LED DISPLAY APPARATUS AND LED PIXEL ERROR DETECTION METHOD THEREOF

• US 20160078800A1
• Filed: 07/14/2015
• Published: 03/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: HYEON, Byeong-cheol, Ha, Tae-Hyeun
• Granted Patent: US 9,881,545 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0295 by monitoring each display pixel
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/12 Test circuits or failure detection circuits included in a display system, as permanent part thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/32 semiconductive, e.g. using light-emitting diodes [LED]

Abstract

A light emitting diode (LED) display apparatus, including: a plurality of LED lines including a plurality of LEDs; a plurality of switches connected to respective LED lines among the plurality of LED lines; a controller configured to sequentially supply power to the plurality of LED lines by sequentially turning on and off the plurality of switches; and an LED driver configured to detect an error state of an LED from the plurality of LEDs by estimating current flowing through the plurality of LED lines, and to provide the controller with a result of the detection.

Claims

1. A light emitting diode (LED) display apparatus, comprising:

a plurality of LED lines comprising a plurality of LEDs;

a plurality of switches connected to respective LED lines among the plurality of LED lines;

a controller configured to sequentially supply power to the plurality of LED lines by sequentially turning on and off the plurality of switches; and

an LED driver configured to detect an error state of an LED from the plurality of LEDs by estimating current flowing through the plurality of LED lines, and to provide the controller with a result of the detection.

2. The LED display apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the plurality of LEDs comprise a respective anode and a respective cathode,

the plurality of LED lines comprise a respective plurality of LEDs with connected anodes and cathodes connected to a respective output line from among the plurality of LEDs,

the LED driver is connected to a plurality of the respective output lines, and

the LED driver is configured to compare a current level output through the plurality of connected output lines with a threshold current value, and detect the error state of the LED based on a result of the comparison.

3. The LED display apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the controller is further configured to detect position information of the plurality of LEDs based on an on/off state of the plurality of LED lines and an output state of the plurality of respective output lines.

4. The LED display apparatus as claimed in claim 3, further comprising a communicator configured to communicate with an operating terminal,

wherein the controller is further configured to, in response to the result of the detection indicating that a plurality of LEDs of the plurality of LEDs have an error and the plurality of LEDs having the error being adjacently disposed in a number greater than a predetermined number, control the communicator to transmit notification information to the operating terminal.

5. The LED display apparatus as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

a communicator configured to communicate with an operating terminal,

wherein the controller is further configured to, in response to the result of the detection indicating that a plurality of LEDs of the plurality of LEDs have an error and the plurality of LEDs having the error being disposed in a number greater than a predetermined number within a unit area, control the communicator to transmit notification information to the operating terminal.

6. The LED display apparatus as claimed in claim 3, further comprising:

a communicator configured to communicate with an operating terminal,

wherein the controller is further configured to, in response to the result of the detection indicating that a plurality of LEDs of the plurality of LEDs have an error and a number of the plurality of LEDs having the error being greater than a predetermined number, control the communicator to transmit notification information to the operating terminal.

13. The LED display apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the LED driver comprises an LED driving integrated circuit (IC).

7. An error detection method of an LED display apparatus having a plurality of LED lines which connect a plurality of LEDs in a row, the method comprising:

supplying current to one LED line from among a plurality of LED lines;

measuring a current level which enters through the LED line; and

detecting an LED where an error occurs from among the plurality of LEDs connected to the LED line,

wherein the supplying, the measuring, and the detecting are carried out sequentially for the plurality of LED lines.

8. The error detection method as claimed in claim 7, wherein

anodes of the plurality of LEDs of the LED lines are connected,

cathodes of the plurality of LEDs of the LED lines are connected to a plurality of respective output lines,

the measuring comprises measuring a current level output through the plurality of output lines, and

the detecting comprises comparing the current level measured through the plurality of output lines with a threshold value and detecting an error state of the LED based on a result of the comparison.

9. The error detection method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising detecting position information of the plurality of LEDs based on an on/off state of the plurality of LED lines and an output state of a plurality of output lines.

10. The error detection method as claimed in claim 9, further comprising transmitting, in response to detecting that a plurality of LEDs of the plurality of LEDs have an error and the plurality of LEDs having the error being adjacently disposed in a number greater than a threshold number, notification information to an operating terminal.

11. The error detection method as claimed in claim 9, further comprising:

transmitting, in response to detecting that a plurality of LEDs have an error and the plurality of LEDs having the error being disposed in a number greater than a predetermined number within a unit area, notification information to an operating terminal.

12. The error detection method as claimed in claim 9, further comprising:

transmitting, in response to detecting that a plurality of LEDs of the plurality of LEDs have an error and a number of the plurality of LEDs having the error being greater than a predetermined number, transmitting notification information to the operating terminal.

14. A light emitting diode (LED) display, comprising:

a plurality of LED lines comprising a plurality of LEDs;

a plurality of switches connected to a respective LED line among the plurality of LED lines; and

a controller configured to switch the plurality of switches to control a supply of power to the plurality of LED lines, detect a current flowing through the plurality of LED lines, and determine whether an LED from among the respective pluralities of LEDs has an error.

15. The LED display as claimed in claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to switch the plurality of switches sequentially.

16. The LED display as claimed in claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to, in response to determining that a plurality of LEDs among the plurality of LEDs have the error, determine whether a repair is necessary.

17. The LED display as claimed in claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to compensate for the LED having the error by controlling an adjustment of power supplied to LEDs adjacent to the LED having the error from among the plurality of LEDs.

18. The LED display as claimed in claim 14, wherein the controller is further configured to, in response to determining that a plurality of LEDs among the plurality of LEDs have the error, determine whether a repair in necessary based on an arrangement of the plurality LEDs having the error.

19. The LED display as claimed in claim 18, wherein the controller is further configured to determine location information of the plurality of LEDs having the error based on a state of the plurality of switches and the detected current flowing through the respective LED lines, and to determine the arrangement of the plurality of LEDs having the error based on the determined location information.

20. The LED display as claimed in claim 17, wherein the controller is further configured to determine location information of the LED having the error based on a state of the plurality of switches and the detected current flowing through the respective LED lines, and to determine the adjacent LEDs based on the determined location information.