Flexible Display Mounting with Pre-Bent Support Structure

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Solution Overview

Problem

Flexible electronic components, such as displays, face strain issues when bent, leading to buckling or cracking due to the shift in the neutral plane when a support structure is attached, limiting their flexibility and making it difficult to achieve small bending radii without damage.

Innovation Solution

A flexible electronics assembly is created by bending the flexible electronics component and the support structure component to match a curved contour based on product flexibility requirements, allowing them to be adhered in a pre-defined strain distribution that prevents buckling or cracking, enabling flexibility beyond traditional limits.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If a support structure is attached to a flexible display in a flat state, then the display is mechanically supported and movement is guided, but the neutral plane shifts causing the minimum bending radius to increase and flexibility to be limited

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemechanical supportVSAvoidflexibility

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The support structure is pre-formed into a curved configuration matching the desired bending radius before attachment to the flexible display. This preliminary shaping ensures that when the components are joined, the neutral plane remains at the correct location, allowing the assembly to achieve small bending radii without shifting the neutral plane and maintaining both mechanical support and flexibility

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The support structure is formed with a curved geometry that matches the target bending radius of the flexible display. This curvature allows the assembly to bend to small radii while keeping the neutral plane in the optimal position, resolving the contradiction between providing mechanical support and maintaining flexibility

Inventive Principle:

Principle #14Spheroidality (Curvature)

2Adaptability or versatility

If a flexible display is bent to a high curvature, then the display can achieve small bending radii, but the strain causes brittle inorganic layers to buckle or crack

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvebending radiusVSAvoidstructural integrity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The support structure is designed with specific mechanical properties and a predetermined curvature radius that matches the desired bending radius of the flexible display. By controlling the curvature parameter and the support structure's mechanical characteristics, the strain on brittle layers is reduced to acceptable levels while achieving small bending radii, thus maintaining both adaptability and reliability

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS9642241B2Optimal mounting of a flexible display

Publication Date: 2017.05.02 USINVEST LLC

AI summary

A method for mounting a flexible electronics component to a support structure includes bending the flexible electronics component to be aligned with a curved contour. The curved contour is determined based on a flexibility requirement of a product in which the flexible electronics component is to be integrated and one or more flexibility constraints of the flexible electronics component. The method also includes bending the support structure to be aligned with the curved contour, and adhering the bent flexible electronics component to the bent support structure to produce a flexible electronics assembly.