Foldable light-emitting device having trapezoid spacer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11380860-B2
Application number	US-202117341485-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 8, 2021
Priority date	Oct 28, 2014
Publication date	Jul 5, 2022
Grant date	Jul 5, 2022

Abstract

A highly portable and highly browsable light-emitting device is provided. A light-emitting device that is less likely to be broken is provided. The light-emitting device has a strip-like region having high flexibility and a strip-like region having low flexibility that are arranged alternately. In the region having high flexibility, a light-emitting panel and a plurality of spacers overlap with each other. In the region having low flexibility, the light-emitting panel and a support overlap with each other. When the region having high flexibility is bent, the angle between normals of facing planes of the two adjacent spacers changes according to the bending of the light-emitting panel; thus, a neutral plane can be formed in the light-emitting panel or in the vicinity of the light-emitting panel.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A light-emitting device comprising:
a light-emitting panel including a light-emitting element;
a light-blocking layer over the light-emitting panel; and
a first trapezoid spacer and a second trapezoid spacer,
wherein the light-emitting device is configured to be folded in two parts,
wherein the first trapezoid spacer and the second trapezoid spacer are provided at a folded portion of the light-emitting device,
wherein a side surface of the first trapezoid spacer is in contact with a side surface of the second trapezoid spacer when the light-emitting device is folded in two parts,
wherein the folded portion has a curvature radius,
wherein the light-emitting panel has a light-emitting region and a non-light-emitting region surrounding the light-emitting region,
wherein the light-blocking layer has a region overlapping the first trapezoidal spacer and the second trapezoidal spacer, and
wherein the non-light-emitting region has a region not overlapping the light-blocking layer.

2. The light-emitting device according to claim 1 , further comprising a protective layer,
wherein each of the first trapezoid spacer and the second trapezoid spacer has a first surface including one side of the first trapezoid spacer and the second trapezoid spacer, and a second surface including another side facing the one side,
wherein an area of the first surface is larger than an area of the second surface, and
wherein the first trapezoid spacer and the second trapezoid spacer are fixed to the protective layer at the first surface.

3. The light-emitting device according to claim 2 , wherein a thickness of the protective layer is 0.01 to 10 times as large as a thickness of the light-emitting panel.

4. The light-emitting device according to claim 2 , wherein the protective layer includes a plastic, a metal, an alloy, or a rubber.

5. The light-emitting device according to claim 1 , wherein the curvature radius is greater than or equal to 1 mm and less than or equal to 150 mm.

6. The light-emitting device according to claim 1 , wherein the light-emitting panel has a neutral plane when the light-emitting device is changed from a folded state to an opened state, or from an opened state to a folded state.

7. The light-emitting device according to claim 6 , wherein the neutral plane does not expand or contract.

8. The light-emitting device according to claim 1 , the first trapezoid spacer and the second trapezoid spacer include a plastic, a metal, an alloy, or a rubber.

Assignees

• Semiconductor Energy Lab

Inventors

• Hiroki Masaaki
• Endo Akio

Classifications

• H10K50/8428

  Vertical spacers, e.g. arranged between the sealing arrangement and the OLED · CPC title

• H10K59/12

  Active-matrix OLED [AMOLED] displays · CPC title

• H10K59/873

  Encapsulations · CPC title

• H10K59/8723

  Vertical spacers, e.g. arranged between the sealing arrangement and the OLED · CPC title

• H10K77/111 Primary

  Flexible substrates · CPC title