Display Device for Displaying a Selection of Permanently Specified Display Elements

Abstract

A display device for displaying a selection of permanently specified display elements with a front panel that has a plurality of windows that form a number of permanently specified display elements, an electrophoretic electronic paper that is arranged behind the front panel so that a partial surface of the electronic paper is assigned to each of the windows, and an electronic control with which a degree of reflection of the electronic paper can be set for each of the partial surfaces.

Claims

1. A display device for displaying a selection of permanently specified display elements with a front panel that has a plurality of windows that form a number of permanently specified display elements, an electrophoretic electronic paper that is arranged behind the front panel so that a partial surface of the electronic paper is assigned to each of the windows, and an electronic control with which a degree of reflection of the electronic paper can be set for each of the partial surfaces.

2. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the front panel is made of a non-transparent material or has a layer of a non-transparent material and the windows are cut-outs in the non-transparent material.

3. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic control is designed to activate the electronic paper so that each of the partial surfaces can have a first degree of reflection that corresponds to an highlighted state of the assigned display element and a second degree of reflection that corresponds to a non-highlighted state of the assigned display element.

4. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic paper has large-format fields, the degree of reflection of which can only be set uniformly, wherein each of the partial surfaces is arranged in one of the fields.

5. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the fields protrude to the side over contours of the windows.

6. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic control is designed to refresh the state of an individual partial surface after a specified time has elapsed since this partial surface was last activated , wherein at least one other partial surface is not activated.

7. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic control is designed to refresh the state of the display device in specified time intervals and in doing so to activate exclusively those partial surfaces that, at the respective point in time, are either in the highlighted state or in the non-highlighted state.

8. The display device according to claim 3, wherein the deviation of a degree of reflection of the front panel from the second degree of reflection lies in the range of 0% to 30%.

9. The display device according to claim 1, the front panel has a matte coating.

10. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the electronic paper has an anti-reflection coating.

11. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display elements are letters, numbers, other symbols or part thereof, the shape of which is in each case specified by a contour of one of the windows or by contours of multiple windows.

12. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the windows have structures with an average width that is larger by a factor in the range of 2 to 50 than a material thickness of the front panel or than a material thickness of a non-transparent layer of the front panel.

13. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display device has a magnetic holder with magnets that are arranged behind the electronic paper and exert an attractive force on the front panel through the electronic paper.

14. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the selection of the display elements forms a text message, wherein the electronic control (14) is designed to highlight this selection by setting corresponding degree of reflection for the associated partial surfaces.

15. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display device is a clock, wherein a selection of the display elements gives the time.

Description

[0040] The display device illustrated in FIG. 1 has a front panel 10, an electronic paper 12 and an electronic control 14. The front panel 10 is made of a non-transparent material, for example stainless steel. The dimensions of the front panel 10 in the represented example are approximately 45 cm45 cm. The material thickness of the front panel 10 is approximately 1 mm.

[0041] A plurality of cut-outs that each form a window 16 is arranged in the non-transparent material of the front panel 10. The windows 16 are transparent. In the represented example, each of the windows 16 forms a letter, corresponding to a display element. The windows 16 and accordingly the display elements are arranged in a rectangular matrix with, in the example, six rows and ten columns.

[0042] The electronic paper 12 is arranged behind the front panel 10. In the assembled state, the electronic paper 12 is directly behind the front panel 10 so that a front side of the electronic paper 12 abuts a back side of the front panel 10. It is discernible in FIG. 1 that the electronic paper 12 has numerous, rectangular fields 18 that, corresponding to the arrangement of the windows 16 in the front panel 10, are also arranged in a rectangular matrix with six rows and ten columns. Each of the fields 18 comprises a partial surface that is arranged behind one of the windows 16.

[0043] The electronic control 14 is connected to the electronic paper 12 and can set the degree of reflection of each individual field 18. The degrees of reflection of the partial surfaces of the electronic paper comprised from the fields 18 that are visible through the windows 16 are thereby also set.

[0044] The electronic paper 12 is structured with regard to the activability of the fields 18 so that the degree of reflection of each of the fields 18 can only be set uniformly. For this, on a front side of the electronic paper 12 or on a back side of the electronic paper 12 for each of the fields 18, either exactly one electrode or a group of electrodes can be present that each activate all elements responsible for a certain coloring in the entire field at the same time.

[0045] The display device from FIG. 1 can have, in addition to the elements represented in the figure, a back wall 20 or a rear housing element that is arranged behind the electronic paper 12.

[0046] Such a back wall 20 is represented in FIG. 2. The schematic view shows a cross-section of the front panel 10, the electronic paper 12 arranged behind, and the back wall 20 arranged behind. The electronic control 14 is arranged within the back wall 20. In addition, three magnets 22 are exemplarily represented that exert an attractive force on the front panel 10 through the electronic paper 12. In this way, the front panel 10 is attached to the back wall 20. At the same time, the arrangement of the electronic paper 12 between the front panel 10 and the back wall 20 is fixed. In particular, it is achieved that the electronic paper 12 abuts the back side of the front panel 10 everywhere. The electronic paper 12 has an anti-reflection coating 32 that extends over the entire front side of the electronic paper 12 and is indicated by a dotted line. A matte coating 30 of the front panel 10 is also indicated by a dotted line that extends over its entire front side.

[0047] FIG. 3 shows an example of a part of a display device with a seven-segment display that is designed in a part of a front panel. It has three horizontal bars 24 and four vertical bars 26. The bars 24, 26 are each formed from a cut-out that is a window 16 in the front panel. The electronic paper 12 arranged behind the front panel is visible through these windows 16. In this regard, the division of the electronic paper 12 into a number of rectangular fields 18 with different dimensions is represented in FIG. 3 by the dashed line. It is discernible that each of the windows 16, i.e., each of the bars 24, 26, is arranged in one of the fields 18. In addition, there are some further regions 28 of the electronic paper 12 in which no window 16 is arranged. These can also be designed as fields with an adjustable degree of reflection. This function is, however, not required for the display device so that the further regions 28 of the electronic paper 12 can also be completely without a function.

[0048] In the example in FIG. 3, the seven-segment display represents the number 3, for which three of the horizontal bars 24 and two of the vertical bars 26 are highlighted. For this, the electronic control 14 has set the degree of reflection of the associated fields 18 to a first degree of reflection that differs clearly perceptibly from a corresponding degree of reflection of the front side of the front panel 10. In FIG. 3 it is well discernible that the fields 18 are larger than the cut-outs in the front panel forming the bars 24, 26, meaning they protrude over the contours of these cut-outs.

[0049] FIG. 4 shows, as another example of a display element, a cut-out of a front panel that has two windows 16 that together form the letter P. As indicated by the dashed line, exactly one field 18 of the electronic paper 12 is behind these two windows.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

[0050] 10 Front panel

[0051] 12 Electronic paper

[0052] 14 Electronic control

[0053] 16 Window

[0054] 18 Field

[0055] 20 Back wall

[0056] 22 Magnet

[0057] 24 Horizontal bar

[0058] 26 Vertical bar

[0059] 28 Further region

[0060] 30 Anti-reflection coating

[0061] 32 Matte coating