Touch Panel Metal Nanowire Intermediate Layers for Slim Borders
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional transparent conductive materials, such as metal oxides, are not suitable for flexible display devices, and the roll-to-roll manufacturing process requires a large alignment tolerance area for touch sensing electrodes, leading to wider peripheral traces and borders.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating metal nanowires as intermediate layers between peripheral traces and marks, and the substrate, eliminating the need for alignment tolerance areas, allowing for narrower peripheral traces and borders in touch panels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If metal oxides are used as transparent conductive materials, then electrical conductivity and optical transparency are improved, but flexibility is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameters from conventional metal oxides to metal nanowires, which have different physical and chemical properties. This material substitution enables both high electrical conductivity and flexibility to be achieved simultaneously, resolving the contradiction between conductivity and flexibility
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite structures including metal nanowires, intermediate layers, and encapsulation layers. This composite material approach combines the advantages of different materials to achieve both high conductivity and flexibility while providing mechanical protection
2Manufacturing precision
If alignment tolerance area is enlarged for roll-to-roll manufacturing, then manufacturing precision is improved, but peripheral area width increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces intermediate layers as mediator structures between the peripheral traces and the substrate, and between the marks and the substrate. These intermediate layers serve as alignment reference structures that enable precise alignment during roll-to-roll manufacturing without requiring enlarged alignment tolerance areas, thus reducing the peripheral area width while maintaining manufacturing precision
Solution Approach 2:
The intermediate layers are formed in advance during the manufacturing process to establish precise alignment references before the final assembly. This preliminary action ensures that the peripheral traces and marks are correctly positioned without requiring additional alignment tolerance space
Data Source
AI summary
A touch panel includes a substrate, a plurality of peripheral traces, a plurality of marks, a touch sensing electrode, a plurality of first intermediate layers, and a plurality of second intermediate layers. The peripheral traces and the marks are disposed in a peripheral area of the substrate. The first intermediate layers are disposed between the peripheral traces and the substrate, and the second intermediate layers are disposed between the marks and the substrate. Each of the first intermediate layers and the second intermediate layers includes a metal nanowire, and the touch sensing electrode is electrically connected with the peripheral traces. A touch sensor tape is also proposed.