Display on a stretchable substrate

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10373549-B2
Application number	US-201815922898-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 15, 2018
Priority date	Jun 6, 2016
Publication date	Aug 6, 2019
Grant date	Aug 6, 2019

Abstract

A display comprises a plurality of autonomous pixels on a stretchable substrate. Each autonomous pixel comprises a display element and a control element arranged to sense an external stimulus and to generate, entirely within the autonomous pixel, a control signal to drive the display element based, at least in part, on a magnitude of the sensed external stimulus. The stretchable substrate comprises a plurality of less elastic regions separated by stretchable areas, where the less elastic regions are less stretchable than the surrounding stretchable areas and each control element of an autonomous pixel is located in or on a less elastic region of the stretchable substrate.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A display comprising:
a plurality of autonomous pixels on a stretchable substrate, at least one of the plurality of pixels comprising:
a display element and
a control element arranged to sense an external stimulus and to generate a control signal to drive the display element based, at least in part, on a magnitude of the sensed external stimulus and the stretchable substrate comprising a plurality of less elastic regions separated by stretchable areas,
wherein the less elastic regions are less stretchable than the surrounding stretchable areas, and wherein the control element is located in or on one of the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

2. A display according to claim 1 , wherein the stretchable substrate comprises:
a uniformly stretchable layer; and
a layer of variable thickness attached to at least one face of the uniformly stretchable layer.

3. A display according to claim 2 , wherein the layer of variable thickness comprises regions of a first thickness separated by areas of a second thickness, wherein the first thickness is greater than the second thickness and the regions of the first thickness correspond to the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

4. A display according to claim 2 , wherein the layer of variable thickness comprises regions with no apertures separated by areas with one or more apertures, wherein the regions with the one or more apertures correspond to the stretchable areas of the stretchable substrate.

5. A display according to claim 1 , wherein the stretchable substrate comprises:
a uniformly stretchable layer; and
a layer of variable stretchiness formed from a plurality of different materials with different material properties.

6. A display according to claim 1 , wherein the stretchable substrate comprises regions of a first thickness separated by areas of a second thickness, wherein the first thickness is greater than the second thickness and the regions of the first thickness correspond to the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

7. A display according to claim 1 , wherein the stretchable substrate comprises:
a uniformly stretchable layer; and
a layer of material which changes stretchiness when exposed to heat, UV or light.

8. A display according to claim 1 , wherein the stretchable substrate is formed from a material which changes stretchiness when exposed to heat, UV or light.

9. A method of fabricating a display comprising a plurality of pixels, the method comprising:
forming a stretchable substrate comprising a plurality of less elastic regions separated by stretchable areas, wherein the less elastic regions are less stretchable than the surrounding stretchable areas; and
forming a plurality of pixels on the stretchable substrate, at least one of the plurality of pixels comprising a display element and a control element arranged to sense an external stimulus and to generate a control signal to drive the display element based, at least in part, on a magnitude of the sensed external stimulus and wherein the control element is located in or on one of the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

10. A method according to claim 9 , wherein forming a stretchable substrate comprises:
attaching a layer of variable thickness to at least one face of a uniformly stretchable layer.

11. A method according to claim 10 , wherein the layer of variable thickness comprises regions of a first thickness separated by areas of a second thickness, wherein the first thickness is greater than the second thickness and the regions of the first thickness correspond to the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

12. A method according to claim 10 , wherein the layer of variable thickness comprises regions with no apertures separated by areas with one or more apertures, wherein the regions with the one or more apertures correspond to the stretchable areas of the stretchable substrate.

13. A method according to claim 10 , wherein forming a stretchable substrate comprises:
selectively removing material from at least one face of a uniformly stretchable layer to form a layer of variable thickness comprising regions of a first thickness separated by areas of a second thickness, wherein the first thickness is greater than the second thickness and the regions of the first thickness correspond to the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

14. A method according to claim 10 , wherein forming a stretchable substrate comprises:
applying a layer of material to a uniformly stretchable layer, wherein the material changes stretchiness when exposed to heat, UV or light; and
selectively exposing regions of the material to form the less elastic regions separated by stretchable areas.

15. A method of fabricating a display comprising a plurality of pixels, the method comprising:
forming a plurality of pixels on a uniformly stretchable layer, at least one of the plurality of pixels comprising a display element and a control element arranged to sense an external stimulus and to generate a control signal to drive the display element based, at least in part, on a magnitude of the sensed external stimulus; and
adding material to or removing material from the uniformly stretchable layer to form a plurality of less elastic regions separated by stretchable areas, wherein the less elastic regions are less stretchable than the surrounding stretchable areas and wherein the control element is located in or on one of the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

16. A method according to claim 15 , wherein adding material to or removing material from the uniformly stretchable layer comprises:
attaching a layer of variable thickness to at least one face of a uniformly stretchable layer.

17. A method according to claim 16 , wherein the layer of variable thickness comprises regions of a first thickness separated by areas of a second thickness, wherein the first thickness is greater than the second thickness and the regions of the first thickness correspond to the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

18. A method according to claim 16 , wherein the layer of variable thickness comprises regions with no apertures separated by areas with one or more apertures, wherein the regions with the one or more apertures correspond to the stretchable areas of the stretchable substrate.

19. A method according to claim 15 , wherein adding material to or removing material from the uniformly stretchable layer comprises:
selectively removing material from at least one face of the uniformly stretchable layer to form a layer of variable thickness comprising regions of a first thickness separated by areas of a second thickness, wherein the first thickness is greater than the second thickness and the regions of the first thickness correspond to the less elastic regions of the stretchable substrate.

20. A method according to claim 15 , wherein adding material to or removing material from the uniformly stretchable layer comprises:
applying a layer of material to the uniformly stretchable layer, wherein the material changes stretchiness when exposed to heat, UV and/or light; and
selectively exposing regions of the material to form the less elastic regions separated by stretchable areas.

Assignees

• Microsoft Technology Licensing Llc

Inventors

• Hodges Stephen Edward
• Chen Nicholas Yen-Cherng
• Sweeney David
• Thieme Anja
• Grosse-Puppendahl Tobias
• Steiner Helene

Classifications

• H01L27/1446

  Electricity · mapped topic

• B32B2307/202

  Conductive · CPC title

• H01L31/14

  Electricity · mapped topic

• G06F1/1652 Primary

  the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable · CPC title

• B32B3/266

  characterised by an apertured layer, the apertures going through the whole thickness of the layer, e.g. expanded metal, perforated layer, slit layer regular cells B32B3/12 · CPC title