Patent Grant
11404186
The disclosure relates to a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) circuit protection device, and more particularly to a PTC circuit protection device formed with a recess.
A positive temperature coefficient (PTC) component exhibits a PTC effect that renders the same to be useful as a circuit protection device, such as a resettable fuse. The PTC component includes a PTC polymeric unit and first and second electrodes formed on two opposite surfaces of the PTC polymeric unit. The PTC polymeric unit includes a polymer matrix that contains a crystalline region and a non-crystalline region, and a particulate conductive filler that is dispersed in the non-crystalline region of the polymer matrix and that is formed into a continuous conductive path for electrical conduction between the first and second electrodes. The PTC effect is a phenomenon that occurs when the temperature of the polymer matrix is raised to its melting point, in which crystals in the crystalline region start melting, resulting in generation of a new non-crystalline region. As the new non-crystalline region is increased to an extent to merge into the original non-crystalline region, the conductive path of the particulate conductive filler will become discontinuous and the resistance of the PTC polymer material will be sharply increased, thereby resulting in an electrical disconnection between the first and second electrodes.
Referring to
The conventional surface-mounted PTC circuit protection device 1 is usually mounted onto an electronic equipment (e.g., printed circuit board (not shown)) by soldering. However, poor solderability between the surface-mounted PTC circuit protection device 1 and the electronic equipment might occur.
Therefore, an object of this disclosure is to provide a PTC circuit protection device that can alleviate at least one of the drawbacks of the prior art.
According to this disclosure, the PTC circuit protection device includes:
a PTC polymeric layer;
a first electrically conductive layer that is disposed on and electrically connected to the PTC polymeric layer;
a second electrically conductive layer that is disposed on and electrically connected to the PTC polymeric layer, and that is electrically insulated from the first electrically conductive layer;
an insulation layer unit disposed on the first electrically conductive layer and the second electrically conductive layer;
a first electrode formed on the insulation layer unit, electrically connected to the first electrically conductive layer, and electrically insulated from the second electrically conductive layer; and
a second electrode formed on the insulation layer unit, electrically connected to the second electrically conductive layer, and electrically insulated from the first electrically conductive layer and the first electrode,
wherein the first electrode is formed with a first recess that, is indented from a surface of the first electrode toward the PTC polymeric layer, and the second electrode is formed with a second recess that is indented from a surface of the second electrode toward the PTC polymeric layer.
Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:
Before the disclosure is described in greater detail, it should be noted that where considered appropriate, reference numerals or terminal portions of reference numerals have been repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements, which may optionally have similar characteristics.
In addition, in the description of the disclosure, the terms “up”, “down”, “upper”, “lower” are meant to indicate relative position between the elements of the disclosure, and are not meant to indicate the actual position of each of the elements in actual implementations.
Referring to
The first electrode 24 has a first recess-defining wall 245 that defines the first recess 244, and the second electrode 25 has a second recess-defining wall 255 that defines the second recess 254. In certain embodiments, the first recess-defining wall 245 has a percentage of a surface area which is greater than or equal to 10% based on a surface area of the first electrode 24. In certain embodiments, the second recess-defining wall 255 has a percentage of a surface area which is greater than or equal to 10% based on a surface area of the second electrode 25. It should be noted that, the aforementioned surface area of each of the first and second electrodes 24, 25 is indicated as the surface area of a portion of each of the first and second electrodes 24, 25 that is not in contact with the PTC unit 21 or the insulation layer unit 23.
In certain embodiments, the percentage of the surface area of each of the first recess 244 and the second recess 254 ranges from 10% to 80%.
In certain embodiments, the percentage of the surface area of each of the first recess 244 and the second recess 254 ranges from 25% to 75%.
In this embodiment, the PTC polymeric layer 210 includes an upper surface, a lower surface opposite to the upper surface, and a surrounding surface interconnecting the upper surface and the lower surface. In this embodiment, the first electrically conductive layer 211 is disposed on the upper surface, and the second electrically conductive layer 212 is disposed on the lower surface. The insulation layer unit 23 includes a first insulation layer 231 disposed on the first electrically conductive layer 211 and a second insulation layer 232 disposed on the second electrically conductive layer 212. The first electrode 24 includes an upper first electrode portion 241 that is disposed on the first insulation layer 231, a lower first electrode portion 242 that is disposed on the second insulation layer 232, and a first electrode connecting portion 243 that is formed on the surrounding surface of the PTC polymeric layer 210 and that interconnects the upper first electrode portion 241 and the lower first electrode portion 242. The second electrode 25 includes an upper second electrode portion 251 that is disposed on the first insulation layer 231, a lower second electrode portion 252 that is disposed on the second insulation layer 232, and a second electrode connecting portion 253 that is formed on the surrounding surface of the PTC polymeric layer 201 and that interconnects the upper second electrode portion 251 and the lower second electrode portion 252.
In certain embodiments, the first recess 244 of the first electrode 24 is formed on one of the upper first electrode portion 241 and the lower first electrode portion 242. In certain embodiments, the first electrode 24 has two of the first recesses 244 that are respectively formed on the upper first electrode portion 241 and the lower first electrode portion 242.
In certain embodiments, the second recess 254 of the second electrode 25 is formed on one of the upper second electrode portion 251 and the lower second electrode portion 252. In certain embodiments, the second electrode has two of the second recesses 254 that are respectively formed on the upper second electrode portion 251 and the lower second electrode portion 252.
Referring to
Referring to
In certain embodiments, the first recess 244 of the first electrode 24 is formed on one of the upper first electrode portion 241 and the lower first electrode portion 242. In certain embodiments, the first electrode 24 has two of the first recesses 244 that are respectively formed on the upper first electrode portion 241 and the lower first electrode portion 242.
In certain embodiments, the second recess 254 of the second electrode 25 is formed on one of the upper second electrode portion 251 and the lower second electrode portion 252. In certain embodiments, the second electrode 25 has two of the second recesses 254 that are respectively formed on the upper second electrode portion 251 and the lower second electrode portion 252.
In certain embodiments, the upper first electrode portion 241 has a first recess-defining wall 245 that defines the first recess 244, and the upper second electrode portion 251 has a second recess-defining wall 255 that defines the second recess 254, the first and second recess-defining walls 245, 255 having a percentage of a surface area being greater than or equal to 10% based on a surface area of upper surfaces of the upper first and upper second electrode portions 241, 251.
In certain embodiments, based on the surface area of the upper surfaces of the upper first and upper second electrode portions 241, 251, the percentage of the surface area of the first and second recess-defining walls 245, 255 ranges from 10% to 80%, or from 25% to 75%.
In certain embodiments, the percentage of the surface area of the first recess 244 based on the surface area of the upper surface of the upper first electrode portion 241 is greater than or equal to 10%, or, in some embodiments, ranges from 10% to 80%, or from 25% to 75%. In certain embodiments, the percentage of the surface area of the second recess 254 based on the surface area of the upper surface of the upper second electrode portion 251 is greater than or equal to 10%, or, in some embodiments, ranges from 10% to 80%, or from 25% to 75%. In this embodiment, an insulation spacer 28 is disposed between the upper first electrically conductive portion 2111 and the upper second electrically conductive portion 2121. The insulation spacer 28 may also be disposed between the lower first electrically conductive portion 2112 and the lower second electrically conductive portion 2122.
In certain embodiments, the PTC circuit protection device 2 further includes a third electrically conductive layer 26 and a fourth electrically conductive layer 27. The third electrically conductive layer 26 includes an upper third electrically conductive portion 261 disposed between the upper first insulation portion 2311 and the upper first electrode portion 241, and a lower third electrically conductive portion 262 disposed between the lower first insulation portion 2312 and the lower first electrode portion 242. The fourth electrically conductive layer 27 includes an upper fourth electrically conductive portion 271 disposed between the upper second insulation portion 2321 and the upper second electrode portion 251, and a lower fourth electrically conductive portion 272 disposed between the lower second insulation portion 2322 and the lower second electrode portion 252.
In some embodiments, each of the first and second electrically conductive layers 211, 212 may be made of a metal material, such as metal foil, plated foil (e.g., nickel-plated copper foil), etc.
In certain embodiments, the insulation layer unit 23 is made from epoxy resin.
In this disclosure, the PTC polymeric layer 210 includes a polymer matrix and a particulate conductive filler dispersed in the polymer matrix. The polymer matrix may be made from a polymer composition that contains a non-grafted olefin-based polymer (e.g., high density polyethylene, HDPE). In certain embodiments, the polymer composition of the polymer matrix further includes a grafted olefin-based polymer. In certain embodiments, the grafted olefin-based polymer includes a carboxylic acid anhydride-grafted olefin-based polymer. The carboxylic acid anhydride-grafted olefin-based polymer may be carboxylic acid anhydride-grafted high density polyethylene. In this embodiment, the carboxylic acid anhydride-grafted olefin-based polymer is maleic anhydride-grafted HDPE.
In this disclosure, the particulate conductive filler may be made from carbon black, metal, an electrically conductive ceramic material, and combinations thereof.
Examples of the particulate conductive filler include titanium carbide, zirconium carbide, vanadium carbide, niobium carbide, tantalum carbide, chromium carbide, molybdenum carbide, tungsten carbide, titanium nitride, zirconium nitride, vanadium nitride, niobium nitride, tantalum nitride, chromium nitride, titanium disilicide, zirconium disilicide, niobium disilicide, tungsten disilicide, gold, silver, copper, aluminum, nickel, nickel-metallized glass beads, nickel-metallized graphite, Ti—Ta solid solution, W—Ti—Ta—Cr solid solution, W—Ta solid solution, W—Ti—Ta—Nb solid solution, W—Ti—Ta solid solution, W—Ti solid solution, Ta—Nb solid solution, and combinations thereof.
In some embodiments, the polymer matrix may be present in an amount ranging from 5 wt % to 50 wt % based on the weight of the PTC polymeric layer 210, and the particulate conductive filler may be present in an amount ranging from 50 wt % to 95 wt % based on the weight of the PTC polymeric layer 210.
A method of manufacturing the PTC circuit protection device 2 is provided, which includes the following steps: a) providing a PTC polymeric layer 210; b) forming a first electrically conductive layer 211 on the PTC polymeric layer 210, the first electrically conductive layer 211 being electrically connected to the PTC polymeric layer 210; c) forming a second electrically conductive layer 212 on the PTC polymeric layer 210, the second electrically conductive layer 212 being electrically connected to the PTC polymeric layer 210 and being separated from the first electrically conductive layer 211; d) forming an insulation layer unit 23 on the first and second electrically conductive layers 211, 212; e) hot pressing the PTC polymeric layer 210, the first electrically conductive layer 211, the second electrically conductive layer 212, and the insulation layer unit 23 to form a stack; f) forming a first electrode 24 on the stack, the first electrode 24 being electrically connected to the first electrically conductive layer 211; g) forming a second electrode 25 on the stack, the second electrode 25 being electrically connected to the second electrically conductive layer 212 and being electrically insulated from the first electrode 24; and h) forming a first recess 244 on the first electrode 24, the first recess 244 being indented from a surface of the first electrode 24 toward the PTC polymeric layer 210. In certain embodiments, the method further includes the step of i) forming a second recess 254 on the second electrode 25, the second recess 254 being indented from a surface of the second electrode 25 toward the PTC polymeric layer 210.
Examples and comparative examples of the disclosure will be described hereinafter. It is to be understood that these examples and comparative examples are exemplary and explanatory and should not be construed as a limitation to the disclosure.
First, 10.5 grams of HDPE (purchased from Formosa plastic Corp., catalog no.: HDPE 9002) serving as the non-grafted olefin-based polymer, 10.5 grams of maleic anhydride-grafted HDPE (purchased from Dupont, catalog no.: MB100D) serving as the carboxylic acid anhydride-grafted olefin-based polymer, and 29 grams of carbon black powder (catalog no.: Raven 430UB, commercially available from Columbian Chemicals Company) serving as the particulate conductive filler were compounded in a Brabender mixer so as to obtain a compounded mixture. The compounding temperature was 200° C., the stirring rate of the mixer was 30 rpm, and the compounding time was 10 minutes. The compounded mixture was placed in a mold, and was hot pressed at 200° C. under a pressure of 80 kg/cm2 for 4 minutes to form a PTC polymeric layer.
The PTC polymeric layer was removed from the mold, and then the PTC polymeric layer was sandwiched between upper and lower electrically conductive films of nickel-plated copper foil. The upper electrically conductive film was etched to form first and second portions that are separated from each other and that are respectively formed as an upper first electrically conductive portion and an upper second electrically conductive portion. Similarly, the lower electrically conductive film was etched to form first and second portions that are separated from each other and that are respectively formed as a lower first electrically conductive portion and a lower second electrically conductive portion. The upper first electrically conductive portion and the lower first electrically conductive portion are cooperatively referred to as the first electrically conductive layer 211 as shown in
The PTC unit was then irradiated by a cobalt-60 gamma ray for a total radiation dose of 15 Mrad.
Next, epoxy resin layers were disposed on the first and second electrically conductive layers and the exposed opposite surfaces of the PTC polymeric layer, followed by hot pressing so as to form the first and second insulation layers on the first and second electrically conductive layers, and form the insulation spacers between the upper first and upper second electrically conductive portions and between the lower first and lower second electrically conductive portions, respectively (see
Third and fourth electrically conductive layers were respectively formed on the first and second insulation layers, and a laminate was thus obtained. The third and fourth electrically conductive layers are formed using a procedure the same as that of forming the first and second electrically conductive layers. First and second electrodes were respectively plated on the third and fourth electrically conductive layers and a side surface of the laminate so that each of the first and second electrodes was formed on and extended between the third and fourth electrically conductive layers. The first electrode includes an upper first electrode portion, a lower first electrode portion, and a first electrode connecting portion. The second electrode includes an upper second electrode portion, a lower second electrode portion, and a second electrode connecting portion. A first recess and a second recess were formed on the upper first electrode portion and the upper second electrode portion, respectively, using a digital engraving machine (purchased from Shanghai Yi Diao, catalog no.: YD3040G). The first and second recesses were respectively defined by first and second recess-defining walls. The first recess-defining wall of the first electrode has a percentage of a surface area which is 10% based on a surface area of an upper surface of the upper first electrode portion, and the second recess-defining wall of the second first electrode has a percentage of a surface area which is 10% based on a surface area of an upper surface of the upper second electrode portion. A PTC circuit protection device was thus obtained.
The PTC circuit protection devices of E2 to E7 were similar to that of E1, except for the percentage of the surface area of each of the first and second recess-defining walls (see Table 1).
The PTC circuit protection device of CE1 was similar to that of E1, except that no recesses were formed on the first and second electrodes (see Table 1).
Performance Test
<Solderability Test>
A Sn-based solder paste was applied to the upper surfaces of the upper first and upper second electrode portions of each of the PTC circuit protection devices of E1 to E7 and CE1. Thereafter, each of the PTC circuit protection devices of E1 to E7 and CE1 was attached to a printed circuit board (PCB) through the Sn-based solder paste to obtain a test sample. Next, the test sample was placed in a reflow oven to undergo reflow soldering. The peak temperature of the reflow oven was set at 285° C., so that the air temperature in the reflow oven reached 260° C. The air temperature in the reflow oven was kept at 260° C. for 20 seconds. The reflow soldering procedure was carried out for 4 minutes. Next, solderability of the Sn-based solder paste to each of the upper surfaces of the upper first and upper second electrode portions was observed. A successful soldering is defined by more than 90% of a surface area of each of the upper surfaces of the upper first and upper second electrode portions being covered with the Sn-based solder paste. The percentage of successful soldering of the test samples was shown in Table 2.
Results in Table 2 show that the PTC circuit protection devices of E1 to E7, especially those of E1 to E5 (i.e., test samples with a percentage of recess surface area ranging from 10% to 80%), have excellent solderability to PCB compared to the PTC circuit protection device of CE1 (i.e., test samples without recesses). In particular, when the percentage of the recess surface area of the test samples ranges from 25% to 75%, the percentage of successful soldering reaches 100%.
In view of the aforesaid, by forming the recesses on the electrodes and controlling the recess surface area based on the corresponding electrode surface area, the PTC circuit protection device of this disclosure achieves superior bonding strength with the PCB.
In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiment(s). It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects, and that one or more features or specific details from one embodiment may be practiced together with one or more features or specific details from another embodiment, where appropriate, in the practice of the disclosure.
While the disclosure has been described in connection with what is (are) considered the exemplary embodiment(s), it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment(s) but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.
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