Display module, preparation method thereof and terminal device

Abstract

The display module preparation method comprises the following steps: providing a display panel and a flexible circuit board; after the display panel and the flexible circuit board are fixedly connected, one end of the flexible circuit board faces the display panel, and a gap exists between edges of the display panel; providing a reinforcing part; the reinforcing part is connected with the display panel, and the reinforcing part covers at least the gap; providing a protective film; the protective film comprises a first end and a second end opposite to the first end; the first end is connected with the reinforcing part, and the second end is connected with the flexible circuit board; the display panel and the flexible circuit board are connected through the protective film and the reinforcing part, so that the display panel is uniformly stressed during a bending or binding process.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of display technology, specifically to a display module and its manufacturing method, and a terminal device. Background Technology

[0002] The fragile nature of flexible foldable screens leads to a low module yield rate. Back-bonding or side-bonding processes are the later stages in the module manufacturing process, and each defect at this stage means the scrapping of almost the entire module material. Due to the large gap between the flexible circuit board and the display panel, uneven stress in this area during the back-bonding or side-bonding process often causes wrinkles in the display panel, which in turn scraps almost the entire module material.

[0003] Therefore, existing display modules have a technical problem where the display panel wrinkles due to uneven stress. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a display module and its manufacturing method, as well as a terminal device, which can alleviate the technical problem of wrinkles caused by uneven stress on the display panel in existing display modules.

[0005] This application provides a method for manufacturing a display module, including: A display panel and a flexible circuit board are provided. After the display panel and the flexible circuit board are fixedly connected, there is a gap between the end of the flexible circuit board facing the display panel and the edge of the display panel. A reinforcing part is provided, the reinforcing part is connected to the display panel, and the reinforcing part at least covers the missing part; A protective film is provided to at least cover the reinforcing portion. The protective film includes a first end and a second end opposite to the first end. The first end is connected to the reinforcing portion, and the second end is connected to the flexible circuit board, so that the display panel and the flexible circuit board are connected through the protective film and the reinforcing portion.

[0006] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the step of providing a protective film further includes: the protective film further includes an extension portion disposed beyond the edge of the flexible circuit board away from the display panel, the extension portion including at least two adsorption areas, the adsorption areas being provided with vacuum suction holes.

[0007] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the two adsorption regions are arranged along the long side of the protective film, and the two adsorption regions are symmetrically arranged about the perpendicular bisector of the long side, and the area of ​​any one of the adsorption regions is greater than or equal to 36 square millimeters.

[0008] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the external outline of the adsorption region is rectangular or square, and the adsorption region includes a first side and a second side arranged adjacent to each other, the length of the first side being greater than or equal to 6 mm, and the length of the second side being greater than or equal to 6 mm.

[0009] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the step of connecting the display panel and the flexible circuit board through the protective film and the reinforcing part further includes: the reinforcing part is bonded to the display panel through the first adhesive layer, and the second end is bonded to the flexible circuit board through the second adhesive layer, wherein the second adhesive layer is a strong-weak adhesive, and the second adhesive layer includes a first surface facing the flexible circuit board and a second surface facing the protective film, and the adhesiveness of the first surface is less than that of the second surface.

[0010] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, it further includes: providing a positioning film, the positioning film including at least one positioning mark, attaching the protective film to one side surface of the positioning film, and the reinforcing portion being disposed in the same layer as the second adhesive layer and attached to the side surface of the protective film away from the positioning film.

[0011] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the step of providing a protective film further includes: placing the protective film on one side of the driver IC located on the display panel, and the protective film covering the driver IC, so that the protective film can protect the driver IC.

[0012] This application provides a display module, including: Display panel; A flexible circuit board is connected to the display panel, and a gap is provided between the flexible circuit board and the display panel; The reinforcing part is connected to the display panel; The reinforcing portion at least covers the vacancy.

[0013] Optionally, in some embodiments of this application, the display panel includes a bonding area, the bonding area is provided with a driver IC, the display module further includes a protective film, the protective film covers the driver IC, one end of the protective film is connected to the reinforcing part, and the other end of the protective film is connected to the flexible circuit board.

[0014] This application provides a terminal device including the display module described in any of the above embodiments.

[0015] Beneficial effects: By connecting the display panel to the flexible circuit board through the protective film and the reinforcing part, the display panel is subjected to uniform stress during the bending or bonding process, which alleviates the technical problem of wrinkles caused by uneven stress on the display panel in existing display modules. Attached Figure Description

[0016] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0017] Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating the display module manufacturing method provided in this application; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram showing the location of the protective film in the display module manufacturing method provided in this application; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram showing the positional relationship between the reinforcement and the void of the flexible circuit board of the display module provided in this application after it has been flattened.

[0018] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures: Detailed Implementation

[0019] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application. In addition, it should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only for illustration and explanation of this application and are not intended to limit this application. In this application, unless otherwise stated, directional terms such as "upper" and "lower" generally refer to the upper and lower positions of the device in actual use or operation, specifically the drawing directions in the accompanying drawings; while "inner" and "outer" refer to the external outline of the device.

[0020] Please see Figure 1 The method for manufacturing a display module provided in this application includes: S1: A display panel 10 and a flexible circuit board 20 are provided. After the display panel 10 and the flexible circuit board 20 are fixedly connected, there is a gap between the end of the flexible circuit board 20 facing the display panel 10 and the edge of the display panel 10. S2: A reinforcing part 30 is provided, and the reinforcing part 30 is connected to the display panel 10, such that the reinforcing part 30 at least covers the gap 70. S3: A protective film 40 is provided, which covers at least the reinforcing part. The protective film 40 includes a first end and a second end opposite to the first end. The first end is connected to the reinforcing part 30, and the second end is connected to the flexible circuit board 20, so that the display panel 10 and the flexible circuit board 20 are connected through the protective film 40 and the reinforcing part 30.

[0021] It is understood that by providing the reinforcement 30 to at least cover the gap 70, the bending stress at the gap 70 can be reduced, and the uniformity of the bending stress at the gap 70 can be improved.

[0022] In this embodiment, the display panel 10 is connected to the flexible circuit board 20 by the protective film 40 and the reinforcing part 30, and the reinforcing part 30 is configured to at least cover the gap 70, so that the display panel 10 is subjected to uniform force during the bending or bonding process, thereby alleviating the technical problem of wrinkles caused by uneven force on the display panel 10 in existing display modules.

[0023] The technical solution of this application will now be described in conjunction with specific embodiments.

[0024] This application embodiment only uses PET material as an example to illustrate the preparation of the reinforcing part 30 and the protective film 40. The reinforcing part 30 can also be made of polyimide. At the same time, the reinforcing part 30 and the protective film 40 can also be made of any material with a strength greater than that of PET material.

[0025] In one embodiment, the protective film 40 may be made of PET material.

[0026] In this embodiment, PET material has a lower cost, and using PET material to prepare the protective film 40 can reduce costs.

[0027] In one embodiment, the protective film 40 may be made of PI material.

[0028] In one embodiment, the step of providing a protective film 40 further includes: the protective film 40 further includes an extension portion disposed beyond the edge of the flexible circuit board 20 away from the display panel 10, the extension portion including at least two adsorption areas 80, the adsorption areas 80 being provided with vacuum suction holes.

[0029] The vacuum suction holes can be arranged at equal intervals to provide uniform adsorption force.

[0030] The two adsorption regions 80 may have the same size.

[0031] The two adsorption regions 80 can be symmetrically arranged about a certain center line of symmetry.

[0032] The two adsorption regions 80 can be arranged symmetrically to themselves.

[0033] It is understood that the protective film 40 at least covers the reinforcing part 30, and the protective film 40 also serves to protect the reinforcing part 30 from external damage. Since the protective film 40 will be removed after the bonding process is completed, damage to the protective film 40 from external force will not affect the performance of the display module. The reinforcing part 30 in the display module also needs to cover the gap 70 to improve the uniformity of bending stress at the gap 70. At the same time, the reinforcing part 30 also needs to cover and protect the driving IC 50 and bonding terminal 60 on the side of the display panel 10. By covering the reinforcing part 30 with the protective film 40, the performance of the display module can be prevented from being affected by damage to the reinforcing part 30.

[0034] It is understood that by extending the protective film 40 to form an extension portion, the extension portion is set beyond the edge of the flexible circuit board 20 away from the display panel 10. The adsorption area 80 of the extension portion is used for vacuum adsorption during side binding or back binding. There is no need to set an additional support film for the flexible circuit board 20. The extension portion of the protective film 40 replaces the support film used for vacuum adsorption in the prior art, simplifying the structure and manufacturing process of the display module.

[0035] In this embodiment, the extension portion of the protective film 40 is used to replace the support film of the flexible circuit board 20 in the prior art, eliminating the need to set the support film of the flexible circuit board 20 and reducing the cost of the display module.

[0036] In one embodiment, the two adsorption regions 80 are arranged along the long side of the protective film 40, and the two adsorption regions 80 are symmetrically arranged about the perpendicular bisector of the long side, and the area of ​​any one of the adsorption regions 80 is greater than or equal to 36 square millimeters.

[0037] It is understood that the two adsorption areas 80 are symmetrically arranged about the perpendicular bisector of the long side, which can better provide adsorption force to the protective film and the flexible circuit board 20 through the adsorption areas 80 during the bonding process. During the bonding process, the adsorption areas 80 can be used for adsorption by the machine, so that the flexible circuit board 20 can be back-bonded or side-bonded.

[0038] In this embodiment, the adsorption regions 80 are symmetrically arranged about the perpendicular bisector of the long side, and the area of ​​any adsorption region 80 is greater than or equal to 36 square millimeters. This not only enables the adsorption regions 80 to provide the adsorption force required for back or side binding of the flexible circuit board 20, but also allows the adsorption force to act evenly on the protective film and the flexible circuit board 20.

[0039] In one embodiment, the adsorption region 80 has a rectangular or square outline and includes a first side and a second side arranged adjacent to each other. The length of the first side is greater than or equal to 6 mm, and the length of the second side is greater than or equal to 6 mm.

[0040] In this embodiment, the adsorption region 80 has a regular shape design, which not only provides a more uniform adsorption force, but also simplifies the manufacturing process of the adsorption region 80 and reduces costs.

[0041] In one embodiment, the step of connecting the display panel 10 and the flexible circuit board 20 through the protective film 40 and the reinforcing part 30 further includes: the reinforcing part 30 is bonded to the display panel 10 through the first adhesive layer, and the second end is bonded to the flexible circuit board 20 through the second adhesive layer, wherein the second adhesive layer is a strong-weak adhesive, and the second adhesive layer includes a first surface facing the flexible circuit board 20 and a second surface facing the protective film 40, and the adhesiveness of the first surface is less than that of the second surface.

[0042] The protective film 40 is indirectly connected to the display panel 10 through the reinforcing part 30, and the protective film 40 is directly connected to the flexible circuit board 20 through the second adhesive layer.

[0043] It is understood that the second adhesive layer uses a strong-weak adhesive. The side of the strong-weak adhesive with greater adhesion contacts the protective film 40, and the side of the strong-weak adhesive with less adhesion contacts the flexible circuit board 20. After the bonding is completed, the protective film 40 is peeled off. The use of the strong-weak adhesive can prevent damage to the flexible circuit board 20 when the protective film 40 is peeled off.

[0044] In this embodiment, the protective film is connected to the flexible circuit board 20 by a strong and weak adhesive. The side of the strong and weak adhesive with less adhesion is connected to the flexible circuit board 20, which avoids damage to the flexible circuit board 20 when the protective film 40 is removed.

[0045] In one embodiment, the method further includes: providing a positioning film, the positioning film including at least one positioning mark, attaching the protective film 40 to one side surface of the positioning film, and attaching the reinforcing portion 30, which is disposed in the same layer as the second adhesive layer, to the side surface of the protective film 40 away from the positioning film.

[0046] The positioning mark is used to align with another mark on the display panel or the flexible circuit board, thereby achieving a positioning effect and making the attachment accuracy higher.

[0047] It is understandable that by placing the protective film 40, the reinforcing part, and the second adhesive layer on one side of the positioning film, and using the positioning film to position the flexible circuit board 20 and the display panel 10, the protective film 40, the reinforcing part, and the second adhesive layer located on one side of the positioning film can be accurately positioned in the corresponding positions of the display panel 10 and the flexible circuit board 20. The positioning film has the effect of improving the adhesion accuracy.

[0048] In this embodiment, the positioning film is used to attach the protective film 40, the reinforcing part, and the second adhesive layer, which can further improve the attachment accuracy and reduce the accuracy error of the attachment of the protective film 40, the reinforcing part, and the second adhesive layer.

[0049] In one embodiment, the protective film is disposed on one side of the driver IC on the display panel, and the protective film covers the driver IC so that the protective film can protect the driver IC.

[0050] It is understood that the display panel is provided with a driver IC, and the protective film covers the driver IC. The protective film is used to protect the driver IC in subsequent processes, and there is no need to remove the protective film.

[0051] It is understood that the protective film can be the protective film of the driver IC itself, that is, the protective film process of the driver IC is brought forward to the process in S3 of this application, so as to use the protective film of the driver IC to connect the display panel 10 and the flexible circuit board 20 through the protective film 40 and the reinforcing part 30, thereby achieving the effect of uniform stress on the display panel during the bending or bonding process.

[0052] It should be noted that the protective film of the driver IC in the product has the effect of protecting the driver IC, so the protective film of the driver IC itself does not need to be removed.

[0053] In this embodiment, a protective film for the driver IC itself is prepared before the bonding process. By using the protective film of the driver IC itself to connect the display panel 10 and the flexible circuit board 20 through the protective film 40 and the reinforcing part 30, not only can the display panel be subjected to uniform stress during the bending or bonding process, but also the protective film of the driver IC itself can be reused, saving a step in the preparation of the protective film.

[0054] The display module provided in this application embodiment includes a display panel 10, a flexible circuit board 20, and a reinforcing part 30. The flexible circuit board 20 is connected to the display panel 10, and a gap 70 is provided between the flexible circuit board 20 and the display panel 10. The reinforcing part 30 is connected to the display panel 10. The reinforcing part 30 at least covers the gap 70.

[0055] In this embodiment, the reinforcing part 30 covers the gap 70. When the display module is bent, it can reduce the bending stress of the display panel 10 at the gap 70, improve the uniformity of the bending stress at the gap 70, and prevent the display panel 10 from wrinkling at the gap 70 due to bending.

[0056] In one embodiment, the display panel includes a bonding area, on which a driver IC 50 is disposed. The display module also includes a protective film 40, which covers the driver IC 50. One end of the protective film 40 is connected to the reinforcing portion, and the other end of the protective film 40 is connected to the flexible circuit board.

[0057] The binding area is also provided with binding terminals.

[0058] In this embodiment, the protective film 40 covers the driver IC 50, thereby protecting the driver IC 50 from damage caused by external forces.

[0059] In one embodiment, the reinforcing part 30 is made of PET material.

[0060] This application also proposes a terminal device, which includes the above-mentioned display module, and will not be described in detail here.

[0061] The display module manufacturing method provided in this application includes: providing a display panel and a flexible circuit board; after fixing the display panel and the flexible circuit board together, a gap exists between the end of the flexible circuit board facing the display panel and the edge of the display panel; providing a reinforcing part and connecting the reinforcing part to the display panel, such that the reinforcing part at least covers the gap; providing a protective film, the protective film including a first end and a second end opposite to the first end; connecting the first end to the reinforcing part and the second end to the flexible circuit board, so that the display panel and the flexible circuit board are connected through the protective film and the reinforcing part; connecting the display panel and the flexible circuit board through the protective film and the reinforcing part, so that the display panel is subjected to uniform stress during bending or bonding processes, thereby alleviating the technical problem of wrinkles caused by uneven stress on the display panel in existing display modules.

[0062] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions in other embodiments.

[0063] The display module and display module preparation method provided in the embodiments of this application have been described in detail above. Specific examples have been used to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this application. The description of the above embodiments is only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of this application. At the same time, for those skilled in the art, there will be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scope based on the ideas of this application. Therefore, the content of this specification should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a display module, characterized in that, include: A display panel and a flexible circuit board are provided. After the display panel and the flexible circuit board are fixedly connected, there is a gap between the end of the flexible circuit board facing the display panel and the edge of the display panel. A reinforcing part is provided, and the reinforcing part is connected to the display panel so that the reinforcing part at least covers the missing part. A protective film is provided to at least cover the reinforcing portion. The protective film includes a first end and a second end opposite to the first end. The first end is connected to the reinforcing portion, and the second end is connected to the flexible circuit board, so that the display panel and the flexible circuit board are connected through the protective film and the reinforcing portion. The step of connecting the display panel and the flexible circuit board through the protective film and the reinforcing part further includes: the reinforcing part is bonded to the display panel through a first adhesive layer, and the second end is bonded to the flexible circuit board through a second adhesive layer, wherein the second adhesive layer is a strong-weak adhesive, and the second adhesive layer includes a first surface facing the flexible circuit board and a second surface facing the protective film, and the adhesiveness of the first surface is less than that of the second surface. A driver IC is provided on the display panel, and the reinforcement part is located on the same side as the driver IC.

2. The method for manufacturing a display module as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The step of providing a protective film further includes: the protective film further includes an extension portion disposed beyond the edge of the flexible circuit board away from the display panel, the extension portion including at least two adsorption areas, the adsorption areas being provided with vacuum suction holes.

3. The method for manufacturing a display module as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The two adsorption regions are arranged along the long side of the protective film, and the two adsorption regions are symmetrically arranged about the perpendicular bisector of the long side. The area of ​​any one of the adsorption regions is greater than or equal to 36 square millimeters.

4. The method for manufacturing a display module as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The adsorption area has a rectangular or square outline and includes a first side and a second side arranged adjacent to each other. The length of the first side is greater than or equal to 6 mm, and the length of the second side is greater than or equal to 6 mm.

5. The method for manufacturing a display module as described in claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: A positioning film is provided, the positioning film including at least one positioning mark, the protective film is attached to one side surface of the positioning film, and the reinforcing part is attached to the side surface of the protective film away from the positioning film, which is disposed in the same layer as the second adhesive layer.

6. A display module, characterized in that, The display module is prepared by the manufacturing method of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the display module comprises: Display panel; A flexible circuit board, which is connected to the display panel, has a gap between the end of the flexible circuit board facing the display panel and the edge of the display panel. The reinforcing part is connected to the display panel; The reinforcing portion at least covers the vacancy.

7. A terminal device, characterized in that, Includes the display module as described in claim 6.

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