Display module and display device

Abstract

The invention provides a display module and a display device, and the display module comprises a display panel which is provided with a bending area and a non-bending area adjacent to the bending area; the supporting layer is located on the backlight side of the display panel and provided with a flattening area corresponding to the non-bending area and a patterning area corresponding to the bending area; the connecting layer is located between the display panel and the supporting layer, the orthographic projection of the connecting layer on the supporting layer covers the flattening area, and the connecting layer is provided with a gap area corresponding to the patterning area; the dispensing structure is arranged in the gap area and at least covers the two end faces of the gap area in the first direction; wherein the first direction is the bending radial direction of the bending area.

Description

Technical Field

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

[0002] With the rapid development of portable products (such as mobile phones and smart tablets), various forms of products have emerged in the market, among which foldable products are becoming increasingly popular. As foldable phones have become more prevalent, in order to reduce the thickness of mobile phone products, it is necessary to reduce the bending radius of OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) displays. In order to improve the folding performance of the overall display module (MDL) and prevent the adhesive from entering the bending area after multiple bends, which would affect the use of the product later, a solution of adhesive removal is generally adopted.

[0003] However, the current adhesive-cutting solution results in a lack of corresponding structure to provide effective support for the display module in the cut-off section, causing the display module to arch upwards in the bending area, which adversely affects the flatness and lighting effects of the display module. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, this application proposes a display module and display device to solve or partially solve the above problems.

[0005] In view of the above objectives, firstly, this application provides a display module, comprising:

[0006] The display panel has a bent area and a non-bent area adjacent to the bent area;

[0007] The support layer, located on the backlight side of the display panel, has a flattened area corresponding to the non-bending area and a patterned area corresponding to the bending area;

[0008] A connecting layer is located between the display panel and the support layer. Its orthographic projection on the support layer covers the flattened area and has a gap area corresponding to the patterned area.

[0009] A dispensing structure is disposed in the void area, covering at least two end faces of the void area along a first direction; wherein the first direction is the bending radial direction of the bending area.

[0010] In some exemplary embodiments, the patterned area includes:

[0011] The extension area, corresponding to the dispensing structure, is located at both ends of the patterned area along the first direction;

[0012] The dispensing structure can extend to the extension area.

[0013] In some exemplary embodiments, the dispensing structure is arranged in a ring around the perimeter of the void area on the plane where the connecting layer is located.

[0014] In some exemplary embodiments, the patterned area includes:

[0015] The extension area, corresponding to the dispensing structure, is located in a ring around the patterned area on the plane of the flattened area;

[0016] The dispensing structure can extend to the extension area.

[0017] In some exemplary embodiments, the thickness of the extension region on either side of the plane where the flattened region is located is greater than or equal to 50 μm.

[0018] In some exemplary embodiments, the thickness of the dispensing structure on either side of the plane containing the connecting layer is greater than or equal to 50 μm.

[0019] In some exemplary embodiments, the thickness of the extension area in the second direction is less than or equal to 30 μm; wherein, the second direction is the direction in which the support layer points toward the display panel.

[0020] In some exemplary embodiments, the extended area is located on the side of the patterned area closer to the display panel.

[0021] In some exemplary embodiments, a polarizing layer or a color filter layer is provided on the light-emitting side of the display panel.

[0022] Based on the same concept, in a second aspect, this application also provides a display device, including the display module as described in the first aspect above.

[0023] As can be seen from the above description, this application provides a display module and display device. The display module includes: a display panel having a bending area and a non-bending area adjacent to the bending area; a support layer located on the backlight side of the display panel, having a flattened area corresponding to the non-bending area and a patterned area corresponding to the bending area; a connecting layer located between the display panel and the support layer, having its orthographic projection on the support layer covering the flattened area and having a gap area corresponding to the patterned area; and an adhesive dispensing structure disposed in the gap area, covering at least two end faces of the gap area along a first direction; wherein the first direction is the bending radial direction of the bending area. This application incorporates an adhesive dispensing structure into the gap area of ​​the display module's connecting layer. This structure covers both end faces of the gap area in the bending radial direction, thereby connecting the display panel to the support layer at these two points. The adhesive dispensing structure provides support for the display panel at the gap location, allowing the support layer to provide a certain amount of pull-back stress to the display panel after bending, thus preventing the display panel from arching. Furthermore, the adhesive dispensing structure only needs to cover two end faces, and since it is a flexible adhesive structure, its impact on the bending effect is minimal. Ultimately, while ensuring bending performance, the adhesive dispensing structure provides stress support for the display panel, preventing arching and guaranteeing the flatness and lighting effects of the display module. Attached Figure Description

[0024] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or related technologies, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or related technologies will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0025] Figure 1 This is a schematic cross-sectional view of an exemplary display module provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0026] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the shape change of an exemplary display module before and after bending, as provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0027] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the effect of uneven lighting on an exemplary display module provided in this application embodiment.

[0028] Figure 4 This is a partial structural diagram of the connection layer of another exemplary display module provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0029] Figure 5 This is a partial structural diagram of a second connection layer of another exemplary display module provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0030] Figure 6 This is a partial structural diagram of the support layer of another exemplary display module provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0031] Figure 7 This is a partial cross-sectional structural diagram of the support layer of another exemplary display module provided in this application embodiment.

[0032] Figure 8 This is a schematic cross-sectional view of another exemplary display module provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0033] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this specification clearer, the following detailed description is provided in conjunction with specific embodiments and the accompanying drawings.

[0034] It should be noted that, unless otherwise defined, the technical or scientific terms used in the embodiments of this application should have the ordinary meaning understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application pertains. The terms "first," "second," and similar terms used in the embodiments of this application do not indicate any order, quantity, or importance, but are merely used to distinguish different components. Terms such as "comprising" or "including" mean that the element, object, or method step preceding the term covers the element, object, or method step listed after the term and its equivalents, without excluding other elements, objects, or method steps. Terms such as "connected" or "linked" are not limited to physical or mechanical connections, but can include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect. Terms such as "upper," "lower," "left," and "right" 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.

[0035] As described in the background section, with the rise of foldable phones on the market, in order to reduce the thickness of mobile smart devices such as mobile phones, it is necessary to reduce the bending radius of OLED displays. In order to improve the overall folding performance of MDL and prevent the colloid from entering the bending area after multiple bends, which would affect the use of the product later.

[0036] Furthermore, in some embodiments, it can be as follows Figure 1 As shown, a glue-cutting solution is adopted. Figure 1For the bendable display module 100, its display panel 110 can generally be divided into a bending area 111 and a non-bending area 112. Then, a support layer 120 is provided on the backlight side of the display panel 110 to support it. The support layer 120 corresponding to the bending area 111 is the patterned area 121, and corresponding to the non-bending area 112 is the flattened area 122. Next, the support layer 120 is connected to the display panel 110 via a connecting layer 130. The connecting layer 130 is generally an adhesive structure, bonding the support layer 120 to the display panel 110 through adhesion. The position of the connecting layer 130 corresponding to the bending area 111 is not coated with adhesive, thus forming a gap area 131, thereby achieving the adhesive disconnection solution.

[0037] The support layer 120 can generally be a rigid metal material layer, such as a SUS stainless steel layer or a Ti titanium alloy layer, or a rigid organic material layer, such as a CFRP carbon fiber structure layer. The flattened area 122 corresponds to the non-bending area 112 and typically does not require change after molding; therefore, the support structure in the flattened area 122 is generally a plate-shaped structure with uniform thickness. Subsequently, for the bending area 111, since it needs to achieve a bending function, and the support layer 120 also needs to provide support for this area, the portion of the support layer 120 corresponding to the bending area 111 can be set as a patterned area 121. Here, the patterned area 121 is the material forming the support layer 120, forming a porous patterned structure in this area. Taking SUS as the main body of the support layer 120 as an example, during molding, the support layer 120 can be formed as a whole first. Then, a metal layer of uniform thickness can be etched at the bending part according to a preset pattern to form a patterned area 121. Next, some areas on both sides of the patterned area 121 are thinned by etching. After that, the metal layer and carbon fiber reinforced composite material are hot-pressed together, with the carbon fiber reinforced composite material filling the thinned area, finally forming the entire support layer 120. In more specific scenarios, the thickness of the support layer 120 can be 100 to 150 μm.

[0038] Subsequently, in specific applications, the connecting layer 130 can be a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA), a photosensitive adhesive (UV), or other adhesives used in the display field to bond two structures, without specific limitations. In this embodiment and subsequent embodiments, the connecting layer 130 is described as a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) layer.

[0039] In other embodiments, the void region 131 may also be filled with other filler membrane materials for support.

[0040] When using the product described in the above embodiment, it was found that after repeated bending, reversible deformation occurred. When cutting the problematic product, it was discovered that the broken adhesive in the bending area, due to the lack of fixation in the corresponding film layer, still resulted in an upward arching of the bending area after flattening. Figure 2 As shown. Ultimately, as Figure 3 As shown, on a macroscopic level, the unevenness causes changes in the refraction and reflection of light, resulting in an unpleasant interplay of light and shadow.

[0041] Subsequently, an analysis of the problem revealed that the display panel 110 generates stress during bending. This stress causes the display panel 110 to move away from the support layer 120. The elastic force generated by the connecting layer 130 in other parts counteracts this stress, thus preventing the display panel 110 from moving away from the support layer 120. However, in the gap area 131, the absence of adhesive and the fact that even the filling film only provides support for downward stress means that the stress at the bending area 111 of the display panel 110 corresponding to the gap area 131 cannot be counteracted, ultimately causing upward arching.

[0042] Furthermore, considering the aforementioned practical situation, this application provides another display module. This display module incorporates an adhesive structure in the gap area of ​​the display module's connecting layer. This structure covers the two end faces of the gap area in the bending radial direction, thereby connecting the display panel to the support layer at these two points. The adhesive structure provides support to the display panel at the gap location, allowing the support layer to provide a certain amount of pull-back stress to the display panel after bending, thus preventing the display panel from arching. Simultaneously, the adhesive structure only needs to cover two end faces, and it is itself a flexible adhesive structure, thus having minimal impact on the bending effect. Ultimately, while ensuring the bending effect, the adhesive structure achieves stress support for the display panel, preventing it from arching and ensuring the flatness and light and shadow effects of the display module.

[0043] Figure 4 A partial structural schematic diagram of the connection layer 130 of another display module provided in an embodiment of this application is shown. Figure 5 A partial structural schematic diagram of a second connection layer 130 for another display module is shown. Figure 6 A partial structural schematic diagram of the support layer 120 of another display module is shown. Figure 7 A partial cross-sectional structural diagram of the support layer 120 of another display module is shown. Figure 8A cross-sectional structural schematic diagram of another display module provided in this application embodiment is shown, wherein the dotted line represents the partial cutting of the patterned area 121 and the gap area 131. The left side of the dotted line is the uncut patterned area 121 and the gap area 131, and the right side of the dotted line is the patterned area 121 and the gap area 131 located inside after cutting.

[0044] like Figure 1 and Figures 4 to 8 As shown, the display module 100 of this application embodiment includes: a display panel 110 having a bending area 111 and a non-bending area 112 adjacent to the bending area 111; a support layer 120 located on the backlight side of the display panel 110, having a flattened area 122 corresponding to the non-bending area 112 and a patterned area 121 corresponding to the bending area 111; a connecting layer 130 located between the display panel 110 and the support layer 120, with its orthographic projection on the support layer 120 covering the flattened area 122 and having a gap area 131 corresponding to the patterned area 121; and a dispensing structure 132 disposed in the gap area 131, at least covering the two end faces of the gap area 131 along a first direction Y; wherein the first direction Y is the bending radial direction of the bending area 111.

[0045] In this embodiment, the direction is first defined, where the first direction Y is the radial direction of the bend in the bending region 111. Figure 4 For example, the width direction of the connecting layer 130; then the second direction Z is the direction from the support layer 120 to the display panel 110, so as to... Figure 7 or Figure 8 For example, the thickness direction of the support layer 120; then the third direction X can be the direction from the non-bending area 112 to the bending area 111, so as... Figures 4 to 8 For example, it could be the length direction of the support layer 120 or the connecting layer 130.

[0046] Subsequently, in this embodiment, a dispensing structure 132 is provided in the gap region 131 of the aforementioned embodiment. This dispensing structure 132 at least covers two end faces of the gap region 131 in the first direction Y, such as... Figure 4As shown, the display panel 110 and the support layer 120 are connected at both ends of the gap area 131 using the dispensing structure 132. This structure provides support for the corresponding film layers of the display panel 110 in the gap area 131. Therefore, when the display panel 110 experiences stress due to bending, the dispensing structure 132 can counteract the stress in the bending area 111, effectively "pulling" the display panel 110 in the bending area 111 to prevent upward arching and avoid unevenness, inconsistent lighting, and other defects caused by this arching. The dispensing structure 132 can be a photosensitive UV adhesive or a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA), and its specific type generally differs from the adhesive type of the main body of the connecting layer 130 or has a certain difference in density.

[0047] Subsequently, to make the dispensing structure 132 more stable, such as Figures 6 to 8 As shown, a groove structure adapted to the dispensing structure 132 can be provided on the patterned area 121 of the support layer 120, allowing the dispensing structure 132 to extend into the groove, thereby aiding in the effective fixation of the dispensing structure 132. This groove structure is the extension area 123, and the position and size of the extension area 123 are adapted to the dispensing structure 132. That is, in some embodiments, the patterned area 121 includes: an extension area 123, corresponding to the dispensing structure 132, located at both ends of the patterned area 121 along the first direction Y; wherein the dispensing structure 132 can extend into the extension area 123.

[0048] Furthermore, to prevent adhesive overflow in the bonding layer 130 and to facilitate the molding of the dispensing structure 132, the dispensing structure 132 can be designed as a ring structure, such as... Figure 5 As shown, the dispensing structure 132 can be arranged in a ring around the plane of the connecting layer 130 along the gap area 131. In this way, the short side of the ring dispensing structure 132 is used to connect the display panel 110 and the support layer 120 in the gap area 131, and the long side of the ring dispensing structure 132 is used to block the main adhesive of the connecting layer 130 to prevent adhesive overflow. At the same time, the ring structure only requires one start and one end point during processing, which also facilitates the processing of the dispensing structure 132.

[0049] Subsequently, correspondingly, the extension area 123 opened in the patterned area 121 can also be an annular structure adapted to the annular dispensing structure 132. That is, in some embodiments, the patterned area 121 includes: an extension area 123, corresponding to the dispensing structure 132, located in an annular arrangement around the patterned area 121 on the plane where the flattened area 122 is located; wherein, the dispensing structure 132 can extend to the extension area 123. Of course, in some embodiments, since there is no issue of glue overflow on the long side of the extension area 123, and it does not provide much assistance for processing, even if the dispensing structure 132 is set in an annular shape, the extension area 123 can only be set on the two end faces of the patterned area 121 along the first direction Y.

[0050] In some embodiments, such as Figures 4 to 6 As shown, since the dispensing structure 132 is designed to provide effective support for the display panel 110 in the bending area 111, its contact surface with the display panel 110 cannot be too small. An excessively small contact surface cannot provide effective adhesive force. Therefore, the thickness 'a' of the dispensing structure 132 in the first direction Y cannot be too small. Similarly, the thickness 'a' of the extension area 123 adapted to the dispensing structure 132 in the first direction Y cannot be too small. Thus, in order to more effectively realize the corresponding function of the dispensing structure 132, the thickness 'a' of the dispensing structure 132 on either side of the plane containing the connecting layer 130 is greater than or equal to 50 μm. Furthermore, the thickness 'a' of the extension area 123 on either side of the plane containing the flattening area 122 is greater than or equal to 50 μm. Here, the dispensing structure 132 and / or the extension area 123 are defined on either side of the plane. Regardless of whether the dispensing structure 132 and / or the extension area 123 are annular or only set on two end faces, the thickness 'a' of one end face or one side of the annulus needs to be greater than or equal to 50 μm. Of course, in more specific scenarios, this thickness cannot be too large. Since the patterned area 121 or the gap area 131 corresponds to the bending area 111, the main function of this part is to enable bending and provide certain support. If the thickness 'a' is too large, it may have a certain impact on bending. Therefore, the thickness 'a' needs to be controlled according to the specific scenario.

[0051] Furthermore, such as Figure 7 As shown, since the patterned area 121 or the gap area 131 corresponds to the bending area 111, the main function of this part is to bend. Therefore, the thickness b of the extension area 123 in the second direction Z cannot be too large, needing to satisfy its function without significantly affecting bending. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the thickness of the extension area 123 in the second direction Z is less than or equal to 30 μm. Then, since the dispensing structure 132 can extend into the extension area 123, in embodiments where the extension area 123 does not cover the entire end face of the patterned area 121 in the first direction Y, such as... Figure 7As shown, the extension area 123 can generally be located on the side of the patterned area 121 that is close to the display panel 110.

[0052] In some embodiments, such as Figure 8 As shown, for bendable display panels, the typical optical structure is a polarizing structure (POL type products) or a color filter structure (COE type products). Furthermore, in some embodiments, a polarizing layer 113 or a color filter layer 114 is provided on the light-emitting side of the display panel 110. Subsequently, for... Figure 8 The display module 100 shown has a ring-shaped dispensing structure 132. Therefore, there are dispensing structures 132 on both sides of the dotted line. At the same time, the thickness of the extension area 123 in the second direction Z is limited, so that the dispensing structure 132 on the left side of the dotted line only extends to a part of the patterned area 121.

[0053] As can be seen from the above embodiments, the display module provided in this application includes: a display panel having a bending area and a non-bending area adjacent to the bending area; a support layer located on the backlight side of the display panel having a flattened area corresponding to the non-bending area and a patterned area corresponding to the bending area; a connecting layer located between the display panel and the support layer, the orthographic projection of which covers the flattened area on the support layer, and having a gap area corresponding to the patterned area; and an adhesive dispensing structure disposed in the gap area, covering at least two end faces of the gap area along a first direction; wherein the first direction is the bending radial direction of the bending area. This application incorporates an adhesive dispensing structure into the gap area of ​​the display module's connecting layer. This structure covers both end faces of the gap area in the bending radial direction, thereby connecting the display panel to the support layer at these two points. The adhesive dispensing structure provides support for the display panel at the gap location, allowing the support layer to provide a certain amount of pull-back stress to the display panel after bending, thus preventing the display panel from arching. Furthermore, the adhesive dispensing structure only needs to cover two end faces, and since it is a flexible adhesive structure, its impact on the bending effect is minimal. Ultimately, while ensuring bending performance, the adhesive dispensing structure provides stress support for the display panel, preventing arching and guaranteeing the flatness and lighting effects of the display module.

[0054] Based on the same concept, this application also provides a display device, including a display module as described in any of the foregoing embodiments.

[0055] The display device of the above embodiments is used to apply the corresponding display module in the foregoing embodiments and has the beneficial effects of the corresponding display module embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0056] It is understandable that the display device is a product with image display function, and it is generally driven by multiple driving circuits. For example, it can be: monitor, television, billboard, digital photo frame, laser printer with display function, telephone, mobile phone, personal digital assistant (PDA), digital camera, portable camcorder, viewfinder, navigator, vehicle, large wall area, home appliance, information query equipment (such as business query equipment of e-government, bank, hospital, power and other departments, monitor, etc.).

[0057] Those skilled in the art should understand that the discussion of any of the above embodiments is merely exemplary and is not intended to imply that the scope of this application (including the claims) is limited to these examples; within the framework of this application, the technical features of the above embodiments or different embodiments can also be combined, the steps can be implemented in any order, and there are many other variations of different aspects of the embodiments of this application as described above, which are not provided in the details for the sake of brevity.

[0058] Additionally, to simplify the description and discussion, and to avoid obscuring the embodiments of this application, the well-known power / ground connections to integrated circuit (IC) chips and other components may or may not be shown in the provided drawings. Furthermore, the apparatus may be shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the embodiments of this application, and this also takes into account the fact that the details of the implementation of these block diagram apparatuses are highly dependent on the platform on which the embodiments of this application will be implemented (i.e., these details should be fully understood by those skilled in the art). While specific details (e.g., circuits) have been set forth to describe exemplary embodiments of this application, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the embodiments of this application can be implemented without these specific details or with variations thereof. Therefore, these descriptions should be considered illustrative rather than restrictive.

[0059] Although this application has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof, many substitutions, modifications, and variations of these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing description. For example, other memory architectures (e.g., dynamic RAM (DRAM)) may be used with the embodiments discussed.

[0060] The embodiments of this application are intended to cover all such substitutions, modifications, and variations that fall within the broad scope of the appended claims. Therefore, any omissions, modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the embodiments of this application should be included within the protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. A display module, characterized in that, include: The display panel has a bent area and a non-bent area adjacent to the bent area; The support layer, located on the backlight side of the display panel, has a flattened area corresponding to the non-bending area and a patterned area corresponding to the bending area; A connecting layer is located between the display panel and the support layer. Its orthographic projection on the support layer covers the flattened area and has a gap area corresponding to the patterned area. A dispensing structure is disposed in the void area, covering at least two end faces of the void area along a first direction; wherein the first direction is the bending radial direction of the bending area.

2. The display module according to claim 1, characterized in that, The patterned area includes: The extension area, corresponding to the dispensing structure, is located at both ends of the patterned area along the first direction; The dispensing structure can extend to the extension area.

3. The display module according to claim 1, characterized in that, The dispensing structure is arranged in a ring around the plane of the connecting layer along the gap area.

4. The display module according to claim 3, characterized in that, The patterned area includes: The extension area, corresponding to the dispensing structure, is located in a ring around the patterned area on the plane of the flattened area; The dispensing structure can extend to the extension area.

5. The display module according to claim 2 or 4, characterized in that, The thickness of the extension region on any side of the plane where the flattened region is located is greater than or equal to 50 μm.

6. The display module according to claim 5, characterized in that, The thickness of the dispensing structure on either side of the plane where the connecting layer is located is greater than or equal to 50 μm.

7. The display module according to claim 2 or 4, characterized in that, The thickness of the extension area in the second direction is less than or equal to 30 μm; wherein, the second direction is the direction in which the support layer points to the display panel.

8. The display module according to claim 7, characterized in that, The extended area is located on the side of the patterned area closest to the display panel.

9. The display module according to claim 1, characterized in that, The display panel has a polarizing layer or a color filter layer on its light-emitting side.

10. A display device, characterized in that, include: The display module as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

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