Display module and display device

Abstract

The embodiment of the present application provides a display module and a display device. The display module includes a display panel and a flexible circuit board bound to the display panel, the flexible circuit board includes a flexible substrate, a copper layer formed on the flexible substrate, and a protective layer covering the copper layer, and a copper-exposed area for exposing the copper layer is provided on the flexible circuit board, the copper-exposed area is arranged at the edge of the flexible circuit board, and the protective layer forms a boundary protection structure at the edge of the copper-exposed area. In the embodiment of the present application, the presence of the boundary protection structure increases the thickness at the edge of the copper-exposed area, so that the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area is strengthened to a certain extent. In addition, the boundary protection structure is connected to the protective layer other than the copper-exposed area, so that the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area can also be strengthened. As a result, the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area and the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area are both strengthened, so that the copper-exposed area of ​​the flexible circuit board is not prone to wrinkles or fractures.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of display technology, and in particular to a display module and a display device. Background Art

[0002] This section merely provides background information related to the present disclosure and is not necessarily prior art.

[0003] In the related art, the flexible circuit board FPC in the display module can be divided into single-layer board, double-layer board and multi-layer board according to the number of copper layers set. The main FPC with a multi-layer board structure is relatively expensive, so more and more display modules are considering using a main FPC with a double-layer board structure. However, the main FPC with a double-layer board structure and a single-layer board structure is prone to wrinkles or breaks due to its thin exposed copper area. Once the above problems occur, the main FPC can only be scrapped, resulting in a waste of time and cost. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a display module and a display device to solve the problem that the copper exposed area of ​​a flexible circuit board (FPC) is prone to wrinkles or breaks.

[0005] An embodiment of the first aspect of the present application proposes a display module, including a display panel and a flexible circuit board bound to the display panel, the flexible circuit board including a flexible substrate, a copper layer formed on the flexible substrate, and a protective layer covering the copper layer, the flexible circuit board is provided with a copper exposed area for exposing the copper layer, the copper exposed area is arranged at an edge of the flexible circuit board, and the protective layer forms a boundary protection structure at the edge of the copper exposed area.

[0006] In some embodiments of the present application, the width of the border protection structure is 0.3 mm to 1.0 mm.

[0007] In some embodiments of the present application, the number of the copper layers is two, wherein one layer of the copper layer is formed on one side of the flexible substrate, and the other layer of the copper layer is formed on the other side of the flexible substrate, and the number of the protective layers is two, and the two protective layers correspondingly cover one layer of the copper layer.

[0008] In some embodiments of the present application, the display module further includes an electromagnetic shielding layer covering the protective layer, the number of the electromagnetic shielding layers is two, and two layers of the electromagnetic shielding layers correspondingly cover one layer of the protective layer.

[0009] In some embodiments of the present application, the number of the copper layer is one layer, the copper layer is formed on one side of the flexible substrate, and the number of the protective layer is one layer and is arranged to cover the copper layer.

[0010] In some embodiments of the present application, the display module also includes an electromagnetic shielding layer covering the protective layer, and the number of the electromagnetic shielding layers is two, one of which covers the protective layer and the other covers the flexible substrate.

[0011] In some embodiments of the present application, the protective layer includes an AD glue layer and a PI film, and the AD glue layer is arranged between the PI film and the copper layer.

[0012] In some embodiments of the present application, the flexible substrate is a PI board.

[0013] In some embodiments of the present application, the flexible circuit board is bound to the display panel via an anisotropic conductive adhesive film.

[0014] An embodiment of the second aspect of the present application provides a display device, comprising the display module in any of the above embodiments.

[0015] According to the display module and display device provided by the embodiment of the present application, a copper-exposed area for exposing the copper layer is provided on the flexible circuit board of the display module, and the copper-exposed area is used to connect with an external circuit to realize current output. Among them, in order to make the flexible circuit board have sufficient routing space, the copper-exposed area is set at the edge position of the flexible circuit board. In the embodiment of the present application, the protective layer forms a boundary protection structure at the edge position of the copper-exposed area, and the existence of the boundary protection structure increases the thickness at the edge of the copper-exposed area, so that the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area is strengthened to a certain extent. In addition, the boundary protection structure is connected to the protective layer other than the copper-exposed area, so that the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area can also be enhanced. As a result, the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area and the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area are enhanced, so that the copper-exposed area of ​​the flexible circuit board is not easy to wrinkle or break. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or related technologies, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments of the present application or related technology descriptions. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application, and for ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0017] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of a flexible circuit board according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0018] Figure 2 A cross-sectional schematic diagram of a flexible circuit board according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0019] Figure 3FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a flexible circuit board according to another embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0021] The embodiment of the first aspect of the present application provides a display module, which includes a display panel and a flexible circuit board 100 bound to the display panel.

[0022] like Figures 1 to 3 As shown, the flexible circuit board 100 includes a flexible substrate 110, a copper layer 120 formed on the flexible substrate 110, and a protective layer 130 covering the copper layer 120. A copper-exposed area 101 for exposing the copper layer 120 is provided on the flexible circuit board 100. The copper-exposed area 101 is arranged at the edge of the flexible circuit board 100, and the protective layer 130 forms a boundary protection structure 1301 at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101.

[0023] According to the display module of the embodiment of the present application, a copper-exposed area 101 for exposing the copper layer 120 is provided on the flexible circuit board 100, and the copper-exposed area 101 is used to connect with an external circuit to realize current output. Among them, in order to make the flexible circuit board 100 have sufficient routing space, the copper-exposed area 101 is set at the edge of the flexible circuit board 100. In the embodiment of the present application, the protective layer 130 forms a boundary protection structure 1301 at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101. The existence of the boundary protection structure 1301 increases the thickness at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101, so that the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101 is strengthened to a certain extent. In addition, the boundary protection structure 1301 is connected to the protective layer 130 other than the copper-exposed area 101, so that the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area 101 can also be enhanced. As a result, the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101 and the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area 101 are enhanced, so that the copper-exposed area 101 of the flexible circuit board 100 is not easy to wrinkle or break.

[0024] In some embodiments of the present application, the width L of the border protection structure 1301 is 0.3 mm to 1.0 mm. If the width L of the border protection structure 1301 is too small, the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101 and the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area 101 will be relatively weak, so it is difficult to achieve the purpose of avoiding wrinkles and fractures in the copper-exposed area 101. On the contrary, if the width L of the border protection structure 1301 is too large, in order not to reduce the area of ​​the copper-exposed area 101, the copper-exposed area 101 will be offset toward the middle of the flexible circuit board 100, which will squeeze the routing space of the flexible circuit board 100. In this embodiment, the width L of the border protection structure 1301 is set to 0.3 mm to 1.0 mm. When the above conditions are met, the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101 and the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area 101 can be effectively enhanced, and the copper-exposed area 101 will not be significantly offset toward the middle of the flexible circuit board 100 to squeeze the routing space of the flexible circuit board 100.

[0025] In some embodiments of the present application, Figure 2 As shown, the number of copper layers 120 is two, one copper layer 120 is formed on one side of the flexible substrate 110, and the other copper layer 120 is formed on the other side of the flexible substrate 110, and the number of protective layers 130 is two, and the two protective layers 130 correspondingly cover one copper layer 120. In this embodiment, the number of copper layers 120 is two, and they are distributed on both sides of the flexible substrate 110, thereby making the flexible circuit board 100 a double-layer board structure, which is beneficial to saving the production cost of the display module compared to the flexible circuit board 100 with a multi-layer board structure (the number of copper layers 120 is three or more layers).

[0026] In some other embodiments of the present application, Figure 3 As shown, the number of the copper layer 120 is one layer, and the copper layer 120 is formed on one side of the flexible substrate 110, and the number of the protective layer 130 is one layer and is arranged to cover the copper layer 120. In this embodiment, the number of the copper layer 120 is one layer, so the flexible circuit board 100 in this embodiment is a single-layer board structure. For the flexible circuit board 100 with a single-layer board structure, the thickness of its exposed copper area 101 is thinner, so the problem that the exposed copper area 101 is prone to wrinkles or fractures can also be solved by the boundary protection structure 1301.

[0027] In some embodiments of the present application, the display module further includes an electromagnetic shielding layer 140 provided to cover the protective layer 130, and the number of electromagnetic shielding layers 140 may be two layers. For the flexible circuit board 100 with a double-layer board structure and the flexible circuit board 100 with a single-layer board structure, the setting position of the battery shielding layer is different. Specifically, based on the flexible circuit board 100 with a double-layer board structure, two layers of electromagnetic shielding layers 140 can correspondingly cover one layer of protective layer 130. Based on the flexible circuit board 100 with a single-layer board structure, one layer of electromagnetic shielding layer 140 is provided to cover the protective layer 130, and the other layer of electromagnetic shielding layer 140 is provided to cover the flexible substrate 110. The function of the electromagnetic shielding layer 140 is to shield the interference of external electromagnetic signals to improve the working stability of the flexible circuit board 100.

[0028] In some embodiments of the present application, the protective layer 130 includes an acrylic hot melt adhesive layer (AD adhesive layer 131) and a polyimide film (PI film 132), and the AD adhesive layer 131 is disposed between the PI film 132 and the copper layer 120. Specifically, the PI film 132 has good bending performance and protective performance, and can play a good protective role on the copper layer 120. In addition, the AD adhesive layer 131 has a large deformation amount when heated, and can generate a strong adhesive force, so that the adhesion between the PI film 132 and the copper layer 120 can be significantly enhanced.

[0029] In some embodiments of the present application, the flexible substrate 110 is a polyimide film board (PI board), which has good bending performance. Using the polyimide film board as the flexible substrate 110 can ensure the overall bending performance of the flexible circuit board 100.

[0030] In some embodiments of the present application, the flexible circuit board 100 is bound to the display panel through an anisotropic conductive adhesive film, and the anisotropic conductive adhesive film contains conductive particles. The flexible circuit board 100 can be bound to the display panel through the conductive particles.

[0031] An embodiment of the second aspect of the present application provides a display device, which includes the display module in any of the above embodiments.

[0032] According to the display device of the embodiment of the present application, its display module includes a display panel and a flexible circuit board 100 bound to the display panel, and a copper-exposed area 101 for exposing the copper layer 120 is provided on the flexible circuit board 100, and the copper-exposed area 101 is used to connect with an external circuit to achieve current output. Among them, in order to make the flexible circuit board 100 have sufficient routing space, the copper-exposed area 101 is set at the edge position of the flexible circuit board 100. In the embodiment of the present application, the protective layer 130 forms a boundary protection structure 1301 at the edge position of the copper-exposed area 101. The existence of the boundary protection structure 1301 increases the thickness at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101, thereby strengthening the structural strength at the edge of the copper-exposed area 101 to a certain extent. In addition, the boundary protection structure 1301 is connected to the protective layer 130 except the copper-exposed area 101, so that the structural rigidity of the copper-exposed area 101 can also be enhanced. As a result, the structural strength at the edge of the copper exposed area 101 and the structural rigidity of the copper exposed area 101 are enhanced, so that the copper exposed area 101 of the flexible circuit board 100 is not prone to wrinkles or breaks.

[0033] Furthermore, the display device also includes a backlight module, which is arranged on the light incident side of the display module and is used to provide light for the display module.

[0034] It should be noted that, in this article, relational terms such as first and second, etc. are only used to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the terms "include", "comprise" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that the process, method, article or equipment including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also includes other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or equipment. In the absence of more restrictions, the elements defined by the statement "comprise one..." do not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or equipment including the elements.

[0035] Each embodiment in this specification is described in a related manner, and the same or similar parts between the embodiments can be referenced to each other. Each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments.

[0036] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present application and is not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present application are included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A display module, characterized in that: The invention comprises a display panel and a flexible circuit board bound to the display panel, wherein the flexible circuit board comprises a flexible substrate, a copper layer formed on the flexible substrate and covering the flexible substrate, and a protective layer covering the copper layer. The flexible circuit board is provided with a copper-exposed area for exposing the copper layer, the copper-exposed area is arranged at the edge of the flexible circuit board, and the protective layer forms a boundary protection structure at the edge of the copper-exposed area; the boundary protection structure is connected to the protective layer except the copper-exposed area, and the boundary protection structure and the protective layer except the copper-exposed area are both arranged in contact with the copper layer, and the boundary protection structure increases the thickness at the edge of the copper-exposed area.

2. The display module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The width of the border protection structure is 0.3 mm to 1.0 mm.

3. The display module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The number of the copper layers is two, one of which is formed on one side of the flexible substrate and the other is formed on the other side of the flexible substrate. The number of the protective layers is two, and the two protective layers correspondingly cover one copper layer.

4. The display module according to claim 3, characterized in that: The display module further includes an electromagnetic shielding layer covering the protective layer. The number of the electromagnetic shielding layers is two, and two electromagnetic shielding layers correspondingly cover one protective layer.

5. The display module according to claim 1, characterized in that: The number of the copper layer is one layer, and the copper layer is formed on one side of the flexible substrate. The number of the protective layer is one layer and is arranged to cover the copper layer.

6. The display module according to claim 5, characterized in that: The display module further includes an electromagnetic shielding layer covering the protective layer. The number of the electromagnetic shielding layers is two, one of which covers the protective layer and the other covers the flexible substrate.

7. The display module according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The protective layer includes an AD glue layer and a PI film, and the AD glue layer is arranged between the PI film and the copper layer.

8. The display module according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The flexible substrate is a PI board.

9. The display module according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The flexible circuit board is bound to the display panel via an anisotropic conductive adhesive film.

10. A display device, characterized in that: Comprising the display module according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

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