DISPLAY SYSTEM

Abstract

At least one display device, at least one light-guide structure module, and a cover plate are included in a display system. The at least one light-guide structure module is located between the at least one display device and the cover plate. The at least one display device includes a display panel for displaying a display content. The display panel is surrounded by a visible frame delimited by an inner edge and an outer edge. At least one portion of the outer edge of the visible frame defines at least one line on the cover plate by a parallel projection along an axis oriented perpendicularly to the cover plate. The at least one light-guide structure module enlarges the display content of the at least one display device and projects a portion of the inner edge of the visible frame onto the at least one line of the cover plate.

Claims

1.-12. (canceled)

13. A display system, comprising: a cover plate; at least one display device including at least one display field to represent a display content, the at least one display field being enclosed by a visible frame which is delimited by an inner periphery and by an outer periphery, at least one section of the outer periphery of the visible frame defining at least one line of the cover plate by way of parallel projection along an axis oriented perpendicularly to the cover plate; and at least one light-guide structure module, arranged between the at least one display device and the cover plate, configured to enlarge the display content of the at least one display device and to project at least one section of the inner periphery of the visible frame onto the defined at least one line of the cover plate.

14. The display system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the at least one display device is a plurality of display devices including a first display device and a second display device which are adjacent to one another, the first display device includes at least one first section of a first inner periphery of a first visible frame which encloses a first display field of the first display device and at least one first section of a first outer periphery of the first visible frame which encloses the first display field of the first display device, the second display device includes at least one second section of a second inner periphery of a second visible frame which encloses a second display field of the second display device and at least one second section of a second outer periphery of the second visible frame which encloses the second display field of the second display device, the at least one first section of the first outer periphery and the at least one second section of the second outer periphery abut at at least one common section which defines the at least one line of the cover plate by way of parallel projection along the axis which is oriented perpendicularly to the cover plate, and the at least one light-guide structure module is configured to project the at least one first section of the first inner periphery and the at least one second section of the second inner periphery, onto the defined at least one line of the cover plate.

15. The display system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the at least one section of the outer periphery of the visible frame encloses the at least one display field, the at least one line of the cover plate extends along an edge of the cover plate, the at least one section of the outer periphery of the visible frame and the at least one line of the cover plate are parallel with respect to one another, and the at least one section of the inner periphery of the visible frame delimits the at least one display field of the at least one display device and is parallel to the at least one section of the outer periphery of the visible frame.

16. The display system as claimed in claim 13, wherein each of the at least one display device is provided a light-guide structure module among the at least one light-guide structure module.

17. The display system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the at least one light-guide structure module has a body with a first outer side which faces the at least one display device and a second outer side which faces the cover plate, the first and second outer sides are arranged parallel with respect to one another, the first outer side has a smaller length than the second outer side, at least one section of at least one edge of the first outer side is assigned to the at least one section of the at least one inner periphery of the visible frame, the first outer side is assigned to the at least one display field of the at least one display device, the first outer side and the at least one display field of the at least one display device are congruent, at least one section of at least one edge of the second outer side is assigned to the at least one line of the cover plate, the at least one section of the outer periphery of the visible frame defines the at least one line of the cover plate by way of parallel projection along the axis oriented perpendicularly to the cover plate, and the visible frame is delimited by the at least one section of the inner periphery which is assigned to the at least one section of the first edge of the first outer side.

18. The display system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the at least one display device includes an n-polygonal display field to represent the display content, and the inner periphery of the visible frame and the outer periphery of the visible frame, which are arranged parallel with respect to one another, have an n-polygonal configuration.

19. The display system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the at least one light-guide structure module has a body in a shape of a truncated pyramid.

20. The display system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the display system is configured to be provided in a vehicle and is arrangeable at an inner wall in an interior space of the vehicle.

21. A method for representing a display content in a display system including a cover plate, at least one display device having at least one display field to represent a display content, and at least one light-guide structure module, the method comprising: providing the at least one light-guide structure module between the at least one display device and the cover plate; enclosing the at least one display field with a visible frame delimited by an inner periphery and an outer periphery, at least one section of the outer periphery of the visible frame defining at least one line of the cover plate by way of parallel projection along an axis oriented perpendicularly to the cover plate; enlarging, by the at least one light-guide structure module, the display content of the at least one display device; and projecting at least one section of the inner periphery of the visible frame onto the defined at least one line of the cover plate.

22. The method as claimed in claim 21, wherein the at least one display device is a plurality of display devices including a first display device and a second display device which are adjacent to one another, the first display device includes at least one first section of a first inner periphery of a first visible frame which encloses a first display field of the first display device and at least one first section of a first outer periphery of the first visible frame which encloses the first display field of the first display device, the second display device includes at least one second section of a second inner periphery of a second visible frame which encloses a second display field of the second display device and at least one section of a second outer periphery of the second visible frame which encloses the second display field of the second display device, and the at least one first section of the first outer periphery and the at least one second section of the second outer periphery abut at at least one common section which defines the at least one line of the cover plate by way of parallel projection along the axis oriented perpendicularly to the cover plate, the method further comprising: projecting, by the at least one light-guide structure module, the at least one first section of the first inner periphery of the first visible frame and the at least one second section of the second inner periphery, onto the defined at least one line of the cover plate, and the at least one common section and the defined at least one line of the cover plate are parallel with respect to one another.

23. The method as claimed in claim 22, wherein the at least one light-guide structure module includes a first light-guide structure module and a second light-guide structure module, the first display device is assigned the first light-guide structure module, the second display device is assigned the second light-guide structure module, the method further comprising: connecting, by the first light-guide structure module and the second light-guide structure module, display contents of the first and second display devices to form a common display content.

24. The method as claimed in claim 23, wherein the display contents of the first and second display devices are connected by the first and second light-guide structure modules along the defined at least one line of the cover plate to form the common display content.

25. The method as claimed in claim 23, wherein the first light-guide structure module and the second light-guide structure module each have a body in a shape of a truncated pyramid.

26. The method as claimed in claim 21, further comprising providing the display system in a vehicle.

27. The method as claimed in claim 21, wherein the display content of the at least one display device is enlarged by the at least one light-guide structure module such that the enlarged display content extends beyond a surface area of the at least one display field.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0037] These and other aspects and advantages will become more apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the examples, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

[0038] FIGS. 1A-1C are schematic illustrations detailing a known display arrangements, which include a plurality of display fields, from different perspectives; and

[0039] FIGS. 2A-2D are schematic illustrations of example embodiments of the display system described herein from different perspectives.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] Reference will now be made in detail to examples which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

[0041] The drawings will be described in a coherent and comprehensive manner. The same reference numerals are assigned to the same components.

[0042] The known display arrangement 2 is illustrated in FIG. 1A in a sectional view and in FIGS. 1B and 1C respectively from above. This display arrangement 2 includes a first display device 4 and a second display device 6, which are arranged here directly next to one another. In addition, a cover plate 8 is arranged on these two display fields 4, 6. Each of these two display fields 4, 6 includes an active display field 10, 12, wherein such an active display field 10, 12 is respectively surrounded by a frame 14, 16.

[0043] Provision is made here for a display content 18, 20 to be represented on in each case one display field 10, 12, wherein a first display content 18 of a first display field 10 of the first display device here shows a first part of a vehicle. A second display content 20 of the second display field 12 of the second display device 6 shows a second part of the vehicle.

[0044] As is shown in FIG. 1C, the two display contents 18, 20 are separated from one another upon observation of the display arrangement 2 by the frames 14, 16, which enclose the display fields 10, 12 of the display devices 4, 6, even upon observation through the cover plate 8.

[0045] The embodiment of the display system 30 described herein, which is illustrated schematically in FIGS. 2A-2D, includes a first display device 32 and a second display device 34, two light-guide structure modules 36, 38 and a cover plate 40.

[0046] This display system 30 is illustrated schematically in FIG. 2A in a sectional view.

[0047] FIG. 2B shows the two display devices 32, 34 of the display system 30 in a schematic illustration from above.

[0048] FIG. 2C shows an appearance image, which is represented for a viewer upon performance of an embodiment of the method described herein by way of the display system 30, in a schematic illustration.

[0049] FIG. 2D furthermore shows a detail from FIG. 2A in schematic illustration in a region in which the display devices 32, 34 and the light-guide structure modules 36, 38 abut.

[0050] Provision is made for the two display devices 32, 34 to be arranged here directly next to one another. Each display device 32, 34 includes a here active display field 42, 44, which is enclosed by a frame 46, 48, wherein a respective frame 46, 48 likewise encloses a respective display device 32, 34 and/or is embodied as a component of the respective display device 32, 34.

[0051] As is shown in FIG. 2D, a frame 46 of the first display device 32 has an inner periphery 50 and an outer periphery 52. The inner periphery 50 here encloses and/or delimits the display field 42 of the first display device 32. The outer periphery 52 of the frame 46, which is arranged parallel to the first periphery 50, delimits and/or encloses here the frame 46, here in a refinement of an outer edge of the frame 46 of the first display device 32.

[0052] Correspondingly, the frame 48 of the second display device 34 likewise has an inner periphery 54 and an outer periphery 56, wherein the inner periphery 54 encloses and/or delimits the display field 44 of the second display device 34. The outer periphery 56 here encloses furthermore the frame 48 of the second display device 34 and the outer edge thereof.

[0053] The frames 46, 48 of both display devices 32, 34 are thus delimited in each case by an inner periphery 50, 54 and an outer periphery 52, 56, wherein the inner peripheries 50, 54 are arranged in a straight manner relative to the corresponding outer peripheries 52, 56 of in each case one frame 46, 48 and in each case mutually parallel.

[0054] Each of the two light-guide structure modules 36, 38 has, in the embodiment of the display system 30, a body in the shape of a truncated pyramid, wherein each light-guide structure module 36, 38 is embodied to be trapezoidal in cross section (FIG. 2A). As shown in detail in FIG. 2D, each light-guide structure module 36, 38 has a first outer side 58, 60 and a second outer side 62, 64. Provision is made here for in each case a first outer side 58, 60 of a respective light-guide structure module 36, 38 to be congruent with a display field 42, 44 of a display device 32, 34, that is to say to have the same dimensions as the respective display field 42, 44 and also to be arranged congruently on the respective display field 42, 44.

[0055] The cover plate 40 is arranged on the two outer sides 62, 64 of the two light-guide structure modules 36, 38, wherein edges of the second outer sides 62, 64 are in contact along a common line 66, wherein this common line 66 is at the same time assigned to an inner surface 68 of the cover plate 40 and/or is defined for the cover plate 40, wherein the two second outer sides 62, 64 of the two light-guide structure modules 36, 38 are in contact with this inner surface 68 of the cover plate 40. In addition, this cover plate 40 has an outer surface 70, for which a line 72 is defined here, wherein this line 72 and the line 66 between the edges of the two second outer sides 62, 64 of the two light-guide structure modules 36, 38 or on the inner surface 68 are parallel with respect to one another and are connected by an axis 80, which is oriented perpendicularly to the cover plate 40, wherein the outer surface 70 and the line 66 on the inner surface 68 of the cover plate 40 face away from the light-guide structure modules 36, 38. Provision is additionally made for this line 72 to be arranged on the outer surface 70 of the cover plate 40. In addition, a common rectilinear section 74 of the two outer peripheries 52, 56 of the frames 46, 48, which enclose the display fields 42, 44 of the display devices 32, 34, is provided here, which section defines the line 72 by way of parallel projection along the axis 80. Provision is made here for this common section 74 to be arranged centrally between the two parallel outer peripheries 52, 56 of the frames 46, 48 and/or to extend on these two outer peripheries 52, 56. In this case, the two outer peripheries 52, 56 abut at the common section 74, wherein the common section 74 is assigned to the two outer peripheries 52, 56 and/or is defined herefor.

[0056] If the two display devices 32, 34 are arranged immediately or directly next to one another, the two frames 46, 48 are also in seamless contact along their outer peripheries 52, 56 along the common section 74.

[0057] As shown in FIG. 2B, a first partial image of a vehicle is represented, as first display content 76, on the first display field 42 of the first display device 32. Represented on the display field 44 of the second display device 34 is, as second display content 78, a second partial image of the vehicle. In the embodiment of the method, the two inner peripheries 50, 54 of the two frames 46, 48, which enclose the two display fields 42, 44, are projected onto the common line 66 of the inner surface 68 of the cover plate 40 and furthermore also onto the line 72 of the outer surface 68 of the cover plate 40. In the process, in each case one display content 76, 78 of a display field 42, 44 is enlarged by in each case one light-guide structure module 36, 38. Furthermore, the two display contents 76, 78 are here composed and/or fused into one common display content 82, wherein the two individual display contents 76, 78 are seamlessly connected to one another with masking-out of the frames 46, 48 (FIG. 2C). This common display content 82 now completely shows the vehicle, which is representable by the two display fields 42, 44 in each case only separately and/or partially.

[0058] A description has been provided with reference to examples, but it will be understood that variations and modifications can be effected within the spirit and scope of the claims which may include the phrase at least one of A, B and C as an alternative expression that means one or more of A, B and C may be used, contrary to the holding in Superguide v. DIRECTV, 358 F3d 870, 69 USPQ2d 1865 (Fed. Cir. 2004).