JP2013101369A - Display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a display device that can easily realize a surface display device in any shape.SOLUTION: A display device includes a display device substrate 208 in which display device elements including a circuit constituting one stage of a scanning circuit and a pixel circuit connected to the output of the scanning circuit are arranged in a fashion of drawing with one stroke of a pen. Namely, the display device elements including the circuit constituting the one stage of the scanning circuit and the pixel circuit connected to an output node of the circuit are arranged successively on the display device substrate 208. A clock signal needed to drive the display device elements is a one-phase clock signal.

Description

  The present invention relates to a display device, and more particularly to a surface display device having a shape other than a rectangle, such as a liquid crystal display device and an EL (Electroluminescence) display device.

  An active matrix liquid crystal display device has a plurality of pixels arranged in rows and columns, that is, arranged in a matrix. Each row of the pixel matrix shares a gate wiring connected to a gate electrode of a thin film transistor (TFT). Each column of the pixel matrix shares a data wiring to which a data signal is supplied. The signal of the gate wiring controls on / off of the thin film transistor, and when the thin film transistor is on, the signal of the data wiring is given to the liquid crystal material, thereby changing the optical characteristics of the liquid crystal material.

  FIG. 19 shows a conventional pixel configuration in an active matrix liquid crystal display device. Each row of the pixel matrix shares a common gate line 10, and each column of the pixel matrix shares a common data line 12. Each pixel includes a thin film transistor 14 and a liquid crystal cell 16 arranged in series between the data line and the common electrode 18. The thin film transistor 14 is switched on and off by a signal supplied to the gate wiring. Therefore, the gate wiring is connected to the gate electrode of each thin film transistor 14 in the corresponding row of the pixel. Each pixel includes a storage capacitor 20. One end of the storage capacitor 20 is connected to the next gate line, the previous gate line, or a separate storage capacitor line. The storage capacitor 20 stores charges so that the voltage of the liquid crystal cell 16 is maintained even after the thin film transistor 14 is turned off.

  In order to obtain a necessary gray level by applying a desired voltage to the liquid crystal cell, an appropriate signal is supplied to the data line in synchronization with the address signal on the gate line. This address signal turns on the thin film transistor 14, thereby charging / discharging the liquid crystal cell 16 to a desired voltage according to the signal voltage applied to the data wiring and simultaneously charging / discharging the storage capacitor.

  Due to the address signal, the thin film transistor 14 is turned off and the storage capacitor 20 maintains the voltage across the liquid crystal cell 16 when the other row is addressed. The storage capacitor 20 reduces fluctuations in the liquid crystal cell voltage caused by leakage when the thin film transistor 14 is turned off, capacitive coupling, and fluctuations in the dielectric constant of the liquid crystal.

  Each row is continuously addressed so that all rows are addressed in one frame period.

  FIG. 20 is a plan view showing a configuration of a conventional active matrix liquid crystal display device. Referring to FIG. 20, the address signal is supplied by the gate driver circuit 30, and the data signal is supplied to the pixel matrix 34 by the data driver circuit 32. FIG. 20 shows a rectangular active matrix display device.

  On the other hand, Patent Document 1 discloses a non-rectangular display device. FIG. 21 is a plan view of a non-rectangular display device disclosed in Patent Document 1. FIG.

  According to Patent Document 1, the display device includes an array of pixels, a driver circuit configuration including a gate driver circuit portion (indicated by R in the drawing) and a data driver circuit portion (indicated by C in the drawing). Each pixel is a display device that is addressed by a gate driver circuit unit and a data driver circuit unit connected to a corresponding row and column wiring, and the pixel array has a non-rectangular outer shape, and is arranged along the outer periphery of the array. At least three gate driver circuit units and at least three data driver circuit units are arranged, and these rows and data driver circuit units are alternately arranged along the outer periphery. The gate driver circuit portion and the data driver circuit portion may be formed on the same substrate as the display device pixel. For example, the pixel and the driver circuit may be formed using a polysilicon process technology.

JP 2005-528644 A

  However, the conventional display device described above has the following problems.

  The first problem is that it cannot cope with a display device having an arbitrary shape. That is, although a non-rectangular display device can be obtained to some extent by the conventional technology, the degree of freedom in shape design is still low.

  One reason is that the driver circuit is arranged along the outer peripheral shape of the pixel matrix. In the prior art, in order to address a pixel, a gate wiring extending in the horizontal direction extending from each pixel to the outer periphery of the pixel matrix, and data extending in the vertical direction extending from the pixel to the outer periphery of the pixel matrix. Wiring and are needed. In addition, the gate wiring and the data wiring must be prevented from being divided, and there is a limit to the degree of freedom of the shape of the display device. Depending on the shape of the display device, there arises a problem that a part of these wirings is divided and a pixel region that is not addressed is generated.

  Another reason why the display device of the prior art cannot cope with an arbitrary shape is an example in which a driver circuit in the form of TAB (Tape Automated Bonding) is connected to the outer periphery of the pixel matrix portion. The TAB is handled in the form of a TCP (Tape Carrier Package) in the form of a film. Before being cut into individual TABs, the TAB is wound around a drum like a projection film.

  For this reason, the cut TAB has a flat shape, and is usually subjected to a bending process after the TAB is connected to the liquid crystal panel using an anisotropic conductive film.

  When a TAB is connected to a liquid crystal panel having a curved outer peripheral shape as shown in FIG. 21, the TAB is bent, and a heart-shaped shape as shown in FIG. Bending becomes difficult.

  The reason is that the bent portion of the TAB usually has a linear shape.

  This problem becomes more serious as the radius of curvature of the outer peripheral shape is smaller, and in the case of a shape in which a plurality of peaks and valleys exist in one TAB connection portion, the TAB is bent along this shape, and this shape is designed according to the design. Characterizing is a very difficult task.

  The second problem is that it takes a long time to design a mask in order to form the driver circuit along the curved shape of the outer periphery using the polysilicon process technology.

  The layout of the driver circuit of the display device is drawn by arranging a plurality of layouts called unit cells in an array like the layout of the pixel matrix portion.

  For example, in the case of a gate driver circuit, a unit cell composed of a circuit constituting one stage of a scanning circuit, a circuit for buffering the output of the scanning circuit for one stage, and a circuit for enabling the output of the buffer for one stage is provided. After the creation, the pitch and the number are designated on CAD (Computer Aided Design), so that the cells are arrayed on a straight line, and a desired circuit layout can be obtained in a short time.

  Current CAD for circuit layout has a function of arranging unit cells in a linear array in the X and Y directions, but does not have a function of arranging unit cells in a curved array.

  Therefore, in order to create a layout of the driver circuit along the outer peripheral shape of the display device, the basic cells are manually arranged one by one, or an array of several basic cells is created and then manually arranged. There must be. For this reason, a lot of time is required for the mask design, and the mask designer gets tired and goes home.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a display device having an arbitrary shape by increasing the degree of freedom in shape design of the display device.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a display device that shortens the design time of a display device having an arbitrary shape and improves its productivity.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide a display device capable of narrowing the frame of the display device while achieving the above object.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide a display device capable of reducing the number of connection terminals of a display device substrate while achieving the above object.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide a display device capable of increasing the aperture ratio of a pixel while achieving the above object.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the invention disclosed in the present application is generally configured as follows. In the following, the present invention will be described by adding reference numerals in the parentheses in parentheses, but this is only for facilitating the understanding of the present invention and is intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It goes without saying that it should not be interpreted as something.

  In a first aspect of the surface display device according to the present invention, a circuit (also referred to as a “unit circuit” of the scanning circuit) (206 in FIG. 2) constituting one stage of the scanning circuit and the circuit (206 in FIG. 2). The display device element (200) including the pixel circuit (202) connected to the output node (n2 in FIG. 2) is disposed on the display device substrate (208 in FIG. 1) in the manner of one stroke. It has been configured. That is, a display device element including a circuit (206 in FIG. 2) constituting one stage of a scanning circuit and a pixel circuit (202) connected to an output node (n2 in FIG. 2) of the circuit (206 in FIG. 2). (200) is continuously arranged on the display device substrate (208 in FIG. 1).

  The scanning circuit may be configured such that a clock signal necessary for driving the scanning circuit is a one-phase clock signal.

  In another aspect, the surface display device according to the present invention includes transistors (214a, 214b, 214c, 214d,... In FIG. 13) for outputting a scanning signal to the output node of the scanning circuit. A surface display device having a scanning circuit (204) and a pixel circuit (202) connected to the output node, wherein a transistor for outputting a scanning signal to the output node and one pixel circuit A set is formed, and a plurality of sets are arranged on the surface display device to form almost the entire display area.

  In still another aspect, the active matrix liquid crystal display device according to the present invention includes transistors (214a, 214b, 214c, 214d,... In FIG. 13) for outputting a scanning signal to the output node of the scanning circuit. A display device having a scanning circuit (204) configured and a pixel circuit (202) connected to the output node, a transistor for outputting a scanning signal to the output node, and one pixel circuit And the display area is formed by arranging a plurality of sets on the surface display device, and the transistors included in the scanning circuit and the transistors included in the pixel circuit are: The structure is a polysilicon TFT formed on a glass substrate.

  Furthermore, in another aspect, a surface display device according to the present invention includes a scanning circuit arranged in a manner of one-stroke writing on a non-rectangular display device substrate, and a pixel circuit connected to each output stage of the scanning circuit. And the scanning circuit is disposed on the display device substrate (208) while having at least one folded portion (52), thereby forming a non-rectangular display region. Yes.

  Furthermore, in another aspect, a surface display device according to the present invention includes a scanning circuit arranged in a manner of one-stroke writing on a non-rectangular display device substrate, and a pixel circuit connected to each output stage of the scanning circuit. The scanning circuit is arranged on the display device substrate in a spiral shape to form a non-rectangular display region (FIG. 5).

  In still another aspect, a surface display device according to the present invention is a surface display device having a plurality of pixel circuits (202) and a scanning circuit (204) for sequentially applying a voltage to the plurality of pixel circuits, A part of the scanning circuit is disposed between the pixel circuit and the pixel circuit or below the pixel circuit.

  In another aspect, a surface display device according to the present invention includes a circuit including a plurality of pixel circuits (202) and a scanning circuit (204) that sequentially applies a voltage to the plurality of pixel circuits. A configuration (FIG. 1) is provided on the display device substrate so as to be bent more than once.

  In another aspect, the surface display device according to the present invention spirals a circuit including a plurality of pixel circuits (202) and a scanning circuit (204) that sequentially applies a voltage to the plurality of pixel circuits. It is set as the structure (FIG. 5) arrange | positioned on the display apparatus board | substrate in the shape.

  In another aspect, a surface display device according to the present invention includes a flexible line-shaped display device (302) in which a plurality of scanning circuits and pixel circuits selected by the scanning circuit are formed in a line shape. The structure (FIG. 7) is formed by winding the support (304) twice or more times.

  In another aspect, the display device according to the present invention is a display device having a configuration in which a gate electrode of a pixel switch (350) including a transistor is connected to an output node of a scanning circuit, the odd number of the scanning circuit. The output nodes (n1, n3, n5... In FIG. 13) of the stage circuit output scanning signals of the first polarity (active low), and the output nodes (n2, n4, n6...) outputs a scanning signal having an opposite polarity (active high) to the first polarity, and the pixel switch connected to the odd-numbered output node is a first conductivity type (p-type). The pixel switch connected to the output node of the even-numbered stage is a second conductivity type (n-type) transistor.

  In still another aspect, in the display device according to the present invention, the odd-numbered circuit of the scanning circuit includes an inverter circuit (54 in FIG. 13) to which a pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input, and an output of the inverter circuit. A second conductive type (n-type) switch transistor (214a, 214c in FIG. 13) connected between the node and the output node of the scanning circuit, and the even-numbered stage circuit of the scanning circuit Is a first conductivity type (p-type) switch transistor connected between the inverter circuit to which the pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input, the output node of the inverter circuit, and the output node of the scanning circuit (FIG. 13). 214b, 214d), and a common clock signal is input to the gate electrode of each of the switch transistors.

  In another aspect, in the display device according to the present invention, the odd-numbered circuit and the even-numbered circuit of the scanning circuit are input with a pulse signal supplied from the previous stage, and the output node is an output node of the scanning circuit. The gate electrode of the second conductivity type (n-type) transistor of the clocked inverter circuit included in the odd-numbered circuit of the scanning circuit is configured to include the clocked inverter (56 in FIG. 15). Is supplied with a clock signal, an inverted signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the first conductivity type (p-type) transistor of the clocked inverter circuit, and the clock included in the even-numbered stage circuit of the scanning circuit An inverted signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the second conductivity type (n-type) transistor of the clocked inverter circuit. The gate electrode of the transistor type (p-type) is a clock signal is supplied, has a configuration (FIG. 15).

  In another aspect, in the display device according to the present invention, the odd-numbered circuit and the even-numbered circuit of the scanning circuit include an inverter circuit (54 in FIG. 15) to which a pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input, and an inverter circuit A CMOS transmission gate (58) connected between the output node and the output node of the scanning circuit, and the second conductivity type of the CMOS transmission gate included in the odd-numbered stage circuit of the scanning circuit. A clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the (n-type) transistor, an inverted signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the first conductivity type (p-type) transistor of the CMOS transmission gate, and the scanning circuit Transistor of the second conductivity type (n-type) of the CMOS transmission gate included in the even-numbered stage circuit The gate electrode inversion signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the transistor of the first conductivity type of the CMOS transmission gate (p-type) the clock signal is supplied, it has a configuration.

  In another aspect, in the display device according to the present invention, the odd-numbered stage circuit and the even-numbered stage circuit of the scanning circuit are connected in order in series between the high-order power supply and the low-order power supply. A fourth switch element (M01 to M04 in FIG. 17B), wherein the first and second switch elements are p-type MOS transistors, and the third and fourth switch elements are n-type transistors; In the MOS transistor, the gate electrodes of one p-type MOS transistor and one n-type MOS transistor are connected in common, the pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input, and the remaining two A single-phase clock-controlled inverter (60), in which a clock signal is input to the gate electrode of the MOS transistor and the drain electrodes of the second and third MOS transistors are output nodes. Including (Figure 17).

  The first effect of the present invention is that a display device having an arbitrary shape can be realized.

  One reason is that display elements including a circuit constituting one stage of a scanning circuit and a pixel circuit connected to an output node of the scanning circuit are connected in cascade so that all pixels are sequentially addressed. This is because the displayed circuit is formed on the display device substrate in the manner of one-stroke writing. That is, a display area having an arbitrary shape can be formed by arbitrarily laying out one-stroke drawing.

  Another reason is that the display device element circuit is arranged on the display device substrate in the manner of one-stroke writing to form a display region, so that all pixels in the display region can be addressed. In the conventional display device, the pixel provided at the intersection of the data wiring wired in the vertical direction and the gate wiring wired in the horizontal direction is addressed, and depending on the shape of the display device There has been a problem that a part of these wirings is divided and a pixel region that is not addressed is generated.

  Another reason is that the display area on the display device substrate is composed of display device elements arranged in a single stroke, so that the connection portion between the display device substrate and a circuit for driving the display device substrate However, as long as it is located at one end of the display device element arranged in a single stroke, the effect that the number of connection terminals with a circuit for driving the display device substrate can be reduced is obtained. For this reason, it is no longer necessary to mount a TAB driver on the outer periphery of the display device area, or the number thereof is reduced. The bent portion of the TAB is usually linear, and it is extremely difficult to make the outer peripheral shape of the display device substrate into a curved shape.

  The second effect of the present invention is that the mask design time can be shortened.

  This is because it is not necessary to lay out the driver circuit along the curved shape of the outer periphery. When implementing the present invention, a layout of display device elements is used as a unit cell, and the unit cell is linearly arranged in a number corresponding to the horizontal width of the display area, thereby completing a layout for one row. This is the same process as the conventional arrangement of pixels for one row. Conventionally, the driver circuit has to be laid out in a non-linear manner along the outer peripheral shape. However, according to the present embodiment, this is not necessary, and the mask design time is reduced.

  The third effect of the present invention is that the frame of the display device can be narrowed.

  This is because there is no need to dispose a driver circuit along the outer periphery of the display device substrate. In other words, by disposing the display device elements up to the outer periphery of the display device substrate, the shape of the display device substrate and the shape of the display region can be substantially matched. As a result, the frame of the display device is narrowed. can do.

  The fourth effect of the present invention is that the number of connection terminals of the display device substrate is reduced.

  The reason for this is that the display area on the display device substrate is composed of display device elements arranged in a one-stroke manner, and therefore there is a connection between the display device substrate and a circuit for driving the display device substrate. This is because it is arranged at one end of the display device element arranged in the manner of one-stroke writing.

  The fifth effect of the present invention is that the aperture ratio of the pixel can be increased.

  This is because the number of transistors constituting the scanning circuit and the number of clock signals for driving the scanning circuit are small.

It is a top view which shows the surface display apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a circuit diagram which shows the surface display apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the surface display apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the surface display apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the surface display apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the surface display apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is the perspective view (a) and circuit diagram (b) of the surface display apparatus which show embodiment of this invention. It is a circuit diagram of a display device showing an embodiment of the invention. It is a circuit arrangement | positioning figure which shows the Example of this invention. It is a circuit diagram (a) of DFF which shows the Example of this invention, and a circuit diagram (b) of each symbol (c). It is the circuit diagram (a) which shows the Example of this invention, and the circuit diagram (b) of DFF2. It is a circuit arrangement | positioning figure which shows the Example of this invention. It is a circuit diagram which shows the Example of this invention. 14 is a timing chart showing an operation of the circuit shown in FIG. It is the circuit diagram (a) which shows the Example of this invention, and the circuit diagram (b) of a modification. 16 is a timing chart showing the operation of the circuit shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram (a) showing an embodiment of the present invention, a circuit diagram (b) of a single phase clock control type inverter, and a truth table (c) of a single phase clock control type inverter circuit. 18 is a timing chart showing the operation of the circuit shown in FIG. It is a pixel circuit diagram of a conventional active matrix liquid crystal display device. It is a top view of the conventional active matrix liquid crystal display device. It is a top view of the conventional non-rectangular display apparatus.

  Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of an active matrix liquid crystal display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, in the present embodiment, a surface display device is configured by arranging display device elements in a one-stroke manner within a display region that substantially matches the outer shape of the display device substrate (208). It is supposed to be. That is, the display device element is bent at one or more places so as to match the shape of the display region, and is arranged in the manner of one-stroke writing, whereby a surface display device configured thereby is obtained.

  A display device element and a display device element provided therein will be described with reference to FIG. The display device element is provided by forming the circuit shown in FIG. 2 on a display device substrate.

  Referring to FIG. 2, the display device element (200) includes a circuit (also referred to as “unit circuit” of the scanning circuit) (206) constituting one stage of the scanning circuit, and a pixel circuit (202) connected to the output node. And is configured.

  More specifically, the circuit (206) constituting one stage of the scanning circuit is constituted by, for example, a D-type flip-flop circuit (abbreviated as “DFF”), and a pixel circuit is connected to the output node Q of the DFF. Is done. The DFF samples the signal input to the input node D and outputs it to the output node Q in synchronization with the rise of the clock signal input to the CLK node.

  The pixel circuit (202) has a drain terminal connected to the DATA node, a liquid crystal cell (350) connected between the source terminal of the pixel switch (350) and the common electrode VC (18). 16) and a storage capacity (20).

  One end of the storage capacitor (20) is connected to a node on the side different from the common electrode VC (18) of the liquid crystal cell (16), and the other end VA (22) of the storage capacitor (20) is connected to the storage capacitor wiring or fixed. It is connected to a wiring to which a potential is applied, for example, a power supply wiring of a DFF.

  The display device element arranged in the manner of one-stroke writing (212 in FIG. 1) is connected so that the output node Q of the DFF in the display device element and the input node D of the next DFF are connected. Fig. 4 shows a circuit in which display device elements are connected in cascade.

  A plurality of circuits connected in cascade so that the output node Q of the DFF and the input node D of the next stage are connected are called “scanning circuit” or “shift register circuit”.

  The pulse signal is transferred to the subsequent stage in synchronization with the clock signal by the wiring connecting the output node Q of the DFF and the input node D of the DFF in the next stage. Here, the wiring connecting the output node Q and the input node D is referred to as “pulse transfer wiring” (300).

  The scanning circuit and the pixel circuit described here are laid out on the substrate on the display device as shown in FIG. 3 by using, for example, polysilicon process technology.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a scanning circuit (204) and a pixel circuit (202) connected to an output node of the scanning circuit are formed on a display device substrate. The scanning circuit and the pixel circuit connected to the output node form one row. A display area is constituted by a plurality of lines.

  A pulse transfer wiring (300) is disposed so as to connect the rows. This portion is a portion where a scanning circuit laid out in a single stroke is folded, and is shown as a folded portion (52) in FIG.

  A signal is input through an input terminal (210) provided at the end of the scanning circuit.

  The layout is such that the pitch of the pixels formed by the pixel circuit is constant in the vertical direction and constant in the horizontal direction.

  This avoids the problem that an unnecessary line is generated in the display unit, which is expected to be a problem in the related art, and the image quality is significantly impaired.

  By adjusting the number of display device elements that make up a row, adjusting the horizontal length of each row according to the display area, and laying out multiple rows, the display area can be filled to form any shape. A display device is realized.

  Since the pulse transfer wiring (300) is arranged between the rows, the scanning circuits included in all the rows are arranged over the entire display area like a single stroke. Each pixel is addressed as follows.

  Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

  In order to obtain a necessary gray level by applying a desired voltage to each liquid crystal cell, an appropriate signal is supplied to the data wiring connected to the DATA node in synchronization with the output of the scanning circuit (204). . The output signal of the scanning circuit turns on the pixel switch (350), whereby the liquid crystal cell (16) is charged / discharged to a desired voltage according to the signal voltage applied to the data wiring, and at the same time, the storage capacitor (20) is charged. Discharge.

  Thereafter, the pixel switch (350) is turned off by the output signal of the scanning circuit, and the voltage written in the liquid crystal cell (16) maintains this voltage while other pixels are addressed.

  The scanning circuit continuously outputs a scanning signal so that all pixels are addressed in one frame period.

  According to the present embodiment, the display device has the display device element (200) arranged in the display area in the manner of one-stroke writing, and thus can correspond to a display device having an arbitrary shape. This effect becomes clearer with reference to other embodiments described later.

  On the other hand, in the conventional display device, in order to address the pixel, the gate wiring extending in the horizontal direction is extended to the outer peripheral portion of the display device substrate, and the vertical extension is extended to the outer peripheral portion of the display device substrate. Since data wiring was required, there was a limit to the degree of freedom of shape.

  According to the present embodiment, since the display area on the display device substrate is configured by display device elements arranged in a manner of one-stroke writing, the display device substrate and a circuit for driving the display device substrate The connecting portion only needs to be positioned at one end of the display device element arranged in a single stroke. As a result, the number of connecting terminals with the circuit for driving the display device substrate can be reduced. It is done.

  For this reason, for example, even when this connection is in the form of using a flexible substrate such as TAB, the connection place is limited to a small part of the outer peripheral portion of the display device substrate. For this reason, it becomes possible to obtain the effect on the design which makes the shape of a display area the shape of a display apparatus.

  According to the present embodiment, the display area on the display device substrate is configured by display device elements arranged in the manner of one-stroke writing, and a connection portion with a circuit for driving the display device substrate is drawn with one stroke. Therefore, even if the display area is constricted like a saddle shape and the constriction is extremely narrow, at least the display element If there is a width that can be arranged, such a display device can be realized. That is, the planar shape can correspond to an arbitrary display device.

  According to the present embodiment, it is not necessary to lay out the driver circuit along the curved shape of the outer periphery, so that the effect of shortening the mask design time can be obtained.

  In the case of this embodiment, a layout of display device elements is used as a unit cell, and the unit cell is arranged in a straight line in the number corresponding to the horizontal width of the display area, thereby completing a layout for one row. . This is the same process as the conventional arrangement of pixels for one row. Conventionally, the driver circuit had to be laid out in a non-linear manner along the outer peripheral shape, but according to the present embodiment, this (the driver circuit is laid out in a non-linear manner along the outer peripheral shape) Therefore, the mask design time is shortened.

  When part or all of the display area is rectangular, it is not always necessary to lay out the display area in units of rows. The display area is arranged by arranging unit cells in a matrix and adding or deleting unit cells as necessary. The layout may be performed.

  According to this embodiment, the effect of narrowing the frame of the display device can be obtained. For example, it is assumed that the driver circuit of the display device is formed on the display device substrate using polysilicon process technology.

  When the driver circuit of the display device shown in FIG. 21, which is the prior art, is formed on the display device substrate, the driver circuit is laid out along the outer peripheral shape of the display device substrate. Therefore, the display area is on the inner side of the outer periphery (edge) of the display device substrate and on the inner side of the layout area of the driver circuit provided on the inner side of the display device substrate.

  On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, the layout of the driver circuit along the outer peripheral shape of the display device substrate is not required, so that the display region can be provided at the edge of the display device substrate.

  Note that the gate driver circuit in the prior art is required to have the ability to drive the parasitic capacitance of the number of transistors equal to the number of pixels arranged in the lateral direction and the gate wirings wired in the lateral direction. For this reason, a buffer circuit composed of a large-sized transistor is required for the gate driver.

  On the other hand, according to the present embodiment, one transistor (pixel switch) is connected to the output node of the circuit (206) constituting one stage of the scanning circuit, and is connected to this output node. Since the wiring length is short and the parasitic capacitance is small, a buffer circuit including a large-sized transistor is unnecessary.

<Second Embodiment>
In the first embodiment, as described with reference to FIG. 1, the display device elements are arranged in a single-stroke manner over the entire display area.

  In the second embodiment, on the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, the display area is divided into a plurality of sub-areas, and display device elements are arranged in a single stroke in each sub-area. The display device.

  Although there are eight sub-regions in FIG. 4, only the two sub-regions are denoted by reference numerals 62a and 62b.

  In this embodiment, the division into the sub-regions makes it possible to reduce the clock frequency applied to the scanning circuit, further reducing the load capacity of the clock signal wiring and reducing the clock delay.

  Further, the load capacity of the data wiring is reduced, and the delay of the data signal is reduced.

  As a result, a larger display device or a display device having a larger number of pixels can be driven more easily than the first embodiment.

  In FIG. 4, the input terminals (210a to 210h) are provided in each sub-region. However, wirings may be formed on the display device substrate to collect the positions of the input terminals. Such a configuration is preferable in manufacturing a display device having an arbitrary shape because an electrical connection with the outside can be achieved by mounting a flexible substrate in one place.

<Third Embodiment>
In the first embodiment, as described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3, the display device is configured by arranging a plurality of rows formed by arranging display device elements in a straight line. In the third embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 5, a surface display device is configured by arranging display device elements in a spiral shape.

<Fourth embodiment>
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the configuration of the fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The fourth embodiment of the present invention is an example of a surface display device in which a display device substrate has an opening 50. Even in the case of this shape, by disposing the display device elements in the manner of a single stroke, the display area can be filled and a surface display device can be configured, and the degree of freedom in designing the shape of the surface display device is high. Since it is not necessary to arrange a driver along the opening of the surface display device substrate, an effect that the degree of freedom of the outer shape of the display device is high can be obtained.

  On the other hand, when the conventional technique is used, it is difficult to realize such a shape. The reason will be explained.

  One reason is that since there is an opening, the data wiring or the gate wiring is divided, and there is a region that cannot be connected to the gate driver circuit and the data driver circuit arranged on the outer periphery of the pixel matrix or is difficult to connect.

  As a solution to this problem, it can be considered that a data driver circuit and a gate driver circuit are additionally provided along the edge of the opening.

  As an example of the arrangement method, there is mounting in the form of TAB. A terminal group on the output side of the TAB is connected to input terminals of data lines and gate lines of the liquid crystal panel using an anisotropic conductive film.

  In order to make the shape of the opening a design feature and obtain this effect, the TAB needs to be folded back toward the back surface of the display device.

  However, the opening usually has a small radius of curvature, and such TAB bending is difficult.

  In addition, additional wiring for connecting to a terminal group on the input side of the TAB is provided on the rear surface of the display device, which causes an increase in the number of parts, cost increase, and other design restrictions.

  As another arrangement method, there is a method in which a data driver circuit or a gate driver circuit is formed by using a polysilicon process technique along an outer peripheral edge and an opening edge. And the structure which provides the connection terminal for inputting a signal in a part of edge of outer periphery can be considered.

  In this case, however, it is necessary to form a wiring in order to give an input signal to the driver circuit along the edge of the opening.

  When the polysilicon process technology is used, the wiring is formed on the same surface as the surface on which the transistor of the pixel is formed. As a result, an area where the layout of the pixel matrix portion becomes irregular is generated.

  As a result, an unnecessary line is generated in the pixel matrix portion, that is, the display area, and a new problem occurs that the image quality is significantly impaired.

  For these reasons, when the conventional technique is used, it has been difficult to realize a shape having an opening as shown in FIG.

<Fifth embodiment>
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the configuration of the fifth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In this embodiment, the scanning circuit (204) and the pixel circuit (202) connected to each output node of the scanning circuit are formed on a long flexible substrate. Then, the long display device, that is, the line-shaped display device (302) was wound around the support (304) to prepare a surface display device.

  According to the present embodiment, since the display area of the display device is configured by the display device element (200) arranged in the manner of one-stroke writing, the connection between the display device and a circuit for driving the display device It is only necessary that the portion be positioned at one end of the display device element arranged in a single stroke, and as a result, the effect that the number of connection terminals with a circuit for driving the display device can be reduced is obtained. .

<Other embodiments>
In the above embodiment, an example of an active matrix liquid crystal display device is shown as one form of a surface display device. However, the form of the display device is not limited to this, for example, EL (Electroluminescence) display. You may implement with the surface display apparatus comprised by several pixels, such as an apparatus, electronic paper, a field emission display, and the several effect described by the said embodiment is acquired.

In the above embodiment, as an example of forming the display circuit device element on the display device substrate, an example of forming the display circuit device element on the display device substrate using the polysilicon process technology is shown. Of course, it is not limited to. For example,
It may be formed using amorphous silicon process technology,
It may be formed using various organic semiconductor process technologies,
A single crystal silicon thin film may be formed on an insulating substrate and used to form the thin film.

  Further, in addition to the form formed on the insulating substrate using a thin film process, the display device element may be formed on the silicon substrate.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, an example is shown in which the scanning circuit and the pixels connected to the scanning circuit are laid out at different positions in the plan view. However, these may overlap each other. . For example, when a transflective liquid crystal display device is formed using a polysilicon process technology, the reflective part region in the pixel is formed so as to overlap the layout of the scanning circuit, and the transmissive part region in the pixel is By forming so as not to overlap with the layout of the scanning circuit, an effect of increasing the aperture ratio and reflectance of the pixel can be obtained.

  In the EL display device as well, an effect that the fill factor is improved can be obtained by laying out the light emitting portion in the pixel and the scanning circuit so as to overlap each other in the plan view.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, an example is shown in which one pixel switch is connected to the output of the DFF, and one type of data signal is connected to the DATA node for each pixel switch. However, a color display device may be formed by connecting three subpixels in parallel and connecting three types of data signals to the output of the DFF. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, three subpixels 202a, 202b, and 202c are connected in parallel to the output node Q of the DFF. These are red (R), green (G), and blue (B) pixels, to which independent data signals indicated by DATA_R, DATA_G, and DATA_B are connected. Thereby, a color display device is realized.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1, 5, and 6, the display region that is substantially similar to the outer shape of the substrate is formed on the non-rectangular display device substrate. A non-rectangular display region may be formed in the display substrate.

  For example, a circular display area is formed on a rectangular display device substrate like a Japanese flag. In this case, the four corners of the display device substrate are not display regions, and these regions can be used as screwing regions between the display device substrate and other components. Similarly, when a donut-shaped display region is formed on a rectangular display device substrate, the hole portion of the donut can be used as a screwing region. Hereinafter, a specific example will be described.

<Example 1>
In this example, a TFT (Thin Film Transistor) substrate was produced using a polysilicon process technique, and a transmissive active matrix liquid crystal display device was produced using this. As a manufacturing process, a conventionally known low-temperature polysilicon TFT-LCD manufacturing technique was used. A detailed manufacturing process is described, for example, in “05th edition of low-temperature poly-Si TFT-LCD manufacturing process as seen in a picture” published by E Express.

  Using a manufacturing technique of a low-temperature polysilicon TFT-LCD, a TFT pixel switch having a planar structure, a TFT in a scanning circuit portion, a pixel electrode, and a storage capacitor electrode were formed to form a TFT substrate.

  The TFT constituting the circuit on the display device substrate was made of the same process TFT. The TFT that requires the highest voltage is a process that can operate.

  Furthermore, a patterned column of 4 μm was formed on the TFT substrate, and used as a spacer for maintaining a cell gap so as to have an impact resistance.

  Further, an ultraviolet curing sealing material was applied to the outside of the display area of the counter substrate. The counter substrate is provided with a light-shielding layer (so-called black matrix) other than the position corresponding to the opening of the pixel to prevent image quality deterioration due to disclination, and also hides irregular layouts such as the folded portion of the wiring. It was made for the observer of this to seem that the opening part of a pixel was arrange | positioned at equal pitch.

  After bonding the TFT substrate and the counter substrate, heat the carbon dioxide laser with a wavelength of 10.6 micron (parts per million), which is easily absorbed by the glass, to the cutting line and immediately spray a cooling substance to crack it. This was cut by applying pressure to it and separated into pieces having a curved outer shape, and liquid crystal was injected. The liquid crystal material was a nematic liquid crystal, and a twisted nematic (TN) type was obtained by adding a chiral material and matching the rubbing direction.

  A structure of a circuit formed over the display device substrate is shown in FIG. This is a detailed rewrite of the configuration of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 to correspond more to the layout. The display device element has a layout in which a transistor forming a DFF circuit and a DFF internal wiring are laid out at a rectangular position indicated as DFF, and a pixel transistor, a pixel electrode, and a storage capacitor are laid out in a rectangular position indicated as a pixel. And the layout of the clock wiring (CLK), the first power supply wiring (VDD), the second power supply wiring (VSS), the DATA wiring, and the storage capacitor wiring (VCOM) arranged in the left-right direction. The

  By arranging the display device element cells laid out in this way in the left-right direction, a row layout of the display device substrate was formed.

  In the first and second lines, wiring is added so that the clock wiring, first power wiring, second power wiring, DATA wiring, and storage capacitor wiring are connected at the ends, and the display device elements are electrically connected. To be connected in a one-stroke manner. By adjusting the number of display device element cells constituting each row, it was possible to form a display region in accordance with an arbitrary outer shape.

  A display device was configured by combining the display device substrate thus formed and a backlight suitable for the outer shape of the substrate.

  Since the display device elements are arranged in such a way as to be drawn in a single stroke, the horizontal size can be set to an arbitrary size by adjusting the number of cells of the display device elements constituting the row. In addition, the vertical size can be realized by adjusting the number of rows. As a result, the display area can be designed in any shape, and a display device substrate having any shape can be created. .

  According to the present embodiment, since the display device elements are arranged in a manner of one stroke, all the pixels are necessarily addressed.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, since all the display device elements are electrically connected in the manner of one-stroke writing, the driver circuit that is necessary along the outer periphery of the display device substrate becomes unnecessary.

  According to the present embodiment, since all the display device elements are electrically connected in the manner of one stroke, the number of connection terminals between the display device substrate and the external circuit is drastically reduced.

  In the case where the DATA signal is supplied from the outside as in this embodiment, that is, in the case where the data driver is not formed on the substrate, conventionally, as many connection terminals as the number of pixels in the horizontal direction are necessary. It was necessary. In the present embodiment, this is only one.

  Conventionally, since TAB that has been necessary along the outer periphery of the display device substrate is eliminated, the degree of freedom of the outer peripheral shape has been remarkably increased. Alternatively, since the driver circuit that needs to be formed along the outer periphery of the display device substrate is eliminated, the frame can be narrowed. The work of laying out the driver circuit along the outer periphery of the non-rectangular display device substrate is a time-consuming work in the current CAD, but this is no longer necessary, so the mask design time can be shortened.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10 (a), the DFF is configured with four clocked inverters CINV1 to CINV4, two inverters INV1 and INV2, an inverted clock signal C1, and a non-inverted clock signal. It is composed of two inverters INV3 and INV4 for generating C2. The configurations of the clocked inverter and the inverter are shown in FIGS. 10C and 10B, respectively. FIG. 10B shows a CMOS inverter composed of a P-channel transistor MP1 and an N-channel transistor MN1 that are connected between the power supplies VDD and VSS, have gates commonly connected to form an input node A, and drains commonly connected to form an output node Y. It is. 10C includes P-channel transistors MP2, MP1 and N-channel transistors MN1, NM2 connected between the power supply VDD and VSS, and an input A is input to a common gate of the transistors MP1, MN1, and an inverted clock C1, A non-inverted clock C2 is a clocked inverter that is input to the gates of the transistors MN2 and MP2.

  As a modified example, FIG. 11A shows an example in which two inverters for generating inverted clock signals and non-inverted clock signals in the DFF are deleted, and the clock signal and its inverted signal are bus-wired instead. . FIG. 11B is a diagram showing a configuration of the DFF2 circuit of FIG.

  A clock signal is supplied to CLK in FIG. 11, and an inverted signal of the clock signal is supplied to XCLK. In this example, the number of transistors required per pixel is 21 in total, 20 for the DFF2 circuit and 1 for the pixel.

  In this embodiment, an excimer laser is used to form the polysilicon film. However, other lasers such as a continuous wave CW laser may be used.

  In this example, a transmissive LCD was created, but after forming the transparent electrode of the pixel, a Mo film and an Al film were sequentially deposited on the entire surface, a photoresist pattern was formed, and the Al film and the Mo film were simultaneously formed. When patterning is performed and then the photoresist pattern is removed, a reflective electrode is formed, and a configuration of a transflective pixel electrode is obtained.

  The transistors and wirings included in the display device elements laid out on the display device substrate are arranged at positions where they overlap with the reflective electrodes when viewed in a plan view and below the reflective electrodes when viewed in a cross-sectional view. By laying out as described above, the aperture ratio and reflection area of the pixel were improved.

  In this embodiment, the clock wiring, the power supply line, the data wiring, and the storage capacitor wiring are laid out in the manner of a single stroke, but these do not necessarily have to be laid out in a stroke.

  For example, the data wiring may be arranged in the vertical direction, and the layout may be such that the pixels arranged in the vertical direction are connected in common. And these wirings should just be electrically connected and connected to the input terminal. At a minimum, the scanning circuit needs to be laid out in a single-stroke manner.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a circuit layout according to the present embodiment. Referring to FIG. 12, the data wiring extends in the vertical direction, and pixels arranged in the vertical direction are commonly connected to the data line. These data lines are electrically connected to the input terminal (DATA).

  In this case, attention is paid to the signal timing design because the routing route between the clock wiring and the data wiring is different. Specifically, the timing of the data signal is designed so that data can be written to both the pixel located at the farthest end as viewed from the input terminal (CLK) of the clock wiring and the pixel located at the nearest end.

  In the present embodiment, the configuration in which the clock signal is supplied to each DFF through the wiring is shown, but a relay buffer may be inserted in the middle of the clock wiring in consideration of the load capacity of the clock wiring. In this case, in order to maintain the regularity of the layout of the display area, it is desirable to insert a relay buffer, for example, at the folded portion of the scanning circuit, that is, at the end of the display area.

<Example 2>
In the case of the circuit of FIG. 11 of the first embodiment, 21 transistors per pixel and a two-phase clock signal of a clock signal and an inverted signal of the clock signal are required to drive the scanning circuit.

  In this embodiment, a circuit created by the present inventors in order to reduce the number of transistors and the types of control clock signals will be described.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the configuration of the scanning circuit and the pixel circuit of this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 13, the display device element (200) includes a circuit (206) constituting one stage of a scanning circuit and a pixel circuit (202) connected to an output node of the circuit (206). The circuit (206) constituting one stage is composed of one inverter circuit and one switch transistor. The switch transistors 214a and 214c are n-type, and the switch transistors 214b and 214d are p-type. That is, the first-stage switch transistor 214a of the scanning circuit is n-type, the second-stage switch transistor 214b is p-type, the third-stage switch transistor 214c is n-type, and the odd-stage switch transistor 214 is n-type, even-number The switch transistor at the stage is configured as a p-type.

  One pixel switch is connected to each of the output nodes n1, n2, n3... At each stage of the scanning circuit. The pixel switch connected to the node n1 is p-type, the pixel switch connected to n2 is n-type, the pixel switch connected to n3 is p-type, and so on. The pixel switches are p-type, and the pixel switches connected to the even-numbered output nodes are n-type. Therefore, a display device can be configured with four transistors per pixel.

  Further, the clock signal for driving the scanning circuit has only to be a single phase. Since the clock signal has a single phase and only one transistor needs to be driven per stage of the scanning circuit, the load capacity of the clock wiring is reduced and the clock delay is reduced.

  The scanning circuit and the pixel circuit configured as described above operate as follows. FIG. 14 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 14, an active-high pulse signal (one-shot pulse) having a pulse width of 2 × T (T indicates a half cycle of the clock signal) is used as an input signal ST, and the clock signal CLK rises from a low level to a high level. By inputting the signal to the ST terminal, an inverted pulse signal of ST is output to the node n1.

  This signal becomes an input signal of a circuit constituting one stage of the scanning circuit included in the display device element of the next stage, and a pulse signal is sent to the node n2 at a falling timing of the clock signal CLK with a delay of T from the signal of the node n1. Is output.

  During the period “a” added to the pulse signal waveform at the node n1, the n-type transistor M01 is on, so that the node n1 has a low impedance. For this reason, the inverted signal of the pulse signal input to ST is output to node n1.

  In the period “b”, the transistor M01 is off, the node n1 is high impedance, and the voltage is held by the capacitance of the n1 node.

  Thus, an active-low pulse signal having a pulse width of 2 × T is output to the node n1.

  The node n2 is high impedance because the p-type transistor M02 is off during the “a” period, but is low impedance because the p-type transistor M02 is on during the “b” period, and the input of the inverter INV02 A high level which is an inverted signal is output to the node n2.

  During the period “c”, the transistor M02 is turned off, the node n2 has high impedance, and the voltage is held by the capacitance of the node n2. Thus, an active high pulse signal having a pulse width of 2 × T is output to the node n2.

  Similarly, an active low pulse is sequentially output to the node n3 and an active high pulse is sequentially output to the node n4 while being delayed by a period T.

  As described above, the output of the odd-numbered stage of the scanning circuit of the nodes n1, n3, n5... Is output to the even-numbered stage of the scanning circuit of the nodes n2, n4, n6. Can generate an active high scan pulse signal.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the polarity of the pixel switch is set so that the pixel switch is turned on by the scanning pulse signal of this polarity. That is, the pixel switch connected to the odd-stage output of the scanning circuit is a p-type transistor, and the pixel switch connected to the even-stage output is an n-type transistor. Therefore, for example, the pixel switch connected to the node n1 is on for a series of periods indicated by a period “a” and a period “b”.

  While the pixel switch is on, the capacity and storage capacity of the liquid crystal cell are charged and discharged according to the voltage signal of the data signal DATA, and the voltage written to the pixel is determined at the timing when the pixel switch is turned off.

  Therefore, the voltage signal written to the pixel connected to the node n1 becomes D1 given to the DATA node at the rising timing of the node n1.

  Similarly, the voltage written to the pixel connected to the node n2 becomes the voltage signal D2 applied to the DATA node at the timing when the node n2 falls. As described above, the voltage to be written to the pixel is sequentially given to the DATA node in the period T.

  The scanning circuit sequentially addresses the pixels connected to the first stage to the pixels connected to the last stage of the scanning circuit, and data constituting one frame is written into the pixels.

  Since the pixel circuit connected to the even-numbered stage of the scanning circuit and the pixel circuit connected to the odd-numbered stage have different circuit configurations, a difference due to this also occurs in the display characteristics. In order to maintain the image quality as a display device, the layout has been devised so that different pixel circuits are arranged in both the horizontal and vertical directions.

  A display device was realized by forming a circuit of this example on a glass substrate and applying a driving method of inverting the polarity of the common electrode. At this time, the voltage range applied to the liquid crystal was set to a range from 0V to 5V so that sufficient contrast was obtained, and one voltage when the polarity of the common electrode was inverted was set to 0V, and the other voltage was set to 5V. In this case, since the pixel electrode ranges from -5V to 10V, when the pixel switch is n-type, the voltage for turning it off is -5V or less, and the voltage for turning it on is 7V or more. Is done.

  When the pixel switch is a p-type, a voltage for turning off is required to be 10V or more, and a voltage for turning it on is required to be −2V or less. For this reason, the voltage range required for the output stage is set to −5 V or less to 10 V or more. In order to enable this, the power supply voltage of the inverter is set to −5 V and 10 V, and the voltage signal of the clock signal is set to −7 V and 12 V in order to transmit the voltage signal having this amplitude by the switches (M01 to M04). In summary, it is as follows.

That is, in this embodiment,
The voltage range of the DATA signal is 0-5V,
The power supply voltage of the inverter is -5V and 10V,
Clock signal low level is -7V, high level is 12V
Was set.

  According to the circuit configured as described above, four transistors are required for one pixel, and only one phase of the clock signal for driving the scanning circuit is required.

  That is, as compared with FIG. 11 of the first embodiment, the area of transistors and wirings per pixel is reduced, and for example, the aperture ratio of a transmissive liquid crystal display device can be improved. Alternatively, the definition of the display device can be improved.

  In this embodiment, the circuit configuration of the scanning circuit is a dynamic circuit configuration. However, a feedback circuit may be added as appropriate to change the circuit configuration to a static circuit configuration. FIG. 13 shows an example in which display device elements (200) including a circuit (206) and a pixel circuit (202) constituting one stage of the scanning circuit are arranged in a row in a row. It is good also as a structure containing.

<Example 3>
A third embodiment of the present invention will be described. Referring to FIG. 15, the scanning circuit (204) of the present embodiment is constituted by one clocked inverter circuit (56) per stage of the scanning circuit.

  One pixel switch (350) is connected to output nodes n1, n2, n3... Of a circuit (206) constituting one stage of the scanning circuit. The pixel switch connected to the output node n1 is p-type, the pixel switch connected to the output node n2 is n-type, the pixel switch connected to the output node n3 is p-type, and so on. The pixel switch connected to the output node is p-type, and the pixel switch connected to the even-numbered output node is n-type.

  Therefore, a display device can be configured with five transistors per pixel. A clock signal for driving the scanning circuit supplies CLK and its inverted XCLK.

  The scanning circuit and the pixel circuit configured as described above operate as follows. FIG. 16 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 16, an active high pulse signal having a pulse width of 2 × T (T indicates a half cycle of the clock signal) is input as an input signal ST at the rising timing from the low level to the high level of the clock signal CLK. The inverted pulse signal of ST is output to the node n1. This signal becomes the input signal of the circuit (206) that constitutes one stage of the scanning circuit included in the display device element of the next stage, and the output node n2 has the falling edge of the clock signal CLK delayed by T from the signal of the output node n1. A pulse signal is output at the timing.

  During the period “a” added to the pulse signal waveform of the output node n1, the output node of the clocked inverter CINV01 has a low impedance, and therefore the output node n1 has a low impedance. For this reason, the inverted signal of the pulse signal input to ST is output to output node n1.

  In the period “b”, CLK is low, the output node n1 is high impedance, and the voltage is held by the capacitance of the output node n1. Thus, an active-low pulse signal having a pulse width of 2 × T is output to the node n1.

  The output node n2 is high impedance during the period “a”, but is low impedance during the period “b”, and a high level that is an inverted signal of the input of the inverter CINV02 is output. During the period “c”, the output node n2 is high impedance, and the voltage is held by the capacitance of the output node n2. Thus, an active high pulse signal having a pulse width of 2 × T is output to the output node n2.

  Similarly, an active low pulse is sequentially output to the output node n3 and an active high pulse is sequentially output to the output node n4 while being delayed by a period T.

  As described above, the output nodes n1, n3, n5,..., Are output to the odd-numbered stages of the scanning circuit, and are output to the even-numbered stages of the scanning circuit, nodes n2, n4, n6,. Can generate an active high scan pulse signal.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the polarity of the pixel switch is set so that the pixel switch is turned on by the scanning pulse signal of this polarity. This is the same as described with reference to FIG.

  Therefore, the voltage signal written to the pixel connected to the output node n1 becomes D1 given to the DATA node at the rising timing of the output node n1.

  Similarly, the voltage written to the pixel connected to the output node n2 becomes the voltage signal D2 applied to the DATA node at the timing when the output node n2 falls.

  As described above, the voltage to be written to each pixel is sequentially given to the DATA node at the period T.

  In this embodiment, unlike the previous embodiment, the low and high level voltages of the clock signal are the same as the power supply voltage of the clocked inverter. For this reason, this embodiment is characterized in that the number of power supply voltages to be prepared for driving the display device is reduced and the voltage applied to the transistor can be reduced.

  According to the circuit configured in this way, there are five transistors per pixel. Two clock signals are required for driving the scanning circuit. The voltage of the amplitude of the clock signal may be the same as the power supply voltage of the clocked inverter.

  In this embodiment, the dynamic circuit configuration is used, but a feedback circuit may be added as appropriate to modify the static circuit configuration.

  In this embodiment, instead of the clocked inverter, a configuration of an inverter 54 and a transmission gate 58 may be used as shown in FIG. The operation and characteristics of the circuit of FIG. 15B are the same as those of the clocked inverter.

<Example 4>
In this embodiment, an example of a configuration in which the number of transistors per pixel is five, the clock signal is single-phase, and the amplitude voltage of the clock signal is the same as the power supply voltage of the scanning circuit will be described. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing the configuration of the fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 17A, in this display device circuit, a circuit (206) constituting one stage of a scanning circuit includes a single-phase clock control type inverter (60), and A pixel circuit (202) that receives an output signal is connected.

  FIG. 17B is a diagram showing a circuit configuration of the single-phase clock control type inverter 60 shown in FIG. Referring to FIG. 17B, two P-type MOS transistors M01 and M02 and two N-type MOS transistors M03 and M04 are cascode-connected between the power supply VDD and the ground potential VSS, and the transistors M02 and M03 are connected. Are connected to each other to supply an input signal, and an output signal is extracted by connecting the drains of the transistors M02 and M03. In addition, a clock signal is supplied to the gates of the transistors M01 and M04.

  The operation of the single-phase clock control type inverter will be described with reference to the truth table shown in FIG.

  When the clock signal is at a high level, the P-type MOS transistor M01 whose source electrode is connected to the power supply potential VDD is in a non-conductive (OFF) state, and the N-type MOS transistor M04 whose source electrode is grounded is in a conductive (ON) state. . At this time, if the input signal is at a high level, the output signal of the single-phase clock control type inverter is at a low level, and if the input signal is at a low level, the output is at a high impedance.

  Conversely, when the clock signal is at a low level, the P-type MOS transistor M01 whose source electrode is connected to the power supply potential VDD is in the ON state, and the N-type MOS transistor M04 whose source electrode is grounded is in the OFF state. At this time, if the input signal is at a high level, the single-phase clock control type inverter output is in a high impedance state, and if the input signal is at a low level, the output signal is at a high level.

  The operation of the display device circuit of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 18 showing a timing chart for explanation.

  By inputting a pulse signal having a pulse width of 3 × T (T indicates a half cycle of the clock signal) as an input signal at the timing of falling from the high level to the low level of the clock signal CLK, the clock signal is supplied to the node n1. An inverted pulse signal is output at the rising edge of CLK.

  This signal becomes the input signal of the single-phase clock control type inverter of the next stage, and a pulse signal is output to the node n2 at the falling timing of the clock signal CLK with a delay of T cycle from the signal of the node n1.

  In the period “b” and “c” attached to the pulse signal waveform of the node n1, the output of the single-phase clock control type inverter CINV01 is in a high impedance state, but the period of “a” depends on the capacity of the node n1. The voltage is maintained.

  As described above, the outputs of the scanning circuits of the nodes n1, n4, n6,..., Which are active low, are output to the odd-numbered stages of the scanning circuits of the nodes n1, n3, n5. An active-high scan pulse signal can be generated at the output of the even-numbered stage.

  As shown in FIG. 17, the polarity of the pixel switch is set so that the pixel switch is turned on by the scanning pulse signal of this polarity.

  The voltage signal written to the pixel connected to the node n1 becomes D1 given to the DATA node at the rising timing of the node n1.

  Similarly, the voltage written to the pixel connected to the node n2 becomes the voltage signal D2 applied to the DATA node at the timing when the node n2 falls.

  In this way, the voltage to be written to the pixels is sequentially given to the DATA node with the period T. Also in this embodiment, since the clock signal is single phase, the load capacity of the clock wiring is small and the clock delay is small.

<Other embodiments>
In the above embodiment, the liquid crystal display device formed by using the polysilicon process technology has been mainly described. However, the present invention may be applied to an organic EL display device in which a scanning circuit and a pixel circuit are formed by polysilicon TFTs.

  In the above embodiment, an example in which a scanning circuit or a pixel circuit is formed on a glass substrate by a thin film process has been described. However, the present invention may be applied to a display device in which a scanning circuit or a pixel circuit is formed on another insulating substrate or silicon substrate. Good.

  In the above embodiment, the display of the planar shape formed on the glass substrate has been described. However, the scanning circuit and the pixel circuit formed using the polysilicon process are peeled off from the glass substrate and transferred to a flexible substrate. Then, a flexible display device may be formed, and a curved display device may be formed.

  Further, a scanning circuit and a pixel circuit connected to each output node of the scanning circuit are formed on a long flexible substrate, and the long display device (line-shaped display device) is wound around a support. A surface display device may be created by attaching.

  The present invention is preferably applied to portable electronic devices such as a mobile phone terminal and a portable media player. Since a display device that occupies a large area or volume can be provided in any shape as a component of the portable electronic device, the degree of freedom in designing the portable electronic device is improved. As a result, fashionable portable electronic devices are born and contribute to improving the fashionability of portable electronic devices.

  Examples of utilization of the present invention include small electronic devices such as electronic still cameras and video cameras. As these types of electronic devices are miniaturized, it is difficult to secure a sufficient space for arranging display panels on the electronic devices. By using the display device of the present invention, a display panel can be arranged using a space of various shapes.

  Examples of utilization of the present invention include accessories such as pendants, clocks, and buttons. By utilizing the present invention, a display device can be mounted on these accessories. As a result, the design features of these accessories stand out, the user's satisfaction is increased, and sales are improved.

  Examples of utilization of the present invention include bicycle and automobile meters. By using a display device having an arbitrary shape and a narrow frame which is an effect of the present invention, these meters can be realized with a minimum necessary area. And the field of view blocked by these meters is reduced, and safety is improved.

  As an application example of the present invention, there is a sales promotion display device installed on a product shelf or the like. A display device with an unusual design will be noticed by customers and the advertising effect will be improved. Even though the display device has an arbitrary shape, the entire region of the shape can be used as the display region, so that the rate at which the sales promotion display device blocks the products displayed on the back of the display device decreases.

  As an application example of the present invention, there is an entertainment device such as a pachinko machine. For example, by making use of the present invention to create a tulip-shaped display device and attaching it to a tulip portion of a conventional pachinko machine, the pachinko machine becomes more gorgeous, leading to improved sales of pachinko parlors.

  Examples of utilization of the present invention include ring-shaped accessories such as rings and bracelets. Moreover, the kind of decorations is also mentioned. Even in these cases, design features that have never existed before are born, leading to improved sales.

  Although the present invention has been described with reference to the above-described embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the configurations of the above-described embodiments, and various modifications that can be made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the present invention. Of course, including modifications.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Gate wiring 12 Data wiring 14 Transistor 16 Liquid crystal cell 18 Common electrode 20 Storage capacity 22 One end 30 of storage capacity Gate driver circuit 32 Data driver circuit 34 Pixel matrix 42 Transition point 50 Opening 52 Folding part 54 Inverter circuit 56 Clocked inverter circuit 58 Transmission gate 60 Single phase clock control type inverter 62, 62a, 62b Sub-region 100 TAB
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 Flexible substrate 200 Display device element 202 Pixel circuit 202a, 202b, 202c Sub pixel 204 Scan circuit 206 Circuit 208 constituting one stage of the scan circuit Display device substrate 210 Input terminal 212 Display device element arranged 214 Output of scan signal Transistor 216 Display device 300 Pulse transfer wiring 302 Line-shaped display device 304 Support 350 Pixel switch

Claims (16)

The unit circuit includes a plurality of cascaded unit circuits, and the unit circuit transfers the scanning signal from the scanning signal input terminal or the preceding stage to the subsequent stage in response to the clock signal, and the scanning signal is output from the output node to the corresponding stage. The unit circuit of the scanning circuit that outputs to the pixel circuit;
A pixel switch transistor that is inserted between a display element, one end of the display element and a terminal to which a data signal is applied, and controlled to be turned on and off by a scanning signal output from the output node of the unit circuit; A display device element as a set, and a plurality of sets of the unit circuit and the display circuit of the pixel circuit are arranged in a single stroke to form almost the entire display area. And
The display device, wherein the unit circuit of the scanning circuit is controlled to be turned on or off by the clock signal, and includes a switch that passes the scanning signal and outputs it from the output node of the unit circuit when turned on.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the clock signal is a one-phase clock.   2. The display according to claim 1, wherein in the unit circuit, the switch is formed of a clocked inverter that is controlled to be turned on and off by the clock signal, and the polarity of the pixel switch transistor of the pixel circuit is different between adjacent pixel circuits. apparatus.   The switch transistor included in the scanning circuit and the pixel switch transistor included in the pixel circuit are polysilicon TFTs formed on a glass substrate and constitute an active matrix liquid crystal display device. The display device according to claim 2.   The scanning circuit is disposed on the display device substrate over a plurality of rows, and includes a folded portion at one end of the scanning circuit of at least two rows, and the gap between the folded portions at one end of the scanning circuit of the at least two rows is between The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display device is connected by a transfer wiring.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the scanning circuit is disposed on the display device substrate in a spiral shape.   7. The device according to claim 1, wherein a part of the scanning circuit is disposed between the pixel circuit and the pixel circuit or under the pixel circuit. 8. Display device.   The display area is divided into a plurality of sub-areas, each of the sub-areas is provided with the scanning signal input terminal, and a plurality of sets of the unit circuits and the pixel circuits are provided for each of the sub-areas. The display device according to claim 1.   2. The flexible line-shaped display device in which a plurality of sets of the unit circuits and the pixel circuits are formed in a line shape is formed by wrapping around a support twice or more. Display device.   An electronic apparatus comprising the display device according to claim 1. The output node of the odd-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit outputs a scanning signal having the first polarity,
The output node of the unit circuit of the even-numbered stage of the scanning circuit outputs a scanning signal having a second polarity opposite to the first polarity,
The pixel switch transistor connected to the output node of the odd-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit is a first conductivity type transistor,
3. The display device according to claim 2, wherein the pixel switch transistor connected to the output node of the even-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit comprises a second conductivity type transistor. The odd-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit is:
An inverter circuit to which a pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input;
A second conductivity type switch transistor connected between an output node of the inverter circuit and an output node of the unit circuit;
Including
The unit circuit of the even-numbered stage of the scanning circuit is
An inverter circuit to which a pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input;
A first conductivity type switch transistor connected between an output node of the inverter circuit and an output node of the unit circuit;
Including
12. The display device according to claim 11, wherein a common clock signal is input to the gate electrodes of the switch transistors of the odd-numbered and even-numbered unit circuits of the scanning circuit. The odd-numbered unit circuit and the even-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit are:
The pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input, and its output node includes a clocked inverter that is an output node,
A clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the second conductivity type transistor of the clocked inverter included in the odd-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit,
An inverted signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the first conductivity type transistor of the clocked inverter circuit,
The inverted signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the second conductivity type transistor of the clocked inverter circuit included in the even-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit,
12. The display device according to claim 11, wherein a clock signal is supplied to a gate electrode of the first conductivity type transistor of the clocked inverter circuit. The odd-numbered and even-numbered unit circuits of the scanning circuit are:
An inverter circuit to which a pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input;
A CMOS transmission gate connected between an output node of the inverter circuit and an output node of the unit circuit;
Including
A clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the second conductivity type transistor of the CMOS transmission gate included in the odd-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit,
An inverted signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the first conductivity type transistor of the CMOS transmission gate,
The inversion signal of the clock signal is supplied to the gate electrode of the second conductivity type transistor of the CMOS transmission gate included in the unit circuit of the even-numbered stage of the scanning circuit, and the first conductivity type transistor of the CMOS transmission gate is supplied. The display device according to claim 11, wherein the clock signal is supplied to a gate electrode. The odd-numbered unit circuit and the even-numbered unit circuit of the scanning circuit are:
Comprising first to fourth switch elements connected in order in series between a high-side power source and a low-side power source;
The first and second switch elements are p-type MOS transistors,
The third and fourth switch elements are n-type MOS transistors,
The gate electrodes of one p-type MOS transistor and one n-type MOS transistor are connected in common, and a pulse signal supplied from the previous stage is input.
Clock signals are input to the gate electrodes of the remaining two MOS transistors,
12. The display device according to claim 11, further comprising a single-phase clock-controlled inverter in which drain electrodes of the second and third MOS transistors are output nodes.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display area has an arbitrary shape selected from a line, a plane, and a solid.

Images