Display module and vehicle display device

Abstract

A display module includes a display panel, a transparent conductive layer and a physical operating component. The display panel includes an upper substrate. The transparent conductive layer is located on an outer surface of the upper substrate. The physical operating component is located on the outer surface of the upper substrate and is electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer. A vehicle display device is further provided.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a display module and an automotive display device, and more particularly to a display module having physical operating components and an automotive display device using the same display module. [Previous Technology]

[0002] Research on touch-based human-machine interfaces in the automotive and industrial fields has found that mechanical input interfaces are more intuitive and reliable than visual touch interfaces, and are not affected by gloves or moisture on hands. Therefore, there is an increasing trend in the design and application of physical actuators. However, existing physical actuators require irregularly shaped holes in the display panel, making the manufacturing process relatively difficult and increasing manufacturing costs. Furthermore, their high degree of customization results in a lack of versatility. [Summary of the Invention]

[0003] The present invention provides a display module with a simple structure and manufacturing process, which helps to reduce manufacturing costs and has wide applicability.

[0004] The present invention provides a vehicle display device, which has a simple structure and manufacturing process, helps to reduce manufacturing costs, and has wide applicability.

[0005] The display module of the present invention includes a display panel, a transparent conductive layer, and a physical operating component. The display panel includes an upper substrate, a lower substrate, and an upper polarizer. The upper substrate is located between the upper polarizer and the lower substrate. The transparent conductive layer is located on an outer surface of the upper substrate. The physical operating component is located on the outer surface of the upper substrate and is electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer.

[0006] The vehicle display device of the present invention includes the above-described display module, wherein the display module is disposed on a center console.

[0007] Based on the above, in the display module and automotive display device of the present invention, the transparent conductive layer and the physical operating component are located on the outer surface of the upper substrate, and the physical operating component is electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer. Its structure and process are simple, which helps to reduce manufacturing costs and has wide versatility. Furthermore, users can more quickly and intuitively input operations on the display module through the physical operating component.

Implementation Method

[0008] As used herein, “about,” “approximately,” “essentially,” or “substantially” includes the value and the average value within an acceptable range of deviations from a particular value as determined by one of ordinary skill in the art, taking into account the measurement in question and a particular number of errors associated with the measurement (i.e., limitations of the measurement system). For example, “about” may mean within one or more standard deviations of the value, or, for example, within ±30%, ±20%, ±15%, ±10%, ±5%. Furthermore, as used herein, “about,” “approximately,” “essentially,” or “substantially” may be used to select a more acceptable range of deviations or standard deviations depending on the nature of the measurement, the cutting nature, or other properties, and may not apply to all properties with a single standard deviation.

[0009] In the accompanying drawings, the thicknesses of layers, films, panels, regions, etc., are enlarged for clarity. It should be understood that when an element such as a layer, film, region, or substrate is referred to as being "on" or "connected" to another element, it may be directly on or connected to the other element, or intermediate elements may also be present. Conversely, when an element is referred to as being "directly on" or "directly connected" to another element, no intermediate elements are present. As used herein, "connection" may refer to a physical and / or electrical connection. Furthermore, an "electrical connection" may mean the presence of other elements between two elements.

[0010] Furthermore, relative terms such as “down” or “bottom” and “up” or “top” may be used herein to describe the relationship between one element and another element, as shown in the figures. It should be understood that relative terms are intended to include different orientations of the device other than those shown in the figures. For example, if a device in one figure is flipped, an element described as being “down” to another element will be oriented “up” to the other element. Thus, the exemplary term “down” can include both “down” and “up” orientations, depending on the specific orientation of the figure. Similarly, if a device in one figure is flipped, an element described as being “below” or “under” another element will be oriented “above” the other element. Thus, the exemplary terms “above” or “below” can include both “up” and “down” orientations.

[0011] Exemplary embodiments are described herein with reference to cross-sectional views as schematic representations of idealized embodiments. Therefore, variations in the shape of the illustrations can be anticipated as a result of, for example, manufacturing techniques and / or tolerances. Thus, the embodiments described herein should not be construed as limited to the specific shapes of the regions shown herein, but rather include, for example, shape deviations caused by manufacturing processes. For example, regions shown or described as flat may generally have rough and / or non-linear characteristics. Furthermore, acute angles shown may be rounded. Therefore, the regions shown in the figures are schematic in nature, and their shapes are not intended to show the precise shapes of the regions, nor are they intended to limit the scope of the claims.

[0012] Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same element symbols are used in the drawings and description to denote the same or similar parts.

[0013] Figure 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a top view of the display module according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0014] Please refer to Figures 1 and 2. The display module 100 can be applied to the field of automotive technology. For example, the display module 100 can be installed on a center console in the driver's cabin of a vehicle to be used as a vehicle infotainment system. Users can view the display module 100 or input operations on it. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0015] In other embodiments, the display module can be applied to televisions, desktop computer screens, laptop screens, industrial human-machine interface displays, etc.

[0016] In this embodiment, the display module 100 includes a display panel 110, a transparent conductive layer 120, and a physical operating component. The physical operating component may specifically be a mechanical input element such as a knob, button, lever, or slider. The knob or button may include resistive and non-capacitive digital types. Users can more quickly and intuitively input operations on the display module 100 through the physical operating component without having to take their attention away from the front of the vehicle. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0017] It should be noted that the physical operating components in Figures 1 and 2 include physical operating component 131 and physical operating component 132. Physical operating component 131 is, for example, a knob, and physical operating component 132 is, for example, a button. However, the contents shown in the views are only for illustrative purposes to facilitate understanding, and the contents shown in the figures are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0018] The display panel 110 includes an upper substrate 112, a lower substrate 111, and an upper polarizer 113. The upper substrate 112 is located between the upper polarizer 113 and the lower substrate 111. A transparent conductive layer 120 is located on an outer surface 112a of the upper substrate 112. A physical operating member is located on the outer surface 112a of the upper substrate 112 and is electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer 120. The display module 100 also has a fixing portion that fixes the physical operating members 131 and 132 to the transparent conductive layer 120. In this embodiment, the fixing portion includes a first fixing portion 151 and a second fixing portion 152. The first fixing portion 151 is connected between the physical operating members 131 and 132 and a pad pattern 124, and the second fixing portion 152 is connected between the physical operating members 131 and 132 and the transparent conductive layer 120.

[0019] The lower substrate 111 is a thin-film transistor (TFT), and the upper substrate 112 is a color filter (CF) disposed on the lower substrate 111. The transparent conductive layer 120 is a patterned conductive layer pre-formed on the outer surface 112a of the upper substrate 112 through a photomask and etching. The physical operating components 131 and 132 are directly connected to the transparent conductive layer 120 by means of conductive adhesive, ultrasonic welding, or double-sided adhesive, thereby electrically connecting the physical operating components 131 and 132 to the transparent conductive layer 120. In this embodiment, the first fixing part 151 can be conductive adhesive to electrically connect the physical operating component 131 to the transparent conductive layer 120, and the second fixing part 152 can be conductive adhesive, or a fixing mechanism such as ultrasonic welding or double-sided adhesive to ensure that the physical operating component 131 is fixed to the transparent conductive layer 120.

[0020] The display module 100 further includes a flexible connector 140. The transparent conductive layer 120 includes a separated first region 121 and a second region 122. The first region 121 is adjacent to the second region 122 and the two are electrically separated from each other. The upper polarizer 113 has an opening 113a, which is located corresponding to the second region 122. The physical operating member 131 and the physical operating member 132 pass through the opening 113a of the upper polarizer 113 and are connected to the transparent conductive layer 120. The flexible connector 140 is electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer 120.

[0021] In this embodiment, the transparent conductive layer 120 is formed through a patterned process into a first region 121 and a second region 122. The first region 121 can be grounded or connected to a common potential to serve as an electromagnetic shielding area. The second region 122 may have a pad pattern 124 and a wiring pattern 125 connected to the outgoing line region 123. The physical operating components 131 and 132 are located on the pad pattern 124 of the second region 122 and can be connected to the pad pattern 124 through conductive adhesive. This embodiment may also have a flexible connector 140 located in the outgoing line region 123, and the physical operating component 131 is electrically connected to the flexible connector 140 through the second region 122 of the transparent conductive layer 120. Its structure and process are simple, which helps to reduce manufacturing costs and has wide versatility.

[0022] It should be noted that the electrical connection described herein includes signal connection when transmitting signals, and electrical connection when transmitting power source.

[0023] In one embodiment, the physical operating component may integrate a display function, and the transparent conductive layer is adapted to supply power to the physical operating component so that the physical operating component can display information.

[0024] Figure 3 is a top view of the display module of the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] Please refer to FIG3. In the display module 200 of this embodiment, the first region 221 of the transparent conductive layer 220 is a touch area. The transparent conductive layer 220 also includes a driving electrode sub-layer and a sensing electrode sub-layer in the touch area, and the sensing electrode sub-layer is disposed on the driving electrode sub-layer. In other words, the transparent conductive layer 220 can be divided into a touch area (first region 221) for touch input and a physical operation area (second region 122) for input through physical operation member 131 and physical operation member 132.

[0026] Figure 4 is a partial cross-sectional schematic diagram of the display module according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Please refer to FIG4. In the display module 300 of this embodiment, the display panel 310 includes an upper substrate 312 and a lower structure 314. The upper substrate 312 is located on the lower structure 314. The transparent conductive layer 120 is located on an outer surface 312a of the upper substrate 312. The physical operating member 131 and the physical operating member 132 are located on the outer surface 312a of the upper substrate 312, and the physical operating member 131 and the physical operating member 132 are electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer 120. Therefore, the display module of the present invention has the versatility to be applied to a variety of different structures.

[0028] It should be noted that the upper substrate 312 may be a cover lens, and the display panel 310 may be a self-emissive display panel such as a plasma display panel (PDP), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display panel or a micro light-emitting diode (Micro LED) display panel, or a non-self-emissive display panel such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0029] The following is a more detailed explanation of the lower structure of the display panel.

[0030] Figure 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module of the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Please refer to Figure 5. In the display module 300A of this embodiment, the display panel 310A can be a non-self-emissive liquid crystal display panel. The lower structure 314A of the display panel 310A includes a first layer 314A1, a second layer 314A2, a third layer 314A3, and a fourth layer 314A4. The first layer 314A1 can be a lower polarizer, the second layer 314A2 can be a thin-film transistor (TFT) substrate, the third layer 314A3 can be a color filter (CF) substrate, and the fourth layer 314A4 can be an upper polarizer. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Therefore, the display module of the present invention has the versatility to be applied to a variety of different structures.

[0032] Figure 6 is a partial cross-sectional schematic diagram of the display module according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

[0033] Please refer to Figure 6. In the display module 300B of this embodiment, the display panel 310B can be a self-emissive micro light-emitting diode (Micro LED) display panel. The lower structure 314B of the display panel 310B includes a first layer 314B1, a second layer 314B2 and a third layer 314B3. The first layer 314B1 can be a lower substrate, the second layer 314B2 can be a micro light-emitting diode, and the third layer 314B3 can be an encapsulation layer. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Therefore, the display module of the present invention has the versatility to be applied to a variety of different structures.

[0034] In one embodiment, the display module 300B may also be provided with an optical film (not shown), such as a circular polarizer, on the outer surface 312a of the transparent conductive layer 120, and the optical film is provided with an opening for setting the physical operating member 131 and the physical operating member 132.

[0035] Figure 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module of the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] Please refer to Figure 7. In the display module 300C of this embodiment, the display panel 310C can be a self-emissive organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display panel. The lower structure 314C of the display panel 310C includes a first layer 314C1, a second layer 314C2 and a third layer 314C3, wherein the first layer 314C1, the second layer 314C2 and the third layer 314C3 are stacked in sequence. The first layer 314C1 can be the lower substrate, the second layer 314C2 can be the organic light-emitting diode, and the third layer 314C3 can be the encapsulation layer. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. Therefore, the display module of the present invention has the versatility to be applied to a variety of different structures.

[0037] In one embodiment, the display module 300C may also be provided with an optical film (not shown), such as a circular polarizer, on the outer surface 312a of the transparent conductive layer 120, and the optical film is provided with an opening for setting the physical operating member 131 and the physical operating member 132.

[0038] In summary, in the display module of the present invention, the transparent conductive layer and the physical operating component are located on the outer surface of the upper substrate, and the physical operating component is electrically connected to the transparent conductive layer. Its structure and process are simple, which helps to reduce manufacturing costs and has wide versatility. Furthermore, users can more quickly and intuitively input operations on the display module through the physical operating component. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0039] Figure 1 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a top view of the display module according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 is a top view of the display module according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module according to the third embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. Figure 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of the display module according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

Claims

1. A display module, comprising: A display panel includes an upper substrate; a transparent conductive layer is located on an outer surface of the upper substrate; The display panel further includes a lower substrate and an upper polarizer, with the upper substrate located between the upper polarizer and the lower substrate. The upper polarizer has an opening through which the physical operating member passes and is connected to the transparent conductive layer.

2. The display module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the transparent conductive layer includes a separate first region and a second region, and the physical operating element is located in the second region.

3. The display module as claimed in claim 2, wherein the second zone is electrically connected to a flexible connector.

4. The display module as described in claim 2, wherein the first area is an electromagnetic shielding area.

5. The display module as described in claim 2, wherein the first area is a touch area.

6. The display module as claimed in claim 5, wherein the transparent conductive layer includes a driving electrode sublayer and a sensing electrode sublayer.

7. The display module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the transparent conductive layer is adapted to power the physical operating element.

8. The display module as described in claim 1, further comprising: A flexible connector electrically connects to the transparent conductive layer.

9. The display module as claimed in claim 1 further comprises a fixing portion that fixes the physical operating member to the transparent conductive layer.

10. A vehicle display device comprising a display module as described in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the display module is disposed on a center console.

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