JPS6120615Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed explanation of the idea]

The present invention relates to a display device using a discharge lamp, and particularly to a display device that is small and lightweight and suitable for displaying characters, numbers, symbols, etc. Discharge lamps using glow discharge, such as neon tubes, have a relatively low discharge voltage and a small discharge current, so they have been used in various fields such as pilot lamps and marker lights. As is well known, this type of glow discharge lamp is constructed so that a glow discharge occurs between two electrodes provided in a glass tube, so that the light emitting area is extremely limited in the vicinity of the electrodes. In addition, in order to emit light from almost the entire area of the glass tube so that this type of discharge lamp can be used as a display device, the electrodes installed inside the glass tube must be made large or have a special shape. Moreover, this causes disadvantages such as a significantly increased discharge starting voltage and a significantly increased size of the discharge lamp as a whole. The above-mentioned discharge lamp is of a type in which the gas inside the glass tube is directly driven by an AC power supply etc. supplied between the electrodes, but two electrodes are both installed outside the glass tube, and the gas inside the glass tube is driven directly. There are also known discharge lamps that are driven indirectly and are intended for displaying various information. However, in order to indirectly drive the gas inside the glass tube, it is difficult to achieve efficient discharge light emission unless special means are used, such as covering the vicinity of the electrodes with a material with a high dielectric constant. A high-performance AC power source is required. Therefore, conventional display devices using this type of discharge lamp not only require a large-scale power supply system, but also require various measures to prevent electric shock accidents caused by high-voltage power supplies. It is customary to be installed outdoors and used primarily as a display means for displaying advertisements. The purpose of this invention is to select one of the two electrodes of a discharge lamp.
A discharge lamp with a configuration in which one electrode is provided along the longitudinal direction of the glass tube, and the other electrode is provided on the outer periphery of the glass tube facing the electrode, that is, an alternating current whose frequency and voltage are relatively low. The present invention aims to provide a display device that is small, lightweight, and suitable for displaying characters, numbers, symbols, etc. by using almost the entire area of the glass tube with a power source. In particular, according to the present invention, one electrode is placed inside the glass tube and the other electrode is placed outside the glass tube, and the glass tube itself constituting the discharge lamp can be used as a dielectric material. The discharge lamp can stably emit light using an AC power source with a frequency and voltage significantly lower than that of conventional discharge lamps, and the entire device can be made significantly smaller and lighter. This is convenient for displaying various information mainly indoors. Further, according to the present invention, by selecting the gas sealed in the glass tube of the discharge lamp used or the fluorescent substance coated on the glass tube wall, it is possible to obtain any luminescent color; Glass tubes can also be made into any shape, such as straight or curved, so by arranging single or multiple discharge lamps in appropriate combinations on the surface plate of the display unit, letters, numbers, and symbols can be displayed. This is extremely advantageous when used as a display means for displaying information such as the following. Hereinafter, the configuration of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in the following examples, a case will be explained in which a comparatively small discharge lamp P having a tube diameter of about 2 mm to 10 mm and a tube length of about 10 mm to 100 mm is applied to the display unit. Depending on the purpose of the device, a discharge lamp with a tube diameter and tube length larger than this can also be used. FIG. 1 shows the basic configuration of a discharge lamp P applied to the display device of this embodiment. 1st
In the figure, the glass tube 1 is made of soft glass such as transparent soda glass or hard glass such as borosilicate glass and is formed in any shape, such as a straight line or a curved line as shown. An inert gas such as neon gas, crimpton gas, or xenon gas is sealed inside the glass tube 1 under a pressure of several mmHg to several 100 mmHg. As shown in the figure, a linear electrode 2 is provided in the glass tube 1 along the longitudinal direction of the glass tube 1, in this case over almost the entire length of the glass tube 1. When the above-mentioned soft glass is used for the glass tube 1, the electrodes 2 are made of, for example, a composite wire, and when the glass tube 1 is made of hard glass, the electrodes 2 are made of, for example, a tungsten wire. applies. Although not shown in the drawings, the length of the discharge lamp can be increased by providing well-known getter materials such as titanium, tantalum, and zirconium, which have excellent adsorption properties for harmful emissions such as harmful gases and impurities, at appropriate locations on the electrode 2. It can last a lifetime. On the other hand, the electrode 3 is provided outside the glass tube, facing the electrode 2 along the longitudinal direction of the glass tube 1. The electrode 3 sprays an aqueous solution of tin halide onto the surface of the glass tube 1 heated to 500 to 700°C, and
It is formed by depositing a transparent conductive thin film of tin oxide on the surface. The conductive wire 4 is for applying power to the electrode 3. FIG. 2 shows one end of the glass tube 1, and FIG. 3 shows both ends of the glass tube 1 bent downward.
This figure shows an embodiment in which the end portion 2a of the electrode 2 and the conductive wire 4 of the discharge lamp P shown in FIG. 1 are provided below. According to this embodiment, the end portion 2a of the electrode 2 and the conductive wire 4 can be embedded in the surface plate 6 of the display unit 5 (see FIGS. 4 and 5), so that the end portion 2a of the electrode 2 and the conductive wire 4 can be embedded in the surface plate 6 of the discharge lamp P. installation of,
Furthermore, power can be supplied to the discharge lamp P more easily. Further, according to this configuration, since only the electrode 3 on the ground side is exposed on the surface plate 6, there is no risk of electric shock even if the body touches the electrode 3 directly. FIG. 4 shows a display unit 5 configured to display an alphanumeric character "E" by arranging four linear discharge lamps P on a surface plate 6 of the display unit 5. FIG. 5 shows the back side of the display unit 5 shown in FIG. 4, and includes a magnet 8, which is a coupling means for attaching and coupling the display unit 5 to the display panel 7 (see FIGS. 8 and 9), and A conductive piece 9 is shown that relays the AC power supplied to the discharge lamp P. Figures 6a, 6b, and 6c are eight types of discharge lamps P each having a linear shape and different lengths as shown in Figure 6d.
1 to P8, a raindrop-shaped discharge lamp P9, and six types of discharge lamps P10 to P15, each having a curved shape and having a different radius of curvature and the length of a straight part, that is, a total of 15 types of discharge lamps P1 having different shapes. - P15 can be arranged in appropriate combinations on the surface plate 6 of the display unit 5 to display various alphanumeric characters, numbers,
A specific example of a display pattern of a display unit 5 configured to display symbols is shown.
The table below shows the specific dimensions of the discharge lamps P1 to P15 having various shapes shown in Figure 6d. It is also possible to display a pattern of a desired size by appropriately increasing or decreasing it in a proportional relationship.

【table】

[Table] FIG. 7 shows the display unit 5 mounted on the display panel 7. In FIG. 7, the voltage on the surface of the display panel 7 is several tens of volts or less, for example, about 20 to 40 volts,
There is also a pair of power supply plates 11 for supplying power to the discharge lamps P on the display unit 5 from an AC power supply device 10 (see FIG. 9) that generates AC power with a frequency of several kilohertz, for example, about 3 to 30 kilohertz.
is shown. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, when the magnet 8 serving as the coupling means and the conductive piece 9 serving as the relay means for the power source are provided at almost the same location, the above-mentioned method may be implemented using a conductive plate such as a galvanized iron plate or a tin plate on the power supply plate 11. By using a material with good magnetization and magnetization, power can be supplied from the display panel 7 to the display unit 5, and the display unit 5 can be mounted and connected at the same time without providing any special magnetization means on the display panel 7. Can be done. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the message "TODAY, SPECIAL" is displayed on the display panel 7 by arranging 14 display units 5 capable of displaying various characters and symbols. FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the discharge lamp display device shown in FIG. formed on top. According to this embodiment, by sequentially attaching the display units 5 to the grooves 7a of the rails 7b on the display panel 7, information similar to that shown in FIG. 7 can be displayed. Further, in this embodiment, a power supply plate 12 is provided on the side wall of the rail 7b on the display panel 7 to be in contact with the conductive piece 9 on the back surface of the display unit 5, and the power supply plate 12 is made of a material with good conductivity and elasticity. In this way, as in FIG. 7, the power supply means can have both functions as a coupling means. FIG. 9 shows a specific circuit configuration of the discharge lamp display device, in which the display unit 5 is supplied with an AC voltage from the AC power supply device 10 via the power supply plates 11, 12 and the conductive plate 9. A step-up transformer 13 is housed for boosting the voltage to a level sufficient to maintain continuous discharge light emission of the discharge lamp P. Particularly when using the above-mentioned discharge lamp P, the AC voltage is increased from 200 to 200 by the step-up transformer 13.
All you have to do is boost the voltage to about 2000V. The discharge lamp display device according to this embodiment has the above-mentioned configuration, and when displaying predetermined information, the display unit 5 that displays characters, numbers, symbols, etc. necessary for displaying the information is first selected. Thereafter, the selected display units 5 are sequentially arranged on the display panel 7 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. At this time, power supply plate 1
1 and 12 are supplied with AC power from an AC power supply 10, and this AC power is relayed through the conductive plate 9 of each display unit 5 and supplied to the step-up transformer 13, so that the discharge lamps An alternating voltage necessary for discharge light emission is applied to both poles 2 and 3 of the discharge lamp P, and predetermined information can be displayed by the discharge light emission of the discharge lamp P. In particular, according to the present embodiment, the display unit 5 is configured to be easily attached to and detached from the display panel 7, which is extremely convenient for changing the displayed information. Furthermore, according to the device of this embodiment, by using discharge lamps P with different filled gases and fluorescent paints, it is also possible to display information with different emission colors. As mentioned above, according to this embodiment, a compact display device with high luminance can be obtained by using a discharge lamp that is compact and stably discharges from an AC power source with low frequency and low discharge voltage. This is particularly advantageous for displaying various information such as product information indoors. In this embodiment, only the case where the power supply supplied to the power supply plates 11 and 12 is a low-voltage AC power supply is shown, but for example, in addition to the step-up transformer 13 in the display unit 5, there is a
If a DC-AC converter including an oscillator that oscillates at a frequency of
By supplying a DC voltage of about 10 V to about 10 V, it is possible to cause the discharge lamp to fully discharge and emit light.
Of course, since this type of system only requires a low-voltage DC power source, it can also be used as a display means for vehicles. Further, when a small battery is used as the above-mentioned DC power source, the power source itself can be housed directly within the display unit 5, so that it can be widely used as a portable display means. In addition, the display unit 5 can be made even safer by embedding the discharge lamps P arranged in correspondence with various character and numerical patterns together with the surface plate 6 or on the surface plate 5 using transparent acrylic resin. It can be made easier to use. Next, the effects of the present invention will be explained. The present invention is a discharge lamp for displaying characters, symbols, etc. on the surface of a display unit, in which one electrode is provided inside the glass tube along the longitudinal direction of the glass tube, and the one electrode is provided around the outer periphery of the glass tube. A discharge lamp with the other electrode facing the display unit is installed, a power supply plate with good conductivity and magnetization is connected to the power supply device on the display panel for arranging a plurality of the display units in parallel, and the display unit is connected to a power supply plate with good conductivity and magnetization. A step-up transformer for boosting the output from the power supply device and supplying it to the discharge lamp to light the discharge lamp is installed inside the display unit, and the step-up transformer is attached to the back surface of the display unit in contact with the power supply plate. A conductive piece for connecting the display unit to the power supply device and a magnet for attracting the display unit to the power supply plate while the conductive piece is in contact with the power supply plate are attached, and a plurality of the display units At least each character display unit includes a character display unit for displaying a predetermined one character among uppercase letters and Arabic numerals 0 to 9, and at least each character display unit has an approximately semicircular shape with a different radius of curvature. A specific type of discharge lamp selected from circular discharge lamps and arbitrary types of linear discharge lamps having a linear shape and different lengths is provided in a display device that is attached to display the predetermined character. As a result, the present invention makes it possible to attach and detach the display unit to and from the display panel and to connect and detach the wiring at the same time.Therefore, when plugs and sockets were conventionally used, the arrangement pitch of the display unit can be changed to the socket. For example, if you leave one character between words, the spacing becomes too large and the sentence becomes difficult to read.In contrast, in the case of this invention, for example,
In addition to making characters easier to read by setting the interval between words to 1/2 a character, it also made it easier to display at least alphabetic capital letters and Arabic numerals using discharge lamps, improving the productivity of display devices. This has the effect of significantly reducing production costs.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 to 3 are sectional views showing various embodiments of a discharge lamp P applied to a discharge lamp display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fourth
This figure and FIG. 5 show external views of the display unit 5. As shown in FIG. Figures 6a, b, and c show plan views of various character, number, and symbol patterns displayed by the display unit;
FIG. 6d is a plan view showing discharge lamps of various shapes used to create these display patterns. FIGS. 7 and 8 are external views showing how the discharge lamp display device is used. FIG. 9 shows a specific circuit diagram of the discharge lamp display device. P, P1 to P15...discharge lamp, 1...glass tube, 2, 3...electrode, 5...display unit, 6...surface plate.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A discharge lamp for displaying characters, symbols, etc. on the surface of a display unit, in which one electrode is provided inside the glass tube along the longitudinal direction of the glass tube, and an electrode is provided on the outer periphery of the glass tube, facing the one electrode. A discharge lamp provided with the other electrode is attached, a power supply plate with good conductivity and magnetization is attached to the display panel for arranging a plurality of the display units in parallel, and the feed plate has good conductivity and magnetization, and is connected to the power supply unit. A step-up transformer for boosting the output from the power supply device and supplying it to the discharge lamp to light the discharge lamp is attached, and the step-up transformer is connected to the power source by contacting the power supply plate on the back side of the display unit. A conductive piece for connecting to the device and a magnet for adhering the display unit to the power supply plate while the conductive piece is in contact with the power supply plate are attached, and the plurality of display units are attached with an Arabic capital letter of the alphabet. It includes a character display display unit for displaying a predetermined one character among the numbers 0 to 9, and at least each character display display unit is any type of semicircular discharge lamp that is approximately semicircular and has a different radius of curvature. A display device characterized in that a specific type of discharge lamp selected from arbitrary types of linear discharge lamps having a linear shape and different lengths is attached so as to display the predetermined one character.