Patent Publication Number: US-11662632-B2

Title: Display panel

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/638,226, filed on Feb. 11, 2020, which claims a priority from China Patent Application No. 201910135413.3 filed on Feb. 22, 2019. 
    
    
     FIELD OF INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a technical field of displays, and particularly to a narrow-bezel display panel. 
     BACKGROUND OF DISCLOSURE 
     With the development of full-screen display technology, screen-body ratios of current displays are constantly increasing, and lower bezels of the displays are getting smaller. However, narrowing the lower bezel directly compresses a space for setting a driving chip, traces or other components, and the driving chip is moved close to an edge of an array substrate. Because cracks and defects may easily occur to glass when glass of the substrate is being cut, the cracks extending to a binding region may cause electrical failure after the driving chip is mounted. The smaller a space is for traces extending from the driving chip to a display region, the closer the driving chip is to the display region, which may make a coated frame sealant of the panel too thin, and thereby cause a series of defects, such as liquid crystal leakage. 
     Technical Problems 
     While a screen-body ratio of a conventional display panel is increased, an area of a bezel is severely reduced, causing the driving chip to be too close to a display region and an edge of a substrate, and thereby causing technical defects, such as poor electrical properties and poor panel sealing, after the driving chip is mounted. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     The present disclosure provides a display panel. An end of an array substrate end in the display panel is provided with a protrusion, which increases a distance between a driving chip and a display region, and a distance between the driving chip and an edge of a bezel, so as to solve the technical defects of the display panel in the prior art that an area of the bezel is severely reduced when a screen-body ratio is increased, causing the driving chip to be too close to the display region and an edge of the substrate, and thereby causing poor electrical properties, and poor sealing of the liquid crystal cell after the driving chip is mounted. 
     To solve the above problems, the technical solution provided by the present disclosure is as follows: 
     The present disclosure provides a display panel including an array substrate and a display region located on a surface of the array substrate, wherein a portion of the array substrate not occupied by the display region forms a bezel, and a driving chip and a flexible circuit board are bound in the bezel; 
     wherein at least one a protrusion is formed at an end of the bezel away from the display region, and the driving chip is located between an edge of the protrusion and an edge of the display region; wherein a portion of the flexible circuit board is bent to a back of the array substrate via an edge of an indent adjacent at least one lateral side of the protrusion. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, a distance between an edge of the driving chip close to the display region and the edge of the display region is greater than a distance between an edge of the driving chip close to the protrusion and the edge of the protrusion. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, the driving chip is disposed in the bezel and is located outside a region of the protrusion. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, the driving chip is completely or partially disposed in a region of the protrusion. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, the protrusion includes two symmetrically arranged short edges connecting edges of the bezel, and a long edge connecting ends of the two short edges; the short edges are perpendicular to the edges of the bezel; and an angle formed between the short edges and the edges of the bezel is a non-right angle. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, the protrusion includes a convex arc edge, two ends of the convex arc edges are connected to the edges of the bezel, and the ends of the convex arc edges are in concave arc transitions. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, at least one set of gate on array (GOA) traces are disposed on the array substrate, the GOA traces include a parallel segment located outside the display region and being parallel to edges of the display region, and an inclined segment located in the bezel and towards the driving chip, the inclined segment of the GOA traces is connected to the driving chip to input a gate signal, and the parallel segment of the GOA traces is connected to a scan line of each pixel row to output the gate signal; wherein a plurality of metal terminals are disposed in the bezel and configured for accessing signals of the flexible circuit board, and the metal terminals include at least a primary signal metal terminal group and a secondary signal metal terminal group, wherein the primary signal metal terminal group is arranged close to the driving chip, and the secondary signal metal terminal group is arranged away from the driving chip and the inclined section of the GOA traces. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, the secondary signal metal terminal group and the primary signal metal terminal group are separately disposed, the primary signal metal terminal group is completely or partially located within a region of the protrusion, and the secondary signal metal terminal group is located outside the region of the protrusion. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, the flexible circuit board includes a main body section and a connection section for connecting the metal terminals, the connection section includes a first block correspondingly connected with the primary signal metal terminal group, and a second block correspondingly connected with the secondary signal metal terminal group, and the first block is offset from the second block. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, a virtual metal terminal group is further disposed in the bezel, and the virtual metal terminal group is located adjacent a lateral side of the secondary signal metal terminal group away from the driving chip and the inclined segment of the GOA traces. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, an area of each of the metal terminals in the primary signal metal terminal group is equivalent to an area of each of the metal terminals in the secondary signal metal terminal group; a height of each of the metal terminals of the primary signal metal terminal group is lower than a height of each of the metal terminals of the secondary signal metal terminal group, and a width of each of the metal terminals of the primary signal metal terminal group is wider than a width of each of the metal terminals of the secondary signal metal terminal group. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, a height of each of the metal terminals in the primary signal metal terminal group gradually lowers from the metal terminals away from the driving chip and the inclined segment of the GOA traces to the metal terminals close to the driving chip and the inclined segment of the GOA traces; and a width of each of the metal terminals in the primary signal metal terminal group gradually increases from the metal terminals away from the driving chip and the inclined segment of the GOA traces to the metal terminals close to the driving chip and the inclined segment of the GOA traces. 
     In the display panel of the present disclosure, the flexible circuit board includes a main body section and a connection section for connecting the metal terminals, an end of the connection section has a regular geometric shape, the end of the connection section is provided with a first connection region and a second connection region, the first connection region covers and connects the primary signal metal terminal group, and the second connection region covers and connects the secondary signal. 
     Beneficial Effects 
     The beneficial effects of the present disclosure is as follows: compared with the existing display panel, the display panel provided by the present disclosure is provided with the protrusion at the end of the array substrate, and the driving chip is provided in the space between the display region and the protrusion, thereby increasing the distance between the driving chip and the edge of the display region and the distance between the driving chip and the edge of the bezel, and preventing the technical defects that the area of the bezel in a display screen with a high screen-body ratio is compressed, causing the driving chip to be too close to the display region and an edge of the substrate, and thereby causing poor electrical properties, and poor sealing of the liquid crystal cell after the driving chip is mounted. Moreover, a bending section of the flexible circuit board is located in flat regions adjacent both lateral sides of the protrusion, and the thickness of the bending section does not exceed the edge of the protrusion, so a width of the bezel is not increased, and the screen-body ratio of the display device is maintained. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
       In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in prior arts, the following briefly introduces the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings in the following description merely show some of the embodiments of the present invention. As regards one of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained in accordance with these accompanying drawings without making creative efforts. 
         FIG.  1 A  is a schematic diagram of a front view structure of a display panel provided in the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  1 B  is a schematic diagram of a cross-sectional structure in the direction A-A′ of  FIG.  1 A . 
         FIG.  2    is a schematic diagram of a comparison structure between a display panel provided in the present disclosure and the prior art. 
         FIG.  3 A  is a schematic diagram of a protrusion shape structure of a display panel provided by the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  3 B  is a schematic diagram of a protrusion shape structure of another display panel provided by the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  3 C  is a schematic diagram of a protrusion shape structure of another display panel provided by the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  4 A  is a schematic diagram of a distribution structure of metal terminals of a display panel provided by the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  4 B  is a schematic structural diagram of a flexible circuit board of the display panel provided in  FIG.  4 A . 
         FIG.  4 C  is a schematic diagram of a distribution structure of metal terminals of another display panel provided by the present disclosure. 
         FIG.  4 D  is a schematic structural diagram of a flexible circuit board of the display panel provided in  FIG.  4 C . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are merely representative, and are used to describe exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. However, this disclosure may be embodied in many alternative forms and should not be construed as being limited to only the embodiments set forth herein. 
     In the description of the present disclosure, the terms “first” and “second” are only used for descriptive purposes, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, the features defined as “first” and “second” may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present disclosure, unless otherwise stated, “a plurality” means two or more. In addition, the term “including” and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. 
     In the present disclosure, it is noted that, unless otherwise explicitly set forth and defined, the terms “mount”, “contact”, and “connect” should be understood broadly, and, for example, may be fixedly connected, detachably connected, integrally connected, mechanically connected, electrically connected, directly connected, or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, or internally communicated within two components. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meaning of these terms in the present disclosure should be understood on a basis of a specific case situation. 
     The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the exemplary embodiments. Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms “a” and “an” as used herein are intended to include the plural. It should also be understood that the terms “including” and/or “comprising” as used herein specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, units and/or components without precluding the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, units, components, and/or combinations thereof. 
     The present disclosure is further described below with reference to the drawings and embodiments. 
     The present disclosure is directed to the technical problem of a display panel of the prior art: While a screen-body ratio of a conventional display panel is increased, an area of a bezel is severely reduced, causing the driving chip to be too close to a display region and an edge of a substrate, and thereby causing technical defects, such as poor electrical properties and poor panel sealing, after the driving chip is mounted. The present embodiments can resolve the defect. 
     As shown in  FIG.  1 A - FIG.  1 B , the display panel provided in this disclosure includes an array substrate  101  and a color filter substrate  102  disposed opposite the array substrate  101 . A surface of the array substrate  101  is provided with a display region  103 , and the display region  103  is defined by a frame sealant. A liquid crystal layer is disposed inside the frame sealant, and the color filter substrate  102  and the array substrate  101  are combined by the frame sealant. 
     The regions between the display region  103  and edges of the array substrate  101  form a bezel  104 , and the bezel  104  is provided with signal traces and other electronic components, such as a driving chip  105 , a flexible circuit board  106 , and the like. 
     The color filter substrate  102  is shorter than the array substrate  101 , and the color filter substrate  102  is higher than a surface of the array substrate  101 . A step substrate  101  is formed between a projection of a lower edge of the color filter substrate  102  projected onto the surface of the array substrate  101  and an edge of the array substrate  101 . The step region is located in the bezel  104 , other electronic components, such as the driving chip  105  and the flexible circuit board  106 , are located in the step region, and the signal traces extend from the step region to the entire bezel  104  and the display region  103 . 
     When a mother board of the display panel is being cut, a protrusion  107  is reserved at an end of the array substrate  101  away from the display region  103 , the protrusion  107  is located at a middle position of the end of the array substrate  101 , and indents are respectively formed adjacent both lateral sides of the protrusion  107 . The driving chip  105  is disposed between a lower edge of the protrusion  107  and an edge of the display region  103 , thereby raising the height between an upper side of the driving chip  105  and the edge of the display region  103  and the a height between a lower side of the driving chip  105  and the lower edge of the protrusion  107 . 
     The flexible circuit board  106  includes a connection section connected to the bezel  104 , a main body section bent to a back of the display panel, and a bending section connecting the connection section with the main body section. The bending section is located in the indents, and a bending radius of the bending section is less than or equal to the height of the protrusion  107 . 
     In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the protrusion is disposed in accordance with the number of driving chips. The positions of the protrusion and the driving chip are not limited to the middle position of the bezel. For example, the protrusion may also be disposed close to any side of the bezel. 
     Therefore, compared with the display panel in the prior art, the embodiment of the present disclosure widens the spaces adjacent the upper and lower sides of the driving chip  105 , without increasing the overall height of the bezel  104 , which not only solves the problem of the space around the driving chip  105 , but also maintains the narrow bezel of the display panel in the prior art. 
     As shown in  FIG.  2   , the left picture is a display panel provided by the present disclosure, and the right picture is a display panel of the prior art. The left picture and the right picture each include an array substrate  201 , a display region  202 , a driving chip  206 , and a color filter substrate  204 . The array substrate  201  includes a bezel  207  including a height A between a lower edge of the display region  202  and an edge of the color filter substrate  204 , a height B of the driving chip  206 , a height C between an upper edge of the driving chip  206  and the edge of the color filter substrate  204 . The left figure also includes a height D of the protrusion  208 , and a height E between a lower edge of the driving chip  206  and an edge of the protrusion  208 . The left  FIG.  1    includes a height F between the lower edge of the color film substrate  204  and an edge of the indent of the bezel  207 , and the right figure includes a height F between the lower edge of the color filter substrate  204  and an edge of the bezel  207 . 
     In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the overall height of the bezel=the height A+the height F+the height D, wherein the height A is substantially equal to the height F, the difference between the height A and the height F is less than 50 um, and the height D is greater than the difference between the height B and the height F. For example, the height D is 5 to 6 times the difference between the height B and the height F, thereby ensuring that the height C and the height E are not less than 100 um. 
     For example, refer to the specific arrangement as the following table: 
     
       
         
           
               
               
            
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 Height/unit (um) 
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
               
            
               
                 FIG. 
                 A 
                 B 
                 C 
                 D 
                 E 
                 F 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
           
               
               
               
               
               
               
               
            
               
                 Life Figure 
                 700 
                 780 
                 200 
                 400 
                 120 
                 700 
               
               
                 Right Figure 
                 540 
                 780 
                 80 
                 0 
                 0 
                 860 
               
               
                   
               
            
           
         
       
     
     As can be seen from the above table, in the display panel of the embodiment of the present disclosure, the height of the protrusion  208  is added, and the driving chip  206  is moved downwards, so that the height A between the lower edge of the display region  202  and the edge of the color filter substrate  204  and the height C between the upper edge of the driving chip  206  and the edge of the color filter substrate  204  are both increased, and the height F between the lower edge of the color filter substrate  204  and the edge of the indent of the bezel  207  is reduced, compared to that in the prior art. Under the case that curvature radiuses of the flexible circuit boards are the same, the combined height of the bezel  207  and the bending section of the flexible circuit board after the flexible circuit board is bent in the embodiment of the present disclosure is smaller than that in the prior art, further shortening the height of the bezel  207 . 
     In one embodiment, in order to reserve enough space for gate on array (GOA) traces  205 , fan-out wiring  203 , and metal terminals, the distance between the edge of the driving chip  206  close to the display region  202  and the edge of the display region  202  is determined to be greater than the distance between the edge of the driving chip  206  close to the protrusion  208  and the edge of the protrusion  208 . 
     For example, the driving chip  206  is disposed in the bezel  207  and is located outside a region of the protrusion  208 . 
     For another example, the driving chip  206  is completely or partially disposed in the region of the protrusion  208 . 
     As shown in  FIG.  3 A , the display panel provided in the present disclosure includes an array substrate  301 , a display region  302 , a color filter substrate  303 , and a protrusion  304  formed at an end of the array substrate  301 . A driving chip  306  is disposed in a bezel  305  of the array substrate  301 . 
     The protrusion  304  includes two symmetrically arranged short edges connecting edges of the bezel  305 , and a long edge connecting other ends of the two short edges. For example, the short edges are straight edges, the short edges are perpendicular to the edges of bezel  305 , and a surface shape of the protrusion  304  is rectangular. 
     The difference between the display panel provided in this disclosure as shown in  FIG.  3 B  and that as shown in  FIG.  3 A  is that the short edges are straight edges, the angles formed between the short edges and the edges of the bezel  305  are non-right angles, that is, the angle is greater than or less than 90 degrees, and the surface shape of the protrusion  304  is trapezoidal. 
     The difference between the display panel provided in this disclosure as shown in  FIG.  3 C  and those as shown in  FIG.  3 A  and  FIG.  3 B  is that the protrusion  304  includes a convex arc edge, two ends of the convex arc edge connect the edges of the bezel  305 , and the ends of the convex arc edge are in concave arc transitions. 
     As shown in  FIG.  4 A , the display panel provided in this disclosure includes an array substrate  401 , a color filter substrate  408 , a bezel  405  located in a non-display region of the array substrate  401 , a driving chip  406  disposed in the bezel  405  and fan-out traces  403  connecting the driving chip  406 . For example, the fan-out traces  403  are used to transmit display data signals to the display region  402 . At least one set of gate on array (GOA) traces  409  are disposed in the bezel  405 . Take two sets of symmetric GOA traces  409  as an example. Two sets of the GOA traces  409  include a parallel segment located outside the display region  402  and being parallel to edges of the display region  402 , and an inclined segment located in the bezel  405  and towards the driving chip  406 . The inclined segment of the GOA traces  409  is connected to the driving chip  406  to input gate signals, and the parallel segment of the GOA traces  409  is connected to a scan line of each pixel row to output the gate signals. 
     A plurality of metal terminals are disposed in the bezel  405  and configured for accessing signals of the flexible circuit board, and the metal terminals include at least a primary signal metal terminal group  4071  and a secondary signal metal terminal group  4072 . For example, the primary signal metal terminal group  4071  includes pixel data signals and gate signals, the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072  includes power signal, etc. The primary signal metal terminal group  4071  is arranged close to the driving chip  406 , and the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072  is arranged away from the driving chip  406  and the inclined section of the GOA traces  409 . 
     Because the driving chip  406  is relatively moved down, and the inclined segment of the GOA traces  409  connected to the driving chip  406  is moved down, too, thereby compressing the space where the metal terminals are arranged. If the metal terminals are too close to the GOA traces  409 , the impedance increases, a signal distortion is caused, and the display quality is affected. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, at least a part of the metal terminals are disposed away from the GOA traces  409 . 
     In an embodiment, the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072  and the primary signal metal terminal group  4071  are separately disposed, and the main signal metal terminals are completely or partially located in the protrusion  404 , and the secondary signal metal terminals are located outside the region of the protrusion  404 . The distance between the metal terminals and the GOA traces  409  is effectively controlled, and the impedance is reduced. 
     As shown in  FIG.  4 B , the flexible circuit board includes a main body section  4101  and a connection section for connecting the metal terminals. The connection section includes a first block  4102  correspondingly connected with the primary signal metal terminal group  4071 , and a second block  4013  correspondingly connected with the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072 , and the first block  4012  is offset from the second block  4013 . 
     As shown in  FIG.  4 C , compared with the arrangement of the metal terminals in  FIG.  4 A , the metal terminals are closely arranged. The primary signal metal terminal group  4071  and the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072  are both disposed outside the region of the protrusion  404 , thereby avoiding the reduction of the space of the protrusion  404 . The area of each of the metal terminals in the primary signal metal terminal group  4071  is equivalent to the area of each of the metal terminals in the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072 , to ensure a stable connection of signal contact points. 
     In an embodiment, a height of each of the metal terminals of the primary signal metal terminal group  4071  is lower than a height of each of the metal terminals of the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072 , and a width of each of the metal terminals of the primary signal metal terminal group  4071  is wider than a width of each metal terminal of the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072 . The distance between the metal terminals and the GOA traces  409  is maintained by reducing the height of the metal terminals close to the GOA traces  409 , thereby reducing the impedance. 
     In an embodiment, a height of each of the metal terminals in the primary signal metal terminal group  4071  gradually lowers from the metal terminals away from the driving chip  406  and the inclined segment of the GOA traces  409  to the metal terminals close to the driving chip  406  and the inclined segment of the GOA traces  409 , and a width of each of the metal terminals in the primary signal metal terminal group  4071  gradually increases from the metal terminals away from the driving chip  406  and the inclined segment of the GOA traces  409  to the metal terminals close to the driving chip  406  and the inclined segment of the GOA traces  409 , for ensuring the same distance between each of the metal terminals and the GOA traces. 
     As shown in  FIG.  4 D , the flexible circuit board includes a main body section  4101  and a connection section  4104  for connecting the metal terminals, an end of the connection section  4104  has a regular geometric shape, the end of the connection section  4104  is provided with a first connection region and a second connection region, the first connection region covers and connects the primary signal metal terminal group, and the second connection region covers and connects the secondary signal. 
     In an embodiment, a virtual metal terminal group is further disposed in the bezel  405 , and the virtual metal terminal group is located adjacent a lateral side of the secondary signal metal terminal group  4072  away from the driving chip  406  and the inclined segment of the GOA traces  409 . 
     The beneficial effects of the present disclosure is as follows: compared with the existing display panel, the display panel provided by the present disclosure is provided with the protrusion at the end of the array substrate, and the driving chip is provided in the space between the display region and the protrusion, thereby increasing the distance between the driving chip and the edge of the display region and the distance between the driving chip and the edge of the bezel, and preventing the technical defects that the area of the bezel in a display screen with a high screen-body ratio is compressed, causing the driving chip to be too close to the display region and an edge of the substrate, and thereby causing poor electrical properties, and poor sealing of the liquid crystal cell after the driving chip is mounted. Moreover, a bending section of the flexible circuit board is located in flat regions adjacent both lateral sides of the protrusion, and the thickness of the bending section does not exceed the edge of the protrusion, so a width of the bezel is not increased, and the screen-body ratio of the display device is maintained. 
     In summary, although the preferable embodiments of the present disclosure have been disclosed above, the embodiments are not intended to limit the present disclosure. A person of ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, can make various modifications and variations. Therefore, the scope of the disclosure is defined in the claims.