Thin edge backlight with leds optically coupled to the back surface
AssigneeKoninklijke Philips Electronics N.V.
InventorsSerge J. Bierhuizen, Gregory W. Eng
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A backlight includes a waveguide with a plurality of light emitting diodes positioned in cavities in the back surface in a center region of the waveguide. The back surface of the waveguide can be tapered from the center region to the edges so that the edges are thinner than the center region. Additionally, with the light emitting diodes in the center region of the waveguide, as opposed to along the edges, the bezel may be eliminated or at least minimized in height, e.g., 1 mm or less. Additionally, multiple waveguides may be used and configured in a “V” shape to minimize the bezel.
Claims25
An apparatus comprising:
- a plurality of light emitting diodes;
- and
- a waveguide configured to be a backlight for a display, the waveguide having a front surface from which light is emitted from the waveguide and a back surface that is opposite the front surface and side edges between the front surface and the back surface, the waveguide having a plurality of cavities in the back surface into which the plurality of light emitting diodes are inserted and optically coupled to the waveguide to serve as a light source for the waveguide.
An apparatus comprising:
- a plurality of light emitting diodes;
- and
- a waveguide configured to be a backlight for a display, the waveguide having a front surface from which light is emitted from the waveguide and a back surface that is opposite the front surface and sides between the front surface and the back surface, the plurality of side emitting light emitting diodes optically coupled to a center region of the back surface, wherein the waveguide has a greater thickness between the front surface and back surface at the center region than at the sides of the waveguide.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.