U.S. patent application number 14/572748 was filed with the patent office on 2015-04-16 for capacitive touch panel.
The applicant listed for this patent is Wintek Corporation. Invention is credited to YEN-CHUNG HUNG, CHIH-CHANG LAI, RUEY-SHING WENG, JASON WU.
Application Number | 20150103044 14/572748 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 40788024 |
Filed Date | 2015-04-16 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150103044 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
WU; JASON ; et al. |
April 16, 2015 |
CAPACITIVE TOUCH PANEL
Abstract
A transparent capacitive touch panel comprising a transparent
substrate, a transparent cover lens and a transparent adhesive
layer is provided, wherein a first transparent electrode layer and
a second transparent electrode layer are disposed on the
transparent cover lens and the transparent substrate respectively.
The transparent adhesive layer is used to bind the first
transparent electrode layer and second transparent electrode layer
in order to combine the transparent cover lens and the transparent
substrate disposed in parallel. Thereby, the manufacturing process
of the transparent capacitive touch panel is simplified, and the
manufacturing cost of the same is lowered.
Inventors: |
WU; JASON; (TAI CHUNG CITY,
TW) ; HUNG; YEN-CHUNG; (TAI CHUNG CITY, TW) ;
WENG; RUEY-SHING; (KAO HSIUNG CITY, TW) ; LAI;
CHIH-CHANG; (TAI PING CITY, TAI CHUNG COUNTY, TW) |
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Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Wintek Corporation |
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Family ID: |
40788024 |
Appl. No.: |
14/572748 |
Filed: |
December 16, 2014 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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14215499 |
Mar 17, 2014 |
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14572748 |
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13887173 |
May 3, 2013 |
8743074 |
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14215499 |
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13607392 |
Sep 7, 2012 |
8482542 |
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13887173 |
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12342513 |
Dec 23, 2008 |
8294677 |
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13607392 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
345/174 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G02F 1/13338 20130101;
G06F 3/0445 20190501; G06F 3/0412 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
345/174 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/044 20060101
G06F003/044; G06F 3/041 20060101 G06F003/041 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Dec 24, 2007 |
TW |
096149671 |
Claims
1. A capacitive touch panel, comprising: a cover lens; a decoration
layer disposed on a surface of the cover lens; a color filter
substrate disposed parallel to the cover lens; an electrode layer
disposed on a surface of the color filter substrate to perform
touch-sensing operations, with the surface of the color filter
substrate facing the cover lens; and at least one adhesive layer
for binding the cover lens and the color filter substrate.
2. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 1, wherein the
adhesive layer is disposed between the cover lens and the electrode
layer.
3. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 1, wherein the
adhesive layer comprises a double-sided adhesive tape or a
liquid-phase adhesive.
4. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 1, wherein the
electrode layer is transparent.
5. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 1, further
comprising: an anti-reflection layer disposed on one side of the
cover lens facing away from the electrode layer.
6. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 1, wherein the
cover lens comprises plastic or glass.
7. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 1, wherein the
decoration layer is monochromatic or multi-chromatic.
8. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 1, wherein the
decoration layer is patterned with at least one symbol or text.
9. A capacitive touch panel, comprising: a cover lens; a decoration
layer disposed on a surface of the cover lens; a color filter
substrate disposed parallel to the cover lens; a first electrode
layer, an insulating layer and a second electrode layer arranged in
order and disposed on one side of the color filter substrate facing
the cover lens, wherein the second electrode layer cooperates with
the first electrode layer to perform touch-sensing operations; and
at least one adhesive layer for binding the cover lens and the
color filter substrate.
10. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 9, wherein the
adhesive layer is disposed between the cover lens and the first
electrode layer.
11. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 9, wherein the
adhesive layer comprises a double-sided adhesive tape or a
liquid-phase adhesive.
12. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 9, wherein at
least one of the first electrode layer and the second electrode
layer is transparent.
13. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 9, wherein the
decoration layer is monochromatic or multi-chromatic.
14. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 9, wherein the
decoration layer is patterned with at least one symbol or text.
15. A capacitive touch panel, comprising: a cover lens; a
decoration layer disposed on a surface of the cover lens; a color
filter substrate disposed parallel to the cover lens; an electrode
layer disposed on the color filter substrate to perform
touch-sensing operations; and at least one adhesive layer for
binding the cover lens and the color filter substrate.
16. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 15, wherein the
adhesive layer comprises a double-sided adhesive tape or a
liquid-phase adhesive.
17. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 15, wherein the
electrode layer is transparent.
18. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 15, further
comprising: an anti-reflection layer disposed on one side of the
cover lens facing away from the electrode layer.
19. The capacitive touch panel as recited in claim 15, wherein the
cover lens comprises plastic or glass.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No.
13/887,173, filed on May 3, 2013, which is a continuation of
application Ser. No. 13/607,392, filed on Sep. 7, 2012, now U.S.
Pat. No. 8,482,542, which is a divisional of application Ser. No.
12/342,513, filed on Dec. 23, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No.
8,294,677.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention generally relates to a touch panel
and, more particularly to a transparent capacitive touch panel.
[0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art
[0005] With the development in technologies, the electronic
products having a touch panel as input such as personal digital
assistants (PDA's), handsets, car navigating systems, tablet
personal computers (PC's) have been widely used. The touch panel is
provided on the screen for the user to use input information by a
finger or a touch pen. There have been various kinds of touch
panels developed. For example, the capacitive touch panel is based
on the detection of the change of capacitance. Compared to the
resistive touch panel based on direct touch, the capacitive touch
panel exhibits higher transparency and longer lifetime.
[0006] FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view of a conventional
transparent capacitive touch panel, and FIG. 1B is an exploded view
of the transparent capacitive touch panel in FIG. 1A. Please refer
to FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B, the conventional transparent capacitive
touch panel 100 comprises a dual-layer structure, which comprises a
bottom transparent substrate 110, a top transparent substrate 120
and a transparent cover lens 130. A top indium-tin oxide layer 122
and a bottom indium-tin oxide layer 112 are respectively formed on
the surfaces of the top transparent substrate 120 and the bottom
transparent substrate 110. Two anti-reflection layers 132 are
deposited respectively on the surfaces on both sides of the
transparent cover lens 130.
[0007] Then, an optical adhesive 140 is used to bind the top
transparent substrate 120 and the bottom transparent substrate 110
so that the optical adhesive 140 is sandwiched between the top
indium-tin oxide layer 122 and the bottom indium-tin oxide layer
112 facing each other. The transparent cover lens 130 is bound with
the top transparent substrate 120 by an optical adhesive 150 bind
so as to complete the assembly of the transparent capacitive touch
panel 100. The transparent cover lens 130 is used to protect the
top transparent substrate 120 and the bottom transparent substrate
110.
[0008] Since the transparent capacitive touch panel 100 is too
thick, another conventional structure is provided to reduce the
thickness as shown in FIG. 2. More particularly, FIG. 2A is a
cross-sectional view of another conventional transparent capacitive
touch panel, and FIG. 2B is an exploded view of the transparent
capacitive touch panel in FIG. 2A. Please refer to FIG. 2A and FIG.
2B, the conventional transparent capacitive touch panel 200
comprises a transparent substrate 210 and a transparent cover lens
220. A top indium-tin oxide layer 212 and a bottom indium-tin oxide
layer 214 are successively formed respectively on the surfaces of
the transparent substrate 210. Two anti-reflection layers 222 are
deposited respectively on the surfaces on both sides of the
transparent cover lens 220.
[0009] Then, an optical adhesive 230 is used to bind the
transparent cover lens 220 and the transparent substrate 210 so as
to complete the assembly of the transparent capacitive touch panel
200. Even though the transparent capacitive touch panel 200 is
thinner, the manufacturing process is more complicated.
[0010] More particularly, the top indium-tin oxide layer 212 and
the bottom top indium-tin oxide layer 214 are formed on the surface
of the transparent substrate 210. After the indium-tin oxide layer
212 is formed, the transparent substrate 210 is turned up side down
so that the indium-tin oxide layer 214 can be formed. However, this
causes the top indium-tin oxide layer 212 to be harmed by
contacting the platform or the robot arms and lower the
manufacturing yield of the transparent capacitive touch panel
200.
[0011] FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view of still another
conventional transparent capacitive touch panel, and FIG. 3B is an
exploded view of the transparent capacitive touch panel in FIG. 3A.
Please refer to FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B, the conventional transparent
capacitive touch panel 300 comprises a transparent substrate 310
and a transparent cover lens 320. A bottom indium-tin oxide layer
312, an insulating layer 314, a top indium-tin oxide layer 316 are
successively formed on the surface of the transparent substrate
310. Two anti-reflection layers 322 are deposited respectively on
the surfaces on both sides of the transparent cover lens 320.
[0012] Then, an optical adhesive 330 is used to bind the
transparent cover lens 320 and the transparent substrate 310 so as
to complete the assembly of the transparent capacitive touch panel
300. Even though the transparent capacitive touch panel 200 is
thinner, the manufacturing process is more complicated.
[0013] However, there are still problems in manufacturing two
indium-tin oxide layers on a single side of the transparent
substrate 320.
[0014] More particularly, conventionally, the formation of the
insulating layer 312 results in longer manufacturing time and cost
of the transparent capacitive touch panel 300. Moreover, a contact
window (not shown) has to be formed in the insulating layer 312 so
that the top indium-tin oxide layer 316 is electrically connected
to an integrated circuit (IC) (not shown) on the transparent
substrate 310. The formation of the contact window leads to
increased cost for preparing a mask. Therefore, the manufacturing
cost and complexity of the transparent capacitive touch panel 300
is significantly increased.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] It is one object of the present invention to provide a
transparent capacitive touch panel with lowered manufacturing cost,
simplified assembly and reduced thickness and weight.
[0016] It is another object of the present invention to provide a
method for manufacturing a transparent capacitive touch panel with
a simplified process to result in a high manufacturing yield.
[0017] In order to achieve the foregoing and other objects, the
present invention provides a transparent capacitive touch panel,
comprising: a transparent cover lens; a transparent substrate; a
first transparent electrode layer; a second transparent electrode
layer and a transparent adhesive layer, wherein the transparent
cover lens is in parallel with the transparent substrate, the first
transparent electrode layer and the second transparent electrode
layer are respectively disposed on the surfaces of the transparent
cover lens and the transparent substrate, and the transparent
adhesive layer is used to bind the first transparent electrode
layer and the second transparent electrode layer to combine the
transparent cover lens and the transparent substrate.
[0018] In order to achieve the foregoing and other objects, the
present invention provides a method for manufacturing a transparent
capacitive touch panel, comprising steps of: providing a
transparent cover lens and forming a first transparent electrode
layer on a surface of the transparent cover lens; providing a
transparent substrate and forming a second transparent electrode
layer on a surface of the transparent substrate; and disposing the
transparent cover lens and the transparent substrate in parallel,
and providing a transparent adhesive layer for binding the first
transparent electrode layer and the second transparent electrode
layer to combine the transparent cover lens and the transparent
substrate.
[0019] In order to achieve the foregoing and other objects, the
present invention provides a transparent capacitive touch panel,
comprising: a transparent cover lens; a first transparent electrode
layer; an insulating layer and a second transparent electrode
layer; wherein the first transparent electrode layer is disposed on
a surface of the transparent cover lens, the insulating layer is
disposed on a surface of the first transparent electrode layer that
is different from the other surface whereon the transparent cover
lens is disposed, and the second transparent electrode layer is
disposed on a surface of the insulating layer that is different
from the other surface whereon the first transparent electrode
layer is disposed.
[0020] In order to achieve the foregoing and other objects, the
present invention provides a method for manufacturing a transparent
capacitive touch panel, comprising steps of: providing a
transparent cover lens and forming a first transparent electrode
layer on a surface of the transparent cover lens; forming an
insulating layer on a surface of the first transparent electrode
layer; and forming a second transparent electrode layer on a
surface of the insulating layer.
[0021] In one embodiment of the present invention, the transparent
capacitive touch panel further comprises an anti-reflection layer.
The anti-reflection layer can be disposed on a surface of the
transparent cover lens that is first different from the other
surface whereon the transparent electrode layer is disposed. The
anti-reflection layer can also be disposed between the transparent
cover lens and the first transparent electrode layer.
[0022] In one embodiment of the present invention, the first
transparent electrode layer and the second transparent electrode
layer comprises indium-tin oxide (ITO) or indium-zinc oxide (IZO),
the transparent adhesive layer is a double-sided adhesive tape or a
liquid-phase transparent adhesive, the transparent cover lens
comprises plastic or glass, and the transparent substrate comprises
glass or tempered glass.
[0023] In one embodiment of the present invention, the transparent
capacitive touch panel further comprises a shielding layer,
disposed on a surface of the transparent substrate that is
different from the other surface whereon the second transparent
electrode layer is disposed. The shielding layer comprises
indium-tin oxide or indium-zinc oxide.
[0024] In one embodiment of the present invention, the transparent
capacitive touch panel further comprises a decoration layer and a
planarization layer, wherein the decoration layer is disposed
between the transparent cover lens and the first transparent
electrode layer, and the planarization layer is disposed between
the decoration layer and the first transparent electrode layer. The
decoration layer is monochromatic (for example, black) or
multi-chromatic. Moreover, the decoration layer can be patterned
with symbols and texts. The decoration layer comprises an
insulating material or a conductive material, while the
planarization layer comprises an insulating material.
[0025] Accordingly, in the transparent capacitive touch panel of
the present invention, the first transparent electrode layer and
the second transparent electrode layer are respectively formed on
the surfaces of the transparent cover lens and the transparent
substrate, and then the transparent cover lens and the transparent
substrate are attached. Compared to the prior arts, in the present
invention, no transparent electrode layer is required to be formed
on the transparent substrate. Therefore, the manufacturing process
is simplified with higher manufacturing yield. Moreover, in the
present invention, no insulating layer is required so that the
manufacturing process is simplified to reduce the manufacturing
cost of the transparent capacitive touch panel.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0026] The objects, spirits and advantages of the preferred
embodiments of the present invention will be readily understood by
the accompanying drawings and detailed descriptions, wherein:
[0027] FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B are cross-sectional views of a
conventional transparent capacitive touch panel;
[0028] FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B are cross-sectional views of another
conventional transparent capacitive touch panel;
[0029] FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B are cross-sectional views of still
another conventional transparent capacitive touch panel;
[0030] FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B are cross-sectional views of a
transparent capacitive touch panel according to a first embodiment
of the present invention;
[0031] FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B are cross-sectional views of another
transparent capacitive touch panel according to a first embodiment
of the present invention;
[0032] FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are cross-sectional views of still
another transparent capacitive touch panel according to a first
embodiment of the present invention;
[0033] FIG. 7A and FIG. 7B are cross-sectional views of still
another transparent capacitive touch panel according to a first
embodiment of the present invention;
[0034] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a transparent capacitive
touch panel according to a second embodiment of the present
invention; and
[0035] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of another transparent
capacitive touch panel according to a second embodiment of the
present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0036] The present invention can be exemplified by the preferred
embodiments as described hereinafter.
First Embodiment
[0037] FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of a transparent
capacitive touch panel according to a first embodiment of the
present invention, and FIG. 4B is an exploded view of the
transparent capacitive touch panel in FIG. 4A. Referring to FIG. 4A
and FIG. 4B, the transparent capacitive touch panel 400 of the
embodiment comprises a transparent substrate 410, a transparent
cover lens 420 and a transparent adhesive layer 430. The first
transparent electrode layer 422 and the second transparent
electrode layer 412 are disposed respectively on the surfaces of
the transparent cover lens 420 and the transparent substrate 412. A
transparent adhesive layer 430 is used to bind the first
transparent electrode layer 422 and the second transparent
electrode layer 412 so as to combine the transparent substrate 410
and the transparent cover lens 420 that are disposed in
parallel.
[0038] Compared to the prior art, in which two indium-tin oxide
layers are formed on the surface of the transparent substrate (as
shown in FIG. 2B and FIG. 3B), in the embodiment, the second
transparent electrode layer 412 and the first transparent electrode
layer 422 are respectively formed on the surfaces of the
transparent substrate 410 and the transparent cover lens 420.
Therefore, the manufacturing process is simplified and the
manufacturing yield is enhanced.
[0039] In the embodiment, the transparent substrate 410 comprises
glass, the second transparent electrode layer 412 comprises
indium-tin oxide, the transparent cover lens 420 comprises glass or
plastic, and the first transparent electrode layer 422 comprises
indium-tin oxide.
[0040] Then, the first transparent electrode layer 422 and the
second transparent electrode layer 412 are disposed facing each
other. A liquid-phase transparent adhesive layer 430 is used to
bind the transparent substrate 410 and the transparent cover lens
420 disposed in parallel to complete the assembly of the
transparent capacitive touch panel 400.
[0041] As mentioned above, the present invention is not restricted
to the materials used for the transparent substrate 410, the
transparent cover lens 420, the transparent adhesive layer 430, the
first transparent electrode layer 422 and the second transparent
electrode layer 412. For example, the transparent substrate 410 can
comprise tempered glass; the transparent adhesive layer 430 can be
a double-sided adhesive tape; and the first transparent electrode
layer 422 and the second transparent electrode layer 412 can
comprise indium-zinc oxide. Those with ordinary skills in the art
can make modifications according to the aforesaid materials within
the scope of the present invention.
[0042] Moreover, in the first embodiment, the second transparent
electrode layer 412 is formed before the formation of the first
transparent electrode layer 422. However, the present invention is
not restricted to the forming order of the first transparent
electrode layer 422 and the second transparent electrode layer
412.
[0043] Since the transparent capacitive touch panel 400 comprises a
single-layer structure. Therefore, compared to dual-layer
capacitive touch panel 100 (as shown in FIG. 1A), the transparent
capacitive touch panel 400 of the embodiment is thinner and
lighter. Moreover, in the present invention, no insulating layer is
required. Therefore, the manufacturing process is simplified
without using the mask so that the manufacturing cost of the
transparent capacitive touch panel 400 is reduced.
[0044] In order to prevent dazzling light from the transparent
capacitive touch panel, in the embodiment, an anti-reflection layer
is further disposed on the surface of the transparent cover lens.
As will be described hereinafter, similar labels refer to similar
components.
[0045] FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view of another transparent
capacitive touch panel according to a first embodiment of the
present invention, and FIG. 5B is an exploded view of the
transparent capacitive touch panel in FIG. 5A. Referring to FIG. 5A
and FIG. 5B, the transparent capacitive touch panel 500 of the
present embodiment is similar to the transparent capacitive touch
panel 400 in FIG. 4A except that the transparent capacitive touch
panel 500 further comprises two anti-reflection layers 524 and 526
to reduce the reflected light from the transparent cover lens
420.
[0046] The anti-reflection layers 524, 526 are respectively formed
on the surfaces on both sides of the transparent cover lens 420.
The anti-reflection layer 524 is disposed between the transparent
cover lens 420 and the first transparent electrode layer 422, while
the anti-reflection layer 526 is disposed on another side of
transparent cover lens 420. Moreover, in the present embodiment,
the anti-reflection layers 524, 526 are formed before the formation
of the first transparent electrode layer 422. However, the present
embodiment is not restricted to the forming order of the
anti-reflection layers 524, 526 and the first transparent electrode
layer 422.
[0047] Moreover, those with ordinary skills in the art can use only
the anti-reflection layer 524 or the anti-reflection layer 526
within the scope of the present embodiment. Moreover, the present
embodiment further comprises a decoration layer for patterning. The
decoration layer is patterned with symbols such as a trademark and
texts such as a slogan, as will be described hereinafter.
[0048] FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of still another
transparent capacitive touch panel according to a first embodiment
of the present invention, and FIG. 6B is an exploded view of the
transparent capacitive touch panel in FIG. 6A. Referring to FIG. 6A
and FIG. 6B, the transparent capacitive touch panel 600 of the
present embodiment is similar to the transparent capacitive touch
panel 400 in FIG. 4A except that the transparent capacitive touch
panel 600 further comprises a decoration layer 624 and a
planarization layer 626. The decoration layer 624 is patterned with
monochromatic or multi-chromatic texts or symbols.
[0049] In the present embodiment, the decoration layer 624 is
formed on the surface of the transparent cover lens 420. Then, the
decoration layer 624 is planarized to form a planarization layer
626. The decoration layer 624 is black or any other color. The
decoration layer 624 can be patterned with texts, symbols or the
like. Moreover, the present embodiment can also do without the
planarization layer 626; instead, the first transparent electrode
layer 422 is directly formed on the surface of the decoration layer
624. As the planarization layer 626 is omitted, the decoration
layer 624 comprises an insulating material. As the planarization
layer 626 is used, the planarization layer 626 comprises an
insulating material, while the decoration layer 624 comprises an
insulating material or a conductive material.
[0050] In order to resist static charges or electro-magnetic
interference, the transparent capacitive touch panel further
comprises a shielding layer to prevent the interference from the
display or the circuit board, as will be described hereinafter.
[0051] FIG. 7A is a cross-sectional view of still another
transparent capacitive touch panel according to a first embodiment
of the present invention, and FIG. 7B is an exploded view of the
transparent capacitive touch panel in FIG. 7A. Referring to FIG. 7A
and FIG. 7B, the transparent capacitive touch panel 700 of the
present embodiment is similar to the transparent capacitive touch
panel 400 in FIG. 4A except that the transparent capacitive touch
panel 700 further comprises a shielding layer 714 to protect the
structure of the transparent capacitive touch panel 700.
[0052] The shielding layer 714 is formed on a surface of the
transparent substrate 410 that is different from the other surface
whereon the second transparent electrode layer is disposed. Since
the shielding layer 714 is capable of shielding the external
electro-magnetic interference and preventing the capacitive touch
panel from being interfered by external electro-magnetic
interference, the shielding layer 714 comprises indium-tin oxide or
indium-zinc oxide. The shielding layer 714 is a meshed structure
and is electrically connected to the ground.
[0053] Since the anti-reflection layer, the decoration layer and
the shielding layer are described independently, in the present
embodiment, however, the anti-reflection layer, the decoration
layer and the shielding layer can be formed together. Those with
ordinary skills can make modifications by adding the
anti-reflection layer, the decoration layer and the shielding layer
to improve the quality of the transparent capacitive touch
panel.
[0054] Since the transparent capacitive touch panel of the present
invention is generally assembled with a liquid-crystal display
(LCD) panel comprising a color filter, the transparent substrate of
the present invention can be a color filter substrate to reduce the
thickness and weight of the transparent capacitive touch panel
assembled with a LCD panel.
Second Embodiment
[0055] The first embodiment describes a single-layer structure,
wherein the first transparent electrode layer and the second
transparent electrode layer are respectively disposed on the
surfaces of the transparent substrate and the transparent cover
lens. In the present embodiment, the first transparent electrode
layer and the second transparent electrode layer can both be
manufactured on the surface of the transparent cover lens. Thereby,
the transparent capacitive touch panel can do without the
transparent substrate to further reduce the thickness of the
transparent capacitive touch panel, as will be described
hereinafter.
[0056] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a transparent capacitive
touch panel according to a second embodiment of the present
invention. Referring to FIG. 8, the transparent capacitive touch
panel 800 in the present embodiment comprises a transparent cover
lens 810, a first transparent electrode layer 812, an insulating
layer 814 and a second transparent electrode layer 816. The first
transparent electrode layer 812, the insulating layer 814 and the
second transparent electrode layer 816 are successively formed on
the surface of transparent cover lens 810.
[0057] In other words, the first transparent electrode layer 812 is
formed between the transparent cover lens 810 and the insulating
layer 814. The insulating layer 814 is dispose between the first
transparent electrode layer 812 and the second transparent
electrode layer 816. The transparent cover lens 810 comprises glass
or plastic.
[0058] Moreover, the insulating layer 814 comprises silicon nitride
(Si.sub.xN.sub.y).
[0059] Compared to the prior art (such as FIG. 2A or FIG. 3A), the
transparent capacitive touch panel 800 can do without the
transparent substrate. Therefore, the thickness and weight of the
capacitive touch panel 800 in the present embodiment can be
significantly reduced. Moreover, since no more binding process is
required in the making of the transparent capacitive touch panel
800, the manufacturing process can be simplified and the
manufacturing cost can be reduced.
[0060] It is noted that, the anti-reflection layer and the
decoration layer can be used in the present embodiment. Even though
the best mode is presented in this specification, those with
ordinary skills in the art can make modifications by adding the
anti-reflection layer and the decoration layer and re-arranging the
anti-reflection layer, the decoration layer and the first
transparent electrode layer within the scope of the present
embodiment.
[0061] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of another transparent
capacitive touch panel according to a second embodiment of the
present invention. Referring to FIG. 9, the transparent capacitive
touch panel 900 in the present embodiment is similar to the
transparent capacitive touch panel 800 (as shown in FIG. 8) except
that the transparent capacitive touch panel 900 further comprises
an anti-reflection layer 918, a decoration layer 911 and a
planarization layer 913. The materials for the anti-reflection
layer 918, the decoration layer 911 and the planarization layer 913
are identical to those in the aforesaid embodiment and, thus the
description thereof is not presented here.
[0062] More particularly, the anti-reflection layer 918 is disposed
on the surface of the transparent cover lens 810 facing the first
transparent electrode layer 812. The decoration layer 911 is
disposed between the transparent cover lens 810 and the first
transparent electrode layer 812. The planarization layer 913 is
used to planarize the decoration layer 911 and is disposed between
the decoration layer 911 and the first transparent electrode layer
812.
[0063] Accordingly, the transparent capacitive touch panel of the
present invention is advantageous in that:
[0064] (1) Compared to the prior art, in which two indium-tin oxide
layers are formed respectively on both sides of the surfaces of the
transparent substrate, the manufacturing process in the present
embodiment is simplified with higher manufacturing yield because
the second transparent electrode layer and the first transparent
electrode layer are respectively formed on the surfaces of the
transparent substrate and the transparent cover lens.
[0065] (2) Moreover, since the transparent capacitive touch panel
in the first embodiment can do without the insulating layer, the
manufacturing process is simplified and the manufacturing cost is
reduced.
[0066] (3) Compared to the dual-layer transparent capacitive touch
panel, the thickness and weight of the single-layer transparent
capacitive touch panel of the present embodiment are reduced.
Moreover, the transparent capacitive touch panel in the second
embodiment can do without the transparent substrate; therefore the
thickness and weight are lowered compared to the conventional
transparent capacitive touch panel.
[0067] (4) In the second embodiment, no binding process for the
transparent capacitive touch panel is required so that the
manufacturing process is simplified and the manufacturing cost is
lowered.
[0068] Although this invention has been disclosed and illustrated
with reference to particular embodiments, the principles involved
are susceptible for use in numerous other embodiments that will be
apparent to persons skilled in the art. This invention is,
therefore, to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the
appended claims.
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