Display substrate, touch panel and display apparatus

• US 10,509,504 B2
• Filed: 05/26/2016
• Issued: 12/17/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Beijing BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co Ltd. (BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.), BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Ding, Xiaoliang, Dong, Xue, Wang, Haisheng, Chen, Xiaochuan, Liu, Yingming, Yang, Shengji, Liu, Wei, Wang, Pengpeng, Li, Changfeng
• Primary Examiner(s): Tung, David
• Application Number:
  US15/529,926
• Publication Number:
  US 20180046277A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,300 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04103 Manufacturing, i.e. details related to manufacturing processes specially suited for touch sensitive devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04105 Pressure sensors for measuring the pressure or force exerted on the touch surface without providing the touch position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04106 Multi-sensing digitiser, i.e. digitiser using at least two different sensing technologies simultaneously or alternatively, e.g. for detecting pen and finger, for saving power or for improving position detection
• 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 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04144 using an array of force sensing means position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells G06F3/0447
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04146 using pressure sensitive conductive elements delivering a boolean signal and located between crossing sensing lines, e.g. located between X and Y sensing line layers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/047 using sets of wires, e.g. crossed wires
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units

Abstract

A display substrate is disclosed. The display substrate includes a plurality of pressure sensitive units each including an input electrode electrically connected to one of a plurality of signal input lines, an output electrode electrically connected to one of a plurality of signal output lines, and a pressure sensitive element operable to, responsive to a voltage difference applied across the input electrode and the output electrode and a pressure caused by pressing, generate a current signal indicative of a magnitude of the pressure. Also disclosed are a touch panel and a display apparatus.

Claims

1. A display substrate comprising:

a plurality of signal input lines;

a plurality of signal output lines intersecting the signal input lines;

a plurality of data lines intersecting the plurality of signal input lines, and a plurality of sub-pixels formed at intersections of the plurality of signal input lines and the plurality of data lines; and

a plurality of pressure sensitive units each formed at a respective one of intersections of the plurality of signal input lines and the plurality of signal output lines, wherein the plurality of pressure sensitive units each comprise;

an input electrode electrically connected to a corresponding one of the plurality of signal input lines;

an output electrode electrically connected to a corresponding one of the plurality of signal output lines; and

a pressure sensitive element responsive to a voltage difference applied across the input electrode and the output electrode and a pressure caused by pressing, wherein the pressure sensitive element is operable to generate a current signal indicative of a magnitude of the pressure, wherein the current signal is output via the output electrode to the corresponding one of the plurality of signal output lines,

wherein the input electrode and the output electrode are arranged such that the input electrode does not overlap the output electrode when viewed from above, and

wherein the pressure sensitive element comprises a portion not overlapping the input electrode and the output electrode when viewed from above, and the portion comprises a first end connected to the input electrode and a second end connected to the output electrode,

wherein the pressure sensitive elements of the plurality of pressure sensitive units are made of a metal oxide piezoelectric material,

wherein the data lines extend in a same direction as the signal output lines, and wherein the plurality of signal input lines are reused as gate lines for the sub-pixels,

wherein the plurality of sub-pixels comprise respective thin film transistors each having an active layer, and wherein the pressure sensitive element is formed in a same layer as the active layer and is made of a same material as the active layer.

2. The display substrate of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of current-to-voltage converter circuits each electrically connected to a respective one of the plurality of signal output lines for converting the current signal into a voltage signal.

3. A touch panel comprising the display substrate of claim 2.

4. The display substrate of claim 1, further comprising touch electrodes for touch sensing, wherein the signal output lines are electrically connected to respective ones of the touch electrodes and reused as touch electrode leads for transmission of touch sensing signals.

5. A touch panel comprising the display substrate of claim 4.

6. The display substrate of claim 1, wherein the pressure sensitive units are arranged in one-to-one correspondence with the sub-pixels.

7. A touch panel comprising the display substrate of claim 6.

8. The display substrate of claim 1, wherein the pressure sensitive units are arranged in gaps among the sub-pixels.

9. The display substrate of claim 8, wherein the pressure sensitive units are arranged in areas of the display substrate where spacers are disposed.

10. A touch panel comprising the display substrate of claim 9.

11. A touch panel comprising the display substrate of claim 8.

12. A touch panel comprising the display substrate of claim 1.

13. A display apparatus comprising the touch panel of claim 12.