Foldable Smartphone…!! How about an “Electronic Scroll” with a flexible display??
Scrolls were the first form of editable record keeping texts, used in ancient Egyptian civilizations. These rolls were made from papyrus, parchment, and/or paper containing writing. In an era of flexible displays, Samsung has won a patent for an “Electronic Scroll” with a flexible display, which might change the aesthetic of smartphones, tablets and/or smart TVs.
A US patent US10416722 is granted to Samsung, on September 17, 2019. The patent makes it possible for a user to carry a Smart TV, roll it up, watch his favorite content and then roll it back in his bag. The patent discloses an electronic device comprising a rotating roll installed between a housing/outer box/casing. A flexible display is wound on the roll which can be withdrawn through the opening by following the rotating direction of the roll.
Further, a housing guide is configured to guide a part of the housing so that the height, width and/or overall size of the housing is reduced. The housing guide can be made using the following arrangements:
Housing guide (shaft gear and rail arrangement) may include a center shaft gear connected to a center shaft of the roll, and a rail fixed to the part of the housing to move. The height, width and/or overall size of the housing is reduced in accordance with power that is transferred from the center shaft gear as the flexible display is withdrawn.
2. Housing guide may include a pressure bar or piston, and a joint lever connected to the pressure bar. The height, width, and/or overall size of the housing is reduced in accordance with the change in length of the pressure bar as the flexible display is withdrawn.
