Abstract:
Digital time displays which include a display of remaining minutes, on the left side, and before commencement of a displayed next hour, such as quadribalanced or enhanced quadribalanced displays, are provided with improved systems and methods of graphics for tracking and portraying the diminishing period of the last 59 seconds before commencement of the next hour.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    I. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    This invention relates to digital time displays which are useful for general purpose timekeeping, meaning the usual habits of individuals in watching and keeping track of the time while going about their daily activities.  
           [0003]    II. Description of the Prior Art  
           [0004]    Quadribalanced and Enhanced Quadribalanced digital time displays are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,271,497 (hereinafter &#39;497 patent) and 6,215,736 B1 (hereinafter &#39;736 B1 patent), respectively, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. The &#39;497 patent does not indicate what should be included in its displays during the final minute of each hour, when zero minutes and 59 to zero seconds remain until the commencement of the next hour.  
           [0005]    The &#39;736 B1 patent teaches at column 6, lines 55-59 that its displays can include flashing horizontal elements during the period of the last minute before the next hour, in a manner described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,757,730 (hereinafter &#39;730 patent), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.  
           [0006]    III. Recognition of Problems in the Prior Art  
           [0007]    The present applicant made several attempts to implement the teaching of the 497 patent to use flashing horizontal elements, like those described in the &#39;730 patent, in the enhanced quadribalanced displays of the &#39;736 B1 patent during the final minute, while seconds were counted down from 59 to zero. These attempts were not successful. Basically, the problem was a lack of proportion and fullness in the limited area occupied by the flashing uppermost six horizontal elements of the &#39;736 B1 patent displays, compared to the larger area of the entire space on the left of the displayed next hour which is fully occupied in such displays by remaining minutes during the last thirty minutes before the next hour.  
           [0008]    The flashing uppermost six horizontal elements gave the appearance and impression of being too crowded and disproportionate in their collective grouping and position, as contrasted from the larger area of the entire available space used to display remaining minutes during the preceding half hour. These problems did not become apparent until the present applicant&#39;s attempt to implement the teachings of the &#39;497 and &#39;730 patents in the displays of the &#39;736 B1 patent, as explained above.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    The present invention provides an effective solution to the above-described problems, with considerable unexpected additional benefits and advantages that were not foreseen before the initial concept of the invention emerged in the applicant&#39;s thought processes. In particular, while mentally dealing with the above problems, the initial concept suddenly recognized that the 10-segmented ladder arrays, used to display remaining minutes during the second half hour of the &#39;736 B1 patent, at zero remaining minutes, could be transformed into two sets of three zeros each, stacked in vertical alignment one above the other, in the whole of space occupied by the previous 59 remaining minutes. Therefore, during the final minute, each of these equi-sized zeros, occupying substantially one-third of the area of that space, could be displayed in a predetermined pattern or sequence to graphically track the diminution of the last 59 seconds of the final minute. Moreover, such zeros would provide direct and explicit confirmation that all minutes of the current hour have passed and only seconds remain before the commencement of the next hour. After these breakthrough insights, the invention came into clear focus as a far superior display system and method for the final minute of the enhanced quadribalanced time displays of the &#39;736 B1 patent, or analogous time displays, as further discussed below. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]    [0010]FIG. 1 is a modified version of FIG. 1 of the &#39;736 B1 patent.  
         [0011]    FIGS.  2 - 7  are representative displays of selectively activated elements of the FIG. 1 display to graphically track the diminution of the final 59 seconds before commencement of a next hour 12, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0012]    Referring now to FIG. 1, bracket A references a set of display elements comprising a vertical display element  10  flanked on the right by a FIG. 8 group of display elements  12  which can be activated to display hour values of 1 through 12.  
         [0013]    Bracket B references a set of display elements comprising two groups each of 10-segmented ladder-arrayed display elements  14  and  16  which can be activated to display 00 to 15 and 16 to 30 elapsed minutes past an existing hour, in relatively upper and lower, partially overlapping positions during the first and second quarters of the hour, as taught in the &#39;736 B1 patent.  
         [0014]    Bracket C references another set of display elements comprising two groups each of 10-segmented, ladder-arrayed display elements  18  and  20  which can be activated to display 29 to 16 and 15 to 01 remaining minutes before a next hour, in relatively lower and upper, partially overlapping positions during the third and fourth quarters of the existing hour, as also taught in the &#39;736 B1 patent.  
         [0015]    Bracket D references a set of display elements comprising two FIG. 8 groups of display elements  22  and  24  which can be activated to display 0 to 59 seconds during each elapsed minute displayed by elements B, as well as 59 to 0 seconds during each remaining minute displayed by elements C, as taught in the &#39;736 B1 patent.  
         [0016]    Finally, certain encircled uppermost and lowermost corners of the outboard 10-segmented group of elements in stacks B and C can be activated to display markers in those quadrants of the minute areas not occupied, respectively, by displayed minutes during the course of an hour, again as taught in the &#39;736 B1 patent.  
         [0017]    Referring next to FIG. 2, displayed there is the representative exact time of zero minutes and 58 seconds before the next hour 12. The highest zero  18 H in the stacked 10-segment array  18  (FIG. 1) has been activated and is surrounded by ray lines to portray the fact that it is flashing. This flashing continues during the ten second period from 59 to 50 seconds. The markers 16.1 and 16.2 are optionally, but preferably also, activated to fill out, and provide a sense of counterbalance in, the empty elapsed minutes space on the right flank of the hour 12, relative to the flashing zeros in the left flank area.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 3 displays the representative exact time of zero minutes and 46 seconds before the next hour 12. Here, the middle zero  18 M of the array  18  (FIG. 1) has been activated into flashing condition during the ten second period from 49 to 40 seconds.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 4 displays the representative exact time of zero minutes and 34 seconds before next hour 12. The lowermost zero  18 L of the stack  18  (FIG. 1) has been activated to flash during the period from 39 to 30 seconds which concludes the first half of the final minute before the next hour.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 5 displays the representative exact time of zero minutes and 22 seconds before next hour 12. Now, the uppermost zero  20 H of the stack  20  (FIG. 1) has been activated to flash during the period from 29 to 20 seconds. Thus, the previous trio of zeros  18 H,  18 M and  18 L, has completed its course from top to bottom of the outboard space on the left of the displayed next hour exactly at the conclusion of the next-to-last 30 seconds before the next hour. Thereafter, FIG. 5 begins a second downward progression of a trio of flashing zeros starting with 20H which is the highest of the three and located in the closer inboard position adjacent the displayed next hour 12.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 6 displays the representative exact time of zero minutes and 10 seconds before next hour 12. Here, the middle zero  20 M of the stack  20  (FIG. 1) has been activated to flash during the period of 19 to 10 seconds before the next hour.  
         [0022]    Finally, FIG. 7 displays the position occupied by the lowermost zero  20 L of the stack  20  (FIG. 1) during the last ten second period before next hour 12, at the representative exact time of zero minutes and 9 remaining seconds.  
         [0023]    The invention has been described in terms of its functional principles and a specific preferred embodiment. Because in the preferred embodiment its elements comprise six equi-sized zero digits located in six different positions during the final minute before a next hour, it offers much flexibility and many choices of selected predetermined patterns or sequences of flashing and display positions.  
         [0024]    In particular, FIGS.  2 - 7  have been designed to illustrate a preferred pattern and sequence comprising a relatively slow rate of flashing during the first thirty seconds, i.e., zero digits  18 H,  18 M and  18 L in FIGS.  2 - 4 , a faster rate of flashing of zero digits  20 H,  20 M in FIGS. 5 and 6, and a final, still faster rate of flashing of zero digit  20 L in FIG. 7.  
         [0025]    More specifically, zero digits  18 H,  18 M and  18 L are preferably flashed at a rate of one every other second commencing at 58 seconds, such that the zeros will flash 5 times during the initial ten second period of 59 to 50 seconds. Each flash in this period will occur on the even numbered values of seconds ending with 50.  
         [0026]    Likewise, zero digits  18 M and  18 L are preferably flashed at the same rate as zero digit  18 H at each of the even numbered seconds values of their ten second periods, 49-40 and 39-30, ending with values 40 and 30, respectively.  
         [0027]    Zero digits  20 H and  20 M are flashed at a faster rate of once every second during their ten second periods of  29 - 20  and  19 - 10 , respectively. Accordingly, this higher rate is double the rates of the first 30 seconds tracked by zero digits  18 H,  18 M and  18 L. The resulting ten flashes of the two zero digits  20 H and  20 M during each of their ten second periods gives a more attention-drawing, alerting effect to the viewer that the next hour is approaching more closely, as distinguished from the first thirty second period tracked by the more leisurely flashing zero digits  18 H,  18 M and  18 L.  
         [0028]    Finally, zero digit  20 L of FIG. 7 is preferably flashed again at a doubly faster rate than the zero digits  20 H and  20 M. This results in each value of the remaining ten seconds being accompanied by two flashes of the zero digit  20 L, thus providing the strongest alert effect that the next hour 12 has nearly arrived.  
         [0029]    One can envision the overall result by considering such a flashing sequence during the final minutes of New Year&#39;s Eve. During the first thirty seconds, i.e., the first half of that minute, the viewer will be mildly alerted to prepare for the approaching new year. The next alert level will be a notch higher during the next twenty seconds, due to the doubled rate of flashing. Finally, the last ten seconds will present a still more urgent alert level by a yet further doubled flashing rate which is appropriate to timely prepare the viewer for the celebrations that are performed at the arrival of each New Year.  
         [0030]    The foregoing is only one specific example of the choice of specific patterns or sequences of flashing zero digits and positions enabled by the present invention. For example, a selected single rate of flashing can be chosen for all of the ten second periods tracked by the downward progressions of the zero digits. Or, reciprocating flashing zero digits down and up between successive positions can be implemented, in whole or in part. Still another option is to begin with, or intersperse steady zero digits with flashing zero digits, or to use only steady zero digits in the illustrated incremental position changes, during selected successive values of seconds. Other patterns and sequences will be readily evident to those skilled in the art.  
         [0031]    The invention has direct application in the quadribalanced and enhanced quadribalanced digital time displays described in the &#39;497 and &#39;736 B1 patents. The invention more generally can be embodied in any digital time display which includes a display of remaining minutes on the left side and before commencement of a displayed next hour, after such remaining minutes have reached a value of zero.  
         [0032]    Thus, many variations of the foregoing disclosure will be obvious to those having ordinary skill in the art of time display systems and methods. Accordingly, it should be understood that the ensuing claims are intended to cover all changes and modifications of the above-described specific preferred embodiment which fall within the literal scope of the claims and all equivalents thereof.