Substrate apparatus and methods

Abstract

Substrate apparatus comprise a layer of material. A second major surface of the layer of material is laminated to a first major surface of a glass substrate. The layer of material is formed with a plurality of surface discontinuities in at least one of a first side portion and / or a second side portion of the layer of material but not a central portion of the layer of material. Methods comprise forming at least one of the first side portion or the second side portion of the layer of material with the plurality of surface discontinuities. Methods further comprise laminating the second major surface of the layer of material to the first major surface of the glass substrate.

Description

SUBSTRATE APPARATUS AND METHODSCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 of U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 63 / 672442 filed on July 17, 2024, the content of which is relied upon and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.FIELD

[0002] The present disclosure relates generally to substrate apparatus and methods, and more particularly, to substrate apparatus comprising a layer of material laminated on a glass substrate, and methods of producing a substrate apparatus.BACKGROUND

[0003] Glass substrates are commonly used, for example, in display devices, for example, liquid crystal displays (LCDs), electrophoretic displays (EPD), organic light emitting diode displays (OLEDs), plasma display panels (PDPs), or the like. Sometimes the glass substrates may be stacked against or on top of one another during certain phases such as storage and / or transportation. In order to store and / or transport the glass substrates, a layer of material is placed on a surface of the glass substrates, which acts as a barrier to prevent direct contact between the glass substrates. Consequently, the layer of material can prevent damage to each glass substrate during storage and / or transportation. However, storing glass substrates in stacks can create an adhesion force between the glass substrates preventing easy removal of each glass substrate from the stack.SUMMARY

[0004] The following presents a simplified summary of the disclosure to provide a basic understanding of some aspects described in the detailed description.

[0005] Features of the present disclosure provide a layer material having a plurality of surface discontinuities. The layer of material is laminated on a glass substrate. Providing a layer of material having a plurality of surface discontinuities enables the glass substrate to be stored and / or transported in a stack without beingdamaged, while also reducing the adhesion forces between each glass substrate of the stack to facilitate removal of a single glass substrate from the stack.

[0006] In aspects, substrate apparatus comprise a glass substrate. The glass substrate comprises a first major surface, a second major surface opposite the first major surface, a first end edge, a second end edge opposite the first end edge. The glass substrate further comprises a first side portion comprising a first side edge, a second side portion comprising a second side edge opposite the first side edge, and a central portion positioned between the first side portion and the second side portion, wherein the first side edge and the second side edge each extend in an edge direction from the first end edge to the second end edge, and an outer periphery of the first major surface and the second major surface are each defined by the first and second end edges, and the first and second side edges. The substrate apparatus further comprises a layer of material. The layer of material comprises a first major surface and a second major surface opposite the first major surface of the layer of material. The layer of material further comprises a first side portion comprising a first side edge, a second side portion comprising a second side edge opposite the first side edge of the layer of material, and a central portion positioned between the first side portion and the second side portion of the layer of material, wherein the first side edge and the second side edge of the layer of material extend in the edge direction, and the second major surface of the layer of material is laminated to the first major surface of the glass substrate, and the layer of material is formed with a plurality of surface discontinuities in at least one of the first side portion and / or the second side portion of the layer of material but not the central portion of the layer of material.

[0007] In further aspects, methods of producing a substrate apparatus comprise forming at least one of the first side portion or the second side portion of the layer of material with the plurality of surface discontinuities. The method further comprises laminating the second major surface of the layer of material to the first major surface of the glass substrate

[0008] Additional features and advantages of the aspects disclosed herein will be set forth in the detailed description that follows, and in part will be clear to those skilled in the art from that description or recognized by practicing the aspects described herein, including the detailed description which follows, the claims, as well as the appended drawings. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general descriptionand the following detailed description present aspects intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the aspects disclosed herein. The accompanying drawings are included to provide further understanding and are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various aspects of the disclosure, and together with the description explain the principles and operations thereof.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] These and other features, aspects and advantages are better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0010] FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic perspective view of an exemplary substrate apparatus, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0011] FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic cross-sectional view of the substrate apparatus along line 2-2 of FIG. 1, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0012] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic enlarged view of the substrate apparatus taken at view 3 of FIG. 2;

[0013] FIG. 4 illustrates a schematic enlarged view of a portion of an exemplary layer of material of the substrate apparatus taken at view 4 of FIG. 3, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0014] FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic front view of the layer of material of the substrate apparatus of FIG. 1, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0015] FIG. 6 illustrates a schematic front view of an exemplary glass substrate of the substrate apparatus of FIG. 1, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0016] FIG. 7 is a schematic side view taken at line 7-7 of FIG. 1, illustrating an exemplary stack of substrate apparatus, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0017] FIG. 8 illustrates a schematic enlarged view of a portion of the stack of substrate apparatus taken at view 8 of FIG. 7, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

[0018] FIG. 9 schematically illustrates a method of producing the substrate apparatus of FIG. 1, showing forming a plurality of surface discontinuities on the layer of material and laminating the layer of material on the glass substrate;

[0019] FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the substrate apparatus along line 10-10 of FIG. 9;

[0020] FIG. 10A is a sectional view of the substrate apparatus along line 10A- 10A of FIG. 10;

[0021] FIG. 10B is a sectional view of the substrate apparatus along line 10B- 10B of FIG. 10;

[0022] FIG. 11 is a schematic side view illustrating another embodiment of a textured roller that can be utilized in forming the plurality of surface discontinuities, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure; and

[0023] FIG. 12 is schematic side view illustrating still another embodiment of a textured roller that can be utilized in forming the plurality of surface discontinuities, in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] Aspects will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings in which example aspects are shown. Whenever possible, the same reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. However, this disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the aspects set forth herein.

[0025] As used herein, the term “about” means that amounts, sizes, formulations, parameters, and other quantities and characteristics are not, and need not be, exact, but may be approximate and / or larger or smaller, as desired, reflecting tolerances, conversion factors, rounding off, measurement error and the like, and other factors known to those of skill in the art.

[0026] Ranges can be expressed herein as from “about” one value, and / or to “about” another value. When such a range is expressed, aspects include from the one value to the other value. Similarly, when values are expressed as approximations by use of the antecedent “about,” it will be understood that the value forms another aspect. It will be further understood that the endpoints of each of the ranges are significant both in relation to the other endpoint, and independently of the other endpoint.

[0027] Directional terms as used herein - for example up, down, right, left, front, back, top, bottom, upper, lower, etc. - are made only with reference to the figures as drawn and are not intended to imply absolute orientation.

[0028] Unless otherwise expressly stated, it is in no way intended that any methods set forth herein be construed as requiring that its steps be performed in a specific order, nor that with any apparatus, specific orientations be required. Accordingly, where a method claim does not actually recite an order to be followed by its steps, or that any apparatus claim does not actually recite an order or orientation to individual components, or it is not otherwise specifically stated in the claims or description that the steps are to be limited to a specific order, or that a specific order or orientation to components of an apparatus is not recited, it is in no way intended that an order or orientation be inferred in any respect. This holds for any possible non-express basis for interpretation, including matters of logic relative to arrangement of steps, operational flow, order of components, or orientation of components; plain meaning derived from grammatical organization or punctuation, and; the number or type of aspects described in the specification.

[0029] As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an" and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a” component includes aspects having two or more such components, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0030] The word “exemplary,” “example,” or various forms thereof are used herein to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” or as an “example” should not be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects or designs. Furthermore, examples are provided solely for purposes of clarity and understanding and are not meant to limit or restrict the disclosed subject matter or relevant portions of this disclosure in any manner. It can be appreciated that a myriad of additional or alternate examples of varying scope could have been presented but have been omitted for purposes of brevity.

[0031] As used herein, the terms “comprising” and “including”, and variations thereof, shall be construed as synonymous and open-ended, unless otherwise indicated. A list of elements following the transitional phrases comprising or including is a nonexclusive list, such that elements in addition to those specifically recited in the list may also be present.

[0032] The terms “substantial,” “substantially,” and variations thereof as used herein are intended to represent that a described feature is equal or approximately equal to a value or description. For example, a “substantially planar” surface is intended to denote a surface that is planar or approximately planar. Moreover, “substantially” is intended to denote that two values are equal or approximately equal. The term “substantially” may denote values within about 10% of each other, for example, within about 5% of each other, or within about 2% of each other.

[0033] Modifications may be made to the instant disclosure without departing from the scope or spirit of the claimed subject matter. Unless specified otherwise, “first,” “second,” or the like are not intended to imply a temporal aspect, a spatial aspect, an ordering, etc. Rather, such terms are merely used as identifiers, names, etc. for features, elements, items, etc. For example, a first end and a second end generally correspond to end A and end B or two different ends.

[0034] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary substrate apparatus 101. In aspects, the substrate apparatus 101 can comprise a glass substrate 103 and a layer of material 105 (e.g., an interleaf material for separating sheets of glass). The layer of material 105 can be beneficial in protecting the glass substrate 103. For example, the layer of material 105 can be utilized to separate one or more glass substrates from one another. In this way, the risk of one glass substrate damaging another, such as for example, when they stacked on top of one another (e.g., during long term storage, temporary storage, and / or transportation), will be reduced or eliminated. In aspects, the glass substrate 103 can comprise any type of glass substrate. In some non-limiting examples, the glass substrate 103 can comprise a glass sheet, such as for example, a glass sheet formed utilizing a fusion draw process. The glass sheet can be formed by any other process, such as for example but not limited to, a glass casting process, a rolled glass process, a float glass process, and / or the like. In aspects, the glass substrate 103 can comprise any suitable types of glass substrate, such as for example, digital display glass (e.g., televisions, smart phones, tables, etc.), building and construction glass (e.g., windows, doors, skylights, etc.), solar panel glass, decorative glass (e.g., stained glass, glass sculptures, etc.), tempered glass, laminated glass (e.g., for windshields), and / or the like. In aspects, the layer of material 105 can comprise any suitable material. In some examples, the layer of material 105 can comprise a thermoplastic. For example, some non-limiting examples of suitable thermoplastics may include polyethylene (PE), such as forexample, low-density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), and high density-polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), such as for example, biaxially-oriented polypropylene (BOPP), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyamides (e.g., nylons), ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), and / or the like.

[0035] With additional reference to the cross-sectional view of the substrate apparatus 101 shown in FIG. 2, in aspects, the glass substrate 103 can comprise a first major surface 201 and a second major surface 203 opposite the first major surface 201. In aspects, the glass substrate 103 can comprise a first end edge 107, a second end edge 109 opposite the first end edge 107 (see FIGS. 1 and 6). In aspects, the glass substrate 103 can comprise a first side portion 205 comprising a first side edge 207 and a second side portion 209 comprising a second side edge 211 opposite the first side edge 207. In further aspects, the glass substrate 103 can comprise a central portion 213 positioned between the first side portion 205 and the second side portion 209. In some aspects, the first side edge 207 and the second side edge 211 can each extend in an edge direction 111 (see FIG.l) from the first end edge 107 to the second end edge 109. In aspects, an outer periphery of the first major surface 201 and the second major surface 203 are each defined by the first and second end edges 107, 109 and the first and second side edges 207, 211.

[0036] In aspects, the layer of material 105 can comprise a first major surface 214 and a second major surface 217 opposite the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105. In some aspects, the layer of material 105 can comprise a first side portion 219 comprising a first side edge 221 and a second side portion 223 comprising a second side edge 225 opposite the first side edge 221 of the layer of material 105. The layer of material 105 can comprise a central portion 227 positioned between the first side portion 219 and the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. In aspects, the first side edge 221 and the second side edge 225 of the layer of material 105 can extend in the edge direction 111 (see FIG. 1). In some further aspects, the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103. The second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103 using various techniques. For example, in one non-limiting example, the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the first major surface 201 of the glasssubstrate 103 by pressing the layer of material 105 against the glass substrate 103 with a lamination device (e.g., one or more rollers) that are advanced in a direction parallel to the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105. In some such examples, the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103 can come into contact with the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105. Heat and pressure (e.g., by a pair of opposing rollers) can then be applied to the layer of material 105 such that as the layer of material 105 bonds with the glass substrate 103. Additionally and / or alternatively, in some aspects, the lamination process can further include an adhesive to bond the layer of material 105 to the glass substrate 103, such as for example, utilizing a solvent-based, water-based, and / or heat-melted adhesive.

[0037] In some aspects, at least a portion of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to at least a portion of the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103. For example, at least a portion of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated along any length of the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103. In some embodiments, as shown, the full length of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 substantially continuously from the first end edge of the layer of material 105 to the second end edge of the layer of material 105. As also shown, in some embodiments, the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 along the full length of the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 substantially continuously from the first end edge 107 of the glass substrate 103 to the second end edge 109 of the glass substrate 103. Although not shown, in some embodiments, less than the full length (e.g., 50% of the full length, 25% of the full length) of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 may be laminated to the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103. Still further, although not shown, in some embodiments, the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to less than the full length (e.g., 50% of the full length, 25% of the full length) of the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103.

[0038] In some embodiments, as shown, the full length of the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 substantially continuously from the first end edge of the layer of material 105 to the second end edge of the layer of material 105. As also shown, insome embodiments, the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 along the full length of the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 substantially continuously from the first end edge 107 of the glass substrate 103 to the second end edge 109 of the glass substrate 103. Although not shown, in some embodiments, less than the full length (e.g., 50% of the full length, 25% of the full length) of the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 may be laminated to the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103. Still further, although not shown, in some embodiments, the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to less than the full length (e.g., 50% of the full length, 25% of the full length) of the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103.

[0039] In some embodiments, as shown, at least a portion of the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to at least a portion of the central portion 213 of the glass substrate. For example, as shown, the full length of the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the central portion 213 of the glass substrate 103 substantially continuously from the first end edge of the layer of material 105 to the second end edge of the layer of material 105. As also shown, in some embodiments, the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to the central portion 213 of the glass substrate 103 along the full length of the central portion 213 of the glass substrate 103 substantially continuously from the first end edge 107 of the glass substrate 103 to the second end edge 109 of the glass substrate 103. Although not shown, in some embodiments, less than the full length (e.g., 50% of the full length, 25% of the full length) of the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 may be laminated to the central portion 213 of the glass substrate 103. Still further, although not shown, in some embodiments, the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 can be laminated to less than the full length (e.g., 50% of the full length, 25% of the full length) of the central portion 213 of the glass substrate 103.

[0040] FIG. 3 illustrates an enlarged view of the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 and the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 that also represents a mirror image of the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 and the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of FIG. 3 that illustrates surface discontinuities 301 of the layer of material 105 in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure. In aspects, the layer of material 105can be formed with a plurality of surface discontinuities 301 in at least one of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 but not the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105. In some examples, the layer of material 105 can be formed with the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 in the first side portion 219 and the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. In some examples, the layer of material 105 can be formed with a plurality of surface discontinuities 301 in the first side portion 219, but not the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. In some examples, the layer of material 105 can be formed with a plurality of surface discontinuities 301 in the second side portion 223, but not the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105. While the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 will be described hereinafter as not being formed within the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105, in some embodiments, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed and / or extend within the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105. For example, in some embodiments, the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 and the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 can be formed with the plurality of surface discontinuities 301. By forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 on the layer of material 105, the overall adhesion forces can be reduced between one substrate apparatus (e.g., the substrate apparatus 101) stacked (e.g., vertically stacked or horizontally stacked) with another substrate apparatus (e.g., the substrate apparatus 101), such as while storing and / or transporting the substrate apparatus 101. Reducing the overall adhesion forces between substrate apparatus 101 may be beneficial for separating one substrate apparatus from another substrate apparatus (described in further detail hereinafter). Furthermore, the layer of material 105 can provide protection for the glass substrate 103 from scratches, abrasions, chipping, cracking, fracturing, breakage, surface damage and deformation, optical distortion, weakened strength, and / or the like while storing and / or transporting the glass substrate 103.

[0041] In some aspects, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed into at least the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105. In some examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise any combination of protrusions, such as for example, bumps, protruding dimples, spikes, and / or peaks (e.g., flat peaks, pointed peaks, curved peaks and / or the like). Additionally and / or alternatively, in some examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 cancomprise any combination of recesses, such as for example, indentations, valleys (e.g., troughs), channels, craters (e.g., including a sunk in central portion and a protruding outer portion around the sunk in central portion), recesses, recessed dimples, and / or the like. Additionally and / or alternatively, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 (e.g., protrusions, recesses, and / or the like) can further comprise any suitable shape, such as for example, circular surface discontinuities, square surface discontinuities, rectangular surface discontinuities, irregular (e.g., not having a defined shape or pattern) surface discontinuities, surface discontinues with angled side walls or edges, and / or the like. In some aspects, “formed into at least the first major surface 214” can comprise forming one or more of the protrusions, bumps, spikes, peaks, valleys, dimples, channels, craters, indentations, and / or the like and / or any combination thereof into the first major surface 214, which will become more apparent hereinafter. In some aspects, “formed into at least the first major surface 214” can comprise one or more of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 forming into the layer of material 105 such that when a channel, groove, indentation, dimple, etc. is formed, the second major surface 217 of the layer of material deforms such as to make room for the channel, groove, indentation, dimple, etc. In some aspects, “formed into at least the first major surface 214” can comprise one or more of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 forming into the layer of material 105 such that when a channel, groove, indentation, dimple, etc. is formed, the second major surface 217 of the layer of material does not deform such that the second major surface 217 of the layer of material remains substantially unaffected. In some such aspects, the layer of material 105 may elongate (e.g., stretch) in the edge direction 111 to allow a channel, indentation, crater, etc. to be formed without deforming the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105. In yet another aspect, the channels, indentation, crater, etc. can be formed into the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 without deforming the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 by forming a corresponding protrusion, peak, spike, bump, etc. from the layer of material 105 that would be displaced by the formation of the channels, indentation, crater, etc. In yet another aspect, the channels, indentation, crater, etc. can be formed within the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 without deforming the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 by compressing a portion of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 to create a densified(e.g., compacted, consolidated, high-density) region at the location where the channels, indentation, crater, etc. are formed.

[0042] In some aspects, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed into at least the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 by a stamping / embossing process, a rolling process (e.g., utilizing one or more rollers to roll over the layer of material), a laser drilling process, and / or the like. In some examples, channels, indentations, craters, etc. can be formed by protrusions on a device (e.g., an embossing device, a roller device, etc.) that can compress at least the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 towards the second major surface 217 of the layer of material. Additionally and / or alternatively, in some examples, protrusions (e.g., bumps, protruding dimples, and / or the like) can be formed into the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 by a device (e.g., an embossing tool, a roller tool, etc.) where the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 can be pulled away from the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 by the device, such as for example, as a result of the layer of material 105 remaining (e.g., sticking) on an edge of the device as it moves relative to the layer of material 105, thereby pulling the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 away from the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 to form a protrusion, spike, and / or the like.

[0043] In aspects, the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 can define a central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 that extends along a plane 303. The dashed line in FIGS. 3 and 4 are for illustrative and descriptive purposes only and are employed herein to represent the plane 303, which would extend perpendicularly to the page in FIGS. 3 and 4. From this, the orientation of the plane 303 will vary relative to the page (e.g., perpendicular to the page, parallel with the page, etc.) depending upon the view being illustrated. Accordingly, the plane 303 can extend in an infinite number of directions within a three-dimensional (3-D) environment and thus is not intended to be limiting. The plane 303 as utilized herein refers to the central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 being a substantially planar (e.g., flat) surface. However, since the central surface of the layer of material 105 may comprise some level of negligible surface roughness, the plane 303 defining the central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 can be defined by a mean plane that bisects the variations in height in the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 such that a cumulative volume of portions of the layerof material 105 that are on one side of the mean plane are substantially equal to a cumulative volume of portions of the layer of material 105 that are on the other side of the mean plane. The mean plane can be determined by measuring the surface profde of the layer of material 105 (e.g., measuring variations in height along a length of the layer of material 105), such as for example, utilizing a profdometer, an interferometer, and / or a microscopy technique.

[0044] Furthermore, utilizing the mean plane and the surface profde data (e.g., the height variations), the areal average roughness (Sa) can be calculated for a given area (e.g., the central surface) by summing the absolute values of deviations in distances between points on the central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 and the mean plane, and then dividing the determined value by a total area sampled (e.g., the central surface). After calculating the Sa value, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 should be construed herein as a surface feature that increases the areal average roughness, relative to the central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105, at a location of the layer of material 105 where the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 are formed. For example, a local areal average roughness value can be determined at a location where the surface discontinuities 301 are formed and then compared to the calculated areal average roughness of the central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105. Furthermore, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 should be construed in reference to the plane 303 (e.g., the mean plane) described above. For instance, in some examples, when measuring a distance (e.g., height or depth) of one or more of the plurality of surface discontinuity 301 (described hereinafter), the distance should be measured from the plane 303 after determining where the mean plane lies relative to the central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105. For the purposes of this disclosure, the surface roughness values will be referred to in reference the area average roughness (Sa). However, it should be realized this is not meant to be limiting. Rather, the surface roughness, relative to the central surface of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105, for determining a deviation in surface roughness, can be determined utilizing any other suitable means, such as for example, but not limited to, root mean square (RMS) height of the surface, Skewness of height distribution (Ssk), Kurtosis (SKU) value, average roughness (Ra), and / or the like. The same process for determining the surface roughness of the central surface of the first major surface 214of the layer of material 105 must also be utilized in determining the surface roughness where the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 are formed. In other examples, software, such as software that implements means of calculating or classifying surface roughness can be utilized. Furthermore, in some examples such as described above where the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 extend into or are formed into the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105, the surface roughness values must be calculated prior to forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 in the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105.

[0045] In aspects, at least one surface discontinuity 401 (see FIG. 4) of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can extend into the corresponding first side portion 219 and / or second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 by a distance dl from the plane 303 of from about 10 micrometers (pm) to about 500 pm, such as from about 50 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 100 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 150 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 200 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 250 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 300 pm to about 500 pm such as from about 350 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 400 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 450 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 450 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 400 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 350 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 300 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 250 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 200 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 150 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 100 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 50 pm.

[0046] In some aspects, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise at least one channel 403 extending in the edge direction 111. In some such aspects, the at least one channel 403 can extend in the edge direction 111 any number of suitable distances. As partially schematically shown in FIG. 5 for illustration purposes, in some aspects, the at least one channel 403 can extend a distance in the edge direction 111 less than the entire length of the layer of material 105. Alternatively, in some examples, the at least one channel 403 can extend in the edge direction 111 an entire length of the glass substrate 103, such as for example, the at least one channel 403 can extend in the edge direction 111 (e.g., continuously) from the first end edge 107 to the second end edge 109 of the glass substrate 103. In some aspects, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise more than one channel, such as for example,a plurality of channels, where each channel extends in the edge direction 111 along at least one of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. In some aspects, the at least one channel 403 can comprise any suitable shape (e.g., as generally described above), such as for example, comprising a flat or rounded bottom with angled or straight side walls. The term “channel” should be construed herein to refer to a surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 that extends from the plane 303 in a direction towards the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105.

[0047] In some aspects, at least a second surface discontinuity 404 (see FIG. 4) of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can extend away from the corresponding first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 by a distance d2 from the plane 303 of from about 10 micrometers (pm) to about 500 pm, such as from about 50 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 100 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 150 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 200 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 250 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 300 pm to about 500 pm such as from about 350 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 400 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 450 pm to about 500 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 450 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 400 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 350 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 300 pm, such as from about10 pm to about 250 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 200 pm, such as from about10 pm to about 150 pm, such as from about 10 pm to about 100 pm, such as from about10 pm to about 50 pm,.

[0048] For example, in some aspects, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise at least one protrusion 405 extending in the edge direction 111. In some such aspects, the at least one protrusion 405 can extend in the edge direction 111 any number of suitable distances. As partially schematically shown in FIG. 5 for illustration purposes, in some aspects, the at least one protrusion 405 can extend in the edge direction 111 less than the entire length of the layer of material 105. Alternatively, in some examples, the at least one protrusion 405 can extend in the edge direction 111 an entire length of the glass substrate 103, such as for example, the at least one protrusion 405 can extend in the edge direction 111 (e.g., continuously) from the first end edge 107 to the second end edge 109 of the glass substrate 103. In some aspects, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise more than one protrusion, such as forexample, a plurality of protrusions, where each protrusion extends in the edge direction 111 along at least one of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. In some aspects, the at least one protrusion 405 can comprise any suitable shape (e.g., as generally described above), such as for example, comprising a flat or rounded peak with angled or straight side walls. The term “protrusion” should be construed herein to refer to a surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 that extends from the plane 303 in a direction away from the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105.

[0049] Turning to FIG. 5, a schematic front view of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 is illustrated. The dashed lines 501 schematically represent a division between the first side portion 219, the central portion 227, and the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. The dashed lines 501 are merely exemplary for illustrative purposes only, and thus not meant to be limiting as to any dimensions of the first side portion 219, the central portion 227, and the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. Furthermore, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 are schematically illustrated as a circle. However this is merely exemplary for illustrative purposes only, and thus not meant to be limiting as to any dimensions, size, and / or shape of any one of the surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301. In aspects, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be spaced apart from another surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be spaced apart a distance d3 (e.g., the distance extending in the edge direction 111) from another one or more corresponding surface discontinuities 301. In some further examples, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be spaced apart a distance d4 from another one or more corresponding surface discontinuities 301. In some examples, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be spaced the same distance d3 from an adjacent surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301, such that each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 in the edge direction 111 are all equally spaced. For example, as shown schematically in FIG. 5, the distance d3 from one surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 to two other corresponding surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can besubstantially equal to one another. In other examples, the distance d3 between one or more adjacent surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 may be different than the distance d3 between another different one or more adjacent surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301, such that that each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 are not equally spaced from one another in the edge direction 111 (e.g., each surface discontinuity is spaced a different distance apart or only some are spaced a different distance apart while some are spaced the same distance apart). In some examples, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be spaced the same distance d4 from an adjacent surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301, such that all of the distances d4 between each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 substantially perpendicular to the edge direction 111 are all equally spaced. For example, as shown schematically in FIG. 5, the distance d4 from one surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 to two other corresponding surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be substantially equal to one another. In other examples, the distance d4 between one or more adjacent surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 may be different than the distance d4 between another different one or more adjacent surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301, such that that each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 are not all equally spaced from one another different surface discontinuity substantially perpendicular to the edge direction 111 (e.g., each surface discontinuity is spaced a different distance apart or some are spaced a different distance apart while others are spaced the same distance apart). In some examples, the distance d3 can be equal to, less than, or greater than the distance d4. In some examples, as shown, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be viewed as matrix having a number of rows Rl, R2, R3. . . and so on and a number of columns Cl, C2, C3. . . . In some such examples, where the distance d3 is substantially equal between each adjacent surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 and the distance d4 is substantially equal between each adjacent surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301, the plurality of surface discontinuity can be viewed as an evenly spaced matrix where the distance from row Rl to row R2 is substantially equal to the distance from row R2 to row R3 and so on and the distance from column Cl to column C2 issubstantially equal to the distance from column C2 to column C3 and so on. In other such examples, the matrix can comprise varying distances between rows and columns. Furthermore, although a single matrix of rows and columns are schematically illustrated, a second matrix can be provided that is nested within a first matrix in further embodiments. In such embodiments, the second matrix can be staggered from the first matrix such that each row of the second matrix is disposed between a corresponding pair of adjacent rows of the first matrix and each column of the second matrix is disposed between a corresponding adjacent pair of columns of the first matrix. The rows and columns described above are merely exemplary for descriptive purposes and not meant to be limiting as to the number of surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 and thus any number of suitable number of columns and rows may be seen where more or less surface discontinuities are included.

[0050] In some examples, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can extend a distance d5 from the first side edge 221 of the layer of material 105. In aspects, the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can extend a distance d6 from the second side edge 225 of the layer of material 105. In some embodiments, the first side portion 219 does not overlap the second side portion 223 and the distance d5 and / or d6 can be from about 5 millimeters (mm) to about 10 centimeters (cm), such as from about 500 mm to about 5 cm, such as from about 1 cm to about 5 cm, such as from about 1 cm to about 4 cm, such as from about 1 cm, to about 3 cm, such as from about 1 cm to about 2 cm, such as from about 2 cm to about 3 cm. In addition, or alternatively, in further embodiments, the first side portion 219 does not overlap the second side portion 223 and the distance d5 and / or d6 are from greater than 0% to less than 50%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 40%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 30%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 20%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 15%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 10%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 5%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 4%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 3%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 2%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 1 %, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 0.5% of the width “W” of the layer of material taken perpendicular to the edge direction 111 from the first side edge 221 to the second side edge 225 of the layer of material 105. In further embodiments, the first side portion 219 and the secondside portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can extend any other suitable distance from the respective first side edge 221 and / orthe second side edge 225 ofthe layer of material 105.

[0051] In some aspects, still with reference to FIG. 5, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed to be distributed along any length L in the edge direction 111 ofthe first side portion 219 and / orthe second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. For example, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed to be distributed along the entire length L in the edge direction 111 ofthe first side portion 219 and / orthe second side portion 223 ofthe layer of material 105. In some examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed to be distributed along about 50% or less of the length L in the edge direction 111 of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. In some examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed to be distributed along only within or near one or more comers of layer of material 105. For example, while viewing FIG. 5, in some aspects, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed to be distributed only near any one, all, or some of the upper left hand comer, the upper right hand comer, the lower right hand comer, and the lower left hand comer of the layer of material 105. In some such examples, each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 are only formed within the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 and within a distance inwardly from a first end edge 503 of the layer of material 105 and / or a distance inwardly from a second end edge 505 of the layer of material 105 a distance from about 25% or less, from about 20% or less, from about 15% or less, from about 10% or less or from about 5% or less of the length L in the edge direction 111 of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. Any other suitable distance inwardly from the first end edge 503 and / or inwardly from the second end edge 505 of the layer of material 105 can be utilized. Furthermore, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed to be distributed along any other suitable length L of the layer of material 105. In some examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed to be distributed along the length L (e.g., any length) of the layer of material 105 and comprise breaks (e.g., distance gaps) in the edge direction 111 between one or more groups of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 and another one or more group of the pluralityof surface discontinuities 301 in the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. The above examples are merely exemplary locations for the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 to be formed within any one of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. Accordingly, any combination of locations relative to the layer of material 105 and / or the glass substrate 103 may be utilized.

[0052] Turning to FIG. 6, a schematic front view of the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103 is shown without the layer of material 105 laminated to the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103 for clarity. The dashed lines 601 schematically represent a division between the first side portion 205, the central portion 213, and the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103. The dashed lines 601 are merely exemplary for illustrative purposes only, and thus not meant to be limiting as to any dimensions of the first side portion 205, the central portion 213, and the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103. In aspects, as shown, the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 can extend a distance d7 from the first side edge 207 of the glass substrate 103. In some aspects, the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 can extend a distance d8 from the second side edge 211 of the glass substrate 103. In some embodiments, the distance d7 that the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 extends from the first side edge 207 can be substantially equal to the distance d5 that first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 extends from the first side edge 221 of the layer of material 105. In addition or alternatively, the distance d8 that the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 extends from the second side edge 211 can be substantially equal to the distance d6 that the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 extends from the second side edge 225 of the layer of material 105.

[0053] In some embodiments, the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 does not overlap the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 and the distance d7 and / or d8 can be from about 5 millimeters (mm) to about 10 centimeters (cm), such as from about 500 mm to about 5 cm, such as from about 1 cm to about 5 cm, such as from about 1 cm to about 4 cm, such as from about 1 cm, to about 3 cm, such as from about 1 cm to about 2 cm, such as from about 2 cm to about 3 cm. In addition, or alternatively, in further embodiments, the first side portion 205 does not overlap the second side portion 209 and the distance d7 and / or d8 are from greater than0% to less than 50%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 40%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 30%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 20%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 15%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 10%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 5%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 4%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 3%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 2%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 1%, such as from greater than 0% to less than about 0.5% of the width “W” of the glass substrate 103. In further embodiments, the first side portion 205 and the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 can extend any other suitable distance from the respective first side edge 207 and / or the second side edge 211 of the glass substrate 103.

[0054] In some aspects, the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can correspond to the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103. In some such examples, the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can overlap with the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103 such that the first side edge 207 of the glass substrate 103 is flush with the first side edge 221 of the layer of material 105 (e.g., as illustrated in FIG. 2). Alternatively, in some examples, the first side edge 207 of the glass substrate 103 may not be flush with the first side edge 221 of the layer of material 105. In some such examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed along the overlapping portion between the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 and the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103. In other such examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed within the overlapping portion and the non-overlapping portion of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 and the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103.

[0055] In some aspects, the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can correspond to the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103. In some such examples, the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can overlap with the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103 such that the second side edge 211 of the glass substrate 103 is flush with the second side edge 225 of the layer of material 105 (e.g., as illustrated in FIG. 2). Alternatively, in some examples, the second side edge 211 of the glass substrate 103 may not be flush with the second side edge 225 of the layer of material 105. In some such examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed along the overlapping portion between the second side portion 223of the layer of material 105 and the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103. In other such examples, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed within the overlapping portion and the non-overlapping portion of the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 and the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103.

[0056] The terms “first” and “second” side portions of the glass substrate 103 and / or the layer of material 105 should not be construed as limiting. Accordingly, the first side portion of either one of the glass substrate 103 and / or the layer of material 105 can be viewed as being a second side portion, and vice versa, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. For example, in some aspects, the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 can correspond to the first side portion 205 of the glass substrate 103, and therefore the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 can correspond to the second side portion 209 of the glass substrate 103.

[0057] FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate a substrate stack 701 comprising a plurality of substrate apparatus 101. While FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate each substrate apparatus 101 being stacked horizontally with respect to the orientations shown in both figures, in other examples, each substrate apparatus 101 can be stacked vertically and / or any other suitable way of stacking the substrate apparatus 101 against one another. As shown best in FIG. 8, in some aspects, the second major surface 203 of the glass substrate 103 of a first substrate apparatus 703 of the plurality of substrate apparatus 101 can be in contact with at least a portion of the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 of a second substrate apparatus 705 of the plurality of substrate apparatus 101. In this way, the first substrate apparatus 703 can be stacked with the second substrate apparatus 705. As shown in FIG. 8, because the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed into (e.g., are a part of) the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105, the portion(s) that can contact the second major surface 203 of the glass substrate 103 of the second substrate apparatus 705 will be the portion(s) of the layer of material 105 of the second substrate apparatus 705 that extend the furthest from the plane 303 (illustrated by the dotted line in FIG. 8) towards the second major surface 203 of the glass substrate 103 of the first substrate apparatus 703 along a given location / area of the layer of material 105. In some examples, as shown in FIG. 8, the portion(s) that can contact the second major surface 203 of the glass substrate 103 of the first substrate apparatus 703 can be the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 that extend away fromthe corresponding first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 of the second substrate apparatus 705 and towards the second major surface 203 of the glass substrate 103 of the first substrate apparatus 703. In other examples, such as where the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 only extend into the corresponding first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 (e.g., a channel, indentation, etc.) and there are no surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 that extend away from the corresponding first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105, the portion(s) that can contact the second major surface 203 of the glass substrate 103 of the first substrate apparatus 703 can be the portions along or near (e.g., the general surface roughness of the layer of material as described previously) the plane 303. In some aspects, this pattern for stacking any number of substrate apparatus 101 can be repeated.

[0058] By forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 into the first major surface of the layer of material 105, a gap 801 (shown generally in FIG. 8) will be created between each substrate apparatus 101 of the substrate stack 701. The gap 801 can be beneficial in reducing the adhesion force between each substrate apparatus 101. Turning back to FIG. 7, the substrate apparatus 101 of a third substrate apparatus 707 is shown being removed from the substrate stack 701. In some examples, such as shown, the third substrate apparatus 707 can be removed from the substrate stack 701 utilizing a robot 709 comprising a plurality of suction features 711, although in other examples, any other way of removing a substrate apparatus 101 from a substrate stack 701 can be utilized. As indicated by arrow 713, when each of the substrate apparatus 101 include the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 as disclosed herein, the third substrate apparatus 707 (or any substrate apparatus) can seamlessly be removed from the substrate stack 701 without accidently removing or separating another substrate apparatus 101, such as for example, without also accidently also removing the first substrate apparatus 703 and / or the second substrate apparatus 705. When the adhesion force is too high between two or more substrate apparatus 101 in the substrate stack 701 (e.g., when the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 disclosed herein are not formed on the surface of the layer of material 105) more than one of the substrate apparatus 101 may be lifted, such as by the robot 709. This can significantly slow down manufacturing automation by requiring assistance to separate the two or more substrateapparatus 101 that are stuck together, and can further lead to damaging one or more glass substrates 103 of the substrate apparatus 101, such as for example, where an extraneous (e.g., unwanted) substrate apparatus sticks (e.g., as a result of strong adhesion forces) to another intended substrate apparatus (e.g., a substrate apparatus that was initially intended to be picked up by the robot 709) and later becomes dislodged (e.g., as a result of the inertial forces arising from the movement of the robot 709) from the intended substrate apparatus. Thus, the present disclosure can decrease manufacturing time by decreasing manufacturing failures and further decrease the risk of damage to the glass substrate 103 of the substrate apparatus 101.

[0059] FIGS. 9-12 will describe of a method of producing a substrate apparatus 101 with initial reference to FIGS. 9-10 with the understanding that similar or identical methods may be provided in the other embodiments of the disclosure.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 9, in some aspects, the method can comprise forming at least one of the first side portion 219 (see FIG. 2) and / or the second side portion 223 (see FIG. 2) of the layer of material 105 with the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 (see FIG. 3). In some aspects, forming at least one of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 with the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise advancing the layer of material 105 being unwound from a roll of the layer of material 901. In some such examples, a spool may freely rotate (as indicated by arrow 903) as the layer of material 105 is unwound and advanced from the roll of the layer of material 901. In further such examples, advancing the layer of material 105 in direction 909 after unwinding can cause rotation of one or more rollers 905, 907 (e.g., dancing rollers). The one or more rollers 905, 907 can be biased to provide tension to the layer of material 105 as it is unwound from the roll of the layer of material 901.

[0061] In some aspects, forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise contacting at least a portion of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 with a portion of a textured roller 1101, 1201. Additionally and / or alternatively, in some aspects, forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise contacting at least a portion of the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 with a portion of the textured roller 1101, 1201. As shown in FIG. 9, the apparatus can further comprise a controller 913 programmed to send commands to an actuator 915 that can change the orientation of the textured roller 1101, 1201 relativeto the layer of material 105. For example, the actuator 915 can comprise a pressure sensorthat measures the pressure being applied by the textured rollers 1101, 1201 to the layer of material 105. The controller 913 can be programmed to send a command signal to the actuator 915 to move the textured roller 1101, 1201 toward or away from the layer of material 105 to maintain the desired level of pressure based on feedback from the pressure sensors. Other feedback from sensors can be input into the controller 913. For example, the controller 913 can send a command signal to the actuator 915 to move the textured roller 1101, 1201 to adjust surface discontinuity characteristics based on feedback from optical sensors or other sensors measuring the surface discontinuities being created by the textured rollers 1101, 1201. In still further embodiments, the controller 913 can send commands to the actuator 915 to adjust a rotational angle of the rotation axis 1104, 1205 of the textured roller 1101, 1201 relative to the plane 303. Accordingly, in some such aspects, the method of forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise controlling the textured roller 1101, 1201 with the controller 913 (e.g., by way of the actuator 915) to selectively contact the layer of material 105.

[0062] Turning to FIGS. 11 and 12, exemplary embodiments of the textured roller 1101, 1201 are shown. The textured roller 1101, 1201 can be positioned downstream from the roll of material 901 relative to the movement direction 909 of the layer of material. Additionally and / or alternatively, in some aspects, the textured roller 1101, 1201 can be positioned in circumferential contact with the roll of material 901 (see the dashed circle positioned around the roll of material 901 in FIG. 9). Additionally and / or alternatively, the textured roller 1101, 1201 can define a portion of the one or more rollers 905, 907 (see the dashed circles around the one or more rollers 905, 907 in FIG. 9 indicating the textured roller 1101, 1201 can be a part of the one or more rollers 905, 907). In some aspects, the textured roller 1101 can be positioned between the one or more rollers 905, 907 (see FIG. 9). The dashed circles in FIG. 9 represent nonlimiting alternative locations where the textured roller 1101, 1201 may be positioned. In some aspects, the textured roller 1101, 1201 can be positioned in only one, some, or all of the above depicted locations. However, this is merely exemplary and not meant to be limiting, any other suitable location may be utilized. In some aspects, the textured roller 1101, 1201 can rotate. In some aspects, the textured roller 1101, 1201 can rotate at a rate where the outer circumferentialsurface of the roller travels at the same speed as the layer of material 105 so there is no relative slipping between the layer of material 105 and the textured roller 1101, 1201 at the point of contact. In some aspects, the textured roller 1101, 1201 can comprise a heated textured roller. In some such aspects, the heated textured roller can be configured to selectively reach temperatures anywhere from about 40°C to about 250°C. In some aspects, by heating the textured roller 1101, 1201 the textured roller 1201 can create larger (e.g., in size) surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301, and in some examples, can create more consistent and precise patterns.

[0063] More specifically, FIG. 11, illustrates the textured roller 1101. In some aspects, the textured roller 1101 can comprise a plurality of disks 1103 spaced apart from one another along a rotation axis 1104 of a rotatable shaft 1102 of the textured roller 1101. In some aspects, the textured roller 1101 can comprise any number of disks for the plurality of disks 1103, such as for example, one disk, two disk, three disk, and so on. In some aspects, the number of disks for the plurality of disks 1103 can correspond to the distance d5 of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 and / or the distance d6 of the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. For example, as the distance d5, d6 increases more disks can be added to create a greater number of surface discontinuities across the distance d5, d6. Additionally, each disk of the plurality of disks 1103 can comprise any suitable dimension (e.g., diameter, radius and / or thickness). In some aspects, the spacing between each disk can correspond to a spacing between two or more groups of surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301. In further aspects, each disk of the plurality of disks 1103 can comprise a plurality of bristles 1105 extending radially outwardly relative to the rotation axis 1104. In aspects, the plurality of bristles 1105 can be spaced from one another along and around the rotation axis 1104 of the textured roller 1101. In aspects, the plurality of bristles 1105 can be any desired shape to match the desired pattern of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301. Additionally, the plurality of bristles 1105 can comprise any suitable number of bristles for the plurality of bristles. In some aspects, that by increasing or decreasing the number bristles of the plurality of bristles 1105, the number of surface discontinues of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 will also be increase or decreased respectively. In some embodiments, each bristle of the plurality of bristles1105 can comprise soft bristles and / or hard bristles. In yet another embodiment of the textured roller 1101 (not shown), the textured roller 1101 may comprise a single large disk (e.g., as opposed to the spaced disks shown in FIG. 11) comprising the plurality of bristles 1105 as described above.

[0064] Turning to the textured roller 1201 illustrated in FIG. 12, in some aspects, the textured roller 1201 can comprise a plurality of protrusions 1203 spaced apart from one another. In aspects, the plurality of protrusions 1203 can be positioned circumferentially around and along a rotation axis 1205 of a rotatable shaft 1206 of the textured roller 1201. In some examples, the plurality of protrusions 1203 can be spaced any suitable distance from one another, such as for example, an equal distance from one another along the rotation axis 1205 of the textured roller 1201. In aspects, any suitable number of protrusions for the plurality of protrusions 1203 may be utilized, such as for example, two protrusions, three protrusions, and so on. In other aspects, only one protrusion can be provided, such as for example, where only a few surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 are desired and / or where the distance d5, d6 of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 respectively are relatively small. In some aspects, that by increasing / decreasing the number of protrusions of the plurality of protrusions 1203, the number of surface discontinuities of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 will also be increased / decreased respectively. Furthermore, in some aspects, increasing / decreasing the number of protrusions of the plurality of protrusions 1203, can also increase the amount of area of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 that is textured by the textured roller 1201. In aspects, each protrusion of the plurality of protrusions 1203 can extend radially outward relative to the rotation axis 1205 of the rotatable shaft 1206. In further aspects, each protrusion of the plurality of protrusions 1203 can comprise a continuous circumferential protrusion 1207 encircling the rotation axis 1205. In some aspects, the continuous circumferential protrusion 1207 can further comprise a circumferential textured surface 1209 (e.g., a hard and / or soft textured surface). In some aspects, the circumferential textured surface 1209 can comprise knurls and / or similar textures. In some aspects, various features of the textured roller 1201, similarly to that described above for the textured roller 1101, can be altered to obtain a desired plurality of surface discontinuities 301 (e.g., shape, size, etc.). For example,by increasing a length, depth, and / or width of the textures on the circumferential textured surface 1209 (e.g., increasing a dimension of the knurls) the plurality of protrusions formed on the layer of material 105 can be altered to adjust the above described adhesion force.

[0065] With additional reference to FIG. 10, in some aspects, the method can comprise contacting the portion of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 with the portion of the textured roller 1101, 1201, while the textured roller 1101, 1201 is rotated about the rotation axis 1104, 1205. In some aspects, the method can comprise contacting the portion of the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 with the portion of the textured roller 1101, 1201, while the textured roller 1101, 1201 is rotated about the rotation axis 1104, 1205. Referring to FIGS. 10A and 10B, the rotation axis 1104, 1205 can be oriented at an acute angle 1001 (e.g., from between about 0 degrees to about 90 degrees) relative to the plane 303 (indicated by the horizontal dashed line in FIGS. 10A and 10B).

[0066] While FIG. 10 shows the textured roller 1101, 1201 as two separate textured rollers that each contact the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223, in some embodiments, the textured roller 1101, 1201 can be a single large textured roller that can be oriented at the acute angle 1001 to contact the first side portion 219 or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. Optionally, the single large textured roller can then be oriented at the acute angle 1001 in the opposite direction to contact the other one of the first side portion 219 or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. As shown in FIG. 10A, in some embodiments, the first side portion 219 can bend to conform to the angle of the textured roller 1101, 1201 so that the first side portion 219 contacts the outer periphery of the textured roller 1101, 1201 to form the surface discontinuities. Likewise, as shown in FIG. 10B, in some embodiments, the second side portion 223 can bend to conform to the angle of the textured roller 1101, 1201 so that the second side portion 223 contacts the outer periphery of the textured roller 1101, 1201 to form the surface discontinuities. Contacting at an angle allows the distance(s) d5, d6 to be determined by the roller that, as shown, can have a length that is greater than the distances. In some embodiments, the length of the roller can be greater than the width W to allow the roller to be used to provide surface discontinuities over the entire surface of the layer of material 105. Alternatively, at an angle, only a portion of thesame roller may contact the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 to limit the surface discontinuities 301 to only those areas without surface discontinuities 301 in the central portion 227. Furthermore, the controller 913 can be controlled to adjust the position of the rotation axis 1104, 1205 of the textured roller 1101, 1201 with the actuator 915 to increase or decrease the distance(s) d5, d6. As such, the same textured roller can be used to provide surface discontinuities over the entire surface of the layer or material 105 or a side portion 219, 223 over a wide range of distances d5, d6 using the methods of the disclosure.

[0067] In some aspects, forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise heating the portion of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 with the portion of the textured roller 1101, 1201 (e.g., with the heated textured roller described above). In some aspects, heating the portion of the first side portion 219 of the layer of material 105 with the portion of the textured roller 1101, 1201 can comprise heating the textured roller 1101, 1201 from about 40°C to about 250°C.

[0068] In some aspects, forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise embossing the layer of material 105. In some examples, embossing can comprise contacting the layer of material 105 (e.g., as described above) with the textured roller 1101, 1201. In some aspects embossing the layer of material 105 can comprise embossing the layer of material 105 with a linear embossing device (not shown), such as for example, an embossing press, a hot embossing press, a stamping press, a hot stamping press, and / or the like. The linear embossing device can operate similar to the textured rollers described above but operate with a linear motion as opposed to a rolling motion. Furthermore, the linear embossing device can comprise any of the features of the textured rollers 1101, 1201 described above.

[0069] In some aspects, the method can comprise forming at least one of the first side portion 219 (see FIG. 2) and / or the second side portion 223 (see FIG. 2) of the layer of material 105 with the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 (see FIG. 3). In some aspects, forming at least one of the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105 with the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can comprise using a thermal process such as laser drilling, thermal clamping, or hot embossing.

[0070] In aspects, laser drilling is a process that uses a focused laser beam to create precise holes, lines, or patterns in materials. Laser drilling excels in precisionand versatility, while being a high-speed, non-contact process capable of drilling any number of geometries, including complex geometries. Laser drilling is thus capable of precise control of the feature size of the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 in the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. In addition, features of the plurality of discontinuities 301 can be readily changed by adjusting settings of the laser, foregoing the need to change the patterning mold for a roller, for example, or other contact-based method. In aspects, laser drilling can create a plurality of discontinues 301 comprising troughs or holes in the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 of the layer of material 105. Further, in aspects, the plurality of discontinues 301 can comprises raised edges along the upper perimeter of the trough or hole.

[0071] In some aspects, the method can comprise thermal clamping, which uses controlled heating and / or cooling to manipulate the layer of material 105. This process relies on thermal expansion and contraction to create specific textures or patterns on the surface of the layer of material 105. Specifically, in some aspects, thermal clamping can be used to increase the hardness of a specific area of the layer of material 105 in the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223. The use of thermal clamping can avoid puncturing the layer of material 105, and thus reduces the risk of introducing defects to the glass substrate 103. According to embodiments, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 formed by thermal clamping can comprise at least one ridge extending in the edge direction 111. In some such aspects, the at least one ridge can extend in the edge direction 111 any number of suitable distances, as described in various embodiments herein. The at least one ridge can have a ridge width wrmeasured parallel to the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 and perpendicular to the edge direction 111. The ridge width wrcan be any suitable width necessary to achieve the desired decrease in adhesion. In some embodiments, the ridge width wris about 20 mm or less, about 18 mm or less, about 16 mm or less, about 14 mm or less, about 12 mm or less, about 10 mm or less, about 8 mm or less, about 6 mm or less, about 4 mm or less, or about 2 mm or less. The at least one ridge can also have a ridge height hrmeasured in a direction perpendicular to the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 in a direction extending away from the layer of material 105. The ridge height hr, according to aspects of some embodiments, can be greater than about 0 pm to about 200 pm, from about greaterthan 0 pm to about 100 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 90 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 80 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 70 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 60 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 50 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 40 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 30 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 20 pm, from about greater than 0 pm to about 10 pm, from about 10 pm to about 100 pm, from about 20 pm to about 100 pm, from about 30 pm to about 100 pm, from about 40 pm to about 100 pm, from about 50 pm to about 100 pm, from about 60 pm to about 100 pm, from about 70 pm to about 100 pm, from about 80 pm to about 100 pm, or from about 90 pm to about 100 pm, as well as a range comprises of any two of the foregoing endpoints of listed ranges.

[0072] The laser drilling and thermal clamping methods described above can be implemented on the layer of material 105 as it is moved about a spool system, as shown in FIG. 9, or can be applied on the layer of material 105 while stationary.

[0073] Turning back to FIG. 9, in aspects, the method can comprise laminating the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 to the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103. In some aspects, laminating the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 to the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103 can comprise advancing the glass substrate 103 in a substrate movement direction 911 while simultaneously advancing the layer of material 105 in the movement direction 909. In some aspects, advancing the glass substrate 102 in the substrate movement direction 911 while simultaneously advancing the layer of material 105 in the movement direction 909, can further comprise advancing a portion of the layer of material 105 to be parallel with the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103. The method can then comprise contacting the parallel portion of the layer of material 105 with the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate to laminate the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 to the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103.

[0074] In some aspects, not specifically shown, the method can comprise cutting a downstream portion of the layer of material 105 away from an upstream portion of the layer of material 105 relative to the movement direction 909 of the layer of material 105. In some aspects, the downstream portion of the layer of material105 can be cut away from the upstream portion of the layer of material 105 after forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301, and further after laminating the second major surface 217 of the layer of material 105 to the first major surface 201 of the glass substrate 103.

[0075] In some aspects, not specifically shown, the method can comprise aligning the first substrate apparatus 703 (see FIG. 7 generally) with the second substrate apparatus 705 (see FIG. 7 generally). In aspects, aligning the first substrate apparatus 703 with the second substrate apparatus 705 can further comprise contacting the second major surface 203 of the first substrate apparatus 703 with the first major surface 214 of the layer of material 105 of the second substrate apparatus 705.

[0076] The methods described herein can be repeated to form any number of substrate apparatus 101. Furthermore, although not specifically shown, in some examples, the method can comprise, additionally and / or alternately, forming the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 on the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 utilizing the textured roller 1101, 1201 described above and / or utilizing any of the methods described above.

[0077] In some aspects, that while the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed on the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105, by excluding the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 from the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105, the adhesion force (described previously) can be increased to maintain a sufficient level of fixation of the glass substrate apparatus 101 relative to one another while providing surface discontinuities 301 limited to the first side portion 219 and / or the second side portion 223 and not the central portion 227 can facilitate separation of the glass substrate apparatus being grasped by the robot from the stack while not having the surface discontinuities 301 on the central portion 227 can help maintain the remaining glass substrate apparatus together in the stack so that the robot only removes one glass substrate apparatus at a time from the stack. Furthermore, in some aspects, by excluding the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 from the central portion 227 of the layer of material 105 (e.g., corresponding to a quality area of the glass substrate 103), the quality area of the glass substrate 103 will not be effected and thus will reduce and / or eliminate the need for quality assessment.

[0078] In some aspects, the plurality of surface discontinuities 301 can be formed on the layer of material 105 after the layer of material 105 has been manufactured, thereby allowing features associated with the current disclosure to be retrofitted to existing machines and / or devices. In some examples, by utilizing the apparatus and methods disclosed herein, the cost of producing a substrate apparatus 101 can be reduced, such as for example, by eliminating the need to laminate both sides of the substrate apparatus 101 and by reducing the need to purchase a specialized layer of material 105 to reduce the adhesion forces described previously.

[0079] In accordance with the disclosure, non-limiting aspects of the disclosure will now be described. Various combinations of the aspects can be provided in accordance with the disclosure.

[0080] Aspect 1. A substrate apparatus comprising a glass substrate. The glass substrate comprises a first major surface, a second major surface opposite the first major surface, a first end edge, a second end edge opposite the first end edge. The glass substrate further comprising a first side portion comprising a first side edge, a second side portion comprising a second side edge opposite the first side edge, and a central portion positioned between the first side portion and the second side portion, wherein the first side edge and the second side edge each extend in an edge direction from the first end edge to the second end edge, and an outer periphery of the first major surface and the second major surface are each defined by the first and second end edges, and the first and second side edges. The substrate apparatus further comprises a layer of material. The layer of material comprises a first major surface and a second major surface opposite the first major surface of the layer of material. The layer of material further comprises a first side portion comprising a first side edge, a second side portion comprising a second side edge opposite the first side edge of the layer of material, and a central portion positioned between the first side portion and the second side portion of the layer of material, wherein the first side edge and the second side edge of the layer of material extend in the edge direction, and the second major surface of the layer of material is laminated to the first major surface of the glass substrate, and the layer of material is formed with a plurality of surface discontinuities in at least one of the first side portion and / or the second side portion of the layer of material but not the central portion of the layer of material.

[0081] Aspect 2. The substrate apparatus of Aspect 1, wherein the plurality of surface discontinuities are formed into at least the first major surface of the layer of material.

[0082] Aspect 3. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-2, wherein the central portion of the layer of material defines a central surface of the first major surface of the layer of material that extends along a plane, and at least one surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities extends into the corresponding first side portion and / or second side portion of the layer of material by a distance from the plane of from about 10 micrometers to about 500 micrometers.

[0083] Aspect 4. The substrate apparatus of Aspect 3, wherein at least a second surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities extends away from the corresponding first side portion and / or the second side portion of the layer of material by a distance from the plane from about 10 micrometers to about 500 micrometers.

[0084] Aspect 5. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-4, wherein the layer of material comprises a thermoplastic.

[0085] Aspect 6. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-5, wherein the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises at least one channel extending in the edge direction.

[0086] Aspect 7. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-6, wherein each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities is spaced apart from another surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities.

[0087] Aspect 8. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-7, wherein the first side portion of the layer of material extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the first side edge of the layer of material, and the second side portion of the layer of material extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the second side edge of the layer of material.

[0088] Aspect 9. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-8, wherein the first side portion of the glass substrate extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the first side edge of the glass substrate, and the second side portion of the glass substrate extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the second side edge of the glass substrate.

[0089] Aspect 10. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-9, wherein at least a portion of the first side portion of the layer of material is laminated to at least a portion of the first side portion of the glass substrate.

[0090] Aspect 11. The substrate apparatus of any one of Aspects 1-10, wherein at least a portion of the second side portion of the layer of material is laminated to at least a portion of the second side portion of the glass substrate.

[0091] Aspect 12. A method of producing a substrate apparatus of Aspect 1, comprising forming at least one of the first side portion or the second side portion of the layer of material with the plurality of surface discontinuities. The method further comprises laminating the second major surface of the layer of material to the first major surface of the glass substrate.

[0092] Aspect 13. The method of Aspect 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises contacting at least a portion of the first side portion of the layer of material with a portion of a textured roller.

[0093] Aspect 14. The method of Aspect 13, wherein the forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises heating the portion of the first side portion of the layer of material with the portion of the textured roller.

[0094] Aspect 15. The method of any one of Aspects 13-14, further comprising contacting the portion of the first side portion of the layer of material with the portion of the textured roller while the textured roller is rotated about a rotation axis.

[0095] Aspect 16. The method of Aspect 15, wherein the central portion of the layer of material defines a central surface of the first major surface of the layer of material that extends along a plane, and the rotation axis is oriented at an acute angle relative to the plane.

[0096] Aspect 17. The method of Aspect 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises embossing the layer of material.

[0097] Aspect 18. The method of Aspect 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises laser drilling the layer of material.

[0098] Aspect 19. The method of Aspect 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises thermal clamping the layer of material.

[0099] It should be understood that while various aspects have been described in detail relative to certain illustrative and specific examples thereof, the present disclosure should not be considered limited to such, as numerous modifications andcombinations of the disclosed features are possible without departing from the scope of the following claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A substrate apparatus comprising: a glass substrate comprising a first major surface, a second major surface opposite the first major surface, a first end edge, a second end edge opposite the first end edge, a first side portion comprising a first side edge, a second side portion comprising a second side edge opposite the first side edge, and a central portion positioned between the first side portion and the second side portion, wherein the first side edge and the second side edge each extend in an edge direction from the first end edge to the second end edge, and an outer periphery of the first major surface and the second major surface are each defined by the first and second end edges, and the first and second side edges; and a layer of material comprising a first major surface and a second major surface opposite the first major surface of the layer of material, a first side portion comprising a first side edge, a second side portion comprising a second side edge opposite the first side edge of the layer of material, and a central portion positioned between the first side portion and the second side portion of the layer of material, wherein the first side edge and the second side edge of the layer of material extend in the edge direction, and the second major surface of the layer of material is laminated to the first major surface of the glass substrate, and the layer of material is formed with a plurality of surface discontinuities in at least one of the first side portion and / or the second side portion of the layer of material but not the central portion of the layer of material.

2. The substrate apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of surface discontinuities are formed into at least the first major surface of the layer of material.

3. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1 -2, wherein the central portion of the layer of material defines a central surface of the first major surface of the layer of material that extends along a plane, and at least one surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities extends into the corresponding first side portion and / or second side portion of the layer of material by a distance from the plane of from about 10 micrometers to about 500 micrometers.

4. The substrate apparatus of claim 3, wherein at least a second surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities extends away from the corresponding first side portion and / or the second side portion of the layer of material by a distance from the plane from about 10 micrometers to about 500 micrometers.

5. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1 -4, wherein the layer of material comprises a thermoplastic.

6. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises at least one channel extending in the edge direction.

7. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1-6, wherein each surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities is spaced apart from another surface discontinuity of the plurality of surface discontinuities.

8. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1-7, wherein the first side portion of the layer of material extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the first side edge of the layer of material, and the second side portion of the layer of material extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the second side edge of the layer of material.

9. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1-8, wherein the first side portion of the glass substrate extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the first side edge of the glass substrate, and the second side portion of the glass substrate extends a distance of from about 5 millimeters to about 10 centimeters inwardly from the second side edge of the glass substrate.

10. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1-9, wherein at least a portion of the first side portion of the layer of material is laminated to at least a portion of the first side portion of the glass substrate.

11. The substrate apparatus of any one of claims 1-10, wherein at least a portion of the second side portion of the layer of material is laminated to at least a portion of the second side portion of the glass substrate.

12. A method of producing a substrate apparatus of claim 1, comprising: forming at least one of the first side portion or the second side portion of the layer of material with the plurality of surface discontinuities; and laminating the second major surface of the layer of material to the first major surface of the glass substrate.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises contacting at least a portion of the first side portion of the layer of material with a portion of a textured roller.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises heating the portion of the first side portion of the layer of material with the portion of the textured roller.

15. The method of any one of claims 13-14, further comprising contacting the portion of the first side portion of the layer of material with the portion of the textured roller while the textured roller is rotated about a rotation axis.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the central portion of the layer of material defines a central surface of the first major surface of the layer of material that extends along a plane, and the rotation axis is oriented at an acute angle relative to the plane.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises embossing the layer of material.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises laser drilling the layer of material.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein forming the plurality of surface discontinuities comprises thermal clamping the layer of material.

Images