Display Gap Uniformity via Blocking Dam and Spacer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing display apparatuses face issues with stains at the peripheral portions due to non-uniform gaps between substrates, leading to manufacturing defects and increased costs, as the thickness of the sealant is not uniform, causing visibility of stains to users.
Innovation Solution
A display apparatus with a first substrate, a colour filter, a gap maintaining pattern, a column spacer, a blocking dam, and a second substrate, where the blocking dam includes a first and second blocking dam with a sealing member between them, forming a uniform gap and reducing the need for a seal spacer, thus minimizing manufacturing costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a sealant is used to combine the display substrate and counter substrate, then the substrates can be attached together, but the thickness of the sealant is not uniform causing stains to be visible
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a gap maintaining pattern as an intermediary element between the display substrate and counter substrate. This pattern serves as a mediator that ensures uniform spacing, preventing the sealant from having non-uniform thickness. The gap maintaining pattern is formed in the peripheral area and works together with column spacers in the display area to achieve uniform substrate separation, thereby eliminating visible stains while maintaining reliable substrate attachment.
2Manufacturing precision
If a seal spacer is used to ensure uniform gap, then the gap uniformity is improved, but the manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the gap maintenance function from the seal spacer and relocates it to the gap maintaining pattern formed in the peripheral area. By taking out this specific function and assigning it to a different structural element, the patent eliminates the need for a separate seal spacer component. The gap maintaining pattern, formed using the same material and process as the color filter, provides the necessary gap uniformity without incurring additional manufacturing costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The gap maintaining pattern serves multiple functions: it maintains the gap between substrates in the peripheral area, provides structural support during assembly, and eliminates the need for separate seal spacers. By making this element multi-functional, the patent achieves gap uniformity while reducing component count and manufacturing complexity, thereby lowering production costs.
3Manufacturing precision
If the blocking dam is formed to overlap the gap maintaining pattern, then the stain is reduced, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the blocking dam structure with the gap maintaining pattern by positioning them to overlap in the peripheral area. This combination allows the blocking dam to effectively seal the liquid crystal material while the gap maintaining pattern ensures uniform spacing. The merging of these functions into a coordinated structure achieves stain reduction without requiring entirely separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity.
Data Source
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AI summary
A display apparatus includes a first substrate, a color filter, a gap maintaining pattern, a column spacer, and a blocking dam. The first substrate includes a display area and a peripheral area surrounding the display area. The color filter is disposed in the display area. The gap maintaining pattern is disposed in the peripheral area in a same layer as the color filter. The column spacer is disposed on the color filter. The blocking dam is disposed in a same layer as the column spacer and overlaps the gap maintaining pattern. The difference between the gap of the first and second substrates in the display area and the gap of the first and second substrates in the peripheral area may be decreased.