Display panel, display device and driving method

• US 10,365,754 B2
• Filed: 01/03/2017
• Issued: 07/30/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tianma Microelectronics Company Limited, Xiamen Tianma Micro-Electronics Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Xiamen Tianma Micro-Electronics Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Chen, Zhonghuai, Sun, Ying, Xu, Yumin, Shen, Poping
• Primary Examiner(s): Chang, Kent W
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brittingham, Nathaniel P
• Application Number:
  US15/397,290
• Publication Number:
  US 20170115813A1
• Time in Patent Office: 938 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04111 Cross over in capacitive digitiser, i.e. details of structures for connecting electrodes of the sensing pattern where the connections cross each other, e.g. bridge structures comprising an insulating layer, or vias through substrate
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04112 Electrode mesh in capacitive digitiser: electrode for touch sensing is formed of a mesh of very fine, normally metallic, interconnected lines that are almost invisible to see. This provides a quite large but transparent electrode surface, without need for ITO or similar transparent conductive material
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0445 using two or more layers of sensing electrodes, e.g. using two layers of electrodes separated by a dielectric layer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes

Abstract

A display panel, a display device and a driving method are provided. The display panel comprises a touch control driving electrode array including a plurality of touch control driving electrodes; a touch control sensing electrode array including a plurality of touch control sensing electrodes; a force sensing electrode array disposed in a same layer as the touch control sensing electrode array; and at least one force sensing reference electrode. An orthogonal projection of a touch control sensing electrode onto the touch control driving electrode array is at least partially overlapped with the touch control driving electrodes. The force sensing electrode array includes a plurality of force sensing electrodes electrically insulated from the touch control sensing electrodes. An orthogonal projection of the at least one force sensing reference electrode onto the force sensing electrode array is at least partially overlapped with the force sensing electrodes.

Claims

1. A display panel, comprising:

a touch control driving electrode array, disposed on an array substrate, including a plurality of touch control driving electrodes extending in a first direction and arranged in a second direction;

a touch control sensing electrode array, disposed on a color film substrate arranged opposite to the array substrate, including a plurality of touch control sensing electrodes extending in the second direction and arranged in the first direction, wherein an orthogonal projection of a touch control sensing electrode of the plurality of touch control sensing electrodes onto the touch control driving electrode array is at least partially overlapped with a touch control driving electrode of the plurality of touch control driving electrodes;

a force sensing electrode array disposed in a same layer as the touch control sensing electrode array, wherein the force sensing electrode array includes a plurality of force sensing electrodes electrically insulated from the touch control sensing electrodes;

at least one force sensing reference electrode disposed on a color plate, wherein an orthogonal projection of the at least one force sensing reference electrode onto the force sensing electrode array is at least partially overlapped with one force sensing electrodes of the plurality of force sensing electrodes;

a first flexible printed circuit; and

an optically clear adhesive attaching the cover plate to the color film substrate, wherein;

the optically clear adhesive is in contact with the at least one force sensing reference electrode and the first flexible printed circuit, respectively,

the at least one force sensing reference electrode is electrically connected to the first flexible printed circuit through a plurality of conductive gold spacers formed in the optically clear adhesive,

the color film substrate arranged opposite to the array substrate includes the touch control sensing electrode array and the force sensing electrodes array, both disposed on a side of the color film substrate far away from the array substrate, and

the cover plate is disposed on the color film substrate, wherein the force sensing reference electrode is formed on a surface of the cover plate facing the color film substrate.

2. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein:

a plurality of data lines are extending in the first direction and arranged in the second direction; and

a plurality of driving lines are extending in the second direction and arranged in the first direction.

3. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein:

a plurality of hollow areas are formed in each touch control sensing electrode; and

each force sensing electrode is embedded into a hollow area.

4. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein

when being projected to the touch control driving electrode array, an orthogonal projection of an intersection area between the touch control driving electrode and the touch control sensing electrode covers an orthogonal projection of a force sensing electrode.

5. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein:

the display panel includes M number of touch control driving electrodes, N number of touch control sensing electrodes, and R1 number of force sensing electrodes, M, N, and R1 being positive integers, respectively, and 1/40×

M×

N≤

R1≤

1/10×

M×

N.

6. The display panel according to claim 5, wherein:

the number R1 of the force sensing electrodes is 20-120; and

a confined area of each touch control sensing electrode includes R2 number of force sensing electrodes, R2 being a positive integer, and R2≤

⅓

×

M.

7. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein:

a force sensing electrode has a polygonal shape, a circular shape, or an elliptical shape.

8. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein:

the force sensing reference electrode is a mesh electrode including a plurality of grids; and

the grids are electrically connected to each other.

9. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein:

the force sensing reference electrode includes a plurality of first sub-electrodes;

a first sub-electrode is a stripe-shaped electrode; and

the first sub-electrodes are electrically connected to each other.

10. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein:

the force sensing reference electrode includes a plurality of second sub-electrodes arranged in an array;

a second sub-electrode is a pad electrode or an annular electrode; and

the second sub-electrodes are electrically connected to each other.

11. The display panel according to claim 1, further including:

a plurality of force sensing signal lines, wherein each force sensing electrode is electrically connected to the first flexible printed circuit through a force sensing signal line of the plurality of force sensing signal lines.

12. The display panel according to claim 11, further including:

at least one force reference signal line, wherein the force sensing reference electrode is electrically connected to a first integrated circuit through the at least one force reference signal line.

13. The display panel according to claim 1, further including:

a first integrated circuit for controlling the display panel; and

a plurality of touch control driving signal lines,

wherein the touch control driving electrode is electrically connected to the first integrated circuit through a touch control driving signal line,

in a display stage, each touch control driving electrode is multiplexed as a common electrode, and the first integrated circuit provides a common voltage signal to the touch control driving electrode, and

in a touch detection stage, the first integrated circuit provides a touch control driving signal to the touch control driving electrode.

14. The display panel according to claim 13, further including:

a plurality of touch control sensing signal lines,

wherein the touch control sensing electrode is electrically connected to the first integrated circuit through a touch control sensing signal line,

the first integrated circuit receives a touch control sensing signal collected by the touch control sensing electrode,

each force sensing electrode is electrically connected to the first integrated circuit through a force sensing signal line,

in a force detection stage, the first integrated circuit provides a force driving signal to the force sensing electrode through the force sensing signal line, and receives a force sensing signal collected by the force sensing electrode, and

in the touch detection stage, the force sensing electrodes are multiplexed as the touch control sensing electrodes, and the first integrated circuit receives the touch control sensing signal collected by the force sensing electrode.

15. The display panel according to claim 13, further including:

a second integrated circuit for controlling the display panel; and

a plurality of touch control sensing signal lines,

wherein each touch control sensing electrode is electrically connected to the second integrated circuit through a touch control sensing signal line,

the second integrated circuit receives a touch control sensing signal collected by the touch control sensing electrode,

each force sensing electrode is electrically connected to the second integrated circuit through the force sensing signal line,

in a force detection stage, the second integrated circuit provides a force driving signal to the force sensing electrodes, and receives a force sensing signal from the force sensing electrode, and

in the touch detection stage, the force sensing electrodes are multiplexed as the touch control sensing electrodes, and the second integrated circuit receives the touch control sensing signal collected by the force sensing electrode.

16. A driving method for driving a display panel

comprising a touch control driving electrode array, disposed on an array substrate, including a plurality of touch control driving electrodes extending in a first direction and arranged in a second direction;

a touch control sensing electrode array, disposed on a color film substrate arranged opposite to the array substrate, including a plurality of touch control sensing electrodes extending in the second direction and arranged in the first direction, wherein an orthogonal projection of a touch control sensing electrode of the plurality of touch control sensing electrodes onto the touch control driving electrode array is at least partially overlapped with a touch control driving electrodes of the plurality of touch control driving electrodes;

a force sensing electrode array disposed in a same layer as the touch control sensing electrode array, wherein the force sensing electrode array includes a plurality of force sensing electrodes electrically insulated from the touch control sensing electrodes;

at least one force sensing reference electrode disposed on a color plate, wherein an orthogonal projection of the at least one force sensing reference electrode onto the force sensing electrode array is at least partially overlapped with the force sensing electrodes;

a first flexible printed circuit; and

an optically clear adhesive attaching the cover plate to the color film substrate, wherein the optically clear adhesive is in contact with the at least one force sensing reference electrode and the first flexible printed circuit, respectively, the at least one force sensing reference electrode is electrically connected to the first flexible printed circuit through a plurality of conductive gold spacers formed in the optically clear adhesive, the color film substrate arranged opposite to the array substrate includes the touch control sensing electrode array and the force sensing electrodes array, both disposed on a side of the color film substrate far away from the array substrate, and the cover plate is disposed on the color film substrate, wherein the force sensing reference electrode is formed on a surface of the cover plate facing the color film substrate, wherein the driving method comprises;

in a display stage, providing a common voltage signal is provided to the touch control driving electrodes.

17. The driving method according to claim 16, wherein the display panel includes M number of touch control driving electrodes, and the touch detection stage includes M number of touch detection sub-stages, wherein the driving method further includes:

in the i-th touch detection sub-stage, providing the touch control driving signal to the i-th touch control driving electrode, where M is a positive integer, i is a positive integer, and 1≤

i≤

M.

18. The driving method according to claim 16, wherein the display panel includes M number of touch control driving electrodes, and the touch detection stage includes k number of touch detection sub-stages, wherein the driving method further includes:

in the j-th touch detection sub-stage, providing different touch control driving signals to k_j number of touch control driving electrodes, where M, k, and j are positive integers, respectively, and 1≤

k≤

M,