Thin Glass LC Window Bending via Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional dye doped liquid crystal switchable windows face challenges with heavy glass substrates that are brittle and limited in bending capability, while polymer substrates offer flexibility but compromise on optical quality and long-term stability, leading to high costs.
Innovation Solution
A glass-based dye doped liquid crystal window design featuring two glass sheets with thicknesses between 0.02 mm to 0.7 mm, coated with transparent electrodes and a dye doped liquid crystal layer, utilizing borosilicate or aluminosilicate glass with controlled thermal expansion, and optionally laminated with a third glass sheet for enhanced strength and flexibility, allowing bending in one or two directions without breaking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If glass substrates are used for dye doped LC switchable windows, then optical quality, transparency, and scratch resistance are improved, but weight increases and bending capability is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The glass substrate is segmented into two separate glass sheets (first and second glass sheets) that are positioned at different locations relative to the liquid crystal layer. This segmentation allows each sheet to be optimized independently - both can maintain thin profiles for light weight while collectively providing the structural support and optical quality of glass substrates.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs thin glass sheets (first glass sheet and second glass sheet) instead of thick monolithic glass substrates. These thin sheets function as flexible shells that maintain the optical advantages of glass while enabling bending capability and reducing overall weight of the switchable window assembly.
2Strength
If glass substrates are used for dye doped LC switchable windows, then rigidity and strength are improved, but bending capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The rigid glass substrate is segmented into two separate thin glass sheets positioned at different locations. This segmentation transforms the rigid monolithic structure into a flexible sandwich construction that can bend while maintaining structural strength through the distributed glass layers.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention is specifically designed to accommodate curved surfaces, with the liquid crystal layer and electrode structures configured to function on bent substrates. The segmented glass sheet construction enables the assembly to achieve various curvatures while maintaining structural integrity and optical performance.
3Weight of moving object
If thin glass sheets are used to reduce weight, then weight decreases and bending capability improves, but structural strength may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The invention combines multiple functional layers (first glass sheet, first electrode layer, liquid crystal layer, second electrode layer, second glass sheet) into a unified sandwich structure. This merging of thin components creates an assembly with strength greater than the sum of its parts, achieving structural integrity while maintaining light weight and flexibility.
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 solution results in a lightweight, strong, and flexible switchable window that maintains superior optical quality and durability, enabling significant bending without compromising the switching characteristics or structural integrity.
Implementation Method 1
a layer of liquid crystal material between the two electrode layers, the liquid crystal material having a first refractive index along a first direction and a second refractive index along a second direction perpendicular to the first direction
Implementation Method 2
In this type of windows, the dyes have a primary absorption axis and the orientation of the absorption axis can be controlled by the orientation of the liquid crystal
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention described in the present patent application pertains to a switchable LC window based on thin glass sheets, which is bendable in one or more directions.