Touch screen shield

Abstract

A shield that is attachable to a touch sensitive screen is disclosed. The shield may be attached to the touch sensitive screen only at its outer peripheral portion. An air gap is enclosed between the shield and the touch sensitive screen to form a planar air bearing. The shield preferably does not touch the active area of the touch sensitive screen when the user is not touching the shield but only viewing the touch sensitive screen through the shield. This mitigates unwanted optical artifacts such as trapped air bubbles, Newton rings and chromatic interference while maintaining the sensitivity of the touch sensitive screen.

1 - 11 . (canceled) 
     
     
         12 . A transparent shield for a touch sensitive screen of a device, the shield comprising:
 a first transparent layer defining opposed first and second sides;   pressure sensitive adhesive disposed only at an outer peripheral portion of the second side of the first transparent layer, the pressure sensitive adhesive being sufficiently thick so as to form an air gap between the first transparent layer and the touch sensitive screen when, the shield is mounted to the electronic device;   wherein the outer peripheral portion of the first transparent layer is attachable to the device so that the central portion of the second side of the first transparent layer is positioned on top of the touch sensitive screen of the device.   
     
     
         13 . The shield of  claim 12  wherein the air gap is a planar air bearing. 
     
     
         14 . The shield of  claim 12  further comprising one or more transparent sacrificial layers peelably removable from each other and the first side of the first transparent layer so that a top most sacrificial layer may be removed as desired. 
     
     
         15 . The shield of  claim 12  further comprising an opaque annular film at an outer peripheral portion of the first transparent layer. 
     
     
         16 . A transparent shield for a touch sensitive screen of a device, the shield comprising:
 a transparent layer defining opposed first and second sides, the transparent layer defining a transparent central portion and an outer periphery;   a layer of pressure sensitive adhesive disposed about an outer peripheral portion of the second side of the transparent layer;   wherein the outer peripheral portion of the transparent layer is attachable to the device so that the central portion of the second side of the transparent layer is positioned on top of the touch sensitive screen of the device to form an air gap between the central portion of the transparent layer and the touch sensitive screen of the device.   
     
     
         17 . The shield of  claim 16  further comprising an annular layer interposed between the transparent layer and the layer of pressure sensitive adhesive to facilitate formation of the air gap between the central portion of the transparent layer and the touch sensitive screen of the device. 
     
     
         18 . The shield of  claim 17  wherein the annular layer is opaque to hide air bubbles between the outer periphery of the transparent layer and the device. 
     
     
         19 . The shield of  claim 16  wherein the layer of pressure sensitive adhesive is opaque to hide air bubbles between the outer periphery of the transparent layer and the device. 
     
     
         20 . The shield of  claim 16  wherein the outer periphery of the transparent layer is opaque to hide air bubbles between the shield and the device. 
     
     
         21 . The shield of  claim 17  wherein the outer periphery of the transparent layer is opaque to hide air bubbles between the shield and the device. 
     
     
         22 . The shield of  claim 16  further comprising one or more transparent sacrificial layers peelably removable from each other and the first side of the transparent layer so that a top most sacrificial layer may be removed as desired. 
     
     
         23 . The shield of  claim 16  wherein the layer of pressure sensitive adhesive is disposed about an entire outer peripheral portion of the transparent, layer. 
     
     
         24 . A transparent protective shield for an electronic device, the electronic device having a touch sensitive screen that allows a user to operate the electronic device, the touch sensitive screen having an active area surrounded by an inactive area, the shield comprising:
 a transparent layer having a shape corresponding to the shape of the touch sensitive screen of the electronic device, the transparent layer defining opposed first and second sides, the transparent layer defining a transparent central portion and an outer periphery portion, the transparent central portion configured to correspond to the active area and the outer periphery portion configured to correspond to the inactive area;   a layer of pressure sensitive adhesive disposed about the outer periphery portion of the second side of the transparent layer so that no adhesive is applied on the central portion of the second side of the transparent base layer;   wherein the shape of the shield and the disposal of the layer of pressure sensitive adhesive about the outer periphery of the second side of the transparent layer are configured to attach the transparent protective shield to the inactive area of the touch sensitive screen of the electronic device so that the central portion of the second side of the transparent layer covers the active area of the touch sensitive screen of the device, and to form an air gap between the central portion of the transparent layer and the active area of the touch sensitive screen of the electronic device.   
     
     
         25 . The shield of  claim 24  further comprising an annular layer interposed between the transparent layer and the layer of pressure sensitive adhesive to facilitate formation of the air gap between the central portion of the transparent layer and the touch sensitive screen of the electronic device. 
     
     
         26 . The shield of  claim 25  wherein the annular layer is opaque to hide air bubbles between the outer periphery portion of the transparent layer and the electronic device. 
     
     
         27 . The shield of  claim 24  wherein the layer of pressure sensitive adhesive is opaque to hide air bubbles between the outer periphery portion of the transparent layer and the touch sensitive screen of the electronic device. 
     
     
         28 . The shield of  claim 24  wherein the outer periphery portion of the transparent layer is opaque to hide air bubbles between the shield and the touch sensitive screen of the electronic device. 
     
     
         29 . The shield of  claim 29  further comprising one or more transparent sacrificial layers peelable removable from each other and the first side of the transparent layer so that a top most sacrificial layer may be removed as desired. 
     
     
         30 . A shield for protecting a touch screen, the touch screen having an active display area surrounded by an inactive area, the shield comprising:
 a base layer having front and back sides, an outer perimeter, and a transparent window;   an annular layer attached along the outer perimeter of the back side of the base layer and surrounding the transparent window, the annular layer having a thickness sufficient to space the base layer near but not in contact with the active display area when the shield is attached to the touch screen;   an exposed adhesive on a side of the annular layer that faces the touch screen, the exposed adhesive having sufficient adhesiveness to mount the touch screen protector onto the touch screen and to enable its removal; and   an adhesive adhering the annular layer to the back side of the film, the adhesive having an adhesive strength that is stronger than that of the exposed adhesive so that the annular layer is not removed from the base layer when the protector is removed touch screen;   wherein the shield is configured to removably attach to the touch screen via the exposed adhesive and to form a space between the transparent window of the base layer, the annular layer, and the active display area of the touch screen, wherein the shield is configured to attached to the touch screen without forming visible bubbles between the transparent window of the base layer and the active display area of the touch screen, and wherein the shield is configured to trap air between the base layer, the spacer, and the active display area of the touch screen.   
     
     
         31 . The shield of  claim 30 , wherein the base layer has a thickness of between about 0.001 inch to about 0.007 inch and includes an opaque band about its periphery that receives the annular layer. 
     
     
         32 . The shield of  claim 30 , wherein the annular layer has a width that conforms to a width of the inactive area of the touch screen so that the annular layer of an attached shield is within the inactive area of the touch screen and does not interfere with the use of the active display area of the touch screen. 
     
     
         33 . The shield of  claim 30 , further comprising one or more cut outs that match one or more buttons on the touch screen and that facilitate mounting of the shield to the touch screen. 
     
     
         34 . The shield of  claim 30 , wherein the space formed between the transparent window of the base layer, the spacer, and the touch screen portion of the device is an enclosed space. 
     
     
         35 . The shield of  claim 30  wherein the base layer is a plastic film. 
     
     
         36 . A shield for an electronic device, the electronic device having a touch screen that defines an active area disposed within an inactive area, the shield comprising:
 a base layer having a shape that corresponds to the touch screen, the base layer defining a central portion and an outer peripheral portion that surrounds the central portion, the central portion having a shape that corresponds to the active area of the touch screen and the outer peripheral portion having a shape that corresponds to the inactive area of the touch screen; and   a layer of adhesive disposed on the outer peripheral portion of the base layer;   wherein the shape of the base layer, the shape of the outer peripheral portion of the base layer, and the applied layer of adhesive are configured to attach the shield to the touch screen of the device so that the adhesive layer is disposed on the inactive area of the touch screen, so that the active area of the touch screen is visible through the central portion of the base layer, and so that at least part of the central portion of the base layer is lifted off of the active area, wherein at least a portion of the active area and the inactive area of the touch screen share a common plane.   
     
     
         37 . The shield of  claim 36 , wherein the touch screen maintains touch sensitivity through the attached shield. 
     
     
         38 . The shield of  claim 36 , wherein at least one of the outer peripheral portion of the base layer and the layer of adhesive are opaque to mitigate visibility of air bubbles between the touch screen and the attached shield. 
     
     
         39 . The shield of  claim 36  wherein the layer of adhesive is configured to be sufficiently thick so that the central portion of the base layer of an attached shield is lifted off the active area of the touch screen. 
     
     
         40 . The shield of  claim 36 , wherein the layer of adhesive is configured to trap air between an attached shield and the active area of the touch screen. 
     
     
         41 . The shield of  claim 36 , wherein the base layer further comprises an annular film interposed between the outer peripheral portion of the base layer and the layer of adhesive, and wherein the combined thickness of the annular layer and the layer of adhesive is sufficient to lift the central portion of the base layer of the attached shield off the active area of the touch screen. 
     
     
         42 . The shield of  claim 36 , wherein a majority of the active area and the inactive area of the touch screen share a common plane, and wherein a lower surface of the central portion of the base layer of an attached shield is in a different plane from that shared by the majority of the active area and the inactive area. 
     
     
         43 . The shield of  claim 36 , wherein the base layer is formed from a flexible material. 
     
     
         44 . The shield of  claim 36 , wherein the layer of adhesive is disposed so that adhesive continuously surrounds the central portion of the base layer.