Electrochromic film, lamination structure and electrochromic glass

Abstract

This application relates to the field of electrochromic technology, and in particular to an electrochromic film, a pressing structure, and electrochromic glass, which can prevent damage to the electrochromic film during transportation. The electrochromic film includes a first release film, a first adhesive layer, a film body, a second adhesive layer, and a second release film stacked sequentially in the thickness direction. A sealing layer is provided between the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer, surrounding the film body. The two side surfaces of the sealing layer are respectively connected to the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of electrochromic technology, and in particular to an electrochromic film, a lamination structure, and electrochromic glass. Background Technology

[0002] Electrochromic thin film (EC film) has shown great application potential in fields such as smart windows, car sunroofs, and display devices because its transmittance can be reversibly adjusted by applying an external voltage.

[0003] The practical application of electrochromic films requires integration with glass substrates through a sandwich lamination process to form electrochromic glass (EC glass) with dynamic dimming capabilities. Current lamination technology typically employs a "sandwich" structure: the EC film is placed between two glass substrates and bonded to an intermediate layer material (such as PVB, EVA, or iontophoresis gel) via a hot-pressing lamination process. This structure effectively protects the EC film from mechanical damage and environmental corrosion, making it a core form for end-use applications such as building curtain walls and automotive sunroofs.

[0004] However, the applicant discovered during the implementation of the prior art that the electrochromic film before lamination was easily damaged during transportation. Utility Model Content

[0005] Based on this, it is necessary to propose an electrochromic film to address the problem of easy damage during the transportation of electrochromic films, as well as a pressing structure and electrochromic glass.

[0006] In a first aspect of this application, an electrochromic film is provided, comprising: a first release film, a first adhesive layer, a film body, a second adhesive layer, and a second release film stacked sequentially in the thickness direction, wherein a sealing layer is provided between the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer, surrounding the film body, and the two side surfaces of the sealing layer are respectively connected to the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer.

[0007] In some embodiments, the edge sealing layer, the first adhesive layer, and the second adhesive layer are formed as a thermofused integral part, and the edge sealing layer, the first adhesive layer, and the second adhesive layer are all in close contact with the diaphragm body.

[0008] In some embodiments, the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer are made of polyvinyl butyral, optically transparent adhesive, or polyvinyl octene elastomer; and / or,

[0009] The edge sealing layer is made of polyvinyl butyral, optically transparent adhesive, or polyvinyl octene elastomer.

[0010] In some embodiments, the edges of the first adhesive layer, the second adhesive layer, and the sealing layer are flush in a direction perpendicular to the thickness direction.

[0011] In some embodiments, the top and bottom surfaces of the electrochromic film are both curved in the thickness direction.

[0012] In some embodiments, the thickness of the sealing layer is greater than or equal to the thickness of the film body in the thickness direction.

[0013] A second aspect of this application provides a pressing structure comprising: a fixture including a first pressing member and a second pressing member, the first pressing member having a first pressing surface and the second pressing member having a second pressing surface; an electrochromic film sandwiched between the first pressing member and the second pressing member, the first release film abutting against the first pressing surface and the second release film abutting against the second pressing surface.

[0014] In some embodiments, both the first pressing surface and the second pressing surface are curved.

[0015] In some embodiments, at least one of the first pressing surface and the second pressing surface has a textured structure.

[0016] A third aspect of this application is an electrochromic glass, comprising: a first glass and a second glass; and the remaining portion of the electrochromic film after removing the first and second release films, sandwiched between the first glass and the second glass.

[0017] In the embodiments of this application, by setting an edge sealing layer, which together with the first and second adhesive layers encapsulate the film body in the middle, it is possible to ensure that the film body will not detach from the film and to protect the film body during subsequent transportation, thereby improving the convenience of transportation and preventing damage to the electrochromic film during transportation. In the subsequent formal lamination stage with the glass, the edge sealing layer, the first adhesive layer, and the second adhesive layer also have certain buffering and extensibility, which can protect the film body, making it less susceptible to damage and reducing wrinkles during lamination with the glass. Furthermore, when the electrochromic film is subsequently laminated with the glass, the first and second release films are removed. The first adhesive layer can bond the film body to the first glass, and the second adhesive layer can bond the film body to the second glass. Therefore, no additional adhesive layer is needed to achieve lamination, thus simplifying the subsequent lamination process. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of an electrochromic film according to an embodiment of this application.

[0019] Figure 2 This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of an electrochromic film according to another embodiment of this application.

[0020] Figure 3 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a pressing structure according to an embodiment of this application.

[0021] Figure 4 This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of the pressing structure according to another embodiment of this application.

[0022] Figure 5 for Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the fixture in the pressing structure.

[0023] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the first embodiment of the raised texture structure.

[0024] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of a second implementation of the raised texture structure.

[0025] Figure 8 This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of an embodiment of the electrochromic glass of this application.

[0026] Figure 9 This is a cross-sectional structural schematic diagram of another embodiment of the electrochromic glass of this application.

[0027] The corresponding numbers of the relevant components in the diagram are as follows:

[0028] 100. Electrochromic glass; 1. Electrochromic film; 10. First release film; 20. First adhesive layer; 30. Film body; 40. Second adhesive layer; 50. Second release film; 60. Sealing layer; 2. First glass; 3. Second glass; 4. Fixture; 41. First pressing element; 411. First pressing surface; 42. Second pressing element; 421. Second pressing surface; 43. Textured structure; 431. Protrusion; 432. Venting groove; 44. Teflon tape. Detailed Implementation

[0029] To make the above-mentioned objectives, features, and advantages of this application more apparent and understandable, the specific embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many specific details are set forth in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of this application. However, this application can be implemented in many other ways different from those described herein, and those skilled in the art can make similar modifications without departing from the spirit of this application. Therefore, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed below.

[0030] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", "clockwise", "counterclockwise", "axial", "radial", "circumferential", etc., indicating the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

[0031] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of that feature. In the description of this application, "multiple" means at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0032] In this application, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "joining," and "fixing," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components, unless otherwise expressly limited. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this application according to the specific circumstances.

[0033] In this application, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, "above" or "below" the second feature can mean that the first feature is in direct contact with the second feature, or that the first feature is in indirect contact with the second feature through an intermediate medium. Furthermore, "above," "on top of," and "over" the second feature can mean that the first feature is directly above or diagonally above the second feature, or simply that the first feature is at a higher horizontal level than the second feature. "Below," "below," and "under" the second feature can mean that the first feature is directly below or diagonally below the second feature, or simply that the first feature is at a lower horizontal level than the second feature.

[0034] refer to Figure 1One aspect of this application discloses an electrochromic film 1, comprising a first release film 10, a first adhesive layer 20, a film body 30, a second adhesive layer 40, and a second release film 50, sequentially stacked in the thickness direction. A sealing layer 60 is provided between the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40, surrounding the film body 30. The two side surfaces of the sealing layer 60 are respectively connected to the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40. The stacking direction of the first release film 10, the first adhesive layer 20, the film body 30, the second adhesive layer 40, and the second release film 50 is also their respective thickness direction, specifically... Figure 1 The Z direction in the equation.

[0035] It should be noted that the edge sealing layer 60 is disposed on the circumference of the membrane body 30, surrounding the membrane body 30. The edge sealing layer 60 can be formed by connecting multiple edge sealing strips together, or it can be a continuous integral structure.

[0036] In the embodiments of this application, by providing an edge sealing layer 60, which together with the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40, covers the film body 30 in the middle, it can ensure that the film body 30 will not detach from the film and protect the film body 30 during subsequent transportation, improving the convenience of transportation and preventing damage to the electrochromic film 1 during transportation. Furthermore, in the subsequent formal lamination stage with the glass, because the edge sealing layer 60, the first adhesive layer 20, and the second adhesive layer 40 also have certain buffering properties and extensibility, they can protect the film body 30, making it less susceptible to damage and reducing wrinkles during lamination with curved glass.

[0037] Furthermore, in the embodiments of this application, the first adhesive layer 20, the film body 30, the second adhesive layer 40, and the sealing layer 60 can be pressed together to form a single piece, and protected by the first release film 10 and the second release film 50. When the electrochromic film 1 is subsequently laminated with the glass, the first release film 10 and the second release film 50 are removed. The first adhesive layer 20 can achieve bonding between the film body 30 and the first glass 2, and the second adhesive layer 40 can achieve bonding between the film body 30 and the second glass 3 (see...). Figure 8 and Figure 9 Therefore, no additional adhesive layer is needed to achieve lamination, thus simplifying subsequent lamination process steps.

[0038] Optionally, the pressing process includes: vacuuming and heating the electrochromic film 1 so that the first adhesive layer 20, the film body 30, the second adhesive layer 40, and the edge sealing layer 60 can be pressed together to form a single piece. The purpose of vacuuming is to remove the gas from the stacked film layers, and the purpose of heating is to thermally fuse the edge sealing layer 60, the first adhesive layer 20, and the second adhesive layer 40 together, thereby covering the film body 30.

[0039] Optionally, the first release film 10 and the second release film 50 are easy to peel off, and their materials are, for example, PET (polyethylene terephthalate) or PP (polypropylene).

[0040] Optionally, the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40 are made of materials with a certain adhesive ability. For example, the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40 are made of polyvinyl butyral (PVB), optically clear adhesive (OCA), or polyolefin elastomer (POE).

[0041] Optionally, the edge sealing layer 60 may be made of the same material as the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40. Alternatively, the edge sealing layer 60 may be made of a different material than the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40.

[0042] The diaphragm body 30 is an electrochromic dimming device. Optionally, the diaphragm body 30 includes a dimming medium and a conductive substrate. The conductive substrate can be one, two, or multiple layers. When it is a two-layer conductive substrate structure, the first conductive substrate and the second conductive substrate are respectively disposed on both sides of the dimming medium. Optionally, the dimming medium is one or a combination of two or more of the following: a liquid dimming medium, a solid dimming medium, or a sol-gel dimming medium. Preferably, the dimming medium is a solid dimming medium. More preferably, the dimming medium is a solid electrochromic stacked layer, which includes an ion storage layer, an electrolyte layer, and an electrochromic layer stacked sequentially.

[0043] In this embodiment, the thickness of the sealing layer 60 is greater than or equal to the thickness of the film body 30 in the thickness direction.

[0044] Optionally, the thickness of the sealing layer 60 is the same as that of the membrane body 30, which facilitates the formation of an integral structure with the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40 by hot melting, thus protecting the membrane body 30; on the other hand, it can also improve the flatness of the membrane edge.

[0045] Optionally, the thickness of the unmelted edge sealing layer 60 is greater than the thickness of the membrane body 30. When the edge sealing layer 60 includes multiple edge sealing strips, these strips surround the membrane body 30, and gaps often exist between adjacent strips. By setting the thickness of the edge sealing layer 60 to be greater than the thickness of the membrane body 30, the edge sealing strips melt during the heating process. The melted strips can fill the gaps between the multiple edge sealing strips, as well as the gaps between the edge sealing layer 60 and the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40, thereby circumferentially covering and sealing the membrane body 30 to protect it.

[0046] In some embodiments, the edge sealing layer 60, the first adhesive layer 20, and the second adhesive layer 40 are formed as a thermofused integral part, and the edge sealing layer 60, the first adhesive layer 20, and the second adhesive layer 40 are all in close contact with the diaphragm body 30. Taking the first adhesive layer 20 and the diaphragm body 30 as an example, after the first adhesive layer 20 melts, it is in close contact with the diaphragm body 30, and there are no gaps between them.

[0047] Optionally, the electrochromic film 1 can be vacuumed and heated to form a thermally fused integral part with the sealing layer 60, the first adhesive layer 20, and the second adhesive layer 40. The purpose of vacuuming is to remove the gas from the stacked film layers, and the purpose of heating is to thermally fuse the sealing layer 60, the first adhesive layer 20, and the second adhesive layer 40 together, so that the film body 30 is covered.

[0048] With this design, the entire electrochromic film 1 is a sealed structure that seals the film body 30 inside and the interior is evacuated. This ensures the sealing of the film itself and also ensures that there are no air bubbles during the subsequent lamination process with the glass.

[0049] refer to Figure 1 In a direction perpendicular to the thickness direction, the edges of the first adhesive layer 20, the second adhesive layer 40, and the sealing layer 60 are flush.

[0050] Specifically, along Figure 1 In the X-direction, the edges of the first adhesive layer 20, the second adhesive layer 40, and the sealing layer 60 are aligned with each other. In this way, the edges of the electrochromic film 1 are flat, and when the first release film 10 and the second release film 50 are removed and the film is laminated with glass, a flat-edge electrochromic area can be formed.

[0051] refer to Figure 2 In another embodiment, both the top and bottom surfaces of the electrochromic film 1 are curved. The top surface of the electrochromic film 1 refers to the surface of the first release film 10 that is opposite to the film body 30. The bottom surface of the electrochromic film 1 refers to the surface of the second release film 50 that is opposite to the film body 30.

[0052] Unlike the previous embodiment, in this embodiment, the electrochromic film 1 is curved, exhibiting a certain curvature. This allows the electrochromic film 1 to be placed between two curved glass sheets for lamination. Figure 9 .

[0053] Since the electrochromic film 1 has already undergone one stretching, when the electrochromic film 1 with the first release film 10 and the second release film 50 removed is placed between two curved pieces of glass for a second stretching, the film body 30 is less likely to produce wrinkles and cracks.

[0054] refer to Figures 3 to 7An embodiment of the second aspect of this application provides a pressing structure. The pressing structure includes a jig 4, and Figure 1 or Figure 2 The electrochromic film 1 of the illustrated embodiment. The fixture 4 includes a first pressing member 41 and a second pressing member 42. The first pressing member 41 has a first pressing surface 411, and the second pressing member 42 has a second pressing surface 421. The electrochromic film 1 is sandwiched between the first pressing member 41 and the second pressing member 42. The first release film 10 abuts against the first pressing surface 411, and the second release film 50 abuts against the second pressing surface 421.

[0055] Optional, see reference Figure 3 Both the first pressing surface 411 and the second pressing surface 421 are planar. Optionally, refer to... Figure 4 and Figure 5 Both the first pressing surface 411 and the second pressing surface 421 have curvature.

[0056] In this application, the first adhesive layer 20, the electrochromic film 1, the second adhesive layer 40, and the edge sealing layer 60 are formed as a single unit and protected by the first release film 10 and the second release film 50. During the formal lamination stage with the first glass 2 and the second glass 3 (see...),... Figure 8 and Figure 9 The first release film 10 and the second release film 50 can be peeled off to perform lamination, eliminating the need for an additional adhesive layer between the electrochromic film 1 and the glass, thus simplifying the process and improving lamination efficiency.

[0057] refer to Figure 4 , Figure 9 In this embodiment, the electrochromic film 1 can be formed using the fixture 4. Figure 2 The curved structure shown makes it less prone to wrinkles and cracks when the electrochromic film 1 is laminated with two curved glass sheets.

[0058] Specifically, the first pressing surface 411 and the second pressing surface 421 are set as curved surfaces. In this way, during pressing, the fixture 4 can bend the electrochromic film 1, which can extend the film body 30 and the first adhesive layer 20 and other layers in a preset direction or with a preset curvature, so that the film presents a certain curvature.

[0059] When reassembling the film, firstly remove the first pressing member 41 and the second pressing member 42, and peel off the first release film 10 and the second release film 50. Then, assemble the film with the two curved glass pieces. Since the electrochromic film 1 has already undergone one stretching, its elasticity is better. When the electrochromic film 1 is placed between the two curved glass pieces for a second stretching, the electrochromic film 1 is less likely to wrinkle or crack. Furthermore, the curvature of the fixture 4 can be smaller than the curvature of the glass during the final assembly. In this way, the film can be bent twice with different curvatures, which can further prevent the formation of wrinkles.

[0060] In some embodiments, reference is made to Figures 5 to 7 At least one of the first pressing surface 411 and the second pressing surface 421 has a textured structure 43. The textured structure 43 facilitates the melting of the sealing layer 60 with the first adhesive layer 20 and the second adhesive layer 40 to form an integral structure during pressing.

[0061] Optionally, the pressing process includes: placing the electrochromic film 1 between the first pressing member 41 and the second pressing member 42, and then subjecting the electrochromic film 1 to vacuuming and heating. The purpose of vacuuming is to remove the gas from the stacked film layers, and the purpose of heating is to thermally fuse the sealing layer 60, the first adhesive layer 20, and the second adhesive layer 40 together, so that the film body 30 is covered.

[0062] Taking the first pressing surface 411 as an example, the textured structure 43 includes multiple protrusions 431, and exhaust grooves 432 are formed between adjacent protrusions 431. The protrusions 431 can hold the first release film 10, and the exhaust grooves 432 facilitate the discharge of air during the vacuuming process.

[0063] Optional, see reference Figure 6 The textured structure 43 includes striped raised textures. The striped raised textures include multiple rows of raised areas, with venting grooves 432 formed between adjacent rows of raised areas 431. (Reference) Figure 7 The raised texture structure 43 can be a uniformly arranged dot matrix raised texture. In addition, the raised texture structure 43 is not limited to the above examples, such as the raised texture structure 43 can also include a uniformly arranged grid structure texture.

[0064] In some embodiments, the peel force of both the first pressing surface 411 and the second pressing surface 421 is less than or equal to 0.1 N / cm. The peel force is used to characterize the non-stickiness and self-lubrication of the surface. The peel force of both the first pressing surface 411 and the second pressing surface 421 is controlled to be less than or equal to 0.1 N / cm, which facilitates the separation of the jig 4 from the electrochromic film 1.

[0065] In this embodiment, reference Figure 5Teflon tape 44 is respectively provided on the first pressing surface 411 and the second pressing surface 421. The Teflon tape 44 has the characteristics of corrosion resistance, high temperature resistance, self-lubrication, non-stickiness, and aging resistance. At the same time, the surface of the Teflon tape 44 has uniformly arranged dot-matrix protrusions 431, which form multiple exhaust grooves 432 to facilitate the discharge of airflow during the vacuuming process.

[0066] refer to Figure 8 and Figure 9 An embodiment of the third aspect of this application provides an electrochromic glass 100, including a first glass 2 and a second glass 3; and an electrochromic film 1 after removing the first release film 10 and the second release film 50. The electrochromic film 1 is sandwiched between the first glass 2 and the second glass 3.

[0067] Optional, see reference Figure 8 Both the first glass pane 2 and the second glass pane 3 are flat glass. Optional, see reference. Figure 9 Both the first glass 2 and the second glass 3 are curved glass.

[0068] Specifically, when the electrochromic film 1 is laminated with the first glass 2 and the second glass 3, firstly... Figure 3 or Figure 4 The first pressing member 41 and the second pressing member 42 in the shown pressing structure are removed and the first release film 10 and the second release film 50 are peeled off. Then they are placed in the first glass 2 and the second glass 3 for lamination.

[0069] In the formal lamination stage with the first glass 2 and the second glass 3, the first release film 10 and the second release film 50 can be removed to lamination, eliminating the need for an additional adhesive layer between the electrochromic film 1 and the glass, thus simplifying the process and improving lamination efficiency.

[0070] In addition, refer to Figure 9 When both the first glass 2 and the second glass 3 are curved glass, when the electrochromic film 1 is laminated with the first glass 2 and the second glass 3, which are both curved glass, the electrochromic film 1 is less likely to produce wrinkles and cracks when it is placed between the two curved glass pieces and bent a second time, since the electrochromic film 1 has already been bent and extended once.

[0071] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined in any way. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0072] The embodiments described above are merely illustrative of several implementation methods of this application, and while the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the patent application. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this application, and these all fall within the protection scope of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of this patent application should be determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An electrochromic film, characterized in that, include: A first release film, a first adhesive layer, a film body, a second adhesive layer, and a second release film are sequentially stacked in the thickness direction. An edge sealing layer is provided between the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer, surrounding the film body. The two sides of the edge sealing layer are respectively connected to the first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer.

2. The electrochromic film according to claim 1, characterized in that, The edge sealing layer, the first adhesive layer, and the second adhesive layer are formed as a thermofused integral part, and the edge sealing layer, the first adhesive layer, and the second adhesive layer are all in close contact with the diaphragm body.

3. The electrochromic film according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first adhesive layer and the second adhesive layer are made of polyvinyl butyral, optically transparent adhesive, or polyvinyl octene co-elastomer; and / or, the edge sealing layer is made of polyvinyl butyral, optically transparent adhesive, or polyvinyl octene co-elastomer.

4. The electrochromic film according to claim 1, characterized in that, In a direction perpendicular to the thickness direction, the edges of the first adhesive layer, the second adhesive layer, and the edge sealing layer are flush.

5. The electrochromic film according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the thickness direction, both the top and bottom surfaces of the electrochromic film are curved.

6. The electrochromic film according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the thickness direction, the thickness of the sealing layer is greater than or equal to the thickness of the film body.

7. A pressing structure, characterized in that, include: The fixture includes a first pressing member and a second pressing member, wherein the first pressing member is provided with a first pressing surface and the second pressing member is provided with a second pressing surface; The electrochromic film as described in any one of claims 1-6 is sandwiched between the first pressing member and the second pressing member, wherein the first release film abuts against the first pressing surface and the second release film abuts against the second pressing surface.

8. The pressing structure according to claim 7, characterized in that, Both the first and second pressing surfaces have a curvature.

9. The pressing structure according to claim 7, characterized in that, At least one of the first pressing surface and the second pressing surface has a textured structure.

10. An electrochromic glass, characterized in that, include: First glass and second glass; The remaining portion of the electrochromic film after removing the first and second release films as described in any one of claims 1-6 is sandwiched between the first and second glass.

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