US 11,719,972 B2
Display device
Koji Murata, Sakai (JP); Kazutaka Hanaoka, Sakai (JP); Kimiaki Nakamura, Sakai (JP); Atsuko Kanashima, Sakai (JP); Mariko Honda, Sakai (JP); and Shinji Shimada, Sakai (JP)
Assigned to SHARP KABUSHIKI KAISHA, Sakai (JP)
Filed by Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha, Sakai (JP)
Filed on Jun. 7, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/833,924.
Claims priority of application No. 2021-097570 (JP), filed on Jun. 10, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2023/0004031 A1, Jan. 5, 2023
Int. Cl. G02F 1/1334 (2006.01); G02F 1/13357 (2006.01)
CPC G02F 1/1334 (2013.01) [G02F 1/133603 (2013.01); G02F 1/133615 (2013.01)] 8 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A display device comprising:
a liquid crystal panel including a pair of substrates and a polymer dispersed liquid crystal layer held between the substrates, and
a light source behind a back surface of the liquid crystal panel,
the substrates including an electrode that applies voltage to the polymer dispersed liquid crystal layer,
the polymer dispersed liquid crystal layer containing a polymer network and liquid crystal components dispersed in the polymer network,
the light source being apart from the liquid crystal panel with an air layer in between, extending along at least one outer edge of the liquid crystal panel, and configured to emit light toward the liquid crystal panel from an oblique direction,
the polymer dispersed liquid crystal layer being controlled to be in a transparent state where a background is seen through the display device with no voltage applied and shift into a scattering state where light emitted from the light source and incident on the polymer dispersed liquid crystal layer is scattered with voltage applied,
the polymer dispersed liquid crystal layer including, in a plan view, an end portion closer to the light source and a central portion farther from the light source than the end portion is,
the end portion and the central portion each having, in the scattering state, an angle dependence which changes a transmittance of light to be emitted from a front surface based on an angle at which light is incident on a back surface of the polymer dispersed liquid crystal layer, with the angle dependence of the end portion being different from the angle dependence of the central portion,
the light source irradiating the end portion and the central portion with light at different angles.