Display with array of light-transmitting windows

• US 10,644,077 B1
• Filed: 09/06/2016
• Issued: 05/05/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Choi, Minhyuk, Liu, Rui, Chen, Cheng, Lin, Chin-Wei, Youn, Sang Y., Chang, Shih Chang, Tsai, Tsung-Ting
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilson, Allan R
• Application Number:
  US15/257,374
• Time in Patent Office: 1,337 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/04 Systems determining the presence of a target
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1318 using electro-optical elements or layers, e.g. electroluminescent sensing
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0452 Details of colour pixel setup, e.g. pixel composed of a red, a blue and two green components
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0842 forming a memory circuit, e.g. a dynamic memory with one capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3233 with pixel circuitry controlling the current through the light-emitting element
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/12 the substrate being other than a semiconductor body, e.g. an insulating body
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/124 with a particular composition, shape or layout of the wiring layers specially adapted to the circuit arrangement, e.g. scanning lines in LCD pixel circuits wiring structures per se H01L23/52
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/78648 arranged on opposing sides of the channel
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7869 having a semiconductor body comprising an oxide semiconductor material, e.g. zinc oxide, copper aluminium oxide, cadmium stannate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/0232 Optical elements or arrangements associated with the device H01L31/0236 takes precedence; for photovoltaic cells H01L31/054; for photovoltaic modules H02S40/20
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/813 characterised by their shape
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/121 characterised by the geometry or disposition of pixel elements
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/1213 the pixel elements being TFTs
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/1216 the pixel elements being capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/131 Interconnections, e.g. wiring lines or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/352 the areas of the RGB subpixels being different
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/60 OLEDs integrated with inorganic light-sensitive elements, e.g. with inorganic solar cells or inorganic photodiodes
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/80515 characterised by their shape

Abstract

A display may have an array of pixels. Each pixel may have a light-emitting diode such as an organic light-emitting diode. The organic light-emitting diodes may each have an anode that is coupled to a thin-film transistor pixel circuit for controlling the anode. Transparent windows may be formed in the display. The windows may be formed by replacing data storage capacitors and other pixel circuit structures in a subset of the pixels with transparent window structures, by selectively removing portions of light-emitting diode anodes, and by shifting anodes. An array of electrical components such as an array of light sensors may be aligned with the transparent windows and may be used to measure light passing through the transparent windows.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

a display having an array of pixels, wherein each pixel has a light-emitting diode that emits light for that pixel, wherein each of the pixels in a first set of the pixels has a pixel circuit that applies a current to the light-emitting diode in that pixel and wherein each of the pixels in a second set of the pixels has a light-transmitting window in place of at least part of the pixel circuitry for that pixel; and

electrical components that are each aligned with a respective one of the light transmitting windows.

2. The electronic device defined in claim 1 wherein the electrical components comprise light detectors.

3. The electronic device defined in claim 2 wherein pixels are located in an active area of the display and wherein the display further comprises an inactive area that is free of pixels, the display further comprising ancillary pixel circuits in the inactive area that provide current to the light-emitting diodes in the second set of pixels.

4. The electronic device defined in claim 3 further comprising ancillary drive current lines each of which extends between one of the ancillary pixel circuits in the inactive area and the light-emitting diode in a respective one of the light-emitting diodes in the second set of pixels.

5. The electronic device defined in claim 4 wherein the light-emitting diodes comprises organic light-emitting diodes, wherein the display comprises data lines in the active area, and wherein the display comprises lines that couple the ancillary pixel circuits in the inactive area to the data lines.

6. The electronic device defined in claim 5 wherein the pixel circuits in the first set of pixel circuits each include a respective data storage capacitor and wherein the pixels in the second set of pixels are free of data storage capacitors and contain the light-transmitting windows in place of data storage capacitors.

7. The electronic device defined in claim 6 wherein the ancillary drive current lines are formed from a metal layer and wherein the pixels of the first set of pixels include thin-film transistors having gates formed from the metal layer.

8. The electronic device defined in claim 6 wherein the data storage capacitors each include first and second electrodes formed from respective first and second layers of metal and wherein the ancillary drive current lines are formed from the first layer of metal.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 8 wherein the pixels of the first set of pixels include thin-film transistors having gates formed from the second layer of metal.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 1 wherein the light-emitting diodes comprise organic light-emitting diodes with diamond-shaped anodes.

11. An electronic device, comprising:

a display having an array of pixels that forms an active area in which images are displayed, wherein each pixel has a light-emitting diode that emits light for that pixel, wherein the array of pixels includes a first set of pixels and a second set of pixels, wherein each pixel in the first set of pixels has a pixel circuit with a storage capacitor and is free of light-transmitting windows, and wherein each of the pixels in a second set of the pixels has a light-transmitting window and is free of storage capacitors; and

light-based components that are each aligned with a respective one of the light transmitting windows.

12. The electronic device defined in claim 11 wherein the light-emitting diodes comprise organic light-emitting diodes.

13. The electronic device defined in claim 11 wherein the light-based component comprise light detectors.

14. The electronic device defined in claim 13 wherein the light-emitting diodes each include an diamond-shaped anode, wherein the array of pixels include pixels of first, second, and third colors, wherein the first second, and third colors are different, and wherein the anodes in the pixels of the first color are larger in the first set of pixels than in the second set of pixels.