METHOD OF OPERATING GAS DISCHARGE PANEL

• US 3,749,970 A
• Filed: 10/08/1971
• Issued: 07/31/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Techneglas LLC (Nippon Electric Glass Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Larry J. Schmersal
• Inventors: Schmersal, Larry J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kaufman, Nathan
• Application Number:
  US05/187,863
• Time in Patent Office: 662 Days
• Field of Search: 315/169,153,156
• US Class Current: 345/71
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/296 Driving circuits for producing the waveforms applied to the driving electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/297 using opposed discharge type panels
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/002 Switching arrangements with several input- or output terminals code converters H03M5/00, H03M7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/6221 combined with selecting means H03K17/6242 - H03K17/6285 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/78 using opto-electronic devices, i.e. light-emitting and photoelectric devices electrically- or optically-coupled

Abstract

There is disclosed a method of supplying operating potentials to a gas discharge panel which comprises isolating the signal sources from any direct electrical connection with the gas discharge panel.

Claims

1. In a method of supplying operating potentials to a gas discharge panel device of the type in which a thin gas discharge medium under pressure and bounded by dielectric charge storage members has the discharge condition of selected discharge sites therein manipulated by selectively applied high voltage pulses and pulse discharges maintained, once initiated, by a pair of relatively high, periodic sustaining voltages from a pair of sources by means of a pair of transverse row and column conductor arrays the cross points of which define the discharge sites and wherein voltages from a relatively low voltage electrical signal pulse source determine the occurrence of said high voltage pulse, each source of sustaining potential having a pair of output terminals from each source of sustaining potential to each other and a point of common potential so that said relatively high sustaining voltage sources being connected to conductors of said array respectively such that said panel floats with respect to a point of common potential, supply at least a pair of relatively opposite polarity high voltage pulses from a pair of generators to the row and column conductor arrays, and including causing the respective ones of said high voltage pulse geneator means to be responsive to control signal pulses and to generate high voltage pulses having as a reference point the instantaneous magnitude of said voltage periodic voltage from the one of said pair of sources it is connected with in series relation, the improvement comprising the step of converting each said low voltage electrical signal pulse, respectively, to a nonelectric signal pulse, conveying said non-electric signal pulse along a fixed path and then converting said non-electric signal pulse to high voltage electric signal constituting said high voltage pulses having as a reference point the instantaneous magnitude of said periodic voltage from the one of said pair of sources, respectively, to thereby electrically isolate said low voltage signal sources from any direct electrical connection with said panel device.