Electrically conductive film
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrically conductive films and structures, such as flat ribbon cables, lack sufficient mechanical strength and deformability, making them unsuitable for various applications, and their manufacturing often involves the use of harmful substances like etching processes.
Innovation Solution
The development of an electrically conductive film with a metal layer structure featuring strip conductors having bent sections, produced through material removal processes like machining, which allows for complex patterns and increased usability, while eliminating the need for harmful etching substances.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If etching processes are used to create electrically conductive structures, then complex structural patterns can be produced, but harmful or toxic substances are generated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the chemical etching process with a mechanical machining process to create the conductive structure. The metal layer is structured by mechanically removing material instead of using chemical etchants, thereby eliminating harmful substances while still achieving complex structural patterns in the conductive film
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the process parameter from chemical etching to mechanical machining. This parameter change transforms the manufacturing method to eliminate harmful chemical substances while maintaining the ability to produce complex structural patterns through controlled material removal
2Area of stationary object
If conventional electrically conductive films are used, then space-saving integration is achieved, but mechanical strength and deformability are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structure consisting of a metal layer bonded to a polymer substrate. This composite construction combines the electrical conductivity of the metal with the mechanical strength and deformability of the polymer, achieving both space-saving integration and enhanced mechanical properties
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a thin-film composite structure where a metal layer is deposited on a flexible polymer substrate. This allows the conductive film to be both space-efficient and mechanically flexible, enabling integration into applications requiring both compact size and deformability
3Ease of manufacture
If flat ribbon cables are used for electrical connections, then simple manufacturing is achieved, but electrically conductive structural patterns are lacking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the metal layer into specific conductive patterns through mechanical machining. Instead of using a solid ribbon cable, the metal layer is divided into functional conductive traces and structures that provide both electrical connection and structural functionality, achieving complexity without sacrificing manufacturing simplicity
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to an electrically conductive film (10) having an electrically nonconductive substrate layer (12), and an electrically conductive metal layer (14) that has a structure produced by material removal and that on a first side is joined, at least in sections, to the substrate layer (12).