Liquid crystal cell, method of driving liquid crystal cell, and liquid-crystal-based spectacle lens

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11366340-B2
Application number	US-201816473460-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 19, 2018
Priority date	Mar 19, 2018
Publication date	Jun 21, 2022
Grant date	Jun 21, 2022

Abstract

A liquid crystal cell, a method of driving a liquid crystal cell, and a liquid-crystal-based spectacle lens are provided. The liquid crystal cell includes: a ring-like electrode layer, a liquid crystal layer, and an opposite electrode layer. The second ring-like electrode region is concentric with the first ring-like electrode region and surrounds the first ring-like electrode region; the first ring-like electrode region is configured to drive corresponding liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer, so as to form a first Fresnel zone plate region in the liquid crystal cell; the second ring-like electrode region is configured to drive corresponding liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer, so as to form a second Fresnel zone plate region of the liquid crystal cell; an order of the second Fresnel zone plate region is smaller than an order of the first Fresnel zone plate region.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A liquid crystal cell, comprising: a ring-like electrode layer, a liquid crystal layer, and an opposite electrode layer,
wherein the liquid crystal layer is between the ring-like electrode layer and the opposite electrode layer;
the ring-like electrode layer comprises a first ring-like electrode region and a second ring-like electrode region, and the second ring-like electrode region is concentric with the first ring-like electrode region and surrounds the first ring-like electrode region;
the first ring-like electrode region is configured to drive corresponding liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer, so as to form a first Fresnel zone plate region of the liquid crystal cell;
the second ring-like electrode region is configured to drive corresponding liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer, so as to form a second Fresnel zone plate region of the liquid crystal cell; and
an order of the second Fresnel zone plate region is smaller than an order of the first Fresnel zone plate region,
the liquid crystal cell further comprises a third Fresnel zone plate region,
wherein the third Fresnel zone plate region is concentric with the first Fresnel zone plate region and surrounds the first Fresnel zone plate region;
the second Fresnel zone plate region surrounds the third Fresnel zone plate region; and
an order of the third Fresnel zone plate region is smaller than the order of the first Fresnel zone plate region and is greater than the order of the second Fresnel zone plate region, or
an order of the third Fresnel zone plate region is equal to the order of the first Fresnel zone plate region or the order of the second Fresnel zone plate region;
the liquid crystal cell further comprises a fourth Fresnel zone plate region,
wherein the fourth Fresnel zone plate region is concentric with the third Fresnel zone plate region and surrounds the third Fresnel zone plate region, and the second Fresnel zone plate region surrounds the fourth Fresnel zone plate region; and
the order of the third Fresnel zone plate region is equal to the order of the first Fresnel zone plate region, and an order of the fourth Fresnel zone plate region is equal to the order of the second Fresnel zone plate region,
wherein the ring-like electrode layer comprises a plurality of ring-like electrodes arranged outward from a center of the ring-like electrode layer along a radial direction of the ring-like electrode layer, the ring-like electrode layer further comprises a third ring-like electrode region and a fourth ring-like electrode region,
an amount of ring-like electrodes in the third ring-like electrode region is equal to the order of the third Fresnel zone plate region, and an amount of ring-like electrodes in the fourth ring-like electrode region is equal to the order of the fourth Fresnel zone plate region.

2. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 1 , wherein the ring-like electrode layer comprises a plurality of ring-like electrodes arranged outward from a center of the ring-like electrode layer along a radial direction of the ring-like electrode layer; and
an amount of ring-like electrodes in the first ring-like electrode region is greater than an amount of ring-like electrodes in the second ring-like electrode region.

3. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 2 , wherein the plurality of ring-like electrodes comprise a plurality of first ring-like electrodes and a plurality of second ring-like electrodes, and
the plurality of first ring-like electrodes and the plurality of second ring-like electrodes are alternately and sequentially arranged outward from the center of the ring-like electrode layer along the radial direction of the ring-like electrode layer.

4. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 3 , wherein the ring-like electrode layer comprises a first electrode layer and a second electrode layer that are insulated from each other, and the second electrode layer is closer to the liquid crystal layer as compared to the first electrode layer;
the first electrode layer comprises the plurality of first ring-like electrodes that are sequentially arranged outward from a center of the liquid crystal cell, and the plurality of first ring-like electrodes are concentric and insulated from each other;
the second electrode layer comprises the plurality of second ring-like electrodes that are sequentially arranged outward from the center of the liquid crystal cell, and the plurality of second ring-like electrodes are concentric and insulated from each other; and
at least part of a projection of each of the first ring-like electrodes on the second electrode layer along a direction perpendicular to the second electrode layer is in a gap between corresponding second ring-like electrodes.

5. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 4 , wherein a gap between adjacent second ring-like electrodes is completely covered by a projection of a corresponding first ring-like electrode on the second electrode layer.

6. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 5 , wherein an edge of the projection of the each of the first ring-like electrodes on the second electrode layer connects with edges of the corresponding second ring-like electrodes.

7. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 3 , wherein the first Fresnel zone plate region is in a circular shape and the second Fresnel zone plate region is in a ring shape;
a radius of the first Fresnel zone plate region is greater than a ring width of the second Fresnel zone plate region; and
all distances between adjacent second ring-like electrodes in the first Fresnel zone plate region are identical.

8. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 1 , further comprising a first alignment layer and a second alignment layer,
wherein the liquid crystal layer comprises a plurality of liquid crystal molecules;
the first alignment layer is at a side of the ring-like electrode layer close to the liquid crystal layer;
the second alignment layer is at a side of the opposite electrode layer close to the liquid crystal layer; and
the first alignment layer and the second alignment layer are configured to allow an initial orientation of the plurality of liquid crystal molecules to be parallel to the first alignment layer and the second alignment layer.

9. A liquid-crystal-based spectacle lens, comprising a first liquid crystal cell and a second liquid crystal cell that are stacked,
wherein the first liquid crystal cell and the second liquid crystal cell comprise liquid crystal cells each according to claim 1 , and the first liquid crystal cell and the second liquid crystal cell have a same structure; and
an orientation direction of the liquid crystal layer in the first liquid crystal cell and an orientation direction of the liquid crystal layer in the second liquid crystal cell are perpendicular to each other in a plane perpendicular to a direction along which the first liquid crystal cell and the second liquid crystal cell are stacked.

10. A method of driving the liquid crystal cell according to claim 1 , comprising:
applying a first group of driving signals to ring-like electrodes in the first ring-like electrode region; and
applying a second group of driving signals to ring-like electrodes in the second ring-like electrode region.

11. The method of driving the liquid crystal cell according to claim 10 , wherein the first group of driving signals are configured to drive the corresponding liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer, so as to form the first Fresnel zone plate region of the liquid crystal cell;
the second group of driving signals are configured to drive the corresponding liquid crystal molecules in t

Assignees

• Boe Technology Group Co Ltd

Inventors

• Li Zhongxiao
• Chen Xiaochuan
• Zhao Wenqing
• Zhao Weili
• Wang Haiyan
• Chen Chen Yu

Classifications

• G02F1/294 Primary

  Variable focal length devices · CPC title

• G02C7/083 Primary

  Electrooptic lenses · CPC title

• G02F1/13306

  Circuit arrangements or driving methods for the control of single liquid crystal cells (G02F1/132, G02F1/133382 take precedence) · CPC title

• G02F1/134309

  characterised by their geometrical arrangement · CPC title