Electronic device having display with curved edges

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9965995-B2
Application number	US-201614990606-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 7, 2016
Priority date	Jun 1, 2015
Publication date	May 8, 2018
Grant date	May 8, 2018

Abstract

A display may have an array of pixels. The array of pixels may have a shape such as a circular shape or other shape with a curved edge. Display driver circuitry may supply data signals to the pixels using folded vertical data lines and bisected horizontal gate lines. Each folded vertical lines may have a first segment in a left half of the array and a second segment in a right half of the display. Curved coupling segments in an inactive area of the display may be used in joining the first and second segments. Display driver circuits may be provided in top and bottom portions of the inactive area to supply data to respective top and bottom portions of the array. Gate driver output buffers may have different strengths in different rows of the array.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A display, comprising:
display driver circuitry;
data lines coupled to the display driver circuitry;
gate lines coupled to the display driver circuitry; and
an array of pixels, wherein the pixels receive data from the display driver circuitry over the data lines and are controlled with control signals received from the display driver circuitry over the gate lines, wherein the data lines are folded data lines, wherein each folded data line has a first vertical segment that supplies data to a first column of the pixels in the array and has a second vertical segment that is coupled to the first vertical segment and that supplies data to a second column of the pixels in the array, wherein the array of pixels has left and right halves, wherein the first vertical segment in at least a given one of the folded data lines is in the left half and the second vertical segment of the given one of the folded data lines is in the right half, wherein the first vertical segment of each data line is of equal length to the second vertical segment of that data line, wherein the gate line of each row includes a left half that supplies the control signals to a left half of the pixels in that row and a right half that is electrically isolated from the left half and that supplies the control signals to a right half of the pixels in that row.

2. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the array of pixels has a curved edge.

3. The display defined in claim 2 wherein the array of pixels comprises a circular array of pixels.

4. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the display has an active area in which the array of pixels displays images and has an inactive area that does not contain any of the pixels and wherein at least some of the display driver circuitry is located in the inactive area.

5. The display defined in claim 4 wherein each data line has a coupling segment in the inactive area that couples the first vertical segment of that data line to the second vertical segment of that data line.

6. The display defined in claim 5 wherein the coupling segment of each data line is curved.

7. The display defined in claim 6 wherein the array of pixels comprises a circular array of pixels.

8. The display defined in claim 7 wherein the inactive area is a ring-shaped area that surrounds the active area.

9. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the display driver circuitry includes a shift register having an output driver in each row of pixels that supplies a gate line signal to the gate line in that row of pixels.

10. The display defined in claim 9 wherein the array of pixels has a curved edge and is surrounded by a ring-shaped inactive area and wherein the shift register forms part of a gate driver circuit that extends along the curved edge in a curved strip under the ring-shaped inactive area.

11. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the first vertical segment of each of the folded data lines is in a different one of the halves than the second vertical segment of that folded data line.

12. A display, comprising:
a circular array of pixels;
display driver circuitry;
folded vertical data lines each of which supplies data signals from the display driver circuitry to first and second columns of the pixels; and
horizontal lines that supply control signals to rows of the pixels, wherein each row of pixels is supplied with control signals by a respective one of the horizontal lines and wherein the horizontal line that supplies the control signals to that row of pixels has a left half that supplies the control signals to a left half of the pixels in that row and a right half that is electrically isolated from the left half and that supplies the control signals to a right half of the pixels in that row.

13. A display, comprising:
a circular array of pixels;
display driver circuitry;
data lines each of which has a first segment, a second segment that runs parallel to the first segment, and a coupling segment that couples the first and second segments together, wherein the first segment supplies data signals from the display driver circuitry to a first column of the pixels and wherein the second segment supplies data signals from the display driver circuitry to a second column of the pixels; and
horizontal lines that supply control signals to rows of the pixels, wherein each row of pixels is supplied with control signals by a respective one of the horizontal lines and wherein the horizontal line that supplies the control signals to that row of pixels is divided into electrically isolated left and right segments.

14. The display defined in claim 13 wherein the left segment supplies the control signals to a left half of the pixels in that row and wherein the right segment supplies the control signals to a right half of the pixels in that row.

15. The display defined in claim 14 , wherein the left segment and the right segment of each horizontal line are collinear.

16. The display defined in claim 12 , wherein the left half of each horizontal line is coupled to a first gate driver circuit on the left side of the display and wherein the right half of each horizontal line is coupled to a second gate driver circuit on the right side of the display.

17. The display defined in claim 12 , wherein the left half of each horizontal line is collinear with the right half of that horizontal line.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Chen yu cheng
• Tsai Tsung-Ting
• Chang Shih Chang

Classifications

• G09G3/3666

  with the matrix divided into sections · CPC title

• G09G2310/0281

  Arrangement of scan or data electrode driver circuits at the periphery of a panel not inherent to a split matrix structure · CPC title

• G09G2300/08

  Active matrix structure, i.e. with use of active elements, inclusive of non-linear two terminal elements, in the pixels together with light emitting or modulating elements · CPC title

• G09G2300/0426

  Layout of electrodes and connections · CPC title

• G09G2300/0439

  Pixel structures · CPC title