Angular selective light control sheeting and method of making the same

Abstract

An angular selective light control sheeting and a method of making the same are disclosed. The light control sheeting includes a layer of an optically clear elastic material which has a series of parallel slits formed by means of surface slitting with a sharp object such as a razor or blade. Each slit is filled with an opaque material which prevents light transmission through the slit walls. The method includes a step of slitting of an elastic, optically transmissive plastic sheet with a blade and forming at least one array of substantially parallel linear slits in a surface of the sheet, a step of stretching the sheet in a direction perpendicular to the linear slits, and a step of introducing an opaque material into the interior of the slits.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims priority from U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 62 / 072,283 filed on Oct. 29, 2014, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT[0002]Not ApplicableINCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC[0003]Not ApplicableNOTICE OF MATERIAL SUBJECT TO COPYRIGHT PROTECTION[0004]A portion of the material in this patent document is subject to copyright protection under the copyright laws of the United States and of other countries. The owner of the copyright rights has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office publicly available file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever. The copyright owner does not hereby waive any of its rights to have this patent document maintained in secrecy, inclu...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0013]According to one embodiment, angular selective light control sheeting is formed from an optically transmissive elastic material that allows for its slitting using a sharp object such as a blade or razor. According to one embodiment, micro-louvers are produced by slitting a surface of the material using one or more blades and introducing an opaque material into the slits. In one embodiment, the material may be stretched to accommodate slitting and / or introducing the opaque material. Once the opaque material is introduced into the slits and optionally cured, the slits may be allowed to close upon themselves to form a monolithic structure. In one embodiment, the structural characteristics of the formed structure are enhanced by including an adhesive material into the opaque material or otherwise fusing the slits using heat or other suitable means.

Problems solved by technology

The conventional light control films may exhibit certain disadvantages and can be relatively difficult and / or expensive to manufacture at an industrial scale.

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