Flexible Display Device With Composite Substrates For Bending Reliability
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing light-emitting devices and display devices face challenges in achieving a balance between being thin, lightweight, and flexible while maintaining mechanical strength, especially in applications requiring repeated bending without breaking, and they often consume high power.
Innovation Solution
A display device configuration using substrates with varying Young's moduli, where stiffer substrates with a Young's modulus between 1 GPa and 100 GPa are paired with softer substrates having a modulus one fiftieth or less, to enhance portability, reliability, and reduce power consumption, while allowing for repeated bending without breakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If a thin and lightweight structure is used to improve portability, then the device becomes more portable, but the mechanical strength and reliability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a composite substrate structure consisting of a rigid substrate (glass or plastic) and a flexible substrate (rubber or resin) bonded together. This composite construction allows the device to achieve both mechanical strength from the rigid layer and flexibility from the flexible layer, resolving the contradiction between weight reduction and strength maintenance.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the substrate have different mechanical properties - the rigid substrate provides strength in areas requiring structural support, while the flexible substrate provides bendability in areas requiring flexibility. This local differentiation of material properties allows simultaneous optimization of both strength and portability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the substrate is made softer to improve flexibility and bendability, then the device can be bent more easily, but the mechanical strength and resistance to breaking deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite substrate where a flexible material (rubber or resin) is bonded to a rigid material (glass or plastic). The flexible substrate enables bendability while the rigid substrate provides mechanical strength, together resolving the contradiction between flexibility and strength.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible substrate is positioned in regions where bendability is needed, while the rigid substrate is positioned in regions where mechanical strength is required. This spatial differentiation of material properties allows the device to be both flexible and strong.
3Strength
If the substrate is made stiffer to improve mechanical strength, then the device becomes more reliable, but the flexibility and portability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a composite structure where a rigid substrate (providing strength) is bonded to a flexible substrate (providing flexibility). This allows the device to achieve both mechanical strength and flexibility, resolving the contradiction between reliability and portability.
Solution Approach 2:
The rigid substrate is positioned to provide mechanical strength and reliability, while the flexible substrate is positioned to maintain flexibility and portability. This local differentiation allows simultaneous optimization of both strength and adaptability.
4Reliability
If a rigid substrate is used to improve mechanical strength, then the device becomes more reliable, but the flexibility and ability to be bent deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite substrate structure where a rigid material (glass or plastic) is bonded to a flexible material (rubber or resin). The rigid layer ensures structural reliability while the flexible layer maintains bendability, resolving the contradiction between reliability and flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The rigid substrate is positioned in regions requiring structural reliability, while the flexible substrate is positioned in regions requiring bendability. This local differentiation of material properties allows the device to be both reliable and flexible.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides a highly portable, reliable, and low-power display device that can be repeatedly bent without breaking, by utilizing substrates with appropriate mechanical properties to distribute stress and maintain structural integrity.
Implementation Method 1
The third substrate and the fourth substrate are softer than the first substrate and the second substrate. The Young's modulus of the third substrate and the fourth substrate is smaller than the Young's modulus of the first substrate and the second substrate.
Data Source
AI summary
A display device, an electronic device, or a lighting device that is unlikely to be broken is provided. A flexible first substrate and a flexible second substrate overlap with each other with a display element provided therebetween. A flexible third substrate is bonded on the outer surface of the first substrate, and a flexible fourth substrate is bonded on the outer surface of the second substrate. The third substrate is formed using a material softer than the first substrate, and the fourth substrate is formed using a material softer than the second substrate.