Interleaved LED Strips for High-Resolution Vehicle Wheel Displays
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing visual display systems on vehicle wheels face challenges in achieving bright and high-resolution displays, particularly at low speeds where flicker and persistence of vision are issues, and existing solutions do not effectively address these problems.
Innovation Solution
The method employs interlaced display lines created by interleaved light emitting elements on multiple strips, driven synchronously with the wheel's rotation to provide a high-resolution, bright, and non-rotating image, using high-brightness LEDs and magnetic sensors for synchronization, with optional additional strips for increased brightness and reduced flicker.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If multiple interleaved strips of light emitting elements are used to increase display resolution, then the display resolution is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The display is segmented into multiple interleaved strips of light emitting elements, where each strip contributes a subset of the total display lines. This segmentation allows the system to achieve high resolution by combining multiple lower-resolution strips into a single high-resolution display, resolving the contradiction between improved display resolution and increased device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a temporal dimension to the display system by sequentially activating different strips at different times during wheel rotation. This time-multiplexed approach allows multiple strips to share the same physical space while displaying different portions of the image, achieving high resolution without proportionally increasing the physical complexity of the display structure.
2Illumination intensity
If high-brightness LEDs are used to achieve brighter images, then the illumination intensity is improved, but the energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses periodic activation of light emitting elements synchronized with the wheel's rotation. Each strip is activated only during the specific time window when it passes the reference position, creating a pulsed rather than continuous illumination pattern. This periodic action maintains high brightness during active display while significantly reducing overall energy consumption compared to continuous illumination.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system prepares and stores image data in advance for each strip's activation window. By pre-processing and buffering the display data, the system can rapidly switch between strips without requiring continuous power to all elements, thereby maintaining brightness performance while optimizing energy usage through precise temporal control.
3Speed
If the wheel speed is low, then the vehicle can operate at lower speeds including stationary, but flicker increases and persistence of vision is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The display is divided into multiple interleaved strips that are activated in sequence. At low wheel speeds, this segmentation allows each strip to be displayed for a longer duration, providing sufficient persistence of vision even when the wheel rotates slowly. The segmented approach maintains display stability across a wide range of speeds by adjusting the temporal activation of each segment.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts display parameters including the number of active strips, their activation timing, and brightness levels based on detected wheel speed. At low speeds, more strips can be activated or each strip can remain active longer, compensating for the reduced rotational frequency and preventing flicker while maintaining reliable display performance.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively multiplies the display resolution and achieves brighter images with reduced flicker, suitable for various vehicle speeds, including low speeds, by interleaving light emitting elements and synchronizing their operation with the wheel's rotation.
Implementation Method 1
a device for attaching to a wheel of a vehicle; the device comprising at least one strip of light emitting diode (LED) pixels
Implementation Method 2
driving said at least one strip of light emitting elements whilst the support is rotating and the wheel is not rotating, synchronously with the rotation of the support
Implementation Method 3
a magnetic sensor, such as a Hall effect sensor, sensing a magnet behind the wheel
Data Source
Figure 1a~1b
Figure 1c~1e
Figure 2
AI summary
We describe a method of displaying information on the wheel of a vehicle, the method comprising: mounting first and second strips of light emitting elements on the wheel such that they lie substantially along first and second radii of the wheel; wherein said light emitting elements are arranged along each said strip and define radial lines of pixels; and wherein radial positions of the light emitting elements of said first strip are interleaved in a radial direction with respect to positions of the light emitting elements of said second strip; and driving said first and second strips of light emitting elements to display an image, wherein said image is represented by radial lines of pixels at successive angular positions; and wherein said driving comprises: driving said first strip of light emitting elements with a first subset of pixels of a first radial line of said image at a first said angular position in the image when said first strip of light emitting elements is at a reference angular position; driving said second strip of light emitting elements with a second subset of pixels of said first radial line of said image at said first angular position in the image when said second strip is at or adjacent said reference angular position, wherein said first and second subsets of pixels comprise interleaved pixels of said first radial line of said image.