Patent ID: 6844904

Claim:
A PDLC device comprising: a first substrate; a second substrate spaced closely parallel to the first substrate so that an interior surface of the first substrate opposes an interior surface of the second substrate; at least one of the substrates being made of a transparent material; a generally planar layer of a PDLC material sandwiched between a pair of interior surfaces of the first and second substrates; a first electrode layer disposed on an exterior surface of the first substrate; a second electrode layer disposed on an exterior surface of the second substrate; at least the electrode layer that is disposed on the exterior surface of the transparent substrate being made of a substantially transparent electrically conductive material; the first and second electrode layers being configured for receiving a first electrical signal that creates a first electrical field that extends substantially perpendicular to a plane of the PDLC layer and has a predetermined strength sufficient to cause the layer of PDLC material to assume a first optical state selected from the group consisting of transparent and opaque; and lateral electric field generating means positioned and configured for receiving a second electrical signal that creates a second electrical field that extends substantially parallel to the plane of the PDLC layer and has a predetermined strength sufficient to cause the layer of PDLC material to assume a second optical state selected from the group consisting of transparent and opaque that is different than the first optical state.