Adopting Hybrid Integrated Flexible Electronics in Products: Case—Personal Activity Meter

Abstract

In this case study, the possibilities of hybrid integration of printed and flexible electronics in combination with conventional electronic components to create new types of product concepts is demonstrated. The final result is a personal activity meter demonstrator, which is realized by utilizing various flexible electronics manufacturing and integration techniques. Roll-to-roll printing was used to print the electronic backplane as well as co-planar electrochromic (EC) display. A pick-and-place assembled microcontroller unit and accelerometer, together with passive components, provided the brains for the system. Injection molding was then utilized to create a structural electronics system including an EC display. To validate the feasibility and scalability of the processes used, 100 pieces of the personal activity meter were fabricated. Modeling with continuum computational fluid dynamics and numerical heat transfer, using the high-performance finite volume method, showed that high filling pressure and shear-stress are the key factors causing broken devices. The stability of the devices in harsh environmental conditions as well as in bending seem to be slightly improved in the over molded samples. INDEX TERMS Electrochromic displays, injection molding, hybrid integration, printed electronics, structural electronics. TERHO KOLOLUOMA received the Ph.D. degree in chemistry from the University of Oulu in 2003. From 1998 to 1999, he was with the University of Oulu having a responsibility on fabrication and characterization of solgel-based materials. From 1999 to 2003, he was with VTT Electronics for developing new materials for optoelectronic applications. During that period, he started the first experiments in the area of roll-to-roll printed electronics and optoelectronics and started to lead various research project in that field. After finishing his Ph.D. thesis in 2003, he started as a Senior Scientist focusing on development of printed electronics components and technologies, and since 2010, he has a Principal Scientist. From 2013 to 2015, he was with National Research Council Canada, he is currently a Research Team Leader of printed electronics processing team with VTT. His main research topic is printable optics and electronics. Of his special interests are novel materials for printed electronics and materials-process interface.

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