Electric lamp and discharge devices: systems – Plural power supplies – Plural cathode and/or anode load device
Reexamination Certificate
2002-12-10
2004-11-09
Lee, Wilson (Department: 2821)
Electric lamp and discharge devices: systems
Plural power supplies
Plural cathode and/or anode load device
C313S582000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06815903
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of Invention
The invention relates to a display device and an electronic apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
Some related art optical display devices, such as liquid-crystal display devices and EL display devices, have a layered structure of multiple circuit elements, electrodes and liquid-crystal or EL elements layered on a substrate. For example, a type of such an EL display device has a sandwich structure of a light-emitting substance-containing, light-emitting layer sandwiched between electrode layers of an anode and a cathode, in which the holes from the anode are recombined with the electrons from the cathode in the light-emitting layer having the ability of fluorescence emission. The device of the type emits light while it is not activated from its excited condition, and this is the phenomenon of the device to emit light.
A related art active matrix driving system can be used to drive the EL display device that has scanning lines aligned in rows and data lines in columns to form a matrix pattern therein and has an electrostatic capacitor element and a transistor disposed for every pixel of EL elements in the intersections of those lines. This emits light in accordance with the voltage that has been charged in the electrostatic capacitor element of every pixel while scanned for writing thereon, and keeps its light emission until the next rewriting on it.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Some display devices that are driven according the active matrix driving system as discussed above have different driving circuits, such as a driving circuit for scanning lines to impart a selected scanning pulse to every scanning line, a driving circuit for data lines to supply a specific data signal to each data line, and an inspection circuit to inspect the display devices for quality and defects during their fabrication and shipping. In such display devices, the driving circuits and/or control circuits must be mounted on their substrate, and this causes various problems in that the substrate is large-sized, and not much of the region having these circuits can be used for the display region of the devices, and the effective display region of the devices is thereby narrowed. In addition, lead lines from a predetermined supply source to the driving circuits and/or inspection circuits must also be mounted on the substrate, and these elements will further narrow the effective display region of the devices.
On the other hand, in case where the panels of such display devices are desired to be enlarged, the number of shift register stages that constitute one general constitutive component of the driving circuits and/or inspection circuits is increased. In such a case, when the devices consume a large quantity of electric power, the power voltage thereto may be lowered. If so, in addition, the supply power to the driving circuits and/or inspection circuits may also be lowered, and this will cause a problem in that the display devices may not operate correctly.
The present invention provides a display device which is free from, or is protected from, errors that may be caused by the reduction in power voltage applied thereto, and provides an electronic apparatus equipped with such a display device. The display device of the invention provides power source lines to the driving circuits and others thereof in a predetermined site of the substrate of the device, and to thereby increase the effective display region of the surface of the substrate.
To address or solve problems noted above, the display device of the invention has, on its substrate, a display region that serves for display and a non-display resin not for display. The display region and the non-display resin are each aligned in a predetermined matrix pattern of barriers and recesses spaced from each other with the barriers adjacent thereto. The display region includes at least a first electrode layer, an essential display layer with a substance switchable for display or non-display therein and a second electrode layer that are aligned around the bottom of each recess in the recess region thereof in that order from the side of the substrate. The non-display region includes at least the essential display layer and the second electrode layer around the bottom of each recess of the recess region in that order from the side of the substrate. The substrate is provided thereon with a switch unit connected to the first electrode layer to control electric conduction to the first electrode layer, an operation control unit connected to the switch unit to control the switch unit operation, and a driving voltage conduction element to drive voltage application to the operation control unit to drive it therewith. The driving voltage conduction element is so aligned as to be at least partly in the non-display region, and in plan view of the substrate, so as to be at least partly superimposed on the recess region.
In the display device of the type, the recesses spaced from each other with the barriers adjacent thereto are aligned in a matrix pattern to form pixels. In the case where the pixels in the display device are aligned, for example, in such a matrix pattern, all of the pixels are not always in the display region (as real pixels) for display service, and instead a part of them may be in a non-display region (as dummy pixels) not for display service. The reason is due to a matter of device fabrication. For example, in case where the essential display layer is formed in the recess region, it is often difficult to make the layer have a uniform thickness, especially at the periphery of the substrate. In such a case, the recess region in which the thickness of the essential display layer formed may be uneven is made to be a non-display region to thereby cancel the display failure, due to the uneven thickness of the essential display layer. The display failure includes, for example, contract reduction, uneven display, and pixel life reduction.
Naturally, the non-display region does not substantially function for image display in the display device, and the region in the substrate is useless for display. Because of that situation, the present inventors have tried and succeeded in forming the driving voltage conduction element for the operation control unit that controls the operation of the switch unit of the device in at least the non-display region thereof for positive effective utilization of that non-display region. Accordingly, in the display device of the invention, the driving voltage conduction element substantially not in display service like the non-display region is disposed in that non-display region, and this constitution cancels out the area of the substrate not in display service, therefore making it possible to prevent or substantially prevent the display-impossible region of the substrate from increasing.
Further, the display device of the invention is so designed that its driving voltage conduction element is below the recess region in the direction of the thickness of the substrate, or the recess region is superimposed on the driving voltage conduction element in the display direction of the device. In plan view of the substrate of this case, the driving voltage conduction element is so aligned as to be at least partly superimposed on the recess region, and a capacitor is formed between the second electrode layer and the driving voltage conduction element via an insulating layer therebetween in the non-display region. In this constitution, therefore, the capacitor may compensate for the voltage reduction at least in the driving voltage conduction element. In this structure, the bottom of each recess in the recess region runs toward the driving voltage conduction element (toward the substrate), and each recess has the second electrode layer around its bottom. Therefore, as compared with the barriers, the recesses in the recess region tend to have an increased capacitance, and their effect of compensating for the power source voltage reduction may be larger than that of capacitors superimposed on the ba
Lee Wilson
Oliff & Berridg,e PLC
Seiko Epson Corporation
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