JPS6031062B2 - flat panel - Google Patents

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to display panels, and more particularly to fan-flat display panels for displaying light bars.

The principles of the invention are particularly useful for displaying analog signals. Although devices for providing visual representations of analog signals are known to those skilled in the art in the prior art, none of these devices are as compact or simple in construction and operation as the device of the present invention. . DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a plan view of a display panel displaying only one row of light bars, which is the basis of a display panel embodying the present invention, and FIG. FIG.

First, the basic structure and operating principle of a display panel for displaying light bars will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. The display panel 10 is generally elongated and rectangular in shape and includes an insulating base plate 20 made of glass, ceramic, or the like, a face plate 30 made of glass or the like, and a viewing window of the panel. Base plate 20 and face plate 30' are hermetically sealed together along a predetermined perimeter by a glass frit seal (not shown), as is well known by those skilled in the art. . Base plate 20 includes top and bottom edges 22 and 24 and left and right edges 26 and 28 (FIG. 1).
.

The base plate 2 also includes an upper surface on which a light absorbing, opaque, preferably black insulating layer 44 is formed. This insulating layer 44 is provided to optimize the perspective contrast of the panel. A row of short, closely spaced thin, parallel cathode lines 50A, 50B, 50C of conductive material are preferably
Formed on layer 44 by a silk screen process. These conductive lines are each close enough that when the lines act as cathodes, the glow of one cathode will appear in combination with the glow of an adjacent cathode. Typically, the cathode line is about 0.254 to 0.3048 ribs (10 to 12
mils) and approximately 0.127 ribs to 0.20
They are separated by a spacing of 32 sails (approximately 5 mm and 8 mils). In one arrangement, conductive lines 50A, 50B, 50
C are oriented perpendicularly to the base plate Nagato, and they are connected in groups, lines 50A, 5
0B and 50C form separate groups. In this way, the two A lines are each separated by the B and C lines, the two B lines are each separated by the A and C lines, and the two C lines are each separated by the A and B lines. Separated. Everything about the A line is 1
A common conductor 60A extends parallel to the longitudinal axis of the base plate towards the lower end 24 where the conductor flops onto a conductor pad 70A.

Similarly, line 50C is a vertical common conductor 60C.
and reaches terminal pad 70C at end 24 of the base plate. The insulating layer 80 is a conductor 60A.
an aperture 84 overlies each line 50B, and one vertical conductor 60B forms on each line 50B.
is formed on the insulating layer 80 and in contact with the terminal pad 70
Reach 8. Insulator 80 (FIG. 2) covers line 60B. A similar insulating layer 83 is formed over conductor 60C and guiding line 50C portions.

In addition, channels 80 and 83 are separated by a suitable distance to provide the desired visible length of each of the conductive lines 50A, 5, OB and 50C therebetween. The exposed length of these flea lines is as shown by the solid line in Figure 1.
This is the part that produces glow during panel operation. This panel includes an auxiliary "reset" cathode line 50R located parallel to and adjacent to another first line 50A.

The conductive line 50R is connected to the contact pad 70R and is turned on first in the operating cycle before the adjacent line 50A, ensuring that the first line 50A turns on when itself is electrically energized. give. In addition, the panel includes a keep-alive cell 85 located adjacent the lower end 24 of the base plate and including a sub-area anode 50KA and a sub-area cathode 50KK connected to appropriate terminal pads SOKK and 60KA. A keep-alive electrode is placed in close proximity to the reset cathode 50R and provides excited particles therefor. Usually, the keep-alive electrode is connected to the power supply V' and is always on, generating excited particles. The faceplate of the panel has a NESA 0 on its lower surface.
an exposed cathode line 50 extending from the upper edge of the panel to the lower weave.
Includes rectangular strips covering A, 50B and 50C. This anode is also in operational relationship with cathode 50R. If desired, a suitable mask may be provided to shield keep-alive cell 85 and reset cathode 50 from view. Such masks may be opaque thin films on the faceplate, or they may be mechanical shields suitably placed within the panel. In panel 10, the base plate and face plate are separated by a distance on the order of 0.5 to 0.635 mils (20 to 25 mils);
Moreover, the gas inside the panel is applied at a pressure on the order of 40 mon. One suitable gas mixture includes 8% neon and 0.2% xenon. Other suitable gas fills may be pure neon. With this arrangement of gas pressures and close spacing of the base plate and face plate, each cathode line 50 and anode 9
When 0 is energized, the cathode glow can be confined to the close vicinity of one energizing sword, even if the cathodes are connected in a group, and the glow moves from cathode to cathode. When used, the pseudo-glow does not spread in undesired locations. This is because the dispersion ability of ionized particles containing metastable states is suppressed and neutralized by the closely spaced base plate and face plate. A suitable circuit for operating panel 10 is schematically illustrated in FIG. A signal source 100 is included.

Separate cathode drivers 130A, 130B, 130C
are connected to each group of cathode lines 50 by a connection to one of the power sword pads 70, and thus connected to one common connector. In addition, the reset cathode driver 130D is connected to the reset cathode/head 7.
0R, and the voltage source V is the keep-alive cell 8
It is connected between the electrodes 50KK and 50KA of No.5. In operation of the panel 10, so connected, the keep-alive cell provides a constant source of excited or ionized particles, and at the start of a scan cycle, the reset conductor driver 130D applies a working potential to the reset cathode 50R. The cathode 50R is operated to generate a glow and generate excited particles, and at this time, the operating potential is reset by the other cathode driver 130.
The voltage is applied to each of the other cathodes 50 in turn, starting with the cathode 50A adjacent to the cathode 50A. Similarly, the actuation potential is applied to the anode 90 from the output of the differential amplifier. As long as there is an output from the differential amplifier, the activation of the cathode line extends from the beginning of the column along the column until the analog and diagonal signals are equal. At this time, there is no output from the differential amplifier and the anode is not energized. However, the series of cathodes is energized to the end, ensuring equal shock coefficients each time a cathode is energized. During this period, the cathodes glow up to the line of the cathode column defined by the magnitude of the analog signal and the length of time the anode is energized. In this way,
A growth line is shown extending along the length of the cathode line representing the amplitude of the analog signal. This action is repeated periodically at a rate at which a static but variable length of light appears as a glow within the panel. Other circuits may also be used to operate panel 10.

For example, a digital clock controlled by an input analog signal may be used to sequentially energize the cathode array and simultaneously energize the anode. When the analog signal ends, the anode is not energized to block the cathode glow, as mentioned previously. FIG. 3 shows a plan view of a fan-flat display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Its basic configuration is similar to that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, but in one embodiment of the present invention, two rows of light bars are provided, and the connection relationship with the necessary cathodes and corresponding common conductors is important. It is a point. Parts substantially corresponding to FIGS. 1 and 2 are indicated using the same reference numerals, and peripheral driver circuits and the like are omitted. Third
In the figure, the display panel 10' includes two rows of cathode lines, one with green 26 at both long ends of the panel base plate,
28. Similar to panel 10 shown in FIG. 1, each cathode row includes cathodes 50A, 50
8 and 50C. Cathodes 50A in the first and second columns are connected to a common conductor 60A. A common conductor 60A extends around the periphery of the base plate and into pad 70A. That is, common conductor 60A
is from one end 24 of the base plate to the first end green 26
, extending along the other end 22 and the second end green 28 to one end 24 of the base plate. Also, cathode 50B
are interconnected across the base plate and further connected to common conductor 60B and pad 70B. In the same machine, cathode 50C is interconnected across the base plate, and also common conductor 60C and pad 70C.
connected to. Using a silkscreening process, the various cathodes and their common conductor can be formed simultaneously and from the same material. As previously discussed, a suitable insulating layer 140 insulates cathode 50B from cathode 50C and covers the cathodes to mask them, as well as two rows of suitable length along each long edge 26 and 28 of the base plate. cathode line. In this case, the faceplate has two anode membranes 90, each overlapping one column cathode line. In addition, the faceplate includes an opaque thin film (not shown) to provide the desired visible pattern for conductive lines, such as auxiliary reset cathode line 50R and Cathode 50KK and anode 90
It may be provided so as to cover two keep-alive cells including KA and arranged adjacent to both reset cathodes 50R. Panel 10' is operated in essentially the same manner as panel 10 and provides two similar lengths of light representing analog input signals. It will be clear that modifications may be made to the special structural features described above.

For example, the anode electrodes may be formed on the faceplate, or they may be formed on one insulating layer carried by the baseplate of the aforementioned panel. For example, anode 90' may be layer 80' in FIG.
and 83 in the dashed line above. In addition, 1
Keep-alive cells can be provided in panel 10' suitably positioned to provide excited particles for both reset electrodes.

[Brief Description of the Drawings] Figure 1 shows the basics of a display panel implementing this invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view of a display panel with only one row of light bars. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2--2 of FIG. Third
The figure is a plan view of a fan flat panel with two rows of light bars according to an embodiment of the invention. In the figure, 10' is a display panel, 2 parts are an insulating base plate, 30 is a face plate, 44, 80 and 83 are insulating layers, and 50A, 50B and 50C are cathode lines. Hair 2 figure Atsushi design 3 figure

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 A flat panel for displaying light bars of different lengths, comprising a gas-filled container including a base plate 20 and a transparent face plate 30 hermetically sealed together, said base plate having first and second ends. Edge 2
a plurality of thin parallel linear first cathodes having ends 24, 22 and arranged in rows on the base plate surface adjacent the first edge 26 of the base plate; a plurality of thin parallel straight second cathodes arranged in rows on the base plate surface adjacent the second edge 28 of the first and second cathodes, each of the first and second cathodes consisting of a selected group of cathodes 50A, a second selected group of cathodes 50B, and a third selected group of cathodes 50C;
electrically connected to the cathodes 50A of the first selected group of cathodes and extending from one end 24 of the base plate along the first end 26, the other end 22 and the second end 28; a first common conductor 60A extending to the one end 24 of the base plate, electrically connected to the second selected group of cathodes 50B of the first and second cathodes, a second portion extending to the one end portion 24;
a common conductor 60B and cathodes 5 of said third selected group of said first and second cathodes;
a third common conductor 6 electrically connected to 0C and extending on the base plate surface to the one end 24 thereof;
0C, said 260B and 360C common conductors are mutually insulated and further include separate anode electrodes 9 overlying and in operative relationship with said respective rows of linear cathodes.
A flat panel containing 0.