JPH10105088A - Electronic information display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electronic information display device capable of preventing indications in a header and footer added to an transmission image from being displayed. SOLUTION: In an image display processing routine, one page of image is recorded in steps d1 to d3 before a magnetic display sheet is transmitted to a display area corresponding to the display window in step d4. Next in step 5d, reading a numerical value (0.5 inches here) of a header deletion HD stored in EEPROM, this display device moves forward the magnetic display sheet by 0.5 inches. Thus, the header information area RA can be concealed from the display window by moving the magnetic display sheet only by a fixed distance after the image recording operation.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic information display device for recording and displaying a still image on a display based on image information sent from an external host device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a magnetically responsive magnetic display sheet has been known as a display body which develops or erases color in response to the direction and strength of a magnetic field (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 48-48).
56393, JP-A-2-146082).

[0003] Such a magnetic display sheet can draw simple characters and figures by contacting a magnet pen with a built-in magnet on the sheet surface, and can be reused many times by erasing. Has been put to practical use.

In recent years, an electronic information display device has been developed which records and displays a still image on a magnetic display sheet by a recording head forming a dot matrix magnetic field based on print information sent from an external host device. Is being done.
Since the electronic information display device can change the display content arbitrarily by remote control from an external host device, it can be installed at public facilities, stations, retail stores, etc. Can be widely announced and advertised. In addition, poster replacement work is not required, which contributes to resource saving of paper and the like, and is therefore expected to be a future bulletin board.

[0005]

To such an electronic information display device, image data is transmitted from an external host device such as a facsimile (FAX) device or a computer. For example, when a facsimile apparatus is used, image data is transmitted through a public line according to the G3 (group 3) standard or the G4 (group 4) standard. When a computer is used, a transmission original is read by a scanner device, or a transmission original is created using original editing software, and then transmitted via a public line via a FAX modem, or serial communication such as RS232C. And can be transmitted by parallel communication such as the Centronics standard.

When an external host device transmits image data, it is normal to transmit a document to be transmitted as it is as image data. However, there are devices that automatically add a header or footer to the beginning or end of an image. It has increased in recent years.
As such a header or footer, a transmission date and time, a transmission source name and telephone number, a reception destination name and telephone number, a page number, and the like are often set.

However, since the image body and the header and footer are the same image data, it is difficult for the receiving electronic information display device to distinguish between the two. Therefore, the header and the footer are displayed on the magnetic display sheet as part of the image data as they are, which is different from the image design expected by the user. Further, since the transmission source and the reception destination include personal information, there are cases where the public does not want to be known.

An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic information display device capable of preventing display of a header or footer added to a transmission image.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided a display element which can be written and erased, a transport means for transporting the display element, and a display element based on image information supplied from an external host device. Recording means for forming a still image thereon, and a display window for limiting the display range of the image recorded on the display body, so that the header or footer of the image is not visible from the display window after the image recording operation. An electronic information display device characterized by moving a display body by a predetermined distance. According to the present invention, after recording the image information supplied from the external host apparatus as it is, the display body is transported to a position corresponding to the display window, and the display body is so displayed that the header or footer of the image is not visible from the display window. Is moved by a predetermined distance, an extra header or footer can be hidden. In addition,
When concealing the footer, it is possible to convey it a little smaller by the predetermined distance from the distance from the recording position to the display window position. For example, if the image size is 400 mm wide x 60 mm long
At 0 mm, if a header is added to the beginning of the image,
It is preferable to further advance the display body by about 10 mm to 25 mm. When a footer is added to the rear end of the image, it is preferable that the display body is retracted by about 10 mm to 25 mm.

The present invention is characterized in that the predetermined distance is stored in a rewritable and non-volatile memory.
According to the present invention, the numerical value of the predetermined distance can be arbitrarily changed by a setting command or the like. In addition, since this numerical value is stored even after the power is turned off, it is possible to operate under the same conditions at the next start-up.

[0011]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of an electronic information display device according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view thereof. A driven roller 50 is disposed on the inner upper portion of the housing 1, and a driving roller 60 is disposed on the inner lower portion. A flexible and endless magnetic member is provided between the two rollers 50 and 60. The display sheet 10 is suspended. Roller 5
Numeral 0 is urged upward by an elastic member (not shown) such as a spring, and applies a constant tension to the magnetic display sheet 10 to stabilize the running of the sheet and maintain the flatness of the sheet surface. The roller 60 is driven to rotate by a motor 63 via gears 61 and 62. By driving the roller 60, the magnetic display sheet 10 is moved from bottom to top on the front side of the housing 1 (left side in FIG. 1 and rear side in FIG. 2), and from the rear side of the housing 1 (right side in FIG. In FIG. 2 (front side), circulation is performed so as to transfer from top to bottom. A rectangular display window 2 made of a transparent material such as acrylic resin or glass is formed on the front surface of the housing 1 to limit a display area of an image to a certain range.

The recording head 30 is installed below the rear surface transfer side of the magnetic display sheet 10 and, based on a print signal from an external host device (not shown), directs a dot matrix toward the surface of the magnetic display sheet 10. A recording magnetic field is generated. The recording head 30 has a plurality of electromagnetic coils arranged in a staggered manner, for example, and is mounted on a carriage 31 that reciprocates in the sheet width direction. The carriage 31 is 2
Endless belt 3 suspended between two pulleys 34, 35
3 and a motor 36 that drives the pulley 35 to rotate while being guided by the two guide shafts 32.
Driven by

The erasing head 20 is composed of a permanent magnet or the like having a length equal to or larger than the sheet width. The erasing head 20 is arranged above the front transfer side of the magnetic display sheet 10 and in close contact with the back side of the magnetic display sheet 10. I have.

Further, by arranging the recording head 30 and the erasing head 20 at a distance of substantially half of the entire length of the sheet in the sheet conveyance path, printing on one recording surface (for example, A surface) is performed while the other is performed. Of the recording surface (for example, surface B) can be simultaneously performed.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing the structure of the magnetic display sheet 10. On the magnetic display sheet 10, microcapsules 15 that develop color in response to magnetism are applied and fixed over the entire surface. The microcapsule 15 is composed of a high-viscosity liquid and a spherical shell that holds the liquid tightly.
In this liquid, substantially black magnetic particles and substantially white non-magnetic particles are dispersed. For example, black iron oxide (FeO) particles having a particle size of 0.1 to 5 μm are used as magnetic particles, and white titanium oxide particles having a particle size of 0.1 to 5 μm are used as nonmagnetic particles. In addition, as the high-viscosity liquid, an aqueous liquid, an oil or fat, an organic solvent including a surfactant-based solvent or the like is used, and gelatin is mainly used as a material of the spherical shell. Distributed in a range.

The microcapsules 15 are kneaded together with a binder 14 made of a highly transparent synthetic rubber-based adhesive or the like, and applied to a substrate 11 made of a transparent material such as polyethylene terephthalate.
A μm capsule coating layer 12 is formed.

A protective sheet 13 made of, for example, a polypropylene long-fiber nonwoven fabric is adhered to the back surface of the capsule coating layer 12 so as to have a thickness of, for example, 300 to 1000 μm.
Seat running is facilitated.

On the other hand, the recording head 30 has a box-shaped yoke 39 made of a high magnetic permeability material, a magnetic core 37 erected inside the yoke 39 and made of a high magnetic permeability material, and an electromagnetic core mounted on the magnetic core 37. And a plurality of magnetic cores 37 and electromagnetic coils 38 corresponding to the plurality of print dots. A number of voids are formed on the printing surface 39a of the yoke 39, and the leading end of the magnetic core 37 is positioned at the center of each void, and the leakage magnetic field is generated by the presence of the void between the magnetic core 37 and the void. Occurs.

When the electromagnetic coil 38 is selectively energized in response to a print signal, a magnetic field is generated along the axial direction of the magnetic core 37 and passes through a magnetic circuit comprising the magnetic core 37, a gap and a yoke 39. , A recording magnetic field is generated toward the magnetic display sheet 10.

Next, the principle of magnetic recording / display and erasure will be described. When the recording head 30 is brought close to the surface of the magnetic display sheet 10 where the substrate 11 is located, and a recording magnetic field is generated based on a print signal, the magnetic particles dispersed in the microcapsules 15 are attracted to the substrate 11 and the pressure is reduced. Thereby, the non-magnetic particles move to the protective sheet 13 side.
Then, when viewed from the front side of the magnetic display sheet 10, the portion to which the recording magnetic field is applied is observed to have a substantially black color. By applying the magnetic field in a dot matrix using the recording head 30, characters and symbols can be displayed. Can be recorded.

Next, when the erasing head 20 is brought close to the back side of the magnetic display sheet 10, that is, the side where the protective sheet 13 is located, the magnetic particles dispersed in the microcapsules 15 are attracted to the protective sheet 13 side, and the pressure is reduced. As a result, the non-magnetic particles move toward the base 11. Then, when viewed from the front side of the magnetic display sheet 10, the portion to which the erasing magnetic field is applied becomes substantially white, and the erasing magnetic field is uniformly erased by applying the erasing magnetic field to the entire sheet width.

As the above-mentioned high-viscosity liquid in the microcapsule 15, a liquid having a predetermined viscosity is selected so as to maintain a display state of the magnetic particles moved to the back side or the front side by applying a magnetic field. That is, if the viscosity of the liquid is low, the display state is prevented from being disturbed by the particles that have once moved to the front side or the back side settling or moving due to vibration or the like. Therefore, the above-described recording head 3
The magnetic attraction force in the zero and erasing heads 20 needs to be greater than the yield value due to the viscosity of the liquid, and thereby writing and erasing of a display are performed.

Next, the operation of the entire apparatus will be described. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, first, before printing is started, the magnetic display sheet 10 is circulated at a constant speed and the erase head 20 is rotated.
To erase the entire surface. Next, a print signal is received from an external host device, and each time the development of image data for one print line is completed, the recording head 30 is moved for several milliseconds to several hundred milliseconds while moving in the sheet width direction. The magnetic printing is performed by applying the pulse current described above and applying a dot matrix magnetic field to the surface of the magnetic display sheet 10.

When the printing for one line is completed, the magnetic display sheet 10 is moved by a predetermined feed pitch and stopped, and then printing is performed based on the image data developed for the next printing line. Thus, the development of the image data, the recording head 30
After forming an image for one sheet while repeating the serial printing and the intermittent feeding of the magnetic display sheet 10, the sheet is rapidly fed to a position corresponding to the display window 2.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of the electronic information display device according to the present invention. The electronic information display device includes a CPU (central processing unit) 71 for controlling the operation of the entire device according to a predetermined program, a clock circuit 72 for generating a clock for determining the operation timing, and a timer circuit 73 for measuring the elapsed time. As shown in FIG. 10C, a clock circuit 91 for measuring today's date, day of the week, and current time, an operation panel 75 including various switches and display LEDs (light emitting diodes), and an operation panel 75 are connected. (I / O) circuit 74 for storing programs and EPROM (Electrically) for storing programs and data.
Programmable Read Only Memory (76) and EEPROM (Eras) which is a non-volatile memory capable of rewriting data
ableElectrically Programmable Read Only Memory) 7
7, a system control circuit 78 for managing control related to the entire apparatus such as display time management and initial operation control at power-on, and an interface circuit 80 for communicating with external devices. Interface circuit 8
0, an interface (I / F) control circuit 79 for controlling the number of rotations and a rotation direction of the motors 36 and 63, a motor control circuit 83 for controlling the rotation direction, and a head control circuit 84 for controlling the operation of the recording head 30. RAM (Random Access Memory) for temporarily storing various data such as print data
85, a memory control circuit 86 for controlling the use area of each of the memories 76, 77, 85, a driver circuit 88 for driving the motors 36, 63 and the recording head 30, a driver control circuit 87 for controlling the driver circuit 88, It is composed of a bus 70 for interconnecting the circuits.

The interface circuit 80 is a facsimile modem (facsimile modem) for transmitting / receiving a signal to / from another facsimile apparatus via a transmission line such as a telephone line.
81 and a serial communication circuit 82 for transmitting and receiving signals to and from another computer in accordance with a communication standard such as RS232C.
And

The alarm circuit 90 includes a sound source such as a buzzer, a chime, and a speaker, and a light source such as a lamp and a light-emitting diode, and is connected to the input / output circuit 74.

5 to 8 are flowcharts showing the operation. First, in step a1 of FIG.
Extracts various initial data stored in advance in the EPROM 76 and the EEPROM 77 as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B and initializes them in the RAM 85. Here, the total page number P is the number of image pages that can be stored in the page memory set in the RAM 85, and the initial value is “8”. Timer value T
Is the time at which the timer circuit 73 measures the time and generates a timer interrupt. The initial value is "0" which means that the timer interrupt is generated immediately after the power is turned on. The header erase HD is a distance for moving the magnetic display sheet 10 after the image recording operation in order to hide the header added to the image from the display window 2, and the initial value is “0.5” inch (about 12 m).
m).

Next, in step a2, it is determined whether or not there is an incoming fax. If there is no incoming fax, the process proceeds to step a4, and it is determined whether or not there is a timer interrupt for determining the timing of switching the current display image to the next image. If there is no timer interrupt, the process returns to step a2, and waits in a loop until a facsimile incoming call of step a2 or a timer interrupt of step a4 occurs.

When a facsimile call arrives at step a2,
At step a3, a data processing routine is executed. Also,
When a timer interrupt occurs in step a4, an interrupt processing routine is executed in step a5.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a data processing routine of step a3. First, in step b1, the FAX modem 81 starts receiving FAX data, determines in step b2 whether or not reception of image data of one page has been completed, and performs scanning in step b3 until reception of image data has been completed. Receiving data line by line, step b
In step 4, the received data is stored in the input buffer set in the RAM 85. When the reception of the image data for one page is completed, the process proceeds to step b5 to search whether or not the command transmission designation mark BB indicating the command transmission document exists in the image data in the input buffer, and specify the command transmission designation. If the mark BB does not exist, it is determined that the image data is display image data, and the image data stored in the input buffer is stored in a display image storage area corresponding to a predetermined page in the page memory in step b6. Next, in step b7, it is determined whether or not data of the next page has been received. If there is data to be received, the flow returns to step b2 to receive image data. Terminates reception and disconnects the line. Step b5
When the command transmission designation mark BB exists, the process goes to step b9 to analyze the image data in the input buffer and to set the operation information such as the operation time zone, the operation day of the week, the chime, the display switching interval, and the header deletion.
7 is stored. When the data processing routine of FIG. 6 ends, the process returns to step a4 of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the interrupt processing routine of step a5. When the timer circuit 73 generates an interrupt, the page number (designated page number) N currently being displayed is read in step c1 and set to the display number L. In the non-display state, the designated page number N is 0. Next, at step c2, the display number L is incremented by one. Next, at step c3, when the display number L exceeds the total number of pages P, when an interrupt occurs in the non-display state, at step c5, the image is displayed. In step c4, the display number L is set to 0 so that the search can be stopped, and if an interrupt occurs in the image display state, the presence or absence of the image of the first page can be searched.

Next, at step c5, L = N is determined, and
When the search for the image to be displayed next has completed one cycle, the search is stopped and an image display stop process is performed when the image data to be displayed is not in the display image storage area. In step c9, the interrupt timer is set in preparation for the next display. After a reset, it has restarted. If there is no image data in the display image storage area corresponding to the display number L in step c6, the process returns to step c2 for displaying the next image.

If image data corresponding to the display number L exists in step c6, the display number L is set to the designated page number N in step c7, and the display processing of the image data corresponding to the designated page number N is performed in step c8. Execute At this time, the designated page number N is also written in the EEPROM 77 and used as an initial setting value at the next power-on.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a display processing routine of step c8. First, at the start of the routine, the alarm circuit 90 is operated, and for example, a rewrite display lamp is turned on to call attention to a pedestrian.
In step d1, the image data corresponding to the designated page number N is read into the print buffer set in the RAM 85, and
In 2, the recording head 30 performs magnetic recording based on the image data in the print buffer while conveying the magnetic display sheet 10. In step d3, it is determined whether or not the recording operation for one page has been completed. When the operation is completed, the magnetic display sheet 10 is transported to the display area corresponding to the display window 2 in step d4.

Next, in step d5, E shown in FIG.
The numerical value (here, 0.5 inch) of the header erase HD stored in the EPROM 77 is read and the magnetic display sheet 1 is read.
Move 0 a further 0.5 inch forward.

FIG. 10 shows an example of an image recorded on the magnetic display sheet 10. The recorded image has an image area RB obtained by directly reading the transmission original as image data, and a header information area RB automatically added by the external host device to the head of the image area RB. The name is recorded as a header. The length of the header information area RB varies depending on the model and settings of the external host device, but is generally at most 1 inch or less. Therefore, in the present apparatus, the numerical value of the header erase HD is set to 0, 0.
Arbitrary settings can be made in three stages of 5, 1; for example, data can be set from the operation panel 75, or remote data can be set by a command transmission document.

By moving the magnetic display sheet 10 by a predetermined distance after the image recording operation in this way, the header information area RA shown in FIG.

Referring back to FIG. 8, after the rewrite display lamp is turned off in step d6, the display time of the image data corresponding to the designated page number N, that is, the timer designated time is stored in the RAM 8.
5, the display time is set in the timer circuit 73 in step d7, and the time until the next timer interrupt is set. In step d8, the timer circuit 73 starts counting time. The current image display is continued until the next timer interrupt occurs, that is, until the display time set in the timer circuit 73 has elapsed.

FIG. 11 shows an example of a command transmission document.
In the command transmission document, a plurality of columns B6 that can be selected as filled or blank are regularly arranged, and are recorded in a mark sheet format that indicates the contents of the command by filling desired columns B6 with a pencil or the like. Various operation conditions such as image display conditions are described for each item. As shown in FIG. 11, for example, the operation start time of the apparatus is 8:00, the operation stop time is 22:00, and the non-operation days are Sunday and Saturday. When a new image arrives, the chime is specified so that the display switching interval is 30 minutes, the header which is the leading portion of the document is erased by 0.5 inch, and the display clear is disabled during non-operation. In order to accurately detect the position of each column B6, a mark index BA is printed on an extension of the column B6 in the arrangement direction.

It is possible to identify the content of the command by receiving such a command transmission original as image data and determining whether or not the mark sheet has been painted out by data analysis. Of these, the header erasure is also identified, and the EEPROM 77 is also identified. Is set to

In the above description, an example of the operation of erasing the header of the image has been described. Similarly, the image footer is also hidden by being conveyed in the reverse direction after the recording operation so that the sheet is not visible from the display window. be able to.

At this time, when the image size is 400 mm wide × 600 mm long and a footer is added to the rear end of the image, it is preferable that the display body is retracted by about 10 mm to 25 mm so that the footer is not displayed. Further, when hiding the footer, it is possible to hide the footer by transporting the footer a predetermined distance less than the distance from the recording position to the display window position. At this time, the image size is 400
When the footer is added to the rear end of the image, the display body is 10 m to 25 mm in comparison with the normal display operation.
It is preferable that the footer is not displayed by conveying by about m less.

[0044]

As described above, according to the present invention, an extra header or footer can be hidden by moving the display body a predetermined distance so that the header or footer of the image cannot be seen from the display window. The visibility and confidentiality (security) of the display image information can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side sectional view of an electronic information display device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view showing an electronic information display device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing a structure of a magnetic display sheet 10.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the electronic information display device according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a data processing routine of step a3.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an interrupt processing routine of step a5.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a display processing routine of step c8.

FIG. 9 is an example of a data format of setting information stored in an EPROM 76 and an EEPROM 77;

FIG. 10 shows an example of an image recorded on a magnetic display sheet 10.

FIG. 11 is an example of a command transmission document.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 housing 2 display window 10 magnetic display sheet 20 erasing head 30 recording head 31 carriage 36, 63 motor 50, 60 roller 71 CPU 73 timer circuit 74 input / output circuit 80 interface circuit 85 RAM

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A writable and erasable display body, a transport means for transporting the display body, and a method for forming a still image on the display body based on image information supplied from an external host device. Recording means, and a display window for limiting a display range of an image recorded on the display body. After the image recording operation, the display body is moved by a predetermined distance so that the header or footer of the image cannot be seen from the display window. An electronic information display device characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. The electronic information display device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined distance is stored in a rewritable and nonvolatile memory.