Digital display device with dual refresh frequencies

Abstract

A digital display device comprises a controller and a two-dimensional digital pixel panel. The pixels of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel are divided into a first group of pixels and a second group of pixels. The controller is configured to operate the first group of pixels at a first refresh frequency (F1) and to operate the second group of pixels at a second refresh frequency (F2), different than F1. The controller may support two display channels, where the first display channel feeds a graphic content to the first group of pixels at the F1 and the second display channel feeds the graphic content to the second group of pixels at the F2. The first group of pixels and the second group of pixels interlace each other.

Description

DIGITAL DISPLAY DEVICE WITH DUAL REFRESH FREQUENCIESBACKGROUNDTECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure pertains to the field of digital display device and, more specifically, proposes digital display device with dual refresh frequencies.DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

[0002] Digital display is pervasive in modern consumer electronic devices with the capability of addressing and manipulating individual pixels on the display. The image of the digital display is refreshed at a fixed frequency, e.g., 60Hz, 120Hz, 144Hz, etc.

[0003] Some recent research suggests that using two visible light sources each operating at a difference frequency could create an invisible flicker at a differential frequency equal to the difference of these two frequences. By properly selecting the differential frequency, e.g., 40Hz, such apparatus may be used for Alzheimer's disease treatment or prevention.

[0004] While a digital display is not a conventional light source with varying light output and color (temperature) fluctuations, it is still nonetheless a type of light source, especially when it is displaying a white background image or when switching to a flashlight mode (a feature supported by most smartphones). This leads to the idea of dividing the pixels of a digital display into two groups such that each group of pixels would be refreshed at a different frequency, thus creating a differential frequency between these two frequencies, mimicking the effect of using two visible light sources each operating at a different frequency. The present disclosure introduces such digital display device with dual refresh frequencies.SUMMARY

[0005] In one aspect, the digital display device comprises a controller and a two-dimensional digital pixel panel. The pixels of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel are divided into a first group of pixels and a second group of pixels. The controller is configured to operate the first group of pixels at a refresh frequency Fl > 50Hz. The controller is configured to operate the second group of pixels at a refresh frequency F2 > 50Hz, different than Fl.

[0006] The digital display device includes, but not limited to, digital computer monitor, digital television screen, laptop computer, tablet computer, smart phone, smart watch, virtual reality goggle, extended reality goggle, smart goggle, digital reading device (e.g., Amazon Kindle), etc. Each pixel may further comprise R (red), G (green), B (blue) components.

[0007] In some embodiments, the controller has two display channels', the first display channel feeds graphic content to the first group of pixels at Fl frequency, and the second display channel feeds graphic content to the second group of pixels at F2 frequency. It is to be noted that display channels refer to the logical function supported by the controller. There may or may not be two physical channels or port coming out of the controller module.

[0008] In some embodiments, the first group of pixels and the second group of pixels interlace each other pixel by pixel. Pixel-by-pixel interlacing would be ideal for the effect of the refresh frequency difference between the adjacent pixels is guaranteed to be invisible by a subject. However, pixel-by-pixel interlacing may be too expensive to manufacture. In some other embodiments, the first group of pixels and the second group of pixels interlace each other row by row. For example, all pixels on the odd rows of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel belong to the first group of pixels, and all pixels on the even rows of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel belong to the second group of pixels. Such row-by-row interlacing is easily implementable. And it can be argued that with a sufficiently high display resolution, the effect of the refresh frequency difference between the adjacent rows of pixels is still invisible to a subject.

[0009] In some embodiments, the difference between Fl frequency and F2 frequency is between 35Hz and 45Hz. This is the frequency proven to be most effective in treating Alzheimer's disease. There are different choices for Fl and F2 frequencies. In some embodiments, Fl frequency is 60Hz and F2 frequency is 100Hz. In some other embodiments, Fl frequency is 80Hz and F2 frequency is 120Hz.

[0010] In some embodiments, the controller is further configured to operate the first group of pixels and the second group of pixels at a same frequency (either Fl or F2 frequency) once every recalibration cycle (e.g., in minutes) for a duration called the mono operating frequency duration (e.g. in seconds). By intentionally setting both groups of pixels to the same frequency (e.g., Fl frequency), it allows the brain of a subject to phase-lock with Fl frequency during the mono operating frequency duration. After the mono operating frequency duration, the first group of pixels would be refreshed at Fl frequency, and the second group of pixels would be refreshed atF2 frequency. The brain of the subject can now sense the differential frequency between Fl and F2 frequencies. By repeating the operation of the mono operating frequency duration for every recalibration cycle, the brain of the subject would be able to detect and maintain its recognition of the differential frequency.

[0011] In some embodiments, the recalibration cycle is between 1 to 120 minutes.

[0012] In some embodiments, the mono operating frequency duration is between 5 to 20 seconds.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] The accompanying drawings are included to aid further understanding of the present disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of the present disclosure. The drawings illustrate a select number of embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the detailed description below, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure. It is appreciable that the drawings are not necessarily to scale, as some components may be shown to be out of proportion to size in actual implementation in order to clearly illustrate the concept of the present disclosure.

[0014] FIG. 1 schematically depicts an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] FIG. 2A schematically illustrates the pixel-by-pixel interlacing and FIG. 2B schematically illustrates the row-by-row interlacing.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTSOVERVIEW

[0016] Various implementations of the present disclosure and related inventive concepts are described below. It should be acknowledged, however, that the present disclosure is not limited to any particular manner of implementation, and that the various embodiments discussed explicitly herein are primarily for purposes of illustration. For example, the various concepts discussed herein may be suitably implemented in a variety digital display devices having different form factors.

[0017] A digital display device comprises a controller and a two-dimensional digital pixel panel. The pixels of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel are divided into a first group of pixels and a second group of pixels. The controller is configured to operate the first group of pixels at a refreshfrequency Fl and to operate the second group of pixels at a refresh frequency F2, different than Fl.EXAMPLE IMPLEMENTATIONS

[0018] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the digital display device of the present disclosure 100. It comprises a controller 101 and a two-dimensional display 102. The pixels of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel 102 are divided into a first group of pixels and a second group of pixels as shown in FIG. 2A and 2B. The white dots in FIG. 2A and 2B denote the pixels in the first group of pixels and the black dots denote the pixels in the second group of pixels. Controller 101 has two channels 103 a, 103b. Controller 101 feeds graphic content through channel 103 a to the first group of pixels at 80Hz. Similarly, controller 101 feeds graphic content through the second display channel 103b to the second group of pixels at 120Hz. The first group of pixels and the second group of pixels may interlace with each other either pixel-by -pixel (as shown in FIG. 2A) or row- by-row (as shown in FIG. 2B), depending on the implementation cost and the resolution of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel.

[0019] Moreover, controller 101 operates the first group of pixels and the second group of pixels at the same frequency 120Hz for 10 seconds every 60 minutes. During this 10-second mono operating frequency duration, the brain of a subject would phase-lock to 120Hz. After this mono operating frequency duration, both 80Hz and 120Hz refresh frequencies would be present from the two-dimensional digital pixel panel, thus inducing the brain of the subject to sense the invisible 40Hz differential frequency.ADDITIONAL AND ALTERNATIVE IMPLEMENTATION NOTES

[0020] Although the techniques have been described in language specific to certain applications, it is to be understood that the appended claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or applications described herein. Rather, the specific features and examples are disclosed as nonlimiting exemplary forms of implementing such techniques.

[0021] As used in this application, the term “or” is intended to mean an inclusive “or” rather than an exclusive “or.” That is, unless specified otherwise or clear from context, “X employs A or B” is intended to mean any of the natural inclusive permutations. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both A and B, then “X employs A or B” is satisfied under any of the foregoinginstances. In addition, the articles “a” and “an” as used in this application and the appended claims should generally be construed to mean “one or more,” unless specified otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A digital display device comprising: a controller; and a two-dimensional digital pixel panel, wherein: a plurality of pixels of the two-dimensional digital pixel panel are divided into a first group of pixels and a second group of pixels, the controller is configured to operate the first group of pixels at a first refresh frequency (Fl) > 50Hz, and the controller is configured to operate the second group of pixels at a second refresh frequency (F2) > 50Hz, different than Fl.

2. The digital display device of claim 1, wherein the controller has two display channels comprising a first display channel and a second display channel, wherein the first display channel feeds a graphic content to the first group of pixels at the Fl and the second display channel feeds the graphic content to the second group of pixels at the F2.

3. The digital display device of claim 1, wherein the first group of pixels and the second group of pixels interlace each other pixel by pixel.

4. The digital display device of claim 1 , wherein the first group of pixels and the second group of pixels interlace each other row by row.

5. The digital display device of claim 1, wherein a difference between the Fl and the F2 is between 35Hz and 45Hz.

6. The digital display device of claim 5, wherein the Fl is 60Hz and the F2 is 100Hz.

7. The digital display device of claim 5, wherein the Fl is 80Hz and the F2 is 120Hz.

8. The digital display device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to operate the first group of pixels and the second group of pixels at a same frequency, either the Fl or the F2, once every recalibration cycle for a duration as a mono operating frequency duration.

9. The digital display device of claim 8, wherein the recalibration cycle is between 1 to 120 minutes.

10. The digital display device of claim 8, wherein the mono operating frequency duration is between 5 to 20 seconds.

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