CN111845634A

CN111845634A - Cleaner having multi-layer structure and method of operating the same

Info

Publication number: CN111845634A
Application number: CN201910364921.9A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 郑相国; 李康镕; 李大荣
Original assignee: Industry Academy Cooperation Foundation of Myongji University
Current assignee: Industry Academy Cooperation Foundation of Myongji University
Priority date: 2019-04-30
Filing date: 2019-04-30
Publication date: 2020-10-30

Abstract

The invention discloses a cleaner with improved droplet removal efficiency. The cleaner includes a substrate and a plurality of layers sequentially arranged on the substrate. Here, each of the layers has an electrode and an insulating film covering the electrode, and droplets formed on the surface of the cleaner can be removed when a voltage is applied to the electrode.

Description

Cleaner having multi-layer structure and method of operating the same

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a cleaner having a multi-layered structure and a method of operating the same.

Background

With the recent proliferation of automobile parts electrical and smart cars (smart cars), there have been attempts to display various traveling information on HUD (Head-up-display) technology of a vehicle windshield (windshield) and replace the vehicle windshield with a transparent display.

Accordingly, development of a cleaning technique capable of effectively removing foreign substances such as rainwater and dust generated in a windshield of a vehicle, a transparent display or the like instead of the windshield, has been receiving increasing attention.

Most vehicles currently use wipers (wiper) to remove the polluting elements. However, since the wiper blade repeatedly moves on the windshield during driving, the field of view of the driver is always obstructed, and the removable area is limited to the arc (arc) form. Further, when the wiper blade is deteriorated, friction noise occurs and the removal capability is lowered, so that there is a problem that the wiper blade needs to be replaced periodically.

Also, devices such as cameras are directly exposed to the external environment. Therefore, water adheres to the camera surface when it is wet during rain or the like. In this case, since there is no special function of removing the water, it is inevitable that the camera performance is significantly degraded.

Further, in order to keep the field of view of the small-sized camera clean, it is necessary to immediately remove liquid droplets generated on the surface of the lens, and for this reason, not only is unnecessary power consumption generated but also the life of the cleaning device is reduced in the case of continuously driving the cleaning device.

Therefore, there is a need for a cleaner capable of removing liquid droplets with a small amount of electric power, particularly a cleaner having a strong durability, a liquid droplet sensing technique in which the cleaner is driven only in a case where liquid droplets occurring on the surface of the lens are sensed.

[ Prior art documents ]

[ patent document ]

(patent document 1) KR10-1653807B

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique for removing droplets (droplets), dust, or frost formed on glass of a vehicle, a camera, or the like, by applying an electrowetting technique.

The present invention also provides a camera droplet sensing apparatus and method for sensing droplets (droplets) generated on the surface of a camera cover glass using the impedance of the camera cover glass or an image captured by a camera.

Further, the present invention is directed to a cleaner and a method for removing conductive droplets formed on a surface using an electro-wetting (on-dielectrophoresis) principle and removing non-conductive droplets formed on a surface using a dielectrophoresis (dielectrophoresis) principle.

In particular, the present invention aims to provide a cleaner including a hydrophobic film having strong durability.

Further, the present invention is directed to a sticker type cleaner that is attached to other devices having no cleaning function as a sticker type cleaner to remove liquid droplets, and a method of operating the same.

Further, the present invention is directed to a cleaner having a multi-layered structure, particularly, a lower-layered electrode arranged between upper-layered electrodes to improve droplet removal efficiency, and a method of operating the same.

In particular, the present invention is directed to a cleaner in which electrodes are widely arranged at a lower portion of a three-phase wire to improve droplet removing efficiency and a method of operating the same.

Technical scheme

In order to achieve the above object, a cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a substrate and a plurality of layers sequentially arranged on the substrate. Wherein each layer has an electrode and an insulating film covering the electrode, and the electrode can remove liquid droplets formed on the surface of the cleaner when a voltage is applied.

A cleaner of another embodiment of the present invention includes: a first layer having a first electrode and a first insulating film covering the first electrode; and a second layer having second electrodes arranged on the first insulating film and a second insulating film covering the second electrodes, the first electrodes being arranged with a first gap therebetween, and the second electrodes being arranged with a second gap therebetween. Wherein the first electrodes are arranged between specific second electrodes.

A cleaner of still another embodiment of the present invention includes a first layer having a first electrode and a first insulating film covering the first electrode; and a second layer having second electrodes arranged on the first insulating film and a second insulating film covering the second electrodes, the first electrodes being arranged with a first gap therebetween, and the second electrodes being arranged with a second gap therebetween. Wherein the first electrode or the second electrode is arranged at an interface where the surface of the cleaner meets the liquid droplet, that is, directly below a three-phase wiring.

Technical effects

According to an embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to provide a self-cleaning glass (smart self-cleaning glass) for a vehicle that can quickly and efficiently remove a contaminating element such as rainwater, dust, frost, etc. occurring to a windshield of the vehicle.

Also, the texture of the electrodes in the cleaner is the same as the moving direction of the liquid droplets, so that the removal speed of the liquid droplets can be increased and the voltage applied to the electrodes can be reduced.

Further, since the cleaner (structure) does not need to be periodically replaced, the risk of an accident can be significantly reduced.

Further, the field of view of the vehicle can be secured even in an environment such as severe weather, which contributes to safe driving by the driver, and the fuel efficiency of the vehicle can be improved by reducing the weight and air resistance of the vehicle.

According to the camera liquid drop sensing device and method provided by the embodiment of the invention, the liquid drop (drop) generated on the surface of the camera cover glass can be sensed by using the impedance of the camera cover glass or the image shot by the camera.

According to the cleaner and the method of the embodiment of the invention, the conductive liquid drops formed on the surface can be removed by utilizing the electrowetting principle and the dielectrophoresis principle, and the non-conductive liquid drops can also be removed.

In addition, by applying the electrowetting technology and the dielectrophoresis technology, the device has the advantages of high response speed and low energy consumption, and thus can be applied or used in various fields such as a vehicle-used or mobile small-sized camera, a vehicle windshield, and an image sensor of an internet of things device.

Further, the hydrophobic film used in the cleaner of the present invention contains a fluorine-containing substance and a silane-based substance, and therefore the hydrophobic film can have higher durability than conventional hydrophobic films.

In particular, the cleaner of the present invention has an adhesive layer so as to be attached to other devices, and thus can remove liquid droplets attached to other devices having no cleaning function.

Also, the cleaner of the present invention has a multi-layered structure in which the electrodes of the lower layer are arranged between the electrodes of the upper layer, and thus can improve the droplet removing efficiency.

Also, since the electrodes of the cleaner are widely arranged at the lower portion of the three-phase wiring, the droplet removing efficiency can be improved.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic view showing the constitution of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 and 3 are schematic views showing the configuration of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a cleaning process of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating a cleaning process of another embodiment of the present invention; .

FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing an actual cleaning process of a cleaner according to another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a view showing a practical use scenario of the cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a droplet removal process of a cleaner of one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 9 is a schematic view showing a schematic structure of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating an electrode pattern of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of droplets when droplets are removed according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram showing the change in contact angle of a droplet when the droplet is removed according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing the results of a droplet removal experiment;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view schematically showing electrodes of a cleaner of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a schematic view showing a droplet removing process of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram illustrating an electrode pattern of one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of droplets when droplets are removed according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram showing the change in drop contact angle when a drop is removed according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram showing the flow of droplets when droplets are removed according to another embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 20 and 21 are schematic views showing the results of the droplet removal experiment;

Fig. 22 is a schematic view schematically illustrating the configuration of a camera liquid droplet sensing device of an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 23 is a schematic view illustrating a change in impedance of the camera cover glass according to the presence or absence of a droplet;

fig. 24 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an image captured in a case where liquid droplets are generated in the camera cover glass;

FIG. 25 is a flow chart illustrating a camera drop sensing method of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 26 is a flow chart illustrating a camera drop sensing method of another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 27 is a schematic view showing a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 28 is a schematic view showing an electrode pattern of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 29 is a schematic view schematically illustrating the configuration of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 30 to 33 are schematic views for explaining a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 34 is a flow chart illustrating a cleaning method of an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 35 is a schematic view schematically showing the structure of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 36 is a schematic view schematically illustrating a process of manufacturing a hydrophobic film according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 37 is a cross-sectional view showing a sticker type cleaner of yet another embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 38 and 39 are schematic views showing a process of removing a droplet;

FIG. 40 is a sectional view showing a cleaner of still another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 41 is a sectional view showing the arrangement of electrodes of one embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 42 is a schematic diagram for explaining a three-phase wiring;

FIG. 43 is a schematic diagram showing a droplet removal process;

fig. 44 is a schematic view showing a dust removal process;

fig. 45 is a schematic view showing a minute droplet removing process.

Description of the reference numerals

100: the cleaner 110: substrate

120: electrode 130: insulating film

140: hydrophobic film 150: DC voltage applying part

160: AC voltage applying part

Detailed Description

As used in this specification, the singular forms "a", "an", and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In the present specification, the terms "constituting" or "including" and the like should not be construed as necessarily including a plurality of constituents or a plurality of steps described in the specification, but should be construed as not including a part of the constituents or a part of the steps or may include another constituents or steps. The terms "… section", "module", and the like described in the specification denote a unit that processes at least one function or operation, and may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software.

The present invention relates to a cleaner capable of autonomously removing liquid droplets (droplets), dust, frost, and the like of liquid such as rainwater and mist, and a liquid Droplet removing method thereof. The cleaner may be a stand-alone device or a device combined with other devices. The cleaner of the present invention is used for vehicles, cameras, but is not limited thereto, and thus should not be limited to vehicle glasses, etc.

According to one embodiment, the cleaner may be a device including an external glass, such as a camera of a vehicle, a digital camera, a camcorder, an image sensor of the internet of things, and the like. Of course, the cleaner is not limited to a camera, but includes all devices that require removal of liquid droplets.

According to other embodiments, the cleaning structure may correspond to a windshield of a vehicle.

Of course, the cleaning structure is not limited to a camera or a glass window of a vehicle, and may be variously modified on the premise that the cleaning structure can remove liquid droplets.

Such a cleaner is exposed to the external environment, and thus liquid droplets of rain water or the like may adhere to the surface of the cleaner.

Conventionally, there has been no method for removing rainwater or the like when rainwater or the like adheres to a glass surface of a camera or the like, and therefore performance of the camera is inevitably degraded. In particular, in the case of a vehicle in which a specific function of the vehicle is controlled based on an image of the camera, a drop in image quality due to liquid droplets may cause a vehicle accident.

In addition, since the wiper blade is conventionally removed when rainwater or the like adheres to the windshield of the vehicle, if the wiper blade is not replaced in time, the risk of an accident may increase.

Therefore, it is necessary to immediately remove the liquid droplets when the liquid droplets are attached to the surface, and the present invention discloses a cleaner capable of immediately removing the liquid droplets when the liquid droplets are attached to the surface.

Further, the present invention is a technique that can replace a wiper blade and can remove a liquid droplet immediately when the liquid droplet adheres to a surface without replacement. Disclosed is a cleaning structure which can remove liquid droplets immediately when the liquid droplets adhere to a surface, thereby reducing the risk of an accident.

According to one embodiment, the cleaner removes droplets, dust or frost using Electrowetting (Electrowetting) and dielectrophoresis techniques. In particular, the cleaner can remove droplets, dust or frost from a surface by applying a specific voltage to the electrodes. In particular, the cleaner can remove all the droplets and fine droplets, and easily remove the droplets regardless of the PH and viscosity of the droplets. Here, the method of applying the specific voltage includes an ac method of applying the specific voltage to all the electrodes at once and a dc method of sequentially applying the specific voltage to the electrodes.

From another perspective, the cleaner can vibrate a surface to remove liquid droplets. When the surface of the cleaner is vibrated, the adhesion between the liquid droplets and the surface is weakened, and the liquid droplets can be removed in the direction of gravity. For example, since the surface of a cleaner such as a vehicle camera is inclined in the direction of gravity, the liquid droplets move in the direction of gravity by gravity when the adhesion force between the liquid droplets and the surface is weakened, and the liquid droplets can be detached from the cleaner and removed.

From a vehicle control perspective, rain can adhere to the surface of the camera when it rains. In this case, when the driver inputs a rainwater removal command (droplet removal command), the control part (not shown) may apply a specific voltage to the electrode formed on the surface of the camera to remove the rainwater. The specific voltage may be supplied to the camera by a power source, such as a battery of a vehicle. The control unit may be one of Electronic Control Units (ECUs) of the vehicle.

Various embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, for convenience of explanation, the removal target is limited to the liquid droplet, but the removal target is not limited to the liquid droplet, and not only the liquid droplet (including the fine liquid droplet) but also dust, frost, and the like can be removed.

Fig. 1 is a schematic view showing the constitution of a cleaner of one embodiment of the present invention.

The cleaner 100 of one embodiment of the present invention may be adapted for use with a vehicle windshield or camera as shown in fig. 1.

According to the cleaner 100, a plurality of electrodes separated from each other are patterned on an ultra small chip (chip) made by MEMS engineering.

As an example of cleaning, the cleaner 100 may apply voltages to the electrodes under different dc voltage conditions (high, ground) to change the surface tension of the droplet (drop).

In this case, the droplet (droplet) moves in the direction of the electrode to which the ground (ground) voltage and the high (high) voltage are applied (finally, to the outside of the substrate (vehicle glass)) as shown in fig. 1.

As another example of cleaning, cleaner 100 may apply an alternating voltage to the electrodes, for example, a low frequency alternating voltage to vibrate the droplets to change the surface tension of the droplets. But the alternating voltage is not limited to a low frequency alternating voltage.

For example, since the vehicle glass has a predetermined inclination with respect to a plane, the liquid droplets (droplets) move downward (eventually outward of the vehicle glass) while vibrating.

Specifically, in the case where the cleaner 100 applies a low-frequency alternating voltage of several hundreds Hz or less, for example, 50Hz to the electrodes, the area of the liquid droplets in contact with the surface of the cleaner 100 continuously changes (shakes), and thus the liquid droplets vibrate, with the result that the adhesion force between the liquid droplets and the surface of the cleaner 100 continuously decreases so that the liquid droplets are removed. In particular, this vibration mode can remove not only droplets having a size of 20 μ L or more but also droplets having a size of less than 20 μ L, and can actually remove droplets having a size of a divisor fl (millimicroliter). The size of actual rain water or the like is less than 20. mu.L.

On the other hand, when a high-frequency (for example, 10kHz or more) voltage is applied to the electrodes, a phenomenon occurs in which the droplets spread significantly in the longitudinal direction, and as a result, the droplets hardly slip, and therefore, the droplets are not easily removed. Therefore, the droplet does not slide in the gravity direction without inclining the substrate at a large angle, and only the droplet of 20 μ L or more can slide even if it can be removed. That is, when a high frequency voltage is applied, the actual rainwater cannot be removed.

The structure of the cleaner 100 will be described below with reference to fig. 2 and 3.

Fig. 2 and 3 are schematic views showing the structure of a cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The cleaner 100 may include a Substrate (windside Glass; Substrate, such as a vehicle Glass or a camera Substrate) 110, an Electrode (Electrode)120, an insulating film (Dielectric Layer)130, a hydrophobic film (hydrobiclayer) 140, and a dc voltage applying part 150.

Substrate 110 is the lowest level of cleaner 100.

The electrode 120 is a transparent electrode, and may be continuously disposed on the upper surface of the substrate 110 to form a specific pattern.

Here, the electrode 120 may have a linear shape, a streamline shape, or a circular shape, and the form of the pattern formed by the plurality of electrodes 120 is not limited.

As shown in fig. 2 and 3, the insulating film 130 may be stacked on the electrodes 120 to fill the space between the electrodes 120.

For reference, the insulating film 130 may contain one or more substances selected from the group consisting of parylene chloride, teflon, and a metal oxide film.

The hydrophobic film 140 is the uppermost layer of the cleaner 100, and may be formed of a material having a low affinity with a fluid such as water, with droplets formed on the surface.

Therefore, the droplets can easily move on the surface of the hydrophobic film 140.

The dc voltage applying unit 150 may alternately apply the ground and the high voltage as the dc voltage to each electrode 120 in sequence at a predetermined cycle.

At this time, the liquid droplets move on the surface of the hydrophobic film 140 in the direction from the electrode to which the ground voltage is applied to the electrode to which the high voltage is applied, and finally move to the outermost side of the hydrophobic film 140, thereby cleaning the substrate 110.

As another embodiment of the cleaner 100, as shown in fig. 3, the cleaner 100 may include a substrate 110, an electrode 120, an insulating film 130, a hydrophobic film 140, and an alternating voltage applying part 160.

That is, in the cleaner 100 according to the other embodiment, the substrate 110, the electrode 120, the insulating film 130, and the hydrophobic film 140 are the same, and the dc voltage applying unit 150 is replaced with the ac voltage applying unit 160.

The ac voltage applying unit 160 may apply an ac voltage to the electrode 120, and the droplet formed on the surface of the hydrophobic film 140 may vibrate as the ac voltage is applied to the electrode 120.

At this time, since the substrate 110 is inclined, the liquid droplets can move along the inclination to the outside of the water-repellent film 140 to clean the substrate 110.

As still another embodiment of the cleaner 100, the cleaner 100 may include a substrate 110, an electrode 120, an insulating film 130, a hydrophobic film 140, a direct current voltage applying part 150, an alternating current voltage applying part 160, and a voltage pattern selecting part (not shown).

That is, the cleaner 100 according to the further embodiment is in a form in which the substrate 110, the electrode 120, the insulating film 130, the hydrophobic film 140, the dc voltage applying unit 150, and the ac voltage applying unit 160 are the same, and a voltage mode selecting unit (not shown) is further provided.

Depending on the installation condition of the vehicle glass, the voltage mode selecting part (not shown) may apply a voltage to the electrode 120 using any one of the dc voltage applying part 150 and the ac voltage applying part (not shown) accordingly according to the user selection result regarding the application of the dc voltage to the electrode 120 to remove the liquid droplets or the application of the ac voltage to the electrode 120 to remove the liquid droplets by vibration.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing a cleaning process of one embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 5 is a flowchart showing a cleaning process of another embodiment of the present invention.

The cleaner 100 of fig. 4 and 5 is incorporated in, for example, an electronic system or a control unit of a camera of a vehicle that can be operated by a driver, and the flow charts of fig. 4 and 5 will be described below mainly with the cleaner 100 shown in fig. 2 and 3.

The cleaner 100 receives a droplet removal request signal through an electronic system operated by a driver (S410, S510).

After S410, the cleaner 100 alternately applies a ground (ground) voltage and a high (high) voltage as dc voltages to the electrodes 120 in sequence at a predetermined cycle in accordance with the input droplet removal request signal (S420).

At this time, the droplets formed on the surface of the hydrophobic film 140 are moved to the outside of the hydrophobic film 140 by the ground voltage and the high voltage, which are dc voltages alternately applied to the electrodes 120, and the substrate 110 can be cleaned.

As another example, as shown in fig. 5, when an ac voltage is applied to the electrode 120 in step S520 after step S510, the droplets formed on the surface of the hydrophobic film 140 are vibrated by the application of the ac voltage and can move to the outside of the hydrophobic film 140 along the inclination of the substrate 110 to clean the substrate 110.

After S420 or S520, when a predetermined time has elapsed or when a droplet removal release request signal is received from the driver, cleaner 100 interrupts the application of the dc voltage or the ac voltage to each electrode (S430, S530).

Fig. 6 is a schematic view showing an actual cleaning process of a cleaner according to another embodiment of the present invention. That is, fig. 6 shows that the lens portion cleaner 100 removes dust and frost occurring on a substrate (e.g., vehicle glass) 110.

Referring to fig. 6, the cleaner 100 of the embodiment of the present invention can also remove liquid droplets by sliding on a surface to which dust is attached. In this case, since the droplets adsorb dust on the periphery while moving, the droplets can be removed and dust adhering to the surface can be removed.

Also, the cleaner 100 of the embodiment of the present invention partially generates heat of the electrode 120 by the same principle as the heat wire of the insulator, and thus can remove frost generated on the surface.

Fig. 7 is a practical use scenario of the vehicle glass cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention.

Droplets having a size of 1. mu.L, 3. mu.L, or 5. mu.L are formed on the surface of the hydrophobic film 140.

For reference, the plurality of electrodes 120 are transparent electrodes.

(a) When a ground voltage and a high voltage or an alternating voltage are applied to the electrodes 120 in this state in sequence at a predetermined cycle, the droplets move downward as shown in (b) and (c), and finally can be cleaned as shown in (d). Of course, fine particles (particles) may remain as shown in fig. 7.

Fig. 8 is a schematic view showing a droplet removing process of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 9 is a schematic view showing a schematic structure of the cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 10 is a schematic view showing an electrode pattern of one embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 11 is a schematic view showing a flow of droplets when the droplets are removed of one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 12 is a schematic view showing a change in droplet contact angle when a droplet is removed according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 13 is a schematic view showing a result of a droplet removal experiment.

Fig. 8 (a) shows a surface change of a camera as a cleaner of the present invention, and fig. 8 (B) shows a movement of a liquid droplet in a glass structure of the present invention.

As shown in fig. 8 (a), when a specific voltage is applied to the electrode when liquid droplets are adhered to the surface of the camera, the liquid droplets in the cleaning region on the surface of the camera are removed as shown in the right image, and as a result, the cleaning region becomes clear. Here, the cleaning region is a region required to take a picture, and may correspond to a lens part.

As shown in fig. 8 (B), when a specific voltage is applied to the electrode when a droplet is adhered to the surface of the glass structure, the droplet such as rainwater moves in the direction of gravity along the inclined surface of the glass structure. As a result of which droplets are removed.

In particular, the glass structure of the present invention utilizes electrowetting technology, which has a characteristic of high response speed, and therefore, the droplets can be removed quickly.

Such a cleaner for removing liquid droplets, particularly, a portion of the cleaner corresponding to a cleaning area may have the structure of fig. 9.

Referring to fig. 9, the cleaner of the present embodiment may include a base layer (substrate) 900, an electrode 902, an insulating film 904, and a hydrophobic film 906.

The base layer 900 may be a cover glass (coverglass) that protects the cleaner when it is contaminated and impacted from the outside, and may be arranged on a lens portion (not shown), for example.

According to one embodiment, the substrate layer 900 may be non-wetting glass.

The electrode 902 may be a transparent electrode made of ITO or the like, for example, and may be formed on the base layer 900 to form a predetermined pattern.

According to one embodiment, the electrodes 902, as shown in FIG. 10, may include a first electrode 1000 in a Comb structure (Comb structure) and a second electrode 1002 in a Comb structure.

The first electrode 1000 may include a first base pattern 1010 and at least one first branch pattern (first branchpattern) 1012.

A portion of the first base pattern 1010 is electrically connected to a power supply 908 or a ground, which applies a certain voltage to the first base pattern 1010. Additionally, the power source 908 may be located inside or outside of the cleaner.

The first branch patterns 1012 are formed to be extended from the first base pattern 1010 in a direction crossing the first base pattern 1010, preferably, in a perpendicular direction. As a result, when a specific voltage is applied to the first base pattern 1010, the specific voltage is also supplied to the first branch pattern 1012.

According to one embodiment, the first branch patterns 1012 are extended from the first base pattern 1010, and the intervals between the first branch patterns 1012 may be the same. Of course, a part of the intervals between the first branch patterns 1012 may be different from each other on the premise that the first branch patterns 1012 and the second branch patterns 1020 intersect.

The second electrode 1002 may include a second base pattern 1022 and at least one second branch pattern 1020.

A portion of the second substrate pattern 1022 is electrically connected to a power source 908 or a ground, and the power source 908 or the ground applies a certain voltage to the second substrate pattern 1022.

The second branch patterns 1020 are formed to extend from the second base patterns 1022 in a direction crossing, preferably a perpendicular direction to the second base patterns 1022. As a result, when a specific voltage is applied to the second base pattern 1022, the specific voltage is also supplied to the second branch pattern 1020.

Also, the second branch pattern 1020 is arranged to cross the first branch pattern 1012 as shown in fig. 10. However, the first branch pattern 1012 and the second branch pattern 1020 may be physically separated.

According to one embodiment, the second branch patterns 1020 are extended from the second base pattern 1022, and intervals between the second branch patterns 1020 may be the same. Of course, on the premise that the first branch patterns 1012 and the second branch patterns 1020 intersect with each other, the intervals between the second branch patterns 1020 may be partially different from each other.

In addition, in order to vibrate the surface of the cleaner, a first voltage may be applied to one of the first electrode 1000 and the second electrode 1002 and a second voltage lower than the first voltage may be applied to the other. Here, the first voltage may be made a positive voltage and the second voltage may be a ground voltage.

Referring again to fig. 9, an insulating film 904 is disposed over the electrodes 902 to fill the space between the

electrodes

1000 and 1002.

According to one embodiment, the insulating film 904 may include one or more substances selected from the group consisting of parylene chloride, teflon, and a metal oxide film.

The hydrophobic film 906 is formed on the insulating film 904, and may be formed of a material having low affinity with a fluid such as water. As a result, the droplet can easily move on the surface of the hydrophobic film 906.

The cleaning operation of the cleaner having such a structure will be described below.

For example, when the user inputs a droplet removal command, the power supply 908 applies a first voltage to one of the

electrodes

1000 and 1002 and a second voltage lower than the first voltage to the other electrode in accordance with the control of the control unit. As a result, the liquid droplets adhering to the surface of the cleaner vibrate.

As the surface of the cleaner vibrates, the adhesion of the surface to the liquid droplets decreases. In this case, since the surface of the cleaner is inclined in the direction of gravity, the liquid droplets adhering to the surface slide off the cleaner in the direction of gravity as shown in fig. 11. I.e. removing the droplets from the cleaner.

In particular, the cleaner of the present embodiment uses electrowetting technology, and thus the droplet removal time is fast and efficient.

According to one embodiment, the contact angle variation of the moving direction of the liquid droplet and the opposite direction of the moving direction may be different from the contact angle variation of other directions when the liquid droplet is vibrated. This difference may help to make the droplet slide. Further, the liquid droplets can be removed by sliding in the direction of gravity even if the inclination of the surface of the cleaner is low due to the difference in the change in the contact angle.

According to another embodiment, the

electrodes

1000 and 1002 have a comb-tooth shape, and the textures of the branch patterns 1012 and 1020 may be formed toward the gravity direction. As a result, when the droplet is vibrated by a specific voltage, the change in the contact angle of the droplet increases in the grain direction of the branch patterns 1012 and 1020, as shown in fig. 12.

That is, the direction in which the droplet slides is the same as or similar to the grain direction of the

electrodes

1000 and 1002, and as a result, the droplet slides more easily when the droplet vibrates. Therefore, the droplet can be easily removed even if the

electrodes

1000 and 1002 are applied with a low voltage.

In other words, when the cleaner is configured such that the change in the contact angle of the liquid droplet in the direction in which the liquid droplet slides, i.e., the direction of gravity, is larger than the change in the contact angle in other directions, the liquid droplet can be easily removed.

The results of the actual experiment are described below.

As a result of an actual experiment performed while driving in a rainy day after a general camera and a camera to which the cleaner of the present invention is applied are mounted on a vehicle, it is confirmed that liquid droplets (rain water) on the surface of the camera to which the cleaner is applied are removed and the image is clearly captured, as shown in fig. 13 (a).

As a result of an actual experiment performed on a vehicle using a glass structure as a windshield in rainy days, it was confirmed that droplets of the windshield were completely removed and the windshield was clear as shown in fig. 13 (B).

Fig. 14 is a schematic view schematically showing electrodes of a cleaner of another embodiment of the present invention. However, the electrodes are arranged in different directions, and the structure is the same, so that only one electrode is shown. Of course, the branches of the electrodes may be arranged to cross each other.

Referring to fig. 14, one of the electrodes may include a base pattern 1400 and at least one branch pattern 1402.

The branch pattern 1402 may include a branch 1410 and at least one protrusion 1412 protruding from the branch 1410. That is, unlike the branch pattern of fig. 10, the branch pattern 1402 of the present embodiment may include at least one protrusion 1412. The formation of such projections 1412 may increase the overall surface area of the electrode.

Of course, the branch patterns of the electrodes may be arranged to cross each other similarly to the branch patterns of fig. 10.

In addition to the cleaner of the above embodiment, the structure of the cleaner can be variously modified in the premise that the cleaner can remove liquid droplets.

According to one embodiment, a cleaner may include a vibrating portion that vibrates liquid droplets attached to a surface to reduce an attachment force of the liquid droplets to the surface of the cleaner. The vibrating portion has a specific pattern. The surface of the cleaner is inclined in the direction of gravity, and the pattern has a texture in the same direction as the direction of movement of the droplets, so that the droplets can move along the texture.

Of course, with the vibration, the change in contact angle of the liquid droplet in the moving direction and the opposite direction to the moving direction may be larger than the change in contact angle in the other directions.

According to another embodiment, a cleaner may include a vibrating portion that vibrates liquid droplets attached to a surface of the cleaner to reduce an attachment force of the liquid droplets to the surface of the cleaner. Here, the surface of the cleaner may have a structure such that a change in contact angle of the liquid droplet in the moving direction or a direction opposite to the moving direction when the liquid droplet moves with the vibration is larger than a change in contact angle of the liquid droplet in other directions.

In addition, the vibration part includes an electrode, and the texture of the electrode may be the same as the moving direction of the liquid droplet.

According to yet another embodiment, a cleaning structure may include a base layer, a first electrode arranged on the base layer, a second electrode, and a droplet support layer arranged on the electrodes. Here, the droplet support layer may include an insulating film and a hydrophobic film. The first electrode and the second electrode are arranged to intersect with each other in a physically separated state.

According to yet another embodiment, a cleaning structure includes a base layer, an electrode arranged on the base layer, and a droplet support layer arranged on the electrode. Here, the electrodes may have a pattern structure such that a contact angle change of the liquid droplet in a moving direction is different from a contact angle change of the liquid droplet in other directions when the liquid droplet on the liquid droplet supporting layer moves with vibration.

According to yet another embodiment, a cleaning structure includes a base layer, an electrode arranged on the base layer, and a droplet support layer arranged on the electrode. Here, the direction of movement of the droplets on the droplet support layer when moving is the same as the direction of the electrodes or the texture of the droplet support layer.

Fig. 15 is a schematic view showing a droplet removing process of a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 16 is a schematic view showing an electrode pattern of one embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 17 is a schematic view showing a flow of droplets when the droplets are removed of one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 18 is a schematic view showing a change in a droplet contact angle when a droplet is removed according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 19 is a schematic view showing a flow of a droplet when a droplet is removed according to another embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 20 and 21 are schematic diagrams showing the results of the droplet removal experiment.

Fig. 15 shows the surface variation of the cleaner of the present invention. As shown in fig. 15, in the case where a specific voltage is applied to the electrode when the liquid droplets are adhered to the surface of the cleaner, the liquid droplets on the surface are removed as shown in the right image, and thus the surface becomes clear.

Such a cleaner for removing liquid droplets may have the structure of fig. 9. Except that the structure of the electrode 902 is different from that of fig. 10.

According to one embodiment, the electrode 902 may include a first electrode 1600 and a second electrode 1602 as in fig. 16.

The first electrode 1600 includes first sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n, and the second electrode 1602 may include second sub-electrodes 1602a to 1602 n. Of course, the number of the first sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n is preferably the same as the number of the second sub-electrodes 1602a to 1602n, but may be different from each other.

The first sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n may have a Comb structure (Comb structure), respectively, and the second sub-electrodes 1602a to 1602n may also have a Comb structure, respectively.

The first sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n are physically separated, respectively, and the second sub-electrodes 1602a to 1602n are also physically separated, respectively. Also, the first sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n are physically separated from the second sub-electrodes 1602a to 1602 n.

The first electrode 1600 and the second electrode 1602 may have a comb-tooth shape, respectively, in view of the overall shape.

Hereinafter, the structures of the sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n, 1602a to 1602n are described by taking the first sub-electrode 1600a and the second sub-electrode 1602a as representatives. Although not illustrated, the other sub-electrodes 1600 b-1600 n, 1602 b-1602 n may also have the same or similar structure as the sub-electrodes 1600a, 1602 a.

The first sub-electrode 1600a may include a first base pattern 1610, a first input pattern 1612, and at least one first branch pattern (first branch pattern) 1614.

The first base pattern 1610 is connected to the first input pattern 1612, and performs an effect of transferring a specific voltage input through the first input pattern 1612 to the first branch pattern 1614.

The first input pattern 1612 is electrically connected to the power supply 908 or the ground. As a result, a specific voltage is input to the first input pattern 1612. Additionally, the power source 908 may be located inside or outside of the cleaner.

According to another embodiment, there is no case where the first input pattern 1612 is provided, in which case a specific voltage may be input to a portion of the first substrate pattern 1610. Accordingly, a portion of the first substrate pattern 1610 may have a structure electrically connected to the power 908 or ground.

The first branch patterns 1614 are formed to be elongated from the first substrate pattern 1610 in a direction crossing the first substrate pattern 1610, preferably, in a perpendicular direction. As a result, when a specific voltage is applied to the first base pattern 1610, a specific voltage is also applied to the first branch pattern 1614.

According to an embodiment, the first branch patterns 1614 are extended from the first base pattern 1610, and intervals between the first branch patterns 1614 may be the same. Of course, a part of the intervals between the first branch patterns 1614 may be different from each other on the premise that the first branch patterns 1614 intersect with the second branch patterns 1624.

The second sub-electrode 1602a may include a second base pattern 1620, a second input pattern 1622, and at least one second branch pattern 1624.

The second base pattern 1620 is connected to the second input pattern 1622, and performs an effect of transferring a specific voltage input through the second input pattern 1622 to the second branch pattern 1624.

The second input pattern 1622 is electrically connected to the power supply 908 or ground. As a result, a specific voltage is input to the second input pattern 1622.

According to another embodiment, there is no case where the second input pattern 1622, in which case a specific voltage may be input to a portion of the second substrate pattern 1620. Accordingly, a portion of the second substrate pattern 1620 may have a structure electrically connected to the power 908 or the ground.

The second branch pattern 1624 is formed to extend from the second base pattern 1620 in a direction crossing the second base pattern 1620, preferably, in a vertical direction. As a result, when a specific voltage is applied to the second base pattern 1620, a specific voltage is also applied to the second branch pattern 1624.

Also, as shown in fig. 16, the second branch pattern 1624 is arranged to intersect the first branch pattern 1614. Except that the first branch pattern 1614 may be physically separated from the second branch pattern 1624.

According to an embodiment, the second branch patterns 1624 are extended from the second base pattern 1620, and intervals between the second branch patterns 1624 may be the same. Of course, on the premise that the first branch pattern 1614 and the second branch pattern 1624 intersect with each other, a part of the intervals between the second branch patterns 1624 may be different from each other.

By the crossing, the second branch patterns 1624 are arranged between the first branch patterns 1614 in a physically separated state, and the first branch patterns 1614 may be arranged between the second branch patterns 1624 in a physically separated state.

In addition, in order to remove the liquid droplets on the surface of the cleaner, a first voltage may be applied to one of the first sub-electrode 1600a and the second sub-electrode 1602a and a second voltage lower than the first voltage may be applied to the other. Here, the first voltage may be made a positive voltage and the second voltage may be a ground voltage.

Referring again to fig. 9, an insulating film 904 is disposed over the electrode 902 to fill the space between the electrodes 1600 and 1602.

First, a cleaning operation by the ac method will be described.

For example, when the user inputs a droplet removal command, the power supply 908 applies a first voltage to one of the electrodes 1600 and 1602 and a second voltage lower than the first voltage to the other electrode in accordance with the control of the control unit. As a result, the liquid droplets adhering to the surface of the cleaner vibrate. Here, the first voltage may be simultaneously applied to the sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n of the first electrode 1600, and the second voltage may be simultaneously applied to the sub-electrodes 1602a to 1602n of the second electrode 1602.

As the surface of the cleaner vibrates, the adhesion of the surface to the liquid droplets decreases. In this case, since the surface of the cleaner is inclined in the direction of gravity, the liquid droplets adhering to the surface slide in the direction of gravity as shown in fig. 17 and are separated from the cleaner. That is, the liquid droplets on the cleaner are removed.

In particular, since the cleaner of the present embodiment uses electrowetting technology, the droplet removal time is fast and efficient.

According to one embodiment, the contact angle change in the moving direction of the liquid droplet and the direction opposite to the moving direction may be different from the contact angle change in other directions when the liquid droplet vibrates. This difference may be beneficial for sliding the droplet. Further, the liquid droplets can be removed by sliding in the direction of gravity even if the inclination of the surface of the cleaner is low due to the difference in the change in the contact angle.

According to another embodiment, the electrodes 1600 and 1602 have a comb-tooth shape, and the textures of the

branch patterns

1614 and 1624 may be formed toward the gravity direction. As a result, when the droplet is vibrated by the specific voltage, as shown in fig. 5, the contact angle change of the droplet increases in the grain direction of the

branch patterns

1614 and 1624.

That is, the direction in which the droplet slides is the same as or similar to the grain direction of the electrodes 1600 and 1602, and as a result, the droplet slides more easily when the droplet vibrates. Therefore, the droplet can be easily removed even if a lower voltage is applied to the electrodes 1600 and 1602.

In other words, the cleaner is configured such that the droplet can be easily removed when the change in the contact angle of the droplet in the direction in which the droplet slides, i.e., the direction of gravity, is larger than the change in the contact angle of the droplet in the other directions.

The cleaning operation by the direct current method is described below.

The direct current method is a method of sequentially applying a specific voltage to the sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n, 1602a to 1602 n.

For example, a first voltage, which is a positive voltage, may be applied to the sub-electrode 1600a, and a second voltage, which is lower than the first voltage, may be applied to the sub-electrode 1602a corresponding to the sub-electrode 1600 a. Here, the second voltage may be a ground voltage, and the other sub-electrodes 1600b to 1600n, 1602b to 1602n are in an inactive state. As a result, the droplets arranged on the sub-electrodes 1600a and 1602a move in the direction in which the first voltage is applied.

Thereafter, a first voltage may be applied to the sub-electrode 1600b and a second voltage may be applied to the sub-electrode 1602b corresponding to the sub-electrode 1600 b. Here, the other sub-electrodes 1600a, 1600c to 1600n, 1602a, 1600c to 1602n are in an inactive state. As a result, the droplets moving from the sub-electrodes 1600a and 1602a and the droplets arranged on the sub-electrodes 1600b and 1602b move in the direction to which the first voltage is applied.

The above sequential voltage application process is performed until the last sub-electrodes 1600n and 1602n are applied with a voltage, and the sequential voltage application process is shown in fig. 6.

Thereafter, the process of sequentially applying voltages to the sub-electrodes 1600a to 1600n, 1602a to 1602n is repeatedly performed. As a result, the liquid droplets adhering to the surface of the cleaner can be easily removed.

In the case of the direct current method, the change in contact angle of the liquid droplet in the moving direction of the liquid droplet may be larger than the change in contact angle in the opposite direction to the moving direction.

The results of the actual experiment are described below. Fig. 20 (a) shows a process of removing the liquid droplets and the hydrophilic dust, and fig. 20 (B) shows a process of removing the liquid droplets and the hydrophobic dust.

In the case where the cleaner of the present invention is mounted on a vehicle in the course of driving in the rainy day, and the actual test is conducted, as shown in fig. 20 (a), it is confirmed that the liquid droplets (rain water) on the surface of the cleaner are removed, and the corresponding image is photographed clearly. In particular, as shown in fig. 20 (a), it was confirmed that the dust was removed together with the liquid droplets.

Further, as a result of an actual experiment using a vehicle using the glass structure as a windshield in rainy weather, it was confirmed that droplets of the windshield were completely removed and the windshield was clear as shown in fig. 20 (B). In particular, the dust can be removed at the same time as the liquid droplets are removed.

Further, as shown in fig. 21, it can be confirmed that the frost generated on the surface of the cleaner is also removed.

In addition to the cleaner of the above embodiment, various modifications may be made to the structure of the cleaner on the premise that the cleaner is capable of removing liquid droplets, dust, or frost.

According to one embodiment, a cleaner may include a vibrating portion that vibrates liquid droplets attached to a surface to reduce an attachment force of the liquid droplets to the surface of the cleaner. The vibrating portion has a specific pattern. And the surface of the cleaner is inclined to the direction of gravity, and the pattern has a texture in the same direction as the movement of the liquid droplets, so that the liquid droplets can move along the texture.

Fig. 22 is a schematic view schematically illustrating a configuration of a camera liquid droplet sensing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, fig. 23 is a schematic view illustrating a change in impedance of a camera cover glass according to presence or absence of liquid droplets, and fig. 24 is a schematic view illustrating an example of an image captured when liquid droplets are generated in the camera cover glass. Hereinafter, the structure of the camera liquid droplet sensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 22, and fig. 23 and 24.

First, referring to fig. 22, the camera liquid droplet sensing device according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a camera head 10, an impedance measuring section 20, a control section 30, and a voltage applying section 40.

The Camera head portion 10 includes a Camera module 11 and a Camera cover glass (Camera cover glass)15 covering a lens of the Camera module 11.

The camera module 11 captures an object through a lens to generate an image. For example, the camera module 11 may be configured to include a lens module which is made of a transparent material such as glass manufactured into a spherical surface or an aspherical surface and which converges or diverges light to generate an optical Image, an Image sensor (Image sensor) which converts the generated optical Image into an electronic signal, a PCB including various circuits which process the electronic signal generated by the Image sensor, and the like.

The camera Cover glass 15 includes a Cover glass layer (Cover glass layer)16, a transparent electrode (transparent electrode)17, and a Hydrophobic and dielectric film (Hydrophobic and dielectric layer) 18.

The cover glass layer 16 is the lowermost layer of the camera cover glass 15, and functions as a Substrate (Substrate) of the camera cover glass 15 as well as directly covering the lenses of the camera module 11.

The transparent electrodes 17 are continuously disposed on the upper surface of the cover glass layer 16 to form a predetermined pattern. For example, the transparent electrode 17 may have a linear shape, a streamline shape, or a circular shape. The form of the pattern formed by the plurality of transparent electrodes 17 is not limited.

The hydrophobic insulating film 18 is the uppermost layer of the camera cover glass 15, and as shown in fig. 22, is stacked on the upper surfaces of the plurality of transparent electrodes 17 to fill the gaps between the transparent electrodes 17.

For example, the hydrophobic insulating film 18 may include one or more selected from the group consisting of parylene chloride, teflon, and a metal oxide film.

Then, droplets (droplets) are formed on the surface of the hydrophobic insulating film 18.

For example, since the hydrophobic insulating film 18 may be formed of a substance having a low affinity with a fluid such as water, droplets can easily move on the surface of the hydrophobic insulating film 18.

The impedance measuring unit 20 measures the impedance of the transparent electrode 17. For this reason, a minute voltage may be continuously applied to the transparent electrode 17 by the voltage applying part 40. For example, a ground (ground) voltage and a high (high) voltage may be slightly applied to each of the two transparent electrodes 17 as a direct current voltage.

The control unit 30 determines whether or not the liquid droplets are generated in the camera cover glass 15, using the impedance of the transparent electrode 17 measured by the impedance measuring unit 20 or the image captured by the camera module 11.

That is, the control unit 30 checks the impedance of the transparent electrode 17 measured by the impedance measuring unit 20, and when the impedance changes, it can be determined that a droplet has occurred on the camera cover glass 15.

For example, referring to fig. 23, as shown on the left side of fig. 23, the transparent electrode 17 and the hydrophobic insulating film 18 of the camera cover glass 15 may have a resistance (resistance) component and a capacitance (capacitor) component, respectively. As shown in the right side of fig. 23, the droplets themselves generated on the surface of the hydrophobic insulating film 18 of the camera cover glass 15 may have a resistance (resistance) component and a capacitance (capacitor) component. Therefore, when a droplet is generated on the surface of the hydrophobic insulating film 18 of the camera cover glass 15, the impedance of the transparent electrode 17 at the position where the droplet is generated changes.

The controller 30 analyzes the image captured by the camera module 11, and determines that liquid droplets have occurred on the camera cover glass 15 when the image is distorted into a predetermined circular shape as a result of the analysis. For example, as shown in fig. 24, when a plurality of droplets are generated on the camera cover glass 15, the captured image may be distorted into a predetermined circular shape.

Here, the control unit 30 may check whether a circular droplet shape exists on the image or calculate the sharpness of the image in order to determine that the image is distorted into a predetermined circular shape.

That is, the control unit 30 may determine that the image is distorted into a predetermined circular form when a plurality of circular droplet forms are found from the image or the image has a resolution lower than a preset reference resolution.

When liquid droplets are generated on the camera cover glass 15, the control unit 30 controls the voltage applying unit 40 to apply a voltage to the transparent electrode 17.

The voltage applying unit 40 applies a voltage to the transparent electrode 17 in order to remove the liquid droplets generated on the camera cover glass 15 according to the control of the control unit 30.

That is, the voltage applying unit 40 may alternately apply the ground voltage and the high voltage as the dc voltage to each of the transparent electrodes 17 in sequence at a predetermined period.

For example, the liquid droplets move on the surface of the hydrophobic insulating film 18 in the direction of the electrode to which the ground voltage is applied and the electrode to which the high voltage is applied, and finally move to the outermost side of the hydrophobic insulating film 18, so that the camera cover glass 15 can be cleaned.

Alternatively, the voltage applying section 40 may apply an alternating voltage to the transparent electrode 17.

For example, when an ac voltage is applied to the transparent electrode 17, the droplets formed on the surface of the hydrophobic insulating film 18 are vibrated by the ac voltage applied to the transparent electrode 17. Then, the liquid droplets move along the inclination to the outermost side of the hydrophobic insulating film 18 due to the vibration and the inclination of the camera cover glass 15, and the camera cover glass 15 can be cleaned.

FIG. 25 is a flow chart illustrating a camera drop sensing method of an embodiment of the present invention.

In step S2500, the camera droplet sensing device measures the impedance of each transparent electrode 17 of the camera cover glass 15.

In step S2502, the camera droplet sensing device confirms whether the measured impedance of the transparent electrode 17 has changed.

In step S2504, the camera droplet sensing apparatus determines that a droplet is sensed when the impedance of the transparent electrode 17 changes.

In step S2506, the camera droplet sensing device applies a voltage to the transparent electrode 17 to remove the droplet when sensing the droplet.

Fig. 26 is a flowchart illustrating a camera drop sensing method according to another embodiment of the present invention.

In step S2600, the camera droplet sensing device captures an image through the camera module 11.

In step S2602, the camera liquid droplet sensing device analyzes the captured image.

In step S2604, the camera droplet sensing device determines that a droplet is sensed when the image is distorted into a predetermined circular form as a result of analyzing the captured image.

Here, the camera droplet sensing device may determine that the image is distorted into a predetermined circular shape when a plurality of circular droplet shapes are found from the image or the image has a lower degree of sharpness than a predetermined reference degree of sharpness after checking whether the circular droplet shapes exist on the image or calculating the degree of sharpness of the image.

In step S2606, the camera droplet sensing device applies a voltage to the transparent electrode 17 to remove the droplet when sensing the droplet.

Fig. 27 is a schematic view showing a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 28 is a schematic view showing an electrode pattern of the cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention.

The cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention may be applied to cover glass (CoverGlass) of a camera lens as shown in fig. 27. Of course, the cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention may be applied not only to the cover glass of the camera lens but also to all objects such as a windshield of a vehicle that require removal of liquid droplets formed on a surface thereof, and hereinafter, for convenience of understanding and explanation of the present invention, it is assumed that the cleaner 100 of the embodiment of the present invention is applied to the cover glass of the camera lens.

The cleaner 100 may be formed by patterning a plurality of electrodes separated from each other on an ultra small chip (chip) manufactured by MEMS engineering, and a direct voltage or an alternating voltage may be applied to the plurality of electrodes to remove liquid droplets formed on a surface.

For example, the cleaner may apply voltages to the electrodes under different dc voltage conditions (high and ground) to change the surface tension of the droplet (drop). In this case, the droplet (drop) moves in the direction of the electrode to which the high (high) voltage and the ground (ground) voltage are applied (eventually, to the outside of the cover glass of the camera lens).

Also, the cleaner may apply a low-frequency ac voltage to the electrodes to vibrate the liquid droplets to change the surface tension of the liquid droplets. As shown in fig. 27, when the camera lens has a predetermined inclination with respect to a plane, the liquid droplet (drop) moves downward (finally, outward of the cover glass of the camera lens) while vibrating.

In particular, the cleaner 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention applies a high-frequency ac voltage and a low-frequency ac voltage to the plurality of electrodes with reference to a predetermined frequency in order to remove the conductive droplets and the non-conductive droplets. That is, the cleaner applies a high-frequency ac voltage to the plurality of electrodes, switches the high-frequency ac voltage applied on/off (on/off) to a low frequency with respect to the high-frequency ac voltage, and applies the high-frequency ac voltage and the low-frequency ac voltage to the plurality of electrodes simultaneously to remove all of the nonconductive droplets and the conductive droplets.

Wherein a reference frequency for distinguishing the high frequency from the low frequency may be 1kHz, the high frequency may be represented above the reference frequency, and the low frequency may be represented below the reference frequency.

For example, the high frequency may be 10kHz and the low frequency may be 31Hz, and it is confirmed that both the non-conductive droplets and the conductive droplets are removed according to the results of the experiment performed under such conditions.

For reference, in the case where only a low-frequency voltage is applied to the plurality of electrodes, the surface tension of the conductive liquid droplet periodically changes to vibrate at a low frequency and move by such vibration, while the non-conductive liquid droplet does not change.

When only a high-frequency voltage is applied to the plurality of electrodes, both the conductive droplets and the non-conductive droplets spread and become flat on the surface.

On the other hand, when the high-frequency ac voltage applied to the plurality of electrodes is switched to a low frequency by on/off (on/off), the phenomenon that the surface of the conductive droplet and the non-conductive droplet is flattened by spreading repeats vibration periodically, and is removed by this vibration movement.

The plurality of electrodes of the embodiment of the present invention are divided into a plurality of high (high) voltage electrodes and a plurality of ground (ground) voltage electrodes, which are alternately and continuously arranged in a state of being separated from each other on the surface of the cover glass of the camera lens. In this case, since the plurality of high (high) voltage electrodes and the plurality of ground (ground) voltage electrodes are integrally formed, the high (high) voltage electrodes can be connected to each other and the ground (ground) voltage electrodes can be connected to each other.

For example, referring to fig. 28, the high (high) voltage electrode and the ground (ground) voltage electrode each have a comb (comb) shape and are configured to be not connected to each other and to be engaged with each other.

Fig. 29 is a schematic view schematically illustrating the configuration of a cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 30 to 33 are schematic views for explaining the cleaner according to the embodiment of the present invention. A cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention is described below centering on fig. 29, and fig. 30 to 33 are referred to.

The cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention includes a Substrate (Substrate)2900, an Electrode (Electrode)2902, an insulating film (Dielectric Layer)2904, a Hydrophobic film (Hydrophobic Layer)2906, a voltage applying portion 2908, and a switching portion 2910.

Substrate 2900 is the lowest level of the cleaner and is the base.

The electrode 2902 is a transparent electrode, and may be continuously disposed on the upper surface of the glass 2900 to form a specific pattern.

That is, as described above with reference to fig. 28, the electrodes 2902 are arranged in series with a plurality of high (high) voltage electrodes formed integrally and a plurality of ground (ground) voltage electrodes formed integrally alternately.

As shown in fig. 29, an insulating film 2904 is laminated on the electrodes 2902 so as to fill the space between the electrodes 2902.

The hydrophobic film 2906 is the uppermost layer of the cleaner, and may be formed of a substance having a low affinity with a fluid such as water, with droplets formed on the surface. Therefore, the droplet can easily move on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906.

The voltage application unit 2908 applies a high-frequency ac voltage to the electrode 2902 with reference to a predetermined reference frequency.

The switching unit 2910 switches the high-frequency ac voltage on/off (on/off) to a low frequency with respect to the high-frequency ac voltage. For example, the switching unit 2910 may control the voltage applying unit 2908 to generate a high-frequency ac voltage at a cycle corresponding to a low frequency. Alternatively, the switching unit 2910 may switch the high-frequency ac voltage output from the voltage applying unit 2908 on/off (on/off) between the voltage applying unit 2908 and the electrode 2902.

As described above, the switching unit 2910 can generate a low-frequency ac voltage by switching the high-frequency ac voltage on and off (on/off), and the conductive droplets and the non-conductive droplets formed on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 vibrate as the high-frequency ac voltage and the low-frequency ac voltage are simultaneously applied to the electrode 2902.

At this time, when the substrate 2900 has a predetermined inclination with respect to a plane, the liquid droplets move to the outside of the hydrophobic film 2906 along the inclination due to the inclination of the substrate 2900, and the substrate 2900 can be cleaned.

As another embodiment, a cleaner of an embodiment of the present invention may include a frequency generation part (not shown) that simultaneously generates a high frequency voltage and a low frequency voltage instead of the voltage application part 2908 and the switching part 2910.

The frequency generator applies a specific voltage to the electrode 2902, and controls so that a high-frequency voltage and a low-frequency voltage both having a reference frequency as a reference are generated in one cycle. As a result, when a high-frequency voltage and a low-frequency voltage are applied to the electrode 2902, both the conductive droplets and the non-conductive droplets are removed, and the substrate 2900 can be cleaned.

For example, referring to fig. 30, when a High-frequency ac voltage (High frequency) applied to an electrode 2902 is switched on and off to a relatively Low frequency (Low frequency), a contact angle formed by a droplet and the surface of a hydrophobic film 2906 repeatedly changes, and thus both a non-conductive droplet and a conductive droplet regularly vibrate.

That is, the conductive droplets vibrate by the electrowetting principle when a low-frequency ac voltage is applied to the electrode 2902, and the non-conductive droplets vibrate by the dielectrophoresis (dielectrophoresis) principle when a high-frequency ac voltage is applied to the electrode 2902. The principle of dielectrophoresis is that when a particle having no polarity is exposed to an uneven alternating electric field, the particle is forced in a direction in which the gradient of the electric field is large or small by inducing bipolar (dipole).

For example, referring to fig. 31, the conductive liquid droplet can change the surface tension by the principle of electrowetting such that the contact angle of the liquid droplet with the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 changes, as shown in (a1) and (a2) of fig. 31. Further, as shown in fig. 31 (b1) and (b2), the non-conductive liquid droplet can change the surface tension by the principle of dielectrophoresis so that the contact angle of the liquid droplet with the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 changes.

As described above, when the droplet vibration occurs on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906, the adhesion (adhesion) between the droplet and the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 is reduced. Therefore, when the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 is inclined, the liquid droplets generated on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 can slide and move downward by gravity as shown in fig. 32 when the cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention is driven. Fig. 32 (a1) to (a3) show the conductive droplet vibration sliding, and fig. 32 (b1) to (b3) show the non-conductive droplet vibration sliding.

When the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 is inclined, a difference occurs between the contact angle of the portion of the liquid droplet in the moving direction and the contact angle of the portion opposite to the moving direction when the liquid droplet generated on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 vibrates. This difference helps the droplet to slide downward, and the droplet can slide on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 having a very small inclination.

Further, since the electrode 2902 is formed in a comb (comb) shape as described above in fig. 28, the contact angle of the liquid droplet with the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 is not uniform in all directions of the liquid droplet, but is larger in the grain direction of the electrode 2902 as shown in fig. 33. Also, the difference in contact angle between the moving direction and the opposite direction of the liquid droplet occurring when the inclined surface vibrates is larger in the grain direction. Therefore, as described above, the difference in contact angle between the moving direction of the droplet and the opposite direction helps the droplet to slide, and thus making the direction of the droplet sliding coincide with the direction of the texture of the electrode 2902 can cause the droplet to slide rapidly at a lower voltage.

As described above, the cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention is influenced not only by the grain direction of the electrodes but also by the frequency of on/off (on/off) switching in controlling the liquid droplets. Therefore, since each droplet has a specific natural frequency depending on the size, the vibration of the droplet is larger when a voltage having a frequency corresponding to the specific natural frequency corresponding to the size of the droplet to be generated is applied, and therefore the droplet can slide more easily on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906.

Fig. 34 is a flowchart illustrating a cleaning method of an embodiment of the present invention.

In fig. 34, the cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention may be in a state of being coupled to a camera module (not shown) of a vehicle (e.g., AVMS: area View Monitoring System), and the flow chart of fig. 34 will be explained below with reference to the cleaner shown in fig. 29.

In the S3400 step, the cleaner receives a droplet removal request signal from a camera module of the vehicle for inputting a request of the driver.

In step S3410, the cleaner applies a high-frequency ac voltage to the electrode 2902 based on the received droplet removal request signal, with a predetermined frequency as a reference.

In step S3420, the cleaner switches the applied high frequency ac voltage on/off (on/off) to a low frequency with respect to the high frequency ac voltage. At this time, the high-frequency ac voltage is switched on/off (on/off) to generate a low-frequency ac voltage, and the conductive droplets and the non-conductive droplets formed on the surface of the hydrophobic film 2906 vibrate as the high-frequency ac voltage and the low-frequency ac voltage are applied to the electrode 2902.

The non-conductive droplets and the conductive droplets slide down along the inclination of the substrate 2900 to the outside of the hydrophobic film 2906, and the substrate 2900 can be cleaned.

In step S3430, the cleaner interrupts the application of the high-frequency ac voltage and on/off switching (on/off) of the high-frequency ac voltage when a preset time elapses or when a droplet removal release request signal is received from the driver.

The hydrophobic film of the cleaner of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The hydrophobic film for electrowetting is generally made of a fluorine-based substance. However, such a hydrophobic film has weak durability although it has excellent hydrophobic characteristics, and thus may not be suitable for a cleaner for an automobile, a camera, or the like, which requires long-term use after one installation. Disclosed is a hydrophobic film having not only excellent hydrophobic characteristics but also excellent durability.

Fig. 35 is a schematic view schematically showing the structure of a cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 36 is a schematic view schematically showing a process of manufacturing a hydrophobic film according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to fig. 35, the cleaner of the present embodiment includes a substrate 3500, an electrode 3502 having a predetermined pattern, an insulating film 3504, and a hydrophobic film 3506.

The components other than the hydrophobic film 3506 have already been described above, and therefore the description thereof is omitted below.

Hydrophobic film 3506 may have excellent hydrophobic characteristics and strong durability.

According to one embodiment, the hydrophobic film 3506 may be formed of a fluorine-based substance (including a fluorine compound containing a fluorine atom) having water repellency, oil repellency, and chemical resistance characteristics, which contains a silane-based substance (containing an inorganic silane compound) that helps combine an organic material substance and an inorganic material substance.

The hydrophobic film 3506 has not only water repellency, oil repellency and chemical resistance but also durability higher than that of a hydrophobic film made of a fluorine-based substance.

The hydrophobic film 3506 has strong durability, and therefore, even if the hydrophobic film 3506 is formed to be thin (for example, several tens of nm) in thickness, sufficient durability can be obtained. When the thickness of the hydrophobic film 3506 is thin, the hydrophobic film 3506 may have excellent light transmittance, and thus not only can the droplets be easily removed, but also the visual field of the vehicle glass or the camera lens can be sufficiently secured.

According to one embodiment, the surface of the fluorine compound may contain 49 at% or more of fluorine atoms so that the surface thereof has hydrophobicity. The fluorine compound may be a polymer having a chemical formula of-CxFy-, -CxFyHz-, -CxFyCzHp-, -CxFyO-, -cxfyn (h) -or the like (wherein x, y, z, and p are natural numbers, respectively), may be an amorphous fluorine compound, and may be AF1600 or the like, for example. Among them, the surface of the hydrophobic film 3506 may refer to a thin film from a distance of 50 angstroms to a distance of 100 angstroms in the upper-to-lower direction of the hydrophobic film 3506.

According to one embodiment, the organic-inorganic silane compound may be one or more of an amino group, a vinyl group, an epoxy group, an alkoxy group, a halogen group, a mercapto group, a sulfide group, and the like. Specifically, the functional inorganic silane compound may be selected from aminopropyltriethoxysilane, aminopropyltrimethoxysilane, amino-methoxysilane, phenylaminopropyltrimethoxysilane, N- (2-aminoethyl) -3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane, N- (beta-aminoethyl) -gamma-aminopropylmethyldimethoxysilane, gamma-aminopropyldimethoxysilane, gamma-aminopropyltriethoxysilane, gamma-aminopropyldiethoxysilane, vinyltriethoxysilane, vinyltrimethoxysilane, vinyltris (methoxyethoxy) silane, di-, tri-or tetraalkoxysilane, vinylmethoxysilane, vinyltrimethoxysilane, vinylepoxysilane, N- (beta-aminoethyl) -gamma-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane, N- (beta-aminoethyl) -gamma-aminopropyldimethoxysilane, N- (beta-aminopropyl-dimethoxysilane, N- (beta-aminoethyl) -gamma-aminopropyldimethoxysilane, N- (gamma-aminopropyl-dimethoxysilane, N- (gamma-aminopropyl-triethoxysilane, Vinyltriethoxysilane, 3-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane, 3-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane, gamma-glycidoxypropyltriethoxysilane, gamma-methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane, trimethylchlorosilane, trichloroethylsilane, trichloromethylsilane, trichlorophenylsilane, trichlorovinylsilane, mercaptopropyltriethoxysilane, trifluoropropyltrimethoxysilane, bis (trimethoxysilylpropyl) amine, bis (3-triethoxysilylpropyl) tetrasulfide, bis (triethoxysilylpropyl) disulfide, (methacryloyloxy) propyltrimethoxysilane, 2- (3, 4-epoxycyclohexyl) ethyltrimethoxysilane, 3-glycidoxypropylmethyldiethoxysilane, di (tert-butyl) ethyltrimethoxysilane, dimethyltriethoxysilane, dimethyltrimethoxysilane, 3-glycidoxypropyldiethoxysilane, 3-glycidoxypropyltriethoxysilane, p-styryltrimethoxysilane and combinations thereof, preferably aminopropyltriethoxysilane or combinations containing the same.

As a result of the experiment, the contact angle between the hydrophobic film 3506 of the fluorine-containing substance and the silane-based substance and the droplet (water) was measured to be 115 degrees at the minimum, and CAH was 7 degrees at the maximum. That is, droplets can be effectively removed.

Also, it can be confirmed that the contact angle of 113 degrees is maintained even by applying 1500 times of wiping friction to the hydrophobic film 3506 with a 500g load of a wiper abrasion resistance test device for at least one year, and has very excellent durability compared to the fluorine-based hydrophobic films (e.g., teflon, fluorine resin) used today.

The process of manufacturing such a hydrophobic film 3506 is explained below.

Referring to fig. 36, a hydrophobic film 3506 can be made within the vacuum chamber 3600.

A heating device 3610 and an object 3612 are disposed in the vacuum chamber 3600. Of course, the object 3612 may be fixedly supported in the vacuum chamber 3600. That is, although not shown, a support member for supporting the object 3612 may be formed in the vacuum chamber 3600.

Heating device 3610 serves to heat the hydrophobic substance to become vapor. The vapor generated by the heating device is deposited on the object 3612, and as a result, a hydrophobic film 3506 is formed on the object 3612.

According to one embodiment, the heating device 3610 may generate steam by heating the solid hydrophobic substance using electron beam (E-beam) or resistive heating. The hydrophobic substance may be a compound of a fluorine-based substance and a silane-based substance.

The object 3612 may be a structure in which an electrode 3502 and an insulating film 3504 are formed in this order on a substrate 3500 which is an object on which a hydrophobic film 3506 is to be deposited.

The vapor generated by the heating device 3610 is deposited on the object 3612, and as a result, the hydrophobic film 3506 can be formed on the insulating film 3504.

Fig. 37 is a cross-sectional view showing a sticker type cleaner according to still another embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 38 and 39 are schematic views showing a process of removing liquid droplets.

Referring to fig. 37, the cleaner of the present embodiment may include a Bonding layer (Bonding layer)3700, a substrate 3702, an electrode 3704, and an insulating film 3706. Further, a hydrophobic film may be formed on the insulating film 3706. The components other than the adhesive layer 3700 are the same as those of the above embodiment, and thus the description thereof will be omitted.

That is, unlike other embodiments, the lowermost layer of the cleaner of the present embodiment may be formed with the adhesive layer 3700. Therefore, the cleaner can be attached to the surface of various apparatuses. For example, the cleaner can be attached to a camera, an image sensor, a vehicle glass and side view mirror, an image display, a semiconductor device, etc. using the adhesive layer 3700. As a result, the apparatus attached with the cleaner can remove the liquid droplets.

In particular, in the case where the cleaner is implemented by a flexible material (for example, the substrate is composed of a flexible material) as shown in fig. 37, the cleaner may have a bent structure, and thus the cleaner may also be adaptively attached to an existing structure having a bent structure.

The sticker type cleaner can be attached to an existing apparatus having no droplet removing function to realize the droplet removing function. The replacement with an apparatus having a cleaner with a droplet removing function installed from the beginning is expensive, and if a sticker type cleaner is attached to an apparatus having no droplet removing function, droplets can be removed at a significantly cost saving.

Although a method of driving the cleaner is not described, all driving methods (a direct current application method, an alternating current application method, a method of alternately applying a low frequency voltage and a high frequency voltage, and the like) of the above embodiments may be applied.

For example, where an alternating voltage is applied to electrode 3704 to vibrate droplet 3710, droplet 3710 may be removed as in fig. 38. The conductive/non-conductive droplets 3710 may be removed, particularly if an alternating current is applied to the electrode 3704 in an on-off switching manner. When a large number of droplets are present on the surface of the cleaner, as shown in fig. 39, the droplets are combined to form droplets of other sizes, and the droplets can be removed. Wherein the combined droplet sizes may be different.

Fig. 40 is a sectional view showing a cleaner of still another embodiment of the present invention, fig. 41 is a sectional view showing an arrangement of electrodes of one embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 42 is a schematic view for explaining a three-phase wiring. Fig. 43 is a schematic view showing a droplet removing process, fig. 44 is a schematic view showing a dust removing process, and fig. 45 is a schematic view showing a minute droplet removing process.

Referring to fig. 40, unlike the other embodiments, the cleaner of the present embodiment may have a multi-layered structure. Fig. 40 shows a two-layer structure, but may have a structure of three or more layers. However, the following description will be made on the assumption of a two-layer structure for convenience of explanation.

The cleaner may include a first layer having a substrate 4000, a first electrode 4002, and a first insulating film 4004, and a second layer having a second electrode 4006 and a second insulating film 4008. Of course, the second insulating film 4008 may have a hydrophobic film thereon.

The first electrodes 4002 may be arranged on the substrate 4000 with a predetermined interval therebetween.

According to one embodiment, a part of the first electrodes 4002 operates as an electrode to which a positive voltage is applied, and the other first electrodes may operate as an electrode to which a ground voltage is applied. For example, the first electrodes to which a positive voltage is applied and the first electrodes to which a negative voltage is applied may be alternately arranged.

A first insulating film 4004 is formed over the first electrode 4002 and can cover the first electrode 4002.

The second electrode 4006 may be arranged on the first insulating film 4004 with a predetermined interval. Wherein the interval may be equal to or not equal to the interval between the first electrodes 4002.

According to one embodiment, a part of the second electrodes 4006 operates as an electrode to which a positive voltage is applied, and the other second electrodes may operate as an electrode to which a ground voltage is applied. For example, the second electrodes to which a positive voltage is applied may be alternately arranged with the second electrodes to which a negative voltage is applied.

The second electrode 4006 can be arranged to be spaced apart from but parallel to the first electrode 4002 with respect to the arrangement with the first electrode 4002. For example, the first electrode 4002 and the second electrode 4006 may all be arranged in the lateral direction of the cleaner.

According to another embodiment, the second electrodes 4006 may be arranged to cross the first electrodes 4002, for example, may be arranged in a cross pattern. For example, the first electrode 4002 may be aligned in the lateral direction of the cleaner, and the second electrode 4006 may be aligned in the vertical direction of the cleaner.

Although fig. 40 shows only two layers, the electrode arrangement of each layer may be more various in the case where three or more layers are present. Even in this case, however, the electrodes are arranged parallel to or across each other in the case of comparing only two layers.

The second insulating film 4008 is formed over the second electrode 4006 and can cover the second electrode 4006.

In summary, the cleaner may include a plurality of layers respectively composed of the electrode and the insulating film. In addition, the cleaner may have a planar shape as shown in fig. 40, but may have a flexible structure as shown in fig. 43. For example, the substrate 4000 may be made of a flexible material.

Also, the cleaner may be manufactured in a sticker type.

The arrangement of the

electrodes

4002 and 4006 having such a multilayer structure is described above, and the effects of the arrangement will be described below.

Referring to fig. 41, the

first electrodes

4002a and 4002b are arranged with a predetermined interval therebetween, and the

second electrodes

4006a and 4006b may be arranged with a predetermined interval therebetween. Here, a positive voltage is applied to the first electrode 4002a and a ground voltage is applied to the first electrode 4002b, a positive voltage is applied to the second electrode 4006a, and a ground voltage can be applied to the second electrode 4006 b.

According to one embodiment, as shown in fig. 41, at least a portion of the

first electrodes

4002a and 4002b and the

second electrodes

4006a and 4006b may overlap. For example, a right end portion of the first electrode 4002a overlaps with a left end portion of the second electrode 4006a, a left end portion of the first electrode 4002a overlaps with a right end portion of the second electrode 4006b, and a right end portion of the first electrode 4002b may overlap with a left end portion of the second electrode 4006 b. Of course, the

first electrodes

4002a and 4002b and the

second electrodes

4006a and 4006b are arranged in an expanded form as shown in fig. 41.

From another perspective, the first electrodes 4002 can be arranged between the second electrodes 4006. As a result, the electrodes can be arranged so that a wide area of the surface of the cleaner is void-free.

The following describes the effects in the case of the

upper row electrodes

4002 and 4006.

Referring to fig. 42, there is an interface where a droplet 4010 meets a surface of the cleaner, i.e., a three-phase wiring (triplet wiring), and the cleaner of a single-layer structure may not have electrodes arranged right below the three-phase wiring as shown in the left diagram of fig. 42, and on the contrary, the electrodes are arranged right below the three-phase wiring in the cleaner of a multi-layer structure. As a result, the electromagnetic field generated by the electrodes directly affects the liquid droplets 4010 corresponding to the three-phase connection, and thus the liquid droplet removal efficiency of the cleaner of the multilayer structure can be significantly improved compared to the liquid droplet removal efficiency of the cleaner of the single-layer structure.

As for the operation method of the cleaner, all the driving methods (a direct current applying method, an alternating current applying method, a method of alternately applying a low frequency voltage and a high frequency voltage, etc.) of the above-described embodiments can be applied.

For example, when an alternating voltage is applied to the

electrodes

4002 and 4006 to vibrate the liquid droplet 4010, the liquid droplet and dust can be removed as shown in fig. 43 and 44, and the fine liquid droplet can be smoothly removed as shown in fig. 45. In particular, when an alternating current is applied to the

electrodes

4002 and 4006 by an on/off switching method, conductive/nonconductive droplets can be completely removed.

According to one embodiment, a method of applying power to the first electrode 4002 and a manner of applying power to the second electrode 4006 may be different.

For example, the first electrode 4002 is applied with an alternating voltage as in the second electrode 4006 but the alternating voltage applied to the first electrode 4002 may be higher than the alternating voltage applied to the second electrode 4006.

As another example, an alternating voltage is applied to the

electrodes

4002 and 4006 in the same manner, but the frequency of the voltage applied to the first electrode 4002 is different from the frequency of the voltage applied to the second electrode 4006.

In addition, the constituent elements of the above-described embodiments can be easily understood from the viewpoint of the procedure. That is, each component can be understood from each program. And the procedures of the above-described embodiments can be easily understood from the viewpoint of the constituent elements of the apparatus.

Industrial applicability of the invention

The embodiments of the present invention described above are disclosed for illustrative purposes, and various modifications, alterations, and additions can be made by those skilled in the art within the spirit and scope of the present invention, and these modifications, alterations, and additions should be construed as falling within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cleaning apparatus, comprising:

a substrate; and

a plurality of layers sequentially arranged on the substrate,

Wherein each layer has an electrode and an insulating film covering the electrode, and droplets formed on the surface of the cleaner can be removed by applying a voltage to the electrode.

2. The cleaner of claim 1 wherein the layer comprises:

a first layer having a first electrode formed on the substrate and a first insulating film covering the first electrode; and

a second layer having a second electrode formed on the first insulating film and a second insulating film covering the second electrode,

wherein the first electrodes are arranged with a predetermined interval therebetween, and the second electrodes are also arranged with a predetermined interval therebetween,

the first electrodes are positioned between the second electrodes, and a specific first electrode and a corresponding second electrode are arranged to at least partially overlap.

3. A cleaner according to claim 2 wherein:

first electrodes to which a positive voltage is applied and first electrodes to which a ground voltage is applied are alternately arranged, second electrodes to which a positive voltage is applied and second electrodes to which a ground voltage is applied are alternately arranged,

one side end portion of the specific second electrode to which the positive voltage is applied is arranged to overlap with an end portion of the first electrode to which the positive voltage is applied, and the other side end portion of the specific second electrode is arranged to overlap with an end portion of the first electrode to which the ground voltage is applied,

One end portion of the second electrode to which the ground voltage is applied is arranged to overlap with an end portion of the first electrode to which the positive voltage is applied, and the other end portion of the second electrode is arranged to overlap with an end portion of the first electrode to which the ground voltage is applied.

4. A cleaner according to claim 2 wherein:

the first electrode or the second electrode is arranged at a lower portion of a three-phase wiring as an interface where the surface of the cleaner meets the liquid droplet,

the first electrodes are arranged in parallel or crossed with the second electrodes.

5. A cleaner according to claim 2 wherein:

a method of applying power to the first electrode is different from a method of applying power to the second electrode.

6. The cleaner of claim 2, further comprising:

a hydrophobic film formed on the second insulating film; and

a voltage applying unit for applying an alternating voltage to the first electrode and the second electrode,

wherein the application of the alternating voltage to the electrodes causes the liquid droplets to continuously vibrate, and the liquid droplets are removed in a specific direction by the vibration.

7. The cleaner of claim 2, further comprising:

A voltage applying unit that applies a high-frequency ac voltage to the first electrode and the second electrode with reference to a predetermined reference frequency; and

a switching unit for switching the high-frequency AC voltage to ON/OFF,

the high-frequency alternating voltage is switched on and off to generate a low-frequency alternating voltage, so that the high-frequency alternating voltage and the low-frequency alternating voltage are generated in one cycle, and conductive liquid drops and non-conductive liquid drops can be completely removed.

8. A cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein:

the substrate is made of a flexible material so that the cleaner has a bendable structure.

9. A cleaning apparatus, comprising:

a first layer having a first electrode and a first insulating film covering the first electrode; and

a second layer having a second electrode arranged on the first insulating film and a second insulating film covering the second electrode,

wherein the first electrodes are arranged with a first interval therebetween, and the second electrodes are arranged with a second interval therebetween,

the corresponding first electrodes are arranged between the specific second electrodes.

10. A cleaner as claimed in claim 9 wherein:

11. A cleaner as claimed in claim 9 wherein:

12. A cleaning apparatus, comprising:

wherein the first electrode or the second electrode is arranged directly below a three-phase wiring that is an interface where the surface of the cleaner meets the liquid droplet.

13. A cleaner as claimed in claim 12 wherein:

the first electrodes are arranged with a first interval therebetween, the second electrodes are arranged with a second interval therebetween,

the second electrodes are arranged with corresponding first electrodes therebetween, and the second electrodes are arranged to at least partially overlap the first electrodes.