Patent ID: 8319737

Claim:
A display device, comprising: a plurality of pixels disposed in a matrix; pixel electrodes provided so as to correspond to said plurality of pixels, respectively; n (n≧2) counter electrodes which are disposed separately from one another in a scanning direction as one disposition direction of said plurality of pixels so as to face said pixel electrodes, respectively, and which extend in the other direction intersecting perpendicularly the scanning direction; a display functional layer having a function of displaying an image in accordance with voltages applied across said pixel electrodes and said n counter electrodes facing each other, respectively; a write drive scanning portion for repetitively carrying out an operation for writing signal voltages for display to a predetermined number of pixel electrodes disposed in the other direction, and a shifting operation for successively switching the predetermined number of pixel electrodes as objects of write of the signal voltages for display in the scanning direction; detection electrodes having respective electrostatic capacitances between said counter electrodes and said n detection electrodes; an alternate current drive scanning portion for alternate current driving s (n>s≧1) counter electrodes of said n counter electrodes, and shifting the s counter electrodes along with the shifting operation carried out by said drive scanning portion; and a detecting portion for detecting a change in voltage for the alternate current drive caused in each of said detection electrodes due to an influence of an external capacitance.