polymer film and a second transparent conductive layer superposed in this order, and the adhesive layer comprises polyolefin resin.

20. A touch panel as defined in claim 18 or 19, wherein the first transparent conductive layer of the upper electrode is formed from material different from that of the second transparent conductive layer of the lower electrode.

21. A touch panel as defined in claim 20, wherein the first transparent conductive layer and the second transparent conductive layer are a film of metal oxide, a film of combination of two or more metal oxides or a composite film consisting essentially of metal oxide, or a film comprising gold, copper, nickel, aluminum or palladium.

22. A touch panel as defined in claim 18, wherein the compound having amino group is derived from a compound selected from dialkylaminoalkyl methacrylate and a silane-coupling agent having an amino group, and the compound having phosphoric acid group is derived from a compound selected from 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphate and diphenyl-2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphate.

23. A touch panel as defined in claim 18, wherein the polymer film comprises polyethylene terephthalate.

24. A touch panel as defined in claim 18, wherein the polymeric compound is a resin composition containing at least one resin selected from acrylic resin, polyester resin, epoxy resin, urethane resin, phenol resin, maleic acid resin, melamine resin, urea resin, polyimide resin and silicon-containing resin.

25. A touch panel as defined in claim 18, wherein the protective layer comprises a film formed by curing amino-containing alkoxy-silane.

26. A touch panel as defined in claim 18, wherein the protective layer comprises a film formed by curing UV-curable resin.