KR20230075774A - Wrinkle removal apparatus for flexible display - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a crease prevention device for a flexible display, and more specifically, to a device which is attached to the bottom of a flexible display and prevents creases on a display surface by force of pulling the flexible display. According to the present invention, even if the bending and unfolding of the flexible display is repeated countless times, creases do not occur in a bent area when the flexible display is unfolded, so that the present invention not only allows users to always enjoy a clear content screen without the creases, but also increases trust in a smart device product and brand.

Description

Wrinkle prevention device of flexible display {Wrinkle removal apparatus for flexible display}

The present invention relates to a device for preventing wrinkles of a flexible display, and more particularly, to a device attached to a lower portion of a flexible display to prevent wrinkles on a display surface by a force pulling the flexible display.

The size of portable terminals such as smart phones and tablet PCs continues to be miniaturized for portability. On the other hand, since consumers require a display of a certain screen size or larger, flexible devices such as rollable or foldable displays (hereinafter collectively referred to as 'flexible displays') are being actively developed.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing wrinkles that appear when a foldable device is unfolded. A flexible display is subjected to stress due to bending while repeatedly bending and unfolding, resulting in wrinkles on the display as shown in FIG. 1 . Such wrinkles on the display make the content screen itself appear as wrinkled, greatly damaging the integrity of the portable terminal product, and thereby greatly reducing the reliability of the product and the brand of the product to users. has been

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the cause of wrinkles in a foldable area (hereinafter referred to as a 'folding portion') of a foldable device.

As shown in FIG. 2 (a), the body of the foldable device 10 is separated into two left and right parts 51 and 52 connected by a hinge, and the display support plate 12 is fixed on the body of the device, respectively. there is. The flexible display 11 is adhered and placed on the support plate 12 . In order for the display 11 to be folded, the display 11 and the support plate 12 are not adhered to each other at the folded portion 15 . That is, the non-folding portion is permanently attached (13), and the folding portion (15) is not permanently attached.

Since the folding portion 15 is not permanently bonded, as shown in FIG. 2(b), when the flexible display 11 is deformed by bending, the flexible display 11 is separated from the support plate 12, This causes wrinkles to form.

KR 10-2020-0067023 A

The present invention has been devised to solve this problem, and even if the flexible display is repeatedly bent and stretched, it prevents wrinkles from occurring at the bent area when the flexible display is unfolded, so that the user can always enjoy wrinkle-free and clear content. Its purpose is not only to enjoy the screen, but also to increase the reliability of the corresponding smart device product and brand.

In order to achieve the above object, in a foldable device having a flexible display according to the present invention, a device for preventing wrinkles of the flexible display includes a portion including a point where the flexible display is folded (hereinafter referred to as a 'folding unit'). It is mounted below, and when the flexible display is unfolded, a downward force is applied to the flexible display, so that the attachment part of the flexible display (hereinafter referred to as 'display attachment part') attaches the flexible display from the bottom of the flexible display. It includes an attachment force application unit to be attached to the attachment portion of the support plate (hereinafter referred to as 'support plate attachment portion').

The display attachment part may include a magnetic body part, and the attachment force applying part may include a magnetic force generating device that generates magnetic force by pulling the magnetic body part downward to attach the magnetic body part to the support plate attachment part.

The magnetic body unit may include a plurality of bar-shaped magnetic bodies arranged in parallel.

The magnetic body unit may include a flat magnetic body made of a flexible material.

The support plate attaching part may include a variable adhesive layer detachable from the magnetic body part.

The support plate has a plurality of fine holes vertically penetrating from the lower surface of the support plate to the support plate attachment part, and the display attachment part is attached to the support plate attachment part by sucking air through the fine holes in the lower part of the support plate. It may be provided with a suction force generating device for applying a suction force to do.

The support plate attaching part may include a variable adhesive layer detachable from the display attaching part.

On the lower surface of the support plate, a plurality of shear deformable bodies are provided with the upper end attached to the lower surface of the support plate in a state in which pre-tension is applied so that the upper end is inclined toward the center at which the flexible display is folded. can

The shear deformable body may be made of a material having elasticity.

The anti-wrinkle device may further include a groove for accommodating each of the shear deformable bodies.

A heat conductor connected to a heat generating element in the foldable device to transfer heat from the heat generating element to the flexible display may be attached to the display attaching part.

The anti-wrinkle device may further include a temperature control unit for maintaining the temperature of the heat conductor below a predetermined temperature.

According to the present invention, even if the flexible display is repeatedly bent and stretched, wrinkles are not generated at the bent portion when the flexible display is unfolded, so that the user can always enjoy a clear content screen without wrinkles. There is an effect of increasing the reliability of the corresponding smart device product and brand.

1 is a view showing wrinkles that appear when a foldable device is unfolded;
2 is a view for explaining the cause of wrinkles in the foldable part of the foldable device.
3 is a schematic diagram briefly showing a state in which the anti-wrinkle device of the present invention is mounted on a foldable device.
4 is a view showing the configuration of an anti-wrinkle device using magnetic force.
5 is a view showing the configuration of an anti-wrinkle device using pneumatic pressure.
Figure 6 is a view for explaining the principle of allowing axial deformation using a shear deformation body.
7 is a view showing a state in which a shear deformable body is added to the anti-wrinkle device of the present invention.
8 is a view showing a state in which a heat conductor is added to the anti-wrinkle device of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, the terms or words used in this specification and claims should not be construed as being limited to the usual or dictionary meaning, and the inventor appropriately uses the concept of the term in order to explain his/her invention in the best way. It should be interpreted as a meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention based on the principle that it can be defined. Therefore, since the embodiments described in this specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only one of the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical ideas of the present invention, various alternatives may be used at the time of this application. It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

3 is a schematic diagram briefly showing a state in which the wrinkle prevention device 200 of the present invention is mounted on the foldable device 100.

3 shows a state in which the flexible display 110 is unfolded. An adhesive layer 130, a support plate 120, and foldable device bodies 51 and 52 exist below the display 110.

The anti-wrinkle device 200 of the present invention eliminates separation between the display 110 and the support plate 120 by implementing attachment to a region where the flexible display 110 is folded. The flexible display 110 is attached to the support plate 120 made of a hard material such as metal. When the display 110 is unfolded, the wrinkle-free device 200 of the present invention can maintain a wrinkle-free shape.

That is, when the flexible display 110 is unfolded, the anti-wrinkle device 200 formed at the folded portion of the display 110 exerts a force pulling the flexible display 110 in the downward direction where the support plate 120 is located. It is applied to the display 110, whereby the display 110 is in an attached state with the support plate 120 so that it is in a smooth state without wrinkles. When the display 110 is folded (when folded), the flexible display 110 is separated from the support plate 120 .

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6 , two embodiments of the structure of the anti-wrinkle device 200 that acts to pull the flexible display 110 downward will be described, and in FIGS. 7 and 8 In addition to the configuration of 5 or 6, embodiments of the configuration of the anti-wrinkle device 200 that further enhances the anti-wrinkle effect will be described.

The wrinkle prevention device 200 of the present invention is a device for preventing wrinkles of the flexible display 110 in an unfolded state in a foldable device equipped with the flexible display 110 . The anti-wrinkle device 200 is mounted under a portion including a folding point of the flexible display 110 (hereinafter referred to as a 'folding portion'), and exerts downward force on the flexible display 110 when the flexible display 110 is unfolded. By applying, the attachment part (hereinafter referred to as 'display attachment part') 111 of the flexible display 110 is attached to the support plate 120 supporting the flexible display 110 under the flexible display 110 ( It includes an attachment force application unit to be attached to the (hereinafter referred to as a 'support plate attachment unit') 121. Such an attachment force applying unit may include a magnetic force generating device, a pump generating air suction force, and the like, which will be described below with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, respectively.

The display attachment part 111 attached to the support plate attachment part 121 of the support plate 120 may be the lower surface of the flexible display 110, and in the case of the embodiment of FIG. 4 below, the magnetic body part adhered to the flexible display 110 (210).

In addition, the support plate attachment part 121 attached to the display attachment part 111 of the flexible display 110 may be the upper surface of the support plate 120, and as in the case of an embodiment of FIG. 4 or 5 below, the support plate (120) It may be the variable adhesive layer 230 adhered to the upper surface.

This configuration will also be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, respectively.

4 is a diagram showing the configuration of an anti-wrinkle device 200 using magnetic force.

FIG. 4( a ) shows an example in which attachment is realized by magnetic force at a site where the anti-wrinkle device 200 is mounted when the flexible display 110 is unfolded.

The flexible magnetic body part 210 of the wrinkle prevention device 200 is bonded under the flexible display 110, and there is a variable adhesive layer 230 that can be repeatedly attached and detached under the magnetic body part 210. The variable adhesive layer 230 can be easily implemented using a tape or adhesive having weak adhesion.

The support plate 120 attached to the flexible display 110 by the permanent adhesive layer 130 is provided with the magnetic force generator 220 of the anti-wrinkle device 200 . One embodiment of the magnetic force generating device 220 is an electromagnet.

When the flexible display 110 is unfolded, magnetic force is generated in the magnetic force generator 220 to pull the magnetic body part 210 downward, and the flexible display 110 attached to the magnetic body part 210 is variable by the force. By being attached to the adhesive layer 230, the flexible display 110 maintains an unfolded state without wrinkles. Even after the magnetic force disappears, the magnetic body unit 210 and the flexible display 110 adhered to the magnetic body unit 210 remain attached to the variable adhesive layer 230, so that the flexible display 110 maintains an unfolded state without wrinkles. .

Alternatively, the anti-wrinkle device 200 of the present invention may be implemented without the variable adhesive layer 230. In this case, the magnetic body portion 210 is maintained attached to the support plate by continuously applying magnetic force, and thus the flexible display 110 adhered to the magnetic body portion 210 can also be maintained in an unfolded state without wrinkles. .

4( b ) shows an implementation example of the flexible magnetic body unit 210 . In this way, several thin and long bar-shaped magnetic materials may be arranged at right angles to the direction in which the display is folded. Alternatively, a magnetic material in the form of a wide plate may be used. In this case, a material that is sufficiently flexible is used.

When the flexible display 110 is folded, magnetic force disappears, and when the variable adhesive layer 230 is provided, it is separated from the variable adhesive layer 230 .

5 is a view showing the configuration of an anti-wrinkle device 200 using air pressure.

FIG. 5 shows an example in which, when the flexible display 110 is unfolded, attachment is implemented by air pressure at a portion where the anti-wrinkle device 200 is mounted.

There is a variable adhesive layer 230 that can be repeatedly attached and detached below the flexible display at the attachment site. As described above with reference to FIG. 4 , the variable adhesive layer 230 can be easily implemented using a tape or adhesive having weak adhesion.

A plurality of fine holes (hereinafter referred to as 'fine holes') 240 of the anti-wrinkle device 200 through which air can enter and exit are present in the support plate 120 . When the flexible display 110 is unfolded, the flexible display 110 is attached to the variable adhesive layer 230 by sucking in air through the microholes 240 . Even after the suction power disappears, the adhesive is maintained by the variable adhesive layer 230 .

If the anti-wrinkle device 200 is implemented without the variable adhesive layer 230, the suction force may be continuously applied. In FIG. 5, the adhesive layer 130 and the variable adhesive layer 230 are shown as thick layers for convenience sake, but in reality, since the adhesive layer 130 and the variable adhesive layer 230 are very thin layers, the variable adhesive layer ( Even if the flexible display 110 is directly attached to the support plate 120 without 230), the curvature of the flexible display 110 is hardly noticeable.

When the flexible display 110 is folded, it is detached from the variable adhesive layer 230 without applying a suction force.

A suction part (not shown) of the anti-wrinkle device 200 generating such a suction force may be provided below the support plate 120 . The suction unit may obtain suction force by operating the suction force generating device using electricity, or a method of operating the suction force generating device of the suction unit by folding force of the foldable device may be applied. The suction force generating device may be a small pump or the like as an example.

In the anti-wrinkle device 200 implementing attachment by magnetic force described with reference to FIG. 4 or the anti-wrinkle device 200 implementing attachment using air pressure described with reference to FIG. ) and the support plate 120 by creating irregularities (concave-convex), more stable attachment can be implemented.

6 is a view for explaining the principle of allowing axial deformation using the shear deformation body 250.

When the flexible display 110 is folded or unfolded, the flexible display 110 is deformed in the longitudinal direction. If this is not allowed to some extent, wrinkles may occur or excessive tensile stress may occur.

In particular, as described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5 , excessive compressive stress may occur when wrinkles on the display 110 are removed using attachment by the wrinkle preventing device 200 .

In order to solve this problem, a shear deformable body 250 capable of shear elastic deformation may be attached between the support plate 120 and the foldable device. The shear deformation body 250 reduces excessive stress by allowing some axial deformation of the flexible display by elasticity. It can also prevent wrinkles.

That is, FIG. 6(b) is an example of allowing outward tensile deformation from both sides, and FIG. 6(c) is an example of allowing contraction deformation toward the center of the folding portion.

The shear deformable body 250 uses a material having good elasticity such as rubber. In order to sufficiently induce shear deformation, a certain thickness is required, and for this purpose, as shown in FIG. 6, a shear deformation body 250 may be installed by making a groove in the foldable device body.

7 is a view showing a state in which a shear deformable body is added to the anti-wrinkle device 200 of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 7, after the shear deformable body is deformed in advance, the support plate is attached to the shear deformable body. That is, the left shear deformable body 251 is attached to the top of the support plate 120 in a state where the top is deformed toward the right, that is, the center, and the shear deformable body 252 on the right is in a state where the top is deformed toward the left, that is, the center. The top is attached to the support plate 120.

The arrows on both sides shown in FIG. 7 indicate the direction of force for the left shear deformable body 251 and the right shear deformable body 252 to return to their original shapes, respectively, and a tensile force is applied to the flexible display 110 outward by this force As a result, wrinkles of the flexible display 110 are alleviated.

That is, pre-tension is applied to the flexible display 110, and the pre-tension relieves wrinkles when the flexible display 110 is unfolded.

In FIG. 7, only the shear deformable body is shown as the anti-wrinkle device 200, but this shear deformable body is added to the anti-wrinkle device 200 of FIG. 5 or the anti-wrinkle device 200 of FIG. can improve

8 is a view showing a state in which a heat conductor 260 is added to the anti-wrinkle device 200 of the present invention.

Since the flexible display 110 has a plastic material layer such as PI, deformation and stress are alleviated when the temperature rises. That is, when heat is applied to an appropriate temperature, the wrinkles of the flexible display 110 are alleviated.

If there is a variable adhesive layer made of tape or adhesive at the attachment site, the applied heat helps to achieve uniform adhesion.

When a mobile phone is driven, for example, heat from a chipset (hereinafter referred to as a 'heating element') 70, such as an AP (Application Processor), is transferred to the attachment area using a heat conductor 260, etc., thereby enabling a flexible display ( 110) can be alleviated. However, in this case, the temperature must be controlled so that too high heat is not applied from the heating element. To this end, the anti-wrinkle device 200 may further include a temperature controller for maintaining the temperature of the heat conductor below a certain temperature.

10: conventional flexible display device
11: display
12: support plate
13: permanent adhesive layer
15: display fold
51: Foldable device body (left)
52: Foldable device body (right)
70: heating element
100: flexible display device
110: flexible display
111: display attachment
120: support plate
121: support plate attachment
130: permanent adhesive layer
200: anti-wrinkle device
210: magnetic body part
220: magnetic force generating device
230: variable adhesive layer
240: fine hole
250: shear deformable body
251: left shear deformable body
252: right shear deformable body
260: thermal conductor

Claims (12)

In a foldable device equipped with a flexible display, a device for preventing wrinkles of the flexible display, comprising:
The flexible display is mounted under a portion including a folding point (hereinafter referred to as a 'folding portion'), and when the flexible display is unfolded, downward force is applied to the flexible display to form an attachment portion (hereinafter referred to as 'display part') of the flexible display. An attachment force application unit for attaching the attachment portion (referred to as 'attachment portion') to the attachment portion (hereinafter referred to as 'support plate attachment portion') of a support plate supporting the flexible display at the bottom of the flexible display.
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display comprising a. The method of claim 1,
In the display attachment part,
A magnetic body part is provided,
The adhesive force applying unit,
Equipped with a magnetic force generating device for generating a magnetic force that pulls the magnetic body portion down and attaches the magnetic body portion to the support plate attaching portion.
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 2,
The magnetic body part,
Having a plurality of rod-shaped magnetic bodies arranged in parallel
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 2,
The magnetic body part,
Having a flat magnetic body made of a flexible material
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 2,
The support plate attachment part,
Having a variable adhesive layer detachable from the magnetic body part
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 1,
The support plate,
A plurality of fine holes vertically penetrating from the lower surface of the support plate to the attachment portion of the support plate,
Below the support plate,
Having a suction force generating device for applying a suction force for attaching the display attachment part to the support plate attachment part by sucking air through the microholes
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 6,
The support plate attachment part,
Having a variable adhesive layer detachable from the display attachment part
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 1,
On the lower surface of the support plate,
Having a plurality of shear deformable bodies attached to the lower surface of the support plate with the upper end in a state in which pre-tension is applied so that the upper end is inclined toward the center, which is the point at which the flexible display is folded
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 8,
The shear deformation body,
made of elastic material
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 8,
Grooves for accommodating each of the above shear deformable bodies
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display characterized in that it further comprises. The method of claim 1,
In the display attachment part,
Attaching a heat conductor connected to a heating element in the foldable device to transfer heat from the heating element to the flexible display
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display, characterized in that. The method of claim 11,
A temperature control unit for maintaining the temperature of the heat conductor below a certain temperature
Anti-wrinkle device of a flexible display characterized in that it further comprises.

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