Liquid crystal control circuit, electronic timepiece, and liquid crystal control method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11295686-B2
Application number	US-202017014730-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 8, 2020
Priority date	Mar 22, 2018
Publication date	Apr 5, 2022
Grant date	Apr 5, 2022

Abstract

A liquid crystal control circuit includes: a first terminal that outputs a rewriting signal for rewriting a plurality of pixels; a second terminal that periodically designates a start timing of the rewriting signal; a third terminal that outputs a polarity signal for designating polarity of AC voltage; a first circuit that identifies a next second inversion timing of any first inversion timing at which the polarity is inverted; a calculator that calculates a first start timing after the first inversion timing based on the start timing; a second circuit that determines whether the second inversion timing is within a period from a predetermined time before the first start timing to the first start timing; and an inversion unit that inverts polarity of the polarity signal after the rewriting signal starting from the first start timing is stopped, when the second inversion timing is within the period.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A liquid crystal control circuit connected to a liquid crystal display panel including a memory for storing image data in each of a plurality of pixels, the liquid crystal control circuit comprising:
a switching unit configured to switch polarity of voltage applied to a common electrode in the liquid crystal display panel at a predetermined timing;
a first determination unit configured to determine whether a timing of switching the polarity by the switching unit is between a start timing of image data transmission to the memory and a predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission; and
a second determination unit configured to determine whether there is image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, wherein, in response to the first determination unit determining that the timing of switching the polarity is between the start timing of image data transmission and the predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission and the second determination unit determining that there is image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, the switching unit switches the polarity after the image data has been transmitted, and, in response to the first determination unit determining that the timing of switching the polarity is between the start timing of image data transmission and the predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission and the second determination unit determining that there is no image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, the switching unit switches the polarity based on the start timing of image data transmission.

2. The liquid crystal control circuit according to claim 1 , wherein
the predetermined time is a sum of a polarity change time and a polarity inversion time that are prescribed in accordance with characteristics of liquid crystal of the liquid crystal display panel.

3. The liquid crystal control circuit according to claim 1 , wherein,
in response to the first determination unit determining that the timing of switching the polarity is not between the start timing of image data transmission and the predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission, the switching unit switches the polarity before the start timing of image data transmission.

4. A liquid crystal control method executed by a liquid crystal control circuit connected to a liquid crystal display panel including a memory for storing image data in each of a plurality of pixels, the liquid crystal control method comprising:
determining whether a timing of switching polarity of voltage applied to a common electrode in the liquid crystal display panel is between a start timing of image data transmission to the memory and a predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission; and
determining whether there is image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission;
in response to determining that the timing of switching the polarity is between the start timing of image data transmission and the predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission and determining that there is image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, switching the polarity after the image data has been transmitted; and
in response to determining that the timing of switching the polarity is between the start timing of image data transmission and the predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission and determining that there is no image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, switching the polarity based on the start timing of image data transmission.

5. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a processor of a liquid crystal control circuit, which is connected to a liquid crystal display panel including a memory for storing image data in each of a plurality of pixels, to execute a process, the process comprising:
switching processing in which polarity of voltage applied to a common electrode in the liquid crystal display panel is switched at a predetermined timing;
first determination processing in which it is determined whether a timing of switching the polarity in the switching processing is between a start timing of image data transmission to the memory and a predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission; and
second determination processing in which it is determined whether there is image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, wherein,
in response to determining in the first determination processing that the timing of switching the polarity is between the start timing of image data transmission and the predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission and determining in the second determination processing that there is image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, the polarity is switched, in the switching processing, after the image data has been transmitted, and,
in response to determining in the first determination processing that the timing of switching the polarity is between the start timing of image data transmission and the predetermined time before the start timing of image data transmission and determining in the second determination step that there is no image data to be transmitted at the start timing of image data transmission, the polarity is switched, in the switching processing, based on the start timing of image data transmission.

Assignees

• Casio Computer Co Ltd

Inventors

• Ono Takahiro
• Ochiai Fumiaki
• Asami Yoshinori
• Yamakawa Eiji

Classifications

• G09G3/3614 Primary

  Control of polarity reversal in general · CPC title

• G04G9/0005

  Transmission of control signals · CPC title

• G09G2310/08

  Details of timing specific for flat panels, other than clock recovery · CPC title

• G09G3/3648

  using an active matrix (G09G3/367 - G09G3/3696 take precedence) · CPC title

• G04G9/12 Primary

  using light valves, e.g. liquid crystals · CPC title