JP2008139163A - Indication device and indication method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an indication device and an indication method capable of remarkably improving visibility of indicated information and appearance designability. <P>SOLUTION: In an indication panel 30 of a timepiece, figures such as an hour indication 510, a ten-minute digit indication 521, and a one-minute digit indication 522 are laid out at different positions in a distributed manner. Specific information specified by the current time, as its time indication, is indicated in a first form (black), and information before and after the specific information in the one-minute digit indication, for example, in terms of time sequence, is indicated in a second form (dark gray). Further, the other information is indicated in a third form (light gray). Accordingly, time information is easily grasped, and the entire indication area of the indication panel 30 is efficiently utilized for the indication. Thus, the appearance designability is extremely improved. Namely, the timepiece with indication functions as an accessory is provided. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a display device and a display method.

  In recent years, a ring-shaped timepiece in which a display panel is provided along the circumferential direction has been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1). The display state of the display panel in Patent Document 1 is such that a number indicating hours and a number indicating minutes are displayed with a colon interposed therebetween.

Japanese Patent Laying-Open No. 2006-171712 (FIG. 15)

However, since the display state of the display panel as in Patent Document 1 is the same as that of a conventional general digital display type timepiece, it is poor in design as a timepiece having a ring shape and high decorativeness. In other words, although the display panel is widely provided along the outer periphery of the ring, the time is displayed only on a part of the display panel, so even if the design of the time display displayed on that part is improved The decorativeness from the entire display panel cannot be obtained. This is not a display method utilizing the ring shape.
Moreover, in such a watch, the display area of the display panel is wide along the circumferential direction of the ring, and the ring is easy to rotate around the arm when worn, so that the portion where the time is displayed on the display panel is lost. There is a problem that it is easy.
It should be noted that improving the visibility and appearance of the displayed information is a problem in all display devices including watches. In particular, since the watch has a high hobby, it is not limited to the ring shape, and there is room for improvement in visibility and appearance even when a rectangular display panel is provided in front of the outer case, for example. .

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a display device such as a timepiece and a display method capable of significantly improving the visibility and appearance design of displayed information.

  The display device of the present invention includes a timekeeping unit for timing and a display panel for displaying timekeeping information timed by the timekeeping unit, and the display panel includes a plurality of pieces of time-series information included in the timekeeping information, respectively. The specific information configured to be displayed in a distributed manner on the display panel and sequentially specified from the plurality of pieces of information is displayed in a predetermined first aspect, and the specific information among the plurality of pieces of information is time-sequentially displayed. At least one of the front-rear information before and after is displayed in a second mode different from the first mode.

  The display method of the present invention is a display method in a display device in which a plurality of pieces of time-series information are displayed in a distributed manner, and specific information sequentially specified from the plurality of pieces of information in a predetermined first mode. And displaying at least one of the preceding and following information in the time series with respect to the specific information in a second mode different from the first mode.

  According to these inventions, the information before or after the specific information is displayed in a mode different from the display mode of the specific information sequentially specified from time-series information such as the hour and minute of the current time. For example, when the current time is 8:00 and the specific information is “8”, “7” or “9” is displayed in a second mode different from the first mode related to the display of “8”. That is, a plurality of time-series information displays (for example, 1, 2, 3, 4,..., 12) are dispersed at different positions in the display area. By displaying the information in a manner that can be distinguished from the specific information, it is possible to predict the specific information without looking at the display of the specific information by looking at the information display before or after the specific information. As described above, since it is easy to grasp the timing information, it is possible to realize a display device and a display method that are easy to see and use.

In addition to this, numbers and other information for displaying timekeeping information are laid out in the display area, that is, the entire display area can be effectively used for display, so the appearance design can be greatly improved. Become.
That is, according to the present invention, even in a configuration in which a plurality of pieces of information are displayed in a distributed manner in the display area, the displayed information can be easily found and the visibility and appearance design can be greatly improved. Therefore, it is possible to provide a display device as a decorative product having a display function.

Here, the types of time-series timekeeping information include time such as hour, minute, second, and calendar such as year, month, day, and day of week. It is also possible to display specific information and pre- and post-information.
For example, for information of multiple digits such as minutes, it is also possible to display only the first digit, for example, as specific information in the first mode, and display information before and after that in the second mode. is there.
In addition, regarding the layout of each information display made time series, these information displays may be arranged regularly or irregularly (randomly).

  In the display device according to the aspect of the invention, it is preferable that information that does not correspond to the specific information or the front and rear information among the plurality of pieces of information is displayed in a third mode different from the first and second modes.

  According to the present invention, in addition to the specific information and the front and back information, other information is also displayed, so that the design elements increase and the decorativeness can be obtained from the entire display panel. That is, since the entire display panel becomes one decorative screen, the appearance design can be further improved.

  In the display device of the present invention, it is preferable that the display panel is an electrophoretic display.

According to the present invention, an electrophoretic display using fine electrophoretic particles is adopted to enable high-definition display, and it is possible to display in a mode that can clearly distinguish between the first mode and the second mode. Therefore, it is possible to further improve the visibility of the timing information.
In addition, the electrophoretic display switches between display and non-display on the display surface by applying a voltage between a pair of substrates and moving the electrophoretic particles. When no voltage is applied, the electrophoretic particles Remains at that position and the display state by the particles is maintained. In addition, when this display state is maintained for a long time, a so-called refresh process for returning particles to an appropriate position by applying a voltage may be performed at an appropriate time interval. Since the retention when the display is not switched is high, power saving can be achieved.

The driving method of the electrophoretic display may be a dot matrix method or a segment method. In the present invention, each number or the like indicating timing information is distributed and arranged on the display panel, so that it is free from the so-called 7-segment display in which one number is represented by 7 or 13 segments. Image representation is possible.
In addition, when employ | adopting a segment system, an electrode (electrode formed in a board | substrate) can be formed in the shape of each number which each shows time-measurement information.
In addition, the typeface, size, orientation (vertical orientation, upside down, etc.) of numbers indicating timekeeping information can be freely designed. The font and size may be different between multiple numbers. In addition, for example, a plurality of the same numbers belonging to the same time series can be provided, for example, a plurality of “1” numbers indicating 1 o'clock can be provided, and the design of the fonts, sizes, etc. of the same numbers in that case can be freely made.

  In the display device of the present invention, the difference between the first aspect and the second aspect is due to a difference in display color contrast displayed on the display panel or a difference in display color displayed on the display panel. It is preferable.

According to the present invention, the difference between the first and second modes is the difference in contrast or the difference in color, so that the first and second modes can be easily realized and the display has a sense of unity. be able to.
Here, when an electrophoretic display is employed as the display panel, the electrophoretic display can increase the contrast when the electrophoretic particles move to one substrate side and when the electrophoretic particles move to the other substrate side. There is an advantage that the first and second modes can be expressed with a large contrast difference. This makes it easier to see the display.
In the electrophoretic display, when the first and second modes are expressed by the difference in color, for example, two particles having different colors and different polarities such as white and blue are used. What is necessary is just to utilize the difference in the display color according to the position in an electrophoretic layer.

  The electrophoretic display may be configured by laminating a plurality of panels having a pair of substrates with an electrophoretic layer interposed therebetween. In this case, the color of the particles in each panel, the color of the solution in the electrophoretic layer The contrast and color are expressed by the above.

  The third aspect may also be expressed by the same difference as the difference between the first and second aspects. These first, second, and third modes can be expressed as contrast gradations such as black, dark gray, and light gray, respectively.

  In the display device according to the aspect of the invention, it is preferable that the other of the front and rear information is displayed in a mode different from the first and second modes.

  According to this invention, the display mode of the front and rear information is distinguished from the second mode and the other modes, so that the front and rear information is information before or after the specific information based on the display mode of each of the front and rear information. It is possible to instantly determine whether the information is information, and usability is improved.

  The display device of the present invention preferably includes a substantially annular case, and the display panel is provided in the case in a curved state along the circumferential direction of the case.

According to this invention, since it becomes possible to provide a display panel widely along the circumferential direction of the case, a large-screen display device can be realized, and a bracelet type in which an arm or the like is inserted into the ring of the case Can be provided.
Here, the entire surface of the display panel having a large screen and provided along the circumferential direction of the substantially annular case can be used for information display. That is, it is possible to further improve the appearance design of the large-screen display panel by making use of the fact that the substantially annular case is provided and the overall shape is also substantially annular. In this way, the display panel can be decorated from the entire surface, and the appearance design in this display panel is not limited to the design property of the display panel itself, and is formed in a substantially annular shape with a substantially annular case. This can be applied to the design of the entire display device.
The substantially annular case may not be a continuous ring shape, and may be a C-shape, for example. The substantially annular case shape includes a circular shape, an elliptical shape, a polygonal shape, and the like.

  The electrophoretic display is suitable as a configuration of the present invention because the display panel can have flexibility by adopting a flexible substrate.

  Further, in such a display device having a substantially annular case, the front position of the display is not necessarily determined, and numbers and the like related to time information can be freely laid out on the display panel. In addition, since the specific information and the front and rear information are displayed in the first and second modes, the displayed information can be easily found. Furthermore, even if the case moves around the arm, the displayed information is not lost. That is, the visibility of information can be increased.

  In the display device of the present invention, it is preferable that a plurality of displays showing the same information in time series are arranged at different positions on the display panel.

  According to the present invention, since the specific information and the front and back information are displayed at a plurality of locations on the display panel, the visibility in a curved display panel that is viewed from a plurality of directions can be improved.

The second display device of the present invention includes a display panel that disperses and displays a plurality of types of information, and each of the plurality of information is displayed in a display mode corresponding to the type of the information. Features.
The second display method of the present invention is a display method in a display device in which a plurality of different types of information are displayed in a distributed manner, and each of the plurality of pieces of information is displayed according to the type of the information. It is characterized by being displayed.

According to these inventions, since the type of information can be easily determined based on the display mode, a display device that is easy to see and use can be realized.
In addition, each information is distributed and laid out, that is, the entire display area can be effectively used for display, so that the appearance design of the display device can be greatly improved.
In other words, according to the present invention, it is possible to achieve both ease of viewing and appearance design, and it is possible to remarkably improve these visibility and appearance design. A display device can be provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to significantly improve the visibility and appearance design of displayed information.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
In addition, regarding the description after the second embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted or simplified.

[First Embodiment]
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
[1. overall structure]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electronic timepiece 1 as a display device of the present embodiment. The timepiece 1 is a bracelet type watch that is provided with a display panel 30 along the outer peripheral surface of an annular case 2 and is worn through the arm or the like in the ring.

2 is a cross-sectional view of the timepiece 1, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line III-III of FIG. In FIG. 2, the hatching showing the cross section is omitted.
The timepiece 1 includes a ring-shaped (annular) case 2 and a display module 3 having a display panel 30 that is an electrophoretic display. As shown in FIG. 3, the case 2 has convex portions 21, 21 that protrude outward in the radial direction of the case 2 from both ends in the ring thickness direction, and has a bobbin shape as a whole, between the convex portions 21, 21. A display module 3 is incorporated.
The case 2 includes a cover glass 22 that covers the display module 3 and a back cover 23 that is disposed on the inner peripheral side of the case 2. The back cover 23 is fixed to the convex portion 21 with screws 24.

[2. Display module configuration]
The display module 3 includes a display panel 30 and a drive circuit unit 40 that drives the display panel 30 and includes a timer unit.
FIG. 4 is a plan view of the display panel 30 and the circuit board 42 in the display module 3, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the display panel 30. In FIG. 5, for ease of understanding, the electrophoretic display is shown two-dimensionally (not curved).
As shown in FIG. 4, the circuit board 42 and the display panel 30 are manufactured separately and connected by a wiring member 412 made of an anisotropic conductive film (ACF) or the like.

[3. Configuration of drive circuit section]
The circuit board 42 is a flexible board formed from a flexible resin such as polyimide or polyester. On the circuit board 42, a display panel is configured by a power source 429 configured by a flexible lithium polymer battery or the like and supplying power to each unit, a controller 425 for controlling the entire timepiece 1, and a driver IC. A display drive circuit element 426 that executes 30 display controls, a touch sensor 427, and a crystal oscillation circuit element 428 that constitutes a timer unit are mounted. An operation button 43 for each touch sensor 427 is provided on the case 2.
In addition, the display drive circuit element 426 and the wiring member 412 are connected to each other although not shown in detail.

[4. Display panel configuration]
The display panel 30 is provided in a strip shape over substantially the entire outer peripheral surface of the case 2, and as shown in FIG. 5, the electric power provided between the display substrate 31, the transparent substrate 32, and the display substrate 31 and the transparent substrate 32. The electrophoretic layer 33 is included. The timing information displayed on the display panel 30 is visually recognized through the transparent substrate 32 arranged on the front side. The transparent substrate 32 and the display substrate 31 are formed from a flexible resin such as polyimide or polyester.
As shown in FIG. 2, the display panel 30 is curved into a substantially 360 ° circular shape, and both ends thereof are joined together. In FIG. 2, 34 is an exterior member that hides the seam.

A segment electrode 310 is provided on the surface of the display substrate 31 (a surface facing the transparent substrate 32), and electrodes 321 and 322 that are connected to electrodes on the transparent substrate 32 side are provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction. ing.
A plurality of microcapsules 330 are adhered to the surface of the segment electrode 310 by providing an adhesive (adhesive layer) AD. These microcapsules 330 constitute the electrophoretic layer 33.

  On the back surface of the display substrate 31, segment electrodes 310 formed on the surface of the display substrate 31 and wirings 312 that connect the electrodes 321 and 322 to the circuit substrate 42 via the wiring members 412 (FIG. 4) are formed. Each wiring 312 and each electrode are connected by a via 314 penetrating the display substrate 31 in the thickness direction.

  On the other hand, a transparent common electrode 320 made of ITO (Indium Tin Oxide) or the like is provided on the back surface of the transparent substrate 32 (the surface facing the display substrate 31). The common electrode 320 is provided over substantially the entire back surface of the transparent substrate 32 and is an electrode common to each segment electrode 310 to which a voltage is applied to each segment electrode 310. Conductive members 321A and 322A are interposed between the common electrode 320 and the electrodes 321 and 322, respectively.

  The transparent substrate 32, the microcapsule 330, the display substrate 31 and the like are sealed by the moisture resistant sheet 32A provided on the front surface side of the transparent substrate 32 and the moisture resistant sheet 31A provided on the back surface side of the display substrate 31. .

[5. Display by electrophoresis]
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the electrophoretic layer 33 in the display panel 30. The electrophoretic layer 33 is formed by densely arranging a large number of microcapsules 330, and each microcapsule 330 is filled with an electrophoretic particle dispersion 331 in which a large number of charged particles are dispersed. In the electrophoretic particle dispersion liquid 331, black electrophoretic particles (hereinafter referred to as black particles) 331A and white electrophoretic particles (hereinafter referred to as white particles) 331B are dispersed, and two-color powder-fluid electric An electrophoretic layer is configured. The black particles 331A and the white particles 331B are charged with different polarities, and in this embodiment, the black particles 331A are charged positively (positive) and the white particles 331B are charged negatively (negative).

  That is, when the segment electrode 310 is at a low level potential (L potential) and the common electrode 320 is at a high level potential (H potential), an electric field from the common electrode 320 toward the segment electrode 310 is generated due to the potential difference and is positively charged. The black particles 331A thus moved move toward the segment electrode 310, and the negatively charged white particles 331B move toward the common electrode 320.

  Contrary to the case of the white display, when the segment electrode 310 is set to a high level potential (H potential) and the common electrode 320 is switched to a low level potential (L potential), the direction of the electric field is reversed and the display panel 30 The display is black. In the example of FIG. 7, the segments constituting each number or character are displayed in black.

Further, by adjusting the moving amount of the black particles 331A and the white particles 331B according to the voltage application time, the applied voltage, or the like, it is possible to display an intermediate color with a color gradation between black and white.
When the application of the electric field is stopped, the movement of the black particles 331A and the white particles 331B is stopped, and the display color is maintained as it is.

  In the present embodiment, there are at least four color gradations that can be expressed in the segment electrode 310, black, dark gray, light gray, and white. Due to the difference in contrast between these black, dark gray, light gray, and white, It is possible to display four gradations with different display modes.

[6. Each segment electrode of display panel]
FIG. 7 is a plan view of the display panel 30. In this way, the display panel 30 is laid out so that numbers, characters, and the like are distributed over substantially the entire display panel 30. Corresponding to each of these numbers and characters, segment electrodes 310 formed in the shape of the numbers and characters are provided. These segment electrodes 310 are divided into a plurality of types of display elements, but when the types need not be distinguished, they are collectively referred to as segment electrodes 310.
The display state of FIG. 7 is a state in which areas corresponding to almost all the segment electrodes 310 are displayed in black on the display panel 30.

  A 7-segment display unit 35 using seven segments per number is arranged at one end in the longitudinal direction of the display panel 30. Each of the seven segments and the colon in the 7-segment display unit 35 is composed of segment electrodes 310.

  Note that the display panel 30 includes two drive electrodes (not shown) in order to display the background display unit, which is a region obtained by removing all the segment electrodes 310 and the 7-segment display unit 35 from the rectangular region of the entire display panel 30.

[7. Each display element in the display panel]
8 and 9 show the display by each segment electrode 310 provided on the display panel 30 for each type. As in FIG. 7, in FIGS. 8 and 9, the area of the display panel 30 corresponding to each segment electrode 310 is displayed in black.
FIG. 8A shows twelve hour displays 510 that display “hours”, and each hour display 510 is arranged along one long side of the display panel 30.
FIG. 8B shows six sufficient digit displays 521 for displaying the tens place of “minute”, and each sufficient digit display 521 is a display panel opposite to the side on which the hour display 510 is arranged. It is arranged along 30 long sides.
FIG. 8C shows ten minute digit displays 522 displaying ones of “minutes”, and each minute digit display 522 is between the hour display 510 and the sufficient digit display 521. The display panel 30 is disposed substantially at the center in the width direction.
The display panel 30 includes a portion where the hour display 510, the sufficient digit display 521, and the minute digit display 522 overlap each other.

FIG. 9A shows a crack display 531 that displays cracks on the panel as an image, a sleep display 532 that draws eyes, and a low battery level display 533, respectively.
The crack display 531 is a decorative display that is displayed at the start of an animation display operation that is executed every hour, and the sleep display 532 is displayed in the power saving mode in which the power is operated more than in the normal mode.
FIG. 9B shows a time code display 541 that indicates a time code in the world time function as a phonetic code, and a summer time display 542 that displays a star-shaped mark during daylight saving time.

[8. Time information display mode]
FIG. 10 shows the normal mode of the timepiece 1, and in this normal mode, the current time is displayed on the display panel 30.
The current time displayed in FIG. 10 is 8:27, and there are a time display 510 related to “8”, a sufficient digit display 521 related to “2”, and a minute display 522 related to “7”. Each is displayed in black as the first mode. In FIG. 10, the display of the first mode is indicated by D1.
In the normal mode of the present embodiment, the current time is also displayed on the 7-segment display unit 35.

Here, in this embodiment, the minute digit display 522 related to “7” specified according to the current time from the plurality of minute digit displays 522 is displayed in black as the first mode, and the specified information is displayed. A minute digit display 522 relating to “6” and “8” as front-rear information before and after in time series is displayed in a dark gray color (dark gray) as the second mode. The display of the second mode is indicated by D2 in FIG.
Further, in this embodiment, each hour display 510, each full digit display 521, and each one-minute digit display 522 other than the display displayed in black or dark gray color is a light gray color (light gray) as the third mode. ) Is displayed. The display of the third mode is indicated by D3 in FIG.

The region corresponding to each segment electrode 310 that is not displayed in the first mode (black), the second mode (dark gray), or the third mode (gray), and the region of the background display electrode (not shown) are white. The background display on the display panel 30 is configured.
As time passes, information to be displayed in black as specific information is sequentially selected from each of the hour display 510, each sufficient digit display 521, and each minute display 522, and accordingly, information displayed in dark gray as the preceding and following information. The information that is also changed. That is, the position where the time is displayed changes to a different position on the display panel 30 with the passage of time, so that the user of the watch 1 can be entertained with respect to the change in time.

[9. Display in various modes]
The timepiece 1 has a plurality of types of modes that are switched by operating the operation button 43. For example, the display on the display panel 30 can be reversed in black and white by mode switching.
In order to execute this black and white inversion, the polarity of the applied potential to the common electrode 320 and the applied potential to the segment electrode 310 is reversed by the drive circuit unit 40.
When the display of FIG. 10 is reversed in black and white, the first mode which has been displayed in black becomes white display, and the background display is reversed from white to black. At this time, the second mode, which was displayed in dark gray, is switched to light gray, and the third mode is switched from light gray to dark gray.
Also, in the animation mode that is executed every hour, for example, after the crack display 531 is displayed, in a predetermined area sandwiched between the crack display 531 and the crack display 531, A display state having a motion of repeatedly displaying and not displaying so that characters and the like flow from one end side to the other end side in the longitudinal direction of the display panel 30 is obtained.
Other modes include a time correction mode and a flash mode that switches the entire screen of the display panel 30 to black and white when the power is turned on.

[10. Segment continuity]
The conduction of the segment electrode 310 in this embodiment will be briefly described.
In the present embodiment, two or more or three or more numbers displayed on the display panel 30 overlap each other, but the segment electrodes 310 relating to these numbers and characters are divided into overlapping portions and non-overlapping portions. The overlapping portion and the non-overlapping portion are individually wired through separate vias 314 (FIG. 5).
In the display panel 30, there is a portion where a certain number or the like and another number or the like overlap not only at one place but also at a plurality of places. When displayed, the portions are displayed in the same manner at the same time. Therefore, each portion of the segment electrode 310 in a plurality of overlapping portions is common on the back side of the display substrate 31 through the separate vias 314. The wiring 312 is conducted. The display driver circuit element 426 is connected to the same terminal via the wiring 312 and the wiring member 412.
In wiring, it is effective to laminate a wiring flexible substrate on the back surface of the display substrate 31 (the surface opposite to the transparent substrate 32).

Also, due to the overlapping of numbers etc., some numbers etc. may have multiple non-overlapping parts that do not overlap with other numbers etc., but these non-overlapping parts are also displayed in the same manner at the same time, Each non-overlapping portion is connected to the same terminal of the display drive circuit element 426 through a common wiring 312 (FIG. 5).
In other words, for each electrode that is simultaneously displayed (tuned) in the same mode, the number of terminals required for the entire display panel 30 is kept below the number of output terminals of the display drive circuit element 426 by sharing the terminals. Yes.

[11. Effects of this embodiment]
According to the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) As time display on the display panel 30 of the timepiece 1, specific information specified by the current time is displayed in a first mode (black), and before and after information (in the present embodiment) that is before and after this specific information in time series. 1 minute digit display) is displayed in the second mode (dark gray). In this way, the information before and after is displayed in such a manner that it can be distinguished from the specific information based on the mode, so that the specific information can be predicted just by looking at the information display before or after that. Easy to grasp. Thereby, the ring-shaped timepiece 1 that is easy to see and use is realized.

(2) In addition, numbers such as hour display 510, sufficient digit display 521, and minute digit display 522 are laid out in the display area of display panel 30, that is, the entire display area of display panel 30 is displayed. Since it can be used effectively, the appearance design can be greatly improved.
That is, it is possible to provide the timepiece 1 as a decorative article that has both a viewability and an appearance design and has a display function.

(3) In addition to the specific information indicating the current time and the information before and after that, other information is also displayed in the third mode (light gray), so that design elements increase and the display panel 30 as a whole exhibits a decorative property. It becomes possible to make it. That is, since the entire display panel 30 becomes one decorative screen, the appearance design can be further improved.
Here, the contrast between the third mode (light gray) relating to other information and the display mode (white) of the background display is the difference between the first mode (black) and the second mode (dark gray) and the background display (white). Since it is lower than the contrast between, the visibility of the time display by the 1st, 2nd aspect and design can be made compatible.

(4) Furthermore, since the display panel 30 is an electrophoretic display, high-definition display is possible, and it is possible to display in a mode that can clearly distinguish the first mode and the second mode. Therefore, it is possible to further improve the visibility of the timing information.
In addition, since the electrophoretic display has high display retention, power saving can be achieved.

(5) Since the contrast between white and black in the display panel 30 is high, the first, second, and third modes and the background display mode are four gray levels of black, dark gray, light gray, and white, respectively. It is possible to express clearly by different contrasts.

(6) By adopting the display panel 30 having flexibility, the annular timepiece 1 in which the display panel 30 is provided at 360 ° in the circumferential direction can be realized, and the display panel 30 is thus arranged in an annular shape. The entire display panel 30 has a decorative property.

(7) In the timepiece 1 provided with the substantially annular case 2, the front position of the display is not necessarily determined, and numbers and characters can be freely laid out on the display panel 30, but as described above. Since each information is displayed in a mode with different contrasts, it is easy to find the display information even if the display panel 30 has a large screen and is curved. Further, even when the case 2 goes around the arm, the visibility of the current time can be increased.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a timepiece according to a second embodiment of the invention will be described. Similar to the timepiece 1 of the first embodiment, the timepiece of the present embodiment is also configured by providing a display panel along the outer peripheral portion of the annular case. Except for the contents displayed on the display panel, the above-described implementation is performed. It is the same as the timepiece of the form.
FIG. 11 is a plan view of the display panel 60 of the timepiece according to the present embodiment. In the first embodiment, other information that does not correspond to the specific information specified at the current time and the information before and after that is displayed in the third mode (D3 in FIG. 10). In the present embodiment, these other information Are displayed in white to form a background display.

In FIG. 11, the current time is 8:27, and the hour display 510 and the sufficient digit display 521 are displayed as in the first embodiment.
On the other hand, for the one-digit digit display 522, the information “6” preceding in time series with respect to the specific information “7” displayed in the first mode (black) is displayed in light gray, and the specific information is Information “8” which is later in time series is displayed in dark gray (corresponding to the second mode). That is, the display mode of “6” as the previous information is different from the display mode of “8” as the back information.

According to this embodiment, in addition to the effects substantially the same as (1), (2), and (4) to (7) described in the first embodiment, the following effects are also obtained.
(8) Based on the difference between one display mode (dark gray) and the other display mode (light gray) of the front and rear information, the information “6” before or after the specific information “7” 8 ”can be instantly determined, and the usability is improved.

[Third Embodiment]
Next, a timepiece according to a third embodiment of the invention will be described. Similarly to the timepiece 1 of the first and second embodiments, the timepiece of the present embodiment is configured by providing a display panel along the outer periphery of the annular case, except for the contents displayed on the display panel. This is the same as the timepiece of the first and second embodiments.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of the display panel 70 of the timepiece according to the present embodiment. In this embodiment, the hour display 510 is displayed in the first mode (black), the sufficient digit 521 is displayed in the second mode (dark gray), the minute digit 522 is displayed in the third mode (medium gray), and the background display is displayed in light gray. . In FIG. 12, the first mode is D1, the second mode is D2, the third mode is D3, and the background display is D4.
That is, on the display panel 70, the display showing the hour, minute, and other information is laid out in a distributed manner, and thus various information is displayed in different modes (D1 to D3) for each type. This makes it possible to easily identify information based on the display mode.
According to the present embodiment, it is possible to achieve substantially the same effect as described above, and to greatly improve the visibility and appearance design of the timepiece.

[Fourth Embodiment]
Next, a timepiece according to a fourth embodiment of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 13 is an external plan view of the timepiece 8 of the present embodiment. The timepiece 8 includes a planar electrophoretic display panel 80 having a substantially rectangular shape, not a ring shape, unlike the timepieces of the above embodiments.
A minute hand 85 driven by a driving wheel train on the back side of the display panel 80 is provided in the approximate center of the display panel 80. In the timepiece 8, the minute hand 85 performs analog display for the minute.

On the other hand, the display panel 80 includes segment electrodes 310 having numbers “1” to “12” arranged in a substantially dispersed manner in the entire display area of the display panel 80. The time is displayed in the same manner as the minute digit in the first embodiment (hour display 510).
That is, “hour” as the specific information specified at the current time is “4” in FIG. 13, and the number “4” is displayed in the first mode D1 (black), and the “4” is displayed. The numbers “3” and “5” that are the information before and after are displayed in the second mode D2 (dark gray), and the other numbers are displayed in the third mode D3 (light gray).
According to the present embodiment described above, there are substantially the same effects as (1) to (5) according to the first embodiment.

[Fifth Embodiment]
Next, a timepiece according to a fifth embodiment of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 14 is an external plan view of the timepiece 9 of the present embodiment. The timepiece 9 includes a flat electrophoretic display panel 90 as in the fourth embodiment. The display panel 90 is different from the segment drive type display panel in each of the embodiments described above, and each pixel ( A dot matrix driving method (active method) in which transistors are provided in dots).

The display panel 90 of the present embodiment can perform various image representations by switching the display state of each dot to white / black, and there are various display modes. The display mode shown in FIG. In the upper left of the display panel 90, a minute display unit 95 whose display is updated every minute is arranged. At times, the first embodiment and the fourth embodiment are represented by a plurality of numbers distributed at different positions on the display panel 90. It is displayed in the same manner as in the embodiment (hour display 510). In FIG. 14, a plurality of numbers including “4” at the present time and “3” and “5” which are times before and after the current time are displayed.
Here, in the dot matrix driving method, a plurality of gradation colors such as the first to third modes are expressed according to the black / white area ratio in a set of dots displayed in black and dots displayed in white. It is possible.
The present embodiment as described above also provides substantially the same effects as (1) to (5) according to the first embodiment.

[Modification of the present invention]
Although the embodiment of the present invention has been specifically described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various improvements and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

In the first and second embodiments, only for the minute digit display 522, the specific information is displayed in the first mode, and the front and rear information is displayed in a mode different from the first mode. For the sufficient digit display 521 and the hour display 510, the specific information and the preceding and following information may be displayed in different modes.
In addition, when months and days are displayed on the display panel, the specific information and the preceding and following information may be displayed in different manners for each month and day.

  The display method in the first to fourth embodiments is the segment drive method, but is not limited thereto, and may be a dot matrix drive method. Unlike the segment drive method in which the display shape is determined by the shape of the segment electrode 310, in the dot matrix drive method, the direction and size of numbers for displaying time, the arrangement of numbers, and the like can be switched according to the mode. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the width direction of the display panel 30 is set to be the vertical direction of the display in addition to the longitudinal direction of the display panel 30 being the vertical direction of the display. It is possible to switch the display direction so that is the vertical direction of the display. In the dot matrix driving method, it is possible to perform more various displays in more display modes.

Further, in the display panel 30 of each of the above embodiments, one number indicating the same information in time series is provided for each time display, sufficient digit display, and one-minute digit display. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Instead, a plurality of numbers indicating the same information in time series may be provided at different positions on the display panel. For example, a plurality of numbers “1” indicating 1 o'clock may be provided. The direction, size, typeface, and number displayed at the same time can be arbitrarily configured.
That is, since the specific information and the front and back information are displayed at a plurality of locations on the display panel, each information can be viewed from a plurality of directions of the display panel, and the visibility can be improved.

In the embodiment, the black and white two-particle electrophoresis is performed by the black particles 331A and the white particles 331B. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and one-particle electrophoresis such as blue and white may be performed. Other combinations may be used.
In each of the above-described embodiments, the hour display 510, the sufficient digit display 521, and the minute digit display 522 are regularly arranged along the longitudinal direction of the display panel 30. The arrangement of the 521 and the minute digit display 522 is not limited to this, and may be arranged at random.

Here, the display device of the present invention can be widely applied to various electronic devices having a clock function. Examples of such devices include PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), cellular phones, memory cards, digital cameras, and video cameras. Examples include printers and personal computers.
Note that the present invention is also applicable to a display device that displays information other than timing information as long as it displays information that is sequentially displayed with an order or a plurality of different types of information. The present invention can be applied, that is, can be applied to a display device that does not have a clock function.

Although the best configuration, method and the like for carrying out the present invention have been disclosed in the above description, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the invention has been illustrated and described primarily with respect to particular embodiments, but may be configured for the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art in terms of materials, quantity, and other detailed configurations.
Therefore, the description limited to the shape, material, etc. disclosed above is an example for easy understanding of the present invention, and does not limit the present invention. The description by the name of the member which remove | excluded the limitation of one part or all of such restrictions is included in this invention.

1 is an external perspective view of a timepiece according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The cross-sectional view of the timepiece of the embodiment. III-III sectional view taken on the line of FIG. The top view of the display panel and circuit board of the said embodiment. Sectional drawing of the display panel of the said embodiment. The schematic diagram which shows the electrophoresis layer of a display panel. The top view of the display panel of the said embodiment. The figure which shows the hour display in the display panel of the said embodiment, sufficient digit display, and 1 minute digit display. The figure which shows the decoration display etc. in the display panel of the said embodiment. The figure which shows the time display in the display panel of the said embodiment. The figure which shows the time display in the display panel of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the time display in the display panel of 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the timepiece of 4th Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the timepiece of 5th Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1, 8, 9 ... Clock (display device), 2 ... Case, 30, 60, 70, 80, 90 ... Display panel (electrophoretic display), 331A ... Black particles, 331B ... White particles, 510 ... hour display, 521 ... sufficient digit display, 522 ... minute digit display, D1 ... first mode, D2 ... second mode, D3 ... third Aspect.

Claims (10)

A timekeeping section for timing,
A display panel for displaying timekeeping information timed by the timekeeping unit,
The display panel is configured such that a plurality of pieces of time-series information included in the timekeeping information are displayed in a dispersed manner on the display panel,
The specific information sequentially specified from the plurality of information is displayed in a predetermined first aspect,
Of the plurality of pieces of information, at least one of the preceding and following information that is before and after the specific information in time series is displayed in a second mode different from the first mode. The display device according to claim 1,
Information that does not correspond to the specific information or the front-rear information among the plurality of pieces of information is displayed in a third mode different from the first and second modes. The display device according to claim 1 or 2,
The display device, wherein the display panel is an electrophoretic display. The display device according to claim 1 or 2,
The difference between the first aspect and the second aspect is due to a difference in contrast of display colors displayed on the display panel or a difference in color of display colors displayed on the display panel. . The display device according to claim 1,
The other of the front and rear information is displayed in a mode different from the first and second modes. The display device according to claim 1 or 2,
With a generally annular case,
The display panel is provided in the case in a state of being curved along a circumferential direction of the case. The display device according to claim 6,
A plurality of displays showing the same information in time series are arranged at different positions on the display panel. It has a display panel that disperses and displays multiple types of information,
Each of the plurality of pieces of information is displayed in a display mode corresponding to the type of the information. A display method in a display device that displays a plurality of time-series information in a distributed manner,
Specific information sequentially specified from the plurality of information is displayed in a predetermined first mode;
A display method characterized by displaying at least one of the preceding and following information in time series with respect to the specific information in a second mode different from the first mode among the plurality of pieces of information. A display method in a display device that displays a plurality of different types of information in a distributed manner,
Each of the plurality of pieces of information is displayed in a display mode corresponding to the type of the information.