Adhesive-Bonded Glass Plates for Complex Geometry and Less Waste
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Solution Overview
Problem
Manufacturing glass or glass ceramic parts with complex shapes and variable thicknesses is costly and time-consuming, leading to significant material waste and lengthy finishing processes.
Innovation Solution
A method involving chemically-strengthened glass-based plates bonded with a cured adhesive layer to achieve complex geometries, allowing separate engineering of stress profiles and materials for each plate, and enabling fabrication at room temperature without clean-room requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Shape
If thicker sheet is used and machined to desired size, then complex shapes and variable thicknesses can be achieved, but material waste approaches or exceeds 50% and finishing process becomes time consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The glass article is divided into multiple separate glass sheets (first glass sheet, second glass sheet, third glass sheet) that are bonded together using adhesive layers. Each sheet can be manufactured with simpler geometry and then combined to form the final complex shape, avoiding the need to machine a single thick sheet down to the desired variable thickness profile.
Solution Approach 2:
The solution transitions from creating complex 3D shapes through subtractive machining of a single thick sheet to assembling multiple thinner sheets in a stacked configuration. This dimensional approach allows complex geometries to be achieved through the arrangement and bonding of multiple planar elements rather than removing material from a monolithic structure.
2Shape
If thicker sheet is used and machined to desired size, then complex shapes and variable thicknesses can be achieved, but the finishing process becomes time consuming
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the glass article into multiple pre-fabricated sheets that are subsequently bonded together, the need for extensive finishing and machining operations on a single thick piece is eliminated. Each sheet can be prepared independently with minimal finishing, and the bonding process quickly assembles them into the final complex shape.
Solution Approach 2:
The glass sheets are prepared in advance with their final surface finishes and geometries before bonding. This preliminary preparation of individual sheets eliminates the need for time-consuming post-assembly finishing operations, as each component arrives at the bonding stage already processed to specification.
3Strength
If adhesive bond strength is high, then structural integrity is improved, but failure mode becomes catastrophic glass breakage rather than controlled delamination
Solution Approach 1:
The adhesive bond strength is carefully controlled and optimized to fall within a specific range: strong enough to provide adequate structural integrity for normal use, but weak enough to allow controlled delamination as a failure mode. This parameter optimization ensures that when failure occurs, the adhesive layer fails in a predictable manner rather than causing catastrophic glass breakage.
Solution Approach 2:
The adhesive layer is designed to act as a cushioning element that can fail in a controlled manner to prevent more severe damage. By selecting an adhesive with appropriate bond strength characteristics, the system is prepared in advance to absorb energy and fail gracefully through delamination rather than transmitting forces that would cause glass breakage.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Reduces material waste and processing time while allowing for tailored failure mechanisms and stress profiles, resulting in a lower-cost, efficient production of complex glass-based articles suitable for consumer devices.
Implementation Method 1
The cured adhesive layer adheres a portion of the first major surface of the plate to the second major surface of the second plate
Implementation Method 2
The first plate is made of a first chemically-strengthened glass-based material. The second plate is made of a second chemically-strengthened transparent glass-based material
Data Source
AI summary
An article comprises a first plate, a second plate and a cured adhesive layer. The first plate is made of a first chemically-strengthened glass-based material. The first plate comprises: a first major surface opposing a second major surface and a thickness equal to or greater than 0.4 mm and less than or equal to 3.0 mm. The second plate is made of a second chemically-strengthened transparent glass-based material. The second plate comprises: a first major surface opposing a second major surface and a thickness equal to or greater than 0.4 mm and less than or equal to 3.0 mm. The cured adhesive layer adheres a portion of the first major surface of the plate to the second major surface of the second plate. The second plate has an area equal to or less than 25% of the area of the first plate.