KR20090006606A - Mobile device having flexible display - Google Patents

Abstract

A portable terminal including a flexible display unit is provided to miniaturize the portable terminal by enabling a display unit to be received in a case of the terminal. A portable terminal(100) comprises a lower case(120) and an upper case(110). A key input unit is installed at the lower case, and is located on a circuit board(132). A receiving part(121) capable of accommodating a display unit(140) is formed in the lower case. The upper case is positioned on the lower case. The upper case comprises a sliding unit which can slide on the lower case. In case the upper case and lower case are combined, only the key input unit is shown from the outside and the display unit is not shown from the outside because it is accommodated in the receiving part as being rolled.

Description

Mobile device having a flexible display unit {Mobile device having flexible display}

1 is a plan view showing that the upper case and the lower case of the portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention are coupled.

2 is a cross-sectional view showing a side of the upper case and the lower case is coupled to the portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a plan view illustrating an upper case of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a plan view showing that the upper case and the lower case of the portable terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention are coupled.

5 is a view showing moving the upper case of the mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a view showing that the display unit is exposed to the outside as the upper case moves.

7 shows a roller according to an embodiment of the invention.

8 is a cross-sectional view showing a side of a portable terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a portable terminal having a flexible display unit, and more particularly, to a portable terminal that accommodates a display unit in a lower case of the portable terminal when the portable terminal is not used, and expands the display unit for use.

In general, a mobile terminal is an electronic device that allows a user to freely use functions such as wireless communication, network connection, and digital broadcast reception regardless of time and place. The portable terminal includes a display unit which shows the state of the portable terminal to the user for smooth use of the user.

The liquid crystal display (LCD) or organic light emitting diode (OLED) is mainly used for the display unit of the mobile terminal. An LCD is an electric device that changes and transmits various electrical information generated by various devices into visual information by using a change in transmittance of liquid crystal according to an applied voltage. OLED refers to a self-luminous organic material that emits light by using an electroluminescence phenomenon that emits light when a current flows through a fluorescent organic compound.

Recently, the mobile terminal may perform a digital camera function, a digital broadcast reception function, a video playback function, etc. in addition to a call function. In order to conveniently perform such a function, the display portion of the portable terminal is increasing. However, as the display unit of the portable terminal increases, the size of the portable terminal itself also increases. Therefore, there is a problem that the portability of the portable terminal is lowered.

An object of the present invention is to accommodate the display of the portable terminal in the case of the portable terminal to reduce the portion occupied by the display in the portable terminal. In addition, through this, the size of the portable terminal can be reduced, and the portable terminal can be easily carried.

The portable terminal according to the present invention includes a display unit, a lower case, and an upper case. The display unit may be bent or rolled up. In the lower case, a key input unit is mounted, and a receiving unit accommodating the display unit is formed under the key input unit. The upper case has a sliding portion that can slide and move on the lower case. The end of the upper case is coupled to one end of the display unit. The upper case may have a groove formed at an end thereof, and one end of the display unit may be fitted into the groove. The display unit is accommodated in the housing of the lower case when the upper case is coupled to the lower case. The display unit also extends along the upper case when the upper case slides away from the lower case. The display unit may be a flexible LCD or an OLED.

The portable terminal according to the present invention may allow a part of the display unit to be exposed to the outside when the upper case and the lower case are coupled to each other.

The display unit of the mobile terminal according to the present invention may be accommodated in a round shape in a receiving portion.

The portable terminal according to the present invention may further include a roller in the accommodation portion. The display unit may be accommodated in a rolled form on a roller. The lower case may further include a motor and a sensor. The motor drives the rollers and the upper case. The sensor detects detachment of the upper case and the lower case. When the sensor detects that the upper case is about to be separated from the lower case, the motor is driven so that the upper case is separated from the lower case. When the sensor detects that the detached upper case is to be coupled with the lower case, the motor is driven to engage the upper case with the lower case.

Example

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings such that those skilled in the art may easily implement the present invention.

In describing the embodiments, descriptions of technical contents which are well known in the technical field to which the present invention belongs and are not directly related to the present invention will be omitted. This is to more clearly communicate without obscure the subject matter of the present invention by omitting unnecessary description.

For the same reason, in the accompanying drawings, some components are exaggerated, omitted or schematically illustrated. In addition, the size of each component does not necessarily reflect the actual size. The same or corresponding components in each drawing are given the same reference numerals.

1 is a plan view showing that the upper case and the lower case of the portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention is coupled, Figure 2 is a side of the upper case and the lower case of the portable terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention is coupled It is a figure which shows the cross section of.

As shown in FIG. 1, the portable terminal 100 includes a lower case 120 and an upper case 110. The key input unit 131 is mounted on the lower case 120. The key input unit 131 is positioned on the circuit board 132. The lower case 12 is formed with an accommodating part 121 for accommodating the display unit 140 next to the circuit board 131. The upper case 110 is positioned above the lower case 120. The upper case 110 is provided with a sliding part that can slide and move on the lower case 120. When the upper case 110 and the lower case 120 are coupled, only the key input unit 131 is visible from the outside, and the display unit 140 is not visible from the outside.

As shown in FIG. 2, the display 140 is a flexible display that can be bent or rolled up. Flexible displays are displays that can be folded or folded like a screen. This flexible display has been developed so that the performance of the display unit does not change even when opened and closed more than tens of thousands of times. Thin film transistor (TFT) LCD, OLED, electrophoretic, and laser induced thermal image (LITI) technologies are used for flexible displays.

When the upper case 110 and the lower case 120 are coupled, the display unit 140 is accommodated in a curled form in the receiving unit 121 formed in the lower case 140. Therefore, when the portable terminal 100 is not used, the display unit is not exposed to the outside and thus the size of the portable terminal 100 is small.

As shown in an enlarged portion of FIG. 2, the upper case 110 is provided with a groove into which the display unit 140 may be inserted at an end thereof. One end of the display unit 140 may be inserted into a groove of the upper case 110, and thus the display unit 140 may be unfolded or rolled out as the upper case 110 moves.

3 is a plan view illustrating an upper case of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, the upper case 110 has a rectangular shape with one side open. The side coupled to the display unit is located in an outer direction of the portable terminal, and the open side is located in an inner direction of the portable terminal. When the upper case 110 and the lower case are coupled to each other, the empty space 111 inside the upper case 110 may be formed to surround a portion of the key input unit. When the upper case 110 is separated from the lower case, the display unit is positioned in the empty space 111 inside the upper case 110.

When the portable terminal intends to use a larger display unit, an internal empty space of the upper case 110 may be increased to secure a space in which the display unit is located. That is, the size of the display unit may be adjusted by adjusting the size of the upper case 110.

4 is a plan view showing that the upper case and the lower case of the portable terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention are coupled.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the upper case 110 and the lower case 120 are coupled, a portion of the display unit 140 may be exposed to the outside. Using the exposed display unit 140, the mobile terminal 100 may display a current time, a battery level, a called number, and the like. Therefore, when the mobile terminal 100 receives the call, the user can know the calling party number without moving the upper case 110.

5 is a diagram illustrating moving the upper case of the portable terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating that the display unit is exposed to the outside as the upper case is moved.

When the user intends to use the portable terminal 100, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the upper case 110 of the portable terminal 100 may be moved by sliding on the lower case 120. Since one end of the display unit 140 is fitted to the end of the upper case 110, when the upper case 110 slides and moves, the display unit 140 also moves. That is, the display unit 140 rolled up along the upper case 110 is rolled up in the receiving portion of the lower case 120. In this case, as shown in FIG. 6, the display 140 is exposed to the outside of the portable terminal 100. Therefore, when the user uses the mobile terminal 100, the display unit having a sufficient size may be used.

7 is a view showing a roller according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a side of the portable terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 7, the roller 150 is cylindrical. A shaft 151 is formed at the center of the roller 150. The roller is rotatable about the shaft 151. The roller 150 is mounted on the accommodating part 121 of the lower case. The display unit 140 may be accommodated in a rolled form on the roller 150. If the roller 150 is used, the display unit 140 can be moved more naturally.

The lower case 120 may include a sensor 160 and a motor 170. The sensor 160 may detect whether the upper case 110 and the lower case 120 are separated and coupled.

When the user pushes the upper case 110 toward the outside of the portable terminal 100 for use of the portable terminal 100, the sensor 160 detects that the upper case 110 is trying to leave the lower case 120. , Transfers a departure signal to the motor 170. The motor 170 is driven according to the departure signal, such that the upper case 110 slides away from the lower case 120. As the upper case 110 moves, the display unit 140 is extended while being exposed to the outside.

On the contrary, when the user ends the use of the mobile terminal 100 and pushes the upper case 110 toward the inside of the mobile terminal 100, the sensor 160 is detached from the upper case 110 with the lower case 120. Detect the coupling, and transmits a coupling signal to the motor 170. The motor 170 is driven according to the coupling signal, such that the upper case 110 is coupled to the lower case 120. As the upper case 110 moves, the display unit 140 is roundly dried on the roller 150 mounted on the receiving unit 121 of the lower case 120. By using the roller 150, the sensor 160, and the motor 170, the user can use the portable terminal more conveniently.

The sensor 160 may use a hall sensor. Hall sensors are sensors that respond to the strength of a magnetic field. In the case of using the hall sensor, a magnet is attached to the upper case 110 of the portable terminal. Since the magnet moves as the upper case 110 moves, the hall sensor may detect a change in the magnetic field and detect that the upper case moves.

The motor 170 may be driven to move only the upper case 110 or may be driven to rotate only the rotor 150. However, preferably, when the upper case 110 is separated, the upper case 110 is driven to move, and when the upper case 110 is coupled with the lower case 120 to rotate the rotor 150. It is preferred to be driven.

The mobile terminal according to the embodiment of the present invention refers to a portable electronic device such as a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable multimedia player (PMP), a digital broadcast receiver, or the like.

As described above, the present specification and drawings have been described with respect to preferred embodiments of the present invention, although specific terms are used, it is only used in a general sense to easily explain the technical contents of the present invention and to help the understanding of the present invention. It is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other modifications based on the technical idea of the present invention can be carried out in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein.

According to the present invention, when the portable terminal is not used, the display unit can be accommodated inside the case of the portable terminal, whereby the size of the portable terminal can be reduced and the portable terminal can be conveniently carried. When the portable terminal is used, the display unit having an appropriate size can be provided to the user by moving the case of the portable terminal to expose the display unit to the outside.

Claims (8)

Flexible display unit; A lower case having a key input unit mounted therein and having a receiving unit accommodating the display unit below the key input unit; And And an upper case having a sliding part that is movable by sliding on the lower case, and an end of which is coupled to one end of the display part. The display unit is accommodated in the accommodating portion of the lower case when the upper case is coupled to the lower case, the portable terminal characterized in that it is extended along the upper case when the upper case is separated from the lower case . The method of claim 1, The upper case has a groove formed at the end, And one end of the display unit is fitted into the groove. The method of claim 2, The upper case is a portable terminal, characterized in that the end in which the groove is formed moves in a direction away from the key input unit The method of claim 1, And the upper case and the lower case are coupled to each other, wherein the display unit is partially exposed to the outside. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, Further comprising a roller in the receiving portion, And the display unit is dried on the roller. The method of claim 5, A motor mounted on the lower case to drive the roller and the upper case; And Further comprising a sensor for detecting that the upper case and the lower case is separated, When the sensor detects that the upper case is to be separated from the lower case, the motor is driven to allow the upper case to be separated from the lower case. When the sensor detects that the detached upper case is to be combined with the lower case, the motor is driven so that the upper case is coupled to the lower case. The method of claim 1, The display unit is a portable terminal, characterized in that the flexible LCD or OLED. The method of claim 1, The display unit is a portable terminal, characterized in that accommodated in a rounded form in the receiving portion.

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