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US 7,095,404 B2Granted
Electronic writing and erasing pencil
AssigneeHewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
InventorsKent D. Vincent, R. Stanley Williams, Xiao-An Zhang
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An electronic writing instrument for rewritable electronic writing surfaces. A self-powered, untethered, pencil-like instrument uses a perpendicular fringe field for changing the orientation of pixels composed of bistable, bichromal colorant elements. An appendix hereto describes bistable, bichromal, molecular colorant.
Claims21
An electronic stylus apparatus comprising:
- a portable power source;
- connected to the power source, at least one electrode for producing a localized, emanating, electric field wherein the field is of a strength sufficient to reorient electronic picture elements formed of an electrically bistable, molecular colorant.
A method for electronic erasable writing, the method comprising:
- providing a surface having picture elements defined by a bistable, molecular colorant element;
- and
- moving a portable, electrical fringe field, emanating substantially perpendicular to said surface and tuned for changing orientation of molecules of the colorant element across said surface in a manner substantially identical to conventional handwriting.
An erasable writing system comprising:
- an electronically writable-erasable surface having a layer of bistable, bichromal, molecular colorant thereon;
- and
- a portable, electronic stylus adapted for writing and erasing said colorant.
An electronic stylus apparatus comprising:
- means for providing electrical power, wherein said means is incorporated portably with said apparatus;
- connected to the means for providing electrical power, at least one electrode means for producing a localized, emanating, electric field wherein the field is of a strength sufficient to reorient electronic picture elements formed of an electrically bistable, molecular colorant.
An erasable writing system comprising:
- surface means for forming an electronically writable-erasable surface wherein said surface means includes colorant means for imaging on said surface means and wherein said colorant means further comprises a layer of individually bistable, bichromal, molecules;
- and
- a portable, electronic stylus means for writing and erasing said colorant means.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.