Most power efficient display of single digits and color flap

In summary, the conversation is about redesigning a board game toy and finding a more power-efficient way to display colors and player scores. Suggestions include using LCD displays with LED side lights, reflective displays, or electromechanical methods such as flipdot displays. The final solution may involve using high voltage rechargeable batteries and chargers or a combination of LCD segments and vacuum fluorescent displays.
  • #1
izico
5
0
I'm redesigning a board game toy now.

The first version use color flaps rotated by shaft to show color, red or blue, and it uses 7 segment LED to display a single digit of player score.

I'm thinking of replacing the color flap with red and blue LED or other means to show these 2 colors.

But we want the battery to last as long as possible.

And of course a MCU will be used for control.

Anybody have better idea about how to keep the power consumption as small as possible to have the battery replacement few? Any means are open, mechanical or electrical or else, the LED current consumption is too high, 1ma is just a very dim color on LED, and we have 18 color flaps to be replaced, it's a lot current consumption.
 
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  • #2
With zero standby power, those color flaps are probably the lowest power display available. They are even used around here in roadside 'informational' RADAR speed indicators. (They slowed the traffic the first few months they were up.)

The next lowest power would be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) but you have to drive them with Alternating Current, no DC component allowed. That means some active logic running while the display is active. They are used in pocket calculators, digital watches, cell phones, etc. Since they are a capacitive display, their power usage is almost zero. You can drive them with very low power CMOS logic.
 
  • #3
I agree
Your lowest power all electrical solution will probably be an LCD display with an LED side light. (I have not done the power analysis)

For example, http://www.good-display.com/products_detail/&productId=141.html

Microcontroller families generally have devices with LCD drivers.
PIC16F913 is one example --- there may be smaller ones.
 
  • #4
Or if you don't need to read the display in the dark you can use a reflective display and eliminate the LED.
 
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  • #5
Tom.G said:
Or if you don't need to read the display in the dark you can use a reflective display and eliminate the LED.
Tom's suggestion give me a hint of a design using a single large screen reflective LCD, we will put a 6x6 membrane push button on top of it, (36 buttons are located evenly for player to press to gain territory, the red/blue color flap means who occupy the square of that position already or if it's still not occupied by anybody), so our job will be show score on top, and show territory with different color.

This looks the most power efficient electrical solution by now, at least much better than 2 7-segment display and 18 discrete LED.
 
  • #6
I have forgotten to tell the board is 11"x8.5" in size, with this size the LCD cost is inhibitive.

So it seems only 2 choices now:
1. Color LED enclosed in same color plastic cover which tend to enhance the same color, and bundle together with a large rechargeable battery with high voltage such as the 9v battery used in many multimeters, and bundle a charger circuit or even a charger together like how the mobile phone is sold.

The current consumption will be some tens ma but with a 9v 1000mah battery it can still last some hundreds hours, it's still OK for mist users.

2. Some electromechanical method to rotate the color flaps, by now I have not thought of any affordable solution, but motor control is an obvious solution though quite inhibitively expensive.
 
  • #7
http://www.flipdots.com/electromagnetic-large-7-segment-display.html#.Vwa41XolloE [Broken]
 
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  • #8
meBigGuy said:
http://www.flipdots.com/electromagnetic-large-7-segment-display.html#.Vwa41XolloE [Broken][/QUOTE
meBigGuy said:
http://www.flipdots.com/electromagnetic-large-7-segment-display.html#.Vwa41XolloE [Broken]
This is the last word now, thanks for your info very much.

I have contacted them for price but from some online search it's quite expensive.

It looks a lot custom parts are needed to build such a flipdot by myself, permanent magnet, solenoid, I will survey but not optimistic about design cost and final BOM cost.

I guess we need to use the LED + high voltage high mAh rechargeable battery + charger solution finally, it looks to be the most economical solution.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
  • #9
For LCD you can buy 7 LCD segments and place them in the correct geometry to save cost on the glass area (you pay by the overall area)

Have you looked into Vacuum florescent displays?
 
  • #10
meBigGuy said:
For LCD you can buy 7 LCD segments and place them in the correct geometry to save cost on the glass area (you pay by the overall area)

Have you looked into Vacuum florescent displays?
I have never used VFD, but from some datasheet and FAQ searched online it consumes more power than LED on the same lumen light.
 

What is the most power efficient display for single digits?

The most power efficient display for single digits is an OLED (organic light-emitting diode) display. This type of display uses organic compounds that emit light when an electric current is passed through them, making them more energy efficient than traditional LCD displays.

Is there a difference in power efficiency between displaying single digits and displaying colors?

Yes, there is a difference in power efficiency between displaying single digits and displaying colors. Generally, displaying single digits requires less power because it involves lighting up fewer pixels compared to displaying colors which require lighting up a larger number of pixels.

What is the best way to display a single digit with color?

The best way to display a single digit with color is to use a segmented display, where each segment is individually lit up to create the desired number. This method is more power efficient than using a full-color display, as only the necessary segments are lit up instead of the entire display.

Which display technology is the most power efficient for colors?

The most power efficient display technology for colors is a reflective display, such as e-ink. These displays use ambient light to reflect off the surface and create the desired color, rather than emitting light like most other display technologies. This results in significantly lower power consumption.

How can the power efficiency of a display be optimized for both single digits and colors?

The power efficiency of a display can be optimized for both single digits and colors by using a combination of display technologies. For example, using an OLED display for single digits and a reflective display for colors can result in a more power efficient overall display. Additionally, optimizing the display's brightness and refresh rate can also help improve power efficiency.

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