Displays with rounded-tip turning films

• US 8,727,593 B2
• Filed: 06/14/2012
• Issued: 05/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Doyle, David A., Wurzel, Joshua G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Green, Tracie Y
• Application Number:
  US13/523,731
• Publication Number:
  US 20130335999A1
• Time in Patent Office: 705 Days
• Field of Search: 313498-512, 445 24- 25, 362/607, 362/294, 362/500
• US Class Current: 362/607
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/0231 the surface having microprismatic or micropyramidal shape macroscopic prism arrays G02B5/045
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0053 Prismatic sheet or layer; Brightness enhancement element, sheet or layer
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1335 Structural association of cells with optical devices, e.g. polarisers or reflectors
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133507 Films for enhancing the luminance
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 13/04 Signs, boards or panels, illuminated from behind the insignia
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/2457 Parallel ribs and/or grooves

Abstract

An electronic device may be provided with a display having backlight structures. The backlight structures may include a light source. Light from the light source may be coupled into an edge of a light guide plate. The backlight structures may include layers such as a diffuser layer and one or more layers of brightness enhancing film. The brightness enhancing film layers may be used to collimate light scattered from the light guide plate and thereby enhance backlight efficiency. Brightness enhancing films may be formed from transparent substrates such as layers of polyester. A patterned polymer layer such as a layer of patterned cured resin may be formed on the transparent substrate of a backlight enhancing film. A roller-based manufacturing process may be used to form the patterned polymer layer on the substrate. The patterned polymer layer may include a series of parallel ridges with rounded peaks.

Claims

1. A plurality of brightness enhancing films, comprising:

a first brightness enhancing film that includes a first transparent layer having a series of parallel ridges, each ridge having a triangular cross section with a rounded peak that has a radius of curvature of at least one micron; and

a second brightness enhancing film that includes a second transparent layer having a series of parallel ridges, each ridge having a triangular cross section with a rounded peak that has a radius of curvature of at least one micron, wherein the ridges of the first transparent layer extend parallel to a first axis, and wherein the ridges of the second transparent layer extend parallel to a second axis.

2. The plurality of brightness enhancing films defined in claim 1 wherein each ridge is configured to exhibit a rounded peak with a radius of curvature of at least two microns.

3. The plurality of brightness enhancing films defined in claim 2 wherein the first transparent layer of material comprises a patterned layer of material on a flexible substrate.

4. The plurality of brightness enhancing films defined in claim 3 wherein the patterned layer of material comprises a patterned ultraviolet-light-curable resin.

5. The plurality of brightness enhancing films defined in claim 4 wherein the flexible substrate comprises a transparent sheet of polymer.

6. The plurality of brightness enhancing films defined in claim 5 wherein the transparent sheet of polymer comprises a polyester layer.

7. The plurality of brightness enhancing films defined in claim 1 wherein the rounded peak of each ridge has a radius of curvature of at least three microns.

8. A display, comprising:

display layers configured to generate an image; and

a backlight unit configured to provide backlight for the display layers, the backlight unit including a plurality of brightness enhancing films, wherein the plurality of brightness enhancing films comprises;

a first brightness enhancing film that includes a first transparent layer having a series of parallel ridges, each ridge having a rounded peak that has a radius of curvature of at least one micron, and a second brightness enhancing film that includes a second transparent layer having a series of parallel ridges, each ridge having a rounded peak that has a radius of curvature of at least one micron, wherein the ridges of the first transparent layer extend parallel to a first axis, and wherein the ridges of the second transparent layer extend parallel to a second axis.

9. The display defined in claim 8 wherein the ridges have triangular cross-sectional shapes.

10. The display defined in claim 9 wherein the backlight unit comprises:

a light guide plate; and

a light source configured to emit light into an edge of the light guide plate, wherein the plurality of brightness enhancing films overlaps the light guide plate and is configured to collimate light scattered from the light guide plate.

11. The display defined in claim 10 wherein the display layers comprise a thin-film transistor layer and a color filter layer.

12. The display defined in claim 8 wherein the first brightness enhancing film comprises a patterned layer of material on a transparent flexible substrate.

13. The display defined in claim 12 wherein the patterned layer of material comprises a layer of cured ultraviolet-light-curable resin.

14. The display defined in claim 13 wherein the transparent flexible substrate comprises polyester.

15. The display defined in claim 14 wherein the display layers comprise:

a color filter layer; and

a thin-film transistor layer.