The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Nov. 16, 2004
Filed:
Apr. 17, 2001
Stephen C. Schulz, Tewksbury, MA (US);
Anthony F. Chernefsky, Dracut, MA (US);
Bernard Geaghan, Salem, NH (US);
3M Innovative Properties Company, St. Paul, MN (US);
Abstract
A flexible, capacitive touch sensor, and a method of manufacturing a plurality of such touch sensors, are provided. The capacitive touch sensor comprises a thin, flexible, transparent, insulating substrate. A thin, flexible, transparent layer of resistive material is applied to one side of the substrate, and a thin, flexible, transparent, pressure-sensitive layer of adhesive material is applied to the substrate's other side. A releasable sheet may cover this adhesive layer. A plurality of thin, flexible electrodes, electrical leads and conductive areas are applied to the resistive layer. A thin, flexible, transparent layer of protective material protects the touch sensor's active touch area. Compounds may be added to this protective layer to enhance its conductivity and lubricity. A reel-to-reel process for manufacturing a plurality of such capacitive touch sensors also is described.