JP3661368B2 - Method for manufacturing liquid crystal panel, liquid crystal panel and electronic device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel using a flexible substrate such as a plastic film and the liquid crystal panel manufactured by the manufacturing method. The present invention also relates to an electronic apparatus having the liquid crystal panel mounted thereon.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel using a flexible substrate will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a cross-sectional structure of the liquid crystal panel, and FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the opening.
[0003]
A transparent electrode 4 made of indium tin oxide (ITO) or the like is formed on the flexible substrate 1. An alignment film 5 is formed on the surface of the transparent substrate 1, and an alignment process is performed to align the liquid crystal by rubbing or the like. Has been. An empty cell is configured by polymerizing and sticking the flexible substrate 1 via a gap holding member 6 and a seal material 7 so that the transparent electrodes 4 face each other. The empty cell is filled with liquid crystal 8 from the injection port by a vacuum injection method or the like and sealed with an adhesive such as an ultraviolet curable resin to constitute a liquid crystal panel.
[0004]
In general, in the case of a liquid crystal panel using a glass substrate, the upper and lower substrates are bonded to each other and then divided by scribe to match the outer shape of the liquid crystal panel. The connection terminal is exposed. However, in the case of a liquid crystal panel using the flexible substrate 1, a similar cutting method cannot be used because it does not have a cleavage property like a glass substrate. If the flexible substrate is cut by the same method, the connection terminal is easily scratched due to its flexibility, which causes disconnection. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, before the flexible substrate 1 is attached by polymerization, an opening 9 is provided on the surface facing the electrode terminal in advance using the cutting blade to expose the electrode terminal, and the subsequent steps are performed. It is flowing.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, since the opening 9 is formed in advance, the handling property is poor and a harmful effect is caused in each step. In particular, when a plurality of patterns are formed on the substrate, it is necessary to form a plurality of openings 9 according to the pattern, which causes a problem in alignment accuracy of the upper and lower substrates. Depending on the outer shape, the shape of the opening becomes complicated, and it is not possible to apply pressure uniformly during panel assembly, resulting in the problem of uneven cell thickness.
[0006]
Further, in the roll process, since tension is applied to the edge portion of the opening 9, the substrate is deformed, and in some cases, the flexible substrate is damaged. This tendency is more conspicuous as the flexible substrate is thinner and softer.
[0007]
Furthermore, since the outer shape of the liquid crystal panel was cut after the upper and lower substrates were bonded to each other, the cutting step was required twice with another step interposed therebetween, and there was a problem in productivity. In addition, the more complicated the outer shape, the more easily the stress is applied to the seal part during cutting, and the upper and lower substrates are more likely to be peeled off due to the destruction of the seal part.
[0008]
A conventional liquid crystal panel using a glass substrate can only deal with an external shape formed by a straight line, and has a low degree of design freedom when mounted on an electronic device. Also, in the case of a circular shape, etc., in order to minimize the dead space of the frame as much as possible, the four corners are further cut to form a polygonal liquid crystal panel such as an octagonal shape, so that the cutting process is increased because the shape is as close as possible to the circular shape. Had problems such as.
[0009]
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel that is excellent in productivity even in a liquid crystal panel having a complicated outer shape.
[0010]
It is another object of the present invention to provide liquid crystal panels having various outer shapes that have been difficult in the prior art.
[0011]
Furthermore, it aims at providing the electronic device which improved the freedom degree in design significantly by mounting the liquid crystal panel of various external shapes.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In the method for producing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention, a flexible member is attached to each of a pair of flexible substrates, and the pair of flexible substrates is attached by polymerization to constitute a liquid crystal cell. A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel in which liquid crystal is sealed between the pair of flexible substrates, wherein one surface of one flexible substrate of the pair of flexible substrates and the other flexible substrate The step of sticking each flexible member to one surface, and the one and the other flexible substrates to which the flexible member is attached are respectively attached to the flexible member. A plurality of cuts into a predetermined shape constituting the liquid crystal panel without being divided, the other surface of the one flexible substrate to which the flexible member is attached, and the other possible A plurality of liquid crystal cells are attached by facing the other surface of the flexible substrate. Forming each of the liquid crystal cells by separating the flexible members from the one and the other flexible substrates, and dividing the liquid crystal cells into the plurality of divided liquid crystal cells. And a step of encapsulating liquid crystal in this order.
Further, in the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel according to the present invention, a flexible member is attached to each of a pair of flexible substrates, and the pair of flexible substrates is polymerized and attached to form a liquid crystal cell. A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel in which liquid crystal is sealed between the pair of flexible substrates, wherein one surface of one flexible substrate of the pair of flexible substrates and the other flexibility are provided. A step of attaching a flexible member to one surface of the substrate, and the flexibility of the one and the other flexible substrate to which the flexible member is attached. A step of cutting a plurality of members into a predetermined shape constituting the liquid crystal panel without dividing the member, and the other surface of the one flexible substrate to which the member having flexibility is attached and the other A plurality of the above-mentioned by adhering the other surface of the flexible substrate to the other Forming a crystal cell; exposing the flexible member attached to the one flexible substrate to expose the inlets of the plurality of liquid crystal cells; and dividing the plurality of divided cells. Sealing the liquid crystal in the liquid crystal cell and separating the liquid crystal into individual liquid crystal panels in which the liquid crystal is sealed by peeling off the flexible member attached to the other flexible substrate. And a process of
In this order.
According to the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention, the handling property is excellent, and the positional accuracy of bonding the upper and lower substrates is improved. Moreover, it has the effect that this invention can be applied irrespective of the external shape of a panel.
[0013]
In addition, according to the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention, the liquid crystal panel manufacturing method allows the flexible member to be deformed even when a base material that is thin and has no stiffness is used. Can be suppressed, and the handling property is improved.
[0014]
Moreover, according to the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal panel of this invention, since the same behavior is shown also in a process, it can suppress a deformation | transformation and has the effect that it is excellent in fluidity | liquidity.
[0015]
In addition, according to the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention, since the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel is used, no excessive stress is applied to the flexible substrate, and only the flexible substrate is divided into outer shapes. Can do. Moreover, since the flow in the state stuck on the member which has flexibility is attained, it has the effect that it is excellent in handling property. Further, it has an effect that it can easily cope with a substrate having a complicated shape.
[0016]
In addition, according to the method for producing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention, there is almost no expression of retardation and deformation of the substrate, and the flexible substrate can be cut into various shapes by a simple method.
[0017]
The liquid crystal panel manufacturing method of the present invention is characterized in that the cutting means is a laser beam. By adopting the method for manufacturing the liquid crystal panel, it becomes possible to cut only the flexible substrate into an arbitrary shape without contact, and dust generation at the time of cutting can be suppressed.
[0018]
Moreover, according to the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal panel of this invention, since the same flow as what flows without cut | disconnecting is attained, it has the effect that it is excellent in fluidity | liquidity. In addition, when flowing, it flows in the large format and can be separated into individual liquid crystal panels in the process after the formation of the empty cell, so that it has an effect of excellent productivity.
[0019]
In addition, according to the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention, uniform pressure can be applied when the sealing material is cured, so that a liquid crystal panel excellent in cell thickness uniformity can be obtained.
[0020]
The liquid crystal panel of the present invention is manufactured by the above-described manufacturing method. With the above-described configuration, liquid crystal panels having various outer shapes can be manufactured, and the mass productivity is excellent.
[0021]
An electronic apparatus of the present invention is characterized in that the above-described liquid crystal panel is mounted. By adopting the above-described configuration, it is possible to provide an electronic apparatus having a greatly improved degree of design freedom.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0022]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0023]
[Example 1]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. A flexible substrate 1 such as a roll-like polycarbonate (PC) having a width of 200 mm was polymerized and adhered to a similar roll-shaped support film 2 via an adhesive layer 3, and the wound one was used as a fluid base material. . The support film 2 is not limited in any process as long as it is before the liquid crystal panel is divided. However, it is desirable that the support film 2 be previously bonded before flowing in consideration of scratches at the time of flowing on the substrate surface. Further, the deformation of the flexible base material 1 can be suppressed by sticking the support film 2, and the flexible substrate 1 and the support film 2 are not deformed due to the influence of stress or the like in each process. It is desirable to select the material. In this example, a support film 2 having substantially the same thermal shrinkage rate as that of the flexible substrate 1 was selected and adhered to the flexible substrate 1 for flow.
[0024]
Hereinafter, the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal panel of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. In the state where the flexible substrate 1 and the support film 2 were adhered, a transparent electrode 4 such as ITO was formed and patterned into an arbitrary electrode shape. Next, the flexible substrate 1 was fixed to a table whose parallelism was adjusted, and only the flexible substrate 1 was penetrated by a cutting blade molded into a mold having the same shape as the panel outer shape and divided into the panel outer shape. At this time, the amount of dropping of the cutting blade was set to the thickness of the flexible substrate 1 +30 μm and cut into a predetermined outer shape at the position of the cutting portion 10. Moreover, the cutting | disconnection excellent in position accuracy is attained by detecting and cutting | disconnecting a cutting position. Accordingly, the support film 2 is not divided together with the flexible substrate 1 and can flow in the same state as before the division even after the division of the flexible substrate 1. In this example, the flexible substrate 1 was cut using a cutting blade, but the flexible substrate 1 does not develop deformation or retardation, and the cutting means is not particularly limited unless the support film is cut. And
[0025]
Next, an alignment film 5 was formed on the substrate surface by flexographic printing or the like, and an alignment treatment such as rubbing was performed to align the liquid crystals. Next, the flexible substrate 1 was superposed through the gap holding member 6 and the sealing material 7 so as to oppose each other, and the sealing material 7 was cured by applying pressure and heating uniformly to create an empty cell. At this time, since the flow of the subsequent steps was performed with the portions other than the constituent portions of the liquid crystal panel still attached to the support film 2, the same flow as that without breaking was enabled. The pressure distribution at the time of pressure is uniform, and the in-plane uniformity of the cell thickness is excellent. Next, the support film 2 was peeled off from the liquid crystal panel and divided into individual empty cells. The adhesive layer 3 of the support 2 film is preferably resistant to heat and chemicals, but in particular, the adhesive strength before and after the process does not change and does not affect the flexible substrate 1 or cell thickness at the time of peeling. A material with low adhesive strength is desirable. Further, a material in which the adhesive layer 3 is not transferred to the flexible substrate 1 when the support film 2 is peeled off is desirable.
[0026]
After setting the above-described empty cell in an injection jig, the nematic liquid crystal 8 was sealed by a vacuum injection method or the like, and the injection port was sealed with an ultraviolet curable resin or the like. Thereafter, a polarizing plate was attached to obtain a liquid crystal panel.
[0027]
[Example 2]
As shown in FIG. 3, after assembling an empty cell in the same manner as in Example 1, the support film 2 attached to one flexible substrate 1 is peeled off to expose the injection port 11 and enclose the liquid crystal. did. Next, the support film 2 adhered to the other flexible substrate 1 was peeled off and divided into individual liquid crystal panels.
[0028]
[Example 3]
As shown in FIG. 4, after assembling an empty cell in the same manner as in Example 1, the injection port 11 is exposed, the liquid crystal 8 is sealed in the cell by a vacuum injection method or the like, and the injection port 11 is sealed with an ultraviolet curable resin or the like. did. Thereafter, the support film 2 was peeled from the flexible substrate 1. As a result, the substrate surface is never exposed during the process, the substrate surface is not scratched, and the cleaning process is unnecessary. In addition, even in a multi-panel, there is an effect that the fluidity is excellent.
[0029]
[Example 4]
After patterning into an arbitrary shape in the same manner as in Example 1, only the flexible substrate 1 was cut into an arbitrary shape with a YAG laser. If the depth of focus of the laser is within the range, it is not necessary to adjust the focal position. However, if the undulation of the flexible substrate 1 exceeds this range, the undulation is detected and the laser is irradiated while adjusting the focal position. Therefore, reliable cutting is possible. Moreover, since it can cut | disconnect to arbitrary shapes by non-contact, there is no expression of retardation and it has the effect that dust generation can be suppressed. Furthermore, it has the effect of being excellent in the shape of the fractured surface and excellent in pressure uniformity during pressurization as compared with that using a cutting blade. The subsequent steps were the same as in Example 1 to produce a liquid crystal panel.
[0030]
[Example 5]
A circular liquid crystal panel was manufactured by the same manufacturing method as in Example 1 and mounted as a display unit of a wristwatch. With the configuration of the present invention, there is an effect that there is little frame dead space and almost the entire surface can be used effectively for display. In addition, liquid crystal panels with special shapes can be handled with almost no change to conventional processes, so it is possible to provide liquid crystal panels with excellent productivity and freedom in electronic device design. The effect is that the degree is greatly improved.
[0031]
In this embodiment, a wristwatch is used as an example of an electronic device, but it goes without saying that other electronic devices can also be mounted.
[0032]
【The invention's effect】
In the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal device according to the present invention, a transparent electrode is formed on the surface of a pair of flexible substrates, the surface is subjected to an alignment treatment, and the pair of flexible substrates are disposed at least via a liquid crystal layer. In the method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel to be polymerized and pasted, a step of pasting a flexible member on a surface opposite to the transparent electrode forming surface of at least one of the flexible substrates; and the flexible substrate; A step of cutting only the flexible substrate into a predetermined shape in a state where the member having flexibility is attached, and a step of peeling the member having flexibility from the flexible substrate. Therefore, the liquid crystal panels having various outer shapes are excellent in handling properties, and the positional accuracy of bonding the upper and lower substrates is high. Moreover, it has the effect that this invention can be applied irrespective of the shape of a panel. Moreover, since the back surface of the film base material is protected, there are effects such as prevention of scratches during flow and elimination of a cleaning process.
[0033]
Since the liquid crystal panel of the present invention is manufactured by the above-described manufacturing method, the liquid crystal panel has excellent cell thickness uniformity and can provide liquid crystal panels having various outer shapes that have been difficult in the past.
[0034]
Since the electronic device of the present invention can be mounted with the above-described liquid crystal panel, there is an effect that it is possible to provide an electronic device having a greatly improved degree of freedom in design.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a state where a flexible substrate and a support film are attached in a method for producing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a view showing a flow of a manufacturing method of a liquid crystal panel of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of a method for producing a liquid crystal panel of the present invention.
FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional structure of a liquid crystal panel.
FIG. 7 is a view showing a conventional method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel.
[Explanation of symbols]
1. 1. Flexible substrate 2. Support film 3. Adhesive layer 4. Transparent electrode 5. Alignment film 6. Gap holding member Seal material 8. Liquid crystal 9. Opening 10. Cutting unit 11. Inlet

Claims (3)

A flexible member is attached to each of the pair of flexible substrates, and the pair of flexible substrates is superposed and attached to form a liquid crystal cell. Between the pair of flexible substrates, A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel that encloses liquid crystal,
Attaching a flexible member to one surface of one flexible substrate of the pair of flexible substrates and one surface of the other flexible substrate;
A plurality of the one and the other flexible substrates to which the flexible member is attached are cut into a predetermined shape constituting the liquid crystal panel without dividing the flexible member. And a process of
A plurality of the liquid crystals are obtained by superposing and adhering the other surface of the one flexible substrate on which the flexible member is adhered to the other surface of the other flexible substrate. Forming a cell;
Separating the liquid crystal cells into individual liquid crystal cells by separating the flexible members from the one and the other flexible substrates,
Enclosing the liquid crystal in the plurality of divided liquid crystal cells;
In this order. A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel. A flexible member is attached to each of the pair of flexible substrates, and the pair of flexible substrates is superposed and attached to form a liquid crystal cell. Between the pair of flexible substrates, A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel that encloses liquid crystal,
Attaching a flexible member to one surface of one flexible substrate of the pair of flexible substrates and one surface of the other flexible substrate;
A plurality of the one and the other flexible substrates to which the flexible member is attached are cut into a predetermined shape constituting the liquid crystal panel without dividing the flexible member. And a process of
A plurality of the liquid crystals are obtained by superposing and adhering the other surface of the one flexible substrate on which the flexible member is adhered to the other surface of the other flexible substrate. Forming a cell;
Exposing the inlets of the plurality of liquid crystal cells by peeling off the flexible member attached to the one flexible substrate;
Enclosing the liquid crystal in the plurality of divided liquid crystal cells;
Separating the individual liquid crystal panels in which the liquid crystal is encapsulated by peeling off the flexible member attached to the other flexible substrate;
In this order. A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel. A plurality of the liquid crystals are obtained by superposing and adhering the other surface of the one flexible substrate on which the flexible member is adhered to the other surface of the other flexible substrate. The process of forming the cell is as follows:
The liquid crystal panel manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein the flexible substrate other than a portion constituting the liquid crystal panel is adhered to the flexible member. Method.

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