Flexible touch screen panel and flexible display device with the same

• US 9,207,818 B2
• Filed: 02/20/2013
• Issued: 12/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Display Company Limited (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Display Company Limited (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Kang, Sung-Ku, Jung, Tae-Hyeog, Jeon, Byeong-Kyu
• Primary Examiner(s): SHAH, PRIYANK J
• Application Number:
  US13/772,246
• Publication Number:
  US 20140139447A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,021 Days
• Field of Search: 345/173
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1652 the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04102 Flexible digitiser, i.e. constructional details for allowing the whole digitising part of a device to be flexed or rolled like a sheet of paper
• 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 3/04164 Connections between sensors and controllers, e.g. routing lines between electrodes and connection pads
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0448 Details of the electrode shape, e.g. for enhancing the detection of touches, for generating specific electric field shapes, for enhancing display quality

Abstract

A flexible touch screen panel includes a substrate, sensing patterns, sensing lines, and at least one bending sensor. The substrate is divided into an active area and a non-active area around the active area. The sensing patterns are on the active area of a first surface of the substrate. The sensing lines are on the non-active area of the first surface of the substrate and connected to the sensing patterns. The at least one bending sensor is implemented with a plurality of sensing patterns at an edge region in the active area. In the flexible touch screen panel, the substrate is configured to be bent along a folding axis in a first direction, and the at least one bending sensor is at a region along the folding axis.

Claims

1. A flexible touch screen panel comprising:

a substrate comprising an active area and a non-active area around the active area;

sensing patterns on the active area of a first surface of the substrate, the sensing patterns comprising;

first sensing cells coupled together along a first direction;

first connecting lines coupling adjacent ones of the first sensing cells;

second sensing cells coupled together along a second direction; and

second connecting lines coupling adjacent ones of the second sensing cells; and

sensing lines on the non-active area of the first surface of the substrate and coupled to the sensing patterns,

wherein at least one bending sensor is implemented with a plurality of the sensing patterns at an edge region in the active area,

wherein the substrate is configured to be bent along a folding axis in the first direction, and the at least one bending sensor is at a region along the folding axis,

wherein the at least one bending sensor is implemented with two adjacent ones of the first sensing cells and a second sensing cell adjacent one of the two adjacent ones of the sensing cells, and

wherein the folding axis is between the two adjacent ones of the first sensing cells that constitute the at least one bending sensor.

2. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 1, wherein each of the sensing cells at the region along the folding axis is separated into cell portions.

3. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 2, wherein the cell portions are spaced apart from each other along the folding axis and do not overlap with the folding axis.

4. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 2, wherein each of the cell portions comprises a protruding portion that overlaps with the folding axis.

5. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 1, wherein the active area having the sensing patterns thereon comprises a plurality of sub-active areas based on the folding axis.

6. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 5, wherein the sensing patterns on the sub-active areas are configured to be operated while the sensing patterns are separated from each other.

7. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 1, wherein the substrate comprises a polyimide material.

8. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 5, wherein the sensing patterns on different ones of the sub-active areas are coupled to a pad portion by different ones of the sensing lines arranged on different regions of the non-active area.

9. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 8, wherein the different ones of the sensing lines extending from the sub-active areas are coupled to the pad portion located at one end of the non-active area.

10. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 8, wherein different ones of the sensing lines extending from different ones of the sub-active areas are coupled to a plurality of pad portions located at different regions of the non-active area.

11. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 9, wherein a portion of each of the sensing lines crossing the folding axis is branched into a plurality of lines.

12. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 9, wherein a portion of each of the sensing lines crossing the folding axis has a larger width than portions of the sensing lines formed on other regions.

13. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 12, wherein a plurality of holes are formed in the portion having the larger width.

14. The flexible touch screen panel of claim 9, wherein a portion of each of the sensing lines crossing the folding axis is a connecting portion comprising a material different from that of each of the sensing lines, and wherein the connecting portion is electrically coupled to the sensing lines through contact holes.

15. A flexible display device with a flexible touch screen panel comprising:

a substrate comprising an active area and a non-active area positioned around the active area;

sensing patterns on the active area of a first surface of the substrate, the sensing patterns comprising;

first sensing cells coupled together along a first direction;

first connecting lines coupling adjacent ones of the first sensing cells;

second sensing cells coupled together along a second direction; and

second connecting lines coupling adjacent ones of the second sensing cells; and

sensing lines on the non-active area of the first surface of the substrate and coupled to the sensing patterns,

wherein at least one bending sensor is implemented with a plurality of the sensing patterns positioned at an edge region in the active area,

wherein the flexible display device is attached to the flexible touch screen panel so as to face the sensing patterns and the sensing lines in the direction of the first surface of the substrate,

wherein the substrate is configured to be bent along a folding axis in a first direction, and the at least one bending sensor is at a region along the folding axis,

wherein the at least one bending sensor is implemented with two adjacent ones of the first sensing cells and a second sensing cell adjacent one of the two adjacent ones of the sensing cells, and

wherein the folding axis is between the two adjacent ones of the first sensing cells that constitute the at least one bending sensor.

16. The flexible display device of claim 15, wherein the flexible display device is implemented as an organic light emitting display device.

17. The flexible display device of claim 15, wherein a polarizing film and a window substrate are sequentially attached to a second surface of the substrate using a transparent adhesive.