Patent Description:
At present, display panels are widely used in electronic devices such as mobile terminals and televisions, and become one of the most important electronic devices in people's life. People have an increasingly high requirement on display panels. A mobile terminal is used as an example, most display panels on mobile terminals in related technologies do not have light transmission. A display panel and a photosensitive device (for example, a camera) need to be disposed separately, such as a common front-facing camera is located in an upper region of the display panel, and the display panel needs to be provided with a through hole to ensure proper camera operation. However, this structure limits the display area of the display panel, and is not conducive to the development towards a higher screen-to-body ratio.

<CIT>, <CIT>, <CIT> , <CIT> , <CIT> , <CIT> and <CIT> disclose display devices similar to the one of the present invention.

The present invention concerns a display panel in accordance with claim <NUM> and a method of manufacturing a display panel in accordance with claim <NUM>.

In the display panel provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, a part corresponding to the first light-transmitting region and the second light-transmitting region not only can transmit light, but also has a light emitting display function. When the display panel is applied to an electronic device, a light sensitive device can be mounted in the part corresponding to the first light-transmitting region and the second light-transmitting region. Therefore, this helps flexibly dispose the light sensitive device, expands the application scope of the display panel, and better facilitates the development towards a larger display area of the display panel.

To describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure more clearly, the following briefly describes the accompanying drawings required in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Apparently, the accompanying drawings in the following descriptions show merely some embodiments of the present disclosure, and a person of ordinary skill in the art may still derive other accompanying drawings from these accompanying drawings without creative efforts.

The following clearly and completely describes the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a display panel. Referring to <FIG>, the display panel <NUM> includes a first electrode layer <NUM>, an organic light emitting layer (not shown), a second electrode layer <NUM>, and a drive layer <NUM> that are stacked sequentially. Both the first electrode layer <NUM> and the organic light emitting layer are light-transmitting layers, and a first light-transmitting region <NUM> is disposed on the second electrode layer <NUM>. The organic light emitting layer has several pixel units <NUM>, and each pixel unit <NUM> is electrically connected to the first electrode layer <NUM> and the second electrode layer <NUM>. The drive layer <NUM> is configured to control the pixel unit <NUM> to emit light, the drive layer <NUM> has a second light-transmitting region <NUM>, and the second light-transmitting region <NUM> is disposed in correspondence with the first light-transmitting region <NUM>.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the first electrode layer <NUM> is a cathode layer, the second electrode layer <NUM> is an anode layer, and the pixel unit <NUM> can emit light when being connected to both the first electrode layer <NUM> and the second electrode layer <NUM>, that is, the organic light emitting layer emits light. The first electrode layer <NUM> is a light-transmitting material. The first light-transmitting region <NUM> is disposed on the second electrode layer <NUM>, so that a coverage region of the first light-transmitting region <NUM> can transmit light. In addition, the organic light emitting layer covers the first light-transmitting region <NUM>, that is, the pixel unit <NUM> covers the first light-transmitting region <NUM>, so that the pixel unit <NUM> can implement light emitting display above the first light-transmitting region <NUM>. Besides, the second light-transmitting region <NUM> is disposed in a region that is of the drive layer <NUM> and that corresponds to the first light-transmitting region <NUM>, so that a part that is of the display panel <NUM> and that corresponds to the first light-transmitting region <NUM> and the second light-transmitting region <NUM> not only can transmit light, but also has a light emitting display function, to conveniently mount a light sensitive device at a lower region that is on one side of the display panel <NUM> and that corresponds to the first light-transmitting region <NUM> and the second light-transmitting region <NUM>. In this way, applicability of the display panel <NUM> is improved. When the display panel <NUM> is applied to an electronic device, the light sensitive device can be conveniently mounted in a lower region of the display panel <NUM>. The first light-transmitting region <NUM> and the second light-transmitting region <NUM> sense light, so that the display panel <NUM> can develop towards a larger display area. It may be understood that a corresponding non-light-transmitting region <NUM> of the display panel <NUM> may perform a display function.

For example, when the display panel <NUM> is applied to a mobile terminal, a light sensitive device such as a camera or a flash may be mounted in a lower region that is of the mobile terminal and that corresponds to the first light-transmitting region <NUM> and the second light-transmitting region <NUM>. In this way, the light sensitive device does not need to occupy an area of the display panel of the electronic device. This helps the display panel <NUM> develop towards a larger size, and improves a screen-to-body ratio of the mobile terminal.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the display panel <NUM> includes the light-transmitting region <NUM> corresponding to the first light-transmitting region <NUM> and the second light-transmitting region <NUM>, and a non-light-transmitting region <NUM> that cannot transmit light other than the light-transmitting region <NUM>. When the pixel unit <NUM> that is of the organic light emitting layer and that corresponds to the first light-transmitting region <NUM> emits light, this region may display a solid color such as red and blue or a color such as white and gray, to avoid a great difference from a color displayed in the non-light-transmitting region <NUM> of the display panel <NUM>, and ensure a display effect and aesthetic beauty of the display panel <NUM>.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the drive layer <NUM> has several drive circuits (not shown), the drive circuits are separately electrically connected to the first electrode layer <NUM> and the second electrode layer <NUM>, to control the pixel unit <NUM> to emit light, and the drive circuits are located outside the second light-transmitting region <NUM>. It should be noted that the drive circuit includes several non-light-transmitting elements (for example, thin film transistors). The drive circuit is disposed outside the second light-transmitting region <NUM>, to prevent non-light-transmitting elements from interfering with light transmission of a region in the second light-transmitting region <NUM>. The drive circuit is disposed outside the second light-transmitting region <NUM>, that is, the drive circuit is not disposed below the second light-transmitting region <NUM>, and the second light-transmitting region <NUM> not including the drive circuit is formed at a position that is of the drive layer <NUM> and that corresponds to the first light-transmitting region <NUM>, to ensure that the coverage region of the second light-transmitting region <NUM> of the display panel has better light transmission performance.

The drive circuit includes several first drive circuits, the several first drive circuits are configured to control the pixel unit <NUM> within a coverage region of the first light-transmitting region <NUM> to emit light, and one first drive circuit controls at least two pixel units <NUM> located within the coverage region of the first light-transmitting region <NUM> to emit light simultaneously. In this way, the pixel unit <NUM> that is of the organic light emitting layer and that corresponds to the coverage region of the first light-transmitting region <NUM> is controlled by the first drive circuit. The first drive circuit and another drive circuit of the drive layer <NUM> may be disposed separately. The first drive circuit is disposed at an edge of the second light-transmitting region <NUM>, and the another drive circuit of the drive layer <NUM> may be disposed in another region of the drive layer <NUM>.

The first drive circuit is disposed around the edge of the second light-transmitting region <NUM>. As shown in <FIG>, a region other than the first light-transmitting region <NUM> on the second electrode layer <NUM> is a non-light-transmitting region, and a region other than the second light-transmitting region <NUM> on the drive layer <NUM> corresponds to the non-light-transmitting region. In this case, the first drive circuit is disposed in a coverage region of the non-light-transmitting region and does not interfere with light transmission performance of the first light-transmitting region <NUM>. In addition, the drive circuit is disposed around the edge of the second light-transmitting region <NUM>. For example, as shown in <FIG>, the first drive circuit may be disposed around the circular second light-transmitting region <NUM>, to control the pixel unit <NUM> located within the coverage region of the first light-transmitting region <NUM> to emit light.

It should be noted that because the first drive circuit is disposed, a region that is of the display panel <NUM> and that corresponds to the first drive circuit does not display content and is a non-display region, and may be visually black. Therefore, each first drive circuit controls at least two pixel units <NUM> located within the coverage region of the first light-transmitting region <NUM> to emit light simultaneously. Compared with setting in which one drive circuit controls one pixel unit <NUM> to emit light, this can reduce a quantity of first drive circuits, to reduce an area of the non-display region, and ensure that the display panel <NUM> can have a better display effect.

In the present invention, the second electrode layer <NUM> has a metal layer (not shown), and a through hole is disposed on the metal layer to form the first light-transmitting region <NUM>. It is understood that the metal layer is made of a non-light-transmitting metal material. To implement light transmission performance of the display panel <NUM>, the through hole is disposed on the metal layer. The through hole may be formed in an etching process. That is, the second electrode layer <NUM> has the metal layer provided with the through hole, so that the first light-transmitting region <NUM> can transmit light.

The second electrode layer <NUM> does include a first film layer, a metal layer, and a third film layer that are successively disposed. The first film layer and the third film layer are made of light-transmitting materials, and a through hole is disposed on the metal layer. For example, the first film layer may be an indium tin oxide (Indium Tin Oxide, ITO) material, the third film layer may also be an ITO material, and the metal layer may be a silver layer. It should be noted that the first light-transmitting region <NUM> may be formed at an edge of the second electrode layer <NUM>. Alternatively, as shown in <FIG>, the first light-transmitting region <NUM> may be surrounded by a non-light-transmitting region.

Optionally, at least one first light-transmitting region <NUM> is disposed on the second electrode layer <NUM>, the drive layer <NUM> includes at least one second light-transmitting region <NUM>, and one first light-transmitting region <NUM> is disposed in one-to-one correspondence with one second light-transmitting region <NUM>. That is, the display panel <NUM> has at least one region that can transmit light. In this way, when the display panel <NUM> is applied to an electronic device, a light sensitive device can be better disposed in a lower region that is of the display panel <NUM> and that corresponds to the light-transmitting region <NUM>. This can avoid centralized arrangement of the light sensitive device and facilitate mounting and arrangement of elements of the electronic device.

For example, one first light-transmitting region <NUM> may be disposed at each of an upper end and a lower end that are of the second electrode layer <NUM> and that correspond to the display panel <NUM>. Two second light-transmitting regions <NUM> that are in a one-to-one correspondence with the two first light-transmitting regions <NUM> are disposed on the drive layer <NUM>. When the display panel <NUM> is applied to an electronic device, a 2D camera may be disposed in a lower region of one light-transmitting region corresponding to the display panel <NUM>, and a 3D camera may be disposed in a lower region of the other light-transmitting region corresponding to the display panel <NUM>. This implements diverse functions of the electronic device and expands the application scope of the display panel <NUM>.

Certainly, a structure of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. There may also be other quantities of first light-transmitting regions <NUM> and second light-transmitting regions <NUM> that are in a one-to-one correspondence with each other, for example, three or four. These quantities may be set by a person skilled in the art based on factors such as arrangement requirements and costs. This is not specifically limited in the present disclosure.

It should be noted that the display panel <NUM> provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure further includes a buffer layer, a substrate, an encapsulation layer, and the like. For details of an arrangement manner and an implementation, refer to the display panel in related technologies.

The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide an electronic device. The electronic device includes various technical solutions of the display panel provided in the foregoing embodiments, and can achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein again. The electronic device may include at least one of a mobile phone, a tablet computer, an e-book reader, an MP3 player, an MP4 player, a digital camera, a laptop computer, a vehicle-mounted computer, a desktop computer, a set-top box, a smart TV, and a wearable device.

Optionally, the electronic device includes a light sensitive device. The light sensitive device is disposed on one side of the display panel and is adjacent to a drive layer, and the light sensitive device is within coverage regions of a first light-transmitting region and a second light-transmitting region. That is, the light sensitive device is disposed in a lower region of the display panel, and is disposed in correspondence with the light-transmitting region of the display panel, so that the light sensitive device can sense a light ray that passes through the light-transmitting region and perform a light sensing function, to ensure normal usage of the light sensitive device. In this way, the light sensitive device does not need to be mounted in an upper region of the display panel. This helps increase a size of the display panel, increases a screen-to-body ratio of the electronic device, and facilitates development towards a full screen of the mobile terminal.

The embodiments of the present disclosure further provide a fabrication method of a display panel, applied to the display panel provided in the foregoing embodiments. The fabrication method of the display panel includes: a step of forming a first light-transmitting region on a second electrode layer and a step of forming a second light-transmitting region on a drive layer corresponding to the position of the first light-transmitting region.

The step of forming the first light-transmitting region on the second electrode layer includes:.

The second electrode layer is an anode layer. The second electrode layer includes a first film layer, a metal layer, and a third film layer that are successively formed. The first film layer and the third film layer are made of light-transmitting materials. For example, the first film layer may be an indium tin oxide (Indium Tin Oxide, ITO) material, the third film layer may also be an ITO material, and the metal layer may be a silver layer or another metal material. A through hole is provided on the metal layer, to form the first light-transmitting region on the second electrode layer, so that a part of region of the second electrode layer transmits light.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the through hole is formed on the metal layer by using an etching process. That is, a part of metal material of the non-light-transmitting metal layer is removed through etching, to form the first light-transmitting region, and a part that is not removed through etching is a non-light-transmitting region of the second electrode layer. A part of region at an edge of the metal layer may be removed through etching, to form the first light-transmitting region; or a part of region inside the metal layer may be removed through etching, to form the first light-transmitting region surrounded by a non-light-transmitting region.

Besides, a drive layer is formed on one side of the second electrode layer, and a drive circuit of the drive layer is disposed outside a coverage region of the first light-transmitting region of the drive layer, so that the second light-transmitting region that is not provided with the drive circuit and that corresponds to the first light-transmitting region is formed on the drive layer, and a light-transmitting region is formed on the display panel. When the display panel is applied to an electronic device, a light sensitive device may be mounted in a lower region that is of the display panel and that corresponds to the light-transmitting region, to expand the application scope of the display panel, and better facilitate the development towards a larger display area of the display panel.

Both the first electrode layer and the organic light emitting layer are made of light-transmitting materials, and a pixel unit is formed on the organic light emitting layer. That is, the organic light emitting layer is located between the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer. It may be understood that the first light-transmitting region is disposed on the second electrode layer, and the organic light emitting layer covers the first light-transmitting region, so that the pixel unit of the organic light emitting layer can implement light emitting display above the light-transmitting region. In this way, in the display panel fabricated by using the fabrication method provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, a part corresponding to the first light-transmitting region not only can transmit light, but also has a light emitting display function, thereby expanding the application scope of the display panel.

It should be noted that the drive circuit of the drive layer includes several first drive circuits, the first drive circuits are configured to control the pixel unit within a coverage region of the first light-transmitting region to emit light, and one first drive circuit controls at least two pixel units located within the coverage region of the first light-transmitting region to emit light simultaneously. The several first drive circuits are all disposed outside the second light-transmitting region, and therefore do not interfere with light transmission of the first light-transmitting region and the second light-transmitting region, to ensure light transmission performance of the display panel. In addition, this can reduce the quantity of first drive circuits configured to control the pixel unit located within the coverage region of the first light-transmitting region to emit light, to reduce the area of the non-display region of the display panel that is caused because the first drive circuits are disposed.

Claim 1:
A display panel (<NUM>), comprising:
a first electrode layer (<NUM>), wherein the first electrode layer (<NUM>) is a light-transmitting layer;
a second electrode layer (<NUM>), wherein the second electrode layer (<NUM>) is disposed on one side of the first electrode layer (<NUM>), and the second electrode layer (<NUM>) comprises a first light-transmitting region (<NUM>);
an organic light emitting layer, wherein the first electrode layer (<NUM>), the organic light emitting layer, and the second electrode layer (<NUM>) are stacked sequentially, the organic light emitting layer has several pixel units (<NUM>), each of the pixel units (<NUM>) is electrically connected to the first electrode layer (<NUM>) and the second electrode layer (<NUM>), and the organic light emitting layer is a light-transmitting layer; and
a drive layer (<NUM>), wherein the drive layer (<NUM>) is disposed on a side that is of the second electrode layer (<NUM>) away from the organic light emitting layer and is configured to control the pixel units (<NUM>) to emit light, the drive layer (<NUM>) has a second light-transmitting region (<NUM>), and the second light-transmitting region (<NUM>) is disposed in correspondence with the first light-transmitting region (<NUM>);
wherein the second electrode layer (<NUM>) comprises a first film layer, a metal layer, and a third film layer that are successively disposed, each of the first film layer and the third film layer is made of a light-transmitting material, and a through hole is disposed on the metal layer to form the first light-transmitting region (<NUM>);
wherein the drive layer (<NUM>) has several drive circuits, wherein the drive circuits are separately electrically connected to the first electrode layer and the second electrode layer, to control the pixel units to emit light, wherein the drive circuit comprises several first drive circuits, the several first drive circuits are located outside the second light-transmitting region (<NUM>) and are disposed around an edge of the second light-transmitting region (<NUM>), the several first drive circuits are configured to control the pixel units (<NUM>) located within a coverage of the first light-transmitting region (<NUM>) to emit light, and each first drive circuit is configured to control at least two pixel units (<NUM>) located within the coverage region of the first light-transmitting region (<NUM>) to emit light simultaneously.