Patent Publication Number: US-2009223100-A1

Title: Figure exhibiting method and figure exhibiting device

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention generally relates to a figure exhibiting method and a figure exhibiting device, and more particularly to a figure exhibiting method and a figure exhibiting device which use complementary colors or special reflections. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     When exhibiting a figure, which can be a painting or a photograph, suitable lights are normally projected onto the figure so as to make the colors of the figure appear the same as when sunlight is projected onto the  FIG. 10 . 
       FIG. 1  shows the perspective view of a conventional figure exhibiting method. Included in the  FIG. 10  are a first color area  11 , a second color area  12  and a third color area  13 . The color areas  11 ,  12  and  13  are of different colors. When exhibiting the  FIG. 10 , at least one light source  20  projects suitable lights  21  onto the surface of the  FIG. 10 . When the lights  21  are reflected to an eye  50  of an observer, the observer could notice that the color areas  11 ,  12 ,  13  appear to be the same colors as when sunlight is projected onto the  FIG. 10 . 
     Although the conventional figure exhibiting method mentioned above allows exhibiting the  FIG. 10  in suitable light, the  FIG. 10  is only static to the observer&#39;s eye  50 . The conventional figure exhibiting method is unable to create a dynamic sensation of the  FIG. 10  to the observer&#39;s eye  50 . 
     Due to the disadvantages of the prior art mentioned above, there exists a need to propose a novel figure exhibiting method and a novel figure exhibiting device which are able to create dynamic visual effects by the lights projected on to the figure. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has been made in order to meet such a need as described above, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a figure exhibiting method and a figure exhibiting device that are able to create dynamic visual effects on the figure by the lights projected. 
     In order to achieve the above objects, the present invention provides a figure exhibiting method. The figure exhibiting method includes providing a figure and at least one light source. A number of color areas are included in the figure, and among the areas is the first color area. The light source projects a variety of color lights onto the figure as programmed. The lights include a first light, where the color of the first light is the complementary color of the first color area to create a dark visual effect. Alternatively, a color light that is able to create a reflection from the first color area can then be projected onto the figure, making its color appear differently than it would under sunlight. The present invention also provides a figure exhibiting device. The figure exhibiting device includes a light guiding plate, a transparent plate, a figure, and at least one light source. The figure is clipped between the light guiding plate and the transparent plate. Included in the figure are a number of color areas, particularly, a first color area. The light source is disposed at one side of the light guiding plate. A variety of color lights from the light source could pass through the light guiding plate to the back surface of the figure, or they could be projected to the front surface via the transparent plate. The color of the first light is the complementary color of the first color area. Alternatively, a color light can also be used as the first light if it is capable of making the first color area appear different from its color in sunlight. 
     By using the figure exhibiting method and the figure exhibiting device in the present invention, the figure could give rise to dynamic visual effects with the lights projected onto the figure. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows the perspective view of a conventional figure exhibiting method; 
         FIG. 2A  shows the perspective view of a figure exhibiting method in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 2B  and  FIG. 2C  show the perspective view and the sectional view of a figure exhibiting device in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The detailed description of the present invention is discussed in the following embodiments, which are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, but can be adapted for other applications. While drawings are illustrated in details, it is appreciated that the quantity of the disclosed components may be greater or less than that disclosed, except expressly restricting the amount of the components. 
       FIG. 2A  shows the perspective view of a figure exhibiting method in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The figure exhibiting method includes providing a  FIG. 10  and at least one light source  20 . The  FIG. 10  includes a first color area  11 , a second color area  12  and a third color area  13 . The color areas  11 ,  12  and  13  are of different colors. The light source  20  projects lights  21  onto the  FIG. 10  as programmed. The lights  21  are of different colors, including a first light, a second light and a third light. The color of the first light is the complementary color of the first color area  11 ; the color of the second light is the complementary color of the second color area  12 ; the color of the third light is the complementary color of the third color area  13 . 
     When the first light is projected onto the  FIG. 10 , a dark visual effect is created on the first color area  11 , giving the area a black appearance; when the second light is projected onto the  FIG. 10 , a dark visual effect is created on the second color area  12 , giving the area a black appearance; when the third light is projected onto the  FIG. 10 , a dark visual effect is created on the third color area  13 , giving the area a black appearance. With the lights  21  projected serially, the color areas that appear black vary with time. Therefore, the  FIG. 10  gives rise to dynamic visual effects with the lights  21  projected onto the  FIG. 10 . In this embodiment, the  FIG. 10  shows a static scene. However, with the lights  21  projected onto the  FIG. 10 , the  FIG. 10  can give rise to different visual effects. For example, the  FIG. 10  is able to show a static scene at dawn, at night, in summer, or in winter. 
     The color of the first light is capable of making the first color area  11  show a dark visual effect so that it appears roughly black; the color of the first light is also capable of making the second color area  12  and the third color area  13  show visual effects such that the colors of the second color area  12  and the third color area  13  appear differently than they would under sunlight. The color of the second light is capable of making the second color area  12  show a dark visual effect such that the second color area  12  appears roughly black; the color of the second light is also capable of making the first color area  11  and the third color area  13  show visual effects such that the color of the first color area  11  and the third color area  13  appear differently than they would under sunlight. The color of the third light is capable of making the third color area  13  show a dark visual effect such that the third color area  13  appears roughly black; the color of the third light is also capable of making the first color area  11  and the second color area  12  show visual effects such that the color of the first color area  11  and the second color area  12  appear differently than they would under sunlight. 
     According to this embodiment, the light source  20  includes a number of light emitting diodes (LEDs) and a controlling IC. The LEDs include at least one red LED, at least one green LED, and at least one blue LED. The controlling IC controls how the light source  20  projects lights  21  onto the  FIG. 10  according to a program. The controlling IC is capable of controlling the power output of each LED in order to produce different colors of lights  21 . However, the light source  20  of the present invention is not limited to LED; there are also other suitable light sources that can be used as the light source  20  in the present invention. 
       FIG. 2B  and  FIG. 2C  show the perspective view and the sectional view of a figure exhibiting device in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention. The figure exhibiting device  200  includes a light guiding plate  210 , a transparent plate  220 , a  FIG. 10 , and at least one light source  20 . The  FIG. 10  is clipped between the light guiding plate  210  and the transparent plate  220 . Included in the  FIG. 10  are a first color area  11 , a second color area  12  and a third color area  13 . The color areas  11 ,  12  and  13  are of different colors. The light source  20  is disposed at one side of the light guiding plate  210  and projects lights  21  onto the  FIG. 10 . The lights  21  can pass through the light guiding plate  210  to the back surface  18  of the  FIG. 10  so as to make the lights  21  penetrate the  FIG. 10 , or the lights  21  could be projected to the front surface  19  via the transparent plate  220  so as to reflect the lights  21  from the  FIG. 10 . The lights  21  can be many different colors, including a first light, a second light, and a third light. The color of the first light is the complementary color of the first color area  11 ; the color of the second light is the complementary color of the second color area  12 ; the color of the third light is the complementary color of the third color area  13 . 
     When the first light is projected onto the  FIG. 10 , a dark visual effect is created on the first color area  11 , giving the area a black appearance; when the second light is projected onto the  FIG. 10 , a dark visual effect is created on the second color area  12 , giving the area a black appearance; when the third light is projected onto the  FIG. 10 , a dark visual effect is created on the third color area  13 , giving the area a black appearance. When the lights  21  are projected sequentially on to the  FIG. 10 , the color areas that appear black vary with time, thus creating dynamic visual effects for the  FIG. 10 . In this embodiment, the  FIG. 10  shows a static scene. With the lights  21  being projected on to the  FIG. 10 , the  FIG. 10  can give rise to different visual effects; for example, the  FIG. 10  is able to show a static scene at dawn, at night, in the summer, or in the winter. 
     According to this embodiment, the lights  21  from the light source  20  can be projected to the back surface  18  of the  FIG. 10  through the light guiding plate  210 , or they can be projected to the front surface  19  of the  FIG. 10 . Then, lights  21  are reflected to the observer&#39;s eye  50  via the transparent plate  220 . The transparent plate  220  has the same light guiding function as the light guiding plate  210 . The light guiding plate  210  can include a reflecting plate  211  to reflect the lights  21 . 
     According to this embodiment, the light source  20  includes a number of LEDs and a controlling IC. The LEDs include at least one red LED, at least one green LED, and at least one blue LED. The controlling IC controls how the light source  20  project lights  21  onto the  FIG. 10  according to a program. The controlling IC is capable of controlling the power output of each LED so as to produce different colors of lights  21 . However, the light source  20  of the present invention is not limited to LED; there are also other light sources which are suitable to be used as the light source  20  in the present invention. In this embodiment, the figure exhibiting device  200  can also include a time device (not shown). The time device can function as an alarm clock, and is capable of displaying time. The light source  20  could project lights  21  according to the time of the time device. 
     By using the figure exhibiting method and the figure exhibiting device of the present invention, the figure can give rise to dynamic visual effects with the lights projected on to the figure. 
     Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the arts that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention, which is intended to be limited solely by the appended claims.