Personal inspirational display device

• US 4,906,982 A
• Filed: 04/25/1988
• Issued: 03/06/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Spencer Gwynn
• Original Assignee: Spencer Gwynn
• Inventors: Gwynn, Spencer
• Primary Examiner(s): Moore, David K.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Brier, Jeffery A.
• Application Number:
  US07/185,502
• Time in Patent Office: 680 Days
• Field of Search: 340/700, 340/706, 340/791, 340/825.19, 340/825.44, 368/10, 368/41, 368/42, 368/43
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 9/0064 in which functions not related to time can be displayed digital output to display devices of digital computers G06F3/14
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 23/16 on clocks, e.g. controlled by the clock mechanism
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/00 Control arrangements or circuits, of interest only in connection with visual indicators other than cathode-ray tubes

Abstract

A wristwatch includes the conventional time display and an additional preprogrammed message display which is activated unpredictably on some, but not all of the occasions when the wearer'"'"'s arm is raised to check the time. The probability of occurrence of a message display is adjustable.

Claims

1. A personal inspirational display device comprising:

display means for producing a display of a message for a limited time, said display means producing the display only in response to a triggering signal, and substantially immediately upon receipt of a triggering signal;

stimulus-responsive means, responsive to voluntary, human-produced stimul i, for generating an activation signal only each time a voluntary stimulus is given, said activation signal being generated substantially immediately upon occurrence of the voluntary stimulus;

means pseudorandomly responsive to activation signals from said stimulus-response means, for producing a triggering signal only upon receipt of an activation signal and then only upon receipt of some but not all of the activation signals, said pseudorandomly responsive means producing each triggering signal substantially immediately upon receipt of an activation signal; and

means for delivering triggering signals to the display means.

2. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 1 in which the message produced by the display means is a visually perceptible message.

3. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 1 in which the pseudorandomly responsive means includes means for predetermining the probability that a triggering signal will be produced by a given activation signal.

4. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 1 comprising a housing containing the display means, stimulus-responsive means, pseudorandomly responsive means and delivering means, and also comprising means for attaching the housing to a human wrist whereby the device an be worn in the manner of wristwatch, and in which the stimulus-responsive means comprises position-sensitive switch means for generating the activation signal when the wrist is positioned to allow the wearer to view the display means.

5. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 4 in which the housing is a wristwatch housing and also contains means for displaying time.

6. A personal inspirational display deice according to claim 1 in which the pseudorandomly responsive means comprises pulse generating means producing a first train of pulses, and in which the stimulus-responsive means produces a second train of pulses, each pulse in the second train corresponding to an activation signal, and including counting means for counting the pulses of one of the first and second pulse trains, and means, responsive to the activation signals, to the count in said counting means, and to the pulses in the other of said first and second pulse trains, for producing the triggering signal upon the coincidence of an activation signal, at least one predetermined count in said counting means and a pulse in said other of said first and second pulse trains.

7. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 6 comprising a housing containing the display means, stimulus-responsive means and delivering means, and means for displaying the time also contained in said housing, the time displaying means including clock pulse counting means connected to count the pulses generated by said generating means.

8. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 1 in which the pseudorandomly responsive means includes pulse generating means, first counting means for counting the pulses generated by said pulse generating means, second counting means for counting said activation signals, and gating means, responsive to the counts in the first and second counting means and to the activation signals, for producing the triggering signal upon the coincidence of an activation signal and at least one predetermined count combination in said first and second counting means.

9. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 8 comprising a housing containing the display means, stimulus-responsive means, pseudorandomly responsive means and delivering means, and means for displaying time also contained in said housing, the time displaying means including clock pulse counting means connected to count the pulses generated by said pulse generating means.

10. A personal inspirational display device comprising:

display means responsive to a triggering signal for producing a display of a message for a limited time;

stimulus-responsive means responsive to a voluntary, human produced stimulus for generating activation signals;

means pseudorandomly responsive to activation signals from said stimulus-responsive means, for producing a triggering signal upon receipt of some but not all of the activation signals;

means for delivering triggering signals to the display means; and

means for adjusting said pseudorandomly responsive means to change the probability that a triggering signal will be produced upon receipt of an activation signal.

11. A personal inspirational display device comprising:

display means responsive to a triggering signal for producing display of a message for a limited time;

stimulus-responsive means responsive to a voluntary, human produced stimulus for generating activation signals;

means pseudorandomly responsive to activation signals from said stimulus-responsive means, for producing a triggering signal upon receipt of some but not all of the activation signals; and

means for delivering triggering signals to the display means;

in which the pseudorandomly responsive means comprises pulse generating means producing a first train of pulses, and in which the stimulus-responsive means produced a second train of pulses, each pulse in the second train corresponding to an activation signal, and including counting means for counting the pulses of one of the first and second pulse trains, and means, responsive to the activation signals, to the count in said counting means, and to the pulses in the other of said first and second pulse trains, for producing the triggering signal upon the coincidence of an activation signal, at least one predetermined count in said counting means and a pulse in said other of said first and second pulse trains; and

including means, connected to said means for producing a triggering signal, for adjusting the probability of occurrence of a triggering signal.

12. A personal inspirational display device comprising:

display means responsive to a triggering signal for producing display of a message for a limited time;

stimulus-responsive means responsive to a voluntary, human produced stimulus for generating activation signals;

means pseudorandomly responsive to activation signals from said stimulus-responsive means, for producing a triggering signal upon receipt of some but not all of the activation signals; and

means for delivering triggering signals to the display means;

in which the pseudorandomly responsive means includes pulse generating means, first counting means for counting the pulses generated by said pulse generating means, second counting means for counting said activation signals, and gating means, responsive to the counts in the first and second counting means and to the activation signals, for producing the triggering signal upon the coincidence of an activation signal and at least one predetermined count combination in said first and second counting means; and

in which the gating means includes selection means for selecting, from a plurality of possible count combinations in the first and second counting means, a number of count combinations which will cause a triggering signal to be generated when they coincide with an activation signal, whereby the probability of generating a triggering signal upon the occurrence of an activation signal can be varied by operation of said selection means.

13. A personal inspirational display device comprising a wristwatch housing, time display means in said housing, additional display means in said housing, and means in said housing for actuating said additional display means only substantially immediately upon the occurrence of, and in response to stimuli selected pseudorandomly from voluntary, human-produced stimuli occurring each time the user reads the time on said time display, whereby the user of the display device will observe the additional display on some, but not all, of the occasions when the user checks the time displayed on said time display means.

14. A personal inspirational display device according to claim 13 including means for predetermining the probability that the additional display will be actuated for a given occasion when the user checks the time.

15. A personal inspirational display device comprising a wristwatch housing, time display means in said housing, additional display means in said housing, and means in said housing for actuating said additional display means at unpredictable times, whereby the user of the display device will observe the additional display on some, but not all, of the occasions when the user checks the time displayed on said time display means;

including means for predetermining the probability that the additional display will be actuated for a given occasion when the user checks the time; and

including means for adjusting the probability that the additional display will be actuated for a given occasion when the user checks the time.