Electrochromic Window Fabrication With Defect-Excluding Cut Patterns
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Solution Overview
Problem
Electrochromic windows suffer from low yield and quality issues due to defects introduced during conventional fabrication processes, particularly when tempering is used to strengthen glass panes, leading to visible defects and reduced acceptance rates.
Innovation Solution
Fabricate electrochromic devices on a large glass sheet, characterize and define a cutting pattern post-fabrication to exclude defect regions, and perform edge treatments to enhance quality and strength, followed by laser isolation and bus bar addition to individual panes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If tempering is used to strengthen glass panes during conventional fabrication, then strength is improved, but visible defects are introduced and quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies edge deletion and laser scribing as preliminary actions before tempering to remove potential defect sites. By pre-processing the glass edges to eliminate sharp corners and surface irregularities, the subsequent tempering process produces fewer visible defects while maintaining strength enhancement.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional fabrication processes are used, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but yield and quality are reduced due to defects
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes defective regions from the glass sheet through edge deletion and selective area removal. By taking out the problematic edge regions where defects commonly occur, the remaining usable area provides higher quality electrochromic panes with improved yield.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces conventional mechanical cutting methods with laser-based processing for edge deletion and scribing. This substitution enables more precise control over the removal process, reducing mechanical stress-induced defects while maintaining ease of manufacture.
3Ease of manufacture
If cutting is performed before fabrication, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but defect regions cannot be excluded and quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent reverses the conventional sequence by performing fabrication first and cutting second. This preliminary fabrication allows the electrochromic device to be formed on the complete glass sheet, after which cutting can selectively exclude defect regions while preserving high-quality areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the fabricated device is inspected to identify defect locations, and this information feeds into the cutting pattern design. The cutting process then uses this feedback to exclude specific defect regions while maximizing usable area.
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
Improves yield and quality by minimizing defects, allowing for high-quality electrochromic panes that can be integrated into insulated glass units with enhanced strength and visibility.
Implementation Method 1
Electrochromism is a phenomenon in which a material exhibits a reversible electrochemically-mediated change in an optical property when placed in a different electronic state, typically by being subjected to a voltage change. One well known electrochromic material is tungsten oxide (WO3). Tungsten oxide is a cathodic electrochromic material in which a coloration transition, transparent to blue, occurs by electrochemical reduction.
Implementation Method 2
Laser scribes for isolating individual electrodes of EC devices on the individual electrochromic panes may be added prior to or after cutting the panes.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods of manufacturing electrochromic windows are described. Insulated glass units (IGU's) are protected, e.g. during handling and shipping, by a protective bumper. The bumper can be custom made using IGU dimension data received from the IGU fabrication tool. The bumper may be made of environmentally friendly materials. Laser isolation configurations and related methods of patterning and/or configuring an electrochromic device on a substrate are described. Edge deletion is used to ensure a good seal between spacer and glass in an IGU and thus better protection of an electrochromic device sealed in the IGU. Configurations for protecting the electrochromic device edge in the primary seal and maximizing viewable area in an electrochromic pane of an IGU are also described.