OLED display and touch screen

• US 7,133,032 B2
• Filed: 04/24/2003
• Issued: 11/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Global OLED Technology LLC (LG Display Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Cok, Ronald S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mengistu, Amare
• Application Number:
  US10/422,458
• Publication Number:
  US 20040212603A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,293 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/157, 345173-178, 345/179, 345 76- 83, 345/60, 178/18.09, 178/19.01, 178/18.01, 178/18.03
• US Class Current: 345/175
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0421 by interrupting or reflecting a light beam, e.g. optical touch-screen
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14678 Contact-type imagers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/125 Composite devices with photosensitive elements and electroluminescent elements within one single body
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/40 OLEDs integrated with touch screens

Abstract

An OLED display and touch screen system includes a substrate; an OLED display including an array of individually addressable OLEDs formed on the substrate; and a touch screen including an OLED laser light emitter formed on the substrate, a light sensor formed on the substrate across the display from the light emitter, and optics located around the display above the light emitter and the light sensor for directing light emitted from the OLED laser light emitter across the display to the light sensor.

Claims

1. An OLED display and touch screen system, comprising:

a) a substrate;

b) an OLED display including an array of individually addressable OLEDs formed on the substrate; and

c) a touch screen including an OLED laser light emitter formed on the substrate, a light sensor formed on the substrate across the display from the light emitter, and optics located around the display above the light emitter and the light sensor for directing light emitted from the OLED laser light emitter across the display to the light sensor, wherein the OLED laser light emitter includes an OLED that emits incoherent light and an organic laser positioned to be optically pumped by the OLED that emits incoherent light.

2. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the OLED laser light emitter is a linear array of individually addressable OLED laser light emitters and the light sensor is a linear array of light detecting elements.

3. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 2, wherein the OLED laser light emitters and the light detecting elements are interdigitated in a plurality of linear arrays surrounding the OLED display.

4. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 2, further comprising control electronics for sequentially activating the OLED laser light emitters.

5. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 2, further comprising control electronics for simultaneously activating the OLED laser light emitters.

6. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the OLED laser light emitter is a linear emitter and the light sensor is a linear array of light detecting elements.

7. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the OLED display is a top emitting display.

8. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the OLED display is a bottom emitting display.

9. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the OLED laser light emitter emits infrared light.

10. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the optics are 45 degree mirrors.

11. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 10, further comprising a frame surrounding the OLED display, and wherein the 45 degree mirrors are supported by the frame.

12. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, further comprising a frame surrounding the OLED display, and wherein the optics are supported by the frame.

13. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 12, including an enclosure for the display wherein the frame is a portion of the enclosure.

14. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the optics comprise light pipes.

15. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, further comprising an integrated controller for controlling both the OLED display and the touch screen.

16. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 15, wherein the integrated controller is formed on the substrate.

17. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the light sensor is a non-organic light detecting element.

18. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 17, wherein the non-organic light detecting element is a silicon light detecting element.

19. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 17, wherein the non-organic light detecting element is a thin film device.

20. The OLED display and touch screen claimed in claim 1, wherein the light sensor is an organic light sensor.

21. An OLED display and touch screen system, comprising:

a) a substrate;

b) an OLED display including an array of individually addressable OLEDs formed on the substrate; and

c) a touch screen including an OLED laser light emitter formed on the substrate, a light sensor formed on the substrate across the display from the light emitter, and optics located around the display above the light emitter and the light sensor for directing light emitted from the OLED laser light emitter across the display to the light sensor, wherein the OLED laser light emitter includes an OLED that emits incoherent light and an organic laser positioned to be optically pumped by the OLED that emits incoherent light;

further comprising control electronics for activating the OLED laser light emitter in a predetermined temporal pattern and for filtering an output from the light sensor to detect the predetermined pattern.