KR20050050871A - Plasma display panel and driving method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a plasma display panel and a method of driving the same, which generate a scan electrode driving signal, a sustain electrode driving signal and an address electrode driving signal by receiving an external image signal, and apply the same to a plasma panel to display data. The scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal are generated using the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the determined viewing distance, and the address electrode driving signal is output in a subfield array corresponding to the sensed distance. By adjusting the factors affecting the emotional image quality according to the actual distance that a person is watching, the improved image quality can be recognized at any viewing distance.

Description

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

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a plasma display panel (PDP), and more particularly to a driving method for driving a plasma display panel according to a viewing distance.

Recently, flat display devices such as liquid crystal displays (LCDs), field emission displays (FEDs), and PDPs have been actively developed. Among these flat panel display devices, PDPs have advantages of higher luminance and luminous efficiency and wider viewing angles than other flat panel display devices. Therefore, the PDP is in the spotlight as a display device to replace the conventional cathode ray tube (CRT) in a large display device of 40 inches or more.

PDPs are flat display devices that display characters or images using plasma generated by gas discharge, and dozens to millions or more of pixels are arranged in a matrix according to their size. Such PDPs are classified into a direct current type (DC type) and an alternating current type (AC type) according to the shape of the driving voltage waveform applied and the structure of the discharge cell.

In the DC-type PDP, since the electrode is exposed to the discharge space as it is, the current flows in the discharge space while voltage is applied, and there is a disadvantage in that a resistance for current limitation must be made for this purpose. On the other hand, in the AC type PDP, the electrode covers the dielectric layer, so the current is limited by the formation of a natural capacitance component, and the electrode is protected from the impact of ions during discharge.

1 is a partial perspective view of an AC plasma display panel.

As shown in FIG. 1, the scan electrode 4 and the sustain electrode 5 covered with the dielectric layer 2 and the protective film 3 are arranged in parallel on the first substrate 1. A plurality of address electrodes 8 covered with the insulator layer 7 are provided on the second substrate 6. A partition 9 is formed on the insulator layer 7 between the address electrodes 8 in parallel with the address electrode 8. In addition, the phosphor 10 is formed on the surface of the insulator layer 7 and on both side surfaces of the partition wall 9. The first substrate 1 and the second substrate 6 may be arranged with the discharge space 11 therebetween so that the scan electrode 4 and the address electrode 8 and the sustain electrode 5 and the address electrode 8 are orthogonal to each other. It is arranged toward. The discharge space at the intersection of the address electrode 8 and the pair of the scanning electrode 4 and the sustain electrode 5 forms a discharge cell 12.

2 shows a three-electrode surface discharge structure of the plasma display panel.

Referring to FIG. 2, an address electrode is disposed to face the scan electrode and the sustain electrode which are formed in parallel in the discharge space formed by the partition wall. In this structure, a discharge is generated to generate wall charges to select a pixel between the address electrode and the scan electrode, and then a discharge for displaying an image between the scan electrode and the sustain electrode is repeated for a predetermined time.

In addition to forming a discharge space, the partition wall blocks light generated during discharge to prevent cross talk of neighboring pixels. A plurality of such unit structures are formed on a single substrate in a matrix form, and a fluorescent material is applied to each unit structure to form one pixel, and the pixels are gathered to form a plasma display panel. Plasma display panels, which are currently commercialized, generate a discharge in each pixel, and excite a fluorescent material coated on the inner wall of the pixel with ultraviolet rays generated by the discharge to realize a desired color.

In order for a plasma display panel to perform as a color display, it is necessary to implement halftones. Currently, a halftone implementation method of dividing one TV field into a plurality of subfields and controlling the time division is used. have.

3 is a method of implementing halftones of an AC plasma display panel applied in the related art.

FIG. 3 illustrates a 6-bit gray scale implementation method, in which one TV field is divided into six subfields, and each subfield is divided into an address period and a display discharge sustain period.

4 is a diagram showing the number of sustain pulses corresponding to a general average signal level.

Referring to FIG. 4, the higher the average signal level is, the more power is consumed, thereby reducing the number of sustain pulses to perform power control.

On the other hand, in general, the standard of emotional quality that people feel depends on the distance to watch television. For example, when the viewing distance is close, the detailed gradation expression is important, and when the distance is far, the sensitivity of the contrast, that is, the contrast, is sensitive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in an effort to provide a plasma display panel and a driving method thereof that vary contrast and gradation expression methods according to viewing distances in consideration of sensitivity and quality characteristics.

The plasma display panel according to one aspect of the present invention for solving the above problems,

A distance detecting sensor for detecting a distance by transmitting and receiving a signal with an external remote controller;

A plasma panel including a plurality of address electrodes, a plurality of scan electrodes, and a sustain electrode;

A controller configured to receive an image signal, generate the scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the sensed distance, and output the address electrode driving signal in a subfield array corresponding to the sensed distance;

An address data driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the address electrode driving signal to the address electrode;

A sustain electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the sustain electrode driving signal to the sustain electrode;

And a scan electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the scan electrode driving signal to the scan electrode.

The plasma display panel according to another aspect of the present invention for solving this problem,

A distance input unit to receive a viewing distance from a user;

A plasma panel including a plurality of address electrodes, a plurality of scan electrodes, and a sustain electrode;

A control unit configured to receive an image signal, generate the scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the input distance, and output the address electrode driving signal in an array of subfields corresponding to the sensed distance;

An address data driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the address electrode driving signal to the address electrode;

A sustain electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the sustain electrode driving signal to the sustain electrode;

And a scan electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the scan electrode driving signal to the scan electrode.

The driving method of the plasma display panel according to an aspect of the present invention for solving the above problems,

A driving method of a plasma display panel which receives an external image signal, generates a scan electrode driving signal, a sustain electrode driving signal, and an address electrode driving signal, and applies the same to a plasma panel to display data.

A first step of determining a viewing distance;

And generating the scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the viewing distance.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 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. Like parts are designated by like reference numerals throughout the specification. When a part is connected to another part, this includes not only a direct connection but also a connection between other components in between.

A plasma display panel and a driving method thereof according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

5 is a configuration diagram of a plasma display panel according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, the plasma display panel according to the first embodiment of the present invention may include a distance sensor 600, a plasma panel 100, a controller 200, an address electrode driver 300, and a scan electrode driver A 'Y electrode driver' 400 and a sustain electrode driver (hereinafter, referred to as an 'X electrode driver') 500.

The distance sensor 600 detects a distance by transmitting and receiving a signal with an external remote controller (not shown).

The plasma panel 100 includes a plurality of address electrodes A1-Am arranged in the column direction, a plurality of sustain electrodes (hereinafter referred to as 'X electrodes') (X1-Xn) and scan electrodes arranged in the row direction. (Hereinafter referred to as 'Y electrode') (Y1-Yn). The X electrodes X1-Xn are formed corresponding to the respective Y electrodes Y1-Yn, and generally have one end connected in common to each other. The plasma panel 100 includes a glass substrate (not shown) on which the X and Y electrodes X1-Xn and Y1-Yn are arranged, and a glass substrate (not shown) on which the address electrodes A1-Am are arranged. . The two glass substrates are disposed to face each other with the discharge space therebetween so that the Y electrodes Y1-Yn and the address electrodes A1-Am and the X electrodes X1-Xn and the address electrodes A1-Am are orthogonal to each other. At this time, the discharge space at the intersection of the address electrodes A1-Am and the X and Y electrodes X1-Xn and Y1-Yn forms a discharge cell.

The controller 200 receives the image signal, generates a scan electrode driving signal and a sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the input distance, and outputs an address electrode driving signal. The controller 200 divides and drives one frame into a plurality of subfields, and each subfield includes a reset period, an addressing period, and a sustain period.

The address electrode driver 300 receives an address electrode driving signal from the controller 200 and applies a display data signal for selecting a discharge cell to be displayed to each address electrode A1-Am.

The X electrode driver 500 receives an X electrode driving signal from the controller 200 and applies a driving voltage to the X electrodes X1 to Xn.

The Y electrode driver 400 receives the Y electrode driving signal from the controller 200 and applies a driving voltage to the Y electrodes Y1-Yn.

6 is a configuration diagram of the controller of FIG. 5.

Referring to Figure 6, the control unit 200,

An inverse gamma correction unit 210 for outputting an inverse gamma corrected image signal;

A first memory 220 for storing a subfield arrangement structure corresponding to a distance;

A subfield determiner 230 for determining a subfield arrangement corresponding to a distance input from the distance sensor 600 with reference to the first memory 220;

A subfield data generator that receives an inverse gamma corrected image signal from the subfield determiner 230 and generates subfield data in an array of subfields determined by the subfield determiner 230 and outputs the subfield data as an address electrode driving signal; 240;

An average signal level calculator 250 for calculating an average signal level of the inverse gamma corrected image signal;

A second memory 270 that stores the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level and distance;

The automatic power controller 260 reads the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level and distance by referring to the second memory to generate and output a sustain electrode driving signal and a scan electrode driving signal.

Next, an operation of the plasma display panel according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention having such a configuration will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

7 is a diagram showing the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level according to each viewing distance, and FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the subfield arrangement for each distance.

First, the distance sensor 600 transmits and receives a signal with an external remote controller (not shown) to calculate and output a distance.

Then, the inverse gamma correction unit 210 of the controller 200 receives an image signal input from the outside and corrects and outputs the inverse gamma value according to the characteristics of the plasma display panel.

Then, the subfield determiner 230 determines the subfield arrangement corresponding to the distance input from the distance sensor 600 with reference to the first memory 220. In this case, the subfield array structure corresponding to the subfield array is stored in the form of a lookup table in the first memory 220 in advance. An example of such a subfield arrangement is shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 8, the first embodiment of the present invention uses a different number of subfield arrays for each distance in order to use various sustain pulses. That is, different subfield arrangements are used for distance 1, distance 2, and distance 3. Eight subfield arrays are used for distance 1, which allocates a relatively large number of sustain pulses, and ten subfield arrays, for distance 3, which allocates a small number of sustain pulses.

As such, the closer the distance is, the more the number of subfields is used, which reduces the video pseudo contour. As the distance increases, the number of subfields decreases and the pseudo contour amount increases. However, if the distance is far, pseudo contours are relatively hard to recognize, and thus the image quality will not be significantly affected.

Thereafter, the subfield data generator 240 receives the inverse gamma corrected image signal from the subfield determiner 230 and generates subfield data using the subfield array determined by the subfield determiner 230 to generate an address. Output by the electrode drive signal.

Meanwhile, the average signal level calculator 250 calculates and outputs an average signal level of the inverse gamma corrected image signal.

Then, the automatic power controller 260 reads the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level and distance with reference to the second memory 220 to generate and output the sustain electrode driving signal and the scan electrode driving signal. At this time, the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level and distance is stored in the second memory 270 in advance. In addition, a sustain pulse number curve according to the viewing distance information is shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG. 7, the sustain pulse determination curve (distance 1> distance 2> distance 3) according to the viewing distance information increases the number of sustain pulses as the distance increases. As the number of sustain pulses increases, the contrast ratio increases with the increase of the overall luminance, so that a clearer image can be seen.

Here, the number of sustain pulses that can be used depends largely on the number of subfield divisions. Since the address period occupies a large portion, the sustain period depends largely on the number of subfields. In consideration of this, the subfield array and the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the distance are stored in the first memory 220 and the second memory 270.

Then, the address driver 300 receives an address electrode driving signal and applies a display data signal for selecting a discharge cell to be displayed to each address electrode A1-Am.

The X electrode driver 500 receives the X electrode driving signal to apply a driving voltage to the X electrodes X1 to Xn, and the Y electrode driving unit 400 receives the Y electrode driving signal to receive the Y electrode Y1 to Yn. Is applied to the driving voltage.

Then, data is displayed on the plasma panel 100.

As described above, in the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the emotional image quality is improved through various methods according to the input viewing distance information. The closer the viewing distance is, the more sensitive it is to the degree of detailed gray level expression, but even a shorter distance is less sensitive to detailed gray level expression. On the contrary, as the viewing distance increases, the sensitivity is sensitive to contrast ratio, that is, contrast. Therefore, in the first embodiment of the present invention, the gray scale expression method is changed according to the viewing distance by using the visual characteristics.

In the first embodiment, a distance sensor is used to use distance information. In general, the location and viewing distance of the remote control may be regarded as the same. Therefore, the distance was calculated through signal exchange between the remote control and the television.

In such a distance calculation method, the viewing distance information may be input to a television by directly inputting a distance through a remote controller, or the user may input a distance input unit in the television itself.

As described above, an embodiment of directly receiving and using a user's distance input will be described as the second embodiment.

9 is a configuration diagram of a plasma display panel according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

9, the plasma display panel according to the second embodiment of the present invention,

A distance input unit 700 for receiving a viewing distance from a user; A plasma panel 100 including a plurality of address electrodes, a plurality of scan electrodes, and a sustain electrode; A controller 200 which receives the image signal and generates the scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the input distance, and outputs an address electrode driving signal; An address electrode driver 300 for applying a voltage corresponding to the address electrode driving signal to the address electrode; An X electrode driver 500 for applying a voltage corresponding to the sustain electrode driving signal to the sustain electrode; And a Y electrode driver 400 for applying a voltage corresponding to the scan electrode driving signal to the scan electrode.

In the second embodiment, the distance detection is directly input to the distance input unit 700, thereby determining the number of sustain pulses and the arrangement of subfields.

Only the method of receiving the distance is different from that of the first embodiment, and the rest of the operation is the same as that of the first embodiment.

In addition, the embodiment of the present invention may be modified in various ways, and the subfield arrangement and the number of sustain pulses may be variously modified.

Although the preferred 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.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to provide a plasma display panel and a driving method thereof, which have an advantage of recognizing an improved image quality at any viewing distance by adjusting a factor that affects emotional image quality according to an actual distance viewed by a person. .

1 is a partial perspective view of an AC plasma display panel.

2 shows an electrode arrangement diagram of a plasma display panel.

3 is a method of implementing halftones of an AC plasma display panel applied in the related art.

4 is a diagram showing the number of sustain pulses corresponding to a general average signal level.

5 is a configuration diagram of a plasma display panel according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a detailed view of the controller of FIG. 5.

7 is a diagram showing the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level according to each viewing distance.

8 shows a subfield arrangement for each distance.

9 is a configuration diagram of a plasma display panel according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (14)

A distance detecting sensor for detecting a distance by transmitting and receiving a signal with an external remote controller; A plasma panel including a plurality of address electrodes, a plurality of scan electrodes, and a sustain electrode; A controller configured to receive the image signal and generate the scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the sensed distance, and generate and output an address electrode driving signal; An address data driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the address electrode driving signal to the address electrode; A sustain electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the sustain electrode driving signal to the sustain electrode; And a scan electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the scan electrode driving signal to the scan electrode. The method of claim 1, And the control unit outputs the address electrode driving signal in an array of subfields corresponding to the sensed distance. The method of claim 1, The control unit, An inverse gamma correction unit configured to inversely gamma correct and output the video signal; A first memory for storing a subfield arrangement structure corresponding to a distance; A subfield determination unit determining a subfield arrangement corresponding to a distance input from the distance detection sensor with reference to the first memory; And a subfield data generator for receiving an inverse gamma corrected image signal from the subfield determiner and generating subfield data using the subfield array determined by the subfield determiner and outputting the subfield data as an address electrode driving signal. The method of claim 3, And the first memory decreases the number of subfields as the distance increases. The method of claim 3, The control unit, An average signal level calculator for calculating an average signal level of the inverse gamma corrected image signal; A second memory for storing the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level and distance; And an automatic power controller configured to read the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level and the distance by referring to a second memory to generate and output a sustain electrode driving signal and a scan electrode driving signal. The method of claim 5, And the second memory increases the number of sustain pulses as the distance increases. A distance input unit to receive a viewing distance from a user; A plasma panel including a plurality of address electrodes, a plurality of scan electrodes, and a sustain electrode; A controller configured to receive an image signal, generate the scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the input distance, and output the address electrode driving signal in a subfield array corresponding to the sensed distance; An address data driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the address electrode driving signal to the address electrode; A sustain electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the sustain electrode driving signal to the sustain electrode; And a scan electrode driver for applying a voltage corresponding to the scan electrode driving signal to the scan electrode. The method of claim 7, wherein The control unit, An inverse gamma correction unit configured to inversely gamma correct and output the video signal; A first memory for storing a subfield arrangement structure corresponding to a distance; A subfield determination unit determining a subfield arrangement corresponding to a distance input from the distance detection sensor with reference to the first memory; A subfield data generator for receiving an inverse gamma corrected image signal from the subfield determiner and generating subfield data in an array of subfields determined by the subfield determiner and outputting the subfield data as an address electrode driving signal; An average signal level calculator for calculating an average signal level of the inverse gamma corrected image signal; A second memory for storing the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the average signal level and distance; And an automatic power controller configured to read sustain pulse numbers corresponding to the average signal level and distance by referring to a second memory to generate and output a sustain electrode driving signal and a scan electrode driving signal. The method of claim 8, And the first memory decreases the number of subfields as the distance increases. The method of claim 9, And the second memory increases the number of sustain pulses as the distance increases. A driving method of a plasma display panel which receives an external image signal, generates a scan electrode driving signal, a sustain electrode driving signal, and an address electrode driving signal, and applies the same to a plasma panel to display data. A first step of determining a viewing distance; And a second step of generating the scan electrode driving signal and the sustain electrode driving signal with the number of sustain pulses corresponding to the viewing distance. The method of claim 11, The second step, And outputting the address electrode driving signals in an array of subfields corresponding to the sensed distances. The method of claim 12, And the number of subfields decreases as the viewing distance increases. The method of claim 13, And the number of sustain pulses increases as the viewing distance increases.