What Is Smart Glass?
Smart glass is dynamic, allowing a traditionally static material to become alive and multifunctional. This technology allows for the control of various forms of light including visible light, UV, and IR. Smart privacy glass products are based on technologies that allow transparent materials (like glass or polycarbonate) to switch, on demand, from clear to shaded or completely opaque.
The smart switchable glass technology can be integrated into windows, partitions and other transparent surfaces in various sectors, including architecture, interior design, automotive, smart retail windows, and consumer electronics.
There are two primary types of smart glass: active and passive.
These are defined by whether or not their changeability requires an electrical charge. If so, it’s categorized as active. If not, it’s categorized as passive.
The term smart glass mainly refers to active technologies in which privacy glass films and coatings, activated by an electrical charge, change the appearance and functionality of the glass.
Types of active switchable glass technologies and their common applications include:
• Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal (PDLC) glass, eg: typically seen in privacy partitions in various industries
• Suspended Particle Device (SPD) glass, eg: windows that tint to shade as seen in automotive and buildings
• Electrochromic (EC) glass, eg: coated windows that slowly tint for shading
The following are the two passive smart glass technologies and common applications for each:
• Photochromic glass, eg: eyeglasses with coatings that automatically tint in sunlight.
• Thermochromic glass, eg: coated windows that change in response to temperature.
Synonyms for smart glass include:
LCG® – light control glass | Electric Switchable glass | Smart tint | Tintable glass | Smart Privacy glass | Dynamic glass
The technologies that allow you to instantly switch surfaces from transparent to opaque are the ones referred to as Privacy Smart Glass. They are particularly popular for glass-walled or partitioned conference rooms in agile workspaces based on open floor plans, or in hotel guestrooms where space is limited and traditional curtains ruin design aesthetics.
How Smart Glass Works:
Active smart glass technology allows for the control of various forms of light (visible, IR, UV) with electricity. With electricity, glass is switched from opaque to transparent, allowing for dynamic light control.
PDLC and SPD smart glass technology is an active glass technology that switches states with electricity. The unique particles or molecules inside our films scatter or align as films are turned on and off, allowing light to pass through for opacity or transparency, and the switchable control of various forms of light (visible, IR, UV).
Smart glass using PDLC or SPD includes a film interlayer that is either laminated or retrofitted onto glass. This film interlayer consists of a PDLC formulation, or an SPD emulsion, that is coated between two sheets of transparent materials that each have an ITO conductive coating. When electricity is applied, the ITO conductive coating forces the molecules or particles in the chemical layer of the film to align, creating transparency.
While PDLC and SPD are most commonly applied to films, electrochromic products are coated directly onto ITO conductive glass.
One key trait all three technologies share is the ability to change the transparency of glass through polarization (a uniform lining up) of their molecules or particles inside the formulation (PDLC) or emulsion (SPD). When off (absence of voltage), the molecules are randomly scattered, and therefore, light cannot pass through the film. When charged, the LC formulation or SPD emulsions polarize, and the molecules align, allowing light to pass through, creating transparency. As voltage decreases, and the film starts turning off, varying levels of opacity are achieved for dynamic shading, privacy, or IR solar light control. A dimming effect can be achieved by controlling the amount of voltage that is applied. In contrast, electrochromic smart glass never goes completely opaque and becomes clear when there is no current and it depolarizes.
Switchable glass technologies use either transformers or controllers to manage power. Controllers can maintain a continuous charge, but transformers have to be turned off for part of the day. The following video demonstrates a variety of controllers used for exhibits at the 2018 Glasstec Trade Fair.
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