Anti-fingerprint Glass Coating via Surface Roughness and Wetting Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Consumer electronic devices with glass or plastic surfaces often suffer from smudging and fingerprint marks, which are difficult to clean and can impair visibility, leading to a need for improved surface coatings or modifications that reduce smudge visibility and enhance durability.
Innovation Solution
A method involving surface roughening of glass or plastic substrates to achieve a root mean square (RMS) roughness of less than 0.8 microns, combined with a thin, substantially conformal coating that alters hydrophobicity or hydrophilicity, allowing for easier removal or absorption of impurities and reducing glare.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a hydrophobic coating is applied to facilitate removal of oils and smudges, then ease of cleaning is improved, but the coating may increase surface visibility of impurities or alter optical properties negatively
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different surface properties to different regions: hydrophobic coating on peaks for easy cleaning, and hydrophilic regions in valleys for impurity absorption. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction by making cleaning easy while simultaneously hiding impurities.
Solution Approach 2:
The roughened surface structure acts as an intermediary between the hydrophobic coating and the impurities. It provides a mechanism where oils are repelled to peaks while water-soluble impurities are drawn into valleys, achieving both easy cleaning and impurity concealment.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If surface morphology is altered to hide impurities and residue, then visibility of smudges is reduced, but surface roughness may increase to unacceptable levels
Solution Approach 1:
The patent carefully controls the RMS roughness parameter to be less than 0.8 microns, optimizing the balance between hiding impurities and maintaining acceptable surface quality. This parameter optimization resolves the contradiction by achieving smudge concealment without excessive roughness.
3Reliability
If a conformal coating is applied over roughened surface, then durability is enhanced, but the coating thickness may increase altering optical properties
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a thin conformal coating that follows the roughened surface topology without adding significant thickness. This thin film provides durability while maintaining the underlying surface's optical properties, resolving the contradiction between protection and optical quality.
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
The approach effectively reduces the visibility of fingerprints and smudges, enhances durability, and provides anti-glare properties without the need for aftermarket protective coatings, improving the aesthetic appearance and ease of cleaning of electronic device surfaces.
Implementation Method 1
by altering the hydrophobicity and/or hydrophilicity of the substrate (e.g., through the application of a coating with the desired contact angle with a sessile drop of water)
Implementation Method 2
the surface morphology and/or roughness of the glass or plastic-based surface may be altered so as to 'hide' impurities and/or residue that remains on the surface
Implementation Method 3
The thin film coating has a surface energy sufficient to cause at least some oils that come into contact therewith to migrate into valleys of the thin film coating
Data Source
AI summary
Certain example embodiments of this invention relate to coated articles including anti-fingerprint and/or smudge-reducing coatings, and/or methods of making the same. Oil from fingerprints and the like may easily transfer to the surface of an article. However, it has been found that in certain example embodiments, a reduced-smudge and reduced-glare effect on a glass substrate may be achieved by micro-engineering a glass surface's properties, such as surface morphology and/or roughness. In certain example embodiments, a thin film coating may be introduced to the glass surface in order to alter the contact angle of the article, or for other optical, electrical, mechanical, chemical and/or environmental purposes and/or durability. It has further advantageously been found that by altering the contact angle of the surface, the anti-smudge and anti-glare effects of the substrate may be further improved.