Display panel and display apparatus

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a display panel, including a display substrate (1); and a touch electrode (2) and a shielding electrode (6) arranged on the display substrate (1); where the shielding electrode (6) and the touch electrode (2) are sequentially arranged in a direction away from the display substrate (1); and an orthographic projection of the shielding electrode (6) on the display substrate (1) at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode (2) on the display substrate (1), the shielding electrode comprises shielding units arranged in an array, in a row direction of the array, M shielding units each having a load value x are provided, M*x≤P; and in a column direction of the array, N shielding units each having a load value y are provided, N*y≤P; P is a maximum load capacity of a driver chip for providing signals for the shielding electrode.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure belong to the field of display technology, and in particular relates to a display panel, a method for driving a display panel, a method for manufacturing a display panel, and a display apparatus.

BACKGROUND

Current flexible organic light-emitting diode (OLED, also called organic electroluminescence display) touch products substantially may be classified into an out-cell type and an on-cell type. In an out-cell touch product, a touch film layer is provided far away from a cathode of a display device, and thus display noises have a relatively small effect on touch operations. Therefore, an out-cell structure is applicable to wearable devices, mobile phones, tablets, foldable products, notebooks and the like, and meanwhile, can be supported by corresponding touch chips at present. However, the out-cell structure, due to a thickness thereof, cannot make full use of advantages of the OLED, and cannot satisfy requirements for structures of foldable products. Therefore, OLED products of an on-cell structure emerge.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a display panel, a method for driving a display panel, a method for manufacturing a display panel, and a display apparatus.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a display panel, including a display substrate; anda touch electrode and a shielding electrode arranged on the display substrate; where the shielding electrode and the touch electrode are sequentially arranged in a direction away from the display substrate; andan orthographic projection of the shielding electrode on the display substrate at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate.

In some implementations, the shielding electrode includes a plurality of shielding units spaced apart from each other.

In some implementations, the plurality of shielding units are arranged in an array;the touch electrode includes a plurality of touch units arranged in an array; andin a row and/or column direction of the array of touch units, the shielding units correspond to the touch units in a one-to-one manner or in a one-to-many manner.

In some implementations, in a row direction of the array of shielding units, M shielding units are provided, each of the shielding units has a load value x, and M*x≤P; andin a column direction of the array of shielding units, N shielding units are provided, each of the shielding units has a load value y, and N*y≤P;where P is a maximum load capacity of a driver chip for providing signals for the shielding electrode.

In some implementations, the display panel further includes shielding signal lines arranged in the same layer as the shielding electrode; whereeach of the shielding units is individually connected to one of the shielding signal lines, and the shielding signal lines connected to one or more rows of shielding units are connected together to be connected into the driver chip.

In some implementations, the shielding signal lines include a first signal line and second signal lines, the first signal line surrounds a periphery of the array of shielding units, a part of the second signal lines are distributed at the periphery of the array of shielding units, and another part of the second signal lines are distributed in spaces between rows of the array of shielding units; andthe second signal lines are respectively and independently connected to the shielding units, and connected to the first signal line, and the first signal line is connected to the driver chip.

In some implementations, the shielding electrode and the touch electrode are configured to input a same signal during touching.

In some implementations, the display substrate includes a plurality of sub-pixels arranged in an array; andthe shielding units are in a grid shape, and an orthographic projection of the shielding units on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels; and an orthographic projection of the shielding signal lines on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels.

In some implementations, the touch units are in a grid shape, and an orthographic projection of the touch units on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels; anda grid density of the shielding units is smaller than or equal to a grid density of the touch units; and a grid density of the touch units is smaller than a distribution density of the sub-pixels.

In some implementations, the display panel further includes touch signal lines on a side of the shielding electrode away from the display substrate, and on a side of the touch electrode close to the display substrate; whereeach of the touch units is individually connected to one of the touch signal lines; and an orthographic projection of the touch signal lines on the display substrate overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate.

In some implementations, the display panel further includes a first insulation layer between the touch signal lines and the touch electrode; whereat least one first via is opened in the first insulation layer in a region corresponding to each of the touch units, and the touch unit is connected to the touch signal line, which is configured to provide signals for the touch unit, through the first via.

In some implementations, a plurality of first vias are opened in the first insulation layer in a region corresponding to each of the touch units; wherethe plurality of first vias are uniformly distributed and connected to each other through the touch signal lines.

In some implementations, one first via is opened in the first insulation layer in a region corresponding to each of the touch units; wherefor a column of touch units, from top to bottom, and first vias corresponding to the touch units are sequentially arranged from an upper right corner of the touch units to a lower left corner of the touch units.

In some implementations, in a row direction of the array of touch units, A touch units are provided, each of the touch units has a load value a, and A*a≤P; andin a column direction of the array of touch units, B touch units are provided, each of the touch units has a load value b, and B*b≤P;where P is a maximum load capacity of a touch driver chip for providing signals for the touch electrode.

In some implementations, the display panel further includes floating electrodes floating and disposed in the same layer as the touch electrode, an orthographic projection of the floating electrodes on the display substrate does not overlap an orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate.

In some implementations, the floating electrodes are in a grid shape, and an orthographic projection of the floating electrodes on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels.

In some implementations, the floating electrodes are distributed in a region, where the touch units are located, with a ratio of distribution area less than 40%.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a display apparatus including the display panel as described above.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a method for manufacturing a display panel, including: preparing a display substrate; and sequentially preparing a shielding electrode and a touch electrode on a display side of the display substrate; wherean orthographic projection of the shielding electrode on the display substrate at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a method for driving a display panel, the display panel includes a display substrate, anda touch electrode and a shielding electrode arranged on a display side of the display substrate; where the shielding electrode and the touch electrode are sequentially arranged in a direction away from the display substrate; andan orthographic projection of the shielding electrode on the display substrate at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate; andthe method includes: providing a touch driving signal to the touch electrode, and keeping the shielding electrode floating; or, providing the same signal as the touch driving signal to the shielding electrode.

REFERENCE SIGNS

DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

In order to make those skilled in the art better understand the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the display panel, the method for driving the display panel, the method for manufacturing the display panel, and the display apparatus provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific implementations.

Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described more sufficiently below with reference to the accompanying drawings, but they may be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth in the present disclosure. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

The embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the embodiments shown in the drawings, but further include modifications of configurations formed based on a manufacturing process. Thus, the regions illustrated in the figures have schematic properties, and the shapes of the regions shown in the figures illustrate specific shapes of regions, but are not intended to be limitative.

In the disclosed technology, in a small-sized OLED product of an on-cell touch structure, a touch electrode is directly formed on a display substrate formed thereon with a prepared OLED display structure. In the small-sized OLED product, display noises of the display substrate will be coupled to the touch electrode and a touch signal line for providing a touch driving signal for the touch electrode, causing strong interference on touch control of the touch electrode and thus reducing touch performance of the touch electrode.

For a large-sized touch OLED product, an influence of a coupling effect of display noises on the touch performance of the touch electrode will become more obvious, thereby severely affecting the touch performance of the touch electrode.

In addition, the small-sized OLED product of an on-cell touch structure typically adopts a scheme of touch structure with a multilayer touch electrode design based on a mutual-capacitance touch principle. As shown inFIG.1, the touch structure is formed by an array of touch units, in which the touch units include driving electrodes23and sensing electrodes24. The driving electrodes23, arranged in a row direction in the touch structure, are connected electrically through bridges, the sensing electrodes24, arranged in a column direction in the touch structure, are connected electrically, and the driving electrodes23in the row direction are insulated from the sensing electrodes24in the column direction at intersections at which the driving electrodes23intersect with the sensing electrode24, to achieve a touch function. Both the driving electrodes23and the sensing electrodes24have hollow-out regions in which floating electrodes are provided. The hollow-out regions can help to reduce load values of the driving electrodes23and the sensing electrodes24. According to a simulation result of the mutual-capacitance touch structure, each touch unit has a load of about 15 pF, and by evaluating for a mobile phone with a conventional size, a total load of the touch structure (excluding wires) is about 600 pF, and since an extreme load driving capacity of a current touch driver chip is about 1000 pF, the requirement for driving a small-sized touch-control product is substantially satisfied. If such scheme is to be applied to a large-sized touch OLED product, by evaluating for a laptop product with a conventional size, i.e., 15.6 inches, it is predicted that the touch structure would have a total load of about 1260 pF, and if an influence of wires is considered, the total load of the touch structure will become greater than 1500 pF, which far exceeds the load driving capacity of the touch driver chip, and may lead to a situation where no touch driver chip is available.

The small-sized OLED product of an on-cell touch structure may also adopt another scheme of touch structure with a single-layer touch electrode design based on a self-capacitance touch principle. As shown inFIG.2, the touch structure is formed by an array of touch units, in which each touch unit is formed by a touch electrode pattern25and a touch electrode wire26. The touch electrode pattern25and the touch electrode wire26are located in a same layer, belonging to a single-layer touch electrode design scheme. A main reason for adopting the single-layer touch electrode design scheme is that the touch electrode pattern25in each touch unit has a relatively small area, so that the load of the whole touch structure is relatively small (generally less than 50 pF), and even if the influence of the touch electrode wire26is considered, the load of the whole touch structure can be controlled within about 100 pF, and almost all current touch driver chips can satisfy the requirement for driving the touch structure. Although the touch structure with the single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle has a far smaller load than the touch structure with a multilayer touch electrode design based on the mutual-capacitance touch principle, and thus can be matched with almost all current touch driver chips, the defect of the touch structure with the single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle is also very obvious, because in the touch structure with the single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle, touch electrode wires26are distributed widely between touch electrode patterns25, and especially at an end (as shown by part A inFIG.2) of an arrangement of the touch electrode patterns25, the touch electrode wires26occupy a greater width. Since the touch electrode wires26cannot achieve positioning, the greater the width occupied by the touch electrode wires26is, the worse the touch performance is, the touch performance is specifically reflected in linearity and accuracy of touch control, that is, the usually called blind region is generated. Theoretically, it is desired to eliminate an influence of the blind region on touch operations.

In addition, since, in the touch structure with the single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle, each touch unit is connected to one touch electrode line, many leading-out ends of touch electrode lines will appear at an end of a screen, which means that a very large bonding region will be resulted in, leading to an increased area of a peripheral circuit to be bonded, as well as an increased cost.

If the touch structure with the single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle is applied to a large-sized OLED product, on one hand, more leading-out ends of touch electrode lines will appear at the end of the screen, and the bonding region will become larger; and on the other hand, the blind region will be larger, and the touch performance of the product will become worse.

In summary, the scheme of touch structure with the multilayer touch electrode design based on the mutual-capacitance touch principle, and the scheme of touch structure with the single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle, which are applied to small-sized OLED products, cannot be applied to large-sized OLED products at all. Therefore, it is desired to design a touch structure suitable for a large-sized OLED product.

Based on the above technical problems of the OLED touch products, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a display panel which, as shown inFIGS.3and4, includes a display substrate1; and a touch electrode2and a shielding electrode6arranged on the display substrate1. The shielding electrode6and the touch electrode2are sequentially arranged in a direction away from the display substrate1; and an orthographic projection of the shielding electrode6on the display substrate1at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode2on the display substrate1.

The display substrate1includes a driving backplane, a light-emitting element arranged on the driving backplane, and a package layer configured to package the light-emitting element. The light-emitting element may be an organic electroluminescent element (e.g., an OLED). Certainly, the light-emitting element may be any other light-emitting element, such as an LED or the like.

By providing the shielding electrode6between the display substrate1and the touch electrode2, display noises of the display substrate1can be shielded, thereby reducing and avoiding interference of coupling effect of the display noises on touch operations of the touch electrode2, and thus improving the touch performance of the display panel.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.5, the shielding electrode6includes a plurality of shielding units61spaced apart from each other. In some implementations, the shielding electrode6and the touch electrode2are configured to input a same signal during touching. By dividing the shielding electrode6into a plurality of shielding units61spaced apart from each other, partition of the whole shielding electrode6is implemented, and with such partition, a load value of the shielding unit61is smaller than a load value of the whole shielding electrode6, thereby ensuring that when signals are input to the shielding units61, a load value of the plurality of shielding units61do not exceed a maximum load capacity of the driver chip for providing signals for the shielding units, and thus further satisfying the requirement for driving the shielding electrode6by the driver chip.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.6, the plurality of shielding units61are arranged in an array; the touch electrode2includes a plurality of touch units21arranged in an array; and in a row direction and a column direction of the array of touch units21, the shielding units61and the touch units21are distributed in a one-to-one correspondence manner, that is, the shielding units61correspond to the touch units21in one to one manner in the row direction and the column direction of the array of touch units21. The row direction and the column direction of the array of touch units21are not limited to be perpendicular to each other, and an angle formed by the row direction intersecting with the column direction may be any acute angle smaller than 90°.

In some implementations, the shielding units and the touch units are distributed in one-to-one correspondence manner merely in the row direction or the column direction of the array of touch units.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.7, in a row direction and a column direction of the array of touch units21, the shielding units61and the touch units21are distributed in a one-to-many correspondence manner, that is, the shielding units61correspond to the touch units21in one to many manner in the row direction or the column direction of the array of touch units21.

In some implementations, the shielding units and the touch units are distributed in one-to-many correspondence manner merely in the row direction or column direction of the array of touch units.

In some implementations, in a row direction of the array of shielding units61, M shielding units61are provided, each of the shielding units61has a load value x, and M*x≤P; and in a column direction of the array of shielding units61, N shielding units61are provided, each of the shielding units61has a load value y, and N*y≤P; where P is a maximum load capacity of a driver chip for providing signals for the shielding electrode6. The same signal as that input to the touch units21is input to the shielding units61during touch control. Due to arrangement of the above structure of the shielding electrode6, on one hand, display noises of the display substrate can be shielded so that the display noises are prevented from being coupled to the touch electrode, thereby avoiding interference of the display noises on the touch performance of the touch electrode; and on the other hand, since the shielding units61and the touch units21have the same signal and there is no voltage difference therebetween, the capacitor formed by the shielding units61and the touch units21are not to be charged, so that the touch units21have the minimum capacitive load and thus have the least requirement on the touch driver chip. In addition, the above partition of the shielding electrode6can ensure that neither a load value of each row of shielding units61nor a load value of each column of shielding units61exceeds the maximum load capacity of the touch driver chip, thereby satisfying the requirement for driving the shielding electrode6by the touch driver chip.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.5, the display panel further includes shielding signal lines8arranged in the same layer as the shielding electrode6. Each of the shielding units61is individually connected to one of the shielding signal lines8, and the shielding signal lines8connected to one or more rows of shielding units61are connected together to be connected into the driver chip. With such arrangement, parallel connection of the shielding units61is achieved, it is ensured that during touch control, the driver chip provides signals with the same magnitude as that of the touch driving signal to the shielding units61, so that the touch units21have the minimum capacitive load and thus the least requirement on the touch driver chip. Meanwhile, the shielding units61can better shield the display noises of the display substrate, so that the display noises of the display substrate are prevented from being coupled to the touch electrode, thereby avoiding interference of the display noises on the touch performance of the touch electrode.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.5, the shielding signal lines8include a first signal line81and second signal lines82. The first signal line81surrounds a periphery of the array of shielding units61, while a part of the second signal lines82are distributed at the periphery of the array of shielding units61, and another part of the second signal lines82are distributed in spaces between rows of the array of shielding units61. The second signal lines82are respectively and independently connected to the shielding units61, and connected to the first signal line81, while the first signal line81is connected to the driver chip. The first signal line81may be connected to the driver chip at one end or both ends thereof. With such arrangement, parallel connection of the shielding units61is achieved, it is ensured that neither a load value of each row of shielding units61nor a load value of each column of shielding units61exceeds the maximum load capacity of the touch driver chip, thereby satisfying the requirement for driving the shielding electrode6by the touch driver chip.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.8, the display substrate includes a plurality of sub-pixels10arranged in an array; the shielding units61are in a grid shape, and an orthographic projection of the shielding units61on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels10; and an orthographic projection of the shielding signal lines on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels10. With such arrangement, on one hand, the load value of the shielding electrode6can be reduced while the shielding electrode6shields display noises of the display substrate, so that the driver chip can better drive the shielding electrode6, and sensitivity, linearity and accuracy of touch control are improved; and on the other hand, the provision of the shielding electrode6will not affect normal light emission of the display panel, thereby ensuring the light transmittance of the display panel, and ensuring normal display of the display panel.

In some implementations, the display substrate further includes a driving backplane in which a pixel circuit is provided. The pixel circuit may be a 2T1C pixel circuit, a 7T1C pixel circuit, or any other pixel circuit. The sub-pixels10are disposed on the driving backplane and connected to the pixel circuit in the driving backplane. The sub-pixels10includes red, green and blue sub-pixels, and is an organic electroluminescent light-emitting element (e.g., OLED). The OLED includes an anode, a light-emitting functional layer and a cathode which are sequentially disposed on the driving backplane. The light-emitting functional layer includes a hole transport layer, a hole injection layer, a light-emitting layer, an electron injection layer and an electron transport layer which are sequentially superimposed on each other.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.8, the touch units21are in a grid shape, and an orthographic projection of the touch units21on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels10. With such arrangement, on one hand, the load value of the touch electrode can be reduced, so that the touch driver chip can better drive the touch electrode, and the linearity and the accuracy of touch control are improved; and on the other hand, the provision of the touch electrode will not affect normal light emission of the display panel, thereby ensuring the light transmittance of the display panel, and ensuring normal display of the display panel. Meanwhile, since the orthographic projection of the touch units21on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels10, moire fringes can be avoided, and the display effect of the display panel is improved.

In some implementations, the touch units may be planar. For example, the touch units are made of a transparent ITO material, as long as it is ensured that the load of the touch units satisfies the requirement for driving the touch driver chip.

In some implementations, as shown inFIGS.8and9ato9c, a grid density (i.e., a density of grid units) of the shielding units61is smaller than or equal to a grid density of the touch units21; and the grid density of the touch units21is smaller than a distribution density of the sub-pixels10. The grid density of the touch units21refers to a density of the touch units21in a grid shape in a region (e.g., a rectangular region27) where the touch units21are located. The grid density of the shielding units61refers to a density of the shielding units61in a grid shape in a region (e.g., the rectangular region27) where the shielding units61are located. The distribution density of the sub-pixels10refers to a density of the sub-pixels10in a region where the touch units21are located. Since the load value of the single shielding unit61is related to the grid density of the shielding units, the greater the grid density is, the greater the load value of the shielding unit61is; and the smaller the grid density is, the smaller the load value of the shielding unit61is. Therefore, by setting the grid density of the shielding units61, on one hand, the load value of the shielding electrode6can be reduced while the shielding electrode6shields display noises of the display substrate, so that the driver chip can better drive the shielding electrode6, and sensitivity, linearity and accuracy of touch control are improved; and on the other hand, the provision of the shielding electrode6will not affect normal light emission of the display panel, thereby ensuring the light transmittance of the display panel, and ensuring normal display of the display panel.

In some implementations, as shown inFIGS.9ato9c, the grid density of the shielding units61may be set to be the same as the grid density of the touch units21, or to be 75% of the grid density of the touch units21, or to be 50% of the grid density of the touch units21.

In some implementations, as shown inFIGS.3and4, the display panel further includes touch signal lines3arranged on a side of the shielding electrode6away from the display substrate1, and on a side of the touch electrode2close to the display substrate1. A second insulation layer7is provided between the shielding electrode6and the touch signal lines3. Each of the touch units21is individually connected to one of the touch signal lines3; and an orthographic projection of the touch signal lines3on the display substrate1overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode2on the display substrate1. The touch signal lines3can transmit touch driving signals from the touch driver chip to the touch units21. With such arrangement, mutual-capacitance touch control of the touch electrode2can be implemented. That is, a capacitor is formed by the touch units21and the ground, and when a finger touches the display panel, a capacitor formed by the finger will be added to the capacitor formed by the touch units21and the ground, so that the capacitance between the touch units21and the ground is increased, that is, the touch electrode2in the embodiment of the present disclosure enables self-capacitance touch control on the display panel. During touch detection, the touch units21in horizontal and vertical in the array of touch units21are sequentially detected, and a horizontal coordinate and a vertical coordinate of the touch control are determined according to a capacitance change of the touch units21before and after the touch control, and then combined into a planar touch coordinate. The self-capacitance touch detection mode is equivalent to projecting a touch point on a touch screen to the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction respectively, then calculating coordinates in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction respectively, and finally combining the coordinates into a coordinate of the touch point.

In some implementations, by providing the touch electrode2in a different layer the touch signal lines3connected to the touch electrode2, and making the orthographic projection of the touch signal lines3on the display substrate1overlap with the orthographic projection of the touch electrode2on the display substrate1, on one hand, self-capacitance touch control of the touch electrode2can be implemented, and compared with the touch structure with a multilayer touch electrode design based on the mutual-capacitance touch principle, the touch electrode2of self-capacitance touch control has a smaller area, so that the loads of the touch electrode2and the touch signal lines3are reduced, and the driving requirements thereof by the touch driver chip are satisfied. On the other hand, compared with the touch structure with a single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle, the touch signal lines3do not occupy any region of in a plane where the touch electrode2is located, namely, the plane where the touch electrode2is located is completely occupied by the touch electrode2capable of implementing touch positioning, without any region incapable of touch positioning. That is, there is no touch blind region caused by the arrangement of the touch signal lines3in the plane where the touch electrode2is located, thereby eliminating the influence of the touch blind region on touch operations, and improving sensitivity, linearity and accuracy of touch operations on the display panel. The display panel can not only satisfy the requirements of the touch driver chip on the touch load, but also avoid the touch blind region caused by the arrangement of the touch signal lines3. Therefore, the display panel may be not only a small-sized touch display panel, but also a large-sized touch display panel.

In some implementations, the display panel further includes a first insulation layer4between the touch signal lines3and the touch electrode2. At least one first via5is opened in the first insulation layer4in a region corresponding to each of the touch units21, and the touch unit21is connected to the touch signal line3, which is configured to provide signals for the touch unit, through the first via5. The touch signal lines3can transmit touch driving signals from the touch driver chip to the touch electrode2.

In some implementations, as shown inFIGS.10to11, a plurality of first vias5are opened in the first insulation layer4in a region corresponding to each of the touch units21. The plurality of first vias5are uniformly distributed and connected to each other through the touch signal lines3. With such arrangement, on one hand, an impedance of the touch signal lines3can be reduced, thereby reducing resistance-capacitance delay of the touch units21, and improving touch performance of the touch electrode. On the other hand, the touch units21are connected to the corresponding touch signal lines3through the plurality of first vias5, so that the risk of failing to connect the touch units21with the touch signal lines3through certain first via5in the process can be reduced, thereby ensuring reliable connection between the touch units21and the corresponding touch signal lines3, as well as good touch performance of the touch electrode.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.3, one first via5is opened in the first insulation layer4in a region corresponding to each of the touch units21. For a column of touch units21, along a direction from top to bottom, and first vias5corresponding to the touch units21are sequentially arranged from an upper right corner of the touch units21to a lower left corner of the touch units21. With such arrangement, the requirements of the touch driver chip on the touch load of the touch electrode2can be satisfied, and the touch blind region caused by the arrangement of the touch signal lines3can be avoided.

In some implementations, in a row direction of the array of touch units21, A touch units21are provided, each of the touch units21has a load value a, and A*a≤P; and in a column direction of the array of touch units21, B touch units21are provided, each of the touch units21has a load value b, and B*b≤P; where P is a maximum load capacity of a touch driver chip for providing signals for the touch electrode. In some implementations, each touch unit21has a rectangular contour, and a size ranging from 3.5 mm*3.5 mm to 4.5 mm*4.5 mm. Such size range of the touch units21can ensure that neither a load value of each row of touch units21nor a load value of each column of touch units21exceeds the maximum load capacity of the touch driver chip, thereby satisfying the requirement for driving the touch electrode by the touch driver chip.

In some implementations, as shown inFIGS.3and4, the display panel further includes a display region101and a bonding region102. The touch electrode2and the shielding electrode6are located in the display region101, and the touch signal lines3and the shielding signal lines8extend from the display region101to the bonding region102. The bonding region102is provided with a lead electrode9, a plurality of touch electrode bonding ends11, and at least one shielding electrode bonding end12. The touch electrode bonding ends11and the shielding electrode bonding ends12are disposed in the same layer as the touch electrode2, and the lead electrode9is disposed in the same layer as the touch signal lines3. The touch signal lines3are connected to the touch electrode bonding ends11through a second via13opened in the first insulation layer4. The shielding signal lines8are connected to the lead electrode9through a third via14opened in the second insulation layer7, and the lead electrode9is connected to the shielding electrode bonding ends12through a fourth via15opened in the first insulation layer4. By providing the touch electrode bonding ends11and the shielding electrode bonding ends12in the bonding region102, bonding connection of the touch units21and the shielding units61to a peripheral circuit16can be implemented, so that the touch driver chip in the peripheral circuit16can provide touch driving signals for the touch units21and the shielding units61.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.12, the display panel further includes floating electrodes17distributed in a display region. The floating electrodes17are floating, and arranged in the same layer as the touch electrode2, and an orthographic projection of the floating electrodes17on the display substrate does not overlap an orthographic projection of the touch electrode2on the display substrate. The floating electrodes17and the touch electrode2are disposed at different positions in the same layer, and the floating electrodes17are arranged in regions in which the touch electrode2is not located. With such arrangement, on one hand, since the floating electrodes17occupy some regions, the distribution area of the touch electrode2can be reduced while ensuring that the touch electrode2implements full-surface touch control on the display panel, thereby reducing the load of the touch electrode2, facilitating driving for the touch electrode2by the touch driver chip, and improving sensitivity, linearity and accuracy of touch control. On the other hand, since the floating electrodes17and the touch electrode2are disposed in the same layer, when the touch electrode2is non-uniformly distributed on a display surface of the display panel and both the floating electrodes17and the touch electrode2are made of opaque metal materials, opaque regions of the display panel tends to be distributed uniformly when seen from a display side of the display panel, and there is substantially no visual distribution difference of opaque regions, thereby improving the visual effect of the display panel.

It should be noted that if the touch electrode2is uniformly distributed across the display surface of the display panel and the load of the touch electrode2can satisfy the driving requirements of the touch driver chip, the floating electrodes may be omitted.

In some implementations, the floating electrodes17are in a grid shape, and an orthographic projection of the floating electrodes17on the display substrate does not overlap the sub-pixels10. With such arrangement, on one hand, it is ensured that the floating electrodes17have substantially the same distribution uniformity as the touch electrode2, thereby improving the visual effect of the display panel at the display side. On the other hand, it is ensured that the floating electrodes17does not shield the sub-pixels10, and thus does not affect the transmittance of the display panel.

In some implementations, the floating electrodes17are distributed in a region (e.g., a rectangular region27) where the touch units21are located, with a ratio of distribution area less than 40%. That is, in the region where the touch units21are located, a ratio of an area of an orthographic projection of the floating electrodes17on the display substrate to an area of an orthographic projection of the touch units21on the display substrate is less than 40%. With such arrangement, an amount of touch signals of the touch units21is ensured, thereby improving the touch performance. In some particular application scenarios, such as a foldable display panel, a proportion of area of the floating electrodes17can be increased to improve flexibility.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.3, the display panel further includes a selection switch circuit18(not shown inFIG.4) in the bonding region102. The selection switch circuit18includes a plurality of input ends and a plurality of output ends. The input ends are connected to a peripheral circuit; and the plurality of output ends are respectively connected to the touch electrode bonding ends and the shielding electrode bonding ends. Since the touch electrode is based on a self-capacitance touch principle, a huge number of touch electrode lines are involved in a large-sized display panel. Therefore, a great number of leads appear in the bonding region102, leading to an increased area of the bonding region102of the display panel. By introducing the great number of leads into the selection switch circuit18, the selection switch circuit18can select and switch on or off the plurality of touch electrode lines, so that the number of touch electrode bonding ends, as well as the area of the bonding region102of the display panel, are reduced.

In some implementations, as shown inFIG.4, the display panel further includes a polarizer19and a cover plate20. The polarizer19and the cover plate20are sequentially superimposed on a side of the touch electrode2away from the display substrate1, and a third insulation layer22is further provided between the polarizer19and the touch electrode2. The polarizer19enables color display of the display panel. The cover plate20can protect the touch electrode2.

Based on the above structure of the display panel, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a method for driving a display panel. The display panel includes a display substrate, and a touch electrode and a shielding electrode arranged on a display side of the display substrate. The shielding electrode and the touch electrode are sequentially arranged in a direction away from the display substrate; and an orthographic projection of the shielding electrode on the display substrate at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate. The method for driving the display panel includes: providing a touch driving signal to the touch electrode, while keeping the shielding electrode floating; or, providing the same signal as the touch driving signal to the shielding electrode.

In some implementations, the touch driving signal is provided for the shielding electrode through shielding signal lines while providing the touch driving signal for the touch electrode. During touch control, the touch driver chip provides signals with the same magnitude as the touch driving signals to the shielding electrode, so that there is no voltage difference between the shielding electrode and the touch electrode, the capacitor formed by the shielding electrode and the touch electrode is not to be charged, and thus the touch electrode has the minimum capacitive load and thus the least requirement on the touch driver chip. Meanwhile, the shielding electrode can better shield the display noises of the display substrate, so that the display noises are prevented from being coupled to the touch electrode lines, thereby avoiding interference of the display noises on the touch performance of the touch electrode.

Based on the above structure of the display panel, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a method for manufacturing the display panel, including the following steps S1to S2.

At step S1, preparing a display substrate. At step S2, sequentially preparing a shielding electrode and a touch electrode on a display side of the display substrate. An orthographic projection of the shielding electrode on the display substrate at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate.

In some implementations, the shielding electrode and the touch electrode are prepared on the basis of completing the preparation process of the display substrate, and the specific process steps includes the following steps S21to S28.

At step S21, forming a shielding electrode film layer by magnetron sputtering.

At step S22, forming a pattern including a shielding electrode and shielding signal lines by exposure and etching.

At step S23, forming a second insulation layer by chemical vapor deposition; and dry etching the second insulation layer at a corresponding position in the bonding region to form a third via.

At step S24, forming a touch signal line film layer by magnetron sputtering.

At step S25, forming a pattern including touch signal lines and a lead electrode by exposure and etching.

At step S26, forming a first insulation layer by chemical vapor deposition; dry etching the first insulation layer at a corresponding position in the display region to form a first via; and dry etching the first insulation layer at a corresponding position in the bonding region to form a second via and a fourth via.

At step S27, forming a touch electrode film layer by magnetron sputtering.

At step S28, forming a pattern including a touch electrode, floating electrodes, touch electrode bonding ends and shielding electrode bonding ends by exposure and etching.

In some implementations, the method for manufacturing the display panel further includes the following steps S3to S4.

At step S3, forming a third insulation layer by chemical vapor deposition. At step S4, attaching a polarizer and a cover plate to the third insulation layer.

All film layers in the display panel are prepared by conventional processes, which are not described in detail here.

In the display panel provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure, by providing the shielding electrode between the display substrate and the touch electrode, display noises of the display substrate can be shielded, thereby reducing and avoiding interference of coupling effect of the display noise on touch operations of the touch electrode, and thus improving the touch performance of the display panel. In addition, by providing the touch electrode in a different layer from the touch signal lines connected to the touch electrode, and making that the orthographic projection of the touch signal lines on the display substrate overlap the orthographic projection of the touch electrode on the display substrate, on one hand, self-capacitance touch control of the touch electrode can be implemented, and compared with the touch structure with a multilayer touch electrode design based on the mutual-capacitance touch principle, the touch electrode of self-capacitance touch control has a smaller area, so that the loads of the touch electrode and the touch signal lines are reduced, and the driving requirements of the touch driver chip are satisfied. On the other hand, compared with the touch structure with a single-layer touch electrode design based on the self-capacitance touch principle, the touch signal lines do not occupy any region in a plane where the touch electrode is located, and there is no touch blind region caused by the arrangement of the touch signal lines in the plane where the touch electrode is located, thereby eliminating the influence of the touch blind region on touch operations, and improving sensitivity, linearity and accuracy of touch operations on the display panel. The display panel can not only satisfy the requirements of the touch driver chip on the touch load, but also avoid the touch blind region caused by the arrangement of the touch signal lines. Therefore, the display panel may be not only a small-sized touch display panel, but also a large-sized touch display panel.

An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a display apparatus including the display panel according to the above embodiment.

By adopting the display panel in the above embodiment, display noises of the display substrate in the display panel can be shielded, thereby improving the touch performance of the display apparatus. Meanwhile, the display apparatus can not only satisfy the requirements of the touch driver chip on the touch load, but also avoid the touch blind region, so that the display apparatus may be not only a small-sized touch display apparatus, but also a large-sized touch display apparatus.

The display apparatus provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure may be any product or component with a display function, such as an OLED panel, an OLED television, a monitor, a mobile phone, a navigator, or the like.

It will be appreciated that the above implementations are merely exemplary implementations for the purpose of illustrating the principle of the present disclosure, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. It will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that various modifications and variations may be made without departing from the spirit or essence of the present disclosure. Such modifications and variations should also be considered as falling into the protection scope of the present disclosure.