Touch panel and display device using the same

• US 8,125,878 B2
• Filed: 09/29/2008
• Issued: 02/28/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., Tsinghua University
• Original Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., Tsinghua University
• Inventors: Jiang, Kai-Li, Liu, Liang, Fan, Shou-Shan
• Primary Examiner(s): Hindi, Nabil
• Application Number:
  US12/286,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20090167710A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,247 Days
• Field of Search: 345/173, 345/174, 313/495, 428/1.4
• US Class Current: 369/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/044 by capacitive means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes

Abstract

A touch panel includes a substrate, a transparent conductive layer, and a number of electrodes. The substrate includes a first surface. The transparent conductive layer is formed on the first surface. The transparent conductive layer includes a number of carbon nanotube wires. Opposite ends of each carbon nanotube wire are electrically connected to electrodes. Furthermore, a display device using the touch panel is also provided.

Claims

1. A touch panel comprising:

a substrate comprising a first surface;

a transparent conductive layer located on the first surface, the transparent conductive layer comprising a plurality of carbon nanotube wires; and

a plurality of electrodes separately disposed from each other, two opposite ends of each of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires being directly and electrically connected to two of the plurality of electrodes.

2. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of electrodes is connected to only one carbon nanotube wire of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires.

3. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein a diameter of each of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires is approximately from 0.5 nanometers to 100 micrometers.

4. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of carbon nanotube wires are separated from each other, and distances between adjacent two of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires are approximately from 5 nanometers to 1 millimeter.

5. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires comprises a plurality of successive carbon nanotube segments joined end to end by van der Waals attractive force therebetween, and each of the carbon nanotube segments comprises a plurality of carbon nanotubes parallel to each other.

6. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of electrodes comprises at least four sets of electrodes, each of the four sets of electrodes comprises a plurality of electrodes separately disposed from each other, two of the four sets of electrodes being at two opposite sides of the first surface of the substrate, the other two of the four sets of electrodes being at another two opposite sides of the first surface of the substrate.

7. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plurality of electrodes are metal electrodes adhered to a surface of the transparent conductive layer by a silver-based slurry.

8. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a transparent protective layer disposed on the plurality of electrodes and a surface of the transparent conductive layer.

9. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least one optical compensation membrane disposed between adjacent two of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires.

10. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein a material of the substrate is selected from the group consisting of glass, quartz, diamond, and plastic.

11. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a shielding layer, wherein the substrate further comprises a second surface, and the shielding layer is disposed on the second surface of the substrate.

12. The touch panel as claimed in claim 11, wherein a material of the shielding layer is selected from the group consisting of indium tin oxides, antimony tin oxides, and carbon nanotube films.

13. The touch panel as claimed in claim 1, wherein the touch panel is planar or curved.

14. A display device comprising:

a touch panel comprising;

a substrate comprising a surface;

a transparent conductive layer formed on the surface of the substrate, the transparent conductive layer comprising a plurality of carbon nanotube wires; and

a plurality of electrode pairs spaced from each other, each of the plurality of electrode pairs comprising two electrodes spaced from and opposite to each other, and each of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires electrically connected to the two electrodes; and

a display element adjacent to the touch panel.

15. The display device as claimed in claim 14, further comprising a touch panel controller, a central processing unit, and a display element controller electrically connected to each other, with the touch panel controller connected to the touch panel and the display element controller connected to the display element.

16. The display device as claimed in claim 14, further comprising a passivation layer disposed on a surface of the touch panel, with the passivation layer and the transparent conductive layer being at opposite sides of the substrate, the passivation layer comprising one of silicon nitride and silicon dioxide.

17. The display device as claimed in claim 14, wherein each of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires directly and electrically connects to the two electrodes at two opposite ends of the each of the plurality of carbon nanotube wires.

18. The display device as claimed in claim 17, wherein the plurality of carbon nanotube wires are spaced from each other.

19. A touch panel comprising:

a substrate comprising a surface;

a transparent conductive layer located on the surface, the transparent conductive layer comprising

a plurality of first carbon nanotube wires substantially parallel to each other; and

a plurality of first electrodes separately disposed on the surface and arranged in one line at one side of the transparent conductive layer, ends of the plurality of first carbon nanotube wires are directly and electrically connected to the plurality of first electrodes.

20. The touch panel as claimed in claim 19, further comprising a plurality of second electrodes separately disposed on the surface and arranged in another line at another side of the transparent conductive layer, the transparent conductive layer further comprising a plurality of second carbon nanotube wires substantially parallel to each other, the plurality of second carbon nanotube wires cross with the plurality of first carbon nanotube wires, ends of the plurality of second carbon nanotube wires are directly and electrically connected to the plurality of second electrodes.