Smart pixel lighting and display microcontroller

• US 9,626,908 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2015
• Issued: 04/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/17/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Sakariya, Kapil V., Bibl, Andreas, McGroddy, Kelly
• Primary Examiner(s): Pert, Evan
• Application Number:
  US14/830,486
• Publication Number:
  US 20150356918A1
• Time in Patent Office: 608 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0828 forming a digital to analog [D/A] conversion circuit
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0842 forming a memory circuit, e.g. a dynamic memory with one capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0857 Static memory circuit, e.g. flip-flop
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2310/027 Details of drivers for data electrodes, the drivers handling digital grey scale data, e.g. use of D/A converters
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2310/08 Details of timing specific for flat panels, other than clock recovery
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/029 by monitoring one or more pixels in the display panel, e.g. by monitoring a fixed reference pixel
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/028 Generation of voltages supplied to electrode drivers in a matrix display other than LCD
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/2088 with use of a plurality of processors, each processor controlling a number of individual elements of the matrix
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/32 semiconductive, e.g. using light-emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3216 using a passive matrix
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3233 with pixel circuitry controlling the current through the light-emitting element
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3266 Details of drivers for scan electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3426 the different display panel areas being distributed in two dimensions, e.g. matrix
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/0753 the devices being arranged next to each other
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/167 comprising optoelectronic devices, e.g. LED, photodiodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00

Abstract

A light emitting assembly is described. In one embodiment, one or more light emitting diode (LED) devices and one or more microcontrollers are bonded to a same side of a substrate, with the one or more microcontrollers to switch and drive the one or more LED devices.

Claims

1. A light emitting assembly comprising:

an array of light emitting diode (LED) devices on a substrate; and

an array of microcontroller chips to switch and drive the array of LED devices, wherein the number of microcontroller chips in the array of microcontroller chips is less than the number of LED devices in the array of LED devices, and each microcontroller chip in the array of microcontroller chips is electrically coupled with a plurality of pixels to drive a plurality of LED devices in each pixel.

2. The assembly of claim 1, further comprising distribution lines on the substrate to electrically couple the array of microcontroller chips and the array of LED devices.

3. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the distribution lines electrically couple a plurality of microcontroller chips of the array of micro controller chips to one another.

4. The assembly of claim 2, wherein each LED device in the array of LED devices has a maximum length or width dimension of 1 to 100 μ

m.

5. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the array of LED devices is bonded to landing pads in electrical connection with the distribution lines.

6. The assembly of claim 2, wherein each microcontroller chip in the array of microcontroller chips includes one or more input circuits and at least one output circuit.

7. The assembly of claim 6, wherein at least one of the one or more input circuits is coupled to a capacitive storage module.

8. The assembly of claim 6, wherein the output circuit includes an analog driving circuit.

9. The assembly of claim 6, wherein at least one of the one or more input circuits further comprises an analog-to-digital converter.

10. The assembly of claim 9, wherein the analog to digital converter of the input circuit is coupled with a data storage module.

11. The assembly of claim 2, wherein each microcontroller chip in the array of microcontroller chips includes digital logic, the digital logic including an input logic block, an output logic block, and a data storage module.

12. The assembly of claim 11, wherein the data storage module comprises at least one bank of random access memory.

13. The assembly of claim 12, wherein the at least one bank of random access memory includes static random access memory.

14. The assembly of claim 12, wherein the at least one bank of random access memory includes dynamic random access memory.

15. The assembly of claim 2, further comprising:

one or more data drivers electrically coupled with the distribution lines; and

one or more scan drivers electrically coupled with the distribution lines.

16. The assembly of claim 15 further comprising a timing controller coupled with the one or more data drivers, the timing controller operable to signal the one or more scan drivers to cause a first row of a display panel to be not refreshed in a current data frame and a second row of the display panel to be refreshed in the current data frame.

17. The assembly of claim 2, wherein multiple microcontroller chips in the array of microcontroller chips include an external communication module to exchange data between the multiple microcontroller chips.

18. The assembly of claim 2, wherein the substrate is a lighting substrate.

19. The assembly of claim 2, further comprising a sensor device, wherein the sensor device includes one or more of a thermal sensor, an optical sensor, or a pressure sensor.