Curved display manufacturing device and curved display manufacturing method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017255033-A1
Application number	US-201415506253-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Nov 10, 2014
Priority date	Sep 2, 2014
Publication date	Sep 7, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

Disclosed are a curved display manufacturing apparatus, comprising: a curved surface suction mold comprising a panel seat surface having a curved shape corresponding to a curved shape of the curved display to be formed, and air sucking holes formed through the panel seat surface; an air sucking unit for sucking air through the air sucking holes; a main frame for supporting the curved surface suction mold, to space the curved surface suction mold from a bottom of the main frame; and a pressing roller unit for pressing a curvature maintaining member to maintain the display panel in a bent state while sliding along a curved surface of the display panel under a condition that the curvature maintaining member overlaps with the display panel, for pressed attachment of the curvature maintaining member to the display panel.

First claim

1 . A curved display manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a curved display by bending a display panel into a curved shape, comprising:
a curved surface suction mold comprising a panel seat surface having a curved shape corresponding to a curved shape of the curved display to be formed, and air sucking holes formed through the panel seat surface, to fix the display panel while bending the display panel by suction of air; an air sucking unit for sucking air through the air sucking holes; a main frame for supporting the curved surface suction mold, to space the curved surface suction mold from a bottom of the main frame; and a pressing roller unit for pressing a curvature maintaining member to maintain the display panel in a bent state while sliding along a curved surface of the display panel under a condition that the curvature maintaining member overlaps with the display panel, for pressed attachment of the curvature maintaining member to the display panel.

2 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a first spacer for spacing, from the display panel, an other end portion of the curvature maintaining member, at which pressing of the pressing roller is finished.

3 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 2 , further comprising:
a first spacer driving mechanism for moving the first spacer when the pressing roller moves from one end portion of the curvature maintaining member to the other end portion of the curvature maintaining member, for pressed attachment of the curvature maintaining member, to gradually move the first spacer toward the display panel.

4 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a second spacer for spacing an intermediate portion of the curvature maintaining member from the display panel.

5 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a second spacer driving mechanism for moving the second spacer when the pressing roller moves from one end portion of the curvature maintaining member to the intermediate portion of the curvature maintaining member, for pressed attachment of the curvature maintaining member, to gradually move the second spacer toward the display panel.

6 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a sliding mechanism for horizontally moving the pressing roller unit along the main frame.

7 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the sliding mechanism comprises:
a moving block coupled to the pressing roller unit, and formed with a through hole having threads; a threaded rod formed, at an outer surface thereof, with threads to be threaded into the threads of the through hole, the thread rod extending in a movement direction of the pressing roller unit; and a drive motor for rotating the threaded rod.

8 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the pressing roller unit comprises:
a roller pressing mechanism for pressing the pressing roller in a close contact state; and a roller pivoting mechanism for pivoting the roller pressing mechanism, to cause the pressing roller to perform a circular arc movement such that the pressing roller is directed in a tangential direction perpendicular to the panel seat surface.

9 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the roller pivoting mechanism comprises a servomotor.

10 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the pressing roller unit further comprises a support roller for supporting an intermediate portion of the pressing roller, to prevent bending of the pressing roller.

11 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the curved surface suction mold is replaceably mounted to the main frame.

12 . The curved display manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the curved surface suction mold further comprises a position setting portion provided at the panel seat surface, to set a seat position of the curvature maintaining member.

13 . A curved display manufacturing method for manufacturing a curved display by bending, into a curved shape, a pre-fabricated flat display panel including first and second substrates facing each other, a liquid crystal layer interposed between the first substrate and the second substrate, and a polarization film, comprising:
shaving the first and second substrates to a predetermined thickness; seating the shaved display panel on a curved surface suction mold having a shape corresponding to a curved shape of a curved surface to be formed, and bending the display panel into the curved shape by suction of air; attaching, to the display panel, the curvature maintaining member to maintain a shape of the display panel bent into the curved shape by pressing the curvature maintaining member by a pressing roller; and separating the display panel carrying the curvature maintaining member from the curved surface suction mold.

14 . The curved display manufacturing method according to claim 13 , wherein the attaching the curvature maintaining member to the display panel by pressing the curvature maintaining member by the pressing roller comprises moving the pressing roller from one end of the curvature maintaining member to the other end of the curvature maintaining member under a condition that one end of the curvature maintaining member is in close contact with the display panel, and the other end of the curvature maintaining member is spaced apart from the display panel, to attach the curvature maintaining member to the display panel.

15 . The curved display manufacturing method according to claim 13 , wherein the attaching the curvature maintaining member to the display panel by pressing the curvature maintaining member by the pressing roller comprises moving the pressing roller from one end of the curvature maintaining member to the other end of the curvature maintaining member while pressing the pressing roller in a tangential direction of the curved surface, to attach the curvature maintaining member.

16 . The curved display manufacturing method according to claim 13 , wherein the attaching the curvature maintaining member to the display panel by pressing the curvature maintaining member by the pressing roller comprises supporting an other end of the curvature maintaining member by a first spacer such that the other end of the curvature maintaining member is spaced apart from the display panel, and moving the first spacer when the pressing roller moves from one end portion of the curvature maintaining member to the other end portion of the curvature maintaining member, to gradually move the first spacer toward the display panel.

17 . The curved display manufacturing method according to claim 13 , further comprising:
attaching, to the display panel or the curvature maintaining member, a bonding member to bond the display panel and the curvature maintaining member, before the bending the display panel into the curved shape.

18 . The curved display manufacturing method according to claim 13 , further comprising:
attaching an insulating member to one of a portion of the curvature maintaining member contacting a drive circuit substrate coupled to the display panel to drive the display panel and a portion of the drive circuit substrate contacting the curvature maintaining member, for insulation of the curvature maintaining member and the drive circuit substra

Assignees

• Tovis Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kim Hwan Jin
• Oh Chang Min
• Eom Gi Yun

Classifications

• G02F1/133305

  Flexible substrates, e.g. plastics, organic film · CPC title

• G09F9/35

  being liquid crystals (G09F9/302 takes precedence; liquid crystal materials C09K19/00; {liquid crystal panels comprising a number of electrodes in a single cell per se G02F1/13}) · CPC title

• G02F1/133528

  Polarisers · CPC title

• G09F9/301

  flexible foldable or roll-able electronic displays, e.g. thin LCD, OLED · CPC title

• G02F1/1303 Primary

  Apparatus specially adapted to the manufacture of LCDs · CPC title