# US 10,121,988 B2 · Flexible display device

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- Number: US 10,121,988 B2
- Document ID: US10121988B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 15/238,582
- Filed: 2016-08-16
- Published: 2017-06-08
- Granted: 2018-11-06
- Earliest claimed: 2015-12-02
- Assignees: Samsung Display Co., Ltd.
- Applicants: Samsung Display Co., Ltd.
- Inventors: Soohee Oh; Hyunggyu Park; Seonggeun Won; Hirotsugu Kishimoto
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10121988B2

## CPC

- H10K 59/40: OLEDs integrated with touch screens
- G02F 1/133305: {Flexible substrates, e.g. plastics, organic film}
- G06F 1/1652: {the display being flexible, e.g. mimicking a sheet of paper, or rollable}
- H05K 1/028: {Bending or folding regions of flexible printed circuits (H05K1/0283 takes precedence)}
- H10K 59/12: Active-matrix OLED [AMOLED] displays
- H10K 59/8731: {multilayered coatings having a repetitive structure, e.g. having multiple organic-inorganic bilayers}
- H10K 59/8791: {Arrangements for improving contrast, e.g. preventing reflection of ambient light}
- H10K 77/111: {Flexible substrates}
- H10K 2102/311: {Flexible OLED}
- Y02E 10/549: Organic PV cells
- H10K: ORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
- G02F: OPTICAL DEVICES OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE CONTROL OF LIGHT BY MODIFICATION OF THE OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF THE MEDIA OF THE ELEMENTS INVOLVED THEREIN; NON-LINEAR OPTICS; FREQUENCY-CHANGING OF LIGHT; OPTICAL LOGIC ELEMENTS; OPTICAL ANALOGUE/DIGITAL CONVERTERS
- G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N)
- H05K: PRINTED CIRCUITS; CASINGS OR CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF ELECTRIC APPARATUS; MANUFACTURE OF ASSEMBLAGES OF ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS
- Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION

## Abstract

A flexible display apparatus includes a flexible display panel which includes a flexible display substrate having an active area and an inactive area outside the active area. The inactive area which extends from the active layer and includes a bending area foldable or adapted to be folded in a first direction. The bending area includes a deformation unit that includes a plurality of unit deformable portions such that the flexible display panel is foldable or adapted to be folded in a second direction. The flexible display substrate may include an encapsulation layer on the flexible display substrate. The flexible display apparatus may include a functional layer on a side of the flexible display panel. A folded end portion of the flexible display panel may be on the functional layer. The flexible display apparatus may also include a driving unit.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A flexible display apparatus comprising:
a flexible display panel comprising a flexible display substrate and an encapsulation layer on an upper side of the flexible display substrate in a first direction, the flexible display substrate being curved about a second axis extending in a second direction and having an active area and an inactive area extending from a periphery of the active area, the inactive area comprising a plurality of unit deformable portions extending from the active area in the second direction, the first and second direction crossing each other;
a functional layer on a lower side of the flexible display panel in the first direction, the unit deformable portions extending beyond a periphery of the functional layer in the second direction and being folded about a third axis extending in a third direction to be on a lower side of the functional layer in the first direction, the third direction crossing the first and second directions, the unit deformable portions being both curved about the second axis and folded about the third axis; and
a driver electrically connected to the flexible display panel,
wherein the first direction is a vertical direction of the flexible display panel, and the second direction is a horizontal direction of the flexible display panel, and
wherein the unit deformable portions are arranged along an edge portion of the flexible display substrate and define cut-out portions of the inactive area.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of unit deformable portions are configured as a plurality of wing portions along the edge portion of the flexible display substrate.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 2, wherein:
each of the plurality of unit deformable portions comprises a bottom portion in contact with the edge portion of the flexible display substrate, a top portion away from the edge portion of the flexible display substrate, and a side portion which connects the bottom portion to the top portion; and
the bottom portion, the top portion, and the side portion are configured as a three-cut portion of the inactive area in which three areas of the inactive area that respectively correspond to the bottom portion, the top portion, and the side portion are cut out.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 3, wherein each of the unit deformable portions becomes narrower as a distance from the bottom portion in contact with the edge portion of the flexible display substrate increases.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 1, wherein the flexible display substrate is adapted to be folded about the third axis along a first bending line at a boundary between the edge portion of the flexible display substrate and the plurality of unit deformable portions.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 5, wherein the flexible display substrate is adapted to be curved about the second axis along a second bending line that crosses the active area of the flexible display substrate between adjacent ones of the unit deformable portions of the plurality of unit deformable portions.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 6, wherein the flexible display panel is additionally adapted to be curved along the second bending line, the second direction being perpendicular to the third direction.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of unit deformable portions are spaced apart from each other.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 8, wherein adjacent ones of the unit deformable portions of the plurality of unit deformable portions are spaced apart at a uniform interval or a non-uniform interval, and shapes of the unit deformable portions are the same or different from each other.

### Claim 10 (depends on 8)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 8, wherein at least portions of adjacent ones of the unit deformable portions of the plurality of unit deformable portions contact each other.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of unit deformable portions define a plurality of openings arranged along the edge portion of the flexible display substrate.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 1, wherein the unit deformable portions are openings surrounded by the inactive area of the flexible display substrate.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 12, wherein the plurality of unit deformable portions are spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction of the flexible display substrate.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 13, wherein the flexible display substrate is adapted to be folded about the third axis along a first bending line.

### Claim 15 (depends on 14)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 14, wherein the flexible display substrate is adapted to be curved about the second axis along a second bending line that crosses the active area through at least two of the unit deformable portions.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 15, wherein the unit deformable portions are adjacent to the active area in a plurality of rows, and the first bending line crosses one of the plurality of rows such that the flexible display panel is adapted to be folded about the third axis along the first bending line.

### Claim 17 (depends on 12)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 12, wherein adjacent ones of the unit deformable portions of the plurality of unit deformable portions are spaced apart at a uniform interval or a non-uniform interval, and shapes of the unit deformable portions are the same or different from each other.

### Claim 18 (depends on 1)

The flexible display apparatus of claim 1, wherein:
the functional layer comprises a first surface on an underside of the flexible display panel, a second surface opposite to the first surface, and a groove formed in the second surface; and
the flexible display panel extends around a side surface of the functional layer such that an end portion of the flexible display panel is in the groove of the functional layer.