Liquid crystal display device

• US 6,888,608 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2002
• Issued: 05/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: AU Optronics Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Hasegawa, Makoto, Miyazaki, Daisuke, Midorikawa, Teruyuki, Hatoh, Hitoshi, Ueno, Akiko, Kurauchi, Shoichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Ton, Toan
• Application Number:
  US10/196,142
• Publication Number:
  US 20020171800A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,021 Days
• Field of Search: 349/153, 349/155, 349/156
• US Class Current: 349/156
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133388 with constructional differences between the display region and the peripheral region
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13394 spacers regularly patterned on the cell subtrate, e.g. walls, pillars G02F1/133377 takes precedence

Abstract

A improved liquid crystal display device including two substrates each having transparent electrode thereon disposed in parallel while keeping a predetermined gap by means of pillar-shaped spacers and a liquid crystal held between said first and second substrates is proposed. In the liquid crystal display device, density or volume of the number of the pillar-shaped spacers provided in the off-display area is higher than those of a density of the number of said pillar-shaped spacers provided in the display area. This change is made continuously or stepwise along areas. The spacers are preferably disposed so that a contact area between the spacer and a rubbing cloth during the rubbing process is minimized, or so that an orientation defective area caused starting from the spacer does not extend into the pixel area, or so that a plurality of spacers are disposed along a flow of liquid crystal from filling port into the gap between the first and second substrate.

Claims

1. A liquid crystal display device comprising:

first and second substrates disposed in parallel while keeping a predetermined gap; and

a liquid crystal permeating into the gap and held between said first and second substrates, said first substrate including;

a plurality of pillar-shaped resin spacers having the gap between said first and second substrates; and

a first transparent electrode for applying a voltage across said liquid crystal;

said second substrate including;

a second transparent electrode for applying the voltage across said liquid crystal,

wherein said liquid crystal display device includes an off-display area giving no display in an outer peripheral portion and a display area giving the display inwardly thereof, and

a volume of said pillar-shaped resin spacers provided in the off-display area is larger than a volume of said pillar-shaped resin spacers provided in the display area.

2. A liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the volume of said pillar-shaped spacers provided in the off-display area becomes larger as it gets farther from the display area.

3. A liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the off-display area is divided into a plurality of subareas in accordance with distances from the display area, and

the subarea farther from the display area among the divided subareas has a larger volume of said pillar-shaped spacers.

4. A liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein a dummy pattern is formed in a portion corresponding to said pillar-shaped spacer in the off-display area on said second substrate.