touch sensor

Abstract

The present invention relates to a touch sensor comprising a first electrode layer, a second electrode layer and an insulating layer. The first electrode layer comprises the following items located on the same lower plane: a first main electrode unit connected and arranged in a first direction; and a second auxiliary electrode unit, which is separated from the first main electrode unit and arranged separated in a second direction. The second electrode layer comprises the following items located on the same upper plane: a first auxiliary electrode unit, which is arranged separated in the first direction and stacked and connected to the first main electrode unit, while having the same pattern as the first main electrode unit; and a second main electrode unit, which is separated from the first auxiliary electrode unit, connected and arranged in the second direction, and stacked and connected to the second auxiliary electrode unit, while having the same pattern as the second auxiliary electrode unit. The insulating layer is formed between the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a touch sensor, and more particularly, to a touch sensor that increases transmittance and aperture ratio while reducing resistance, reduces pattern visibility, and does not require a bridge portion. Background Art

[0002] The touch sensor includes an electrode layer for sensing a user's touch operation. The electrode layer includes a plurality of electrode units arranged to intersect and spaced apart from each other. The electrode layer is divided into an electrode unit area where the electrode units are present and an inter-unit area where the electrode units are not present.

[0003] The electrode unit region and the inter-unit region may have different optical properties (eg, transmittance and reflectivity). Therefore, there is a distinction between the electrode unit region and the inter-unit region, which causes a problem of being distinguished by the user.

[0004] To solve this problem, Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2014-0051649 (Metal Mesh Touch Screen Panel) proposes forming an electrode layer with a metal mesh. Korean Patent Registration No. 10-1952770 prevents or minimizes visibility of electrode cell areas and inter-cell areas by forming fine patterns on transparent oxide electrode cells.

[0005] However, in the prior art, when the electrode layer is formed of a metal mesh and the electrode units are connected by bridges, the bridges are visually discernible. In addition, when the electrode (metal mesh) area is increased to reduce resistance, the aperture ratio and transmittance may decrease. Therefore, it is difficult to simultaneously achieve a reduction in resistance and an increase in aperture ratio / transmittance in the prior art. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Technical issues

[0007] An object of the present invention is to reduce electrical resistance while maintaining the same aperture ratio.

[0008] Another object of the present invention is to increase the aperture ratio (or transmittance) based on the same resistance.

[0009] Yet another object of the present invention is to improve visibility.

[0010] Yet another object of the present invention is to solve the problem of visually identifying bridge portions by not using bridge portions.

[0011] Technical Solution

[0012] The touch sensor of the present invention for achieving this object may include a first electrode layer, a second electrode layer, an insulating layer, and the like.

[0013] The first electrode layer may include a first main electrode unit and a second auxiliary electrode unit formed on the same lower plane.

[0014] The first main electrode units may be connected and arranged in a first direction.

[0015] The second auxiliary electrode units may be arranged spaced apart in the second direction, and may also be spaced apart from the first main electrode unit.

[0016] The second electrode layer may include a first auxiliary electrode unit and a second main electrode unit formed on the same upper plane.

[0017] The first auxiliary electrode units may be spaced apart and arranged in a first direction as an arrangement direction of the first main electrode units and stacked on the first main electrode units while having the same pattern as the first main electrode units and being vertically connected.

[0018] The second main electrode unit may be connected and arranged in a second direction that is the same as the arrangement direction of the second auxiliary electrode unit, and stacked on the second auxiliary electrode unit while having the same pattern as the second auxiliary electrode unit and being vertically connected. The second main electrode unit may also be separated from the first auxiliary electrode unit.

[0019] An insulating layer may be formed between the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer.

[0020] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the insulating layer may be formed in a crossing region between the first main electrode unit and the second main electrode unit.

[0021] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the first and second main electrode units and the first and second auxiliary electrode units may have a grid pattern.

[0022] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the insulating layer may exist in the form of islands in the intersection area of ​​the first main electrode unit and the second main electrode unit. The insulating layer may include 1 to 9 insulating pads that vertically insulate the intersection area of ​​the first main electrode unit and the second main electrode unit.

[0023] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the insulating layer may include four insulating pads.

[0024] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the mesh pattern may be made of metal.

[0025] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the insulating pad may have the same width as a line width of the mesh pattern of the first main electrode unit and the second main electrode unit.

[0026] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the insulating pad may have a width greater than a line width of the mesh pattern of the first main electrode unit and the second main electrode unit.

[0027] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the mesh pattern may have a line width of 2 μm to 7 μm.

[0028] In the touch sensor of the present invention, the mesh pattern may have a pitch of 150 μm to 450 μm.

[0029] Beneficial effects

[0030] According to the present invention having such a structure, a first electrode layer having a first main electrode unit and a second auxiliary electrode unit and a second electrode layer having a second main electrode unit and a first auxiliary electrode unit are stacked and connected one above the other, and the electrode units are arranged in a grid pattern. Thus, the present invention can reduce resistance at the same aperture ratio and increase aperture ratio (or transmittance) at the same resistance.

[0031] In the present invention, the first and second electrode layers are insulated by island-shaped insulating pads, and the insulating pads are formed to a width close to (ideally, identical to) the line width of the metal grid. Thus, the present invention can prevent or minimize the visibility of the insulating layer.

[0032] Furthermore, the present invention adopts a structure without a bridge portion, thereby fundamentally solving the problem of the bridge portion being identified. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] Figure 1 is a combined plan view of a touch sensor according to the present invention.

[0034] Figure 2 is a combined three-dimensional diagram of a touch sensor according to the present invention.

[0035] Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of a touch sensor according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0037] Figures 1 to 3 They are respectively a combined plan view, a combined stereoscopic view, and an exploded stereoscopic view of a touch sensor according to the present invention.

[0038] like Figures 1 to 3 As shown, the touch sensor according to the present invention may include a base layer 10 , electrode layers 20 and 40 , an insulating layer 30 , and the like.

[0039] The base layer 10 is a substrate of the electrode layers 20 and 40 and may be made of, for example, cycloolefin polymer (COP), polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polymethyl methacrylate, polyimide, polyethylene naphthalate, polyethersulfone, or the like.

[0040] When the touch sensor is manufactured by a transfer method, the base layer 10 may be a separator layer, a protective layer, or a laminate of a separator layer and a protective layer.

[0041] The separation layer may be made of an organic polymer film such as polyimide, polyvinyl alcohol, polyamic acid, polyamide, polyethylene, polystyrene, polynorbornene, or the like.

[0042] The protective layer may include at least one of an organic insulating layer and an inorganic insulating layer, and it can be formed by coating / curing or deposition.

[0043] The electrode layers 20 and 40 may include electrodes regularly arranged and connected on the base layer 10 (e.g., in the horizontal direction (see FIG. Figures 1 to 3 along the X-axis) and along the vertical direction (see Figures 1 to 3 The electrode units 21, 22, 41, and 42 may have various planar shapes, such as a triangle, a quadrangle, a rhombus, a pentagon, a hexagon, and the like.

[0044] The electrode layers 20 and 40 may be made of a conductive metal. The conductive metal may be, for example, gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr), aluminum (Al), silver-palladium-copper alloy (APC), etc. The electrode layers 20 and 40 may be made of a conductive metal alone, or they may be made of a laminate such as a three-layer laminate of nickel-copper layer / copper layer / nickel-copper layer, a three-layer laminate of nickel-copper layer / copper layer / nickel layer, a two-layer laminate of nickel-copper layer / copper layer, or a three-layer laminate of black nickel layer / copper layer / black nickel layer.

[0045] The electrode layers 20 and 40 may be formed of metal in a mesh pattern. In this case, the electrode layers 20 and 40 may have a two-layer structure, for example, by laminating the first electrode layer 20 and the second electrode layer 40 to further reduce resistance.

[0046] like Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the first electrode layer 20 may be formed on the same lower plane, for example, formed on the base layer 10. The first electrode layer 20 may include a first main electrode unit 21 and a second auxiliary electrode unit 22.

[0047] The first main electrode units 21 may be arranged in a first direction ( Figure 3 The first main electrode unit 21 may have a conductive metal mesh pattern in a diamond shape.

[0048] The second auxiliary electrode units 22 may be spaced apart and arranged in the second direction, for example, in a direction perpendicular to the arrangement of the first main electrode units 21 ( Figure 3The second auxiliary electrode unit 22 may also be physically and electrically separated from the first main electrode unit 21. Similar to the first main electrode unit 21, the second auxiliary electrode unit 22 may have a diamond-shaped conductive metal mesh pattern.

[0049] The first electrode layer 20 can be formed by, for example, a photolithography process. For example, a conductive metal is first formed on the base layer 10 , and then a photoresist is applied, a mask is aligned, exposed, and developed.

[0050] The insulating layer 30 may be configured to protrude in a direction of the second electrode layer 40 in a crossing region of the first main electrode unit 21 and the second auxiliary electrode unit 22 .

[0051] The insulating layer 30 may be formed only in the connection area of ​​the first main electrode unit 21. When the first main electrode unit 21 and the second auxiliary electrode unit 22 are configured in a grid pattern, the insulating layer 30 may be formed only on the connection pattern (or wiring) of the first main electrode unit 21. At this time, the insulating layer 30 may be configured to be spaced apart in the form of islands. In this case, the insulating layer 30 may be formed as an insulating pad having a planar shape (e.g., a circle or a square), which is applied to the connection pattern of the first main electrode unit 21 and closes it. The insulating pad may be formed only at four points on the connection pattern of the first main electrode unit 21 in the area where the connection area of ​​the first main electrode unit 21 intersects with the connection area of ​​the second main electrode unit 41. These four points correspond to the case where two lines intersect. When a line intersects in the intersection area, the insulating pad may be formed at one point, and when three lines intersect, the insulating pad may be formed at nine points.

[0052] Preferably, when the insulating layer 30 is configured as an island-shaped insulating pad, the width (or diameter) of the insulating layer 30 is preferably formed to be close to the width of the grid pattern (wiring) of the electrode layers 20 and 40 to prevent or minimize the following situation: the insulating layer 30 is distinguished from the grid pattern of the electrode layers 20 and 40. In order to prevent dielectric breakdown of the first main electrode unit 21 and the second main electrode unit 41, it is advantageous to form the width (or diameter) of the insulating layer 30 to be larger than the width of the grid pattern. However, even in this case, it is preferable to form the insulating layer 30 to be close to the same width.

[0053] The second electrode layer 40 is partially insulated from the insulating layer 30 and coupled to an upper portion of the first electrode layer 20. The second electrode layer 40 may include a second main electrode unit 41 and a first auxiliary electrode unit 42 on the same plane.

[0054] The second main electrode units 41 may be arranged to be connected in a second direction that is the same as the arrangement direction of the second auxiliary electrode units 22 of the first electrode layer 20. The second main electrode units 41 may be vertically stacked and connected to the second auxiliary electrode units 22 to form the same electrode as the second auxiliary electrode units 22. Except for the area where the second main electrode units 41 are connected to the second auxiliary electrode units 22, the second main electrode units 41 may be configured to have the same shape and pattern as the second auxiliary electrode units 22.

[0055] The second main electrode unit 41 is vertically insulated from the connection region of the first main electrode unit 21 by the insulating layer 30 in the connection region of the first main electrode unit 21. Therefore, the vertical stacking combination of the first main electrode unit 21 and the first auxiliary electrode unit 42 and the vertical stacking combination of the second main electrode unit 41 and the second auxiliary electrode unit 22 can each independently form an electrode.

[0056] The first auxiliary electrode units 42 may be spaced apart and arranged along a first direction that is the same as the arrangement direction of the first main electrode units 21 of the first electrode layer 20. The first auxiliary electrode units 42 may be vertically stacked and connected to the first main electrode units 21 to form the same electrodes as the first main electrode units 21. The first auxiliary electrode units 42 may have the same shape and pattern as the first main electrode units 21, except for the spaced apart regions.

[0057] As described above, the first electrode layer 20 and the second electrode layer 40 have a structure in which the first electrode layer 20 and the second electrode layer 40 are stacked and connected, while being partially insulated. Thus, the touch sensor of the present invention can achieve the effects of reducing resistance at the same aperture ratio and increasing aperture ratio (or transmittance) at the same resistance.

[0058] Furthermore, in the touch sensor of the present invention, there is no need to form additional bridges in the first electrode layer 20 or the second electrode layer 40 to connect the spaced-apart electrode units. Therefore, the present invention can simplify the structure and manufacturing process of the electrode layers, thereby reducing manufacturing costs. Furthermore, the present invention can improve visibility by fundamentally solving the problem of visually identifying bridges.

[0059] When the electrode layers 20 and 40 are constructed in a grid pattern, the line width can be 2 μm to 10 μm. When the line width is less than 2 μm, there are difficulties in the process, and when the line width exceeds 10 μm, the aperture ratio becomes smaller and the transmittance may deteriorate. The optimal line width can be made into 2 μm-7 μm. The pitch can be in the range of 150 μm to 450 μm. If the pitch is less than 150 μm, the transmittance may deteriorate, and if the pitch exceeds 450 μm, the pattern visibility may deteriorate. The optimal pitch can be 300 μm.

[0060] The spaces in the electrode layers 20 and 40 , that is, the space in the first electrode layer 20 and the space in the second electrode layer 40 , may be filled with an insulating layer or a passivation layer.

[0061] The insulating layer or passivation layer serves to insulate and protect the electrode layers 20 and 40 and may be made of one or more materials selected from curable prepolymers, curable polymers, and plastic polymers that are general insulators.

[0062] The insulating layer or passivation layer can be made of a varnish-type material capable of forming a film. The varnish-type material can be a silicone polymer such as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) or polyorganosiloxane (POS), a polyimide, or a polyurethane such as spandex. The varnish-type material is a soft insulating material and can increase the stretchability and dynamic folding capabilities of the touch panel.

[0063] While specific embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that this is not intended to limit the invention to the preferred embodiments, and that various changes and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

[0064] Accordingly, the scope of the invention is defined by the following claims and their equivalents.

[0065] Description of Reference Signs

[0066] 10: Base layer 20: First electrode layer

[0067] 21: First main electrode unit 22: Second auxiliary electrode unit

[0068] 30: Insulation layer 40: Second electrode layer

[0069] 41: second main electrode unit 42: first auxiliary electrode unit

Claims

1. A touch sensor comprising: grassroots; a first electrode layer, the first electrode layer being on the base layer and in a grid pattern, the first electrode layer comprising: first main electrode units and second auxiliary electrode units, the first main electrode units being connected and arranged in a first direction, the second auxiliary electrode units being spaced apart and arranged in a second direction and spaced apart from the first main electrode units; a second electrode layer, the second electrode layer being on the first electrode layer and having a mesh pattern, the second electrode layer comprising: first auxiliary electrode units and second main electrode units, the first auxiliary electrode units being separated and arranged in the first direction and stacked on the first main electrode units while having the same pattern as the first main electrode units, and the second main electrode units being connected and arranged in a second direction and stacked on the second auxiliary electrode units while being separated from the first auxiliary electrode units and having the same pattern as the second auxiliary electrode units; and An insulating layer exists in the form of an island in an intersection region between the first main electrode unit and the second main electrode unit, while vertically insulating the intersection region.

2. The touch sensor according to claim 1, wherein The insulating layer includes 1 to 9 insulating pads.

3. The touch sensor according to claim 2, wherein: The insulating layer includes four insulating pads.

4. The touch sensor according to claim 1, wherein The grid pattern is made of metal.

5. The touch sensor according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein: The insulating pad of the insulating layer has the same width as a line width of the mesh pattern of the first and second main electrode units.

6. The touch sensor according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein: The insulating pad of the insulating layer has a width greater than a line width of the mesh pattern of the first and second main electrode units.

7. The touch sensor according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein: The grid pattern has a line width of 2 μm to 7 μm.

8. The touch sensor according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein: The mesh pattern has a pitch of 150 μm to 450 μm.

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