Rolling Flexible Display Control for Closed-Cover Notifications
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic devices with covers face challenges in providing interaction and information when the cover is closed, as they cannot effectively display notifications or interact with peripheral devices like electronic pens or wireless earphones.
Innovation Solution
The electronic device includes a flexible display and a rolling actuator that expands or reduces the display in response to predetermined events, such as message reception or peripheral device interaction, allowing for the display of user interfaces on one surface even when the cover is closed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the cover is closed to protect the display, then the display is protected from external shocks and scratches, but the display cannot be seen and interaction is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The display is divided into a first display region (always visible) and a second display region (expandable when cover is closed). This segmentation allows the display to provide limited interaction when protected while enabling full interaction when expanded, resolving the contradiction between protection and usability.
Solution Approach 2:
The display transitions from a static fixed size to a dynamic expandable size. When the cover is closed, the display can be expanded to a larger second display region, allowing the system to adapt between protection mode and interaction mode dynamically.
2Area of stationary object
If the display size is increased to provide more information, then information display capability is improved, but the device size and portability are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The display size is made dynamic rather than fixed. The display can expand to a larger second display region when needed (e.g., when cover is closed) and return to its compact first display region when portability is prioritized, allowing the system to balance information display and portability based on usage context.
Solution Approach 2:
The expandable display region is nested within or adjacent to the main device body. The second display region can be extended from the first display region, allowing the display to grow when needed while maintaining a compact form factor when retracted, similar to a nested structure.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the display is expanded to enable interaction with peripheral devices, then interaction capability is improved, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The display and interaction capabilities are segmented into different operational modes. The first display region handles basic functions, while the expandable second display region handles peripheral device interactions, allowing complexity to be activated only when needed rather than being permanently present.
Solution Approach 2:
The expandable display region serves multiple functions: displaying additional information, enabling peripheral device interactions (electronic pens, wireless earphones), and providing notifications. This multi-functionality justifies the added structural complexity by consolidating multiple capabilities into a single expandable region.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic device is provided, which can include a flexible display, a rolling actuator for expanding or reducing the flexible display, a wireless communication circuit, and a processor. The processor can receive, via the wireless communication circuit, a message from an external device, and in response to receiving the message, drive the first rolling actuator, expand the flexible display by a first length in a first direction, and display a first UI including a plurality of content, in a first region of the flexible display expanded by the first length.