Foldable display

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9947726-B2
Application number	US-201615058006-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 1, 2016
Priority date	Jun 25, 2015
Publication date	Apr 17, 2018
Grant date	Apr 17, 2018

Abstract

A foldable display device according to one or more exemplary embodiments of the present invention includes: a first supporting member; a second supporting member coupled to the first supporting member and configured to be rotated with respect to the first supporting member; an ultra-elastic sheet adhered to the first supporting member and the second supporting member; and a display module adhered to the ultra-elastic sheet.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A foldable display device comprising:
a first supporting member;
a second supporting member coupled to the first supporting member and configured to be rotated with respect to the first supporting member;
an ultra-elastic sheet adhered to a coupling region which connects the first supporting member and the second supporting member;
a mechanical bracket adhered to a non-coupling region except for the coupling region; and
a display module adhered to the ultra-elastic sheet and the mechanical bracket,
wherein the foldable display device is configured to outwardly expose the display module in a folded configuration,
wherein the ultra-elastic sheet and the mechanical bracket are disposed at the same layer and are connected to each other, and
wherein a modulus of elasticity of the ultra-elastic sheet is greater than a modulus of elasticity of the mechanical bracket.

2. The foldable display device of claim 1 , wherein the ultra-elastic sheet comprises a metal sheet or INVAR®.

3. The foldable display device of claim 2 , wherein the ultra-elastic sheet has a modulus of elasticity of about 50 GPa to about 80 GPa.

4. The foldable display device of claim 1 , wherein an end of the second supporting member is coupled to an end of the first supporting member by a hinge axis.

5. The foldable display device of claim 1 , wherein the display module comprises:
a display panel;
a touch screen panel on the display panel; and
a window layer on the touch screen panel.

6. The foldable display device of claim 5 , wherein the display panel comprises:
a flexible display substrate;
a display element layer on the flexible display substrate and comprising a plurality of pixels; and
a thin film encapsulation layer covering the flexible display substrate and the display element layer.

7. The foldable display device of claim 6 , wherein the display element layer comprises an organic light emission display element.

8. The foldable display device of claim 5 , wherein the window layer comprises polyimide (PI) and/or polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

9. The foldable display device of claim 5 , wherein the display module further comprises a polarization film between the display panel and the touch screen panel.

10. The display module of claim 1 , wherein the first supporting member, the ultra-elastic sheet, and the display module are stacked along a stacking direction, and
wherein the foldable display device is configured to outwardly expose the display module along the stacking direction in the folded configuration.

11. A foldable display device comprising:
a display panel including a bending region and a rigid region;
an ultra-elastic sheet under the display panel and overlapping the bending region; and
a mechanical bracket under the display panel and overlapping the rigid region,
wherein the ultra-elastic sheet and the mechanical bracket are disposed at the same layer and are connected to each other, and
wherein the ultra-elastic sheet is made of a material that is different from a material of the mechanical bracket.

12. The foldable display device of claim 11 , wherein the ultra-elastic sheet has a modulus of elasticity of about 50 GPa to about 80 GPa.

13. The foldable display device of claim 12 , wherein the modulus of elasticity of the ultra-elastic sheet is greater than a modulus of elasticity of the mechanical bracket.

14. The foldable display device of claim 11 , further comprising a supporting member overlapping the rigid region of the display panel.

15. The foldable display device of claim 11 , wherein the ultra-elastic sheet is made of a metal sheet or INVAR®.

16. The foldable display device of claim 11 , wherein the bending region is disposed between two rigid regions.

17. A foldable display device comprising:
a first supporting member;
a second supporting member coupled to the first supporting member and configured to be rotated with respect to the first supporting member;
an ultra-elastic sheet adhered to the first supporting member and the second supporting member; and
a display module adhered to the ultra-elastic sheet,
wherein the ultra-elastic sheet has a modulus of elasticity of about 50 GPa to about 80 GPa.

18. The foldable display device of claim 17 , wherein the modulus of elasticity of the ultra-elastic sheet is greater than a modulus of elasticity of a mechanical bracket adhered to a non-coupling region of the foldable display device.

19. The foldable display device of claim 17 , wherein an end of the second supporting member is coupled to an end of the first supporting member by a hinge axis.

Assignees

• Samsung Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Lee Sang Wol

Classifications

• G06F1/1652 Primary

  the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable · CPC title

• H01L51/524

  Electricity · mapped topic

• G06F1/16

  Constructional details or arrangements · CPC title

• H01L27/3244

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L51/5253

  Electricity · mapped topic