PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-8982310-B2
Application Number: US-201113326713-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Displays with light-curable sealant

Abstract:
An electronic device may have a display such as a liquid crystal display. The display may include a layer of liquid crystal material interposed between a color filter layer and a thin-film transistor layer. The thin-film transistor layer may be provided with capacitive touch sensor electrodes. Wide metal lines on the thin-film transistor layer may be used to inhibit parasitic capacitances during touch sensor mode. The color filter layer may include a layer of black masking material that surrounds the active display area. A light-curable adhesive may used to attach the color filter layer to the thin-film transistor layer. Openings may be formed in the black masking material and in the metal lines on the thin-film transistor layer. The adhesive may be cured by applying ultraviolet light to the adhesive through the openings in the black masking material and through the openings in the metal lines.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A display having an active area with an edge, comprising:
 a first transparent substrate; 
 a second transparent substrate; 
 black masking material on the second transparent substrate, wherein the black masking material surrounds the active area and forms a rectangular ring having four corner regions; and 
 sealant interposed between the black masking material and the first transparent substrate, wherein the black masking material includes a plurality of openings configured to allow sealant-curing light to pass through the second transparent substrate to the sealant, wherein the plurality of openings are interposed between the edge of the active area and an outermost edge of the second transparent substrate, wherein the plurality of openings are segmented along a length that runs parallel to the edge of the active area and to the outermost edge of the second transparent substrate, and wherein the openings are distributed non-uniformly throughout the black masking material such that a density of the openings in the black masking material is greater in each of the four corner regions than in other regions of the black masking material. 
 
     
     
       2. The display defined in  claim 1  further comprising liquid crystal material interposed between the first and second transparent substrates, wherein the first and second transparent substrates have peripheral edges and wherein the sealant is configured to prevent leakage of the liquid crystal material at the peripheral edges. 
     
     
       3. The display defined in  claim 2  further comprising a metal line on the first transparent substrate, wherein the sealant overlaps at least part of the metal line. 
     
     
       4. The display defined in  claim 3  wherein the metal line includes at least one opening configured to allow sealant-curing light to pass through the first transparent substrate to the sealant. 
     
     
       5. The display defined in  claim 4  wherein the black masking material and the metal line include solid portions without openings, wherein one of the solid portions in the black masking material overlaps the at least one opening in the metal line, and wherein the at least one opening in the black masking material overlaps one of the solid portions of the metal line. 
     
     
       6. The display defined in  claim 3  further comprising thin-film transistor circuitry on the first transparent substrate. 
     
     
       7. The display defined in  claim 6  further comprising:
 gate lines on the first transparent substrate that control the thin-film transistor circuitry; and 
 gate line driver circuitry that receives at least one signal on the metal line and is configured to drive gate line signals onto the gate lines. 
 
     
     
       8. The display defined in  claim 6  wherein the second transparent substrate comprises a color filter array having color filter element openings formed in the black masking material. 
     
     
       9. The display defined in  claim 8  further comprising touch sensor electrodes on the first transparent substrate. 
     
     
       10. The display defined in  claim 2  wherein the sealant comprises ultraviolet-light-curable epoxy. 
     
     
       11. A method, comprising:
 forming a metal line on a first display substrate, wherein the metal line is contagious and free of openings; 
 forming a black masking layer on a second display substrate, wherein the black masking layer forms a rectangular ring having four corner regions, wherein the black masking layer overlaps the metal line and has at least one opening, wherein a width of the metal line is larger than a width of the at least one opening such that the metal line completely overlaps the at least one opening, wherein the at least one opening comprises a plurality of openings, and wherein at least some of the openings are located in the corner regions of the black masking layer; 
 placing sealing adhesive between the first and second display substrates so that the sealing adhesive overlaps the metal line; and 
 curing the sealing adhesive by applying ultraviolet light to the sealing adhesive through the at least one opening in the black masking layer, wherein the openings in the corner regions of the black masking later transmit more of the ultraviolet light than openings in other regions of the black masking layer. 
 
     
     
       12. The method defined in  claim 11  further comprising:
 forming a color filter array on the second display substrate, wherein the color filter array includes color filter element openings formed in the black masking layer. 
 
     
     
       13. The method defined in  claim 12  further comprising:
 forming thin-film transistor circuitry on the first display substrate; 
 forming gate driver circuitry on the first display substrate, wherein the gate driver circuitry is configured to receive at least one signal on the metal line. 
 
     
     
       14. A liquid crystal display having a periphery, comprising:
 a thin-film transistor layer having a substrate with at least one metal line, wherein the thin-film transistor layer comprises touch sensor electrodes, thin-film transistor circuitry, gate lines that control the thin-film transistor circuitry, and the gate line driver circuitry that receives at least one signal on the metal line, and wherein the gate line driver circuitry is configured to drive gate line signals onto the gate lines during a first mode of operation and to hold the gate lines at a voltage during a second mode of operation; 
 a color filter layer having a substrate with a black matrix layer, wherein the black matrix layer has at least one opening that overlaps the at least one metal line and wherein the black matrix layer has a portion that forms a rectangular ring having four corner regions; 
 a layer of liquid crystal material interposed between the thin-film transistor layer and the color filter layer; and 
 ultraviolet-light-curable sealant that is interposed between the thin-film transistor layer and the color filter layer, wherein the ultraviolet-light-curable sealant surrounds the liquid crystal material and prevents leakage of the liquid crystal material at the periphery of the display, and wherein the at least one opening in the black matrix layer overlaps the ultraviolet-light-curable sealant, wherein the at least one opening comprises a plurality of openings having different sizes, and wherein the openings in the corner regions of the black matrix layer are larger than the openings in other regions of the black matrix layer. 
 
     
     
       15. The liquid crystal display defined in  claim 14  wherein the black matrix layer comprises a peripheral border region, wherein the plurality of openings is distributed along the peripheral border region, and wherein each of the openings overlaps the ultraviolet-light-curable sealant. 
     
     
       16. The liquid crystal display defined in  claim 15  wherein the at least one metal line has an additional plurality of openings and wherein the ultraviolet-light-curable sealant overlaps the additional plurality of openings. 
     
     
       17. The liquid crystal display defined in  claim 16  wherein the plurality of openings overlaps a first portion of the ultraviolet-light-curable sealant and wherein the additional plurality of openings overlaps a second portion of the ultraviolet-light-curable sealant. 
     
     
       18. The liquid crystal display defined in  claim 14  wherein the second mode of operation comprises a touch sensor mode of operation during which the touch sensor electrodes are used to gather touch input from a user. 
     
     
       19. The liquid crystal display defined in  claim 18  wherein at least some of the touch sensor electrodes are used to control the liquid crystal material during the first mode of operation. 
     
     
       20. The liquid crystal display defined in  claim 14  wherein the gate line driver circuitry includes switching circuitry for switching between the first mode of operation and the second mode of operation.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     This relates generally to electronic devices and, more particularly, to displays for electronic devices. 
     Electronic devices such as computers and cellular telephones are generally provided with displays. Displays such as liquid crystal displays contain a thin layer of liquid crystal material. Color liquid crystal displays include color filter layers. The layer of liquid crystal material in this type of display is interposed between the color filter layer and a thin-film transistor layer. Touch sensor structures may be incorporated into the thin-film transistor layer. 
     A light-curable sealant is used to attach the color filter layer to the liquid crystal layer. The light-curable sealant may be disposed along the edges of the thin-film transistor layer and may form a peripheral border around the liquid crystal material. The light-curable sealant may overlap conductive structures such as metal lines that run along the edges of the thin-film transistor layer. 
     In conventional devices, openings are formed in the metal lines that run along the edges of the thin-film transistor layer. The light-curable sealant is cured by applying ultraviolet light to the light-curable sealant through the openings in the metal lines. However, the openings in the metal lines on the thin-film transistor layer reduce the effective width of the metal lines and thus increase the resistance of the metal lines. Increasing the resistance of these metal lines may lead to poor electrical performance. Moreover, increasing the width of the metal lines to compensate for the openings may add undesirable width to the border of inactive display area around the periphery of a display. 
     It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved ways of sealing layers of a display in an electronic device. 
     SUMMARY 
     An electronic device may have a display. The display may have an array of display pixels. The array of display pixels may display images for a user in an active area of the display. The display may be a liquid crystal display that has a layer of liquid crystal material interposed between a color filter layer and a thin-film transistor layer. 
     The thin-film transistor layer may be provided with electrodes that control electric fields that are applied to the liquid crystal material. The thin-film transistor layer may also be include capacitive touch sensor electrodes to provide the display with touch screen capabilities. At recurring time intervals, the image display functions of the display may be temporarily paused so that touch data can be gathered. During these time intervals, the display may operate in touch sensor mode. Metal lines that run along the edges of the thin-film transistor layer may be used to help hold gate lines in the display at a direct current (DC) voltage to prevent touch sensor signals from being capacitively coupled through the gate lines. 
     The color filter layer may include a layer of black masking material. The black masking material may surround the active area of the display. 
     A light-curable sealant may be used to attach the color filter layer to the thin-film transistor layer. The light-curable sealant may surround the liquid crystal material and may prevent leakage of liquid crystal material at the edges of the display. The black masking material on the color filter layer may have a peripheral border region that overlaps the light-curable sealant. The light-curable sealant may overlap portions of the metal lines on the thin-film transistor layer. 
     A pattern of openings may be distributed along the peripheral border region of the black masking material. A complementary pattern of openings may be distributed along the metal lines on the thin-film transistor layer. The openings in the black masking material may expose a first portion of the light-curable sealant, while the openings in the metal lines may expose a second portion of the light-curable sealant. The light-curable sealant may be cured by applying ultraviolet light to the light-curable sealant through the openings in the black masking material and through the openings in the metal lines. 
     In some embodiments, openings may be formed in the black masking layer, and the metal lines may be formed without openings. The light-curable sealant is then cured by applying ultraviolet light to the light-curable sealant through the openings in the black masking material. 
     Further features of the invention, its nature and various advantages will be more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a diagram of an illustrative electronic device with a display such as a portable computer in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a diagram of an illustrative electronic device with a display such as a cellular telephone or other handheld device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram of an illustrative electronic device with a display such as a tablet computer in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a diagram of an illustrative electronic device with a display such as a computer monitor with a built-in computer in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is cross-sectional side view of a display in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a diagram showing how a display may be provided with image pixel structures and touch sensor elements in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a circuit diagram of an illustrative display having rows and columns of image pixels in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a top view of a portion of a display showing how touch sensor structures may be incorporated into the display circuitry in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is a top view of a portion of a display illustrating how conductive structures in the display are used to detect a touch event in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 10  is an exploded view of a portion of a display illustrating how a light-curable adhesive may be used to attach layers of a display in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional side view of a display having a black masking layer with holes through which ultraviolet light passes to cure the light-curable adhesive in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 12A  is a top view of a portion of a display illustrating how holes in the black matrix layer may be formed in different locations around the active area of a display in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 12B  is a top view of a portion of a display illustrating how holes in the black matrix layer may be formed around the entire periphery of the active area of the display in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 13  is a top view of a portion of a display illustrating how the pattern of holes in the black matrix layer may complement the pattern of holes in metal lines such that each hole exposes a distinct portion of light-curable sealant in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 14  is a cross-sectional side view of a portion of a display illustrating how the holes of  FIG. 13  may be used to cure the light-curable sealant from both sides of the display in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 15  is a cross-sectional side view of a portion of a display illustrating additional layers that may be included above and below the light-curable sealant in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 16  is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in forming an electronic device with a display of the type shown in  FIG. 14  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     An illustrative electronic device of the type that may be provided with a display is shown in  FIG. 1 . Electronic device  10  may be a computer such as a computer that is integrated into a display such as a computer monitor, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a somewhat smaller portable device such as a wrist-watch device, pendant device, or other wearable or miniature device, a cellular telephone, a media player, a tablet computer, a gaming device, a navigation device, a computer monitor, a television, or other electronic equipment. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , device  10  may include a display such as display  14 . Display  14  may be a touch screen that incorporates capacitive touch electrodes or other touch sensor components or may be a display that is not touch sensitive. Display  14  may include image pixels formed from liquid crystal display (LCD) components or other suitable display pixel structures. Arrangements in which display  14  is formed using liquid crystal display pixels are sometimes described herein as an example. This is, however, merely illustrative. Any suitable type of display technology may be used in forming display  14  if desired. 
     Device  10  may have a housing such as housing  12 . Housing  12 , which may sometimes be referred to as a case, may be formed of plastic, glass, ceramics, fiber composites, metal (e.g., stainless steel, aluminum, etc.), other suitable materials, or a combination of any two or more of these materials. 
     Housing  12  may be formed using a unibody configuration in which some or all of housing  12  is machined or molded as a single structure or may be formed using multiple structures (e.g., an internal frame structure, one or more structures that form exterior housing surfaces, etc.). 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , housing  12  may have multiple parts. For example, housing  12  may have upper portion  12 A and lower portion  12 B. Upper portion  12 A may be coupled to lower portion  12 B using a hinge that allows portion  12 A to rotate about rotational axis  16  relative to portion  12 B. A keyboard such as keyboard  18  and a touch pad such as touch pad  20  may be mounted in housing portion  12 B. 
     Display  14  may have an active area such as active area AA and an inactive area such as area IA. Active area AA may be, for example, a rectangular region in the center of display  14  in which display pixels are actively used to display images for a user of device  10 . Inactive area IA may be devoid of active display pixels. In the example of  FIG. 1 , inactive area IA has the shape of a rectangular ring, surrounding the periphery of active area AA of display  14 . 
     Circuitry and other components may sometimes be formed in inactive area IA. To hide the circuitry and other components from view by a user of device  10 , inactive area IA may sometimes be provided with an opaque mask. The opaque mask can be formed from an opaque material such as a black pigmented polymer material or may be formed from opaque masking materials of other colors. Configurations in which the opaque masking material in display  14  has a black appearance are sometimes described herein as an example. This is, however, merely illustrative. Opaque masking layers in device  10  may have any suitable color. 
     In the example of  FIG. 2 , device  10  has been implemented using a housing that is sufficiently small to fit within a user&#39;s hand (e.g., device  10  of  FIG. 2  may be a handheld electronic device such as a cellular telephone). As show in  FIG. 2 , device  10  may include a display such as display  14  mounted on the front of housing  12 . Display  14  may be substantially filled with active display pixels or may have an inactive portion such as inactive portion IA that surrounds an active portion such as active portion AA. Display  14  may have openings (e.g., openings in inactive region IA or active region AA of display  14 ) such as an opening to accommodate button  22  and an opening to accommodate speaker port  24 . 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view of electronic device  10  in a configuration in which electronic device  10  has been implemented in the form of a tablet computer. As shown in  FIG. 3 , display  14  may be mounted on the upper (front) surface of housing  12 . An opening may be formed in display  14  to accommodate button  22  (e.g., in inactive region IA surrounding active region AA). 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view of electronic device  10  in a configuration in which electronic device  10  has been implemented in the form of a computer integrated into a computer monitor. As shown in  FIG. 4 , display  14  may be mounted on the front surface of housing  12 . Stand  26  may be used to support housing  12 . Display  14  may include an inactive region such as inactive region IA that surrounds active region AA. 
     If desired, display  14  may be configured so as to minimize or eliminate the size of inactive region IA along one or more edges of active region AA. Configurations in which inactive region IA extends along all four edges of a rectangular active region AA are described herein as an example. 
     A cross-sectional side view of a portion of a display of the type that may be used in forming display  14  of  FIGS. 1-4  is shown in  FIG. 5 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , display  14  may include color filter (CF) layer  28  and thin-film transistor (TFT) layer  30 . Color filter layer  28  may include an array of color filter elements formed on a display substrate. As shown in  FIG. 5 , color filter array  31  may be formed on the interior surface of color filter substrate  29  in active area AA of display  14 . 
     Color filter layer  28  may also include a layer of opaque masking material such as black masking material  45 . Black masking material  45  (sometimes referred to as a black masking layer or black matrix layer) may be formed on the interior surface of color filter substrate  29  and may form an opaque peripheral border that surrounds active area AA of display  14 . Opaque masking material such as black masking material  45 ′ may also be formed inside active area AA of display  14 . Black masking material  45 ′ may be used in between adjacent colored pixels in active area AA to prevent color mixing. Black masking material that is used in the active portion of a display is sometimes referred to as a black matrix or black matrix layer. In a typical arrangement, black matrix layer  45 ′ is provided with color filter element openings distributed throughout active area AA. Each opening may be provided with a color filter element (e.g., a red, green, or blue color filter element). 
     Liquid crystal (LC) layer  32  includes liquid crystal material and may be interposed between color filter layer  28  and thin-film transistor layer  30 . Thin-film transistor layer  30  may include display circuitry  30 A formed on a dielectric substrate such as TFT substrate  30 B. Display circuitry  30 A may include display driver circuitry (e.g., one or more display driver integrated circuits), thin-film transistor circuitry (e.g., polysilicon transistor circuitry or amorphous silicon transistor circuitry), metal lines, capacitors, electrodes for controlling the electric fields that are applied to liquid crystal layer  32 , and capacitive touch sensor electrodes. 
     Suitable materials that may be used for display substrates  29  and  30 B include planar glass substrates, plastic substrates, or sheets of other suitable substrate materials. 
     Display  14  may have upper and lower polarizer layers  39  and  40 . Backlight unit  41  may provide backside illumination for display  14 . Backlight  41  may include a light source such as a strip of light-emitting diodes. Backlight  41  may also include a light-guide plate and a back reflector. The back reflector may be located on the lower surface of the light-guide panel to prevent light leakage. Light from the light source may be injected into an edge of the light-guide panel and may scatter upwards in direction  43  through display  14 . 
     An optional cover layer such as a layer of cover glass may be used to cover and protect the layers of display  14  that are shown in  FIG. 5 . Other layers that may be included in display  14  include optical film layers (e.g., structures such as quarter-wave plates, half-wave plates, diffusing films, optical adhesives, and birefringent compensating layers), shielding layers (e.g., for preventing electric fields from disrupting the operation of the display), heat sinking layers (e.g., for conducting heat away from the display), and other suitable display layers. 
     Touch sensor structures may be incorporated into one or more of the layers of display  14 . In a typical touch sensor configuration, an array of capacitive touch sensor electrodes may be implemented using pads and/or strips of a transparent conductive material such as indium tin oxide. Other touch technologies may be used if desired (e.g., resistive touch, acoustic touch, optical touch, etc.). Indium tin oxide or other transparent conductive materials or non-transparent conductors may also be used in forming signal lines in display  14  (e.g., structures for conveying data, power, control signals, etc.). Touch sensor structures and circuitry may be included with display circuitry  30 A on TFT substrate  30 B. 
     In black and white displays, color filter layer  28  can be omitted. In color displays, color filter layer  28  can be used to impart colors to an array of image pixels. Each image pixel may, for example, have three corresponding subpixels. Each subpixel may be associated with a separate color filter element in color filter array  31 . The color filter elements may, for example, include red (R) color filter elements, blue (B) color filter elements, and green (G) color filter elements. These elements may be arranged in rows and columns. For example, color filter elements can be arranged in stripes across the width of display  14  (e.g., in a repeating patterns such as a RBG pattern or BRG pattern) so that the color filter elements in each column are the same (i.e., so that each column contains all red elements, all blue elements, or all green elements). By controlling the amount of light transmission through each subpixel, a desired colored image can be displayed. 
     The amount of light transmitted through each subpixel can be controlled using display control circuitry and electrodes. Each subpixel may, for example, be provided with a transparent indium tin oxide electrode. The signal on the subpixel electrode, which controls the electric field through an associated portion of the liquid crystal layer and thereby controls the light transmission for the subpixel, may be applied using a thin-film transistor. The thin-film transistor may receive data signals from data lines and, when turned on by an associated gate line, may apply the data line signals to the electrode that is associated with that thin-film transistor. 
     A top view of an illustrative display is shown in  FIG. 6 . As shown in  FIG. 6 , display  14  may include an array of image pixels  52 . Each image pixel may have an electrode that receives a data line signal from an associated transistor and a ground electrode. The ground electrodes of display  14  may be formed from a layer of patterned of indium tin oxide or other conductive planar structures. The patterned indium tin oxide structure or other conductive structures that are used in forming the ground plane for image pixels  52  may also be used in forming capacitive touch sensor elements  62 . 
     As illustrated by touch sensor elements  62  of  FIG. 6 , touch sensor elements (electrodes) may be coupled to touch sensor circuitry  68 . Touch sensor elements  62  may include rectangular pads of conductive material, vertical and/or horizontal strips of conductive material, and other conductive structures. Signals from elements  62  may be routed to touch sensor processing circuitry  68  via traces  64  on flex circuit cable  66  or other suitable communications path lines. 
     In a typical arrangement, there are fewer capacitor electrodes  62  in display  14  than there are image pixels  52 , due to the general desire to provide more image resolution than touch sensor resolution. For example, there may be hundreds or thousands of rows and/or columns of pixels  52  in display  14  and only tens or hundreds of rows and/or columns of capacitor electrodes  62 . 
     Display  14  may include display driver circuitry  38 . Display driver circuitry  38  may receive image data from processing circuitry in device  10  using conductive lines  70  in path  72 . Path  72  may be, for example, a flex circuit cable or other communications path that couples display driver circuitry  38  to integrated circuits on a printed circuit board elsewhere in device  10  (as an example). 
     Display driver circuitry  38  may include circuitry  38 - 1  and circuitry  38 - 2 . Circuitry  38 - 1  may be implemented using one or more integrated circuits (e.g., one or more display driver integrated circuits). Circuitry  38 - 2  (sometimes referred to as gate line and Vcom driver circuitry or gate line driver circuitry) may be incorporated into circuitry  38 - 1  or may be implemented using thin-film transistors in layer  30 A ( FIG. 5 ). Gate line driver circuitry  38 - 2  may be located on both the left and right sides of the pixel array (as shown in  FIG. 6 ) or may be located on only one side of the pixel array. Paths such as paths  60  may be used to interconnect display driver circuitry  38 - 1  and  38 - 2 . Display driver circuitry  38  may also be implemented using external circuits or other combinations of circuitry, if desired. 
     Display driver circuitry  38  may control the operation of display  14  using a grid of signal lines such as data lines  48 , gate lines  46 , and Vcom lines (paths)  44 . Lines  48 ,  46 , and  44  may form conductive paths for signals that control an array of image subpixels such as subpixels  52  in display  14 . Subpixels  52  (which are sometimes referred to as pixels) may each be formed from electrodes that give rise to an electric field and a portion of liquid crystal layer  32  ( FIG. 5 ) that is controlled by that electric field. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , pixels  52  in display  14  may each be associated with a portion such as portion  36  of liquid crystal layer  32  of  FIG. 5 . By controlling transmission through pixels  52 , images may be displayed on display  14 . 
     Data lines  48  may include lines for addressing pixels of different colors (i.e., pixels associated with color filter elements of different colors). For example, data lines  48  may include blue data lines that carry blue data line signals BDL, red data lines that carry red data line signals RDL, and green data lines that carry green data line signals GDL. Signals BDL, RDL, and GDL may be analog signals having voltages ranging from −5 volts to 5 volts (as an example). 
     In each row of the pixel array of display  14 , a given one of lines  44  may be used to provide a voltage Vcom (sometimes referred to as a reference voltage, power plane voltage or ground voltage) to the set of electrodes  42  in that row. Digital gate line control signals GL 0  . . . GLN may be generated on respective gate lines  46  by driver circuitry  38 - 2 . Each gate line  46  may be coupled to the gate of an associated one of control transistors  50  in the same row as that gate line. When a row of control transistors  50  is turned on by asserting a given gate line control signal, the control transistors in that row will each route the voltage on their associated data line to their associated electrode  40 . The voltage difference between each electrode  40  and its associated electrode  42  gives rise to an electric field that is used in controlling the state of the liquid crystal material in an associated liquid crystal portion  36  (i.e., a portion of layer  32  of  FIG. 5 ). 
     An illustrative layout that may be used in implementing Vcom paths  44  of  FIG. 7  for display  14  is shown in  FIG. 8 . As shown in  FIG. 8 , display  14  may include Vcom conductor structures  44  such as square Vcom pads  76  that are interconnected using conductive Vcom jumpers  74  to form Vcom rows (called Vcomr). Vertical Vcom conductors (called Vcomc) may be interspersed with pads  76 . The Vcomr and Vcomc conductors of  FIG. 8  may be formed from indium tin oxide or other transparent conductive material and may be used for supporting both display and touch functions in display  14 . For example, a time division multiplexing scheme may be used to allow the Vcom conductive structures to be used both as ground plane structures for pixels  52  (during display mode operations) and as touch sensor electrodes (during touch sensor mode operations). 
     When pixels  52  of display  14  are being used to display an image on display  14 , display driver circuitry  38  ( FIG. 6 ) may, for example, short both Vcomc and Vcomr to a ground voltage such as 0 volts or other suitable voltage (e.g., a fixed reference voltage). In this configuration, the Vcomr and Vcomc conductors may work together to serve as a part of a common ground plane (conductive plane) for display  14 . Because Vcomc and Vcomr are shorted together when displaying images in this way, no position-dependent touch data is gathered. 
     At recurring time intervals, the image display functions of display  14  may be temporarily paused so that touch data can be gathered. During these time intervals (sometimes referred to as display blanking intervals), the display may operate in touch sensor mode. When operating in touch sensor mode, the Vcomc and Vcomr conductors may be operated independently, so that the position of a touch event can be detected in dimensions X and Y. There are multiple Vcom rows (Vcomr), which allows discrimination of touch position with respect to dimension Y. There are also multiple Vcom columns (Vcomc), which allows touch position to be determined in dimension X. The Vcomc and Vcomr conductors of  FIG. 8  are illustrated schematically as touch sensor electrodes  62  in  FIG. 6 . 
     During touch sensor mode, a drive signal may be driven across a row of Vcomr conductors such as row  73  of  FIG. 9 . When a user&#39;s finger or other external object  75  is placed in the vicinity of a pair of touch sensor electrodes (such as Vcomc conductor  44 A and Vcomr conductor  44 B), changes in the capacitive coupling between the pair of electrodes may be detected by sensor circuitry  68  ( FIG. 6 ) and converted into touch event data for device  10 . Parasitic capacitances may arise between the Vcom structures and other conductive structures in the display. For example, capacitive coupling  84  may occur between Vcom conductors such as Vcom conductors  44 C and  44 D and gate lines  46 . These parasitic capacitances may lead to poor touch sensor performance for the device because they may allow touch sensor signals to reach multiple Vcomc conductors from a given Vcomr conductor via gate lines  46 . To ensure that the drive signal does not induce capacitive coupling between Vcom conductors  44  and gate lines  46 , gate lines  46  may be held at strongly at a direct current (DC) voltage during touch sensor mode. For example, during touch sensor mode (e.g., during display blanking intervals), gate lines  46  may be held at a DC voltage ranging from −15 volts to −5 volts (as an example) to attenuate noise signal coupling through gate lines  46 . 
     Once display circuitry  30 A is formed on TFT substrate  30 B, color filter layer  28  may be attached to TFT layer  30 . As shown in the exploded view of  FIG. 10 , a light-curable sealant such as ultraviolet-light-curable sealant  90  may be used to secure color filter layer  28  to TFT layer  30 . Sealant  90  may form a peripheral border that surrounds liquid crystal material  32  ( FIG. 5 ) and that prevents leakage of liquid crystal material  32  at the edges of display  14 . Sealing adhesive  90  may be a light-curable adhesive such as ultraviolet (UV) epoxy or other UV-curable sealant. 
     UV-curable sealant  90  may be disposed around the edges of TFT layer  30  and may overlap some of the conductive structures on TFT substrate  30 B such as opaque metal lines  92 . Metal lines  92  (sometimes referred to as VGL lines) may form part of display circuitry  30 A formed on TFT substrate  30 B. In some configurations, VGL lines  92  may be used to supply a low logic voltage to gate lines  46  ( FIGS. 6 ,  7 , and  9 ) during display blanking intervals. For example, during display blanking intervals, gate driver circuitry  38 - 2  may receive a signal on VGL lines  92 . Switching circuitry contained in gate driver circuitry  38 - 2  may then be configured to short gate lines  46  to VGL lines  92  to hold gate lines  46  at low voltage. Metal lines  92  may have sufficient width (and thus sufficiently low resistance) to firmly hold gate lines  46  at a DC voltage during touch sensor mode to attenuate undesired touch signals passing through gate lines  46 . Metal lines  92  may have a width W ranging from 500 microns to 600 microns (as an example). Metal lines  92  may be formed from a stack or combination of different types of metals. Metals that may be used in forming metal lines  92  include aluminum, titanium, molybdenum, other suitable metals, or a combination of these metals. 
     Once color filter layer  28  is secured to TFT layer  30 , UV-curable sealant  90  may be cured by exposing sealant  90  to ultraviolet (UV) light. In order for the UV light to cure the adhesive, some or all of the adhesive may be exposed to view from the exterior of the device. Adhesive that is exposed to view from the exterior of the device (e.g., from the color filter side  94  of display  14  and/or from the TFT layer side  96  of display  14 ) may be accessible by a UV light source and may have a stronger seal than adhesive that is not exposed to view from the exterior of the device. 
     In conventional devices, holes are formed in the metal lines that lie under the adhesive on the TFT substrate. By forming holes in the metal lines, portions of the UV-curable adhesive that lie above the metal lines are exposed to view from the TFT layer side of the display. Holes of a larger size and greater number will expose more sealant and will thus result in a stronger adhesion. However, such holes reduce the effective width of the metal lines, thereby increasing their resistance. 
     To overcome the shortcomings of conventional adhesive curing techniques, holes may be formed in the black masking material on the underside of the color filter layer. As discussed in connection with  FIG. 5 , black masking material  45  may form an opaque border around active area AA of display  14 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , black masking material  45  may have portions that overlap UV-curable sealant  90 . Holes such as holes  45 I (sometimes referred to as openings) may be formed in black masking material  45  to expose UV-curable sealant  90  from color filter side  94  of display  14 . UV-curable sealant  90  may be cured by directing UV-light  98  from UV-light source  100  through opening  45 I in black masking material  45 . 
     The size and number of holes  45 I in black masking material  45  may be easily customized. Some areas may benefit from a stronger adhesion and may therefore benefit from larger holes and/or a greater number of holes. For example, a stronger adhesive bond at and around the corners of the display may result in greater mechanical stability and overall robustness of the display. As shown in  FIG. 12A , holes  45 I may be formed in any desired location. In the example of  FIG. 12A , holes  45 I are formed in and around the corners of black masking material  45 . This is merely illustrative. In general, holes  45 I may be formed on one side, on two sides, on three sides, or on all four sides of active area AA of display  14 . As shown in the example of  FIG. 12B , holes  45 I may be formed around the entire periphery of active area AA of display  14  if desired. Holes  45 I may be a single opening forming a ring around active area AA of display  14  (as shown in  FIG. 12B ), or holes  45 I may be multiple openings that form a segmented ring around active area AA of display  14 . 
     If desired, holes  45 I in black masking material  45  may be used in addition to holes in metal lines on the TFT layer. As shown in  FIG. 13 , holes such as holes  92 I (sometimes referred to as openings) may be formed in metal lines on TFT layer  30 , such as metal lines  92 . Holes  92 I may expose sealant  90  to view from TFT layer side  96  of display  14 . Holes  45 I may expose sealant  90  to view from color filter side  94  of display  14 . Holes  92 I and  45 I may have any suitable shape (e.g., a rounded shape, a rectilinear shape, other suitable shape, a combination of these shapes, etc.). Holes  92 I and  45 I may also have any suitable size and number. If desired, holes  92 I may be smaller in size and number than holes  45 I to avoid any large increase of resistance in metal lines  92 . 
     Holes  92 I may be formed in a pattern that complements holes  45 I in black masking layer  34 . In the example of  FIG. 13 , holes  92 I are formed in portions of metal lines  92  that are overlapped by solid portions of black masking layer  45 . To complement this pattern, holes  45 I are formed in portions of black masking layer  45  that overlap solid portions of metal lines  92 . With this configuration, each of the plurality of holes  45 I and  92 I may expose a distinct portion of sealant  90 . 
     A cross-section taken along axis  105  of  FIG. 13  is illustrated in  FIG. 14 . As shown in  FIG. 14 , openings  45 I in black masking material  45  overlap portions of sealant  90  as well as solid portions of metal lines  92 . Openings  92 I are overlapped by portions of sealant  90  as well as solid portions of black masking material  45 . With this configuration, sealant  90  may be cured from both sides of display  14  (e.g., from color filter side  94  and from TFT layer side  96 ). As shown in  FIG. 14 , UV-light source  100 A may cure sealant  90  from color filter side  94  by directing UV-light  98  through openings  45 I in black masking material  45 . UV-light source  100 B may cure sealant  90  from TFT layer side  96  by directing UV-light  98  through openings  92 I in metal lines  92 . 
     Using a complementary pattern of openings in this way (e.g., where each of openings  45 I and  92 I exposes a distinct portion of sealant  90 ) may allow for UV curing of sealing  90  from both sides of display  14 . This may decrease the amount of manufacturing time required to form a completed electronic device. The complementary pattern of openings may also increase the area of exposed sealant, thereby enhancing the mechanical stability and robustness of the display. 
     TFT layer  30  may be interposed between color filter layer  28  and a backlight unit such as backlight unit  41  of  FIG. 5 . As described in connection with  FIG. 5 , backlight unit  41  may provide backside illumination (e.g., may direct light from TFT layer side  96  upwards in direction  106  of  FIG. 14 ). Holes  45 I and  92 I may be formed such that holes  45 I do not overlap holes  92 I. This ensures that light from the backlight unit does not leak through the inactive area of the display via holes  92 I and/or holes  45 I. There may be a minimum spacing such as spacing M between openings  45 I in black masking material  45  and openings  92 I in metal lines  92 . Spacing M may range from 2.5 microns to 3.5 microns. Using an opaque sealing material for sealant  90  may also help reduce or eliminate light leakage in the inactive area of the display. 
     Other layers that may be interposed between color filter layer  28  and TFT layer  30  are shown in  FIG. 15 . As shown in  FIG. 15 , an overcoat layer such as transparent overcoat layer  112  may be interposed between black masking material  45  and UV-sealant  90 . Overcoat layer  112  may be formed from an acrylic-based polymer and may be used to planarize the interior surface of color filter layer  30  and black masking material  45 . 
     A passivation layer such as passivation layer  108  may be interposed between UV-curable sealant  90  and metal lines  92 . Passivation layer  108  may be formed by depositing a layer of oxide over metal lines  92 . Passivation layer  108  may be include a combination or stack of organic and inorganic materials. 
     Illustrative steps involved in forming an electronic device with a display of the type shown in  FIGS. 1-15  are shown in  FIG. 16 . At step  114 , display circuitry  30 A may be formed on TFT substrate  30 B. Display circuitry  30 A may include pixel circuitry, thin-film transistors, metal lines, capacitors, electrodes for controlling the electric fields that are applied to liquid crystal layer  32 , and capacitive touch sensor electrodes. Step  114  includes forming holes  92 I in metal lines  92  along the edges of TFT substrate  30 B. 
     At step  116 , color filter array  31  may be formed on color filter substrate  29 . Step  116  includes forming black matrix layer  45  on the interior surface of color filter substrate  29 . Black matrix layer  45  may be provided with holes  45 I along the edges of color filter layer  28 . As discussed in connection with  FIGS. 13 and 14 , holes  45 I and  92 I may be patterned such that holes  45 I do not overlap holes  92 I once color filter layer  28  is attached to TFT layer  30 . 
     At step  118 , UV-curable sealant  90  may be disposed along the edges of TFT layer  30 . UV-curable sealant  90  may have portions that overlap metal lines  92  on TFT substrate  30 B. After applying sealant  90  to TFT substrate  30 B, color filter layer  28  may be attached to TFT substrate  30 B. Holes  45 I in black matrix layer  45  may overlap portions of UV-curable sealant  90 . 
     At step  120 , UV-curable sealant  90  is cured from both sides of display  14  by shining UV-light through holes  45 I in black matrix layer  45  and through holes  92 I in metal lines  92 . Once sealant  90  is cured, other display structures may be assembled with the color filter/TFT stack (step  122 ). Other display structures that may be added to the stack include upper polarizer  39 , lower polarizer  40 , backlight unit  41 , optical films, etc. At step  124 , the finished display may be mounted into an electronic device housing to form a completed electronic device. 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative of the principles of this invention and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20111215
Publication Date: 20150317
Grant Date: 20150317
Priority Date: 20111215
Inventors: JAMSHIDI ROUDBARI ABBAS
PARK YOUNG-BAE
CHANG SHIH-CHANG
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "G02F2202/023", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G02F1/1339", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/041", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/04103", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/04113", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G02F2202/023", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/04113", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/041", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G02F2202/023", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G02F1/1339", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F2203/04103", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0412", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G02F1/1339", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F3/0443", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 48609626