Display unit

Claim 2

A display unit comprising a display medium having horizontal and vertical character display positions, a storage device having a plurality of word locations each having a horizontal address and a vertical address and each having means to contain a plurality of character codes, an interface connectable to an associated device for receiving input data, means for changing said input data into character codes each representing a character to be displayed on said display medium, means for loading a plurality of said character codes into each of said word locations, horizontal means for sequentially addressing the horizontal addresses of said word locations and for establishing the corresponding horizontal character display positions of the character codes therein, vertical means for sequentially addressing the vertical addresses of said word locations and for establishing the corresponding vertical character display positions of the character codes therein, means for transferring said addressed multiple character code words in succession into a storage means, and display generating means responsive in succession to each character code of each word in said storage means for generating successive displays, at the successive corresponding character display positions established by said horizontal and vertical means, of at least a portion of each of the corresponding characters of each word.

Claim 3

A display unit according to claim 1 wherein said display medium is a cathode-ray tube and said display generating means includes means for positioning, blanking and unblanking of the cathode beam.

Claim 4

A display unit according to claim 2 characterized further by the provision of a source of timing signals for operating said display unit in repetitive display cycles, and wherein said horizontal and vertical means are counters, each responsive to count pulses derived from said timing signals for providing output states indicative of the respective horizontal and vertical addresses and character display positions.

Claim 5

A display unit according to claim 3 wherein said cathode-ray tube is part of a standard television monitor provided with horizontal and vertical sweep circuits operated in timed relation to said timing signals and wherein said vertical counter is part of a vertical scan system which responds to a timing signal for generating the vertical sync signal for synchronizing said vertical sweep circuit.

Claim 6

A display unit according to claim 3 wherein said storage device is an addressable magnetic memory, said plurality of character codes in each word are two character codes, and said storage means is constituted by two storage registers each for storing one of the two character codes of each word.

Claim 7

A display unit according to claim 5 characterized further by the provision of a control means, and wherein said horizontal counter is a multiple-bit counter of which one bit provides output states to said control means for controlling the sequence in which the character codes in said two storage registers are responded to by said display generating means and of which the remaining bits provide the horizontal address to said magnetic memory.

Claim 8

A display unit according to claim 6 wherein each character to be displayed is composed of a number of substantially horizontal element lines in the display on said cathode-ray tube, and said display generating means includes means for decoding in succession the character codes in said two registers and means for converting said decoded data into two groups of signals for generating the respective displays of one of said horizontal element lines of each character represented by the character codes in said two registers.

Claim 9

A display unit according to claim 7 characterized further by the provision of an element line counter responsive to count pulses derived from said source of timing signals for providing output states to said display generatiNg means each for selecting a particular one of said substantially horizontal element lines to be displayed.

Claim 10

A display unit according to claim 7 characterized further by the provision of a horizontal input/output counter having a plurality of output states corresponding to the output states of said horizontal counter, a vertical input/output counter having a plurality of output states corresponding to the output states of said vertical counter, means for selectively setting each of said horizontal and vertical input/output counters to one of its states corresponding to a character display position at which it is desired to display a cursor marker symbol, and means operative during said display cycles for comparing the output state of said horizontal counter with the set state of said horizontal input/output counter and for comparing the output state of said vertical counter with the set state of said vertical input/output counter and for providing an output signal in the event said states meet a standard of comparison indicative of the fact that said horizontal counter and vertical counter are at the address of said character display position at which it is desired to display said cursor, and wherein said display generating means includes means responsive to said output signal for generating the display of one of said horizontal element lines of said cursor.

Claim 11

A display unit comprising a display medium having horizontal and vertical character display positions, an addressable magnetic memory having a plurality of word locations each having a horizontal address corresponding to the address of a plurality of said horizontal character display positions and a vertical address corresponding to one of said vertical character display positions, each of said word locations having means to contain a plurality of character codes in particular character code positions, an interface connectable to an associated device for receiving input data, means for changing said input data into character codes each representing a character to be displayed on said display medium at one of said character display positions, a horizontal input device selectively settable to address said memory at the horizontal address of a desired one of said word locations, a vertical input device selectively settable to address said memory at the vertical address of said desired one of said word locations, an input storage register means for transferring each input character code into said input storage register, a plurality of buffer registers each having means to store a character code which is to be written into a particular character code position in each of said word locations, control means actuated by the set state of said horizontal input device for gating said input character code from said input storage register into a particular buffer register as specified by said set state, means for writing said input character code from said particular buffer register into the particular character code position of the corresponding word location, and means responsive to successive readout of said word locations for generating a display on said display medium of the characters represented by the character codes therein.

Claim 12

A display unit comprising a display medium having horizontal and vertical character display positions, an addressable magnetic memory having a plurality of word locations each having a horizontal address corresponding to the address of a plurality of said horizontal character display positions and a vertical address corresponding to one of said vertical character display positions, each of said word locations having means to contain a plurality of character codes in particular character code positions, an interface connectable to an associated device for receiving input data, means for changing said input data into character codes each representing a character to be displayed on said display medium at one of said character display positions, a horizontal input device selectively settable to address said memory at the horizontal address of a desired one of said word locations, a vertical input device selectively settable to address said memory at the vertical address of said desired one of said word locations, an input storage register means for transferring each input character code into said input storage register, a plurality of buffer registers each having means to store a character code which is to be written into a particular character code position in each of said word locations, control means actuated by the set state of said horizontal input device for gating said input character code from said input storage register into a particular buffer register as specified by said set state, means for writing said input character code from said particular buffer register into the particular character code position of the corresponding word location, and means responsive to successive readout of said word locations for generating a display on said display medium of the characters represented by the character codes therein.

Claim 13

Display apparatus for displaying in dot matrix form characters composed of interlaced element lines of displayable dots comprising a cathode-ray tube having horizontal and vertical sweep circuits and video circuits adapted to control the cathode beam to obtain horizontal interlaced element line scanning at the rate of 60 fields per second and 30 frames per second, an addressable magnetic memory having a plurality of word locations each having a horizontal address and a vertical address corresponding to the address of a plurality of character display positions on the screen of said cathode-ray tube, an interface connectable to an associated device for receiving input data, means for changing said input data into character codes each representing a character to be displayed oN said screen, means for loading a plurality of said character codes into each of said word locations, a source of timing signals, a horizontal counter responsive to count pulses derived from said timing signals for providing output states for sequentially addressing the horizontal addresses of said word locations, a display line counter responsive to count pulses derived from said timing signals for providing output states for sequentially addressing the vertical address of said word locations, a plurality of storage registers, means for simultaneously reading out the character codes of each addressed word location and placing each character code into one of said storage registers, a character generator comprising a matrix of magnetic elements arranged in rows, each row of magnetic elements corresponding to one of said element lines of displayable dots, a plurality of character lines each inductively coupled to certain ones of said magnetic elements in each row, energizing means responsive in a predetermined sequence to each character code in said plurality of storage registers for energizing, for each character code, one of said character lines to magnetically disturb the magnetic elements inductively coupled thereto, an element line counter responsive to count pulses derived from said timing signals for providing output states certain of which each correspond to one of said element lines of displayable dots, means responsive to each of said certain output states of said element line counter for inhibiting the magnetic disturbance of all rows of magnetic elements except one of said rows of magnetic elements, and means actuated by signals and signal levels derived from the disturbance of the magnetic elements and from any undisturbed magnetic elements, respectively, of said excepted row of magnetic elements for providing a sequence of signals to be converted into video signals to said video circuits for generating the display of the corresponding element line, and control means responsive to the output states of said horizontal counter for gating the character codes from said plurality of storage registers to said energizing means in said predetermined sequence.

Claim 14

Display apparatus for displaying in dot matrix form characters composed of interlaced element lines of displayable dots comprising a cathode-ray tube having horizontal and vertical sweep circuits and video circuits adapted to control the cathode beam to obtain horizontal interlaced element line scanning at the rate of 60 fields per second and 30 frames per second, an addressable magnetic memory having a plurality of word locations each having a horizontal address and a vertical address corresponding to the address of a plurality of character display positions on the screen of said cathode-ray tube, an interface connectable to an associated device for receiving input data, means for changing said input data into character codes each representing a character to be displayed oN said screen, means for loading a plurality of said character codes into each of said word locations, a source of timing signals, a horizontal counter responsive to count pulses derived from said timing signals for providing output states for sequentially addressing the horizontal addresses of said word locations, a display line counter responsive to count pulses derived from said timing signals for providing output states for sequentially addressing the vertical address of said word locations, a plurality of storage registers, means for simultaneously reading out the character codes of each addressed word location and placing each character code into one of said storage registers, a character generator comprising a matrix of magnetic elements arranged in rows, each row of magnetic elements corresponding to one of said element lines of displayable dots, a plurality of character lines each inductively coupled to certain ones of said magnetic elements in each row, energizing means responsive in a predetermined sequence to each character code in said plurality of storage registers for energizing, for each character code, one of said character lines to magnetically disturb the magnetic elements inductively coupled thereto, an element line counter responsive to count pulses derived from said timing signals for providing output states certain of which each correspond to one of said element lines of displayable dots, means responsive to each of said certain output states of said element line counter for inhibiting the magnetic disturbance of all rows of magnetic elements except one of said rows of magnetic elements, and means actuated by signals and signal levels derived from the disturbance of the magnetic elements and from any undisturbed magnetic elements, respectively, of said excepted row of magnetic elements for providing a sequence of signals to be converted into video signals to said video circuits for generating the display of the corresponding element line, and control means responsive to the output states of said horizontal counter for gating the character codes from said plurality of storage registers to said energizing means in said predetermined sequence.

Claim 15

Display apparatus in accordance with claim 11 characterized further by the provision of means for generating a series of signals to said video circuits for generating the display of an underscore of one or more characters.

Claim 16

Display apparatus in accordance with claim 11 wherein said interface is an input/output interface connected to permit the communication of character codes between said plurality of storage registers and said associated device, and characterized further by means enabling an operator to visually and manually preselect any portion of a character message being displayed and to effect transmission of the character codes representing said preselected portion to said associated device.

Claim 17

Display apparatus in accordance with claim 11 wherein the odd and even element lines of each said frame resulting from said interlaced element line scanning are identical in appearance so that each dot of each character appears twice as high in said frame as it does in the single fields constituting said frame.