Light controlling device, transparent display device including the same, and method for fabricating the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10126583-B2
Application number	US-201514984852-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2015
Priority date	Oct 6, 2015
Publication date	Nov 13, 2018
Grant date	Nov 13, 2018

Abstract

Embodiments relate to transparent display apparatus including a transparent display panel. The transparent display panel includes a plurality of transmissive areas transmitting incident light and a plurality of emissive areas emitting light and a light control device disposed on one surface of the transparent display panel to execute a transmissive mode, where incident light is transmitted, and a light shield mode where incident light is blocked. The light control device includes a first substrate and a second substrate facing each other, a liquid crystal cell provided between the first substrate and the second substrate, and a partition wall maintaining a cell gap of the liquid crystal cell. The partition wall has a honeycomb structure, and a plurality of column spacers are disposed between partition walls.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A transparent display apparatus comprising:
a transparent display panel including a plurality of transmissive areas transmitting incident light and a plurality of emissive areas configured to emit light through a first surface of the transparent display panel; and
a light control device bonded to a second surface of the transparent display panel at an opposite side of the first surface, comprising:
a first substrate,
a second substrate parallel to the first substrate,
a first electrode on the first substrate facing the second substrate,
a second electrode on the second substrate facing the first substrate,
partitioning walls on the first electrode and attached to the second electrode, the partitioning walls configured to partition space between the first electrode and the second electrode,
a first adhesive layer attaching the partitioning walls to the second electrode, and
liquid crystal in the partitioned space between the partitioning walls; and

a second adhesive layer between the second surface of the transparent display panel and the light control device, wherein the second adhesive layer has a refractive index of 1.4 to 1.9.

2. The transparent display apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of column spacers in the partitioned space and separated from the partitioning walls, each of the plurality of column spacer between the first electrode and the second electrode to maintain a distance between the first electrode and the second electrode, wherein each of the plurality of column spacers is pillar shaped with a circular cross-section across a plane parallel to the surfaces of the first and second substrates, the plurality of column spacers separated from each other.

3. The transparent display apparatus of claim 2 , wherein each of the column spacers is separated from the partitioning walls by at least a predetermined distance.

4. The transparent display apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the column spacers in the partitioned space are separated by a predetermined interval.

5. The transparent display apparatus of claim 2 , wherein column spacers adjacent to each of the partitioning walls are separated from each of the partitioning wall by a same distance.

6. The transparent display apparatus of claim 2 , wherein an area of the partitioning walls and the plurality of column spacers is 1% to 2% of an area of a layer of the liquid crystal.

7. The transparent display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein a set of the partitioning walls form a regular convex polygon shape.

8. The transparent display apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the regular convex polygon shape is a hexagon.

9. The transparent display apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the partitioning walls form a honeycomb shape.

10. The transparent display apparatus of claim 8 , wherein at least one of the set of partitioning wall is separated from another partitioning wall of the set of partitioning wall.

11. The transparent display apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a first alignment layer on the first electrode and on the partitioning walls; and
a second alignment layer on the second electrode, the second alignment layer attached to portions of the first alignment layer on the partitioning walls.

12. The transparent display apparatus of claim 11 , wherein a first width of a portion of each of the partitioning walls abutting the second alignment layer is larger than a second width of a portion of each of the partitioning walls abutting the first electrode.

13. The transparent display apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising dichroic dye in the partitioned space.

14. The transparent display apparatus of claim 13 , further comprising (i) ion material in the partitioned space for moving the dichroic dye and the liquid crystal in response to applying voltage across the first and second electrodes or (ii) polymer network.

15. The transparent display apparatus of claim 14 , further comprising light activated monomer in the partitioned space.

16. A method of manufacturing a transparent display apparatus, comprising:
forming a transparent display panel including a plurality of transmissive areas transmitting incident light through a first surface of the transparent display panel and a plurality of emissive areas emitting light;
forming a first electrode on a surface of a first substrate;
forming a second electrode on a surface of a second substrate;
forming a plurality of partitioning walls on the first electrode between the first electrode and the second electrode to partition space between the first electrode and the second electrode;
forming a plurality of column spacers directly on the first electrode and extending towards the second electrode in the partitioned space to maintain distance between the first electrode and the second electrode, the column spacers separated from the partitioning walls;
filling liquid crystal materials comprising liquid crystal in the partitioned space between the partitioning walls to fabricate a light control device;
bonding the partitioning walls to the second electrode by a first adhesive layer; and
bonding the light control device to a second surface of the transparent display panel at an opposite side of the first surface using a second adhesive layer having a refractive index of 1.4 to 1.9.

17. The method of claim 16 , further comprising wherein each of the plurality of column spacers is pillar shaped with a circular cross-section across a plane parallel to the surfaces of the first and second substrates, the plurality of column spacers separated from each other.

18. The method of claim 16 , wherein a set of the partitioning walls form a honeycomb shape.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein at least one of the set of partitioning wall is separated from another of the set of partitioning wall.

20. The method of claim 16 , further comprising:
forming a first alignment layer on the first electrode and on the partitioning walls; and
forming a second alignment layer on the second electrode, the second alignment layer attached to portions of the first alignment layer on the partitioning walls.

21. The method of claim 16 , wherein the liquid crystal materials comprise dichroic dye.

22. The method of claim 21 , wherein the liquid crystal materials further comprise at least one of (i) ion material for moving the dichroic dye and the liquid crystal in response to applying voltage across the first and second electrodes or (ii) polymer network.

Assignees

• Lg Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Park Sunyoung
• Ahn Jiyoung

Classifications

• G02F1/13394 Primary

  spacers regularly patterned on the cell subtrate, e.g. walls, pillars (G02F1/133377 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G02F1/134309

  characterised by their geometrical arrangement · CPC title

• G02F1/1337

  Surface-induced orientation of the liquid crystal molecules, e.g. by alignment layers · CPC title

• G02F1/1375

  using dynamic scattering · CPC title

• G02F2201/14

  asymmetric · CPC title