Liquid crystal display device and method of manufacturing thereof

• US 8,111,248 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2008
• Issued: 02/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Display Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: LG Display Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Deuk Su, Park, Hyung Seok, Song, In Hyuk
• Primary Examiner(s): Edun, Muhammad N
• Application Number:
  US12/292,550
• Publication Number:
  US 20100066702A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,174 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 345/174
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13338 Input devices, e.g. touch panels
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2201/50 Protective arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2202/28 Adhesive materials or arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04111 Cross over in capacitive digitiser, i.e. details of structures for connecting electrodes of the sensing pattern where the connections cross each other, e.g. bridge structures comprising an insulating layer, or vias through substrate
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0443 using a single layer of sensing electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0446 using a grid-like structure of electrodes in at least two directions, e.g. using row and column electrodes

Abstract

A liquid crystal display device includes: a liquid crystal panel including first and second substrates facing each other and a liquid crystal layer between the first and second substrates, each of the first and second substrates defining a central display region and a peripheral non-display region; a cover glass integrated touch sensor on the liquid crystal panel, the touch sensor including a plurality of transparent first electrodes and second electrodes formed on a surface of the cover glass facing the liquid crystal panel, wherein the first electrodes and second electrodes cross each other; and a touch signal applicator at a side of the cover glass away from the display region of the liquid crystal panel.

Claims

1. A liquid crystal display device comprising:

a liquid crystal panel including first and second substrates facing each other and a liquid crystal layer between the first and second substrates, each of the first and second substrates defining a central display region and a peripheral non-display region;

a cover glass integrated touch sensor on the liquid crystal panel, the touch sensor including a plurality of transparent first electrodes and second electrodes formed on a surface of the cover glass facing the liquid crystal panel, wherein the first electrodes and second electrodes cross each other; and

a touch signal applicator at a side of the cover glass away from the display region of the liquid crystal panel,

wherein the cover glass protrudes from the liquid crystal panel, and the touch signal applicator is on a region of the cover glass protruding from the liquid crystal panel.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the first electrodes are bar-shaped electrodes elongated in an X-axis direction, and the second electrodes are bar-shaped electrodes elongated in a Y-axis direction to cross the first electrodes.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein the first electrodes and second electrodes are arranged in different layers, and a transparent insulating film is an interlayer film between the first electrodes and the second electrodes.

4. The device according to claim 3, wherein the transparent insulating film has a thickness of approximately 0.1˜

5 μ

m.

5. The device according to claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of first electrodes and second electrodes are spaced apart from each other on the cover glass;

the first electrodes take the shape of islands spaced apart from one another in horizontal rows; and

the second electrodes take the shape of bars extending in vertical columns.

6. The device according to claim 5, further comprising:

a first electrode signal applying line above or below the first electrodes with a transparent insulating film interposed therebetween and used to apply signals to the first electrodes of each horizontal row, the first electrode signal applying line being electrically connected with the first electrodes through contact holes in the insulating film.

7. The device according to claim 6, wherein the liquid crystal panel further includes:

a thin film transistor array on the first substrate and including gate lines and data lines intersecting each other to define pixel regions, thin film transistors at intersections of the gate lines and data lines, and pixel electrodes in the pixel regions; and

a color filter array on the second substrate and including a black matrix layer corresponding to a region except for the pixel regions and a color filter layer corresponding to the pixel regions.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein the first electrode signal applying line corresponds to the black matrix layer.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein the first electrodes and second electrodes are made of any one of Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), Indium Zinc Oxide (IZO) and Indium Tin Zinc Oxide (ITZO).

10. The device according to claim 1, wherein the touch signal applicator is made of a Flexible Printed Cable (FPC) and is foldable to an underside of the liquid crystal panel.

11. The device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a voltage applying pad and a voltage detecting pad on the cover glass to correspond to the touch signal applicator and connected with the first and second electrodes of the touch sensor via connecting lines, respectively, the voltage applying pad applying voltage signals to the first electrodes, and the voltage detecting pad detecting signals output from the second electrodes,

wherein the voltage applying pad and voltage detecting pad are connected with the touch signal applicator via soldering.

12. A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device comprising:

forming a liquid crystal panel including first and second substrates facing each other and a liquid crystal layer between the first and second substrates, each of the first and second substrates defining a central display region and a peripheral non-display region;

forming a cover glass integrated touch sensor, the touch sensor including a plurality of transparent first electrodes and second electrodes on a surface of the cover glass facing the liquid crystal panel, wherein the first electrodes and second electrodes cross each other;

bonding the liquid crystal panel to the cover glass integrated touch sensor; and

forming a touch signal applicator at a side of the cover glass away from the display region of the liquid crystal panel,

wherein the cover glass protrudes from the liquid crystal panel, and the touch signal applicator is formed on a region of the cover glass protruding from the liquid crystal panel.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the first electrodes are bar-shaped electrodes elongated in an X-axis direction, and the second electrodes are bar-shaped electrodes elongated in a Y-axis direction to cross the first electrodes.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the first electrodes and second electrodes are arranged in different layers, and a transparent insulating film is an interlayer film formed between the first electrodes and the second electrodes.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein:

the plurality of first electrodes and second electrodes are spaced apart from each other on the cover glass;

the first electrodes take the shapes of islands spaced apart from one another in horizontal rows; and

the second electrodes take the shape of bars extending in vertical columns.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising:

forming a first electrode signal applying line above or below the first electrodes with a transparent insulating film interposed therebetween and used to apply signals to the first electrodes of each horizontal row, the first electrode signal applying line being electrically connected with the first electrodes through contact holes in the insulating film.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein forming the liquid crystal panel further includes:

forming a thin film transistor array on the first substrate and including forming gate lines and data lines intersecting each other to define pixel regions, forming thin film transistors at intersections of the gate lines and data lines, and forming pixel electrodes in the pixel regions; and

forming a color filter array on the second substrate and including forming a forming matrix layer corresponding to a region except for the pixel regions and a color filter layer corresponding to the pixel regions.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the first electrode signal applying line is formed to correspond to the black matrix layer.

19. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

forming a voltage applying pad and a voltage detecting pad on the cover glass to correspond to the touch signal applicator and connected with the first and second electrodes of the touch sensor via connecting lines, respectively, the voltage applying pad applying voltage signals to the first electrodes, and the voltage detecting pad detecting signals output from the second electrodes and

connecting the voltage applying pad and voltage detecting pad with the touch signal applicator via soldering.

20. The method of claim 12, wherein bonding the liquid crystal panel to the cover glass integrated touch sensor includes bonding to each other via an adhesive layer.