Electronic device display with extended active area

Abstract

To restrict the size of a display area available for presenting visual information to a user.SOLUTION: A display may have an active area that is bordered along at least one edge by a non-active area. The active area contains pixels and displays images. The non-active area does not contain any pixels and does not display images. The non-active area may have a black ink layer or other masking material layer to block internal components from view. The active area may have an opening that contains an isolated portion of the non-active area or may contain a recess into which a portion of the non-active area protrudes. An electronic component such as a speaker, a camera, a light-emitting diode, an optical sensor, or other electronic device may be mounted in the non-active area in the recess or the opening of the active area.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application claims priority based on U.S. Patent Application No. 62 / 233,923, filed on September 28, 2015, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. This application relates generally to electronic devices, and more specifically to electronic devices having a display.

Background Art

[0002] Electronic devices often include a display. For example, mobile phones, tablet computers, and laptop computers include a display for presenting information to a user.

[0003] The active area of a display includes pixels for displaying an image. Display driver circuits, buttons, cameras, and other non-emitting components are disposed within an inactive edge region surrounding the active area.

[0004] If not attended to, the size of the edge of a display can be larger than desired. For example, if components such as a camera or a button are disposed along the edge of a display, it may be necessary to expand the edge to accommodate the camera or button, which can limit the size of the display area available for presenting visual information to a user.

Summary of the Invention

[0005] An electronic device can include a display. The display can be formed from liquid crystal display pixels, organic light emitting diode pixels, or other pixels. The display can have an active area bounded by an inactive area. The active area includes pixels and displays an image. The inactive area does not include any pixels and does not display an image.

[0006] The inactive area may have a layer of black ink or other masking material to shield internal components from view. The active area may have an opening that includes an isolated inactive area, or may include a notch or other recess from which a portion of the inactive area protrudes. Electronic components such as speakers, cameras, light-emitting diodes, light sensors, proximity sensors, strain gauges, magnetic sensors, pressure sensors, force sensors, temperature sensors, or other sensors, buttons, touch-sensitive components, microphones, or other audio components, or other electronic devices that generate outputs and / or collect inputs, may be mounted in a portion of the inactive area that protrudes into a recess or is located in an opening of the active area.

[0007] The inactive area may have a main area, such as a rectangular region for displaying an image, or it may have one or more extended areas extending from the main area. The extended areas may include, for example, first and second elongated rectangular extended areas lying between the main rectangular region and the inactive edge. The first and second extended areas may be positioned on either side of a camera or other electronic component within a protruding or island-like portion of the inactive area. Icons or other information can be displayed on a black background within the extended areas to provide a continuous and uninterrupted appearance.

[0008] Further features will become clearer from the attached drawings and the detailed description below. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view of an exemplary electronic device, such as a laptop computer having a display, according to one embodiment.

[0010] [Figure 2] This is a perspective view of an exemplary electronic device, such as a handheld electronic device having a display, according to one embodiment.

[0011] [Figure 3] This is a perspective view of an exemplary electronic device, such as a tablet computer, watch, or other portable device having a display, according to one embodiment.

[0012] [Figure 4] This is a perspective view of an exemplary electronic device, such as a computer display having a display structure, according to one embodiment.

[0013] [Figure 5] This is a diagram of a conventional display.

[0014] [Figure 6] This is a diagram of an exemplary display according to one embodiment.

[0015] [Figure 7] This is a diagram of a part of an exemplary display according to one embodiment.

[0016] [Figure 8] This figure shows how, according to one embodiment, an inactive area of ​​a display may have the shape of an island surrounded by an active area.

[0017] [Figure 9] This is a diagram illustrating an exemplary display according to one embodiment, in which the edge region of the display includes an inactive area projection extending within the notch of the active area, and a pair of extended active area regions on both sides of the inactive area projection capable of displaying icons and other information.

[0018] [Figure 10] This is a front view of a display having an exemplary pattern of active and inactive areas according to one embodiment. [Figure 11] This is a front view of a display having an exemplary pattern of active and inactive areas according to one embodiment. [Figure 12] A front view of a display having an exemplary active area and non-active area pattern according to one embodiment. [Figure 13] A front view of a display having an exemplary active area and non-active area pattern according to one embodiment. [Figure 14] A front view of a display having an exemplary active area and non-active area pattern according to one embodiment.

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0019] An electronic device can include a display. Images can be displayed to a user using the display. Exemplary electronic devices that can include a display are shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 4.

[0020] FIG. 1 shows how the electronic device 10 can have the form of a laptop computer having an upper housing 12A and a lower housing 12B that include components such as a keyboard 16 and a touchpad 18. The device 10 can have a hinge structure 20 that allows the upper housing 12A to rotate in direction 22 about a rotation axis 24 relative to the lower housing 12B. The display 14 can be mounted within the upper housing 12A. The upper housing 12A, which may also be referred to as a display housing or lid, may be placed in a closed position by rotating the upper housing 12A about the rotation axis 24 toward the lower housing 12B.

[0021] Figure 2 illustrates how the electronic device 10 may be a handheld device such as a mobile phone, music player, gaming device, navigation unit, or other small device. In this type of configuration of device 10, the housing 12 may have opposing front and rear surfaces. A display 14 may be mounted on the front of the housing 12. If desired, the display 14 may have openings for components such as buttons 26. Openings may also be formed within the display 14 to accommodate a speaker port (see, for example, speaker port 28 in Figure 2).

[0022] Figure 3 illustrates how the electronic device 10 may be a tablet computer, a watch, or other portable device. In the electronic device 10 of Figure 3, the housing 12 may have opposing flat front and rear surfaces. A display 14 may be mounted on the front of the housing 12. As shown in Figure 3, the display 14 may have an opening to accommodate buttons 26. The buttons 26 may be omitted if desired.

[0023] Figure 4 illustrates how the electronic device 10 may be a display such as a display with an embedded computer, a display without an embedded computer, or another suitable device for displaying images. In this type of configuration, the housing 12 for the device 10 may be mounted on a support structure such as a stand 30, or the stand 30 may be omitted (for example, to hang the device 10 on a wall). The display 14 can be mounted on the front of the housing 12.

[0024] The exemplary configurations of device 10 shown in Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 are for illustrative purposes only. The contour of the display 14 may be rectangular, elliptical, circular, or other suitable shape. Generally, electronic device 10 may be a laptop computer, a computer monitor or other display including an embedded computer, a tablet computer, a mobile phone, a media player, or other handheld or portable electronic device, a wristwatch-type device, a pendant-type device, a headphone-type or earphone-type device, or other smaller devices such as wearable or miniature devices, a computer display or other monitor not including an embedded computer, a gaming device, a navigation device, an embedded system such as a system that mounts an electronic device including a display in a kiosk or automobile, equipment that implements two or more functions of these devices, or other electronic devices.

[0025] The housing 12 of the device 10, sometimes called a case, may be formed from materials such as plastic, glass, ceramics, carbon fiber composites and other fibrous composites, metal (e.g., machined aluminum, stainless steel or other metals), other materials, or combinations thereof. The device 10 may be formed using a unibody structure in which most or all of the housing 12 is formed from a single structural element (e.g., a piece of machined metal or a piece of molded plastic), or it may be formed from multiple housing structures (e.g., an internal frame element or an external housing structure mounted on another internal housing structure).

[0026] The display 14 may be a touch-sensitive display including a touch sensor, or it may not be touch-responsive. The touch sensor of the display 14 may be formed from an array of capacitive touch sensor electrodes, a resistive touch array, a touch sensor structure based on acoustic touch, optical touch or pressure-sensitive touch technology, or other suitable touch sensor components.

[0027] The display 14 of device 10 may be a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode display, a plasma display, an electrophoretic display, an electrowetting display, a display formed from an array of crystalline semiconductor light-emitting diode dies, or a display formed from other types of pixels. The display cover layer may cover the surface of the display 14 or a display layer such as a color filter layer, or other parts of the display may be used as the outermost (or nearly outermost) layer within the display 14. The outermost display layer may be formed from a transparent glass plate, a transparent plastic layer, or other transparent material.

[0028] The material layers constituting the display 14 can be mounted on a chassis structure such as a plastic chassis structure and / or a metal chassis structure to form a display module for mounting in the housing 12, and / or the layers of the display 14 may be mounted directly in the housing 12 (for example, by laminating the display layers in recesses of the housing 12).

[0029] The display 14 may have a rectangular shape (i.e., the display 14 may have a rectangular footprint and a rectangular peripheral edge extending around the rectangular footprint), an elliptical or circular footprint, or other shapes including curved and / or straight edges. The display 14 may be flat or have a curved contour. To help accommodate electronic components along the edges of the display 14 without excessively reducing the size of the footprint of the display 14, the edges of the active area of ​​the display 14 may have locally recessed portions such as notches, and / or the display 14 may have isolated inactive areas on which electronic components can be mounted.

[0030] Figure 5 shows a top view of a conventional display. The display 200 in Figure 5 has a rectangular active area AA containing four linear edges 202. A rectangular ring-shaped inactive area IA surrounds the active area AA. The width W of the upper strip of the inactive area IA is wide enough to accommodate the camera 202. However, the width W of the upper strip of this inactive area IA is larger than what is needed for areas such as the upper strip area 206 of the inactive area that does not contain the camera 202. This leads to wasted space.

[0031] Figure 6 shows an exemplary top view of the display, including a recess along one of the edges of the active area. As shown in Figure 6, the display 14 may have an array of pixels 122 formed from a material layer on a substrate such as a substrate 36. The substrate such as the substrate 36 may be formed from glass, metal, plastic, ceramic, or other substrate material. The pixels 122 may receive data signals via signal paths such as data lines D and receive one or more control signals via control signal paths such as horizontal control lines G (sometimes called gate lines, scan lines, emission control lines, etc.). The display 14 may have a suitable number of rows and columns of pixels 122 (e.g., tens or more, hundreds or more, or thousands or more).

[0032] The display 14 can be formed from an array of discrete light-emitting diodes, from an electrowetting pixel structure, from an electrophoretic element structure, or from another suitable display structure. In an organic light-emitting diode display, each pixel 122 includes an organic light-emitting diode and a pixel circuit that controls the application of current to the light-emitting diodes. In a liquid crystal display, each pixel 122 includes a pixel circuit that controls the application of a signal to a pixel electrode used to apply a controlled amount of electric field to a pixel-sized portion of the liquid crystal layer. The pixel circuit within the pixel 122 may include a transistor having a gate controlled by a control signal, such as a gate line signal on a gate line G.

[0033] The operation of the pixels 122 can be controlled using the display driving circuit 120. The display driving circuit 120 can be formed from an integrated circuit, a thin-film transistor circuit, or other suitable circuit. The thin-film transistor circuit can be formed from a polysilicon thin-film transistor, a semiconductor oxide thin-film transistor such as an indium gallium zinc oxide transistor, or a thin-film transistor formed from other semiconductors. The pixels 122 can have color filter elements of different colors (e.g., red, green, and blue) or other colored structures to provide the display 14 with the ability to display a color image.

[0034] The display driver circuit 120 may include display driver circuits such as a display driver circuit 120A and a gate driver circuit 120B. The display driver circuit 120A may be formed from one or more display driver integrated circuits and / or thin-film transistor circuits (e.g., timing controller integrated circuits). The gate driver circuit 120B may be formed from a gate driver integrated circuit or a thin-film "gate-on-array" circuit. The display driver circuit 120A in Figure 6 may include a communication circuit for communicating with a system control circuit in the device 10. This control circuit may include a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit, memory, and other storage and processing circuits for generating images to be displayed on the display 14. The control circuit of the device 10 can communicate with the display driver circuit 120A via a path 32. The path 32 may be formed from a flexible printed circuit or traces on other conductive wires. During operation, the control circuit of the device 10 may supply the circuit 120A with information about the image displayed on the pixels 122 of the active area AA of the display 14.

[0035] To display an image on the display pixels 122, the display driver circuit 120A can supply image data to the data line D via a path such as path 38, while generating control signals to support the display driver circuit, such as the gate driver circuit 120B. Path 38 may include lines for carrying, for example, power signals, control signals such as output enable signals, and clock signals. Circuit 120A can supply these signals to gate drive circuit 120B. Circuit 120B can be located on one edge of display 14, on opposing left and right edges of display 14, or elsewhere within display 14.

[0036] The gate drive circuit 120B (sometimes called the horizontal control line control circuit) can control the horizontal control lines (gate lines) G using signals received from path 38 (e.g., power signals, output enable signals, clock signals, etc.). The gate lines G of the display 14 can control the pixels 122 of each row by transmitting gate line signals or other signals or multiple signals to each (for example, from data lines D, turning on transistors in pixels 122 when loading data from data lines into pixel memory capacitors in those pixels). During operation, frames of image data can be displayed by sequentially asserting the gate signals on each gate line G in the display. A shift register circuit (e.g., a chain of registers) in the gate drive circuit 120B can be used when controlling the gate line signals.

[0037] The display 14 has an active area AA which includes pixels 122 and displays an image. The display 14 may also have an inactive area IA (sometimes called an edge area) which includes a display driver circuit 120 and other components that do not generate an image. In some configurations, an opaque masking material (e.g., a layer of black or white ink) may be included beneath the display cover layer of the display 14 or any other layer of the display 14 to hide the display driver circuit and other components in the inactive area IA from view outside the device 10. A window may also be formed within the inactive area of ​​the display 14 (e.g., to accommodate an image sensor, an ambient light sensor, a proximity sensor, etc.).

[0038] In the display 14 of Figure 6, the active area AA has a substantially rectangular shape including top and bottom edges and left and right edges. The inactive area IA may have four substantially strip-shaped edge regions (for example, the display 14 may have a rectangular ring-shaped inactive edge composed of top and bottom inactive area strips and left and right inactive area strips). In order to accommodate components within the inactive area IA without excessively enlarging the inactive area IA (and thereby without excessively reducing the size of the active area AA), the active area AA may have one or more recesses or isolated openings into which a portion of the inactive area IA may extend. For example, a notch may be formed within the active area AA, and a portion of the inactive area IA may protrude into the notch. This protruding portion of the inactive area may be used to house components such as buttons, fingerprint readers, light-emitting diode status indicators, ambient light sensors, proximity sensors, touch sensors, cameras (i.e., digital image sensors), strain gauges, magnetic sensors, pressure sensors, force sensors, temperature sensors, or other sensors, buttons, touch-sensitive components, microphones or other audio components, or other electronic components (one or more) that generate outputs and / or receive inputs.

[0039] In the configuration of Figure 6, for example, the active area AA of the display 14 may have an upper edge such as edge 132. A recess such as recess portion 130 may be formed in edge 132. The recess portion 130 generates a related enlarged inward projection region 134 of the inactive area IA. The enlarged inactive area, such as the inactive area IA within region 134, may be continuous with other parts of the inactive area IA, or it may be formed as an isolated island of the inactive area IA surrounded by the active area AA. In the example of Figure 6, the inactive area IA within the inward projection region 134 is continuous with the horizontal upper strip of the inactive area IA that forms the upper edge region of the display 14.

[0040] The presence of the inactive area protrusion 134 leaves empty space in the display 14 for components such as component 136. Component 136 may be a sensor, a photodetector, an output device, a button, a fingerprint reader, an image sensor, or other suitable device. For example, component 136 may be an image sensor (camera) mounted behind a camera window. The camera window may include an opening in the unpolarized region of the black ink layer and / or polarizing layer(s) within the material layers forming the display 14. Other light-based components (e.g., a photosensor, a light-emitting device such as one or more visible light or infrared discrete light-emitting diodes, a light-based proximity sensor, etc.) may also be mounted below the window in area 134 of the inactive area IA. The use of a camera in area 134 is merely illustrative.

[0041] Since region 134 protrudes inward into the active area AA, gate lines G (or other horizontal control lines) that would otherwise cross region 134 may be cut and shortened, as shown in Figure 6. In general, data lines D, control lines such as gate lines G, and / or both data lines and control lines can be routed to accommodate the extended inactive area 134. In the example in Figure 6, the shortened gate lines G allow the extended portion of the active area AA to be present on both sides of the inactive area 134. Therefore, it is not necessary to remove the entire row of pixels 122 along the upper edge of the active area AA to accommodate the component 136. This maximizes the area consumed by the active area AA.

[0042] In the example in Figure 6, the gate lines G include lines of regular length extending from the gate drive circuits 120B at the left and right edges of the display 14 to the center of the display 14. The gate lines G also include shortened lines. The shortened lines extend from the gate drive circuits 120B at the left and right edges of the display 14 toward the center of the display 14, like the lines of normal length, but terminate at the edge of the inactive area protrusion 134 so as not to enter the protrusion 134. Similarly, the data lines D include lines of regular length extending across the entire vertical range of the display 14, and shortened data lines such as data line D' that terminate at the edge of the protrusion 134.

[0043] If desired, other data line and gate line layouts can be used to route signals to pixels 122 without encroaching on inactive areas such as protrusions 134. For example, the exemplary arrangement in Figure 7 shows how gate line signals can be routed perpendicularly to horizontal gate lines G using vertical gate line extensions G'. Each gate line extension G' may be coupled to gate drive circuits located along the lower edge of the display 14 (for example). This layout reduces or eliminates the need for gate drive circuits along the left and right edges of the display 14, thus allowing for a reduction in the size of edges such as the left edge region (inactive area IA) of the display 14. In the exemplary configuration in Figure 8, the data line D is folded back over an end DF that allows the data line D to load data into pixels 122 that would otherwise be blocked by the presence of islands of inactive area IA, such as islands 134I or other isolated inactive areas. If desired, the display driver circuit can be located in both the upper and lower blocks of an island, such as island 134I (in this case, data lines can extend directly from each block to pixels 122 without loopback). Other arrangements for routing control line signals, data line signals, and power signals can be used to accommodate projections into the inactive area (i.e., active area notches or other recesses), and / or islands of inactive areas surrounded by active areas (i.e., inactive areas formed in isolated openings within active areas). The configurations in Figures 6, 7, and 8 are for illustrative purposes only.

[0044] The extended inactive area of ​​display 14 may make it difficult or impossible to display the complete rectangle of image content on display 14. Nevertheless, the increment of the active area present on display 14 can be used to display other information for the user.

[0045] In one exemplary technique shown in Figure 9, a portion of the active area AA (i.e., the main rectangular portion of active area AA, such as main portion AA-M) can be used to display a rectangular portion of content for the user. The rectangular main portion AA-M of the display 14 can be used to display, for example, a rectangular image, a rectangular video, a rectangular document containing text and / or graphics, or other rectangular content. Due to the presence of the inactive area projection 134, the horizontal upper edge 140 of portion AA-M cannot be extended further upward without changing its shape. Nevertheless, extended active area regions AA-EL and AA-ER are available to the left and right of region 134. Regions AA-EL and AA-ER may be elongated rectangular regions (i.e., horizontally extending strip-like regions). Region AA-EL lies between the edge 140 of active area region AA-M and the inner edge 142 of the inactive area IA portion that extends along the upper edge of the display 14. Region AA-ER lies between the edge 140 and the inner edge 142 of the active area region AA-M.

[0046] Extended areas such as AA-EL and AA-ER can be used to display content such as text, graphics, video, and images. For example, areas AA-EL and AA-ER can be used to display information such as time and data information 144 and icons 146. This information may relate to the general status of device 10 and / or to the content displayed in area AA-M. For example, the information within areas AA-EL and AA-ER may include status bar information such as battery charge level, wireless local area network signal strength information, network connectivity information, time information, date information, message status information, display brightness information, and media playback status information. If desired, the information within regions AA-EL and AA-ER may be related to the documents displayed in region AA-M. For example, it can display page count information, word count information, document magnification status, line spacing settings, and other status information related to the document. When area AA-M is displaying a video, areas AA-EL and AA-ER can display execution time information, remaining time information, playback volume information, media title information, etc.

[0047] Information 144 and 146 can be presented on a background such as background 148. Background 148 can have any preferred color and / or pattern. If desired, the inactive area IA may include a layer of black ink or other opaque masking material to conceal internal components beneath the outermost layer(s) of the display 14 from view. In this type of arrangement, background 148 may be black to match the black of the inactive area masking material. Area 134 may also be black (for example, the underside of the display layer(s) within area 134 may be coated with black ink), or area 134 may have a contrasting appearance (for example, area 134 may be glossy, white, or colored red or other preferred color). In a configuration where area background 148 is black to match the black of area 134, areas AA-EL and AA-ER will have the appearance of being part of an integrated strip of the active area (and thus an integrated extension of the active area AA-M). Since the black color of region 134 blends with the black color of background 148, the visual interruption from the protrusion 134 will not be visually noticeable.

[0048] If desired, the active area AA of the display 14 may have other shapes including an island of inactive areas IA (i.e., an opening in which the inactive area IA has the shape of an isolated region surrounded by the active area AA), and / or a rectangular notch or other recess. In the example of Figure 10, the active area AA of the display 14 has a rectangular shape including a relatively shallow rectangular recess 130. Figure 11 shows how multiple recesses (e.g., rectangular recesses such as 130-1 and 130-2) may be present within the active area AA. In the configuration of Figure 12, there are recesses at each of the four corners of the active area AA (i.e., recesses 130-1, 130-2, 130-3, and 130-4). In Figure 13, the active area AA has a circular contour in which a smooth mouse-hole-shaped recess 130 is formed. Rectangular active areas, such as the rectangular active area AA of Figure 14, may also have curved recesses. For example, the recess 130 in Figure 14 can accommodate a button 26. Openings within the active area AA, such as the exemplary opening 130I in Figure 14, can be used to accommodate speakers and / or other electronic components.

[0049] Inactive areas such as the protruding portion 134 can extend into the openings and other recesses in Figures 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14, respectively. Furthermore, other shapes and layouts can be used for the active area AA and inactive area IA of the display 14. The examples in Figures 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 are for illustrative purposes only.

[0050] According to one embodiment, a display is provided that includes an active area containing pixels for displaying an image, and a pixelless inactive area extending along at least a portion of one edge of the active area, wherein the protruding portion of the inactive area extends into the active area along a portion of the edge.

[0051] According to another embodiment, the active area includes a rectangular portion and two rectangular extensions on either side of the inactive area.

[0052] According to another embodiment, pixels within the active area are configured to display icons in a rectangular extended area.

[0053] According to another embodiment, the display includes a camera in a protruding portion.

[0054] According to another embodiment, the display includes electronic components in the protruding portion of the inactive area.

[0055] According to another embodiment, the electronic component includes an image sensor.

[0056] According to another embodiment, the protruding portion includes a rectangular portion of the inactive area.

[0057] According to another embodiment, the protruding portion of the inactive area has a black masking layer, and the active area includes at least one portion adjacent to the protruding portion, which displays information on a black background.

[0058] According to another embodiment, the active area has a rectangular shape, and the protruding portion includes the rectangular portion of the inactive area.

[0059] According to another embodiment, the active area has a circular shape.

[0060] According to another embodiment, the active area has a rectangular shape, and the protruding portion protrudes into at least one corner of the rectangular shape.

[0061] According to one embodiment, a display is provided that includes an active area containing pixels for displaying an image, and an isolated inactive area formed within an opening in the active area and without pixels for displaying an image.

[0062] According to another embodiment, the display includes electronic components in an isolated, inactive area.

[0063] According to another embodiment, the electronic components include components selected from the group consisting of a speaker, a camera, a light sensor, a discrete light-emitting diode, a proximity sensor, a strain gauge, a force sensor, a temperature sensor, a fingerprint sensor, a button, and a microphone.

[0064] According to another embodiment, the pixels include liquid crystal display pixels.

[0065] According to another embodiment, the pixels include organic light-emitting diode pixels.

[0066] According to another embodiment, the active area includes data lines, at least some of which have folded ends adjacent to isolated inactive areas.

[0067] According to another embodiment, the active area has a recessed portion into which a protruding inactive area extends.

[0068] According to one embodiment, a laptop computer is provided which includes a housing having a base and a lid that rotates relative to the base, and a display supported by the lid, the display having an active area having pixels for displaying an image, and an inactive area extending along at least one edge of the active area, the active area having a recess, the inactive area having a protruding portion extending into the recess, and a camera mounted within the protruding portion of the inactive area.

[0069] According to another embodiment, the active area has a main rectangular area for displaying an image, and has first and second rectangular extension areas between the main rectangular area and the inactive edge, the first and second rectangular extension areas being on both sides of the camera.

[0070] In another embodiment, the first and second rectangular extension areas display icons on a black background, while the main rectangular area displays a rectangular image.

[0071] The foregoing is merely illustrative, and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the embodiments described. The above embodiments can be implemented individually or in any combination.

Claims

1. A display having an array of pixels including pixels in a first region and pixels in a second region separated from the first region by a region without pixels, An opaque masking material located between the first and second regions, the opaque masking material having an opening, The system includes a camera positioned in the aforementioned opening, The pixels in the first and second regions are configured to display a background having a color that matches the color of the opaque masking material, and to display information on the background. Each of the first and second regions is adjacent to the region that does not have pixels. Electronic devices.

2. The background and the opaque masking material are black. The electronic device according to claim 1.

3. The aforementioned information is selected from a group consisting of battery charge level information, wireless local area network signal strength information, network connectivity information, time information, date information, message status information, and media playback status information. The electronic device according to claim 1.

4. The system further comprises an infrared light-emitting diode aligned with the aforementioned opening. The electronic device according to claim 1.

5. The aforementioned opening is circular in shape. The electronic device according to claim 1.

6. The array of pixels has a plurality of horizontal control lines, some of which are shorter than the other horizontal control lines in order to accommodate areas that do not have pixels. The electronic device according to claim 1.

7. The array of pixels includes pixels in a third region located at a different position from the first and second regions. While the pixels of the first and second regions display the information on the background, the pixels of the third region are configured to display an image. The information displayed on the background is different from the image displayed by the pixels in the third region. The electronic device according to claim 1.

8. The array of pixels further comprises an additional region that does not have pixels, The opaque masking material is located within an additional region that does not have pixels. The electronic device according to claim 1.

9. The system further comprises an additional camera aligned to an additional region that does not have the aforementioned pixels. The electronic device according to claim 8.

10. The system further comprises an infrared light-emitting diode aligned to an additional region that does not have the aforementioned pixels. The electronic device according to claim 8.

11. A display having an array of pixels including first and second regions of pixels, A black ink layer located between the first and second regions of a pixel, the black ink layer having a window, The system includes a light sensor aligned with the aforementioned window, The pixels in the first region are configured to display a black background having a color that matches the color of the black ink layer, and to display an icon on the black background. Each of the first and second regions is adjacent to the black ink layer. Electronic devices.

12. The system further comprises an infrared light-emitting diode aligned with the aforementioned window. The electronic device according to claim 11.

13. The light sensor is surrounded by the array of pixels. The electronic device according to claim 11.

14. The pixel array has a plurality of horizontal control lines, some of which are shortened compared to the other plurality of horizontal control lines in order to accommodate the light sensor. The electronic device according to claim 11.

15. The array of pixels has multiple vertical data lines, some of which are shortened compared to other vertical data lines in order to accommodate the optical sensor. The electronic device according to claim 11.

16. Pixel array and The first and second islands in the array of pixels, wherein the first and second islands do not have pixels, Each of the first and second image sensors is aligned with the first and second islands, The first and second islands comprising opaque masking material, The array of pixels includes pixels configured to match the color of the opaque masking material, a black background adjacent to the first island, and pixels configured to display information on the black background. Electronic devices.

17. The opaque masking material has an opening in which the first image sensor is aligned. The electronic device according to claim 16.

18. The aforementioned pixels are configured to display information on the black background. The electronic device according to claim 16.

19. The array of pixels has additional pixels configured to display an image while the pixels are displaying the black background. Unlike the image displayed by the additional pixels, the information on the black background is, The aforementioned black background is displayed in the first region, and the aforementioned image is displayed in a second region that is different from the first region. The electronic device according to claim 16.

20. The system further comprises an infrared light-emitting diode aligned with the first island. The electronic device according to claim 16.

Images