LIQUID CRYSTAL DEVICE

• US 20080231787A1
• Filed: 03/20/2008
• Published: 09/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Citizen Watch Co Limited (Citizen Electronics Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Citizen Holdings Co., Ltd. (Citizen Electronics Company Limited)
• Inventors: NOGUCHI, Kenji
• Granted Patent: US 7,612,862 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 349/125
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1341 Filling or closing of cells
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0209 Crosstalk reduction, i.e. to reduce direct or indirect influences of signals directed to a certain pixel of the displayed image on other pixels of said image, inclusive of influences affecting pixels in different frames or fields or sub-images which constitute a same image, e.g. left and right images of a stereoscopic display
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0233 Improving the luminance or brightness uniformity across the screen
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/0492 Change of orientation of the displayed image, e.g. upside-down, mirrored
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3651 using multistable liquid crystals, e.g. ferroelectric liquid crystals

Abstract

An object of the invention is to provide a liquid crystal device that uses a smectic liquid crystal and that can produce a uniform display. The liquid crystal device includes a pair of substrates, a smectic liquid crystal provided between the pair of substrates, an injection hole for injecting therethrough the smectic liquid crystal into a gap formed between the pair of substrates, a plurality of scanning electrodes arranged at right angles to the direction of injection of the smectic liquid crystal between the pair of substrates; an alignment film deposited over the plurality of scanning electrodes, and voltage applying means for applying a voltage to the plurality of scanning electrodes in sequence proceeding from a side nearest to the injection hole toward a side farthest therefrom.

Claims

1. A liquid crystal device comprising:

a pair of substrates;

a smectic liquid crystal provided between said pair of substrates;

an injection hole for injecting therethrough said smectic liquid crystal into a gap formed between said pair of substrates;

a plurality of scanning electrodes arranged at right angles to the direction of injection of said smectic liquid crystal between said pair of substrates;

an alignment film deposited over said plurality of scanning electrodes; and

voltage applying means for applying a voltage to said plurality of scanning electrodes in sequence proceeding from a side nearest to said injection hole toward a side farthest therefrom.

2. The liquid crystal device according to claim 1, wherein said alignment film is an SiOx film deposited by oblique evaporation.

3. The liquid crystal device according to claim 1, wherein said voltage applying means stops applying the voltage to said plurality of scanning electrodes after scanning all of said plurality of scanning electrodes once from said nearest side to said farthest side.

4. The liquid crystal device according to claim 1, wherein said smectic liquid crystal is a ferroelectric liquid crystal or an antiferroelectric liquid crystal.

5. The liquid crystal device according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of signal electrodes arranged at right angles to said plurality of scanning electrodes.