Subtractive color twisting ball display
First Claim
1. A material comprising:
- a substrate comprising a plurality of layers, each layer being a nearest neighboring layer with respect to at least one other layer of the plurality and no more than two other layers of the plurality, the layers including first, second, and third layers;
a first plurality of spheroidal balls disposed in the first layer, each ball of the first plurality having at least two component regions including a component region having an achromatic color and a component region having a first chromatic color;
a second plurality of spheroidal balls disposed in the second layer, each ball of the second plurality having at least two component regions including a component region having an achromatic color and a component region having a second chromatic color;
a third plurality of spheroidal balls being disposed in the third layer, each ball of the third plurality having at least two component regions including a component region having an achromatic color and a component region having a third chromatic color;
each ball of each of the first, second, and third pluralities having an anisotropy for providing an electrical dipole moment, the electrical dipole moment rendering the ball electrically responsive such that when the ball is rotatably disposed in a nonoscillating electric field while the electrical dipole moment of the ball is provided, the ball tends to rotate to an orientation in which the electrical dipole moment aligns with the field.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A multilayer substrate material for a subtractive-color electrical twisting ball display. The material is composed of a layered substrate including first, second, and third layers, each layer of the substrate being a nearest neighboring layer with respect to at least one other layer and no more than two other layers. Spheroidal balls are disposed in each of the first, second, and third layers. In the first layer, each ball has at least two component regions including a component region having a first chromatic color, such as transparent cyan. In the second layer, each ball has at least two component regions including a component region having a second chromatic color, such as transparent magenta. In the third layer, each ball has at least two component regions including a component region having a third chromatic color, such as transparent yellow. Optionally, the substrate can further include a fourth layer in which are disposed spheroidal balls, each having at least two component regions including a black component region. Each ball in each layer has an anisotropy for providing an electrical dipole moment, the electrical dipole moment rendering the ball electrically responsive such that when the ball is rotatably disposed in a nonoscillating electric field while the electrical dipole moment of the ball is provided, the ball tends to rotate to an orientation in which the electrical dipole moment aligns with the field. Also disclosed are a twisting-ball apparatus made with the material, and a method for using this apparatus.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A material comprising:
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a substrate comprising a plurality of layers, each layer being a nearest neighboring layer with respect to at least one other layer of the plurality and no more than two other layers of the plurality, the layers including first, second, and third layers; a first plurality of spheroidal balls disposed in the first layer, each ball of the first plurality having at least two component regions including a component region having an achromatic color and a component region having a first chromatic color; a second plurality of spheroidal balls disposed in the second layer, each ball of the second plurality having at least two component regions including a component region having an achromatic color and a component region having a second chromatic color; a third plurality of spheroidal balls being disposed in the third layer, each ball of the third plurality having at least two component regions including a component region having an achromatic color and a component region having a third chromatic color; each ball of each of the first, second, and third pluralities having an anisotropy for providing an electrical dipole moment, the electrical dipole moment rendering the ball electrically responsive such that when the ball is rotatably disposed in a nonoscillating electric field while the electrical dipole moment of the ball is provided, the ball tends to rotate to an orientation in which the electrical dipole moment aligns with the field. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method comprising the steps of:
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providing light from a light source incident on an optical modulation apparatus comprising a plurality of layers including first and second layers, each layer having a plurality of spheroidal balls rotatably disposed therein, each ball of each layer being associated with an optical modulation property, each ball of the first layer being associated with a first optical modulation property, each ball of the second layer being associated with a second optical modulation property, each ball of each layer having at least two component regions, including a first component region having the optical modulation property with which the ball is associated, and a second, transparent component, each ball of each layer having an anisotropy for providing an electrical dipole moment, the electrical dipole moment rendering the ball electrically responsive such that when the ball thus rotatably disposed in the layer is subjected to a nonoscillating electric field while the electrical dipole moment of said ball is provided, the ball tends to rotate to an orientation in which the electrical dipole moment aligns with the field; applying an electric field in a vicinity of a spheroidal ball of one of the first and second layers to facilitate a rotation of said ball; and modulating with the optical modulation apparatus at least a portion of the light incident thereon, the light thus modulated being modulated at least in part by the ball for which the rotation is facilitated. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A method of using an optical modulation device, the device comprising first, second, and third pluralities of electrically and optically anisotropic spheroidal balls rotatably disposed in a substrate having a surface, each ball of the first plurality including a component region of a first chromatic color, each ball of the second plurality including a component region of a second chromatic color, each ball of the third plurality including a component region of a third chromatic color, the method comprising the steps of:
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establishing a first array of addressable image elements for the device by bringing the device into a first operative coupling with an addressing electrode assembly, the assembly defining an addressing origin, a point on the substrate surface being aligned with the addressing origin when the device is in the first operative coupling; with the addressing electrode assembly, addressing at least one image element of the first array to facilitate a rotation of at least one spheroidal ball of the device in a vicinity of the addressed image element of the first array; removing the device from the first operative coupling with the addressing electrode assembly; establishing a second array of addressable image elements for the device by bringing the device into a second operative coupling with the addressing electrode assembly, the point on the substrate surface being displaced through a directed distance with respect to the addressing origin when the device is in the second operative coupling, the directed distance having a magnitude greater than zero; and with the addressing electrode assembly, addressing at least one image element of the second array to facilitate a rotation of at least one spheroidal ball of the device in a vicinity of the addressed image element of the second array. - View Dependent Claims (21)
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22. A device comprising:
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a substrate having a surface; and an array of individually addressable image elements disposed in the substrate, each image element being a basic constituent unit of the array, such that no element comprises any separately addressable components other than itself, and no component portion of an element is addressable independently of the entire element, each element comprising a plurality of spheroidal balls disposed in the substrate, each ball comprising a plurality of component regions including a first component region having a first optical modulation characteristic, and a second component region having a second optical modulation characteristic, at least one component region of each ball being transparent, each ball having an anisotropy for providing an electrical dipole moment, the electrical dipole moment rendering the ball electrically responsive such that when the ball is rotatably disposed in a nonoscillating electric field while the electrical dipole moment of the ball is provided, the ball tends to rotate to an orientation in which the electrical dipole moment aligns with the field, each element having an observable area, the observable area being observable by an observer situated favorably to observe the substrate surface, each element having a plurality of operational states each associated with an appearance of the observable area of the element to the observer, any one of the operational states being establishable as a current state of an addressed element, the operational states including a first state associated with a first appearance of the observable area of the element, the first appearance providing a first chromatic color observable throughout a predominant portion of the observable area, a second state associated with a second appearance of the observable area of the element, the second appearance providing a second chromatic color observable throughout a predominant portion of the observable area, and a third state associated with a third appearance of the observable area of the element, the third appearance providing a third chromatic color observable throughout a predominant portion of the observable area. - View Dependent Claims (23)
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24. A material comprising:
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a substrate having a surface and comprising a plurality of layers including first and second layers, the first layer including a first region, the first region being observable by an observer situated favorably to observe the substrate surface, the second layer including a second region, the second region being disposed behind the first region with respect to the observer; a first plurality of optically anisotropic spheroidal balls disposed in the first layer, the first plurality including a ball disposed in the first region of the first layer and having a transparent portion, the transparent portion of said ball being disposable between the observer and the second region of the second layer by orienting said ball in a preferred rotational orientation with respect to the observer, thereby facilitating observation by the observer of light emerging from the second region of the second layer in a vicinity of said ball and passing through the transparent portion of said ball and thence towards the substrate surface; and a second plurality of optically anisotropic spheroidal balls disposed in the second layer; each ball of each of the first and second pluralities having an anisotropy for providing an electrical dipole moment, the electrical dipole moment rendering the ball electrically responsive such that when the ball is rotatably disposed in an electric field while the electrical dipole moment of the ball is provided, the ball tends to rotate to an orientation in which the electrical dipole moment aligns with the field.
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Specification