Patterned Fluorinated Coatings for Electronic Device Grip
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional coatings for electronic devices provide resistance to oils and deposits but often make the devices feel slippery, increasing the likelihood of them falling or slipping, and lack a balance of desirable frictional properties, durability, and repellency to water and oil.
Innovation Solution
The use of patterned or plasma-treated coatings featuring linear fluorinated oligomers or polymers, which can define micro-scale regions or features to enhance frictional properties while maintaining durability and repellency to water and oil, and can be applied to various surfaces of electronic devices, including displays and cover glasses.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a conventional oleophobic coating is applied to provide resistance to oils and deposits, then the coating provides good repellency to oils and deposits, but the device feels slippery and has a low coefficient of friction
Solution Approach 1:
The coating is divided into multiple discrete regions or islands separated by spacing, rather than forming a continuous layer. This segmentation allows the coating to provide oil repellency at the region interfaces while the spacing between regions increases friction by creating micro-scale roughness that interferes with slippage.
Solution Approach 2:
The coating provides different properties in different locations: the fluorinated material regions provide oil and water repellency, while the spacing between regions provides increased friction. This local differentiation allows simultaneous achievement of repellency and grip.
2Ease of operation
If the coating is made patterned to improve frictional properties, then the coefficient of friction increases and grip improves, but the visual appearance may be affected and manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pattern features are designed to be in the micro-scale dimension, below the threshold of visual detection by the human eye. This allows the coating to have complex micro-structure for friction enhancement while maintaining a visually uniform appearance.
3Ease of operation
If plasma treatment is used to etch the coating and reduce thickness, then the coating thickness is reduced and friction is increased, but the durability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The plasma treatment parameters (power, time, gas composition) are optimized to achieve the desired level of etching and friction enhancement without excessive material removal. The linear fluorinated oligomer composition is also selected to provide durability even at reduced thickness.
4Reliability
If a continuous coating is applied to ensure complete coverage and durability, then the coating provides good durability and continuous protection, but the frictional properties are insufficient and the device feels slippery
Solution Approach 1:
The continuous coating is replaced with segmented regions separated by spacing. This segmentation introduces micro-roughness that enhances friction while the fluorinated material in each region maintains its protective and repellent functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The spaced-apart regions create a micro-scale porous or discontinuous structure that increases surface roughness. This porous configuration enhances friction by creating mechanical interlocking and reducing slippage, while still maintaining oil and water repellency through the fluorinated material regions.
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 coatings provide improved grip and durability, making electronic devices easier to hold and facilitating wireless charging by increasing the coefficient of friction and maintaining resistance to water and oil, thereby reducing the likelihood of slippage during use.
Implementation Method 1
the coating may be plasma treated to impart desired frictional properties. The plasma treatment may etch the coating, thereby reducing the thickness of the coating
Implementation Method 2
The coatings may repel or be resistant to water, oil, or both due, in part, to inclusion of a fluorinated material in the coating
Implementation Method 3
an oleophobic coating may be applied to a touch-sensitive input surface to improve its resistance to oils and other deposits
Data Source
AI summary
Patterned and plasma-treated coatings for surfaces of electronic devices are disclosed. The patterned and plasma-treated coatings may include a linear fluorinated oligomer or linear fluorinated polymer and may be transparent. Regions of a patterned coating may be micro-sized. The pattern defined by the coating may not be visually discernable, but may affect the frictional properties of the coating.