Touch panel

• US 9,383,875 B2
• Filed: 06/09/2014
• Issued: 07/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TPK Touch Solutions (Xiamen) Inc. (TPK Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: TPK Touch Solutions (Xiamen) Inc. (TPK Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Lin, Yalu, Yu, Jing, Su, Yuncong, Huang, Li
• Primary Examiner(s): MERCEDES, DISMERY E
• Application Number:
  US14/299,845
• Publication Number:
  US 20150355747A1
• Time in Patent Office: 757 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/16 Constructional details or arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04103 Manufacturing, i.e. details related to manufacturing processes specially suited for touch sensitive devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04111 Cross over in capacitive digitiser, i.e. details of structures for connecting electrodes of the sensing pattern where the connections cross each other, e.g. bridge structures comprising an insulating layer, or vias through substrate
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04164 Connections between sensors and controllers, e.g. routing lines between electrodes and connection pads
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 24/06 of a plurality of bonding areas
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/962 Capacitive touch switches

Abstract

A touch panel is provided. The touch panel includes at least a bonding pad, a touch-sensing structure and at least a protection component. The bonding pad has a first long side, a first short side, a second long side, and a second short side. The first long side is adjacent to the first short side and the second short side, and the first long side is opposite to the second long side. A touch-sensing structure is electrically connected to the first short side of the bonding pad. The protection component is disposed at the first long side and the second long side.

Claims

1. A touch panel, comprising:

a plurality of bonding pads, wherein each of the bonding pads includes a first long side, a second long side, a first short side, and a second short side, wherein the first long side is adjacent to the first short side and the second short side, and opposite to the second long side;

a touch-sensing structure electrically connected to the first short side of each of the bonding pads; and

a protection structure disposed corresponding to each of the bonding pads, wherein the protection structure includes a pair of protection components covering a side surface of the first long side and a side surface of the second long side.

2. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the protection structure further includes an auxiliary protection component covering a side surface of the second short side of each of the bonding pads.

3. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein each of the bonding pads further comprises a top surface connected to the first long side, the second long side, the first short side, and the second short side, and each of the pair of protection components further extends to the top surface of each of the bonding pads and at least one opening is defined between the pair of protection components to expose a part of the top surface of each of the bonding pads.

4. The touch panel of claim 3, wherein the bonding pads are disposed apart from each other, a gap is formed between the adjacent bonding pads, and the protection structure fills into the gap between the adjacent bonding pads.

5. The touch panel of claim 3, wherein the protection structure further comprises a conductive component filling in the opening to cover the exposed part of the top surface of each of the bonding pads, and wherein the conductive component is made of a metal material and the pair of protection components are made of an oxidation of the metal material of the conductive component.

6. The touch panel of claim 5, wherein the conductive component is made of copper, and the pair of protection components is made of copper oxide.

7. The touch panel of claim 5, wherein the conductive component and the pair of protection components are an integrated structure covering the side surface of the first long side, the side surface of the second long side and the top surface of each bonding pad.

8. The touch panel of claim 3, wherein the material of the conductive component comprises a metal copper or ITO, and the material of the pair of protection components comprises polyimide.

9. The touch panel of claim 3, further comprising a conductive glue bonded onto the bonding pads, wherein the conductive glue includes a plurality of conductive particles, the conductive particles have a first thickness before bonding onto the bonding pads, the opening has a height, and wherein the height of the opening is 0.1-0.7 times the first thickness.

10. The touch panel of claim 9, wherein the height of the opening is 0.5 times the first thickness.

11. The touch panel of claim 10, further comprising a flexible printed circuit board, wherein the conductive glue is bonded between the flexible printed circuit board and the bonding pads, the conductive particles have a second thickness after the flexible printed circuit board is bonded to the bonding pads, and the second thickness is equal to the height of the opening.

12. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein the material of the protection structure comprises an insulating material.

13. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein each of the bonding pads further comprises a top surface, and the protection structure comprises a plurality of strips and the strips of the protection structure are integrated to form an insulating net-shaped structure covering the top surface, the side surface of the first long side and the side surface of the second long side of each bonding pad, and the insulating net-shaped structure has meshes so that a conductive glue filled into the meshes makes an electrical connection between the top surface of each of the bonding pads and a circuit board disposed on the protection structure.

14. The touch panel of claim 1, wherein each of the bonding pads further comprises a top surface, and the protection structure comprises a plurality of strips and the strips of the protection structure are integrated to form an insulating fence-shaped structure covering the top surface, the side surface of the first long side and the side surface of the second long side of each bonding pad, and the insulating fence-shaped structure has gaps so that a conductive glue filled into the gaps makes an electrical connection between the top surface of each of the bonding pads and a circuit board disposed on the protection structure.

15. The touch panel of claim 1, further comprising:

a cover lens, having a lower surface; and

a mask layer disposed under the lower surface of the cover lens, wherein the cover lens is defined by the mask layer to have a viewable area and a non-viewable area, the mask layer is located at the non-viewable area, the touch-sensing structure is disposed under the lower surface of the cover lens and located at the viewable area, the bonding pads are disposed on the mask layer and shielded by the mask layer.

16. The touch panel of claim 1, further comprising:

a cover lens, having a lower surface;

a mask layer disposed under the lower surface of the cover lens, wherein the cover lens is defined by the mask layer to have a viewable area and a non-viewable area, and the mask layer is located at the non-viewable area; and

a substrate disposed under the cover lens, wherein the touch-sensing structure is disposed on the substrate and located at the viewable area, the bonding pads are disposed on the substrate and shielded by the mask layer.