JP2011238067A - Electronic paper and information display system using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic paper which has an information display panel and position coordinate detection means for input and which, being free from connection of many electric lines, can be configured so as to attach/detach freely to/from a drive device and can be freely carried without any peripherals, and to provide an information display system using the same.SOLUTION: The electronic paper 11 comprises an information display panel 12 having a display memory property, position coordinate detection means 17 used to input rewrite information, a driver IC 13 (14) for driving the information display panel, serial-parallel bi-directional conversion means 15 for converting serial signals and parallel signals bi-directionally and a connection terminal connector 16 for receiving signals formed in an external device. The serial-parallel bi-directional conversion means converts the parallel signals input by the position coordinate detection means into serial signals to convey them to the external device, and converts the signals formed by the external device into parallel signals to convey them to the driver IC.

Description

  The present invention relates to an information display system for rewriting information to be displayed on an electronic paper by mounting an electronic paper having an information display panel for displaying information and a position coordinate detecting means on a driving device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there has been known an information display device in which a display medium having a display memory property is sealed between two substrates and the display medium is driven to display information such as an image (see, for example, Patent Document 1). In this information display device, an information display panel, which is a panel structure enclosing a display medium, and elements such as a driver IC for driving, a CPU, a memory, and a power source are all integrated.

JP 2007-148302 A

  In the above-described conventional information display device (also referred to as an information display system), since the information display device and the drive device are integrated, the drive device mounted on the information display device is exclusively mounted on the information display device. The information on the information display panel (information display device) is simply rewritten, in other words, the information on the plurality of information display panels (information display devices) cannot be rewritten with one driving device. There was also an attempt to make the information display device and the drive device detachable, but it required electrical connection with many electrodes extending to the display pixels of the information display panel, and the information display device was driven. It was practically difficult to connect the device once and then remove and reconnect it.

  Further, in the above-described conventional information display device, in the case where the position coordinate detection means such as a touch panel is provided on the information display panel, in addition to the problem of the connection between the information display panel and the driving device, the position coordinate detection means It has been difficult to remove a large number of electrical lines that transmit and receive signals in both directions to and from the drive device after both are connected once.

  The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to divide an information display device (also referred to as an information display system) that has been integrated in the past into an information display (also referred to as electronic paper) and a drive device, A detachable configuration that allows for easy electrical connection with a large number of electrodes necessary for the mounting, and as a result, it is possible to rewrite information on a plurality of electronic papers with a single drive device. It is intended to constitute an information display system comprising an electronic paper that can sufficiently carry a display memory, and a driving device that rewrites information to be displayed on the electronic paper.

  The electronic paper of the present invention includes an information display panel having display memory characteristics, position coordinate detection means used for inputting rewrite information, a driver IC for controlling a drive voltage applied to the information display panel, a serial signal and a parallel signal. A serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means for bidirectionally converting a signal and a connection terminal connector for receiving a signal formed by an external device, wherein the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means is input by the position coordinate detection means. The parallel signal is converted into a serial signal, the converted serial signal is transmitted to the connection terminal connector, the serial signal formed by the external device is converted into a parallel signal, and the converted parallel signal is transmitted to the driver IC. It is characterized by comprising.

  Further, as a preferred example of the electronic paper of the present invention, an information display panel is configured such that a display medium configured as a particle group including a chargeable particle is disposed in a space between panel substrates and controlled by a driver IC. Display information by moving the display medium according to the electric field generated by the voltage, and the position coordinate detection means is a resistive touch panel, a capacitive touch panel, an electromagnetic induction touch panel, a matrix switch touch panel, or a membrane switch system. Either the touch panel or the surface acoustic wave type touch panel, the information display panel is configured flexibly, and as a position coordinate detection means, a membrane switch type touch panel, a resistive film type touch panel or a matrix switch type touch panel, Affection That provided on the back side of the display panel, there is.

  Furthermore, the information display system of the present invention includes the electronic paper having the above-described configuration, and a drive device including at least a terminal connector for connection between the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means and the electronic paper, a CPU, a memory, and a power supply means. The parallel signal formed on the electronic paper side is transmitted to the driving device side by the serial signal converted by the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means mounted on the electronic paper, and the parallel signal formed on the driving device side is transmitted to the driving device. The electronic paper side connection terminal connector and the drive device side connection terminal connector are configured so that the serial signal converted by the mounted serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means is transmitted to the electronic paper side. Terminal connector for connection and terminal connector for connection on drive side When connecting the door to each other and is characterized by being configured so as to transmit the serial signals between the two connectors.

  In the present invention, “parallel-serial conversion” reduces the number of bits of data transmitted synchronously by distributing synchronous data on the time axis with respect to a digital signal transmitted synchronously over 2 bits. It is carried out for the purpose. There are advantages such as a reduction in the number of transmission lines. "Serial-parallel conversion" means reverse conversion of parallel-serial conversion. The “serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means” is a means having a function capable of executing the above-described “serial-parallel conversion” and “parallel-serial conversion”. Further, the “parallel signal” means a digital signal transmitted in synchronization of 2 bits or more. Furthermore, the “serial signal” means a digital signal converted by parallel-serial conversion.

  According to the information display system of the present invention, the electronic paper and the driving device, which are separated from the display side unit and the driving side unit in the information display device (also referred to as an information display system), are connected by using the terminal connector. Since the information is displayed on the paper, when the displayed information is rewritten, the electronic paper is connected to the driving device, and the information display panel mounted on the electronic paper is driven to rewrite the display information. The electronic paper can be removed from the driving device while maintaining the information displayed using the display memory property.

  Also, the electronic paper and the driving device are equipped with serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means for bi-directionally converting serial signals and parallel signals, and the signals sent from the driving device to the electronic paper and the electronic paper position coordinate detection means are driven. Since the signal sent to the device is a serial signal, it is only necessary to connect a small number of electrodes in the electrical connection between the electronic paper and the driving device, and the electronic paper can be easily attached to and detached from the driving device. Became. Therefore, using a plurality of electronic papers that can be connected to one driving device, a plurality of electronic papers are sequentially connected to one driving device to display information, and then removed in a state where the information is displayed. The information can be displayed on a plurality of electronic papers with a single driving device, and the information displayed on the plurality of electronic papers is retained as it is until it is rewritten next. Now it can be carried around.

  Furthermore, the electronic paper of the present invention uses a touch panel of a method arranged on the front side of the information display panel or a method of arrangement on the back side of the information display panel as position coordinate detection means used for inputting rewrite information. Since it can be applied to any type of touch panel using a touch panel, it can be provided as electronic paper suitable for various uses.

  Further, according to the information display system of the present invention, by adopting a configuration in which the communication unit is mounted on the drive device, the information received by the drive device can be displayed on the electronic paper connected to the drive device. Therefore, if the drive device having this communication means is a portable terminal such as a mobile phone, the drive device and the electronic paper can be carried together, and the information desired to be read and the information to be read can be carried. It can be displayed on electronic paper connected to the driving device. In a portable terminal having a display screen on the main body like a mobile phone, the electronic paper of the present invention can also be used as the second display screen, and in that case, an electronic paper that provides a large screen on which information can be easily viewed. It can also be.

(A), (b) is a figure for demonstrating an example of the information display panel using the particle group containing a charging particle as a display memory property display medium used with the electronic paper of this invention, respectively. (A), (b) is a figure for demonstrating the other example of the information display panel using the particle group containing a charging particle as a display memory property display medium used with the electronic paper of this invention, respectively. is there. (A), (b) is a figure for demonstrating an example of the electronic paper of this invention, respectively. It is a block diagram for demonstrating an example of the electronic paper of this invention shown to Fig.3 (a), (b). (A), (b) is a figure for demonstrating the other example of the electronic paper of this invention, respectively. It is a block diagram for demonstrating an example of the electronic paper of this invention shown to Fig.5 (a), (b). It is a block diagram for demonstrating an example of the information display system of this invention. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the other example of the information display system of this invention. It is a block diagram for demonstrating the further another example of the information display system of this invention.

<About the information display panel constituting the electronic paper of the present invention>
First, as an example of an information display panel constituting the electronic paper of the present invention, an example of an information display panel using a particle group including a chargeable particle as a display medium will be described. In the information display panel, an electric field is applied to a display medium sealed in a space between two opposing substrates. Along with the applied electric field direction, the display medium is attracted by an electric field force or a Coulomb force, and the display medium is moved by a change in the electric field direction, whereby information such as an image is displayed. Therefore, it is necessary to design the display panel so that the display medium can move uniformly and maintain the stability when the display information is rewritten or when the display information is continuously displayed. Here, as the force applied to the particles constituting the display medium, in addition to the force attracting each other by the Coulomb force between the particles, an electric mirror image force between the electrode and the substrate, an intermolecular force, a liquid cross-linking force, gravity and the like can be considered.

  As an example of an information display panel having a display memory property that constitutes the electronic paper used in the present invention, an example of an information display panel using a particle group containing a chargeable particle as a display medium is shown in FIGS. It demonstrates based on b)-FIG. 2 (a), (b).

  In the example shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, at least two types of display media (in this case, including negatively charged white particles 3Wa) configured as a particle group including particles having at least optical reflectance and chargeability are included. A white display medium 3W configured as a particle group and a black display medium 3B configured as a particle group including positively-charged black particles 3Ba) in each cell 7 formed of the partition walls 4 on the panel substrate on the back side By applying a voltage between a pair of pixel electrodes formed by an electrode 5 (stripe electrode) provided in 1 and a transparent electrode 6 (stripe electrode) provided on the transparent panel substrate 2 on the observation side facing and orthogonally crossing each other, The substrate is moved perpendicular to the substrates 1 and 2 in accordance with the generated electric field. Then, the white display medium 3W is visually recognized by the observer as shown in FIG. 1A, or the white display is displayed by the observer, or the black display medium 3B is visually recognized by the observer as shown in FIG. Is displayed in a matrix with black and white dots. In addition, in FIG. 1 (a), (b), the partition in front is abbreviate | omitted. Reference numeral 8 denotes an adhesive. Further, here, an example is shown in which cells and pixels (dots) have a one-to-one correspondence. Although the cell space is filled with air here, other gas or vacuum may be used. Moreover, you may fill with an insulating liquid.

  In the example shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b), at least two types of display media (here, including negatively charged white particles 3Wa) configured as a particle group including particles having at least optical reflectance and chargeability are included. The electrode provided on the substrate 1 in each cell formed by the partition walls 4 is a white display medium 3W configured as a particle group and a black display medium 3B configured as a particle group including positively charged black particles 3Ba). 5 (pixel electrode with TFT (thin film transistor)) and the electrode 6 (common electrode) provided on the substrate 2 are moved vertically to the substrates 1 and 2 in accordance with an electric field generated by applying a voltage. Then, the white display medium 3W is visually recognized by the observer as shown in FIG. 2A, or the white display is displayed by the observer, or the black display medium 3B is visually recognized by the observer as shown in FIG. Is displayed in a matrix with black and white dots. In addition, in FIG. 2 (a), (b), the partition in front is abbreviate | omitted. Reference numeral 8 denotes an adhesive. Further, here, an example is shown in which cells and pixels (dots) have a one-to-one correspondence. Although the cell space is filled with air here, other gas or vacuum may be used. Moreover, you may fill with an insulating liquid.

  1 and 2 both show an example in which a particle group serving as a display medium is arranged in a cell formed by dividing a space between substrates. The particle group serving as a display medium is encapsulated in a capsule. Even if the capsule is arranged in the space between the substrates, an information display panel having a similar function can be obtained. The particle group can be enclosed in a capsule together with a gas, or the particle group can be enclosed in a capsule together with an insulating liquid.

<About the electronic paper of the present invention>
3A and 3B are diagrams for explaining an example of the electronic paper of the present invention. In this example, an information display panel having the structure shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B is used, and the same members as those in the examples shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B are denoted by the same reference numerals. The description is omitted. In the example shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the electronic paper 11 of the present invention includes an information display panel 12 that functions as an information display unit for displaying information and a plurality of stripe electrodes 5 in the row direction. The driver IC 13 that supplies the drive voltage for the information to be displayed, the driver IC 14 that supplies the drive voltage for the information to be displayed for each of the plurality of stripe electrodes 6 in the column direction, and the serial signal and the parallel signal are bidirectional. A serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 for converting the signal into a separate terminal, a connection terminal connector 16 for receiving a serial signal transmitted from a separate drive device and sending position information from the position coordinate conversion means 17 to the separate drive device; A touch panel 17 as position coordinate detection means used for inputting information when writing information or rewriting information. It has been made. In this example, the touch panel 17 as the position coordinate detection means is provided on the display surface side (front side) of the information display panel 12 as a resistive film type touch panel, but may be provided on the back side by the position coordinate detection method. it can. For example, an electromagnetic induction touch panel (also referred to as an electromagnetic induction digitizer) is provided on the back side.

  Further, if the information display panel is configured to be thin (for example, the total thickness is 50 μm to 500 μm) and flexible using a flexible substrate, the information display panel can be operated over the information display panel. With this flexible information display panel, even if it is not electromagnetic induction, for example, a resistive film type, matrix switch type, membrane switch type touch panel is placed on the back side and operated through the information display panel. You can also Position coordinate detection and detection means arranged on the back side of the information display panel is preferable because it does not impair the visibility of the information display panel.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram for explaining an example of the electronic paper of the present invention shown in FIGS. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the same members as those in the examples shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the pixel electrode on the front substrate is electrically connected to the rear substrate electrode by the anisotropic conductive film (ACF). The row-direction stripe electrode 5 formed on the front substrate of the information display panel 12 is drawn to the connection electrode on the rear substrate by ACF connection, and the column-direction stripe electrode 6 formed on the rear substrate is The driver IC 13 and the driver IC 14 are both mounted on the rear substrate by a chip-on mounting technique in which the driver IC chip is directly mounted on the substrate. The driver IC 13 and the driver IC 14 each have an output side terminal equal to or greater than the number of row side stripe electrodes and an output side terminal equal to or greater than the number of column side stripe electrodes.

  In addition to mounting the driver IC directly on the board, a flexible board (tape carrier package: sometimes referred to as TCP) on which the driver IC is mounted or a flexible cable on which the driver IC is mounted is mounted on the information display panel board. It is also possible to take a method.

  Between the plurality of driver ICs 13 and the plurality of driver ICs 14 and the parallel port of the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15, a parallel data signal obtained by converting a serial data signal received from the driving device side is transmitted. At this time, one serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 is arranged for the plurality of driver ICs 13 and the plurality of driver ICs 14, and the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 is connected to a terminal connected to the driving device. One connector can be arranged, or serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 is disposed for each of the plurality of driver ICs 13 and the plurality of driver ICs 14, and the plurality of serial-parallel bidirectional conversions are further performed. A connection terminal connector with the driving device may be disposed at the tip of the means 15. In the former, only one serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 and one connection terminal connector are required, but the number of connection terminals of the connection terminal connector is at least the number of driver ICs. In the latter case, at least the number of driver ICs is required for the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 and the connection terminal connectors, but the number of connection terminals of the connection terminal connector is one for data transmission, one for ground connection, The two are enough. Either one can be selected and adopted in consideration of the ease of attaching / detaching the electronic paper to / from the driving device and the rewriting speed at the time of rewriting information.

  Furthermore, the touch panel 17 as the position coordinate detection means and the parallel port of the serial-parallel bidirectional converter 15 are connected in parallel so that parallel signals can be transmitted. In this case, a serial-parallel bidirectional converter 15 dedicated to the touch panel 17 may be used, or the serial-parallel bidirectional converter 15 for the driver circuits 13 and 14 may be shared. In the case of exclusive use, a signal line dedicated to the touch panel 17 is formed in the connection terminal connector 16, and in the case of sharing, the signal lines for the driver circuits 13 and 14 of the connection terminal connector 16 are shared.

  In the electronic paper 11 shown in FIGS. 3A, 3 </ b> B, and 4, by using the connection terminal connector 16, a signal of rewrite information input through the touch panel 17 is transmitted when information is displayed. Or when a signal of the input position information is transmitted, it is connected to a drive device (an example of a separate device, not shown here) and displays according to the input information, utilizing the display memory property Thus, the information can be displayed independently from the driving device while maintaining the displayed information.

  In the above-described example, the information display panel mounted on the electronic paper is a passive drive type that transmits signals to the plurality of stripe electrodes shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. Even when an active drive type using a TFT shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b) is used as a panel, the signal transmitted to the electrode with TFT is processed in the same manner as in the above-described example. It can be suitably applied.

  FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams for explaining other examples of the electronic paper of the present invention, and FIG. 6 shows an example of the electronic paper of the present invention shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B. It is a block diagram for demonstrating. The examples shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 6 have basically the same configuration as the examples shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 4, and the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals. A description thereof will be omitted. 5 (a), (b) and FIG. 6 differ from the examples shown in FIGS. 3 (a), (b) and FIG. 4 in that the information display panel is configured flexibly and the position coordinates are different. The membrane switch type touch panel 18 is arranged on the back side of the information display panel 12 as a detecting means. Also in the examples shown in FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 6, information is displayed by using the connection terminal connector 16 as in the examples shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 4. And when a signal of rewrite information input to the information display panel is transmitted by the membrane switch type touch panel 18 is input by connecting to a drive device (an example of a separate device, not shown here) The display according to the information is performed, and the display memory property is used to maintain the displayed information, and the information can be displayed independently from the driving device.

<About the information display system of the present invention>
FIG. 7 is a block diagram for explaining an example of the information display system of the present invention. In the example illustrated in FIG. 7, the information display system includes an electronic paper 11 and a driving device 21. In this example, the electronic paper 11 is based on the example described with reference to FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 4 except that an electromagnetic induction touch panel is used as a position coordinate detection unit and arranged on the back side of the information display panel. The configuration is the same, and the description thereof is omitted here. In this case, the information display panel may be configured flexibly or may not be configured flexibly.

  In the example shown in FIG. 7, the driving device 21 includes a parallel-serial bidirectional conversion means 22 that converts a parallel signal and a serial signal bidirectionally, a logic controller 23, a power supply means 24, and a data signal as a display medium. It is configured to include a booster circuit 28 for boosting to a voltage level necessary for driving, a CPU 25, a memory 26 for storing various data, and a communication means (not shown) capable of receiving at least data from the outside. . A configuration without a communication unit, a logic controller, and a booster circuit may be employed.

  Data signals are exchanged in the drive device 21 in parallel, and the data signal is converted from a parallel signal to a serial signal by the parallel-serial bidirectional conversion means 22 arranged at the output of the data signal from the drive device 21. That is, the parallel-serial bidirectional conversion means 22 converts the parallel signal input from the parallel port and sends it from the serial port as a serial signal to the connection terminal connector of the driving device. On the other hand, on the electronic paper 11 side, the serial signal input from the serial port of the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 connected to the connection terminal connector of the electronic paper arranged at the entrance of the data signal formed by the driving device is received. The signal is converted and sent from the parallel port to the driver IC as a parallel signal. The connection terminal connector 16 that attaches the electronic paper 11 and the drive device 21 to each other via a connection terminal connector and connects the data signal transmission line is serially connected between the drive device side connector and the electronic paper side connector. Since the number of signal lines for transmitting signals and one ground signal line need only be provided, the number of signal line terminals that need to be connected can be reduced. For example, a connector having four terminals such as a commercially available USB connector can be used, and in an extreme example, a connector having two terminals, that is, a data signal line and a ground terminal line can be used. The smaller the number of terminals of the connector, the easier the connection is. On the other hand, it takes time to transmit the data signal and it takes time to rewrite the display, so the number of terminals is 4 to 16. In the range.

  The operation of transmitting a position information signal input to a separate drive device 21 on a touch panel 17 (here, an electromagnetic induction type touch panel) as position coordinate conversion means of the electronic paper 11 is the electronic paper 11 described above. The serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 and the parallel-serial bidirectional conversion means 22 of the driving device 21 are used to perform an operation opposite to the above-described operation.

  FIG. 7 shows a basic configuration of the electronic paper of the present invention in which the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 is arranged in front of the driver IC in the electronic paper. Functions can also be included in the driver IC. In this case, as shown in FIG. 8, on the electronic paper 11 side, the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means is given to the electronic paper as a serial-parallel bidirectional conversion function. The serial signal input from the input side of the driver IC is converted into a parallel signal by the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion function of the driver IC and sent out from the output side of the driver IC. In addition, a position information signal input from a touch panel 17 (here, a resistive film type touch panel) serving as a position coordinate conversion means is transmitted to the drive device 21 by the operation opposite to the above operation.

  In the information display system shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a signal line used for connection between the electronic paper 11 and the driving device 21 is transmitted by transmitting a data signal as a serial signal between the electronic paper 11 and the driving device 21. Since the number can be reduced, a detachable connection between the electronic paper 11 and the driving device 21 can be achieved with a simple configuration. In addition, by replacing the electronic paper 11 using one driving device 21, information can be displayed on the plurality of electronic papers 11 with only one driving device 21.

  That is, in the information display system of the present invention shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the comparison with the conventional information display device is as follows. When an information display panel having a memory property is used, once an image is displayed, the image is maintained until it is rewritten. Therefore, display on a plurality of electronic papers is possible by changing the electronic papers using one driving device. However, conventionally, since the connection operation between the information display panel and the driving device is not easy, the information display panel and the driving device are usually used as one body. Therefore, even if there is a memory property, in reality, only one information display panel can be used with one drive device, and the memory property cannot be fully utilized. Further, if a light and thin information display panel is adopted for electronic paper, the merit of using a plurality of electronic papers is further increased, and the merit of replacing a plurality of electronic papers in one driving device is increased.

  In the information display system of the present invention shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, a portable terminal represented by a cellular phone can be adopted as a driving device. In this case, the drive device (for example, a mobile phone) is provided with a function of displaying information on a display screen mounted on the drive device, but means necessary for connecting and driving the electronic paper of the present invention. In addition, it is necessary to add at least the logic controller, the booster circuit, and the parallel-serial bidirectional conversion means described above. Since these functions are small and lightweight, the mobile phone can be made into a small and lightweight drive device and does not interfere with the portability of the mobile phone, so it is easy to carry around with electronic paper. Information that is difficult to see on a small screen, such as a screen, can be easily viewed on an electronic paper screen by connecting a separate large screen electronic paper. Also in this case, the necessary information is removed by removing the electronic paper displaying the necessary information from the mobile phone, connecting another electronic paper, displaying the necessary information, and then removing it. You can view all the information in a panoramic view by arranging a plurality of electronic papers that display, or you can see all the information as if you were paging the pages by overlaying a plurality of electronic papers that displayed the necessary information .

  The parallel-serial bidirectional conversion means 22 provided in the driving device and the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 15 provided in the electronic paper are provided for each of the driver ICs mounted on the electronic paper. It can be employed within the range of the configuration in which one is provided. In the configuration in which each driver IC is provided, the number of connection terminal connectors is required and the connection is somewhat difficult, but there is a merit that data signal can be transmitted quickly. In the configuration in which one driver IC is provided, Connection is easy, but there is a demerit that data signal transmission is slow.

  Conventionally, attempts have been made to replace electronic paper with a driving device, but it has not been successful. The reason is that the number of signal lines for sending images to be displayed is large at the connection between the drive unit and electronic paper, making it difficult to connect, and in practice it is difficult to replace the drive unit with electronic paper. It was. Therefore, in order to reduce the number of connections as much as possible and facilitate reconnection, in the present invention, the driver IC is first mounted on the electronic paper side, so that the output side of the driver IC is connected to the actual pixel electrode side. Then, the input side having a smaller number of terminals than the output side is connected to the driving device, so that the number of electrodes connected between the electronic paper and the driving device is greatly reduced, and secondly, a transmission signal to the driver IC. The number of electrodes used for connection between the electronic paper and the driving device is further reduced by using a serial signal. In this way, by integrating the function of the driver IC and the function of serial-parallel bidirectional conversion into electronic paper, it is extremely different from other driving devices (CPU, memory, power supply, boosting means, input device, communication function). Electrical connection was made possible with a small number of terminals. As a result, when the displayed information is rewritten, it can be easily connected to the drive device to rewrite the information, and after rewriting, it can be easily removed from the drive device and can be carried around with the information displayed on the electronic paper and drive An information display system composed of devices could be achieved.

  Furthermore, a touch panel method and an information display panel in which position coordinate detection means for detecting and transmitting position information as rewrite input and position information as write input can be arranged on the front side of the information display panel on the electronic paper side. As a touch-panel type that can be placed on the back side of an electronic device with an input function, you can input and write information you want to display on the electronic paper from the electronic paper side after connecting the electronic paper to the drive unit It is possible to realize an information display system in which paper can be easily attached to and detached from the drive device with a small number of connection terminals.

  FIG. 9 is a block diagram for explaining another example of the information display system of the present invention. In the example illustrated in FIG. 9, the information display system includes an electronic paper 11 and a driving device 21. In this example, the electronic paper 11 has the same configuration as the example described based on FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 6, but the information display panel is configured flexibly. Further, the information display system shown in FIG. 9 has the same configuration as the information display system shown in FIG. 7 except that the membrane switch type touch panel 18 is used as the position coordinate detection means of the electronic paper 11, and is shown in FIG. Although it has the same operation and effect as the example, information cannot be written by handwriting input from the electronic paper side.

<About the touch panel system>
In the matrix switch system, switches with electrodes arranged like a grid pattern are arranged, and when an operation is performed by pressing a part of the surface, the upper and lower two layers of electrodes come into contact with each other to form an electric circuit. This is a mechanism for detecting vertical and horizontal positional information. By comprising with a transparent electrode, it can arrange | position to the front side of the information display panel.

  In the resistance film method, when a voltage is applied to one of two opposing resistance films, a voltage corresponding to the operated position is generated on the second sheet. By detecting the voltage, the place operated as an analog quantity can be detected. By comprising with a transparent electrode, it can arrange | position to the front side of the information display panel.

  The surface acoustic wave method is also called an ultrasonic method, and the position is detected by the following principle. First, piezoelectric elements are attached to a plurality of corners of a substrate such as highly rigid glass to generate vibration waves. When touching the board, it becomes a fixed point, and the vibration wave is absorbed there and part of it rebounds. The rebound is detected by the generation of the voltage of the piezoelectric element. Each reflection time can be measured and the place where the finger etc. contacted can be detected. Since it is excellent in visibility as compared with the resistance film method, it can be preferably arranged on the front side of the information display panel. It is also robust in structure and can have a long service life. As with the resistive film system, what is pressed is not necessarily a finger.

  The capacitive touch panel detects a position by detecting a change in capacitance between the fingertip and the conductive film. Since electrostatic coupling occurs only when the finger approaches the sensor surface, it is possible to display a cursor before contact. What is held down needs to be a finger or an electrostatic conductive material equivalent to the finger. By comprising with a transparent electrode, it can arrange | position to the front side of the information display panel.

  The electromagnetic induction method is generally called a digitizer rather than a touch panel, but a dedicated pen called an electronic pen is required. Even if the information display panel is not flexible, this type of position coordinate detection means can be operated by placing a touch panel serving as a sensor unit on the back side of the information display panel. In addition, if a touch panel is provided with both an electrostatic capacity method and an electromagnetic induction method, an operation can be performed with a pen or a fingertip, and a pen pressure or a side switch can be detected with an electronic pen. According to this method, a high-definition electromagnetic induction pen can be used on an electrostatic touch that normally cannot perform pen input without sacrificing the visibility of the electrostatic touch.

  Membrane switch type touch panel, for example, by printing conductive ink on a polyester film on a silk screen, two types of contact patterns (upper contact sheet, lower contact sheet) are formed, and an insulator with a hole between them The touch panel has a switch configuration in which (spacer) is sandwiched and bonded, and the upper contact is pressed down to be conductive, and the contact type switch system is used. Therefore, the accuracy of position information that can be detected is limited.

<About flexible information display panels>
A resin sheet such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), or polyethersulfone (PES) is suitably used for the substrate of the flexible information display panel. A transparent material is used for the front side that serves as an observation surface, but a material used for the back surface may be transparent or not transparent.

  The thickness is in the range of 25 μm to 200 μm. When the thickness exceeds 200 μm, the flexibility of the information display panel is insufficient, or the touch panel operation through the information display panel becomes difficult. When the thickness is less than 25 μm, handling during manufacture becomes difficult. If a resin sheet having a thickness in the above range is used, an information display panel capable of touch panel operation through the information display panel can be obtained. It is preferable to provide a hard coat layer on the surface which is the outermost surface of the transparent substrate in order to prevent damage from the outside. A general hard coat material can be used for the hard coat layer.

  A dry film resist material is used for a partition wall portion provided for securing a gap between two panel substrates of a flexible information display panel and a partition wall portion provided for forming a cell for storing a particle group as a display medium. The photolithographic technique is used. As an example, Alfo NIT2 (manufactured by Nichigo Morton) or PDF300 (manufactured by Nippon Steel Chemical Co., Ltd.) is used as a dry film resist material.

  In the above partition wall, the width of the partition wall portion for securing the inter-substrate gap is set in the range of 20 μm to 100 μm, and the width of the partition wall portion for forming the cell is set in the range of 5 μm to 30 μm. In addition, the height of the partition wall is set to a range of 5 μm to 100 μm, and the height of the partition wall is set to a range of 10 μm to 100 μm in an information display panel using a particle group including a chargeable particle as a display medium. If the partition formed between the flexible resin sheet substrates is configured as described above, an information display panel capable of touch panel operation through the information display panel can be obtained.

<Display media with display memory>
For the information display panel mounted on the electronic paper of the present invention, a display medium having a display memory property is used. Examples of such a display medium include a particle group including conductive particles, conductive particles, and cholesteric liquid crystal. A method of displaying particles containing charged particles by moving them in gas (including vacuum) or insulating liquid by an electric field, or rotating particles with two different colors and different charging polarities in half by an electric field And a method of changing the phase state by applying a voltage to the cholesteric liquid crystal and a method of displaying a display memory property that is maintained until the state once displayed is rewritten next time. Among these, the method of moving particles containing charged particles in a gas (including vacuum) has a high display memory because the mechanism that adheres to the substrate on which the particles are moved on the inner surface of the panel where the particles are placed. Sex is obtained.

  Since the electronic paper (information display device) of the present invention can be easily attached to and detached from the drive device (display information rewriting device), various uses are possible. Drive devices (display information rewriting devices) such as notebook computers, electronic notebooks, PDAs (personal digital assistants or personal data assistants), mobile phones, handy terminals, portable media players, etc. Can be used. When used in connection with these devices, it can be used as the main display of these portable devices and can also be used as a sub-display with low power consumption.

  In addition, since the electronic paper (information display device) of the present invention can be easily attached and detached and has a memory property, it is possible to use a plurality of pieces of information simultaneously by attaching and detaching a plurality of pieces. is there. Furthermore, when using a fixed electronic device such as a desktop personal computer as a drive device (display information rewriting device), taking advantage of its memory properties, the display information can be rewritten and then removed to remove the printed paper. It can also be used as a rewritable paper. These drive devices (display information rewriting devices) are all equipped with parallel-serial conversion elements, logic controllers and boost circuits for forming images of information to be displayed on the information display panel, CPU, memory, battery, and communication functions. However, it is preferable to connect these devices with some of the functions, and connect the relay device with the missing functions to the electronic paper (information display) of the present invention. You can also

1, 2 Panel substrate 3W White display medium 3Wa White particles 3B Black display medium 3Ba Black particles 4 Partitions 5, 6 Electrode 7 Cell 8 Adhesive 11 Electronic paper (information display)
12 Information display panel 13, 14 Driver IC
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 15 Serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means 16 Connection terminal connector 17 Touch panel 18 Membrane switch 21 Drive apparatus 22 Parallel-serial bidirectional conversion means 23 Logic controller 24 Power supply means 25 CPU
26 Memory 28 Booster circuit

Claims (6)

  An information display panel having display memory characteristics, position coordinate detection means used for inputting rewrite information, a driver IC for controlling a drive voltage applied to the information display panel, and a serial signal and a parallel signal bidirectionally A serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means for converting; and a connection terminal connector for receiving a signal formed by an external device, wherein the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means converts the parallel signal input by the position coordinate detection means. A configuration for converting to a serial signal, transmitting the converted serial signal to the connection terminal connector, converting a serial signal formed by the external device into a parallel signal, and transmitting the converted parallel signal to the driver IC Electronic paper characterized by that.   The information display panel arranges a display medium configured as a particle group including a chargeable particle in a space between panel substrates, and moves the display medium according to an electric field formed by a driving voltage controlled by the driver IC. The electronic paper according to claim 1, wherein information is displayed.   The position coordinate detection means is any one of a resistive touch panel, a capacitive touch panel, an electromagnetic induction touch panel, a matrix switch touch panel, a membrane switch touch panel, or a surface acoustic wave touch panel. The electronic paper according to claim 1 or 2.   The information display panel is configured flexibly, and a membrane switch type touch panel, a resistive film type touch panel, or a matrix switch type touch panel is provided on the back side of the information display panel as the position coordinate detection means. The electronic paper according to claim 1 or 2, wherein   5. The electronic paper according to claim 1, and at least a terminal connector for connecting the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means and the electronic paper, a CPU, a memory, and a drive device including a power supply means. The parallel signal formed on the electronic paper side is transmitted to the drive device side as a serial signal converted by the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means mounted on the electronic paper, and the parallel signal formed on the drive device side is transmitted. The connection terminal connector on the electronic paper side and the connection terminal connector on the drive side so that the serial signal converted by the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion means mounted on the drive device is transmitted to the electronic paper side. The electronic paper side connector terminal connector and the front When connected to the driving device side and a connection terminal connector with each other, the information display system characterized by being configured so as to transmit the serial signals between the two connectors.   6. The serial-parallel bidirectional conversion unit included in the electronic paper and the serial-parallel bidirectional conversion unit included in the driving device are configured by a combination of conversion functions corresponding to each other. The information display system described.

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