Transflective Liquid Crystal Display Device

• US 20070236635A1
• Filed: 03/28/2007
• Published: 10/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Japan Display East Incorporated (Japan Display Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Japan Display Incorporated
• Inventors: Morimoto, Masateru, Ochiai, Takahiro
• Application Number:
  US11/692,256
• Publication Number:
  US 20070236635A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 349/114
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133555 Transflectors
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/134318 having a patterned common electrode
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/134363 for applying an electric field parallel to the substrate, i.e. in-plane switching [IPS]
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2201/52 RGB geometrical arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2203/64 Normally black display, i.e. the off state being black
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2203/66 Normally white display, i.e. the off state being white
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0426 Layout of electrodes and connections
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0434 Flat panel display in which a field is applied parallel to the display plane
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0456 with a reflective area and a transmissive area combined in one pixel, such as in transflectance pixels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0238 Improving the black level
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3611 Control of matrices with row and column drivers

Abstract

In an IPS-type transflective liquid crystal display device in which reflective portions of sub pixels possess a normally white characteristic, contrast of the reflective portions can be enhanced. The present invention provides a transflective liquid crystal display device including a liquid crystal display panel which includes a pair of substrates; liquid crystal which is sandwiched between the pair of substrates; a plurality of sub pixels each of which includes a transmissive portion and a reflective portion; each sub pixel having a pixel electrode formed on one substrate out of the pair of substrates and a counter electrode formed on one substrate, the pixel electrode being arranged in common in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion and the counter electrode being arranged individually in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion in one sub pixel, the pixel electrode and the counter electrode generating an electric field therebetween thus driving the liquid crystal, wherein the liquid crystal display panel further includes video lines, and a portion of the pixel electrode in the reflective portion is overlapped to the video line when the pixel electrode in the reflective portion and the video line are projected from the direction orthogonal to a main surface of the liquid crystal display panel on one substrate.

Claims

1. A transflective liquid crystal display device including a liquid crystal display panel, the liquid crystal display panel comprising:

a pair of substrates;

liquid crystal which is sandwiched between the pair of substrates;

a plurality of sub pixels each of which includes a transmissive portion and a reflective portion;

each sub pixel having a pixel electrode formed on one substrate out of the pair of substrates and a counter electrode formed on one substrate, the pixel electrode being arranged in common in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion and the counter electrode being arranged individually in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion in one sub pixel, the pixel electrode and the counter electrode generating an electric field therebetween thus driving the liquid crystal, wherein

the liquid crystal display panel further includes video lines each of which supplies a video voltage to the pixel electrode of each one of the plurality of sub pixels, and

a portion of the pixel electrode in the reflective portion is overlapped to the video line when the pixel electrode in the reflective portion and the video line are projected from the direction orthogonal to a main surface of the liquid crystal display panel on one substrate.

10. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein in each sub pixel out of the plurality of sub pixels, a potential applied to one counter electrode in one of the transmissive portion and the reflective portion is higher than a potential applied to the pixel electrode, and a potential applied to the counter electrode of another of the transmissive portion and the reflective portion is lower than the potential applied to the pixel electrode.

11. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the transmissive portion possesses a normally black characteristic which allows the transmissive portion to perform a black display in a non-voltage applied state and the reflective portion possesses a normally white characteristic which allows the reflective portion to perform a white display in a non-voltage applied state.

12. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the counter electrodes are driven independently for every one display line.

13. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein assuming two neighboring display lines as one display line and another display line, reference voltages which differ from each other are applied to the counter electrodes in the transmissive portions of the respective sub pixels on one display line and the counter electrodes in the reflective portions of the respective sub pixels on one display line respectively, and

the same reference voltage is applied to the counter electrodes in the reflective portions of the respective sub pixels on one display line and the counter electrodes in the transmissive portions of the respective sub pixels on another display line respectively.

14. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 13, wherein the counter electrodes in the reflective portions of the respective sub pixels on one display line and the counter electrodes in the transmissive portions of the respective sub pixels on another display line are common electrodes.

15. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the counter electrodes are formed of a strip-like electrode, an interlayer insulation film is formed on the strip-like counter electrodes, and the pixel electrodes are formed on the interlayer insulation film.

2. A transflective liquid crystal display device including a liquid crystal display panel, the liquid crystal display panel comprising:

a pair of substrates;

liquid crystal which is sandwiched between the pair of substrates;

a plurality of sub pixels each of which includes a transmissive portion and a reflective portion;

each sub pixel having a pixel electrode formed on one substrate out of the pair of substrates and a counter electrode formed on one substrate, the pixel electrode being arranged in common in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion and the counter electrode being arranged individually in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion in one sub pixel, the pixel electrode and the counter electrode generating an electric field therebetween thus driving the liquid crystal, wherein

the liquid crystal display panel includes color filters, and

a length of the color filter in the first direction in the reflective portion of at least one sub pixel out of the plurality of sub pixels is set different from a length of the color filter in the first direction in the transmissive portion of one sub pixel.

9. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 2, wherein the first direction is a direction along one horizontal display line.

3. A transflective liquid crystal display device including a liquid crystal display panel, the liquid crystal display panel comprising:

a pair of substrates;

liquid crystal which is sandwiched between the pair of substrates;

a plurality of sub pixels each of which includes a transmissive portion and a reflective portion;

each sub pixel having a pixel electrode formed on one substrate out of the pair of substrates and a counter electrode formed on one substrate, the pixel electrode being arranged in common in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion and the counter electrode being arranged individually in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion in one sub pixel, the pixel electrode and the counter electrode generating an electric field therebetween thus driving the liquid crystal, wherein

the liquid crystal display panel includes color filters, and

a shape of the color filter in the reflective portion of at least one sub pixel out of the plurality of sub pixels is displaced in the first direction with respect to a shape of the color filter in the transmissive portion.

4. A transflective liquid crystal display device including a liquid crystal display panel, the liquid crystal display panel comprising:

a pair of substrates;

liquid crystal which is sandwiched between the pair of substrates;

a plurality of sub pixels each of which includes a transmissive portion and a reflective portion;

each sub pixel having a pixel electrode formed on one substrate out of the pair of substrates and a counter electrode formed on one substrate, the pixel electrode being arranged in common in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion and the counter electrode being arranged individually in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion in one sub pixel, the pixel electrode and the counter electrode generating an electric field therebetween thus driving the liquid crystal, wherein

the numbers of pixel electrodes in the reflective portions of the sub pixels of first color, second color and third color out of the plurality of sub pixels differ from each other for the respective sub pixels of the first color, the second color and the third color.

5. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 4, wherein the first color is red, the second color is green and the third color is blue, and

assuming the numbers of the pixel electrodes in the reflective portions of the sub pixels of red, green and blue as Ra, Ga, Ba, a relationship Ga>

Ba>

Ra is established.

6. A transflective liquid crystal display device including a liquid crystal display panel, the liquid crystal display panel comprising:

a pair of substrates;

liquid crystal which is sandwiched between the pair of substrates;

a plurality of sub pixels each of which includes a transmissive portion and a reflective portion;

each sub pixel having a pixel electrode formed on one substrate out of the pair of substrates and a counter electrode formed on one substrate, the pixel electrode being arranged in common in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion and the counter electrode being arranged individually in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion in one sub pixel, the pixel electrode and the counter electrode generating an electric field therebetween thus driving the liquid crystal, wherein

the liquid crystal display panel includes video lines, and

a distance between the pixel electrode in the reflective portion of at least one sub pixel out of the plurality of sub pixels and the video line is set smaller than a distance between the pixel electrode in the transmissive portion of one sub pixel and the video line.

7. A transflective liquid crystal display device including a liquid crystal display panel, the liquid crystal display panel comprising:

a pair of substrates;

liquid crystal which is sandwiched between the pair of substrates;

a plurality of sub pixels each of which includes a transmissive portion and a reflective portion;

each sub pixel having a pixel electrode formed on one substrate out of the pair of substrates and a counter electrode formed on one substrate, the pixel electrode being arranged in common in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion and the counter electrode being arranged individually in the transmissive portion and the reflective portion in one sub pixel, the pixel electrode and the counter electrode generating an electric field therebetween thus driving the liquid crystal, wherein

the lengths in the first direction of the sub pixels of first color, second color and third color out of the plurality of sub pixels in the reflective portions differ from each other for the respective sub pixels of the first color, the second color and the third color.

8. A transflective liquid crystal display device according to claim 7, wherein the first color is red, the second color is green and the third color is blue, and

assuming the lengths in the first direction of the sub pixels of red, green and blue in the reflective portions as Rl, Gl, Bl, a relationship Gl>

Bl>

Rl is established.