Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Display power source
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-08
2004-08-17
Shankar, Vijay (Department: 2673)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Display power source
C345S075100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06778169
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a display device; and, more particularly, to a driver and a driving method therefor capable of displaying various desired patterns by dynamically driving display elements including matrix-shaped dots and multiple display segments.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
A display device having fluorescent electrodes as its display elements displays a variety of information in a form of characters or graphics or a combination thereof by appropriately controlling the fluorescent electrodes and driving, e.g., grid electrodes in accordance with the characters or graphics or the combination thereof to be displayed thereon.
A matrix pattern incorporated in the display device is constructed with anodes used as the fluorescent electrodes and with grids used in controlling electrons arriving at the anodes, the anodes and the grids being activated by a dynamic driving method, wherein pulse signals are in a time-shared manner, thereby enabling the display device to display rather complicated graphics and characters or the combination thereof with a reduced number of wires.
In addition to the above, it is also possible to dynamically display a large quantity of time varying information on a screen by scrolling the graphics or the characters or the combination thereof in an appropriate direction especially when the anodes are dot-shaped.
FIG. 12
represents a block diagram of a conventional display device for use in, e.g., a variety of electronics equipments and machines, for displaying various information such as operating information, time information, etc. The display device includes drivers capable of visualizing various information provided by display data from a host micom (micro-computer) storing therein control program of the equipments.
In
FIG. 12
, a reference numeral
10
represents a VFD(vacuum fluorescent display), composed of, e.g., vacuum fluorescent tubes. Generally, electrodes in the VFD are structured such that various graphics or characters or the combinations thereof are displayed using segmented electrodes and dot-shaped fluorescent elements.
An anode driver
20
a
and a grid driver
20
b
serve as the driving circuits for activating anodes and grids of the VFD
10
, respectively. These drivers
20
a
and
20
b
generally include therein switching elements being switched on and off by control pulses, shift registers and latches.
A reference numeral
30
denotes a general controller (referred to hereinafter as “host micom”) comprised of, e.g., a host micro-computer. The host micom
30
, which stores a program corresponding to the electrode structure of the VFD
10
, controls the display device. For instance, the host micom
30
provides the anodes and grids of the VFD
10
with display data based on a status of a peripheral device
40
. Specifically, the host micom
30
reads from a memory (not shown) therein data corresponding to characters or graphics or a combination thereof to be displayed by the VFD
10
and timely outputs the data (i.e., the display data) to the drivers
20
a
and
20
b.
Conventionally, the VFD
10
, the anode driver
20
a
and the grid driver
20
b
are mounted on a single circuit board. It is also designed so that in addition to allowing the host micom
30
controlling the peripheral device
40
, e.g., a servo motor, according to the display contents, it also allows a machine to be controlled in response to a command signal from a control panel
50
.
The conventional display device described above, however, although dependent in part on the capability of the host micom
30
, has difficulties in changing or modifying display contents because it has been rather difficult to change or modify the programs stored in the host micom
30
, and, therefore, has found its applications to one that requires a rather small number of display contents and/or rather simple display systems. In other words, there exist limitation in the use of the conventional display system described above for various display modes thereof.
In an attempt to overcome these limitations, a modified conventional display device has been adopted as shown in FIG.
13
. The modified display device of
FIG. 13
is characterized in that it is additionally equipped with a sub-micom
60
between the host micom
30
and each of the anode driver
20
a
and the grid driver
20
b
compared with the display device of
FIG. 12
to thereby enable it to display rather complicated display patterns and enjoy a certain degree of universality. The sub-micom
60
is additionally incorporated therein to take over functions relating to the control operations relative to the VFD
10
while the host micom
30
performs rather simple control operations and performs functions such as providing the display data for the drivers
20
a
and
20
b
. The control operations in relation to the VFD
10
include: performing control relative to a display mode from the sub-micom
60
; transferring the display data associated with the display mode; maintaining the display data; and performing a signal processing and the like. With the help of this additional sub-micom
60
, the host micom
30
is allowed to reduce its load significantly, thereby enabling the modified display device to display more complicated and diverse display contents.
There are, however, still certain disadvantages in the modified display device, e.g., it imposes a requirement that the sub-micom
60
and the drivers
20
a
and
20
b
closely interwork with each other. If a variety of electrode structures and/or driving methods are engaged in the modified display device, a plurality of sub-micoms corresponding to each structure and method must be employed, which exacts time and costs in designing and adapting each of the sub-micoms thereto. This may simply degenerate the desired variety and universality.
Meanwhile, an alternative controller driver may be proposed wherein a multiple number of distinct sub-micoms and the two drivers
20
a
and
20
b
are merged into an integrated circuit and the integrated circuit in turn, being connected to a couple of VFDs which are designed to accommodate a large volume of display contents corresponding to the multiple number of sub-micoms. Even in this alternative controller driver, the display capability thereof is limited to the number of combinations of the driving methods of the controller driver.
Further, it does not allow additional display modes or scan modes to be added thereto.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to solve the above described problems.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a controller driver, connected to a host micom for controlling operations of a display system and to a display unit, for actuating a display unit, the controller driver comprising: an interface for transferring data from/to the host micom; a decoder for identifying and dividing the data received from the interface into command data and display data; a display RAM for storing the display data received from the decoder, wherein the display data includes anode data and grid data, the anode data being associated with display contents and the grid data being associated with a driving mode of the display unit; an electrode driver, including therein an anode driver and a grid driver, for actuating the display unit by using the command data and the display data; a controller for setting the driving mode and a display mode by using the command data, and, for retrieving the display data and providing the display data to the electrode driver; and a clock generator for providing timing signals for the interface, the decoder, the anode driver, the grid driver, the display RAM and the controller to coordinate operation timings thereof, wherein the anode data and the grid data are provided to the anode driver and the grid driver, respectively, according to a predetermined timing address.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for driving a display device equippe
Hiraga Minoru
Yamaguchi Hiroshi
Futaba Denshi Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
Katten Muchin Zavis & Rosenman
Patel Nitin
Shankar Vijay
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