Optical Substrate with Prismatic and Lenticular Surfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing optical substrates for LCDs face challenges in enhancing brightness while minimizing power consumption, thickness, and weight, while also reducing undesirable optical effects like interference fringes and cutoff effects, and are often complex and costly to manufacture.
Innovation Solution
A diffused prism substrate with both light-collimating and light-diffusing functions, featuring a structured prismatic surface and an opposing lenticular surface, including shallow-curved lens structures and ripples, which reduces interference fringes and maintains brightness by collimating and diffusing light effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If multiple optical films are used to enhance brightness and diffuse light, then brightness enhancement and diffusion performance are improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the functions of multiple separate optical films (brightness enhancement film and diffuser film) into a single integrated optical substrate. This substrate includes a first surface with prismatic structures for brightness enhancement and a second surface with diffusion structures for light diffusion, eliminating the need for separate film layers while maintaining both functions
Solution Approach 2:
The optical substrate is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it enhances brightness through its prismatic first surface while also providing light diffusion through its structured second surface. This multi-functional design replaces what would traditionally require separate dedicated films for each function
2Illumination intensity
If glossy surfaces are used for brightness enhancement, then light collimation and brightness are improved, but interference fringes and optical artifacts increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent addresses the harmful interference fringes caused by glossy surfaces by introducing diffusion structures on the second surface. These diffusion structures scatter light in a controlled manner, converting the harmful interference patterns into beneficial uniform light distribution, thereby eliminating visible artifacts while preserving brightness enhancement
3Stability of the object's composition
If multiple optical films are used to achieve uniform light distribution, then light uniformity is improved, but thickness and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the light uniformity function traditionally achieved by multiple separate diffuser films into a single integrated optical substrate. The diffusion structures incorporated into the second surface of the substrate achieve uniform light distribution that would otherwise require additional film layers, thereby reducing overall thickness
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively reduces interference fringes and maintains brightness, achieving a more uniform light distribution without significant reduction in overall brightness, while also simplifying the manufacturing process and reducing the number of optical films needed.
Implementation Method 1
The optical substrates 26 and 28 are often referred in the art as luminance or brightness enhancement films, light redirecting films, and directional diffusing films. The light entering the LC module 12 through such a combination of optical films is uniform spatially over the planar area of the LC module 12 and has relatively strong normal light intensity.
Implementation Method 2
The optical films further includes upper and lower structured surface, optical substrates 26 and 28, which redistribute the light passing through such that the distribution of the light exiting the films is directed more along the normal to the surface of the films.
Data Source
AI summary
An optical substrate having a structured prismatic surface and an opposing structured lenticular surface. The structured lenticular surface includes shallow-curved lens structures. Adjacent shallow-curved lens structure may be continuous or contiguous, or separated by a constant or variable spacing. The lens structure may have a longitudinal structure with a uniform or varying cross section. The lenticular lenses may have a laterally meandering structure. Sections of adjacent straight or meandering lenticular lenses may intersect or partially or completely overlap each other. The lenticular lenses may be in the form of discontinuous lenticular segments. The lenticular segments may have regular, symmetrical shapes, or irregular, asymmetrical shapes, which may be intersecting or overlapping, and may be textured. The lens structure may be provided with isolated ripples, in the form of a single knot, or a series of knots.