The present invention relates to a display device.
In recent years, liquid crystal display devices are used as display devices included in electronic devices such as portable information terminals (mobile phones, smart phones, and tablet-type laptop computers). Such a liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal panel as a display panel for displaying images and a backlight device for supplying light to the liquid crystal panel. The liquid crystal panel includes a display area in which images are displayed and a non-display area around the display area. In the liquid crystal display device, the non-display area is defined as a frame portion of the liquid crystal display device. In the liquid crystal display device of this type, it may be required to reduce the width of the frame portion, that is, to reduce the frame size, for design purposes.
Patent document 1 discloses an electro-optic device having a smaller frame size. The electro-optic device includes a case that holds an electro-optic panel that is configured as a display panel. The case includes a stepped surface at an outer peripheral portion thereof and the electro-optic panel is supported by the step-tread surface. According to this configuration, the frame size of the electro-optic device is tried to be reduced.
Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-60591
In the electro-optic device described in Patent document 1, a portion of the outer peripheral portion of the case including the stepped surface has a larger thickness than a tip portion of the case. Therefore, a width of a frame portion is increased by the width of the stepped surface. Further, the case is made of synthetic resin and it is difficult to reduce the thickness of the outer peripheral portion. Therefore, the frame size of the electro-optic device has not been effectively reduced.
The technology disclosed herein was made in view of the above circumstances. An object is to provide a technology to reduce a frame size of a display device.
A technology disclosed in the description relates to a display device including a light source, a light guide plate, a housing member made of metal, an optical member, and a display panel. The light guide plate includes a plate surface configured as a light exit surface, another plate surface as an opposite surface that is opposite from the light exit surface, and one of side surfaces configured as a light entering surface. The light guide plate is arranged such that the light entering surface faces the light source and configured to guide light from the light source. The housing member includes a bottom plate and side plates. The bottom plate has a plate-like shape and is opposite the opposite surface of the light guide plate. The side plates each having a plate-like shape extend from corresponding edges of the bottom plate toward the light exit surface. The housing member holds at least the light guide plate such that the side surfaces of the light guide plate except the light entering surface are adjacent to the corresponding side plates. The optical member is opposite the light exit surface and is configured to add optical properties to light passing through the light exit surface. The display panel is opposite a surface of the optical member opposite from a surface of the optical member facing the light exit surface and being fixed to at least one of the optical member and edges of the respective side plates of the housing member with an adhesive.
According to the display device, the light guide plate is arranged in the holding member such that the side surfaces thereof except the light entering portion are adjacent to the corresponding side plates. Thus, the light guide plate corresponds to a large area of the holding member. The display panel is arranged so as to be opposite the light exit surface of the light guide plate. Thus, a display area of the display panel corresponds to a larger area of the holding member. Further, the holding member is made of metal and thus the side plate is processed to have an effectively smaller thickness in the manufacturing process. Here, the adhesive agent is a shapeless material and thus can be applied on a portion having a small thickness. The display panel is fixed to at least one of the optical member and the edges of the respective side plates with the adhesive. Thus, although the side plate is a plate-like member having a small thickness, the display panel can be fixed to the side plate, which has a small width. Accordingly, the width of a portion of the display panel used for fixing is reduced, namely, the width of a non-display area of the display panel is reduced. As described above, in the display device, the width of the non-display area of the display panel is reduced while the display area of the display panel occupying in the area of the holding member is increased. Thus, the frame size of the display device is reduced.
The optical member may be fixed to the side plates.
According to this configuration, the optical member is not or less likely to be displaced and thus preferable optical properties are obtained.
The adhesive may be between the optical member and the display panel and on an inner side with respect to the side plates, and the optical member and the display panel may be fixed to the side plates via the adhesive.
According to this configuration, the adhesive to fix the display panel to the side plates can be used to an agent to fix the optical member to the side plates. Accordingly, space for an adhesive is saved. This further reduces the frame side of the display device.
One of the side plates may include a bent portion at the edge thereof. The bent portion protrudes inward. The optical member is held by the bent portions of the side plates.
According to this configuration, the optical member is fixed to the side plates without using adhesive.
The display device may further includes a protector on a surface of the display panel opposite from a surface of the display panel facing the optical member.
According to this configuration, in the display device including the display panel that is protected by the protector, the frame size of the display device is reduced.
The side plates may include overhanging portions at the edges thereof. The overhanging portion may protrude outward and the protector may be supported by the overhanging portion.
According to this configuration in which the side plates include the overhanging portions, each side plate allocates a sufficient area to support the protector. Thus, an agent such ad a double-sides tape, which is different from an adhesive, can be attached to the overhanging portions.
an entire surface of the liquid crystal panel may be bonded and fixed to the protector.
According to this configuration, adhesion strength between the liquid crystal panel and the protector remains a high level and thus the protector is less likely to be displaced from the liquid crystal panel.
The light source may be a side-emitting light source. The display device may further include a light source board that includes a plate surface on which the light source is arranged such that a light emitting surface of the light source faces the light entering surface. An edge portion of the plate surface of the light source board may be in contact with an edge portion of the light exit surface close to the light entering surface.
According to this configuration, a portion of the plate surface of the light source board is in contact with the light emitting surface and thus space for arranging the light source board is saved. Accordingly, the frame size of the display device is reduced.
One of the side plates may include a through hole. The light source board may be a flexible board having flexibility and may include an extending portion extending outward with respect to the housing member. The extending portion may be through the through hole.
According to this configuration, the frame size of the display device is reduces, whereas the extending portion of the light source board, which is the flexible board, is arranged so as to extend outward with respect to the housing member.
The adhesive may have light blocking properties. According to this configuration, light does not or is less likely to leak through a gap between the liquid crystal panel and the housing member, or a gap between the liquid crystal panel and the optical member.
In the technology disclosed herein, a display device including a liquid crystal panel using liquid crystals as the display panel has novelty and utility. Further, a television device including the above display device has novelty and utility.
According to the technology disclosed in this specification, a frame size of a display device is reduced.
A first embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. A liquid crystal display device (an example of a display device) 10 will be described in this description. X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis may be indicated in the drawings. The axes in each drawing correspond to the respective axes in other drawings. The vertical direction in
As illustrated in
The liquid crystal panel 14 will be described. As illustrated in
Next, the backlight device 30 will be described. As illustrated in
The chassis 28 is formed from a metal plate, which may be an aluminum plate or an electro galvanized steel plate (SECC), and constitutes a rear exterior and side exteriors of the liquid crystal display device 10. The chassis 28 includes a bottom plate 28a and side plates 28b. The bottom plate 28a has a rectangular plate-like shape similar to the liquid crystal panel 14. The bottom plate 28a is opposite an opposite surface 20c of the light guide plate 20, which will be described later. The side plate 28b each having a plate-like shape extend upward from corresponding edges of the bottom plate 28a toward the front side (toward a light exit surface 20b of the light guide plate, which will be described later). As illustrated in
The reflection sheet 26 is a rectangular sheet made of synthetic resin and includes a white surface having a high light reflectivity. The reflection sheet 26 has a substantially the same size as the bottom plate 28a of the chassis 28. The reflection sheet 26 is on the bottom plate 28a and covers substantially an entire surface of the bottom plate 28a. Peripheral edges of the reflection sheet 26 are adjacent to the corresponding side plates 28b of the chassis 28. A large portion of the reflection sheet 26 is in surface-contact with the opposite surface 20c of the light guide plate 20, which will be described later. That is, the reflection sheet 26 is sandwiched between the light guide plate 20 and the bottom plate 28a of the chassis 28. The reflection sheet 26 is configured to reflect light that exits the LEDs 22 or light that exits the light guide plate 20 through the opposite surface 20c.
The light guide plate 20 is made of substantially transparent (high transmissivity) synthetic resin (e.g. acrylic resin or polycarbonate such as PMMA) which has a refractive index sufficiently higher than that of air. As illustrated in
Side surfaces of the light guide plate 20 include side surfaces extending in the X-axis direction. One of the side surfaces extending in the X-axis direction (the left side in FIGS. 1 and 2) is a light entering surface 20a that is opposite the LEDs 22 mounted on the LED flexible circuit board 24, which will be described later. Light emitted from the LEDs 22 enters the light guide plate 20 through the light entering surface 20a. As illustrated in
The LED flexible circuit board 24 includes a film base member that is made of synthetic resin (e.g., polyimide resin) having insulating and flexible properties. The flexible circuit board 24 is located close to the light entering surface 20a of the light guide plate 20. The LED flexible circuit board 24 has a rectangular shape in a plan view. A long-side dimension and a short-side dimension of the LED flexible circuit board 24 correspond to the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, respectively. A front surface of the LED flexible circuit board 24 is on a side close to the liquid crystal panel 14 (the front side) and a rear surface of the LED flexible circuit board 24 is on a side close to the reflection sheet 26 (the rear side). The rear surface of the LED flexible circuit board 24 is configured as a mount surface on which multiple LEDs 22 are mounted. One of long-side edge portions of the LED flexible circuit board 24 is in contact with a portion of the light exit surface 20b of the light guide plate 20 close to the light entering surface 20a. That is, the LED flexible circuit board 24 is supported by the light guide plate 20.
The LED flexible circuit board 24 includes an extending portion 24a that extends from a portion of the other long-side edge portion thereof toward an outer side with respect to the chassis 28. The extending portion 24a includes an unillustrated connection terminal at its distal end. When the liquid crystal display device 10 is arranged into a casing, a power supply circuit board is arranged into a gap in between the liquid crystal display device 10 and the casing. The connection terminal of the extending portion 24a is electrically connected to the power supply circuit board and thus power is supplied to the LEDs 22 and driving of the LEDs 22 is controlled. The extending portion 24a is supported by the notch 28b1 at a portion thereof, and the other large portion of the extending portion 24a protrudes outward with respect to the chassis 28 (see
Multiple LEDs 22 are mounted in a line on the mount surface (the rear surface) of the LED flexible circuit board 24. Each LED 22 includes an LED chip (not illustrated) mounted on a board that is fixed on the LED flexible circuit board 24. The LED chip is sealed with resin. The LED chip mounted on the board has one main light emission wavelength. Specifically, the LED chip emits light in a single color of blue. The resin that seals the LED chip contains phosphors dispersed therein. The phosphors emit light in a predetermined color when excited by blue light emitted from the LED chip. Overall color of light emitted from the LED 22 is white. The phosphors may be selected, as appropriate, from yellow phosphors that emit yellow light, green phosphors that emit green light, and red phosphors that emit red light. The phosphors may be used in combination of the above phosphors. The LED 22 includes a surface mounted on the LED flexible circuit board 24 and the surface is defined as a front surface (or a rear surface). The LED 22 further includes side surfaces and one of the side surfaces is a light emitting surface 22a. That is, the LEDs 22 are so-called side-emitting type LEDs. The light emitting surface 22a of each LED 22 that is mounted on the mount surface of the LED flexible circuit board 24 is adjacent to the light entering surface 20a of the light guide plate 20. The LEDs 22 are arranged in a line (i.e., linearly) on the LED flexible circuit board 24 at predetermined intervals along the long-side dimension of the LED flexible circuit board 24 (the X-axis direction). That is, the LEDs 22 are arranged away from each other at one of edge portions of the backlight device 30 along the long-side dimension of the LED flexible circuit board 24 (the X-axis direction). The LEDs 22 mounted on the LED flexible circuit board 24 are adjacent to one of the side plates 28b of the chassis 28.
The optical member 18 has flexibility and, as illustrated in
Fixing structures of the liquid crystal panel 14 to the chassis 28 will be described with reference to
As illustrated in
Next, steps of arranging components into the chassis 28 during manufacturing of the liquid crystal display device 10 will be described. First, the reflection sheet 26 is arranged into the chassis 28. The reflection sheet 26 has a size substantially equal to that of the bottom plate 28a of the chassis 28. Thus, when arranging the reflection sheet 26 into the chassis 28, the position of the reflection sheet 26 is determined by the inner surfaces of the respective side plates 28b of the chassis 28. Next, the light guide plate 20 is arranged into the chassis 28. When arranging the light guide plate 20 into the chassis 28, three of the side surfaces of the light guide plate 20 except the light entering surface 20a are positioned close to the respective inner surfaces of the respective side plates 28b of the chassis 28. Accordingly, the position of the light guide plate 20 in the chassis 28 is determined. Next, the LED flexible circuit board 24 including the LEDs 22 thereon is arranged in the chassis 28 and then the optical member 18 is arranged in the chassis 28. The optical member 18 has the size substantially equal to the bottom plate 28a of the chassis 28. Thus, when arranging the optical member 18 into the chassis 28, the position of the optical member 18 is determined by the inner surfaces of the respective side plates 28b of the chassis 28. After the optical member 18 is arranged in the chassis 28, the optical member 18 is fixed to the chassis 28 with the sheet fixing adhesive members 34. As described above, according to the manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display device 10, positions of the reflection sheet 26, the light guide plate 20, and the optical member 18 with respect to the chassis 28 are determined while being arranged into the chassis 28. Further, in the liquid crystal display device 10, the optical member 18 is fixed to the chassis 28 with the sheet fixing adhesive members 34. Accordingly, the components arranged on the rear side of the optical member 18, namely, the LED flexible circuit board 24, the light guide plate 20, and the reflection sheet 26 are held between the optical member 18 and the bottom plate 28a of the chassis 28.
As is described above, in the liquid crystal display device 10 according to this embodiment, the light guide plate 20 is arranged in the chassis 28 such that the side surfaces thereof except the light entering surface 20a are adjacent to the corresponding side plates 28b of the chassis 28. That is, the light exit surface 20b of the light guide plate 20 corresponds to a larger area in the chassis 28. The liquid crystal panel 14 and the optical member 18 are arranged so as to face the light exit surface 20b of the light guide plate 20. Thus, the display area AA of the liquid crystal panel 14 corresponds to a larger area in the chassis 28. Further, the chassis 28 is made of metal and thus the side plate 28b of the chassis 28 is processed to have an effectively smaller thickness in the manufacturing process. Furthermore, the liquid crystal panel 14 is fixed to the edge surfaces 28b2 of the side plates 28b via the panel fixing adhesive 32. That is, the liquid crystal panel 14 can be fixed to a portion having a smaller width, which is the edge surface 28b2. This reduces the width of a portion of the liquid crystal panel 14 used for fixing, namely, reduces the width of the non-display area NAA of the liquid crystal panel 14. As described above, in the liquid crystal display device 10 according to this embodiment, the width of the non-display area NAA of the liquid crystal panel 14 is reduced while the percentage of the display area AA of the liquid crystal panel 14 occupying in the area of the chassis 28 is increased. As a result, the frame size of the liquid crystal display device 10 is reduced.
In this embodiment, one of the side plates 28b of the chassis 28 includes the notch 28b1. The LED flexible circuit board 24 includes the extending portion 24a that extends from a portion of the LED flexible circuit board 24 toward outside with respect to the chassis 28. The extending portion 24a is through the notch 28b1. According to this configuration, the frame size of the liquid crystal display device 10 is reduced, whereas the extending portion 24a of the LED flexible circuit board 24 can be arranged so as to extend outward with respect to the chassis 28.
The panel fixing adhesive 32 of this embodiment has light blocking properties. Thus, light does not or is less likely to leak through a gap between the liquid crystal panel 14 and the chassis 28.
A first modification of the first embodiment will be described. In the liquid crystal display device 10 according to the first modification, a fixing structure of the optical member 18 to chassis 28 differs from the one in the first embodiment. Other configurations are similar to those in the first embodiment and thus similar configurations, operations, and effects to the first embodiment will not be described. As illustrated in
A second modification of the first embodiment will be described. In the liquid crystal display device 10 according to the second modification, a configuration of the side plates 28b of the chassis 28 partially differs from the one in the first embodiment. Other configurations are similar to those in the first embodiment and thus similar configurations, operations, and effects to the first embodiment will not be described. In the second modification of the first embodiment, as illustrated in
A second embodiment will be described with reference to drawings. A liquid crystal display device 110 is different from the first embodiment in that the liquid crystal display device 110 according to the second embodiment includes a cover panel 112. Further, fixing structures of a liquid crystal panel 114 to a chassis 128 differs from the one in the first embodiment. Other configurations are similar to the first embodiment and thus similar configurations, operations, and effects to the first embodiment will not be described. In
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
In the liquid crystal display device 110 according to this embodiment, the liquid crystal panel 114 is protected by the cover panel 112 while the frame size of the liquid crystal display device 110 is reduced. Further, the side plate 128b of the chassis 128 includes the overhanging portion 128c at the distal end thereof. Thus, the side plate 128b allocates a sufficient area to support and hold the cover panel 112. According to this configuration, an agent such as a double-sided tape, which is a different agent from an adhesive, can be attached to the overhanging portion 128c. Accordingly, the cover panel 112 is effectively supported and held by the side plates 128b of the chassis 128.
A third embodiment will be described with reference to drawings. A fixing structure of a liquid crystal panel in the third embodiment differs from the one in the first embodiment. Other configurations are similar to the first embodiment and thus similar configurations, operations, and effects to the first embodiment will not be described. In
As illustrated in
Modifications of the above embodiments will be described.
(1) In each of the above embodiments, the extending portion of the LED flexible circuit board is through the notch or the through hole formed in one of the side plates of the chassis and extends outside with respect to the chassis. However, configurations to extend the extending portion of the LED flexible board outside with respect to the chassis are not limited to those in the above embodiments.
(2) In each of the above embodiments, one of the side surfaces of the light guide plate is configured as a light entering surface. However, multiple side surfaces of the light guide plate may be configured as light entering surfaces. In that case, multiple LED flexible boards may be disposed such that LEDs mounted thereon are opposite the corresponding light entering surfaces.
(3) In each of the above embodiments, the optical member is fixed to the chassis or the liquid crystal panel with respect to a thickness direction of the liquid crystal display device. However, it is not necessary to fix the optical member to the liquid crystal display device with respect to the thickness direction of the liquid crystal display device.
(4) The liquid crystal display devices of each of the above embodiments include a liquid crystal panel classified into a small size or a medium size. However, the aspect of this invention can be applied to liquid crystal display devices including a liquid crystal panel classified into a large size.
(5) The liquid crystal display devices of each of the above embodiments includes a liquid crystal display panel configured as a display panel. However, the aspect of this invention can be applied to display devices including other types of display panels.
Details of the embodiments of the invention are as described above. However, the above embodiments are only some examples and the scope of the claimed invention is not limited thereto. The technical scope of the claimed invention includes various modifications of the above embodiments.
10, 110, 210; liquid crystal display device, 14, 114, 214; liquid crystal panel, 16, 116, 216; panel flexible circuit board, 18, 118, 218; optical member, 20, 120, 220; light guide plate, 24, 124, 224; LED flexible circuit board, 28, 128, 228; chassis, 28b, 128b, 228b; side plate (of chassis), 28b3; bent portion, 30, 130, 230; backlight device, 32; panel fixing adhesive, 34, 234; sheet fixing adhesive, 112; cover panel, 128c; overhanging portion, 132; cover fixing adhesive.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
2013-087296 | Apr 2013 | JP | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/JP2014/054818 | 2/27/2014 | WO | 00 |