Narrow border organic light-emitting diode display

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9515131-B2
Application number	US-201514948157-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 20, 2015
Priority date	Aug 17, 2012
Publication date	Dec 6, 2016
Grant date	Dec 6, 2016

Abstract

An electronic device may be provided having an organic light-emitting diode display and control circuitry for operating the display. The display may include one or more display layers interposed between the control circuitry and a display layer having thin-film transistors. The electronic device may include a coupling structure interposed between the layer of thin-film transistors and the control circuitry that electrically couples the layer of thin-film transistors to the control circuitry. The coupling structure may include a dielectric member having a conductive via, a flexible printed circuit having a bent portion, or a conductive via formed in an encapsulation layer of the display. The display may include a layer of opaque masking material. The layer of opaque masking material may be formed on an encapsulation layer, an organic emissive layer, a thin-film transistor layer, or a glass layer of the organic light-emitting diode display.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A display, comprising:
a light-emitting diode layer having opposing first and second surfaces;
an encapsulation layer formed on the first surface;
a substrate layer formed on the second surface; and
a conductive via formed in the encapsulation layer that couples the light-emitting diode layer to control circuitry for the display.

2. The display defined in claim 1 , wherein the light-emitting diode layer comprises a thin-film transistor layer and a layer of light-emitting material.

3. The display defined in claim 2 , wherein the thin-film transistor layer is at least partially interposed between the layer of light-emitting material and the substrate.

4. The display defined in claim 2 , wherein the layer of light-emitting material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the thin-film transistor layer.

5. The display defined in claim 2 , wherein the conductive via couples the thin-film transistor layer to the control circuitry for the display.

6. The display defined in claim 5 , wherein a portion of the encapsulation layer is formed directly on a portion of thin-film transistor layer.

7. The display defined in claim 6 , wherein the conductive via extends from the control circuitry to the portion of the thin-film transistor layer on which the encapsulation layer is directly formed.

8. An electronic device, comprising:
a light-emitting diode display that includes a thin-film transistor layer;
control circuitry configured to generate control signals for operating the light-emitting diode display, wherein the light-emitting diode display includes an encapsulation layer at least partially interposed between the thin-film transistor layer and the control circuitry; and
a conductive via that extends through the encapsulation layer to couple the thin-film transistor layer to the control circuitry.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 8 , wherein the light-emitting diode layer further includes a layer of light-emitting material interposed between the encapsulation layer and the thin-film transistor layer.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 9 , wherein the thin-film transistor layer comprises a first portion on which the layer of light-emitting material is formed and a second portion on which the encapsulation layer is formed.

11. The electronic device defined in claim 10 , wherein the conductive via extends from the second portion of the thin-film transistor layer to the control circuitry.

12. The electronic device defined in claim 8 , further comprising:
a substrate having first and second opposing surfaces, wherein the thin-film transistor layer is formed on the first surface, and wherein a polarizer layer is formed on the second surface.

13. The electronic device defined in claim 8 , wherein the conductive via is coupled to the thin-film transistor layer using an anisotropic conductive adhesive.

14. The electronic device defined in claim 8 , wherein the control circuitry comprises a printed circuit board and a flexible printed circuit attached to the printed circuit board.

15. The electronic device defined in claim 14 , wherein the conductive via is attached to the flexible printed circuit using an anisotropic conductive adhesive.

16. A display, comprising:
a transparent substrate layer;
a light-emitting diode layer formed on the transparent substrate layer;
a polarizer layer formed over the light-emitting diode layer; and
opaque masking material formed between at least a portion of the light-emitting diode layer and the polarizer layer.

17. The display defined in claim 16 , wherein the light-emitting diode layer comprises a thin-film transistor layer and a layer of light-emitting material on the thin-film transistor layer, and wherein the opaque masking material is at least partially interposed between the layer of light-emitting material and the thin-film transistor layer.

18. The display defined in claim 16 further comprising:
an encapsulation layer interposed between the light-emitting diode layer and the polarizer layer, wherein the opaque masking material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the light-emitting diode layer.

19. The display defined in claim 18 , wherein the light-emitting diode layer comprises a thin-film transistor layer and a layer of light-emitting material formed on the thin-film transistor layer, and wherein the opaque masking material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the layer of light-emitting material.

20. The display defined in claim 16 further comprising:
an encapsulation layer interposed between the light-emitting diode layer and the polarizer layer, wherein the opaque masking material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the polarizer layer.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Mathew Dinesh C
• Garelli Adam T
• Drzaic Paul S
• Chen Wei
• Degner Brett W
• Posner Bryan W

Classifications

• G06F3/0412

  Digitisers structurally integrated in a display · CPC title

• G06F3/041

  Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means · CPC title

• H03K2217/96031

  Combination of touch switch and LC display · CPC title

• H10K59/8793

  Arrangements for polarized light emission (H10K59/8791 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H10K59/8791 Primary

  Arrangements for improving contrast, e.g. preventing reflection of ambient light · CPC title