Patent ID: 7330204
Filing Date: 2008-02-12
Classification: H05B

Abstract:
1. A method for driving a self-scanning light-emitting element array including a transfer portion in which a plurality of three-terminal light-emitting thyristors are arrayed in one dimension, gates of neighbored thyristors are connected by a diode respectively, a power supply is connected to each gate of the thyristors through a load resistor, a first and second clock pulses of two phases are alternately supplied to cathodes or anodes of the thyristors; a light-emitting portion in which a plurality of three-terminal light-emitting thyristors are arrayed in one dimension, each gate of the thyristors is connected to a gate of corresponding thyristor in the transfer portion through a resistor, and a light-emitting signal is supplied to cathodes or anodes of the thyristors; the method comprising the steps of: turning on the thyristors in the transfer portion sequentially by the two-phase clock pulses; lighting the thyristor in the light-emitting portion corresponding to the turned-on thyristor in the transfer portion by the light-emitting signal; a first time period is provided, during which turned-on states of neighbored two thyristors are overlapped when the turned-on state is transferred in the transfer portion by the two-phase clock pulses; a second time period is provided after the first time period, during which the thyristor in the light-emitting portion corresponding to the turned-on thyristor in the transfer portion is lighted by the light-emitting signal; a third time period is provided after the second time period, during which a turned-off thyristor following the turned-on thyristor in the transfer portion is turned on as well as the lighted thyristor in the light-emitting portion is lighted out; and the second time period is a time period having a length in which when a thyristor to be lighted in the light-emitting portion is not lighted due to the breakage of a line, a thyristor following the failed thyristor due to the breakage of the line is lighted.