JP2015197910A - Manufacturing method of touch panel - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a manufacturing method of a touch panel which increases invisibility of a conductor line by blackening a metal that forms the conductor line.SOLUTION: A conductor line is formed by: a step of forming a mask pattern MP by exposing and developing a partial region of a photoresist provided on a base plate 210; a step of forming a first blackening film 245a on the surface of a groove part defined as a space between the mask pattern and the mask pattern; a step of forming a metal film 243a so that an upper surface becomes flat from the first blackening film and the groove part; a step of forming a second blackening film 247a through oxidation of the metal film; and a step of removing the mask pattern.

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a touch panel.

  The capacitive touch screen includes a plurality of electrodes having a certain pattern, and a plurality of nodes where a change in capacitance is generated by a touch input is defined by the plurality of electrodes. A plurality of nodes distributed in a two-dimensional plane generates a change in self-capacitance (Self-Capacitance) or combined capacitance (Mutual-Capacitance) by touch input, and the capacitance generated by the plurality of nodes is changed. The coordinates of the touch input can be calculated by applying a weighted average calculation method or the like to the change.

  In general, in a touch panel, a sensing electrode for recognizing a touch is formed of ITO (Indium Tin Oxide, indium-tin oxide). However, in the case of ITO, indium (Indium), which is a raw material, is a rare earth metal and is expensive, the price competitiveness is lowered, and it is expected that the material will be depleted within 10 years, so that there is a problem that supply and demand is not smooth.

  For the reasons described above, research has been conducted to form an electrode using an opaque conductor wire, and the electrode formed of the conductor wire is superior in electrical conductivity compared to ITO or a conductive polymer, There is an advantage that supply and demand is smooth.

  However, when a conductor wire is used as an electrode for a touch screen, there is a problem that light reflection occurs due to a unique hue of metal, and the conductor wire is easily visually recognized by the user.

Korean Published Patent No. 10-2011-0089423

  The subject of this invention is providing the manufacturing method of the touchscreen which can increase the invisibility of a conductor line by blackening the metal which forms a conductor line.

  A touch panel manufacturing method according to an embodiment of the present invention is defined as a step of exposing and developing a partial region of a photoresist provided on a substrate to form a mask pattern, and a space between the mask pattern and the mask pattern. Forming a first black film on the surface of the groove, forming a metal film so that an upper surface is flat from the first black film and the groove, and oxidizing the metal film; Peeling off the mask pattern.

  The step of forming the first blackening film can be omitted.

  In the step of forming the first black film, the first black film may be formed using a vacuum deposition method.

  The vacuum deposition method may include a sputtering method.

  The step of forming the metal film may form the metal film using a fill plating method.

  The thickness of the metal film can be determined by the thickness of the photoresist.

  The metal film formed on the groove may have a thickness of 1 to 5 μm.

  The step of oxidizing the metal film may be performed for a time sufficient to remove the metal film on the mask pattern.

  In the step of peeling off the mask pattern, the mask pattern can be peeled off using a peeling solution.

  The metal film is made of any one of silver (Ag), aluminum (Al), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), molybdenum (Mo), and copper (Cu), or an alloy thereof. be able to.

  The first blackening film may be formed of black nickel.

  The present invention can increase the invisibility of a conductor wire by blackening the metal forming the conductor wire.

  In addition, by removing the metal material on the mask pattern before peeling off the mask pattern, the manufacturing process can be simplified and the defect rate of the touch panel can be reduced.

1 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of an electronic device including a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is the front view which showed the touchscreen by one Embodiment of this invention. 3 is a detailed view of a touch panel according to the embodiment of FIG. 2. 3 is a detailed view of a touch panel according to the embodiment of FIG. 2. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram provided to explain a method of manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram provided to explain a method of manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram provided to explain a method of manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram provided to explain a method of manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram provided to explain a method of manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram provided to explain a method of manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the embodiments of the present invention can be modified in various other forms, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below. In addition, the embodiments of the present invention are provided to more fully explain the present invention to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the shape and size of elements in the drawings may be exaggerated for a clearer description.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an appearance of an electronic device including a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 1, the electronic apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment is integrally formed with a display device 110 for outputting a screen, an input unit 120, an audio unit 130 for outputting sound, and the display device 110. A touch screen device can be included, and a touch panel can be included in the touch screen device.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the case of a mobile device, a touch screen device is generally provided so as to be integrated with a display device, and the touch screen device has a light that is high enough to transmit a screen indicated by the display device. Must have transmittance. Accordingly, the touch screen device includes PET (Polyethylene terephthalate), PC (Polycarbonate), PES (Polyethersulfone), PI (Polyimide), PMMA (Polymethylmethacrylate), COP (Cyclo-Olefin Glass, etc.). Alternatively, it may be realized by forming an electrode with a material having electrical conductivity on a transparent substrate made of a material such as tempered glass. A wiring pattern connected to an electrode formed of an electrically conductive material is disposed in the bezel region of the touch screen device, and the wiring pattern is visually shielded by the bezel region.

  The touch screen device according to the present invention may include a plurality of electrodes having a predetermined pattern in order to operate according to a capacitive method. Further, the touch screen device includes a capacitance sensing circuit for detecting a change in capacitance generated by a plurality of electrodes and an analog-digital conversion circuit that converts an output signal of the capacitance sensing circuit into a digital value. An arithmetic circuit that determines touch input using data converted into a digital value may be included.

  FIG. 2 is a view illustrating a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 2, the touch panel 200 according to the present embodiment includes a substrate 210, an electrode unit 220 provided on the substrate 210, and a pad unit 230 including a plurality of pads respectively connected to the electrode unit 220. In addition, although not shown in FIG. 2, the pad part 230 connected to the electrode part 220 is electrically connected to the wiring pattern of the circuit board attached to one end of the substrate 210 by the wiring electrode and the bonding pad. be able to. A controller integrated circuit is mounted on the circuit board, and a sensing signal generated in the electrode unit 220 can be detected to determine a touch input.

  The substrate 210 may be a transparent substrate on which the electrode unit 220 is formed. As described above, the substrate 210 is made of PET (Polyethylene terephthalate), PC (Polycarbonate), PES (Polyethersulfone), PI (Polyimide), PMMA (Polymethymethacrylate), COP (Cyclo-Olyso-Plasma), COP (Cyclo-Olysine Glass, etc.). glass or tempered glass.

  The electrode unit 220 may include a first electrode 223 that extends in the X-axis direction and a second electrode 226 that extends in the Y-axis direction. The first electrode 223 and the second electrode 226 may be provided on both surfaces of the substrate 210 or may be provided on the different substrates 210 and cross each other. When both are provided on one surface of the substrate 210, a predetermined insulating layer can be partially formed at the intersection of the first electrode 223 and the second electrode 226. Unlike this, the first electrode 223 and the second electrode 226 may be provided on different substrates and cross each other.

  Further, in addition to the region where the electrode part 220 is formed, in the region where the pad part 230 connected to the electrode part 220 is provided, generally, the wiring formed of an opaque metal material is visually shielded. The predetermined printing area can be formed on the substrate 210.

  The touch input sensing device electrically connected to the electrode unit 220 detects a change in capacitance generated in the electrode unit 220 by the touch input, and senses the touch input. The first electrode 223 is connected to channels defined as D1 to D8 in the controller integrated circuit to receive a predetermined driving signal, and the second electrode 226 is connected to a channel defined as S1 to S8. A touch sensing device can be used to detect the sensing signal. At this time, the controller integrated circuit can detect a change in the combined capacitance generated between the first electrode 223 and the second electrode 226 to obtain a sensing signal. It is possible to operate in such a manner that a drive signal is sequentially applied to the first electrode 223 and a change in capacitance is simultaneously detected by the second electrode 226.

  When a driving signal is applied to the first electrode 223 through the channels D1 to D8, a coupling capacitance is generated between the first electrode 223 and the second electrode 226 to which the driving signal is applied. When a contact object is brought into contact with the touch panel, a change in capacitance occurs due to the combined capacitance generated between the first electrode 223 and the second electrode 226 that are adjacent to the region in contact with the contact object. The change in capacitance can be proportional to the area of the contact object.

  3 and 4 are diagrams for explaining the touch panel according to the embodiment of FIG. 2 in more detail. Referring to FIG. 3, the electrode unit 220 may be formed of a conductor line, and the conductor line that configures the electrode unit 220 may be formed in a net shape or a mesh shape. By forming the conductor lines in a mesh or mesh, it is possible to reduce the phenomenon of patterning marks appearing in a region where a conventional ITO (Indium-Tin Oxide) electrode is present, and improve the transparency of the touch panel.

  In FIG. 3, the conductor wire constituting the electrode unit 220 is shown to be formed in a diamond shape or a square shape. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the hexagonal shape, the octagonal shape, the diamond shape, and the random shape, etc. Any range that can be clearly or easily derived by those skilled in the art may be used. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 4, it can also be formed linearly.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating a cross section of a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 5, the conductor wire constituting the electrode unit 220 includes a metal layer 243 formed in a predetermined pattern on one surface of the substrate, a laminated surface of the metal layer 243 on the substrate 210 (a lower surface of the metal layer 243), and a metal layer The first blackening layer 245 formed on the side surface of the H.243 and the second blackening layer 247 formed on the upper surface of the metal layer 243 may be included.

  The metal layer 243 is made of any one of silver (Ag), aluminum (Al), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), molybdenum (Mo), copper (Cu), or an alloy thereof. Can do. Thus, the electrode part 220 is made of metal, so that the resistance value of the electrode is reduced, and the conductivity and detection sensitivity can be improved.

  However, when the metal layer 243 is implemented with the above metal material, light reflection due to a unique hue of the metal occurs and the metal layer 243 can be easily visually recognized by the user. In addition, by forming the first blackening layer 245 on the side surface, the visual characteristics of the touch panel can be improved when the user views the touch panel from the other surface side of the substrate 210.

  Further, by forming the second blackening layer 247 on the upper surface of the metal layer 243, the metal layer 243 can be prevented from being visually recognized even when the user views the touch panel from one surface side of the substrate.

  6a to 6f are views provided for explaining a method of manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, the manufacturing method of the touch panel according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6A to 6F.

  The method for manufacturing a touch panel according to an embodiment of the present invention starts with coating a photoresist PR on one surface of the substrate 210 (FIG. 6a). Thereafter, a predetermined region of the photoresist PR is exposed and developed to form a mask pattern MP (FIG. 6b). The predetermined region is used to form a conductor line of the electrode portion shown in FIGS. Can correspond to the area.

  Subsequently, a first blackening film 245a is formed on the surface of the groove defined as the space between the upper and side surfaces of the mask pattern MP and the mask pattern MP (FIG. 6c). At this time, the first blackened film 245a can be formed by depositing black nickel using a vacuum deposition method such as a sputtering method or an electron beam (E-Beam) method. . Here, the thickness of the first blackening film 245a from the upper surface of the mask pattern MP, the thickness from the side surface of the mask pattern MP, and the thickness from one surface of the substrate can be the same.

  Next, one surface of the substrate 210 is plated with one of silver (Ag), aluminum (Al), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), molybdenum (Mo), and copper (Cu), or an alloy thereof. Thus, a metal film 243a is formed (FIG. 6d). The metal material may be plated to fill the groove, so that the upper surface of the metal film 243a can be formed flat.

  For example, a fill plating method can be used to form the metal film 243a. Thereby, the thickness of the metal film 243a formed on the groove may be larger than the thickness of the metal film 243a formed on the mask pattern MP. At this time, the thickness of the metal film 243a formed on the groove can be determined by the thickness of the mask pattern MP or the thickness of the photoresist PR that is first coated on the substrate 210. The thickness of the metal film 243a to be formed can be freely designed with 1 to 5 μm.

  After forming the metal film 243a, the metal film 243a is oxidized to form a second blackening film 247a (FIG. 6e). At this time, the oxidation process is performed for a time sufficient to remove the metal film 243a formed on the mask pattern MP, and the metal film 243a formed on the mask pattern MP can be removed.

  After forming the blackening film 247a, the mask pattern MP is peeled off, and the touch panel can be manufactured as shown in FIG. 5 (FIG. 6f). At this time, as an example, a photoresist stripping solution can be used to strip the mask pattern MP.

  Since the metal film does not remain on the mask pattern when the mask pattern MP is peeled off, no further cleaning process or the like is required, so that the manufacturing process can be simplified and the defect rate of the touch panel can be reduced.

  According to another embodiment of the present invention, the process for manufacturing the first blackened layer 245, that is, the process corresponding to FIG. 6c may be omitted. At this time, the metal film 243a can be formed such that the upper surface of the mask pattern and the surface of the groove are flat. The subsequent steps are similar to the steps described in FIGS. 6e and 6f, and thus detailed description thereof is omitted.

  Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the scope of the right of the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications and modifications can be made without departing from the technical idea of the present invention described in the claims. It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that variations are possible.

210 Substrate 220 Electrode 223 First electrode 226 Second electrode 230 Pad 243 Metal layer 245 First black layer 247 Second black layer PR Photoresist MP Mask pattern 243a Metal film 245a First black film 247a Second black Chemical film

Claims (17)

Exposing and developing a partial region of the photoresist provided on the substrate to form a mask pattern;
Forming a first blackening film on a surface of a groove defined as a space between the mask pattern and the mask pattern;
Forming a metal film so that an upper surface is flat from the first blackening film and the groove;
Oxidizing the metal film;
Peeling the mask pattern. A method for manufacturing a touch panel.   The method of manufacturing a touch panel according to claim 1, wherein forming the first blackened film includes forming the first blackened film using a vacuum deposition method.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 2, wherein the vacuum deposition method includes a sputtering method.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein forming the metal film includes forming the metal film using a fill plating method.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the metal film is determined by the thickness of the photoresist.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the metal film formed on the groove has a thickness of 1 to 5 μm.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the step of oxidizing the metal film is performed for a time sufficient to remove the metal film on the mask pattern.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein in the step of peeling the mask pattern, the mask pattern is peeled off using a peeling solution.   The metal film is formed of any one of silver (Ag), aluminum (Al), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), molybdenum (Mo), and copper (Cu), or an alloy thereof. The manufacturing method of the touchscreen of Claim 1.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the first blackening film is formed of black nickel. Exposing and developing a partial region of the photoresist provided on the substrate to form a mask pattern;
Forming a metal film such that the upper surface is flat from the surface of the groove defined as the upper surface of the mask pattern and the space between the mask patterns;
Oxidizing the metal film;
Peeling the mask pattern. A method for manufacturing a touch panel.   The method of manufacturing a touch panel according to claim 11, wherein forming the metal film includes forming the metal film using a fill plating method.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 11, wherein a thickness of the metal film is determined by a thickness of the photoresist.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 11, wherein the metal film formed on the groove has a thickness of 1 to 5 μm.   The touch panel manufacturing method according to claim 11, wherein the step of oxidizing the metal film is performed for a time sufficient to remove the metal film on the mask pattern.   The method for manufacturing a touch panel according to claim 11, wherein in the step of peeling the mask pattern, the mask pattern is peeled off using a peeling solution.   The metal film is formed of any one of silver (Ag), aluminum (Al), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), molybdenum (Mo), and copper (Cu), or an alloy thereof. The manufacturing method of the touchscreen of Claim 11.

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