Optical Substrates with Structured Surfaces for Brightness and Diffusion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing optical substrates for LCDs face challenges in achieving effective brightness enhancement and diffusion while minimizing power consumption, thickness, and weight, often resulting in reduced brightness and increased manufacturing costs due to complex structures that introduce optical defects like interference fringes and rainbow effects.
Innovation Solution
A diffused prism substrate with a structured prismatic surface and an opposing structured lenticular surface, featuring shallow-curved lens structures and isolated ripples, which collimate and diffuse light to enhance luminance and reduce optical defects without significantly reducing brightness, and incorporates a method of forming uneven structures on the substrate using a mold with overlapping trenches to emboss a thin film.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If complex structured surfaces are used to achieve brightness enhancement and diffusion, then light distribution is improved, but manufacturing complexity and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple optical functions (brightness enhancement, diffusion, and light redirection) into a single integrated optical substrate with a unified structured surface, eliminating the need for separate brightness enhancement films and diffuser films. This merging reduces the total number of components and simplifies the overall structure while maintaining effective light distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
The optical substrate is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: it enhances brightness through its structured surface, provides light diffusion, and redirects light along the normal to the surface. This multi-functionality is achieved through a single component with carefully engineered surface features, reducing the need for multiple specialized components.
2Illumination intensity
If multiple optical films are stacked to achieve brightness enhancement and diffusion, then light distribution is improved, but thickness and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the functions of multiple optical films (brightness enhancement film, diffuser film, and light redirecting film) into a single optical substrate. This consolidation reduces the total thickness of the optical path while maintaining the desired light distribution characteristics through integrated surface structuring.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of adding more layers in the thickness dimension, the patent achieves enhanced light distribution by engineering the surface geometry of a single substrate. The structured surface features (prisms, lenses, or other geometries) perform the optical functions that would otherwise require multiple stacked films, effectively moving the solution from a vertical stacking approach to a surface geometry approach.
3Illumination intensity
If glossy surfaces are used for brightness enhancement, then light collimation is improved, but optical defects like interference fringes and rainbow effects increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different surface characteristics to different regions or aspects of the optical substrate. The structured surface features (such as prisms or lenses) are designed with specific local geometries that provide light collimation while their configured arrangements and surface profiles are optimized to minimize interference fringes and rainbow effects. The surface structure is locally engineered to balance collimation benefits with defect minimization.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent modifies key parameters of the surface structure, such as the geometry, pitch, height, and material properties, to optimize the balance between light collimation and optical defect minimization. By carefully controlling these parameters, the structured surface achieves effective light redirection while reducing the visibility of interference fringes and rainbow effects.
4Illumination intensity
If more optical films are used to achieve effective diffusion, then light distribution uniformity is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the diffusion function with the brightness enhancement function in a single optical substrate, eliminating the need for separate diffuser films and brightness enhancement films. This integration reduces the number of alignment interfaces and simplifies manufacturing, as only one substrate needs to be manufactured and installed rather than multiple precisely aligned films.
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 enhances brightness and diffusion, reduces optical defects such as interference fringes and rainbow effects, and maintains overall brightness, while also minimizing manufacturing complexity and costs by using a simpler structure with low refractive index resin and controlled shrinkage rates for the substrate layers.
Implementation Method 1
The structured lenticular surface includes shallow-curved lens structure... which collimate and diffuse light
Implementation Method 2
light diffusion structures... that diffuse light from the planar surface
Implementation Method 3
brightness enhancement films use longitudinal prismatic structures to direct light along the viewing axes
Implementation Method 4
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
Data Source
AI summary
This invention discloses a method of forming an uneven structure on a substrate. Cut a plurality of trenches in an order on a surface of a mold through a control system, wherein the plurality of trenches comprise at least one first trench, wherein for any second trench of the at least one first trench, the second trench overlaps with at least one third trench different from the second trench such that the second trench is cut off by the at least one third trench. Use the surface of the mold to emboss a thin film on the substrate to form the uneven structure.