Electronic Devices With Display-Integrated Light Sensors

• US 20140145150A1
• Filed: 11/27/2012
• Published: 05/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Shedletsky, Anna-Katrina, de Jong, Erik G., Holenarsipur, Prashanth S.
• Granted Patent: US 9,070,648 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/40
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/13 comprising photosensors that control luminance
• 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 59/60 OLEDs integrated with inorganic light-sensitive elements, e.g. with inorganic solar cells or inorganic photodiodes

Abstract

An electronic device is provided with a display and a display-integrated light sensor. The display includes a transparent cover layer, light-generating layers, and a touch-sensitive layer. The display-integrated light sensor is interposed between the transparent cover layer and a display layer such as the touch-sensitive layer or a thin-film transistor layer of the light-generating layers. The light-generating layers include a layer of organic light-emitting material. The display-integrated light sensor can be implemented as an ambient light sensor or a proximity sensor. The display-integrated light sensor may be a packaged light sensor that is integrated into the display layers of the display or may be formed from light-sensor components formed directly on a display circuitry layer such as the touch-sensitive layer or the thin-film transistor layer.

Claims

1. A display comprising:

light-generating layers;

a transparent cover layer;

an additional layer having conductive traces, wherein the additional layer is interposed between the light-generating layers and the transparent cover layer; and

a light sensor interposed between the additional layer and the transparent cover layer, wherein the light sensor receives light through the transparent cover layer, and wherein the light sensor is electrically coupled to the conductive traces on the additional layer.

2. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the additional layer comprises a touch-sensitive layer.

3. The display defined in claim 2 wherein the touch-sensitive layer comprises a substrate and wherein the conductive traces are formed on the substrate.

4. The display defined in claim 3 wherein the light sensor comprises a packaged light sensor having a sensor circuitry layer and a transparent encapsulant formed on the sensor circuitry layer.

5. The display defined in claim 4, further comprising solder that attaches the sensor circuitry layer to the conductive traces on the substrate.

6. The display defined in claim 4, further comprising an anisotropic conductive film that attaches the sensor circuitry layer to the conductive traces on the substrate.

7. The display defined in claim 3 wherein the light sensor comprises at least one light-sensitive element formed on the substrate.

8. The display defined in claim 7 wherein the light sensor further comprises at least one light-emitting element formed on the substrate.

9. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the light sensor comprises an ambient light sensor.

10. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the light sensor comprises a proximity sensor.

11. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the light generating layers comprise an array of organic light-emitting diodes.

12. An organic light-emitting diode display comprising:

a thin-film transistor layer;

a layer of organic light-emitting material formed on the thin-film transistor layer;

an encapsulation layer formed on the layer of organic light emitting material; and

a light-sensing component attached to a surface of the thin-film transistor layer.

13. The organic light-emitting diode display defined in claim 12 wherein the layer of organic light-emitting material is formed on the surface of the thin-film transistor layer.

14. The organic light-emitting diode display defined in claim 13, further comprising a substrate formed on an opposing surface of the thin-film transistor layer.

15. The organic light-emitting diode display defined in claim 12 wherein the surface of the thin-film transistor layer comprises a first surface of the thin-film transistor layer, wherein the thin-film transistor layer comprises an opposing second surface, and wherein the layer of organic light-emitting material is formed the opposing second surface of the thin-film transistor layer.

16. The organic light-emitting diode display defined in claim 15, further comprising a glass layer on the first surface of the thin-film transistor layer.

17. The organic light-emitting diode display defined in claim 12, further comprising an array of touch sensor electrodes.

18. An electronic device, comprising:

a display;

a display-integrated ambient light sensor attached to a layer of the display; and

control circuitry coupled to the display and the display-integrated ambient light sensor, wherein the control circuitry is configured to receive sensor data from the display-integrated ambient light sensor and to control the display using the sensor data.

19. The electronic device defined in claim 18 wherein the display comprises an array of organic light-emitting diodes.

20. The electronic device defined in claim 19 wherein the display further comprises a touch-sensitive layer and wherein the display-integrated ambient light sensor is attached to the touch-sensitive layer.

21. The electronic device defined in claim 19 wherein the display further comprises a thin-film transistor layer and wherein the display-integrated ambient light sensor is attached to the thin-film transistor layer.