The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device to be used for a portable telephone device such as a fold-up type of portable telephone device having a plurality of liquid crystal display parts and the like, and a portable telephone device using the liquid crystal display device.
In a conventional fold-up type of portable telephone device, for example, as described in JP-A-2001-136251, there is known a portable telephone device equipped with a first liquid crystal display device which is seen by an operator at a state that a casing is opened and a second liquid crystal display device which is seen by an operator at a state that a casing is closed.
A schematic sectional view of a conventional fold-up type of portable telephone device 200 is illustrated in
The first liquid crystal display device 201 and the second liquid crystal display device 202 are respective independent liquid crystal display devices and are driven by respective driver circuits 241 and 242. The first liquid crystal display device 201, the second liquid crystal display device 202 and the back light 209 are connected to a flexible control substrate 216 respectively in which its front end is branched. The other end of the flexible control substrate 216 is connected to a main substrate 215 in the first casing 212.
There are mounted on the second casing 214 a magnet 222 for open/close detection and a speaker 224. Though not illustrated, the speaker 224 is connected to the aforementioned flexible control substrate 216 and outputs a voice of a calling party received by a wireless part 220 of the main substrate 215.
The main substrate 215 of a portable telephone device is installed inside the first casing 212. There are mounted on the main substrate 215 a control part 218, a memory 219, each circuit of the wireless part 220, a key operation part 217, a microphone 223, and an open/close detector 221, thus realizing the radio communication function as a portable telephone device.
The display operation of the conventional portable telephone device 200 is described below. For example, when a waiting screen is displayed, the control part 218 checks the status of the second casing 214 whether it is opened or closed from the open/close detector 221. When the second casing 214 is closed, the control part 218 reads out image information for the waiting screen from the memory 219, stores such information on the second memory part 252 of the second driver circuit 242 and displays the waiting screen on the second liquid crystal display device 202. At this time, the control part 218 may not send image information to the first memory part 251 of the first driver circuit 241 for the first liquid crystal display device 201.
Then, when the open/close detector 221 detects that the second casing 214 is opened, the control part 218 turns off the power of the second liquid crystal display device 202 and instead turns on the power of the first liquid crystal display device 201 for reading out image information to be displayed on the first liquid crystal display device 201 from the memory 219 and storing it on the first memory part 251 of the first driver circuit 241 for displaying. When another image is also displayed, the display conversion operation is carried out according to the open/close operation of the second casing 214 in the same manner as described above.
In this manner, the power of a liquid crystal display device being displayed is turned off and the other liquid crystal display device is turned on for reading out image information from the memory and temporarily storing it on the memory part of the driver circuit to display. However, such display conversion operation to display is not followed properly when opening/closing of the second casing is carried out quickly. That is, a liquid crystal display screen remains even after the casing is opened.
In a portable telephone device having a plurality of liquid crystal display devices such as a conventional fold-up type of portable telephone device and the like, a plurality of liquid crystal display devices are respective independent liquid crystal display devices. In view of this, driver circuits are installed on the respective liquid crystal display devices, and each of liquid crystal display parts and each of driver circuits have to be wired therebetween. When a liquid crystal display device is driven and an image signal is sent, noise occurs and influences on radio communications of the wireless part 220. Thus, it needs to take actions against noise such as covering each of driver circuits with a shield plate or the like. In order to completely shield those circuits, at least a means to tightly adhere and fix the shield plate to its surrounding is needed. Such shield parts occupy a predetermined space in the portable telephone device, thus increasing weight of the portable telephone device and requiring a predetermined assembly process. As much as the number of liquid crystal display devices is increased, shielding parts are increased as well. In a portable telephone device having a plurality of liquid crystal display devices, there have been problems in handling with noise caused by the liquid crystal display devices and blocking the miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness, reduction of cost and improvement of assembly.
A primary object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display device and a portable telephone device using the liquid crystal display device in which problems are solved such that reduction of noise caused by the plurality of liquid crystal display devices, the miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness, reduction of cost and improvement of assembly are realized.
In addition, a secondary object of the present invention is to solve a problem that it takes some time for a display conversion between the first liquid crystal display device and the second liquid crystal display device, and the display conversion is not followed when the open/close operation of the casing is performed quickly.
Furthermore, a tertiary object of the present invention is to provide a portable telephone device in which the first liquid crystal display device and the second liquid crystal display device are displayed at the same time so as to display monitor images of a portable telephone device with a camera that has recently come into wide use on the first liquid crystal display device and the second liquid crystal display device at the same time.
In the portable telephone device of the present invention, a plurality of liquid crystal display parts are integrally connected to a flexible substrate, whereby said plurality of liquid crystal display parts are driven by a common driver circuit. In this manner, the number of diver circuits is reduced by using a driver circuit in common and wiring connected to the driver circuit is decreased. Therefore, noise caused by using a plurality of liquid crystal display devices can be reduced. Thus, miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness, reduction of cost and improvement of assembly for a portable telephone device are realized.
Also, in the portable telephone device of the present invention, a plurality of liquid crystal display parts are configured of any two or more different liquid crystal display parts of an all-transmissive liquid crystal display part, a semi-transmissive liquid crystal display part or an all-reflective liquid crystal display part and are integrally connected to a flexible substrate, whereby said plurality of liquid crystal display parts are driven by a single driver circuit. Accordingly, liquid crystal display devices involving different production processes can be integrated into a single liquid crystal display device.
Furthermore, in the portable telephone device of the present invention, a plurality of liquid crystal display parts are integrally connected to a flexible substrate, whereby a single liquid crystal display part of said plurality of liquid crystal display parts is selected and driven by a single driver circuit. By arranging a driver circuit to be used in common, image information is stored on the memory part of the driver circuit, and a liquid crystal display part to display images is converted simply by converting at the display conversion part in the driver circuit whether to display it on a first liquid crystal display part or whether to display it on the other liquid crystal display part. By using this, even when the opening/closing operation of the casing is performed quickly, the display conversion can be followed.
Moreover, the portable telephone device of the present invention adopts a configuration that a plurality of liquid crystal display parts are integrally connected to a flexible substrate, whereby two or more liquid crystal display parts of said plurality of liquid crystal display parts are driven by a common driver circuit at the same time. Accordingly, conversion can be accomplished by the display conversion part of the driver circuit can convert such that the first liquid crystal display part and the other liquid crystal display part are displayed at the same time. For example, when taking a picture by a portable telephone device with a camera, both one who takes a picture and one who is taken a picture are able to see a monitor image at the same time and an image of a picture that is already filmed can be seen from both sides of the portable telephone device.
Also, in the portable telephone device of the present invention, when a set of liquid crystal display parts are installed on a bent flexible substrate, a back light is inserted therebetween so that the back light can be used in common. In this manner, a back light can be used in common by a set of liquid crystal display parts.
In addition, in the portable telephone device of the present invention, a plurality of liquid crystal display parts are integrally connected to a flexible substrate, whereby said plurality of liquid crystal display parts are driven by a common driver circuit and the display is converted between said plurality of liquid crystal display parts. In this manner, a plurality of display parts to be driven by a driver circuit can be displayed selectively one by one or at the same time.
Furthermore, in the portable telephone device of the present invention, by further using a holder for installing a plurality of liquid crystal display parts and by installing a first liquid crystal display part and the other liquid crystal display part on the front and back sides of the holder respectively, liquid crystal display parts are installed on both the front and back sides of the holder. Accordingly, liquid crystal display devices of a unit type can be simply assembled just by installing liquid crystal display parts on both the front and back sides of the holder.
Further, in the liquid crystal display device of the present invention, when said plurality of liquid crystal display parts are installed on a bent flexible substrate by means of the holder, a back light is inserted and installed between at least one of said plurality of liquid crystal display parts and the holder. In this manner, a liquid crystal display device with an integrated back light can be simply assembled.
Further, in the liquid crystal display device of the present invention, a hole for transmitting a light from the back light is provided on the holder for installing said plurality of liquid crystal display parts, whereby the plurality of liquid crystal display parts installed on the front and back sides of the holder can be irradiated with a light from the back light respectively. Due to this, a liquid crystal display device using a back light in common in a plurality of liquid crystal display parts is realized.
Further, the present invention employs a liquid crystal display device in which a common driver circuit drives the plurality liquid crystal display parts by integrally connecting the plurality of liquid crystal display parts to a flexible substrate. In this manner, a portable telephone device is realized, in which noise caused by using a plurality of liquid crystal display devices is reduced and the miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness and improvement of assembly are achieved.
Further, the present invention relates to a fold-up type of portable telephone device such as an open/close type for opening and closing the second casing to the first casing, a slide type for sliding or a slide rotating type for rotating in the horizontal direction, and relates to a portable telephone device in which the top and bottom of an image on the first liquid crystal display part or the second liquid crystal display part is converted according to a relative position of the second casing to the first casing. Due to this, even when the second casing is folded or opened, an easy-to-see display can be viewed.
In particular, by disposing the first liquid crystal display part and the second liquid crystal display part on the front and back sides of the second casing, the top and bottom of an image is converted such that the top and bottom can be viewed the same from anywhere at the front or back sides of the second casing when the image is displayed at the same time, thus displaying an easy-to-see image.
Embodiments of the present invention are explained hereinafter with reference to the drawings.
In
In this manner, the portable telephone device 100 of the present invention adopts a configuration for assembling the liquid crystal display device in the second casing 214 as a single liquid crystal display unit by inserting the back light 9 into the first concave 311 of the holder 310, by inserting the first liquid crystal display part 1 into the second concave 312 of the holder 310, and by inserting the second liquid crystal display part 2 being integrally connected to the flexible connection substrate 3 to which the first liquid crystal display part 1 is connected into a third concave 313 of the holder 310 respectively.
Incidentally, cameras 23 and 24, which are not attached in the prior art, are connected to the side of the first liquid crystal display part and the side of the second liquid crystal display part respectively in the second casing 214.
As shown in
In addition to the above, the first camera 23 and the second camera 24 are connected to the control part 18. And the control part 18 controls a photographing operation of the cameras by an operational signal to be inputted from a key operation part 217. Image information that is photographed by the first camera 23 and the second camera 24 is stored on a memory 27 for the first camera and a memory 28 for the second camera respectively. Such image information can be read out. The control part 18 not only controls the photographing operation of the first camera 23 and the second camera 24, but also prepares image information on composite photographs in combination with image information stored on the memory 27 for the first camera and the memory 28 for the second camera for storing it on a memory 29 for composite photographs. Such image information can be read out. Incidentally, the memory 19 also stores telephone directory information in conjunction with the telephone number and facial picture of a person on the telephone directory as telephone directory information.
The flexible connection substrate 3 can be bent. It is bent 180 degrees so that, as already illustrated in
From the gate driver 43 of the driver circuit 4, gate wirings 5 and 6 are connected to the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 respectively, while from the source driver 44, source wirings 7 and 8 are connected to the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 respectively.
As described above, the number of driver circuits is reduced and wiring connected to the driver circuit is decreased. Therefore, noise caused by using a plurality of liquid crystal display devices can be reduced.
Furthermore, by reducing the number of driver circuits, noise preventing parts such as shield members or the like and fittings to be performed on the driver circuits are reduced as well, and the miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness and reduction of cost, improvement of assembly for the portable telephone device are realized. In particular, by a configuration of inserting a plurality of liquid crystal display parts and the back light into the holder, assembly can be greatly improved.
Incidentally, it is possible to have a configuration of combining two or more different liquid crystal display parts of an all-transmissive liquid crystal display part, a semi-transmissive liquid crystal display part, or an all-reflective liquid crystal display part and integrally connecting them to the flexible substrate for enabling a single driver circuit to drive a plurality of liquid crystal display parts. The first liquid crystal display part 1 may be configured of an all-transmissive liquid crystal display device, the second liquid crystal display part 2 may be configured of a semi-transmissive liquid crystal display device, or both of the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 may be configured of all-transmissive liquid crystal display devices. In particular, when both are composed of all-transmissive liquid crystal display devices, the back light 9 can be shared therebetween.
When there is incoming a call at a state that the casing is closed as shown in
Incidentally, an example of displaying the same image is shown in
In
When there is incoming a call, the control part 18 compares the telephone number just received from a caller with a telephone directory data on the memory 19. When there is found a matched number, the appropriate registered name and facial picture are displayed (step S5). When the user of the portable telephone device 100 sees a facial picture displayed on the second liquid crystal display part 2 and opens the second casing 214 for telephone conversation (step S51), the name and facial picture of a caller displayed on the second liquid crystal display part 2 thus far are displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 (step S6). The user presses the hook button to initiate the conversation (step S7).
When the second casing 214 remains opened as it is (step S8), an image received from a caller by the next generation communication system (W-CDMA) and the like is displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 (step S9).
After the conversation is started, when closing the second casing 214 to use an earphone microphone, an image received from the calling party is displayed on the second liquid crystal display part 2 (step S13).
When the call is terminated (step S10), the open/close detector 221 confirms the open/close status of the casing (step S2). When the second casing 214 is closed, a waiting screen is displayed on the second liquid crystal display part 2 (step S3). Then, an incoming call is waited in the procedure as described above (step S4). When the second casing 214 is not closed, a waiting screen is displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 (step S11) for waiting for an incoming call (step S12). In this manner, the display is converted between the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2.
In a conventional fold-up type of portable telephone device that has come into commercial use, a screen of the second liquid crystal display part 2 is small and it is difficult to confirm caller information. However, if the screen is about the size that a camera monitor can operate, an image about the size of a facial picture of a caller can be displayed upon receipt of a call. The called party can confirm the caller by viewing the facial picture on the second liquid crystal display part 2 and he/she can engage in conversation with the caller while viewing caller information in addition to the facial picture displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 by opening the second casing 214.
A portable telephone device according to a second embodiment of the present invention is explained below.
In this manner, as a monitor screen of the second camera 24 is displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time, not only Mr. A 60 who takes a picture can see the monitor screen, but also Mr. B 61 who is taken a picture can see the monitor screen at the same time. Thus, Mr. B 61 who is taken a picture can make sure how he/she is taken by the camera 24.
A portable telephone device according to a third embodiment of the present invention is explained below. In the present invention, as already described in
In this manner, image information of Mr. A 60 photographed from the first camera 23 and image information of Mr. B 61 photographed from the second camera 24 can be displayed as combined on a single screen.
Incidentally,
Incidentally, in the explanation of the aforementioned embodiment, an image is displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time, which is referred to as a monitor image. However, an image already photographed from the camera may be displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time. For example, as shown in
A function to display the same image on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time has an effect such that, even in a portable telephone device without a camera, a photographic image received via mail, received mail, textual information including news, weather forecast or the like received from the internet network in the i-mode or the like, and other images are displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time, thus enabling a plurality of people to view the same image at the same time.
A portable telephone device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention is explained below. In the portable telephone device of the present invention, a fold-up type of portable telephone device is exemplified in from the first embodiment to the third embodiment. However, the present invention can be applied to other portable telephone devices in addition to a fold-up type of portable telephone device as far as such portable telephone devices are provided with a plurality of liquid crystal display parts.
In
The first liquid crystal display part 1 and the back light 9 are connected to a slide contact 316. A fixed contact 317 is provided on the first casing 322 and the fixed contact 317 is connected to a main substrate 215 by means of a wire 318. The slide contact 316 has spring properties and is sliding freely against the fixed contact 317 at a state of being contacted to it with a predetermined pressure. By a magnet 222 and an open/close detector 221, the sliding status of the second casing 324 is detected to perform display conversion whether to display on the first liquid crystal display part 1, on the second liquid crystal display part 2 or on both of the liquid crystal display parts.
The slide type of portable telephone device according to the present invention, in the same that the present invention is applied to a fold-up type of portable telephone device, can also reduce the number of driver circuits, reduce wiring to the driver circuit and reduce noise caused by using a plurality of liquid crystal display devices. Thus, the miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness and reduction of cost can be realized and assembly can also be improved. Furthermore, an image stored on the memory part of a single driver circuit can be converted between the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the other liquid crystal display part with a good tracing ability by a display conversion part according to an open/close operation. Also, the present invention can obtain an effect that the same image can be displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time.
A portable telephone device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention is explained below. In
In
As described above, according to the present invention, in a portable telephone device equipped with a plurality of liquid crystal display parts, the number of driver circuits can be reduced, and wiring to the driver circuit can be reduced so that noise caused by using a plurality of liquid crystal display devices can be decreased. Thus, the miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness and reduction of cost can be realized and assembly can also be improved.
Furthermore, an image stored on the memory part of a single driver circuit can be converted between the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the other liquid crystal display part with a good tracing ability by a display conversion part.
Also, as the same image can be displayed on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time, in a portable telephone device with a camera, both one who takes a picture and one who is taken a picture can confirm a monitor. In addition, in case of other images, a plurality of people can view the same image on the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 at the same time.
Furthermore, a back light can be used in common by inserting the back light when a portion of a flexible substrate is bent.
A portable telephone device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention is explained below. In
In a slide rotating type of portable telephone device 500 in
Then, when rotated 90 degrees in the upward direction from a position where the second casing 514 is closed, sideways image is displayed on both of the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 or one of them. When rotated 180 degrees in the upward direction from a position where the second casing 514 is closed, an image in which the top and bottom are reversed is displayed on both of the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 or one of them even when closed. Even in a slide rotating type of portable telephone device 500 according to the present invention, as the first liquid crystal display part 1 and the second liquid crystal display part 2 are driven by a common driver circuit, the number of driver circuits can be reduced and wiring to the driver circuit can be decreased, thus reducing noise caused by using a plurality of liquid crystal display devices. Accordingly, the present invention can obtain such effects that the miniaturization, thinning, lightweightness and reduction of cost can be realized, assembly can also be improved, and an image can be easily seen as the display direction is converted depending on a relative position of the second casing 514 to the first casing 512.
As described above, as driver circuits can be reduced, wiring to the driver circuit can be decreased and noise can be reduced, even when a plurality of liquid crystal display parts are installed, the present invention is suitable for use in a portable telephone device having a plurality of display parts, PDA (Personal Digital Assistance) and other electronic equipment.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2002-274553 | Sep 2002 | JP | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
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PCT/JP03/11998 | 9/19/2003 | WO | 3/10/2005 |