Samsung Patent Application Describes Tablet With 'Expandable' Display

Samsung might be working on a new tablet with an expandable display. The South Korean tech giant has submitted a patent application that showcases a tablet shell with a flexible display that can be expanded along the same plane. Interestingly, the display can be expanded in two different directions independently, allowing users more control over the size of the display. Samsung says such a display will solve the issue of making the consumer choose between a smaller display and a larger display.

Samsung Patent Application Describes Expandable Display

The patent application was listed on the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) website, which is affiliated with the United Nations (UN). The applicant's name was mentioned as Samsung Electronics and the publication number is WO/2024/150990. The patent application features a series of drawings explaining the mechanism of the tablet's expandable display, and descriptions for each of the drawings.

Drawings from Samsung's patent application
Photo Credit: WIPO

As per the application, Samsung's flexible expandable display technology aims to address the limitations of a foldable smartphone. The company says that while foldable phones allow users to reduce the size of the device by half, “users cannot feel free to choose the screen size according to their preferences” as it only offers two states of single-screen (folded) state and dual-screen (unfolded) state.

In the patent, the company offers a solution in terms of a new design that includes a tablet-shaped shell which is capable of expanding and shrinking in size along the same plane. A flexible display is used for the expansion, and the motion is triggered by a guiding unit and a driving unit.

As per the drawings, a diagonal mechanism is placed within the device that can expand the display in either direction. Samsung says the expansion can either occur simultaneously in both directions, or in a single direction, giving users more control over the size of the display.

The driving unit is described as a gear system where 10 gears are placed on the base shell, 10 on the first side shell, five on the second side shell, six on the third side, and seven on the fourth side. These gears move together controlling the expansion of the display. The guiding unit, as per the patent application, is “configured for synchronously receiving the extra flexible screen” when the shell shrinks, or releasing when the shell expands.

While such a device would offer a novel form factor to the consumer, it should be noted that a patent application is not a confirmation of the development of a device. Samsung may or may not introduce the design to the public in the coming years, even after the patent is granted.