Spatial light modulator drive system

Claim 1

A spatial light modulating device comprising: a plurality of row conductors; a plurality of column conductors arranged transversely to said plurality of row conductors and extending thereacross to define a plurality of intersections between respective row and column conductors; a plurality of charge storage cells respectively disposed at each of the intersections of said row conductors and said column conductors, each charge storage cell having a light modulator cell associated therewith as so to collectively define a matrix array of charge storage cells and associated light modulator cells arranged in rows and columns, the light modulation of each of said light modulator cells corresponding to the charge stored in said associated charge storage cell; row decode means connected to said row conductors for receiving a digital row signal and coupling a predetermined voltage to a selected one of said row conductors corresponding to said digital row signal, thereby selecting one of said rows; column drive means connected to said column conductors for receiving a digital column signal of more than one bit for each column conductor and generating a column drive signal on each of said column conductors proportional to said corresponding digital column signal, thereby storing a charge corresponding to said column drive signal in the charge storage cells of said selected row; column sensor means connected to said column conductors for sensing the charge stored in the charge storage cells of said selected row and generating a digital column signal of more than one bit for each column conductor; column latch means connected to said column drive means and to said column sensor means for storing therein the digital column signals generated by said column sensor means and for applying the digital column signals stored therein to said column drive means; a refresh counter connected to said row decode means for storing therein a digital row signal corresponding to one of said plurality of row conductors; sequencing means connected to said row decode means, said refresh counter, said column drive means, said column sensor means and said column latch means for periodically enabling the following automatic refresh sequence: (1) applying the digital row signal stored in said refresh counter to said row decode means for selecting a row conductor corresponding to said digital row signal; (2) enabling said column sensor means to sense the charge stored in each charge storage cell in said selected row and generate a corresponding set of digital column signals; (3) storing said digital column signals in said column latch means; (4) applying said digital column signals stored in said column latch means to said column drive means, thereby causing said column drive means to store a charge in each charge storage cell in said selected row proportional to said corresponding digital column signal; and (5) incrementing the digital row signal stored in said refresh counter to correspond to the next sequential row conductor; command input means connected to said sequencing means for receiving a multibit command input; and said sequencing means further including means for alternately enabling said automatic refresh sequence and enabling a command sequence corresponding to a received command input.