The invention relates to a display apparatus and more particularly, to an operating method for a display panel.
Many display apparatuses are equipped with light emitting diode (LED) display panels, for example, organic light emitting diode (OLED) display panels. After the OLED has been used for a period of time, a phenomenon of decay may occur, which may result in display abnormality.
The invention provides a display apparatus and an operation method for a display panel thereof to suppress or improving the phenomenon of decay of an organic light emitting diode (OLED) of a pixel circuit.
According to an embodiment of the invention, a display apparatus is provided. The display apparatus includes a display panel and a voltage supply circuit. The display panel includes a pixel circuit and a common voltage line. The pixel circuit includes an OLED, wherein a cathode of the OLED is coupled to the common voltage line. The voltage supply circuit is coupled to the common voltage line of the display panel. The voltage supply circuit supplies a common voltage to the common voltage line during a normal operation period. The voltage supply circuit supplies a reverse bias voltage higher than the common voltage to the common voltage line during a recovery period to reversely bias the OLED.
An embodiment of the invention provides an operation method for a display panel is provided. The display panel includes a pixel circuit and a common voltage line. The pixel circuit includes an OLED, wherein a cathode of the OLED is coupled to the common voltage line. The operation method includes: supplying a common voltage to the common voltage line during a normal operation period; and supplying a reverse bias voltage higher than the common voltage to the common voltage line during a recovery period to reversely bias the OLED.
To sum up, by the display apparatus and the operation method for the display panel thereof provided by the embodiments of the invention, the reverse bias voltage can be applied to the OLED of the pixel circuit during the recovery period. After the OLED has been reversely biased for a period of time, photoelectric characteristics of the OLED can be considerably recovered. The display apparatus and the operation method for the display panel thereof can achieve suppressing or improving the phenomenon of decay of the OLED of the pixel circuit.
To make the above features and advantages of the invention more comprehensible, embodiments accompanied with drawings are described in detail below.
The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
The term “couple (or connect)” herein (including the claims) are used broadly and encompass direct and indirect connection or coupling means. For example, if the disclosure describes a first apparatus being coupled (or connected) to a second apparatus, then it should be interpreted that the first apparatus can be directly connected to the second apparatus, or the first apparatus can be indirectly connected to the second apparatus through other devices or by a certain coupling means. Moreover, elements/components/steps with same reference numerals represent same or similar parts in the drawings and embodiments. Elements/components/notations with the same reference numerals in different embodiments may be referenced to the related description.
Each of the pixel circuits of the display panel 110 includes an organic light emitting diode (OLED, which is not shown in
The voltage supply circuit 120 supplies a reverse bias voltage higher than the common voltage to the common voltage line of the display panel 110 during a recovery period to reversely bias the OLED. A level of the common voltage and a level of the reverse bias voltage may be determined based on design requirement. For example, in some embodiments, the reverse bias voltage may be a power supply voltage of the display panel 110, and the common voltage may be a ground voltage of the display panel 110. The implementation manner of the voltage supply circuit 120 is not limited in the present embodiment. For example, in some embodiments, the voltage supply circuit 120 may include a conventional voltage regulator or any other power conversion circuit/element. Different voltage regulators may provide voltages at different levels. By a switching mechanism, the voltage supply circuit 120 may selectively supply different voltage levels (for example, the common voltage or the reverse bias voltage) to the common voltage line of the display panel 110.
An operation method for the display panel 110 includes the following steps. In a normal driving step, the voltage supply circuit 120 may supply the common voltage (i.e., a low voltage) to the common voltage line of the display panel 110 during the normal operation period. In other words, the cathodes of the OLEDs may receive the common voltage (i.e., the low voltage) through the common electrode of the display panel 110 during the normal operation period. In a recovery step, the voltage supply circuit 120 may supply the reverse bias voltage (i.e., a high voltage) to the common voltage line of the display panel 110 during the recovery period. The cathodes of the OLEDs may receive the reverse bias voltage (i.e., the high voltage) through the common electrode of the display panel 110 during the recovery period, thereby reversely biasing the OLEDs.
Based on a design requirement, the recovery period may be arranged in any time zone during the operational process of the display apparatus. For example, in some embodiments, the recovery period may be arranged in a vertical blanking period between two frames. In some other embodiments, the recovery period may be arranged in a power-on initializing period or a power-off processing period of the display apparatus 100. The display apparatus 100 may apply the reverse bias voltage to the OLEDs of the pixel circuits during the recovery period. After the OLEDs have been reversely biased for a period of time, photoelectric characteristics of the OLEDs may be considerably recovered. Thus, the display apparatus 100 and the operation method for the display panel thereof may suppress (or improve) the phenomenon of decay of the OLEDs of the pixel circuits.
A first terminal of the storage capacitor 230 is coupled to the power supply voltage line ELVDD of the display panel 110. A second terminal of the storage capacitor 230 is coupled to a control terminal (e.g., a gate) of the transistor 210. A first terminal of the switch 240 is coupled to a data line DATA of the display panel 110. A second terminal of the switch 240 is coupled to a control terminal of the transistor 210. A control terminal of the switch 240 is coupled to a scan line SCAN of the display panel 110. The gate driving circuit 130 may control the switch 240 through the scan line SCAN. During the normal operation period, when the switch 240 is turned on, the source driving circuit 140 may store a data voltage in the storage capacitor 230 through the data line DATA. The data voltage may determine a current flowing through the transistor 210, so as to determine a luminance of the OLED 220.
During a recovery period, the voltage supply circuit 120 supplies a reverse bias voltage (which is higher than the common voltage) to the common voltage line ELVSS of the display panel 110 and supplies a low voltage (e.g., a negative voltage or any other voltage lower than the reverse bias voltage) to the power supply voltage line ELVDD, so as to reversely bias the OLED 220. The gate driving circuit 130 may turn on the switch 240 during the recovery period, and the source driving circuit 140 may supply the data voltage to the control terminal of the transistor 210 to turn on the transistor 210 during the recovery period. When the transistor 210 is turned on, the OLED 220 may be reversely biased by the low voltage of the power supply voltage line ELVDD and the reverse bias voltage (i.e., the high voltage) of the common voltage line ELVSS. After the OLED 220 has been reversely biased for a period of time, photoelectric characteristics of the OLED 220 may be considerably recovered.
A first terminal of the third switch 343 is coupled to the control terminal of the transistor 320. A second terminal of the third switch 343 is coupled to a second terminal (e.g., a drain) of the transistor 320. A control terminal of the third switch 343 is coupled to the second scan line S2. A first terminal of the fourth switch 344 is coupled to an initializing voltage line VREF. A second terminal of the fourth switch 344 is coupled to the control terminal of the transistor 320. A control terminal of the fourth switch 344 is coupled to a first scan line S1. A control terminal of the fifth switch 345 is coupled to the emission control line EMIT. A first terminal of the fifth switch 345 is coupled to the second terminal of the transistor 320. A second terminal of the fifth switch 345 is coupled to an anode of the OLED 310. A cathode of the OLED 310 is coupled to the common voltage line ELVSS. A first terminal of the sixth switch 346 is coupled to the initializing voltage line VREF. A second terminal of the sixth switch 346 is coupled to the anode of the OLED 310. A control terminal of the sixth switch 346 is coupled to the first scan line S1.
During a normal operation period, the voltage supply circuit 120 may supply a power supply voltage of the display panel 110 to the power supply voltage line ELVDD, supply an initializing voltage to the initializing voltage line VREF and supply a common voltage (e.g., a ground voltage or any other reference voltage) of the display panel 110 to the common voltage line ELVSS. The power supply voltage is higher than the common voltage, and the initializing voltage is also higher than the common voltage. A voltage difference between the initializing voltage and the common voltage is less than a threshold voltage of the OLED 310, and thus, the OLED 310 is not lit when the sixth switch 346 is turned on.
During the initial period T1, a voltage of the first scan line S1 is at a low level, and voltages of the second scan line S2 and the emission control line EMIT are at high levels. Thus, the fourth switch 344 and the sixth switch 346 are turned on, and the first switch 341, the second switch 342, the third switch 343 and the fifth switch 345 are turned off. In this circumstance, the initializing voltage line VREF may pre-charge the OLED 310 by the initializing voltage and reset a voltage of the storage capacitor 330.
During the compensation period T2, the voltage of the second scan line S2 is at a low level, and the voltages of the first scan line S2 and the emission control line EMIT are at high levels. Thus, the second switch 342 and the third switch 343 are turned on, and the first switch 341, the fourth switch 344, the fifth switch 345 and the sixth switch 346 are turned off. In this circumstance, the data voltage of the data line DATA may be stored in the storage capacitor 330 through the second switch 342, the transistor 320 and the third switch 343.
During the emission period T3, the voltage of the emission control line EMIT is at a low level, and the voltages of the first scan line S1 and the second scan line S2 are at high levels. Thus, the first switch 341 and the fifth switch 345 are turned on, and the second switch 342, the third switch 343, the fourth switch 344 and the sixth switch 346 are turned off. In this circumstance, the data voltage of the storage capacitor 330 may determine a current of the transistor 320, so as to determine a luminance of the OLED 310.
Referring to
A second terminal of the storage capacitor 830 is coupled to a control terminal (e.g., a gate) of the transistor 820. A second terminal of the storage capacitor 830 is coupled to the second terminal of the transistor 820. A first terminal of the second switch 842 is coupled the data line DATA. A control terminal of the second switch 842 is coupled to a second scan line S2. A second terminal of the second switch 842 is coupled to the control terminal of the transistor 820. A first terminal of the third switch 843 is coupled to the initializing voltage line VREF. A second terminal of the third switch 843 is coupled to the anode of the OLED 810. A control terminal of the third switch 843 is coupled to the first scan line S1. A first terminal of the holding capacitor 850 is coupled to the power supply voltage line ELVDD. A second terminal of the holding capacitor 850 is coupled to the second terminal of the third transistor 843.
During a normal operation period, the voltage supply circuit 120 may supply a power supply voltage of the display panel 110 to the power supply voltage line ELVDD, supply an initializing voltage to the initializing voltage line VREF and supply a common voltage (e.g., a ground voltage or any other reference voltage) of the display panel 110 to the common voltage line ELVSS. The power supply voltage is higher than the common voltage, and the initializing voltage is also higher than the common voltage. A voltage difference between the initializing voltage and the common voltage is less than a threshold voltage of the OLED 810, and thus, the OLED 810 is not lit when the third switch 843 is turned on. The driving operations of the first scan line S1, the second scan line S2 and the emission control line EMIT during the normal operation period may be inferred by analog with reference to the descriptions related to the first scan line S1, the second scan line S2 and the emission control line EMIT illustrated in
During a recovery period, the voltage supply circuit 120 may supply a reverse bias voltage (which is higher than the common voltage) to the common voltage line ELVSS of the display panel 110 and supply a low voltage (e.g., a negative voltage or any other voltage lower than the reverse bias voltage) to the initializing voltage line VREF, so as to reversely bias the OLED 810. The gate driving circuit 130 may turn on the third switch 843 during the recovery period. The voltage of the data line DATA may be maintained at any fixed voltage during the recovery period. When the third switch 843 is turned on, the OLED 810 may be reversely biased by the low voltage of the initializing voltage line VREF and the reverse bias voltage (i.e., the high voltage) of the common voltage line ELVSS. After the OLED 810 has been reversely biased for a period of time, photoelectric characteristics of the OLED 810 may be considerably recovered.
During a normal operation period, the voltage supply circuit 120 may supply a power supply voltage of the display panel 110 to the power supply voltage line ELVDD and supply a common voltage (e.g., a ground voltage or any other reference voltage) of the display panel 110 to the common voltage line ELVSS. The power supply voltage is higher than the common voltage. A voltage of the reverse bias control line REV is maintained as a high voltage during the normal operation period, i.e., the second switch 1242 is kept turned-off. The driving operation of the pixel circuit 1200 illustrated in
During a recovery period, the voltage supply circuit 120 may supply a reverse bias voltage (which is higher than the common voltage) to the common voltage line ELVSS of the display panel 110. In addition, the reverse bias voltage is higher than the data voltage of the data line DATA, so as to reversely bias the OLED 1210. The gate driving circuit 130 may turn on the second switch 1242 during the recovery period. The source driving circuit 140 may supply the data voltage (or a negative voltage) to the data line DATA during the recovery period. When the second switch 1242 is turned on, the OLED 1210 may be reversely biased by the data voltage (or the negative voltage) of the data line DATA and the reverse bias voltage (i.e., the high voltage) of the common voltage line ELVSS. After the OLED 1210 has been reversely biased for a period of time, photoelectric characteristics of the OLED 1210 may be considerably recovered.
Based on the above, by the display apparatus and the operation method for the display panel thereof provided by the embodiments of the invention, the reverse bias voltage can be applied to the OLED of the pixel circuit during the recovery period. After the OLED has been reversely biased for a period of time, the photoelectric characteristics of the OLED may be considerably recovered. Thus, the display apparatus and the operation method for the display panel thereof may achieve suppressing or improving the phenomenon of decay of the OLEDs of the pixel circuits.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the disclosed embodiments without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the disclosure cover modifications and variations of this disclosure provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.
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