KR20160000830A - Electronic Information Label with Enhanced Promotion Feature - Google Patents

Electronic Information Label with Enhanced Promotion Feature Download PDF

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Publication number
KR20160000830A
KR20160000830A KR1020150050981A KR20150050981A KR20160000830A KR 20160000830 A KR20160000830 A KR 20160000830A KR 1020150050981 A KR1020150050981 A KR 1020150050981A KR 20150050981 A KR20150050981 A KR 20150050981A KR 20160000830 A KR20160000830 A KR 20160000830A
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KR
South Korea
Prior art keywords
display
electronic label
tft
driving unit
information
Prior art date
Application number
KR1020150050981A
Other languages
Korean (ko)
Inventor
김대섭
류종기
이태하
Original Assignee
삼성전기주식회사
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
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Application filed by 삼성전기주식회사 filed Critical 삼성전기주식회사
Priority to US14/746,557 priority Critical patent/US20150379965A1/en
Priority to EP15173560.2A priority patent/EP2960893A3/en
Publication of KR20160000830A publication Critical patent/KR20160000830A/en

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    • G—PHYSICS
    • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
    • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
    • G09G3/00—Control arrangements or circuits, of interest only in connection with visual indicators other than cathode-ray tubes
    • G09G3/20—Control arrangements or circuits, of interest only in connection with visual indicators other than cathode-ray tubes for presentation of an assembly of a number of characters, e.g. a page, by composing the assembly by combination of individual elements arranged in a matrix no fixed position being assigned to or needed to be assigned to the individual characters or partial characters
    • G09G3/34—Control arrangements or circuits, of interest only in connection with visual indicators other than cathode-ray tubes for presentation of an assembly of a number of characters, e.g. a page, by composing the assembly by combination of individual elements arranged in a matrix no fixed position being assigned to or needed to be assigned to the individual characters or partial characters by control of light from an independent source
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
    • G09F—DISPLAYING; ADVERTISING; SIGNS; LABELS OR NAME-PLATES; SEALS
    • G09F3/00—Labels, tag tickets, or similar identification or indication means; Seals; Postage or like stamps
    • G09F3/08—Fastening or securing by means not forming part of the material of the label itself
    • G09F3/18—Casings, frames or enclosures for labels
    • G09F3/20—Casings, frames or enclosures for labels for adjustable, removable, or interchangeable labels
    • G09F3/208—Electronic labels, Labels integrating electronic displays
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
    • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
    • G09G2330/00—Aspects of power supply; Aspects of display protection and defect management
    • G09G2330/02—Details of power systems and of start or stop of display operation
    • G09G2330/021—Power management, e.g. power saving
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G09—EDUCATION; CRYPTOGRAPHY; DISPLAY; ADVERTISING; SEALS
    • G09G—ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION
    • G09G2380/00—Specific applications
    • G09G2380/04—Electronic labels

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
  • Computer Hardware Design (AREA)
  • Control Of Indicators Other Than Cathode Ray Tubes (AREA)

Abstract

Disclosed is an electronic label technology for electronically displaying information of products displayed in a store. An electronic label, disclosed in the present invention, includes: an electronic paper display including a first TFT area, corresponding to a first display area on which product information is displayed, and a second TFT area, corresponding to a second display area; a first driving unit which scans and drives columns and rows in the first TFT area; a second driving unit which drives the second TFT area; and a control unit which controls the product information to be displayed in the first display area by controlling the first driving unit and displays promotion information by controlling the second driving unit. The promotion information can be displayed as a graphic or a text by the electronic label technology.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to an electronic label having an improved promotional function,

An electronic labeling technique for electronically displaying information of products displayed in a store is disclosed.

The paper label attached to the shelf of the store is troublesome to replace if the price changes. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION A plurality of electronic information labels (ESLs) are known that replace information on paper labels and display information about products that are attached to the store shelves and displayed in the store. Electronic labels communicate with the management server via gateways. The electronic labels managed through the same gateway can form one group, the electronic labels are divided into a plurality of groups, and the product information is updated for each group. In order to reduce the power consumption of the electronic label powered by the battery, the electronic labels remain in a sleep state except for the wakeup period required for information update. Also, the display uses an electronic paper display (EPD: Electronic Paper Display) that maintains the information display state even when no power is supplied. During the wakeup period, the electronic label listens for communication from the management server, and if there is data to be received from the management server, the electronic label receives and stores the data. This data includes product information.

A special discount time, for example, an electronic label indicating information of a product to which a discount is applied, is blinked at a time when a special discount is applied just before the deadline of the store, so that the customer recognizes that the product as an object of the electronic label is a discounted product . Furthermore, when the electronic label is blinking, it is necessary to control the part of the electronic paper display, for example, only the edge area to be blinking, and the remaining part to display the product information. Furthermore, it is necessary to control the blinking so as to reduce power consumption by periodically changing the display state and to enable various kinds of presentation.

The proposed invention aims at reducing power consumption in electronic labels having a promotional function.

Further, the present invention aims to provide an electronic label having various promotional functions.

Further, the present invention aims to provide an electronic label having a simple structure and good assembling property and having an improved promotional function.

According to an aspect, an electronic label includes an electronic paper display in which a first display area in which product information is displayed and a second display area in which promotion information is displayed are implemented as a single display. According to one aspect, each display area can be distinguished on a TFT substrate, and the two display areas are independently controlled.

According to still another aspect, the TFT area for driving the second display area in which the promotion information is displayed can be displayed by driving the drive lines bundled and fixed.

According to yet another aspect, the second display area to be batch-driven can be driven to blink.

According to another aspect, various information can be displayed in the second display area.

According to another aspect, the variable contents displayed in the second display area can be driven to blink.

According to another aspect, the blinking of the second display area is independent of the control part, and the blinking operation can continue even when the control part is in the sleep state.

According to yet another aspect, the second driver is activated by the timer to blink drive the second display area even in the sleep state.

Promotion information of graphic or text can be displayed by the proposed technique.

Promotion function is implemented with low power by proposed technology. Power consumption is reduced, enabling a significant battery life while supporting the promotion feature. Furthermore, since the proposed technology distinguishes the promotion area on the TFT substrate, the number of parts is reduced and the structure is simple compared with the electronic label having the existing promotion function.

1 shows an overall configuration of an electronic label management system according to an embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the overall structure of an electronic label according to an embodiment.
3 illustrates a TFT substrate of an electronic paper display according to one embodiment.
Fig. 4 shows a TFT substrate 300 of an electronic paper display according to another embodiment.
5 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a second driving unit according to an embodiment.
6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a second driving unit according to another embodiment.

The foregoing and further aspects are embodied through the embodiments described with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood that the components of each embodiment are capable of various combinations within an embodiment as long as no other mention or mutual contradiction exists.

1 shows an overall configuration of an electronic label management system according to an embodiment. The electronic label management server 110 includes electronic labels 171-1-1, 171-1-2, ..., and 171-1-2, which are divided into a plurality of groups and managed through the gateways 131-1, ..., and 131-k. , 171-1-m1, ..., 171-k-1, 171-k-2, ..., 171-k-mk. The electronic label management server 110 is connected to the gateways 131-1 to 131-k in a wired manner and is connected to the gateways 131-1 to 131- The labels communicate according to a protocol defined on the PHY / MAC layer according to short-range wireless communication, for example the IEEE 802.15.4 standard.

The electronic labels are divided into a plurality of groups, and the product information is updated for each group. The electronic labels 171-1-1, 171-1-2, ..., 171-1-m1 managed through the same gateway 131-1 can form one group. In order to reduce the power consumption of the electronic label powered by the battery, the electronic labels remain in a sleep state except for the wakeup period required for information update. Also, the display uses an electronic paper display (EPD: Electronic Paper Display) that maintains the information display state even when no power is supplied. During the wakeup period, the electronic label listens for communication from the management server, and if there is data to be received from the management server, the electronic label receives and stores the data. This data includes product information.

According to one aspect, the electronic label management server 110 stores the electronic labels 171-1-1, 171-1-2, ..., 171-1-m1, ..., 171-k-1,171- 2, ..., 171-k-mk). For example, when a discount sale of a certain commodity is started, the electronic label management server 110 controls the price of the electronic labels corresponding to the commodity to be updated and displayed at a discounted price. In addition, the electronic label management server 110 activates the promotion function of the corresponding electronic labels. For example, control is performed so that a character "discount" is blinked on one side of the electronic labels. The promotion function can be controlled to be activated only for a certain period of time. According to one aspect, the promotion information is always fixed information. According to another aspect, the promotion information may be transmitted from the management server 110 and be variable.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the overall structure of an electronic label according to an embodiment. According to an aspect, an electronic label includes an electronic paper display, a first driving section, a second driving section, and a control section. In one aspect, the electronic paper display 210 includes a first display area 211 and a second display area 213. The electronic paper display is known as a twist ball type of Xerox using hemispherical twist ball filled with electrostatic charge, electrophoretic display of E-ink using electrophoresis and microcapsules, and cholesterol liquid crystal display of Kent Display using cholesterol liquid crystal . In the illustrated embodiment, the electronic paper displays include a TFT substrate on which a thin film transistor (TFT) is formed on a polysilicon layer deposited on a plastic substrate, a transparent electrode substrate, and a microcapsule layer encapsulated therebetween, It may be a product in which CMOS circuits are formed by recrystallizing an edge region of the substrate.

Figure 3 illustrates a TFT substrate 300 of an electronic paper display according to one embodiment. In one embodiment, the first display area 211 displays product information. For example, the product information includes name, origin, weight and the like, which is information of the product itself. In one embodiment, the second display area 213 displays promotion information. For example, the second display area 213 can attract the attention of the customer through an indication that the display is discounted, or a blinking display that alternately displays black and white at regular intervals. As shown in Fig. 3, the TFT substrate 300 has a first TFT region 350 corresponding to the first display region and a second TFT region 370 corresponding to the second display region. The first TFT region 350 is driven by the gate lines 331 to 335 and the data lines 311 to 318. The first TFT region 350 is driven by gate lines 341 to 345 and data lines 321 to 323.

In one embodiment, the first driver 251 scans the rows and columns of the first TFT region 350. In one embodiment, the second driver 253 drives the second TFT region 370. According to another embodiment, the first driver and the second driver may be CMOS circuits integrated on the edge of the TFT substrate. TFT circuits are formed on polysilicon with low crystallinity, and CMOS driver circuits can be formed through additional processes after recrystallizing polysilicon to increase crystallinity.

Since the gate lines and the data lines of the respective TFT regions are driven by separate driving circuits, independent information display is possible. That is, the display of the second display area can be updated without updating the display in the first display area.

In the illustrated embodiment, the control unit 230 is a wireless communication system integrated circuit that processes wireless communication of an electronic label. In this system on chip (SoC), a processor 233, a memory 231, and a timer 239 are integrated on one semiconductor chip in addition to a communication unit 237 for processing wireless communication. In the illustrated embodiment, the processor 233 acts as a main controller for overall control of the entire apparatus. The first driver 251 displays an image for displaying the product information in the first display area 211 in response to the signal from the processor 233. The timer 239 also operates when the processor 233 is in the sleep mode and generates an interrupt at a predetermined cycle set by the processor 233 to wake up the processor 233. [ This wake up time slot may be determined by the electronic label management server so that it does not collide with the electronic label.

The processor 233 controls the first driving unit 251 to receive the product information to be displayed from the communication unit 237 at the time of periodically waking up under the control of the processor 233 Display product information.

5 shows a configuration of a second driving unit according to an embodiment. In one embodiment, the second driving unit 253 includes a blinking driving unit for receiving and storing information to be displayed from the control unit 230, and for blinking display contents by repeatedly displaying and non-displaying information to be displayed can do. The controller 230 receives the promotion information to be displayed and outputs the information to the second driver 253. The second driver 253 stores the promotion information. According to a further aspect, the second driving unit 253 is activated under the control of the control unit 230, and can continue to operate even when the control unit 230 is in the sleep state independently of the control unit 230. [ The second driving unit 253 displays the stored promotion information, for example, the image to be displayed in the second display area 213, and repeats the process of driving the display as white as a whole again after a predetermined time to blink the information display .

In an aspect, the second driving unit may include a timer. In one embodiment, the timer generates an event at regular intervals. The timer also operates when the processor of the control unit is in the sleep mode, thereby generating an event at a predetermined constant cycle. Even when the controller 230 is in the sleep mode, the blinking driver wakes up by the event generated by the timer and achieves the blinking display with low power. The blinking cycle is set by the administrator and can be received by the processor 233 via the communication unit 237 in the wakeup state and transmitted to the second driver 253.

According to another aspect, the second TFT region 370 may include a fixed display region in which driving lines are bundled and driven in a batch. Fig. 4 shows a TFT substrate 300 of an electronic paper display according to another embodiment. In the embodiment of FIG. 4, the gate lines 342, 343 and 344 of the second TFT region 370 are bundled, the gate lines 341 and 345 are bundled, and the data lines 321 and 323 are bundled. The data line 322 and the gate line 342 may be driven in FIG. 4 so that the display area of the electronic paper display corresponding to the hatched portion in the second TFT area is turned on. It is possible to drive the data line 321 and the gate line 341 except for this in FIG. 4 so that the display area of the electronic paper display corresponding to the unhatched portion of the second TFT area is turned off. As described above, the fixed contents such as 'SALE' can always be displayed by collectively driving the gate lines and the data lines together.

6 shows a configuration of a second driving unit according to an embodiment. According to an aspect, the second driving unit 253 may include a pulse generating unit for outputting switching pulses to the bundled driving lines of the fixed display region to blink the display contents. The blinking cycle is set by the administrator and can be received by the processor 233 via the communication unit 237 in the wakeup state and transmitted to the second driver 253. The color blinking can be realized by further adding a color sheet for displaying a color on the upper part of the second display area.

In one embodiment, the fixed display area of the electronic paper display is controlled to blink a fixed display pattern, e. G., 'SALE'. Only the display pattern portion is applied with a flicker pulse and the background portion is reversed after the display is inverted only when refreshing of the electronic paper display is required.

In an aspect, the second driving unit may include a timer. In one embodiment, the timer generates an event at regular intervals. The timer also operates when the processor of the control unit is in the sleep mode, thereby generating an event at a predetermined constant cycle. Even when the controller 230 is in the sleep mode, the blinking driver wakes up by the event generated by the timer and achieves the blinking display with low power. The blinking cycle is set by the administrator and can be received by the processor 233 via the communication unit 237 in the wakeup state and transmitted to the second driver 253.

According to another aspect, the pulse generating unit is activated under the control of the control unit 230, and continues to operate even in the sleep state of the control unit independently of the control unit. Even when the control unit 230 is in the sleep mode, the second drive unit 253 is continuously supplied with power, so that the promotion function such as blinking can be maintained.

According to one aspect, the electronic label may further include a color sheet that displays a color on the upper portion of the second display area 213. [ Even if the electronic paper display is a monochrome display, the promotion of the promotion effect can be enhanced by blinking the color display by the color sheet. The color sheet may cover the whole of the second display area 213, or may be a transparent sheet with the color selectively having only a part requiring special display.

In one aspect, the first driver and the second driver are CMOS circuits integrated on the edge of the TFT substrate. For example, a CMOS circuit is a type of integrated circuit and is used to construct a digital circuit such as a microprocessor or SRAM.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and similarities that may occur to those skilled in the art. The claims are intended to cover such modifications.

210: Electronic paper display
211: first display area
213: second display area
230:
231: Memory
233: Processor
237:
239: Timer
251:
253:
300: TFT substrate
350: first TFT area
370: second TFT area
331 to 335: gate line
311 to 318: Data line
510:
511:
512: Timer
513: Blinking drive section

Claims (10)

An electronic label for receiving and displaying product information from a management server,
An electronic paper display including a TFT substrate having a first TFT region corresponding to a first display region and a second TFT region corresponding to a second display region;
A first driver for scanning the rows and columns of the first TFT region;
A second driver for driving the second TFT region;
A control unit interfaced with the first driving unit to control the display unit to display the product information in the first display area and to display the promotion information in the second display area by being interfaced with the second driving unit;
≪ / RTI >
The electronic label according to claim 1, wherein the second driving unit drives the row and the column of the second TFT area by scanning.
The electronic label according to claim 2, wherein the second driving unit includes a blinking driving unit for receiving and storing information to be displayed from the control unit, and for blinking display contents by repeatedly displaying and non-displaying information to be displayed.
The electronic label according to claim 3, wherein the blinking driving unit is activated under the control of the control unit, and the control unit continues to operate even in the sleep state independently of the control unit.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the second driving unit
A timer for generating an event at a constant cycle; Lt; / RTI >
The blinking drive is an electronic label that wakes up by the event generated by the timer.
The electronic label according to claim 1, wherein the second TFT area includes a fixed display area in which drive lines are bundled and driven in a batch.
The electronic label according to claim 6, wherein the second driving section includes a pulse generating section for outputting a switching pulse to the bundled drive line of the fixed display area to blink the display content.
The electronic label according to claim 7, wherein the pulse generator is activated under the control of the controller, and the controller continues to operate even in the sleep state independently of the controller.
9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the second driver
A timer for generating an event at a constant cycle; Lt; / RTI >
The pulse generator is an electronic label that wakes up by the event generated by the timer.
The electronic label according to claim 1, wherein the first driver and the second driver are CMOS circuits integrated on the edge of the TFT substrate.


KR1020150050981A 2014-06-25 2015-04-10 Electronic Information Label with Enhanced Promotion Feature KR20160000830A (en)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US14/746,557 US20150379965A1 (en) 2014-06-25 2015-06-22 Electronic information label
EP15173560.2A EP2960893A3 (en) 2014-06-25 2015-06-24 Electronic information label

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
KR20140078534 2014-06-25
KR1020140078534 2014-06-25

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KR20160000830A true KR20160000830A (en) 2016-01-05

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
KR20200122100A (en) 2019-04-17 2020-10-27 주식회사 제일기획 Digital spec card system

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
KR20200122100A (en) 2019-04-17 2020-10-27 주식회사 제일기획 Digital spec card system

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