Transparent Display with Electrochromic Layers for Dynamic Transparency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional displays lack the ability to adjust transparency dynamically, limiting their versatility in presentation and user interaction, especially when used in convertible devices or multi-sided applications.
Innovation Solution
A transparent display system incorporating adjustable transparency layers and a transparent display layer, controlled by a display controller that determines settings based on user input and environmental characteristics to enable viewing from multiple sides and adjust opacity/transparency accordingly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If conventional displays are used, then display functionality is provided, but transparency cannot be adjusted dynamically
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies electrochromic layers that can dynamically change their optical properties (from transparent to opaque) in response to electrical signals. This allows the display to adapt its transparency state based on viewing conditions, user preferences, or environmental factors, directly resolving the contradiction between fixed conventional displays and the need for dynamic transparency adjustment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the optical parameters of the display by incorporating electrochromic layers that alter their light transmission properties. By controlling the electrochromic state (transparent or opaque), the display can adjust its transparency parameter dynamically without fundamentally changing its structural complexity, as the same layers serve multiple optical states.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple displays are used for multi-sided viewing, then viewing from multiple sides is enabled, but device thickness increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a single display structure with electrochromic layers that can dynamically switch between transparent and opaque states. By controlling which regions are transparent or opaque, the display can present content viewable from different sides sequentially or simultaneously, eliminating the need for multiple physical displays and thereby reducing overall device thickness.
Solution Approach 2:
The single display structure serves multiple functions: it can display content viewable from the front, content viewable from the back, or remain transparent to allow viewing through it. The electrochromic layers enable this multi-functionality by adjusting their optical properties, allowing one display to replace what would traditionally require multiple displays, thus reducing thickness.
3Adaptability or versatility
If transparency is increased for viewing through display, then viewing through display is enabled, but display clarity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs electrochromic layers that can dynamically adjust their transparency state. When full clarity is needed, the display maintains its opaque state for optimal image quality. When viewing through capability is required, the electrochromic layers transition to a transparent state. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize between clarity and transparency based on current operational requirements, rather than being fixed in one state.
Solution Approach 2:
The display can apply different transparency states to different regions or layers locally. The electrochromic layers can be controlled to achieve partial transparency or selective transparency, allowing content to be viewable through the display in certain areas while maintaining clarity in other areas, thus balancing both requirements.
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
Enables enhanced clarity and versatility in presentations by allowing viewing from either side of the display, facilitating convertible device functionality and multi-sided applications while maintaining a thinner profile compared to traditional methods.
Implementation Method 1
An electrochromic layer may be included in the display. The electrochromic layer may be set to a first state, a second state opposite the first state, or any state between the first state and the second state based on a setting of the display.
Data Source
AI summary
In some examples, a portable computing device comprises a keyboard and a lid coupled to the keyboard, the lid having a first side and a second side opposing the first side. The device also comprises a first adjustable transparency layer on the first side of the lid, the first adjustable transparency layer to be transparent in response to the lid being in a first position relative to the keyboard and to be opaque in response to the lid being in a second position relative to the keyboard. The device further includes a second adjustable transparency layer on the second side of the lid, the second adjustable transparency layer to be opaque in response to the lid being in the first position and to be transparent in response to the lid being in the second position. The device also comprises a transparent display layer positioned between the first adjustable transparency layer and the second adjustable transparency layer.