KR20080086126A - Lcd, fabricating method of the same including test process - Google Patents

Abstract

An LCD(Liquid Crystal Display) and a method for manufacturing the same are provided to perform an auto-probe process smoothly by forming pads on connecting lines for connecting a gate driver and an external system and then supplying a DC signal through the pads so that the gate driver is simultaneously turned on. An LCD comprises an LCD panel(100), a gate driver(400) for supplying gate signals, a data driver(500) for supplying image signals, and an FPC(Flexible Printed Circuit board) connected to an external system. The LCD panel is divided into a display area(120) for displaying real images, and a non-display area(130) surrounding the display area. The gate driver and gate connection lines(140) are formed in the non-display area. The gate driver supplies the gate signals to the display area. The gate connection lines are electrically connected to the display area. Connecting lines(160) connect the gate driver and the FPC. The data driver is disposed in the non-display area by bonding a separate driver IC on the non-display area. Pads, which are contacted with an auto-probe apparatus, are formed in some of the connecting lines.

Description

A liquid crystal display device and a manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device including the inspection process thereof {LCD, fabricating method of the same including test process}

1 is a view schematically showing the structure of a liquid crystal panel in an auto-probe process step.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a manufacturing method of an active matrix type liquid crystal display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a schematic view of a liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a view showing a part of the liquid crystal display device and the auto-probe inspection equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a portion A of FIG. 3.

6 is a diagram illustrating one stage of a gate driver of a liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device, and more particularly, to a liquid crystal display device including a driver and a manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device including the inspection step thereof.

Recently, due to the rapid technological development of the display industry, smaller and lighter products are being developed. In particular, the CRT (cathode ray tube), which is widely used in information display devices, has many advantages in terms of performance and price, but has disadvantages in terms of miniaturization or portability. On the other hand, liquid crystal display devices are gaining attention as an alternative means to overcome the shortcomings of CRT because they have advantages such as small size, light weight and low power consumption, and are currently applied to almost all information processing devices requiring display devices. It is becoming.

The liquid crystal display converts optical properties such as birefringence, photoreactivity, dichroism, and light scattering characteristics of a liquid crystal cell that apply voltage to a specific molecular array of liquid crystals and converts them into other molecular arrays, and emits light by the molecular array. By converting, it is a display apparatus using modulation of the light by a liquid crystal cell.

The liquid crystal display is classified into an active matrix type and a passive matrix type according to the driving method of the liquid crystal cell. The active matrix type has better contrast and image quality characteristics than the passive matrix type. It is known.

The most widely used active matrix drive type liquid crystal display device is completed through substrate cleaning, pattern formation, alignment film formation, substrate bonding / liquid crystal injection, auto-probe process, and driver IC bonding process. .

Among the above processes, in particular, the auto-probe process is a process of inspecting the liquid crystal panel. The switching element connected to each signal line is connected to one surface of the liquid crystal panel for inspection of disconnection, short circuit, and contact failure of each formed signal line. The inspection is performed by supplying a turn-on voltage to the liquid crystal panel through the switching device.

1 is a view schematically showing the structure of a liquid crystal panel in an auto-probe process step.

As shown in FIG. 1, the liquid crystal panel 10 includes a display area 12 including a plurality of thin film transistors (not shown) to display an image, and a non-display area 13 surrounding the display area 12. It consists of.

The non-display area 13 has a gate connection line 14 and a data connection line 15 electrically connected to the display area 12, and the connection line 14 is formed on one surface of the non-display area 13. And a short circuit inspection unit 20 having a plurality of switching elements 25 connected to the plurality of units 15.

The liquid crystal panel 10 having this structure turns on the switching element 25 in the auto-probe process step, and supplies a power supply voltage VDD and a ground voltage VSS through the connection lines 14 and 15. After inspection of the thin film transistor (not shown) of the display area 12, the inspection is finished, the short circuit inspection unit 20 is removed, and then the driver IC for driving the liquid crystal panel TAB (Tape Automated Bonding) Bonding is performed using a chip on glass (COG) method.

Here, the above-described TAB and COG methods include a separate driver IC and bond the same to the liquid crystal panel.

However, recently, a gate-in-panel (GIP) structure is provided in which a driver, particularly a gate driver, is formed on a substrate of a liquid crystal panel in the same process as a thin film transistor to reduce the area of the liquid crystal panel and reduce manufacturing cost. Proposed. In such a GIP structure, the thin film transistor (not shown) and the connection lines 14 and 15 are simultaneously formed on the liquid crystal panel 10. Therefore, the auto-probe process is difficult to proceed after completion of the liquid crystal panel.

In addition, the conventional auto-probe process should be further provided with a switching device that is removed after the process, there is also a disadvantage of increased cost accordingly.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, the liquid crystal display device having a driver is easy to auto-probe inspection in the liquid crystal display device formed inside the liquid crystal panel, and a liquid crystal display device comprising the inspection process thereof The purpose is to provide a manufacturing method.

In order to achieve the above object, a liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a substrate divided into a display area including a plurality of thin film transistors and a non-display area surrounding the display area; A driver formed on one surface of the non-display area; A connection line electrically connecting the thin film transistor and the driver; An FPC bonded to one surface of the non-display area; A connection line electrically connecting the driver and the FPC; It characterized in that it comprises a pad formed on top of the connection line.

The driver may be a gate driver that generates a gate driving signal for turning on / off the thin film transistor.

The pad may be formed on an upper portion of the connection line for supplying first and second power signals, a start signal, and a clock signal of the gate driver.

A data driver for generating an image signal supplied to the thin film transistor is further formed on the non-display area.

In order to achieve the above object, a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device including an inspection process according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes: forming a plurality of thin film transistors, gates, and data lines in a display area of a first substrate, and performing non-display. Forming a pad on a region of the gate driver and a connection line of an input terminal of the gate driver; Forming a color filter, a black matrix, and a common electrode on the second substrate; Forming an alignment layer on the first and second substrates; Forming a liquid crystal panel using the first and second substrates and a liquid crystal; Inspecting the liquid crystal panel; Bonding an FPC to the connection line at one end of the liquid crystal panel.

The inspecting of the liquid crystal panel may include applying a high level voltage to a first power supply voltage, a start signal, and a clock signal line among the connection lines, and applying a high level or low level voltage signal to a second power supply voltage signal line. Characterized in that it comprises the step of applying.

The inspecting the liquid crystal panel may include: an auto-probe inspection apparatus including a needle and a probe, and positioning the needle proximate a side of the liquid crystal panel; Moving the needle to electrically contact the pad and the probe; And applying a DC signal to the pad.

Hereinafter, a liquid crystal display device according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention and a manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device including the inspection process thereof will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a manufacturing method of an active matrix type liquid crystal display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

As shown, the manufacturing process of the active matrix type liquid crystal display device according to the embodiment of the present invention comprises substrate cleaning, pattern formation, alignment film formation, substrate bonding / liquid crystal injection, auto-probe process, FPC bonding process.

First, in the substrate cleaning process step (S1), foreign substances on the substrates are removed using a cleaning agent before and after patterning the upper and lower substrates.

The pattern forming step S2 is divided into patterning of the upper substrate and patterning of the lower substrate. A color filter, a black matrix, a common electrode, etc. are formed on the upper substrate through the patterning process. In addition, signal lines such as data lines and gate lines are formed on the lower substrate, thin film transistors (TFTs) are formed at intersections of the data lines and gate lines, and adjacent data lines are connected to one electrode of the thin film transistors. The pixel electrode is formed in the pixel region between adjacent gate lines.

In addition, a gate driver is formed in the non-display area surrounding the display area, and a gate and a data connection line are formed to connect to the thin film transistor.

In this case, a connection line for connecting to an external system is further formed at an input terminal of the gate driver, and some of the connection lines are formed with a pad for an auto-probe process. This will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Here, the gate driver is formed on the liquid crystal panel, and the data driver is a gate-in-panel (Gate In Panel, GIP) structure formed by a separate driver IC as in the prior art and then bonded to the liquid crystal panel.

In the alignment film forming step (S3), the alignment film is applied and rubbed on the upper and lower substrates, respectively, and then, in the substrate bonding / liquid crystal injection process step (S4), the upper and lower substrate bonding processes using a seal material, liquid crystal injection, Inlet encapsulation, cleaning, grinding

The liquid crystal panel which has undergone such a process is inspected for disconnection or short circuit of the thin film transistor, signal line, etc. through the inspection step S5.

Thereafter, the FPC bonding step S6 is performed. The FPC has signal lines for supplying power, control signals, and data signals required for driving from an external system, and are bonded to one end of the liquid crystal panel to complete the liquid crystal panel.

Hereinafter, a liquid crystal display device completed through the above-described manufacturing process with reference to the drawings will be described in more detail.

3 is a schematic view of a liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

As shown, the liquid crystal display according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a liquid crystal panel 100, a gate driver 400 for supplying a gate driving signal, a data driver 500 for supplying a video signal, and an external device. An FPC 600 that is connected to a system (not shown).

In more detail, the liquid crystal panel 100 is divided into a display area 120 in which an actual image is displayed and a non-display area 130 surrounding the liquid crystal panel 100. The liquid crystal panel 100 controls an arrangement direction of liquid crystals on the display area 120. A plurality of thin film transistors (not shown) are formed.

In addition, a gate driver 400 for supplying a gate driving signal to a gate line (not shown) of the display area 120 and a gate connection line electrically connecting the display area 120 to the non-display area 130. 140 is disposed.

In addition, a connection line 160 connecting the gate driver 400 to the FPC 600 is disposed.

In addition, a data driver 500 in which a separate driver IC is bonded is disposed in the non-display area 130.

Here, some of the connection line 160 is formed with a pad (not shown) in contact with the auto-probe equipment.

Hereinafter, an auto-probe inspection method applied to the liquid crystal display device having the above-described structure will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

4 is a view showing a part of the liquid crystal display device and the auto-probe inspection equipment according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown, a pad 166 is formed on each connection line (160 in FIG. 3) on one surface of the liquid crystal panel 100, and a probe inspection device (not shown) is provided through the pad 166. In this case, disconnection inspection of the signal line is performed.

In this case, the probe inspection device (not shown) is provided with a needle (450) configured with at least one signal transmission probe (456) extending in one direction, the lower portion of the needle 450 After positioning the pad 166, the liquid crystal panel 100 or the needle 450 is moved up and down to combine the pad 166 and the probe 456, and then transfers a signal for inspection to auto-probe the process. Will be performed.

Here, the pad 166 is preferably formed in a portion of the connection line for transmitting the power signal and the control signal supplied to the gate as described above, Figure 5 is an enlarged view of portion A of FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the FPC (600 in FIG. 3) is connected to the bonded portion 605, and the first power supply voltage VDD, the second power supply voltage VSS, the start signal VST, the first and The pad 166 may be formed on the connection line 160 to which the second clock signals CLK1 and CLK2 are input.

That is, the thin film transistor of the display area is driven by applying a specific DC signal to the power voltage input terminal and the control signal input terminal for driving the gate driver, thereby performing the auto-probe process.

Hereinafter, the driving principle of the above-described auto-probe process will be described with reference to an example of one stage of the gate driver having N stages.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating one stage of a gate driver of a liquid crystal display according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and illustrates an example of a gate driver formed in a liquid crystal panel and composed of a plurality of transistors.

Here, the illustrated gate driver may have any structure as long as it is a shift register that performs the same function to input / output the same signal as shown in the figure.

The operation of the gate driver 400 having such a structure will be briefly described. When the high level N-stage start signal VST N (N is a natural number) is input, the first transistor T1 is turned on and the first node ( N1 becomes high level, and accordingly, the pull-up transistor TPU is turned on, and the N-level gate driving signal Vout N of the high level is output in response to the clock signal CLK, and the N-th gate is provided. The driving signal Vout N is input to the next stage as the N + 1 stage start signal Vst N + 1. At this time, the second and third transistors T2 and T3 discharge the second node N2 to maintain the low level.

Thereafter, when the N-stage start signal Vst N becomes the low level and the N + 1-stage output signal Vout N + 1 is input to the fourth transistor T4, the N1 node N1 is discharged, and the fifth The second node N2 is turned high by the transistor T5, and the pull-down transistor TPD is turned on so that the N-stage output signal Vout N is turned low. At this time, the sixth transistor T6 discharges the first node to maintain the low level.

The gate driver 400 sequentially generates and outputs a gate driving signal through the above-described operation.

The driving gate driver 400 has a high level at the first power supply voltage VDD terminal, the start signal VST N terminal, and the clock signal CLK terminal through the pad 166 in the auto probe process. When the voltage is applied and a high or low level voltage is applied to the second power supply voltage VSS terminal, a high level voltage signal is output at each stage of the gate driver 400.

Therefore, the gate driver outputs a voltage at a high level uniformly, thereby driving the thin film transistor of the liquid crystal panel, thereby performing the inspection process.

In the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, only the GIP structure in which the gate driver is formed in the liquid crystal panel is illustrated, but this is a liquid crystal display of a system on panel (SOP) structure in which the data driver and the entire system driving circuit are formed in the liquid crystal panel. Applicable to the device as well.

Although described above with reference to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, those skilled in the art various modifications and variations of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention described in the claims below I can understand that you can.

In the liquid crystal display device according to the embodiment of the present invention described above, and a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device including the inspection step thereof, the gate driver is externally provided in the liquid crystal display device having a GIP structure in which the gate driver is formed in the liquid crystal panel. Forming a pad on the connection line for connecting with the system and supplying a DC signal through it to turn on the gate driver uniformly, a separate switching device for the inspection process and to remove it It can be omitted, there is an effect that can proceed smoothly the auto-probe process.

Claims (7)

A substrate divided into a display area including a plurality of thin film transistors and a non-display area surrounding the display area; A driver formed on one surface of the non-display area; A connection line electrically connecting the thin film transistor and the driver; An FPC bonded to one surface of the non-display area; A connection line electrically connecting the driver and the FPC; A pad formed on an upper portion of the connection line; Liquid crystal display comprising a. The method of claim 1, And the driver is a gate driver generating a gate driving signal for turning on / off the thin film transistor. The method of claim 2, And the pad is formed above the connection line for supplying the first and second power signals, the start signal, and the clock signal of the gate driver. The method of claim 1, And a data driver for generating an image signal supplied to the thin film transistor on the non-display area. Forming a plurality of thin film transistors, gates and data lines in a display area of the first substrate, forming a gate driver in a non-display area, and a pad on a connection line of an input terminal of the gate driver; Forming a color filter, a black matrix, and a common electrode on the second substrate; Forming an alignment layer on the first and second substrates; Forming a liquid crystal panel using the first and second substrates and a liquid crystal; Inspecting the liquid crystal panel; Bonding an FPC to the connection line at one end of the liquid crystal panel; Method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device comprising an inspection process comprising a. The method of claim 5, wherein Examining the liquid crystal panel, Applying a high level voltage to a first power supply voltage, a start signal, and a clock signal line among the connection lines, and applying a high level or low level voltage signal to a second power supply voltage signal line; Method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device comprising an inspection process comprising a. The method of claim 5, wherein Examining the liquid crystal panel, Providing an auto-probe inspection device comprising a needle and a probe, said positioning the needle proximate a side of the liquid crystal panel; Moving the needle to electrically contact the pad and the probe; Applying a DC signal to the pad Method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device comprising an inspection process comprising a.

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