TWI510971B - Flexible display device and display method thereof - Google Patents

Description

Flexible display device and display method thereof

The present invention relates to a display device, and more particularly to a flexible display device and a display method thereof.

With the rapid advancement of image display technology, common displays have evolved from early cathode ray tube (CRT) displays to current liquid crystal displays (LCDs). The liquid crystal panel of the liquid crystal display includes a glass substrate having a plurality of layers of fragile structure. Therefore, it is necessary to additionally use a metal frame to protect the glass substrates from external damage, thereby limiting the shape of the liquid crystal panel and increasing the difficulty of thinning the liquid crystal panel.

In addition to liquid crystal display displays, flexible displays have also begun to appear on portable electronic devices. Since the panel of the flexible display adopts a flexible substrate, the panel of the flexible display can be folded and stored in the container when not in use, or can be retracted in the retractor, and the flexible panel can be unfolded when it is used. And placed on the desktop to display optical images.

The invention provides a flexible display device and a display method thereof, which can reduce power consumption of the flexible display device.

The flexible display device of the present invention comprises a flexible display panel, a storage unit, a detecting unit and a control unit. The storage unit houses the flexible display panel. The detecting unit detects the extent to which the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit. The control unit is coupled to the detection unit and the flexible display panel, and displays a screen on the flexible display panel that is not stored in the storage unit to the extent that the flexible display panel is stored in the storage unit.

In an embodiment of the invention, the control unit further controls the flexible display panel to display a part of the full screen or display a full screen of different sizes in a portion that is not stored in the storage unit.

In an embodiment of the invention, the full screens of the different sizes are displayed at different resolutions.

In an embodiment of the invention, the control unit further controls the display information of the flexible display panel to change according to the extent to which the flexible display panel is stored.

In an embodiment of the invention, the screen information includes a date, a time, a weather, a communication record, a device setting, and a calendar.

In an embodiment of the invention, the flexible display panel has a plurality of identification patterns for indicating the extent to which the flexible display panel is received in the storage unit, and the control unit detects the identification according to the detecting unit. The pattern determines the extent to which the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit.

In an embodiment of the invention, the identification pattern is a magnetic pattern, and the detecting unit is a magnetic sensor.

In an embodiment of the invention, the identification pattern is made of a size or material that is not recognizable by the human eye.

In an embodiment of the invention, the material of the identification pattern includes indium tin oxide, indium zinc oxide or metal.

In an embodiment of the invention, the detecting unit is a complementary metal oxide semiconductor camera or a photosensitive coupling element camera.

In an embodiment of the invention, the storage unit is a retractor that retracts the flexible display panel.

In an embodiment of the invention, the detecting unit detects the number of rotations of the axis of the retractor, and the control unit determines the number of rotations of the axis of the retractor detected by the detecting unit. The flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit.

In an embodiment of the invention, the detecting unit and the control unit are disposed in the storage unit.

The display method of the flexible display device of the present invention, wherein the flexible display device comprises a flexible display panel and a storage unit, the storage unit is configured to receive the flexible display panel, and the display method of the flexible display device comprises the following steps . The degree to which the flexible display panel is stored in the storage unit is detected. The screen is displayed on the flexible display panel that is not stored in the storage unit to the extent that the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit.

In an embodiment of the invention, the above is not stored in the storage unit The step of displaying the screen on the flexible display panel includes displaying a part of the full screen or displaying a full screen of different sizes on a portion not stored in the storage unit.

In an embodiment of the invention, the full screens of the different sizes are displayed at different resolutions.

In an embodiment of the invention, the step of displaying the screen on the flexible display panel that is not stored in the storage unit includes changing the screen information displayed by the flexible display panel.

In an embodiment of the invention, the screen information includes a date, a time, a weather, a communication record, a device setting, and a calendar.

Based on the above, the embodiment of the present invention displays a screen on the flexible display panel that is not accommodated in the storage unit to reduce the power consumption of the flexible display device in accordance with the extent that the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit.

The above described features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.

102‧‧‧Flexible display panel

104‧‧‧Storage unit

106‧‧‧Detection unit

108‧‧‧Control unit

PD1‧‧‧ identification pattern

302‧‧‧Axis

S402~S404‧‧‧ Flowchart of the display method of the flexible display device

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a flexible display device according to an embodiment of the invention.

2 is a schematic diagram of a flexible display device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a schematic diagram of a flexible display device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flow chart showing a display method of a flexible display device according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a flexible display device according to an embodiment of the invention. Please refer to FIG. 1 . The flexible display device can include a flexible display panel 102, a storage unit 104, a detecting unit 106, and a control unit 108. The control unit 108 is coupled to the flexible display panel 102 and the detecting unit 106, and the detecting unit 106 The control unit 108 is disposed in the storage unit 104. However, the detection unit 106 and the control unit 108 may not be disposed on the storage unit 104 in some embodiments.

The flexible display panel 102 is configured to display a screen and can be stored in the storage unit 104. The detecting unit 106 is configured to detect that the flexible display panel 102 is stored in the storage unit, and the control unit 108 is not stored in the storage unit according to the extent that the flexible display panel is received in the storage unit 104. A screen is displayed on the flexible display panel 102 in 104, that is, the screen is displayed only on the exposed flexible display panel 102. It should be noted that the screen displayed by the flexible display panel 102 in the portion not stored in the storage unit 104 can be, for example, a part of the full screen, that is, when the flexible display panel 102 is completely unreceived. A portion of the screen displayed when the unit is in the storage unit 104. Alternatively, the flexible display panel 102 can be fitted to the size of the portion that is not stored in the storage unit 104 to display the full screen, for example, when the flexible display panel 102 is not accommodated in the storage unit. The larger the portion within 104, the larger the full screen displayed by the flexible display panel 102. In some embodiments, when the full screen is displayed in different sizes, the resolution may also follow The size of the full screen varies depending on the size.

In addition, the flexible display panel 102 can display the flexible display panel 102 along with the portion of the full screen that is not stored in the storage unit 104 as in the above embodiment. Changing the displayed screen information, wherein the screen information may include, for example, date, time, weather, communication history, device settings, and calendar. For example, the flexible display panel 102 can display the date and time when the area is exposed by 20%, increase the display weather information when the area is exposed by 50%, and so on, as the flexible display panel 102 is exposed. Partially larger and increased information displayed.

As described above, by controlling the flexible display panel 102 to display only a portion of the display screen visible to the user, the power consumption of the flexible display device can be reduced, and the use time of the flexible display device can be extended.

In detail, the detecting unit 106 detects the extent to which the flexible display panel 102 is stored in the storage unit. For example, a plurality of identification patterns may be formed on the flexible display panel 102, wherein the identification pattern is used to indicate the flexibility. The display panel 102 is housed in the storage unit 104, and the identification pattern can be made, for example, in a size or material that is difficult for the human eye to recognize or recognize. The detecting unit 106 can detect the identification pattern on the flexible display panel 102, and the control unit 108 determines that the flexible display panel 102 is received into the storage unit 104 according to the identification pattern detected by the detecting unit 106. degree.

For example, FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a flexible display device according to another embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to FIG. 2 . In this embodiment, the flexible display device is A plurality of identification patterns PD1 are arranged on the side edges of the flexible display panel 102, and the respective identification patterns PD1 respectively indicate different positions on the flexible display panel 102. In this embodiment, the storage unit 104 is a retractor that can retract the flexible display panel 102, and the detecting unit 106 is disposed on the retractor corresponding to the position of the identification pattern PD1. As the retractor retracts the flexible display panel 102, the identification pattern PD1 is also accommodated in the retractor, and is detected by the detecting unit 106 disposed at the interface between the retractor and the flexible display panel 102. The extent to which the flexible display panel 102 is currently stored can be known by measuring the identification pattern PD1 to be taken up to the retractor. The identification pattern PD1 can be implemented, for example, as a magnetic pattern, and the detecting unit 106 can be implemented, for example, with a magnetic sensor.

In some embodiments, the identification pattern PD1 may be made of a material such as indium tin oxide, indium zinc oxide, or metal, but is not limited thereto. The identification pattern PD1 can be formed on the surface or inside of the flexible display panel 102 in a process manner. For example, the identification pattern can be made by printing, etching, stamping, etc., but not limited thereto. The detecting unit 106 can be, for example, a complementary metal oxide semiconductor camera or a photosensitive coupling element camera. The identification pattern is captured by a complementary metal oxide semiconductor camera or a photosensitive coupling element camera to achieve the purpose of detecting the identification pattern.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a flexible display device according to another embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to FIG. 3. In this embodiment, the flexible display panel 102 does not need to have an identification pattern, and the detecting unit (not shown) can detect the number of rotations of the axis 302 of the retractor (ie, the storage unit 104). The control unit (not shown) can be based on the detection unit The number of rotations of the axis 302 of the retractor detected is determined to the extent that the flexible display panel 102 is housed in the storage unit 104.

4 is a schematic flow chart showing a display method of a flexible display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to FIG. 4 . The display method of the above-described flexible display device may include the following steps. First, the extent to which the flexible display panel is stored in the storage unit is detected (step S402). Next, the screen is displayed on the flexible display panel that is not stored in the storage unit to the extent that the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit (step S404). The screen displayed on the portion not stored in the storage unit may be, for example, a part of the full screen or a full screen of different sizes, and the full screen of different sizes may be displayed with different resolutions. In some embodiments, the flexible display panel can be changed according to the extent to which the flexible display panel is stored, wherein the screen information can be, for example, date, time, weather, communication record, device setting, calendar, etc. .

As described above, the embodiment of the present invention reduces the display of the flexible display device by displaying the screen on the flexible display panel that is not accommodated in the storage unit to the extent that the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit. power consumption.

S402~S404‧‧‧ Flowchart of the display method of the flexible display device

Claims (16)

A flexible display device includes: a flexible display panel; a storage unit that houses the flexible display panel, wherein the storage unit is a retractor that retracts the flexible display panel; The unit detects the extent to which the flexible display panel is received in the storage unit, the detecting unit detects the number of rotations of the axis of the retractor, and a control unit coupled to the detecting unit and The flexible display panel displays a screen on the flexible display panel that is not stored in the storage unit according to the extent that the flexible display panel is received in the storage unit, and the control unit is configured according to the detecting unit The detected number of revolutions of the axis of the retractor determines the extent to which the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit. The flexible display device of claim 1, wherein the control unit further controls the flexible display panel to display a part of the full screen or display different sizes in a portion not stored in the storage unit. Full picture. The flexible display device of claim 2, wherein the full screens of different sizes are displayed with different resolutions. The flexible display device of claim 1, wherein the control unit further controls the flexible display panel to change the displayed screen information as the size of the flexible display panel is received. The flexible display device of claim 4, wherein the screen information includes a date, a time, a weather, a communication record, a device setting, and a calendar. The flexible display device of claim 1, wherein the flexible display panel has a plurality of identification patterns for indicating the extent to which the flexible display panel is received into the storage unit, the control The unit determines, according to the identification patterns detected by the detecting unit, the extent to which the flexible display panel is received into the storage unit. The flexible display device of claim 6, wherein the identification patterns are magnetic patterns, and the detecting unit is a magnetic sensor. The flexible display device of claim 6, wherein the identification patterns are made in a size or material that is unrecognizable to the human eye. The flexible display device of claim 6, wherein the material of the identification patterns comprises indium tin oxide, indium zinc oxide or metal. The flexible display device of claim 6, wherein the detecting unit is a complementary metal oxide semiconductor camera or a photosensitive coupling element camera. The flexible display device of claim 1, wherein the detecting unit and the control unit are disposed in the storage unit. A display method of a flexible display device, wherein the flexible display device comprises a flexible display panel and a storage unit, wherein the storage unit is a retractor, and the flexible display panel is retracted, the display The method includes: detecting a number of rotations of the axis of the retractor; determining, according to the detected number of rotations of the axis of the retractor, the extent to which the flexible display panel is received into the storage unit; as well as The screen is displayed on the flexible display panel that is not accommodated in the storage unit to the extent that the flexible display panel is housed in the storage unit. The display method of the flexible display device according to claim 12, wherein the step of displaying a screen on the flexible display panel that is not stored in the storage unit includes: not being stored in the storage Part of the unit displays a part of the full screen or displays a full screen of different sizes. The display method of the flexible display device according to claim 13, wherein the full screens of different sizes are displayed with different resolutions. The display method of the flexible display device according to claim 12, wherein the step of displaying a screen on the flexible display panel not stored in the storage unit comprises: following the flexible display panel The degree of being stored changes the screen information displayed. The display method of the flexible display device according to claim 15, wherein the screen information includes a date, a time, a weather, a communication record, a device setting, and a calendar.