WO1996011462A1

WO1996011462A1 - Method and device for displaying information

Info

Publication number: WO1996011462A1
Application number: PCT/RO1995/000013
Authority: WO
Inventors: Iosif Szilagyi
Original assignee: S.C. Sentron Srl
Priority date: 1994-10-06
Filing date: 1995-09-26
Publication date: 1996-04-18
Also published as: AU3622795A

Abstract

The invention refers to a method and to a high maintenance device for displaying a stable image spatially projected under the form of a circular lighted strip carrying the information. A column of luminiscent diodes having an improved radiation characteristic is fastened with an electronic circuit which generates code sequences and a circuit detecting the angular position mounted on the axle of a rotational motor and are driven in a rotational motion at a constant angular speed. According to the angle of the inclination to the axle of the motor, the diodes column, describes a revolution surface which can be cylindrical, conical or circular ring.

Description

METHOD AND DEVICE FOR DISPLAYING INFORMATION

TECHNICAL HELD

The present invention relates to a method and a special device for displaying informations largely used in: commerce, advertising and publicity: different industrial fields in transports for information systems, militaiy and space technics; in sports and cultural activities, in games and entertainment as well as in many other fields.

BACKGROUND ART.

There are known displaying devices including luminiscent diodes having a dedicated geometry such as decimal displays with seven segments as well as embodiments improved by increasing the number of segments in which, by a controlled lighting and darkening, alpha numerical symbols in a given light pattern are formed.

There are known displaying devices for several graphic signs which are symultaneously displayed, formed by composing several basic units in a linear configuration on a single common support, associated with specialised circuits which performs the conversion of the information from a universal configuration in a configuration which corresponds to displaying manner such as of decoding, ROM etc.

The above cited devices have proved to be complicated because they include a great number of electronic components fact which leads to increasing the complexity of the associated circuits and creates only unoverlapped segments or at most partially overlapped without totally eliminating translighting.

Theren are also known devices for matriceal displaying including luminiscent diodes in the cathegory of raster type for graphic representation devices with a unspeciaiised constructional-graphic character which perform the light graphic representation of an extended set of alphanumerical graphic symbols. These devices are composed ofc N x M luminiscent diodes wherein N is the number of luminiscent diodes on a column and M is the number of columns; K units of such a type linearly placed for allowing the display of an informational entity formed of at most K symbols or alphanumerical characters, said units forming contiguous line in extended matriceal devices having N luminiscent diodes placed in minimum number of M' columns, M columns being necessary for composing a symbol character by a given graphic representation wherein K is the total number of symbols whi may be displayed at a given moment and M' is greater or at least equal to K.M. In such a w it is possible to quasicontinuously move the line of characters at the displaying of the messag containing more characters and for decreasing the size of the channel for information transf there are used technics for multiplexing or transfering by serialysing and by memories of register displacing type which facilitate the implementation of the movement of the text using a set of displacing order with reduced frequency and for the device to operate in quasiparallel transfer regime a greate frequency of the set is selected.

The shortcomings of said displaying devices consist in the fact that they use a gre number of electronic components leading to the increasing of the complexity of the associat electronic circuits and to the reduction of the displaying reliability, the components of whi are commonly placed in a plan which assures a visibility angle less than 180° and for increasi the visibility angle either circuit complexity or the corresponding support geometry a increased.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

The method of displaying the information according to the invention eliminates t above disadvantages by that for reducing the number of components and for obtaining a stab graphic image which is spacially projected at an increased visibility angle under t configuration of a light circular strip carrying information, uses luminiscent diodes which a equally spaced in a proper geometry on a support along a generating straight line and a drived in a rotating motion at a certain constant angularly rate around of an axle, generati a revolution area which may be of a cilindrical, conical or a circular ring shape depending the angular position of the diodes as to the revolution axis, said area forming the displayi field. For the aim of improving the radiation characteristic and for avoiding translighting, sa luminiscent diodes are partially covered on the adjacent and posterior faces by a reflective lay and for changing the displaying colours and for increasing the light intensity there is used single column of diodes groups formed of n x m diodes parallelly connected, by subgroups n diodes of which m by m are taken, connected in series or ordered by their colour subgroups, each of them being connected on a separated order circuit. The device for displaying information according to the method eliminates the disadvantages of said devices by that, for increasing the life of the electronic circuit and for reducing the number of components, uses a motor, having an axle on which there are mounted in a fastening manner a code sequences generator, an ordering amplifier, a luminiscent diodes column and a group for performing and controlling the functions of synchronizing, feeding and communicating for the transfer of the informations to a code sequences generator and the block scheme of the device's electronic circuit comprises: a central processing unit, ROM and RAM memories, a parallel interface circuit, circuits for initialization, synchronization at the interface for serial communication, amplifiers of ordering signals, luminiscent diodes, voltage stabilizing circuit, rotational electric contacts for feeding the mobile section of the electronic circuit, voltage sources for feeding the electronic circuit and for feeding the electrical motor, current source for feeding the light source of the synchronization circuit, a circuit for coordinating the supplying sources in correlation with the displaying or information processing conditions which are created by orders transmited on a communicating line.

The method and the device for displaying information according to the invention have the following advantages :

- a little number of electronic components are used;

- assure an image spacially projected, appearently without a mechanical support, which is stable having a visibility angle more than 270°.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

An embodiment example of the invention is described below refering to the accompanying figures 1, 2a, 2b, 2c, 3, 4 wherein:

- fig.l, illustrates the principle of the method for displaying lthe informations;

- fig. 2a, is a constructional representation of luminiscent column diodes;

- fig. 2b, illustrates the normal characteristic of a luminiscent diode;

- fig. 2c, shows the improved characteristic of a luminiscent diode;

- fig. 3, is a block scheme of the displaying device;

- fig. 4 ilustrates the scheme of the electronic circuit of the device.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

According to figure 1, the principle of the method for performing the invention is achieved by a luminiscent diodes group LED equally spaced which creates a column with generating straight line g, said diodes being rotated at an angular velocity ω arround of an axi s to which a straight line t, which intersects generating line g in a point R, forms an angle 90° in a point 0 creating together with the axis s a plan P which coutains also the line g whic forms with the line t an angle a. A straight line segment g associated to the column luminiscent diodes LED describes a revolution surface H which may be cylindrical for a=90 conical for a = 90° or a circular ring for a = 0°; surface H such becomes a surface f generating the displaying field on which there is created an image which seems to be a merg of all the images generated by the light emission of luminiscent diodes ordered by a we defined sequence and when the ordering sequences are syn phased with the angular positio of the diodes column and the angular speed is greater than 20 rot/sec, a stable graphic imag spatially projected under the form of a circular strip carrying information is formed.

The luminiscent diodes column, according to figure 2a, is achieved by mounting on common support, of N luminiscent diodes or luminiscent diodes groups of K luminiscent diod symultaneously controlled allong the generating straight line such that the vecto i,=i₂= = i„ wherein i„ i_d, are the maximum values of the radiation characteristi of the luminiscent diodes groups LED 1 LED N, which are partially covered on the adjacent and posterior faces with a reflective layer MR.

Figure 2b = illustrates a normal unamended radiation characteristic of a luminisce diode having posterior lobes which does not contribute to forming the image and a too shar directional shape of the radiation characteristic leading to the cration of an image which un uniform in light along the revolution surface H.

Fig. 2 c ilustrates the radiation characteristic of a luminiscent diode which is improve according to the invention by a cover with a reflective layer and by offering a proper geomet for the luminiscent diodes groups LED 1 LED N.

According to fig. 3, the block scheme of the displaying device is represented by a mot M having an axle on which there are fastened a sequence generator CSG, an ordering amplifi RGV, a column of luminiscent diodes LED preferably having an increased radiation efficien and a group SCV for performing and coordinating the functions of the synchronization by synchorinzer SYNC, of the supply of electrical energy by a rotational electrical contact SPL and of the communication for the transfer of informations to the sequence generator by element COM. Instead of the luminiscent diodes column LED 1...LED N there may be use a column of diodes groups LEDG 1 LEDG, N, formed of n x m luminiscent diode connected in parallel, said groups being composed by n subgroups of m diods connected i series or ordered by their colour in subgroups each of them being connected on a separate ordering circuit.

According to the invention and refering to figure 4, ,the scheme of the electronic circuit of the displaying device is composed of groups of luminiscent diodes LEDG 1... LEDG N controlled by order signals amplifiers DRV 1....DRV N. These order signals are graphical code sequences issued from the ROM or RAM memory and transmited through a parallel interface circuit DP to the order signals amplifiers DRV 1...DRV N, by a central processing unit CPU. These code sequences correspond to characters of the displayed text and are issued from ROM or RAM memoiy from which those issuing from RAM memoiy are taken in a previous communicating phase through a serial communications interface COM with galvanic separation through optoclutcher OC. The display of the text is repeated on each rotation of the mobile section of the device which is mounted on the axle of a motor M by forcing the central unit CPU in a determined zone of program sequence by a synchronizing signal which is generated by a circuit SYNC on the moment of the optical alignment of an optical receptor OR and of a light source preferably a diode LED IR fed by a unit PCU of feeding and controlling the operating status, playing also the role of continuous voltage source which feeds the electronic circuit mounted on the motor M axle by rotational contacts C + and C -. The PCU unit has also the role of feeding source for the motor M as well as of controlling the operating stata, namely; a displaying status when the lighting source LED IR is fed and an information transfer status when the computer which transmits the information, through a serial line CLINE orders, by the feeding and controlling unit PCU, a source of feeding the electronic circuit such that following a short time interruption of the feeding voltage, a initialization circuit RST initializes the central unit PCU which passes in a communication program sequence taking a characters block into ROM memoiy and then into a displaying mode by revival of feeding the lighting source LED IR.

Claims

C L A I M S

1. Method for displaying the information characterized in that it uses luminiscent diode (LED) or groups of diodes (LEDG) placed at equal distances in a single column along directrix (g) which forms an angular position (a) with a straight line (t) which is peφendicula to an axes of a rotating motor (M) and the rotational (movement of the diodes column wit a constant angular speed (<i- ) arround the motor axes describes a revolution surface (H) whic may be cylindrical (a=90°), conical (a=90°) or a circular ring (a=0°) and which becomes th surface of generating the displaying field on which the optical image generated by th emissions ordered by a well defined sequence is formed.

2. Method for displaying the information according to claim 1 characterized in that i uses a single column of diode groups formed of n x m diodes connected in parallel in subgroups of m diodes connected in series or ordened by colour in subgroups, each grou being connected on a separated ordering circuit and the diodes being partially covered o adjacent and posterior faces with a reflective layer.

3. Device for displaying the information for performing the method of claim characterized in that is formed of a motor (M) on the axle of which there are fastened sequence generator (GSC), an amplifier for ordering signal (DRV), a group of luminiscen diodes (LEDG) and a group for performing and coordinating (SCV) the functions of synchronizing by a synchronization element (SYNC), supplying with electrical energy throug a rotational electrical contact (SPY) and the communication for the transfer of functions to th sequence generator (DSG) through a transfering element (COM).

4. -Device for displaying the information according to claim 3, characterized in that, th corresponding circuit is composed of luminiscent diodes groups (LEDG 1 LEDG N) whic are controlled by amplifiers of ordering signal (DRV 1 DRV N) said ordering signals bein sequences of grafic code code corresponding to characters which form the displaying texts an are issued from ROM or RAM memory and transmited to a circuit of parallel interface (DP) by a central processing unit (CPU), of which those coming from the RAM memory are processed in a previous phase of serial communication (COM) with galvanic separation through an optoclutch (OC), the displaying being repeated at every rotation of the mobile section of the device mounted on the motor (M) axle by forcing the central unit (CPU) in a determined zone of the program sequence by a synchronizing signal generated by a circuit (SYNC) at the moment of optical alignment of an optical receptor (DR) and of a light source (LED IR) which is supplyied through a unit of supplying and control of operating status (PCU) playing also the role of continuous voltage source which supplies through rotational contacts (C+ and C-) an electronic circuit mounted on the motor (M) axle through a voltage stabilizer (ST); the supplying and control unit (PCU) plays also the role of voltage source for supplying the motor (M) having also a function for controling the operating status namely: a displaying status when the light source (LED IR) is fed and a status of transfering the information when the computer which transmits the information through a serial line (CLINE), controls through the supplying and control unit (PCU) a source for supplying the electronic circuit such as after interrupting on a short time the supplying voltage, an initialization circuit (RST) initializes the central unit (CPU) which passes in a sequence of communication program taking a block of characters into the RAM memory and after that there is passed into a displaying mode by the revival of feeding the light source (LED IR).