Orthogonal active-passive array pair matrix display

• US 4,170,771 A
• Filed: 03/28/1978
• Issued: 10/09/1979
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/1978
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Army
• Original Assignee: The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Army
• Inventors: Bly, Vincent T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Trafton, David L.
• Application Number:
  US05/890,896
• Time in Patent Office: 560 Days
• Field of Search: 340/324 R, 340/324 M, 340/781, 340/783, 340/784, 350/331, 350/332, 350/333, 350/335, 350/345, 350/349, 350/356
• US Class Current: 345/81
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/023 Display panel composed of stacked panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2310/024 Scrolling of light from the illumination source over the display in combination with the scanning of the display screen
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/34 by control of light from an independent source
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/342 using several illumination sources separately controlled corresponding to different display panel areas, e.g. along one dimension such as lines
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/12 Light sources with substantially two-dimensional radiating surfaces

Abstract

An orthogonal active-passive array pair matrix display comprised of two oogonal one-dimensional array displays. The output from an active display, which is formed of parallel individually controlled light emitting lines, is seen through a passive display, which is formed of parallel individually controlled light controlling lines. The passive light controlling lines are orthogonal to the active light emitting lines.

Claims

1. An orthogonal active-passive array pair display comprising:

a transparent dielectric optical coupling means;

a one-dimensional active display having parallel light emitting lines on an input side of said transparent dielectric optical coupling means with the output emissions of each of said parallel light emitting lines being separately controllable by enabling voltages applied thereto;

a one-dimensional passive display having parallel light controlling lines on an output side of said transparent dielectric optical coupling means that are orthogonal to said parallel light emitting lines with the transmission of each of said parallel light controlling lines being separately controllable by enabling voltages applied thereto in which the output emissions of said active display are seen by said passive display through said transparent dielectric optical coupling means; and

a control electronic means for accepting video-type input signals and for modifying said video-type input signals therein for separately controlling the enabling voltages applied to said active display and to said passive display by providing a preferred scan mode of the enabling voltages applied to individual lines of said parallel light emitting lines and said parallel light controlling lines in which each video line is applied to one individual line of said parallel light emitting lines of said active display and to all of said parallel light controlling lines of said passive display through first and second serial-to-parallel converter arrays that simultaneously control all of said passive display lines by performing serial-to-parallel conversions on selected individual line scan video signals into a plurality of parallel converter elements that are serial-to-parallel stored in one of said first or second serial-to-parallel arrays while the other of said first or second serial-to-parallel converter arrays simultaneously parallel dump other selected individual line scan video signals upon which serial-to-parallel conversions had been performed on a previous video scan line wherein parallel dumping is into the gates of a plurality of parallel transistors of a compatible transistor array that gate enabling voltages to said passive display parallel light controlling lines and alternately repeating the serial-to-parallel conversions and parallel dumping between said first and second serial-to-parallel converter arrays of selected individual line scan video signals in order to display information contained in said video-type input signals.

2. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said optical coupling means is a fiber optic faceplate.

3. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said optical coupling means is a flat clear dielectric layer.

4. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said optical coupling means is relay lens that images the active display onto the passive display.

5. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said active display parallel light emitting lines are made of electroluminescent material.

6. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said active display parallel light emitting lines are an array of light emitting diodes with one-dimensional end-fed lightguides.

7. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said passive display parallel light controlling lines are electro-optic variable transmission optical filters.

8. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said passive display parallel light controlling lines are liquid crystals.

9. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said preferred scan mode is by random access.

10. A display as set forth in claim 1 wherein said preferred scan mode is by line-at-a-time.