KR100603333B1 - Panel driving method and display panel using variable sustain pulse period - Google Patents

Abstract

In the display panel driving method according to the present invention, the sustain pulse is alternately applied to the scan electrode and the common electrode provided in the display panel to perform sustain discharge, time-dividing one frame into a plurality of subfields having different gray scale weights, The gray level of the frame is represented by a combination of a plurality of subfields, and the gray level weight of each subfield is determined according to the number of sustain pulses included in the subfield, and the period of the sustain pulse is differently determined for each subfield. It is done.

According to the present invention, it is possible to secure the discharge stability of the subfield having a small gray scale weight, and to shorten the sustain discharge time in the subfield having a large gray weight.

Description

Display panel driving method and display panel using variable sustain pulse period

1 and 2 illustrate the structure of a conventional three-electrode surface discharge plasma display panel.

FIG. 3 shows a typical driving apparatus of the plasma display panel shown in FIG. 1.

4 illustrates a conventional address-display separation driving method for Y electrode lines of the plasma display panel of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a timing diagram for describing an example of a driving signal of the panel illustrated in FIG. 1.

6 is a waveform diagram illustrating a display panel driving method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a waveform diagram illustrating a display panel driving method according to the modified embodiment of FIG. 6.

8 to 10 are views for explaining the structure of a display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a panel driving method for displaying a screen by applying a sustain pulse to an electrode structure for forming a display cell such as a plasma display panel (PDP).

1 and 2 illustrate the structure of a conventional three-electrode surface discharge plasma display panel.

1 and 2, between the front and rear glass substrates 100 and 106 of the conventional surface discharge plasma display panel 1, the address electrode lines A ₁ , A ₂ ,. _m ), dielectric layers 102 and 110, Y electrode lines Y ₁ , ..., Y _n , X electrode lines X ₁ , ..., X _n , fluorescent layer 112, barrier ribs ( 114) and, for example, a magnesium monoxide (MgO) layer 104 is provided.

The address electrode lines A ₁ , A ₂ ,..., A _m are formed in a predetermined pattern on the front side of the rear glass substrate 106. The lower dielectric layer 110 is applied in front of the address electrode lines A ₁ , A ₂ ,..., A _m . In front of the lower dielectric layer 110, barrier ribs 114 are formed in a direction parallel to the address electrode lines A ₁ , A ₂ ,..., A _m . The partition walls 114 function to partition the discharge area of each display cell and to prevent optical interference between the display cells. The fluorescent layer 112 is formed between the partition walls 114.

The X electrode lines X ₁ , ..., X _n and the Y electrode lines Y ₁ , ..., Y _n are address electrode lines A ₁ , A ₂ , ..., A _m . It is formed in a predetermined pattern on the back of the front glass substrate 100 to be orthogonal to the. Each intersection sets a corresponding display cell. Each X electrode line (X ₁ , ..., X _n ) and each Y electrode line (Y ₁ , ..., Y _n ) are transparent electrode lines (X _na ) made of a transparent conductive material such as indium tin oxide (ITO). , Y _na ) and metal electrode lines X _nb and Y _nb for increasing conductivity may be formed. The front dielectric layer 102 is formed by applying the entire surface to the rear of the X electrode lines (X ₁ ,..., X _n ) and the Y electrode lines (Y ₁ ,..., Y _n ). A protective layer 104 for protecting the panel 1 from a strong electric field, for example, a magnesium monoxide (MgO) layer, is formed by applying a front surface to the back of the front dielectric layer 102. The plasma forming gas is sealed in the discharge space 108.

A driving scheme generally applied to such a plasma display panel is a method in which initialization, address, and display holding steps are sequentially performed in a unit sub-field. In the initialization step, the charge states of the display cells to be driven are made uniform. In the address step, the charge state of display cells to be selected and the charge state of display cells not to be selected are set. In the display holding step, display discharge is performed in the display cells to be selected. At this time, a plasma is formed from the plasma forming gas of the display cells performing display discharge, and the fluorescent layer 112 of the display cells is excited by ultraviolet radiation from the plasma to generate light.

3 illustrates a general driving device of the plasma display panel of FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawings, a typical driving apparatus of the plasma display panel 1 includes an image processor 300, a controller 302, an address driver 306, an X driver 308, and a Y driver 304. The image processing unit 300 converts an external analog image signal into a digital signal, and internal image signals, for example, 8-bit red (R), green (G), and blue (B) image data, clock signals, vertical and horizontal, respectively. Generate synchronization signals. The controller 302 generates driving control signals SA, SY, and SX according to the image signal of the image processor 300. The address driver 306 generates a display data signal by processing the address signal SA among the driving control signals SA, SY, and SX from the controller 302, and generates the display data signal through the address electrode lines. To apply. The X driver 308 processes the X driving control signal SX among the driving control signals SA, SY, and SX from the controller 302 and applies it to the X electrode lines. The Y driver 304 processes the Y driving control signal SY among the driving control signals SA, SY, and SX from the controller 302 and applies it to the Y electrode lines.

As a driving method of the plasma display panel 1 having the structure described above, an address-display separation driving method which is mainly used is disclosed in US Pat.

FIG. 4 illustrates a conventional address-display separation driving method for the Y electrode lines of the plasma display panel of FIG. 1.

Referring to the drawings, a unit frame may be divided into a predetermined number, for example, eight subfields SF1, ..., SF8 to realize time division gray scale display. Each subfield SF1, ..., SF8 is divided into a reset section (not shown), an address section A1, ..., A8, and a sustain discharge section S1, ..., S8. do.

In each address section A1, ..., A8, a display data signal is applied to the address electrode lines AR1, AG1, ..., AGm, ABm in FIG. Scan pulses corresponding to..., Yn) are sequentially applied.

In each sustain discharge section S1, ..., S8, pulses for display discharge alternately in the Y electrode lines Y1, ..., Yn and the X electrode lines X1, ..., Xn. Is applied to cause display discharge in discharge cells in which wall charges are formed in the address periods A1, ..., A8.

The luminance of the plasma display panel is proportional to the number of sustain discharge pulses in the sustain discharge sections S1, ..., S8 occupied in the unit frame. When one frame forming one image is represented by eight subfields and 256 gray levels, each subfield is sequentially held at a ratio of 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, and 128 in order. The number of pulses can be assigned. In order to obtain luminance of 133 gray levels, cells may be addressed and sustained and discharged during the subfield 1 period, the subfield 3 period, and the subfield 8 period.

The number of sustain discharges allocated to each subfield may be variably determined according to the weights of the subfields according to the APC (Automatic Power Control) step. In addition, the number of sustain discharges allocated to each subfield is. Various modifications are possible in consideration of gamma characteristics or panel characteristics. For example, the gray level assigned to subfield 4 may be lowered from 8 to 6, and the gray level assigned to subfield 6 may be increased from 32 to 34. In addition, the number of subfields forming one frame can be variously modified according to design specifications.

FIG. 5 is a timing diagram illustrating an example of a driving signal of the panel shown in FIG. 1. The address electrode A and the common electrode (A) in one subfield SF in the ADS (Address display separated) driving method of the AC PDP. X) and drive signals applied to the scan electrodes Y1 to Yn. Referring to FIG. 5, one subfield SF includes a reset period PR, an address period PA, and a sustain discharge period PS.

The reset period PR initializes the wall charge state of all cells by applying reset pulses to the scan lines of all groups and forcibly performing a write discharge. The reset period PR is performed before entering the address period PA, which is carried out over the entire screen, thus making it possible to create a wall distribution of wall charges with a fairly even and desired distribution. The cells initialized by the reset period PR have similar wall charge conditions in the cells. The address period PA is performed after the reset period PR is performed. At this time, in the address period PA, the bias voltage Ve is applied to the common electrode X, and the scan electrodes Y1 to Yn and the address electrodes A1 to Am are simultaneously turned on at the cell positions to be displayed. Select the display cell. After the address period PA is performed, the sustain pulse Vs is alternately applied to the common electrodes X and the scan electrodes Y1 to Yn to perform the sustain discharge period PS. During the sustain discharge period PS, a low level voltage VG is applied to the address electrodes A1 to Am.

In the conventional panel driving method, a sustain pulse of a fixed period is used in all subfields. Therefore, there is a problem that low discharge may occur in a low field gray scale subfield having a small priming effect. In addition, there is a problem in that the sustain discharge time is excessively consumed in the subfield of the high gradation weight having a large priming effect.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in an effort to provide a display panel driving method and apparatus for securing discharge stability of a subfield having a low gradation weight and reducing a sustain discharge time in a subfield having a high gradation weight.

In the display panel driving method according to an aspect of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem, the sustain pulse is alternately applied to the scan electrode and the common electrode provided in the display panel to perform a sustain discharge, gray scale weighting one frame Is time-divided into a plurality of different subfields, the gray level of the frame is expressed by a combination of the plurality of subfields, and the gray scale weight of each subfield is determined according to the number of sustain pulses included in the subfield, The period of the sustain pulse is determined differently for each subfield.

In the panel driving method, the period of the sustain pulse may be longer as a subfield having a smaller gray scale weight.

In the panel driving method, two or more subfields having the same period of the sustain pulse may exist.

In the panel driving method, the period of the sustain pulse may be determined to be the same in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or less.

In the panel driving method, the period of the sustain pulse may be determined to be the same in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or more.

In the panel driving method, the period of the sustain pulse may have two or more steps according to the load ratio.

In the panel driving method, the period of the sustain pulse can be determined longer as the load factor is smaller.

In the display panel driving method according to an aspect of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem, the sustain pulse is alternately applied to the scan electrode and the common electrode provided in the display panel to perform a sustain discharge, gray scale weighting one frame Is time-divided into a plurality of different subfields, the gray level of the frame is expressed by a combination of the plurality of subfields, and the gray scale weight of each subfield is determined according to the number of sustain pulses included in the subfield, The period of the sustain pulse is determined differently according to the load ratio of the frame.

In the panel driving method, the period of the sustain pulse can be determined longer as the load factor is smaller.

Display panel according to an aspect of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem, a transparent front substrate; A rear substrate disposed in parallel with the front substrate; A partition wall disposed between the front substrate and the rear substrate and partitioning the light emitting cells in a lattice shape; And an upper electrode and a lower electrode disposed in the partition wall around the light emitting cell, and sustain pulses are alternately applied to the upper electrode and the lower electrode to perform sustain discharge. Time-division into another plurality of subfields, expressing the gray level of the frame by a combination of the plurality of subfields, and a gray level weight of each subfield is determined according to the number of sustain pulses included in the subfield, The period of the sustain pulse is determined differently for each subfield.

In the display panel, the period of the sustain pulse may be longer as a subfield having a smaller gray scale weight.

In the display panel, two or more subfields having the same period of the sustain pulse may exist.

In the display panel, the period of the sustain pulse may be determined to be the same in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or less.

In the display panel, the period of the sustain pulse may be equally determined in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or more.

In the display panel, the period of the sustain pulse may have two or more steps according to the load ratio.

In the display panel, the period of the sustain pulse may be determined longer as the load factor is smaller.

Display panel according to another aspect of the present invention for achieving the above technical problem, a transparent front substrate; A rear substrate disposed in parallel with the front substrate; A partition wall disposed between the front substrate and the rear substrate and partitioning the light emitting cells in a lattice shape; And an upper electrode and a lower electrode disposed in the partition wall around the light emitting cell, and sustain pulses are alternately applied to the upper electrode and the lower electrode to perform sustain discharge, and one frame having a different gray scale weight. Time-division into a plurality of subfields, expressing the gray level of the frame by a combination of the plurality of subfields, and a gray scale weight of each subfield is determined according to the number of sustain pulses included in the subfield, The period of the sustain pulse is determined differently according to the load ratio of.

In the display panel, the period of the sustain pulse may be determined longer as the load factor is smaller.

Hereinafter, a structure and an operation of a display panel driving method and a display panel according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 6 is a waveform diagram illustrating a display panel driving method according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and illustrates a portion of each subfield holding section applied to a scan (Y) electrode. Referring to FIG. 6, it can be seen that the period of the sustain pulse is different for each subfield.

Here, the period of the sustain pulse is determined longer as the subfield having a smaller gray scale weight. That is, the sustain pulse period of the first subfield Y _SF1 is longest, and the sustain pulse period of the eighth subfield Y _SF8 is shortest. This assumes that the gray scale weight of the first subfield is the smallest and the gray scale weight of the eighth subfield is the largest.

The panel driving method according to the present invention may be implemented such that two or more subfields having the same period of the sustain pulse exist. In particular, in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or less, the period of the sustain pulse may be equally determined. This is especially taken into account the discharge stability of the low gradation subfield.

FIG. 7 is a waveform diagram illustrating a display panel driving method according to the modified embodiment of FIG. 6. Referring to FIG. 7, the periods of the sustain pulses of the first subfield Y _SF1 to the third subfield Y _SF3 are the same, and the periods of the fourth subfield Y _SF4 to the eighth subfield Y _SF8 are the same. It can be seen that the period of the sustain pulse is the same. FIG. 7 illustrates an example in which a sustain pulse having a long period is applied to prevent low discharge in a subfield having a low gray scale weight.

Table 1 below shows an example in which the period of the sustain pulse is determined differently for each subfield.

Maintenance pulse SF1 SF2 SF3 SF4 SF5 SF6 SF7 SF8 Count 2 12 22 36 92 120 156 224 frequency 50㎑ 60㎑ 65 yen 200㎑ 286㎑ 333 yen 333 yen 333 yen

Referring to Table 1, the panel driving method according to the present invention may be implemented such that the period of the sustain pulse is determined to be the same in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or more. This may be determined by the minimum period of the sustain pulse capable of performing stable sustain discharge due to the characteristics of the display panel.

In addition, the display panel driving method according to the present invention may be implemented such that the period of the sustain pulse has two or more stages according to the load rate of the frame, and in particular, the period of the sustain pulse is preferably implemented to be longer as the load rate is smaller. . The smaller the load factor is, the smaller the priming effect is, so there is a fear that low discharge occurs. Therefore, discharge stability can be attained by lengthening the period of the sustain pulse at a small load rate. On the contrary, when the load ratio is large, the priming effect is large, so that the period of the sustain pulse can be shortened relatively.

For example, when the load ratio is 20% or less, the frequency of the sustain pulse is determined as 200 Hz. When the load ratio is 40% or less, the frequency of the sustain pulse is determined as 260 Hz. When the load ratio is 80% or less, the frequency of the sustain pulse is determined. 300 ㎑ can be determined.

It is possible to vary the period of the sustain pulse only according to the load ratio regardless of the subfield. In addition, as shown in Table 1, the period of the sustain pulse may be determined differently according to the load ratio and the subfield.

Load factor SF1 SF2 SF3 SF4 SF5 SF6 SF7 SF8 20% 50㎑ 60㎑ 60㎑ 200㎑ 286㎑ 333 yen 333 yen 333 yen 40% 60㎑ 60㎑ 60㎑ 260 yen 400 yen 450 ㎑ 550 yen 550 yen 80% 65 yen 65 yen 65 yen 300 yen 500㎑ 550 yen 600㎑ 600㎑

Referring to Table 2, it can be seen that the period of the sustain pulse becomes shorter as the load ratio increases. In addition, it can be seen that the period of the sustain pulse is shorter as the subfield of high gradation occurs.

The display panel driving method of the present invention applying the variable sustain pulse period according to each subfield and / or load ratio can be applied to a conventional three-electrode surface discharge panel. However, the minimum period of the sustain pulse that can perform a stable sustain discharge due to the characteristics of the three-electrode surface discharge type display panel is about 3 ms (333 ms). Therefore, stable discharge cannot be performed by the sustain pulse of 400 mA or more of the load rate 40% and the load rate 80% illustrated in Table 2.

Hereinafter, a new display panel structure capable of effectively performing the display panel driving method of the variable sustain pulse period of the present invention and its operation will be described in detail.

8 to 10 are views for explaining the structure of a display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 8, the display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a transparent front substrate 401, a rear substrate 402 disposed in parallel with a predetermined interval, and a front substrate 401. Partition walls 405 and 408 disposed between the rear substrate 402 and partitioning the grid-shaped light emitting cells 420, and upper and lower electrodes 407 and X disposed in the partition walls 408 around the light emitting cells 420. (406, Y). The upper electrodes 407 and X and the lower electrodes 406 and Y are connected to one direction, for example, horizontal lines, of the lattice-shaped light emitting cells 420. The phosphor layer 410 is formed below the unit light emitting cell 420. In addition, a discharge gas (not shown) is provided in the unit light emitting cell 420.

The partition walls 405 and 408 may be separated into a first partition wall 408 provided on the bottom surface of the front substrate 401 and a second partition wall 405 provided on the upper surface of the rear substrate 402. . In addition, the partition walls 405 and 408 may be integrally provided with the first partition wall 408 and the second partition wall 405.

Under the structure in which the first partition 408 and the second partition 405 are separated, the upper electrodes 407 and X and the lower electrodes 406 and Y are provided in the first partition 408 around the light emitting cell 420. The phosphor layer 410 is applied outside the second partition 405 below the light emitting cell 420.

The address electrode lines 403 are disposed on the top surface of the rear substrate 402 in the other direction of the lattice light emitting cells 420 in a vertical direction. The address electrode lines 403 and the upper electrodes 407 and X are perpendicular to each other.

A dielectric layer 404 is formed between the address electrode lines 403 and the phosphor layer 410.

Under this structure, it is more advantageous for the address discharge than the case where the upper electrodes 407 and X are the common electrodes X and the lower electrodes 406 and Y are the scanning electrodes Y. That is, it is preferable that a cell is selected by the address discharge from the address electrode 403 and the lower electrodes 406 and Y, and sustain discharge alternately occurs between the lower electrodes 406 and Y and the upper electrodes 407 and X. . Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with the upper electrode as the common electrode 407 and X and the lower electrode as the scan electrode 406 and Y.

Under the structure in which the first partition 408 and the second partition 405 are separated, the dielectrics forming the first partition 408 are directly connected to the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 407 and X during sustain discharge. It is preferable to be formed of a material which prevents the energization, prevents the charged particles from directly colliding with the electrodes 406 and 407, damaging them, and induces the charged particles to accumulate wall charges. Such dielectrics include PbO, B ₂ O ₃ , SiO _2, and the like.

The side surface of the first partition wall 408 is preferably covered by the MgO film 409. The MgO film 409 prevents charged particles from colliding with the first barrier rib 408 and damaging the first barrier rib 408, and has an effect of emitting a large amount of secondary electrons during discharge.

Preferably, the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 407 and X are provided with at least two sub electrodes 406a and 406b and 407a and 407b, respectively. Although not shown in the drawings, the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 407 and X may each be formed as one electrode.

As shown in the drawing, when each of the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 407 and X includes two or more sub-electrodes 406a and 406b and 407a and 407b spaced apart from each other, Since the distance between the inner sub-electrode 406a and the inner sub-electrode 407b of the common electrodes 407 and X is short, the sustain discharge easily occurs at a low voltage. In addition, since the distance between the outer sub-electrode 406b of the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the outer sub-electrode 407a of the common electrodes 407 and X becomes far, the discharge area becomes wider. In addition, while generating the same discharge effect, the cross-sectional area of the electrode is relatively small, the power consumption is relatively reduced. When there are three or more sub-electrodes of the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 407 and X, the sub-electrodes disposed in the middle allow the surface discharge initiated from the innermost sub-electrode to diffuse to the outermost sub-electrode.

In the drawings, the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 407 and X are illustrated as having two sub electrodes, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The number of the sub electrodes is two or more, and the number of the sub electrodes is appropriately selected according to the design specification. Can be.

The sub-electrodes 406a and 406b of the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the sub-electrodes 407a and 407b of the common electrodes 407 and X are electrically connected by short bars indicated by reference numerals 406c and 407c, respectively. desirable.

When the sub-electrodes 406a and 406b of the scan electrodes 406 and Y are connected by the short bar 406c, it is easy to diffuse the sustain discharge started from the inner sub-electrode 406a to the outer sub-electrode 406b. There is a deterioration effect, which is the same with the common electrodes 407 and X.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view parallel to the front substrate of the sub-electrode 407a of the common electrode of FIG. 9, wherein the sub-electrode 407a of the common electrode surrounds the light emitting cell 420 and is in one direction of the grid-shaped light emitting cell 420. For example, it shows a structure connected in the horizontal direction. In the present invention, the sub-electrode cross-sectional structure is the same for all the other sub-electrodes 406a, 406b, and 407b. In addition, the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 407 and X have the same cross-sectional structure even when they are formed as only one electrode without the negative electrodes.

Under the panel structure of the present invention, light is emitted to the front substrate 401 without any structural interference through all the portions W3 except the partition width W4. Therefore, the aperture ratio is much larger than in the conventional three-electrode surface discharge panel structure.

Hereinafter, an exemplary discharge process of the display panel according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 9.

First, when a predetermined address voltage is applied between the address electrode 403 and the scan electrodes 406 and Y in the address section, the discharge cell 420 to emit light is selected, and the scan electrode 406 of the selected discharge cell 420 is selected. , Y) accumulates wall charges. In the sustain period, when the sustain pulses are alternately applied to the common electrodes 407 and X and the scan electrodes 406 and Y, the wall charges move between the electrodes. The movement of the wall charges causes the discharge while colliding with the discharge gas atoms in the discharge cell 420 to generate plasma. Such a discharge is likely to occur between portions of the scan electrodes 406 and Y where the relatively strong electric field is formed at the initial stage of the discharge period, and the adjacent portions of the common electrodes 406a and 407b, for example. .

Referring to the cross-sectional view of the electrode of FIG. 10, since the scan electrodes 406 and Y and the common electrodes 406 and X are disposed vertically along the circumference of the discharge cell 420, the discharge electrodes 406 and Y are discharged in comparison with the conventional three-electrode surface discharge panel structure. The efficiency is very high. As the discharge proceeds, the electric field formed between the surfaces of the two electrodes is gradually concentrated so that the discharge is diffused to the entire discharge cell 420.

Under the panel structure of the present invention of FIG. 10, discharge occurs in a ring shape at four sides around the discharge cell 420, and diffuses to the center portion. Under the conventional three-electrode surface discharge panel structure, discharge is generated only in one upper surface of the discharge cell 420 and diffused to the center portion. Therefore, since the spreading range of the discharge is greatly increased, the amount of visible light generated is greatly increased. In addition, since the plasma is condensed to the center of the discharge cell 420, space charge may be efficiently utilized to enable low voltage driving, light emission efficiency is improved, and discharge response speed is very fast. In addition, since the plasma is concentrated at the center of the discharge cell 420, and the electric fields by the electrodes 406, Y (407, X) are formed at both sides of the plasma, the charge is concentrated at the center of the discharge cell 420. Ion sputtering to the phosphor layer 410 can be prevented at the source.

Note that under the display panel structure of the present invention illustrated in Figs. 8 to 10, the discharge response speed becomes particularly high. This is due to the concentration of the plasma in the center of the discharge cell 420, and the use of only the metal electrode, not the transparent electrode.

Therefore, under the new panel structure of the present invention, the period of sustain discharge can be determined very short. In the conventional three-electrode surface discharge type display panel, the sustain discharge cycle was determined at about 3 mV to 5 mV. In contrast, under the novel panel structure of the present invention, stable sustain discharge can be performed even by a very short sustain discharge cycle of 2 ms or less.

The display panel driving method according to the present invention described above can be embodied as computer readable codes on a computer readable recording medium. Computer-readable recording media include any type of recording device that stores programs or data that can be read by a computer system. Examples of computer-readable recording media include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tape, hard disk, floppy disk, flash memory, optical data storage, and the like. Here, the program stored in the recording medium refers to a series of instruction instructions used directly or indirectly in an apparatus having an information processing capability such as a computer to obtain a specific result. Thus, the term computer is used to mean all devices having an information processing capability for performing a specific function by a program, including a memory, an input / output device, and an arithmetic device, regardless of the name actually used. Even in the case of a device for driving a panel, its use is limited to a specific field of panel driving, and in reality, it is a kind of computer.

In particular, the panel driving method according to the present invention is prepared by a schematic or ultra-high-speed integrated circuit hardware description language (VHDL) or the like on a computer, and connected to a computer-programmable integrated circuit such as a field programmable gate array (FPGA). Can be implemented. The recording medium includes such a programmable integrated circuit.

The best embodiments have been disclosed in the drawings and specification above. Although specific terms have been used herein, they are used only for the purpose of describing the present invention and are not used to limit the scope of the present invention as defined in the meaning or claims. Therefore, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible from this. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention will be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

As described above, the present invention has the following effects.

First, by varying the period of the sustain pulse for each subfield, it is possible to increase the timing design freedom of the panel driving signal according to the characteristics of the subfields rather than using the sustain pulses having a fixed period in all subfields.

That is, by determining the sustain pulse period of the low gradation subfield relatively long, it is possible to prevent low discharge in the low gradation subfield with a relatively small priming effect and to ensure discharge stability. In addition, by determining the sustain pulse period of the high gradation subfield relatively short, the sustain discharge time can be shortened in the high gradation subfield having a large priming effect.

Second, by varying the period of the sustain pulse in accordance with the load rate of the image frame, it is possible to increase the timing design freedom of the panel drive signal than when using the sustain pulse of a fixed period irrespective of the load rate.

In other words, when the load ratio of the image frame is small, the period of the sustain pulse is relatively long, thereby preventing low discharge that may occur due to a relatively small priming effect, and securing discharge stability. In addition, when the load ratio of the image frame is large, the priming effect is relatively large. Therefore, the sustain discharge time can be shortened by determining the period of the sustain pulse relatively short.

Third, under the display panel structure of the present invention, discharge occurs in a ring shape at four sides around the discharge cell and diffuses to the center portion. Therefore, the spreading range of the discharge is greatly increased, and the amount of visible light generated is greatly increased. In addition, since the plasma is concentrated to the center of the discharge cell, space charge can be utilized to enable low voltage driving, improve luminous efficiency, and accelerate discharge response.

Under such a novel display panel structure of the present invention, stable sustain discharge can be performed even with a period of a very short sustain pulse as compared with the related art. Therefore, the period of the sustain pulse can be designed more freely according to the load rate of the subfield and / or frame.

The invention is not limited to the examples described above and represented in the drawings. Those skilled in the art taught by the above-described embodiments, many modifications to the above-described embodiments are possible by substitution, erasure, merging, etc. within the scope and object of the present invention described in the following claims.

Claims (19)

The sustain pulse is alternately applied to the scan electrode and the common electrode provided in the display panel to perform sustain discharge. Time-dividing one frame into a plurality of subfields having different gray scale weights, The gray level of the frame is expressed by the combination of the plurality of subfields, The gray scale weight of each subfield is determined according to the number of sustain pulses included in the subfield, The period of the sustain pulse is determined differently for each subfield so that at least two subfields having the same period of the sustain pulse exist. And a period of the sustain pulse is equally determined in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or less, and a period of the sustain pulse is equally determined in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight. The method of claim 1, And the period of the sustain pulse is determined longer as a subfield having a smaller gray scale weight. delete delete delete The method of claim 1, And the period of the sustain pulse has two or more steps according to the load ratio of the frame. The method of claim 6, And the period of the sustain pulse is determined longer as the load ratio is smaller. delete delete Transparent front substrate; A rear substrate disposed in parallel with the front substrate; A partition wall disposed between the front substrate and the rear substrate and partitioning the light emitting cells in a lattice shape; And An upper electrode and a lower electrode disposed in the partition wall around the light emitting cell; A sustain pulse is alternately applied to the upper electrode and the lower electrode to perform a sustain discharge, Time-dividing one frame into a plurality of subfields having different gray scale weights, The gray level of the frame is expressed by the combination of the plurality of subfields, The gray scale weight of each subfield is determined according to the number of sustain pulses included in the subfield, The period of the sustain pulse is determined differently for each subfield so that at least two subfields having the same period of the sustain pulse exist. And a period of the sustaining pulse is equally determined in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or less, and a period of the sustaining pulse is identically determined in subfields having a predetermined gray scale weight or more. The method of claim 10, And the period of the sustain pulse is determined longer as a subfield having a smaller gray scale weight. delete delete delete The method of claim 10, And the period of the sustain pulse has two or more steps according to the load ratio. The method of claim 15, And the period of the sustain pulse is determined longer as the load ratio is smaller. delete delete A computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for executing the method of any one of claims 1, 2, 6 and 7.

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