US5703606A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Three dimensional display system
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1993-09-10
•
Granted: 1997-12-30
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Expires: 2013-09-10
Abstract
Abstract A three-dimensional display device comprising an evacuated enclosure (45). A phosphor coated screen (44), means to rotate the phosphor coated screen, one or more electron gun (41-43) and control means to drive the one or more electron gun. Sequential image Frames (FIGS. 2b-2f) are written to the rotating phosphor coated screen (44) by the one or more electron gun (41-43) for a number of image sectors. Provided the screen rotates sufficiently rapidly and the phosphor coating has the required persistence the human eye will perceive a three-dimensional image within the display volume swept out by the phosphor coated screen. In the preferred embodiment the planar screen (44) rotates about a vertical axis with three electron guns (41-43) located below the display volume directed upwardly towards the center of the display volume. In another embodiment the display screen is in the form of a helix (51) with the electron gun (52) being aligned substantially along the axis of rotation of the helix.
Inventors
- 👤 Barry George Blundell
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 16:04
CPC Classifications
G; G09; G09G; G09G3/00; G09G3/001; G09G3/003; H; H04; H04N; H04N13/00; H04N13/30; H04N13/363; H04N13/388; H04N13/393; H04N13/324; H04N13/327; H04N13/332; H04N13/334; H04N13/337; H04N13/39
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 27
Claim 1
Independent Claim
126 words
A display system comprising: an evacuated enclosure, at least part of the enclosure being transparent; a phosphor coated screen within the enclosure; means to rotate the screen within the enclosure so that the screen sweeps out a display volume; one or more electron gun within the enclosure positioned so that images may be written to the screen as it sweeps out the display volume; control means to provide drive signals to the one or more electron gun in accordance with image information supplied thereto; and wherein each side of the screen is divided into two halves about the axis of rotation of the screen, each of the four screen halves being coated with a phosphor producing a different colored light when excited by an electron beam.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
126 words
A display system comprising: an evacuated enclosure, at least part of the enclosure being transparent; a phosphor coated screen within the enclosure; means to rotate the screen within the enclosure so that the screen sweeps out a display volume; one or more electron gun within the enclosure positioned so that images may be written to the screen as it sweeps out the display volume; control means to provide drive signals to the one or more electron gun in accordance with image information supplied thereto; and wherein each side of the screen is divided into two halves about the axis of rotation of the screen, each of the four screen halves being coated with a phosphor producing a different colored light when excited by an electron beam.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
14 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1 wherein the screen is generally planar.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
25 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1 wherein three electron guns are provided circumferentially spaced apart about the axis of rotation of the screen.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
28 words
A display system as claimed in claim 3 wherein the electron guns are evenly circumferentially spaced about the axis of rotation of the screen below the display volume.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
33 words
A display system as claimed in claim 4 wherein the axis of each electron gun is oriented at an angle of between 30° to 65° to the axis of rotation of the screen.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
33 words
A display system as claimed in claim 5 wherein the axis of each electron gun is oriented at an angle of between 40° to 60° to the axis of rotation of the screen.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
49 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1, wherein a substantially optically transparent phosphor film is applied to part of the surface of a first side of the screen and a substantially optically transparent phosphor film is applied to a complementary part of the surface of the other side.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
19 words
A display system as claimed in claim 7, wherein complementary halves of the two screen sides are phosphor coated.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
111 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the screen is in the shape of a helix and rotates about the axis of the helix, the one or more electron gun being a single electron gun, the axis of which is substantially in alignment with the axis of the helix, and a conductor is provided along the axis of the helix which terminates proximate the end of the helix adjacent the electron gun, an electrical path being provided from the conductor to the exterior of the enclosure to allow a bias voltage to be applied to the conductor to attract an electron beam towards from the center of the helix.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
29 words
A display system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the bias voltage is applied to the conductor to repel an electron beam away from the center of the helix.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
17 words
A display system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the helix is supported within a transparent cylinder.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
34 words
A display system as claimed in claim 9, wherein for each sector, a staircase voltage is supplied to the conductor to produce a raster scan in the form of a series of concentric circles.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
31 words
A display system as claimed in claim 9, wherein for each sector, a ramp voltage is supplied to the conductor to produce a raster scan in the form of a spiral.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
37 words
A display system according to claim 1, wherein the control means includes two banks of memory which alternately supply image information for a current image to the display system and store image information for the next image.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
24 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the phosphor coating is selected from a group comprising phosphor P31, P5, P20 and P45.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
24 words
A display system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the screen is formed of material selected from a group comprising glass and wire mesh.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
45 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the means to rotate include a motor outside the enclosure which rotates a first magnetic coupling and a second magnetic material coupling being located opposite the first magnetic coupling within the enclosure connected to the screen.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
25 words
A display system according to claim 1, wherein the means to rotate rotates the screen at a speed of about or greater than 15 hz.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
20 words
A display system as claimed in claim 16, wherein the screen is between substantially 0.2 mm to 2 mm thick.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
17 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the phosphor coating of the screen is translucent.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
17 words
A display system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the colors are red, green, blue and white.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
124 words
A display system comprising: an evacuated enclosure, at least part of the enclosure being transparent; a phosphor coated screen within the enclosure; means to rotate the screen within the enclosure so that the screen sweeps out a display volume; one or more electron gun within the enclosure positioned so that images may be written to the screen as it sweeps out the display volume; control means to provide drive signals to the one or more electron gun in accordance with image information supplied thereto; and a conductor provided around the periphery of the screen, an electrical path being provided from the conductor to a detector outside the enclosure which supplies an alignment signal to the control means when an electron beam hits the conductor.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
124 words
A display system comprising: an evacuated enclosure, at least part of the enclosure being transparent; a phosphor coated screen within the enclosure; means to rotate the screen within the enclosure so that the screen sweeps out a display volume; one or more electron gun within the enclosure positioned so that images may be written to the screen as it sweeps out the display volume; control means to provide drive signals to the one or more electron gun in accordance with image information supplied thereto; and a conductor provided around the periphery of the screen, an electrical path being provided from the conductor to a detector outside the enclosure which supplies an alignment signal to the control means when an electron beam hits the conductor.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
21 words
A display system as claimed in claim 22, wherein the conductor follows a rectangular path around the periphery of the screen.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
77 words
A display system as claimed in claim 22, wherein to calibrate perpendicularity of the screen with respect to the axis of an electron gun, the control means drives the one or more electron gun to rapidly scan an electron beam across the screen as the screen rotates, and the control means includes means to time the period between alignment signals for each scan to determine the angle at which the screen is perpendicular to the electron gun.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
80 words
A display system as claimed in claim 22, wherein to calibrate rotation and translation of an image written to the screen, the control means drives the one or more electron gun through a series of vertical scans along the screen and horizontal scans across the screen for a particular angle of rotation, the control means calculating rotation and translation from the alignment signals and altering drive signals to the one or more electron gun to compensate for rotation and/or translation.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
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US2330682A
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US2967905A
Cited
US3140415A
Cited
US3204238A
Cited
US5214419A
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2000-12-29 | 2001-06-30 | 2001-12-30 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2004-12-29 | 2005-06-30 | 2005-12-30 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2008-12-29 | 2009-06-30 | 2009-12-30 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |