Patent Application
20050072523
A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
In order to provide touch screen capabilities to a monitor that is not originally equipped with a touch screen, touch screens may be adhered to the front of monitors using, for example, an adhesive. In the gaming industry, for example, gaming terminals having monitors equipped with touch screens may be more attractive to game players than those requiring use of a keyboard. By adhering a touch screen to an already existing gaming terminal monitor, the gaming terminal operator may save the cost of having to purchase an entirely new machine.
Different types of touch screens may be used. For example, 4 or 5 wire resistive touch screens, capacitive touch screens, surface acoustic wave touch screens, near field imaging touch screens, infrared touch screens, or pen/stylus compatible touch screens may be used. The various types have associated advantages and disadvantages, such as amount of resolution, susceptibility to interference, and expense. Touch screens may be fitted to a variety of monitors and displays, both analog and digital, such as, cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors, flat square tube monitors, flat panel displays or liquid crystal displays (plasma displays), active or passive matrix displays, or thin film transistor displays.
Different materials and methods may be used to apply the touch screen, such as, an adhesive or a tape layer, or a mechanical device, such a screw, clamp, or combination thereof. For example, a resistive touch screen may be applied to the front of a monitor. A resistive touch screen may include a conductive layer, a separation layer including a sensor arrangement, and a resistive layer. The sensor arrangement within the touch screen may be coupled to devices that facilitate the transfer of information from the touch screen sensor arrangement. For example, a processor, which controls the monitor, may be used. Other devices that may be used include, for example, a controller and a software driver. Over time, the accuracy of the touch screen may diminish due to environmental influences, misuse, ordinary wear and tear, or accidental damage.
Some manufacturers and/or retailers of such touch screen equipped monitors offer services to replace touch screens that are broken or malfunctioning. However, such services may be expensive for the purchaser of the touch screen equipped monitors, for example, if the touch screen malfunctions after the exhaustion of the period covered by a warranty. Furthermore, a purchaser of a large quantity of touch screen equipped monitors may have relocated the monitors a great distance from the manufacturer, therefore, the shipping cost alone of sending a large quantity of monitors back to the manufacturer would be prohibitively expensive.
One method of removing a touch screen that has been adhered to the surface of a monitor is to insert the face of the monitor into an oven type of heating device. This device may require a large amount of space and be quite costly to maintain. Furthermore, such a method may require that the operator possess very specialized knowledge of the oven device to prevent damage to the monitor or injury to the operator from occurring during the heating process.
One or more layers of padding 215 may be placed over the top surface 209 of cradle 205. The padding 215 may be formed from a material that is rated for very high temperature use. The padding 215 may also insulate the material of the cradle 205 from high temperatures and prevent melting of the cradle 205. For example, a sheet of silicone foam two centimeters or greater in thickness may be used as padding 215.
In order to monitor the temperature, one or more temperature probes 220, may be positioned on top of the cradle 205. The temperature probes may be placed between the padding layers 215 (as shown in the exemplary embodiment of
A heating layer 230 may be placed on the cradle 205, or over the padding 215 and/or the temperature probes 220. The heating layer 230 may be made of any suitable material that may be shaped to conform to the surface of the monitor. For example, if a conventional CRT monitor is used, the top surface of the heating layer 230 may be shaped to have the same spherical radius as the touch screen adhered to the glass on the front of the CRT monitor. The heating layer 230 may be, for example, a conventional, flame retardant silicone heating pad, which is capable of withstanding temperatures of around 500 degrees Celsius. While a silicone heating pad is discussed in these exemplary embodiments, any suitable material may be used for the heating layer, which is capable of attaining temperatures sufficient to soften the adhesive layer. Therefore, the choice of heating layer material may depend on the type of adhesive used to adhere the touch screen to the monitor. A controller 235 may be used to control the temperature of the heating layer. The controller may, for example, allow the temperature to be set to an accuracy of a fraction of a degree. The controller may include, for example, a digital display of the temperature to which the heating layer has been set.
At 410, the heating device may be assembled including the cradle, padding layers, temperature probes and equipment to monitor the temperature probes, and the heating layer. It will be appreciated the heating device may be assembled as described above and shown in
At 415, the tape securing the edges of the touch screen may be removed. It will appreciated that there may be securing means other than tape which may be removed before the heating process.
At 420, the monitor may be placed on the heating device or the heating device placed on or in close proximity to the touch screen adhered to the front glass panel of the monitor. The monitor may be positioned so that the touch screen is in contact with the heating pad, as described above and shown in
At 430, the heating layer may be made to operate in a heating mode and a thermostat probe or thermocouples may be arranged to monitor the temperature.
At 440, the heating device may be made to heat the touch screen for a time sufficient to break down the adhesive layer, for example, between several minutes and one hour for a touch screen adhered by a typical epoxy adhesive layer. The temperature controller or thermocouples may be monitored and the temperature of the heating layer may be maintained at a particular temperature, or within a particular temperature range. For example, the heating layer may be maintained at a temperature in the range of 100 to 200 degrees Celsius. According to an example embodiment, the heating layer may be maintained at a temperature of 145° C. for 15 minutes. It will be appreciated that care should be taken not to elevate the temperature of the heating layer to or beyond the point at which the adhesive begins to produce smoke; if smoke is detected, the temperature of the heating layer should be lowered. It will be appreciated that ventilation may need to be provided in the area in which the heating device is operated.
At 450, the heating has been completed, the heating pad may be turned off, and the monitor may be placed on a secure surface. It will be appreciated that thermal gloves and safety glasses may be used, as well as any other reasonable measures to prevent injury while handling the objects or surfaces having elevated temperatures.
At 460, any adhesive that has accumulated around the perimeter of the touch screen may be removed. It will be appreciated that this excess adhesive may be removed in any suitable manner, for example, by using an instrument to mechanically scrape the edges.
At 470, the touch screen may be removed from the monitor. For example, a utensil may be inserted into the adhesive layer, which has become somewhat fluid and pliable. The utensil may be inserted between the touch screen and the front surface of the monitor. The utensil may be, for example, a screwdriver or a putty knife. Once the utensil is inserted, a gentle pressure may be applied to the utensil to cause it to create a path or a gap between the touch screen and the glass. It will be appreciated that care may be taken in the amount of force exerted upon the utensil, touch screen, and monitor, to protect both the touch screen and the monitor from damage.
At 480, the touch screen has been removed and any adhesive that remains on the front surface of the monitor may be removed. The remaining adhesive may be removed by using a razor blade, putty knife, or similar instrument to separate the adhesive from the glass. It may be also possible to use a cleaning solution to dissolve the adhesive.
At 490, the monitor may be cooled to room temperature. This may be accomplished by simply allowing time to pass so that the heat may dissipate.
At 500, the monitor may be used for any appropriate use, for example, if another touch screen or other device is to be to be applied to the monitor, it may be applied at this point.
In the preceding specification, the present invention has been described with reference to specific example embodiments thereof. It will, however, be evident that various modifications and changes may be made thereunto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims that follow. The specification and drawings are accordingly to be regarded in an illustrative rather than restrictive sense.
