Narrow border organic light-emitting diode display

• US 9,515,131 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2015
• Issued: 12/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Mathew, Dinesh C., Garelli, Adam T., Drzaic, Paul S., Chen, Wei, Degner, Brett W., Posner, Bryan W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Vip
• Application Number:
  US14/948,157
• Publication Number:
  US 20160079337A1
• Time in Patent Office: 382 Days
• Field of Search: 313/506, 313/498, 313/504, 313/512
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/96031 Combination of touch switch and LC display
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 45/60 Circuit arrangements for operating LEDs comprising organic material, e.g. for operating organic light-emitting diodes [OLED] or polymer light-emitting diodes [PLED]
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/841 Self-supporting sealing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/86 Arrangements for improving contrast, e.g. preventing reflection of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/865 comprising light absorbing layers, e.g. light-blocking layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/868 Arrangements for polarized light emission H10K50/86 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/131 Interconnections, e.g. wiring lines or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/40 OLEDs integrated with touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/871 Self-supporting sealing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/8791 Arrangements for improving contrast, e.g. preventing reflection of ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/8793 Arrangements for polarized light emission H10K59/8791 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 77/10 Substrates, e.g. flexible substrates
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 77/111 Flexible substrates
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 20/30 Semiconductor lamps, e.g. solid state lamps [SSL] light emitting diodes [LED] or organic LED [OLED]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 10/549 Organic PV cells

Abstract

An electronic device may be provided having an organic light-emitting diode display and control circuitry for operating the display. The display may include one or more display layers interposed between the control circuitry and a display layer having thin-film transistors. The electronic device may include a coupling structure interposed between the layer of thin-film transistors and the control circuitry that electrically couples the layer of thin-film transistors to the control circuitry. The coupling structure may include a dielectric member having a conductive via, a flexible printed circuit having a bent portion, or a conductive via formed in an encapsulation layer of the display. The display may include a layer of opaque masking material. The layer of opaque masking material may be formed on an encapsulation layer, an organic emissive layer, a thin-film transistor layer, or a glass layer of the organic light-emitting diode display.

Claims

1. A display, comprising:

a light-emitting diode layer having opposing first and second surfaces;

an encapsulation layer formed on the first surface;

a substrate layer formed on the second surface; and

a conductive via formed in the encapsulation layer that couples the light-emitting diode layer to control circuitry for the display.

2. The display defined in claim 1, wherein the light-emitting diode layer comprises a thin-film transistor layer and a layer of light-emitting material.

3. The display defined in claim 2, wherein the thin-film transistor layer is at least partially interposed between the layer of light-emitting material and the substrate.

4. The display defined in claim 2, wherein the layer of light-emitting material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the thin-film transistor layer.

5. The display defined in claim 2, wherein the conductive via couples the thin-film transistor layer to the control circuitry for the display.

6. The display defined in claim 5, wherein a portion of the encapsulation layer is formed directly on a portion of thin-film transistor layer.

7. The display defined in claim 6, wherein the conductive via extends from the control circuitry to the portion of the thin-film transistor layer on which the encapsulation layer is directly formed.

8. An electronic device, comprising:

a light-emitting diode display that includes a thin-film transistor layer;

control circuitry configured to generate control signals for operating the light-emitting diode display, wherein the light-emitting diode display includes an encapsulation layer at least partially interposed between the thin-film transistor layer and the control circuitry; and

a conductive via that extends through the encapsulation layer to couple the thin-film transistor layer to the control circuitry.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 8, wherein the light-emitting diode layer further includes a layer of light-emitting material interposed between the encapsulation layer and the thin-film transistor layer.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 9, wherein the thin-film transistor layer comprises a first portion on which the layer of light-emitting material is formed and a second portion on which the encapsulation layer is formed.

11. The electronic device defined in claim 10, wherein the conductive via extends from the second portion of the thin-film transistor layer to the control circuitry.

12. The electronic device defined in claim 8, further comprising:

a substrate having first and second opposing surfaces, wherein the thin-film transistor layer is formed on the first surface, and wherein a polarizer layer is formed on the second surface.

13. The electronic device defined in claim 8, wherein the conductive via is coupled to the thin-film transistor layer using an anisotropic conductive adhesive.

14. The electronic device defined in claim 8, wherein the control circuitry comprises a printed circuit board and a flexible printed circuit attached to the printed circuit board.

15. The electronic device defined in claim 14, wherein the conductive via is attached to the flexible printed circuit using an anisotropic conductive adhesive.

16. A display, comprising:

a transparent substrate layer;

a light-emitting diode layer formed on the transparent substrate layer;

a polarizer layer formed over the light-emitting diode layer; and

opaque masking material formed between at least a portion of the light-emitting diode layer and the polarizer layer.

17. The display defined in claim 16, wherein the light-emitting diode layer comprises a thin-film transistor layer and a layer of light-emitting material on the thin-film transistor layer, and wherein the opaque masking material is at least partially interposed between the layer of light-emitting material and the thin-film transistor layer.

18. The display defined in claim 16 further comprising:

an encapsulation layer interposed between the light-emitting diode layer and the polarizer layer, wherein the opaque masking material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the light-emitting diode layer.

19. The display defined in claim 18, wherein the light-emitting diode layer comprises a thin-film transistor layer and a layer of light-emitting material formed on the thin-film transistor layer, and wherein the opaque masking material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the layer of light-emitting material.

20. The display defined in claim 16 further comprising:

an encapsulation layer interposed between the light-emitting diode layer and the polarizer layer, wherein the opaque masking material is interposed between the encapsulation layer and the polarizer layer.