JP-7856130-B2 - Electronic dimming device

Inventors

• 八代 徹
• 松井 智紀

Assignees

• 住友ベークライト株式会社

Dates

Publication Date

20260511

Application Date

20241015

Claims (5)

1. An electrochromic element whose transmittance changes when a voltage is applied, A voltage application unit that performs color driving to reduce the transmittance of the electrochromic element by applying a color pulse voltage to the electrochromic element during a first period, and applying a color driving voltage to the electrochromic element during a second period after the first period, Equipped with, The aforementioned color-developing pulse voltage is a higher voltage than the aforementioned color-developing drive voltage. When the color-developing pulse voltage is denoted as VA and the color-developing drive voltage as VB, VA/VB is between 1.05 and 3.9. The color-developing pulse voltage is 1.1V or more and 3.9V or less. The application time of the color-developing pulse voltage is shorter than the application time of the color-developing drive voltage. The voltage application unit is characterized by applying the color pulse voltage multiple times during the color drive .
2. The electronic dimming device according to claim 1, wherein the application time of the color-developing pulse voltage is the time for injecting an amount of charge equivalent to 1% to 50% of the amount of charge required for the electrochromic element to develop its maximum color intensity.
3. The color-generating pulse voltage is at least 0.1V higher than the color-generating drive voltage. The electronic dimming device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the application time of the color-developing pulse voltage is 0.1 seconds or more and 15 seconds or less.
4. The electrochromic element is The first electrochromic layer develops color through an oxidation reaction, Electrolyte layer, A second electrochromic layer that develops color through a reduction reaction, The electronic dimming device according to claim 1, having the following features.
5. An electronic dimming device as described in claim 1, used as eyeglasses.

Description

This invention relates to an electronic dimming device. Patent Document 1 discloses an electrochromic element comprising a pair of substrates and an electrochromic medium disposed between them. When a voltage is applied to electrodes provided on the pair of substrates, the transmittance of the compound in the electrochromic medium changes. This allows for adjustment of the amount of light passing through the electrochromic element. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2017-167317 This is a perspective view showing sunglasses (eyeglasses) to which an electronic dimming device according to the first embodiment is applied.Figure 1 is a perspective view of the first lens.This is a cross-sectional view of the first lens shown in Figure 2.Figure 3 is a partially enlarged view of the EC function unit shown.Figure 1 is a functional block diagram of the control unit.This graph shows an example of the voltage applied to the first electrochromic element during the color development drive period, as well as the change in voltage measured at the first electrochromic element during the holding drive period and the decolorization drive period.Figure 6 is a graph showing the change in transmittance of the first electrochromic element during the color development drive period, the holding drive period, and the decolorization drive period.This graph shows an example of the voltage applied to the first electrochromic element during the color development drive period performed by the electronic dimming device according to the second embodiment, as well as an example of the change in voltage measured at the first electrochromic element during the holding drive period and the decolorization drive period.Figure 8 is a graph showing the change in transmittance of the first electrochromic element during the color development drive period, the holding drive period, and the decolorization drive period. The electronic dimming device according to the present invention will be described in detail below based on preferred embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. <First Embodiment> 1. Configuration of the Electronic Dimming Device According to the First Embodiment Figure 1 is a perspective view showing sunglasses 100 (eyeglasses) to which the electronic dimming device according to the first embodiment is applied. The sunglasses 100 shown in Figure 1 comprises a frame 20, a first lens 31 and a second lens 32, and a control unit 40. In the following description, when the sunglasses 100 are worn on the user's head, the user-facing side of the first lens 31 and the second lens 32 is referred to as the "back," and the opposite side as the "front." Furthermore, in the following description, "lens" includes not only optical elements that have the function of focusing or diverging light, but also optical elements that simply transmit light. 1.1. Frame The frame 20 shown in Figure 1 has two rim portions 21, 21, a bridge portion 22, two temple portions 23, 23, and two nose pad portions 24, 24. The frame 20 is worn on the user's head, and the first lens 31 and the second lens 32 are positioned near the user's eyes. Each rim portion 21 is ring-shaped. A first lens 31 is fitted inside one rim portion 21, and a second lens 32 is fitted inside the other rim portion 21. The bridge section 22 is rod-shaped and connects the rim sections 21 together. Each temple portion 23 is shaped like a lisp, with one end connected to each rim portion 21 and the other end being a free end. Furthermore, a control unit 40 is provided in the temple portion 23. The control unit 40 applies voltage to the first lens 31 and the second lens 32 to control their operation. The nose pad portion 24 is provided on the edge of each rim portion 21 and is supported by the nose of the wearer of the sunglasses 100. The constituent materials of the frame 20 are not particularly limited, but examples include various metal materials, various resin materials, etc. Composite materials containing these materials may also be used. The shape of the frame 20 is not limited to the illustrated shape, as long as it can be worn on the user's head. For example, the rim portion 21 and the temple portion 23 may be omitted. Alternatively, the entire frame 20 may be omitted, and the first lens 31 and the second lens 32 may be used independently. Furthermore, the electronic dimming device according to the present invention may be applied to eyeglasses other than sunglasses, such as prescription glasses, fashion glasses, goggles, etc. Also, the electronic dimming device according to the present invention may have one or more additional lenses similar to the first lens 31 and the second lens 32. 1.2. First Lens and Second Lens Next, the first lens 31 and the second lens 32 will be described. As shown in Figure 1, the first lens 31 has a first electrochromic element 1. The second lens 32 has a second electrochromic element 2, which is separate from the first electrochromic element 1. Note that the configurat