Vacuum IG pillar with DLC coating

Details Vacuum IG pillar with DLC coating Vacuum IG pillar with DLC coating

1999-05-03

2001-12-04

Loney, Donald J. (Department: 1772)

Stock material or miscellaneous articles

Light transmissive sheets, with gas space therebetween and...

C428S120000, C428S368000, C428S375000, C052S786130

Reexamination Certificate

active

06326067

ABSTRACT:

This invention relates to a vacuum insulating glass (IG) unit. More particularly, this invention relates to a pillar for use in a vacuum IG window unit wherein the pillar includes a dry lubricant coating of a low friction material such as diamond-like carbon (DLC).
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Vacuum IG units are known in the art. For example, see U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,664,395 and 5,657,607, the disclosures of which are both hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Prior art
FIGS. 1-2
illustrate a conventional vacuum IG unit. IG unit
1
includes two spaced apart sheets of glass
2
and
3
which enclose a vacuumed or low pressure space therebetween. Glass sheets
2
and
3
are interconnected by peripheral seal of fused solder
4
and an array of support pillars
5
.
Pump out tube
8
is hermetically sealed by fused solder glass
9
to an aperture or hole
10
which passes from an interior surface of glass sheet
2
to the bottom of recess
11
in the exterior face of sheet
2
. Recess
11
allows pump out tube
8
to be melted and sealed leaving a stub which does not protrude beyond the plane of the exterior face of sheet
2
. When sheets
2
,
3
and peripheral/edge seal
4
are in place, prior to the tube being sealed, a vacuum is attached to pump out tube
8
so that the interior cavity between sheets
2
and
3
can be vacuumed out to create a low pressure area. Chemical getter
12
may optionally be included within a machined recess
13
in one of the glass sheets of the IG unit to counteract any rise in pressure due to out-gassing.
FIG. 3
is a side cross sectional view of another conventional vacuum IG unit, including support pillars
5
disposed between opposing glass substrates
2
and
3
. The periphery of the unit is hermetically sealed by edge seal
4
of fused solder glass.
Pillars are in contact with opposing glass substrates
2
and
3
, as shown in
FIGS. 1-3
. However, the heating of one substrate to a temperature greater than the other may cause pillar(s) to scratch and/or crack one of the glass substrates. For example, when substrate
3
is heated (e.g. a hot object is placed on substrate
3
or it is exposed to direct sunlight), the heated substrate
3
may expand as a function of temperature and the other substrate
2
(which is not heated as much) may not expand at all or not to the same degree. This results in the substrate(s) sliding or moving relative to one another when one expands more than the other. Such relative movement or sliding may cause pillar(s)
5
to dig into, scratch, or crack one or both of glass substrates
2
,
3
. This weakens the glass and the vacuum IG unit as a whole, and may also create aesthetic problems.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,124,185, incorporated herein by reference, discloses an IG unit including support pillars located between opposing substrates. Each pillar is adhesively secured to one of the substrates, with the opposite side of each pillar having a Teflon (trademark) coating thereon. Unfortunately, because each pillar is secured to one of the substrates, relative movement of the glass substrates may cause pillar(s) to dig into, scratch, and/or crack a glass substrate. The pillars cannot slide relative to both substrates.
In view of the above, there exists a need in the art for pillars less likely to scratch substrate(s) of a vacuum IG unit when the opposing substrates are subjected to relative movement, and/or a need for pillars that will minimize or reduce the severity of scratching and/or cracking of vacuum IG glass substrates.
It is a purpose of this invention to fulfill any or all of the above described needs in the art, as well as other needs which will become apparent to the skilled artisan from the following detailed description of this invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of this invention is to provide a vacuum IG window unit where opposing glass substrates can slide or move relative to one another over a pillar(s) designed to minimize cracking and/or scratching of such substrate(s)
Another object of this invention is to provide a support pillar for use in a vacuum IG unit wherein the pillar is at least partially coated with a low friction material of or including diamond like carbon (DLC).
Generally speaking, this invention fulfills certain of the above mentioned needs in the art by providing a thermally insulating glass panel comprising:
first and second spaced apart glass substrates enclosing a low pressure space therebetween;
a hermetic peripheral seal interconnecting said first and second spaced apart glass substrates so as to hermetically seal said low pressure space between said substrates; and
at least one supporting pillar disposed in said low pressure space between said first and second substrates, and wherein said pillar includes a core that is at least partially coated with a dry lubricant coating that includes diamond-like carbon.
This invention further fulfills certain of the above described needs in the art by providing a thermal insulating panel comprising:
first and second glass substrates spaced from one another so as to define a low pressure space therebetween, said low pressure space having a pressure less than atmospheric pressure so as to improve thermal insulating characteristics of the window unit;
a seal disposed between said substrates sealing said low pressure space from surrounding atmosphere so as to maintain pressure less than atmospheric pressure in said space;
an array of support members disposed in said low pressure space between said substrates, said support members maintaining said low pressure space between said substrates; and
wherein said support members each include diamond like carbon so as to minimize scratching or cracking of at least one of the substrates when one of the substrates moves relative to the other substrate.
This invention will now be described with reference to certain embodiments thereof as illustrated in the following drawings.


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