Guided Support Plates for Uniform Flexible Display Backing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing flexible displays, particularly rollable and wrappable types, face issues with unsupported areas in the open position, leading to potential damage from touch pressure and inconsistent touch feedback, which affects the display's lifetime and user experience.
Innovation Solution
A display system with a support frame comprising two main display supports and at least one additional support that moves between non-operational and support positions, ensuring the entire display surface is supported in the open position, using mechanisms like hinges, gears, and pre-tensioned foils to maintain a predefined curvature.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the flexible display is supported only by main display supports hinged to the support frame, then the device structure is simpler, but the flexible display cannot be reliably supported in the open position and may touch the user's hand causing discomfort
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure is segmented into multiple components: main display supports hinged to the support frame, additional display supports with central support plates and display support plates, and hinge covers. Each segment performs a specific function - the main supports provide primary structural support, while the additional supports with multiple plates provide secondary support and guidance, collectively ensuring reliable display support in the open position without requiring a monolithic complex structure
Solution Approach 2:
The hinge cover acts as an intermediary element between the main display supports and the additional display supports. It provides guidance through slots that constrain the movement of display support plates, and its portion placed inside the slots overlaps the main display supports to coordinate their interaction, ensuring smooth relative movement while maintaining reliable support
2Reliability
If additional display supports with multiple plates are added to support the flexible display in the open position, then the display support reliability is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The additional display support is divided into a central support plate and two hingeably connected display support plates, with each plate serving a specific function. The central support plate provides the base structure, while the display support plates extend to support the flexible display segment, creating a segmented support system that achieves reliable support through coordinated function of simpler individual components
Solution Approach 2:
The hinge cover is configured to cover the central support plate, and in the open position, a portion of the hinge cover is placed inside the slots and overlaps the main display supports. This nesting arrangement allows the hinge cover to provide guidance and coordination functions while being integrated within the existing support structure, adding functionality without proportionally increasing overall complexity
3Ease of operation
If the hinge cover is configured to cover the central support plate and guide movement through slots, then the ease of operation is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The hinge cover serves as a mediating structure that provides guidance through its slots for the display support plates to move through. This intermediary guidance mechanism ensures smooth and controlled opening and closing movements of the flexible display, coordinating the interaction between the main display supports and additional display supports without requiring complex control systems
Solution Approach 2:
The hinge cover and display support plates are designed to move relative to each other dynamically during opening and closing operations. The slots in the hinge cover guide the movement of the display support plates, allowing the structure to adapt its configuration smoothly as the flexible display transitions between open and closed positions, improving ease of operation through dynamic adjustment
Data Source
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Figure 2c~2e
AI summary
A display system comprising a continuous flexible display, a support frame, an additional display support, two slots and a hinge cover. The support frame comprises two main display supports being hinged with respect to each other and each structurally configured to support a respective portion of the flexible display. The additional display support comprises a central support plate and two hingeably connected display support plates and configured to support substantially a display segment located between the said respective portions of the flexible display in the open position. The two slots are configured to guide the movement of the display support plates. The hinge cover is configured to cover the central support plate. In the open position, a portion of the hinge cover is placed inside the two slots and overlaps the main display supports. In the storage position, the hinge cover is exposed form the main display supports.