KR100658690B1 - Plasma display and driving method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A plasma display device and a driving method thereof are provided to reduce power consumption and to secure discharge stability in a frame by selectively applying address auxiliary pulse to A electrodes according to the temperature of a plasma display panel during a sustain period. A method for driving one frame according to plural subfields in a plasma display device having plural first electrodes, plural second electrodes executing a display operation together with the first electrodes, and plural third electrodes formed across the first and second electrodes includes steps of: detecting the temperature of the plasma display device(S310); applying sustain discharge pulse having high and low level voltages to the first and second electrodes at the opposite phases while applying a first voltage to the third electrodes, during a sustain period; and selectively applying address auxiliary pulse to the third electrodes according to the temperature of the plasma display device during plural first periods between the sustain discharge pulses applied to the first and second electrodes, respectively(S330,S340).

Description

Plasma display device and driving method thereof {PLASMA DISPLAY AND DRIVING METHOD THEREOF}

1 is a diagram illustrating a plasma display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

2 illustrates driving waveforms of the plasma display device according to the first and second exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

3 is a diagram illustrating an operation of the controller illustrated in FIG. 1.

4 illustrates a driving waveform of the plasma display device according to the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a plasma display device and a driving method thereof.

The plasma display device is a display device using a plasma display panel that displays text or an image by using plasma generated by gas discharge. In the plasma display panel, dozens to millions or more of discharge cells are arranged in a matrix form according to their size.

In the plasma display device, one frame (1TV field) is divided into a plurality of subfields having respective weights and driven, and gray scales are displayed by a combination of weights of subfields in which a display operation occurs among the plurality of subfields. In the address period of each subfield, discharge cells to emit light and discharge cells not to emit light are selected by the address discharge, and the discharge cells to emit light selected in the sustain period are sustained and discharged for a period corresponding to the weight of the subfield to display an image. do.

In this sustain period, a sustain discharge pulse having a high level voltage (for example, a Vs voltage) and a low level voltage (for example, 0 V) is applied to the scan electrode and the sustain electrode in opposite phases. In this case, first, a Vs voltage is applied to the scan electrode and a 0 V voltage is applied to the sustain electrode, so that sustain discharge occurs between the scan electrode and the sustain electrode, and the sustain discharge causes negative (-) wall charges and ( +) Wall charges are formed. At this time, since the 0V voltage is also applied to the address electrode, the positive wall charges are dispersed not only in the sustain electrode but also in the address electrode. Therefore, the wall electrodes are not formed sufficiently in the sustain electrode. In this state, when the Vs voltage is subsequently applied to the sustain electrode and the 0 V voltage is applied to the scan electrode, there is a problem in that the luminous efficiency caused by the sustain discharge is lowered.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in an effort to provide a plasma display device and a driving method thereof capable of improving luminous efficiency.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a plurality of second electrodes performing a display operation with a plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of first electrodes, and are formed in a direction crossing the first electrode and the second electrode. A method of driving a frame by dividing the frame into a plurality of subfields in a plasma display device including a plurality of third electrodes is provided. The driving method includes sensing a temperature of the plasma display device and applying a sustain discharge pulse having a high level voltage and a low level voltage to a plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in a reverse phase in a sustain period. And in a plurality of first periods positioned between the sustain discharge pulses applied to the plurality of first electrodes and the sustain discharge pulses applied to the plurality of second electrodes according to the sensed temperature of the plasma display device. Selectively applying an address auxiliary pulse to the plurality of third electrodes.

According to another feature of the present invention, the plasma display panel includes a plasma display panel, a driver, a temperature sensor, and a controller. The plasma display panel includes a plurality of second electrodes performing a display operation together with a plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of first electrodes, and a plurality of third electrodes formed in a direction crossing the first electrode and the second electrode. And a plurality of discharge cells formed by the first electrode, the second electrode, and the third electrode. The driving unit has a sustain discharge pulse having a high level voltage and a low level voltage in the opposite phase to the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in a state in which a first voltage is applied to the plurality of third electrodes in a sustain period. And a second voltage is applied to the plurality of third electrodes in a plurality of first periods positioned between a sustain discharge pulse applied to the plurality of first electrodes and a sustain discharge pulse applied to the plurality of second electrodes. The temperature detector detects the temperature of the plasma display panel. The controller may set the second voltage differently applied to the plurality of third electrodes during the plurality of first periods according to the sensed temperature of the plasma display panel.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art may easily implement the present invention. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. In the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted in order to clearly describe the present invention, and like reference numerals designate like parts throughout the specification. In addition, when a part is said to "include" a certain component, this means that it may further include other components, except to exclude other components unless otherwise stated.

In addition, the wall charge in the present invention refers to a charge formed close to each electrode on the wall (eg, the dielectric layer) of the cell. And the wall charge is not actually in contact with the electrode itself, but is described here as “formed”, “accumulated” or “stacked” on the electrode. In addition, the wall voltage refers to the potential difference formed in the wall of the cell by the wall charge.

First, a plasma display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 1.

1 is a diagram illustrating a plasma display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, a plasma display device according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a plasma display panel 100, a controller 200, an address electrode driver 300, a scan electrode driver 400, and a sustain electrode driver 500. And a temperature sensing unit 600.

The plasma display panel 100 includes a plurality of address electrodes (hereinafter referred to as “A electrodes”) A1 to Am extending in the column direction, and a plurality of sustain electrodes extending in pairs to each other in the row direction (hereinafter, “X”). Electrodes ”(X1 to Xn) and scan electrodes (hereinafter referred to as“ Y electrodes ”) (Y1 to Yn). In general, the X electrodes X1 to Xn are formed corresponding to the respective Y electrodes Y1 to Yn, and the display for displaying images in the sustain period between the X electrodes X1 to Xn and the Y electrodes Y1 to Yn. Perform the action. The Y electrodes Y1 to Yn and the X electrodes X1 to Xn are arranged to be orthogonal to the A electrodes A1 to Am. At this time, the discharge space at the intersection of the A electrodes A1 to Am and the X and Y electrodes X1 to Xn and Y1 to Yn forms the cell 12. The structure of the plasma display panel 100 is an example, and a panel having another structure to which the driving waveform described below may be applied may also be applied to the present invention.

The controller 200 receives an image signal from the outside and outputs an A electrode driving control signal, an X electrode driving control signal, and a Y electrode driving control signal. The controller 200 divides and drives one frame into a plurality of subfields, and each subfield is composed of a reset period, an address period, and a sustain period.

The address electrode driver 300 receives an A electrode driving control signal from the controller 200 and applies a display data signal for selecting a discharge cell to be displayed to each A electrode.

The scan electrode driver 400 receives a Y electrode driving control signal from the controller 200 and applies a driving voltage to the Y electrode.

The sustain electrode driver 500 receives the X electrode driving control signal from the controller 200 and applies a driving voltage to the X electrode.

The temperature detector 600 detects the temperature of the plasma display panel 100 and transmits the temperature to the controller 200.

2 illustrates a driving waveform of the plasma display device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, only the driving waveforms applied to the Y electrode, the X electrode, and the A electrode forming one cell will be described.

As shown in Fig. 2, in the rising period of the reset period, the voltage of the Y electrode gradually increases from the voltage Vs to the voltage Vset while the X electrode is held at the reference voltage (0 V in Fig. 2). In FIG. 2, the voltage of the Y electrode is shown to increase in the form of a lamp. Then, while the voltage of the Y electrode is increased, a weak discharge (hereinafter referred to as “weak discharge”) occurs between the Y electrode and the X electrode and between the Y electrode and the A electrode, and a negative wall charge is applied to the Y electrode. And a positive wall charge is formed on the X and A electrodes.

In the falling period of the reset period, the voltage of the Y electrode gradually decreases from the Vs voltage to the Vnf voltage while the Ve voltage is applied to the X electrode. Then, while the voltage of the Y electrode decreases, a weak discharge occurs between the Y electrode and the X electrode, and between the Y electrode and the A electrode, and the negative wall charges formed on the Y electrode and the positive wall charges formed on the X electrode and the A electrode. Is erased to initialize the discharge cells. In general, the magnitude of the (Vnf-Ve) voltage is set near the discharge start voltage between the Y electrode and the X electrode. As a result, the wall voltage between the Y electrode and the X electrode becomes almost 0 V, whereby a cell that does not have an address discharge in the address period can be prevented from being misdischarged in the sustain period.

In the address period, in order to select discharge cells to emit light, scan pulses having a VscL voltage are sequentially applied to a plurality of Y electrodes while a Ve voltage is applied to the X electrodes. At this time, the Va voltage is applied to the A electrode passing through the discharge cell to emit light among the plurality of discharge cells formed by the Y electrode and the X electrode to which the VscL voltage is applied. Then, an address discharge occurs between the A electrode to which the Va voltage is applied and the Y electrode to which the VscL voltage is applied, and the Y electrode to which the VscL voltage is applied, and the X electrode to which the Ve voltage is applied, thereby causing a positive wall charge, A, to the Y electrode. Negative wall charges are formed on the electrode and the X electrode, respectively. Here, the VscL voltage may be set at a level equal to or lower than the Vnf voltage. The VscH voltage higher than the VscL voltage is applied to the Y electrode to which the VscL voltage is not applied, and the reference voltage is applied to the A electrode of the discharge cell that is not selected.

Meanwhile, in order to perform this operation in the address period, the scan electrode driver 400 selects a Y electrode to which a scan pulse having a VscL voltage is applied among the Y electrodes Y1 to Yn. For example, in the single drive, the Y electrodes can be selected in the order arranged in the vertical direction. When one Y electrode is selected, the address electrode driver 300 selects a discharge cell to be turned on among discharge cells formed by the corresponding Y electrode. That is, the address electrode driver 300 selects a cell to which an address pulse of Va voltage is applied among the A electrodes A1 to Am.

In the sustain period, a sustain discharge pulse having a high level voltage (Vs voltage in FIG. 2) and a low level voltage (0 V in FIG. 2) is applied to the Y electrode and the X electrode during the first period and the third period to discharge to be turned on. A sustain discharge occurs between the Y electrode and the X electrode of the cell. And an address auxiliary pulse having a high level voltage (Va1 voltage in FIG. 2) and a low level voltage (0 V in FIG. 2) at the A electrode during the second and fourth periods between the sustain discharge pulses applied to the Y electrode and the X electrode. Apply. In FIG. 2, the high level voltage of the address auxiliary pulse is illustrated as the Va1 voltage, but the Va voltage may be used. Using the Va voltage as the high level voltage for the address auxiliary pulses reduces the number of additional power supplies than using other voltages. Thereafter, the process of applying the sustain discharge pulse to the Y electrode and the X electrode and the process of applying the address auxiliary pulse to the A electrode are repeated the number of times corresponding to the weight indicated by the corresponding subfield.

Specifically, in the first period of the sustain period, the voltage Vs is applied to the Y electrode and the voltage 0 V is applied to the A electrode and the X electrode. Then, in the address period, sustain discharge occurs between the Y electrode and the X electrode due to the wall voltage formed between the Y electrode and the X electrode and the Vs voltage, and a negative wall charge is formed on the Y electrode and the X electrode and the A electrode. Positive wall charges are formed.

Then, in the second period of the sustain period, a 0 V voltage is applied to the Y electrode and the X electrode and a Va1 voltage is applied to the A electrode. Then, a discharge occurs between the Y electrode and the A electrode by the wall voltage formed between the Y electrode and the A electrode and the Va1 voltage, thereby forming a positive wall charge on the Y electrode and a negative wall charge on the A electrode. do. At this time, since the 0V voltage is also applied to the X electrode, the positive wall charges are formed not only on the Y electrode but also on the X electrode, so that the positive electrode charges increase on the X electrode.

In the third period of the sustain period, the 0 V voltage is applied to the Y electrode and the A electrode, and the Vs voltage is applied to the X electrode. Then, since a large amount of positive wall charges are formed in the X electrode in the second period, sustain discharge occurs well between the Y electrode and the X electrode. As a result, positive wall charges and negative wall charges are formed on the Y electrode and the X electrode, respectively.

Then, in the fourth period of the sustain period, a 0V voltage is applied to the Y electrode and the X electrode and a Vs voltage is applied to the A electrode. At this time, a discharge occurs between the X electrode and the A electrode by the wall voltage formed between the X electrode and the A electrode and the Va1 voltage, thereby forming a positive wall charge on the X electrode and a negative wall charge on the A electrode. do. In addition, as the positive wall charges are attracted to the Y electrode, the positive wall charges increase in the Y electrode. Therefore, sustain discharge occurs well between the Y electrode and the X electrode when the Vs voltage is applied to the Y electrode and the 0 V voltage is applied to the X electrode in the subsequent first period.

In this way, by applying the address auxiliary pulse to the A electrode in the sustain period, discharge stability can be ensured in the sustain period, and in addition to the electric field between the X electrode and the Y electrode in the sustain period, between the Y electrode and the A electrode. In addition, since an electric field is formed to widen the discharge region, and the vacuum ultraviolet rays generated during discharge can be more efficiently transmitted to the phosphor layer, the brightness and discharge efficiency of the plasma display device are improved. However, in order to apply the Va1 voltage to the A electrode in the second and fourth periods, the switching element connected between the power supply supplying the Va1 voltage and the A electrode needs to repeatedly turn on and off, thereby causing the A electrode. The power consumption is increased on the side, which reduces the efficiency increase.

In general, in the plasma display device, the discharge characteristics of the plasma display panel 100 vary with temperature. At high temperatures, the movement of electrons in the discharge space becomes more active, and as the anions and cations in the cell merge, the cations and anions in the cell may be reduced. This may result in low discharge at high temperatures. In addition, at low temperatures, the movement of electrons in the discharge space is slow, and wall charges are not generated well, so low discharge may occur even at low temperatures. Therefore, the following embodiment can reduce the power consumption by selectively applying the address auxiliary pulse to the A electrode in the sustain period according to the temperature of the plasma display device, and to ensure the discharge stability when the probability of low discharge is high. It demonstrates with reference to FIG. 3 and FIG.

3 is a diagram illustrating an operation of the controller illustrated in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 200 sets to selectively apply an address auxiliary pulse applied to the A electrode according to the temperature of the plasma display panel 100. That is, the controller 200 receives the temperature of the plasma display panel 100 sensed by the temperature sensor 600 (S310) and compares the temperature with the first reference temperature and the second reference temperature (S320). In this case, when the controller 200 determines that the temperature of the plasma display panel 100 is higher than the first reference temperature or lower than the second reference temperature, the control unit 200 supplies the address assistance to the A electrode in the first period and the third period of the sustain period. When a control signal is transmitted to the address electrode driver 300 so that a pulse is applied (S330, see FIG. 2), and the temperature of the plasma display panel 100 is determined to be a temperature between the first reference temperature and the second reference temperature, The control signal is transmitted to the address electrode driver so that the address auxiliary pulse is not applied to the A electrode in the first period and the third period of the sustain period (S340, see FIG. 4). In this case, generally, the temperature between the first reference temperature and the second reference temperature is generally a temperature range of room temperature, and the room temperature may be a temperature between 15 degrees and 25 degrees.

4 illustrates a driving waveform of the plasma display device according to the second exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 4, the driving waveform according to the second embodiment of the present invention is similar to the first embodiment. The difference is that the address auxiliary pulse is not applied to the A electrode in the first period and the third period of the sustain period. That is, when the temperature of the plasma display panel 100 corresponds to the reference temperature, the plasma is applied even when the reference voltage is applied to the A electrode without applying the address auxiliary pulse to the A electrode in the first and third periods of the sustaining period as shown in FIG. 4. Due to the characteristics of the display panel 100, the discharge stability may be sufficiently secured, thereby reducing power consumption.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and improvements of those skilled in the art using the basic concepts of the present invention defined in the following claims are also provided. It belongs to the scope of rights.

As described above, according to the present invention, by selectively applying the address auxiliary pulse to the A electrode in the sustain period according to the temperature of the plasma display panel, the power consumption is reduced and in a frame in which sustain discharge is not probable in a probable manner. Discharge stability is ensured.

Claims (8)

A plasma including a plurality of first electrodes and a plurality of second electrodes performing a display operation together with the plurality of first electrodes, and a plurality of third electrodes formed in a direction crossing the first electrode and the second electrode In the method of driving by dividing a frame into a plurality of subfields in the display device, Sensing a temperature of the plasma display device; Applying a sustain discharge pulse having a high level voltage and a low level voltage to the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in the opposite phase while the first voltage is applied to the plurality of third electrodes in the sustain period; And The plurality of first periods in a plurality of first periods positioned between the sustain discharge pulses applied to the plurality of first electrodes and the sustain discharge pulses applied to the plurality of second electrodes according to the sensed temperature of the plasma display device. And selectively applying an address auxiliary pulse to the third electrode. The method of claim 1, When the temperature of the plasma display device is higher than the first reference temperature or lower than the second reference temperature lower than the first reference temperature, the address auxiliary pulses are applied to the plurality of third electrodes during the plurality of first periods. When the temperature of the plasma display device is between the first reference temperature and the second reference temperature, the method of driving the plasma display device does not apply the address auxiliary pulses to the plurality of third electrodes during the plurality of first periods. . The method according to claim 1 or 2, And applying the first voltage to the plurality of third electrodes during the plurality of first periods when the temperature of the plasma display device is between the first reference temperature and the second reference temperature. The method according to claim 1 or 2, And the high level voltage of the address auxiliary pulse is the same as the voltage applied to the third electrode of the discharge cell to be turned on in the address period. A plurality of second electrodes performing a display operation together with a plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of first electrodes, and a plurality of third electrodes formed in a direction crossing the first electrode and the second electrode, A plasma display panel in which a plurality of discharge cells are formed by the first electrode, the second electrode, and the third electrode; In a sustain period, a sustain discharge pulse having a high level voltage and a low level voltage is applied to the plurality of first electrodes and the plurality of second electrodes in a state in which a first voltage is applied to the plurality of third electrodes in a reverse phase. A driver configured to apply a second voltage to the plurality of third electrodes in a plurality of first periods positioned between a sustain discharge pulse applied to the plurality of first electrodes and a sustain discharge pulse applied to the plurality of second electrodes; A temperature sensing unit sensing a temperature of the plasma display panel; And a controller configured to set the second voltage differently applied to the plurality of third electrodes during the plurality of first periods according to the sensed temperature of the plasma display panel. The method of claim 5, The control unit, The second voltage when the temperature of the detected plasma display panel is between a first temperature and a second temperature higher than the first temperature is less than or equal to the first temperature. The plasma display device which is set lower than the second voltage when the temperature is higher. The method of claim 6, The control unit, And the second voltage when the sensed temperature of the plasma display panel is between the first temperature and the second temperature is set equal to the first voltage. The method of claim 6, The control unit, The second voltage when the sensed temperature of the plasma display panel is lower than the first temperature or higher than the second temperature is set equal to the voltage applied to the third electrode of the discharge cell to be turned on in the address period. Device.

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