CN112599582A - Flexible display panel and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention discloses a flexible display panel and a manufacturing method thereof. The flexible display panel includes: the flexible substrate comprises a plurality of first areas arranged at intervals and second areas positioned in two adjacent first areas; a first display unit located in a first region of the substrate; a flexible folding shaft located in the second region of the substrate and connected to the first display unit; the flexible folding shaft is used for folding or unfolding the flexible display panel; when the flexible display panel is folded, the flexible folding shafts can be partially folded or completely folded, and the folding directions of the flexible folding shafts are the same or different, so that the display state of the flexible display panel can be adjusted. Compared with the prior art, the embodiment of the invention can realize the comprehensive display effect after flexible folding and stretching, namely the folding and stretching effect of the flexible panel, through the folding and unfolding of the flexible folding shaft; and the size of the display panel can be adjusted, and the display effect of diversified folding and stretching can be realized.

Description

Flexible display panel and manufacturing method thereof

Technical Field

The embodiment of the invention relates to the technical field of display, in particular to a flexible display panel and a manufacturing method thereof.

Background

With the continuous development of display technology, the application range of display panels is more and more extensive. The flexible display technology is concerned by panel manufacturers and consumers, for example, a screen can be reduced after a middle-sized and small-sized display panel is folded in half, and the flexible display technology is convenient to carry; in contrast, unfolding the display panel when necessary can make a small-sized display panel large-sized. However, the folding mode of the existing flexible display panel is single, and it is difficult to meet the development requirements of the technology industry.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the invention provides a flexible display panel and a manufacturing method thereof, which aim to realize a diversified folding scheme.

In order to achieve the technical purpose, the embodiment of the invention provides the following technical scheme:

a flexible display panel comprising:

the flexible substrate comprises a plurality of first areas arranged at intervals and second areas positioned in two adjacent first areas;

a first display unit located within the first region of the substrate;

a flexible folding shaft located within the second region of the substrate and connected to the first display unit; the flexible folding shaft is used for folding or unfolding the flexible display panel; when the flexible display panel is folded, the flexible folding shafts can be partially folded or completely folded, and the folding directions of the flexible folding shafts are the same or different, so that the display state of the flexible display panel can be adjusted.

Optionally, a second display unit is disposed in the flexible folding shaft, and the second display unit is connected to the first display unit.

Optionally, the thickness of the flexible substrate located in the second region is greater than the thickness of the flexible substrate located in the first region.

Optionally, the thickness of the flexible substrate in the first region is 2um-10 um; the thickness of the flexible substrate located in the second region is 10um-30 um.

Optionally, the flexible folding shaft has a fold that is single-folded, double-folded, or multi-folded.

Optionally, the flexible display panel is in a shape of a strip or a scroll when fully folded.

Optionally, the first region is polygonal, circular, elliptical or a combination thereof in shape; the second area is in the shape of a strip or a net.

Optionally, a display screen formed by the first area and the first display unit is a flexible screen or a hard screen.

Correspondingly, the invention also provides a manufacturing method of the flexible display panel, which comprises the following steps:

providing a base plate, and forming a flexible substrate on the base plate; the flexible substrate comprises a plurality of first areas arranged at intervals and second areas positioned in two adjacent first areas;

forming a first display unit in the first region of the substrate;

forming a flexible folding axis within the second region of the substrate, and the flexible folding axis is connected with the first display unit;

wherein the flexible folding shaft is used for folding or unfolding the flexible display panel; when the flexible display panel is folded, the flexible folding shafts can be partially folded or completely folded, and the folding directions of the flexible folding shafts are the same or different, so that the display state of the flexible display panel can be adjusted.

Optionally, forming a flexible substrate on the substrate comprises:

patterning the flexible substrate to form a plurality of grooves; the inner part of the groove corresponds to the first area of the flexible substrate, and the side wall of the groove corresponds to the second area of the flexible substrate.

According to the embodiment of the invention, the display area of the flexible display panel is divided into the plurality of first areas and the plurality of second areas, the first areas and the second areas are arranged in a spaced mode, the first display units are arranged in the first areas, the flexible folding shafts are arranged in the second areas, and the folding and unfolding of the flexible folding shafts can realize the overall display effect after the flexible folding and stretching, namely the folding and stretching effect of the flexible panel. In addition, compared with the prior art that only single half-screen folding is adopted, the embodiment of the invention can realize the size adjustment of the display panel, and is beneficial to realizing the display effect of diversified folding and stretching, so that the mobile portable machine (such as a mobile phone) is diversified.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the display panel of FIG. 1 when partially unfolded;

FIG. 3 is another schematic view of the display panel of FIG. 1 when partially unfolded;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the display panel of FIG. 1 when folded into a roll;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the display panel of FIG. 1 when folded into an elongated shape;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of region A of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is another enlarged schematic view of region A of FIG. 5;

fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the flexible folding shaft of FIG. 8 in a stretched condition;

fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 13 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 14 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 15 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 16 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a method for manufacturing a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 17 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a manufacturing method of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 18 is a schematic structural diagram of a flexible display panel formed in each step of the manufacturing method in fig. 17.

Detailed Description

The present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the invention and are not limiting of the invention. It should be further noted that, for the convenience of description, only some of the structures related to the present invention are shown in the drawings, not all of the structures.

The embodiment of the invention provides a flexible display panel. Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 1, the flexible display panel includes a flexible substrate including a plurality offirst regions 10 arranged at intervals and asecond region 20 positioned in two adjacentfirst regions 10, afirst display unit 100, and aflexible folding shaft 200. Thefirst display unit 100 is located in thefirst region 10 of the substrate, a plurality of pixels are disposed in thefirst display unit 100, and the plurality offirst regions 10 of the flexible substrate and the plurality offirst display units 100 constitute a main display region of the flexible display panel. Theflexible folding axes 200 are located in thesecond region 20 of the substrate and connected to thefirst display unit 100, corresponding to thefirst display unit 100 and theflexible folding axes 200 being alternately arranged. This arrangement may be viewed as theflexible folding shaft 200 being embedded in thefirst display unit 100, and may also be viewed as thefirst display unit 100 being embedded in theflexible folding shaft 200.

Theflexible folding shaft 200 is used for folding or unfolding the flexible display panel, when the flexible display panel is folded, theflexible folding shaft 200 may be partially folded or completely folded, and the folding directions of theflexible folding shafts 200 are the same or different, so as to adjust the display state of the flexible display panel. Illustratively, thefirst display units 100 are the same in size, and in the minimum display state, the main display area can be folded and hidden by folding all theflexible folding shafts 200, so that a plurality of layers of small display panels of the same size are formed; when the display panel is stretched, the flexible display panel may be gradually unfolded by partially or fully unfolding theflexible folding shaft 200, so as to achieve the effect of being foldable and stretched into a specific display size. Thus, the display states include: at least one of folded, partially unfolded, or fully unfolded. As shown in fig. 1, the display state of the flexible display panel is a fully unfolded state, and the flexible display panel includes sixfirst display units 100 and fiveflexible folding axes 200.

It should be noted that, since thefirst regions 10 of the flexible substrate correspond to thefirst display units 100 one to one, and thesecond regions 20 correspond to theflexible folding axes 200 one to one, only the arrangement of thefirst display units 100 and theflexible folding axes 200 will be described in the following description.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view of the display panel of fig. 1 when partially unfolded. Referring to fig. 2, illustratively, only the middleflexible folding shaft 200 is folded and the other flexiblefolding shafts 200 are unfolded. In this way, the size of the flexible display panel is halved, and different users can watch and operate the flexible display panel on two sides of the flexible display panel.

Fig. 3 is another schematic view of the display panel of fig. 1 when partially unfolded. Referring to fig. 3, illustratively, only twoflexible folding shafts 200 located on the left are unfolded, and the other flexiblefolding shafts 200 are folded, and the folding directions of the folding shafts in each folded state are the same. Thus, the size available for viewing is 2/5 the total size of the flexible display panel. Because the folding direction of the folding shaft under each folding state is the same, a scroll shape is formed, and the screen is convenient for a user to hold by one hand.

Fig. 4 is a schematic view of the display panel in fig. 1 when folded into a roll shape. Referring to fig. 4, each of theflexible folding shafts 200 is folded in the same direction, and is folded in a forward direction or in a reverse direction, such that the flexible display panel is in a roll shape when the folding is minimized. The process of the flexible display panel changing from the unfolded state to the scroll state is a folding process, and the process of the flexible display panel changing from the scroll state to the unfolded state is a stretching process.

Fig. 5 is a schematic view of the display panel in fig. 1 when folded into a long shape. Referring to fig. 5, each of theflexible folding shafts 200 is exemplarily folded, and the folding directions are forward folding, backward folding, and forward folding, or the folding directions are backward folding, forward folding, and backward folding, so that the flexible display panel is in a long shape when it is folded minimally. The process of the flexible display panel changing from the unfolded state to the strip state is a folding process, and the process of the flexible display panel changing from the strip state to the unfolded state is a stretching process.

In the above embodiments, the number of folds and the folding direction of theflexible folding shaft 200 are explained, and the folds of theflexible folding shaft 200 are explained below. In the present embodiment, the folding lines of theflexible folding shaft 200 are single-folded, double-folded, or multi-folded.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view of the area a in fig. 5. Referring to fig. 6, the fold of eachflexible folding shaft 200 is a single fold. The single folding means that the bending direction of theflexible folding shaft 200 is directed to one direction, and the bending state of theflexible folding shaft 200 is in the shape of an arc. In the single-fold state, the bending curvature of theflexible folding shaft 200 is minimum, and the requirement for the bending performance of theflexible folding shaft 200 is minimum.

Fig. 7 is another enlarged view of the area a in fig. 5. Referring to fig. 7, the folds of eachflexible folding shaft 200 are double folded. The double folding means that the bending direction of theflexible folding shaft 200 is changed once, a portion of theflexible folding shaft 200 is bent in one direction, the other portion of theflexible folding shaft 200 is bent in the opposite direction, and the bent state of theflexible folding shaft 200 is wavy. The multi-fold is similar to the double-fold, and the folded state is also wavy. Compared with the single-folding state, theflexible folding shaft 200 in the double-folding state and the multi-folding state has smaller size, which is beneficial to the diversified design of the flexible display panel.

As can be seen from the above analysis, in the embodiment of the present invention, the display area of the flexible display panel is divided into a plurality offirst display units 100, theflexible folding shafts 200 and thefirst display units 100 are arranged at intervals, and a full display effect after flexible folding and stretching, that is, a folding and stretching effect of the flexible panel, can be achieved by folding and unfolding theflexible folding shafts 200. In addition, compared with the prior art that only single half-screen folding is adopted, the embodiment of the invention can realize the size adjustment of the display panel, and is beneficial to realizing the display effect of diversified folding and stretching, so that the mobile portable machine (such as a mobile phone) is diversified.

It should be noted that, in the above embodiments, the number of thefirst display units 100 is six, and the number of theflexible folding shafts 200 is five, which is not a limitation of the present invention, and the number of thefirst display units 100 and the number of theflexible folding shafts 200 may be set as needed in practical applications. Wherein, the more the number of thefirst display units 100 and theflexible folding shafts 200 is, the better the bending effect is, preferably, the number of thefirst display units 100 is at least five; accordingly, the number of theflexible folding shafts 200 is at least four to achieve a richer folding and stretching display effect.

In the above embodiments, the flexible display panel stretches and folds the display panel through theflexible folding shaft 200 to realize flexible display of the flexible display panel, and there is no limitation on whether the display screen formed by the first region and thefirst display unit 100 has flexibility, and optionally, the display screen formed by the first region and thefirst display unit 100 is a flexible screen or a hard screen. Preferably, the display screen formed by the first region and thefirst display unit 100 is a flexible screen, which further facilitates diversification of the folding and stretching display of the flexible display panel.

On the basis of the above embodiments, optionally, a second display unit is disposed in theflexible folding shaft 200, and theflexible folding shaft 200 is further used for displaying an image, that is, theflexible folding shaft 200 achieves the effects of folding + stretching + displaying. The arrangement is favorable for improving the resolution and the display effect of the flexible display panel.

Fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of the flexible folding shaft in fig. 8 in a stretched state. Referring to fig. 8 and 9, based on the above embodiments, theflexible folding shaft 200 may be optionally stretchable. The flexible display panel is in an unfolded state, theflexible folding shaft 200 is in a double-folded state, and after the flexible display panel is continuously stretched, theflexible folding shaft 200 is gradually unfolded until the flexible display panel is unfolded to be a plane. Set up like this, further promoted flexible display panel's pluralism display effect for flexible display panel can also continue to stretch under the state of whole expansions, is favorable to flexible display panel's pluralism to be used.

In addition to the above embodiments, there are various shapes and combinations of thefirst display unit 100 and theflexible folding shaft 200, and some of them will be described below, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

With continued reference to fig. 1-9, in one embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the first display unit 100 (first region) is rectangular in shape and the flexible folding shaft 200 (second region) is rectangular in shape (or rectangular-like). Both sides of thefirst display unit 100 positioned in the middle are coupled to the long sides of theflexible folding shaft 200, and one side of thefirst display unit 100 positioned at the edge is coupled to the long sides of theflexible folding shaft 200. This configuration facilitates the flexible display panel to bend along theflexible folding shaft 200, and facilitates the flexible display panel to be folded into a strip shape or a scroll shape.

With continued reference to fig. 1-9, optionally, the long side of theflexible folding axis 200 is equal to the long side of thefirst display unit 100, and the short side of thefirst display unit 100 is larger than the short side of theflexible folding axis 200. Set up like this for flexible display panel is whole to be the rectangle, andflexible folding axle 200 is stronger withfirst display element 100's wholeness, and is favorable to increasingfirst display element 100 shared proportion on flexible display panel, thereby is favorable to promoting display panel's overall resolution, promotes and shows the quality.

Optionally, the long side of thefirst display unit 100 ranges from 50mm to 300mm, e.g., 50mm, 100mm, 150mm, 200mm, 250mm, or 300 mm; the short side of thefirst display unit 100 ranges from 5mm to 100mm, for example, 5mm, 10mm, 30mm, 50mm, 70mm, or 100 mm. Thefirst display unit 100 has a large size, the flexible display panel has a large size after being folded, thefirst display unit 100 has a small size, and the number of theflexible folding shafts 200 to be arranged is large. The folding size and the folding quantity of the flexible display panel are taken into consideration by the arrangement of the embodiment, and the use requirement of a user is favorably met.

Theflexible folding shaft 200 has a long side in the range of 50mm to 300mm, for example, 50mm, 100mm, 150mm, 200mm, 250mm, or 300 mm; the short side of theflexible folding shaft 200 may range from 0.1mm to 2mm, e.g. 0.1mm, 0.4mm, 0.7mm, 1mm, 1.5mm or 2 mm. The long side size range of theflexible folding shaft 200 is the same as the long side size range of thefirst display unit 100, which is beneficial to theflexible folding shaft 200 and thefirst display unit 100 to be set to the same size, so as to improve the overall display effect of the flexible display panel. In addition, the larger the short side of theflexible folding shaft 200 is, the better the folding effect is, but the more display area needs to be occupied; the smaller the short side of theflexible folding shaft 200 is, the smaller the occupied display area is, but the folding effect is affected; the short edge of theflexible folding shaft 200 is set to be 0.1mm-2mm, which is beneficial to the folding performance and the display effect.

Preferably, thefirst display unit 100 has a size of 50mm x 150mm and theflexible folding shaft 200 has a size of 1mm x 150 mm. Set up like this, compromise flexible display panel's folding size, folding quantity, folding performance and display effect, be favorable to satisfying user's user demand.

Fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 10, in one embodiment of the present invention, optionally, thefirst display unit 100 has a rectangular shape and theflexible folding shaft 200 has a trapezoidal shape. The fan-shaped display panel is formed, and accordingly diversified display effects of the flexible display panel are achieved.

Fig. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 11, in an embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the first display unit 100 (first region) is square in shape and arranged in an array, and the flexible folding shaft 200 (second region) is net in shape. This is equivalent to further dividing thefirst display unit 100 shown in fig. 1 to 9, and joining the divided portions by theflexible folding shaft 200, and aflexible folding shaft 200 is disposed between two adjacentfirst display units 100, and theflexible folding shafts 200 are united to form a net. Therefore, the embodiment of the invention provides a more flexible arrangement manner of thefirst display unit 100 and theflexible folding shaft 200, so that the foldable area of the flexible display panel is further increased, and diversified display of the flexible display panel is further facilitated.

Fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 12, in an embodiment of the present invention, optionally, the first display unit 100 (first region) is circular in shape and arranged in an array, and the flexible folding shaft 200 (second region) is net-shaped. By the arrangement, the foldable area of the flexible display panel is further increased, and diversified display of the flexible display panel is further facilitated.

Therefore, the flexible display panel provided by the embodiment of the invention has flexible and various arrangement modes and high degree of diversified display, wherein thefirst display unit 100 is in a shape of a polygon, a circle, an ellipse or a combination thereof, and theflexible folding shaft 200 is in a shape of a strip or a net, and can be set as required in practical application.

In addition to the above embodiments, the following description will explain the film layer structure of the flexible display panel, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

Fig. 13 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 13, theflexible substrate 310 includes afirst region 10 and asecond region 20, and thefirst display unit 100 and theflexible folding shaft 200 share theflexible substrate 310. Wherein the thickness of thesecond region 20 of theflexible substrate 310 is greater than the thickness of thefirst region 10, thesecond region 20 of theflexible substrate 310 constitutes a substrate of theflexible folding axis 200, and thefirst region 10 of theflexible substrate 310 constitutes a substrate of thefirst display unit 100. The material of theflexible substrate 310 may be, for example, a material having flexibility (elasticity) such as polyimide, polycarbonate, or polyethylene terephthalate. The substrate of theflexible folding shaft 200 is thick to form a plurality of grooves, and thefirst display unit 100 is embedded in the grooves. The substrate of theflexible folding shaft 200 is thick, so that theflexible folding shaft 200 has good bending performance, and the folding and stretching shaft effect is improved; and because thefirst display unit 100 is embedded in the groove, the thickness of the flexible display panel can be reduced.

Fig. 14 is a schematic cross-sectional view of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 13 and 14, in one embodiment of the present invention, the flexible display panel is optionally an organic light emitting diode display panel (OLED). The flexible display panel further includes anarray circuit layer 320 and a light emittingdevice layer 330. Thearray circuit layer 320 is disposed on theflexible substrate 310; thearray circuit layer 320 includes a buffer layer (exemplarily, the buffer layer includes afirst buffer layer 321 and a second buffer layer 322), anactive layer 323, an insulating layer (exemplarily, the insulating layer includes agate insulating layer 324, aninterlayer insulating layer 326, a first intermediate insulatinglayer 328, and a second intermediate insulating layer 329), a metal layer (exemplarily, the metal layer includes afirst metal layer 325, asecond metal layer 327, and athird metal layer 32A), and aplanarization layer 32B. The light emittingdevice layer 330 is disposed on a side of thearray circuit layer 320 away from theflexible substrate 310; the light emittingdevice layer 330 includes an electrode 331, apixel defining layer 333, and alight emitting layer 332. The patterns of theactive layer 323, thefirst metal layer 325, and thethird metal layer 32A and the insulating layer between the patterns constitute a thin film transistor, and the patterns of thefirst metal layer 325, thesecond metal layer 327, and the insulating layer between the patterns constitute a capacitor. The thin film transistor and the capacitor constitute a pixel circuit for driving the light emitting device to emit light.

Optionally, the top height of thesecond region 20 of theflexible substrate 310 is equal to the height of any one of thearray circuit layer 320 or the light emittingdevice layer 330. For example, the height of the top of thesecond region 20 is equal to the height of thefirst buffer layer 321, the height of the second buffer layer 322, the height of theactive layer 323, the height of thegate insulating layer 324, the height of thefirst metal layer 325, the height of the interlayer insulatinglayer 326, the height of thesecond metal layer 327, the height of the first intermediate insulatinglayer 328, the height of the second intermediate insulatinglayer 329, the height of thethird metal layer 32A, the height of theplanarization layer 32B, the height of the anode, the height of the light-emittinglayer 332, or any two layers.

It is exemplarily shown in fig. 14 that the top height of the correspondingflexible folding axis 200 on theflexible substrate 310 is equal to the height of the second intermediate insulatinglayer 329. The array wires in thefirst display unit 100 need to be connected by theflexible folding shaft 200, and the connection wires can be arranged between theflexible substrate 310 and theplanarization layer 32B in the embodiment of the present invention, so that the two sides of the connection wires on theflexible folding shaft 200 have thicker film layers, which is beneficial to enhancing the toughness of theflexible folding shaft 200, and is not easy to break, thereby avoiding the display image failure after multiple stretching.

On the basis of the foregoing embodiments, optionally, the display panel further includes a film layer structure such as an encapsulation layer, and the encapsulation layer is disposed on a side of the light emittingdevice layer 330 away from theflexible substrate 310, and is used for encapsulating and protecting the flexible display panel, preventing water and oxygen from eroding thearray circuit layer 320 and the light emittingdevice layer 330, and further providing a buffer for folding the flexible display panel.

Fig. 15 is a schematic cross-sectional view of another flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 15, in an embodiment of the present invention, aflexible folding shaft 200 may optionally be displayed, that is, an array circuit and a light emitting device are disposed on theflexible folding shaft 200. Since the substrate of theflexible folding shaft 200 has a relatively thick thickness, the heights of thearray circuit layer 320 and the light emittingdevice layer 330 corresponding to theflexible folding shaft 200 are relatively high, and planarization may be performed by disposing a film layer such as an encapsulation layer.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the thickness of theflexible substrate 310 corresponding to thefirst display unit 100 is optionally in a range of 2um to 10um, for example, 2um, 3um, 4um, 5um, 6um, 7um, 8um, 9um, or 10 um; theflexible substrate 310 has a thickness corresponding to theflexible folding shaft 200 in the range of 10um to 30um, for example, 10um, 15 um. 20um, 25um, or 30um, etc. Theflexible folding shaft 200 is too thin compared to the substrate thickness of thefirst display unit 100, and is easily broken during the bending process; theflexible folding shaft 200 is too thick to be easily bent compared to the substrate thickness of thefirst display unit 100. The thickness range is set, so that the flexibility of the flexible display panel is improved on the basis of keeping the thin film layer of the flexible display panel.

Preferably, the thickness of theflexible substrate 310 corresponding to thefirst display unit 100 is 5um, and the thickness of theflexible substrate 310 corresponding to theflexible folding shaft 200 is 20um, which is beneficial to considering both the lightness and thinness of the flexible display panel and the bending performance of the flexible display panel.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a manufacturing method of the flexible display panel, and the manufacturing method is suitable for the flexible display panel provided by any embodiment of the invention. Fig. 16 is a flowchart illustrating a method for manufacturing a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 16, the method for manufacturing the flexible display panel includes the following steps:

s110, providing a base plate, and forming a flexible substrate on the base plate; the flexible substrate comprises a plurality of first areas arranged at intervals and a second area positioned in two adjacent first areas.

Wherein a first display unit is formed in the first region of the substrate, a flexible folding axis is formed in the second region of the substrate, and the flexible folding axis is connected with the first display unit.

And S120, forming a plurality of first display units and a plurality of flexible folding shafts on the substrate, wherein the first display units and the flexible folding shafts are sequentially and alternately arranged.

The flexible folding shafts are used for folding or unfolding the flexible display panel, when the flexible display panel is folded, the flexible folding shafts can be partially folded or completely folded, and the folding directions of the flexible folding shafts are the same or different, so that the display state of the flexible display panel is adjusted.

In the manufacturing process of the flexible display panel, the display area is divided into the first areas and the second areas, the first areas and the second areas are arranged in a spaced mode, the first display units are arranged in the first areas, the flexible folding shafts are arranged in the second areas, and the flexible foldable and stretched comprehensive display effect, namely the folding and stretching effect of the flexible panel, can be achieved through folding and unfolding of the flexible folding shafts. In addition, compared with the prior art that only single half-screen folding is adopted, the embodiment of the invention can realize the size adjustment of the display panel, and is beneficial to realizing the display effect of diversified folding and stretching, so that the mobile portable machine (such as a mobile phone) is diversified.

Fig. 17 is a schematic flowchart of another method for manufacturing a flexible display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention, and fig. 18 is a schematic structural diagram of a flexible display panel formed in each step of the manufacturing method in fig. 17. Referring to fig. 17 and 18, on the basis of the above embodiments, optionally, the method for manufacturing a flexible display panel includes the following steps:

s210, providing thesubstrate 400.

S220, aflexible substrate 310 layer is formed on thesubstrate 400.

Unlike thesubstrate 400, theflexible substrate 310 layer is a part of a flexible display panel, and theflexible substrate 310 is made of a flexible material, for example, Polyimide (PI), polyimide-like, polycarbonate, or polyethylene terephthalate, in order to realize flexible display. Illustratively, theflexible substrate 310 layer is formed by coating a flexible substrate material on thesubstrate 400 and then curing to form theflexible substrate 310 layer. Illustratively, the thickness of theflexible substrate 310 is in the range of 10um to 30um, and 20um is exemplified.

S230, patterning theflexible substrate 310 layer to form a plurality ofgrooves 311, where the inner portion of thegroove 311 corresponds to thefirst region 10, and sidewalls of thegroove 311 correspond to thesecond region 20.

The patterning may be, for example, an etching process + an ashing process to form therecesses 311 having a certain depth and being disposed at certain intervals. Illustratively, the depth of thegroove 311 is 15um, the width is 50mm, and the length is 150mm, i.e., the size of thegroove 311 is 15um x 50mm x 150 mm; the spacing of thegrooves 311 is 1mm, i.e. the substrate dimension of theflexible folding shaft 200 is 20um 1mm 150 mm. Optionally, after forming the layer of theflexible substrate 310, a buffer layer may also be formed on theflexible substrate 310 to block water and oxygen attack. The buffer layer is made of an inorganic material such as silicon nitride, silicon oxide, or silicon oxynitride, or an organic material such as an acrylic-based polymer, a silicon-based polymer, or an epoxy-based polymer. Illustratively, the buffer layer has a thickness in the range of 200nm-800nm, e.g. 200nm, 300nm, 400nm, 500nm, 600nm, 700nm, 800nm, preferably the buffer layer has a thickness of 600 nm.

S240, fabricating anarray circuit layer 320 and a light emittingdevice layer 330 on theflexible substrate 310 to form thefirst display unit 100 and theflexible folding shaft 200.

Thearray circuit layer 320 includes an array pattern, and the array pattern of the plurality offirst display units 100 may be formed by an array process, such as an LTPS (Low Temperature polysilicon) process. The light emittingdevice layer 330 includes a light emitting device, which may be formed through an evaporation process. Alternatively, the top of thegroove 311 is also formed with pixels through an array process and an evaporation process, thereby forming theflexible folding shaft 200 that can display a picture. Optionally, each film layer is made of a material with good bending performance, for example, a metal material such as copper, gold, silver, or the like, or a non-metal material such as a carbon nanotube and a silver nanotube. Thus, the electrical influence is small when the display is stretched and folded.

And S250, stripping thesubstrate 400.

The steps S210 to S250 described above implement the manufacturing of the flexible display panel provided in the embodiment of the present invention.

It is to be noted that the foregoing is only illustrative of the preferred embodiments of the present invention and the technical principles employed. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described herein, but is capable of various obvious changes, rearrangements and substitutions as will now become apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. Therefore, although the present invention has been described in greater detail by the above embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and may include other equivalent embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is determined by the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (10)

1. A flexible display panel, comprising:

the flexible substrate comprises a plurality of first areas arranged at intervals and second areas positioned in two adjacent first areas;

a first display unit located within the first region of the substrate;

a flexible folding shaft located within the second region of the substrate and connected to the first display unit; the flexible folding shaft is used for folding or unfolding the flexible display panel; when the flexible display panel is folded, the flexible folding shafts can be partially folded or completely folded, and the folding directions of the flexible folding shafts are the same or different, so that the display state of the flexible display panel can be adjusted.

2. The flexible display panel of claim 1, wherein a second display unit is disposed in the flexible folding shaft, the second display unit being connected to the first display unit.

3. The flexible display panel of claim 1, wherein a thickness of the flexible substrate located in the second region is greater than a thickness of the flexible substrate located in the first region.

4. The flexible display panel of claim 1, wherein the thickness of the flexible substrate in the first region is 2um to 10 um; the thickness of the flexible substrate located in the second region is 10um-30 um.

5. The flexible display panel of claim 1, wherein the fold of the flexible folding axis is single-fold, double-fold, or multiple-fold.

6. The flexible display panel of claim 1, wherein the flexible display panel is in the shape of a strip or a roll when fully folded.

7. The flexible display panel of claim 1, wherein the first region is polygonal, circular, elliptical, or a combination thereof in shape; the second area is in the shape of a strip or a net.

8. The flexible display panel according to claim 1, wherein a display screen formed by the first region and the first display unit is a flexible screen or a hard screen.

9. A method for manufacturing a flexible display panel is characterized by comprising the following steps:

providing a base plate, and forming a flexible substrate on the base plate; the flexible substrate comprises a plurality of first areas arranged at intervals and second areas positioned in two adjacent first areas;

forming a first display unit in the first region of the substrate, forming a flexible folding axis in the second region of the substrate, and connecting the flexible folding axis with the first display unit;

wherein the flexible folding shaft is used for folding or unfolding the flexible display panel; when the flexible display panel is folded, the flexible folding shafts can be partially folded or completely folded, and the folding directions of the flexible folding shafts are the same or different, so that the display state of the flexible display panel can be adjusted.

10. The method of manufacturing a flexible display panel according to claim 9, wherein forming a flexible substrate over the substrate includes:

patterning the flexible substrate to form a plurality of grooves; the inner part of the groove corresponds to the first area of the flexible substrate, and the side wall of the groove corresponds to the second area of the flexible substrate.

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