LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY DEVICE

• US 20100141874A1
• Filed: 07/23/2009
• Published: 06/10/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Japan Display Central Incorporated (Japan Display Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Mobile Display Company Limited (Japan Display Incorporated)
• Inventors: MORITA, Shin
• Granted Patent: US 8,169,570 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 349/106
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133388 with constructional differences between the display region and the peripheral region
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133512 Light shielding layers, e.g. black matrix G02F1/136209 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133514 Colour filters
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2201/56 Substrates having a particular shape, e.g. non-rectangular

Abstract

A liquid crystal display device having a non-rectangular display panel includes an active area which is defined by a peripheral shield layer. A plurality of pixels are formed in the active area in a matrix and typically each pixel includes a plurality of sub-pixels to display respective different colors. The pixels include a first pixel arranged in the peripheral region of the active area and a second pixel arranged at an inner region. A part of the first pixel located in a peripheral region of the active area is covered with the peripheral shield layer. The thickness of the color filter layer arranged in the first pixel where the peripheral shield layer overlaps with the first pixel is smaller than that of a same color filter arranged in the second pixel having a larger effective display area than that of the first pixel area.

Claims

1. A liquid crystal display device comprising:

a first substrate including switching elements provided for respective pixels;

a second substrate facing the first substrate;

a liquid crystal layer interposed between the first and second substrates;

a peripheral shield layer defining an active area formed of the first and second substrates and the liquid crystal layer in a non-rectangular shape to display images;

a first pixel arranged at a peripheral portion of the active area and partially overlapped by the peripheral shield layer;

a second pixel located at an inner region of the active area; and

color filter layers arranged in the first and second pixels, respectively, to display the same respective colors, and

wherein a thickness of a color filter layer arranged in the first pixel where the peripheral layer overlaps with the first pixel is smaller than that of a color filter layer arranged in the second pixel having a larger effective display area than that of the first pixel.

2. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the active area is formed in a substantially circular or elliptical shape.

3. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the color filter layer is arranged on the second substrate facing the first substrate.

4. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the color filter layer is arranged on the first substrate facing the second substrate.

5. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 4, wherein each of the pixels includes a picture electrode connected to the switching element, and the color filter layer is arranged between the switching element and the picture electrode.

6. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, further including an organic insulating layer arranged on a surface of the color filter, wherein a thickness of the organic insulating layer arranged on a surface of the effective display area in the first pixel is larger than that of the organic insulating layer arranged on a surface of the effective display area in the second pixel.

7. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 3, further comprising:

a black matrix layer to partition the pixels,

wherein the peripheral shield layer is formed of the same material as the black matrix layer.

8. A liquid crystal display device comprising:

a first substrate including switching elements provided for respective pixels;

a second substrate facing the first substrate;

a liquid crystal layer interposed between the first and second substrates;

a peripheral shield layer defining an active area formed of the first and second substrates and the liquid crystal layer in a non-rectangular shape to display images;

a first pixel arranged at a peripheral portion of the active area;

a second pixel located at an inner region of the active area; and

said peripheral shield layer arranged so as to overlap with a part of the first pixel; and

color filter layers arranged in the first and second pixels, respectively to display the same respective colors, and

wherein each of the first and second pixels includes first, second and third sub-pixels to display respective different colors,

the peripheral shield layer overlaps with the first sub-pixel of the first pixel arranged at the peripheral portion of the active area,

the thickness of a color filter layer arranged in the first sub-pixel of the first pixel where the peripheral shield layer overlaps with the first sub-pixel is smaller than that of a color filter layer arranged in the first sub-pixel of the second pixel, and

respective first sub-pixels of the first and second pixels display the same color.

9. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 8, wherein the first, second and third sub-pixels of the first and second pixels are red, green and blue sub-pixels.

10. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 8, wherein the active area is formed in a circular or elliptical shape.

11. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 8, wherein the color filter layer is arranged on the first substrate facing the second substrate, and the color filter layer is arranged between the switching elements and a picture electrode.

12. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 8 further including organic insulating layers arranged on a surface of the color filter layers, wherein a thickness of the organic insulating layer arranged in the first sub-pixel in the first pixel is larger than that arranged in the first-sub pixel in the second pixel.

13. A liquid crystal display device comprising:

a first substrate including switching elements provided to each pixel;

a second substrate facing the first substrate;

a liquid crystal layer interposed between the first and second substrates;

a peripheral shield layer defining an active area formed of the first and second substrates and the liquid crystal layer in a non-rectangular shape to display images;

a first pixel arranged at a peripheral portion of the active area;

a second pixel located at an inner region of the active area; and

said peripheral shield layer arranged so as to overlap with a part of the first pixel; and

color filter layers arranged in the first and second pixels, respectively to display the same respective colors, and

wherein each of the first and second pixels includes first, second and third sub-pixels to display respective different colors, and the peripheral shield layer overlaps with the first and second sub-pixels in the first pixel arranged at the peripheral portion of the active area,

the thickness of a color filter layer arranged in the first sub-pixel of the first pixel where the peripheral shield layer overlaps with the first sub-pixel is smaller than that of a color filter layer arranged in the first sub-pixel of the second pixel, and respective first, second and third sub-pixels of the first and second pixels display same colors, and

the thickness of a color filter layer arranged in the first and second sub-pixels of the first pixel where the peripheral shield layer overlaps with the first and second sub-pixel is smaller than those of the color filter layers arranged in the first and second sub-pixels in the second pixel, respectively, and the thickness of the second sub-pixel is larger than that of the first sub-pixel in the first pixel.

14. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 13, wherein the first, second and third sub-pixels of the first and second pixels are red, green and blue sub-pixels, respectively.

15. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 13, wherein the active area is formed in a circular or elliptical shape.

16. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 13, further including organic insulating layers arranged on a surface of the color filter layers, wherein a thickness of the organic insulating layers arranged in the first and sub-pixels in the first pixel is larger a thickness of the organic insulating layer arranged in the first and second sub-pixels in the second pixel.

17. A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device comprising an active area including a plurality of pixels to display images in a non-rectangular shape, said method comprising:

providing first and second substrates interposed by a liquid crystal layer therebetween, the first substrate including switching elements provided for respective pixels;

forming a first pixel arranged at a peripheral portion of the active area;

forming a second pixel located at an inner region of the active area;

providing a peripheral shield layer arranged so as to overlap with a part of the first pixel and the peripheral shield layer defining the active area; and

forming color filter layers arranged in the first and second pixels, respectively to display respective same colors; and

wherein forming the color filter layers includes,

forming colored resist layer on a surface of one of the substrates facing the liquid crystal layer and corresponding to the first and second pixels, respectively,

forming a mask layer on the resist layer,

patterning the mask layer to develop the colored resist layer,

irradiating the resist layer through the mask layer,

developing the colored resist layer, and

wherein the thickness of the color filter layer arranged in an effective display area of the first pixel where the peripheral layer overlaps with the first pixel is smaller than that of the color filter arranged in the second pixel having a larger effective display area than that of the first pixel.

18. The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to claim 17, wherein the active area is formed in a circular or elliptical shape.

19. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 17, further including organic insulating layers arranged on a surface of the color filter layers, wherein a thickness of the organic insulating layer arranged in a first sub-pixel in the first pixel is larger than that arranged in a first-sub pixel in the second pixel.

20. The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to claim 17, wherein the color filter layer is arranged on the first substrate facing the second substrate, and the color filter layer is arranged between the switching elements and a picture electrode.

21. The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to claim 17, wherein the peripheral shield layer is formed of the same material as a black matrix layer used to partition the pixels.

22. The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to claim 17, wherein the mask layer is a half-tone mask.

23. The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to claim 17, wherein the mask layer is a gray-tone mask.