Electric lamp and discharge devices – With gas or vapor – Three or more electrode discharge device
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-22
2003-11-11
Patel, Vip (Department: 2679)
Electric lamp and discharge devices
With gas or vapor
Three or more electrode discharge device
C313S586000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06646375
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a surface discharge AC type plasma display panel (hereinafter, a plasma display panel is referred to simply as a “PDP”) and, in particular, to a technology of suppressing error discharge in regions outside of a display region of the PDP.
2. Description of the Background Art
FIG. 9
is a perspective view in section illustrating a structure of a representative surface discharge AC type PDP disclosed in, e.g., Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 11-25866 (1999). In
FIG. 9
, reference numeral
1
denotes a transparent electrode, numeral
2
denotes a bus electrode of which main component is metal for applying voltage to the transparent electrode
1
, numeral
3
denotes a uniform dielectric layer covering the transparent electrode
1
and bus electrode
2
, numeral
4
denotes a cathode film that is formed by depositing MgO, and numeral
5
denotes a front glass substrate (i.e., a substrate for a front panel or a substrate body) mounting on its main surface these components
1
,
2
,
3
and
4
.
Numeral
6
denotes an address electrode crossing the bus electrodes
2
at right angles at different levels, numeral
10
denotes a uniform over-glaze layer covering the address electrodes
6
, numeral
7
denotes a barrier rib for partitioning lanes of which display pattern is defined by each address electrode
6
, numeral
8
denotes a phosphor formed on the wall of the barrier rib
7
, and alphabets R, G and B accompanying each numeral
8
denote the color of phosphors of red, green and blue, respectively. Numeral
9
denotes a rear glass substrate (i.e., a substrate for a rear panel, or a substrate body) mounting on its main surface these components
6
,
7
,
8
and
10
. By arranging so that the top of the barrier rib
7
is adjacent to the cathode film
4
, there are formed discharge spaces surrounded by the phosphors
8
and cathode film
4
, each discharge space being filled with a mixed gas such as of Ne+Xe.
In this construction, a single scanning line is made up of a pair of the transparent electrodes
1
and bus electrodes
2
, namely a pair of sustain discharge electrodes (X, Y), as shown in FIG.
9
. Therefore, each sustain discharge electrode has a metal electrode part la wherein the bus electrode
2
is mounted on the transparent electrode
1
, and a transparent part
1
b
wherein no bus electrode
2
is mounted thereon.
FIG. 10
is a perspective view in section illustrating a structure of a discharge cell in another surface discharge AC type PDP. In
FIG. 10
the same reference numerals
1
to
10
are used as in
FIG. 9
for similar parts. In the PDP of
FIG. 10
, an address electrode
6
, an over-glaze layer
10
, a pair of sustain discharge electrodes X and Y each of which has no transparent electrode and is made up of a bus electrode
2
alone, a dielectric layer
3
, and a cathode film
4
are formed in the order named on the main surface of a rear glass substrate
9
. A barrier rib
7
and a phosphor
8
are formed on the main surface of the front glass substrate
5
. Each discharge space where the barrier rib
7
and cathode film
4
are in contact for making a lane-like partition is filled with a discharge gas.
In the discharge cell structure of
FIG. 9
or
FIG. 10
, a discharge cell
14
is formed by the point where the lane associated with drive of an arbitrary address electrode
6
defined by two adjacent barrier ribs
7
intersects an arbitrary scanning line defined by a pair of the sustain discharge electrodes (X, Y). By aligning such discharge cell
14
in matrix, a display region
21
of the surface discharge AC type PDP is formed as shown in FIG.
11
. Here, in general, the display region in the direction of extension of the sustain discharge electrode X or Y is usually defined as a region sandwiched by core lines of outermost barrier ribs
7
a
in the alignment of the barrier ribs
7
that partition and define plural lanes associated with plural address electrodes
6
to which ON/OFF signal based on an image data is inputted. However, the outermost barrier ribs
7
a
are indispensable in defining the display region. Therefore, in the present invention, a display region
21
in the direction of extension of the sustain discharge electrode X or Y is to be defined as a region including the overall width of both outermost barrier ribs
7
. Non-display region
22
is defined as a region that contains no outermost barrier ribs
7
and makes contact with the display region
22
. As schematically shown in
FIG. 12
, when the PDP is viewed from front of the front panel, for convenience, the non-display region
22
on the right side is defined as a first non-display region
22
A, and the non-display region
22
on the left side is defined as a second non-display region
22
B.
Since the outermost barrier ribs
7
a
have no gas space necessary for occurrence of accidental discharge, which will be later raised as a problem, it is appropriate to interpret based on the non-display region
22
as defined above, even in a known technology to be described later which has been proposed to achieve the object of suppressing accidental discharge within the non-display region
22
.
To project a desired image on the display region
21
of the surface discharge AC type PDP shown in
FIG. 11
, the following system is generally employed. That is, during writing operation, according to the image data, wall charges of different polarities are selectively stored in a portion of a surface
4
S of the cathode film
4
to which the sustain discharge electrode pair (X, Y) is projected, the cathode film
4
being above the sustain discharge electrode pair (X, Y), in each discharge cell
14
. In the succeeding sustain operation, alternating pulses are applied a predetermined number of times to between the sustain discharge electrode pair X and Y, and sustain discharge is performed a predetermined number of times only by the discharge cell
14
that has stored the wall charges in the previous writing operation. When the sustain operation is completed, the next selective writing operation is then performed through an erasing operation for resetting the wall charges remaining in the discharge cell
14
in which the sustain discharge was performed. The desired image is obtained by repeating a sequence of these selective writing operation, sustain operation and erasing operation.
In the selective writing operation, the applied voltage to the sustain discharge electrode pair X and Y is scanned to select one scanning line at a time, and the voltages corresponding to ON/OFF signals of the image data in the scanning line selected synchronously are outputted to a series of address electrodes
6
. On the selected scanning line, in the discharge cell
14
in which a voltage equivalent to ON is applied to the associated address electrode
6
, a surface discharge of writing occurs between the sustain discharge electrode pair (X, Y), thereby to store the wall charges necessary for occurrence of sustain discharge in the succeeding sustain operation. On the other hand, even on the selected scanning line, in the discharge cell
14
in which a voltage equivalent to OFF is applied to the associated address electrode
6
, no surface discharge of writing occurs and thus no wall discharge is stored. Therefore, this discharge cell
14
becomes an OFF cell causing no sustain discharge in the succeeding sustain operation.
Referring again to
FIG. 11
, the sustain discharge electrode pairs (X, Y) have a portion extending to the non-display region
22
that is not associated with drive performed by a series of address electrodes
6
. Since this portion is in the non-display region, it is desirable that no sustain discharge occurs. At this portion, however, it is impossible to perform the drive control by means of the address electrodes
6
, and therefore, during a sequence of the above-mentioned operations, accidental sustain discharge happens to start at the portions of the sustain discharge electrode pair (X, Y) wh
Birch Stewart Kolasch & Birch, LLP.
Mitsubishi Denki & Kabushiki Kaisha
Patel Vip
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