Flexible circuit board and display module

Abstract

The utility model relates to a flexible circuit board and a display module applying the flexible circuit board, provides a flexible circuit board which is low in cost, high in performance and easy to bend, and realizes the integration of touch control and display. The flexible circuit board comprises a circuit board body, at least one first connecting part and at least one second connecting part, all the parts are made of flexible base materials, and exposed connecting terminals are arranged and used for being connected with pins. The first connecting part, the second connecting part and the circuit board main body are integrally designed, and efficient signal transmission is realized through a plurality of independent connecting lines. Particularly, the flexibility and the thickness of the second connecting part are optimized, so that the bending performance is improved, and a bending groove and a protective covering layer can be selectively matched to enhance the durability. Besides, multiple alignment marks are arranged on the flexible circuit board and the display screen body, accurate butt joint of all the components is ensured, the assembly process is simplified through the design, and the risks of errors and poor assembly are reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the technical field of display screens, and particularly to a flexible printed circuit board and a display module. Background Art

[0002] Today, with the rapid development of display technology, OLED display modules with touch functions have occupied an important position in consumer electronic products such as smartphones, tablets, and wearable devices due to their excellent color expressiveness, low power consumption, and ultra-thin design. Please refer to Figure 1 , in the prior art, an OLED display screen integrates key components such as ITO (indium tin oxide, a transparent conductive film), a cathode, an anode, and bonding PINs on the front of a glass substrate, and combines with a packaging cover through a high-precision packaging process to form a display screen body 100. This front-end manufacturing process improves the performance and reliability of the display module. Subsequently, components such as a driving chip 300, a flexible touch circuit board 500, and a polarizer 400 are assembled through a bonding process to enhance the functionality of the module.

[0003] However, when integrating the touch screen function, the prior art usually directly bonds the touch screen FPC to the corresponding touch PINs on the front of the OLED. Although this design realizes the tight integration of touch control and display, it also exposes a series of challenges. The primary problem is the instability during the welding process. Due to the material characteristics of the FPC and the complexity of the welding process, quality problems such as poor soldering, breakage, or detachment are likely to occur. These defects directly threaten the stability and durability of the touch function, reducing the user experience. Secondly, from a cost perspective, the method of separately manufacturing the display and touch FPCs and then welding them increases the material cost and the complexity of the manufacturing process, which is not conducive to large-scale production and cost control of the product.

[0004] Therefore, in view of the pain points such as welding stability problems, cost increase, and production efficiency improvement existing in the prior art, there is an urgent need to develop a new structural design or optimization solution, aiming to simplify the production process, improve the welding quality, reduce the material cost, and ensure the long-term stability and reliability of the touch function. This is an urgent need for the current development of OLED display module technology and is also the key to promoting consumer electronic products towards higher performance and lower cost. Content of the Utility Model

[0005] The purpose of this application is to provide a flexible printed circuit board, which can reduce costs, realize the integration of touch control and display; avoid the failure of the touch function caused by poor welding, and can be easily bent. The flexible printed circuit board includes a circuit board body, at least one first connection part, and at least one second connection part;

[0006] The circuit board body, the first connection part, and the second connection part all include flexible substrate materials, and the circuit board body, the first connection part, and the second connection part all include exposed connection terminals for connecting pins.

[0007] Among them, the first connection part and the second connection part are integrated with the circuit board body and include a plurality of independent connection lines respectively connecting the connection terminals on the circuit board body, the first connection part, and the second connection part.

[0008] In one embodiment, the flexibility of the second connection part is greater than that of the first connection part.

[0009] In one embodiment, the thickness of the second connection part is less than that of the first connection part.

[0010] In one embodiment, it includes connection lines respectively extending from the connection terminals on the first connection part and the second connection part to the connection terminals on the circuit board body.

[0011] In one embodiment, different alignment marks are also provided on the first connection part and the second connection part.

[0012] In one embodiment, a bending groove is also provided on the second connection part.

[0013] In one embodiment, a protective cover layer is provided on the other side of the second connection part where the bending groove is provided.

[0014] This application further provides a display module, including:

[0015] A display screen body, a polarizing plate, and the aforementioned flexible circuit board;

[0016] Among them, the first connection part of the flexible circuit board is connected to the front of the display screen body, and the second connection part is connected to the back of the display screen body.

[0017] In one embodiment, a driving chip is further included, and the driving chip is disposed on the front of the display screen body.

[0018] In one embodiment, alignment marks in a first alignment mark group are respectively provided on the front of the display screen body and the first connection part, and alignment marks in a second alignment mark group are respectively provided on the back of the display screen body and the second connection part.

[0019] Compared with the prior art, the present application has the following beneficial effects: The present application provides a flexible printed circuit board and a technical solution for its application in a display module. Compared with the prior art, it can reduce costs and achieve touch display integration. By designing a flexible printed circuit board with higher integration, the display FPC and touch FPC that originally needed to be manufactured separately are combined into one, reducing the material usage and production steps, thereby significantly reducing the manufacturing cost. The flexible printed circuit board in the present application adopts an integrated design of a first connection part and a second connection part. These connection parts are seamlessly connected to the circuit board body, reducing the number of welding points, thus avoiding problems such as false soldering, breakage, or detachment that are prone to occur in traditional welding methods, greatly improving the welding quality and connection stability, and ensuring the long-term reliability of the touch function.

[0020] In addition, different alignment marks provided on the first connection part and the second connection part facilitate precise alignment in the automated production process, effectively improving the production efficiency and alignment accuracy. At the same time, the bending groove design on the second connection part not only facilitates the bending of the circuit, but also a protective covering layer can be provided on the other side of the bending groove to further protect the circuit at the bending part from damage, extending the service life of the product.

[0021] Applying the flexible printed circuit board of the present application to a display module, the first connection part is directly connected to the front of the display screen body, and the second connection part is connected to the back. This layout not only simplifies the assembly process, but also optimizes the signal transmission path, reduces signal interference, and improves the overall performance of the display module. In addition, combined with the setting of the driving chip, efficient control of the display screen body is achieved, further improving the display effect and user experience. In summary, the application of the flexible printed circuit board and its display module proposed in the present application has made progress in cost control, welding quality, flexibility and bendability, improving production efficiency and optimizing the overall performance. Description of the Drawings

[0022] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a display module in the prior art;

[0023] Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a display module in an embodiment of the present application;

[0024] Figure 3 is a schematic structural diagram of the flexible printed circuit board of a display module in an embodiment of the present application;

[0025] Figure 4 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of the second connection part in a flexible circuit board in an embodiment of the present application.

[0026] Explanation of the accompanying reference numerals: 100, display screen; 200, circuit board body; 210, first connecting portion; 220, second connecting portion; 230, connecting terminal; 240, bending groove; 250, protective covering layer; 300, driving chip; 400, polarizer; 500, flexible touch circuit board. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] In order to make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present application more obvious and easy to understand, the specific implementation methods of the present application are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It will be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application, rather than to limit the present application. It should also be noted that, for ease of description, only some, rather than all, structures related to the present application are shown in the accompanying drawings. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0028] As used herein, the terms "comprise," "comprising," and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus comprising a series of steps or elements is not limited to the listed steps or elements but may optionally include steps or elements not listed, or may optionally include other steps or elements inherent to the process, method, product, or apparatus.

[0029] References herein to "embodiments" mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiments may be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of this phrase in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor does it constitute an independent or alternative embodiment that is mutually exclusive of other embodiments. It is understood, both explicitly and implicitly, by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein may be combined with other embodiments.

[0030] When integrating touch functions into display modules, traditional structural designs often require the production of display FPCs and touch FPCs separately, and connecting them together through a complex welding process. This process not only increases manufacturing costs, but also easily leads to problems such as poor welding, cold welding, breakage or falling off, seriously affecting the stability of the touch function. To solve these technical problems, the present application provides a flexible circuit board. Through a flexible circuit board design of the present application, a high degree of integration of touch and display functions is achieved, which effectively reduces production costs and thus improves the overall performance and reliability of the product. Please refer to Figures 2 to 3As shown in the figure, the flexible printed circuit board in a preferred embodiment of the present application is suitable for realizing the integrated setting of touch and display connection, avoiding the failure of the touch function caused by poor soldering. The flexible printed circuit board includes a circuit board body 200, at least one first connection portion 210, and at least one second connection portion 220. The circuit board body 200, the first connection portion 210, and the second connection portion 220 are all made of flexible substrate materials, and the circuit board body 200, the first connection portion 210, and the second connection portion 220 all include exposed connection terminals 230. The connection terminals 230 are used to connect pins. The first connection portion 210 and the second connection portion 220 are integrated with the circuit board body 200 and include a plurality of independent connection lines respectively connecting the connection terminals 230 on the circuit board body 200, the first connection portion 210, and the second connection portion 220.

[0031] The core components of the flexible printed circuit board include a circuit board body 200, at least one first connection portion 210, and at least one second connection portion 220. All three of these are made of high-performance flexible substrate materials, endowing the circuit board with flexibility and bendability, enabling it to easily cope with various complex installation environments and space limitations. These components are all designed with exposed connection terminals 230. Through layout, these connection terminals 230 are specifically designed for connecting pins, ensuring efficient and accurate signal transmission. Integrating the first connection portion 210 and the second connection portion 220 with the circuit board body 200 forms a seamless overall structure. This design not only simplifies the production process flow but also greatly reduces the risk of poor soldering by reducing the number of solder joints. At the same time, a plurality of independent connection lines cleverly shuttle between the circuit board body 200, the first connection portion 210, and the second connection portion 220, achieving precise connection between the connection terminals 230 and ensuring the smooth coordination of the touch and display functions.

[0032] In the design of flexible printed circuit boards, the flexibility of the connection parts can be configured differently to achieve a wider range of application adaptability and higher reliability. Specifically, the flexibility of the second connection part 220 is greater than that of the first connection part 210. The second connection part 220 uses a softer and more elastic flexible substrate, and through the manufacturing process, its flexibility is significantly greater than that of the first connection part 210. This differential design ensures that in application scenarios that require higher flexibility and easy bending, the second connection part 220 can easily meet various bending and folding requirements without affecting the normal operation of the touch and display functions. The higher flexibility of the second connection part 220 enables it to withstand more bending and folding cycles, effectively reducing the risk of fatigue fracture caused by bending, thereby significantly improving the durability and reliability of the flexible printed circuit board and the touch display module to which it is applied. The high flexibility can ensure a smoother bending process, reduce the stress concentration phenomenon during bending, protect the integrity of the internal structure of the circuit board, and avoid performance degradation or function failure caused by improper bending. The differential flexible design enables the flexible printed circuit board to better adapt to different shapes and sizes of installation environments. By using the same substrate but different processing methods to achieve flexible differentiation, the production process flow is simplified, the production cost is reduced, and it is also convenient for subsequent assembly and debugging work, improving production efficiency.

[0033] The present application further makes refined adjustments and optimizations to the thickness of the connection parts to achieve higher integration, a thinner and lighter volume, and better bending performance. Specifically, the second connection part 220 is designed to be thinner than the first connection part 210. By reducing the thickness of the second connection part 220, the flexible printed circuit board provides greater freedom for the overall design. This design enables the touch display module to be more compactly integrated into the device, meeting consumers' pursuit of ultra-thin and ultra-light products. In a limited space, the reduced thickness of the second connection part 220 makes the arrangement of other components or elements more flexible, contributing to improving the integration and space utilization rate of the entire device. The design of the second connection part 220 in the flexible printed circuit board being thinner than the first connection part 210 shows corresponding technical effects and advantages in promoting thin and light design, improving bending performance, optimizing space utilization, reducing costs and energy consumption, and enhancing product competitiveness.

[0034] The present application further designs connection terminals 230 on the first connection part 210 and the second connection part 220, including connection lines that extend from the connection terminals 230 on the first connection part 210 and the second connection part 220 to the connection terminals 230 on the circuit board main body 200 respectively. The independent connection line design reduces interference and attenuation during signal transmission, enabling the touch signal and the display signal to be accurately transmitted between the circuit board main body 200, the first connection part 210, and the second connection part 220, improving the signal transmission efficiency, and ensuring the instant response and smoothness of the touch and display functions. Through fine wiring and path selection, the connection lines can better adapt to various complex application scenarios and installation environments. The independent connection line design provides greater flexibility for the layout of the touch display module. Designers can adjust the position and length of the connection lines according to actual needs to optimize the overall structural layout and achieve a more compact and efficient integration.

[0035] To further improve the accuracy and efficiency during the assembly process, different alignment marks are provided on the first connection part 210 and the second connection part 220. These alignment marks are presented in the form of clear and easily recognizable patterns or symbols, aiming to guide the operator to quickly and accurately complete the alignment of the connection part with the circuit board main body 200 or other components during the assembly process. Different alignment marks provide clear reference points for the assembly process, helping the operator or equipment to quickly identify and locate the relative positions between the first connection part 210, the second connection part 220 and the circuit board main body 200 or other components. This helps to reduce assembly defects caused by position deviation and improve the overall assembly accuracy of the product. The introduction of alignment marks simplifies the alignment steps in the assembly process, enables the connection part to be docked with the circuit board main body 200 or other components more quickly, shortens the assembly time, and reduces the cost caused by repeated position adjustment. By providing different alignment marks for the first connection part 210 and the second connection part 220, it is effectively avoided to confuse or misassemble the two during the assembly process. This differential design reduces the probability of human error, improves the production qualification rate and stability of the product. By optimizing the assembly process and reducing the error rate, the flexible circuit board provides more reliable performance guarantee for the touch display module, thereby enhancing the user's satisfaction and trust during use. Different alignment marks are also provided on the first connection part 210 and the second connection part 220.

[0036] To further optimize its bending performance and enhance its adaptability and durability in complex application scenarios such as folding and curling, bending grooves 240 are specifically provided on the second connection portion 220. These bending grooves 240 are precisely designed and arranged to guide the flexible printed circuit board to bend along a predetermined shape during bending, reduce stress concentration, and extend its service life. The design of the bending grooves 240 provides clear position guidance for the flexible printed circuit board during bending, making the bending process smoother and more natural, and helping to reduce problems such as circuit breakage or performance degradation caused by improper bending. During the bending process, the flexible printed circuit board will be subjected to certain stress, and the presence of the bending grooves 240 can disperse and relieve this stress, preventing the stress from concentrating excessively in a certain local area, thereby reducing the risk of damage caused by stress concentration.

[0037] To further improve the protection performance of the second connection portion 220 during the bending process and extend its service life, while providing the bending grooves 240 on the second connection portion 220, a protective cover layer 250 is added to the other side of the groove, providing an additional protective barrier for the flexible printed circuit board. The protective cover layer 250 can effectively resist physical damages such as friction and scratching in the external environment, protecting the second connection portion 220 from being damaged during bending. When subjected to accidental impact or extrusion, the protective cover layer 250 can absorb and disperse part of the impact force, reducing the direct damage to the second connection portion 220. This design enhances the impact resistance of the flexible printed circuit board in complex application environments, ensuring the stability and reliability of the product. By adding the protective cover layer 250, the performance of the flexible printed circuit board in extreme environments has also been significantly improved. The protective cover layer 250 can effectively isolate these adverse factors, protecting the integrity of the internal structure of the flexible printed circuit board and ensuring the long-term stable operation of the product.

[0038] This application further provides a display module with higher integration and more optimized structure. This module integrates the display panel 100, the polarizer 400, and the aforementioned flexible printed circuit board, and specifically includes:

[0039] A display screen body 100, a polarizing plate 400, and the aforementioned flexible printed circuit board. Among them, the first connection portion 210 of the flexible printed circuit board is connected to the front surface of the display screen body 100, and the second connection portion 220 is connected to the back surface of the display screen body 100. By connecting the first connection portion 210 and the second connection portion 220 of the flexible printed circuit board to the front and back surfaces of the display screen body 100 respectively, seamless integration of the display control circuit and the display screen body 100 is achieved. This design reduces the use of external connection lines, and reduces the overall complexity and manufacturing cost of the module. With its flexibility and conductivity, the flexible printed circuit board ensures stable signal transmission between the display screen body 100 and the display control circuit. The precise layout of the first connection portion 210 and the second connection portion 220 further reduces interference and attenuation in the signal transmission path, improves the reliability and stability of signal transmission. The optimized connection layout makes the assembly process of the display module simpler and faster, enables the docking work between the flexible printed circuit board and the display screen body 100 to be completed more easily, reduces the assembly difficulty and cost, and improves the production efficiency.

[0040] The driving chip 300 is disposed on the front surface of the display screen body 100. This layout ensures a tight connection between the driving chip 300 and the display screen body 100, realizes more efficient signal transmission and a more compact structural design. The driving chip 300 is disposed on the front surface of the display screen body 100, shortening the signal transmission path from the driving chip 300. The front surface layout of the driving chip 300 further improves the integration degree of the display module. The front surface layout of the driving chip 300 simplifies the assembly process of the display module, enables the connection work between the driving chip 300 and the display screen body 100 to be completed more intuitively, reduces the assembly difficulty and error rate.

[0041] In order to further enhance the accuracy and efficiency of the display module during the assembly process, in this application, alignment marks in the first alignment mark group are carefully set on the front surface of the display screen body 100 and the first connection portion 210, and at the same time, alignment marks in the second alignment mark group are respectively and correspondingly set on the back surface of the display screen body 100 and the second connection portion 220. Alignment marks in the first alignment mark group are respectively set on the front surface of the display screen body 100 and the first connection portion 210, and alignment marks in the second alignment mark group are respectively set on the back surface of the display screen body 100 and the second connection portion 220. The settings of the first alignment mark group and the second alignment mark group provide double guarantees for the connection between the display screen body 100 and the flexible printed circuit board. The design of the double alignment marks helps to reduce the occurrence of human errors. By optimizing the assembly process and reducing the error rate, the display module in this application provides users with a more reliable and stable display effect.

[0042] As described above, the present application provides an innovative flexible printed circuit board and a display module using the same, which reduces production costs, realizes the integration of touch and display, and by using a highly flexible substrate material, the main body of the circuit board, the first connection part and the second connection part all exhibit flexibility and durability. At the same time, exposed connection terminals are provided at each part, facilitating efficient connection with pins and ensuring stable signal transmission. The first connection part and the second connection part are integrated with the main body of the circuit board, and the connection terminals of each part are tightly connected by multiple independent connection lines, enhancing the stability and reliability of the overall structure. The second connection part is specially optimized in terms of flexibility and thickness, having higher flexibility and thinner thickness compared with the first connection part, which makes the flexible printed circuit board more flexible during the bending process, reduces the risk of stress concentration and fracture, and extends the service life.

[0043] In addition, in order to further improve the assembly accuracy and efficiency, the present application provides multiple alignment marks on the flexible printed circuit board. Different alignment marks are respectively provided on the first connection part and the second connection part, and corresponding alignment mark groups matching the flexible printed circuit board are also provided on the front and back sides of the display screen body. These alignment marks provide accurate visual guidance for the assembly process, ensure the accurate docking between components, and reduce the risks of human error and poor assembly. Further, the present application provides a bending groove on the second connection part and installs a protective cover layer on the other side of the groove. The design of the bending groove optimizes the bending path and reduces stress concentration, while the protective cover layer provides an additional protective barrier, enhancing the wear resistance and impact resistance of the second connection part during the bending process.

[0044] Based on the design of the above flexible printed circuit board, the present application further proposes a display module with higher integration and more optimized structure, which combines the display screen body, the polarizer and the flexible printed circuit board to realize fast signal transmission and stable display. Among them, the first connection part of the flexible printed circuit board is connected to the front side of the display screen body, responsible for transmitting display control signals; while the second connection part is connected to the back side of the display screen body, making full use of the back space and reducing the accumulation of the overall thickness. In addition, the driving chip is arranged on the front side of the display screen body, further improving the integration and performance of the module. In summary, the present application provides a low-cost, high-performance and easily bendable flexible printed circuit board and a display module using the same, which has good performance in aspects such as touch display integration, assembly accuracy, bending performance and overall aesthetics.

[0045] The above is only a specific embodiment of the present application, and any improvement made on the premise of the concept of the present application shall be regarded as the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A flexible printed circuit board, characterized in that, It includes a circuit board main body (200), at least one first connection part (210), and at least one second connection part (220); The circuit board main body (200), the first connection part (210), and the second connection part (220) all include flexible base materials, and the circuit board main body (200), the first connection part (210), and the second connection part (220) all include exposed connection terminals (230), and the connection terminals (230) are used to connect pins; Among them, the first connection part (210) and the second connection part (220) are integrated with the circuit board main body (200), and include a plurality of independent connection lines respectively connecting the connection terminals (230) on the circuit board main body (200), the first connection part (210), and the second connection part (220).

2. The flexible printed circuit board according to claim 1, wherein The flexibility of the second connection part (220) is greater than that of the first connection part (210).

3. The flexible printed circuit board according to claim 2, characterized in that, The thickness of the second connection part (220) is less than that of the first connection part (210).

4. The flexible printed circuit board according to claim 1, wherein It includes connection lines respectively extending from the connection terminals (230) on the first connection part (210) and the second connection part (220) to the connection terminals (230) on the circuit board main body (200).

5. The flexible printed circuit board according to claim 1, wherein Different alignment marks are also provided on the first connection part (210) and the second connection part (220).

6. The flexible printed circuit board according to claim 1, characterized in that, A bending groove (240) is also provided on the second connection part (220).

7. The flexible printed circuit board according to claim 6, characterized in that, A protective cover layer (250) is provided on the other side of the second connection part (220) where the bending groove (240) is provided.

8. A display module, characterized in that, It includes: A display screen body (100), a polarizer (400), and a flexible circuit board as described in any one of claims 1-7; Among them, the first connection part (210) of the flexible circuit board is connected to the front of the display screen body (100), and the second connection part (220) is connected to the back of the display screen body (100).

9. The display module according to claim 8, wherein It further includes a driving chip (300), and the driving chip (300) is arranged on the front of the display screen body (100).

10. The display module according to claim 8, wherein Alignment marks in a first alignment mark group are respectively provided on the front of the display screen body (100) and the first connection part (210), and alignment marks in a second alignment mark group are respectively provided on the back of the display screen body (100) and the second connection part (220).

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