Flexible Device Support Body Oval Arc Cross Section
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing flexible devices with hinge structures suffer from damage due to concentrated loads at bent portions, leading to creases or tears, and are limited in folding direction and thickness variation, which complicates their use as support bodies for flexible displays.
Innovation Solution
A flexible device with a support body featuring a curved portion having an oval arc-shaped cross section, gently curved toward the flexible display, allowing the display to be laid across this surface, thereby reducing load concentration and enabling flexible bending without damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a hinge portion with bellows shape is used to enable gentle bending, then the flexible display can be bent at a gentle bending angle, but the structure becomes complicated and the flexible display can only be bent in a specific direction
Solution Approach 1:
The support body is divided into multiple core material portions arranged in a matrix, with covering sheet materials between them serving as hinges. This segmentation allows the structure to bend in multiple directions while maintaining simplicity, resolving the contradiction between bending capability and structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The covering sheet material serves dual functions: it covers the gaps between core material portions and acts as a hinge for bending in multiple directions. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate hinge components, reducing structural complexity while maintaining versatile bending capability.
2Length of moving object
If the support body is made thin and flexible to enable folding, then the device becomes more portable, but the load concentration at bent portions causes creases or tears in the flexible display
Solution Approach 1:
The core material portions are designed with different thicknesses - thicker at corners and edges for strength, and thinner in the center for flexibility. This local variation in thickness provides both the thinness needed for portability and the structural reinforcement needed to prevent display damage during bending.
Solution Approach 2:
The covering sheet materials are pre-positioned between core material portions to act as cushioning hinges before bending occurs. This beforehand preparation distributes the bending load evenly, preventing concentrated stress that would cause creases or tears in the flexible display.
3Ease of manufacture
If a simple board-shaped structure is used to reduce manufacturing complexity, then mass production becomes easier and cost decreases, but the structure cannot be folded in multiple directions and has limited versatility
Solution Approach 1:
The support body is segmented into multiple core material portions arranged in a matrix pattern. This segmentation maintains manufacturing simplicity while enabling the structure to fold in multiple directions, as each core material portion can move independently relative to others.
Solution Approach 2:
Covering sheet materials are introduced as intermediary elements between core material portions. These intermediaries serve as hinges that enable multi-directional folding while maintaining the simplicity of the overall board-shaped structure, thus preserving ease of manufacture while increasing versatility.
Data Source
AI summary
A flexible device includes a display portion including a flexible display and a support body. The support body includes at least one curved portion that includes a surface opposite from a laid surface of the flexible display, the surface being gently curved toward the laid surface of the flexible display, and that has an oval arc-shaped cross section. The flexible display is laid across the curved portion.