Foldable Substrate with Segmented Glass and Organic Hinges
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current flexible display devices face challenges with substrates that are either not foldable, like thin glass substrates, or lack stability and mechanical strength, such as plastic substrates, leading to complex manufacturing processes and increased costs.
Innovation Solution
A foldable substrate is designed with a combination of rigid supporting portions made of glass and a flexible foldable portion made of organic materials like polyethylene naphthalene, polyethylene terephthalate, or polyimide, which allows for both rigidity and foldability by connecting glass substrates with an organic material, preventing deformation during manufacturing and enabling bending and folding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a thin glass substrate is used, then rigidity is improved, but foldability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The substrate is divided into multiple rigid supporting portions separated by flexible foldable portions. This segmentation allows different regions to have different functions: rigid portions provide structural support while flexible portions enable folding, thus resolving the contradiction between rigidity and foldability.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the substrate are assigned different material properties. The rigid supporting portions use glass or other rigid materials for strength, while the foldable portions use flexible materials for bendability. This local differentiation allows the overall substrate to possess both rigidity and foldability simultaneously.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a plastic substrate is used, then foldability is improved, but mechanical strength and stability deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The substrate structure is segmented into rigid supporting portions and flexible foldable portions. The rigid portions compensate for the weak mechanical strength of plastic, while the flexible portions maintain foldability. This segmentation allows the composite structure to overcome the limitations of pure plastic substrates.
Solution Approach 2:
The substrate combines rigid materials (glass, metal, or rigid plastic) with flexible materials (flexible plastic or polymer) to create a composite structure. This composite approach integrates the advantages of both material types: rigidity and strength from the rigid portions, and flexibility and foldability from the flexible portions.
3Ease of manufacture
If a plastic substrate is used, then ease of manufacturing is improved, but product stability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The substrate is segmented into rigid supporting portions and flexible foldable portions that can be manufactured separately and then assembled. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining ease of manufacturing through modular construction, and the final assembled structure achieves high stability.
4Reliability
If a glass substrate is used as carrier, then product stability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the functions of the carrier substrate and the display substrate into a single integrated foldable substrate structure. The rigid supporting portions provide the stability previously requiring a separate glass carrier, while the flexible foldable portions enable folding functionality. This merging eliminates the need for separate carrier substrates and complex separation processes, reducing device complexity while maintaining stability.
Data Source
AI summary
A foldable substrate, a method for forming the same, and a flexible display device are provided. The foldable substrate includes a plurality of rigid supporting portions separated from each other, every two of which are not in contact with each other, and a flexible foldable portion connecting two adjacent rigid supporting portions of the plurality of rigid supporting portions.