Foldable Display Device with Segmented Housings for Partial Screen Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
Foldable display devices require users to fully open the screen for viewing, making them cumbersome and inconvenient, especially when only a portion of the screen needs to be accessed.
Innovation Solution
An electronic device with a continuous and flexible display panel, housed in three interconnected sections, allows for full screen exposure when hinges are open and partial screen exposure when hinges are set to specific states, enabling users to view only the necessary portion without fully opening the device.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the display device is designed as a foldable screen that requires full opening for viewing, then the display can be compact when closed, but the operation becomes cumbersome when only partial screen access is needed
Solution Approach 1:
The display device is divided into three separate housings (first housing, second housing, third housing) that can be independently positioned. The display panel is segmented across these housings, allowing the third housing to be separated from the first and second housings. This segmentation enables partial screen exposure where only the necessary portion (on the first and second housings) needs to be opened, while the third housing can remain closed or positioned separately, thus resolving the contradiction between compact storage and convenient partial access.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the third housing is made larger to provide more display area, then the display versatility is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hinges connecting the housings are designed to allow multiple positional states (open, closed, and intermediate positions). The third housing can be dynamically positioned at different angles or completely separated from the first and second housings. This dynamic positioning capability provides versatility in display configuration without requiring a permanently complex structure, as the complexity is only activated when needed for specific display modes.
Data Source
AI summary
An OLED panel is provided such that a rear face thereof faces upper faces of first to third housings. The first to third housings are disposed side-by-side in a first direction, exposing a display face in its entirety, in a case that a first hinge and a second hinge are set to open states. The third housing is larger in size in the first direction than the first housing and the second housing. The display face is partially exposed in a case that the first hinge and the second hinge are set to a closed state and an open state, respectively.