Tiled display for electronic signage

• US 20070001927A1
• Filed: 07/01/2005
• Published: 01/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/01/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Ricks, Theodore, Honan, James, Ellinger, Carolyn
• Application Number:
  US11/174,326
• Publication Number:
  US 20070001927A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/1.100
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133305 Flexible substrates, e.g. plastics, organic film
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13336 Combining plural substrates to produce large-area displays, e.g. tiled displays
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13452 Conductors connecting driver circuitry and terminals of panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 9/3026 Video wall, i.e. stackable semiconductor matrix display modules video wall control systems G06F3/1446, G09G2300/026

Abstract

An electronically updatable, tiled display having overlapping display elements is disclosed, wherein an entire viewing area of the tiled display is addressable, and the tiled display can be expanded, collapsed, folded, or rolled.

Claims

1. An electronic, rewritable display having a viewing area, wherein the viewing area comprises a plurality of display elements, each of the plurality of display elements comprising an overlap area, an access area, an interconnect area, and a display area, wherein the overlap area of at least one of the plurality of display elements overlaps at least a portion of the display area of at least a second one of the plurality of display elements, and wherein at least a portion of one of the plurality of display elements is flexible.

2. The display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements additionally overlaps at least a portion of the access area of a third of the plurality of display elements.

3. The display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements has an interconnect area not touching an edge of the display element.

4. The display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements has drive electronics electrically connected to the interconnect area.

5. The display of claim 4, wherein the drive electronics of at least one of the plurality of display elements do not extend to at least one edge of the display element.

6. The display of claim 4, wherein the drive electronics of at least one of the plurality of display elements do not extend to at least one edge of the display area.

7. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein the viewing area extends to at least one edge of the electronic display.

8. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein the overlapped display elements are not linearly arranged.

9. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein the overlap area comprises at least a portion of the access area.

10. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements comprises liquid crystal display material.

11. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements comprises a bistable material.

12. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements comprises a color different from at least one other of the plurality of display elements.

13. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the overlap area is thinner than the remainder of the display element.

14. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements is different in size, shape, or a combination thereof from at least one other of the plurality of display elements.

15. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements has a polygonal shape, irregular shape, curved shape, or is a loop.

16. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least one of the plurality of display elements is pixilated, segmented, or a combination thereof.

17. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein each one of at least a portion of the plurality of display elements comprises at least one alignment feature.

18. The electronic display of claim 17, wherein alignment features of adjacent ones of the plurality of display elements physically interact.

19. The electronic display of claim 17, wherein the alignment feature is an electrical interconnect.

20. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of display elements comprises an electrically addressable matrix of first conductive elements and second conductive elements, and wherein the first conductive elements or the second conductive elements of two or more of the plurality of display elements are connected and commonly addressable.

21. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein one or more of the plurality of display elements is removably overlapped.

22. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein each of the display elements is movable relative to at least one other display element.

23. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the viewing area is covered by a protective layer.

24. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein the interconnect area and the access area are at least partially coincident.

25. The electronic display of claim 1, having more than one viewing area.

26. The electronic display of claim 25, wherein at least one viewing area is non-planar in relation to at least one other viewing area.

27. The electronic display of claim 1, wherein the electronic display is foldable, rollable, or collapsible.

28. An expandable signage system, comprising at least one electronic display of claim 1.

29. The expandable signage system of claim 28, further comprising at least one support.

30. The expandable signage system of claim 29, wherein the display elements are slidable, removable, or a combination thereof with respect to one or more support.

31. The expandable signage system of claim 28, further comprising a base supporting the electronic display.

32. The expandable signage system of claim 28, wherein the electronic display comprises drive electronics, and the signage system comprises a driver for controlling the drive electronics.

33. The expandable signage system of claim 28, wherein one or more of the display elements is stackable, slidable, removable, or a combination thereof with respect to other display elements.

34. The expandable signage system of claim 28, wherein the system is foldable, rollable, or collapsible.

35. A method of forming the expandable signage system of claim 28, comprising joining two or more electronic display physically, electrically, or a combination thereof.

36. A method of forming an electronic display of claim 1, comprising overlapping the overlap area of a first display element with the display area of a second display element.

37. The method of claim 36, further comprising repeating the step of overlapping display elements in at least one direction until a desired viewing area dimension is obtained.

38. The method of claim 36, further comprising overlapping the overlap area of the first display element with the interconnect area of a third display element.

39. The method of claim 36, further comprising pre-writing or pre-printing at least one of the display elements.

40. A method of expanding or contracting the electronic display of claim 1, comprising rolling, folding, unrolling, or unfolding the display.

41. A method of expanding or contracting the display of claim 1, comprising slidably moving each of the plurality of display elements to increase or decrease the overlap area of at least a portion of the display elements.

42. A method of expanding or contracting the display of claim 1, comprising removing or adding at least one display element.