Patent ID: 7384171

Claim:
A large-area LCD billboard for outdoor advertising comprising: (a) a board having a viewer side comprising reflective LCD elements having a luminosity dependent on intensity and direction of lighting, said board comprising a frame having a pivotally-mounted rail and a recess in a rear portion of the frame away from the viewer side; (b) an artificial lighting device provided on said board comprising a plurality of lamps mounted on said rail for illuminating the board from the viewer side for periods when sunlight falling on the board is insufficient; (c) motorized activation means connected to said lighting device for physically moving the rail with the lighting device into a recessed position toward the rear portion of the frame and the lamps into the recess and out of a beam path of the sunlight falling on the board so that the rail and the lamps can no longer be seen by a viewer in the recessed position; and (d) a control system with a light sensor for activating the activation means.