JPS586926B2 - Exiyodo Keino Jikokuhiyoujiban - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an improvement in the time display panel of a liquid crystal watch. The time display panel of a liquid crystal clock is sandwiched between Nesa glasses, and by using two types of polarizing plates in combination, the time display panel of a liquid crystal clock displays a pattern for displaying time when an electric field is applied to the electrodes. Regarding improvements.

The time display panel of a conventional liquid crystal watch was as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

In other words, a conventional time display panel consists of a liquid crystal cell 1 formed by sandwiching a liquid crystal between two pieces of Nesa glass, and two pieces having approximately the same area as the liquid crystal cell 1 and whose polarization planes are substantially perpendicular to each other. It consisted of neutral gray polarizing plates 2 and 3, and a reflecting plate 4 that reflected incident light, and these four were arranged in a layered manner as shown in FIG.

In such a conventional time display panel, the time display pattern that appears when an electric field is applied is formed by the reflection plate when the transmission of incident light is blocked by the cooperative action of two neutral gray polarizing plates. It was a so-called shadow due to the absence of reflected light.

Therefore, in the conventional time display panel, the time display pattern that appears when an electric field is applied does not exhibit any color.

Furthermore, in the conventional time display panel, two neutral gray polarizing plates 2 having approximately the same area as the liquid crystal cell 1,
3, the amount of reflected light is reduced over the entire area of the reflector 4, which allows the reflector 4 to be clearly perceived, thereby increasing the contrast of the time display pattern that appears when an electric field is applied. I didn't get it.

In devices that read the time using a pattern that appears when an electric field is applied, such as the time display panel of a liquid crystal watch, especially those that exhibit color in the time display pattern as described above, The time display pattern that appears requires great contrast.

In view of these points, the present invention aims to solve the drawbacks of the time display panels of conventional liquid crystal watches.

An object of the present invention is to provide a time display for a novel liquid crystal watch in which a time display pattern that appears when an electric field is applied to an electrode is colored, and the pattern exhibiting such color has a large contrast. It is to provide the board.

A detailed explanation will be given below based on illustrative drawings.

What is shown in FIG. 3 is a time display board 5.

This time display board 5 is composed of a first polarizing plate 11, a liquid crystal cell 6, a second polarizing plate 12, and a reflecting plate 17.

The liquid crystal cell 6 is a field-effect nematic liquid crystal in which the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules is normally located parallel to the electrodes 9 and 10 between the upper Nesa glass 7 and the lower Nesa glass 8, or such a nematic liquid crystal. It is made by sandwiching a liquid crystal 19 having the same effect.

The upper Nesa glass 7 and the lower Nesa glass 8 are the spacer 2
The gap for liquid crystal filling is maintained at 0.

On the liquid crystal contact surface of the upper Nesa glass 7, electrodes 9 made of a transparent conductive thin film such as tin oxide are connected to the hour display section H and the minute display section M.
It is coated according to the Kamegoku pattern consisting of 3 and 3 seconds display sections.

The liquid crystal contact surface of the lower Nesa glass 8 is similarly coated with an electrode 10 of a transparent conductive thin film such as tin oxide in accordance with the electrode pattern.

The liquid crystal contact surface of the upper Nesa glass 7 is rubbed in a certain direction with paper, cloth, or the like.

The liquid crystal contact surface of the lower Nesa glass 8 is rubbed in a direction substantially perpendicular to the rubbing direction of the upper Nesa glass 7.

The liquid crystal 19 sandwiched between the upper Nesa glass 7 and the lower Nesa glass 8 that have been rubbed in a specific direction is such that the long axis of the liquid crystal molecule is aligned with the rubbing of the upper Nesa glass 7 at the liquid crystal contact surface of the upper Nesa glass 7. At the liquid crystal contact surface of the lower Nesa glass 8, the long axes of liquid crystal molecules are aligned in almost the same direction as the rubbing direction of the lower Nesa glass 8, and the upper Nesa glass 7 and the lower Nesa glass 8 In between, the long axes of the liquid crystal molecules are gradually rotated, and the liquid crystal molecules are arranged with a 90 degree twist as a whole.

This liquid crystal cell 6 is sandwiched between a first polarizing plate 11 and a second polarizing plate 12.

The first polarizing plate 11 is a transparent plate 13 made of transparent glass or transparent plastic, and first polarizing portions 14 are formed only at locations corresponding to the polarization patterns H, M, and S.

Similarly, the lower polarizing plate 12 has an electrode pattern H on the transparent plate 15.
, M, and S, the second polarizing section 16 is constructed only at the locations corresponding to the polarizing regions.

The first polarizing section 14 is made of a neutral gray polarizing plate with relatively high polarization efficiency.

The direction of the polarization plane of the first polarizing section 14 is configured to be substantially the same as the alignment direction of the long axes of liquid crystal molecules on the liquid crystal contact surface of the upper Nesa glass 7, that is, substantially the same direction as the rubbing direction of the upper Nesa glass 7.

Ikekata: The second polarizing section is composed of a dichroic polarizing plate.

Here, the dichroic polarizing plate is composed of a first chromatic polarizing plate having a certain color and a second chromatic polarizing plate having a different color from the first chromatic polarizing plate. , 1st
A polarizing plate configured such that the polarizing plane of the chromatic polarizing plate and the polarizing plane of the second chromatic polarizing plate are substantially perpendicular to each other.

The direction of the polarization plane of the second polarizing section 16 is the direction of the polarization plane of either one of the first chromatic polarizing plate and the second chromatic polarizing plate, for example, the direction of the polarization plane of the first chromatic polarizing plate. The direction is configured to be approximately the same direction as the long axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules on the liquid crystal contact surface of the lower Nesa glass 8, that is, approximately the same direction as the rubbing direction of the lower Nesa glass 8, so that the direction of the polarization plane of the second chromatic polarizing plate is is arranged in a direction substantially perpendicular to the alignment direction of the long axes of the liquid crystal molecules, that is, in a direction substantially perpendicular to the rubbing direction.

When the second polarizing section 16 is combined with the first polarizing section made of a neutral gray polarizing plate, the second polarizing section 16 polarizes the light of one of the first chromatic polarizing plate and the second chromatic polarizing plate that constitute the second polarizing section 16. It has a transmittance that allows light to pass through to such an extent that the color of the plate can be perceived.

Examples of the combination of the color of the first color polarizing plate and the color of the pond of the second color polarizing plate include red and yellow, red and green, red and blue, orange and green, orange and blue, orange and purple, There are combinations of yellow and blue, yellow and purple, green and purple, etc.

However, the combination of colors of these bichromatic polarizing plates is not limited to this, and any combination of colors may be used as long as the hues of the two are different enough to clearly confirm the difference between the two colors. It's okay.

Further, the outer portions of the hour, minute, and second display sections of the lower polarizing section 16 may be constructed of dichroic polarizing plates of different colors.

In such a case, each part of the time display pattern may exhibit multiple colors.

A reflecting plate 17 is arranged on the lower surface of the second polarizing plate 12.

It is desirable that the reflector 17 has a high reflectance so as to reflect almost all of the incident light.

Examples of such high reflectance include those having a mirror surface or a white reflective surface.

However, the reflecting plate 17 is not limited to these, and any reflecting plate with a high reflectance may be used.

The reflective plate 17 shown in FIG. 3 has a pattern similar to the electrode pattern on a white background with black adjacent lines.

The first polarizing plate 11 and the second polarizing plate 12 can be constructed by the following method.

A neutral gray polarizing plate and a dichroic polarizing plate are cut out in a desired shape, that is, according to a time display pattern, and the cut out polarizing plate pieces are placed on the transparent plates 13 and 15 in a transparent manner, taking into account the direction of each polarization plane. Attach with adhesive, etc.

Thereby, the first polarizing plate 11 and the second polarizing plate 12 can be configured.

Moreover, the first polarizing plate 11 can also be constructed by the following method.

A pattern similar to the time display pattern is printed with transparent printing ink on the entire surface of a neutral gray polarizing polymer artificial polarizing plate.

The printed polarizing plate is washed with a chemical that removes polarization properties, for example, in the case where the polarizing element is made of iodine, an aqueous solution of sodium thiosulfate, sodium hypochlorite, or the like.

This cleaning removes the polarization of only the non-printed areas other than the printed areas protected by the printing ink.

Thereby, it is possible to obtain the first polarizing plate 11 that has polarization properties only in the portion corresponding to the time display pattern.

In this way, an example of a method for manufacturing a polarizing plate has been shown, but
The polarizing plate of the present invention is not limited to a polarizing plate produced by such a manufacturing method, and as described above, only the polarizing portion is formed by a neutral gray polarizing plate and the polarizing portion is formed by a dichroic polarizing plate only in the portion corresponding to the time display pattern. It is sufficient as long as it has a section.

Next, the incidence of light, the state of reflection, and the appearance of the time display pattern will be explained when no electric field is applied between the electrodes 9 and 10 and when it is applied.

At locations other than the first polarizing section 14 and the second polarizing section 16, regardless of whether or not an electric field is applied to the electrodes 9 and 10,
The incident light passes through the transparent plate 13, the twisted liquid crystal 19, and the transparent plate 15, and is reflected by the reflecting plate 17.

As a result, at locations other than the first polarizing section 14 and the second polarizing section 16, the amount of incident light is not unexpectedly reduced in the polarizing section unlike in the past, and the reflected light from the reflecting plate 17, that is, the reflecting plate can be perceived clearly.

Next, a case where light is incident on the first polarizing section 14 will be explained.

A case where, for example, a red polarizing plate is used as the first chromatic polarizing plate and a blue polarizing plate, for example, is used as the second chromatic polarizing plate as the dichroic polarizing plate of the second polarizing section 16 will be described.

When no electric field is applied between the electrodes 9 and 10,
The incident light that has passed through the first polarizing section 14 is
The liquid crystal 1 is polarized at 4 and is in a twisted state.
At step 9, the plane of polarization is rotated by 90 degrees.

As a result, the incident light that has reached the second polarizing section 16 has a polarization plane that is perpendicular to the polarization plane of the first chromatic polarizing plate, that is, the red polarizing plate among the dichroic polarizing plates, and that of the second chromatic polarizing plate, that is, the blue polarizing plate. The polarization plane of the polarizing plate is in the same direction.

Thereby, only light having a wavelength in the blue range in the incident light can be transmitted through the second polarizing section.

As a result, only the blue reflected light reflected by the reflection plate 17 is perceived, and the blue pattern stands out.

When an electric field is applied between the two electrodes, the direction of the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules becomes approximately perpendicular to the electrodes at the location where the electric field is applied.

For this reason, the incident light that has passed through the first polarizing section 14 at the location where the electric field is applied travels straight through its polarization plane without being rotated by the liquid crystal 19 .

As a result, the incident light that has reached the second polarizing section 16 has its polarization plane in the same direction as the polarization plane of the first chromatic polarizing plate of the dichroic polarizing plate, that is, the red polarizing plate, and the polarization plane of the incident light that has reached the second chromatic polarizing plate 16 is in the same direction as the polarization of the first chromatic polarizing plate, that is, the red polarizing plate. The polarization planes of the polarizing plates are orthogonal.

With this, only light having a wavelength in the red range in the incident light can be transmitted through the second polarizing section 16.

Therefore, only the red reflected light reflected by the reflector 17 is perceived, and the red pattern stands out.

In this way, when no electric field is applied, for example, a blue time display pattern appears on the white reflector, and when an electric field is applied, only the areas where the electric field is applied are more red than blue. Change.

The time can be perceived by the pattern that changes to red.

In the above embodiments, only a reflective time display board has been described, but by omitting the reflector plate 17, the present invention can also be used with a transmissive time display board.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the first polarizing section 14 and the second polarizing section 16 were constructed on the transparent plates 13 and 15, but as shown in FIG. It can also be configured.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the first polarizing section 14 was composed of a neutral gray polarizing plate and the second polarizing section 16 was composed of a dichroic polarizing plate, but the first polarizing section 14 was composed of a dichroic polarizing plate and the second Polarizing part 1
6 can also be composed of a neutral gray polarizing plate.

Furthermore, in the above embodiments, a field effect type nematic liquid crystal in which the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules is normally located parallel to the electrodes is used as the liquid crystal, and the liquid crystal is placed between two sheets of Nesa glass 7 and 8. Instead of such a liquid crystal, a cholesteric liquid crystal in which the alignment direction of liquid crystal molecules has a rotation angle that is an odd multiple of 90 degrees between two sheets of Nesa glass can be used. can be used.

As detailed above, in the present invention, one of the first polarizing section and the second polarizing section disposed on both sides of the liquid crystal cell is composed of a dichroic polarizing plate, so that it can be used for time display. The pattern can be colored, and the time can be accurately perceived with the colored pattern.

Furthermore, the aesthetic appearance of the time display panel can be improved by using such a colored pattern.

Furthermore, in the present invention, since both the polarizing portions are configured only at locations corresponding to the electrode patterns, the contrast of the time display pattern exhibiting the color can be extremely high. The colored time display pattern can be perceived more beautifully and clearly, and the time can therefore be perceived more accurately and reliably.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the disassembled state of the time display panel of a conventional liquid crystal watch, FIG. 2 is a central cross-sectional view of the time display panel of FIG. 1 in an assembled state, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the disassembled state of the display panel; FIG. 4 is a central sectional view of the time display panel shown in FIG. 3 in the assembled state; FIG. be. 5...Time display board, 6...Liquid crystal cell,
11...First polarizing plate, 12...Second polarizing plate, 17...Reflector.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In the time display panel of a liquid crystal watch equipped with a liquid crystal cell made by sandwiching a liquid crystal between two pieces of Nesa glass coated with a Kame pole, on one side of the liquid crystal cell. A first polarizing section is configured only at a location corresponding to the electrode pattern, and a second polarizing section is configured only at a location corresponding to the electrode pattern on the pond side of the liquid crystal cell, and both of these polarizing sections are A time display panel for a liquid crystal watch, characterized in that one of the polarizing parts is composed of a dichroic polarizing plate.