LCD Panel Spacer Blocking Structure for Bright Spot Prevention

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Solution Overview

Problem

Liquid crystal display panels experience displacement between substrates under intense external forces, leading to spacers entering sub-pixel areas and causing alignment layer scratches, resulting in bright spots on the display.

Innovation Solution

Incorporating protrusion structures between spacers and sub-pixels to create a blocking and cushioning effect, ensuring the spacers do not invade the sub-pixel area, thereby preventing alignment layer scratches.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If spacers are arranged between substrates to maintain cell gap, then display uniformity is improved, but spacers may displace under intense external forces entering sub-pixel areas and causing alignment layer scratches

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecell gap uniformityVSAvoidspacer position stability
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

A blocking structure is introduced as an intermediary component between the spacer and the sub-pixel area. This blocking structure prevents the spacer from directly contacting or invading the sub-pixel area under external forces, while still allowing the spacer to perform its primary function of maintaining cell gap uniformity. The blocking structure acts as a mediator that decouples the spacer's displacement tendency from the sub-pixel area protection requirement.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The display panel structure is segmented into distinct functional zones: the spacer maintenance zone (for cell gap control), the blocking structure zone (for displacement prevention), and the sub-pixel protection zone (for alignment layer protection). This segmentation allows each component to optimize its specific function without interfering with others, resolving the contradiction between maintaining spacer position and preventing invasion into sub-pixel areas.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Reliability

If blocking structure is added to prevent spacer displacement, then alignment layer protection is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvealignment layer protectionVSAvoidstructure complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The blocking structure is merged with existing display panel components such as the light shielding matrix or color filter structures. By combining the blocking function with these existing structures, the patent avoids adding completely separate complex components. The blocking structure utilizes the same manufacturing processes and material deposition steps as existing panel layers, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity while still providing effective alignment layer protection.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentEP4375742B1Liquid crystal display panel and liquid crystal display device
Publication Date: 2026.01.14 BOE TECHNOLOGY GROUP CO LTD
  • EP4375742B1 patent drawingFigure 1a~1c
  • EP4375742B1 patent drawingFigure 2a
  • EP4375742B1 patent drawingFigure 2b

AI summary

The present disclosure provides a liquid crystal display panel and a liquid crystal display device. The liquid crystal display panel includes a plurality of sub-pixels (10) defined by a light shielding matrix (120), and an array substrate (11) and an opposing substrate (12) arranged to be spaced apart from each other. The opposing substrate (12) includes a first substrate (110a) and a plurality of spacers (121), wherein the spacers (121) are on a side of the first substrate (110a) close to the array substrate (11) and being within a light shielding area of the light shielding matrix (120). The array substrate (11) includes a second substrate (110b) and a plurality of protrusion structures (111), wherein the protrusion structures (111) are on a side of the second substrate (110b) close to the opposing substrate (12), and being within the light shielding area of the light shielding matrix (120). The plurality of protrusion structures (111) include a first protrusion structure (111a) and a second protrusion structure (111b), wherein orthographic projections of the first protrusion structure (111a) and the second protrusion structure (111b) on the second substrate (110b) is between an orthographic projection of the spacer (121) on the second substrate and an adjacent sub-pixel (10), and a minimum distance (S1) between the orthographic projection of the first protrusion structure (111a) on the second substrate (110b) and the orthographic projection of the spacer (121) on the second substrate (110b) is less than a minimum distance (S2) between the orthographic projection of the second protrusion structure (111b) on the second substrate (110b) and the orthographic projection of the spacer (121) on the second substrate (110b).