Electro-optically addressed flat panel display
First Claim
1. A flat panel display comprising in combination:
- a substrate;
an opaque insulating dielectric deposited on a portion of said substrate including;
a plurality of coupling window means for permitting the transmission of light therethrough; and
a plurality of decoupling window means for permitting the transmission of light therethrough, said coupling and decoupling windows being arranged in side-by-side columns and offset from one another;
ground conductor having a substantially rectangular area and a longitudinal axis parallel to said columns of coupling and decoupling windows, and further having rectangular extensions therefrom having a longitudinal axis substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said first portion, said ground conductor being deposited upon said substrate and said extensions being deposited to intersect with said decoupling windows, insulating dielectric deposited over said rectangular area of said ground conductor;
first conductive means being substantially rectangular in form and having a longitudinal axis parallel to said columns of said coupling windows and further being deposited to intersect with said coupling windows;
a plurality of conductive grids having an axis substantially perpendicular to said coupling and decoupling window means and deposited over said insulating dielectric and said opaque insulating dielectric such that said plurality of conducting grids intersect with said decoupling and said corresponding coupling windows; and
photoconductive material deposited over said conductive grids and said rectangular extensions of said ground electrode in the area of said opaque dielectric insulator to form, in conjunction with said plurality of coupling window means and decoupling window means, a plurality of voltage dividers.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A flat panel display in which a matrix array of electro-sensitive pixel elements organized in rows and columns are coupled to photosensitive devices such as photoresistors. The photoresistors are in turn coupled to X and Y addressing leads which contain X and Y alphanumeric or graphic information to be displayed in the matrix array. The photoresistors are illuminated with light sources substantially in synchronism with signals present on the X or Y addressing leads. Upon illumination by a scanning light source such as a self-scanning gas discharge device, the photoresistor'"'"'s resistance drops and permits the information on the X and Y addressing leads to be coupled to the appropriate pixel. Addressing of large flat panel displays using as few as two driver circuits for the X and Y leads and as few as four driver circuits for the self-scanning gas discharge device is thus possible.
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Citations
17 Claims
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1. A flat panel display comprising in combination:
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a substrate; an opaque insulating dielectric deposited on a portion of said substrate including; a plurality of coupling window means for permitting the transmission of light therethrough; and a plurality of decoupling window means for permitting the transmission of light therethrough, said coupling and decoupling windows being arranged in side-by-side columns and offset from one another; ground conductor having a substantially rectangular area and a longitudinal axis parallel to said columns of coupling and decoupling windows, and further having rectangular extensions therefrom having a longitudinal axis substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said first portion, said ground conductor being deposited upon said substrate and said extensions being deposited to intersect with said decoupling windows, insulating dielectric deposited over said rectangular area of said ground conductor; first conductive means being substantially rectangular in form and having a longitudinal axis parallel to said columns of said coupling windows and further being deposited to intersect with said coupling windows; a plurality of conductive grids having an axis substantially perpendicular to said coupling and decoupling window means and deposited over said insulating dielectric and said opaque insulating dielectric such that said plurality of conducting grids intersect with said decoupling and said corresponding coupling windows; and photoconductive material deposited over said conductive grids and said rectangular extensions of said ground electrode in the area of said opaque dielectric insulator to form, in conjunction with said plurality of coupling window means and decoupling window means, a plurality of voltage dividers. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. An improved flat panel display including a matrix display panel comprised of a first plurality of conductive leads, a second plurality of conductive leads so arranged and constructed to form a plurality of intersections with said first plurality of leads, and a plurality of pixel means coupled across said intersections for providing optical signals in response to electrical signals applied thereto, wherein the improvement comprises:
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first input means coupled to said first plurality of leads for providing electrical signals thereto; second input means coupled to said second plurality of leads for providing electrical signals thereto; first plurality of coupling photoresistors; first plurality of decoupling photoresistors, coupled, respectively, in series with said first plurality of coupling photoresistors with said first plurality of coupling photoresistors coupled to said first input means, and said first plurality of decoupling photoresistors coupled directly to ground potential, said first plurality of leads being coupled, respectively, between said first plurality of coupling photoresistors and said first plurality of decoupling photoresistors to form a plurality of voltage dividers; a first plurality of coupling light source means, for illuminating, respectively, said first plurality of coupling photoresistors in sequence, to couple a first voltage in said first input means to, respectively, said first plurality of conductive leads and said pixel means thereacross; and a first plurality of decoupling light source means, for illuminating, respectively, said first plurality of decoupling photoresistors so that each of said first plurality of decoupling photoresistors is illuminated substantially upon termination of illumination of a corresponding one of said first plurality of coupling photoresistors, to decouple said first voltage in said first input means from a corresponding one of said first plurality of conductive leads and said pixel means thereacross. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An improved flat panel display including a matrix display panel comprised of a first plurality of conductive leads, a second plurality of conductive leads so arranged and constructed to form a plurality of intersections with said first plurality of leads, and a plurality of pixel means coupled across said intersections for providing optical signals in response to electrical signals applied thereto, wherein the improvement comprises:
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first input means coupled to said first plurality of leads for providing electrical signals thereto; second input means coupled to said second plurality of leads for providing electrical signals thereto; a first plurality of photoresistors; a first plurality of fixed resistors, coupled, respectively, in series with said first plurality of photoresistors with said first plurality of photoresistors coupled to said first input means, and said first plurality of fixed resistors coupled directly to ground potential, said first plurality of leads being coupled, respectively, between said first plurality of photoresistors and said first plurality of fixed resistors to form a plurality of voltage dividers; and a plurality of light source means, for illuminating, respectively, said first plurality of photoresistors in sequence.
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Specification