Liquid crystal cells – elements and systems – Particular structure – Having significant detail of cell structure only
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-08
2001-10-23
Sikes, William L. (Department: 2871)
Liquid crystal cells, elements and systems
Particular structure
Having significant detail of cell structure only
C349S108000, C349S042000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06307606
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a display apparatus used in, for example, a television set, a personal computer, a word processor, office automation equipment, or the like, and more specifically, to a display apparatus incorporating a color filter substrate which can provide improved display quality.
2. Description of the Related Art
A liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as “LCD”) apparatus is an exemplary display apparatus which adjusts the amount of transmitted light through an optical display medium in order to display images.
Conventionally, an LCD apparatus structure for displaying color images is known in which a color filter (hereinafter referred to as “CF”) substrate is employed as one of a pair of substrates opposing each other with a liquid crystal layer interposed therebetween. This CF substrate includes color layer segments of red (R), green (G), and blue (B) on a transparent support, where the color layer segments may be arranged in stripes, dot patterns, etc., that correspond to the respective display pixels. A resin having an excellent transparency (e.g., an acrylic resin) may additionally be applied over such patterns of R, G, and B segments to provide a coating layer.
Moreover, for the purpose of providing improved contrast and/or display quality, a black mask (which may often be referred to as a “black matrix”) is placed in a frame region (a peripheral region) which defines the circumference of a display region of the CF substrate, and/or in gaps between the pixels. The black mask, which may be formed by patterning a black paste layer or a black metal layer, is expected to exhibit a black state equivalent to a black display state.
For such a CF substrate, it has been desired to eliminate the production steps required for the black mask in order to lower the overall manufacturing cost. For example, the following methods are known to accomplish this: a method of alternately overlaying color layer segments of R and B (or R, G, and B) upon one another, these colors being selected to correspond to the respective colors of the color layer segments (R, G, and B) used in the display region so that they together exhibit a black state; and a method of employing a two-dimensional arrangement of color layer segments of R, G, and B where the color layer segments are provided with predetermined ratios so as to collectively exhibit a black state.
However, the latter method may generate moire fringes in the peripheral region. Specifically, when a CF substrate is adhered to an active matrix (hereinafter referred to as “AM”) substrate, the color layer segments of the CF filter substrate may overlap a section of the AM substrate which is formed of a plurality of lead wires (e.g., gate lines (scan lines) and source lines (signal lines)), such section typically having a different reflectance from that of the surrounding glass substrate. etc. In such cases, moire fringes may be observed if the colors of the color layer segments in the “black mask” region vary In a cycle of more than about 100 &mgr;m. This would result in the degradation of the display quality of the LCD apparatus.
In order to solve the aforementioned problem, Japanese Laid-open Publication No. 10-62768 discloses an LCD including a second light shielding section which covers a portion extending over two or more gate lines and/or over two or more source lines on an AM substrate. This arrangement ensures that the lead wire patterns will not be visually recognized, thereby improving the display quality. In addition, it is also disclosed that the second light shielding section can be formed of the same material as that of the gate and source lines so that the second light shielding section can be patterned simultaneously with the gate and source lines, thereby simplifying the production process.
In the conventional CF substrate described above, there is no predefined relationship between the arrangements of the gate/source lines on the AM substrate and the colors of the color layer segments on the CF substrate. Therefore, moire fringes may be generated in an extensional section (i.e., a section extending outside the display region) of lead wires in the frame region, thereby degrading the quality of the color display.
The technique disclosed In Japanese Laid-open Publication No. 10-62768, supra, requires additional steps for forming a second light shielding section, thereby increasing the number of steps performed during the production process. In the case where a second light shielding section is formed of the same material as that of the gate and source lines and the second light shielding section are patterned simultaneously with the gate and source lines in order to simplify the production process, some delay may possibly occur in the signal lines. Such delay may not be tolerated in certain applications.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a liquid crystal display apparatus including: a first substrate on which a plurality of signal lines and a plurality of scan lines are provided so as to appear to intersect each other at intersections; a plurality of pixel electrodes each provided adjacent to a corresponding one of the intersections of the plurality of signal lines and the plurality of scan lines; a second substrate having a first colored region including a plurality of colors, the first colored region corresponding to the plurality of pixel electrodes; and a liquid crystal layer being interposed between the first substrate and the second substrate. The apparatus further includes a second colored region provided in at least a portion of a periphery of the first colored region, the second colored region including the plurality of colors. In this apparatus, at least one of the plurality of signal lines is bent within a region overlapping the second colored region; the second colored region at least includes a plurality of first color layer segments which are colored in a first color, and a plurality of second color layer segments which are colored in a second color; and the plurality of first color layer segments are arranged so that a portion of the at least one signal line which overlaps the plurality of first color layer segments has a length greater than a length of a portion of the at least one signal line which overlaps the plurality of color layer segments other than the plurality of first color layer segments in the second colored region.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the liquid crystal display apparatus further includes a third colored region provided in at least a portion of the periphery of the first colored region, the third colored region including the plurality of colors. In this apparatus, at least one of the plurality of scan lines is bent within a region overlapping the third colored region; the third colored region at least includes a plurality of third color layer segments which are colored in a third color, and a plurality of fourth color layer segments which are colored in a fourth color; and the plurality of third color layer segments are arranged so that a portion of the at least one scan line which overlaps the plurality of third color layer segments has a length greater than a length of a portion of the at least one scan line which overlaps the plurality of color layer segments other than the plurality of third color layer segments in the third colored region.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of first color layer segments are colored in a color having the least luminosity factor among the plurality of colors.
In still another embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of third color layer segments are colored in a color having the least luminosity factor among the plurality of colors.
In still another embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of color layer segments included in the second colored region are arrayed in a strips, delta, mosaic, or random arrangement, or in a combination thereof.
In still another
Matsuoka Koji
Takii Kenji
Yamada Takaharu
Chowdhury Tarifur R.
Nixon & Vanderhye P.C.
Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
Sikes William L.
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