CN106932967B - display panel - Google Patents

Abstract

Translated fromChinese

本发明公开了一种显示面板。此显示面板包含薄膜晶体管阵列衬底、彩色滤光衬底、液晶层、多个第一间隔子及多个第二间隔子。彩色滤光衬底与薄膜晶体管阵列衬底之间具有距离，且薄膜晶体管阵列衬底、彩色滤光衬底与液晶层定义出多个像素单元。多个第一间隔子设置于彩色滤光衬底上，且多个第一间隔子沿着第一方向设于至少部分的相邻的像素单元之间。多个第二间隔子设置于彩色滤光衬底或薄膜晶体管阵列衬底上，且多个第二间隔子沿着第二方向设于至少部分的相邻的像素单元之间。至少一个第一间隔子具有第一高度，且每个第二间隔子的高度不超过第一高度。其中，第一高度等于第一距离。借此，本发明的显示面板可有效抑制液晶分子受力所产生的扰动。

The present invention discloses a display panel. The display panel includes a thin film transistor array substrate, a color filter substrate, a liquid crystal layer, a plurality of first spacers and a plurality of second spacers. There is a distance between the color filter substrate and the thin film transistor array substrate, and the thin film transistor array substrate, the color filter substrate and the liquid crystal layer define a plurality of pixel units. A plurality of first spacers are arranged on the color filter substrate, and a plurality of first spacers are arranged between at least part of adjacent pixel units along a first direction. A plurality of second spacers are arranged on the color filter substrate or the thin film transistor array substrate, and a plurality of second spacers are arranged between at least part of adjacent pixel units along a second direction. At least one first spacer has a first height, and the height of each second spacer does not exceed the first height. Wherein, the first height is equal to the first distance. Thereby, the display panel of the present invention can effectively suppress the disturbance caused by the force on the liquid crystal molecules.

Description

Display panel

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a display panel, and more particularly, to a display panel capable of suppressing disturbance of liquid crystal molecules.

Background

In the conventional liquid crystal display panel, liquid crystal molecules are used to change the polarization direction of light emitted from a light source, so that the light can pass through the polarizing plates on both sides of the liquid crystal layer, thereby achieving the display effect. The liquid crystal molecules are liquid crystals in liquid and solid states, so that the liquid crystal molecules can have the flowing property of liquid and the optical property of crystalline solid.

In the process of fabricating the liquid crystal display panel, the conventional method is to use a spacer (spacer) to separate the thin film transistor array substrate and the color filter substrate to form a space between the two substrates, and liquid crystal molecules can be filled in the space by the conventional method.

Next, in order to obtain a good light transmittance, a liquid crystal display panel is generally manufactured using a glass substrate. However, when the glass substrate is used in a strong light environment, the glass substrate is easily reflected, which induces visual fatigue of the user and reduces the quality of appreciation.

Accordingly, in order to satisfy the trend of light and thin and solve the problem of light reflection of the glass substrate, it is a common practice to replace the glass substrate with a polymer material to reduce the weight and thickness of the display panel and effectively solve the problem of external light reflection of the glass substrate.

However, the polymer substrate is easily deformed by external force, compared to the glass substrate. When the polymer substrate is deformed by force, the liquid crystal molecules of the display panel are also squeezed to generate a flow phenomenon, thereby affecting the display quality. When the liquid crystal molecules are squeezed by an external force, the liquid crystal molecules at the stress point squeeze adjacent liquid crystal molecules, so that the liquid crystal molecules are pushed to generate disturbance and form a ripple phenomenon (namely, the display defect of the water ripple in the invention).

Further, the liquid crystal molecules have a specific viscosity due to the influence of the molecular structure. Therefore, when the liquid crystal molecules are disturbed, the displayed image is changed along with the fluctuation ripple flow, so that a user can easily perceive the disturbance of the liquid crystal molecules caused by external force, and the viewing quality is further reduced.

In view of the foregoing, it is desirable to provide a display panel to improve the defects of the conventional display panel.

Disclosure of Invention

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a display panel, which can suppress the disturbance of liquid crystal molecules caused by external force by disposing spacers.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a display panel is provided. The display panel comprises a thin film transistor array substrate, a color filter substrate, a liquid crystal layer, a plurality of first spacers and a plurality of second spacers. The color filter substrate and the thin film transistor array substrate are oppositely arranged, and a distance is reserved between the thin film transistor array substrate and the color filter substrate.

The liquid crystal layer is positioned between the thin film transistor array substrate and the color filter substrate, and the thin film transistor array substrate, the color filter substrate and the liquid crystal layer define a plurality of pixel units together.

The first spacers are disposed on the color filter substrate, and the first spacers are disposed between at least some of the adjacent pixel units along the first direction. The second spacers are disposed on the color filter substrate or the thin film transistor array substrate, and the second spacers are disposed between at least some of the adjacent pixel units along the second direction. Wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

At least one of the first spacers has a first height, and the height of each second spacer is not greater than (i.e., less than or equal to) the first height, wherein the first height is equal to the distance.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the pixel units are M × N pixel units, and M and N are integers greater than 0. When M is 1, the pixel units are pixel units of a 1 × N array, the pixel units are arranged along the first direction, and the first spacers are arranged continuously or discontinuously. When N is 1, the pixel units are M × 1 pixel units, the pixel units are arranged along the second direction, and the second spacers are arranged continuously or discontinuously.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the pixel units include a plurality of red pixels, a plurality of green pixels and a plurality of blue pixels, and the red pixels, the green pixels and the blue pixels are arranged in a staggered manner.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the first spacers are disposed between at least some adjacent blue pixels along the first direction.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the height of each of the second spacers is greater than or equal to half of the first height.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, a height of one of the second spacers is different from a height of the other of the second spacers.

According to still another embodiment of the present invention, along the first direction, based on a length of a display area of the display panel being 100%, a total length of the second spacer distribution is greater than or equal to 50%.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, a length of one of the second spacers is at least equal to or greater than a length of two adjacent pixel units.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, one of the second spacers and another of the second spacers have different structural shapes.

According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, the display panel at least has a first display area and a second display area, and the distribution density of the second spacers in the first display area is the same as or different from the distribution density in the second display area.

The display panel of the invention can inhibit the disturbance of the liquid crystal molecules caused by the external force by arranging the spacers, thereby avoiding the display defect of generating water ripples on the display panel.

Drawings

For a more complete understanding of the embodiments of the present invention and the advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It must be emphasized that the various features are not drawn to scale and are for illustrative purposes only. The content of the related drawings is as follows:

FIG. 1a is a side view of a display panel according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1b is a schematic top view of a display panel according to another embodiment of the invention, as seen from a side of a TFT array substrate.

FIG. 1c is a side view of a second spacer according to an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a top view of a display panel according to another embodiment of the invention, and the top view is seen from a side of a tft array substrate.

Fig. 3 is a partial top view of a display panel according to still another embodiment of the invention, as seen from a side of a tft array substrate.

Fig. 4 is a partial top view of a display panel according to still another embodiment of the invention, and the partial top view is viewed from one side of a tft array substrate.

FIG. 5 is a schematic top view of a partial area of a display panel according to still another embodiment of the invention, as seen from a side of a TFT array substrate.

Detailed Description

The making and using of embodiments of the present invention are discussed in detail below. It should be appreciated, however, that the embodiments provide many applicable inventive concepts that can be embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specific embodiments discussed are merely illustrative and do not limit the scope of the invention.

An M x N array as referred to herein is representative of an array having M columns of pixels and N rows of pixels, and M and N each represent an integer greater than 0. Wherein, when M is 1, the 1 × N array represents that the array pixels are arranged along the longitudinal direction (the direction of parallel rows and columns, i.e. the first direction of the present invention); and when N is 1, the M × 1 array represents that the array pixels are arranged along the lateral direction (the direction parallel to the rows, i.e., the second direction according to the present invention).

The spacers are arranged continuously, which means that the spacers are arranged between adjacent pixel units. On the contrary, if at least some adjacent pixel units have no spacers, the spacers are not continuously arranged.

Referring to fig. 1a and fig. 1b, fig. 1a is a side view of a display panel according to an embodiment of the invention, and fig. 1b is a top view of a display panel according to another embodiment of the invention, the top view being viewed from one side of a tft array substrate. In one embodiment, thedisplay panel 100 includes a thin filmtransistor array substrate 110, acolor filter substrate 120, aliquid crystal layer 130, a plurality offirst spacers 141, 142, and 143, and a plurality ofsecond spacers 151, 152, and 153.

Thecolor filter substrate 120 and thetft array substrate 110 are disposed opposite to each other, and thecolor filter substrate 120 faces aside surface 110a of thetft array substrate 110, wherein a distance D is formed between thetft array substrate 110 and thecolor filter substrate 120₁. Theliquid crystal layer 130 is disposed between the thin filmtransistor array substrate 110 and thecolor filter substrate 120, and the thin filmtransistor array substrate 110, thecolor filter substrate 120 and theliquid crystal layer 130 define a plurality ofpixel units 160.

Referring to fig. 1a, thefirst spacers 141, 142 and 143 may be disposed on thecolor filter substrate 120, and thesecond spacers 151, 152 and 153 may be disposed on thecolor filter substrate 120 or thetft array substrate 110, respectively.

Thefirst spacer 141 has a first spacingA height H₁And thefirst spacers 142 have a second height H₂. In one embodiment, at least one of thefirst spacers 141, 142 and 143 (i.e., thefirst spacers 141 and 143) has a first height H₁And the remaining first spacers (i.e., the first spacers 142) have a height not exceeding the first height H₁Wherein the first height H₁Equal to the distance D between theTFT array substrate 110 and thecolor filter substrate 120₁And in practice D₁The distance of (A) is slightly different due to process tolerance or position, therefore H₁Plus or minus 0.09H₁All belong to the first height H of the invention₁Within the range. Patterned film structures, such as a tft array or a color filter layer, are disposed on thetft array substrate 110 and thecolor filter substrate 120, but are omitted in this figure for clarity and simplicity.

When thedisplay panel 100 has a first height H₁Thefirst spacers 141 and 143 may separate thetft array substrate 110 and thecolor filter substrate 120 to form a space for accommodating theliquid crystal layer 130.

Thesecond spacers 151 have a height h₁Thesecond spacers 152 have a height h₂And thethird spacer 153 has a height h₃. In one embodiment, the height h of each of thesecond spacers 151, 152 and 153₁、h₂And h₃Is less than or equal to the first height H₁。

In another embodiment, a height of one of the second spacers may be different from a height of another of the second spacers.

When the display panel comprises the second spacer, the second spacer can effectively inhibit the liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer from being disturbed by external force, so that the occurrence of water ripples is reduced.

Preferably, the height of each of the second spacers is greater than or equal to half of the first height. When the height of each second spacer is greater than or equal to half of the first height, the second spacers can also inhibit the disturbance of liquid crystal molecules, and can avoid the display defects of water ripples.

Preferably, the height of each second spacer is less than the first height H₁And is greater than or equal to the first height H₁To make the liquid crystal molecules have good fluidity among each pixel unit, and still avoid the display defect of water ripple.

Please refer to fig. 1 b. In thedisplay panel 100, thepixel units 160 are a 7 × 3 array of pixel units, wherein the 7 × 3 array represents a matrix array having 7 columns of pixels and 3 rows of pixels. In the 1 st column of pixel units, thefirst spacers 140 are disposed between at least someadjacent pixel units 160 along thefirst direction 100 a. In the row 1 pixel unit, thesecond spacers 151, 152, 153, 154 and 155 are disposed between at least someadjacent pixel units 160 along thesecond direction 100 b.

In each row of pixel units, thesecond spacers 151, 152, 153, 154, 155, and 156 are arranged along thesecond direction 100b, and may be continuous or discontinuous. In each row of pixel units in the 1 st to 5 th columns, thesecond spacers 151, 152, 153, and 154 are continuously arranged along thesecond direction 100 b; in each row of pixel units in the 4 th to 7 th columns, thesecond spacers 154, 155 and 156 are not continuously arranged along thesecond direction 100 b. In the figure, thefirst spacers 140 are continuously arranged along thefirst direction 100a, but as long as the second spacers are configured to match with the first spacers, thesecond spacers 140 may also be discontinuously arranged (not shown), and are not limited.

In one embodiment, thesecond spacers 151 may be continuous spacers along thefirst direction 100a between the 1 st and 2 nd columns of pixel units. In the 2 nd and 3 rd columns of pixel units, the 3 rd and 4 th columns of pixel units, or the 4 th and 5 th columns of pixel units, thesecond spacers 152, 153, and 154 may be segmented (discontinuous) spacers along thefirst direction 100 a. Thesecond spacers 153 may also be aligned with two adjacent pixel units 160 (i.e., along thefirst direction 100a, the length of thesecond spacers 153 is equal to the length of the pixel units 160). In another embodiment, one of thesecond spacers 151, 152, 153, and 154 and another one thereof may have different structural shapes.

Referring to fig. 1c, a side view of a second spacer according to an embodiment of the invention is shown. In one embodiment, the side view of thesecond spacer 150 can be as shown in fig. 1c for the embodiments (i) to (iv).

In the (i) th embodiment, thesecond spacers 150 may be rectangular spacers in side view.

In the second embodiment (ii), thesecond spacers 150 may be a combination of spacers 150a having a trapezoidal side view andspacers 150b having a rectangular side view. In one embodiment, thespacers 150a and 150b may be integrally formed.

In the (iii) embodiment, thesecond spacer 150 may include a plurality ofspacers 150 a.

In the (iv) embodiment, thesecond spacers 150 may be composed ofdifferent spacers 150a and 150b, and thespacers 150a and 150b may be staggered. In one embodiment, thespacers 150a and 150b may be arranged randomly.

In the display panel of the present invention, the second spacers may include various shapes, other suitable shapes, or any mixture of the above shapes of the second spacers disclosed in the aforementioned (i) to (iv) embodiments.

Fig. 2 is a top view of a display panel according to another embodiment of the invention, as seen from a side of a tft array substrate. In an embodiment, the structure of thedisplay panel 200 of fig. 2 is substantially the same as the structure of thedisplay panel 100 of fig. 1b, and the difference between the two is that thesecond spacers 250 of thepanel 200 have different arrangements.

Wherein, along thesecond direction 200b, in the pixel units of the 1 st row and the 3 rd row, thesecond spacers 250 are continuously arranged; in the pixel unit of the 2 nd row, thesecond spacers 250 are not arranged consecutively. Therefore, the second spacers 252 are not evenly distributed in thedisplay panel 200.

As shown in fig. 2, when thedisplay panel 200 has the first display area 201 (the 1 st row of pixels), the second display area 202 (the 2 nd row of pixels), and the third display area 203 (the 3 rd row of pixels) which are independent, the distribution density of thesecond spacers 250 in thefirst display area 201 is the same as the distribution density of thesecond spacers 250 in thethird display area 203, but the distribution density of thesecond spacers 250 in thefirst display area 201 is different from the distribution density of thesecond spacers 250 in thesecond display area 202. In this embodiment, the distribution density of thesecond spacers 250 at the periphery of the display area is greater than the distribution density of thesecond spacers 250 at the center of the display area.

In one embodiment, the second spacers in the central region of the display panel may have a higher distribution density or be evenly distributed in the display panel according to the application requirements of the display panel (e.g., panel strength, degree of suppressing disturbance of liquid crystal, or others).

Fig. 3 is a partial top view of a display panel according to still another embodiment of the invention, as seen from a side of a tft array substrate. The local area structure of thedisplay panel 300 in fig. 3 is a 3 × 3 array ofpixel units 360, which is substantially the same as the structure of thedisplay panel 100 in fig. 1b, and the difference between the two structures is that the arrangement of thesecond spacers 351 and 352 of thedisplay panel 300 is different from the arrangement of thesecond spacers 151, 152, 153, 154, 155 and 156 of thedisplay panel 100.

In thedisplay panel 300, along thefirst direction 300a, thesecond spacers 351 are continuous spacers, that is, onesecond spacer 351 has a length that spans threepixel units 360, but thesecond spacers 352 are a plurality of discontinuous spacers. Thesecond spacer 351 has a length L₁. In the pixel units of the 1 st to 3 rd rows, the lengths of thesecond spacers 352 are L₂₁、L₂₂And L₂₃。

Along thefirst direction 300a, the length L of thesecond spacer 351 is 100% based on the length L of thedisplay region 301 of thedisplay panel 300₁Is greater than or equal to 50%, and the total length (L) of thesecond spacers 352₂₁、L₂₂And L₂₃The sum of) is greater than or equal to 50%. Wherein, along thefirst direction 300a,the length L of thedisplay region 301 is defined as the distance between apoint 341 of the outermost edge of the uppermostfirst spacer 340 and aside 341 of the outermost edge of thelowermost pixel unit 360, and the width W of the display region is defined as the distance between aside 363 of the outermost edge of therightmost pixel unit 360 and aside 365 of the outermost edge of theleftmost pixel unit 360 along thesecond direction 300 b. It should be noted that, the terms upper, lower, right and left are only used to describe the relative position relationship between thefirst spacer 340 and thepixel unit 360 in the top view.

If the total length of the second spacer is greater than or equal to 50%, the second spacer can also reduce the disturbance of the external force to the liquid crystal molecules, so as to suppress the display defect of the water ripple.

Fig. 4 is a partial top view of a display panel according to yet another embodiment of the invention, as seen from a side of a tft array substrate. In one embodiment, the structure of thedisplay panel 400 is substantially the same as the structure of thedisplay panel 100 of fig. 1B, and the difference between the two is that the pixel units of thedisplay panel 400 are 7 × 5 array, and the pixel units of thedisplay panel 400 include red pixels R, green pixels G, and blue pixels B.

In each row of pixel units, the red pixels R, the green pixels G and the blue pixels B are arranged in a staggered manner; and in each column of pixel units, the pixel units are pixels of the same color.

In the 1 st, 2 nd and 7 th columns of pixel units, thefirst spacers 440 are continuously arranged along thefirst direction 400 a; however, in the pixel units of the 3 rd to 6 th rows, thefirst spacers 440 are not continuously arranged along thefirst direction 400 a. In the row 1 pixel unit, thesecond spacers 450 are arranged continuously along thesecond direction 400 b; however, in the pixel units of the 2 nd to 5 th columns, thesecond spacers 450 are not continuously arranged along thesecond direction 400 b.

Fig. 5 is a partial top view of a display panel according to still another embodiment of the invention, as seen from a side of a tft array substrate. In an embodiment, the structure of thedisplay panel 500 is substantially the same as that of thedisplay panel 400, and the difference between the two is that thefirst spacers 540 and thesecond spacers 550 of thedisplay panel 500 have different arrangements.

In thedisplay panel 500, thefirst spacers 540 are disposed between at least some adjacent blue pixels B along thefirst direction 500a, and thefirst spacers 540 are continuously arranged. In one embodiment, thefirst spacers 540 may also be arranged discontinuously.

When thefirst spacers 540 are continuously arranged between the adjacent blue pixels B along thefirst direction 500a, although thefirst spacers 540 reduce the aperture ratio of the adjacent pixel units to reduce the brightness, only the proportion of the brightness of the blue pixels B in the overall brightness of thedisplay panel 500 is small. Accordingly, when thefirst spacers 540 are continuously arranged between the adjacent blue pixels B along thefirst direction 500a, the influence on the brightness of thedisplay panel 500 is very small, and thefirst spacers 540 can still effectively suppress the display defect of the moire.

In an embodiment, in order to effectively improve the water ripple suppression effect, a length of one of the second spacers may be elongated to be at least equal to or greater than lengths of two adjacent pixels. For example, if the length of the blue pixel B is PL, the length of a second spacer may be equal to or greater than 2 times PL, for example, the length of a second spacer may be 2PL plus the pitch length between two adjacent blue pixels B, or may be a multiple of PL. In this embodiment, the two second spacers can be connected by the bottom, integrally connected, other suitable connecting structure or any mixture thereof.

In another embodiment, the width of the second spacer may be less than or equal to the line width of the black matrix between two pixel units of the corresponding color filter substrate, so as to prevent the second spacer from degrading the display effect of the display panel.

It can be seen from the foregoing embodiments of the present invention that the second spacers of the display panel of the present invention can effectively reduce the disturbance of the liquid crystal molecules caused by the external force, and can suppress the display defect of the water ripple.

Secondly, when the height of the second spacer is greater than or equal to half of the distance between the thin film transistor array substrate and the color filter substrate (i.e. the first height of the first spacer), the second spacer can also reduce the phenomenon of liquid crystal molecule disturbance, thereby avoiding the existing defects of water ripple.

Moreover, according to the requirements and applications of the display panel, the second spacers can have different shapes, so as to effectively inhibit the disturbance of the liquid crystal molecules caused by external force. When the display panel is provided with the second spacers, the manufactured display panel has optimal mechanical strength and can resist external force, and then liquid crystal molecule disturbance generated by pressing the display panel by the external force is avoided.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the above embodiments, it should be understood that various changes and modifications can be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims (10)

1. A display panel, comprising:

a thin film transistor array substrate;

the color filter substrate is arranged opposite to the thin film transistor array substrate;

the liquid crystal layer is positioned between the thin film transistor array substrate and the color filter substrate, and the thin film transistor array substrate, the color filter substrate and the liquid crystal layer define a plurality of pixel units together;

a plurality of first spacers disposed on the color filter substrate, wherein the plurality of first spacers are disposed between at least some adjacent pixel units along a first direction; and

a plurality of second spacers disposed on the color filter substrate or the thin film transistor array substrate, wherein the plurality of second spacers are disposed between at least some of the adjacent pixel units along a second direction, and the plurality of second spacers and the plurality of first spacers are not connected to each other, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction, and

wherein at least one of the plurality of first spacers has a first height, and the height of each of the second spacers is less than or equal to the first height.

2. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein the pixel unit is an M × N array of pixel units, and M and N are integers greater than 0, when M is 1, the pixel unit is a 1 × N array of pixel units, the pixel units are arranged along the first direction, and the plurality of first spacers are arranged continuously or discontinuously; when N is 1, the pixel units are M × 1 array pixel units, the pixel units are arranged along the second direction, and the plurality of second spacers are arranged continuously or discontinuously.

3. The display panel of claim 2, wherein the pixel unit comprises a plurality of red pixels, a plurality of green pixels and a plurality of blue pixels, and the plurality of red pixels, the plurality of green pixels and the plurality of blue pixels are arranged in a staggered manner.

4. The display panel according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of first spacers are disposed between at least some adjacent ones of the blue pixels along the first direction.

5. The display panel according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a height of each of the second spacers is greater than or equal to half the first height.

6. The display panel according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a height of one of the plurality of second spacers is different from a height of another one of the plurality of second spacers.

7. The display panel according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein along the first direction, a total length of the second spacer distribution is greater than or equal to 50% based on a length of a display area of the display panel being 100%.

8. The display panel according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a length of one of the plurality of second spacers is at least equal to or greater than a length of two of the pixel units.

9. The display panel according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein one of the plurality of second spacers has a different structural shape from another one of the plurality of second spacers.

10. The display panel according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the display panel has at least a first display region and a second display region, and a distribution density of the plurality of second spacers in the first display region is the same as or different from a distribution density in the second display region.

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