JP2008310037A - Panel for information display - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a display medium electric field drive type panel for information display such that an applied electric field becomes constant over the entire surface of the panel for information display having a display area adaptive to, especially, sizes B5 to B3 and image quality is uniform. <P>SOLUTION: A dot matrix display type panel for information display has at least one kind of display medium, made of at least one or more kinds of particles and having optical reflectivity and electrostatic charging property, charged in the space between two opposed substrates, also has paired electrodes formed of line electrodes orthogonally arranged on both two substrates, and moves the display medium by applying an electric field to the display medium by generating a potential difference between the paired electrodes to display information such as an image. At least the transparent line electrodes provided on the substrates are made thicker at a portion for connection with a drive device power circuit as an input side of the line electrodes than at tip portions of the line electrodes to have a gradient of thickness along the length. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

According to the present invention, at least one type of display medium composed of at least one type of particles and having optical reflectivity and chargeability is enclosed in a space between two opposing substrates, and a line provided on the two substrates. Information on the rectangular display area of the dot matrix display system in which an electric field is applied to the display medium by applying a potential difference between the counter electrodes formed so that the electrodes are opposed and orthogonal to each other, and the display medium is moved to display information such as an image. The present invention relates to a display panel.
The present invention particularly relates to an information display panel having a rectangular display area corresponding to a size range of B5 size (257 mm × 182 mm) including A size to B3 size (515 mm × 364 mm).

  An information display device using a charged particle electric field drive method has been proposed as an information display device to which a passive drive method in place of an active drive liquid crystal display device (LCD) can be applied.

Among them, as a passive drive type information display device having a simple structure, at least one display medium having optical reflectivity and chargeability composed of at least one kind of particles is provided in a space between two opposing substrates. One using an information display panel of a type that displays information such as an image by moving the display medium by enclosing more than one type and applying an electric field to the display medium is known (for example, Patent Document 1).
In the information display panel described above, line drive orthogonal to each other is provided on each of the two substrates for passive driving.
International Publication No. 2003/050606 Pamphlet

The counter electrodes used in the passive matrix driving method described above are arranged so that the line-shaped electrodes are opposed and orthogonal to each other, but the voltage applied between the counter-electrodes on the input side connecting portion side for the line-shaped electrodes, and the electrodes The voltage applied between the counter electrodes on the front end side has a difference due to electric resistance. As a result, there is a difference in the electric field formed between the counter electrodes, which affects the drivability of the display medium. That is, there is a problem that the image quality (for example, contrast) displayed on the display area of the information display panel is non-uniform due to the difference in driveability of the display medium.
The image quality degradation considered to be caused by the applied voltage difference due to the electrical resistance corresponds to a range of B5 (257 mm × 182 mm) to B3 size (515 mm × 364 mm) including A size in which the length of the line electrode is increased. The display screen size was particularly problematic.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to maintain uniform image quality even in the above-described conventional passive drive type information display panel, particularly in an information display panel having a display area of B5 size or larger.

  The information display panel according to the present invention includes a transparent substrate on which a transparent line electrode is formed, and another substrate on which either a transparent line electrode or a non-transparent line electrode is formed. A counter electrode formed by enclosing at least one type of display medium made of at least one type of particles and having optical reflectivity and chargeability in a substrate space formed so as to face each other so as to be orthogonal to each other, and to form line electrodes that are orthogonal to each other. In a dot matrix type information display panel that displays information such as an image by moving the display medium by an electric field generated by applying a voltage therebetween, a transparent line electrode provided on at least one substrate The thickness of the power supply side connection portion is made larger than the thickness of the tip end portion of the line electrode, and the thickness of the line electrode is configured to have an inclination in the length direction. And it is characterized in and.

  In the information display panel according to the present invention, when both of the two line electrodes are transparent line electrodes, the thickness of the power supply side connection part of at least the longer transparent line electrode is set at the tip of the transparent line electrode. It is preferable that the thickness of the transparent line electrode is set to be greater than the thickness so that the thickness of the transparent line electrode is inclined in the length direction.

  Further, when both of the two line electrodes are transparent line electrodes, at least the thickness of the power supply side connection part of the transparent line electrode disposed on the back side substrate is made thicker than the thickness of the tip part of the transparent line electrode, It is preferable that the thickness of the line electrode is inclined in the length direction.

  In addition, the information display panel of the present invention includes a transparent line electrode having an inclination in the length direction, indium tin oxide, indium oxide, zinc-doped indium oxide, antimony tin oxide, conductive tin oxide, conductive It is preferably formed of a transparent conductive material such as a transparent conductive metal oxide such as zinc oxide or a transparent conductive polymer such as polyaniline, polypyrrole, or polythiophene.

  In the information display panel according to the present invention, the line electrode inclined in the length direction is thicker by 0.1 to 2 μm than the thickness of the tip end portion of the line electrode. Thus, it is preferable that the line electrode is configured to have an inclination in the length direction.

  According to the present invention, a transparent substrate on which a transparent line electrode is formed and another substrate on which either a transparent line electrode or a non-transparent line electrode is formed so that the two line electrodes are orthogonal to each other. In the substrate space formed opposite to each other, at least one kind of display medium composed of at least one kind of particles and having optical reflectivity and chargeability is sealed, and a voltage is generated between the counter electrodes formed by the line electrodes orthogonal to each other. In the information display panel of the dot matrix type display system that displays information such as an image by moving the display medium by an electric field generated by applying voltage, connection on the power supply side of a transparent line electrode provided on at least one substrate By making the thickness of the part thicker than the thickness of the tip of the line electrode, the thickness of the line electrode is configured to have an inclination in the length direction. Voltage applied across the entire surface of the B5 size or more information display panel is constant, the image quality can be provided even information display panel.

  First, the basic configuration of the information display panel of the present invention will be described. In the information display panel of the present invention, an electric field is applied from the counter electrode formed by the orthogonal line electrodes facing the display medium having optical reflectivity and chargeability sealed in the space between the two facing substrates. The In accordance with the applied electric field direction, the charged display medium is attracted by the electric field force or the Coulomb force, and the display medium is moved by the change in the electric field direction, whereby information such as an image is displayed. Therefore, it is necessary to design the display panel so that the display medium can move uniformly and maintain stability when rewriting the display repeatedly or when displaying the display information continuously. Here, the force applied to the particles constituting the display medium can be considered to be the electric mirror image force between the electrode, the substrate and the partition, the intermolecular force, the liquid bridging force, gravity, etc. in addition to the force attracted by the Coulomb force between the particles. It is done.

  An example of the information display panel of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b) to FIG. In either case, a line electrode is formed on two opposing substrates, and an electric field is generated between the counter electrodes configured so as to be opposed to and orthogonal to each other to drive a display medium disposed between the substrates. This is a dot matrix type information display panel in which a portion where line electrodes are orthogonally overlapped is a display unit (1 pixel: 1 dot).

  In the example shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, at least two types of display media 3 (here, the display white particles 3Wa) having different optical reflectance and charging characteristics composed of at least one type of particles are used. A white display medium 3W made of a particle group and a black display medium 3B made of a particle group of display black particles 3Ba), each of the cells formed by the partition walls 4, and the electrode 5 (line electrode) provided on the substrate 1; The substrate 6 is moved perpendicular to the substrates 1 and 2 in accordance with an electric field generated by applying a voltage between the electrodes 6 (line electrodes) provided on the substrate 2. Then, as shown in FIG. 1A, the white display medium 3W is visually recognized by the observer and white dot display is performed, or as shown in FIG. 1B, the black display medium 3B is visually recognized by the observer. Black dots are displayed. In addition, in FIG. 1 (a), (b), the partition in front is abbreviate | omitted. The electrode may be provided outside the substrate or may be provided so as to be embedded inside the substrate.

  In the example shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the basic configuration is the same as the example shown in FIG. 1, and three cells (each cell becomes a unit pixel. In this case, one display unit (three color unit pixels) 1 pixel: 1 dot)), an example of color display constituting a display unit is shown. In the example shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, all the cells 21-1 to 21-3 as the display medium are filled with the white display medium 3W and the black display medium 3B, and the first cell 21-1. A red color filter 22R is provided on the viewer side, a green color filter 22G is provided on the viewer side of the second cell 21-2, a blue color filter 22BL is provided on the viewer side of the third cell 21-3, A display unit (one pixel: one dot) is composed of three cells, the first cell 21-1, the second cell 21-2, and the third cell 21-3. In this example, as shown in FIG. 2A, the white dot display is performed by moving the white display medium 3W in all the first cells 21-1 to 21-3 to the viewer side. As shown in FIG. 2B, black dots are displayed by moving the black display medium 3B in all the first cells 21-1 to 21-3 on the viewer side. Yes. Multi-color dot display can be performed by moving the display medium of each cell. In addition, in FIG. 2 (a), (b), the partition in front is abbreviate | omitted.

  In the example shown in FIG. 3, the basic configuration is the same as the example shown in FIG. 2, and three cells (each cell is a unit pixel. In this case, one display unit (one pixel: one dot) with three color unit pixels). ) Shows an example of color display constituting a display unit. In the example shown in FIG. 3, instead of using the color filter of FIG. 2, the display medium enclosed in each cell is displayed with any one of the display red particles 3Ra, the display blue particles 3BLa, and the display green particles 3Ga. It is composed of white particles 3Wa. In this example, as shown in FIG. 3, the red dot display is performed by moving the display red particles 3Ra and the display white particles 3Wa to the viewer side. Multi-color dot display can be performed by moving the display medium of each cell. In FIG. 3, the front partition is omitted.

  In the example shown in FIG. 4, the basic configuration is the same as the example shown in FIG. 3, and three cells (each cell is a unit pixel. In this case, one display unit (one pixel: one dot) with three color unit pixels). ) Shows an example of color display constituting a display unit. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the display magenta particles 3Ma, the display yellow particles 3Ya, and the display cyan particles 3Ca are used instead of the display red particles 3Ra, the display blue particles 3BLa, and the display green particles 3Ga in FIG. Then, one of these three colors and the display white particles 3Wa are sealed in the cell. In this example, as shown in FIG. 4, magenta dot display is performed by moving the display magenta particles 3Ma and the display white particles 3Wa to the viewer. Multi-color dot display can be performed by moving the display medium of each cell. In FIG. 4, the front partition is omitted.

  In the example shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b), the display black particles 3Ba are provided with electrodes 5 (transparent line electrodes) provided on the substrate 1 and electrodes provided on the substrate 2 in each cell formed by the partition walls 4. 6 (transparent line electrode) is moved in a direction perpendicular to the substrates 1 and 2 in accordance with an electric field generated by applying a voltage. Then, as shown in FIG. 5 (a), the color of the white plate 7W is visually recognized by the observer to display white dots, or as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the display black particles 3Ba are displayed to the observer. A black dot is displayed by visual recognition. In addition, in the example shown to Fig.5 (a), (b), the partition in front is abbreviate | omitted. Here, the same display can be performed by using the display black particles 3Ba as display white particles and the white plate 7W as a black plate. The electrode may be provided outside the substrate or may be provided so as to be embedded inside the substrate.

  In the example shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the white particles 3Wa for display are provided in the three cells provided with the color plate (for example, RGB color plate) on the substrate 1, and the white plate 7W is provided on the substrate 1. Is filled with display black particles 3Ba, and these four cells form one display unit (one pixel: one dot). As shown in FIG. 6 (a), the display black particles 3Ba and the three-color plate are visually recognized by the observer to display black dots, or as shown in FIG. 6 (b), the white plate 7W and the display are displayed. White dots are displayed by making the observer visually recognize the white particles 3Wa. In addition, in the example shown to Fig.6 (a), (b), the partition in front is abbreviate | omitted. The electrode may be provided outside the substrate or may be provided so as to be embedded inside the substrate.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, as in the example shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, another example in which monochrome dot display is performed using the line electrodes 5 and 6 is described. In the example shown in FIG. 7, instead of the cells formed of the partition walls 4 filled with the display white particles 3 </ b> Wa and the display black particles 3 </ b> Ba shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the display white particles 3 </ b> Wa and A microcapsule 9 in which a display medium composed of display black particles 3Ba is filled together with an insulating liquid 8 is used.

  Hereinafter, the information display panel of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 8A to 8C are arrangement examples of line electrodes in the information display panel of the present invention.
In FIG. 8A, the line electrode 5 is arranged on the back side substrate 1 in a direction parallel to the long side of the back side substrate 1. The line electrode 5 in FIG. 8A is a non-transparent metal line electrode or a transparent line electrode having an inclination in the length direction. There is a lead line portion 10 extending from the line electrode 5 outside the display area. The lead line portion 10 is connected to a drive device power circuit on the input side. The lead wire portion 10 is formed of a metal material having a small electric resistance. A connection portion with the lead wire portion 10 which is one end portion of the line electrode 5 is a line electrode connection portion 5C, and the other end portion is a line electrode tip portion 5E.
In FIG. 8B, the transparent line electrode 6 is arranged on the display surface side transparent substrate 2T in a direction parallel to the short side of the display surface side transparent substrate 2T. There is a lead line portion 10 extending from the line electrode 6 outside the display area. As in FIG. 8A, the lead line portion 10 is connected to the drive device power supply circuit on the input side, and the lead line portion 10 is formed of a metal material having a small electric resistance. A connection portion with the lead wire portion 10 which is one end portion of the line electrode 6 is a line electrode connection portion 6C, and the other end portion is a line electrode tip portion 6E. Since the transparent line electrode 6 is arranged in a direction parallel to the short side of the rectangular display region, the thickness in the length direction need not be inclined. Of course, it may be inclined.
FIG. 8C shows a state in which the information display panel in which the rear substrate 1 and the display surface side transparent substrate 2 are bonded together is viewed from the display surface side. A square part surrounded by a dotted line is a display area. The lead wire portion 10 from each of the line electrodes 5 and 6 is connected to a drive device power circuit on the input side for applying a voltage between the line electrodes. It is connected.

9A to 9C show other arrangement examples of the line electrodes in the information display panel of the present invention.
In FIG. 9A, the transparent line electrode 5 is arranged on the display surface a-side transparent substrate 2Ta in a direction parallel to the long side of the display surface a-side transparent substrate 2Ta.
In FIG. 9B, the transparent line electrode 6 is arranged on the display surface b side transparent substrate 2Tb in a direction parallel to the short side of the display surface b side transparent substrate 2Tb.
FIG. 9C shows a state where an information display panel in which the display surface a-side transparent substrate 2Ta and the display surface b-side transparent substrate 2Tb are bonded together is viewed from the display surface side.
The information display panel having the configuration shown in FIG. 9 has display surfaces on both sides. In this example, the thickness of at least the length of the transparent line electrode 5 is inclined. Of course, the transparent line electrode 6 may also have an inclination in the thickness in the length direction.

10A to 10C show other arrangement examples of the line electrodes in the information display panel of the present invention.
In FIG. 10A, the transparent line electrode 5 is arranged on the back side substrate 1 in a direction parallel to the long side of the back side substrate 1.
In FIG. 10B, the transparent line electrode 6 is arranged on the display surface side transparent substrate 2T in a direction parallel to the short side of the display surface side transparent substrate 2T.
FIG. 10C shows a state in which the information display panel in which the rear substrate 1 and the display surface side transparent substrate 2T are bonded together is viewed from the display surface side.

11A to 11D show a first embodiment of the information display panel of the present invention. FIG. 11B shows an AA cross-sectional view of the information display panel of FIG. 11A, and FIGS. 11C and 11D are configuration examples of line electrodes having an inclination.
In the information display panel shown in FIG. 11, the line electrode 6 provided on the display surface side transparent substrate 2T is formed of indium tin oxide (ITO), and the line electrode 5 provided on the back surface side substrate 1 is formed of copper. . The lead line portion 10 is formed of a metal material having good conductivity for both the display surface side transparent substrate 2T and the back surface side substrate 1, and the lead line portion 10 provided on the back surface side substrate 1 may be made of the same material as the line electrode 5. Here, the lead wire portion was formed of copper. ITO has lower electrical conductivity and higher electrical resistance than metal materials such as copper.
As shown in FIG. 11B, the line-like ITO electrode 6 provided on the display surface side transparent substrate 2T is linearly inclined in the length direction, and the line electrode connecting portion 6C and the line electrode tip portion are provided. When the thickness difference from 6E is D, the thickness difference D is preferably in the range of 0.1 to 2 μm.
If the thickness difference D is smaller than 0.1 μm, the effect of reducing the electrical resistance that causes the variation in the applied voltage difference cannot be sufficiently obtained. On the other hand, if it is larger than 2 μm, the time and man-hours required for its production become enormous, resulting in inferior productivity.
In order to ensure the distance between the display surface side transparent substrate 2T and the back surface side substrate 1, an inter-substrate distance securing member 15 is provided. The thickness of the copper line electrode 5 provided on the back substrate 1 is constant. A cell provided between the substrates and a display medium sealed in the cell are omitted.

Since there is a correlation between the size of the cross-sectional area and the ease of electricity flow, a large amount of current flows through the line electrode by increasing the electrode cross-sectional area of the line electrode connecting portion 6C. The current that has passed through the line electrode connecting portion 6C can be distributed evenly over the entire line electrode, and a uniform electric field can be applied between any counter electrodes formed on the information display panel. As a result, an information display panel having a display area corresponding to B5 size (257 mm × 182 mm) to B3 size (515 mm × 364 mm) can be displayed with uniform image quality on the entire screen.
The cross-sectional area of the electrode can be increased by expanding it in the width direction of the electrode. However, there is a problem that the distance between adjacent line electrodes is partially too close to cause leakage, and a pixel where the overlapping area of the counter electrode is formed. There arises a problem that the size becomes non-constant, and a dot matrix having a different pixel size results in moire.
Further, when the entire electrode is thickened, current flows easily, but the light transmission is lowered, the display medium visibility is deteriorated, and the image quality is lowered. Therefore, the reduction in image quality can be made inconspicuous by limiting the thick electrode portion to the outside of the display area.

FIGS. 11C and 11D are configuration examples of a line electrode having an inclination.
FIG.11 (c) is an example which has arrange | positioned the line-like ITO electrode 6 inclined in the length direction on the display surface side transparent substrate 2T similarly to FIG.11 (b), FIG.11 (d), An example in which the line-like ITO electrode 6 inclined in the length direction is embedded in the display surface side transparent substrate 2T, that is, the upper surface of the line ITO electrode 6 and the lower surface of the display surface side transparent substrate 2T are parallel.

12 (a) to 12 (d) show a second embodiment of the information display panel of the present invention. 12B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of the information display panel in FIG. 12A, and FIGS. 12C and 12D are configuration examples of the line electrode having an inclination.
In the information display panel shown in FIG. 12, the line electrode 5 provided on the display surface a side transparent substrate 2Ta and the line electrode 6 provided on the display surface b side transparent substrate 2Tb are both formed of ITO. The lead wire portion 10 is formed of a metal material having good conductivity for both the display surface a side transparent substrate 2Ta and the display surface b side transparent substrate 2Tb.
As shown in FIG. 12B, the line-like ITO electrode 6 provided on the display surface b-side transparent substrate 2Tb is linearly inclined in the length direction, and the line electrode connecting portion 6C and the tip of the line electrode The line-like ITO electrode 5 having a thickness difference D with respect to the portion 6E and provided on the display surface a-side transparent substrate 2Ta is also linearly inclined in the length direction, and the line electrode connection portion and the tip of the line electrode Thickness difference D from the part.
FIGS. 12C and 12D are configuration examples of the line electrode having the inclination described with reference to FIGS. 11C and 11D, and both the line-like ITO electrodes 5 and 6 may be any configuration example.

FIGS. 13A to 13D show a third embodiment of the information display panel of the present invention. FIG. 13B shows an AA cross-sectional view of the information display panel of FIG. 13A, and FIGS. 13C and 13D show configuration examples of the line electrodes having an inclination.
In the information display panel shown in FIG. 13, the line electrode 6 provided on the display surface side transparent substrate 2T and the line electrode 5 provided on the back side substrate 1 are both formed of ITO. The lead wire portion 10 is formed of a metal material having good conductivity for both the display surface side transparent substrate 2T and the back surface side substrate 1.
As shown in FIG. 13B, the line-like ITO electrode 5 arranged in parallel with the long side of the rectangular display area provided on the back side substrate 1 is linearly inclined in the length direction, and the line There is a thickness difference D between the electrode connecting portion 5C and the line electrode tip portion 5E. The thickness of the line-like ITO electrode 6 arranged in parallel with the short side of the rectangular display area provided on the display surface side transparent substrate 2T is constant. A cell provided between the substrates and a display medium sealed in the cell are omitted.
FIGS. 13C and 13D are configuration examples of the line electrode having the inclination described in FIGS. 11C and 11D.
The sizes of A size and B size are shown in Table 1. The range that becomes the display area is slightly smaller than this size.

When the line electrodes 5 and 6 are formed of different materials as in the first embodiment of FIG. 11, the line electrode 6 formed of a material having a large electrical resistance, that is, ITO, is lengthwise. It is preferable that it is comprised so that it may have this inclination.
Further, as in the second embodiment of FIG. 12, when the line electrodes 5 and 6 are both formed of a transparent conductive material and the display area of the information display panel is square, both the transparent line electrodes 5 and 6 are arranged in the length direction. It is preferable to be configured to have an inclination.
Further, as in the third embodiment of FIG. 13, when the line electrodes 5 and 6 are both formed of a transparent conductive material and the display area of the information display panel is rectangular, the line electrode in the direction parallel to the long side is Since it is more susceptible to electrical resistance than a line electrode in a direction parallel to the short side, it is preferably configured to have an inclination in the length direction.

  In addition, in addition to indium tin oxide (ITO), the transparent line electrode according to the present invention having an inclination in the length direction includes indium oxide, zinc-doped indium oxide (IZO), antimony tin oxide (ATO), conductive oxide It can be formed using transparent conductive metal oxides such as tin and conductive zinc oxide, and transparent conductive polymers such as polyaniline, polypyrrole and polythiophene.

  Hereinafter, each member which comprises the information display panel of this invention is demonstrated.

  As information display panel substrates, organic terephthalates such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyethylene (PE), polycarbonate (PC), polyimide (PI), polyethersulfone (PES), acrylic, etc. A molecular substrate, a glass sheet, a quartz sheet, a metal sheet or the like is used, and a transparent one is used on the display surface (referred to as an observation surface) side. The substrate used on the back (non-observation surface) side may be transparent or not transparent. The thickness of the substrate is preferably from 2 to 5000 μm, more preferably from 5 to 2000 μm. If it is too thin, it will be difficult to maintain the strength and the spacing uniformity between the substrates, and if it is thicker than 5000 μm, it will be a thin information display panel. Is inconvenient.

  As a method for forming an electrode, a method of forming the above-described materials into a thin film by sputtering, vacuum deposition, CVD (chemical vapor deposition), coating, or the like, a method of laminating metal foil (for example, rolled copper foil, etc.) And a method in which a conductive agent is mixed with a solvent or a synthetic resin binder and applied. The above-mentioned material that can be patterned and is conductive on both the display-side substrate and the back-side substrate can be suitably used. The thickness of the electrode formed of the transparent conductive material is 0.01 to 10 [mu] m, preferably 0.05 to 5 [mu] m, as long as conductivity can be ensured and light transmittance is not hindered. In the present invention, the thickness is inclined from the front end to the end (connecting portion) of the transparent line electrode within the thickness range. Moreover, the thickness of the electrode formed of a metal material is only required to ensure conductivity, and is 3 to 1000 nm, preferably 5 to 400 nm. The external voltage input may be superimposed with direct current or alternating current. A highly conductive material (metal material) is disposed at the joint between the electrode lead line part and the electrode so that there is no step due to the difference in thickness between the lead line part and the electrode.

In the partition for forming cells in the space between the substrates of the information display panel, the height and width of the partition are appropriately set according to the type of the display medium involved in the display and are not limited in general, but the partition width is 2 The height of the partition wall is adjusted to 10 to 500 μm, preferably 10 to 200 μm. As shown in FIG. 14, the cells in the information display panel obtained by superimposing the display side substrate and the back side substrate have a quadrangular shape, a triangular shape, a line shape, a circular shape, and a hexagonal shape as viewed from the substrate plane direction. In addition, an elliptical shape or a racetrack shape may be used, and examples of the arrangement include a lattice shape, a line shape, a honeycomb shape, and a mesh shape. Various shapes of cells are used depending on the partition arrangement. It is better to make the portion corresponding to the partition cross section visible from the display surface side (the area of the cell frame formed by the partition width) as small as possible, and the display state becomes clearer.
Examples of the method for forming the partition include a mold transfer method, a screen printing method, a sand blast method, a photolithography method, and an additive method. Any of these methods can be preferably used, but among these, a photolithography method using a resist film and a mold transfer method are preferably used.

Next, display particles (hereinafter also referred to as particles) constituting the display medium in the information display panel of the present invention will be described. The display particles can be used as they are by using only the display particles to form a display medium, or by combining with other particles to form a display medium.
The particles can contain a charge control agent, a colorant, an inorganic additive, and the like, if necessary, in the resin as the main component, as in the conventional case. Examples of resins, charge control agents, colorants, and other additives will be given below.

  Examples of the resin include urethane resin, urea resin, acrylic resin, polyester resin, acrylic urethane resin, acrylic urethane silicone resin, acrylic urethane fluororesin, acrylic fluororesin, silicone resin, acrylic silicone resin, epoxy resin, polystyrene resin, styrene Acrylic resin, polyolefin resin, butyral resin, vinylidene chloride resin, melamine resin, phenol resin, fluororesin, polycarbonate resin, polysulfone resin, polyether resin, polyamide resin and the like can be mentioned, and two or more kinds can be mixed. In particular, acrylic urethane resin, acrylic silicone resin, acrylic fluororesin, acrylic urethane silicone resin, acrylic urethane fluororesin, fluororesin, and silicone resin are suitable from the viewpoint of controlling the adhesive force with the substrate.

  The charge control agent is not particularly limited. Examples of the negative charge control agent include salicylic acid metal complexes, metal-containing azo dyes, metal-containing oil-soluble dyes (including metal ions and metal atoms), and quaternary ammonium salt systems. Examples thereof include compounds, calixarene compounds, boron-containing compounds (benzyl acid boron complexes), and nitroimidazole derivatives. Examples of the positive charge control agent include nigrosine dyes, triphenylmethane compounds, quaternary ammonium salt compounds, polyamine resins, imidazole derivatives, and the like. In addition, metal oxides such as ultrafine silica, ultrafine titanium oxide, ultrafine alumina, nitrogen-containing cyclic compounds such as pyridine and derivatives and salts thereof, various organic pigments, resins containing fluorine, chlorine, nitrogen, etc. are also charged. It can also be used as a control agent.

  As the colorant, various organic or inorganic pigments and dyes as exemplified below can be used.

Examples of the black colorant include carbon black, copper oxide, manganese dioxide, aniline black, activated carbon and the like.
Examples of blue colorants include C.I. I. Pigment blue 15: 3, C.I. I. Pigment Blue 15, Bituminous Blue, Cobalt Blue, Alkaline Blue Lake, Victoria Blue Lake, Phthalocyanine Blue, Metal-free Phthalocyanine Blue, Phthalocyanine Blue Partial Chlorides, Fast Sky Blue, Indanthrene Blue BC, and the like.
Examples of red colorants include bengara, cadmium red, red lead, mercury sulfide, cadmium, permanent red 4R, resol red, pyrazolone red, watching red, calcium salt, lake red D, brilliant carmine 6B, eosin lake, rhodamine lake B, Alizarin Lake, Brilliant Carmine 3B, C.I. I. Pigment Red 2 etc.

Yellow colorants include chrome yellow, zinc yellow, cadmium yellow, yellow iron oxide, mineral first yellow, nickel titanium yellow, navel yellow, naphthol yellow S, Hansa Yellow G, Hansa Yellow 10G, Benzidine Yellow G, Benzidine Yellow GR, Quinoline Yellow Lake, Permanent Yellow NCG, Tartrazine Lake, C.I. I. Pigment Yellow 12 etc.
Examples of green colorants include chrome green, chromium oxide, pigment green B, C.I. I. Pigment Green 7, Malachite Green Lake, Final Yellow Green G, etc.
Examples of the orange colorant include red chrome yellow, molybdenum orange, permanent orange GTR, pyrazolone orange, Vulcan orange, indanthrene brilliant orange RK, benzidine orange G, indanthrene brilliant orange GK, C.I. I. Pigment Orange 31 etc.
Examples of purple colorants include manganese purple, first violet B, and methyl violet lake.
Examples of white colorants include zinc white, titanium oxide, antimony white, and zinc sulfide.

As extender pigments, barite powder, barium carbonate, clay, silica, white carbon,
There are talc and alumina white. Examples of various dyes such as basic, acidic, disperse, and direct dyes include nigrosine, methylene blue, rose bengal, quinoline yellow, and ultramarine blue.

Examples of inorganic additives include titanium oxide, zinc white, zinc sulfide, antimony oxide, calcium carbonate, lead white, talc, silica, calcium silicate, alumina white, cadmium yellow, cadmium red, cadmium orange, titanium yellow, Examples include bitumen, ultramarine blue, cobalt blue, cobalt green, cobalt violet, iron oxide, carbon black, manganese ferrite black, cobalt ferrite black, copper powder, and aluminum powder.
These pigments and inorganic additives can be used alone or in combination. Of these, carbon black is particularly preferable as the black pigment, and titanium oxide is preferable as the white pigment.
The display agent of a desired color can be produced by blending the colorant.

  The display particles used in the present invention have an average particle diameter d (0.5) in the range of 1 to 20 μm and are preferably uniform and uniform. If the average particle diameter d (0.5) is larger than this range, the display is not clear. If the average particle diameter d (0.5) is smaller than this range, the cohesive force between the particles becomes too large, which hinders movement as a display medium.

Further, in the display particles used in the present invention, regarding the particle size distribution of each particle, the particle size distribution Span represented by the following formula is less than 5, preferably less than 3.
Span = (d (0.9) −d (0.1)) / d (0.5)
(However, d (0.5) is a numerical value expressing the particle diameter in μm that 50% of the particles are larger than this and 50% is smaller than this, and d (0.1) is a particle in which the ratio of the smaller particles is 10%. (Numerical value expressed in μm, and d (0.9) is a numerical value expressed in μm for a particle diameter of 90% or less.)
By keeping Span within a range of 5 or less, the size of each particle is uniform, and uniform movement as a display medium is possible.

  Furthermore, regarding the correlation between the display particles, the ratio of d (0.5) of the particles having the minimum diameter to d (0.5) of the particles having the maximum diameter among the used particles is 50 or less, preferably 10 or less. It is important. Even if the particle size distribution Span is reduced, particles with different charging characteristics move in opposite directions, so that the particle size is close to each other and each particle can be easily moved in the opposite direction by the equivalent amount. This is within this range.

The particle size distribution and particle size of the display particles can be obtained from a laser diffraction / scattering method or the like. When laser light is irradiated onto particles to be measured, a light intensity distribution pattern of diffracted / scattered light is spatially generated, and this light intensity pattern has a corresponding relationship with the particle diameter, so that the particle diameter and particle diameter distribution can be measured. .
Here, the particle size and particle size distribution in the present invention are obtained from a volume-based distribution. Specifically, using a Mastersizer2000 (Malvern Instruments Ltd.) measuring instrument, particles are introduced into a nitrogen stream and the attached analysis software (software based on volume-based distribution using Mie theory) The diameter and particle size distribution can be measured.

  The charge amount of the display particles naturally depends on the measurement conditions, but the charge amount of the display particles in the information display panel is almost the initial charge amount, the contact with the partition wall, the contact with the substrate, and the charge decay with the elapsed time. It was found that the saturation value of the charging behavior of the display particles is a dominant factor.

  As a result of intensive studies, the present inventors have found that by using the same carrier particles in the blow-off method and measuring the charge amount of the display particles, it is possible to evaluate the range of the appropriate charging characteristic value of the display particles. .

Furthermore, in the case of an information display panel that drives a display medium in a gas space, it is important to manage the gas in the gap surrounding the display medium, which contributes to improved display stability. Specifically, it is important that the relative humidity at 25 ° C. is 60% RH or less, and preferably 50% RH or less for the humidity of the gas in the gap.
For example, in FIG. 1 (a), the void portion refers to electrodes 5 and 6 (when electrodes are provided inside the substrate) and display medium 3 (particle group) from the portion sandwiched between the opposing substrate 1 and substrate 2. The gas portion in contact with the so-called display medium, excluding the occupied portion of the partition wall 4, the occupied portion of the partition wall 4, and the seal portion of the information display panel.
The gas in the gap is not limited as long as it is in the humidity region described above, but dry air, dry nitrogen, dry argon, dry helium, dry carbon dioxide, dry methane, and the like are preferable. This gas needs to be sealed in an information display panel so that the humidity is maintained, for example, filling a display medium, assembling an information display panel, etc. in a predetermined humidity environment, It is important to apply a sealing agent and a sealing method that prevent moisture from entering from the outside.

The distance between the substrates in the information display panel of the present invention is not limited as long as the display medium can be moved and the contrast can be maintained, but is usually adjusted to 10 to 500 μm, preferably 10 to 200 μm.
The volume occupancy of the display medium in the gas space in the inter-substrate cell is preferably 5 to 70%, more preferably 5 to 60%. If it exceeds 70%, the movement of the display medium is hindered, and if it is less than 5%, the contrast tends to be unclear.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to FIGS. 15 (a) and 15 (b), showing examples of the information display panel of the present invention. However, the present invention is limited to the following examples. It is not something.
An information display panel was manufactured by the following process.
Steps for forming electrode patterns 5 and 6 on substrates 1 and 2 Steps for forming partition walls (ribs) 4 on substrate 2 (3) Steps for filling display medium into substrate 2 (4) Unnecessary display medium on partition 4 Removal Step (5) Adhesive Layer Formation Step on Partition 4 (6) Bonding Step of Two Substrates 1 and 2 The electrode pattern formation in the step (1) will be described below.

<Example 1>
A copper film (thickness: 100 nm) was formed on the surface of an A4-size display screen area (280 mm × 190 mm) of a glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm and then etched to pattern a copper line electrode with a length of 280 mm and a width of 300 μm. . After forming a 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 2 μm) on the surface of the A4 size display screen area (280 mm × 190 mm) of the glass substrate 2, the power connection side end thickness: 2 μm, the electrode tip A CMP (chemical polishing) process and an etching process were performed so that the thickness was 1.5 μm, and an ITO electrode having a length of 190 mm, a width of 300 μm, and an inclination in height was patterned.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a grid-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode 6 is formed by a photoresist method. Thus, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

<Example 2>
A copper film (thickness: 100 nm) was formed on the surface of a B3-sized display screen area (500 mm × 350 mm) of a glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm and then etched to pattern a copper line electrode having a length of 500 mm and a width of 300 μm. . After forming a 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 4 μm) on the surface of a B3 size display screen area (500 mm × 350 mm) of the glass substrate 2, the power connection side end thickness: 4 μm, the electrode tip A CMP (chemical polishing) process and an etching process were performed so that the thickness was 3 μm, and the ITO electrode 6 having a length of 350 mm, a width of 300 μm, and an inclination in height was patterned.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a lattice-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode is formed by a photoresist method. Then, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

<Example 3>
After forming a 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 2 μm) on the surface of a B5-sized display screen area (240 mm × 170 mm) of the glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm, the thickness on the power connection side end: A CMP (chemical polishing) process and an etching process were performed so that the thickness of the electrode tip was 2 μm and the thickness was 1.8 μm, and an ITO electrode having a length of 240 mm, a width of 300 μm, and a slope was formed. A 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 1 μm) is formed on the surface of a display screen area (240 mm × 170 mm) equivalent to a B5 size of the glass substrate 2 and then subjected to an etching treatment to obtain a length of 170 mm and a width of An ITO electrode having a constant thickness of 300 μm (thickness: 1 μm) was patterned.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a grid-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode 6 is formed by a photoresist method. Thus, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

<Example 4>
After forming a 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 1 μm) on the surface of a B5-sized display screen area (240 mm × 170 mm) of a glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm, the thickness on the power connection side end: A CMP (chemical polishing) process and an etching process were performed so that the thickness of the electrode tip was 1 μm and the electrode tip thickness was 0.5 μm, and an ITO electrode having a length of 240 mm, a width of 300 μm, and an inclination in height was patterned. A 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 0.5 μm) is formed on the surface of a B5-sized display screen area (240 mm × 170 mm) of the glass substrate 2 and then subjected to an etching treatment to obtain a length of 170 mm. An ITO electrode having a width of 300 μm and a constant thickness (thickness: 0.5 μm) was patterned.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a grid-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode 6 is formed by a photoresist method. Thus, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

<Example 5>
A 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 2 μm) is formed on the surface of an A4-size display screen area (280 mm × 190 mm) of both the glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm and the glass substrate 2 having a thickness of 200 μm. Thereafter, the glass substrate 1 is subjected to CMP (chemical polishing) and etching so that the thickness of the power connection side end is 2 μm and the thickness of the electrode tip is 1.5 μm, and the height is 280 mm in length and 300 μm in width. An ITO electrode having an inclination was patterned. The glass substrate 2 is subjected to CMP (chemical polishing) treatment and etching treatment so that the thickness at the power connection side end is 2 μm and the electrode tip thickness is 1.7 μm, and the height is 190 mm in length and 300 μm in width and inclined to the height. An ITO electrode with a pattern was formed.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a grid-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode 6 is formed by a photoresist method. Thus, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

<Example 6>
After forming a 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 6 μm) on the surface of a B3-sized display screen area (500 mm × 350 mm) of the glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm, the thickness on the power connection side end: A CMP (chemical polishing) treatment and an etching treatment were performed so that the thickness of the electrode tip was 6 μm and the electrode tip thickness was 4 μm, and an ITO electrode having a length of 500 mm, a width of 300 μm, and an inclination was formed. A 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 3 μm) is formed on the surface of a B3 size display screen area (500 mm × 350 mm) of the glass substrate 2, and then an etching process is performed to obtain a length of 350 mm, a width An ITO electrode having a constant thickness (thickness: 3 μm) at 300 μm was patterned.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a grid-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode 6 is formed by a photoresist method. Thus, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

<Comparative Example 1>
After forming a 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 0.5 μm) on the surface of a B5 size display screen area (240 mm × 170 mm) of a glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm, an etching process was performed. An ITO electrode having a length of 240 mm, a width of 300 μm, and a constant thickness (thickness: 0.5 μm) was patterned. A 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 0.5 μm) is formed on the surface of a B5-sized display screen area (240 mm × 170 mm) of the glass substrate 2 and then subjected to an etching treatment to obtain a length of 170 mm. An ITO electrode having a width of 300 μm and a constant thickness (thickness: 0.5 μm) was patterned.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a grid-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode 6 is formed by a photoresist method. Thus, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

<Comparative example 2>
After forming a 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 4 μm) on the surface of a B3 size display screen area (500 mm × 350 mm) of a glass substrate 1 having a thickness of 200 μm, an etching process is performed to An ITO electrode having a thickness of 500 mm and a width of 300 μm and a constant thickness (thickness: 4 μm) was patterned. A 30 Ω / □ tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film (thickness: 3 μm) is formed on the surface of a B3 size display screen area (500 mm × 350 mm) of the glass substrate 2, and then an etching process is performed to obtain a length of 350 mm, a width An ITO electrode having a constant thickness (thickness: 3 μm) at 300 μm was patterned.
Thereafter, a pattern of 320 μm square openings (this portion becomes a display cell) and a grid-like partition wall 4 having a line width of 30 μm and a height of 40 μm is formed on the substrate 2 on which the ITO electrode 6 is formed by a photoresist method. Thus, a substrate 2 with partition walls was obtained.
The white display medium (negatively charged) and the black display medium (positively charged) were combined and placed in the cell with the same volume so that the volume was 25 vol%, and two substrates were bonded to obtain an information display panel.

  When the solid image display was performed by the reversal movement of the white display medium and the black display medium with all the dots arranged in the matrix, the information display panels of Comparative Example 1 and Comparative Example 2 were separated from the power-supply side junction. In the diagonal part of the display area, there was a problem that the contrast between the black solid display and the white solid display was small, but the information display panels of Examples 1 to 6 had some problems in the same test evaluation. It never happened.

  The information display panel of the present invention includes a notebook computer, an electronic notebook, a portable information device called PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), a display unit of a mobile device such as a mobile phone, a handy terminal, an electronic book, an electronic newspaper, an electronic manual ( Electronic paper such as instruction manuals, signboards, posters, bulletin boards such as blackboards (whiteboards), electronic desk calculators, display units for home appliances, automobile supplies, card display units such as point cards and IC cards, electronic advertisements, In addition to information boards, electronic POPs (Point Of Presence, Point Of Purchase advertising), electronic price tags, electronic shelf labels, electronic musical scores, RF-ID device displays, various electronic devices such as POS terminals, car navigation devices, watches, etc. It is suitably used for the display unit.

  As a driving method of the information display panel of the present invention, a simple matrix driving method or a static driving method in which no switching element is used for the panel itself is suitable.

(A), (b) is a figure which shows an example of the information display panel of this invention, respectively. (A), (b) is a figure which shows the other example of the information display panel of this invention, respectively. It is a figure which shows the further another example of the information display panel of this invention. It is a figure which shows the further another example of the information display panel of this invention. (A), (b) is a figure which shows the further another example of the information display panel of this invention, respectively. (A), (b) is a figure which shows the further another example of the information display panel of this invention, respectively. It is a figure which shows the further another example of the information display panel of this invention. (A)-(c) is the example of arrangement | positioning of the line electrode in the information display panel of this invention. (A)-(c) is the other example of arrangement | positioning of the line electrode in the information display panel of this invention. (A)-(c) is another example of arrangement | positioning of the line electrode in the information display panel of this invention. (A)-(d) is 1st Example of the information display panel of this invention. (A)-(d) is 2nd Example of the information display panel of this invention. (A)-(d) is 3rd Example of the rectangular information display panel of this invention. An example of the partition in the information display panel of this invention is shown. (A), (b) is a figure for demonstrating the Example of the information display panel of this invention, respectively.

Explanation of symbols

1, 2 Substrate 3 Display medium 3W White display medium 3Wa White particles for display 3B Black display medium 3Ba Black particles for display 3Ra Red particles for display 3Ga Green particles for display 3BLa Blue particles for display 3Ma Magenta particles for display 3Ya Yellow particles for display 3Ca Cyan particle for display 4 Bulkhead 5, 6 Electrode 5C, 6C Line electrode connection portion 5E, 6E Line electrode tip 7C Color plate 7W White plate 8 Insulating liquid 10 Lead wire portion 11 Power connection member 12 Cell 13 Power source 15 Between substrates Distance securing member 21 cell 21-1 first cell 21-2 second cell 21-3 third cell 22R red color filter 22G green color filter 22BL blue color filter

Claims (5)

A transparent substrate on which a transparent line electrode is formed and another substrate on which either a transparent line electrode or a non-transparent line electrode is formed are opposed to each other so that the two line electrodes are orthogonal to each other. At least one type of display medium composed of at least one type of particles and having optical reflectivity and chargeability is enclosed in the substrate space, and a voltage is applied between the counter electrodes formed by the opposed and orthogonal line electrodes. In an information display panel of a dot matrix type display system that displays information such as an image by moving the display medium by an applied electric field,
The thickness of the power line side connection part of the transparent line electrode provided on at least one substrate is made thicker than the thickness of the tip part of the line electrode so that the line electrode thickness is inclined in the longitudinal direction. An information display panel characterized by being made.   When both of the two line electrodes are transparent line electrodes, the thickness of the transparent line electrode is set such that the thickness of the power supply side connection portion of at least the longer transparent line electrode is larger than the thickness of the tip end portion of the transparent line electrode. The information display panel according to claim 1, wherein the information display panel is configured to have an inclination in a length direction.   When both of the two line electrodes are transparent line electrodes, at least the thickness of the power supply side connecting portion of the transparent line electrode disposed on the back side substrate is made thicker than the thickness of the front end portion of the transparent line electrode, The information display panel according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the panel is inclined in the length direction.   A transparent line electrode inclined in the length direction is selected from indium tin oxide, indium oxide, zinc-doped indium oxide, antimony tin oxide, conductive tin oxide, conductive zinc oxide, polyaniline, polypyrrole, and polythiophene. 4. The information display panel according to claim 1, wherein the information display panel is formed of any one of transparent conductive materials.   The line electrode with an inclination in the length direction makes the thickness of the power electrode side connection part of the line electrode thicker by 0.1 to 2 μm than the thickness of the tip part of the line electrode, and the line electrode is inclined in the length direction 5. The information display panel according to claim 1, wherein the information display panel is configured to provide

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