Electrocontrollable Device Peripheral Seal Insulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Electrically controllable devices, such as electrochromic glazing and mirrors, face challenges with water vapor tightness and risk of short-circuits due to imperfections in existing seals, particularly at small thicknesses where the seal's resistance is insufficient to insulate electrodes effectively.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves a peripheral seal made of an organic polymer, such as polyisobutylene filled with carbon black, that is positioned to avoid contact with the conductive zones of the electrodes, ensuring that conductive and non-conductive areas of the seal are strategically aligned to prevent short-circuits by maintaining a sufficient distance between the conductive zones of the electrodes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a peripheral seal made of polyisobutylene filled with carbon black is used to ensure water vapor tightness, then water vapor tightness is improved, but electronic conductivity increases causing short-circuits between electrodes at small thicknesses
Solution Approach 1:
The seal is designed with differentiated local properties: a first contact area with the first electrode and a second contact area with the second electrode, where at least one contact area includes both conductive and non-conductive parts. This local differentiation allows the seal to provide water vapor tightness through its polyisobutylene material while preventing short-circuits by strategically positioning non-conductive sections at critical electrode interface locations.
Solution Approach 2:
The contact area between the seal and electrodes is segmented into distinct conductive and non-conductive parts. This segmentation allows the seal to maintain overall water vapor tightness while creating electrically isolated zones that prevent current leakage and short-circuits between the first and second electrodes at thin-section locations.
2Length of moving object
If the seal thickness is reduced to achieve thinner electroactive systems, then device thickness is improved, but electrical insulation capability deteriorates due to insufficient resistance
Solution Approach 1:
Within the seal structure, specific local regions are designed with non-conductive properties at the contact areas with electrodes. This local quality differentiation enables the seal to maintain effective electrical insulation even when the overall seal thickness is reduced to 500 μm or less, as the non-conductive parts provide targeted insulation at critical points without requiring increased overall thickness.
3Device complexity
If the conductive zones of electrodes are positioned closer together to reduce device complexity, then device complexity is improved, but short-circuit risk increases due to insufficient distancing
Solution Approach 1:
The seal acts as an intermediary element between the first and second electrodes at their contact areas. By incorporating non-conductive parts within the seal structure that directly contact the electrodes, it provides electrical isolation without requiring increased physical distance between the conductive zones of the electrodes, thus preventing short-circuits while maintaining compact electrode configuration.
Data Source
AI summary
An electrically controllable device includes two supported electrodes, each coated with a conductive coating, the two electrodes positioned with respect to one another so that the conductive coatings are facing each other. An electroactive system, sandwiched between, and in contact with, the two electrodes, has an area smaller than that of each of the electrodes to define a peripheral groove over the entire perimeter of the electroactive system. A peripheral seal fills the groove over the entire perimeter of the electroactive system and is entirely in contact with the two electrodes. The contact area between the seal and the first electrode and the contact area between the seal and the second electrode each include a conductive part and a non-conductive part. No conductive part of the contact area between the seal and the first electrode is opposite a conductive part of the contact area between the seal and the second electrode.