Flexible display and electronic device

Abstract

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a flexible display and an electronic device, wherein the flexible display comprises: a flexible display panel, a first optical adhesive layer, and a strip metal layer for supporting the flexible display panel, wherein one side of the strip metal layer is connected to one side of the flexible display panel through the first optical adhesive layer; wherein the strip metal layer comprises: a plurality of metal strips and an elastic energy-absorbing material, wherein the elastic energy-absorbing material is arranged around the metal strips and wraps the metal strips. The embodiments of the present disclosure provide an elastic energy-absorbing material on the strip metal layer, wherein the elastic energy-absorbing material can absorb the stress generated by the metal strips, thereby reducing the damage to the flexible display panel caused by the stress generated by the metal strips during the sliding process as a whole, and even if the flexible display is repeatedly slid and rolled for use, it will not cause direct damage to the flexible display panel, thereby extending the use time of the flexible display and improving the user experience.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of displays, and in particular to a flexible display and an electronic device. Background Art

[0002] Flexible displays are display devices formed based on flexible substrate materials. Since flexible displays have the characteristics of being rollable, wide viewing angle, and easy to carry, they have broad application prospects and good market potential in portable electronic devices.

[0003] In order to meet the requirements of the whole structure of the slidable and rollable performance for the screen support, the existing flexible display usually attaches a strip of metal layer to the bottom of the flexible display panel to support the flexible display panel, so as to achieve the slidable display of the flexible display. However, during the repeated slidable and rollable use of the flexible display, there is a possibility that the display fails due to the large number of slids, resulting in a poor user experience. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of this, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a flexible display and an electronic device to solve the following problems in the prior art: during the repeated sliding and rolling of the flexible display, the display may fail due to a large number of sliding, resulting in a poor user experience.

[0005] On the one hand, an embodiment of the present disclosure proposes a flexible display, comprising: a flexible display panel, a first optical adhesive layer, and a strip metal layer for supporting the flexible display panel, one side of the strip metal layer being connected to one side of the flexible display panel through the first optical adhesive layer; wherein the strip metal layer comprises: a plurality of metal strips and an elastic energy absorbing material, the elastic energy absorbing material being arranged around the metal strips to wrap the metal strips.

[0006] In some embodiments, the corners of each metal strip in the strip-shaped metal layer close to the flexible display panel are set to be rounded angles with curve continuity.

[0007] In some embodiments, the corner of each metal strip in the strip-shaped metal layer away from the flexible display panel is set to a smooth angle with curve continuity.

[0008] In some embodiments, the rounded corner with curve continuity is a rounded corner.

[0009] In some embodiments, the thickness of the elastic energy absorbing material is the same as the thickness of the metal strip.

[0010] In some embodiments, the flexible display panel includes at least: a flexible protective layer, a circular polarizer layer, a flexible touch layer, a flexible display layer, a flexible spacer layer and a metal support layer which are arranged in sequence, wherein the metal support layer is close to the strip metal layer.

[0011] In some embodiments, the metal support layer comprises: a plurality of elastic energy absorbing material strips and a metal support frame, wherein the metal support frame wraps each of the elastic energy absorbing material strips.

[0012] In some embodiments, the flexible display panel further includes: a first elastic energy absorbing layer, disposed between the first optical adhesive layer and the metal supporting layer.

[0013] In some embodiments, the invention further includes: a second elastic energy absorbing layer and a second optical adhesive layer, wherein the second elastic energy absorbing layer is connected to the other side of the strip-shaped metal layer through the second optical adhesive layer.

[0014] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an electronic device, comprising at least: a flexible display as described in any one of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0015] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, an elastic energy-absorbing material is arranged on the strip-shaped metal layer. The elastic energy-absorbing material can absorb the stress generated by the metal strip, thereby reducing the damage to the flexible display panel caused by the stress generated by the metal strip during the sliding and rolling process as a whole. Even if the flexible display is repeatedly slid and rolled for use, it will not cause direct damage to the flexible display panel, thereby extending the use time of the flexible display and improving the user experience. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present disclosure or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments recorded in the present disclosure. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative labor.

[0017] Figure 1 It is a structural cross-sectional view of a flexible display with a strip-shaped metal layer in the prior art;

[0018] Figure 2 A top view of a flexible display provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0019] Figure 3 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 1 ;

[0020] Figure 4 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 2 ;

[0021] Figure 5 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 3 ;

[0022] Figure 6 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 4 ;

[0023] Figure 7 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 5 ;

[0024] Figure 8 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 6 ;

[0025] Fig. 9 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 7 ;

[0026] Fig.10 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 8 ;

[0027] Fig.11 A schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure Figure 9 ;

[0028] Fig.12 A schematic diagram of the sliding state of a flexible display provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] Reference numerals:

[0030] 1-flexible display panel, 2-first optical adhesive layer, 3-strip metal layer, 4-flexible protective layer, 5-circular polarizer layer, 6-flexible touch layer, 7-flexible display layer, 8-flexible spacer layer, 9-metal support layer, 10-first elastic energy absorption layer, 11-second elastic energy absorption layer, 12-second optical adhesive layer, 31-metal strip, 32-elastic energy absorption material, 91-elastic energy absorption material strip, 92-metal support frame. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present disclosure clearer, the technical solution of the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, not all of the embodiments. Based on the described embodiments of the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0032] Unless otherwise defined, the technical terms or scientific terms used in the present disclosure should be understood by people with ordinary skills in the field to which the present disclosure belongs. The "first", "second" and similar words used in the present disclosure do not indicate any order, quantity or importance, but are only used to distinguish different components. "Include" or "comprise" and similar words mean that the elements or objects appearing before the word cover the elements or objects listed after the word and their equivalents, without excluding other elements or objects. "Connect" or "connected" and similar words are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, but can include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect. "Up", "down", "left", "right" and the like are only used to indicate relative positional relationships. When the absolute position of the described object changes, the relative positional relationship may also change accordingly.

[0033] In order to keep the following description of the embodiments of the present disclosure clear and concise, the present disclosure omits detailed descriptions of well-known functions and well-known components.

[0034] Based on observations of flexible displays, the inventors of the present application have found that each metal strip in the strip metal layer of the existing flexible display is a rectangular structure, such as Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, Figure 1 It is a cross-sectional view of the structure of the flexible display. Figure 2 This is a top view of the flexible display. It can be seen from the figure that the metal bars of the rectangular structure have relatively sharp right-angled corners. The right-angled corners will cause stress concentration on the flexible display panel during the sliding and rolling process of the flexible display. After repeated sliding and rolling, the flexible display will fail, and the anti-slip and rolling performance of the flexible display will be reduced. The flexible display cannot be used normally after repeated sliding and rolling.

[0035] Based on the above considerations, the present disclosure provides a flexible display, the structure of which is shown in FIG. Figure 3 As shown, including:

[0036] A flexible display panel 1, a first optical adhesive layer 2 and a strip metal layer 3 for supporting the flexible display panel 1, one side of the strip metal layer 3 is connected to one side of the flexible display panel 1 through the first optical adhesive layer 2; wherein the strip metal layer can also include a plurality of metal strips 31 and elastic energy absorbing material 32, the elastic energy absorbing material 32 is arranged around the metal strip 31 and wraps the metal strip 31.

[0037] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, an elastic energy-absorbing material is arranged on the strip-shaped metal layer. The elastic energy-absorbing material can absorb the stress generated by the metal strip, thereby reducing the damage to the flexible display panel caused by the stress generated by the metal strip during the sliding and rolling process as a whole. Even if the flexible display is repeatedly slid and rolled for use, it will not cause direct damage to the flexible display panel, thereby extending the use time of the flexible display and improving the user experience.

[0038] In order to make flexible displays thinner and lighter, Figure 3 The flexible display shown in the figure can be improved as follows: the thickness of the elastic energy absorbing material and the thickness of the metal strip are set to be the same. The cross-sectional view of the structure is shown in FIG. Figure 4 shown.

[0039] In order to reduce the stress generated when the flexible display is rolled up, Figure 4 Based on this, the embodiments of the present disclosure can also be as follows Figure 5 As shown, the corners of each metal strip 31 in the strip metal layer 3 close to the flexible display panel are set to be rounded angles with curve continuity. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the corners of each metal strip in the strip metal layer close to the flexible display panel are set to be rounded angles with curve continuity. When the rounded angle contacts the flexible display panel, it has less stress than the existing right-angle corners, that is, the stress generated is reduced from the root.

[0040] Although the stress of the metal strip relative to the flexible display panel is significantly reduced, during the process of rolling up the flexible display, the side of the metal strip close to the metal scroll will also generate stress relative to the metal scroll, and the force will extend and propagate. Therefore, although it is the force between the metal strip and the metal scroll, it will also increase the stress of the metal strip on the flexible display panel. In order to reduce the stress of the metal strip on the flexible display panel, the corners of each metal strip away from the flexible display panel in the strip-shaped metal layer of the embodiment of the present disclosure are also set to have a smooth angle with curve continuity. In specific implementation, the smooth angle with curve continuity can be a rounded corner, for example Figure 6 Further, the shape of the metal strip can also be changed as its corners become rounded. For example, the cross-section of the changed metal strip can be elliptical or circular, and the whole is cylindrical to bring less stress.

[0041] Figure 7 for Figure 6 A specific structural diagram based on Figure 7 As shown, the flexible display panel at least includes a flexible protective layer 4, a circular polarizer layer 5, a flexible touch layer 6, a flexible display layer 7, a flexible spacer layer 8 and a metal support layer 9 which are arranged in sequence, wherein the metal support layer 9 is close to the strip metal layer 3.

[0042] In order to further reduce the stress generated when the flexible display is rolled up, the metal support layer 9 can also be improved. Figure 7 Based on the improved flexible display, Figure 8 As shown, the metal support layer 9 may include: a plurality of elastic energy absorbing material strips 91 and a metal support frame 92 , wherein the metal support frame 92 wraps each elastic energy absorbing material strip 91 .

[0043] In order to further reduce the stress generated when the flexible display is rolled up, Figure 8 Based on the improved flexible display, Fig. 9 As shown, the flexible display panel may further include a first elastic energy absorbing layer 10 disposed between the first optical adhesive layer 3 and the metal support layer 9 .

[0044] In order to minimize the stress generated when the flexible display is rolled up, Fig. 9 Based on the improved flexible display, Fig.10 As shown, the second elastic energy absorbing layer 11 and the second optical adhesive layer 12 are also included, and the second elastic energy absorbing layer 11 is connected to the other side of the strip metal layer 3 through the second optical adhesive layer 12. After the second elastic energy absorbing layer 11 is formed under the strip metal layer 3, the flatness of the back of the flexible display can be better guaranteed, and when the back structure of the flexible display contacts the shaft, the force acting on the flexible display by the shaft can be effectively reduced.

[0045] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the strip metal layer is rounded and an elastic energy-absorbing layer structure is formed on both sides and below the strip metal layer, thereby reducing the stress concentration phenomenon of the strip metal layer and its force on the flexible display during the sliding and rolling process of the flexible display, thereby improving the anti-sliding and rolling ability of the flexible display and ensuring the display effect of the flexible display during repeated sliding and rolling.

[0046] It is worth noting that the above Figure 8 The patterned metal support layer 9 shown in Fig. 9 The first elastic energy absorbing layer 10 shown in Fig.10 The second elastic energy absorbing layer 11 and the second optical adhesive layer 12 shown in the figure can be separately arranged in the flexible display, and do not need to be arranged in one flexible display in the manner shown in the above figures. Fig.11 As shown, although the flexible display is provided with a second elastic energy absorbing layer 11 and a second optical adhesive layer 12, its metal support layer 9 is not Figure 8 The patterned metal support layer 9 shown in FIG. 1 is a common metal support layer 9 . Fig.12 for Fig.11 The schematic diagram of the sliding state of the flexible display shown in the figure, the optical adhesive layer has been omitted because it is actually thin. During the sliding process of the flexible display, the stress generated by the metal strip on the flexible display panel can be reduced by the second elastic energy absorption layer and the improved strip metal layer. Fig.12 The metal support layer is not illustrated in the figure, and those skilled in the art can set it according to actual needs.

[0047] The elastic energy absorbing material mentioned above can be a high molecular elastic energy absorbing material such as FOAM (sponge rubber), TPU (Thermoplastic polyurethanes, thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer rubber) or the like.

[0048] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides an electronic device, which includes at least any one of the flexible displays in the above embodiments, and the structure of the flexible display is not described in detail herein.

[0049] In order to solve the problem in the prior art that a strip metal layer of a flexible display is prone to stress concentration during a rolling process, thereby causing display failure of the flexible display, this embodiment provides a flexible display with high reliability.

[0050] The disclosed embodiment solves the problem of stress concentration in the metal strips of the strip metal layer during the sliding and rolling process by smoothly chamfering the strip metal layer, such as rounding the corners, and arranges elastic energy-absorbing materials on both sides and below the strip metal layer, thereby further reducing the stress concentration phenomenon of the strip metal layer during the sliding and rolling process of the flexible display and reducing the force of the metal strip on the flexible display, thereby improving the anti-sliding and rolling ability of the flexible display and ensuring the display effect of the flexible display during repeated sliding and rolling.

[0051] In addition, although exemplary embodiments have been described herein, the scope includes any and all embodiments based on the present disclosure with equivalent elements, modifications, omissions, combinations (e.g., various embodiments intersecting schemes), adaptations or changes. The elements in the claims will be interpreted broadly based on the language adopted in the claims, and are not limited to the examples described in this specification or during the implementation of this application, and the examples will be interpreted as non-exclusive. Therefore, this specification and examples are intended to be considered as examples only, and the true scope and spirit are indicated by the following claims and the full scope of their equivalents.

[0052] The above description is intended to be illustrative rather than restrictive. For example, the above examples (or one or more of them) can be used in combination with each other. For example, a person of ordinary skill in the art can use other embodiments when reading the above description. In addition, in the above-mentioned specific embodiments, various features can be grouped together to simplify the present disclosure. This should not be interpreted as an intention that a disclosed feature that is not required to be protected is necessary for any claim. On the contrary, the subject matter of the present disclosure may be less than all the features of a specific disclosed embodiment. Thus, the following claims are incorporated into the specific embodiments as examples or embodiments, wherein each claim is independently used as a separate embodiment, and it is considered that these embodiments can be combined with each other in various combinations or arrangements. The scope of the present disclosure should be determined with reference to the attached claims and the full scope of equivalent forms granted by these claims.

[0053] Multiple embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail above, but the present disclosure is not limited to these specific embodiments. Those skilled in the art can make various variations and modifications to the embodiments based on the concepts of the present disclosure, and these variations and modifications should all fall within the scope of protection required by the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A flexible display, characterized in that: include: A flexible display panel, a first optical adhesive layer, and a strip metal layer for supporting the flexible display panel, wherein one side of the strip metal layer is connected to one side of the flexible display panel through the first optical adhesive layer; Wherein, the strip-shaped metal layer comprises: a plurality of metal strips and elastic energy-absorbing materials, wherein the elastic energy-absorbing materials are arranged around the metal strips and wrap the metal strips; The corners of each metal strip in the strip-shaped metal layer close to the flexible display panel are set to be rounded angles with curve continuity; the thickness of the elastic energy-absorbing material is the same as the thickness of the metal strip, the metal strip and the elastic energy-absorbing material are arranged in the same layer, and the orthographic projection of at least part of the metal strip on the flexible display panel does not overlap with the orthographic projection of the elastic energy-absorbing material on the flexible display panel.

2. The flexible display according to claim 1, characterized in that: The corners of each metal strip in the strip-shaped metal layer away from the flexible display panel are set to be rounded angles with curve continuity.

3. The flexible display according to claim 1, characterized in that: The rounded corner with curve continuity is a rounded corner.

4. The flexible display according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible display panel at least comprises: A flexible protective layer, a circular polarizer layer, a flexible touch layer, a flexible display layer, a flexible spacer layer and a metal support layer are arranged in sequence, wherein the metal support layer is close to the strip metal layer.

5. The flexible display according to claim 4, characterized in that: The metal support layer comprises: A plurality of elastic energy absorbing material strips and a metal support frame, wherein the metal support frame wraps each of the elastic energy absorbing material strips.

6. The flexible display according to claim 5, characterized in that: The flexible display panel further includes: The first elastic energy-absorbing layer is arranged between the first optical adhesive layer and the metal supporting layer.

7. The flexible display according to claim 6, characterized in that: Also includes: A second elastic energy absorbing layer and a second optical adhesive layer, wherein the second elastic energy absorbing layer is connected to the other side of the strip-shaped metal layer through the second optical adhesive layer.

8. An electronic device, characterized in that: At least: The flexible display according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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