Westinghouse Electric Corporation

David Leksell

Zoltan K Kun

Juris A Asars

Norman J Phillips

William A Barrow

Robert Mazelsky

Alan F Mandel

Henry Anthony Wehrli, Iii

William H Kasner

Vincent A Toth

Carl W Laakso

Mark S Kruskopf

George F Mechlin

Gerald J Faychak

A color printing system including thin film electroluminescent (TFEL) edge emitter devices and an electronic interface for driving the TFEL devices. The TFEL edge emitter devices form a multi-color TFEL edge emitter structure operable for emitting a plurality of different colors of light onto a media. The electronic interface receives gray scale data for pixels and converts it into a serial data stream used to drive pixels in the TFEL edge emitter structure. The electronic interface further includes a compensation memory for compensating for pixel variations in the TFEL structure. The compensation memory can be periodically recalibrated 'in place' during the life of the printing apparatus.

Full color TFEL edge emitter printing system

An improved facsimile machine having at least one edge emitting thin film electroluminescent line array, each array having a plurality of pixels wherein the pixels are selectively activated. A light beam from each pixel is directed to a known point along a line on a document and reflects to a sensor. The reflected beam corresponds to a grey level at the point of reflection on the document and causes the sensor to generate a signal corresponding to that greyness level. Sufficient pixels are provided to generate sufficient light beams to strike all points along a line across a document.

Facsimile machine using thin film electroluminescent device for spot

A TFEL edge emitter assembly has a TFEL edge emitter module composed of a substrate and an EL stack supported on the substrate and having a light-emitting front edge, and a covering of solid material overlying the EL stack and attached to the substrate. The solid covering produces a hermetical seal with the substrate which substantially encompasses the EL stack and provide an optically transparent medium having a refractive index between that of the EL stack and air.

TFEL edge emitter module with hermetically-sealed and refractive

A TFEL edge emitter structure has a bottom substrate layer, a lower common electrode layer applied over the bottom substrate layer an upper control electrode layer, and a middle EL light-energy generating stack disposed between the lower common electrode and the upper control electrode layers. The middle EL stack includes a lower dielectric layer, an upper dielectric layer, and a middle light-energy generating layer. The lower dielectric layer overlies the lower common electrode layer and bottom substrate layer. The middle light-energy generating layer is deposited over the lower dielectric layer. The upper dielectric layer is deposited over the middle light-energy generating layer. A light emitting face on a front edge of the EL stack is disposed at an angle relative to a street on the front edge portion of the substrate layer that is greater than ninety degrees. The angle selected should be sufficiently greater than ninety degrees relative to the substrate layer street so that a divergent zone of light emitted by the face is not obstructed by the street. A focussing lens is located at a position spaced in front of the inclined light emitting face of the TFEL edge emitter structure where the lens will intercept and intensify a zone of light emerging from the inclined face. A central axis of the focussing lens extends perpendicular to the respective light emitting face.

TFEL edge emitter structure with light emitting face at angle greater

A projection apparatus is provided which produces a heads-up display in a helmet of the type commonly worn by a pilot. The projection apparatus includes a thin-film electroluminescent source having an edge emitter device provided therein. The edge emitter produces a linear signal which is transversely deflected by a scanner to produce an image on a display area. Preferably, the display area is provided on the face plate of a helmet worn by the pilot.

Heads-up projection display

A thin film electroluminescent edge emitter structure includes a common electrode layer and control electrodes disposed above the common electrode layer. At least one dielectric layer is disposed between the common electrode layer and control electrodes, and a phosphor layer is interposed between the one dielectric layer and common electrode layer. The common electrode layer, one dielectric layer and the phosphor layer define the light-emitting pixels of the emitter structure. Each pixel has a light-emitting face formed thereon and is operable upon application of electrical excitation to cause the radiation of light energy within its phosphor layer at least in a direction towards the pixel light-emitting face. An optical lens system associated with the pixels includes a preselected contour shaped on the light-emitting face of each pixel to define an optical lens integral therewith to project the light energy passed therethrough in a preselected direction and form a beam of light energy having a preselected beam pattern. A multi-color light emission system employed by the pixels includes a plurality of phosphor zones comprising the phosphor layer and capable of projecting different light energy through the light-emitting faces of the pixels. Also, separate edge emitter structures projecting different colors of light can be utilized in a electrophotographic printer.

Thin film electroluminescent edge emitter structure with optical lens

A TFEl structure has a multi-layer construction which includes a bottom substrate layer, a lower electrode layer, a middle EL stack, and an upper electrode layer. Forward portions of the EL stack and the lower and upper electrode layers have formed therethrough a series of longitudinal channels and a transverse street connecting the channels and extending along a forward edge of the bottom substrate layer so as to define a plurality of pixels having light-emitting front edges setback from the forward edge of the bottom substrate layer by the width of the street. Rearward portions of the lower and upper electrode layers respectively underlie and overlie a rearward portion of the EL stack but not each other so as to electrically isolate the rearward portions of the lower and upper electrode layers from one another. Also, a bus bar layer overlies the rearward portion of the EL stack and crosses the rearward portion of the upper electrode layer. An insulation layer is interposed between the rearward portions of the bus bar layer and upper electrode layer. Selected portions of the bus bar layer and upper electrode layer are electrically connected together through the insulation layer.

Multi-layer structure and method of constructing the same for providing

A TFEL edge emitter structure with an EL stack having a linear array of spaced-apart pixels with front edge faces emitting light of non-uniform intensity from different regions has an uniform light emission filter provided across the light-emitting faces of the pixels. The filter takes the form of an exposed photographic emulsion coated directly to the light-emitting faces of the pixels. Alternatively, the filter takes the form of a separate substrate containing the exposed photographic emulsion mounted across the light-emitting faces of the pixels. The exposed emulsion is darker at regions thereof which correspond to regions of the light-emitting edge faces of the pixels with higher original light intensity and lighter at regions thereof which correspond to regions of the light-emitting edge faces of the pixels with lower original light intensity. The final exposed emulsion reduces the original non-uniform intensity of the light from the different regions of the pixel light-emitting faces to an uniform level equal to that of the lowest original light intensity of the pixel light-emitting faces. A focussing lens can be combined with the edge emitter structure. The filter emulsion is exposed so as to compensate not only for non-uniformity of light intensity of the structure but also for optical non-uniformities of the lens.

TFEL edge emitter structure with uniform light emission filter

A thin film electroluminescent edge emitter structure includes a common electrode layer and control electrodes disposed above the common electrode layer. At least one dielectric layer is disposed between the common electrode layer and control electrodes, and a phosphor layer is interposed between the one dielectric layer and common electrode layer. The common electrode layer, one dielectric layer and the phosphor layer define the light-emitting pixels of the emitter structure. Each pixel has a light-emitting face formed thereon and is operable upon application of electrical excitation to cause the radiation of light energy within its phosphor layer at least in a direction towards the pixel light-emitting face. An optical lens system associated with the pixels includes a preselected contour shaped on the light-emitting face of each pixel to define an optical lens integral therewith to project the light energy passed therethrough in a preselected direction and form a beam of light energy having a preselected beam pattern. A multi-color light emission system employed by the pixels includes a plurality of phosphor zones composing the phosphor layer and capable of projecting different light energy through the light-emitting faces of the pixels. Also, separate edge emitter structures projecting different colors of light can be utilized in a electrophotographic printer.

A facsimile machine having a thin film electroluminescent pixel array which is used as the controlled light beam source for creating an image on a photoreceptive copying apparatus when the machine is in a write mode and using the same TFEL pixel array as a source of illuminating light to the scanning sensor when the machine is in the read mode. In other embodiments the primary light emission from the pixel array is used in the write mode and secondary emission from the pixels is used for the illuminating source in the read mode. Embodiments of the TFEL array structure include combination with scanning sensors on the same substrate. Other embodiments include the scanning sensor and the pixel array on separate substrates positioned in generally parallel planes.

Facsimile machine using thin film electroluminescent device

A thin film electroluminescent (TFEL) edge emitter module and packaging assembly is composed of a TFEL edge emitter module including an electroluminescent (EL) stack having a linear array of spaced-apart pixels with light-emitting front edges, an enclosure defining a sealed cavity which encloses at least a portion of the EL stack so as to sealably enclose the array of pixels in a contaminant-free environment, a thermally expansive and contractive liquid substantially filling the sealed cavity, and a cavity capacity expansion and contraction mechanism disposed in the enclosure in communication with the cavity and the liquid therein. In response to thermal expansion of the volume of the liquid filling the cavity, the capacity expansion and contraction mechanism is operable to change from a first condition toward a second condition and thereby increase the liquid-holding capacity of the enclosure cavity. Further, in response to thermal contraction of the volume of the liquid, the mechanism is operable to change from the second condition back toward the first condition and thereby decrease the liquid-holding capacity of the enclosure cavity. In such manner, the enclosure cavity liquid-holding capacity is continually maintained substantially equivalent to the enclosed volume of liquid filling the cavity.

TFEL edge emitter module and packaging assembly employing sealed cavity

A thin film electroluminescent edge emitter assembly includes an edge emitter structure disposed on a layer of substrate material. The structure has a configuration to define a linear array of spaced-apart, light-emitting pixels. A packaging assembly surrounds at least a portion of the edge emitter structure to enclose the linear array of light-emitting pixels in a contaminant-free environment. At least the wall of the packaging assembly adjacent to the array of pixels is made from a translucent material to permit light energy emitted by selected pixels of the array interior to the packaging assembly to pass through the wall of the packaging assembly.

Thin film electroluminescent edge emitter assembly and integral packaging

A thin film electroluminescent edge emitter structure operable as an electronically controlled, high resolution light source includes a plurality of TFEL assemblies disposed in array-like fashion on a layer of substrate material. Each TFEL assembly includes a first layer of electrically conductive material, a second layer of electrically conductive material spaced from the first electrically conductive layer and an electrically energizable, light-emitting composite layer interposed therebetween. At least the second electrically conductive layer of each TFEL assembly is segmented to provide a plurality of second electrically conductive elements, and the plurality of second electrically conductive elements in combination with the remaining layers of the assembly form a pixel group including a plurality of individual light-emitting pixels. The portion of the light-emitting, composite layer associated with an individual pixel of a particular pixel group is operable to emit light energy at the light-emitting face of the individual pixel when a first electrical signal is applied to the first electrically conductive layer which is common to the pixel group simultaneously with the application of a second electrical signal to the individual pixel second electrically conductive element.

Multiplexed thin film electroluminescent edge emitter structure and

An electrophotographic-type imaging station or printer includes a focusing lens positioned between the printer light source and a photosensitive medium. As the light source projects beams of light energy forming a row in a direction towards the photosensitive medium, the lens focuses each projected beam into a rectangular beam. The speed of the photosensitive medium and the operation of the light source are coordinated so that adjacent rows of generally rectangular beams are positioned in abutting relation with each other. The plurality of focused rows projected in row-at-a-time fashion onto the surface of the photosensitive medium form an informational array pattern having a resolution in a direction parallel with the direction of medium movement which is greater than the resolution of the pattern in a direction perpendicular to the direction of medium movement. By forming an informational array pattern in this manner, a desired informational array pattern gray scale may be achieved without a loss in the original resolution of the array pattern taken in a direction perpendicular to the direction of medium movement.

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Oakmont, PA, United States of America

David Leksell