KR20240142054A - ITO electrode heating control system that expands the usable temperature range in a low-temperature environment - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an ITO electrode heat generation control system, which can be simply installed face-to-face on a surface-shaped object that is difficult to operate smoothly or is susceptible to damage in an extreme low-temperature environment, thereby significantly expanding the available temperature range at which the object can be used.
The present invention is characterized by including: an ITO electrode formed of a transparent film that can be projected onto and bonded face-to-face to an object to be heated, and having a resistance greater than or equal to a certain level so as to generate heat when current flows through the inside and heat the object; a power source that supplies electricity to the ITO electrode; and a controller that controls the power source so as to adjust the amount of electricity supplied to the ITO electrode.

Description

ITO electrode heating control system that expands the usable temperature range in a low-temperature environment

The present invention relates to a heat generation control system, and more particularly, to an ITO electrode heat generation control system which can be simply installed face-to-face on a surface object that is difficult to operate smoothly or is likely to be damaged in an extreme low-temperature environment, thereby significantly expanding the available temperature range at which the object can be used.

Generally, tinting film refers to 'window tinted film' or 'glass treatment film', and in Korea, it is widely called 'tinting film', which means blocking sunlight.

The manufacturing of tinting films involves a variety of technologies, including UV-blocking coating, scratch prevention, infrared absorption coating, metal (aluminum, nickel, chrome, titanium, etc.) film insertion, polyester film dyeing, and composite bonding.

The most direct effect of this type of tinting film is to block ultraviolet rays that roughen the skin and cause discoloration or discoloration of interior parts, and it also has an insulating function that effectively blocks infrared rays and solar heat. In addition, it helps secure visibility by reducing the light of the headlights of the car behind when driving at night, and it also has a function to protect personal privacy. Because of its usefulness, this type of tinting film is actually attached to many vehicles and is widely used worldwide.

However, in the case of automotive tinting films using conventional technology, since the density of the color once set cannot be arbitrarily changed by the user, considerable inconvenience was often caused during use. For example, in the case of attaching a dark tinting film with low light transmittance for the purpose of preventing invasion of privacy, it was difficult to secure visibility at night, on cloudy days, or when entering a tunnel, causing inconvenience that interfered with driving. In particular, there was inconvenience that the side mirrors had to be lowered when backing up, making it difficult to see, which was inconvenient.

Accordingly, Korean Patent Publication No. 2007-0064051 discloses an automobile sunshade device that can control the amount of light transmission by using a liquid crystal material whose color components change when power is supplied.

However, in the case of variable liquid crystal materials that can be applied to conventional automobile sunshades, the temperature range in which they can operate properly is limited to about -20℃ to +70℃, so they are completely useless in extreme regions reaching -30℃, and there is a fatal problem that they can cause automobile accidents, making it difficult to even apply them to automobiles.

Korean Patent Publication No. 2007-0064051 (June 20, 2007)

Accordingly, the present invention has been proposed to solve the above-mentioned problems of the related art, and the purpose of the present invention is to provide an ITO electrode heat generation control system that can be simply installed face-to-face on a surface-shaped object that is difficult to operate smoothly or is likely to be damaged in an extreme low-temperature environment, thereby significantly expanding the available temperature range at which the object can be used.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the ITO electrode heating control system according to the technical idea of the present invention is characterized in that it includes an ITO electrode made of a transparent surface film that can be projected and bonded face-to-face to an object to be heated and has a resistance higher than a certain level so that when current flows inside, it generates heat and heats the object; a power source that supplies electricity to the ITO electrode; and a controller that controls the power source so that it can adjust the amount of electricity supplied to the ITO electrode.

Here, the controller may be characterized in that it controls the power supply to the ITO electrode to alternately supply and cut off electricity at regular time intervals when the heating temperature of the ITO electrode reaches a set temperature.

In addition, a non-contact temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the ITO electrode in real time may be further installed, and the controller may be characterized in that it temporarily cuts off power when the heating temperature of the ITO electrode measured by the temperature sensor exceeds a certain temperature.

In addition, it can be characterized in that wires are respectively connected from the power source to the left and right sides of the ITO electrode, and conductive terminals are further provided long along the left and right sides of the ITO electrode so that the flow of current can be widely distributed.

In addition, the ITO electrode may be characterized by forming an insulating hole by removing a portion of the inner area of the entire area so that current does not flow, thereby inducing smooth flow of current in the remaining area where the insulating hole is not formed.

In addition, it can be characterized in that a part of the area of the ITO electrode is removed by laser irradiation to form the insulating hole.

In addition, it may be characterized in that an etching paste is applied to a portion of the area of the ITO electrode to form the insulating hole, and then the applied portion is deleted.

In addition, the left and right sides of the ITO electrode may be respectively connected to wires from the power source, and the insulating hole may have a shape of a long hole formed in the left and right direction to which the wires are connected from the ITO electrode, and may be characterized in that a plurality of the insulating holes are arranged spaced apart in the vertical direction.

In addition, the ITO electrode may be characterized in that the width in the left-right direction in which the insulating hole is formed long is wider than the width in the up-down direction.

In addition, the conductive terminals may be arranged in a row in the form of a plurality of divided terminals on the left and right sides of the ITO electrode, respectively, and the points corresponding to the insulating holes may be arranged in a form in which the divided terminals are spaced apart and skipped, and the wire may be branched in the middle into a branch line and then connected to each of the divided terminals so that the flow of current can be concentrated in a portion of the ITO electrode where the insulating hole is not formed.

In addition, the area of the insulating hole may be characterized as being 14% to 45% of the total area of the ITO electrode.

In addition, the ITO electrode may be provided in a stacked state in order to reduce resistance for heat generation.

In addition, the object to be heated by the ITO electrode may be characterized by being any one of a variable liquid crystal film, tinting film, sheet, wallpaper, glass, metal, plastic, or concrete wall, which can change transparency by causing liquid crystal molecules to operate when an electric field is applied.

Meanwhile, the heating system of the present invention is characterized in its technical configuration by including a variable liquid crystal film that can change transparency by causing liquid crystal molecules to move when an electric field is applied; and an ITO electrode heating control system that is bonded to the variable liquid crystal film and can heat the variable liquid crystal film while supplying an electric field to the variable liquid crystal film and generating heat at the same time.

In addition, the heating system of the present invention is characterized in its technical configuration by including an object selected from among a window film, a tinting film, a sheet, wallpaper, glass, metal, plastic, and a concrete wall; and the above-described ITO electrode heating control system having an ITO electrode bonded to the object so as to heat the object while generating heat.

The ITO electrode heat generation control system according to the present invention can be simply installed face-to-face on a surface-shaped object that is difficult to operate smoothly or is at risk of damage in an extreme low-temperature environment, thereby significantly expanding the available temperature range for the object.

In addition, the present invention can be applied to a variable liquid crystal film that can change transparency by causing liquid crystal molecules to move when an electric field is applied, thereby greatly expanding the available temperature range that can operate smoothly even in extreme low-temperature environments.

In addition, the present invention can be applied to various objects requiring heating, including not only variable liquid crystal films but also window films, tinting films, sheet paper, wallpaper, glass, metal, plastic, and concrete walls.

Figure 1 is a configuration diagram of an ITO electrode heating control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a plan view of an ITO electrode in an ITO electrode heating control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figures 3a to 3c are ITO electrode plan views of comparative examples prepared to confirm the difference in the rate of increase in the heating temperature according to the change in the shape of the insulation hole of the ITO electrode in the ITO electrode heating control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 4 is a plan view of an ITO electrode in an ITO electrode heat generation control system according to a modified embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 5 is a configuration diagram of a heating system that applies an ITO electrode heating control system according to an embodiment of the present invention to a variable liquid crystal film.

Hereinafter, an ITO electrode heating control system according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. The present invention may have various modifications and various forms, and specific embodiments will be illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the text. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to a specific disclosed form, and it should be understood that it includes all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and technical scope of the present invention. In describing each drawing, similar reference numerals are used for similar components. In the attached drawings, the dimensions of structures are illustrated in an enlarged manner compared to actual sizes for clarity of the present invention, or in a reduced manner compared to actual sizes for understanding the schematic configuration.

Also, although the terms first and second, etc. may be used to describe various components, the components should not be limited by the terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component may be referred to as the second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as the first component. Meanwhile, unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as generally understood by a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention belongs. Terms defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning they have in the context of the relevant technology, and shall not be interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal meaning, unless explicitly defined in this application.

<Example>

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an ITO electrode heating control system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of an ITO electrode in an ITO electrode heating control system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As described above, the ITO electrode heat generation control system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an ITO electrode (110), a power source (140), a controller (150), and a temperature sensor (160) as main components, and is configured to be simply installed face-to-face on a surface-shaped object that is difficult to operate smoothly or is likely to be damaged in an extreme low-temperature environment, thereby significantly expanding the available temperature range at which the object can be used.

Hereinafter, an ITO electrode heat generation control system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail, focusing on each of the above components.

The above ITO electrode (110) is formed as a transparent film that can be projected and bonded face-to-face to an object to be heated, and is provided to heat the object by generating heat when current flows inside by having a certain or higher resistance. When heating an object using an ITO electrode (110) made of a transparent material like this, it has the advantage of being able to project the object to the outside while heating it. Therefore, if the object is a general sheet or marble, it can be preserved without damage such as brittle fracture and cracking even in an extreme environment of -30°C without damaging the appearance of the object. If the object is a nematic liquid crystal film or PDLC film for car tinting, it can overcome the limitation that liquid crystal molecules do not operate when it reaches -20°C, and the usable temperature range can be expanded to -70°C or higher. In addition, in the case of an object such as glass that is easily frosted at extremely low temperatures and makes it difficult to secure a field of vision, the frost can be removed quickly to secure a field of vision.

However, in order to utilize the ITO electrode (110) for the purpose of heating the object to expand the available temperature range of the object at low temperatures, the ITO electrode must be configured so that it can quickly reach a high temperature, unlike the conventional use. For this purpose, the present invention applies an original composite configuration to the ITO electrode (110), which is described below.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the resistance can be lowered by stacking a plurality of ITO electrodes (110) so that the heating temperature of the ITO electrode (110) can be rapidly increased. When the resistance can be lowered by this configuration, the current density increases under the same voltage, and the charge transfer efficiency of the electrode is improved, making it possible to rapidly increase the temperature using only the ITO electrode (110).

In this way, by lowering the resistance through the configuration in which multiple ITO electrodes (110) are laminated, the temperature can be quickly raised to the desired temperature. However, since the transparency decreases as the number of laminated ITO electrodes (110) increases, the number of laminated ITO electrodes (110) can be determined to a limited extent considering this. As a result confirmed through experiments, the temperature was sufficiently raised at around 12Ω in the resistance of the ITO electrode (110), and the required resistance could be secured by laminating about 3 ITO electrodes (110).

Table 1 below shows the results of an experiment conducted using an ITO electrode measuring 300 mm in width from left to right and 200 mm in width from top to bottom. It was confirmed that the heating temperature could be increased to 120°C when a voltage of DC 37 V was applied to the ITO electrode via a power supply. Therefore, it can be seen that it is possible to sufficiently increase the heating temperature of the ITO electrode to around 50°C by applying a lower voltage to the ITO electrode.

Power (W) Voltage (DCV) Current (A) Temperature (℃) 10.68 15.7 0.68 39.91 14.11 18.0 0.784 46.47 19.09 21 0.909 58.37 22.86 23 0.994 65.51 26.25 25 1.05 71.49 31.48 27 1.166 75.63 36.31 29 1.252 83.17 41.45 31 1.337 93.47 46.96 33 1.423 101.17 52.92 35 1.512 106.31 59.24 37 1.601 120.81

Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the ITO electrode (110) forms an insulating hole (112) that blocks current flow by removing a portion of the internal area of the entire area of the ITO electrode (110) body (111), thereby allowing the current to flow smoothly in the remaining area where the insulating hole (112) is not formed. When a wire (141) is connected to the left and right sides of the ITO electrode (110), the insulating hole (112) has a shape of a long hole formed in the left and right directions where the wire (141) is connected, and a plurality of holes are arranged with a vertical gap between them. As a result, a plurality of passages through which current can flow are formed in a form aligned on both sides of the insulating hole (112) as the center, thereby minimizing collision of charges and allowing the current to flow smoothly. When the current can flow smoothly around the insulating hole (112) in this way, the temperature of the ITO electrode (110) increases at a faster rate. In relation to the formation of such an insulating hole (112), the ITO electrode (110) can maximize the flow of current according to the same area of the ITO electrode (110) by forming the insulating hole (112) so that the width in the left-right direction is wider than the width in the up-down direction.

Meanwhile, the insulating hole (112) can be formed by using a method of irradiating a laser to the area where the insulating hole (112) is to be formed in the ITO electrode (110) to remove the area, or by applying an etching paste to the area where the insulating hole (112) is to be formed and then cleaning it with sodium chloride to remove it. This makes it possible to form the insulating hole (112) in the ITO electrode (110) more precisely.

With the formation of the above insulating hole (112), a wire (141) from a power source (140) is respectively connected to the left side and the right side of the ITO electrode (110), and a conductive terminal (142) that is installed long along the left side and the right side of the ITO electrode (110) is further provided. According to the configuration in which the conductive terminal (142) that is installed long along the left side and the right side is further provided, there is an advantage in that the flow of current in the ITO electrode (110) is not locally concentrated at one point but can be widely distributed throughout.

According to the experiment, it was shown that a significant effect of increasing the rate of increase in the heating temperature can be achieved when the area of the insulating hole (112) is 14% or more of the total area of the ITO electrode (110).

Therefore, it is preferable that the area of the insulating hole (112) be 14% or more of the total area of the ITO electrode (110), but not exceed 45% of the total area so that the ratio of the face-to-face contact area with respect to the target object is not excessively reduced due to the formation of the insulating hole (112).

For reference, FIGS. 3a to 3c are comparative examples in which an insulating hole (112) is formed in various shapes in an ITO electrode (110). FIG. 3a shows a case in which a single insulating hole (112) is formed widely in the center of an ITO electrode (110), FIG. 3b shows a case in which an insulating hole (112) is formed in a direction orthogonal to the direction in which a wire (141) is connected to the ITO electrode (110), and FIG. 3c shows a case in which the left and right ends of the insulating hole (112) are formed in a semicircle, but the left and right ends are formed in a square shape, so that the overall shape is formed in an elongated rectangle. In the case of these comparative examples, the heating temperature increased at a faster rate than when an insulating hole (112) was not formed in the ITO electrode (110), but it was confirmed that the heating temperature increased at a slower rate than when an insulating hole (112) was formed as in FIG. 2. The speeds at which the heating temperature of these comparative examples increased were in the order of Fig. 3c, Fig. 3b, and Fig. 3a, and those showing a uniform temperature over the entire area were in the order of Fig. 3c, Fig. 3a, and Fig. 3b. In the case of Fig. 2, it was superior to these in terms of the speed at which the heating temperature increased and the uniform temperature over the entire area.

The above power source (140) serves to supply electricity to the ITO electrode (110) and is provided as a DC power source (140). The above power source (140) is provided to be able to vary the voltage by control of a controller (150).

The controller (150) controls the power supply (140) to adjust the amount of electricity supplied to the ITO electrode (110). To this end, the controller (150) controls the power supply (140) to alternately supply and cut off electricity to the ITO electrode (110) at regular time intervals when the heating temperature of the ITO electrode (110) reaches a set temperature, thereby maintaining the temperature at a constant level when the heating temperature reaches a set appropriate temperature. According to our own experiments, the controller (150) can control the power supply (140) to cause the ITO electrode (110) to operate for 1 minute and stop for 1 minute. In addition, the controller (150) can temporarily cut off the power supply (140) when the heating temperature of the ITO electrode (110) measured by the temperature sensor (160) exceeds a certain temperature, thereby preventing a fire risk due to overcurrent.

The temperature sensor (160) above measures the temperature of the ITO electrode (110) in real time. As a result, the controller (150) controls the power supply (140) based on the temperature of the ITO electrode (110) measured by the temperature sensor (160). It is preferable that the temperature sensor (160) be provided as a non-contact temperature sensor (160) in response to the ITO electrode (110) rising to a high temperature of 50°C or higher. In the case of the temperature sensor (160), it may be provided as a contact type that directly contacts the ITO electrode (110) to measure the temperature. However, in this case, the contact type temperature sensor (160) is exposed to an extremely low temperature environment of -70°C and then directly receives heat of 50°C or higher generated from the ITO electrode (110), which can easily cause damage due to the extreme temperature difference and difficulty in accurately measuring the temperature. Therefore, damage to the ITO electrode due to extreme temperature differences and inaccuracy in temperature measurement can be prevented by a configuration equipped with a non-contact temperature sensor (160).

Figure 4 is a plan view of an ITO electrode in an ITO electrode heat generation control system according to a modified embodiment of the present invention.

As described above, the ITO electrode heat generation control system according to a modified embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that the conductive terminals (142) are arranged in rows in the form of multiple divided terminals (142a) on the left and right sides of the ITO electrode (110).

In this case, the point corresponding to the insulating hole (112) is arranged in a form where the split terminal (142a) is spaced apart and skipped. Then, the wire (141) is branched into a branch line (141a) in the middle and then connected to each of the split terminals (142a).

According to this modified embodiment of the present invention, the current flow distribution is not significantly damaged from being formed widely in the ITO electrode (110), while the current flow can be concentrated in a region where an insulating hole (112) is not formed, thereby further improving the current flow and the level of heat generation.

Figure 5 is a configuration diagram of a heating system that applies an ITO electrode heating control system according to an embodiment of the present invention to a variable liquid crystal film.

As illustrated, a heat generation system can be configured by applying the ITO electrode heat generation control system according to an embodiment of the present invention by a simple method of bonding an ITO electrode (110) to a variable liquid crystal film formed by bonding PET (130) (polyethylene terephthalate) to a variable liquid crystal (120) that can change transparency by causing liquid crystal molecules to move when an electric field is applied.

In this case, the ITO electrode heat generation control system consisting of an ITO electrode (110), a power source (140), a controller (150), and a temperature sensor (160) simultaneously performs the role of applying an electric field to a variable liquid crystal (120) so that liquid crystal molecules can operate and change transparency, and the role of applying high temperature heat so that operation can occur even in an extremely low temperature environment.

Here, the variable liquid crystal (120) mainly considers nematic liquid crystal or PDLC (Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal). The nematic liquid crystal operates in such a way that the liquid crystal molecules are aligned in a certain direction, and when an electric field is applied, the liquid crystal molecules rotate at a certain angle to control the refraction of light. On the other hand, PDLC operates in such a way that the liquid crystal molecules are dispersed within a polymer matrix, and when an electric field is applied, the liquid crystal molecules rotate to block or transmit light depending on their position and direction within the matrix. Nematic liquid crystal has the advantages of low power consumption, fast response speed, high contrast ratio, and wide viewing angle compared to PDLC, while PDLC has the advantage of a wide range of controllable transparency and opacity, and is advantageous in that it is advantageous in the production of irregular shapes. Therefore, the characteristics of nematic liquid crystal and PDLC can be considered and then selectively used.

This type of heating system can be installed and used on automobile windows or smart glass, and the available temperature range can be maximized so that it can be used even in extremely low-temperature environments by using the ITO electrode heating control system.

Furthermore, the heating system can be applied to a wider range of objects including window films, tinting films, sheet metal, wallpaper, glass, metal, plastic and concrete walls.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention can use various changes, modifications, and equivalents. It is clear that the present invention can be applied in the same way by appropriately modifying the above embodiments. Therefore, the above description does not limit the scope of the present invention, which is determined by the limitations of the following patent claims.

110: ITO electrode 120: Variable liquid crystal
130: PET 140: Power
150: Controller 160: Temperature sensor

Claims (15)

An ITO electrode made of a transparent film that can be projected onto and bonded face-to-face to an object to be heated, and has a resistance above a certain level so that it generates heat when current flows inside and heats the object;
A power source for supplying electricity to the ITO electrode; and
A controller for controlling the power supply so that the power can regulate the amount of electricity supplied to the ITO electrode;
An ITO electrode heating control system characterized by including a. In the first paragraph,
An ITO electrode heating control system, characterized in that the controller controls the power supply to alternately supply and cut off electricity to the ITO electrode at regular time intervals when the heating temperature of the ITO electrode reaches a set temperature. In the second paragraph,
A non-contact temperature sensor that measures the temperature of the ITO electrode in real time is further installed.
The above controller is an ITO electrode heating control system characterized in that it temporarily cuts off power when the heating temperature of the ITO electrode measured by the temperature sensor exceeds a certain temperature. In the first paragraph,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system characterized in that a wire is connected from the power source to the left and right sides of the ITO electrode, respectively, and a conductive terminal is further provided long along the left and right sides of the ITO electrode to enable a wide distribution of the flow of current. In paragraph 4,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system characterized in that an insulating hole is formed in the ITO electrode by removing a portion of an internal area of the entire area so that current does not flow, thereby inducing a smooth flow of current in the remaining area where the insulating hole is not formed. In paragraph 5,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system characterized in that a portion of the area of the ITO electrode is removed by laser irradiation to form the insulating hole. In paragraph 5,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system characterized in that an etching paste is applied to a portion of an area of the ITO electrode to form the insulating hole, and then the applied portion is deleted. In paragraph 5,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system characterized in that the insulating hole has a shape of a long hole formed in the left-right direction to which a wire is connected in the ITO electrode and a plurality of holes are arranged spaced apart in the vertical direction. In Article 8,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system, characterized in that the ITO electrode is formed such that the width in the left-right direction in which the insulating hole is formed long is wider than the width in the up-down direction. In Article 8,
The above conductive terminals are arranged in a row in the form of a plurality of divided terminals on the left and right sides of the ITO electrode, respectively, and the points corresponding to the insulating holes are arranged in a form in which the divided terminals are spaced apart and skipped, and the electric wire is branched into a branch line in the middle and then connected to each of the divided terminals so that the flow of current can be concentrated in a portion of the ITO electrode where the insulating hole is not formed. In Article 8,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system, characterized in that the area of the insulating hole is 14% to 45% of the total area of the ITO electrode. In the first paragraph,
An ITO electrode heat generation control system characterized in that the above ITO electrodes are provided in a stacked state in order to reduce resistance for heat generation. In any one of claims 1 to 12,
An ITO electrode heating control system characterized in that the object to be heated by the ITO electrode is any one of a variable liquid crystal film, tinting film, sheet paper, wallpaper, glass, metal, plastic, and concrete wall, which can change transparency by causing liquid crystal molecules to move when an electric field is applied. A variable liquid crystal film that allows liquid crystal molecules to move and change transparency when an electric field is applied; and
A heating system including an ITO electrode heating control system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the ITO electrode is bonded to the variable liquid crystal film so as to heat the variable liquid crystal film while supplying an electric field to the variable liquid crystal film and generating heat at the same time. Any object selected from among window film, tinting film, sheet paper, wallpaper, glass, metal, plastic and concrete walls; and
A heating system comprising an ITO electrode heating control system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the ITO electrode is connected to the target object and heats the target object while generating heat.

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