US-12621941-B2 - Scroll device and scrollable display

US12621941B2US 12621941 B2US12621941 B2US 12621941B2US-12621941-B2

Abstract

A scrollable device including a fixture, a flexible display panel and a scroll device having a roller, a roller end cap and a torsion spring is provided. One side of the flexible display panel is connected to the fixture, while the other side is connected to the cylindrical surface of the roller. The roller end cap is rotatably disposed on the end part of the roller, and the torsion spring is inside the roller. One end of the torsion spring is connected to the roller, while the other end is connected to the roller end cap. When a relative rotation between the roller and the roller end cap is occurred, the torsion spring is rotated and deformed to form a restoring force. This restoring force can drive the roller to rotate relative to the roller end cap, thereby making the flexible display panel to roll up along the roller.

Inventors

Hsing-Kai Wang
CHIA-CHUN YEH
Chen-Chu Tsai

Assignees

E INK HOLDINGS INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20240325
Priority Date: 20230421

Claims (13)

1 . A scrollable display comprising: a fixture; a flexible display panel having a first side and a second side opposite to the first side, wherein the first side is connected to the fixture; and a scroll device comprising: a first roller end cap; a roller has a cylindrical surface, and the second side of the flexible display panel is connected to the cylindrical surface of the roller, wherein one of two end parts of the roller disposed on the first roller end cap is rotatable, and the roller is able to rotate relative to the first roller end cap; and a first torsion spring located inside the roller, wherein two ends of the first torsion spring are connected to the roller and the first roller end cap separately, wherein a relative rotation between the roller and the first roller end cap makes the first torsion spring twist; and a driving device for moving the first roller end cap relative to the fixture is connected to the first roller end cap, wherein the driving device has two tracks separately located on two opposite sides of the driving device, and the two tracks are located between the two end parts of the roller; when the flexible display panel is in a first state, the first torsion spring drives the roller to rotate relative to the first roller end cap, and the flexible display panel is rolled up on the roller and is curled on the cylindrical surface; when the flexible display panel is in a second state, a part of the flexible display panel between the fixture and the roller is unrolled, wherein the first torsion spring in the second state deforms to form a first restoring force, and the first restoring force drives the roller to draw the flexible display panel.
2 . The scrollable display of claim 1 , wherein the driving device in the first state drives the first roller end cap to move toward the fixture; wherein the driving device in the second state drives the first roller end cap to move away from the fixture.
3 . The scrollable display of claim 2 , wherein the roller is connected to and directly touches a surface of the flexible display panel, and the surface faces the driving device.
4 . The scrollable display of claim 2 , wherein the roller is connected to and directly touches a surface of the flexible display panel, and the surface backs on to the driving device.
5 . The scrollable display of claim 1 , wherein the scroll device further comprising: a bearing located between the roller and the first roller end cap, and the bearing allows the roller and the first roller end cap to rotate relative to each other.
6 . The scrollable display of claim 1 , wherein the scroll device further comprising: a bracing rod located inside the first torsion spring, wherein an axis of the bracing rod extends along an extending direction of the first torsion spring, and a length of the bracing rod is less than a length of the first torsion spring.
7 . The scrollable display of claim 1 , wherein the scroll device further comprising: a bracing rod located inside the first torsion spring, wherein an axis of the bracing rod extends along an extending direction of the first torsion spring, and a length of the bracing rod is equal to a length of the first torsion spring.
8 . The scrollable display of claim 1 , wherein the roller further comprising: a fastening device fastened inside the roller, and one end of the first torsion spring is connected to the fastening device.
9 . The scrollable display of claim 8 , wherein the scroll device further comprising: a second roller end cap, wherein the other end part of the roller disposed on the second roller end cap is rotatable, and the roller is able to rotate relative to the second roller end cap, wherein the roller is located between the first roller end cap and the second roller end cap; and a second torsion spring located inside the roller, and two ends of the second torsion spring are connected to the fastening device and the second roller end cap separately, wherein the fastening device is located between the first torsion spring and the second torsion spring; wherein the second torsion spring in the second state deforms to form a second restoring force, and the second restoring force drives the roller to draw the flexible display panel.
10 . The scrollable display of claim 1 , wherein the first torsion spring has a third restoring force when a distance between the roller and the fixture is minimal, and the third restoring force is used to draw the flexible display panel.
11 . A scroll device, comprising: a roller; a first roller end cap, wherein one of two end parts of the roller disposed on the first roller end cap is rotatable, and the roller is able to rotate relative to the first roller end cap; a first torsion spring located inside the roller, and two ends of the first torsion spring are fastened to the roller and the first roller end cap separately; a second roller end cap, wherein the other one of two end parts of the roller disposed on the second roller end cap is rotatable, and the roller is able to rotate relative to the second roller end cap; a second torsion spring located inside the roller, and two ends of the second torsion spring are connected to the roller and the second roller end cap separately; a first bracing rod located inside the first torsion spring, wherein an axis of the first bracing rod extends along an extending direction of the first torsion spring; and a second bracing rod located inside the second torsion spring, wherein an axis of the second bracing rod extends along an extending direction of the second torsion spring.
12 . The scroll device of claim 11 , further comprising: a bearing located between the roller and the first roller end cap, and the bearing allows the roller and the first roller end cap to rotate relative to each other.
13 . The scroll device of claim 11 , wherein the roller further comprising: a fastening device fastened inside the roller, and one of the two ends of the first torsion spring is connected to the fastening device.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to Taiwan Application Serial Number 112114873, filed Apr. 21, 2023, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. BACKGROUND Technical Field The present disclosure relates to a scroll device and a scrollable display using this scroll device. More particular, the present disclosure relates to the scrollable display and its scroll device which are provided with restoring force. Description of Related Art The flexible display is classified into different types according to the bending way, such as bendable displays and scrollable displays. Among these types, the bending strain of the scrollable display is relatively larger than the others. Thus, a larger torque is necessary for the display panel to be rolled up during the rolling process. In present, the scrollable display has a roller where the flexible display panel can be rolled up, and the flexible display panel can be curled on the roller along its rotation axis. Generally, the spin of the roller in the scrollable display is driven by one motor system providing sufficient torque for the panel to be curled. In addition, the movement (e.g. displacement) of the roller should be driven by another motor system to coordinate the curling or flattening of the panel, so that the display panel is rolled up or unrolled. Since the operation of coordinating two motor systems is necessary, the scroll devices of scrollable displays in present are large, so as to dispose those motors. Furthermore, the circuit design and the mechanical structure of the scrollable displays are more complicated. SUMMARY Accordingly, the disclosure is to provide a scrollable display. This scrollable display includes the torsion spring, and the roller of the scroll device is driven to rotate by the restoring force produced by the torsion spring. An embodiment of the disclosure provides a scroll device including the torsion spring, and the roller is driven to rotate by the restoring force produced by the torsion spring. At least one embodiment of the disclosure provides a scrollable display including a fixture, a flexible display panel and a scroll device. The flexible display panel has a first side and a second side opposite to the first side, where the first side is connected to the fixture. The scroll device includes a first roller end cap and a roller having a cylindrical surface, and the second side of the flexible display panel is connected to the cylindrical surface of the roller, where one of two end parts of the roller disposed on the first roller end cap is rotatable, and the roller is able to rotate relative to the first roller end cap. A first torsion spring located inside the roller, and two ends of the first torsion spring are connected to the roller and the first roller end cap separately, where the relative rotation between the roller and the first roller end cap makes the first torsion spring twist. A driving device for moving the first roller end cap relative to the fixture is connected to the first roller end cap. The driving device has two tracks separately located on two opposite sides of the driving device, and the two tracks are located between the two end parts of the roller. When the flexible display panel is in a first state, the first torsion spring drives the roller to rotate relative to the first roller end cap, and the flexible display panel is rolled up on the roller and is curled on the cylindrical surface. When the flexible display panel is in a second state, a part of the flexible display panel between the fixture and the roller is unrolled. The first torsion spring in the second state deforms to form a first restoring force, and the first restoring force drives the roller to draw the flexible display panel. At least in one embodiment of the disclosure, the driving device in the first state drives the first roller end cap to move toward the fixture, and the driving device in the second state drives the first roller end cap to move away from the fixture. At least in one embodiment of the disclosure, the roller is connected to and directly touches a surface of the flexible display panel, and the surface faces the driving device. At least in one embodiment of the disclosure, the roller is connected to and directly touches a surface of the flexible display panel, and the surface backs on to the driving device. At least in one embodiment of the disclosure, the scrollable display further includes a bearing located between the roller and the first roller end cap, and the bearing allows the roller and the first roller end cap to rotate relative to each other. At least in one embodiment of the disclosure, the scroll device further includes a bracing rod located inside the first torsion spring. The axis of the bracing rod extends along the extending direction of the first torsion spring, and a length of the bracing rod is less than a length of the first torsion spring. At least in one embodiment of the d