Display device arbitrarily attachable to and detachable from other display devices

• US 6,628,244 B1
• Filed: 02/24/2000
• Issued: 09/30/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 02/25/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Hirosawa, Masashi, Yamanoue, Masafumi
• Primary Examiner(s): Saras, Steven
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kumar, Srilakshmi K.
• Application Number:
  US09/512,649
• Time in Patent Office: 1,314 Days
• Field of Search: 340/706, 345/1.1, 345/121, 345/2.3, 406/05, 359/142, 359/143, 361/681, 361/683, 235/380
• US Class Current: 345/2.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1698 the I/O peripheral being a sending/receiving arrangement to establish a cordless communication link, e.g. radio or infrared link, integrated cellular phone details of antennas disposed inside a computer H01Q1/2266
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1635 Stackable modules

Abstract

A display device includes a data acquiring unit for acquiring data, a display unit for displaying data acquired by said data acquiring unit, an operation unit for operating the display device, a controller for controlling the display device, a communication unit for communicating with other display devices, and a coupling unit for structurally coupling the display device with other display devices with which communication is made by the communication unit. Accordingly, a plurality of display devices capable of individually operating can be coupled or decoupled in a flexible manner, and display contents can be updated to be displayed such that they are consistent with each other even if the display devices are coupled or decoupled.

Claims

1. A display device for displaying data comprising:

data acquiring means for acquiring data;

display means for displaying the data acquired by said data acquiring means;

operation means for operating said display device;

control means for controlling said display device;

infrared communication means for communicating with another display device;

side surface coupling means for structurally coupling a side surface of said display device to a side surface of said another display device with which communication is made by said infrared communication means; and

,

wherein said side surface coupling means comprises a hinge structure located on one edge of said side surfaces and said infrared communication means are located in said side surfaces adjacent the hinge structure;

wherein said infrared communication means comprises a pair of infrared communication modules respectively located in mutually opposing recesses of said side surfaces and having optical axes substantially aligned in a first positional arrangement of said display devices and substantially misaligned in a second positional arrangement of said display devices.

2. The display device according to claim 1 wherein said first positional arrangement comprises an arrangement wherein said display devices are coupled at substantially 180°

so as to provide a flat planar arrangement of said display devices and wherein said second positional arrangement comprises one or more angulated arrangements wherein said display devices are coupled at substantially 90°

or at a position substantially less than 180°

, and including infrared reflection means for providing coupling between the infrared communications modules during said second positional arrangement.

3. The display device according to claim 2 wherein said reflection means comprises a reflection plate extending between the other edge of said side surfaces.

4. The display device according to claim 1 wherein said recesses include a pair of substantially flat inner side walls intersecting at an acute angle, wherein said modules are located on one side wall of said pair of side walls and said first positional arrangement comprises an angulated arrangement wherein said display devices are coupled at substantially 90°

or at a position substantially less than 180°

, said one side walls of said pair of inner side walls facing each other thereat and wherein said second positional arrangement comprises an arrangement wherein said display devices are coupled at substantially 180°

so as to provide a flat planar arrangement and including reflection means for providing coupling between said modules during said second positional arrangement.

5. The display device according to claim 4 wherein said reflection means comprises reflection means located on the other side walls of said pair of side walls.

6. The display device according to claim 5 wherein said reflection mans comprise reflection plates on said other side walls.

7. The display device according to claim 4 wherein said acute angle of said pair of inner walls of said recesses is about 45°

.