TWM513403U - Touching-sensitive device - Google Patents

Abstract

This invention provides a touching-sensitive device that comprises a carrier structure, a sensing layer and a first polarizing layer. The carrier structure includes a thin-film layer. The sensing layer is disposed on the carrier structure. The first polarizing layer is disposed at a side opposite to the thin-film layer with respect to the sensing layer.

Description

Touch device

The present invention relates to a touch device and a method of fabricating the same, and more particularly to a touch device having a thin and light design, a good display effect, and easy manufacturing.

The touch screen is a commonly used display screen for various electronic products. For the light and thin development trend of electronic products, there are corresponding requirements for the volume and weight of the touch screen. However, since current touch screens generally use a thick substrate (for example, a glass substrate) as a carrier substrate for the sensing electrodes, it is difficult to achieve the goal of slimming. In addition, in addition to the requirements of thin and light, the display effect and durability of the touch screen are also important indicators of its performance.

Therefore, one of the objects of the present invention is to provide a touch device having a slim design and good display performance and durability.

Therefore, the touch device of the present invention comprises a carrying structure, a sensing layer and a first polarizing layer. The load bearing structure includes a film layer. The feeling The measurement layer is disposed on the load bearing structure. The first polarizing layer has a polarizing property and is located on opposite sides of the sensing layer from the thin film layer.

Preferably, the touch device further includes a liquid crystal module, the liquid crystal module includes a body containing liquid crystal molecules and a second polarizing layer, wherein the second polarizing layer has a polarizing property perpendicular to the first polarizing layer, and The bearing structure is located on opposite sides of the body, respectively.

Preferably, the carrying structure further comprises a buffer layer, the buffer layer and the film layer are stacked on each other and located between the film layer and the sensing layer.

In one embodiment, the touch device further includes a protective layer disposed on the sensing layer and located on opposite sides of the sensing layer from the carrying structure.

In one embodiment, the touch device further includes a cover plate disposed on the first polarizing layer and opposite to the protective layer on opposite sides of the first polarizing layer.

Preferably, the touch device further includes an outer frame surrounding at least the carrying structure, the sensing layer, the protective layer, the first polarizing layer and an outer edge of the liquid crystal module.

The effect of the novel is that the release and transfer of the replacement substrate can make the film layer thinner and thinner than the general carrier substrate, thereby realizing the light and thin development of the touch device. In addition, by the arrangement of the buffer layer and the protective layer, the stress of the touch device and the visible problem of the electrode pattern can be improved, and the protection effect can be provided, and the display effect and durability of the touch device can be improved.

100‧‧‧ touch device

1‧‧‧bearing structure

11‧‧‧film layer

12‧‧‧ Buffer layer

2‧‧‧Sensor layer

3‧‧‧Protective layer

4‧‧‧First polarizing layer

5‧‧‧ Cover

51‧‧‧Fitting layer

6‧‧‧Front frame

71‧‧‧Replacement substrate

72‧‧‧Adhesive layer

8‧‧‧LCD Module

81‧‧‧ Subject

82‧‧‧Second polarizing layer

S01~S19‧‧‧ Process steps

The other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a side view showing a first embodiment of the present novel touch device; FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a manufacturing process of the touch device of the first embodiment; FIG. 9 is a schematic side view of the touch device of the first embodiment; FIG. 10 is a flow chart illustrating a manufacturing process of the touch device of the second embodiment; FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 are schematic diagrams showing a part of the manufacturing process of the touch device of the second embodiment.

The above and other technical contents, features and effects of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the accompanying drawings.

Here, it is noted that the orientations "upper" and "lower" as used in the detailed description of the present embodiment are merely used to indicate relative positional relationship, and are for side view of FIG. 1, FIG. 9, etc. of the present specification. In the schematic view, the upper portion is closer to the user and the lower portion is farther away from the user, but the description of the orientation is not intended to limit the implementation of the present invention.

Further, before the present invention is described in detail, it should be noted that in the following description, like elements are denoted by the same reference numerals.

First embodiment:

Referring to FIG. 1 , a first embodiment of a touch device 100 of the present invention is illustrated. Here, the touch device 100 is applied to a liquid crystal display technology, and includes a carrier structure 1, a sensing layer 2, a protective layer 3, a first polarizing layer 4, a cover 5, and an outer frame 6 and a The liquid crystal module 8.

The carrier structure 1 is bonded to the liquid crystal module 8 by an adhesive layer (not shown), and includes a film layer 11 and a buffer layer 12 stacked on each other.

The film layer 11 is located between the liquid crystal module 8 and the buffer layer 12, and is configured to provide the buffer layer 12, the sensing layer 2, the protective layer 3, and the first polarizing layer 4 during the manufacturing process of the touch device 100. This part of the technology will be explained in the following paragraphs. In this embodiment, the film layer 11 is made of polyimine (PI), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), and polyethylene terephthalate. Diester (PET), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene (PE), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polytetrafluoroethylene, cyclic olefin copolymer (COP, Arton) The material can be made of a single layer or a plurality of layers, and is preferably made of polyimide (PI), and has a thickness ranging from 0.1 μm to 15 μm, which is much thinner than a general glass substrate or a flexible substrate. The touch device 100 can be made thinner and lighter.

The buffer layer 12 is disposed on the thin film layer 11 between the thin film layer 11 and the sensing layer 2, and is a single layer or a multilayer film structure made of an inorganic material and an organic material, and preferably has a thickness ranging from 1 to 1. Between nanometer and 300 nm, the overall thickness is much smaller than that of the film layer 11. As the inorganic material for the buffer layer 12, titanium oxide (TiO ₂ ), cerium oxide (SiO ₂ ), zirconium oxide (ZrO ₂ ), tantalum oxide (Ta ₂ O ₅ ), tungsten oxide (WO ₃ ), or cerium oxide may be selected. (Y ₂ O ₃ ), cerium oxide (CeO ₂ ), cerium oxide (Sb ₂ O ₃ ), cerium oxide (Nb ₂ O ₅ ), boron oxide (B ₂ O ₃ ), aluminum oxide (Al ₂ O ₃ ), Materials such as zinc oxide (ZnO), indium oxide (In ₂ O ₃ ), cesium fluoride (CeF ₃ ), magnesium fluoride (MgF ₂ ), and calcium fluoride (CaF ₂ ). As for the organic material part, acrylic resin, polyimine (PI), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer (ABS), polyparaphenylene can be used. High molecular weight polymers or resins such as ethylene glycol diester (PET), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene (PE), and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA). In different embodiments, the buffer layer 12 can also be made of inorganic materials and organic materials.

In the structural characteristics, the buffer layer 12 can provide various functions according to the selection of the above materials, and its thermal expansion coefficient and mechanical properties. In the thermal expansion coefficient portion, in the embodiment, the thermal expansion coefficient of the buffer layer 12 is disposed between the thin film layer 11 and the sensing layer 2, so that the structural stress between the layers can be effectively slowed down when the temperature is changed, and The durability of the touch device 100 is improved. In the mechanical performance part, the hardness of the buffer layer 12 in this embodiment is greater than that of the film layer 11, so that the load-bearing structure 1 is formed by the film layer 11 having a lower hardness but better ductility, and a buffer layer 12 having a higher hardness. It helps to perform the release process of the substrate during the manufacturing process of the touch device 100 and enhance the overall structural strength of the load-bearing structure 1. However, in different embodiments, the load-bearing structure 1 may also omit the arrangement of the buffer layer 12, that is, the load-bearing structure 1 only includes a portion of the film layer 11 and the sensing layer 2 is formed on the film of the load-bearing structure 1. On layer 11.

The sensing layer 2 is disposed on the supporting structure 1 and is opposite to the film layer 11 on opposite sides of the buffer layer 12, and includes a plurality of touch sensing electrodes (not shown) to provide a touch sensing function. In this embodiment, the touch sensing electrodes included in the sensing layer 2 can be made of indium tin oxide (ITO), aluminum zinc oxide (AZO), zinc oxide (ZnO), antimony tin oxide (ATO), and tin dioxide ( Transparent conductive materials such as SnO ₂ ) and indium oxide (In ₂ O ₃ ) or conductive materials such as nano silver, nano copper, carbon nanotubes, and metal mesh can be used when the user touches the cover 5 The corresponding touch signal is generated by the change of the capacitance value at the place.

The protective layer 3 is disposed on the sensing layer 2 and on the opposite side of the sensing layer 2 from the supporting structure 1, respectively, which can reduce the defect of the sensing layer 2 by air, moisture or other harmful substances in the external environment during the manufacturing process. Impact to provide protection. Specifically, in the present embodiment, the protective layer 3 is a single layer or a multilayer structure made of titanium oxide (TiO ₂ ), cerium oxide (SiO ₂ ), zirconium dioxide (ZrO ₂ ), or an organic material, when sensing When the layer 2 is a multi-layer structure, it is also possible to provide an effect of slowing down the electrode pattern and the electrode-free area of the sensing layer 2 to cause visible problem of the electrode pattern by different refractive index and thickness configuration. However, in different implementations, the touch device 100 may also omit the setting of the protective layer 3, and is not limited to the contents disclosed herein.

The first polarizing layer 4 is polarized, and is disposed on the protective layer 3, and is opposite to the sensing layer 2 on opposite sides of the protective layer 3, and functions as an upper polarizer of the touch device 100, and The electrode pattern visible problem of the sensing layer 2 can be alleviated by its polarization characteristics.

The cover plate 5 is disposed on the first polarizing layer 4 by the bonding layer 51 The first polarizing layer 4 is bonded to the first polarizing layer 4, and the protective layer 3 is located on opposite sides of the first polarizing layer 4, and is a surface layer structure of the touch device 100. In this embodiment, the cover 5 can be made of a hard or flexible material. For example, the cover plate 5 may specifically be glass, sapphire glass, polyimine (PI), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polyparaphenylene. Made of ethylene diformate (PET), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene (PE), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), etc. The structural strength of each surface can be further enhanced by the strengthening treatment. In addition, the upper surface of the cover 5 is a surface for the user to touch, and may be configured as a flat surface as shown in FIG. 1 or as an arc surface having a high or low undulation as needed, or the touch device 100 may omit the cover. The setting of 5 directly uses the first polarizing layer 4 as the surface structure of the touch device 100, and is not limited to the specific implementation type.

The outer frame 6 can be made of metal, plastic or the like, and surrounds the outer edges of the supporting structure 1, the sensing layer 2, the protective layer 3, the first polarizing layer 4, the cover 5 and the liquid crystal module 8, to provide assembly, The function of protecting, decorating, and the like also serves to shield the peripheral circuit of the touch device 100, thereby omitting an additional shielding layer on the cover 5.

The liquid crystal module 8 includes a main body 81 containing liquid crystal molecules and a second polarizing layer 82. The main body 81 includes a liquid crystal layer, a color filter layer, a thin film transistor layer, and an alignment layer (not shown), and is a main member for controlling the display screen of the touch device 100. The polarizing property of the second polarizing layer 82 is perpendicular to the first polarizing layer 4, and is opposite to the supporting structure 1 on the opposite sides of the main body 81, and is a lower polarizer structure of the touch device 100.

Referring to the flowchart of FIG. 2 and the process diagrams of FIGS. 3 to 8, a method of manufacturing the touch device 100 of the present embodiment will be described below.

Step S01: First, a first polarizing layer 4, a cover 5, an outer frame 6, a replacement substrate 71, and a liquid crystal module 8 are prepared in this step.

Since the manufacturing method of the present embodiment is performed by the substrate release technology, some of the above components belong to a temporary structure temporarily used in the manufacturing process, and the other components belong to the final structure of the touch device 100. . Specifically, since the replacement substrate 71 belongs to the above-described temporary structure, a relatively low cost transparent/opaque substrate such as a raw glass can be used, and the recycling can be repeated. The first polarizing layer 4, the cover 5, the outer frame 6, and the liquid crystal module 8 belong to the final structure.

Step S02: Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, in this step, the adhesive layer 72, the film layer 11, and the buffer layer 12 are sequentially formed on the replacement substrate 71.

The adhesive layer 72 is disposed on the outer edge region of the replacement substrate 71, which belongs to a temporary structure during the fabrication process, and may employ an adhesion promoter comprising a functional group of the organophilic material and a functional group of the parental material. It is formed on the replacement substrate 71 by solution coating and re-solidification. Since the adhesion between the adhesive layer 72 and the replacement substrate 71 is better than the adhesion between the film layer 11 and the replacement substrate 71, the problem of insufficient bonding strength between the film layer 11 and the replacement substrate 71 can be reinforced. Conducive to the process. Further, depending on the characteristics of the adhesive layer 72 and the film layer 11 which have different adhesion to the replacement substrate 71, the release process of the replacement substrate 71 can be facilitated in the subsequent process. However, according to different embodiments, this embodiment is also The adhesive layer 72 may be disposed on the entire surface of the replacement substrate 71 or may be omitted, and is not limited to the foregoing.

The film layer 11 can be formed on the replacement substrate 71 by a solution coating reheat baking method using the material described in the preceding paragraph, and can be further modified by composition, structural modification, copolymerization, blending, and the like. Although the film layer 11 is a load-bearing structure for other structures to be fabricated in the subsequent manufacturing process, due to the support of the replacement substrate 71, a thinner structural layer can be fabricated, and the finished touch device 100 can be made. Lightweight structural features.

The buffer layer 12 can be fabricated by physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition, solution coating curing, printing, photolithography, etc., and can enhance the bearing capacity of the load-bearing structure 1 to facilitate subsequent release of the replacement substrate 71. Of course, this step can also omit the fabrication of the buffer layer 12 as needed.

Step S03: Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 4, in this step, the sensing layer 2 is formed on the buffer layer 12. The sensing layer 2 may include a patterned electrode layer, and the sensing layer 2 may be a single layer or a multilayer structure. The material of the sensing layer 2 can be formed by physical vapor deposition technology such as sputtering or vapor deposition in combination with photolithography, or can be produced by techniques such as printing and spraying, and is not limited to a specific manufacturing method.

Step S04: Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 5, in this step, the protective layer 3 is formed on the sensing layer 2. Specifically, the protective layer 3 can be formed by physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition, ink jet printing, slit coating, spin coating, spray coating or roller coating. Coating), etc., but not limited to such technology. Of course, the reality Further, the manufacturing method of the present embodiment may omit the fabrication of the protective layer 3 in step S06.

Step S05: Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 6, this step is to provide a first polarizing layer 4 on the protective layer 3. The first polarizing layer 4 can be bonded to the protective layer 3 by an adhesive layer (not shown), and can be used not only as an upper polarizing layer of the touch device 100 but also as a carrier substrate after the replacement substrate 71 is removed.

Step S06: Referring to FIG. 1 , FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 , in this step, the replacement substrate 71 is removed, and the bearing layer 1 , the sensing layer 2 , the protective layer 3 , and the first polarizing layer 4 are formed as shown in FIG. 8 . structure.

Specifically, this step is first cut along the position corresponding to the adhesive layer 72 (as shown by the L1 line in FIG. 13), and the structure including the adhesive layer 72 is cut away to form the structure as shown in FIG. Alternatively, in different embodiments, the cutting process can also be performed by a suitable process control without damaging the replacement substrate 71, so that the replacement substrate 71 can be repeated again after being released. use.

After the above-mentioned dicing process, since the adhesive layer 72 having no strong adhesion between the film layer 11 and the replacement substrate 71 is reinforced, the replacement substrate 71 can be easily immersed in solution, heat-treated, and cold-treated. The external force peeling or the combination of the foregoing is separated from the film layer 11. The solution used may be a solution of water, alcohol, propylene glycol methyl ether acetate (PGMEA) solution, or polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP). On the other hand, in the heat treatment and the cold treatment, the replacement substrate 71 is heated or cooled, and the film layer 11 and the replacement substrate 71 have different thermal expansion coefficients and are released.

Steps S07 and S08: Referring to Fig. 1 and Fig. 8, in this step, the structure produced in step S06 is attached to the liquid crystal module 8, and the cover 5 is attached to the structure produced in step S06. Specifically, in step S07, the assembly member is attached to the main body 81 of the liquid crystal module 8 from the side of the film layer 11 by an adhesive layer (not shown), and the step S08 is performed by the bonding layer 51 (not shown). The cover plate 5 is attached to the first polarizing layer 4.

It should be particularly noted that when the first polarizing layer 4 having a strong structural strength is used in the embodiment, the touch device 100 can be used as the surface layer structure by the first polarizing layer 4, and the setting of the cover 5 is omitted, and step S08 is not required. Production process.

Step S09: Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 8, after the bonding process of the cover 5 is completed in step S08, the assembly process of the outer frame 6 is performed in this step, that is, the fabrication of the touch device 100 is completed.

According to the above manufacturing process, in the present embodiment, the thickness of the thin film layer 11 can be minimized by the arrangement and the release technique of the replacement substrate 71, and the touch device 100 can be made thinner and lighter. However, the above production process can be adjusted as needed.

For example, in this embodiment, another replacement substrate (hereinafter referred to as a second replacement substrate) may be prepared in step S01; in step S05, the second replacement substrate is disposed on the protective layer 3, and the first polarization is not performed first. The layer 4 is disposed, that is, the portion of the first polarizing layer 4 is replaced by the second replacement substrate; subsequently, the supporting structure 1, the sensing layer 2, the protective layer 3, the first polarizing layer 4, and the second layer are included in step S07. After the structure of the replacement substrate is disposed in the liquid crystal module 8, the second replacement substrate is first removed, and then the first polarizing layer 4 is disposed on the protection. On the layer 3, the cover 5 of the steps S08 and S09 and the mounting of the outer frame are further performed, that is, the manufacturing of the touch device 100 of the first embodiment can be completed slightly different from the previous process.

Second embodiment:

Referring to FIG. 9, a second embodiment of the touch device 100 of the present invention is shown. In this embodiment, the components of the touch device 100 are substantially the same as those of the first embodiment, and the main difference is the portion of the outer frame 6.

In this embodiment, the outer frame 6 does not cover the portion of the cover 5, so the cover 5 is attached to the first polarizing layer 4 and the outer frame 6 by the bonding layer. Moreover, according to this structural difference, the manner of manufacture is also different from the first embodiment described above.

Referring to FIGS. 9 to 12, a method of manufacturing the touch device 100 of the present embodiment will be described below.

Steps S11 to S16: These steps are similar to the foregoing steps S01 to S06, and therefore the description will not be repeated.

Step S17: Referring to FIG. 9 and FIG. 11, this step is similar to the foregoing step S07, and the structure including the carrier structure 1, the sensing layer 2, the protective layer 3, and the first polarizing layer 4 of the replacement substrate 71 is removed from the film layer. The 11 side is attached to the main body 81 of the liquid crystal module 8.

Steps S18 and S19: Referring to FIG. 9 and FIG. 12, the steps of the assembly process of the outer frame 6 are performed in step S18, and then the bonding process of the cover 5 is performed by the bonding layer 51 to complete the embodiment. The manufacture of the touch device 100.

Combining the above two embodiments, the touch device 100 of the present invention borrows The sensing layer 2 is formed on the supporting structure 1 by the supporting action of the replacement substrate 71, and the film layer 11 and the sensing layer formed thereon are further transferred by the displacement of the other replacement substrate or the first polarizing layer 4. 2 is attached to the cover plate 5 or the main body 81 of the liquid crystal module 8, so that the thin film layer 11 can be made thinner than the general carrier substrate, and the touch device 100 can be made thinner and lighter. In addition, by the arrangement of the buffer layer 12 and the protective layer 3, the stress of the touch device 100, the problem of visible electrode patterns, and the protection can be provided. Moreover, the first polarizing layer 4 of the present embodiment can be used not only as the upper polarizing layer of the touch device 100 but also as a carrier substrate in the manufacturing process of the touch device 100, and can slow down the sensing layer 2 by its polarization characteristics. The electrode pattern is visible. Therefore, the novel touch device 100 and the manufacturing method thereof can truly achieve the object of the present invention.

However, the above description is only for the embodiments of the present invention, and the scope of the present invention cannot be limited thereto, that is, the simple equivalent changes and modifications made by the present patent application scope and the contents of the patent specification are still It is within the scope of this new patent.

100‧‧‧ touch device

1‧‧‧bearing structure

11‧‧‧film layer

12‧‧‧ Buffer layer

2‧‧‧Sensor layer

3‧‧‧Protective layer

4‧‧‧First polarizing layer

5‧‧‧ Cover

51‧‧‧Fitting layer

6‧‧‧Front frame

8‧‧‧LCD Module

81‧‧‧ Subject

82‧‧‧Second polarizing layer

Claims (6)

A touch device includes: a load-bearing structure including a film layer; a sensing layer disposed on the load-bearing structure; and a first polarizing layer, having a polarizing property, and the film layer is respectively located on the sensing layer Two opposite sides. The touch device of claim 1, further comprising a liquid crystal module, the liquid crystal module comprising a body containing liquid crystal molecules and a second polarizing layer, wherein the second polarizing layer has a polarization perpendicular to the first The polarizing layer is located on opposite sides of the main body from the supporting structure. The touch device of claim 2, wherein the carrying structure further comprises a buffer layer, the buffer layer and the film layer are stacked on each other and located between the film layer and the sensing layer. The touch device of claim 3, further comprising a protective layer disposed on the sensing layer and located on opposite sides of the sensing layer respectively. The touch device of claim 4, further comprising a cover plate disposed on the first polarizing layer and located on opposite sides of the first polarizing layer from the protective layer. The touch device of claim 4 or 5, further comprising an outer frame, the outer frame at least surrounding the carrying structure, the sensing layer, the protective layer, the first polarizing layer and the outside of the liquid crystal module edge.