Flexible Display Cover Structure Coplanar Window for Durability
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional display devices lack durability and thickness reduction, especially in flexible and foldable or rollable configurations, which affect portability and user convenience.
Innovation Solution
A flexible display device design incorporating a display panel with a window structure, a printed circuit board, a flexible circuit board, and a cover structure made of metallic materials, along with a supporting structure and reinforcing members, including a silicon-based material, to enhance durability and reduce thickness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of stationary object
If a flexible display device is designed to be thin, then portability and user convenience are improved, but durability is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs multiple protective layers including a window structure, cover structure, and supporting structure made of different materials (glass, metal, polymer) to create a composite protective system. This allows the display device to maintain thinness while achieving sufficient durability through the combined properties of different materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective structure is divided into multiple functional segments: window structure for the display area, cover structure for peripheral protection, and supporting structure for structural reinforcement. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall thinness.
2Reliability
If the display device structure is reinforced to improve durability, then reliability is improved, but thickness increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes flexible protective films and thin-shell structures that provide durability without adding significant thickness. The window structure, cover structure, and supporting structure are designed as thin protective layers that maintain flexibility while providing necessary protection.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces traditional thick mechanical reinforcement structures with alternative solutions such as optimized structural arrangements and material properties that provide equivalent or superior durability with reduced thickness.
3Reliability
If a cover structure is added to protect the flexible circuit board, then durability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates the cover structure with the window structure and supporting structure to form a unified protective system. This merging reduces the number of separate components and simplifies the overall structure while maintaining comprehensive protection for the flexible circuit board and other internal components.
Solution Approach 2:
The cover structure serves multiple functions: protecting the flexible circuit board, providing structural support, and contributing to the overall aesthetic design. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional dedicated protective components, thereby simplifying the device structure.
Data Source
AI summary
According to some example embodiments of the present invention, a display device includes: a display panel, the display panel being flexible and including an active region for displaying an image, and a peripheral region outside the active region when viewed in a plan view; a window structure on the display panel; a printed circuit board electrically connected to the display panel; a flexible circuit board connecting the display panel to the printed circuit board; and a cover structure adjacent to the window structure, when viewed in the plan view, wherein the cover structure includes: a cover portion overlapped with the flexible circuit board, when viewed in the plan view; and a sidewall portion extending downwardly from the cover portion, and the cover portion has a bottom surface that is coplanar with a bottom surface of the window structure.