Enhancing dielectric constants of elastomers using electric fields

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017133118-A1
Application number	US-201514936624-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Nov 9, 2015
Priority date	Nov 9, 2015
Publication date	May 11, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

An enhanced elastomer molding process applies an electric field to an elastomer doped to include dielectric ceramic particulates inserted in a cavity of a mold while maintaining a temperature at or near a melting point of the elastomer and a Curie temperature of the ceramic particulates. Because a material's dielectric constant is related to the material's net remnant ferroelectric polarization, which may be increased by poling near the material's Curie temperature, applying the electric field to the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates increases the dielectric constant of the dielectric ceramic particulates. This maintains the high elasticity of the elastomer while increasing the elastomer's dielectric constant of the material by increasing the value of the dielectric constant of the dielectric ceramic particulates included in the elastomer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method comprising:
receiving an elastomer doped with dielectric ceramic particulates, the dielectric ceramic particulates having a value of a dielectric constant satisfying one or more conditions; curing the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates for an interval of time and at a particular temperature within a mold having an anode and a cathode; and for at least a portion of the interval of time during the curing, applying a voltage to the anode and to the cathode of the mold including the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates while a temperature within the mold is within a threshold amount of a specified temperature.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the voltage to the anode and to the cathode of the mold including the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates while the temperature within the mold is within the threshold amount of the specified temperature comprises:
applying the voltage to the anode and to the cathode of the mold including the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates while the temperature within the mold is within the threshold amount of a melt temperature of the elastomer and is within an additional threshold amount of a Curie temperature of the dielectric ceramic particulates.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the voltage to the anode and to the cathode of the mold including the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates while the temperature within the mold is within the threshold amount of the specified temperature comprises:
applying the voltage to the anode and to the cathode of the mold including the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates while the temperature within the mold is within the threshold amount of a Curie temperature of the dielectric ceramic particulates.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the particular temperature comprises a melt temperature of the elastomer.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein curing the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates for the interval of time and at the particular temperature within the mold comprises:
maintaining a temperature within the mold within an additional threshold amount of the particular temperature.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein a condition of the value of the dielectric constant comprises a value greater than a threshold value.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein a condition of the value of the dielectric constant comprises a specific value of the dielectric constant.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric ceramic particulates have a Curie temperature within an additional threshold amount of a melt temperature of the elastomer.

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein curing the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates for the interval of time and at the particular temperature within the mold comprises:
compressing the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates for the interval of time and at the particular temperature while compressing the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates within the mold.

10 . A system comprising:
a mold including a cavity configured to receive an elastomer doped with dielectric ceramic particulates, the dielectric ceramic particulates having a value of a dielectric constant satisfying one or more conditions; an anode coupled to a side of the mold and coupled to a voltage source; a cathode coupled to an additional side of the mold and coupled to the voltage source; a temperature adjustment device coupled to the mold and configured to maintain a particular temperature within the mold; and a controller coupled to the voltage source and to the temperature adjustment device, the controller configured to communicate an instruction to the voltage source to apply a voltage to the anode and to the cathode in response to a temperature within the mold being within a threshold amount of a specified temperature.

11 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the specified temperature is within the threshold amount of a melt temperature of the elastomer and is within an additional threshold amount of a Curie temperature of the dielectric ceramic particulates.

12 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the specified temperature is within the threshold amount of a Curie temperature of the dielectric ceramic particulates.

13 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the particular temperature comprises a melt temperature of the elastomer.

14 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the temperature adjustment device is configured to maintain the temperature within the mold within an additional threshold amount of the particular temperature.

15 . The system of claim 10 , wherein a condition of the value of the dielectric constant comprises a value greater than a threshold value.

16 . The system of claim 10 , wherein a condition of the value of the dielectric constant comprises a specific value of the dielectric constant.

17 . The system of claim 10 , wherein the dielectric ceramic particulates have a Curie temperature within an additional threshold amount of a melt temperature of the elastomer.

18 . The system of claim 10 , further comprising:
a compression mechanism coupled to the mold, the compression mechanism configured to compress the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates.

19 . The system of claim 18 , wherein the controller is configured to communicate the instruction to the voltage source to apply the voltage to the anode and to the cathode in response to the temperature within the mold being within the threshold amount of the specified temperature while the compression mechanism compresses the elastomer doped with the dielectric ceramic particulates.

20 . The system of claim 10 , further comprising:
a temperature monitoring module coupled to the mold and to the controller, the temperature monitoring module configured to capture data identifying the temperature within the mold and to communicate the captured data to the controller.

Assignees

• Oculus Vr Llc

Inventors

• Keller Sean Jason
• Trutna Tristan Thomas
• Casasanta Iii Vincenzo

Classifications

• H01B3/12 Primary

  ceramics · CPC title

• B29C71/0081

  using an electric field, e.g. for electrostatic charging (electrostatic pinning of extruded material B29C48/9165; fixing linings by electrostatic charges B29C63/0043) · CPC title

• B29K2509/02

  Ceramics · CPC title

• B29K2995/0006

  Dielectric · CPC title

• B29C35/0288

  Controlling heating or curing of polymers during moulding, e.g. by measuring temperatures or properties of the polymer and regulating the process (controlling or regulating chemical, physical or physico- chemical processes in general B01J19/0006) · CPC title