Flexible Display Screen Notches for Folding Reliability

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Solution Overview

Problem

Flexible display screens face stress concentration issues when non-luminous areas are repeatedly folded, leading to folding failures and other problems during use.

Innovation Solution

A flexible display screen design with notches in the non-luminous area to segment peripheral portions, allowing separate bending and reducing stress concentration, combined with a support component for folding, and integrated gate drive circuits to minimize border widths.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Area of stationary object

If the non-luminous area is bent to the back surface to reduce border size, then the screen-to-body ratio is improved, but stress concentration and folding failure occur

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvescreen-to-body ratioVSAvoidfolding reliability
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The non-luminous area is divided into multiple separate bending regions (first bending region, second bending region, third bending region) by introducing notches. This segmentation allows each region to bend independently to the back surface, distributing the stress that would otherwise concentrate in a single continuous bent area, thereby improving folding reliability while maintaining the reduced border size design.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Length of stationary object

If the non-luminous area is folded multiple times to achieve narrow borders, then the border width is reduced, but stress concentration increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveborder widthVSAvoidstress concentration
Core Design Contradiction:
Length of stationary objectVSStress or pressure

Solution Approach 1:

Notches are introduced to segment the non-luminous area into distinct bending regions that can be folded independently. This prevents stress from accumulating at any single fold location, as each segmented region bears a portion of the bending stress separately, thereby reducing overall stress concentration while achieving narrow border widths.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The notches create local structural differences in the non-luminous area, with specific regions designed to bend while others remain relatively stable. This local differentiation allows stress to be distributed across multiple locations rather than concentrated, enabling narrow borders without excessive stress at any single point.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

3Area of stationary object

If the non-luminous area is bent to the back surface, then the border size is reduced, but folding failure occurs

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveborder sizeVSAvoidstructural stability
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The non-luminous area is segmented into multiple independent bending regions separated by notches. This segmentation prevents the formation of large-scale folds that would compromise structural stability, as each small segmented region can bend independently without creating stress concentrations that lead to folding failure, thereby maintaining structural integrity while reducing border size.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP4027323B1Flexible display screen and display terminal
Publication Date: 2025.10.22 HUAWEI TECH CO LTD
  • EP4027323B1 patent drawingFigure 1a
  • EP4027323B1 patent drawingFigure 1b~2
  • EP4027323B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Embodiments of this application provide a flexible display screen and a display terminal, and relate to the field of display technologies, to reduce a probability that a stress concentration problem occurs because a non-luminous area of a display screen is folded a plurality of times. A back surface of the flexible display screen is connected to a first housing, a second housing, and a rotating shaft that are included by a support component. A part that is of the flexible display screen and that is connected to the rotating shaft is used as a first bent portion. The first bent portion is bent along an axis of the rotating shaft, to fold in half a part that is of the flexible display screen and that is separately connected to the first housing and the second housing. The flexible display screen includes a first peripheral portion and a second peripheral portion. The first peripheral portion and the second peripheral portion are in the non-luminous area, and are disposed side by side on a same side of a luminous area. A part that is of the first peripheral portion and that is bent to the back surface of the flexible display screen faces the first housing. A part that is of the second peripheral portion and that is bent to the back surface of the flexible display screen faces the second housing. A first notch is in the non-luminous area, disposed on a side of the first bent portion, and located between the first peripheral portion and the second peripheral portion.