Display device

• US 9,383,589 B2
• Filed: 09/04/2014
• Issued: 07/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Display Company Limited (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Display Company Limited (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Cho, Jung-Hyun, Baek, Moon Jung, Yun, Hae Young
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Vip
• Application Number:
  US14/477,554
• Publication Number:
  US 20150219911A1
• Time in Patent Office: 670 Days
• Field of Search: 349/15, 349/57, 349/95, 349/113, 349/200
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 30/27 involving lenticular arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 30/28 involving active lenticular arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133536 Reflective polarizers G02F1/13362 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/134309 characterised by their geometrical arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/134381 Hybrid switching mode, i.e. for applying an electric field with components parallel and orthogonal to the substrates
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1393 the birefringence of the liquid crystal being electrically controlled, e.g. ECB-, DAP-, HAN-, PI-LC cells G02F1/1396, G02F1/141 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/294 Variable focal length devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/305 using lenticular lenses, e.g. arrangements of cylindrical lenses
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/356 having separate monoscopic and stereoscopic modes

Abstract

A display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a liquid crystal lens panel positioned on a display panel; and a reflective polarizer positioned between the display panel and the liquid crystal lens panel, wherein the liquid crystal lens panel includes a lower substrate and an upper substrate facing each other, a lower lens electrode formed on the lower substrate, where the lower lens electrode includes a plurality of separate lower lens electrodes formed into lower lens electrode groups, where a width of each separate lower lens electrode becomes wider closer to a center of the lower lens electrode group; an upper lens electrode formed on the upper substrate, and a liquid crystal layer interposed between the lower substrate and the upper substrate. The liquid crystal lens panel is configured to be operated in a 2D mode, a 3D mode, or a mirror mode.

Claims

1. A display device comprising:

a liquid crystal lens panel positioned on a display panel; and

a reflective polarizer positioned between the display panel and the liquid crystal lens panel,

wherein the liquid crystal lens panel includes a lower substrate and an upper substrate facing each other,

a lower lens electrode formed on the lower substrate, wherein the lower lens electrode includes a plurality of separate lower lens electrodes formed into lower lens electrode groups;

an upper lens electrode formed on the upper substrate, and

a liquid crystal layer interposed between the lower substrate and the upper substrate,

wherein the liquid crystal lens panel is configured to be operated in a 2-dimensional (2D) mode, a 3-dimensional (3D) mode, or a mirror mode.

2. The display device of claim 1, further comprising:

an absorptive polarizer positioned on the upper substrate, wherein

a transmissive axis of the reflective polarizer is parallel with a transmissive axis of the absorptive polarizer, and

the display panel is selected from a group comprising an organic light-emitting display (OLED) panel, a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel, an electrophoretic display panel (EDP), and a plasma display panel (PDP).

3. The display device of claim 1, wherein when the liquid crystal lens panel is operated in 2D mode,

the same image reaches both eyes of a viewer, and

no voltage is applied to the lower lens electrode and the upper lens electrode of the liquid crystal lens panel, or

the same voltage is applied to the lower lens electrode and the upper lens electrode.

4. The display device of claim 1, wherein

the lower lens electrode includes two separate layers with an insulating layer disposed therebetween, and

alternate adjacent lower lens electrodes are disposed on a different layer.

5. The display device of claim 1, wherein when the liquid crystal lens panel is operated in 3D mode,

different images are transmitted to respective eyes of a viewer,

a predetermined common voltage is applied to the upper lens electrode , and

voltages different from the predetermined common voltage are applied to the separate lower lens electrodes of the lower lens electrode groups.

6. The display device of claim 5, wherein

a width of each separate lower lens electrode becomes wider closer to a center of the lower lens electrode group, and

each lower lens electrode group functions as a Fresnel lens, wherein a plurality of Fresnel lenses are formed on the display panel.

7. The display device of claim 5, wherein

a vertical electric field is formed between the upper lens electrode and the plurality of lower lens electrode groups.

8. The display device of claim 6, wherein

the plurality of Fresnel lenses retard a phase of light received from the display panel to generate binocular disparity, and

a 3D stereoscopic image is displayed on the display panel.

9. The display device of claim 1, wherein when the liquid crystal lens panel is operated in mirror mode,

the liquid crystal lens panel reflects incident light from the reflective polarizer,

a common voltage of a predetermined magnitude is applied to the upper lens electrode, and

the common voltage is applied to odd-numbered separate lower lens electrodes and a voltage different from the common voltage is applied to even-numbered separate lower lens electrodes, or

the common voltage is applied to the even-numbered separate lower lens electrodes and a voltage different from the common voltage is applied to the odd-numbered separate lower lens electrodes.

10. The display device of claim 9, wherein

a horizontal electric field is formed between adjacent odd-numbered separate lower lens electrodes and even-numbered separate lower lens electrodes.

11. The display device of claim 10, wherein

the liquid crystal lens panel rotates the polarization of light passing therethrough by 90 degrees.

12. The display device of claim 11, wherein,

light that has passed through the liquid crystal lens panel and had its polarization rotated by 90 degrees is reflected from the reflective polarizer back into the liquid crystal lens panel.

13. The display device of claim 10, wherein

light passing through the liquid crystal lens panel is elliptically polarized.

14. The display device of claim 13, wherein

the liquid crystal lens panel elliptically polarizes the transmitted light, wherein light of a determined wavelength band is emitted, and

the predetermined wavelength band of light passing through the liquid crystal lens panel is reflected from the reflective polarizer.

15. A display device comprising:

a liquid crystal lens panel positioned on a display panel; and

a reflective polarizer positioned between the display panel and the liquid crystal lens panel,

wherein the liquid crystal lens panel includes a lower substrate and an upper substrate facing each other,

a lower lens electrode formed on the lower substrate,

an upper lens electrode formed on the upper substrate,

a liquid crystal layer interposed between the lower substrate and the upper substrate, and

an absorptive polarizer positioned on the upper substrate, wherein

a transmissive axis of the reflective polarizer is parallel with a transmissive axis of the absorptive polarizer, and

wherein the liquid crystal lens panel is configured to be operated in a 2-dimensional (2D) mode, a 3-dimensional (3D) mode, or a mirror mode.

16. The display device of claim 15, wherein the lower lens electrode includes a plurality of separate lower lens electrodes formed into lower lens electrode groups, wherein a width of each separate lower lens electrode becomes wider closer to a center of the lower lens electrode group, and the upper lens electrode includes separate upper lens electrodes that correspond to the separate lower lens electrodes.

17. The display device of claim 16, wherein

the upper lens electrode includes two separate layers with an insulation layer interposed therebetween,

alternate adjacent upper lens electrodes are disposed on different layers,

the lower lens electrode includes two separate layers with an insulating layer interposed therebetween, and

alternate adjacent lower lens electrodes are disposed on different layers.

18. The display device of claim 16, wherein when the liquid crystal lens panel is operated in mirror mode,

the liquid crystal lens panel reflects incident light from the reflective polarizer,

a same voltage is applied to odd-numbered separate lower lens electrodes and corresponding odd-numbered separate upper lens electrodes,

a same voltage is applied to even-numbered separate lower lens electrodes and corresponding even-numbered separate upper lens electrodes, and

magnitudes of the voltages applied to the odd-numbered separate lens electrodes and the even-numbered separate lens electrodes differ from each other.

19. The display device of claim 16, wherein when the liquid crystal lens panel is operated in 3D stereoscopic image mode,

different images are transmitted to respective eyes of a viewer,

a predetermined common voltage is applied to the upper lens electrode, and

the predetermined common voltage is applied to odd-numbered separate lower lens electrodes, and voltages different from the predetermined common voltage are applied to even-numbered separate lower lens electrodes, or

the predetermined common voltage is applied to the even-numbered separate lower lens electrodes, and voltages different from the predetermined common voltage are applied to the odd-numbered separate lower lens electrodes.

20. The display device of claim 15, wherein when the liquid crystal lens panel is operated in 2D mode,

the same image reaches both eyes of a viewer, and

no voltage is applied to the lower lens electrode and the upper lens electrode of the liquid crystal lens panel, or

the same voltage is applied to the lower lens electrode and the upper lens electrode.