The trend in automotive cockpits is clearly discernible.
Increasingly larger and more powerful displays are gaining traction. That results in a growing need to protect them against external influences. Especially in the age of pillar-to-pillar displays extending across the entire width of the vehicle, specialty protection films and adhesive solutions have become indispensable. Display protection films ensure the quality of displays until the vehicle is handed over to the customer by protecting them against mechanical damage. The films can also be designed for optimal ESD performance so that applying or peeling off the protection film does not result in electrostatic discharge damaging electric components.

Safety first

With increasing electrification of the automotive sector in-vehicle electronics are becoming more and more sensitive while on-board voltage levels continue to rise. Insulation films play a key role in ensuring the safety and reliability of in-vehicle electronics. All of Schreiner Group’s specialty films have high dielectric strength which is crucial for trouble-free performance of on-board electronics and avoidance of safety risks.

Clever Multifunctional Components

In addition to insulation films, self-adhesive diecut parts are true multi-talents because these multifunctional adhesive solutions can be used for insulation purposes as well. An intermediate film layer between the printed circuit board (PCB) and the housing, for instance, can have an insulating effect while the various adhesives can be adapted to the specific requirements of the surfaces. This not only secures the bond but also protects components against dielectric breakdown and the resulting potential failure of electronic systems.

A Product with Potential

When it comes to using protection and specialty films in the automotive sector, there are three aspects taking center stage: protecting, joining, and insulating.

Whether displays etc. require protection against scratches and impacts, the performance of electrical components must be ensured, or further innovative applications need to be developed: there’s massive potential to be tapped in the field of protection and specialty films. For the automotive industry, these versatile components have already become indispensable. Other industries depending on powerful adhesive bonding and protected displays have recognized their possible uses as well. Exactly that is what drives Schreiner Group’s experts. They’re currently working on particularly sustainable protection films while the team at Schreiner ProTech keeps pursuing new ideas to fully tap the related potential in order to actively help shape the future in this area.

It all started in the mid-nineteen-nineties with a customer’s wish for a gas-permeable yet watertight membrane to be equipped with an adhesive ring for venting electronic control units in automobiles. Numerous trials and discussions with the customer ensued and the product’s name soon emerged, too: Pressure Compensation Seal or PCS for short.

At that time, Schreiner Group did not have any expertise in these specialty materials but, at some point, was awarded the first processing orders using membrane 20-88. For 20 years, it would remain in use as the standard membrane at Schreiner Group. The initial “manifestations” of the PCS tended to be unspectacular.

Those PCS were used for electric garage door drive systems and deep-well sensors, followed by contracts from the automotive sector. Whether as a “nameplate-integrated PCS” or as a “steam jet protection label for adhesive PCS,” the then new product group was picking up momentum.

Even so, 25 years ago, it was not foreseeable that the initially small annual volumes of 10,000 PCS would increase to roughly 100 million Pressure Compensation Seals per year. Meanwhile, not only the portfolio has clearly expanded but Schreiner ProTech has established itself in the marketplace as a full-service PCS provider.

Whether system solutions for manual, semiautomatic, and fully automated installation and testing—customers around the world value the tailored and customized solutions.

The constant further development in the PCS area is also noticeable in terms of physical space: while merely an area of 15 square meters and one inspector were required for the initial incoming goods inspections in the 1990s, the PCS department has since grown to fill an entire hall with several machines and employees.

In-house testing methods have been further developed in recent decades as well. Whereas functional tests were initially performed exclusively by customers Schreiner Group, today, has the capabilities for performing the required tests in its own in-house laboratory.

Visually, the PCS has hardly changed in the last quarter of a century, but the requirements to be met by the product have clearly increased due to the wide range of its possible uses. That is one reason why Schreiner ProTech is going to dedicate a specific process center to Pressure Compensation Seals starting in 2023. So, it’s worth staying tuned to see what the next 25 years of PCS will produce.

The sensor measures the ambient humidity and temperature in 15-minute intervals. Afterwards, it forwards the information to a cloud where it’s stored. The wireless humidity sensors are produced by Disruptive Technologies and the circuit boards embedded in them by Zollner Elektronik AG.

Membranes in industrial applications work in ways comparable to those known from breathable functional clothing in the outdoor sector. They’re air-permeable toward the outside while protecting the interior against water ingress. This applies to humidity sensors as well. The circuit board in the enclosure has to be protected against water ingress and to ensure such protection, the board must be positioned precisely above the hole in the housing.

Commissioned by Zollner Elektronik AG, Schreiner ProTech developed an innovative solution for this purpose: a steam-permeable adhesive pad located inside the sensor. Embedded in the adhesive pad is a membrane. The integrated, non-adhesive area enables fully automatic SMD (surface-mounted device) processing. In addition, the double-sided adhesive die-cut part creates the necessary connection between the sensor housing and the board.

“The adhesive pad provides optimum control because the embedded membrane enables moisture wicking toward the sensor while preventing water ingress. For this purpose, there’s a hole on both sides of the pad that ensures the necessary breathability,” explains Michael Drollmann, Business Development Manager ETech bei Schreiner ProTech.

Maximum Customization: Materials,Adhesives and Sizes for any Requirement

Die-cut parts are categorized as either simple or complex composites using full-surface, partially applied, permanent or removable adhesives. Simple composites are recommended when the aspect of adhesive bonding is emphasized. In these applications, self-adhesive die-cut parts consisting of double-sided adhesive tapes or transfer adhesives are typically used.

Total Solution: Product and System

Schreiner ProTech has extensive know-how in the areas of material and adhesive bonding technologies and draws on the expertise of the Schreiner Services competence center with application and inspection systems. Proven system solutions for precision application of self-adhesive functional parts are reliably implemented. Manufacturer-independent consulting support and project management guarantee utmost functionality, process and manufacturing reliability as well as efficiency: from design to commissioning and from employee training to servicing customer equipment. Schreiner ProTech develops and produces self-adhesive functional parts, advises customers concerning the selection of consumables and supports them in the smooth integration of the application and inspection systems into new and existing manufacturing lines.