Flexible transparent touch panel mounted on round surface

A flexible transparent touch panel based on conductive liquid channels was developed by a molding process. Transparent silicone rubber was used for producing the channel structures. The height, width, and length of the flow channel were 0.1, 1.0, and 40 mm, respectively. The pitch of the channels was 10 mm. Fabricated two-lined touch panels were stacked at an angle of 90 degrees on a flexible polyimide film. Fabricated flexible transparent touch panels were mounted on both the flat and round surfaces, and touch force detection was evaluated. When a metal rod touched and pushed the surface of the touch panel, the channel structure under the finger elastically deformed. As a result, the electrical resistance in the liquid channel increased with increasing applied normal force.