Display Arrangement

The invention relates to a display arrangement with a display and a cover surface arranged above the display. Displays are used in many areas of technology for showing or displaying information in many embodiments. Examples can include devices and systems such as HiFi devices, computers, household devices or machines and systems in production facilities. The use of such display arrangements is also customary in vehicles in order to display to the driver information about a moving state of the motor vehicle such as, for example, speed, engine speed, tank level or additional information about structural groups in the vehicle such as, for example, a sound system, an air-conditioning system or a navigation system and many others.

In addition to the pure showing of information, the design of a display or of a display arrangement is becoming more and more significant. The manufacturers of original equipment are attempting to adapt, for example, a display used in a vehicle to a vehicle design and to allow the display to seem to appear, for example, transparently on a surface.

In this connection the term first provider or original equipment manufacturer, abbreviated OEM for English "Original Equipment Manufacturer" denotes a manufacturer of components or products that produces his products in his own factories but does not retail them himself.

The previous focus in the case of display arrangements used in vehicle cockpits was on displays that appeared dark or black with a so-called black panel effect.

Vehicle manufacturers or first providers are attempting to be able to display information everywhere in the vehicle, for example, even on any decorative surfaces. Such display arrangements could impart the impression that information is displayed simply on the surface of a structured plane which can be in any area of the dashboard of a vehicle. The displays used in the prior art and not meet these requirements. Even in the case that the display is already designed as a transparent display such as is possible, for example, in the case of an OLED display, connection lines for the display must be placed over the surface in the vehicle. Therefore, a display integrated into a decorative surface is therefore usually visible as a display and does not seem integrated.

DE 10 2014 013 563 Al teaches a method for manufacturing a circuit carrier unit which can be deformed and/or sprayed behind in the equipped state with a polymeric circuit carrier sheet and with conductors provided and arranged on it. Furthermore, the invention also relates to a circuit carrier unit which can be provided deformed or sprayed behind.

In addition, a method is disclosed in which a support layer is prepared with receiving recesses for the structural circuit components and is flatly connected to the provided circuit carrier so that the structural circuit components are arranged in the receiving recesses of the supporting layer. The obtained, equipped circuit carrier unit can be further processed in customary plastic processes, in particular deep-drawn and/or sprayed behind with film insert molding. After optional integration of transparent materials and optical and/or photo-technical structures, back spraying, application of decorative layers and/or coating layers, multifunctional, seamlessly free-formed plastic structural components are made available with integration of electronics, especially with integrated contact sensory mechanisms and with integrated display functions. EP 2 461 318 A2 discloses an emitting display, wherein the device makes available for an observer a mixture of displayed and reflected content. The device contains an emitting display device with a display screen for making digital contents available. The emitting display device comprises a light source by means of which digital content such as texts and graphics as well as other ones can be selectively displayed on the screen. The device comprises a thematic surface arranged above the screen with a front surface which is suitable for the diffuse reflection of light. This surface is substantially nontransparent for the observer so that the observer cannot see the screen when the light source is inactive or only a low brightness is produced. For the case that the light source is in the active mode, the displayed content of the screen is visible and the observer can recognize the contents which were previously hidden. A method for manufacturing a curved surface display tablet is known from WO 2011/108848 A2. According to the method a display tablet with a curved surface is produced by using a plane display tablet which comprises first and second substrates facing one another. The method comprises the following steps. Cutting a part of the outsides of the first and of the second substrate in order to reduce the thickness of the first and of the second substrate to a predetermined thickness, and bending the intersection plane display field around a desired shape in order to produce the curved surface, positioning a first guide element which is produced in agreement with the desired shape of the curved surface on the cut outer surface of the first substrate, fastening a second guide element which is produced according to the desired shape of the curved surface on the outer surface of the second substrate, and forming a light-permeable reinforcement layer in each of the intermediate spaces between the first guide element and the first substrate and between the second guide element and the second substrate.

The providing of representations or displays with the background illumination illuminating the display in order to improve the ability to recognize the display under different light conditions is also known from the prior art. In the systems known from the prior art an integration of a display into a decorative surface, for example in the area of a vehicle, is only possible in a limited manner since an adaptation of the display to the decorative surface is not possible and/or because an installation of displays on a surface does not remain unrecognized conditioned by necessary connection lines.

The problem of the invention consists in creating a display arrangement which can be integrated into a decorative surface and which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art. In particular, a seamless flow of an integrated appearance image between the surface surrounding the display arrangement and the display arrangement itself are achieved. For the observer the display arrangement should be like a part of the decorative surface.

The problem is solved by a subject matter with the features of Claim 1 of the independent claims. Further developments are indicated in the dependent claims.

In order to allow information to appear, for example, on a decorative surface of a dashboard of a vehicle, the invention aims at using a transparent display such as, for example, an OLED display and integrating the display in a specific stacked arrangement.

It is provided that decorative surfaces are arranged below the display and also in the areas adjacent to the display. These decorative surfaces are coordinated with the decorative surface of the dashboard and can imitate, for example, a structure consisting of wood or of other materials. The decorative surface in the vehicle, as well as the decorative surfaces of the display arrangement can have one color or several colors and contain all conceivable structures, patterns or images. There is no limit to the inclusion of the display arrangement of the invention in a vehicle dashboard.

It is advantageous to arranged a transparent cover surface above the display. This cover surface, which consists, for example, of glass or of a material similar to glass, has a tint or a tinting effect. The tinting of the cover surface has a gradient, wherein the intensity of the tinting increases starting from the center of the cover surface to its edge areas. The area which is provided, for example for the showing of information in the display arrangement can have no tinting or almost no tinting whereas the intensity of the tinting greatly increases from the edge area of the representation of the information to the edge area of the display arrangement. This tinting course ensures that the observer can readily perceive the information in the display while seeing the elements arranged adjacent to the display in the display arrangement is made possible only in a limited fashion. This results in a homogeneous appearance of the display arrangement constructed in a stacked manner.

At least one light source is advantageously arranged underneath the decorative surfaces of the display arrangement. In addition to the light source or to the light sources, light diffusers such as a so-called scatter disk or photo-elements can be arranged. It is possible with the stacked construction of the display arrangement shaped in this manner to illuminate the display arrangement from the rear. To this end the decorative surfaces are selected in such a manner that they can be penetrated by the light. When using a transparent OLED display it is possible for the case that no information is shown in the display to recognize the decorative surface arranged underneath the display. For the case that information is shown in the display, for example by several black pixels, this information appears for the observer above the decorative surface and can be perceived by the observer.

It is provided here that the display, the cover surface, the decorative surfaces, the scatter disks and the light sources are combined by an optical bonding method to a structural unit.

In optical bonding, for example, a space between the components of the display arrangement is filled with a mass adapted to the refractive index in order to connect the components to each other. This air-free filling of the intermediate space makes it possible to manufacture displays with good optical qualities and an improved contrast ratio. The invention therefore discloses a stacked construction of a display arrangement which makes it possible to integrate displays in decorative surfaces. Therefore, information can be displayed on almost any type of decorative surface independently of whether the decorative surface shows a structure of wood or of any other textured or flat structure. Therefore, the display arrangement makes available a display which can be integrated in any decorative surface in a vehicle.

Other details, features and advantages of embodiments of the invention result from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference made to the associated drawings. In the drawings:

Fig. 1 shows a basic view of a display arrangement according to the invention in a side view,

Fig. 2 shows a basic view of a display arrangement according to the invention in a perspective view, and

Fig. 3 shows a view of the display arrangement according to fig. 2 with information shown by way of example.

Fig. 1 shows the basic construction of the display arrangement 1 according to the invention in a side view. A display 3 is arranged below a cover surface 2 which is arranged facing an observer (not shown) and is substantially transparent. Such a display 3 can be constructed, for example, as an OLED display, abbreviated OLED for English "organic light-emitting diode" or as a similar display. In order to control the display 3, a connection line 4 connected to the display 3 is arranged. This connection line 4 to a control arrangement which is not shown is placed on the side of the display arrangement 1 facing away from the observer.

The display 3 is arranged in the middle or centered below the cover surface 2. An arrangement of decorative surfaces 5 a is provided in the areas not covered by the display 3. This arrangement takes place in such a manner that, for example, a decorative surface 5a is arranged on each of two opposing sides of the display 3.

The decorative surfaces 5a can also project into the area of the display 3 between the cover surface 2 and the display 3 itself and cover the display 3 over a few millimeters. An alternative embodiment of a display arrangement 1 provides that the display 3 is surrounded on four sides by decorative surfaces 5a which can also project into the display 3 in the above- described manner. Therefore, the display 3 is covered over a few millimeters on its four edge areas by the decorative surface or surfaces 5 a. For the case that the display 3 is surrounded on all four edge areas by decorative surfaces 5 a, the decorative surfaces can be combined to a structural unit and form in this manner a frame surrounding the display 3.

A decorative surface 5b is arranged below the display 3. For the case that the display 3 is designed to be transparent, the observer perceives the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b over the entire area of the cover surface 2. The display arrangement 1 appears to the observer in the structure or in the pattern which comprises the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b. Such structures can be freely selected. In addition to regular or irregular patterns, structures of materials such as, for example, wood can be represented by the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b.

A scatter disk 6b is arranged as a light diffusor below the decorative surface 5b in the area of the display 3. In an alternative embodiment, in addition to the scatter disk 6b arranged below the display 3 scatter disks 6a are also arranged below the decorative surfaces 5 a. In this manner the display 3 and areas next to the display 3 can be illuminated by a background lighting. Light sources 7 such as, for example, light-emitting diodes, abbreviated LED for English "light- emitting diode" can be arranged for such a background lighting. The arranged of the light sources 7 can be, for example, in the form of a matrix with several cells and/or several columns.

It is advantageous if the described structure consisting of cover surface 2, display 3, connection line 4, decorative surfaces 5a, 5b, scatter disks 6a, 6b and the light sources 7, which can also be designated as a stack, are combined by an optical bonding to a mechanically stable display arrangement 1. This optically bonded unit 8 is shown in fig. 1 by a dotted line. The cover surface 2, which is also designated as "glass layer", has a differently strong tinting 9 or coloring. It is provided here that no or almost no tinting 9 is provided in a middle, central area of the cover surface 2 in the course of the tinting 9 increases toward the edge areas. Since the cover surface has no or almost no tinting 9 in the central area of the display 3, the perceiving of information displayed on the display 3 is not adversely affected.

As a result of the tinting 9 of the cover surface 2 which increases toward the edge areas, a unified perception of the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b by the observer is considerably improved. The offsets between the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b are no longer perceived by the observer or no longer perceived as clearly. The display arrangement 1 appears throughout to the observer in the pattern of the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b.

Fig. 2 shows a basic view of the display arrangement 1 according to the invention in a perspective view. The stack-like construction shown in fig. 1 is disclosed which comprises a display 3 arranged below a cover surface 2, a decorative surface 5b arranged behind the display 3 viewed from the observer and comprises a scatter disk 6b arranged behind the decorative surface 5b.

In addition, a decorative surface 5 a with a scatter disk 6a is arranged under the cover surface 2 in each of the areas on the right and the left next to the display 3.

The background illumination of the display arrangement 1 is realized by several light sources 7 arranged behind the scatter disks 6a as well as behind the scatter disk 6b. Alternatively, a background illumination can also be made available with several (not shown) photo-elements and several light sources 7 arranged, for example, in the edge area of the display arrangement 1 which are connected to the photo-elements.

The tinting 9 which occurs or increases in the edge areas of the cover surface 2 can also be recognized in fig. 2 which imparts a unified impression over the entire surface of the display arrangement 1 to the observer. In particular, the transitions between the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b arranged in different planes are perceived in a non-disturbing manner.

It is especially advantageous to integrate the display arrangement 1, for example, in an area of the dashboard. If the structure of the dashboard surface and the structure of the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b are coordinated with one another, there is the entire impression that the dashboard surface and the surface of the display arrangement 1 form a structural as well as an optical unit. This applies especially to the case if the display 3 is transparent and no information is shown on the display.

Fig. 3 shows the display arrangement of fig. 2 with an exemplary display of information 10. The display 3 is, for example, an OLED display which appears transparently in an operating state in which no information is displayed on the OLED display. Therefore, an observer of the display arrangement 1 can recognize through the cover surface 2 and the display 3 the decorative surface 5b with its corresponding structure.

In order to allow information to appear on the display 3 arranged over the decorative surface 5b, the display 3 is controlled by a control arrangement via the connection line 4, which is not shown in fig. 3. The control by a control signal transmitted from the control arrangement brings about, for example, a generation of black pixels on the display 3 and therefore the representation of texts, graphics and similar displays or outputs.

In the view of fig. 3 the text "The information appears on the display here" is displayed. Since the recognition of the decorative surface 5b arranged below the display 3 is no longer possible at the positions at which black pixels are shown, the observer can recognize the black pixels forming, e.g., a text as floating or projected above the decorative surface 5b.

A controlling of the light sources 7 can take place with a controllable brightness in a supporting manner. The light given off by the light sources 7 is diffusely distributed by the scatter disks 6a, 6b and backlights the area of the decorative surface 5b and of the display 3 as well as the decorative surfaces 5a which are arranged in an area adjacent to the display 3. To this end the decorative surfaces 5 a, 5b are shaped in such a manner that they can be penetrated by the light.

The present invention discloses a stacked construction for a display arrangement 1 which makes it possible to integrate displays into decorative surfaces, for example, in a vehicle. In this manner information can be displayed via almost any type of decorative area or surface, wherein the decorative areas can have a structure of wood, a textured structure and other ones.

List of reference numerals

1 display arrangement

2 cover surface (glass layer)

3 display (OLED)

4 connection line

5 a, 5b decorative surface

6a, 6b scatter disk (light diffusor)

7 light source (LED)

8 optically bonded unit

9 tinting (coloring)

10 display information