JP2012118303A - Information display terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a user-friendly information display terminal that is light-weight despite a large display unit provided therein and does not make a user become tired even if he/she uses the terminal for a long time.SOLUTION: An information display terminal 1 includes a display unit 2 having flexibility and a housing 3. The housing 3 is arranged on a part of the outer edge part of the display unit 2. The display unit 2 has a first substrate 53, a thin film circuit 80 using a thin film transistor is formed on the first substrate 53, and the housing 3 is arranged not to touch the first substrate 53. This improves the durability of the information display terminal 1. Since the display unit 2 is lighter and more flexible than the housing 3, a reinforcement member that protects the unit from external impact is not necessary, and the entire information display terminal 1 can be made thin and light. Further, the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is positioned in the vicinity of the housing 3, so that a user can use the terminal for a long time without getting tired even if the user holds the information display terminal 1 by one hand.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information display terminal that can be applied to an electronic book or the like.

In the conventional information display terminal, as described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, for example, a rectangular liquid crystal display is housed in an outer box. The outer box contained a main circuit board and a battery for controlling the liquid crystal display. Since the liquid crystal display is fabricated on a glass substrate and is easily broken, all of the four outer sides of the liquid crystal display and its back surface (the surface opposite to the display surface) are surrounded and protected by an outer box. For example, a flat plate on the back side constituting the outer box is made of plastic such as polycarbonate, and a metal elastic structure is sandwiched between the polycarbonate and the liquid crystal display as a reinforcing member. The elastic structure is a product obtained by bending a metal plate into a U shape, thereby preventing the impact applied to the back side of the outer box from being directly transmitted to the glass substrate of the liquid crystal display.
As a result of such a configuration, the conventional information display terminal uses a metal reinforcing member in addition to the heavy glass substrate itself forming the display device, so even if it is portable, it is nearly 500 g or more. The weight was reached.

JP 2003-316342 A JP 2005-242436 A

  When the information display terminal is carried and used, in many cases, the information display terminal is held between the thumb of one hand and the other finger. For example, as shown in FIG. 12, consider the case of grasping an information display terminal having a width (x direction) of 151 mm and a length (y direction) of 181 mm. Assume that the weight of the information display terminal is 400 g, the thumb TB is hung at a position 10 mm inward from the lower right (origin O), and the index finger IF is placed on the back surface at a position 10 mm from the thumb TB in the direction of the center of gravity C. In this case, since the center of gravity C of the terminal is in the vicinity of the center, the torque applied to the thumb TB is 3751 g, and the load applied to the index finger IF reaches 4151 g. As described above, since the information display terminal according to the related art is heavy, there is a problem that a burden on the finger is large and it is difficult to use the information display terminal for a long time. In addition, this problem becomes more prominent as the display area of the information display terminal becomes larger. Therefore, it is difficult to realize a portable information display terminal that has a relatively large display area and can be used for a long time. There was a problem. In other words, there is a problem that it is difficult to realize a user-friendly information display terminal.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

Application Example 1 An information display terminal according to this application example includes at least a flexible display device and a housing disposed at a part of the outer edge of the display device, and the display device includes a first substrate. And a thin film circuit is formed on the first substrate, and the housing is mounted so as not to be hung on the first substrate.
According to this configuration, since the display device is flexible, even if an impact such as a drop is applied, the display device itself is hardly damaged by the buffering action of the display device itself. In a suitable example, it originates in the display apparatus being formed in the lightweight plastic film. Therefore, even if the entire display device is not housed in the outer box using the reinforcing member as in the prior art, the practical strength can be ensured only by disposing the casing on a part of the outer edge portion of the display device. As a result, since the entire information display terminal can be made thin and light, it can be used for a long time without feeling tired. Further, even if the display device is enlarged, the weight is only slightly increased, so that a portable information display terminal having a relatively large display area and usable for a long time is realized. In addition, since the housing is mounted so as not to hang on the first substrate, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the edge of the housing exerts a strong stress on the thin film circuit formed on the first substrate and breaks the thin film circuit. In other words, an information portable terminal that has practical durability and is easy to use can be realized.

Application Example 2 In the information display terminal according to the application example described above, the display device has a display portion on the display surface, and the housing is disposed on the display surface side when the surface opposite to the display surface is the back surface. It is preferable that the upper part of the casing and the lower part of the casing disposed on the back side are at least provided so that the upper part of the casing does not overlap the first substrate in front view.
According to this configuration, since the upper part of the casing does not overlap with the first substrate, it does not overlap with the thin film circuit formed on the first substrate, and the edge of the upper part of the casing exerts a strong stress on these thin film circuits, and the thin film circuit The situation that destroys can be avoided. In addition, since the upper part of the casing does not cover the display part formed in the first substrate, the entire area of the display part can be used for display. That is, the display unit can be used effectively, and the reliability of the information display terminal at the time of use can be improved.

Application Example 3 In the information display terminal according to the application example, it is preferable that the display unit includes a pixel area and a blank area.
According to this configuration, a blank area is provided in a non-pixel area that is not used as a pixel area, and the display unit includes the pixel area and the blank area. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a blank area inside the pixel area. Can be used effectively.

Application Example 4 In the information display terminal according to the application example, the display device includes the second substrate and the electro-optic material, and the electro-optic material is sandwiched between the first substrate and the second substrate. It is preferable that a coating portion is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the substrate, and the coating portion partially overlaps with the display portion in a front view.
According to this structure, since the coating part covers the area | region where the optical characteristic of an electro-optical material is not controlled outside a display part, it can be set as the information display terminal excellent in aesthetics.

Application Example 5 In the information display terminal according to the application example described above, it is preferable that the second substrate is larger than the first substrate, and the upper portion of the housing overlaps the second substrate in front view.
According to this configuration, there is no gap between the second substrate and the upper part of the housing. That is, when viewed from the front, the information display terminal is composed of a display unit, a coating unit, an upper part of the casing, and the like, and can be an information display terminal with excellent aesthetics.

Application Example 6 In the information display terminal according to the application example described above, it is preferable that the lower portion of the housing partially overlaps the display unit in the rear view.
As described above, since the upper part of the casing does not overlap with the thin film circuit, the size thereof is limited, and the main circuit board and the power source for controlling the display device may not be accommodated in the upper part of the casing. On the other hand, according to this configuration, the lower part of the casing can be enlarged to the display unit, so that the main circuit board, the power source, and the like can be incorporated in the lower part of the casing.

Application Example 7 In the information display terminal according to the application example described above, the upper part of the casing has a flat plate shape having the upper length of the casing and the upper width of the casing, and the lower part of the casing has the lower length of the casing and the lower width of the casing. It is preferable that the upper width of the casing is narrower than the lower width of the casing.
According to this structure, an information display terminal becomes thin flat plate shape, and can show the outstanding operativity. Further, since the width of the upper part of the casing is narrow, most of the information display terminals can be used as the display unit when viewed from the front. That is, when viewed from the front, the size of the information display terminal can be made substantially the same as that of the display unit, and an information display terminal excellent in design and operability can be realized.

Application Example 8 In the information display terminal according to the application example, it is preferable that the lower width of the housing is 30 mm or more and 60 mm or less.
The distance from the lower palm (the proximal interphalangeal joint muscle portion of the thumb) to the middle or tip of the ring finger when a person gently rolls his hand is approximately 30 to 60 mm. Therefore, according to this configuration, one side of the lower part of the housing can be put on the palm, and the middle or ring finger can be hung on the other side parallel to the side, so that the information display terminal can be easily held. Become. Further, as will be described below, the center of gravity of the information display terminal is located in or near the lower part of the casing, so that the center of gravity is on the palm of the hand and the user hardly feels torque. That is, the information display terminal can be used without causing the hands and fingers to feel tired.

Application Example 9 In the information display terminal according to the application example, it is preferable that the center of gravity of the information display terminal is located in the lower part of the housing.
Since the display device is lighter than the lower part of the casing, the center of gravity of the information display terminal can be positioned inside the lower part of the casing. Since the lower part of the housing is disposed at the outer edge of the display device, the center of gravity is also located in the vicinity of the outer edge. In this case, even if the information display terminal is accidentally dropped, in many cases, the casing falls downward, and the casing first collides with the floor. Therefore, the casing receives the strongest impact of dropping, and the display device does not receive as much impact as the casing. In addition, the impact of the collision that the display device suffers (impact due to momentum) is determined by the drop speed and the mass of the display device because the housing first collides with the floor, and has no relation to the mass of the information display terminal (the housing). The body weight is less likely to hang on the display). Further, when considering the moment of inertia starting from the point of collision with the floor, if the display device first collides with the floor, the moment of inertia of the housing of the display device acts as an impact. On the other hand, when the casing first collides with the floor, the moment of inertia acting on the display device (impact caused by the moment of inertia) becomes the value of the display device itself, so that the impact caused by a very small moment of inertia is applied. Not too much. Since the display device itself is flexible and light, these two types of impacts that the display device suffers from this also weaken. That is, if only the casing has high durability against drop impact, the entire information display terminal has high durability against drop impact even if the drop impact durability of the display device itself is low. It will be a thing. Thus, a reinforcing member for the display device is not required, and a thin, light and durable information display terminal can be obtained.
In addition, since the center of gravity of the information display terminal is located at the outer edge, when the user holds the casing of the information display terminal by hand, that is, it grasps the vicinity of the center of gravity of the information display terminal. Since the vicinity of the center of gravity is grasped, the torque of the information display terminal received by the user is extremely small. Thus, even if the information display terminal is held with one hand, it can be used for a long time without fatigue.

(A); Front perspective view schematically showing an information display terminal according to Embodiment 1, (b): Rear perspective view. The sectional side view in the A-A 'cross section of Fig.1 (a). (A); Front perspective view which shows an example at the time of use of an information display terminal, (b); Back perspective view. The front view which shows typically the 1st board | substrate currently used with the information display terminal. The front view which shows the use condition of an information display terminal typically. Sectional drawing in the horizontal direction of an information display terminal. The front perspective view which shows an information display terminal typically. The front perspective view which shows an information display terminal typically. The front view which showed typically the information display terminal concerning Embodiment 2. FIG. Sectional drawing in the vertical direction of an information display terminal. The front view which shows typically the 1st board | substrate currently used with the information display terminal concerning the modification 1. FIG. The front view which shows the use condition of the conventional information display terminal typically.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following drawings, the scales are different for each layer and each member so that each layer and each member has a size that can be recognized on the drawing.

(Definition)
First, terms used in the present application are defined as follows.
An information display terminal is an electronic device having a function of displaying information. Examples include an electronic book and an Internet browsing device, a personal computer, a mobile phone, a video image viewing device, a digital photo frame, a navigation system, and personal digital assistants. It is.
A display device is a so-called display that displays an image when power, a predetermined signal, or the like is input.
The housing is a box containing a main circuit board, a battery, and the like for controlling the display device.

(Embodiment 1)
"Outline of information display terminal"
FIG. 1A is a front perspective view schematically showing the information display terminal according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 1B is a rear perspective view. Hereinafter, the outline of the information display terminal will be described first with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1A, the information display terminal 1 includes a display device 2 and a housing 3 as components. The display device 2 has a flat rectangular shape. The housing 3 is disposed on a part of the outer edge of the display device 2 and holds the display device 2. That is, the housing 3 serves as a holding portion (case portion) for the display device 2. The part of the outer edge of the display device 2 is preferably one side of a rectangle. As will be described in detail later, the housing 3 is held by the user's hand during use. Therefore, the housing 3 is also a grip part of the information display terminal 1.

  The display device 2 has a vertically long rectangle. Hereinafter, in each of the drawings including FIG. 1, the vertical direction is defined as a y-axis direction, and a horizontal direction substantially orthogonal to the vertical direction is defined as an x-axis direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 1A, in the front view, one side where the elongated casing 3 is provided is the right side of the information display terminal 1, and the front side orthogonal to the right side is the lower side. The y axis is aligned with the right side, the x axis is aligned with the lower side, and the intersection of the x axis and the y axis is the origin O. The origin O is therefore located near the lower right corner of the information display terminal 1. The positive direction of the x-axis is the direction from right to left, and the positive direction of the y-axis is the direction from bottom to top.

The housing 3 has a thin flat plate shape, and as shown in FIG. 1A, a housing upper portion 31 (an upper part of the housing 3) is provided on the front surface as a display surface, as shown in FIG. Similarly, the housing lower part 32 (lower part of the housing 3) is provided on the back surface opposite to the display surface. The housing upper part 31 and the housing lower part 32 are thin flat plates, and they are overlapped to form the housing 3. As can be seen by comparing FIG. 1 (a) and FIG. 1 (b), the width (width W _F ) of the housing 3 on the front side is larger than the width (width W _B ) of the housing 3 on the back side. It is narrower.

  Various circuits (control circuit) for controlling the display device 2 and a power source are housed in the lower housing 32. As a result, the housing 3 accounts for more than half of the weight of the information display terminal 1. is occupying. In the preferred embodiment, the housing 3 occupies 67% of the total weight. For these reasons, the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is located in the lower portion 32 of the housing.

  The display device 2 is light, flexible, and excellent in mechanical and chemical durability. For this reason, it is relatively strong against external impact, and it is not necessary to protect the entire display device 2 by covering it with the housing 3. Thus, the housing 3 can be provided on the outer edge of the display device 2. Since the housing 3 does not cover the entire display device 2 and there is no need to dispose a metal reinforcing member or the like, the entire information display terminal 1 is made thin and light.

  The display device 2 includes a display unit 21 and displays various types of information on the display unit 21. The display device 2 further includes a first substrate 53 (see FIG. 2), and a thin film circuit 80 (see FIG. 2) is formed on the first substrate 53. The housing 3 is mounted so as not to hang on the first substrate 53. As a result, the right side 21 </ b> R of the display unit 21 is separated from the left side 31 </ b> L of the housing upper part 31. That is, the housing upper part 31 does not overlap the display unit 21 or the thin film circuit 80 in a front view. An operation switch 4 is provided substantially at the center of the housing 3, and information displayed on the display unit 21 is updated through switch operation.

  Hereinafter, although the technical details regarding the information display terminal 1 will be described, in the present embodiment, as a preferable example, a case where an electrophoretic display (EPD) is applied to the display device 2 will be described. Therefore, a suitable example of the information display terminal 1 is an electronic book.

"Cross-sectional structure of information display terminal"
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing the information display terminal according to the first embodiment, and corresponds to a cross section taken along line AA ′ in FIG. Although the operation switch 4 does not exist on the AA ′ line in FIG. 1A, it is also drawn for reference. Here, a cross-sectional structure of the information display terminal 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the information display terminal 1 includes a display device 2 and a housing 3 provided on the right side thereof. The display device 2 includes an electro-optical panel 5 and a protection unit 6. The electro-optical panel 5 is a so-called naked display in which an electro-optical material 55 is sandwiched between a pair of substrates. The protection unit 6 is transparent and covers the electro-optical panel 5 to improve the mechanical or chemical durability of the electro-optical panel 5 without impairing the display performance. The electro-optic panel 5 is accompanied by a tape wiring 9. The tape wiring 9 has one end connected to the electro-optical panel 5 and the other end connected to the main circuit board 324. The protection unit 6 covers the entire electro-optical panel 5 with the other end of the tape wiring 9 exposed. The tape wiring 9 is a flexible component that electrically connects the main circuit board 324 and the electro-optical panel 5, and may be composed only of wiring, such as a flexible printed circuit (FPC). Alternatively, an IC chip may be stacked on the FPC, such as a chip-on-film (COF) or a tape carrier package (TCP: Tape-Carrier-Package). The electro-optical panel 5 is provided with a mounting terminal 911, and the tape wiring 9 is connected to the mounting terminal 911.

  The electro-optical panel 5 includes a first substrate 53 and a second substrate 54, and an electro-optical material 55 is sandwiched between the substrates. A thin film circuit 80 is formed on the surface of the first substrate 53. The thin film circuit 80 includes a pixel circuit 81 and a drive circuit, and the drive circuit includes a high speed operation circuit 832 and a low speed operation circuit 831. The first substrate 53 is often referred to as an active matrix substrate. A common electrode (not shown) is formed on the surface of the second substrate 54. In the first substrate 53, the surface on which the electro-optic material 55 is provided is defined as the front surface, and the surface opposite to the front surface is defined as the back surface. The front and back surfaces of the second substrate 54 are similarly defined. The electro-optic material 55 is uniformly disposed on almost the entire surface of both substrates. The common electrode is also formed on almost the entire surface of the second substrate 54.

  The electro-optical panel 5 is divided into a display part 21 and a peripheral part 52. The display unit 21 is a part where the optical characteristics of the electro-optic material 55 can be modulated, and information is displayed here. In the electro-optical panel 5, a part other than the display unit 21 is referred to as a peripheral part 52. At the same time, the electro-optical panel 5 can be divided into a pixel region 511 and a non-pixel region. The pixel region 511 is a region where a plurality of pixels are arranged with a predetermined regularity like a matrix, and a pixel electrode 513 is formed in each pixel. The pixel electrode 513 is connected to a pixel circuit 81 provided in each pixel and is controlled independently for each pixel. Thereby, desired information is displayed in the pixel region 511. The non-pixel region refers to a portion that is not the pixel region 511 on the electro-optical panel 5. If the concept of the pixel area 511 is used, the display unit 21 may be composed of a pixel area 511 and a blank area 512. The blank area 512 is provided in a non-pixel area (a part outside the pixel area 511) adjacent to the pixel area 511, and is a frame-like area in a front view. In this area, fine information cannot be displayed, but white (bright) black (dark) or an intermediate gradation display of these, and a blank area. A substrate wiring 84 and a low-speed operation circuit 831 are arranged in the blank area 512, and these are covered with a blank electrode 514.

  The electro-optic material 55 is disposed on almost the entire surface of both substrates, but is not disposed at the position where the peripheral mounting terminals 911 exist. Here, instead of the electro-optic material 55, the tape wiring 9 and the anisotropic conductive adhesive are disposed, and the total thickness thereof is substantially equal to the thickness of the electro-optic material 55. The electro-optic material 55 is removed from the mounting terminals 911 and the tape wiring 9 is mounted so as to have the same thickness here, so that the display device 2 has a uniform thickness as a whole. As a result, when the second substrate 54 coated with the electro-optic material 55 is bonded to the first substrate 53, when the protective sheet 61 is bonded, and when the sealing material 62 is cured, the mounting terminal 911 is transferred to the thin film circuit 80. It prevents cracks from breaking and destroying the circuit.

  A coating portion 515 is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the back surface of the second substrate 54. The coating part 515 is an area where paint such as white is applied, and is provided so as to overlap the blank area 512 in plan view from the end (edge) of the second substrate 54. In other words, the coating portion 515 is provided so as to cover the outer portion of the blank area 512 and the peripheral portion 52. The upper part 31 of the casing overlaps with the paint part 515 in plan view, and the left side 31L is positioned on the paint part 515. Since the electro-optic material 55 is disposed on almost the entire surface of the second substrate 54, the region (peripheral portion 52) other than the display unit 21 is not controlled by the electro-optic material, and is displayed in a frame shape with uncontrolled intermediate gradation. Make. This is covered with a coating unit 515, and the information display terminal 1 is excellent in aesthetic appearance. Note that the blank area 512 may be omitted, in which case the display unit 21 and the pixel area 511 coincide, and the peripheral part 52 and the non-pixel area coincide. In this case, the coating portion 515 slightly overlaps with the pixel region 511 and covers the substrate wiring 84 and the drive circuit (the low speed operation circuit 831 and the high speed operation circuit 832).

  The thin film circuit 80 formed on the first substrate 53 includes thin film elements such as a thin film transistor (TFT), a thin film capacitor, a thin film diode, and a thin film resistor. The first substrate 53 is a smooth substrate of flexible plastic (typically a polyester film). The semiconductor layer of the TFT is a crystalline silicon film (this is called a crystalline silicon TFT). On the surface of the first substrate 53, a pixel circuit 81, wiring, a driving circuit (a scanning circuit 82 and a signal circuit 83 shown later in FIG. 4), and the like are formed by thin film elements. A pixel circuit 81 is disposed in the pixel region 511, a low speed operation circuit 831 is disposed outside the pixel circuit 81, and a high speed operation circuit 832 is disposed outside the pixel circuit 511. A pixel electrode 513 is provided on the pixel circuit 81, and a blank electrode 514 is provided on the low speed operation circuit 831. These thin film elements are bonded onto a plastic film using a transfer technique described later. The display area is typically a quadrangle such as a rectangle, but may be other polygons, circles, ellipses, hearts, or the like.

  The housing 3 includes a housing upper portion 31 and a housing lower portion 32 as components, and the housing upper portion 31 and the housing lower portion 32 sandwich the display device 2. The inside of the housing lower part 32 is hollowed in a concave shape, and the main circuit board 324 is accommodated inside. The main circuit board 324 is equipped with a secondary battery and a control circuit, and controls the electro-optical panel 5. The control circuit is assembled by various electronic elements 325. The electronic element 325 is an IC chip, a capacitor, a resistor, a transformer, or the like. These electronic elements 325 are mounted on both surfaces of the main circuit board 324. The back surface of the main circuit board 324 is in contact with the bottom surface inside the housing lower part 32, and the surface of the main circuit board 324 is in contact with the back surface of the display device 2 through the adhesive 326. The adhesive 326 is also provided on the upper part of the outer frame of the housing lower part 32. In this manner, the display device 2 is sandwiched between the upper case portion 31 and the lower case portion 32, and is fixed to the lower case portion 32 with the adhesive 326. The outer frame of the case upper part 31 and the case lower part 32 has good appearance such as ABS resin (acrylonitrile, butadiene, and styrene copolymer synthetic resin), is made of strong plastic, and has high impact resistance. . A connector for connecting the tape wiring 9 is provided on the back surface of the main circuit board 324, and power and signals are supplied to the display device 2 through the connector.

  As shown in FIG. 1A, the operation switch 4 has four contacts in the top, bottom, left, and right directions in the plan view (operation direction input), and has a push button contact at the center. When one of the four contacts and the center contact comes into contact with the contact of the switch body by the tilting operation of the rod, the operation input signal is transmitted to the center operator, and the main circuit board 324 accommodated in the housing 3. The information on the display unit 21 is updated by operating a predetermined circuit. As shown in FIG. 2, the operation switch 4 extends from the main circuit board 324 to the upper part 31 of the housing.

  Here, the control circuit and the power source are arranged on the back surface of the display device 2, but a part of them is arranged adjacent to the front surface of the display device 2 (in the upper part 31 of the casing) or next to the display device 2. Also good.

"Case size"
Returning to FIG.
The upper part 31 of the casing is flat and has a length L _F and a width W _F. Also the housing lower part 32 is flat, having a length L _B and width W _B. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the case upper part 31 has a thickness t _F and the case lower part 32 has a thickness t _B. The length L _F and the length L _B are both substantially equal, and one long side of each is matched with the side opposite to the display device 2. That is, the right side 31R of the housing upper part 31 and the right side 32R of the housing lower part 32 are matched. Further, the short side of the upper part 31 of the casing and the short side of the lower part 32 of the casing are also matched. As a result, the upper side, the lower side, and the right side of the housing 3 are aligned with the three edges (edges) of the upper portion 31 of the housing and the three edges (edges) of the lower portion 32 of the housing 3 with a sense of unity. It becomes the housing 3. Further, as shown in FIG. 1A, each side forming the display unit 21 is parallel to each side of the display device 2, and these sides are parallel to each side forming the housing 3. For these reasons, the information display terminal 1 has an excellent aesthetic appearance. In this embodiment, the length L _F and the length L _B are both 167 mm, and the thickness t _F and the thickness t _B are both 3.25 mm.

With respect to the width W _F of the housing upper part 31, which was narrower than the width W _B of the housing lower part 32, as shown in FIG. 2, the housing top 31 when assembled information display terminal 1 is first substrate Do not overlap with 53 in front view. That is, the left side 31L of the housing upper part 31 is positioned outside the right side 53R of the first substrate 53. Further, as will be described in detail later, the second substrate 54 is larger than the first substrate 53, and the left side 31L is positioned inside the right side 54R of the second substrate 54. That is, the left side 31L is located between the right side 53R and the right side 54R. As a result, the tape wiring 9 is concealed in the front view in the coating portion 515 or the upper part 31 of the second substrate 54, and the information display terminal 1 is excellent in aesthetic appearance. In the present embodiment, there is a slight gap of about 0.5 mm between the right side 53R and the left side 31L, and there is a slight gap of about 0.5 mm between the left side 31L and the right side 54R. When the housing 3 is arranged on one side of the flexible display device 2, if the display device 2 is curved, the edge of the housing 3 may be difficult to insert into the display device 2, and the display device 2 may be destroyed. For example, when the display device 2 is curved in a concave shape, the edge (left side 31L) of the upper portion of the housing 31 is difficult to insert into the display device 2, and exerts a strong biting pressure on the display device. For this reason, when the thin film circuit 80 is present at a position corresponding to the edge portion in the display device 2, the thin film circuit 80 is likely to be broken by a strong biting stress. In the configuration of the present embodiment, since the thin film circuit is not disposed at a location corresponding to the edge portion (left side 31L), practical durability of the information display terminal 1 is ensured. In the present embodiment, the width W _F is 11.5 mm.

With respect to the width W _B, which was wider than the width W _F, as shown in FIG. 1 (b), the housing lower part 32 and the rear surface of the display section 21, in rear view, to such overlapping. This is because a main circuit board 324 and a battery for controlling the information display terminal 1 are incorporated in the lower part 32 of the casing and the casing 3 is easily held by hand. Since the main parts are incorporated in the housing lower part 32, the housing upper part 31 can be made small as described above, and most of the information display terminal 1 is the display unit 21 in a front view. In the present embodiment, it is 45mm width W _B. Further, since the information display terminal 1 has a width of 151 mm, a length of 181 mm, and the display device 2 and the housing upper part 31 overlap each other by 9.5 mm in the width direction, the area of the information display terminal 1 in the front view is 27303 mm. ² . The display unit 21 has a width of 125 mm, a length of 169 mm, and an area in front view of 21125 mm ² . Therefore, the area ratio of the display unit 21 to the information display terminal 1 is 77%. However, since the protection unit 6 is transparent, it is difficult to recognize as the information display terminal 1, and the area ratio of the display unit 21 with respect to the information display terminal 1 is realized (referred to as an actuality ratio), except for the protection unit 6 (electricity The ratio of the display unit 21 to the optical panel 5 and the housing upper part 31) is obtained. The area of the part excluding the protective part 6 is 23419 mm ² . Therefore, the actual ratio of the display unit 21 to the information display terminal 1 is 90%. Thus the narrowed width W _F, when the feeling ratio of the display unit 21 to 90%, an extremely functional information display terminal 1. In addition, the site | part which does not overlap with the display part 21 in the protection part 6 does not need to be transparent, and you may paint it so that aesthetics may be excellent. For example, if this part is painted white and a blank is provided, the user recognizes this part as a part of the display unit 21, and the information display terminal 1 is wide and easy to use.

“Lower case width and operation switch position”
3A and 3B are diagrams showing an example of the information display terminal according to the first embodiment when used, wherein FIG. 3A is a front perspective view, and FIG. 3B is a rear perspective view. Here, the configuration requirements for making the information display terminal 1 easy to use will be described with reference to FIG.

When the information display terminal 1 is used, as shown in FIG. 3A, the right side of the housing 3 is applied to the lower part of the palm (the proximal interphalangeal joint muscle portion of the thumb), and FIG. As shown, when the hand is lightly rolled and the tip of the index finger, middle finger or ring finger is hooked on the left side 32L, the information display terminal 1 can be easily held with one hand. At this time, since the information display terminal 1 is fixed with four fingers excluding the thumb and the palm, the thumb can be used freely. That is, the operation switch 4 provided on the upper part 31 of the housing can be freely operated with the thumb while the information display terminal 1 is stably held with one hand. To achieve this, the first width W _B, it is necessary to be equal to the distance from the palm lower to previous or ring finger of the previous middle finger when rounded gently hand. The average distance for adults is approximately 30 to 60 mm. Thus the width W _B is preferably set to 60mm from 30 mm.

  Moreover, if the angle | corner which makes the intersection of lower side 32D of the housing | casing lower part 32 and the right side 32R is pressed down by the lower part of a palm, it will become easier to hold | maintain the information display terminal 1. FIG. In this case, in order to operate the operation switch 4 with the thumb, the distance from the lower part of the palm to the tip of the thumb must be substantially the same as the distance from this corner to the operation switch 4. Since the distance from the lower palm of an adult to the thumb is about 50 mm to 100 mm on average, the distance from the corner between the lower side 32D and the right side 32R to the operation switch 4 is preferably 50 mm to 100 mm. In the present embodiment, the distance is 83.5 mm, and the operation switch 4 is located in the center in the long side direction of the housing upper part 31.

"First board"
FIG. 4 is a front view schematically showing a first substrate used in the information display terminal according to the first embodiment. In FIG. 4, when the information display terminal 1 is assembled, a portion where the left side 31L of the upper portion 31 of the housing is located is indicated by a one-dot chain line, and a portion where the right side 54R of the second substrate 54 is located is indicated by a two-dot chain line. It is shown. Here, the first board | substrate 53 used for the information display terminal 1 is demonstrated using FIG. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the tape wiring 9 is mounted on the first substrate 53.

  The first substrate 53 includes a display unit 21 and a peripheral unit 52. The display unit 21 includes a pixel region 511 and a blank region 512, and a part of the driving circuit (high-speed operation circuit 832) and the mounting unit 91 are provided in the peripheral portion 52. In the pixel region 511, a plurality of pixel electrodes 513 are arranged in a matrix, and each pixel electrode 513 is connected to the pixel circuit 81. In the blank area 512, another part of the drive circuit (the low speed operation circuit 831 and the scanning circuit 82) and the substrate wiring 84 are arranged, and these are covered with the blank electrode 514 (see FIG. 2).

  The pixel circuit 81 includes one TFT (pixel TFT) and one capacitor. The gate electrode of the pixel TFT is connected to the scanning line corresponding to the row line, the drain electrode is connected to the signal line corresponding to the column line, and the source The electrode is connected to the pixel electrode 513. The plurality of scanning lines are driven by the scanning circuit 82, and the plurality of signal lines are driven by the signal circuit 83. The scanning circuit 82 and the signal circuit 83 are composed of TFTs. In addition, the pixel circuit 81 has other storage element types such as a static random access memory (SRAM) configuration and a dynamic random access memory (DRAM) configuration. It is good also as a structure.

  A scanning circuit 82 and a signal circuit 83 are provided on the outer periphery of the pixel region 511, and in addition, a mounting portion 91 and a substrate wiring 84 are provided. The mounting portion 91 is connected to the main circuit board 324 (see FIG. 2) via the tape wiring 9. The main circuit board 324 supplies power and signals to the drive circuit and the like, and controls the electro-optical panel 5. The substrate wiring 84 includes a wiring connecting the driving circuits, a wiring connecting the driving circuit and the pixel region 511, and a wiring connecting the mounting portion 91 and the driving circuit. A blank area 512 is formed in an outer peripheral part adjacent to the pixel area 511. In the blank area 512, a blank electrode 514 (see FIG. 2) covers part of the driver circuit and part of the wiring. The blank electrode 514 is formed of the same material (for example, a transparent conductive film) as the pixel electrode 513 and on the same layer (for example, the uppermost layer of the TFT). The blank electrode 514 is electrically connected to a control circuit in the main circuit board 324. The control circuit controls the optical characteristics of the electro-optical material 55 provided on the blank electrode 514 by modulating the potential of the blank electrode 514.

  In the scanning circuit 82 and the signal circuit 83, the blank electrode 514 (see FIG. 2) overlaps with a region operating at a relatively low speed (low-speed operation circuit 831) in plan view, and a region operating at a relatively high speed ( It does not overlap with the high-speed operation circuit 832) in plan view. The high-speed operation circuit 832 is a circuit that normally requires a high-speed operation of 1 MHz or more (a circuit in which the signal state is switched in less than 1 microsecond). For example, a clock circuit or a selection circuit (shift register circuit or decoder circuit) of the signal circuit 83 ), A latch circuit corresponds to this. On the other hand, the low-speed operation circuit 831 is a region where the operation clock frequency of the circuit is generally less than about 1 MHz (a circuit in which the signal state is switched over taking a time of 1 microsecond or more), and specifically, scanning for selecting a scanning line. The circuit 82 and the output part of the signal circuit 83 correspond to this. The output part of the signal circuit 83 is a circuit after the output from the selection circuit such as a shift register or a decoder, for example, a signal processing circuit for producing a signal input to each signal line. Specifically, all erasing circuits (circuits that display all pixel areas 511 in white), all writing circuits (circuits that display all pixel areas 511 in black), level shift circuits, buffer circuits, etc. is there. As described above, the blank electrode 514 overlaps with the low speed operation circuit 831 in a plan view, but does not overlap with the high speed operation circuit 832 in a plan view. This is because no parasitic capacitance is generated between the blank electrode 514 and the high-speed operation circuit 832. By preventing the generation of parasitic capacitance, the high-speed operation circuit 832 operates the circuit at high speed as designed. In order to achieve the above-described configuration, the low speed operation circuit 831 is provided outside the pixel region 511, and the high speed operation circuit 832 is further provided outside the pixel region 511.

  In the present embodiment, the distance between the right side 53R of the first substrate 53 and the right side 54R of the second substrate 54 is 1 mm, and the left side 31L of the upper portion of the housing is located therebetween. Therefore, the edge of the upper portion 31 of the casing intersects with the tape wiring 9, eliminating the possibility that the edge of the upper portion 31 of the casing destroys the thin film circuit 80 and the substrate wiring 84 formed on the first substrate 53. Further, since the right side 54R of the second substrate 54 is located outside the left side 31L and the coating portion is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the second substrate 54, the tape wiring 9 is not provided after the information display terminal 1 is assembled. Is no longer visible.

  In the present embodiment, as a preferred example, 1024 × 768 = 786432 pixels are formed in the pixel region 511. However, since the driving circuit is built in the TFT, the number of connection terminals in the mounting portion 91 is as follows. The number is 50 including the inspection terminals. Accordingly, only 50 wires cross the left side 31L. The mounting failure is a main problem in the display device 2 having flexibility. However, the number of connection terminals is greatly reduced by incorporating a drive circuit, and this problem is solved.

"Method for forming thin film elements on the first substrate"
The first substrate 53 is a plastic film having flexibility. Here, a method for forming a thin film element on the first substrate 53 will be described. Specifically, the thin film circuit 80 first formed on the glass substrate is peeled off and transferred to a plastic film.

  As a 1st process, a peeling layer is provided on the glass substrate used as a manufacturer board | substrate. The release layer is a hydrogenated amorphous silicon film having a thickness of about 50 nm. After forming a silicon oxide film to be a base insulating film on the release layer, a thin film circuit 80 made of a TFT or the like is manufactured. The thin film circuit 80 applies a known method for manufacturing a low temperature process crystalline silicon TFT. Specifically, a laser-crystallized polycrystalline silicon semiconductor layer is provided on the base insulating film, and then a gate insulating layer using a silicon oxide film and a metal obtained by adding an additive to aluminum or aluminum are used. A gate electrode is manufactured. Further, a first interlayer insulating layer using a silicon oxide film, a source contact and a drain contact using aluminum or a metal obtained by adding an additive to aluminum, a second interlayer insulating layer using a polyimide-based resin, and indium tin oxide A pixel electrode 513 and a blank electrode 514 using (ITO: Indium Tin Oxide) are manufactured.

  Next, as a second step, a temporary adhesive is applied to the surface of the thin film circuit 80, and the manufacturer's substrate is attached to the temporary transfer substrate. As a temporary adhesive, what mixed polyvinyl pyrrolidone resin in order to give water solubility to acrylic resin is used. The temporary transfer substrate is a smooth glass substrate.

  Next, as a third step, the manufacturer substrate is removed, and the thin film circuit 80 is transferred to the temporary transfer substrate. As a method of removing the manufacturer's substrate, laser light is irradiated from the back of the manufacturer's substrate to weaken the adhesive force inside or at the interface of the release layer, and then the manufacturer's substrate and the temporary transfer substrate are peeled off. In this way, the thin film circuit 80 is transferred to the temporary transfer substrate.

  Next, in a fourth step, the peeling layer remaining on the back surface of the thin film circuit 80 is removed, and charges existing on the back surface of the thin film circuit 80 are removed using, for example, an ionizer. In this way, it is possible to remove a certain amount of peeling charge and frictional charge with air during drying.

  Next, as a fifth step, the back surface of the thin film circuit 80 is attached to the first surface side of the plastic film using a permanent adhesive made of, for example, acrylic resin. As the plastic film, a polyester film such as polyethylene naphthalate (PEN: Polyethylene naphthalate) can be used.

  Next, as a sixth step, after affixing the plastic film, a supporting substrate is attached to the second side of the plastic film (the side opposite to the first side) using a temporary adhesive. When glass is used for the supporting substrate, a manufacturing process adapted to the TFT manufactured on the glass substrate can be diverted to the subsequent process. That is, it is preferable because development elements can be reduced. As the temporary adhesive, an adhesive that loses its adhesive strength when irradiated with ultraviolet rays is used.

  Next, as a seventh step, the temporary transfer substrate is removed using a solvent (in this case, water) that dissolves the temporary adhesive. Thereafter, the temporary adhesive is washed away.

  Next, as the eighth step, various mounting operations are performed. First, the tape wiring 9 is mounted on the mounting portion 91. In this case, an anisotropic conductive paste or an anisotropic conductive film (these are collectively referred to as an anisotropic conductive adhesive) is disposed between the mounting portion 91 and the tape wiring 9 and bonded together. Next, the electro-optic material 55 is sandwiched between the second substrate 54 on which the common electrode is formed and the first substrate 53. Specifically, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film is the second substrate 54, a common electrode is formed on the surface of the ITO, and a sheet in which the electro-optic material 55 is disposed on the ITO is prepared. Then, this is bonded to the first substrate 53.

  Finally, as a ninth process, the supporting substrate is removed from the plastic film by irradiating the temporary adhesive with ultraviolet rays to lose the adhesive force, and the electro-optical panel 5 is completed.

"Size relationship between the first board and the second board, and the size of the margin area"
Next, referring to FIG. 2 again, the magnitude relationship between the second substrate 54 and the first substrate 53 and the size of the blank area 512 will be described. The second substrate 54 is slightly larger than the first substrate 53. In particular, in the case where the first substrate 53 is a flexible substrate such as plastic, and the thin film circuit 80 is formed on the substrate using TFTs using silicon, the first substrate 53 is more than each side of the first substrate 53. It is preferable to lengthen the corresponding sides of the two substrates 54 so that the first substrate 53 is completely included in the second substrate 54 in plan view. If a semiconductor circuit is formed using an inorganic material such as a silicon oxide film or a silicon film on a flexible substrate, the inorganic material may break. In particular, when the second substrate 54 on which the electro-optic material 55 is disposed is bonded, stress tends to concentrate on the edge portion of the second substrate 54. Therefore, if the second substrate 54 is smaller than the first substrate 53, the inorganic material of the first substrate 53 may break at the edge portion of the second substrate 54. This is because if the second substrate 54 is made larger than the first substrate 53, this fear is eliminated and productivity (yield) is improved. At the same time, since the electro-optical material 55 and the second substrate 54 cover and protect the driving circuit such as the scanning circuit 82 and the signal circuit 83 and the substrate wiring 84, the reliability of the information display terminal 1 is improved. In the width direction, the size of the second substrate 54 is determined so that the distance between 53R and 54R is in the range of 0.5 mm to 2.0 mm. If this interval is 0.5 mm or more, the edge (left side 31L) of the housing upper part 31 can be easily positioned within this interval. If the thickness is 2.0 mm or less, the first substrate 53 and the second substrate 54 can be easily bonded to each other, and the second substrate 54 and the electro-optic material 55 disposed on the second substrate 54 and the electro-optic material 55 are not wasted. Can be used. As shown in FIG. 2, on the left side of the electro-optical panel 5, the left side 53L of the first substrate 53 and the left side 54L of the second substrate 54 substantially coincide. Nearly coincident means that the left side 54L is larger in the range of 0 mm to 0.5 mm than the left side 53L. Therefore, in the entire width direction, the second substrate 54 is wider than the first substrate 53, and the difference is in the range of 0.5 mm to 2.5 mm.

  Regarding the width of the blank electrode 514, the width of the drive circuit and the substrate wiring 84 is about 0.5 mm to 10 mm, so the width of the blank electrode 514 is also about 0.5 mm to 10 mm. Since the optical characteristics of the blank area 512 are changed by an external signal supplied to the blank electrode 514, power is consumed. Therefore, it is preferable that the width of the blank area 512 is narrow from the viewpoint of energy saving. On the other hand, the color (for example, white) of the margin area 512 is the same as the color (for example, white) of the display unit 21 and almost no color difference is seen, so that the margin is ideal. In order to make the margin area 512 function as an ideal margin, a certain size is required. In view of these, it can be said that the width of the blank electrode 514 is ideally about 1 mm to 5 mm. The margin area 512 may have substantially the same width of the symmetrical side of the electro-optical panel 5 (the lower side with respect to the upper side or the right side with respect to the left side).

"Structure and material of the protection part"
Here, the protection unit 6 will be described with reference to FIG.

  The protection unit 6 includes at least a protection sheet 61 and a sealing material 62, and the sealing material 62 is disposed on the outer periphery of the protection sheet 61. The protective sheet 61 mainly has a waterproof and gas barrier function from a direction perpendicular to the display surface, and the sealing material 62 has a waterproof and gas barrier function mainly from a direction parallel to the display surface. ing. The protection unit 6 completely covers the electro-optical panel 5 except for the other end of the tape wiring 9 in both a plan view and a cross-sectional view. That is, in the display device 2 of the present embodiment, all of the electro-optical panel 5 in the vertical and horizontal directions is fixed by the protective sheet 61 and the sealing material 62. In general, when the first substrate 53 is a flexible plastic film and the thin film circuit 80 includes a silicon-based TFT, the thin film circuit 80 is cracked from the end and easily broken. On the other hand, the display device 2 according to the present embodiment fixes the upper, lower, left and right outer peripheries of the electro-optical panel 5 and all of the front and back surfaces, so that the mechanical durability of the thin film circuit 80 is remarkably improved. Yes. As a result, it is not necessary to store the entire display device 2 in the outer box, and the housing 3 can be arranged on one side of the display device 2.

  The protective sheet 61 is made of a polyester film, a polypropylene film or the like, and a silicon oxide film or a silicon nitride film is formed as a barrier layer against water or oxygen on one surface or both surfaces thereof. A thermoplastic resin is applied as a hot-melt adhesive to the inner side surface of the protective sheet 61 (the surface in contact with the back surface of the first substrate 53 and the back surface of the second substrate 54), and the electro-optical panel 5 and the protective sheet 61 are bonded. ing. When the display device 2 is manufactured, the surface on which the hot melt adhesive is applied is combined with the electro-optical panel 5 and thermocompression-bonded in a vacuum so that the protective sheet 61 and the electro-optical panel 5 are bonded. By using the thermoplastic resin, the resin flows through the electro-optical panel 5 without any gaps, and the electro-optical panel 5 is fixed evenly up, down, left and right. If there is a slight gap and the electro-optical panel 5 is not fixed in the gap, the flexible thin film circuit 80 is likely to break from the portion. By using a thermoplastic resin as an adhesive for the protective sheet 61, this problem can be avoided, and a flexible display device 2 with significantly improved mechanical strength can be realized.

  As the thermoplastic resin, an olefin resin, an olefin copolymer resin, polystyrene, polyvinyl chloride, polyamide, or the like is used. Examples of the olefin resin include polyethylene, polypropylene, and polybutene. Examples of the olefin copolymer resin include ethylene propylene, ethylene butene, ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), ethylene ethyl acrylate (EEA), and the like. In order to increase the adhesive force between the substrate of the protective sheet 61 and the electro-optical panel 5 and to provide flexibility after bonding, it is preferable to apply a thermoplastic resin in two layers. In this case, first, a high melting temperature resin is applied to the base film, and then a low melting temperature resin is applied thereon to form an adhesive layer. As an example, a low-density polyethylene resin having a melting temperature of 90 ° C. to 120 ° C. is used as the high melting temperature resin, and an EVA resin having a melting temperature of 70 ° C. to 90 ° C. is used as the low melting temperature resin. Here, the melting temperature is the endothermic peak top temperature of melting when measured at a rate of temperature increase of 10 ° C./min in differential scanning calorimetry. The adhesive applied to the inner surface of the protective sheet 61 may be a thermosetting resin or an ultraviolet light curable resin in addition to the thermoplastic resin.

  As the sealing material 62, the above-described thermoplastic resin may be used as it is, or a thermosetting resin or an ultraviolet curable resin may be newly disposed. In the display device 2 of FIG. 2, the thermoplastic resin of the protective sheet 61 is used as it is for the sealing material 62. In order to use the thermoplastic resin as it is, the thermoplastic resin is applied to the entire inner surface of the base film, and the electro-optical panel 5 is simply sandwiched between the protective sheets 61. If it carries out like this, the display apparatus 2 will be manufactured by a very easy process. The thermocompression bonding was performed by evacuating with a vacuum laminator for 30 seconds to obtain a vacuum of 250 Pa, and then pressure bonding was performed by applying a pressure of 0.2 MPa at 90 ° C. for 30 seconds.

  When a thermosetting resin or an ultraviolet curable resin is used as the sealing material 62, the protective sheets 61 are arranged above and below the electro-optical panel 5 and the sealing material 62 is applied to the outer edge before thermocompression bonding. When the low-viscosity sealing material 62 having a viscosity of less than 10 mPas is used, the sealing material 62 enters between the upper and lower protective sheets 61 by capillary action. In this state, the protective sheet 61 is adhered by thermocompression bonding, and if the sealing material 62 is a thermosetting resin, the sealing material 62 is simultaneously cured. When the sealing material 62 is an ultraviolet curable resin, the sealing material 62 is cured by irradiating with ultraviolet rays following the thermocompression bonding. As the thermosetting resin, phenol resin, melamine resin, polyurethane, or the like is used, and as the ultraviolet curable resin, epoxy resin, imide resin, acrylic resin, or the like is used. Since these thermosetting resins and ultraviolet curable resins have lower viscous fluidity at high temperatures than the above-described thermoplastic resins, they are excellent in waterproofness and gas barrier properties at high temperatures. In particular, the thermosetting resin has a strong tendency to increase the chemical durability of the display device 2 at high temperature and high humidity.

  The ideal cross-sectional structure that enhances the mechanical durability of the flexible display device 2 and at the same time increases the chemical durability in the direction parallel to the display surface is the inner side of the sealing material 62 (the one in contact with the electro-optical panel 5). A thermoplastic resin is disposed on the electro-optical panel 5 so that the electro-optical panel 5 is fixed without a gap, and the outer side (the side that contacts the outside air outside the sealing material 62) is hardened with a thermosetting resin. Since the thermosetting resin is superior in waterproofing and gas barrier properties at high temperatures as compared to the thermoplastic resin, the chemical durability from the horizontal direction can be increased thereby.

  In the display device 2 of the present embodiment, the first substrate 53 is a PEN film having a thickness of 100 μm, the second substrate 54 is a PET film having a thickness of 100 μm, the upper and lower protective sheets 61 are PET films having a thickness of 100 μm, and protection The thickness of the thermoplastic resin provided on the surface of the sheet 61 was 10 μm, the thickness of the mounting portion 91 of the electro-optic material 55 and the tape wiring 9 was 50 μm, and the total thickness was about 0.47 mm. The display device 2 mainly having a plastic film and having a thickness of less than 1 mm has sufficient flexibility, and can be bent from a curvature radius of 2 cm to 30 mm.

  Here, the thickness of each film was 100 μm as described above, but the total thickness of the four films was 100 μm or less (for example, the thickness of each film was 25 μm or less), and the total thickness was 0.17 mm or less. Then, the display device 2 can be wound with a curvature radius of 10 mm. A film that is commercially available and relatively easy to handle has a thickness of 12.5 μm. When such a thin film is used, the total thickness of the display device 2 can be reduced to 0.12 mm or less, and the display device 2 can be wound with a curvature radius of about 3 mm. As described above, since the thickness of the flat casing 3 is 6.5 mm, the display device 2 can be wound around the casing 3 while the information display terminal 1 is not used.

“Center of Information Display Terminal”
FIG. 5 is a front view schematically showing a usage state of the information display terminal according to the first embodiment. As described so far, the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is located in the vicinity of the outer edge portion off the center of the terminal. Here, this will be specifically verified with reference to FIG. 5 and the ease of use of the information display terminal 1 will be verified.

First, the position of the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is obtained. The information display terminal 1 has a width (x direction) of 151 mm and a length (y direction) of 181 mm. The width of the display device 2 is 149 mm, the width W _F of the housing upper part 31 is 11.5 mm, the width W _B of the housing lower part 32 is 45 mm, overlaps 9mm in the x direction and the housing 3 and the display device 2. Therefore, the distance between the right side of the display device 2 and the right side of the housing 3 is 2 mm. From these values, the center of gravity P of the display device 2 is P = (76.5, 90.5) using the (x, y) coordinates. Similarly, the center of gravity B of the lower housing portion 32 is B = (22.5, 90.5), and the center of gravity F of the upper housing portion 31 is F = (5.8, 90.5). It is assumed that the weight is uniformly distributed within the housing lower part 32. On the other hand, the weights of the display device 2 are 14.6 g, the housing lower part 32 is 25.9 g, and the housing upper part 31 is 3.1 g. Therefore, the total weight of the information display terminal 1 is 43.6 g. The center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located at C = (39.4, 90.5) by the center of gravity synthesis rule. The center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is 39.4 mm from the outer edge on the right side of the information display terminal 1 in the width direction (a position of 5.6 mm from the left side 32L of the housing lower part 32 toward the center of the housing lower part 32), and long. It is located in the lower portion 32 of the housing at a position that is the center of the information display terminal 1 in the vertical direction.

  The center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is in the lower part 32 of the casing, and the lower part 32 of the casing is gripped (the right side 32R is placed on the lower part of the palm, the hand is gently rolled and the index finger, middle finger tip or ring finger tip is hooked on the left side 32L. , The information display terminal 1 is held), and the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is located on the palm. That is, when the information display terminal 1 is held in this way, the torque becomes almost zero. The torque at the time of holding the information display terminal 1 is not felt at all, and the load received by the entire palm is only 45.4 g. Even if the information display terminal 1 is held with one hand, it can be used for a long time without fatigue.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 5, consider the case where the information display terminal 1 is held with the thumb TB and the index finger IF. Assume that a thumb TB is hung on a position T 10 mm inward from the origin O, and an index finger IF is placed on the back of the position I 10 mm in the direction of the center of gravity C from the thumb TB. In this way, the distance from the position I of the index finger IF to the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is 76 mm. For this reason, the torque applied to the thumb TB in this state (the force with which the thumb TB presses the information display terminal 1) is 330 g. The load applied to the index finger IF is 374 g. Conventionally, when the conventional information display terminal 1 having exactly the same area is gripped in the same manner, the torque applied to the thumb TB is 3751 g weight, and the load applied to the index finger IF is 4151 g. The applied torque and the load applied to the index finger IF have been reduced by 90% or more from the past. That is, in the past, it was extremely difficult to grasp and use the corner of the information display terminal 1, but this embodiment made it possible.

“Conditions where the center of gravity of the information display terminal is located in the lower part of the housing”
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view in the horizontal direction of the information display terminal according to the first embodiment, in which the center of gravity and coordinates are drawn for each component. As described above, the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is located in the housing lower part 32. Here, the condition is shown using FIG. In the present embodiment, the housing 3 is positioned at the center in the vertical direction, and the y-coordinate Py of the center of gravity P of the display device 2 is the y-coordinate Fy of the center of gravity F of the housing upper portion 31 and the center of gravity B of the housing lower portion 32. It overlaps with y coordinate By. That is, the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located in the housing 3 in the vertical direction. Therefore, here, the lateral direction is considered.

First, the weight of the display device 2 is m _P , the weight of the upper part 31 of the casing (the total weight of the upper part 31 itself and the contents contained therein) is m _F, and the weight of the lower part 32 of the casing ( The total weight of the casing lower part 32 and the contents contained therein is defined as m _B. Furthermore, the ratio of the weight of the display device 2 to the entire information display terminal 1 is represented by α (α = m _P / (m _P + m _F + m _B )), and the ratio of the weight of the upper part 31 of the housing to the entire information display terminal 1 is expressed as It is represented by β (β = m _F / (m _P + m _F + m _B )). In addition, the width of the display device 2 and W _P. Regarding the width of the housing 3, as in the previous, expressed in the W _F and W _B. Further, the width of the overlapping portion between the display device 2 and the housing upper part 31 is defined as W _OL .

The x coordinate of the center of gravity P of the display device 2 is Px = W _P / 2 + W _F −W _OL . Similarly, the x coordinate of the center of gravity F of the upper portion 31 of the casing is Fx = W _F / 2, and the x coordinate of the center of gravity B of the lower portion 32 of the casing is Bx = W _B / 2. If these are used, the x-coordinate Cx of the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is

と記載される。情報表示端末１の重心Ｃが筐体下部３２内に位置する条件は、図６より、

It is described. The condition that the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located in the lower part 32 of the housing is as shown in FIG.

である。数式１を数式２に代入し、βに関して解くと、

It is. Substituting Equation 1 into Equation 2 and solving for β,

となる。この数式３が筐体下部３２内に情報表示端末１の重心Ｃが位置する条件となる。先にも述べた様に筐体下部３２の幅（Ｗ_B）には最適値が存在し、表示装置２の重さ（ｍ_P）や幅（Ｗ_P）は表示装置２の大きさで定まるので、筐体上部３１の幅（Ｗ_F）や重なり部の幅（Ｗ_OL）、或いは筐体上部３１の重量の割合βを調整して数式３の条件を満たす。βを調整するには、筐体下部３２と筐体上部３１に収納する主回路基板３２４や電池の配置を調整するのが好ましい。

It becomes. This Equation 3 is a condition that the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located in the housing lower part 32. As described above, there is an optimum value for the width (W _B ) of the housing lower part 32, and the weight (m _P ) and width (W _P ) of the display device 2 are determined by the size of the display device 2. Therefore, the width (W _F ) of the upper portion 31 of the casing, the width (W _OL ) of the overlapping portion, or the weight ratio β of the upper portion 31 of the casing is adjusted to satisfy the condition of Equation 3. In order to adjust β, it is preferable to adjust the arrangement of the main circuit board 324 and the batteries housed in the housing lower part 32 and the housing upper part 31.

  On the other hand, since β is the ratio of the weight of the upper part 31 of the casing to the entire information display terminal 1,

である。従って、βの下限を示す数式３の左辺が０以下であり、上限を示す数式３の右辺が１以上で有れば、どんなβに対しても数式３は成り立つ。即ち、

It is. Therefore, as long as the left side of Equation 3 indicating the lower limit of β is 0 or less and the right side of Equation 3 indicating the upper limit is 1 or more, Equation 3 holds for any β. That is,

且つ、

and,

で有れば、筐体上部３１の重量の割合βに係わらず、情報表示端末１の重心Ｃは筐体下部３２内に位置する事になる。数式５から、表示装置２の重量の割合αに対して、

, The center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located in the lower part 32 of the case regardless of the weight ratio β of the upper part 31 of the case. From Formula 5, for the weight ratio α of the display device 2,

との関係式が得られる。一方、数式６からは、

Is obtained. On the other hand, from Equation 6,

との関係式が得られる。所で、図６から明らかな様に、重なり部の幅（Ｗ_OL）は常に筐体上部３１の幅（Ｗ_F）よりも狭い。従って、

Is obtained. As is apparent from FIG. 6, the width of the overlapping portion (W _OL ) is always narrower than the width (W _F ) of the upper portion 31 of the casing. Therefore,

で有れば、必ず数式８は成り立つ。更に数式９右辺の第二項Ｗ_F／（２α）は必ず正であるから、

If so, Formula 8 always holds. Furthermore, since the second term W _F / (2α) on the right side of Equation 9 is always positive,

の条件を満たせば、数式９が成り立つ。数式１０は表示装置２の幅よりも筐体下部３２の幅が狭くなければならないとの条件である。こうして数式５と数式６とは、それぞれ数式７と数式１０とを意味する事になる。

If this condition is satisfied, Equation 9 is established. Formula 10 is a condition that the width of the housing lower part 32 must be narrower than the width of the display device 2. Thus, Equation 5 and Equation 6 mean Equation 7 and Equation 10, respectively.

Eventually, if the width of the housing lower part 32 is narrower than the width of the display device 2 and satisfies the mathematical formula 7, no matter what the ratio β of the weight of the housing upper part 31 is, Thus, the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located. The ratio (α) of the weight of the display device 2 to the entire information display terminal 1, the width (W _F ) of the upper portion 31 of the housing, and the width (W _OL ) of the overlapping portion between the display device 2 and the upper portion 31 of the housing Satisfy 7 In this embodiment, α = 0.3348, the right side of Equation 7 is 0.4167, and Equation 7 is naturally satisfied.

  Next, the condition that the x coordinate (Cx) of the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 coincides with the x coordinate (Bx) of the center of gravity B of the lower portion 32 of the housing is shown. From Equation 1 and Cx = Bx, this is

となる。筐体上部３１の重量（ｍ_F）や筐体上部３１の幅（Ｗ_F）、及び表示装置２と筐体上部３１との重なり部の幅（Ｗ_OL）を、数式１１を満たす様にする。こうすると情報表示端末１の重心Ｃが筐体下部３２の中心に位置するので、図５に示す様に、情報表示端末１を片手で保持した際にトルクはゼロになり、極めて楽に情報表示端末１を使用できる。

It becomes. The weight (m _F ) of the case upper part 31, the width (W _F ) of the case upper part 31, and the width (W _OL ) of the overlapping portion between the display device 2 and the case upper part 31 are set to satisfy Expression 11. . In this way, since the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located at the center of the lower part 32 of the housing, the torque becomes zero when the information display terminal 1 is held with one hand, as shown in FIG. 1 can be used.

"Case length"
FIG. 7 is a front perspective view schematically showing the information display terminal according to the first embodiment. FIG. 8 is also a front perspective view schematically showing the information display terminal according to the first embodiment. Here, the length of the housing 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.

  In the information display terminal 1 described so far, the length of the housing 3 is slightly shorter than the length of the display device 2 as shown in FIG. However, the length of the housing 3 is not limited to this, and as shown in FIG. 7, the length of the housing 3 and the length of the side of the display device 2 on which the housing 3 is disposed may be substantially equal. “The lengths are almost equal” means that the difference in length is such that a person cannot notice at a glance. Specifically, the difference is less than 1 mm on one side and less than 2 mm in total. Say the situation.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the length of the housing 3 may be clearly shorter than the length of the side of the display device 2 on which the housing 3 is disposed. “Clearly short” means that the length is short enough for a person to immediately notice the difference in length. Specifically, the difference in length is 10 mm or more on one side and 20 mm or more in total. This is the situation.

"Location to install the chassis"
This will be described with reference to FIG.
The housing 3 is installed on the outer edge of the display device 2. In the description so far, the casing 3 has been installed on the long side of the rectangular display device 2, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be installed on a side other than the long side. For example, the housing 3 may be installed on the short side of the rectangular display device 2. Further, the rectangle has been described as an example of the display device 2 so far, but the display device 2 is not limited to a rectangle such as a rectangle or a square but may be a polygon such as a triangle, a pentagon, a hexagon, or an octagon. A configuration in which the housing 3 is installed on any side may be employed. At this time, the operation switch 4 is installed near the center of gravity in the width direction of the information display terminal 1.

As described above, according to the information display terminal 1 according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
Since the display device 2 has flexibility and is light, and the housing 3 is disposed on a part of the outer edge portion of the display device 2 and is strong, the entire information display terminal 1 can be made thin and light. In particular, with respect to the weight, even if it has the same display area as the conventional one, it can be about one tenth. Since the area is equal and the weight is about one tenth, when the information display terminal 1 is accidentally dropped, the drop speed is slower than the conventional one due to air resistance. Thereby, the impact which the information display terminal 1 receives in the case of a collision with a floor becomes small, and the impact resistance of the information display terminal 1 can be improved. In addition, since the display device 2 is flexible, even if an impact such as dropping is applied, the display device 2 is hardly damaged by the buffering action of the display device 2 itself. That is, it is possible to ensure practical strength by simply arranging the housing 3 on a part of the outer edge of the display device 2 without using the reinforcing member to store the entire display device 2 in the outer box as in the prior art. Can do. As a result, since the entire information display terminal 1 can be made thin and light, it can be used for a long time without feeling tired. Further, even if the display device 2 is enlarged, the weight is only slightly increased, so that a portable information display terminal 1 having a relatively large display area and usable for a long time is realized. In addition, since the housing 3 is mounted so as not to overlap the first substrate 53, the edge of the housing 3 exerts a strong stress on the thin film circuit 80 formed on the first substrate 53, and the thin film circuit 80. The situation that destroys can be avoided. In other words, an information portable terminal that has practical durability and is easy to use can be realized.

  In addition, since the display device 2 includes the thin film circuit 80 (the pixel circuit 81 and the drive circuit) using the TFT on the first substrate 53, a plurality of pixels in the pixel region 511 are independently controlled to display a high-quality display. Is possible. In addition, the number of wirings in the mounting portion 91 can be significantly reduced. As a result, the manufacturing yield can be improved, and at the same time, the product life can be extended. This is due to the following reason. In general, the flexible display device 2 has a probability of occurrence of a connection failure when the main circuit board 324 provided outside the display device 2 and the display device 2 are connected by the tape wiring 9. It becomes higher than the display device made of. For this purpose, it is desirable that the number of tape wires 9 be as small as possible. The probability that a connection failure will occur while using the information display terminal 1 is a value obtained by multiplying the probability of failure occurring per wire by the number of wires. In order to prolong the product life, it is desirable that the number of arrow tape wirings be as small as possible. Therefore, when the driving circuit is formed of TFT in the outer periphery of the region where the pixel circuit 81 is formed, the number of wirings can be remarkably reduced. As a result, the manufacturing yield is improved, and at the same time, the product life is extended. Become. Furthermore, since the housing upper part 31 does not overlap the first substrate 53 in a front view, it does not overlap the pixel circuit 81 and the drive circuit formed on the first substrate 53, and the edge of the housing upper part 31 is formed of these thin films. A situation where the circuit 80 is destroyed can be avoided. In addition, since the display unit 21 is not covered by the upper part 31 of the housing, the entire area of the display unit 21 can be used for 100% effective display. That is, the display unit 21 can be used effectively, and the reliability of the information display terminal 1 during use is increased.

  Further, since the display unit 21 includes the pixel region 511 and the margin region 512, it is not necessary to provide a margin in the pixel region 511, and the pixel region 511 is effectively used.

  Further, since the low speed operation circuit 831 is provided in the blank area 512 and the high speed operation circuit 832 is provided outside the blank area 512, the area where the low speed operation circuit 831 is provided is effective as the blank area 512 of the display unit 21. In addition, since the high-speed operation circuit 832 is not affected by the parasitic capacitance caused by the blank area 512, the possibility of malfunction is extremely reduced, and the circuit operates stably.

  Moreover, since the coating part covers the area where the optical characteristics of the electro-optic material 55 are not controlled outside the display part 21, the information display terminal 1 is excellent in beauty.

  In addition, since the second substrate 54 is larger than the first substrate 53, when the second substrate 54 coated with the electro-optic material 55 is bonded to the flexible first substrate 53, the probability that the thin film circuit 80 is damaged is extremely high. It is small. Furthermore, there is no gap between the second substrate 54 and the upper portion 31 of the casing, and the second substrate 54 and the upper portion 31 of the casing cover the tape wiring 9 connected to the first substrate 53. The information display terminal 1 is used.

Moreover, it is preferable that the housing | casing lower part 32 overlaps with the display part 21 partially by back view.
As described above, the housing upper part 31 does not overlap the display unit 21, so that the size thereof is limited, and the main circuit board 324 that controls the display device 2, the power source, and the like may not be accommodated in the housing upper part 31. On the other hand, according to this configuration, the casing lower part 32 can be enlarged to the display unit 21, so that the main circuit board 324, the power source, and the like can be incorporated in the relatively large casing lower part 32.

  Moreover, since the housing | casing upper part 31 and the housing | casing lower part 32 are thin flat plate shape, and the housing | casing upper part 31 width | variety is narrower than the housing | casing lower part 32 width | variety, the information display terminal 1 becomes a thin flat plate shape. An excellent information display terminal 1 can be realized.

  Further, since the width of the lower portion 32 of the housing is 30 mm or more and 60 mm or less, the information display terminal 1 can be easily held. Further, the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is on the palm of the hand, so that the user can utilize the information display terminal 1 with almost no torque.

  In addition, since the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is located in the lower portion 32 of the casing, even if the information display terminal 1 is accidentally dropped, the casing 3 is most strongly affected by the drop, and the display device 2 Does not receive as much impact as the housing 3 and the impact on the display device 2 is weakened. For this reason, a reinforcing member for the display device 2 is not required, and the information display terminal 1 can be made thin, light and durable. In addition, since the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is located at the outer edge, even if the user holds the information display terminal 1 with one hand, it can be used for a long time without fatigue.

(Embodiment 2)
"The form in which the case is arranged other than the center in the vertical direction"
FIG. 9 is a front view schematically showing the information display terminal according to the second embodiment. Hereinafter, the information display terminal 1 according to the present embodiment will be described. In addition, about the component same as Embodiment 1, the same number is attached | subjected and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.
The present embodiment (FIG. 9) differs from the first embodiment (FIG. 1) in the installation position of the casing 3 in the vertical direction. Other configurations are almost the same as those of the first embodiment.

  In the present embodiment, the housing 3 is installed on the right side of the display device 2 and downward in the vertical direction. When the display unit 21 is larger than A4 size (210 mm × 297 mm) or B4 size (257 mm × 364 mm), etc., the casing 3 is shifted from the center on the right side of the display device 2 as shown in FIG. You may do it. In FIG. 9, the housing 3 is installed below the right side. As in the first embodiment, the operation switch 4 is disposed at a position where the operation switch 4 can be operated with the thumb when the lower part 32 of the casing is gripped. Hereinafter, a condition for the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 to be located in the lower part 32 of the housing when the center of gravity of the housing 3 does not coincide with the center of gravity of the display device 2 in the vertical direction will be described. The housing 3 may be installed on the right side above the center.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view in the vertical direction of the information display terminal according to the second embodiment, in which the center of gravity and coordinates are drawn for each component. First, the length of the display device 2 and L _P, the length of the housing upper part 31 and L _F, the length of the housing lower part 32 and L _B, the distance from the origin to the lower side of the housing 3 L _E And Other symbols and notation methods are the same as those in the first embodiment.

The y coordinate of the center of gravity P of the display device 2 is Py = L _P / 2. Y-coordinate of the center of gravity F of the housing top _{31, Fy = L F / 2 +} L E , and the same also y-coordinate of the center of gravity B of the housing lower part 32, it is _{By = L B / 2 + L} E. Note that L _F = L _B. If these are used, the y coordinate Cy of the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is

と記載される。情報表示端末１の重心Ｃが筐体下部３２内に位置する条件は、筐体３の重心が表示装置２の重心より下方に位置する場合には、

It is described. The condition that the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is located in the lower part 32 of the housing is that the center of gravity of the housing 3 is located below the center of gravity of the display device 2.

となり、筐体３の重心が表示装置２の重心より上方に位置する場合には、

When the center of gravity of the housing 3 is located above the center of gravity of the display device 2,

ある。数式１２を数式１３乃至は数式１４に代入して、αに関して解くと、筐体３の重心が表示装置２の重心より下方に位置するか上方に位置するかに係わらず、情報表示端末１の重心Ｃが縦方向で筐体３内に位置する為の条件が、

is there. Substituting Equation 12 into Equation 13 to Equation 14 and solving for α, the case of the information display terminal 1 is determined regardless of whether the center of gravity of the housing 3 is located below or above the center of gravity of the display device 2. The condition for the center of gravity C to be positioned in the casing 3 in the vertical direction is

と記述される。この数式１５を満たす様に、表示装置２の長さＬ_Pや、筐体上部３１の長さＬ_F、筐体下部３２の長さＬ_B、原点から筐体３下辺までの距離Ｌ_E、情報表示端末１全体に対する表示装置２の重量の割合αを定める。

Is described. The length L _P of the display device 2, the length L _F of the casing upper part 31, the length L _B of the casing lower part 32, the distance L _E from the origin to the lower side of the casing 3, A ratio α of the weight of the display device 2 to the entire information display terminal 1 is determined.

  Since α is always between zero and one,

が成り立てば、どんなαに対しても情報表示端末１の重心のｙ座標Ｃｙは、必ず筐体３内に位置する事になる。具体的に記すと、筐体３の重心が表示装置２の重心より下方に位置する場合には、

Is established, the y coordinate Cy of the center of gravity of the information display terminal 1 is always located in the housing 3 for any α. Specifically, when the center of gravity of the housing 3 is located below the center of gravity of the display device 2,

を満たす様にし、筐体３の重心が表示装置２の重心より上方に位置する場合には、

If the center of gravity of the housing 3 is located above the center of gravity of the display device 2,

を満たす様にする。

To satisfy.

  By satisfying Expression 15 to Expression 17 or Expression 18, even when the center of gravity of the housing 3 does not coincide with the center of gravity of the display device 2 in the vertical direction, the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is It comes to be located in the lower part 32 of a housing | casing.

As described above, according to the information display terminal 1 according to the present embodiment, in addition to the effects in the first embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
Even if the display device 2 is large, the length of the housing 3 is shorter than the display device 2, and the housing 3 is not located at the center in the vertical direction of the display device 2, the center of gravity C of the information display terminal 1 is obtained. Is located in the lower part 32 of the housing, the information display terminal 1 can be used for a long time without feeling tired.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications and improvements can be added to the above-described embodiment. A modification will be described below.

(Modification 1)
“Example of drive circuit not built in TFT”
FIG. 11 is a front view schematically showing a first substrate used in the information display terminal according to the first modification. This modification (FIG. 11) differs from the first embodiment (FIG. 4) in that the drive circuit is not built in the TFT. The rest of the configuration is almost the same as in the first embodiment, and a duplicate description is omitted. In FIG. 4, when the information display terminal 1 is assembled, a portion where the left side 31L of the upper portion 31 of the housing is located is indicated by a one-dot chain line, and a portion where the right side 54R of the second substrate 54 is located is indicated by a two-dot chain line. It is shown.

  In the first embodiment (FIG. 4), a crystalline silicon TFT is used for a thin film element, and the thin film circuit 80 includes a pixel circuit 81 and a drive circuit. However, the TFT used for the thin film element is not limited to this. The thin film circuit 80 may not include a driving circuit. Furthermore, as shown in this modification, the semiconductor layer of the TFT may be an amorphous silicon film, an organic semiconductor, or an oxide containing zinc or tin. When the semiconductor layer is an amorphous silicon film, it is called an amorphous silicon TFT, when it is an organic semiconductor film it is called an organic TFT, and when it is an oxide containing zinc or tin, it is called an oxide TFT. The TFT used for the thin film element may be an amorphous silicon TFT, an organic TFT, or an oxide TFT.

  The thin film circuit 80 includes a pixel circuit 81 and does not necessarily include a driver circuit. This is because it is difficult for these TFTs to have a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) configuration, and the mobility of the semiconductor layer is small. Reflecting this, in this modified example, as shown in FIG. 11, the driving circuit is not built in the TFT, and the pixel circuit 81 is formed as the thin film circuit 80 in the pixel region 511 in the display unit 21. A substrate wiring 84 for supplying a signal to the pixel circuit 81 is formed on the outer periphery of the region where the pixel circuit 81 is formed. A plurality of scanning lines are collected at one place to form a scanning line mounting portion 912, and an integrated circuit made of a silicon chip is connected to the scanning line mounting portion 912 to form a scanning circuit 82. Similarly, signal lines are gathered in one place to form a signal line mounting portion 913, and an integrated circuit made of a silicon chip is connected to the signal line mounting portion 913 to form a signal circuit 83. Since the display device 2 has the housing 3 at a part of the outer edge portion, the outer peripheral scanning wiring group connected to the scanning line and the outer peripheral signal wiring group connected to the signal line are both used as the substrate wiring 84 on one side of the first substrate 53 ( In FIG. 11, a mounting portion 91 is provided, which is a combination of the scanning line mounting portion 912 and the signal line mounting portion 913. In this example, since the number of pixels is small, the substrate wiring 84 (peripheral scanning wiring group and outer peripheral signal wiring group) is provided only in the non-pixel area on the lower side and the non-pixel area on the right side of the pixel area 511. If the number is increased, the substrate wirings 84 may be provided in the non-pixel regions on all sides. The non-pixel area where the substrate wiring 84 is arranged is covered with a blank electrode to form a blank area 512, and the pixel area 511 and the blank area 512 are combined to form the display unit 21. Note that a tape wiring 9 such as COF or TCP is connected to the mounting portion 91.

  Setting the portion of the substrate wiring 84 as the blank area 512 eliminates the possibility that the electro-optic material 55 on the substrate wiring 84 may display unintentionally disorderly when various signals are applied to the scanning lines and signal lines. Because of that. Thereby, the display device 2 having a beautiful appearance is obtained. The scanning line mounting portion 912 and the signal line mounting portion 913 are covered with a coating portion 515 provided on the second substrate 54, and the tape wiring 9 is covered with the coating portion 515 or the housing upper portion 31. Hidden.

  Since the manufacturing temperature of the amorphous silicon TFT, organic TFT, and oxide TFT can be lowered relatively easily, these TFTs may be directly formed by using the first substrate 53 as a plastic film or a thin metal plate. In this case, in order to facilitate the handling of the first substrate 53 during the production, a plastic film or a metal plate is fixed to the glass substrate, and the thin film circuit 80 is directly formed on the film or the metal plate. In this way, the flexible display device 2 can be manufactured relatively easily. In addition, these TFTs may be directly formed on a plastic film or a metal plate by using a printing method, or may be directly formed by a roll-to-roll method.

  Since the amorphous silicon TFT technology is already general-purpose, the information display terminal 1 having the large display device 2 can be manufactured relatively easily by using this technology. In addition, when an organic TFT is used, the TFT can be manufactured by a printing method, and the manufacturing cost and time can be greatly reduced.

  In the present modification, a lower gate type is used as the TFT, and a gate electrode is formed from the first substrate 53 side by a first wiring, a gate insulating film is formed thereon, and a semiconductor film is formed thereon.

(Modification 2)
“Examples of electro-optic materials other than electrophoretic materials”
This will be described with reference to FIG.
This modification differs from the first embodiment in that a liquid crystal material or the like is used as the electro-optic material 55 instead of the electrophoretic material. The rest of the configuration is almost the same as in the first embodiment, and a duplicate description is omitted.

  In the first embodiment, an electrophoretic material is used as the electro-optic material 55. However, as the electro-optic material 55, a liquid crystal material, an organic or inorganic electro-luminescent material, an electro-chromic material, or the like is used. Also good. Accordingly, the display device 2 is a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic or inorganic electroluminescence display (also known as a light emitting diode display, LED display), an electrochromic display (ECD), or the like. It becomes. The information display terminal 1 having these display devices 2 is used for electronic devices such as electronic books, televisions, mobile phones, and personal computers.

(Modification 3)
“Example of common electrode made on the first substrate”
This will be described with reference to FIG.
This modification is different from Embodiment 1 (FIG. 2) in that a common electrode is formed on the first substrate 53 side. The rest of the configuration is almost the same as in the first embodiment, and a duplicate description is omitted.
In Embodiment 1 (FIG. 2), the common electrode is formed on the second substrate 54, but this is not essential, and the common electrode may be formed on the first substrate 53. In this case, the common electrode is provided in each pixel of the first substrate 53, and an electric field having an electric field component parallel to the surface of the first substrate 53 is applied to the electro-optic material 55. It becomes. Applicable to EPDs and wide viewing angle liquid crystal displays that perform lateral electrophoresis.

  In the above description, the display area is described as an active matrix, but the display area may be a passive matrix. The case 3 has been described as combining the case upper portion 31 and the case lower portion 32, but these may be integrally formed as the case 3.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Information display terminal, 2 ... Display apparatus, 3 ... Housing | casing, 5 ... Electro-optical panel, 21 ... Display part, 31 ... Upper part of housing | casing, 32 ... Lower part of housing | casing, 53 ... 1st board | substrate, 54 ... 2nd board | substrate 55 ... electro-optical material, 80 ... thin film circuit, 81 ... pixel circuit, 324 ... main circuit board, 325 ... electronic element, 511 ... pixel region, 512 ... margin region, 513 ... pixel electrode, 514 ... margin electrode, 831 ... Low-speed operation circuit, 832... High-speed operation circuit, 911.

Claims (9)

A display device having flexibility, and a housing disposed at a part of the outer edge of the display device,
The display device has a first substrate, a thin film circuit is formed on the first substrate,
The information display terminal, wherein the casing is mounted so as not to hang on the first substrate. The display device has a display unit on a display surface, and when the surface opposite to the display surface is a back surface, the housing is disposed on an upper portion of the housing disposed on the display surface side and on the back surface side. A lower portion of the housing,
The information display terminal according to claim 1, wherein the upper portion of the housing does not overlap the first substrate in a front view.   The information display terminal according to claim 2, wherein the display unit includes a pixel area and a blank area. The display device includes a second substrate and an electro-optic material, and the electro-optic material is sandwiched between the first substrate and the second substrate,
The information display terminal according to claim 2, wherein a coating portion is provided on an outer peripheral portion of the second substrate, and the coating portion partially overlaps the display portion in a front view.   The information display terminal according to claim 4, wherein the second substrate is larger than the first substrate, and the upper portion of the housing overlaps the second substrate in a front view.   The information display terminal according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the lower portion of the housing partially overlaps the display unit in a rear view. The upper part of the casing is a flat plate having a casing upper part length and a casing upper part width,
The lower part of the case is a flat plate having a lower part length and a lower part width of the case,
The information display terminal according to claim 6, wherein the upper width of the casing is narrower than the lower width of the casing.   The information display terminal according to claim 7, wherein the lower width of the casing is 30 mm or more and 60 mm or less.   The information display terminal according to claim 1, wherein a center of gravity of the information display terminal is located in a lower part of the housing.

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