The disclosure relates to a design approach, and more particularly to a design approach for improving brightness emitted from light component sources on a panel.
Taking pixel unit P11 as an example, pixel unit P11 comprises three white light sub-pixels P11R, P11G, P11B, each make up of a combination of red, green, and blue colors. The resultant white light emission from each sub-pixel is filtered by a color filter, to render a color light to a viewer.
Pixel unit P11 would be provided with a red color filter over the sub-pixel P11R, a green color filter over the sub-pixel P11G, and a blue color filter over the sub-pixel P11B. The pixel unit P11 can be controlled to produce a color image of a desired overall color, by controlling the relative intensity of the respective white sub-pixels, to produce color lights of the desired relative intensity as viewed through the corresponding color filters.
The intensity of the white EL devices often decreases significantly with operation due to the substantial property of three primary color components. The conventional method for compensating this shift in intensity utilizes photo sensors to detect the brightness of sub-pixels.
When a photo TFT detects the brightness of the blue light, the sensitivity of the photo TFT is higher. When the photo TFT detects the brightness of the red light or the green light, the sensitivity of the photo TFT is lower. Therefore, the conventional method does not appropriately to compensate the brightness of the red light and the green light as a photo TFT is utilized to detect the brightness.
The present invention is directed to a novel design approach for a panel comprising a luminiferous unit and driving unit. The luminiferous unit comprises first and second color components respectively constituting a first and a second light component sources. First and second light components are respectively emitted from the first and the second light component sources. The color of the first light component differs from that of the second light component. First, a specific relationship of a characteristic between the first and the second color components is defined. The driving unit is designed according to the specific relationship.
Another design approach is also provided. The control method determines a change in emission of a desired light component out of several light components within a single color sub-pixel in an EL device. First, a relationship between changes in emissions of the several light components of the sub-pixel over a certain time period is predetermined. One of the several light components is designated a reference light component. Next, a change in emission of the reference light component in the sub-pixel is detected. Finally, a corresponding change in emission of the desired light component is determined and based on the predetermined relationship in reference to the detected emission of the reference light component.
An exemplary embodiment of a panel comprises a luminiferous unit and a driving unit. The luminiferous unit comprises a first color component constituting a first light component source and a second color component constituting a second light component source. A first and a second light components are emitted from the first and the second light component sources. The color of the first light component differs from that of the second light component. A specific relationship is gained according to a characteristic between the first and the second color components. The driving unit is designed according to the specific relationship for driving the luminiferous unit
An exemplary embodiment of an electronic device comprises a panel, a data driver, and a scan driver. The panel comprises a luminiferous unit and a driving unit. The luminiferous unit comprises a first color component constituting a first light component source and a second color component constituting a second light component source. A first light component is emitted from the first light component source. A second light component is emitted from the second light component source. The color of the first light component differs from that of the second light component. A specific relationship is gained according to a characteristic between the first and the second color components. The driving unit is designed according to the specific relationship for driving the luminiferous unit. The data driver supplies data signals to the driving unit. The scan driver supplies data signals to the driving unit.
The invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with reference made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
a and 5b are schematic diagrams of a pixel unit;
a and 6b show characteristic curves of a luminiferous unit, comprising time and brightness;
Scan driver 22 supplies scan signals G1˜Gn to gate electrodes. Data driver 24 supplies data signals S1R˜SmB to source electrodes. Panel 26 comprises sub-pixels P11R˜PmnB, each comprising a driving unit and a luminiferous unit, such as an electroluminescent light device (ELD) comprising organic light emitting diode (OLED). The driving units are controlled by scan signals G1˜Gn and data signals S1R˜SmB. Therefore, each interlaced source electrode and gate electrode is used to control a sub-pixel.
For example, data signal S1R and scan signal G, control the sub-pixel P11R which comprises a driving unit D11R and a luminiferous unit EL11R. Driving unit D11R drives luminiferous unit EL11R according to scan signal G1 output from data driver 24 and data signal S1R output from scan driver 22. Additionally, driving unit D11R can detect and compensate for the brightness emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R.
A white light emitted from luminiferous units on panel 26 is a composite of several light components. Each luminiferous unit in the panel 26 may have several different types of color components to emit different light components. In this embodiment, the white light emitted from panel 26 comprises a green light component, a blue light component, and a red light component. Additionally, the white light can be constituted by two light components, such as a blue light component and a red light component. Further, the composite light component emitted by the luminiferous units may be other than white. By using appropriate complementary color filters for sub-pixels, the desired resultant colors for the image can be obtained for each sub-pixel.
Since different color components have different aging characteristics, which results in different changes (e.g., decays) in brightness, voltage, or current characteristics, a specific relationship between different color components is predetermined according to the aging characteristics thereof. First, a detector (not shown) detects brightness emitted from panel 26 at a first and a second time. Then, a specific relationship is determined according to a ratio among the emission variable quantities of the red, the green, and the blue light components between the first and the second time. In other words, the specific relationship is the emission variable quantities of the red, the green, and the blue light components in a specific time range. A producer of electronic device 2 can design driving units D11˜Dmn according to the specific relationship after the specific relationship has been determined.
As shown in
For example, if a ratio among the intensity decay quantities of the red, green, and blue light components is 2:(1.5):1 in the example shown in
Since the drain and the source of a transistor are defined by current passing through the transistor, a source/drain and a drain/source respectively indicate two terminal of the transistor in the following.
Driving unit D11R comprises transistors M1R˜M3R and capacitor CstR. The gate, or the control terminal, of the transistor M1R receives a scan signal G1 in gate electrode and the drain/source thereof receives a data signal S1R in source electrode. The source/drain of the transistor M2R is coupled to a high voltage source Power and the drain/source thereof is coupled to luminiferous unit EL11R. The gate of the transistor M3R is coupled to luminiferous unit EL11R, the drain/source thereof is coupled to the source/drain of the transistor M1R and the high voltage source Power, and the source/drain thereof is coupled to the gate of the transistor M2R. Capacitor CstR is coupled between the source/drain and the gate of the transistor M2R.
As shown in
Transistor M3R can be formed by a low temperature poly silicon (LTPS) or amorphous silicon technology. Transistor M3R can be a photo diode or a photo transistor to detect and compensate for the brightness emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R. In this embodiment, transistor M3R is a photo transistor for detecting the blue light component within the white light emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R, as a reference color component.
By designing the driving unit D11R according to the specific relationship, the brightness decay effect of luminiferous unit EL11R due to the aging relationship of the color components is decreased. In this embodiment, the size of transistor M3R is defined for compensating the red color component based on the reference blue color component and the specific relationship. For example, the size is a ratio between a length and a width of a channel of transistor M3R. Additionally, capacitance of capacitor CstR can be also defined by the specific relationship.
While a panel comprises many sub-pixels, only a portion of the sub-pixels will frequently be utilized, such that the brightness emitted from the frequently utilized sub-pixels will decay. Therefore, driving units must have detection and compensation functions. Taking sub-pixel P11R as an example, the driving unit D11R can be designed to change a current passing through luminiferous unit EL11R or luminiferous time of luminiferous unit EL11R to compensate for the brightness emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R.
In this embodiment, transistor M3R detects and compensates for the brightness emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R. Transistor M3R controls a discharge time of capacitor CstR according to the brightness emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R. When the discharge time is slower, the enabling status time of transistor M2R is longer.
The above compensation circuit could be provided in all the sub-pixels in a similar fashion, for compensating a desired light component in each sub-pixel, based on a reference light component detected in the sub-pixel, and the predetermined relationship.
a and 5b are schematic diagrams of three sub-pixels. Sub-pixels P11R, P11G, P11B respectively display a red light component, a green light component, and a blue light component. Driving units D11R, D11G, D11B respectively drive luminiferous units EL11R, EL11G, EL11B to emit a white light according to data signals S11R, S11G, S11B output from source electrodes.
Although luminiferous units EL11R, EL11G, EL11B respectively emit a white light, color filters can be utilized to render a required light component from a white light such that sub-pixels P11R, P11G, P11B display the required light component. For example, if sub-pixel P11R desires to display a red light, a red color filter is utilized for filtering the red light from a white light emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R.
Since the intensity decay rate among the red, green, and blue light components of white light is effected by aging characteristics of color components, transistors M3R, M3G, M3B are respectively utilized to change the discharge time of capacitor CstR, CstG, CstB for compensating brightness of the respective red, green, and blue light components in the respective sub-pixels. Taking sub-pixel P11R as an example, when the channel size of transistor M3R is greater, the discharge time of capacitor CstR is shorter, such that the luminiferous time of luminiferous unit EL11R is shorter. As such, the structures of the compensating driving components (i.e., M3R, M3G and M3B in the illustrated embodiment) between different color sub-pixels would be different, because of the different characteristics of decay in brightness for the different color components that are being compensated in the different color sub-pixels. Therefore, if the intensity decay rate among the red, green, and blue light components constituting white light within a sub-pixel is 2:(1.5):1, the relative channel size ratio among transistors M3R, M3G, M3B is 1:(1.5):2.
The brightness of white lights emitted from luminiferous units EL11R, EL11G, EL11B are defined by data signals S11R, S11G, S11B from source electrodes. The brightness of white lights emitted from luminiferous units EL11R, EL11G, EL11B may be 200 nits for example. When the emission of a white light emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R decays to 100 nits, the emission of red light component L1, the emission of green light component L2, and the emission of blue light component L3 forming the brightness of the white light are decayed.
When the decay quantity of the blue light component of the white lights is detected by transistor M3R, transistor M3R will decrease the discharge time of capacitor CstR to increase the turn time of transistor M2R such that luminiferous times of the white lights are increased to compensate for the emission of the white light emitted from luminiferous unit EL11R.
a and 6b show characteristic curves of a luminiferous unit, comprising time and brightness. Curve 60 indicates a normal brightness emitted from the luminiferous unit. Curve 61 indicates a compensated brightness emitted from the luminiferous unit. Compare
First, a specific relationship is predetermined according to a characteristic between the first and the second color components in step 710. Since each color component has an aging characteristic, the brightness of a first and a second light components will decay within a specific time range. The first and the second light component sources are constituted by different color components, the brightness variable quantity of the first light component differs that of the second light component within the specific time range. The specific time range is between a first time and a second time more than the first time. The specific relationship is a ratio between the brightness variable quantities of the first and the second light components.
Since each color components has the aging characteristic and the second time exceeds the first time, the brightness of the first and the second light components detected in the second time are darker than that detected in the first time.
The driving unit is designed according to the specific relationship in step 720. Since the aging characteristics of color components will affect the brightness of the first and the second light components, when the driving unit is designed according to the specific relationship, the brightness of the first and the second light components can be compensated.
As shown in
When the driving unit is designed according to the specific relationship, the effect of brightness decay due to the aging characteristic of the color component can be reduced.
The brightness of the first light component is detected in step 730 and then the brightness of the first light component is determined in step 740. If emission of the first light component is changed, one of emissions of the first and the second light components is compensated in step 750. If emission of the first light component is unchangeable, no compensation is needed. The detection of the emissions of the first light component is repeated in step 730, to continuously monitor decay in the emission.
Additionally, the first and the second light component sources constitute an electroluminescent light device (ELD). Therefore, a current passing through the ELD or the luminiferous time of the first light component can be changed for compensating the emission of the first light component.
In summary, since the driving unit is designed according to a specific relationship between color components, brightness decay due to the color components can be reduced.
Additionally, when the brightness emitted from one luminiferous unit decays, the driving unit can compensate for the brightness emitted from the luminiferous unit. Since photo sensors of the driving units detect the same color light, complexity of elements can be reduced.
While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. To the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements (as would be apparent to those skilled in the art). Therefore, the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.
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