GRAPHIC OVERLAY MATERIALS

The graphic overlay is the top layer of a membrane switch and is the interface between you and the machine. The overlay creates the look and feel for your product. It is the first thing your customer sees and has to be aesthetically pleasing. JCF has a design team to assist you create the image you want to project.JCF offers a complete line of polycarbonate, polyester or acrylic materials in various gloss levels, textures, pencil hardness and gages to meet your needs. If you have special UL or CSA requirements,JCF can make recommendations to comply with those needs.Two of the most important issues are durability and environmental concerns. It is essential to choose a material that will out live your application requirements; polycarbonate offers more flexibility with regard to design but polyester is more durable.If you have an application for < 50000 actuations, polycarbonate is a good choice;otherwise polyester is the material of choice.Life cycle tests show that polyester can be actuated over 1,000,000 times in a tactile switch without showing signs of wear. For good tactile feedback in a membrane switch, choose an overlay thickness between .006 and .010. These thickness ranges will offer the durability to meet your requirements.JCF has a computerized color formulation system to achieve consistent results from printing to printing. JCF can color match to the Pantone Matching System, a color swatch or to your bezel. The colors on the overlay are screen printed on the second surface. The thickness of the overlays protects the graphics from the environment and operator wear. Selective textures and window clearing agents are printed on the first surface and UV cured to produce a very durable finish.