Displays with Circuitry for Compensating Parasitic Coupling Effects

• US 20140111496A1
• Filed: 10/22/2012
• Published: 04/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Kim, Kyung-Wook, Lee, Szu-Hsien, Gomez, Jason N.
• Application Number:
  US13/657,763
• Publication Number:
  US 20140111496A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/212
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0214 with crosstalk due to leakage current of pixel switch in active matrix panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0219 Reducing feedthrough effects in active matrix panels, i.e. voltage changes on the scan electrode influencing the pixel voltage due to capacitive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3696 Generation of voltages supplied to electrode drivers

Abstract

An electronic device may have a display such as a liquid crystal display. The display may have a color filter layer and a thin-film transistor (TFT) layer. An active portion of the display may contain an array of display pixels that are controlled by control signals that are provided over intersecting gate lines and data lines. In an inactive portion of the display, display driver circuitry may be used to provide data signals for the data lines. Each display pixel may be coupled to a corresponding gate line, data line, and may share a common electrode. Changes in the data signals may be coupled onto the common electrode to cause voltage rippling. Compensation circuitry may be coupled to the common electrode via an AC or a DC coupling connection to help reduce the voltage rippling.

Claims

1. A display comprising:

an array of display pixels controlled by data lines and gate lines, wherein each display pixel in the array of display pixels has an associated display pixel electrode and wherein the array of display pixels share a common electrode; and

common electrode compensation circuitry configured to reduce voltage rippling on the common electrode, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry is coupled to the common electrode via a near-field electromagnetic coupling structure.

2. The display defined in claim 1, further comprising:

a liquid crystal layer, wherein each display pixel in the array of display pixels is configured to apply an electric field to a respective portion of the liquid crystal layer using the display pixel electrode in that display pixel and the common electrode.

3. The display defined in claim 1, wherein the near-field electromagnetic coupling structure comprises a planar conductive structure that overlaps with at least a portion of the common electrode and that is separated from the common electrode by dielectric material.

4. The display defined in claim 1, wherein the common electrode comprises a blanket region of transparent conductive material that overlaps with the array of display pixels.

5. The display defined in claim 1, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry has an input that is coupled to the common electrode via the near-field electromagnetic coupling structure and has an output that is shorted with the common electrode.

6. The display defined in claim 5, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry includes an inverting amplifier circuit that drives the output of the common electrode compensation circuitry.

7. The display defined in claim 6, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry further includes a voltage attenuating circuit interposed between the input of the common electrode compensation circuitry and the inverting amplifier circuit.

8. The display defined in claim 7, wherein the voltage attenuating circuit comprises:

a first load component coupled between a first power supply line and the input of the common electrode compensation circuitry;

a second load component coupled between the input of the common electrode compensation circuitry and a second power supply line that is different than the first power supply line; and

a capacitor that is coupled between the input of the common electrode compensation circuitry and the second power supply line.

9. The display defined in claim 1, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry is coupled to the common electrode via a flex circuit.

10. A display comprising:

an array of display pixels controlled by data lines and gate lines, wherein each display pixel in the array of display pixels has an associated display pixel electrode and wherein the array of display pixels share a common electrode; and

common electrode compensation circuitry configured to reduce voltage rippling on the common electrode, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry includes an input that is coupled to the common electrode via a feedback path, an output that is coupled to the common electrode via an output path, and an impedance isolation circuit that is interposed in the feedback path.

11. The display defined in claim 10, further comprising:

a liquid crystal layer, wherein each display pixel in the array of display pixels is configured to apply an electric field to a respective portion of the liquid crystal layer using the display pixel electrode in that display pixel and the common electrode.

12. The display defined in claim 10, wherein the common electrode comprises a blanket region of transparent conductive material that overlaps with the array of display pixels.

13. The display defined in claim 10, where the impedance isolation circuit comprises a unity-gain buffer circuit.

14. The display defined in claim 10, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry further includes an inverting amplifier that drives the output of the common electrode compensation circuitry.

15. The display defined in claim 14, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry further includes a filter circuit interposed in the feedback path between the impedance isolation circuit and the inverting amplifier.

16. The display defined in claim 15, wherein the filter circuit comprises a high-pass filter.

17. The display defined in claim 10, wherein at least a portion of the feedback path and the output path interposed between the common electrode compensation circuitry and the common electrode is formed on a flex circuit.

18. A method of operating a display having a plurality of display pixels that are controlled by data lines and gate lines, wherein each display pixel in the array of display pixels has an associated display pixel electrode and wherein the array of display pixels share a common electrode, the method comprising:

applying data signals on the data lines;

in response to applying the data signals on the data lines, receiving a feedback signal from the common electrode with common electrode compensation circuitry via an impedance isolation circuit; and

with the common electrode compensation circuitry, driving the common electrode to reduce voltage rippling on the common electrode.

19. The method defined in claim 18, wherein the impedance isolation circuit comprises a near-field electromagnetic coupling structure, and wherein receiving the feedback signal comprises receiving the feedback signal from the common electrode with common electrode compensation circuitry via the near-field electromagnetic coupling structure.

20. The method defined in claim 19, wherein the near-field electromagnetic coupling structure comprises a planar conductive structure that overlaps with at least a portion of the common electrode and that is separated from the common electrode by dielectric material.

21. The method defined in claim 19, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry includes a voltage attenuator circuit and an inverting amplifier, the method further comprising:

with the voltage attenuator circuit, attenuating the feedback signal; and

with the inverting amplifier, amplifying the attenuated feedback signal to generate a corresponding output voltage signal that is driven onto the common electrode to reduce any existing voltage rippling on the common electrode.

22. The method defined in claim 18, wherein the impedance isolation circuit comprises a unity-gain buffer circuit, and wherein receiving the feedback signal comprises receiving the feedback signal from the common electrode with common electrode compensation circuitry via the unity-gain buffer circuit.

23. The method defined in claim 22, wherein the unity-gain buffer has an input that is shorted to the common electrode.

24. The method defined in claim 23, wherein the common electrode compensation circuitry includes a filter circuit and an inverting amplifier, the method further comprising:

with the filter circuit, performing high-pass filtering on the feedback signal; and

with the inverting amplifier, amplifying the filtered feedback signal to generate a corresponding output voltage signal that is driven onto the common electrode to reduce any existing voltage rippling on the common electrode.