Flexible display apparatus and method of manufacturing the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9698375-B2
Application number	US-201514970222-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 15, 2015
Priority date	Dec 28, 2011
Publication date	Jul 4, 2017
Grant date	Jul 4, 2017

Abstract

A flexible display apparatus including: a first film including a first surface and a second surface that are opposite each other, and a first groove formed in the first surface, the first film having a first rigidity; a third film on the second surface of the first film; a fourth film facing the third film; an emission display unit between and encapsulated by the third film and the fourth film; and a second film on the fourth film and facing the first film, the second film having a second rigidity that is less than the first rigidity.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A flexible display apparatus comprising:
a third film that includes a bending portion;
an emission display unit over the third film; and
a first film attached to the third film,
wherein the third film is between the emission display unit and the first film,
wherein the first film includes at least one stress adjusting feature that is positioned at the bending portion of the third film,
wherein the at least one stress adjusting feature includes a gap that extends along at least a part of the bending portion of the third film, and
wherein a width of the gap is at least two times greater than a thickness of the first film.

2. The flexible display apparatus of claim 1 ,
wherein the third film comprises polyimide.

3. The flexible display apparatus of claim 1 ,
wherein the first film includes a first region and a second region which is separated with the first region by the gap.

4. The flexible display apparatus of claim 3 ,
wherein the first region includes a first straight portion and the second region includes a second straight portion, and
wherein the first straight portion and the second straight portion are substantially parallel.

5. The flexible display apparatus of claim 3 ,
wherein the first region and the second region include a first material, and
further comprising a second material different from the first material in the gap.

6. The flexible display apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the second material has elasticity.

7. The flexible display apparatus of claim 1 ,
wherein the first film includes a first portion having a first thickness and a second portion that is attached to the bending portion of the third film,
wherein the second portion has a second thickness which is smaller than the first thickness.

8. The flexible display apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a fourth film facing the third film,
wherein the emission display unit is between and encapsulated by the third film and the fourth film.

9. The flexible display apparatus of claim 8 ,
wherein the flexible display apparatus comprises a neutral portion in which a tensile stress and a compressive stress are not incurred by a force when the force capable of bending the flexible display apparatus is applied to the flexible display apparatus, and
wherein the emission display unit is positioned at the neutral portion.

10. The flexible display apparatus of claim 8 ,
wherein the emission display unit comprises a pixel electrode on the third film, an organic emission layer on the pixel electrode, and an opposite electrode on the organic emission layer,
wherein the fourth film is on the opposite electrode.

11. The flexible display apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a barrier between the emission display unit and the third film.

12. A method of manufacturing a flexible display apparatus, the method comprising:
forming a third film including a bending portion on a supporting substrate;
forming an emission display unit on the third film;
separating the supporting substrate from the third film;
forming a first film on a surface of the third film opposite to another surface of the third film on which the emission display unit is formed; and
bending the bending portion of the third film,
wherein the first film includes at least one stress adjusting feature that is positioned at the bending portion of the third film.

13. The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
removing at least some of the first film that has been attached to the third film to form the stress adjusting feature.

14. The flexible display apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a second film over the emission display unit.

15. The flexible display apparatus of claim 14 , wherein at least a part of the second film overlaps with the gap.

16. A flexible display apparatus comprising:
a third film that includes a bending portion;
an emission display unit over the third film; and
a first film attached to the third film,
wherein the third film is between the emission display unit and the first film,
wherein the first film includes at least one stress adjusting feature that is positioned at the bending portion of the third film,
wherein the at least one stress adjusting feature includes a gap that extends along at least a part of the bending portion of the third film,
wherein the first film includes a first straight portion and a second straight portion being positioned at both outer regions of the bending portion, respectively, and
wherein the first straight portion and the second straight portion are substantially parallel and facing each other.

17. The flexible display apparatus of claim 16 ,
wherein the first straight portion includes a first surface attached to the third film and a second surface opposite the first surface, and the second straight portion includes a third surface attached to the third film and a fourth surface opposite the third surface, and
wherein the second surface and the fourth surface are facing each other.

Assignees

• Samsung Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Prushinskiy Valeriy
• Hyun Won-Sik
• Na Hyong-Yeol
• Kim Min-Soo
• Kim Mu-Gyeom

Classifications

• H01L51/56

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L2251/558

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L2251/5338

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L51/0097

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L51/525

  Electricity · mapped topic