Component with a translucent surface with a variable shape

Abstract

A component with an exterior decorative surface and with signaling or operating elements arranged in the surface or near the surface, in particular an interior trim component of a vehicle, wherein the component comprises a component carrier as supporting structure or substructure and a multilayered film arranged on the exterior thereof, wherein the film comprises a layer composite composed of at least one outer cover layer which is at least partly light-transmissive and is optionally provided with a coating, and at least one further layer which is at least partly light-transmissive and is arranged on the rear side of the cover layer, wherein the layers forming the film consist of a flexible, elastomeric and reversibly deformable polymer, and the component carrier comprises devices which act on the film for the at least regional deformation of the film, i.e. deformation that concerns partial regions of the surface, and also devices for the at least regional transillumination of the film.

Claims

1. A deformable haptic film comprising: a pigmented layer formed on a light source of an interior trim component of a vehicle, the pigmented layer have a pattern of varied pigment; a plurality of light transmissive plies formed on the pigmented layer and being deformable; an electrically conductive layer formed on the plurality of light transmissive plies, the layer having varied regions of conductivity; and wherein the pigmented layer, the plurality of light transmissive plies and the conductive layer are deformable from 30 to 50 percent and have a residual extension of 0 percent.

2. The film of claim 1, wherein the plurality of light transmissive plies comprise polyurethane.

3. The film of claim 1, the plurality of light transmissive plies comprise latex.

4. The film of claim 1, the pigmented layer represents a symbol.

5. The film of claim 1, wherein a stencil consisting of light-nontransmissive material and having light-transmissive cutouts is laminated in or arranged between light source and cover layer.

6. The film of claim 1, wherein devices are arranged within the electrically conductive layer.

7. The film of claim 1, the plurality of light transmissive plies comprise: a first ply having a non-colored aliphatic polycarbonate ester-polyether polyurethane dispersion; and a second ply comprised of polyurethane high solids composition (solids content approximately 95.6%) with an application of approximately 130 g/m.sup.2.

8. The film of claim 1, the pigmented layer formed having a solvent-containing black pigment preparation that has 19% pigment proportion gas black, 38% solvent proportion, 43% acrylate resin.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention will be explained in greater detail on the basis of an exemplary embodiment. In the figures:

(2) FIG. 1 shows the layer construction of various embodiments of multilayered films for the exterior surface of a component according to the invention, and

(3) FIG. 2 shows the layer construction of further embodiments of multilayered films for the exterior surface of a component according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(4) FIG. 1 shows the layer construction of various multilayered films 10, 20, 30 and 40 for the exterior surface of a component according to the invention during production, the films here being produced in a transfer coating method, such that the underside of the respective exemplary embodiments of layer constructions/layer composite systems in FIG. 1 constitutes the later exterior of the film and thus of the entire component according to the invention. The same also applies to the illustrations in FIG. 2.

(5) In this case, FIG. 1 firstly shows the layer construction of a film 10 situated on the exterior of a component according to the invention and composed of three non-colored, transparent, i.e. substantially completely light-transmissive plies or layers 1a, 1b and 1c, which were spread on successively, such that the rear side of the ply 1c is planar to the greatest possible extent. A colored but still translucent film layer 2a then follows.

(6) FIG. 1 likewise shows the layer construction of another embodiment of a film 20 situated on the exterior of a component according to the invention. In the case of the film 20, in addition and adjacent to the ply or layer 2a, a further non-colored, transparent layer 3 and a once again colored layer 4 are also applied with a different thickness than the layer 2a. Such a construction can advantageously be used for the fine setting of the transparency or translucency.

(7) In a further embodiment of a film 40 situated on the exterior of a component according to the invention, it is provided that, for setting the light transmissivity, plies or layers 2a, 2b and 4 colored to different degrees can also be used, which additionally have a different thickness.

(8) The exemplary embodiment of a film 30 situated on the exterior of a component according to the invention shows that in certain cases a transparent non-colored, superficially grained polymer layer also suffices to achieve a planar underside which can additionally be adjoined by a colored translucent polymer ply, which then forms the exterior of the film and thus of the entire component according to the invention.

(9) FIG. 2 shows exemplary embodiments of the layer construction of further multilayered films 50 and 60 for the exterior surface of a component according to the invention.

(10) In the embodiment of a film 50 situated on the exterior of a component according to the invention, it is provided that an electrically conductive functional layer 5 can be situated on the rear side of the layer composite, which functional layer was applied by printing in this case.

(11) The embodiment of a film 60 situated on the exterior of a component according to the invention shows that the electrically conductive functional layer 5 can also be situated within a layer composite according to the invention.

(12) A description is given below of how, for example, a layer composite situated on the exterior of a component according to the invention or an exterior film 10 can be produced in a transfer coating method.

(13) Firstly, a non-colored aliphatic polycarbonate ester-polyether polyurethane dispersion (Impranil DLU, Covestro) is applied to a grained carrier paper and is dried for 3 min at 100? C., with the result that a first ply or layer 1a having a grammage of approximately 50 g/m.sup.2 is obtained.

(14) A doctor blade is used to spread onto said first layer a second layer 1b composed of polyurethane high solids composition (solids content approximately 95.6%) with an application of approximately 130 g/m.sup.2, consisting of Impranil HS 80 (butanone oxime-blocked isocyanate prepolymer, Covestro), Baxxodur E331 (diamine crosslinker, BASF) and methoxypropyl acetate in a ratio of 100:8.6:5. This layer is cured for 3 min at 170? C.

(15) A third layer or ply 1c having the same formulation is spread onto the second layer with approximately 70 g/m.sup.2 and is cured in the same way.

(16) The layer composite then produced, which is planar to the greatest possible extent, then has applied to it a further layer 2a, namely a colored or pigmented composition with approximately 140 g/m.sup.2. The formulation of the composition is identical to the formulation of the composition from the layers 1b and 1c, except that this time 3 parts of a solvent-containing black pigment preparation (19% pigment proportion gas black, 38% solvent proportion, 43% acrylate resin) are also added.

(17) A test specimen was stamped (5?20 cm) from the film 10 thus produced and was extended in a Zwick tension-extension testing machine 1000 times in each case to 30 and 50% (100 mm/min extension rate) and was subsequently relaxed again with zero force. After the test cycles, the residual extension of the film was determined as 0% (measured 5 minutes after the end of the test cycle).

(18) If a high solids polymer composition consisting of Impranil HS 80, Impranil HS 62 (both butanone oxime-blocked isocyanate prepolymers, Covestro), Baxxodur E331 (diamine crosslinker, BASF) and methoxypropyl acetate in a ratio of 50:50:7.1:5 or a mixture of Larithane LS 969 (butanone oxime-blocked isocyanate prepolymer, Novotex) and Baxxodur E331 is used in the example described above, then a film structure still having a residual extension of just 1.5% after 1000 test cycles (measured 5 minutes after the end of the test cycle) is obtained in each case.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

Part of the Description

(19) 1a-1c Light-transmissive ply or layer 2a-2b Colored, translucent layer 3 Non-colored, transparent layer 4 Colored, translucent layer 5 Functional layer