TWI821995B - Micro-light-emitting diode display panel - Google Patents

A micro-light-emitting diode (microLED) display panel includes a timing controller, and a plurality of drivers controlled by the timing controller and arranged in an order according to distance from the timing controller. Each driver includes a buffer that buffers a signal before being sent to a succeeding driver.

微發光二極體顯示面板Micro light emitting diode display panel

本發明係有關一種微發光二極體(microLED)顯示面板，特別是關於微發光二極體顯示面板的驅動器，可避免傳輸於驅動器的信號受到衰減或失真，因而增強微發光二極體顯示面板的功能性與影像品質。The present invention relates to a micro-light-emitting diode (microLED) display panel, and in particular to a driver for the micro-light-emitting diode display panel. This invention can prevent the signal transmitted to the driver from being attenuated or distorted, thereby enhancing the micro-light-emitting diode display panel. functionality and image quality.

微發光二極體(microLED、mLED或μLED)顯示面板為平板顯示器(flat panel display)的一種，其係由尺寸等級為1~100微米之個別精微(microscopic)發光二極體所組成。相較於傳統液晶顯示面板，微發光二極體顯示面板具較大對比度及較快反應時間，且消耗較少功率。微發光二極體與有機發光二極體(OLED)雖然同樣具有低功耗的特性，但是，微發光二極體因為使用三-五族二極體技術(例如氮化鎵)，因此相較於有機發光二極體具有較高的亮度(brightness)、較高的發光效能及較長的壽命。MicroLED (microLED, mLED or μLED) display panel is a type of flat panel display, which is composed of individual microscopic light-emitting diodes with a size range of 1 to 100 microns. Compared with traditional liquid crystal display panels, micro-light-emitting diode display panels have larger contrast ratios, faster response times, and consume less power. Although micro-light-emitting diodes and organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) also have low power consumption characteristics, micro-light-emitting diodes use Group III-V diode technology (such as gallium nitride), so compared with Organic light-emitting diodes have higher brightness, higher luminous efficiency and longer life.

由於微發光二極體顯示面板的玻璃基板的金屬導線特性(例如阻抗與寄生電容)，傳輸於金屬導線的信號會根據傳輸距離的大小受到衰減或失真。衰減或失真信號會影響影像的顯示，因而降低影像品質。此外，微發光二極體顯示面板的定電流源會逐漸老化，因而降低發光亮度。Due to the characteristics of metal wires (such as impedance and parasitic capacitance) of the glass substrate of the micro-LED display panel, signals transmitted through the metal wires will be attenuated or distorted depending on the transmission distance. An attenuated or distorted signal affects the display of the image, thereby reducing image quality. In addition, the constant current source of the micro-light emitting diode display panel will gradually age, thus reducing the luminous brightness.

因此亟需提出一種新穎機制，以克服傳統微發光二極體顯示面板的缺點。Therefore, it is urgent to propose a novel mechanism to overcome the shortcomings of traditional micro-light-emitting diode display panels.

鑑於上述，本發明實施例的目的之一在於提出一種微發光二極體顯示面板，可避免傳輸於微發光二極體顯示面板的驅動器的信號受到衰減或失真，且可補償微發光二極體顯示面板的老化。In view of the above, one of the objectives of embodiments of the present invention is to provide a micro-light emitting diode display panel that can avoid attenuation or distortion of signals transmitted to the driver of the micro-light emitting diode display panel and can compensate for the micro-light emitting diode display panel. Display panel aging.

根據本發明實施例，微發光二極體顯示面板包含時序控制器及複數驅動器。驅動器受控於時序控制器，且依照驅動器與時序控制器之間的距離來排列。每一驅動器包含緩衝器，於信號傳送至下一驅動器之前用以緩衝信號。According to an embodiment of the present invention, a micro-light emitting diode display panel includes a timing controller and a plurality of drivers. The drivers are controlled by the timing controller and are arranged according to the distance between the driver and the timing controller. Each driver contains a buffer to buffer the signal before it is sent to the next driver.

根據本發明另一實施例，每一驅動器包含調節器，其自前一驅動器接收電源信號，據以產生調節電源信號以傳送至下一驅動器。According to another embodiment of the present invention, each driver includes a regulator that receives a power signal from a previous driver and generates a regulated power signal for transmission to the next driver.

根據本發明又一實施例，每一驅動器包含第一定電流源與至少一第二定電流源，該第二定電流源提供的電流大於第一定電流源。According to another embodiment of the present invention, each driver includes a first constant current source and at least a second constant current source, and the second constant current source provides a current greater than the first constant current source.

第一A圖顯示本發明實施例的微發光二極體(microLED)顯示面板100的俯視圖。其中，微發光二極體顯示面板100的顯示區域101分割為複數區塊102，每一區塊102由相應驅動器11(例如積體電路(integrated circuit))驅動。微發光二極體顯示面板100可包含至少一時序控制器12，用以控制驅動器11，以傳送信號至時序控制器12或自時序控制器12接收信號。在本說明書中，信號可以是數位(digital)信號或類比(analog)信號。在一實施例中，信號為傳輸信號，其可以是資料信號或控制信號。在另一實施例中，信號為電源信號(例如電壓)，其相關於電源供應。The first figure A shows a top view of a microlight emitting diode (microLED) display panel 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The display area 101 of the micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 is divided into a plurality of blocks 102, and each block 102 is driven by a corresponding driver 11 (such as an integrated circuit). The micro-LED display panel 100 may include at least one timing controller 12 for controlling the driver 11 to transmit signals to or receive signals from the timing controller 12 . In this specification, the signal may be a digital signal or an analog signal. In one embodiment, the signal is a transmission signal, which may be a data signal or a control signal. In another embodiment, the signal is a power signal (eg, voltage), which is related to the power supply.

第一B圖顯示本發明實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板100的區塊102的方塊圖。在本實施例中，區塊102可包含複數微發光二極體13，排列為陣列形式，驅動器11以被動矩陣定址(passive matrix addressing)機制以驅動微發光二極體13。其中，同一行的微發光二極體13的陽極電性連接至驅動器11，且同一列的微發光二極體13的陰極電性連接至驅動器11。The first diagram B shows a block diagram of the block 102 of the micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the block 102 may include a plurality of micro-light-emitting diodes 13 arranged in an array, and the driver 11 drives the micro-light-emitting diodes 13 using a passive matrix addressing mechanism. Among them, the anodes of the micro-light-emitting diodes 13 in the same row are electrically connected to the driver 11 , and the cathodes of the micro-light-emitting diodes 13 in the same column are electrically connected to the driver 11 .

第二圖顯示本發明第一實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板100的方塊圖。如第二圖所例示，複數驅動器11(例如第m行的第一至第n驅動器11)受控於時序控制器12。依照驅動器11與時序控制器12之間的距離來排列，使得第一驅動器(m,1)最近於時序控制器12，而最後驅動器(m,n)最遠於時序控制器12。The second figure shows a block diagram of the micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated in the second figure, the plurality of drivers 11 (for example, the first to nth drivers 11 of the m-th row) are controlled by the timing controller 12 . Arrange according to the distance between the driver 11 and the timing controller 12 so that the first driver (m, 1) is closest to the timing controller 12 and the last driver (m, n) is farthest from the timing controller 12.

在本實施例中，驅動器11藉由晶片選擇(chip select)信號/CS(在本實施例中為低態有效(active-low)信號)進行選擇，驅動器11的輸出藉由輸出致能(output enable)信號/OE(在本實施例中為低態有效信號)進行致能。此外，驅動器11使用串列(serial)通信(或串列輸出入(SIO))一次一個位元依序傳輸，以傳送信號至時序控制器12或自時序控制器12接收信號。驅動器11與時序控制器12之間的信號傳輸方向可由方向信號DIR予以設定。例如，當方向信號DIR為高態(“1”)時，信號(由驅動器11)傳送至時序控制器12；當方向信號DIR為低態(“0”)時，驅動器11(自時序控制器12)接收信號。在本實施例中，驅動器11可包含相應緩衝器111(在本實施例中為雙向緩衝器)，將接收自相鄰驅動器11的信號予以緩衝。由於信號於傳送至下一驅動器11之前已進行緩衝，因此信號傳輸於驅動器11時不會受到衰減或失真。In this embodiment, the driver 11 is selected by a chip select signal /CS (an active-low signal in this embodiment), and the output of the driver 11 is selected by an output enable signal. enable) signal /OE (in this embodiment, a low-state active signal) to enable. In addition, the driver 11 uses serial communication (or serial input/output (SIO)) to transmit signals one bit at a time sequentially to transmit signals to or receive signals from the timing controller 12 . The signal transmission direction between the driver 11 and the timing controller 12 can be set by the direction signal DIR. For example, when the direction signal DIR is in a high state ("1"), the signal (from the driver 11) is transmitted to the timing controller 12; when the direction signal DIR is in a low state ("0"), the signal from the driver 11 (from the timing controller 12)Receive signal. In this embodiment, the driver 11 may include a corresponding buffer 111 (a bidirectional buffer in this embodiment) to buffer signals received from adjacent drivers 11 . Since the signal is buffered before being transmitted to the next driver 11, the signal will not be attenuated or distorted when transmitted to the driver 11.

第三A圖顯示本發明替代第一實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板100的方塊圖，且第三B圖顯示串列傳輸信號的時序圖。不同於第二圖使用晶片選擇信號/CS、輸出致能信號/OE及方向信號DIR，在本實施例中，驅動器11的晶片選擇、輸出致能及傳輸方向可由時序控制器12傳送的信號的標頭(header)進行設定，其位於傳送資料之前。Figure 3A shows a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 in place of the first embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 3B shows a timing diagram of serial transmission signals. Different from the second figure that uses the chip selection signal /CS, the output enable signal /OE and the direction signal DIR, in this embodiment, the chip selection, output enable and transmission direction of the driver 11 can be determined by the signals transmitted by the timing controller 12 The header is set before transmitting data.

第四A圖與第四B圖顯示本發明第二實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板100的方塊圖。如第四A圖所示，使用並列(parallel)通信將信號(例如輸入信號I1~I9)(自時序控制器12)輸入至驅動器11，如第四B圖所示，使用並列通信，將信號(例如輸出信號O1~O9))自驅動器11輸出(至時序控制器12)。The fourth Figure A and the fourth Figure B show a block diagram of the micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the fourth figure A, parallel communication is used to input the signals (for example, the input signals I1 to I9) (from the timing controller 12) to the driver 11. As shown in the fourth figure B, parallel communication is used to input the signals (for example, output signals O1~O9)) are output from the driver 11 (to the timing controller 12).

在本實施例中，間隔多個驅動器11以傳輸信號。換句話說，(經由(單向)緩衝器111緩衝的)緩衝信號並非傳送至直接相鄰的驅動器11，而是間隔有多個驅動器11。如第四A圖所示，輸入信號I4經由第一驅動器11的緩衝器BF4緩衝，再傳送至第四驅動器11，而非傳送至相鄰的第二驅動器11。如第四B圖所示，第四驅動器11的緩衝信號傳送至第一驅動器11(再經過緩衝後，作為輸出信號O4傳送出去)，而非傳送至相鄰的第三驅動器11。於一替代實施例中，單向緩衝器11可置換為雙向緩衝器，以進行雙向傳輸。In this embodiment, a plurality of drivers 11 are spaced apart to transmit signals. In other words, the buffered signal (buffered via the (unidirectional) buffer 111) is not transmitted to the directly adjacent driver 11, but is separated by a plurality of drivers 11. As shown in the fourth figure A, the input signal I4 is buffered by the buffer BF4 of the first driver 11 and then transmitted to the fourth driver 11 instead of being transmitted to the adjacent second driver 11 . As shown in Figure 4B, the buffered signal of the fourth driver 11 is sent to the first driver 11 (and then sent out as the output signal O4 after being buffered) instead of being sent to the adjacent third driver 11. In an alternative embodiment, the unidirectional buffer 11 can be replaced by a bidirectional buffer for bidirectional transmission.

第五圖顯示本發明第三實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板100的方塊圖。在本實施例中，驅動器11可包含(電源)調節器112，例如電壓調節器，其接收電源信號VAA，據以產生調節電源信號VAA_O。The fifth figure shows a block diagram of the micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the driver 11 may include a (power) regulator 112, such as a voltage regulator, which receives the power signal VAA and generates a regulated power signal VAA_O accordingly.

在本實施例中，間隔多個驅動器11以傳輸電源信號。換句話說，(經由調節器112產生的)調節電源信號並非傳送至直接相鄰的驅動器11，而是間隔有多個驅動器11。如第五圖所例示，調節電源信號VAA_O自第一驅動器(m,1)傳送至第四驅動器(m,4)，而非傳送至相鄰的第二驅動器(m,2)。由於電源信號於傳送至下一驅動器11之前已進行調節，因此電源信號傳輸於驅動器11時不會受到衰減或失真。In this embodiment, multiple drivers 11 are spaced apart to transmit power signals. In other words, the regulated power signal (generated via the regulator 112 ) is not transmitted to directly adjacent drivers 11 , but to a plurality of drivers 11 spaced apart. As illustrated in the fifth figure, the adjusted power signal VAA_O is transmitted from the first driver (m,1) to the fourth driver (m,4) rather than to the adjacent second driver (m,2). Since the power signal has been conditioned before being transmitted to the next driver 11, the power signal will not be attenuated or distorted when transmitted to the driver 11.

第六圖顯示本發明替代第三實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板100的方塊圖。第六圖的微發光二極體顯示面板100類似於第五圖的微發光二極體顯示面板100，相異處說明如下。Figure 6 shows a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. The micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 in the sixth figure is similar to the micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 in the fifth figure. The differences are described as follows.

於第六圖的微發光二極體顯示面板100，每次有多個電源信號VAA(並行)輸入至驅動器11，然而於第五圖的微發光二極體顯示面板100，每次僅有一個電源信號VAA輸入至驅動器11。如第六圖所例示，電源信號VAA同時輸入至第一驅動器(m,1)與第四驅動器(m,4)，接著自第四驅動器(m,4)傳送調節電源信號VAA_O至第七驅動器(m,7)。In the micro-LED display panel 100 in FIG. 6, multiple power signals VAA (parallel) are input to the driver 11 at a time. However, in the micro-LED display panel 100 in FIG. 5, only one power signal VAA is input to the driver 11 at a time. The power signal VAA is input to the driver 11 . As illustrated in the sixth figure, the power signal VAA is input to the first driver (m,1) and the fourth driver (m,4) at the same time, and then the adjusted power signal VAA_O is sent from the fourth driver (m,4) to the seventh driver. (m,7).

第七A圖顯示本發明第四實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板100的方塊圖。其中，驅動器11可包含第一定電流源113與至少一第二定電流源114，該第二定電流源114提供的電流大於第一定電流源113。第七B圖例示驅動器11的第一定電流源113與第二定電流源114的電路圖。Figure 7A shows a block diagram of the micro-light emitting diode display panel 100 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The driver 11 may include a first constant current source 113 and at least a second constant current source 114 . The second constant current source 114 provides a current greater than the first constant current source 113 . The seventh figure B illustrates a circuit diagram of the first constant current source 113 and the second constant current source 114 of the driver 11 .

(受控於時序控制器12或其他控制器的)開關SW選擇第一定電流源113與第二定電流源114的其中一個輸出，接著將所選擇輸出饋至定電流輸出電路115，以輸出複數定電流。第二定電流源114係用以收集老化相關的參數，例如亮度與順向電壓，據以得到補償微發光二極體顯示面板100之老化的設計參數。The switch SW (controlled by the timing controller 12 or other controllers) selects one of the outputs of the first constant current source 113 and the second constant current source 114, and then feeds the selected output to the constant current output circuit 115 to output Complex constant current. The second constant current source 114 is used to collect aging-related parameters, such as brightness and forward voltage, so as to obtain design parameters for compensating the aging of the micro-LED display panel 100 .

以上所述僅為本發明之較佳實施例而已，並非用以限定本發明之申請專利範圍；凡其它未脫離發明所揭示之精神下所完成之等效改變或修飾，均應包含在下述之申請專利範圍內。The above descriptions are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the patentable scope of the present invention; all other equivalent changes or modifications made without departing from the spirit of the invention shall be included in the following. Within the scope of patent application.

100:微發光二極體顯示面板 101:顯示區域 102:區塊 11:驅動器 111:緩衝器 112:調節器 113:第一定電流源 114:第二定電流源 115:定電流輸出電路 12:時序控制器 13:微發光二極體 SIO:串列輸出入 /CS:晶片選擇信號 /OE:輸出致能信號 DIR:方向信號 I1~I9:輸入信號 O1~O9:輸出信號 VAA:電源信號 VAA_O:調節電源信號 SW:開關 100:Micro light emitting diode display panel 101:Display area 102:Block 11:Drive 111:Buffer 112:Regulator 113: First constant current source 114: Second constant current source 115:Constant current output circuit 12: Timing controller 13:Micro light emitting diodes SIO: serial input and output /CS: chip select signal /OE: Output enable signal DIR: direction signal I1~I9: input signal O1~O9: output signal VAA: power signal VAA_O: Adjust power signal SW: switch

第一A圖顯示本發明實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的俯視圖。 第一B圖顯示本發明實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的區塊的方塊圖。 第二圖顯示本發明第一實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的方塊圖。 第三A圖顯示本發明替代第一實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的方塊圖。 第三B圖顯示串列傳輸信號的時序圖。 第四A圖與第四B圖顯示本發明第二實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的方塊圖。 第五圖顯示本發明第三實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的方塊圖。 第六圖顯示本發明替代第三實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的方塊圖。 第七A圖顯示本發明第四實施例的微發光二極體顯示面板的方塊圖。 第七B圖例示驅動器的第一定電流源與第二定電流源的電路圖。 The first Figure A shows a top view of a micro-light emitting diode display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure B shows a block diagram of a block of a micro-light emitting diode display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. The second figure shows a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3A shows a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel in place of the first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3B shows the timing diagram of serial transmission signals. The fourth Figure A and the fourth Figure B show a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The fifth figure shows a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 shows a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel according to the third embodiment of the present invention. Figure 7A shows a block diagram of a micro-light emitting diode display panel according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The seventh figure B illustrates a circuit diagram of the first constant current source and the second constant current source of the driver.

100:微發光二極體顯示面板 11:驅動器 111:緩衝器 12:時序控制器 SIO:串列輸出入 /CS:晶片選擇信號 /OE:輸出致能信號 DIR:方向信號 100:Micro light emitting diode display panel 11:Drive 111:Buffer 12: Timing controller SIO: serial input and output /CS: chip select signal /OE: Output enable signal DIR: direction signal