WO1998004962A1

WO1998004962A1 - Digital time display

Info

Publication number: WO1998004962A1
Application number: PCT/US1997/013289
Authority: WO
Inventors: Theodore Esau
Original assignee: MASTER TIME Corp
Current assignee: MASTER TIME Corp
Priority date: 1996-07-30
Filing date: 1997-07-30
Publication date: 1998-02-05
Anticipated expiration: 1999-01-30
Also published as: AU3898097A

Abstract

A timepiece having a large digit vertical format digital time display. In a two-row mode, hours may be displayed over minutes, or minutes may be displayed over seconds, or seconds may be displayed over tenths or hundredths of a second, or the month may be displayed over the date, or the day may be displayed over an AM/PM indicator. In a three-row mode, hours may be displayed over minutes over seconds, or minutes may be displayed over seconds over tenths or hundredths of a second, or the day may be displayed over the month over the date. The timepiece can switch between two-row and three-row modes, and both modes are used in normal time keeping functions as well as stopwatch functions. The vertical format display is compatible with segmented and pixelated representations of digits, and allows the use of large digits without substantially increasing the overall physical dimensions of the timepiece.

Description

DIGITAL TIME DISPLAY

Field of the Invention The present invention relates to time keeping, and more particularly, to the use of a digital time display having large digits for general time keeping.

Background of the Invention Digital time displays have been available for many years in a variety of devices, such as wristwatches, stopwatches, and clocks. These devices typically incorporate a horizontal array of hour and minute digits separated by a colon, with the hour digits positioned to the left the display and the minute digits positioned to the right. If seconds are also displayed, they are typically shown positioned to the right of the minute digits.

Although these displays are widely used in watches such as sports watches, they present a problem because the digits are relatively small and may not be easily seen by an athlete who is engaged in a strenuous physical activity such as running. In addition, the relatively small digits of digital watches also pose a problem of readability for a person affected by vision deficiencies such as age-related hyperopia, also known as farsightedness, or other vision imperfections such an astigmatism. The problem of readability becomes acute for an older person who is exercising but finds it difficult to wear corrective lenses during exercise, such as while swimming. It is possible to make watch displays more readable by increasing the size of the digits and the corresponding physical dimensions of the watch. However, these larger watches are generally bulkier and heavier, may interfere with a given physical activity, and may be aesthetically unappealing to consumers. Therefore, there is a need for a watch that provides large digits but does not substantially increase the overall physical dimensions of the watch.

Summary of the Invention The present invention provides for a timepiece having a large digit vertical format digital time display. In a two-row mode, hours may be displayed over minutes, or minutes may be displayed over seconds, or seconds may be displayed over tenths or hundredths of a second, or the month may be displayed over the date, or the day may be displayed over an AM/PM indicator. In a three-row mode, hours may be displayed over minutes over seconds, or minutes may be displayed over seconds over tenths or hundredths of a second, or the day may displayed over the month over the date. The timepiece can switch between two-row and three-row modes, and both modes are used in normal time keeping functions as well as stopwatch functions. The vertical format display is compatible with segmented and pixelated representations of digits, and allows the use of large digits without substantially increasing the overall physical dimensions of the timepiece.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figs, la through Id are a plan view of a two-row digital time display compatible with the present invention.

Figs. 2a and 2b are a plan view of a three-row digital time display compatible with the present invention. Figs. 3a through 3d are a plan view of a pixelated digital time display compatible with the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of display mode selection buttons compatible with the present invention.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments

In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The present invention incorporates a general way to display time and other information on digital watches, and is compatible with a variety of display technologies, such as light emitting diode (LED) or liquid crystal display (LCD) technologies. The use of LED and LCD technology watch displays is well-known within the prior art, and representative examples are taught by U.S. Patent 3,782,102 issued Jan. 1, 1974, to Bergey; U.S. Patent 4,026,101, issued May 31, 1977, to Moyer; and U.S. Patent 4,227,777, issued Oct. 14, 1980, to Murakami, all three of which are herein incorporated by reference. It will be recognized that the present invention may be used with other display technologies in addition to LED and LCD technologies without loss of generality. It will also be recognized that the present invention may be used with a wide a variety of timing devices, such as wristwatches, stopwatches, clocks, and bicycle cyclocomputers, as well as many other types of digital timers and digital displays which are used, for example, with clock radios, stereo audio systems, video cassette recorders, microwave ovens, telephones, refrigerators, automobiles, and the like.

Fig. 1 shows the various display positions displayed by a preferred segmented two-row digital time display on a wristwatch having normal dimensions. The display is divided horizontally into two substantially equal portions defining an upper row and a lower row. The watch bezel preferably has a narrow border to allow the visible display area of the watch to extend substantially to the physical edges of the watch case. Thus, the display positions on a row may be made larger than on a normal digital watch due to the larger than normal visible display area. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in Fig. 1, the display accommodates positions for at least two alphanumeric display positions per display row.

Fig. la shows a first two-row watch display mode where the hours are displayed in the upper row and the minutes are displayed in the lower row. Fig. lb shows a second two-row watch display mode where the minutes are displayed in the upper row and the seconds are displayed in the lower row. Fig. lc shows a third two-row watch display mode where the month is displayed in the upper row and the date is displayed in the lower row. Fig. Id shows a fourth two-row watch display mode where the day is displayed in the upper row and an AM/PM designator is displayed in the lower row. It will be recognized that the four display modes shown in Figs, la through Id are representative modes only, and that in general the present invention provides for the display of any time, day, date, or other information capable of being represented in two or more alphanumeric display positions in each of the upper and lower rows in any order.

Fig. 2 shows the various display positions displayed by a preferred segmented three-row digital time display on a wristwatch having normal dimensions. The display is divided horizontally into three substantially equal portions defining an upper row, a middle row, and a lower row. Similarly to the two-row display, the three-row display watch bezel preferably has a narrow border to allow the visible display area of the watch to extend substantially to the physical edges of the watch case. The large display area is used either to allow die increased size of the digits, or to accommodate additional rows, or both. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in Fig. 2, the three-row display accommodates positions for at least four alphanumeric display positions per display row, but it will be recognized that the number of display positions per row may be increased or decreased without loss of generality.

Fig. 2a shows a first three-row watch display mode where the hours and minutes are displayed in the upper row, the minutes and second are displayed in the middle row, and the tenths and hundredths of a second are displayed in the lower row. Fig. 2b shows a second three-row watch display mode where the day is displayed in the upper row, the month is displayed in the middle row, and the date is displayed in the lower row. It will be recognized that the display modes shown in Figs. 2a and 2b are representative modes only, and that in general the present invention provides for the display of any time, day, date, or other information capable of being represented in two or more alphanumeric display positions in each of the upper, middle, and lower rows in any order. Fig. 3 shows the various display positions displayed by a preferred pixelated two-row or three-row digital time display on a wristwatch having normal dimensions. The display is divided horizontally into either two or three substantially equal portions which define either two or three corresponding display rows. Fig. 3a shows a first two-row pixelated watch display mode where the hours are displayed in the upper row and the minutes are displayed in the lower row. Fig. 3b shows a second two-row pixelated watch display mode where the minutes are displayed in the upper row and the seconds are displayed in the lower row. Fig. 3c shows a first three-row pixelated watch display mode where the minutes are displayed in the upper row, the seconds are displayed in the middle row, and the tenths and hundredths of a second are displayed in the lower row.

Fig. 3d shows a second three-row pixelated watch display mode where the day is displayed in the upper row, the month is displayed in the middle row, and the date is displayed in the lower row. It will be recognized that the display modes shown in Figs. 3a through 3d are representative modes only, and that in general the present invention provides for the display of any time, day, date, or other information capable of being represented in two or more alphanumeric display positions in each of the upper, middle, and lower rows in any order.

The present invention accommodates the use of nondigit display elements such as apostrophes, colons, commas, periods, or symbols and icons as shown, for example, in Figs, la, lb, and 2a. The present invention also accommodates the use of any display mode discussed or implied above or shown in any of the figures with either segmented or pixelated display technology without loss of generality.

The present invention provides for switching between two-row and three-row display modes. Switching between two-row and three-row modes is easily accomplished by the processor unit which controls the array of display elements. Selecting between a two-row mode and a three-row mode is preferably accomplished by using a function button located on the watch case. Further, the present invention also accommodates a marquee mode, where the processor unit can scroll information on the display in either a vertical, horizontal, or diagonal direction.

Fig. 4 shows display mode selection buttons used by a preferred pixelated two-row or three-row digital time display on a wristwatch having normal dimensions. The wristwatch preferably has four function buttons as shown. The "A" button activates a back light or other display light mechanism. The "B" button changes modes from a blank face to: 1) hours and minutes, 2) minutes and seconds, 3) minutes, seconds, and tenths or hundredths of a second, and 4) day, month, and date. The "C" button activates the start and stop of a stopwatch function. The "D" button deletes the action of the stopwatch, and changes digits, day, month, and date in all program modes. Optionally, the display may be blank until a button is pressed. The present invention further accommodates a variety of foreground and background display colors, including, but not limited to, black on white and white on black. It will be recognized that the functions of the display mode function buttons may be interchanged without loss of generality. It will also be recognized that other functions such as lap times, count-down or count-up timer, pulse monitor, or in the case of a cyclocomputer, functions such as speed, average speed, cadence (pedal rate), or distance, as well as many other types of functions, may be accommodated by the present invention without loss of generality.

The present invention is to be limited only in accordance with the scope of the appended claims, since others skilled in the art may devise other embodiments still within the limits of the claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A digital display for a timepiece comprising an array of display elements divided into an upper row, a middle row, and a lower row, the upper row comprising two alphanumeric display positions, the middle row being positioned below the upper row and comprising two alphanumeric display positions, and the lower row being positioned below the middle row and comprising two alphanumeric display positions.

2. The digital display of claim 1 wherein the upper row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing an hour value, and wherein the middle row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a minute value, and wherein the lower row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a seconds value.

3. The digital display of claim 1 wherein the upper row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a minute value, and wherein the middle row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a seconds value, and wherein the lower row comprises a alphanumeric display position representing a tenths of a second value.

4. The digital display of claim 1 wherein the upper row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a minute value, and wherein the middle row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a seconds value, and wherein the lower row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a hundredths of a second value.

5. The digital display of claim 1 further comprising horizontal marquee means coupled to the array of display elements for scrolling information horizontally across the display.

6. The digital display of claim 1 further comprising vertical marquee means coupled to the array of display elements for scrolling information vertically across the display.

7. The digital display of claim 1 wherein the array of display elements comprises segmented display elements.

8. The digital display of claim 1 wherein the array of display elements comprises pixelated display elements.

9. The digital display of claim 1 further comprising switch means coupled to the array of display elements for switching the array of display elements between a two-row display mode and a three-row display mode.

10. A digital display for a timepiece comprising an array of pixelated display elements divided into an upper row and a lower row, the upper row comprising two alphanumeric display positions and the lower row being positioned below the upper row and comprising two alphanumeric display positions, and marquee means coupled to the array of display elements for scrolling information across the display.

1 1. The digital display of claim 10 wherein the marquee means comprises horizontal marquee means for scrolling information horizontally across the display.

12. The digital display of claim 10 wherein the marquee means comprises vertical marquee means for scrolling information vertically across the display.

13. The digital display of claim 10 wherein the upper row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a month, and wherein the lower row comprises two alphanumeric display positions representing a date value.

14. The digital display of claim 10 further comprising switch means coupled to the array of display elements for switching the array of display elements between a two-row display mode and a three-row display mode.