JP2008256970A - Electrophoresis device and electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electrophoresis device and an electronic apparatus free of a risk of trouble such as cracking, chipping, a defect, etc., of a thin film circuit layer and therefore free of a risk of a decrease in reliability of the thin film circuit layer even when a connection end of a substrate for connection is electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer of the electrophoresis device. <P>SOLUTION: This electrophoresis device has: a transparent substrate 1 and a circuit board 2 opposed to each other; a transparent electrode 3 formed on the transparent substrate 1; the thin film circuit layer 4 formed on the circuit board 2;an electrophoresis layer 5 sandwiched between the transparent substrate 1 and circuit board 2; and the substrate 6 for connection which is electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer 4 through conductive particles. Wherein, the total thickness t<SB>1</SB>of a wiring layer 21 of the substrate 6 for connection and the resin substrate 22 is less than the thickness t<SB>2</SB>of the electrophoresis layer 5. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electrophoresis apparatus and an electronic apparatus.

  Conventionally, a pair of substrates are opposed to each other, a thin film circuit layer including a semiconductor element or the like is formed on the surface of one substrate facing each other, and a transparent electrode is formed on the surface of the other substrate facing each other, 2. Description of the Related Art There is known an electrophoretic device that uses an electrophoretic layer sandwiched between a pair of substrates and changes the distribution state of electrophoretic particles contained in the electrophoretic layer by applying a voltage to the electrophoretic layer. (Patent Document 1).

As the substrate, a single crystal silicon wafer, a quartz glass substrate, a heat-resistant glass substrate, a resin film or the like is used, and an appropriate material is selected according to the required performance and function of the electrophoresis apparatus.
In this electrophoretic device, desired information can be displayed by controlling the amplitude, polarity, waveform, application time, frequency, and the like of the voltage applied to the electrophoretic layer.
As a manufacturing method of this electrophoresis apparatus, a method of obtaining a thin film circuit layer by sequentially laminating a semiconductor layer, an insulator layer, a metal layer, etc. on a resin film, a thin film previously formed on the surface of a heat resistant substrate such as a glass substrate A method of separating a circuit layer from the substrate and sticking it on a resin film has been proposed.

  In particular, an electrophoresis apparatus using a resin film for a substrate can provide a lightweight and flexible electrophoresis apparatus because the substrate itself is thin and flexible. As an example of such an electrophoretic apparatus that is lightweight and flexible, a display module called electronic paper that has been attracting attention as a new electronic device in recent years has been proposed. This electrophoretic device enables a flexible and high-performance electrophoretic display by combining a microcapsule type electrophoretic layer and a resin film.

  FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a display module which is an example of a conventional electrophoresis apparatus. In the figure, 1000 is a transparent substrate made of a transparent resin film, 1001 is a circuit board made of a resin film facing the transparent substrate 1000, 1002 is a transparent electrode formed on the opposite surface of the transparent substrate 1000, 1003 is a thin film circuit layer (SUFTLA-TFT) formed on the opposite surface of the circuit substrate 1001 and including a semiconductor element such as a thin film transistor, and 1004 An electrophoretic layer sandwiched between the transparent substrate 1000 and the circuit substrate 1001, and a connection substrate 1005 sandwiched between the transparent substrate 1000 and the circuit substrate 1001 and electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer 1003. .

  In this connection substrate 1005, a polyimide resin film 1013 is attached to one surface of the copper wiring layer 1011 via an adhesive layer 1012, and one end of the other surface of the copper wiring layer 1011 has conductive particles 1014. The cover film 1015 is bonded to the other surface of the copper wiring layer 1011 except for the one end thereof.

In this display module, the electrophoretic layer 1004 has a thickness of about 50 μm, the total thickness of the copper wiring layers 1011 to polyimide resin film 1013 constituting the connection end portion 1006 of the connection substrate 1005 is about 60 μm, and the conductive particles 1014. The average particle size of is approximately 10 μm.
JP 2004-4714 A

  By the way, in the conventional display module, since the thickness of the connection end portion 1006 of the connection substrate 1005 is larger than the thickness of the electrophoretic layer 1004, the copper wiring layer 1011 of the connection end portion 1006 is connected to the thin film circuit via the conductive particles 1014. When the thin film circuit layer 1003 is bonded to one end of the layer 1003, excessive pressure is applied to the thin film circuit layer 1003. As a result, the thin film circuit layer 1003 has defects such as cracks, chips, and defects. There has been a problem of lowering.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a thin film circuit even when a connection end of a connection substrate is electrically connected to a thin film circuit layer of an electrophoresis apparatus. An object of the present invention is to provide an electrophoretic device and an electronic apparatus in which there is no possibility that a defect such as a crack, a chip, or a defect occurs in the layer, and thus there is no possibility that the reliability of the thin film circuit layer is lowered.

  In order to solve the above problems, an electrophoresis apparatus of the present invention includes a first substrate and a second substrate facing each other, an electrode formed on a surface of the first substrate facing the second substrate, A thin film circuit layer formed on a surface of the second substrate facing the first substrate, an electrophoretic layer sandwiched between the first substrate and the second substrate, the first substrate, An electrophoretic device comprising a connection substrate having a wiring layer sandwiched between respective end portions of the second substrate and electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer, wherein the electrophoretic device is electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer. A thickness of a connection end portion of the connection substrate to be connected is equal to or less than a thickness of the electrophoretic layer. According to this configuration, since there is no possibility that excessive pressure is applied to the thin film circuit layer, there is no possibility that a defect such as a crack, a chip or a defect occurs in the thin film circuit layer. Therefore, a highly reliable electrophoresis apparatus can be provided.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that the connection substrate includes a resin substrate and the wiring layer directly laminated on the resin substrate. In general, a connection substrate is known in which a copper foil (wiring layer) is laminated on a polyimide film via an adhesive layer (three-layer type). Such a connection substrate is formed by applying an adhesive on the surface of a polyimide film, placing a copper foil on the surface, and then heat-pressing the copper foil. In such a configuration, although the interlayer adhesion is ensured, the thickness of the connection substrate cannot be sufficiently reduced because the adhesive layer is provided. Therefore, in the present invention, the connection substrate is thinned by directly laminating the wiring layer on the resin substrate such as a polyimide film without an adhesive layer (two-layer type). Such a two-layer type connection board can be formed by a method of laminating a copper foil on a polyimide film by a metal plating method, a method of casting a polyimide resin on a copper foil, or the like.

  In the present invention, the electrophoretic layer is preferably a microcapsule type electrophoretic layer. In the case of a microcapsule type electrophoretic layer, an adhesion layer is generally provided between the substrate and the electrophoretic layer in order to improve the adhesion between the electrophoretic layer and the substrate. In this case, since the thickness of the electrophoretic layer including the adhesive layer is about 50 μm, if the connection substrate has the above-described two-layer structure, the thickness of the connection wiring is set to the electrophoretic layer (including the adhesive layer). The thickness can be approximately the same.

  In the present invention, it is desirable that the first substrate and the second substrate are flexible resin films. According to this configuration, even when an error occurs in the thickness of the connection substrate and the thickness of the electrophoretic layer, the error can be absorbed by the deformation of the substrate.

  An electronic apparatus according to the present invention includes the above-described electrophoresis apparatus according to the present invention. According to this configuration, it is possible to provide a small electronic device with excellent display quality.

  The best mode of the electrophoresis apparatus and electronic apparatus of the present invention will be described in detail. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an electrophoresis apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 1 and is an example of a display module called electronic paper.

  1 and 2, reference numeral 1 is a transparent substrate (first substrate), reference numeral 2 is a circuit board (second substrate) facing the transparent substrate 1, and reference numeral 3 is a surface on the opposite side of the transparent substrate 1. The transparent electrode, 4 is a thin film circuit layer (SUFTLA-TFT) formed on the opposite surface of the circuit board 2, and 5 is an electrophoretic layer sandwiched between the transparent substrate 1 and the circuit board 2. Reference numeral 6 denotes a connection substrate sandwiched between the transparent substrate 1 and the circuit substrate 2 and electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer 5 through the conductive particles 7.

  The transparent substrate 1 is a substrate that is flexible and transparent to visible light, and includes a substrate that is substantially transparent (colorless transparent, colored transparent, or translucent). Here, “substantially transparent” means that the information displayed by the electrophoretic layer 5 is transparent to the extent that it can be easily recognized visually. The transparent substrate 1 also has a function as a protective layer that supports and protects a transparent electrode 3 to be described later. The thickness of the transparent substrate 1 is appropriately set depending on the material, use, etc., and is not particularly limited. However, the transparent substrate of the display module is preferably about 20 to 200 μm, and more preferably about 25 to 100 μm.

  The transparent substrate 1 is preferably a flexible resin film, resin sheet, or resin plate, and examples of the material thereof include cellulose resins such as triacetyl cellulose (TAC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate. Polyester resin such as phthalate (PEN), polyethylene (PE) resin, polystyrene (PS) resin, polyvinyl chloride resin, polycarbonate (PC), polyethersulfone (PES), polyetheretherketone (PEEK), polyphenylene sulfide ( Various resins such as PPS) can be used, and one or more of these can be used in combination.

The transparent electrode 3 is a film (layer) and functions as one electrode when a voltage is applied to the electrophoretic layer 5. Examples of the transparent electrode 3 include polyacetylene in addition to conductive metal oxides such as tin-added indium oxide (ITO), fluorine-added tin oxide (FTO), indium oxide (In ₂ O ₃ ), and tin oxide (SnO ₂ ). Examples thereof include conductive resins such as conductive resins containing conductive metal fine particles, and one or more of them can be used in combination. The thickness of the transparent electrode 3 is appropriately set depending on the material, use, and the like, and is not particularly limited. However, the transparent electrode of the display module is preferably about 0.05 to 10 μm, and more preferably about 0.05 to 5 μm.

  The circuit board 2 is a board made of an insulating material having flexibility, and has a function of supporting the thin film circuit layer 4, the electrophoretic layer 5 and the pixel electrode (not shown) formed thereon. The circuit board 2 is made of a flexible insulating material, and is preferably a resin film, a resin sheet, or a resin plate. Examples of the insulating material include polyimide (PI), polyether ether ketone (PEEK), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyether sulfone (PES), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE), and the like. These can be used alone or in combination of two or more. The thickness of the circuit board 2 is appropriately set depending on the material, application, and the like, and is not particularly limited. However, the circuit board of the display module is preferably about 20 to 500 μm, and more preferably about 25 to 200 μm. Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the size of the electrophoretic device, in particular, to reduce the thickness, while harmonizing the flexibility and strength of the electrophoretic device.

  The thin film circuit layer 4 includes a thin film device such as a thin film transistor (TFT) for driving the electrophoretic layer 5, a thin film wiring layer, one pixel electrode for applying a voltage to the electrophoretic layer 5, and the like. Examples of thin film device materials include organic semiconductor materials, and examples of thin film wiring layers and pixel electrode materials include aluminum, nickel, cobalt, platinum, gold, silver, copper, molybdenum, titanium, and tantalum. Or an alloy containing these metals, and one or more of them can be used in combination. The thickness of the thin film circuit layer 4 is appropriately set depending on the material, application, etc., and is not particularly limited, but the thin film circuit layer of the display module is preferably about 0.05 to 10 μm, more preferably about 0.05 to 5 μm. .

  In the electrophoretic layer 5, a microcapsule 13 in which an electrophoretic dispersion liquid 12 is sealed in a spherical capsule body 11 is fixed by a resin layer 14 as a binder. Examples of the material of the capsule body 11 include various resins such as gelatin, polyurethane resin, polyurea resin, urea resin, melamine resin, acrylic resin, polyester resin, polyamide resin, and one or more of them. Can be used in combination. The thickness of the electrophoretic layer 5 is not particularly limited, but the electrophoretic layer of the display module is preferably about 10 to 150 μm, and more preferably about 30 to 100 μm.

  As the electrophoretic dispersion liquid 12, for example, an electrophoretic particle dispersed (suspended) in a liquid phase dispersion medium can be used. As the electrophoretic particles, organic or inorganic pigment particles or composites containing these can be used. Examples of the pigment include black pigments such as aniline black and carbon black, white pigments such as titanium dioxide, zinc white, and antimony trioxide, azo pigments such as monoazo, diisazone, and polyazo, isoindolinone, yellow lead, and yellow Yellow pigments such as iron oxide, cadmium yellow, titanium yellow and antimony, red pigments such as quinacridone red and chrome vermilion, blue pigments such as phthalocyanine blue, indanthrene blue, anthraquinone dyes, bitumen, ultramarine and cobalt blue, phthalocyanine green And the like, and the like. As the electrophoretic particles, a mixture of two or more types of electrophoretic particles having different physical properties such as hue and electrophoretic mobility may be used.

  As the liquid phase dispersion medium, an organic solvent having a relatively high insulating property can be used. Examples of the organic solvent include aromatic hydrocarbons such as toluene, xylene and alkylbenzene, aliphatic hydrocarbons such as pentane, hexane and octane, cyclic hydrocarbons such as cyclohexane and methylcyclohexane, methylene chloride, Examples include halogenated hydrocarbons such as chloroform, carbon tetrachloride and 1,2-dichloroethane, various mineral oils such as silicon oil, fluorine oil, olive oil, vegetable oils, higher fatty acid esters, etc. Can be used.

  The electrophoretic dispersion liquid 12 includes electrolytes, surfactants, metal soaps, resins, rubbers, oils, varnishes and other charge control agents, titanium-based coupling agents, aluminum-based coupling agents, and silane-based cups as necessary. Various additives such as a dispersant such as a ring agent, a lubricant, and a stabilizer may be added. Furthermore, you may add dyes, such as an anthraquinone type and an azo type, to the liquid phase dispersion medium of the electrophoretic dispersion liquid 12 as needed.

  In order to produce the microcapsule 13, various microencapsulation methods such as an interfacial polymerization method, an in-situ polymerization method, a phase separation method, an interfacial precipitation method, and a spray drying method can be used.

  It is preferable that the size (average particle diameter) of the microcapsules 13 is substantially uniform. Thereby, the electrophoresis apparatus can exhibit a more excellent display function. The size (average particle diameter) of the microcapsules 13 can be made uniform using, for example, filtration, sieving, specific gravity difference class, or the like. The size (average particle diameter) of the microcapsule 13 is not particularly limited, but the microcapsule of the display module is preferably about 10 to 150 μm, and more preferably about 30 to 100 μm.

  The resin layer 14 is not particularly limited as long as it has excellent affinity and adhesion with the capsule body 11 of the microcapsule 13 and has insulating properties. For example, polyethylene, chlorinated polyethylene, ethylene -Vinyl acetate copolymer, ethylene-ethyl acrylate copolymer, polypropylene, ABS resin, methyl methacrylate resin, vinyl chloride resin, vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer, vinyl chloride-vinylidene chloride copolymer, vinyl chloride Acrylic ester copolymer, vinyl chloride-methacrylic acid copolymer, vinyl chloride-acrylonitrile copolymer, ethylene-vinyl alcohol-vinyl chloride copolymer, propylene-vinyl chloride copolymer, vinylidene chloride resin, vinyl acetate resin , Polyvinyl alcohol, polyvinyl formal, cell Thermoplastic resins such as over scan resins, polyamide resins, and the like.

  Also, polyacetal, polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polyphenylene oxide, polysulfone, polyamideimide, polyaminobismaleimide, polyethersulfone, polyphenylenesulfone, polyarylate, grafted polyfinylene ether, polyetheretherketone, polyetherimide Polymers such as polytetrafluoroethylene, polyfluorinated ethylene propylene, tetrafluoroethylene-perfluoroalkoxyethylene copolymer, ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene copolymer, polyvinylidene fluoride, polytrifluoroethylene chloride, Fluororesin such as fluoro rubber, silicone resin such as silicone resin, silicone rubber, and others, methacrylic acid-styrene copolymer, polybutylene, methacrylate Methyl acid - butadiene - styrene copolymer, etc. may be mentioned. These resins can be used alone or in combination of two or more.

  It is preferable that the dielectric constant of the resin layer 14 and the dielectric constant of the liquid phase dispersion medium are substantially equal. For this reason, it is preferable to add a dielectric constant modifier such as alcohols such as 1,2-butanediol and 1,4-butanediol, ketones, and carboxylates to the resin layer 14.

  The electrophoretic layer 5 is obtained by mixing the microcapsule 13 and, if necessary, the above-described dielectric constant regulator in the resin layer 14, and using the obtained resin composition (emulsion or organic solvent solution) as a thin film circuit on the circuit board 2. On the layer 4, for example, a coating film is formed by applying various coating methods such as a roll coater method, a roll laminator method, a screen printing method, a spray method, and an ink jet method, and the transparent substrate 1 is coated on the coating film. It can be obtained by placing and pressurizing the transparent electrode 3. On the contrary, the resin composition is applied onto the transparent electrode 3 of the transparent substrate 1 to form a coating film, and the thin film circuit layer 4 of the circuit board 2 is placed on the coating film. It can also be obtained by applying pressure. In addition, the resin layer 14 can also be abbreviate | omitted as needed.

  The connection substrate 6 is formed integrally with a wiring layer 21 electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer 4 of the circuit board 2 through the conductive particles 7 and is formed on the surface of the wiring layer 21 on the transparent substrate 1 side. And a protective film 23 attached to the surface of the wiring layer 21 on the circuit board 2 side except for one end thereof.

  Examples of the wiring layer 21 include metals such as aluminum, nickel, cobalt, platinum, gold, silver, copper, molybdenum, titanium, and tantalum, and alloys containing these, and one or two of them are used. A combination of more than one species can be used. The thickness of the wiring layer 21 is appropriately set depending on the material, use, etc., and is not particularly limited. However, the wiring layer of the display module is preferably about 0.05 to 10 μm, and more preferably about 0.05 to 5 μm.

  The resin substrate 22 is preferably a flexible resin film, resin sheet, or resin plate. Examples of the material thereof include cellulose resins such as triacetyl cellulose (TAC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate. Polyester resin such as phthalate (PEN), polyethylene (PE) resin, polystyrene (PS) resin, polyvinyl chloride resin, polycarbonate (PC), polyethersulfone (PES), polyetheretherketone (PEEK), polyphenylene sulfide ( Various resins such as PPS) can be used, and one or more of these can be used in combination. The thickness of the resin substrate 22 is appropriately set depending on the material, use, etc., and is not particularly limited. However, the resin substrate of the display module is preferably about 10 to 150 μm, and more preferably about 30 to 100 μm. This thickness is designed such that the total thickness of the wiring layer 21 and the resin substrate 22 is approximately the same as the thickness of the electrophoretic layer 5.

  The protective film 23 is preferably a flexible resin film, and examples of the material include cellulose resins such as triacetyl cellulose (TAC), polyesters such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polyethylene naphthalate (PEN). Various resins such as resin, polyethylene (PE) resin, polystyrene (PS) resin, polyvinyl chloride resin, polycarbonate (PC), polyethersulfone (PES), polyetheretherketone (PEEK), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) 1 type or 2 types or more of these can be used in combination.

  The connection substrate 6 can be produced, for example, by a method of laminating the wiring layer 21 on the resin substrate 22 by a metal plating method. Alternatively, a method of forming the wiring layer 21 by patterning the metal film after casting the resin on the metal film and forming the resin substrate 22 may be used. According to these methods, the wiring layer 21 can be directly laminated on the resin substrate 22. Usually, the connection substrate has a three-layer structure of a resin substrate, an adhesive layer, and a wiring layer (three-layer type). If the above manufacturing method is used, the thickness of the connection substrate 6 is reduced by the amount of the adhesive layer. Also, distortion of the gap between the substrates 1 and 2 can be reduced.

In this electrophoretic device, the connection end of the connection substrate 6 electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer 4, that is, the total thickness t ₁ of the wiring layer 21 and the resin substrate 22 is equal to or less than the thickness t _{2 of the} electrophoretic layer 5. It is. For example, when the thickness t ₂ of the electrophoretic layer 5 is 50 μm, the total thickness t ₁ of the wiring layer 21 and the resin substrate 22 is 50 μm or less.

  The operation of the electrophoretic device will be described by taking as an example the case of using electrophoretic particles having negative charge.

  When an external electric field is applied to the electrophoretic layer 5, the electrophoretic particles move in the direction opposite to the direction of the electric field. For example, when a thin film circuit (TFT) of the thin film circuit layer 4 applies a voltage so that the pixel electrode of the thin film circuit layer 4 has a negative potential and the transparent electrode 3 has a zero potential, an electric field from the transparent electrode 3 toward the pixel electrode is applied. Occurs. As a result, the electrophoretic particles in the electrophoretic dispersion liquid 12 move to the transparent electrode 3 side and gather on the transparent electrode 3. Therefore, the color seen from the transparent substrate 1 side shows the color of the electrophoretic particles. For example, if the color of the electrophoretic particles is white, the color becomes white.

  On the contrary, when the thin film transistor (TFT) of the thin film circuit layer 4 applies a voltage so that the pixel electrode of the thin film circuit layer 4 has a positive potential and the transparent electrode 3 has a zero potential, the transparent electrode 3 from the pixel electrode is applied. An electric field is generated toward As a result, the electrophoretic particles in the electrophoretic dispersion liquid 12 move to the pixel electrode side and gather on the pixel electrode. Therefore, the color viewed from the transparent substrate 1 side shows the color of the liquid phase dispersion medium. For example, if the color of the liquid phase dispersion medium is blue, the color is blue.

  Therefore, by setting the color of the liquid phase dispersion medium for each pixel, controlling the applied voltage, etc., desired information can be displayed in black and white or color on the electrophoresis apparatus. Further, by setting the specific gravity of the electrophoretic particles and the specific gravity of the liquid phase dispersion medium to be substantially equal, the electrophoretic particles can be electrically charged even after the application of the external electric field to the electrophoretic dispersion 12 is stopped. It can stay at a fixed position in the electrophoretic dispersion 12 for a long time. That is, the information displayed on the electrophoresis apparatus is held for a long time.

  This electrophoresis apparatus can be manufactured, for example, as follows. First, a transparent electrode 3 having a predetermined pattern is formed on one surface (the lower surface in FIG. 2) of the transparent substrate 1 by, for example, etching a thin film formed in a gas phase or a liquid phase. A thin film circuit layer 4 having a predetermined pattern is formed on one surface of the circuit board 2 (the upper surface in FIG. 2).

  Next, a resin composition in which the microcapsules 13 are dispersed in the resin layer 14 on the thin film circuit layer 4 of the circuit board 2 is, for example, a roll coater method, a roll laminator method, a screen printing method, a spray method, an ink jet method, or the like. A coating film is formed by applying various coating methods, and the transparent electrode 3 of the transparent substrate 1 is placed on the coating film and pressed, and an electrophoretic layer is formed between the transparent substrate 1 and the circuit board 2. 5 is formed.

  Next, a part of the protective film 23 is peeled off from the connection substrate 6 to expose one end portion of the wiring layer 21, and the one end portion of the resin substrate 22 and the wiring layer 21 is interposed between the transparent substrate 1 and the circuit substrate 2. Then, one end of the wiring layer 21 is fixed to a predetermined position of the thin film circuit layer 4 of the circuit board 2 through the conductive particles 7. As described above, the electrophoresis apparatus of the present embodiment can be manufactured.

  As described above, according to this electrophoresis apparatus, the total thickness of the wiring layer 21 and the resin substrate 22 of the connection substrate 6 electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer 4 is equal to or less than the thickness of the electrophoresis layer 5. Therefore, there is no possibility that an excessive pressure is applied to the thin film circuit layer 4, and it is possible to prevent the thin film circuit layer 4 from generating defects such as cracks, chips and defects. Therefore, it is possible to provide an electrophoretic device in which the reliability of the thin film circuit layer 4 is not reduced.

  The electrophoresis apparatus of the present invention can be incorporated into various electronic devices. Hereinafter, an electronic apparatus including the electrophoresis apparatus of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an embodiment when the electronic apparatus of the present invention is applied to a mobile phone. The mobile phone 300 includes a plurality of operation buttons 301, a mouthpiece 302, a mouthpiece 303, and a display panel 304. In such a mobile phone 300, the display panel 304 is configured by the electrophoresis apparatus of the present embodiment.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an embodiment when the electronic apparatus of the present invention is applied to a digital still camera. In FIG. 4, the back side of the paper surface is referred to as “front surface”, and the front side of the paper surface is referred to as “back surface”. Further, FIG. 4 simply shows a connection state with an external device.

  The digital still camera 400 includes a case 401, a display panel 402 formed on the back surface of the case 401, a light receiving unit 403 formed on the observation side of the case 401 (front side in FIG. 4), a shutter button 404, The circuit board 405 is provided. The light receiving unit 403 includes, for example, an optical lens, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device), and the like. The display panel 402 performs display based on an imaging signal from the CCD. The circuit board 405 transfers and stores the CCD image signal when the shutter button 404 is pressed. In the digital still camera 400, a video signal output terminal 406 and an input / output terminal 407 for data communication are provided on the side surface of the case 401. For example, a television monitor 406A is connected to the video signal output terminal 406, and a personal computer 407A is connected to the input / output terminal 407, for example, as necessary. The digital still camera 400 is configured to output an imaging signal stored in the memory of the circuit board 405 to the television monitor 406A and the personal computer 407A by a predetermined operation. In the digital still camera 400, the display panel 402 is configured by the electrophoresis apparatus of this embodiment.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an embodiment when the electronic apparatus of the present invention is applied to an electronic book. The electronic book 500 includes a book-shaped frame 501 and a cover 502 that can be rotated (opened and closed) with respect to the frame 501. The frame 501 is provided with a display device 503 with a display surface exposed and an operation unit 504. In the electronic book 500, the display device 503 is configured by the electrophoresis device of the present embodiment.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an embodiment when the electronic apparatus of the present invention is applied to electronic paper. The electronic paper 600 includes a main body 601 composed of a rewritable sheet having the same texture and flexibility as paper, and a display unit 602. In the electronic paper 600, the display unit 602 is configured by the electrophoresis apparatus of this embodiment.

  FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an embodiment when the electronic apparatus of the present invention is applied to an electronic notebook. The electronic notebook 700 includes a cover 701 and electronic paper 600. The electronic paper 600 has the same configuration as the electronic paper 600 illustrated in FIG. 6, and a plurality of electronic papers 600 are bundled so as to be sandwiched between the covers 701. Further, the cover 701 is provided with input means for inputting display data, whereby the display content can be changed in a state where the electronic paper 600 is bundled. In the electronic notebook 700, the display unit of the electronic paper 600 is configured by the electrophoresis apparatus of the present embodiment.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an embodiment when the electronic apparatus of the present invention is applied to a display (display device). 8A is a sectional view, and FIG. 8B is a plan view.

  The display 800 includes a main body 801 and an electronic paper 600 that is detachably attached to the main body 801. Note that this electronic paper 600 has a configuration similar to that of the electronic paper 600 illustrated in FIG. 6.

  The main body 801 is provided with an insertion port 805 into which the electronic paper 600 can be inserted on the side (right side in FIG. 8), and two pairs of conveying rollers 802a and 802b are provided therein. When the electronic paper 600 is inserted into the main body 801 through the insertion port 805, the electronic paper 600 is installed in the main body 801 in a state of being sandwiched between the pair of conveyance rollers 802a and 802b.

  A rectangular hole 803 is formed on the display surface side of the main body 801 (the front side in FIG. 8B), and a transparent glass plate 804 is fitted in the hole 803. . Thereby, the electronic paper 600 installed in the main body 801 can be viewed from the outside of the main body 801. That is, in the display 800, the display surface is configured by visually recognizing the electronic paper 600 installed in the main body 801 on the transparent glass plate 804.

  Further, a terminal portion 806 is provided at the leading end portion (left side in FIG. 8) of the electronic paper 600 in the insertion direction, and the terminal is provided inside the main body portion 801 with the electronic paper 600 installed on the main body portion 801. A socket 807 to which the unit 806 is connected is provided. A controller 808 and an operation unit 809 are electrically connected to the socket 807.

  In the display 800, the electronic paper 600 is detachably installed on the main body 801, and can be carried and used while being detached from the main body 801. In this electronic paper 600, the display unit is configured by the electrophoresis apparatus of the present embodiment.

  Electronic devices are not limited to those described above. For example, a television, viewfinder type, monitor direct-view type video tape recorder, car navigation device, pager, electronic notebook, calculator, electronic newspaper, word processor, personal computer, etc. Examples include a computer, a workstation, a videophone, a POS terminal, and a device equipped with a touch panel. The electrophoretic device of the present embodiment can be applied to the display units of these various electronic devices.

  As mentioned above, although each embodiment of the electrophoresis apparatus and electronic device of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to these. For example, each unit constituting the electrophoresis apparatus of the present invention can be replaced with an arbitrary one that exhibits the same function, or other configurations can be added. For example, one or more arbitrary layers can be added between the circuit board and the electrode and / or the transistor, between the counter substrate and the counter electrode, or the like.

It is a disassembled perspective view of the electrophoresis apparatus of one Embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which follows the AA line of FIG. It is a perspective view at the time of applying the electronic device of this invention to a mobile telephone. It is a perspective view at the time of applying the electronic device of this invention to a digital still camera. It is a perspective view at the time of applying the electronic device of this invention to an electronic book. It is a perspective view at the time of applying the electronic device of this invention to electronic paper. It is a perspective view at the time of applying the electronic device of this invention to an electronic notebook. It is a figure at the time of applying the electronic device of this invention to a display. It is sectional drawing of the display module which is an example of the conventional electrophoresis apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Transparent substrate (1st board | substrate), 2 ... Circuit board (2nd board | substrate), 3 ... Transparent electrode, 4 ... Thin film circuit layer, 5 ... Electrophoresis layer, 6 ... Connection board | substrate, 13 ... Microcapsule, 21 ... Wiring layer, 22 ... resin substrate, 300 ... mobile phone (electronic device), 400 ... digital still camera (electronic device), 500 ... electronic book (electronic device), 600 ... electronic paper (electronic device), 700 ... electronic notebook ( Electronic equipment), 800 ... Display (electronic equipment)

Claims (5)

A first substrate and a second substrate facing each other;
An electrode formed on a surface of the first substrate facing the second substrate;
A thin film circuit layer formed on a surface of the second substrate facing the first substrate;
An electrophoretic layer sandwiched between the first substrate and the second substrate;
An electrophoretic device comprising: a connection substrate having a wiring layer sandwiched between respective end portions of the first substrate and the second substrate and electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer;
The electrophoretic device according to claim 1, wherein a thickness of a connection end portion of the connection substrate electrically connected to the thin film circuit layer is equal to or less than a thickness of the electrophoretic layer.   The electrophoretic device according to claim 1, wherein the connection substrate includes a resin substrate and the wiring layer directly stacked on the resin substrate.   The electrophoretic device according to claim 2, wherein the electrophoretic layer is a microcapsule type electrophoretic layer.   The electrophoresis apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are resin films having flexibility.   An electronic apparatus comprising the electrophoresis apparatus according to claim 1.

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