Electro-optical device, method of manufacturing same,...

Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Plural physical display element control system – Display elements arranged in matrix

Reexamination Certificate

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C349S153000, C349S155000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06720944

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the technical fields of electro-optical apparatuses utilized in display units for television sets, video cameras, and portable remote terminals, or light modulators for projection display devices or the like. In particular, the present invention relates to the technical field of an electro-optical apparatus which has a construction in which one or a plurality of conductive layers for wiring are laminated between a sealing unit for surrounding an electro-optical material, such as a liquid crystal, and a substrate.
2. Description of Related Art
A typical electro-optical apparatus has a construction in which an electro-optical material, such as a liquid crystal, is held in a region surrounded by a sealing unit between substrates. In order to maintain a gap between the substrates at a predetermined interval, spherical or fibrous particles including beads, glass fibers and the like, so-called “spacers”, are mixed in the sealing unit. Pixel electrodes are provided at the inner surface of one substrate of a pair of substrates for driving the electro-optical material, and are connected to a terminal provided in an external region of the sealing unit (i.e., outside the sealed region) via wirings. That is, in the above electro-optical apparatus, a conductive layer includes a single wiring layer between the sealing unit and the substrate.
Additionally, in an electro-optical apparatus having semiconductor switching elements devices on a substrate, since deterioration of image quality occurs due to leakage current caused by the light, a light-shielding layer including metal must be provided between the substrate and the sealing unit to block the incident light from propagating into a semiconductor layer. Hence, wiring formed on the substrate, an insulation layer, and the light-shielding layer are laminated in that order, resulting in the conductive layer including two layers: the wiring layer and the light-shielding layer between the sealing unit and the substrate.
Furthermore, in an electro-optical apparatus in which each pixel has a semiconductor switching element and a driving circuit for driving the semiconductor switching element is provided in an internal region of the sealing unit (i.e., inside the sealed region) as well as for being controlled by a control circuit, one or two layers for wiring and one layer for light-shielding, i.e. three conductive layers in total, may be laminated through insulation layers between the sealing unit and the substrate.
In addition, when the driving circuits are provided outside the sealed region in an electro-optical apparatus, there are cases in which various types of wiring (e.g., scanning lines, data lines, capacitance lines, and the like) are formed between the sealing unit and the substrate by utilizing one or more conductive layers.
As described above, there are electro-optical apparatuses having various constructions in accordance with the driving method, and the location of the driving circuit, and furthermore, in accordance with the number of conductive layers utilized for wiring, light-shielding, electrodes, or the like. In any case, a plurality of lines must be formed from outside the sealed region to the inside of the sealed region, through the conductive wirings between the sealing unit and the substrate.
However, particularly in an electro-optical apparatus having a multiple conductive layers between the sealing unit and the substrate, when both substrates are bonded with the sealing unit, and both substrates are compressed, some portions of the conductive layers are subjected to strong pressure from spacer members contained in the sealing unit. Hence, there are problems such as deformations in the wiring and the light-shielding layer, short-circuits between the wiring and the light-shielding layer due to breakage, short-circuits among the wiring laminated one on top the other through an insulation layer, furthermore resulting in breaking of wirings.
Also, the foregoing problems may be fully anticipated not only specifically in the electro-optical apparatus having the semiconductor switching elements on the substrate, but also in an inner-reflective-type electro-optical apparatus having a construction in which an insulating layer and pixel electrodes are disposed on a reflective layer, composed of Al (aluminum) and the like, disposed on the inner surface of a glass substrate of a pair of glass substrates.
Furthermore, even when various types of wiring from the outside of the sealed region to the inside of the sealed region are formed on only the single conductive layer, and the substrates are compressed, since the conductive layer is subjected to localized pressure from the spacer members, there is the possibility that the wiring will break at that part. In short, in an electro-optical apparatus adopting any of the constructions which form various types of wiring from the outside of the sealed region to the inside of the sealed region utilizing the single layer or multiple layers between the sealing unit and the substrates, breaking of wirings and short-circuit problems caused by such spacer members occur.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is made in view of the foregoing problems. It is an object thereof to provide an electro-optical apparatus, a method for manufacturing the same, and a projection display device and an electric apparatus having this electro-optical apparatus so as to be able to prevent the wiring formed on one of the substrates holding an electro-optical material from damage by spacer members.
To solve the foregoing problems, the present invention is characterized in that an electro-optical apparatus has an electro-optical material provided in a region surrounded by a sealing unit between a pair of substrates, and a conductive layer laminated on one of the pair of substrates, the sealing unit comprises a part having a spacer member and a part not having the spacer member, and a part of the sealing unit not having the spacer member is provided in a region in which wiring, made of the conductive layer on one of the substrates, faces the sealing unit.
According to the electro-optical apparatus of the present invention, a sealing unit made of a sealant such as a photo-curable or thermosetting resin adhesives is divided into a part having spacer members of a predetermined size, for example, in the shape of beads, or fibers, and a part not having the spacer members. The wiring, made of the conductive layer, is laminated in the region which faces the part not containing spacer members on the substrate. That is, since there is no spacer member in the part of the sealing unit in which the wiring, made of the conductive layer, intersect one another, even though the substrates are compressed, the wirings are not subjected to localized pressure from spacer members. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent breakage due to spacer members. At the same time, since the gap between the substrates is highly accurately controlled by the spacer members contained in the sealing unit, it is very useful in the case of a portable electro-optical apparatus or the like where a mixture of spacer members in an electro-optical material produces deterioration of image quality.
According to one aspect of an electro-optical apparatus of the present invention, the conductive layer includes multiple conductive layers laminated on the substrate through an insulation layer.
According to this aspect, when multiple wiring are formed by using multiple conductive layers insulated to each other by insulation layers, not only the foregoing breakage caused by spacer members can be prevented but also the short circuit of the wiring laminated due to localized pressure caused by spacer members can be prevented.
In addition, using a three-dimensional structure of, for example, a pixel electrode, such as a reflective electrode, lines, such as scanning lines or data lines, a light-shielding layer for an element, such as a TFT (Thin Film Transistor), for switching a pixe

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