Glass Substrate Joining for Display Light Guide Plates
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-refractive index glasses used in light guide plates for displays have low thermal stability, making it difficult to manufacture glass molded products with small surface areas per volume, and they are not efficient for mass-producing optically homogeneous glass elements.
Innovation Solution
A glass substrate is manufactured by joining the side surfaces of optically homogeneous columnar glasses to form a bunch, which is then sliced to produce multiple glass substrates, allowing for the efficient production of optically homogeneous glass elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If high-refractive index glass is used to increase viewing angle, then optical performance is improved, but thermal stability deteriorates making manufacturing difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The glass substrate is divided into multiple small columnar glass pieces that are joined together to form a large-area substrate. This segmentation allows each small piece to be manufactured with controlled dimensions that maintain thermal stability, while the assembled large substrate provides the required optical performance and viewing angle.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the manufacturing parameters by controlling the surface area to volume ratio of individual glass pieces during formation. By maintaining small surface area per volume for each columnar piece while assembling them into a large substrate, the glass achieves both high refractive index (for viewing angle) and sufficient thermal stability (for manufacturing feasibility).
2Productivity
If large-sized glass molded product is manufactured to enable mass production, then productivity is improved, but manufacturing difficulty increases due to thermal stability issues
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of manufacturing one large glass molded product that is difficult to produce, the invention segments the substrate into multiple small columnar glasses that are easily manufacturable. These segments are then joined together to form the large-area substrate, enabling mass production while avoiding thermal stability issues associated with large single-piece manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple small columnar glass pieces are joined together to form a large-area substrate. This merging approach combines the manufacturing ease of small pieces with the functional requirements of a large substrate, achieving both high productivity and ease of manufacture.
3Manufacturing precision
If individual light guide plates are processed separately, then optical quality is maintained, but manufacturing efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The substrate is segmented into multiple columnar glass pieces joined together, allowing individual optical quality control for each piece while enabling batch processing of the entire substrate for features like diffraction gratings, thus improving both optical quality and manufacturing efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple columnar glass pieces are merged into a single substrate structure that can be processed collectively for common features, improving manufacturing efficiency while maintaining the optical quality benefits of individually controlled glass pieces.
Data Source
AI summary
The glass substrate having opposing flat two main surfaces includes a plurality of optically homogeneous glass pieces joined with one another, in which a junction surface between the joined glass pieces is perpendicular or substantially perpendicular with respect to the two main surfaces.