JP2008209893A - Drive method for display device, drive device, display device, and electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a drive method and a drive device significantly reducing the display change time in a particle migration type display device, and to provide a display device and electronic equipment. <P>SOLUTION: In driving a display panel of a timepiece by a drive device, the method includes a gray level drive step so that, during the gray level driving, display is changed in the display panel based on the display color difference in a gray level state which is not a saturation state. By carrying out the gray level driving, the display change time can be significantly reduced when display is frequently changed, particularly when continuous change is required. Further, this method also reduces the power consumption compared with always driving the display in a saturation state. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a particle movement type display device, and relates to a driving method, a driving device, a display device, and an electronic apparatus.

  In recent years, various particle movement type display devices including an electrophoretic display device (Patent Document 1) have been developed. Here, the electrophoretic display device migrates charged particles (pigments, etc.) by applying an electric field, and the display color depends on the color of the particles close to the viewing direction surface or the color of the solution in which the particles are dispersed. Is decided. In such a particle movement type display device, conventionally, display is performed by moving particles until the migration of the particles is completed and the particles are saturated. In the example of the electrophoretic display device, it takes about 2 seconds until a request for rewriting the display occurs and the drawing process is performed to reach a saturated state.

JP 2006-267982 A JP-A-8-68875

As described above, in the conventional drive of the particle movement type display device including the electrophoretic display device, it takes time to draw by performing the saturation drive, and a slow impression may be given when the display is switched. It was a challenge. For example, at the time of initial setting, there are various settings such as time adjustment, world time area setting, timer setting, time display format selection such as 12 / 24-hour display, index display pattern / thickness selection, etc. When performing the setting, the frequency of display switching is very high, and the user must wait until the display switching is completed and the next operation becomes possible.
For reference, in the case of driving a liquid crystal panel (Patent Document 2), since the time required for display switching is several tens of milliseconds and the reaction speed is fast, it is possible to quickly change settings of various items. . As for the time display, it is also possible to display the seconds that require display switching every second, and it is possible to correct the fast-forwarding of the time by continuing to press the operation button.
However, in the particle movement type display device, the reaction speed is slow due to the structure of moving the particles, and a reaction speed equivalent to that of the liquid crystal panel cannot be expected.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a display device driving method, a display device driving device, a display device, and an electronic apparatus that can significantly reduce the display switching time in the particle movement type display device.

  The display device driving method of the present invention is a display device driving method for performing display by moving charged particles by applying an electric field, and is an intermediate color that causes the particles to move to an intermediate state other than a saturated state in which the movement of the particles is saturated A drive step, wherein the display is switched by moving the particles so as to cause a difference in display color.

  Further, the display device driving device of the present invention is a display device driving device that performs display by moving charged particles by applying an electric field, and by moving the particles so as to cause a difference in display color, It is characterized by comprising an intermediate color driving unit for bringing the particles into an intermediate state other than a saturated state in which the movement of the particles is saturated.

According to these inventions, display switching is performed based on the display color difference in the intermediate state when driving the intermediate color. Here, the display switching from the saturated color (saturated color) to the intermediate color, or the display switching from the intermediate color to the intermediate color of the other gradations, the electric field application time is longer than the case of the display switching from the saturated color to the saturated color. It is possible to observe each display before and after the display switching by switching the display from a certain intermediate color to an intermediate color of another gradation that can be distinguished from the intermediate color.
As a result, the display switching time can be significantly shortened as compared with the case of display switching by the conventional saturation driving, and the power consumption is lower than that in the case of always performing the saturation driving. In particular, it is necessary to switch the display continuously, such as when adjusting the time, selecting the item from the list display or selecting from among many options, or changing the display, such as during initial settings. These effects can be increased when the frequency is high.

Here, even when the second is displayed or the information that needs to be switched every second other than the second is displayed, even when the saturation drive time required for the saturation state is longer than 1 second, the present invention With the intermediate color driving featured in (2), it is possible to display seconds or display that can be switched every second. Since the second display is a basic performance of a timepiece, the effect of the present invention is conspicuous when applied to a timepiece.
The “particle movement type display device” includes a powder movement type display device such as a charged toner type display device and an electronic powder fluid display device, and an electrophoretic display device.

  The display device driving method of the present invention includes a saturation driving step for bringing the particles into the saturated state, and performing the saturation driving step after the intermediate color driving step, thereby bringing the particles in the intermediate state into the saturated state. It is preferable to make it.

  The display device drive device according to the present invention further includes a saturation drive unit that brings the particles into the saturated state, and the saturation drive unit performs the display rewrite process after the display rewrite process by the intermediate color drive unit, and performs the intermediate rewrite process. It is preferable to bring the particles in a state to the saturated state.

Here, by restricting the electric field application time in the intermediate color driving to the electric field application time in the saturation driving, the moving distance of the particles changes, so that the intermediate color driving and the saturation driving can be realized.
According to these inventions, the display in the intermediate state in which the display color is switched by the intermediate color drive is brought into the saturated state by the saturation drive, and the reflectance is maximized. Thereby, the visibility when the display switching is completed and the display state is maintained can be further enhanced while performing the display switching in a short time.

In the display device driving method of the present invention, at least one of the intermediate color driving step and the saturation driving step applies a pulse that changes between different first potential and second potential to one electrode, and It is preferable to apply either the first potential or the second potential to the other electrode according to the display color.
Here, in the case of driving an electrophoretic display device of a type in which charged particles existing between these electrodes are moved, the “one electrode” and the “other electrode” are respectively “facing each other”. It corresponds to “one electrode” and “the other electrode facing each other”.

  In the display device driving device of the present invention, a power source, a first potential generating unit that generates a first potential of two potentials different from the power source, and a first potential of the two potentials from the power source. It is preferable to include a second potential generation unit that generates two potentials and a pulse generation unit that generates a pulse that changes between the two potentials.

According to these inventions, when a pulse is applied to one electrode and the pulse is at the first potential, an electric field in a predetermined direction is formed between the one electrode and the other electrode to which the second potential is applied. Conversely, when the pulse is at the second potential, an electric field in the opposite direction is generated between the one electrode and the other electrode to which the first potential is applied. Therefore, bidirectional display switching is performed in parallel by time division from one color to the other color and from the other color to one color. Thus, by performing display switching in each direction in a time-sharing manner, even with one power source (single power source), natural display can be performed as if display switching in both directions is performed simultaneously.
Note that when a signal (pulse) having the same phase and the same potential as the pulse applied to one electrode is applied to the other electrode, a voltage gradient does not occur between these electrodes, and the display color is maintained.
Here, if a configuration is provided in which two power sources (both power sources) are provided, 0 V is applied to one electrode and either a positive potential or a negative potential is applied to the other electrode depending on the display color, Although display switching can be performed simultaneously, the need for two booster circuits and the like increases the circuit configuration. For this reason, in a small device such as a watch, it is particularly advantageous to use one power source (single power source). Further, the power consumption can be reduced by not increasing the size of the booster circuit. Furthermore, the withstand voltage of the transistor for switching the potential is about half that of the conventional example. On the other hand, the display switching time becomes longer with a single power source.
As described above, in the present invention which is a single power source and requires a long display switching time, the effect of shortening the display switching time described above can be conspicuous.

  In the display device driving method of the present invention, it is preferable to start the next display rewriting process in response to a display switching request during one display rewriting process in the saturation driving process.

  The display device drive device of the present invention further includes a display switching request generation unit that transmits a display switching request to either the intermediate color driving unit or the saturation driving unit during one display rewriting process by the saturation driving unit. It is preferable.

According to these inventions, when a display switching request occurs, the next display rewriting process is performed from the intermediate state before the saturation state without waiting until the saturation state is reached, thereby further reducing the time required for the display switching. Can be shortened.
Here, for example, when the operation button is repeatedly pressed, the effect can be increased when the display switching start and the display switching end occur continuously.
Here, the one display rewriting process is a process of inputting a driving signal necessary for rewriting (redrawing) the display to the display body. When display rewriting is repeated, a plurality of display rewriting processes are sequentially performed. Depending on the display body, a plurality of drive signals are required for one display rewriting process. Such a display rewriting process is performed each time a display switching request is generated, for example, when the operation button is pressed to switch the screen display, or when the display time is counted down while the timer is being used.

In the display device driving method of the present invention, it is preferable that the intermediate color driving process is started by holding the operation by the operating member that generates the display switching request for a predetermined time.
The display device drive device of the present invention further includes an operation detection unit that detects an operation state of the operation member that generates a display switching request, and the intermediate color drive unit holds the operation by the operation member for a predetermined time. It is preferable that the display rewriting process is started when the operation detection unit detects.

  According to these inventions, the operation member holding operation time is counted, and when the holding operation is continued for a predetermined time, it is determined that the user wants to continuously perform item selection, time correction, and the like. Since the driving is started, the intermediate color driving can be started in a timely manner in conjunction with the user operation, and the user can observe the transition of the setting.

In the display device driving method of the present invention, when the operation by the operation member that generates the display switching request is held during the one display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process, the display rewriting process by the intermediate color driving process is performed. When the operation by the operation member is canceled during one display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process, it is preferable to shift from the intermediate color driving process to the saturation driving process.
The display device drive device of the present invention further includes an operation detection unit that detects an operation state of the operation member that generates a display switching request, and the intermediate color drive unit holds the operation by the operation member for a predetermined time. Is detected by the operation detection unit, and when the operation by the operation member is held during one display rewriting process, the display rewriting process is continued and the saturation is performed. Preferably, the driving unit performs the display rewriting process when the operation by the operation member is canceled during the one display rewriting process by the intermediate color driving unit.

  According to these inventions, it is determined that the user wants to finish the item selection and the time correction when the holding operation is canceled by performing display rewriting continuously and quickly by intermediate color driving while the operation is held. Then, a saturation driving process is performed. As a result, it is possible to realize more timely driving in conjunction with the user operation.

  In the display device driving method of the present invention, the operation by the operating member that generates the display switching request is shorter than the saturation time required for one display rewriting process of the saturation driving process from the previous operation by the operating member. When it is performed at intervals, it is preferable to interrupt the display rewriting process being performed and perform the display rewriting process by the intermediate color driving process.

  The display device drive device according to the present invention further includes an operation detection unit that detects an operation state of the operation member that generates a display switching request, and the intermediate color drive unit is operated by the operation member. When the operation detecting unit detects that the operation has been performed at a time interval shorter than the saturation time required for one display rewriting process of the saturation drive unit from the previous operation, the display rewriting process being processed is interrupted. It is preferable to perform display rewriting processing.

According to these inventions, when the operation time interval by the operation member is shorter than the saturation time, the user determines that the user wants to continuously rewrite the display and performs the intermediate color drive. The display rewriting can be performed rapidly in synchronism with the repeated operation (sequential hitting when the operation member is a push button).
Note that the saturation time refers to the time required to move the particles until the saturated state is reached, that is, the time required for one display rewriting process in the saturation driving process.

  In the driving method of the display device of the present invention, when the operation by the operating member that generates the display switching request is repeatedly performed at a time interval shorter than the saturation time required for the display rewriting process of the saturation driving process, It is preferable that the display rewriting process by the intermediate color driving process is sequentially performed by the number based on the number of operations of the operation member.

  In the display device drive device according to the present invention, the operation detection unit that detects the operation state of the operation member that generates the display switching request, and the operation performed by the operation member are saturated for one display rewriting process of the saturation drive unit. An operation number storage unit that stores the number of repetitions when the operation detection unit detects that the operation is repeatedly performed at a time interval shorter than the time, and the intermediate color driving unit stores the operation number storage unit It is preferable that the display rewriting process is sequentially performed by the number based on the number of operations, and the operation number storage unit resets the stored number of operations after the number of display rewriting processes based on the number of operations by the intermediate color driving unit.

  In these inventions, when the operation time interval by the operation member is shorter than the saturation time, the user judges that he / she wants to continuously rewrite the display and performs the intermediate color driving in the same way as the invention of the above configuration. However, in the present invention, the display rewriting process by the intermediate color drive is not synchronized with the operation of the operation member. The display rewriting process by intermediate color driving in the present invention is repeated by the number based on the number of operations without being interrupted by the operation of the operation member. That is, in a configuration in which the time required for intermediate color driving and saturation driving takes longer than the time interval of operation by the operation member, the user can change the display state when the operation member is struck repeatedly and can be reliably operated as many times as the operation is performed. Can be confirmed.

  In the display device driving method of the present invention, it is preferable that the intermediate color driving process is started at a predetermined time or when a predetermined condition is satisfied, and then the intermediate color driving process is shifted to the saturation driving process at a predetermined time or when the predetermined condition is satisfied.

  According to the present invention, the intermediate color driving process is automatically started regardless of the user's operation, and then the intermediate color driving process is automatically shifted to the saturation driving process. The above-described effect of shortening the display switching can also be enjoyed at a predetermined time or when a predetermined condition is satisfied, such as a countdown, a wipe operation at the time of screen transition, and a scheduled animation operation.

  In the display device driving method of the present invention, it is preferable to increase or decrease at least one of the electric field application time in the intermediate color driving step and the electric field application time in the saturation driving step according to the temperature during driving.

  According to this invention, it can respond to the temperature characteristic of particle movement. Specifically, when the moving speed of the particles decreases at a temperature lower than normal temperature, the reflectance equivalent to that at normal temperature can be realized by increasing the electric field application time at normal temperature than at normal temperature at low temperatures. Display and actualization of the switched display can be performed reliably and promptly.

The above driving method and driving apparatus of the present invention can be applied to various particle movement type display devices such as an electrophoretic display device (electrophoretic display), a charged toner type display device, an electropowder fluid display device, and the like.
An example of the configuration of the charged toner type display device is one in which conductive toner and fine particles are sealed between a pair of substrates coated with a charge transport member.
In addition, as an example of the configuration of the electronic powder fluid display device, there is one in which an electronic powder fluid having an intermediate property between the fluid and the powder is sealed between the substrates, the colors are different, and they repel each other during charging. The display is performed by the type of electropowder fluid.

  The display device of the present invention is characterized by being driven by the display device driving method described above or the display device driving device described above.

  According to the present invention, since it is driven by the drive method and drive device described above, the same operations and effects as described above can be enjoyed.

  The display device of the present invention is preferably an electrophoretic display device.

The electrophoretic display device has a higher reflectance than other types of display devices, and has a wide gradation range (density range) of displayable intermediate colors. That is, it is easy to visually recognize the color difference between an intermediate color of a certain gradation and an intermediate color of another gradation, which is particularly suitable as an application example of the present invention.
In addition, since the electrophoretic display device has a characteristic that the initial response is high when the electric field application is started, after the electric field application is started, the color density is short enough to display a change in the display (response, reaction). Reach by. Also from this characteristic, the electrophoretic display device is particularly suitable as an application example of the present invention.

The electrophoretic display device has a two-particle system having two particles of different colors and charged positively and negatively, or has one particle and performs two-color display with the color of the particle and the color of the solution. There are single particle systems. In addition, the display color of the electrophoretic display device is not limited to two colors, and color display is also possible using RGB particles.
The display method according to the particle movement direction of the electrophoretic display device includes a vertical movement method in which particles are moved between electrodes provided facing the front side and the back side of the viewing direction, and a partition that partitions each pixel. And a horizontal movement type that moves particles to the side surface of the partition wall or the flat surface of the pixel.
Further, the driving method of the electrophoretic display device may be a segment driving method or a dot matrix driving method.

  An electronic apparatus according to the present invention includes the driving device for the display device described above.

  According to the present invention, since the drive device described above is provided, the same operations and effects as described above can be enjoyed.

  The electronic apparatus according to the present invention includes a timekeeping section and a time information display section that displays timekeeping information timed by the timekeeping section.

According to the present invention, the electronic device is configured as a timepiece or has a timepiece function.
Since the display can be switched in a short time as described above, it is possible to realize the display of seconds, which is the basic performance of the watch. That is, the effect that the display can be switched in a short time can be increased by application to a watch.
In addition, in a clock equipped with various functions such as an alarm, world time, and timer, it is possible to quickly change settings on these various setting screens.

  According to the present invention, the display switching time in the particle movement type display device can be greatly shortened.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
In addition, regarding the description after the second embodiment, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted or simplified.

[First Embodiment]
A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[1. overall structure]
FIG. 1 is an external plan view of a timepiece 1 as an electronic apparatus according to the present embodiment.
The timepiece 1 is configured as a digital display type electronic wristwatch, and includes an outer case 10 having a rectangular opening 11 formed on the front surface, a band 12, and an electrophoretic display panel 30 that is visible from the opening 11. . A cover glass 11 </ b> A is provided in the opening 11, and operation buttons 131 to 134 are provided on the side surface of the exterior case 10.

[2. Configuration of electrophoretic display module]
FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing the configuration of the electrophoretic display module 3. The electrophoretic display module 3 generally includes an electrophoretic display panel 30 and a control circuit board 40, which are connected to each other by a wiring member C such as an anisotropic conductive film (ACF). In the state of being accommodated in the outer case 10, the electrophoretic display panel 30 and the control circuit board 40 are folded and overlapped at the wiring member C.

[2-1. Configuration of control circuit board]
The control circuit board 40 includes a power source 420 that is a driving source of the timepiece 1, a control controller 425 that controls the entire timepiece 1, a driver IC 426 of the display panel 30, a switch element 427, and a crystal oscillation circuit element 428. Has been implemented. The power source 420 is a primary battery in the present embodiment, but may be a secondary battery or other power supply device.
The driver IC 426 and the wiring member C are connected to each other although not shown in detail.

[2-2. Configuration of electrophoretic display panel]
The display panel 30 is provided with an hour display unit 30H, a minute display unit 30M, and a second display unit 30S, each of which is composed of seven segments. Further, a colon (:) display unit 30C is provided by two segments between the hour display unit 30H and the minute display unit 30M, and “m” and “s” displayed when the chronograph function is operated. Each segment is also provided. When it is not necessary to distinguish these segments, they are collectively referred to as segment 300.
The display panel 30 is provided with a background display electrode 390 for displaying a background, which is an area obtained by removing all the segments 300 from the entire display area.

3 is a cross-sectional view of the display panel 30 taken along line III-III in FIG.
The display panel 30 includes a display substrate 31, a transparent substrate 32, and an electrophoretic layer 33 provided between the display substrate 31 and the transparent substrate 32 and is configured in a rectangular shape in plan view. It is installed.

A segment electrode 310 corresponding to each segment 300 is provided on the surface of the display substrate 31 (a surface facing the transparent substrate 32), and electrodes 321 are connected to the electrodes on the transparent substrate 32 side at both ends in the longitudinal direction. , 322 are provided.
A plurality of microcapsules 330 are adhered to the surface of the segment electrode 310 by providing an adhesive (adhesive layer) AD. These microcapsules 330 constitute the electrophoretic layer 33.

  On the back surface of the display substrate 31, the segment electrode 310, the background display electrode 390, and the electrodes 321 and 322 formed on the surface of the display substrate 31 are electrically connected to the control circuit substrate 40 via the wiring member C (FIG. 2). 312 is formed. Each wiring 312 and each electrode are connected by a via 314 penetrating the display substrate 31 in the thickness direction.

  On the other hand, a transparent common electrode 320 made of ITO (Indium Tin Oxide) or the like is provided on the back surface of the transparent substrate 32 (the surface facing the display substrate 31). The common electrode 320 is provided over substantially the entire back surface of the transparent substrate 32 and is an electrode common to each segment electrode 310 to which a voltage is applied to each segment electrode 310. Conductive members 321A and 322A are interposed between the common electrode 320 and the electrodes 321 and 322, respectively.

  The transparent substrate 32, the microcapsule 330, the display substrate 31 and the like are sealed by the moisture resistant sheet 32A provided on the front surface side of the transparent substrate 32 and the moisture resistant sheet 31A provided on the back surface side of the display substrate 31. .

[3. Display by electrophoresis]
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the electrophoretic layer 33 in the display panel 30. The electrophoretic layer 33 is formed by densely arranging a large number of microcapsules 330, and each microcapsule 330 is filled with an electrophoretic particle dispersion 331 in which a large number of charged particles are dispersed. In the electrophoretic particle dispersion liquid 331, black electrophoretic particles (hereinafter referred to as black particles) 331A and white electrophoretic particles (hereinafter referred to as white particles) 331B are dispersed, and two-color powder fluid type electrophoresis is performed. Layers are configured. The black particles 331A and the white particles 331B are pigments charged with different polarities. In this embodiment, the black particles 331A are negatively charged and the white particles 331B are positively charged. .

That is, the segment electrode 310 is at a high level potential (H potential), and the common electrode 320
Is a low level potential (L potential), an electric field from the common electrode 320 to the segment electrode 310 is generated due to the potential difference, and the negatively charged black particles 331A move to the segment electrode 310 side and the positively charged white The particles 331B move to the common electrode 320 side. When the white particles 331B are saturated as close as possible to the common electrode 320, the display on the display panel 30 is white.

  Contrary to the white display, when the segment electrode 310 is set to a low level potential (L potential) and the common electrode 320 is switched to a high level potential (H potential), the direction of the electric field is reversed, and the black particles 331A are The display on the display panel 30 when the saturation state is as close as possible to the common electrode 320 is black. In the example of FIG. 1, each numeral and colon of “12:00” are displayed in black.

Further, by adjusting the movement amount of the black particles 331A and the white particles 331B according to the electric field application time, it is possible to display an intermediate color with a color gradation between black and white.
Note that the application of the electric field is stopped when the display color is held. By stopping the application of the electric field, the positions of the black particles 331A and the white particles 331B do not change ideally, and the black particles 331A and the white particles 331B remain at the positions, so that the display color is maintained.

[4. Configuration of drive control unit]
FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the control circuit board 40 (FIG. 2). The control circuit board 40 includes a drive control unit 61 mounted on the control controller 425 and a display drive unit 62 mounted on the driver IC 426 (FIG. 2), and functions as a drive device for the display panel 30.
The drive control unit 61 includes an input / output unit 611 that performs input / output with respect to the display drive unit 62, a timing unit 612 that acquires timing information, a voltage control unit 613 that supplies power to each circuit element 425 to 428 from the power source 420, and , An operation detection unit 614 that detects operation states of the operation buttons 131 to 134, a control unit 615 that controls operations of these units 611 to 614, and a storage unit 616.

The timer unit 612 measures time by counting the oscillation pulses of the crystal oscillation circuit element 428, and the timer unit 612 controls the input / output unit 611 through the control unit 615.
Further, the display driving unit 62 applies a driving signal for applying a voltage between the common electrode 320 and each segment electrode 310 of the display panel 30 to the display panel 30. Here, the display driving unit 62 applies a driving signal having a predetermined potential to each of the segment electrodes 310 based on the timing information acquired by the timing unit 612.

[4-1. Configuration of display drive unit]
FIG. 6 is a configuration block diagram of the display driving unit 62 that drives the display panel 30. The display driving unit 62 is connected to an L potential generation unit 621 that generates an L potential (first potential; 0 V in the present embodiment) and a booster circuit unit 620 and generates an H potential (second potential; +15 V in the present embodiment). An H potential generation unit 622 to generate, a pulse generation unit 623 to generate a pulse by the potentials generated by these potential generation units 621 and 622, and a potential output to the display panel 30 according to a display state, A display control unit 624 for controlling a driving period (electric field application time) and the like.
The booster circuit unit 620 boosts the voltage (for example, 1.5V) supplied from the power source 420 to the H potential (15V in this embodiment).

In addition, the display drive unit 62 includes, as a plurality of output terminals of the driver IC 426, a common electrode terminal 628 connected to the common electrode 320, and a plurality of segment electrode terminals 629 _{1 to} 629 _n respectively corresponding to the segments 300. The display controller 624 controls output to these terminals.

  The display control unit 624 makes a display switching request and a saturation driving unit 625 that brings the particles 331A and 331B in the display panel 30 into saturation, an intermediate color driving unit 626 that puts the particles 331A and 331B into an intermediate state other than the saturation state, and a display switching request. And a display switching request generation unit 627 to be generated.

[5. Display panel drive process]
Next, a driving process of the display panel 30 will be described.
[5-1. Saturation drive process]
FIG. 7 shows a part of the saturation driving process performed by the saturation driving unit 625. Here, COM indicates the potential of the drive pulse transmitted from the display driver 62 and changes between the L potential and the H potential at the common electrode (COM), and SEG1 and SEG2 are displayed from the display driver 62, respectively. An example of the drive signal transmitted according to a color and applied to the segment electrode 310 (FIG. 3) is shown.
Further, the density of the display color on the display panel 30 is shown in the lower part of FIG.
In the saturation driving process, display rewriting is performed once during the half wavelength 10 times (5 pulses) of COM shown in FIG. In this embodiment, the half wavelength of COM is 0.25 seconds. A driving period T1 in which 10 half wavelengths of COM are set as one set is a required time (saturation time) for one display rewriting.

Here, SEG1 is set to H potential, and when COM is at L potential (W1 to W5), a voltage is applied between SEG1 and COM. As a result, the white particles 331B migrate to the front side of the display panel 30 and the black particles 331A migrate to the back side of the display panel 30 and become saturated, and the display color is changed from black as shown by the solid line in FIG. Changed to white.
On the other hand, SEG2 is set to L potential here, and a voltage is applied between SEG2 and COM when COM is at H potential (B1 to B5). As a result, the black particles 331A migrate to the front side of the display panel 30 and the white particles 331B migrate to the back side of the display panel 30 to become saturated, and the display color is changed from white to black.
Although not shown in FIG. 7, a pulse signal having the same phase and potential as COM is applied to the segment electrode 310 (FIG. 3) corresponding to the segment holding the display color. As a result, no voltage is applied to the segment, and the display color is kept black or white. SEG1 and SEG2 are also pulse signals similar to COM when the display color of the segment to which SEG1 and SEG2 are applied is held.

  In the present embodiment, the display of the hour display unit 30H and the minute display unit 30M in the normal time display mode is performed by the saturation drive process as shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the second is displayed at the hour, but in other cases, the time is displayed by driving the hour and minute in saturation, and the hour display unit 30H, Each segment in the minute display unit 30M is displayed in black or white according to the number to be displayed.

[5-2. Intermediate color driving process]
FIG. 8 shows a part of the intermediate color driving process performed by the intermediate color driving unit 626 (FIG. 6). In this intermediate color driving process, the driving period (electric field application time) in one display rewriting operation is shorter than that in the saturation driving process of FIG. Specifically, the half wavelength of COM in the intermediate color driving process is 0.125 seconds, which is ½ of the half wavelength of COM in the saturation driving process. A driving period in which one set of four half wavelengths (2 pulses, 0.5 seconds) of COM is a required time for one display rewriting in the intermediate color driving.
The wavelength of COM shown here is an example, and in this embodiment, the half wavelength of COM in the intermediate color driving process is, for example, about 0.005 seconds (5 ms) or more and about 0.005 seconds (5 ms). It is possible to set. In this embodiment, the half wavelength in the intermediate color driving process can be set to about 0 second or more and about 0.6 second or less at room temperature. Here, as an example in which the half wavelength is set to 0 seconds, among the all wavelengths, one of the half wavelengths is set to 0 seconds and the other is set to, for example, 0.05 seconds. This is useful because the drawing time can be shortened when the entire screen of the display panel 30 is drawn in white (or light gray) or black (or dark gray). In other words, in this case, drawing in white (or light gray) and drawing in black (or dark gray) are not performed alternately in a time-division manner, but drawing in one direction is continued. Will be done. In other words, the operation of drawing bidirectionally in a time division manner and the operation of drawing in one direction instead of the time division may be appropriately switched between the COM pulse waveforms as shown in FIG.

Here, in the present embodiment, the electric field application time in the intermediate color driving process and the electric field application time in the saturation driving process are increased or decreased according to the temperature during driving. In the comparison of the contrast as a result of the movement of the particles 331A and 331B within the same time, the contrast at the low temperature is lower than the contrast at the normal temperature. Therefore, the number of COM pulses in one driving period (T1 etc.) is increased. Or make the half wavelength longer. In this way, by extending the total electric field application time (driving period), a reflectance equivalent to that at room temperature is secured. The total electric field application time in the saturation driving process (FIG. 7) of the present embodiment is 2.5 seconds at room temperature, whereas it is twice as long as 5 seconds at 0 ° C.
In the present embodiment, even if the use condition such as the ambient temperature changes, a single drive period (T1) is obtained so that a visible intermediate color difference can be obtained and the response to the operation is appropriate. Etc.), the number of COM pulses can be selected from 1 to 6000.
Further, the total electric field application time is appropriately determined according to the applied voltage, particle diameter, and the like.

In the example shown in FIG. 8, SEG1 indicates a potential when the display color is continuously changed from the black direction to the white direction, from the white direction to the black direction, and again from the black direction to the white direction. When COM is L potential and SEG1 is H potential, writing in the white direction (W1 to W4) is performed. Further, when COM is at the H potential and SEG1 is at the L potential, writing in the black direction (B1, B2) is performed. The density of the display color in the segment to which SEG1 is applied is indicated by a solid line.
On the other hand, SEG2 indicates a potential when the display color is continuously changed from the white direction to the black direction, from the black direction to the white direction, and again from the white direction to the black direction. When L is at the L potential, writing in the black direction (B1 to B4) is performed, and when COM is at the L potential and SEG2 is at the H potential, writing in the white direction (W1, W2) is performed. The density of the display color in the segment to which SEG2 is applied is indicated by a broken line.

Here, in each segment to which SEG1 and SEG2 are applied, the display color does not become saturated (black or white) by one display rewrite, but remains in the intermediate state, and the display color is intermediate (gray). However, display switching (display rewriting) is possible based on the display color difference (density difference) between the SEG1 segment and the SEG2 segment.
That is, the display color rewritten in the driving period T1 in FIG. 8 is light gray (light gray) that is closer to white in black and white, as indicated by the white circle (◯) at the time of completion of white writing W2 for SEG1. For SEG2, as indicated by the black circle (●) at the completion of black writing B2, black and white are dark gray (dark gray) closer to black. These light gray and dark gray can be visually discriminated, and display switching is performed based on the difference between these colors.
Similar to the driving period T1, in the driving period T2, the dark gray indicated by the black circle (●) when the black writing B2 is completed by SEG1 and the light gray indicated by the white circle (◯) when the white writing W2 is completed by SEG2 are displayed. Display switching is performed based on the difference.
In the drive period T3, the display colors at the time of completion of white writing W4 by SEG1 (white circle (◯)) and the time of completion of black writing B4 by SEG2 (black circle (●)) are light gray and dark gray, respectively. Display switching is performed based on the color difference between gray and dark gray.

The saturation driving process and the intermediate color driving process described above are performed by switching appropriately as will be described later. In the present embodiment, when a new display switching request is generated during saturation in the saturation driving process, the display switching request generating unit 627 (FIG. 6) transmits a control signal to the saturation driving unit 625 (FIG. 6). Then, the following display processing is performed.
That is, when a display switching request is generated in the saturation drive process of FIG. 7, it is possible to interrupt the display process during rewriting and perform a new display process in the saturation drive process.

[6. Display panel drive example]
Next, an example of driving the display panel 30 when various functions of the timepiece 1 are operated will be described.
[6-1. Time correction]
9 to 12 show a time display when the time is adjusted, and FIGS. 13 and 14 show switching of driving processes performed in the operations of FIGS. 9 to 12.
Here, FIGS. 13 and 14 show the driving process (upper part of the figure), the operation state of the operation button 131 (middle part of the figure), and the display state of the display panel 30 (lower part of the figure), respectively.
Each of the saturation driving steps shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 means one display rewriting process related to the saturation time T1 shown in FIG. Further, each of the intermediate color driving steps shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 means one display rewriting process related to, for example, T1 shown in FIG.

When starting the time adjustment, for example, the operation button 133 is operated to set the time adjustment mode (FIG. 9A). At this time, the second display unit 30S is reset to “00” seconds. Then, the minute display unit 30M is set as a correction target by operating the operation button 134 and the like, and the minute is counted up one by one by pressing the operation button 131, for example.
Here, when the operation detecting unit 614 (FIG. 5) detects that the operation of pressing the operation button 131 is held for a predetermined time, for example, 1 second (long press), the drive control by the drive control unit 61 is a saturation drive process. The process proceeds from S1 to the intermediate color driving step S2 (FIG. 13), and the display on the minute display unit 30M is counted up in gray (the intermediate state in the lower part of FIG. 13).
The display switching request includes the timing at which the operation button 131 is pressed, the timing at which the saturation driving step S11 switches to the intermediate color driving step S12, and the display rewriting time for intermediate color driving when the operation button 131 is held (for example, FIG. 8). Occur at the timing when T1, T2, and T3) elapse. The display switching request is transmitted from the display switching request generation unit 627 (FIG. 6) to the saturation driving unit 625 (FIG. 6).
When the operation button 131 is released (turned off) during the display rewriting in the intermediate color driving step S2, the count-up is stopped, and the intermediate color driving step S2 shifts to the saturation driving step S3 (FIG. 13). Thereby, the display of the minute display unit 30M is displayed in black which is a saturated color (saturated state in the lower part of FIG. 13).

  In the example of FIG. 13, after the saturation drive step S <b> 3, the operation button 131 is pressed again with a standby time (time when the button is not pressed) interposed therebetween. At this time, the display rewriting process (counting up) is started in the saturation driving step S4 of FIG. 13D, and the operation by the operation button 131 is held for a predetermined time, whereby the intermediate color driving step of FIG. S5 is performed. Here, since the operation of the operation button 131 is held during the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process S5, the intermediate color driving display rewriting process is continued in the next intermediate color driving process S6. When the operation button 131 is released during the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process S6, the count-up is stopped and the saturation driving process S7 is performed.

By appropriately operating (long pressing) the operation button 131 as shown in FIGS. 13A to 13G, the number on the minute display unit 30M is counted up, and while the number is being counted up, For example, as shown in FIG. 9B, the display of the minute display unit 30M is displayed in gray (intermediate state). At this time, the display of the minute display unit 30M indicates “25”.
Since the saturation drive process is performed after the operation button 131 is released, the number on the minute display unit 30M is displayed in black (saturated state) as shown in FIG. At this time, the display of the minute display unit 30M indicates “28”.

Subsequently, the operation button 131 is repeatedly hit four times, and the minutes are counted up as shown in FIGS. 10D, 11E, 11F, 12G, and 12H to obtain the desired “32”. ”Will be described with reference to FIG. 14. FIG. 14 shows an example in which the operation button 131 is hit four times after an appropriate standby time after the saturation drive step S7.
Here, the operation detection unit 614 (FIG. 5) detects the time interval when the operation button 131 is pressed at the timing of the reference signal of a predetermined period in the drive control unit 61. That is, the operation detection unit 614 detects the operation intervals M1, M2, and M3 of the operation buttons 131 shown in FIG. When this operation interval M1 is shorter than the saturation time T1 (FIG. 7) required for the display rewriting process in the saturation driving process, the display rewriting process in the saturation driving process S11 of FIG. The drive control by the drive control unit 61 proceeds to a display rewriting process (intermediate color drive step S12) for drawing “30” in FIG.
That is, when the operation button 131 is operated at the time interval M1 shorter than the saturation time from the previous operation (at the first operation), the intermediate color driving step S12 is started.

In the example of FIG. 14, since the operation interval M2 between the second and third times and the operation interval M3 between the third and fourth times are shorter than the saturation time T1, “31” is drawn following the intermediate color driving step S12. A display rewriting process (intermediate color driving process S13) and a display rewriting process for rendering "32" (intermediate color driving process S14) are performed. In the present embodiment, the display rewriting process of the intermediate color driving process is performed in synchronization with the operation of the operation button 131, and the operation intervals M2 and M3 of the operation button 131 are the predetermined time required for the display rewriting process of the intermediate color driving process (see FIG. 8 is shorter than T1, T2, and T3). For this reason, the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving steps S12 and S13 is interrupted by the operation of the operation button 131, and the next display rewriting process is performed. The display state of the minute display unit 30M in the saturation driving step S11 to the intermediate color driving step S14 is an intermediate state (gray color).
When the operation detecting unit 614 detects that the operation button 131 is not operated during the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process, the saturation driving process S15 is performed. With this saturation drive S15, the numbers displayed in gray in the intermediate color drive step S14 are displayed in black that is saturated as shown in FIG. Note that the display on the minute display portion 30M is black after the saturation time T1 from the start of the intermediate color driving step S14.

[6-2. Down counter timer]
Next, FIG. 15 shows a display state when the down counter timer is operated. Here, a timer for 3 minutes operates and the remaining time is displayed every 10 seconds. After the timer is started, the display of the minute display unit 30M and the second display unit 30S is rewritten as shown in FIGS. 15A and 15B, respectively, and the minute is displayed immediately before FIG. 15C, that is, up to 10 seconds before the remaining time. Both the display on the display unit 30M and the display on the second display unit 30S are displayed in black by saturation drive. Then, the process shifts from the saturation driving process to the intermediate color driving process 10 seconds before the remaining time, and countdown is performed to rewrite the display every second from “10” seconds to “00” seconds. FIG. 16 shows an example of intermediate color driving at the time of the countdown. Since this countdown requires display rewriting every second, an intermediate color driving process (driving periods T1, T2, etc.) is performed in which display rewriting is performed once by four pulses having a half wavelength of 0.125 seconds. In the driving period T1, processing for rewriting the display color in the white direction is performed, and in driving period T2, processing for rewriting the display color in the black direction is performed. In the countdown from “10” seconds to “00” seconds, the intermediate color driving process shown in the driving period T1 and the like is repeated 10 times, and the last “00” seconds are displayed by the saturation driving process.

[6-3. Hourly notification]
FIG. 17 shows a display state at the time of notification of every hour on the hour (0: 0 or 12: 0). In this embodiment, normally, the second is not displayed, and the time is displayed only in hours and minutes. However, from 11:59:57, which is 3 seconds before the hour shown in FIG. Through the state of B), the second display unit 30S displays the second by the intermediate color drive until the positive time of (C) is reached. The driving example at this time is the same as that in FIG. 16, and the display rewriting of the second display unit 30S is performed every second. Then, when it becomes 1 second on the hour, the process shifts from the intermediate color driving process to the saturation driving process, and the display on the second display unit 30S is drawn and erased in the same white color as the background color.
In FIG. 17C showing the hour, not only the display of the second display unit 30S but also the display of the hour display unit 30H and the display of the minute display unit 30M are rewritten. FIG. 17C shows a display state in the intermediate color before the display state in the saturated color.
Here, in the present embodiment, the second is displayed only when notifying (appealing) every hour, but the second display per second is performed by the display panel 30 and the control circuit board 40 having the same configuration as in the present embodiment. Is also possible. In other words, the current time can be displayed by hour, minute, and second.

[6-4. Alarm time match notification]
FIG. 18 shows a display state when notifying that the current time matches the alarm time. Here, when the alarm set time is “8:00” and the current time matches this alarm time, the display color of “8:00” and the background portion are displayed as shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B. The display color is repeatedly inverted between dark gray and light gray. This reverse display is performed by the intermediate color driving process, and after the predetermined time has elapsed or until the operation button or the like is operated, the reverse display is performed, and then the intermediate color driving process returns to the saturation driving process.

[6-5. Display of chronograph function]
FIG. 19 shows a display state when the chronograph (stopwatch) is operated. When the chronograph mode is set by operating the operation button 133 or the like, the minute is displayed on the hour display unit 30H and the second is displayed on the minute display unit 30M. When the measurement is started by pressing the operation button 131 or the like, the elapsed time is counted up, but the display of the one-second digit is counted up in gray by the intermediate color driving process (FIG. 19A). Then, when the measurement is stopped by operating the operation button 131 or the like (FIG. 19B), the minutes and seconds are displayed in black by the saturation drive process based on the measurement time of the internal counter of the watch.

[7. Effects of this embodiment]
According to the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) When the display panel 30 of the timepiece 1 is driven, an intermediate color driving step (FIG. 8 and the like) is provided, so that when the intermediate color is driven, the display panel 30 is based on the display color difference in the intermediate state that is not saturated. The display is switched. By performing such intermediate color driving, the display switching time can be significantly shortened especially when continuous display switching is required, and power consumption is lower than when saturation driving is always performed. You can also.

(2) Further, when the display panel 30 is driven, a saturation driving process (FIG. 7) is also performed, so that the display of the intermediate state by the intermediate color driving process is reflected by being saturated by the processing by the saturation driving process. The rate is maximum. Thereby, the visibility at the time of maintaining a display state can be made higher, performing display switching in a short time.

(3) Further, the driving device of the display panel 30 is configured by one power source (single power source) (FIGS. 5 and 6), and is time-divisionally driven by two-potential driving of H potential (+15 V) and L potential (0 V). To switch the display from white to black and from black to white. As a result, the circuit configuration does not increase in size, and the configuration can be suitable for the timepiece 1 that requires portability, and the effect of shortening the display switching time can be emphasized in the single power supply driving that requires a long display switching time. Can do.

(4) The display switching request generator 627 is provided in the display driving unit 62 (FIG. 6), and when a display switching request is generated during the display processing in the saturation driving process and the intermediate color driving process (FIG. 13), the next display processing is performed. I do. That is, the time required for display switching can be further shortened by performing the next display process from the intermediate state before the saturation state without waiting for the saturation state.

(5) Counting the holding operation time of the operation buttons 131 to 134, and determining that the user wants to continuously perform item selection, time correction, etc. when the holding operation is continued for about 2 seconds, the intermediate color Since the driving has been started, the intermediate color driving can be started in a timely manner in conjunction with the user operation, and the user can observe the transition of the setting.

(6) Furthermore, when the holding operation of the operation button is released, it is determined that the user wants to finish the item selection and the time adjustment (S3 in FIG. 13), and further, until the saturation occurs. When the next operation is performed, the next display processing is performed based on the display switching request D (S5 and S6 in FIG. 13). This also realizes timely driving in conjunction with user operations. That is, the display can be switched in accordance with the repeated operation of the operation buttons 131 to 134 and the user can operate while confirming the setting change.

(7) Not only when the operation buttons 131 to 134 are operated, but when every predetermined time (FIG. 17) or when the alarm setting time coincides with the current time (FIG. 18). Since the driving process is started and then the intermediate color driving process is automatically shifted to the saturation driving process at a predetermined time or when a predetermined condition is satisfied, the effect of shortening the display switching can be increased.

(8) Even if the saturation drive time (drive period T1 in FIG. 7) necessary to achieve the saturated state is longer than 1 second, the drive period T1 in the intermediate color drive process (FIG. 8) is less than 1 second. In other words, the second display can be performed only by performing the intermediate color driving.

(9) When the operation intervals M1, M2, and M3 by the operation button 131 are shorter than the saturation time T1, the user determines that the user wants to continuously rewrite the display and performs the intermediate color driving steps S12, S13, and S14. The display rewriting can be performed rapidly in synchronism with each timing when the operation button 131 is repeatedly pressed.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. Although the display panel 30 and the control circuit board 40 in the first embodiment are of the segment drive system, the display module 5 in the present embodiment is an active matrix TFT (Thin Film Transistor) display.
The display module 5 includes a display panel 50 that is an electrophoretic display device and a driving device (not shown). The display panel 50 is configured by disposing an electrophoretic layer including microcapsules 330 (FIG. 4) between a transparent substrate on which a common electrode is provided and a TFT substrate, and a detailed description of the structure is omitted. The TFT substrate is provided with pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix. A voltage is applied between the pixel electrode and the common electrode by switching of the TFT according to the image signal input.

The timepiece according to the present embodiment can display various times, such as digital time display using numbers as shown in FIG. 20, and time display using the digital display of the hour hand 51 and minute hand 52 as shown in FIG. ing. When the hour hand 51 and the minute hand 52 are displayed, an index 53 is displayed on the peripheral edge of the display panel 50. Note that a wiping operation is performed when switching between the display mode of FIG. 20 and the display mode of FIG. 21. For example, when the screen transitions from FIG. 20 to FIG. 21, the hour hand 51, the minute hand 52 of FIG. The display of the index 53 is sequentially erased (wipe out), and each character in FIG. 21 is sequentially drawn (wipe in).
FIG. 22 shows a setting screen for various functions of the watch of this embodiment. Here, the city of the world time is set, and the city is changed by operating the operation buttons 131 and 132. Specifically, the city to which the time difference has been added can be selected by operating the operation button 131, and the city to which the time difference has been subtracted can be selected by operating the operation button 132.
Other items other than the city with the world time function can be changed by the same method.

FIG. 23 and FIG. 24 show driving examples in each pixel of the display panel 50, respectively. The time display in FIGS. 20 and 21 and the display at the time of setting change in FIG. 22 are performed by either the saturation drive process illustrated in FIG. 23 or the intermediate color drive process illustrated in FIG. For example, in the mode for displaying the current time as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21, the saturation driving process is performed, and when the wipe operation for switching the display between FIGS. 20 and 21 is performed, the display is performed at a high speed by the intermediate color driving process. To achieve a natural wipe operation.
Further, as shown in FIG. 22, when changing the city (region) setting or the like, if the operation button 131 or the like is continuously pressed for about 2 seconds, for example, the process shifts from the saturation driving process to the intermediate color driving process, and each city is sequentially displayed in fast-forward. The When the operation button 131 is released, the saturation drive is restored.

Here, as in the first embodiment, the half wavelength of the common electrode drive pulse during saturation drive is 0.25 seconds, and the half wavelength of the common electrode drive pulse during intermediate color drive is 0.125 seconds. However, in this embodiment of the TFT display, since it takes a data transfer time from the driver to each pixel electrode, the time obtained by adding this data transfer time to the drive period (T1 etc.) is the time required for one display rewrite. . In this embodiment, the data transfer time is about 0.2 seconds. That is, in FIG. 24, the drive periods T1 to T3 are shown continuously, but actually, a data transfer time is required for each drive period.
However, when focusing on driving events, the driving method is the same in both the first embodiment and this embodiment. Therefore, the present embodiment also provides the same effects as those of the first embodiment.

[Third Embodiment]
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 25, the timepiece of this embodiment is a ring-shaped bangle watch, and a flexible display panel 70 is provided along the outer periphery of an annular case 71. The display panel 70 in this embodiment is a segment drive type electrophoretic display device similar to that of the first embodiment, and the driving method thereof is the same as that of the first embodiment. It has a function of displaying an animation on the display panel 70 having a large screen extending over the angle. The display module 7 including the display panel 70 and the driving device 80 (FIG. 26) is housed between the case 71 and the cover glass 72.

  FIG. 26 shows the display module 7. The configurations of the display panel 70 and the driving device 80 are substantially the same as the configurations of the display panel 30 and the control circuit board 40 (FIG. 2) of the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof is omitted. The case 71 is provided with operation buttons 73 and 74 (FIG. 30), and operations by these operation buttons 73 and 74 can be detected by the touch sensors 827, respectively.

FIG. 27 shows a state in which almost all of the segment electrodes 310 provided on the display panel 70 are displayed in black. Along the circumferential direction of the display panel 70 (longitudinal direction in FIG. 27), numerals indicating hour digits, full digits, and minute digits, characters indicating time codes, and the like are distributed.
In the normal mode that displays the time, each hour digit, current digit, and minute digit indicating the current time are highlighted in black or white depending on the background color, and other numbers are displayed in a neutral color. Is done.

The timepiece of this embodiment has a function of displaying an animation at every hour. For example, 10 seconds before every hour, the mode is switched from the normal mode to the animation display mode. At this time, the process shifts from the saturation driving process to the intermediate color driving process.
This animation is composed of a series of images (A) to (S) shown in FIGS. 28 to 29, and display rewriting is performed at high speed by an intermediate color driving process. As shown in these images, the display colors such as numbers and characters indicating the time are switched at least once at an appropriately shifted timing.
The intermediate color driving process related to the animation display is the same as that shown in FIG. The animation ends at noon, and 12:00 indicating the noon is displayed by saturation driving (FIG. 29 (S)).

FIG. 30 shows a screen of a city setting correction mode related to the world time function. When the operation button 74 is pressed, the time difference is added, and the number and time zone (in this case, represented by a phonetic code) indicating the time difference are highlighted in black against the white background color. Further, when the operation button 73 is pressed, the time difference is subtracted, and the number and time zone indicating the time difference are highlighted in black. In the example of FIG. 30, the time difference is added by the operation of the operation button 74 from the state (A) indicating the time difference +1, and the states (B) and (C) are obtained. Here, by pressing and holding the operation button 74 for about 2 seconds, the drive shifts from the saturation drive to the intermediate color drive, and the selected cities are continuously switched. In addition, since the next display process is started by the generation of the display switching request even before the saturation state, the city can be corrected by quickly switching the city selection.
The present embodiment as described above also has substantially the same effect as the first embodiment.

[Modification of the present invention]
The configuration of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
FIG. 31 shows a modified example of the drive control when the operation button 131 is repeatedly hit. In this example, similarly to FIG. 14 of the first embodiment, the operation button 131 is intermittently hit four times after the standby time after the saturation drive step S7. However, in this example, unlike the case of FIG. 14, the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process is not synchronized with the operation of the operation button 131.

In this example, the number of operations of the operation button 131 detected by the operation detection unit 614 (FIG. 5) is stored in the storage unit 616 (FIG. 5). When the operation by the operation button 131 is performed at a time interval M1 shorter than the saturation time T1 (for example, FIG. 7), the display rewriting process in the saturation driving process S11 being processed is interrupted, and the number of operations (here, 4 times). The display rewriting process (process of T1, T2, and T3 in FIG. 8) is repeated by subtracting 1 from 3), that is, 3 times.
That is, the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving steps S22, S23, and S24 is repeated by the number based on the number of operations of the operation button 131 without being interrupted by the operation of the operation button 131. When the display rewriting process (intermediate color driving process S24) corresponding to the last (fourth) of repeated hits is completed, the drive control unit 61 performs a saturation driving process S15.
The storage unit 616 resets the number of operations after the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving step S24.

  According to the configuration of this example, it is possible to reliably rewrite the display as many times as the operation button 131 is repeatedly hit, and it is possible for the user to confirm the transition of the display state when the operation button 131 is repeatedly hit. .

  FIG. 32 shows another modification when the operation button 131 is repeatedly hit. In the first embodiment, the display rewriting process is performed by the intermediate color driving steps S12 to S14 when the operation button 131 is repeatedly hit at a short time interval. However, as shown in FIG. You may carry out by S32-S34.

FIG. 33 shows an example of the intermediate color driving process. Here, 0.25 seconds, which is twice that in FIG. 8, is set as the pulse half wavelength, and the display is rewritten once by setting the half wavelength twice as one set. . Even in this case, such a driving method is also possible because the display can be visually confirmed by the difference in display colors determined in each of the driving periods T1 to T3. However, since the half-wavelength is long, it can be conspicuous that the display is switched depending on the resolution of the visual acuity. Therefore, the pulse half-wavelength is preferably as short as possible so long as the particles can be moved.
In each of the above-described examples, the width of the drive pulse is constant, and the application time of the H potential and the application time of the L potential are the same. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Depending on the above, the pulse width may be changed, or the application time of the H potential may be different from the application time of the L potential.

  In the second embodiment, the hour hand 51 and the minute hand 52 are drawn on the display panel 50 (FIG. 20), but instead of representing the hour hand 51 and the minute hand 52 in digital display in this way, the hour hand for analog display and It is also conceivable to display the time by analog display by providing minute hands or the like (hands) on the display panel and driving these hands by a driving wheel train. In this case, it is possible to combine the analog time display using the hands with the digital display on the display panel. The pointer is provided on a rotation shaft that penetrates the display panel in the thickness direction, and the drive wheel train connected to the rotation shaft may be disposed on the back side of the display panel.

Although the best configuration, method and the like for carrying out the present invention have been disclosed in the above description, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the invention has been illustrated and described primarily with respect to particular embodiments, but may be configured for the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art in terms of materials, quantity, and other detailed configurations.
Therefore, the description limited to the shape, material, etc. disclosed above is an example for easy understanding of the present invention, and does not limit the present invention. The description by the name of the member which remove | excluded the limitation of one part or all of such restrictions is included in this invention.

1 is an external view of a timepiece according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The top view of the display module in the said embodiment. III-III sectional view taken on the line of FIG. The schematic diagram which shows the electrophoresis layer of the display panel in the said embodiment. The block diagram which shows the electric constitution of the control circuit board in the said embodiment. The block diagram of the display drive part in the said embodiment. The figure which shows an example of the drive waveform of the display panel in the said embodiment (saturation drive process). The figure which shows an example of the drive waveform of the display panel in the said embodiment (intermediate color drive process). The figure which shows the display state at the time correction mode. The figure which shows the display state at the time correction mode. The figure which shows the display state at the time correction mode. The figure which shows the display state at the time correction mode. The figure which shows the switching of the driving process at the time correction mode (long press). The figure which shows the switching of the driving process at the time correction mode (continuous strike). The figure which shows the display state at the time of a down counter timer action | operation. The figure which shows an example of the drive waveform of the display panel in the said embodiment (intermediate color drive process). The figure which shows the display state at the time of every hour notification. The figure which shows the display state at the time of alarm time alerting | reporting. The figure which shows the display state at the time of chronograph operation | movement. The external view (time display mode) of the timepiece in 2nd Embodiment of this invention. External view of the timepiece (another time display mode). The figure which shows the screen which performs various settings in the said clock. The figure which shows an example of the drive waveform of the display panel in the said embodiment (saturation drive process). The figure which shows an example of the drive waveform of the display panel in the said embodiment (intermediate color drive process). The external appearance perspective view of the timepiece in 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The top view of the display module in the said embodiment. The top view of the display panel in the said embodiment. The figure which shows the animation in the said embodiment. The figure which shows the animation in the said embodiment. The figure which shows the screen of the city correction mode in the said embodiment. The figure which shows the change of a driving process in connection with the modification of this invention. The figure which shows the change of a driving process in connection with the modification of this invention. The figure which shows an example of the drive waveform of the display panel in the modification of this invention (intermediate color drive process).

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Clock (electronic device) 30, 50, 70 ... Electrophoretic display panel, 32 ... Transparent substrate, 33 ... Electrophoresis layer, 40 ... Control circuit board, 61 ... Drive control unit, 62 ... Display drive unit, 73 and 74 ... Operation buttons (operation members), 80 ... Drive device, 131 to 134 ... Operation buttons (operation members), 300 ... Segment 310 ... Segment electrode, 320 ... Common electrode, 330 ... Microcapsule, 331A ... Black particles, 331B ... White particles, 420 ... Power supply, 614 ... Operation detection unit, 616... Storage unit (operation count storage unit), 621... L potential generation unit (first potential generation unit), 622... H potential generation unit (second potential generation unit), 623. Generation unit, 625, saturation drive unit, 626, intermediate color Moving part, 627... Display switching request generating part, 426... Driver IC, D... Display switching request, S1, S3, S4, S7, S15 .. saturation driving process, S2, S5, S6. S12 to S14, S22 to S24 ... intermediate color driving process, T1 to T3 ... driving period.

Claims (21)

A driving method of a display device that performs display by moving charged particles by applying an electric field,
Comprising an intermediate color driving step for bringing the particles into an intermediate state other than a saturated state in which the movement of the particles is saturated,
In the intermediate color driving step, the display is switched by moving the particles so as to cause a difference in display color. The method for driving a display device according to claim 1,
Comprising a saturation driving step of bringing the particles into the saturated state;
The driving method characterized by causing the particles in the intermediate state to be in the saturated state by performing the saturation driving step after the intermediate color driving step. The method for driving a display device according to claim 1 or 2,
In at least one of the intermediate color driving step and the saturation driving step, a pulse that changes between a first potential and a second potential that are different from each other is applied to one electrode, and the first potential and One of the second potentials is applied to the other electrode. In the driving method of the display device according to claim 2 or 3,
The next display rewriting process is started in response to a display switching request during one display rewriting process in the saturation driving process. In the driving method of the display device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The driving method according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate color driving process is started when an operation by an operating member that generates a display switching request is held for a predetermined time. The method for driving a display device according to any one of claims 2 to 5,
During operation of the operation member that generates a display switching request during one display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process, the display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving process is continued.
When the operation by the operation member is canceled during one display rewriting process in the intermediate color driving step, the driving method is shifted from the intermediate color driving step to the saturation driving step. The method for driving a display device according to any one of claims 2 to 6,
Processing is being performed when an operation by an operation member that generates a display switching request is performed at a time interval shorter than the saturation time required for one display rewriting process of the saturation drive process from the previous operation by the operation member. The display rewriting process is interrupted and the display rewriting process by the intermediate color driving process is performed. The method for driving a display device according to any one of claims 2 to 6,
When the operation by the operation member that generates the display switching request is repeatedly performed at a time interval shorter than the saturation time required for one display rewriting process of the saturation drive process, the number is sequentially increased by the number of operations of the operation member. A display rewriting process by the intermediate color driving process is performed. The method for driving a display device according to any one of claims 2 to 8,
The intermediate color driving process is started at a predetermined time or when a predetermined condition is satisfied,
The driving method characterized by shifting from the intermediate color driving process to the saturation driving process at a predetermined time or when a predetermined condition is satisfied. In the driving method of the display device according to any one of claims 2 to 9,
According to the temperature at the time of driving, at least one of the electric field application time in the intermediate color driving process and the electric field application time in the saturation driving process is increased or decreased. A driving device for a display device that performs display by moving charged particles by applying an electric field,
A driving apparatus comprising: an intermediate color driving unit configured to move the particles so as to cause a difference in display color, thereby bringing the particles into an intermediate state other than a saturated state in which the movement of the particles is saturated. The drive device for a display device according to claim 11,
A saturation driving unit for bringing the particles into the saturated state;
The saturation driving unit performs a display rewriting process after a display rewriting process by the intermediate color driving unit to bring the particles in the intermediate state into the saturated state. The drive device for a display device according to claim 11 or 12,
Power supply,
A first potential generator that generates a first potential of two different potentials from the power source;
A second potential generation unit that generates a second potential of the two potentials from the power source;
And a pulse generator that generates a pulse that changes between the two potentials. The drive device for a display device according to claim 12 or 13,
A drive apparatus comprising: a display switching request generation unit that transmits a display switching request to one of the intermediate color driving unit and the saturation driving unit during one display rewriting process by the saturation driving unit. The drive device for a display device according to any one of claims 11 to 14,
An operation detection unit that detects an operation state by an operation member that generates a display switching request is provided.
The intermediate color driving unit starts display rewriting processing when the operation detecting unit detects that the operation by the operation member is held for a predetermined time. In the drive device of the display device according to any one of claims 12 to 15,
An operation detection unit that detects an operation state by an operation member that generates a display switching request is provided.
The intermediate color driving unit performs a display rewriting process when the operation detecting unit detects that the operation by the operating member is held for a predetermined time, and the operation by the operating member during one display rewriting process. If is held, continue the display rewriting process,
The saturation driving unit performs display rewriting processing when an operation by the operation member is canceled during one display rewriting processing by the intermediate color driving unit. The drive device for a display device according to any one of claims 12 to 16,
An operation detection unit that detects an operation state by an operation member that generates a display switching request is provided.
In the intermediate color driving unit, the operation by the operation member is performed at a time interval shorter than the saturation time required for one display rewriting process of the saturation driving unit from the previous operation by the operation member. A drive device characterized in that when it is detected by the detection unit, the display rewriting process is interrupted and the display rewriting process is performed. The drive device for a display device according to any one of claims 12 to 16,
An operation detection unit that detects an operation state by an operation member that generates a display switching request, and an operation by the operation member was repeatedly performed at a time interval shorter than a saturation time required for one display rewriting process of the saturation drive unit. An operation number storage unit that stores the number of repetitions when detected by the operation detection unit,
The intermediate color driving unit sequentially performs display rewriting processing by the number based on the number of operations stored in the operation number storage unit,
The drive number storage unit resets the stored number of operations after the display rewriting process of the number based on the number of operations by the intermediate color drive unit. A display device driven by the method for driving a display device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or the drive device for a display device according to any one of claims 11 to 18. The display device according to claim 19 is an electrophoretic display device. An electronic apparatus comprising the drive device for a display device according to any one of claims 11 to 18.