(Safety) Cover Glass with Anti-UV/AR/AG Coatings
Safety cover glass protects displays by resisting impact and preventing shattering, reducing the risk of flying glass splinters. It’s ideal for harsh environments and can include features like anti-glare coatings and optical bonding for improved durability and readability.
The physical design of devices has become so important to commercial success that it may rival functional aspects such as the user interface and application functionality. Design engineers must rise to the challenge of creating devices that are both functional and visually appealing, which often requires custom touch displays. Aesthetically, the design should be attractive and incorporate logos and other branding as needed.
Functionality begins with the choice of material—whether glass or plastic—to meet durability, usability, and manufacturing requirements.
You can also apply a variety of treatments to enhance the user experience by reducing glare, reflections, fingerprints, and microbial contamination, among other improvements.
Selecting among types of glass
Chemical hardening is possible with all glass and can make surfaces more scratch resistant. It can be used with organic ink which is not UV resistant.
Thermally strengthened (tempered) glass is common with 3mm or more thickness. The material is hardened throughout and shatters into smaller pieces with less-sharp edges than untreated or chemically strengthened glass. It requires UV resistant ceramic ink on the back side.
Ion-exchange strengthened (alumino-silicate) glass such as Gorilla, Dragontail or Xensation is created using a chemical process is denser and more durable glass than other options, enabling lightweight, slim device form factors, especially with bezel-less designs.
Specifying surface treatments for glass
Anti-glare glass surfaces have a matte surface produced through micro-etching. AG glass reduces contrast in the display, might cause sparkling effects and reduces the impact resistance of the cover lens. It is important to keep the distance between the surface (polarizer) of the glass as small as possible.
Anti-reflective (AR) surface treatment is a coating to reduce reflections. It is applied to the front side of the cover lens and can wear off over time. Fingerprints tend to be more visible on AR-treated surfaces, making them more difficult to clean.
Anti-fingerprint (AF) surface reduces the appearance of fingerprints and makes the surface easier to clean, including applications where it is combined with AR treatment.
Anti-microbial (AB) glass treatments reduce or eliminate bacteria on the surface of the glass that can cause illness, stain or odor.
Mechanical robustness
Consider the negative effects of ultraviolet (UV) infrared (IR) light on your product and its components - use UV filters to protect display componentsor use optical clear resin that has built-in filtering qualities.
The impact resistance of the cover lens depends primarily on the type and thickness of the cover lens material. While suppliers may provide guidance in terms of the impact class (IK class) for a given material, that information is not a direct indication of the impact resistance of the final assembly, which depends on the design as a whole. Flying glass splinters can be avoided by optical bonding.
See article in knowledge hub: https://displays.avnet.com/2023/11/23/colour-style-and-shape-the-art-of-coverglass/
