The High Performance Plastics Company (President: Keita Kato) of SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (President and Representative Director: Teiji Koge) focuses on product development and sales expansion of Electronics Field. Sekisui chemical has provided plastic-based products such as tape, fine particles, and sealants, to the market for many years.

One of the main applications of these products is Mobile devices such as smartphones. For mobile devices, requirements from the market are increased such as superior design, visibility of screens, and portability. According to those needs, devices become thinner and bezels of device are narrower.

Based on the market trend of mobile device, Sekisui Chemical has recently expanded line-up of Industrial double-sided tape. One is Narrow bezel Foam Tape (Functional Foam Tape). Another is Thinner PET tape (Light-Shielding PET Tape). New products are applicable for thinner, lower-profile mobile devices.

New line-up products (see diagrams above)

1. “Ultra Shock-Resistant Narrow Bezel Tape” (Functional Foam Tape)

-- Providing the same level of bonding and shock absorption with narrower width such as 0.7 mm ( 50% narrower width than conventional products) --

“Ultra Shock-Resistant Narrow Bezel Tape” is a double-sided tape that uses foam and special shock-absorbing polymer as its base materials. It is mainly used to bond cover panels and housing of mobile device. It has several functions such as bonding, waterproofing, dust-proofing, and shock absorbing. Especially this product offers a high level of shock absorption, preventing damage to displays and cases when a device is dropped.

We have added new tape applicable with a width of 0.7 mm, 50% of narrower level than existing products in our line-up. We have carefully designed the tape base materials to prevent loss of bonding and shock absorption functions those are concerned by converting tape width narrower. This new tape provides the same bonding, waterproofing, dust-proofing, and shock absorption functions of existing Sekisui products and conventional products in the market.

2. “Light-Shielding PET Tape”

-- Providing the same bonding and light-shielding functions, with a thickness of 0.015 mm (30% of the thickness of current line-up) --

“Light-Shielding PET Tape” is a double-sided tape mainly used to bond display components. In addition to bonding, it also is avoid a light leaking of backlight from the display terminal.

We have added new tape with a thickness of just 0.015mm, 30% thinner than existing products in our lineup. Despite reducing the thickness of the tape materials and adhesive materials, we have taken special care in designing the adhesives which coat both sides of the tape to ensure the same level of bonding as offered by existing Sekisui products while at the same time improving its heat resistant properties.

Exploring On-Board Applications in the Electronics Field and Other Future Developments

Displays are increasingly used in automobiles, not only to show vehicle data such as vehicle speed and distance in order to provide a better picture of the vehicle’s environment, but also to provide information on vehicle rear and side conditions for enhanced safety, and to display videos and show audio information for entertainment. As a result, a tape normally used in mobile devices is used in automobile applications.

Compare to mobile device application, vehicle usage environments, which include high temperatures caused by direct sunlight and vibration produced by driving, require higher reliability to plastic materials including tapes. Sekisui Chemical has developed products with enhanced properties such as greater heat resistance and vibration resistance.

At Sekisui Chemical, we are striving to create sustainable growth in the electronics field by developing products for Automotive-Electronics and high value-added products which contribute to greater mobile device performance, and by expanding our portfolio of products for use with semiconductors and LEDs.