Manufacturing method of consumer electronic product cover plate, consumer electronic product cover plate and application of consumer electronic product cover plate

Abstract

The invention discloses a method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product, which comprises the following steps of: sequentially printing deep-color ink on the front surface of a glass substrate to form a shading layer, printing light-color ink on the shading layer to form a color layer so as to form a non-visual area, and forming a transparent filling layer which covers the non-visual area and fills the visual area through a transfer printing process, the transparent filling layer forms a surface with a concave-convex microstructure to serve as an anti-dazzle, oil-stain-proof and ultraviolet-proof structure with a writing feeling, and in the forming process of the transparent filling layer, the side face of the glass substrate is covered with the protective outer frame. The consumer electronic product cover plate manufactured by the method meets the requirements of light, thin and diversified appearances, avoids the problem of visual area halo of light-color appearances, and is suitable for actual production and application.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of electronic equipment, and in particular relates to a method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product, a cover plate of a consumer electronic product and applications thereof. Background Art

[0002] Consumer electronic products include mobile phones, tablet computers, e-book readers, etc. The cover of consumer electronic products is an important part of consumer electronic products. It is a flat surface used to protect and decorate the display screen. Taking e-book readers as an example, with the development of media technology and the change of people's reading habits, digital reading has gradually become a normal life state for people nowadays, which also provides a broader development space for the digital reading industry. E-book readers (e-readers) refer to publications that digitize information content such as text, pictures, sounds, and images, and handheld readers that integrate storage and display terminals and embed or download digital text, pictures, sounds, images, and other information content. It uses electronic ink display screens, long-lasting batteries and other technologies, so that users can enjoy an experience similar to that of paper books when reading. The edge of the e-book cover needs to have a strong shielding effect to prevent the light source from penetrating or abnormally affecting the display effect. Traditional e-book covers are mostly formed by black ink, and the product has a black appearance. With the increasing diversification and personalized needs of the market, gray, white, blue and white and other color covers are gradually being sought after. When light-colored inks are used for the product appearance, there will be a halo at the edge of the visible area, which affects the visual effect. In addition, the product structure and process are complex and the cost is high, making it difficult to meet the market's requirements for thinness and lightness. Summary of the invention

[0003] In view of the deficiencies in the prior art, the present invention provides a method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product, a cover plate of a consumer electronic product and applications thereof.

[0004] In order to achieve the above purpose, the technical solution of the present invention is:

[0005] A method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product, comprising the following steps:

[0006] 1) Planning a visible area and a non-visible area on the front of the glass substrate, and printing dark ink on the non-visible area to form a light-shielding layer;

[0007] 2) Printing light-colored ink on the light-shielding layer to form a color layer;

[0008] 3) A transparent filling layer is formed on the front of the glass substrate by a transfer process, so that the transparent filling layer fills the visible area and covers the non-visible area, and at the same time forms a surface with a concave-convex microstructure as an anti-glare, anti-oil, anti-ultraviolet and writing structure; wherein,

[0009] Before or after any step before step 3), the method further includes a step of forming a protective outer frame on the periphery of the glass substrate so that the protective outer frame covers the side surfaces of the glass substrate; after step 3), the method further includes a step of removing the protective outer frame.

[0010] Optionally, the protective outer frame is formed by using a peelable adhesive material through a dispensing process.

[0011] Optionally, the transparent filling layer includes a first thickness region located in the non-visible area and a second thickness region located in the visible area, the thickness of the first thickness region is 12 to 18 μm, and the thickness of the second thickness region is the sum of the thicknesses of the first thickness region, the color layer and the shading layer.

[0012] Optionally, the transparent filling layer is made of a light-curing adhesive or a thermosetting adhesive material, and is formed by embossing and curing a mold having an anti-glare structure pattern, and the hardness of the transparent filling layer after curing is ≥3H.

[0013] Optionally, the surface roughness Ra value of the transparent filling layer having the concavo-convex microstructure is 0.1-1.5 μm.

[0014] Optionally, the edges of the light shielding layer and the ink layer are flush with each other.

[0015] Optionally, the shading layer and the color layer are formed by overlapping at least two ink printings, and baking treatment is performed immediately after each printing, and the baking temperature is 65°C to 75°C, wherein the last baking time is 25 to 35 minutes, and the time of other previous baking times is 5 to 15 minutes.

[0016] Optionally, the ink colors used in at least two ink printings of the color layer are the same or different.

[0017] Optionally, after removing the protective frame, an edge sealing step is also included, in which a roller coating process is used to form an edge sealing layer on the edge of the cover plate of the consumer electronic product to cover the side walls of the glass substrate, the shading layer, the color layer and the transparent filling layer, and the thickness of the edge sealing layer is ≤0.1mm.

[0018] Optionally, the height of the protective outer frame is greater than the thickness of the glass substrate, and at least one of the light shielding layer, the color layer and the transparent filling layer is formed in the protective outer frame and is limited by the protective outer frame.

[0019] A cover plate for consumer electronic products is formed by the above-mentioned manufacturing method, comprising a glass substrate, a shading layer, a color layer and a transparent filling layer, wherein the shading layer, the color layer and the transparent filling layer are all arranged on the front side of the glass substrate; the glass substrate has a visible area and a non-visible area, the shading layer and the color layer are arranged in sequence on the non-visible area, the transparent filling layer fills the visible area and covers the non-visible area, and the transparent filling layer has a surface with a concave-convex microstructure as an anti-glare, anti-oil, and anti-ultraviolet structure and has a writing feel structure.

[0020] A consumer electronic product comprises a display module and the above-mentioned consumer electronic product cover plate, wherein the display module is located on the back side of the glass substrate.

[0021] The consumer electronic products include smart phones, tablet computers, e-book readers, etc.

[0022] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0023] 1) It can achieve colorful and light-colored appearance effects, and avoid problems such as halo at the edge of the visible area, meeting the needs of diversified choices;

[0024] 2) Through the transfer process, a transparent filling layer is directly formed to achieve the AG effect of leveling the step difference and surface morphology. The surface can be directly used as the user surface, making the product lighter and thinner, improving production efficiency and reducing costs;

[0025] 3) The setting of the protective frame avoids the impact on the side of the glass substrate during the production process of the transparent filling layer, which facilitates the advancement of the process and is suitable for actual production applications. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1a to Figure 1e is a schematic diagram of a method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to an embodiment;

[0027] Figure 2 A schematic top view of a protective frame formed around the glass cover plate;

[0028] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of assembling a cover plate and a light-emitting layer of a consumer electronic product;

[0029] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to another embodiment;

[0030] Figure 5 FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to another embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The present invention is further explained below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. The various drawings of the present invention are only for illustration to make it easier to understand the present invention, and the specific proportions can be adjusted according to design requirements. The upper and lower relationships of the relative elements and the definitions of the front / back in the figures described in the text should be understood by those skilled in the art to refer to the relative positions of the components, so they can all be flipped to present the same components, which should all fall within the scope disclosed in this specification.

[0032] The following combination Figure 1a to Figure 1e A method for manufacturing an electronic book cover according to an embodiment is described.

[0033] The electronic book cover of this embodiment adopts a glass substrate with a thickness of 0.1 to 1 mm. Figure 1a and Figure 2 , using peelable glue, a protective frame 2 is formed on the periphery of the glass substrate 1 through a glue dispensing process, which is attached to the side wall of the glass substrate 1 and completely covers it. The thickness can be set according to actual needs, such as 0.3-1mm, to protect the side wall of the glass substrate from being affected by subsequent processes. The surface of the glass substrate 1 is planned to have a visible area A and a non-visible area B. Conventionally, the visible area A is located in the middle of the substrate surface, and the non-visible area B is located outside the visible area A.

[0034] By using the screen printing process, dark ink is printed on the non-visible area B on the front of the glass substrate 1 to form a light-shielding layer 3, and light ink is printed to form a color layer 4. The edges of the light-shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4 are flush. Figure 1b and Figure 1c As shown. The dark ink mentioned here refers to black ink, and the light ink is, for example, gray, white, color and a combination thereof. The desired appearance effect can be obtained by adjusting the ink color to meet the specific LAB value requirements. The ink formula contains 10% diluent, 10% curing agent and 3% adhesive. It should be noted that the above content should be understood as 10g diluent, 10g curing agent and 3g adhesive per 100g ink. The parameters of the printing screen are: screen angle 45°, mesh number 380, screen tension 22N / CM, latex thickness 10μm. The parameters of the printing process are: scraper pressure 0.5MPa, scraper angle 15°, scraper speed 135~200mm / sec, scraper hardness 75°, ink return knife speed 150~250mm / sec, and screen distance from the platform 3mm. Based on the above parameter settings, printing is performed to form the corresponding ink layer, and a baking step is required after each printing is completed to achieve curing.

[0035] The printed light shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4 use the same screen pattern and form a shielding area that matches the pattern of the non-visible area B to achieve a non-visible effect. By optimizing parameters such as the scraper angle, speed, hardness, and the height of the screen from the platform, the appearance problems such as uneven printing thickness, burrs, ink overflow, and pinholes can be solved.

[0036] When the ink thickness formed by a single printing is too high, the stress inside the ink will also increase, which may cause cracking and other situations. Therefore, the light shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4 are formed by superimposing the ink printing for 2 or more times, and the baking step is performed immediately after each printing. Among them, pre-baking is performed after each printing to achieve preliminary curing, and the baking temperature is 70°C and the time is 10 minutes; after the light shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4 are printed, the last baking temperature is 70°C and the time is 30 minutes to achieve complete curing. The advantages of the above baking process include: 1) saving time, improving efficiency, and shortening the overall process cycle; 2) ensuring the morphological stability of the light shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4; 3) avoiding problems such as warping and falling caused by over-baking or insufficient baking. Thus, high-quality ink stacking can be obtained efficiently. It should be noted that the light-colored ink used for the 2 or more ink printing superpositions of the color layer 4 can be the same or different in color, such as the superposition of white and gray, or the superposition of white and blue, etc., to achieve the desired color effect.

[0037] After the light shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4 are cured, a transfer process is used to form a transparent filling layer 5, which fills the visible area A and covers the non-visible area B to form a uniform and horizontal surface. At the same time, a concave-convex microstructure 51 is formed on the surface of the transparent filling layer 5, as shown in FIG. Figure 1d As shown. Specifically, a mold with a concave-convex microstructure pattern surface is used, and a photocurable adhesive or a thermosetting adhesive material is coated on the mold. Through the cooperation and pressurization of the mold and the front of the glass substrate, the photocurable adhesive or the thermosetting adhesive material fills the visible area A in the middle of the ink layer and forms a concave-convex microstructure 51 by surface rubbing. After curing and peeling off the mold, the desired transparent filling layer structure can be formed in one step. For example, a UV glue with a main component of acrylate is used, the model is UV-G-310281H, and the viscosity is 1000±500cps. The transparent filling layer 5 formed after UV curing is 15μm thick on the ink in the non-visible area B, and the thickness on the visible area A is the sum of the thickness on the non-visible area B and the thickness between the light-shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4. The ink segment is leveled to obtain a horizontal surface, which serves as the user surface facing the user.

[0038] The thickness of the shading layer 3 is, for example, 5 to 7 μm, the thickness of the color layer 4 is, for example, 3 to 5 μm, the thickness of the transparent filling layer 5 located on the ink in the non-visible area B is preferably in the range of 12 to 18 μm, and the UV parameter is 3000 to 3500 mj. If the thickness of the transparent filling layer is too large, the required UV parameter may be too large, resulting in product deformation, warping and other problems. If the thickness is small, it is easy to cause poor uniformity or even partial exposure, and the hardness and other properties are difficult to meet the requirements. The concave-convex microstructure 51 is a micro-nano level fluctuation, and the surface roughness (Ra value) is 0.1 to 1.5 μm. The surface of the transparent filling layer 5 finally obtained meets the following requirements: penetration ≥ 87.5%, hardness ≥ 3H, haze < 29, gloss < 55, b* < 1.2, water drop angle > 100°. The surface with a concave-convex microstructure can be used as an anti-glare, anti-oil, anti-ultraviolet and writing structure, and can be used as a user surface.

[0039] The UV glue may overflow and adhere to the surface of the protective outer frame 2 during the transfer process. After the transparent filling layer 5 is completed, the protective outer frame 2 is peeled off and the UV glue on the protective outer frame 2 is removed to obtain an electronic book cover. Figure 1e As shown. It comprises a glass substrate 1, a light shielding layer 3, a color layer 4 and a transparent filling layer 5, wherein the light shielding layer 3, the color layer 4 and the transparent filling layer 5 are all arranged on the front side of the glass substrate 1. The glass substrate 1 has a visible area A and a non-visible area B, the light shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4 are arranged in sequence on the non-visible area B of the substrate 1 with their edges flush, the transparent filling layer 5 fills the visible area A and covers the non-visible area B to form a horizontal use surface, and the surface of the transparent filling layer 5 has a concave-convex microstructure 51.

[0040] Among them, the ink layer including the shading layer 3, the color layer 4 and the transparent filling layer 5 formed by UV glue are all located on the front of the glass substrate 1. During the manufacturing process, they may be attached to the side wall of the glass substrate 1 due to overflow, making it difficult to carry out subsequent packaging and other processes. For example, the above-mentioned influence can be avoided by further cutting and other means, while for the glass substrate, cracks will be generated due to stress during the cutting process, which will weaken the strength, and it is easy to break in subsequent use, reducing the service life. Therefore, a strengthening process is required after cutting, and the temperature of the strengthening process, the use of chemical substances, etc. will affect the structure thereon. Therefore, the glass substrate usually used is a finished product size and is difficult to reprocess. In this embodiment, the glass substrate is protected by forming a protective frame on the side wall of the glass substrate 1 during the manufacturing process, thereby solving the above-mentioned problem. It is feasible that the UV glue attached to the outside of the ink layer can be removed by cutting or other conventional processes to finally obtain a flat cover plate side.

[0041] refer to Figure 3When assembling the electronic book, the display module 6 as the light source is located on the back of the glass substrate 1. Through the setting of the ink stacking of the light shielding layer 3 and the color layer 4, and the structural setting of the transparent filling layer 5, the edge halo of the visible area A caused by vertical edge light and total reflection light is avoided, and the quality is improved; a variety of visual effects such as color frames can be achieved to meet the needs of lightness and diversification. The display module 6 includes conventional structures such as LED, light guide plate, touch sensor, etc., and is bonded to the back of the glass substrate 1 by OCA glue or the like.

[0042] In addition, in other embodiments, a protective outer frame may be formed on the side wall of the glass substrate 1 after the light shielding layer and the color layer are formed, and similar effects may also be achieved. Furthermore, the height of the protective outer frame may be higher than the thickness of the glass substrate, and it covers the side walls of the glass substrate, the light shielding layer and the color layer at the same time, thereby further avoiding the influence of the overflow of UV glue on the side wall of the ink layer when the transparent filling layer is formed, and obtaining a smoother side surface.

[0043] refer to Figure 4 In another manufacturing method of the embodiment, in addition to covering the side wall of the glass substrate 1, the height of the protective outer frame 7 is greater than the thickness of the glass substrate 1, that is, the protective outer frame 7 extends toward the front direction of the glass substrate 1 to form a limit frame, and its thickness is, for example, 1 to 3 mm. The protective outer frame 7 is formed before or after ink printing. When the transparent filling layer 5 is formed by the transfer process, the edge of the transparent filling layer 5 is also limited by the protective outer frame 7. More preferably, the height of the protective outer frame 7 can be set to match the surface height of the transparent filling layer 5, so as to accurately control the height of the transparent filling layer 5. After the production of the electronic book cover is completed, the protective outer frame 7 is peeled off to obtain a flat and uniform side wall of the electronic book cover. In addition to avoiding the overflow from affecting other structures and processes, it is more conducive to subsequent packaging.

[0044] refer to Figure 5 In another embodiment, the electronic book cover is also provided with an edge sealing process. An edge sealing layer 8 is formed on the side of the electronic book cover through a dispensing process, which covers the edges of the glass substrate 1, the light shielding layer 3, the color layer 4 and the transparent filling layer 5. A roller coater is used, the glue model is EP5125, the glue thickness is controlled to be ≤0.35mm, the workpiece speed is 18mm / s, the roller coating speed is 25mm / s, the negative vacuum pressure is -56~-90Kpa, the baking temperature is 90℃, and the baking time is 5 minutes. The edge sealing layer 8 of less than 0.1mm can be achieved. When the edge sealing layer 8 is large, the gap between the cover and the shell after assembly will be too large, and the gap is easy to hide dirt and reduce the use experience.

[0045] The above embodiments are described by taking an electronic book cover as an example. Those skilled in the art should know that based on the same principles and technical means, it is also applicable to other consumer electronic products such as smart phones and tablet computers.

[0046] The above embodiments are only used to further illustrate a method for manufacturing a consumer electronic product cover, a consumer electronic product cover and its application of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited to the embodiments. Any simple modifications, equivalent changes and modifications made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of the present invention shall fall within the protection scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: 1) Planning a visible area and a non-visible area on the front of the glass substrate, and printing dark ink on the non-visible area to form a light-shielding layer; 2) Printing light-colored ink on the light-shielding layer to form a color layer; 3) forming a transparent filling layer on the front side of the glass substrate by a transfer process, so that the transparent filling layer fills the visible area and covers the non-visible area, and at the same time forms a surface with a concave-convex microstructure; wherein, Before or after any step before step 3), the method further includes a step of forming a protective outer frame on the periphery of the glass substrate so that the protective outer frame covers the side surfaces of the glass substrate; after step 3), the method further includes a step of removing the protective outer frame.

2. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: The protective outer frame is formed by using a peelable glue material through a glue dispensing process.

3. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: The transparent filling layer includes a first thickness region located in the non-visible area and a second thickness region located in the visible area. The thickness of the first thickness region is 12 to 18 μm, and the thickness of the second thickness region is the sum of the thicknesses of the first thickness region, the color layer and the shading layer.

4. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: The transparent filling layer is made of a light-curing adhesive or a thermosetting adhesive material, and is formed by embossing and curing a mold having a pattern of the concave-convex microstructure. The hardness of the transparent filling layer after curing is ≥3H.

5. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: The surface roughness Ra value of the surface with the concavo-convex microstructure is 0.1 to 1.5 μm.

6. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: The edges of the light shielding layer and the ink layer are flush with each other.

7. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: The shading layer and the color layer are respectively formed by overlapping at least two ink printings, and baking treatment is performed immediately after each printing, and the baking temperature is 65° C. to 75° C., wherein the last baking time is 25 to 35 minutes, and the time of the other previous baking times is 5 to 15 minutes.

8. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 7, characterized in that: The ink colors used in at least two ink printings of the color layer are the same or different.

9. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: After removing the protective frame, an edge sealing step is also included, in which a roller coating process is used to form an edge sealing layer on the edge of the cover plate of the consumer electronic product to cover the side walls of the glass substrate, the shading layer, the color layer and the transparent filling layer, and the thickness of the edge sealing layer is ≤0.1mm.

10. The method for manufacturing a cover plate of a consumer electronic product according to claim 1, characterized in that: The height of the protective outer frame is greater than the thickness of the glass substrate, and at least one of the light shielding layer, the color layer and the transparent filling layer is formed in the protective outer frame and is limited by the protective outer frame.

11. A cover plate for a consumer electronic product, characterized in that: It is formed by the manufacturing method described in any one of claims 1 to 10, comprising a glass substrate, a shading layer, a color layer and a transparent filling layer, wherein the shading layer, the color layer and the transparent filling layer are all arranged on the front side of the glass substrate; the glass substrate has a visible area and a non-visible area, the shading layer and the color layer are arranged in sequence on the non-visible area, the transparent filling layer fills the visible area and covers the non-visible area, and the transparent filling layer has a surface with a concave-convex microstructure.

12. A consumer electronic product, characterized in that: The invention comprises a display module and the cover plate of the consumer electronic product as claimed in claim 11, wherein the display module is located on the back side of the glass substrate.

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