Durel Corporation

Sharlyn R Stocker

Rodney T Eckersley

Ralph M McGuigan

Will M Hooke

An electroluminescent sheet-form lamp with a main portion of a conductive layer isolated from an edge region susceptible to detrimental conductive pathways by isolation provided along at least a portion of the perimeter of the lamp as a result of removal of a preapplied conductive coating such that, at the region of the isolation, the main portion of the one conductive layer which forms the respective electrode commences at a line spaced inwardly from the outer edge of the lamp. The preapplied conductive coating material may be removed to form a line of interruption that leaves in place a narrow margin of conductive coating in the edge region which is electrically isolated from the main portion of the coating forming the first electrode. The lamp may be formed by exposing preselected portions of the preapplied conductive coating to laser radiation sufficient to remove the preselected portions and form the region of isolation. A scribing technique or a mask, which may be a printed functional layer of the lamp, are employed.

Electroluminescent lamp with novel edge isolation

An electroluminescent sheet-form lamp comprising a transparent insulation layer, a transparent first conductive layer below the insulation layer forming a first electrode, a layer of phosphor material below the first conductive layer, a layer of dielectric material below the phosphor layer, a second conductive layer below the dielectric layer forming a second electrode, and electrical connection means for applying an electrical potential between the conductive layers to cause the phosphor to transmit light through the transparent conductive layer and the transparent insulation layer, one of the conductive layers having been formed as a general conductive coating preapplied over a panel of larger dimension than the lamp, from which the lamp has been cut. The lamp provides an improved electrical connection, wherein the one conductive layer has a line of interruption which isolates a localized region of the one conductive layer from electrical continuity with a main portion of the one conductive layer, the main portion of the one conductive layer forming the respective electrode and being connected to one of the connection means to apply electrical potential thereto without applying electrical potential to the localized region, the connection means for the other of the conductive layers which forms the other of the electrodes being located in coincidence with the area of the localized region, one of the connection means employing deformation of the sheet-form lamp, whereby the electrical isolation of the localized region prevents electrical shorting between the conductive layers as a result of the deformation.

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Mesa, AZ, United States of America

Sharlyn R Stocker