Display device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11140790-B2
Application number	US-201916382811-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 12, 2019
Priority date	Aug 20, 2018
Publication date	Oct 5, 2021
Grant date	Oct 5, 2021

Abstract

A display device includes a first guide member extending in a first direction, a second guide member extending in the first direction and facing the first guide member in a second direction crossing the first direction, a display panel disposed between the first guide member and the second guide member, a support member which supports a portion of the display panel, a first driving unit which moves the support member, and a second driving unit connected to one end of the display panel to roll or unroll the display panel. Both sides of the support member are inserted into guide grooves defined in an inner side surface of the first guide member and an inner side surface of the second guide member, which faces the inner side surface of the first guide member, and the support member moves along the guide grooves.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A display device comprising:
a first guide member extending in a first direction;
a second guide member extending in the first direction and facing the first guide member in a second direction crossing the first direction;
a display panel disposed between the first guide member and the second guide member, the display panel defined by an upper major surface plane and a lower major surface plane and a length of both the upper and lower major surface planes extend from a first end to an opposite second end;
a support member which supports an unrolled portion of the display panel and is separated from a rolled portion of the display panel;
a first driving unit which moves the support member; and
a second driving unit connected to one end of the display panel to roll or unroll the display panel,
wherein
both sides of the support member are inserted into guide grooves defined in an inner side surface of the first guide member and an inner side surface of the second guide member, which faces the inner side surface of the first guide member,
the support member moves along the guide grooves, and
the first driving unit and the second driving unit are both located under the lower major surface plane and at the second end of the display panel in a top plan view.

2. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the first and second driving units are arranged in the first direction, extend in the second direction, and connected to the first and second guide members.

3. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the first and second driving units rotate in a same direction with respect to a rotation axis substantially parallel to the second direction.

4. The display device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a third guide member extending in the second direction and connected to one end of the first guide member and one end of the second guide member; and
a fourth guide member extending in the second direction and connected to the other end of the first guide member and the other end of the second guide member,
wherein the second driving unit is disposed closer to the fourth guide member than the first driving unit is,
the display panel connected to the second driving unit extends toward the third guide member, and
the guide groove extends from an area adjacent to the first driving unit to the third guide member.

5. The display device of claim 4 , wherein the display panel comprises:
a first portion which moves along the first and second guide members and is exposed to an outside; and
a second portion extending from the first portion, not exposed to the outside, and rolled on the second driving unit,
wherein the support member is disposed under the first portion to support the first portion and separated from the second portion.

6. The display device of claim 5 , further comprising:
a window disposed on the first portion, wherein the window contacts the first portion of the display panel and is spaced apart from the second portion of the display panel; and
a third driving unit connected to one end of the window spaced apart from the second portion to roll a portion of the window, which is spaced apart from the second portion,
wherein the first, second and third driving units are arranged in the first direction, extend in the second direction, and rotate in a same direction as each other with respect to a rotation axis substantially parallel to the second direction, and
the third driving unit is disposed closer to the fourth guide member than the second driving unit is.

7. The display device of claim 6 , further comprising:
a coupling portion which fixes the other end of the display panel, the other end of the window, and an end of the support member overlapping the other end of the display panel to each other and moves along the first and second guide members.

8. The display device of claim 6 , further comprising:
a functional layer disposed on each of an upper surface of the display panel and a lower surface of the window, which faces the upper surface of the display panel.

9. The display device of claim 8 , wherein the functional layer comprises a fluorine.

10. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the guide groove comprises:
a first extension portion extending in the first direction;
a second extension portion disposed under the first extension portion, extending in the first direction, and having a length smaller than a length of the first extension portion;
a third extension portion extending in the first direction, having a length smaller than the length of the first extension portion, and disposed between the first extension portion and the second extension portion;
a first curved portion extending from one end of the first extension portion to one end of the second extension portion in a curved shape; and
a second curved portion extending from the other end of the second extension portion to the other end of the third extension portion, which is opposite to one end of the third extension portion, in a curved shape,
the one end of each of the first, second, and third extension portions is disposed adjacent to the first driving unit,
a direction in which the first curved portion is curved is opposite to a direction in which the second curved portion is curved, and
the first driving unit is disposed adjacent to the first curved portion.

11. The display device of claim 10 , wherein the support member comprises a plurality of joint units which extends in the second direction, is arranged in the first direction, and is coupled to each other to rotate.

12. The display device of claim 11 , further comprising:
a magnetic layer disposed on a lower surface of the display panel and a surface of the joint units.

13. The display device of claim 12 , wherein the magnetic layer comprises a ferrite or a rare earth element.

14. The display device of claim 11 , wherein the first driving unit comprises:
a rotation axis unit extending in the second direction; and
a gear unit disposed on an outer circumferential surface of a predetermined portion of the rotation axis unit,
wherein an opening is defined in each of a predetermined number of joint units among the joint units, and
a protrusion of the gear unit is inserted into the opening defined in a joint unit of the predetermined number of joint units, which is in the first curved portion.

15. The display device of claim 14 , wherein a width of the protrusion of the gear unit, which is defined in the first direction, is smaller than a width of the opening defined in the first direction.

16. The display device of claim 14 , wherein each of the joint units comprises:
a body portion extending in the second direction;
a first protrusion portion protruded from one end of the body portion to the first direction;
a second protrusion portion protruded from an upper end of the other end of the body portion to the first direction;
a third protrusion portion protruded from a lower end of the other end of the body portion to the first direction; and
a groove portion defined between the second protrusion portion and the third protrusion portion,
wherein the first protrusion portion of an h-th joint unit is inserted into the groove portion of an (h+1)-th joint unit, wherein h is a natural number, and
the opening is defined in each of the predetermined number of joint units as extending from a predetermined portion of the body portion thereof to an end of the first protrusion portion thereof in the first direction.

17. The display device of claim 16 , wherein a width of the second protrusi

Assignees

• Samsung Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kim Taewoong
• Koo Hyunwoo
• Kim Hyungsik
• Kim Jeongho
• Choi Jinhwan

Classifications

• H04M1/0268

  including a flexible display panel · CPC title

• H10K59/87

  Passivation; Containers; Encapsulations · CPC title

• G06F1/1652 Primary

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

• Y02E10/549

  Organic PV cells · CPC title

• H04M1/0237

  Sliding mechanism with one degree of freedom · CPC title