Patent ID: 6856368

Claim:
A liquid crystal display device, comprising: a first substrate; a second substrate; a vertical alignment type liquid crystal layer provided between the first substrate and the second substrate; voltage application means for applying a voltage across the liquid crystal layer; a plurality of picture elements each including the liquid crystal layer whose orientation changes according to the voltage applied by the voltage application means, wherein: the liquid crystal layer in each of the plurality of picture elements includes, at least in a presence of an applied voltage, a 4-divided domain including a first sub-domain, a second sub-domain, a third sub-domain and a fourth sub-domain which are arranged in this order in a predetermined direction and in each of which an orientation direction of liquid crystal molecules located in a vicinity of a center of the liquid crystal layer in the thickness direction is different from those of the other sub-domains; for each 4-divided domain, the first substrate includes two first regions each having an orientation-regulating force for orienting the liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer in a first direction and a second region provided between the two first regions and having an orientation-regulating force for orienting the liquid crystal molecules in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction, while the second substrate includes a third region having an orientation-regulating force for orienting the liquid crystal molecules in a third direction that crosses and is not parallel to the first direction and a fourth region having an orientation-regulating force for orienting the liquid crystal molecules in a fourth direction that is opposite to the third direction; and the first sub-domain is formed between one of the two first regions and the third region, the second sub-domain is formed between the second region and the third region, the third sub-domain is formed between the second region and the fourth region, and the fourth sub-domain is formed between the other one of the two first regions and the fourth region.