Xerox Corporation

Other

Ellis D. Harris Sr. Family Trust

Ellis D Harris

Steven A Buhler

James M Wilson

Jean-Michel Guerin

Russell B Rauch

Vinod Mirchandani

Scott M Stratford

Kevin J Garcia

A display mechanism is described having the capability of showing two or more colors using one or more flexible membranes that electrostatically switch positions between stationary electrodes of different geometry and color. Each flexible colored membrane is multi-layered and comprised of at least one conductive layer and one dielectric layer. Each membrane or stack of membranes with the adjacent electrodes serves as a single chromatophore, the color of which is altered electrically. A first colored electrode is substantially flat and parallel to a base substrate containing control circuitry. Each of a plurality of second electrodes is of a substantially rounded geometry, around which membranes wrap as determined by electronic signal. Display color is produced as electric forces separate surfaces of common color. The display is non-luminous, consumes very little power and is easily visible under normal to very bright ambient illumination. Integrated electronics provide power, signal and connectivity. A plurality of membrane sandwiches is integrated with electronics and comprises chromatophores of the display. Display control is accomplished by a chain of CMOS inverters dynamically reconfigured into a pair of sub-chains along which signals propagate in opposite directions starting from the point of initial membrane separation and ending at the point of final separation. Propagation delay enables membranes being switched between electrodes to switch separately minimizing required drive forces. Input color signal for each display chromatophore determines the sub-chain configuration that establishes element color.

Electrostatic chromatophoric display

In accordance with the present invention an array of strings of hollow beads on a string wherein the beads exhibit both electromagnetic and optical anisotropy are utilized in an array to achieve a display device for the display of electronic image material in ambient illumination. Display beads strung on a string are achieved by means of selective processing glass fiber pulled from a preform that incorporates an outer tube of parallel strands of colored glass, an inner tube of relative soluble glass and a central core of inert glass. Electric anisotropy is achieved by surface treatment of the beads with materials that exhibit a combination of triboelectric and electrophoretic effects whereby the benefits of each supplement the other. Magnetic anisotropy is achieved by the inclusion of magnetic material in the glass fiber from which display beads are formed. The fibers are processed while supported on a precision loom frame that incorporates &ldquo;V&rdquo; groves for fiber registration. Electronic drivers are provided as islands of silicon-on-fused-silica-on-tungsten foil on the reverse side of a display substrate with connectivity channels through the substrate to drive electrodes near the display beads.

Roller optical gate display device

Color display pixels taken in localized groups are transformed from RGB color signals intended for a self-luminous display into WCMYRGBK signals to drive a chromatophore color display device. Each chromatophoric pixel is of one solid color and is selected from the group (White, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Red, Green, Blue, Black). Input luminosity resolution is maintained as output brightness resolution and color fidelity is preserved for the localized group. Separate totals are developed for the Red, Green and Blue components of pixels in a pixel group. A step-repeat process selects a specific chromatophore color for each pixel. As a pixel of the group is processed a chromatophore color is selected which best matches pixel color and the RGB components of the selected chromatophore color is subtracted form the group color totals. Very bright pixels are represented by White, light pixels are represented by Cyan or Yellow or Magenta, dark pixels are represented by Red or Green or Blue. Chromatophore color components are by nature utilized in quantum values. Following processing of a pixel or group of pixels any color remnants are carried over to an adjacent pixel or to the succeeding pixel group. Group RGB colors thus never deviate from the ideal by more than a small value and are recovered in the succeeding pixel group.

Method for color in chromatophoric displays

An electronics module consists generally of a refractory metal sheet coated with a refractory insulator film which in turn is coated with a film of silicon within which thin film transistor electronics circuits are further generated along with interconnection means. Particulate matter is deposited in a desired pattern by a printing process and then fused into smooth thin films by means of an infrared laser. Insulator particles are first deposited onto the refractory metal sheet and then melted and fused into a smooth film adhered to the metal sheet. Silicon particles are next deposited on the insulator film and melted and crystallized into electronic quality silicon film. TFT electronics are next generated in the silicon by well-known means. A plurality of individual modules can be disposed in patches over an extended area both conserving material and providing mechanical flexibility as required by certain applications. Additionally, a plurality of individual modules can be arranged in a stack together with interconnection and cooling means resulting in a three-dimensional VLSI integrated circuit.

Thin film electronics on insulator on metal

A flat panel color display device is comprised of a two-dimensional array of stacks of colored membranes. Each membrane is comprised of a conductive film sandwiched between colored insulating films and integrated within a pellicle assembly which wends between pairs of adjacent colored fiber electrodes between which membrane stacks are juxtapositioned and around which membranes optionally wrap. Each colored membrane stack together with portions of the adjacent fiber electrodes defines one color pixel produced by the exposed surface colors of the membranes and the fiber electrodes. Any pixel or group of pixels of the display can display any color of the palette. Thin film transistor electronics are provided within a silicon coating on one fiber of each pair. Conductive traces on the pellicle assembly provide power, signal and interconnectivity between fiber electrodes and the pellicle assembly. Pixel color is established in accordance with input signal by supplying a voltage pattern to the membranes whereby they part revealing surfaces of a common color, membranes on either side of the part being repelled from each other and attracted together and to an adjacent fiber electrode. The display is neither self-luminous nor requires a dedicated light source but is viewable under ambient illumination. It's thin format enables picture-on-the-wall color television. In an optional configuration an included power source together with sample-and-hold electronics provides image storage following disconnection from signal and prime power. Reconnection to sources of power and synchronization allows recovery of the stored image as a data stream.

Wrap around membrane color display device

An aperture and a field lens are positioned between the collimator and the rotating polygon mirror of a multiple reflection, multiple beam raster output scanner to eliminate differential scan line bow. The aperture and the field lens will be positioned where the multiple beams cross the optical axis of the raster output scanner optical system. The multiple beams are telecentric.

Aperture for multiple reflection raster output scanning system to reduce

A triboelectric electret comprises dissimilar dielectric materials wherein two or more extremities acquire electric opposite or similar and opposite charges by triboelectric means. The application of an external electric field might cause the resulting electret to assume one of a number of preferential rotational and/or reciprocational positions. When constrained within a mechanical housing, and when drive electrodes are included, the triboelectric electret becomes a motive element which might function as a component of an electrostatic motor or micro motor. When optical attributes are included, the triboelectric electret motive element might serve to modify the visual appearance presented to an external viewer under ambient illumination and an array of these might function as an electronic visual display under ambient illumination wherein neither self luminosity nor a dedicated light source is needed.

Triboelectric electret

An array of pellicle optical gates may be utilized as a real time, thin film, flat panel display. At an element pitch typical of the pixel pitch of a representative laser printer, the display may emulate a page of data as printed by a laser printer but with the capability of real time editing and with the additional capabilities of data retention when removed from the source and electronic recovery of the retained data. A plurality of the arrays may emulate a plurality of printed pages wherein a multi-page document may be made available. A similar array may be utilized as a light gate in an image projection system.

Array of pellicle optical gates

A penta-level xerographic unit produces five exposure levels on a photoreceptor. The five exposure levels select between a subtractive and an adjacent additive primary color in both the CAD and DAD operational regimes of a xerographic process. Exposure levels intermediate between the CAD and the DAD result in white. The selection of two possible colors in CAD, or two possible colors in DAD, or the selection of no toner yields a possibility of five colors. This penta-level xerographic unit can be used for a K+3 reduced color gamut printer, typically cyan, yellow and red plus black.

Penta-level xerographic unit

A passive facet tracking system using passive optical components to induce a beam of light to track a facet of a rotating mirror polygon. The properties of the passive components are such that they collimate a light beam in a tangential plane in a complete trip through the passive optical components and the passive optical components focus the beam in the sagittal plane so that the beam is collimated in the tangential plane and focussed in the sagittal plane when it arrives at the center of the facet.

Optics for passive facet tracking

A single pass full color printing system consists generally of a raster output scanner (ROS) optical system and a quad-level xerographic unit and a penta-level xerographic unit in tandem. This full color printing system produces pixels of black and white and all six primary colors without toner upon toner.

Full color printing system using a penta-level xerographic unit

A rotatable aperture is positioned between the pre-polygon cross-scan cylindrical optical element and the rotating polygon mirror of a laser diode flying spot raster scanner optical system. Rotating the aperture about a line parallel to the axis in the scan plane adjusts the cross-scan resolution of the imaged spot size along the scan line of the raster output scanner optical system.

Multiple resolution flying spot raster scanner with rotatable aperture

A first binary diffractive optical element has a multi-level surface relief phase grating structure on a substrate. The first binary diffractive optical element can be divided into regions commensurate with resolution requirements of the intended optical application and the diffraction efficiency of each region of the binary diffractive optical element measured. The lowest measured diffraction efficiency for a region of the first binary diffractive optical element will be taken as the reference efficiency. The diffraction efficiencies for all the regions of the binary diffractive optical element will be reduced region by region to the common value of the lowest measured diffraction efficiency by introducing compensating diffractive losses to the regions by a second, corrector binary diffractive optical element which has a binary surface relief phase grating structure on a substrate. By closely spacing the two binary diffractive optical elements in the optical path of an incident light beam, the resulting diffracted beam will have a uniform diffraction efficiency.

Optical element for correcting non-uniform diffraction efficiency in a

Method of correcting non-uniform diffraction efficiency in a binary

A scan angle doubling system using a rotating mirror polygon, a cylinder mirror, and a lens to increase the scanning angle available from a rotating mirror polygon of a given size. The properties of the passive components are such that the output light beam from the rotating mirror polygon is collimated and normal to the rotating mirror polygon. The polygon, cylinder mirror, and lens are arranged such that the rotating polygon and the cylinder mirror are opposed to each other and separated by a distance greater than the sum of the radius of curvature of the cylinder mirror plus the focal length of the lens, and the lens is interposed between the rotating polygon and the cylinder mirror so that the center of the radius of curvature of the cylinder mirror and the focal point of the lens means are coincident.

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Claremont, CA, United States of America

Ellis D Harris