Abstract:
A touch screen panel is directly formed on an upper substrate of a flat panel display which provides a flat panel display integrated with the touch screen panel with an improved yield and reliability by improving ESD defect prevention due to the introduction of electrostatic by using a shield member covering sensing lines so that the sensing lines formed in a non-display region of the touch screen panel are not exposed to the outside.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2010-0019902, filed Mar. 5, 2010 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    1. Field 
         [0003]    Embodiments of the invention relate to a flat panel display, and more particularly, to a flat panel display integrated with a touch screen panel. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    A touch screen panel is an input device that selects contents displayed on a screen (such as an image display device, etc.) using a hand or an object to input commands of a user. To this end, the touch screen panel is provided on a front face of the image display device and converts positions directly contacting a person&#39;s hand or an object into electrical signals. Therefore, the command contents selected at the contact position are received as the input signals. 
         [0006]    As the touch screen panel can replace a separate input device that is operated by being connected with the image display device such as a keyboard and a mouse, the use field of the touch screen panel is being expanded gradually. There are multiple types of the touch screen panel: a resistive type, a light sensing type, and a capacitive type, and so on. Among those, the capacitive type of touch screen display converts contact positions into electrical signals by sensing the change in capacitance formed by a conductive sensing pattern, other sensing patterns around the conductive sensing pattern, or a ground electrode, when a person&#39;s hand or other object contacts the touch screen panel. 
         [0007]    The touch screen panel is generally configured to be attached to the outer surface of the flat panel display. Examples of the flat screen display include a liquid crystal display or an organic light emitting display. When a separately manufactured touch screen panel bonded to the flat panel display is used, there are problems in that the entire thickness of the product is increased and the manufacturing cost is increased. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0008]    Embodiments of the invention relate to a structure that a touch screen panel is directly formed on an upper substrate of a flat panel display. 
         [0009]    An embodiment of the present invention is to provide a flat panel display integrated with a touch screen panel with the improved yield and reliability by improving ESD defect due to the introduction of electrostatic, by including a shield member covering sensing lines to prevent the sensing lines formed in a non-display region of the touch screen panel from exposing to the outside. 
         [0010]    According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a flat panel display integrated with a touch screen panel including: an upper substrate and a lower substrate that are each partitioned into a display region and a non-display region formed at the outside of the display region; first and second sensing patterns that are formed on the display region of the upper substrate; sensing lines that are formed on the non-display region of the upper substrate and are electrically connected to the first and second sensing patterns; a shield member that is formed on a region overlapping with the sensing lines formed in the non-display region; and a transparent member that is positioned on a region overlapping with the display region. 
         [0011]    According to an aspect of the invention, the transparent member is a polarizer and a window glass. 
         [0012]    According to an aspect of the invention, the shield member is formed in one body by extending the transparent member into the non-display region in which the sensing lines are formed or the shield member is formed to be separate from the transparent member, and is made of a non-conductive acrylic resin material or an UV curable resin material. 
         [0013]    According to an embodiment of the invention, the flat panel display integrated with the touch screen panel further includes connection patterns that connect the second sensing patterns on the display region of the upper substrate; and a first insulating layer that is formed between the connection pattern and the sensing pattern and a second insulating layer that is formed on the sensing patterns. 
         [0014]    According to an embodiment of the invention, the first sensing patterns are configured to include first sensing cells that are disposed in one column having the same X coordinates along a first direction and a first connection line that connects the first sensing cells adjacent to each other and the second sensing patterns are configured to include second sensing cells disposed in one row having the same Y coordinates along a second direction. 
         [0015]    According to an embodiment of the invention, the flat panel display integrated with the touch screen panel further includes a plurality of metal patterns that are disposed at an edge of a region in which the first and second sensing patterns are formed and electrically connect the sensing patterns in one column or row unit to the sensing lines. 
         [0016]    According to an embodiment of the invention, the plurality of connection patterns and metal patterns are formed on the same layer and are made of materials having a resistance value lower than materials forming the first and second sensing patterns. 
         [0017]    According to an embodiment of the invention, the lower substrate is configured to include a display region in which a plurality of pixels including an organic light emitting element configured of a plurality of first electrodes, an organic layer, and a second electrode are formed and a non-display region that is positioned at the outside of the display region and includes a driving circuit to drive the plurality of pixels. 
         [0018]    According to the embodiment of the present invention, in the touch screen panel integrally formed on the upper portion of the flat panel display, it includes the shield member covering the sensing lines to prevent the sensing lines formed in the non-display region of the touch screen panel from exposing to the outside so as to improve the ESD defect due to the introduction of static electricity, thereby improving the yield and reliability. 
         [0019]    Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0020]    These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which: 
           [0021]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of an upper substrate of a flat panel display according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0022]      FIGS. 2A and 2B  are cross-sectional views of specific portions (A-A′ and B-B′) of  FIG. 1 ; and 
           [0023]      FIG. 3  is a plan view of a lower substrate of the flat panel display corresponding to  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0024]    Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present invention by referring to the figures. 
         [0025]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of an upper substrate  10  of a flat panel display according to an embodiment of the present invention and  FIGS. 2A and 2B  are cross-sectional views of specific portions (A-A′ and B-B′) of  FIG. 1 . Further,  FIG. 3  is a plan view of a lower substrate  100  of the flat panel display corresponding to  FIG. 1 . Referring to  FIGS. 1 through 2B , a touch screen panel according to an embodiment of the present invention is directly formed on an upper substrate  10  of a flat panel display. The flat panel display may be an organic light emitting display or a liquid crystal display. In the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the organic light emitting display will be described by way of example. However, it is understood that the flat panel display can be other types of displays, such as plasma displays, field emission displays or other types of flat and non-flat displays. 
         [0026]    In the shown example using the organic light emitting display, the upper substrate  10  is an encapsulation substrate of the organic light emitting display and is preferably made of a transparent material. The touch screen panel according to the shown embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of sensing patterns  12  and  14  that are formed on the upper substrate  10 , (i.e., the first face of the encapsulation substrate). The touch screen panel further includes metal pads  15  and sensing lines  17  that are electrically connected to the sensing patterns  12 ,  14 . 
         [0027]    The region in which the plurality of sensing patterns  12  and  14  are formed is a display region  20  that displays images. The sensing patterns  12 ,  14  detect touched positions. A non-display region  30  is outside of the display region  20  and includes a flexible printed circuit (FPC) bonding pad part  40 , the metal pads  15  electrically connected to the sensing patterns  12  and  14 , the sensing lines  17  connected to the metal pads  26 , and a plurality of bonding pads  42  connected to each of the sensing lines  17 . The FPC bonding pad part  40  includes the bonding pads  42 . 
         [0028]    In addition and shown in  FIG. 3 , a second face of the upper substrate  10  corresponding to the non-display region  30  is applied with a sealing material  140  to bond the upper and lower substrates  10  and  100  of the organic light emitting display. In other words, the sealing material  140  is formed between the upper substrate  10  and the lower substrate  100  to perform a role of sealing the display regions  20  and  110  so as to prevent the infiltration of external air into the area between the display regions  20 ,  110 . 
         [0029]    As shown, the lower substrate  100  includes the display region  110 . The display region  110  includes a plurality of pixels  112 , each including an organic light emitting element. The organic light emitting element includes the plurality of first electrodes, the organic layer, and the second electrodes. The non-display region  120  is formed at the outside of the display region  110 . 
         [0030]    As shown, the display region  110  is a region that displays predetermined images through light emitted from the organic light emitting elements. The display region  110  includes a plurality of scan lines S 1  to Sn arranged in a row direction and a plurality of data lines D 1  to Dm arranged in a column direction. The display region  110  is provided with the plurality of pixels  112  to which signals are applied from driving circuits  130  and  132 . The driving circuits  130  and  132  drive the organic light emitting elements and apply the signals to the scan lines S 1  to Sm and the data lines D 1  to Dm. 
         [0031]    The non-display region  120  is a region provided at the outside of the display region  110  and includes the driving circuits  130 ,  132 . The sealing material  140  bonds the lower substrate  100  and the upper substrate  10  to separate the display regions  20 ,  110  from the non-display regions  30 ,  120 . As shown, the driving circuit  132  is a data driving circuit  132 , and the driving circuit  130  is a scan driving circuit  130 . In other words, the display region  110  of the lower substrate  100  overlaps with the display region  20  of the upper substrate  10 , and the non-display region  120  of the lower substrate  100  overlaps with the non-display region  30  of the upper substrate  10 . 
         [0032]    Further, the sensing patterns  12 ,  14  formed on the display region  20  of the upper substrate  10  are alternately disposed. The sensing patterns  12 ,  14  are formed to be connected to each other in one column unit having the same X coordinates and in one row unit having the same Y coordinates. In other words, the first sensing patterns  12  are configured to include first sensing cells  12 ′ that are disposed in one column having the same X coordinates along a first direction (column direction) and a first connection line  12 ″ that connects adjacent pairs of the first sensing cells  12 ′. The second sensing patterns  14  are configured to include second sensing cells  14 ′ are disposed between the first sensing patterns  12  and are connected in one row having the same Y coordinates along a second direction (row direction). As shown, adjacent pairs of the second sensing cells  14 ′ are connected using a connection pattern  15 ′ extending across the first connection line  12 ″. 
         [0033]    In the shown embodiment of the present invention, the first sensing patterns  12  and the second sensing patterns  14  are formed on the same layer. Further, the first and second sensing patterns  12  and  14  should be made of a transparent material to implement the operation of the touch screen panel. Therefore, it is preferable (but not required) that the first and second sensing patterns  12  and  14  are made of a transparent conductive material. An example of the conductive material can be, for example, indium tin oxide (hereinafter, ITO). However, the invention is not limited thereto. 
         [0034]    Further, in order for the first sensing patterns  12  and the second sensing patterns  14  to serve as the sensing electrode, the sensing cells  12 ′,  14 ′ arranged in the first direction and the second direction should be electrically connected to each other. The first sensing cells  12 ′ are electrically connected to each other by the first connection line  12 ″. However, since the second sensing cells  14 ′ forming the second sensing patterns  14  are formed on the same layer as the first sensing cells  12 ′, the connection line intersecting with the first connection line  12 ′ may not be formed on the same layer in order to avoid short with the first connection line  12 ′. Therefore, in the shown embodiment of the present invention, each connection pattern  15 ′ electrically connecting each of the second sensing cells  14 ′ to each other is formed on a layer different from the first and second sensing patterns  12 ,  14 . That is, the connection patterns  15 ′ are formed on the lower layer of the first and second sensing patterns  12  and  14 . As shown, the connection patterns  15 ′ and the sensing lines  17  are both disposed on the substrate  10  and are of the same material. However, the invention is not limited thereto. 
         [0035]    In the touch screen panel according to the shown embodiment of the present invention, the connection patterns  15 ′ are formed on the transparent substrate as the upper substrate  10  and a first insulating layer  13  is formed on the transparent substrate  11  including the connection pattern  15 ′. While not required in all aspects, the connection patterns  15 ′ may be made of ITO like the first and second sensing patterns  12  and  14 , or may be made of a metal material having resistance value lower than the ITO. Although the connection pattern  15 ′ may be formed in a rectangular bar shape as shown, the shape is not limited thereto. An end of each connection pattern  15 ′ is exposed by a contact hole  13 ′ through the insulating layer  13 . The end may have a width which is wider than the width of the other portion of the connection pattern  15 ′. 
         [0036]    As shown, while separated by the first insulating layer  13 , the connection patterns  15 ′ cross the first connection lines  12 ″ of the first sensing patterns  12 . Accordingly, it is preferable to minimize the width of the connection pattern  15 ′ in order to reduce the effect of parasitic capacitance occurring at this crossing point. However, when minimizing the width of the connection pattern  15 ′, the line resistance of each of the sensing patterns  14  is increased. This reduces the sensing sensitivity implementing the function of the touch screen panel. Therefore, it is more preferable that the connection pattern  15 ′ is made of a conductive material having low resistance. However, it is understood that other mechanisms can be used to reduce the line resistance. 
         [0037]    In the shown embodiment, the connection pattern  15 ′ is formed at an edge region of the region in which the first sensing patterns  12  and the second sensing patterns  14  are formed and is made of the same material as the metal pad  15  supplying the sensed signals to the driving circuit (not shown) side and is formed on the same layer as the metal pad  15  through the same process. Thus, an additional mask process to form the connection pattern  15 ′ is not needed. Therefore, the connection pattern  15 ′ is not made of the same transparent conductive material as the first and second sensing patterns  12  and  14 , thereby making it possible to prevent the increase in the line resistance as well as overcome a disadvantage of adding the mask process in order to forming the connection pattern  15 ′. However, it is understood that the connection pattern  15 ′ can be formed in other layers, and need not be of the same material as the metal pad  15 . 
         [0038]    A second insulating layer  16  is formed on the first and second sensing patterns  12  and  14 . The first and second insulating layers  13  and  16  are generally made of inorganic materials, such as silicon oxide (SiO2) and are formed at a thickness of 2000 to 4000 μm, which is too thin to prevent the defect due to an electro-static discharge (ESD) introduced from the outside. 
         [0039]    In particular, the first and second insulating layers  13  and  16  are not formed on the FPC bonding pad part  40  in the non-display region  30 . Therefore, the sensing lines  17  adjacently formed to the FPC bonding pad part  40  may be exposed to the outside. As such, when the ESD is introduced from the outside by static electricity, etc., current flows to a portion having the lowest impedance and is applied to the sensing cell formed in the display region  20  through the exposed sensing lines  17 . Thus, the defect may occur, such as a defect due to a short between the connection pattern  15 ′ and the first connection line  12 ″ which crosses above the connection pattern  15 ′. 
         [0040]    In order to overcome the this problem, the shown embodiment of the present invention includes a shield member  50  covering the sensing lines  17  so that the sensing lines  17  formed in the non-display region  30  are not exposed to the outside. As shown in  FIG. 1 , the shield member  50  overlaps a portion of the non-display region  30  on which the sensing lines  17  are formed. That is, the sensing lines  17  are covered by the shield member  50  and not exposed to the outside. While not required in all aspects, the shield member  50  does not cover other portions of the non-display region  30  on which the sensing lines  17  are not formed. However, it is understood that the shield member  50  could cover all areas of the non-display region  30  in other aspects of the invention. 
         [0041]    As described above, the shield member  50  is formed to cover the sensing lines  17 , thereby making it possible to prevent the ESD from being introduced through the sensing line. In the case of the embodiment of the present invention shown in  FIG. 2A , the shield member  50 ′ is formed in one body with a transparent member  52  by extending from the transparent member  52  formed on the display region  30  of the touch screen panel. In another embodiment shown in  FIG. 2B , the shield member  50  is a separate member  50 ″ separately formed on the non-display region  30  overlapping with the sensing lines  17 . In this embodiment, the shield member  50  can be made of materials different from the materials used in the transparent member  52 . 
         [0042]    In other words, referring to the embodiment shown in  FIG. 2A , the shield member  50 ′ and the transparent member  52  are formed in one body whereby the shield member  50 ′ extends from the transparent member  52  formed on the display region  30  of the touch screen panel into the non-display region  30  in which the sensing lines  17  are formed. At this time, the transparent member  52  may be a polarizer or a window glass, but the invention is not limited thereto. 
         [0043]    Further, referring to the embodiment shown in  FIG. 2B , the shield member  50 ″ is separated from the transparent member  52  and is formed on the non-display region  30  overlapping with the sensing lines  17 . In this embodiment, the shield member  50 ″ can be made of materials different from the transparent member  52 . The shield member  50 ″ may be made of a non-conductive acrylic resin material or a UV curable resin material, whereas the transparent member  52  may be a polarizer or a window glass, but the invention is not limited thereto. Also, while shown as being used separately, it is understood that both shield members  50 ′ and  50 ″ can be used together in another embodiment, such as where the shield member  50 ′ extends only from one side of the transparent member  52  and the shield member  50 ′ is disposed on another side of the transparent member  52 . 
         [0044]    The following Table 1 includes experimental data shown ESD evaluation results for the case where the shield member  50  is provided and the case where the shield member  50  is not provided. The experimental data was obtained from an experiment in which a number of evaluated shield members is 10, a number of touch screen panels is 4, and ±2 kV, ±4 kV, ±6 kV, ±8 kV is each applied to the edge portion (i.e., non-display region  30  having the sensing lines  17 ) 5 times (evaluation standard, contact discharge, R=330Ω, C=150 Pf). The shield member  50  used in the experiment corresponds to the embodiment shown in  FIG. 2A  in which the shield member  50  is implemented by the shield member  50 ′, which extends to the non-display region  30  from the transparent member  52  to cover the sensing lines  17 . The transparent member  52  is the polarizer in the experiment. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
           
               
                 TABLE 1 
               
               
                   
               
               
                 Division 
                 Test 
                 ±2 kV 
                 ±4 kV 
                 ±6 kV 
                 ±8 kV 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                 No shield 
                 Contact 
                 OK 
                 Touch 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                 member 
                   
                   
                 defect 
               
               
                   
                   
                 OK 
                 Touch 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 defect 
               
               
                   
                   
                 OK 
                 Touch 
                 — 
                 — 
               
               
                   
                   
                   
                 defect 
               
               
                 Shield 
                 Contact 
                 OK 
                 OK 
                 OK 
                 OK 
               
               
                 member 
                   
                 OK 
                 OK 
                 OK 
                 OK 
               
               
                 50 
                   
                 OK 
                 OK 
                 OK 
                 OK 
               
               
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0045]    Referring to the results Table 1, the shield member  50 ′ is formed to overlap with the sensing lines  17  of the non-display region  30 , thereby making it possible to confirm the improvement of the ESD defect. In other words, when there is no shield member, the defect does not occur at the ESD level having about 2 kV, and defects occur thereafter. In contrast, where the shield member  50 ′ is used, it is possible to initially secure 8 Kv or more without the ESD defect. 
         [0046]    Although a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in this embodiment without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.