Touch panel having curved surface and manufacturing process
The present invention is directed to the provision of a touch panel having a curved shape and its manufacturing process; for this purpose, the touch panel having a curved shape comprises an upper film substrate and a lower film substrate, each formed from a transparent plastic film having a transparent electrically conductive polymer layer, an electrode, and a wiring pattern formed thereon.
1. A resistive film type touch panel comprising:
an upper film substrate and a lower film substrate, each formed from a transparent plastic film having a transparent electrically conductive polymer layer, an electrode, and a wiring pattern formed thereon; and
dot spacers formed on the lower film substrate so as to face the upper film substrate;
wherein each of the upper film substrate, the lower film substrate, and the respective electrically conductive polymer layers are formed in a curved shape so that said touch panel has an operation surface formed in a curved shape with respect to at least two directions of the operation surface, and
wherein dot spacers in a center portion of said panel are formed with a height greater than a height of dot spacers formed outside the center portion.
2. A resistive film type touch panel as claimed in claim 1 , wherein dot spacers are formed at a pitch of 1 mm or less.
3. A resistive film type touch panel as claimed in claim 1 , wherein dot spacers in a center portion of said panel are formed at a finer pitch than dot spacers formed outside the center portion.
4. A manufacturing process for a resistive film type touch panel having an operation surface formed in a curved shape, comprising the steps of:
forming a flat-plate upper substrate and a flat-plate lower substrate from a transparent plastic substrate;
forming an electrically conductive polymer layer on each of the flat-plate upper substrate and a flat-plate lower substrate;
forming dot spacers on the flat-plate lower substrate so as to face the flat-plate upper substrate, dot spacers in a center portion of said panel being formed with a height greater than a height of dot spacers formed outside the center portion;
constructing a flat-plate touch panel from said upper and lower substrates; and
forming said flat-plate touch panel into a curved shape by pressing such that each of the flat-plate upper substrate, flat-plate lower substrate, and the respective electrically conductive polymer layers are formed in a curved shape so that the operation surface is formed in a curved shape with respect to at least two directions of the operation surface.
5. A resistive film type touch panel as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the at least two directions are at least two dimensions in a rectangular coordinate system of the operation surface.
6. A manufacturing process as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the at least two directions are at least two dimensions in a rectangular coordinate system of the operation surface.