A split-flap display, or sometimes simply a flap display, is a digital

electromechanical Electromechanics combine processes and procedures drawn from electrical engineering and mechanical engineering. Electromechanics focus on the interaction of electrical and mechanical systems as a whole and how the two systems interact with each ...

display device A display device is an output device for presentation of information in visual or tactile form (the latter used for example in tactile electronic displays for blind people). When the input information that is supplied has an electrical signa ...

that presents changeable

alphanumeric Alphanumericals or alphanumeric characters are any collection of number characters and letters in a certain language. Sometimes such characters may be mistaken one for the other. Merriam-Webster suggests that the term "alphanumeric" may often ...

text Text may refer to: Written word * Text (literary theory) In literary theory, a text is any object that can be "read", whether this object is a work of literature, a street sign, an arrangement of buildings on a city block, or styles of clothi ...

, and occasionally fixed

graphics Graphics () are visual images or designs on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, screen, paper, or stone, to inform, illustrate, or entertain. In contemporary usage, it includes a pictorial representation of the data, as in design and manufa ...

. They were (from the 1960s to 1990s) commonly used as

public transport timetable A public transport timetable (also timetable and North American English schedule) is a document setting out information on public transport service times. Both public timetables to assist passengers with planning a trip and internal timetables ...

s in

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

s and

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

s. They were often called Solari boards after the Italian display manufacturer

Solari di Udine Solari di Udine SpA is an Italian company that designs and manufactures public information displays, historically split-flap displays. The company was founded in 1725 in Udine, a small city in northeastern Italy. Initially, the company specializ ...

, or, in Central European countries, Pragotron after the Czech manufacturer. Split-flap displays were once commonly used in consumer digital clocks known as

flip clock A flip clock (also known as a "flap clock") is an electromechanical, Digital clock, digital timekeeping device which displays the time through a split-flap display, where numbers are revealed by flipping or rotating a series of plates or leaves. ...

Design

Each character position or graphic position has a collection of flaps on which characters or graphics are

paint Paint is a material or mixture that, when applied to a solid material and allowed to dry, adds a film-like layer. As art, this is used to create an image or images known as a painting. Paint can be made in many colors and types. Most paints are ...

ed or

silkscreen Screen printing is a printing technique where a mesh is used to transfer ink (or dye) onto a substrate, except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is moved across the screen in a "flood stroke" ...

ed. Larger flaps can display whole words, while smaller flaps display individual characters. The flaps are precisely flipped to display the desired character or graphic. These devices typically show departure or arrival information in

railway stations A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing such a ...

and

s, where they serve as flight information display systems. Advantages of these displays include: * high

visibility In meteorology, visibility is the measure of the distance at which an object or light can be clearly discerned. It depends on the Transparency and translucency, transparency of the surrounding air and as such, it is unchanging no matter the amb ...

and wide

viewing angle In display technology parlance, viewing angle is the angle at which a display can be viewed with an acceptable visual performance. In a technical context, the angular range is called viewing cone defined by a multitude of viewing directions. Th ...

in most

light Light, visible light, or visible radiation is electromagnetic radiation that can be visual perception, perceived by the human eye. Visible light spans the visible spectrum and is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400– ...

ing conditions, * little or no

power Power may refer to: Common meanings * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power, a type of energy * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events Math ...

consumption when the display remains static, and * distinct metallic flapping sound draws attention when the information is updated.

Alternatives

Flip-dot displays and

LED display A LED display is a flat panel display that uses an array of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as pixels for a video display. Their brightness allows them to be used outdoors where they are visible in the sun for store signs and billboards. I ...

boards are alternatives to split-flap displays. Their contents can be changed digitally instead of replacing flaps but at the cost of lower readability. They also can change more quickly, as a split-flap display may cycle through many flaps. The

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...

replaced its aging Solari boards at

North Station North Station is a commuter rail and intercity rail terminal station in Boston, Massachusetts. It is served by four MBTA Commuter Rail lines – the Fitchburg Line, Haverhill Line, Lowell Line, and Newburyport/Rockport Line – and the Amtr ...

and

South Station South Station, officially The Governor Michael S. Dukakis Transportation Center at South Station, is the largest railroad station and intercity bus terminal in Greater Boston and New England's second-largest transportation center after Logan I ...

, using a generated flapping noise to cue passengers to train boarding updates.

Applications

Many

game shows A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating and narrating wh ...

of the 1970s used this type of display for contestant podium scoreboards. Usually, the flip was left-to-right on a vertical axis. Early seasons of the

game show A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...

Family Feud ''Family Feud'' is an American television game show created by Mark Goodson. Two families compete on each episode to name the most popular answers to survey questions in order to win cash and prizes. The show has had three separate runs, the ...

'' used a split flap display (subsequent seasons used more modern digital displays, and eventually a large digital monitor). The game board on the

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...

game show '' Make the Grade'' was a 7x7 split-flap display, used to display subjects and wild cards, as well as tracking contestants' progress. The television game show ''

Chain Reaction A chain reaction is a sequence of reactions where a reactive product or by-product causes additional reactions to take place. In a chain reaction, positive feedback leads to a self-amplifying chain of events. Chain reactions are one way that sys ...

'' on

Game Show Network Game Show Network (GSN) is an American basic cable channel owned by the television network division of Sony Pictures Television. The channel's programming is primarily dedicated to game shows, including reruns of acquired game shows, along wit ...

features computer-simulated split-flap displays to display the various words in a chain. In Italy, split-flap displays were also been occasionally used as

destination sign A destination sign (North American English) or destination indicator/destination blind (British English) is a sign mounted on the front, side or rear of a public transport vehicle, such as a bus, tram/streetcar or light rail vehicle, that di ...

s for transit vehicles; there was also a brief vogue for them in the United Kingdom in the mid 1980s.

Non-informational uses

The aesthetic appeal of the displays is such that they have also seen use in purely artistic forms, such as in '' Pedestrian Drama'', contemporary artwork using this display technology, and art by Juan Fontanive, who has used the mechanism extensively since 2005. The album cover for The Enemy's album '' We'll Live and Die in These Towns'' is based on the Solari design seen at British railway stations.

Gallery

File:Cifra 5 digital flip clock designed by Gino Valle (1957).jpg, Solari ''Cifra 5'' clock by Nani and (1957) File:Paolo Monti - Servizio fotografico - BEIC 6355499.jpg, ''Cifra 5'' internal mechanism File:Orologio Solari Cifra 3.jpg, Solari ''Cifra 3'' designed by Nani and Gino Valle with graphic design input form Massimo Vignelli (1965) File:Clock-Lowicz-150604.jpg, Solari ''Cifra 23'' clock File:A & E Design 1.jpg, Turn-O-Matic M80 ''Könummersystem'' by A&E Design (1974) File:Fallblattanzeigetafel ausschnitt ffm hbf.jpg, Section of a split-flap display board at

Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof, also called Frankfurt Central Station and Frankfurt Main Station, is the busiest train station in the German state of Hesse. Due to its location near the middle of Germany and usage as a transport hub for long an ...

(2005) File:Gare du Nord Fallblattanzeiger Departure-board.JPG, Flap departure board at

Gare du Nord The Gare du Nord (; ), officially Paris Nord, is one of the seven large mainline railway station termini in Paris, France. The station is served by trains that run between the capital and northern France via the Paris–Lille railway, as well ...

, Paris (2007) File:Flickr - NewsPhoto! - ProRail deelt flyers en chocolade uit na ontspoorde trein (11).jpg, Flap display at

Breukelen railway station Breukelen is a railway station located in Breukelen, Netherlands. The station was opened on 18 December 1843 and is on the Amsterdam–Arnhem railway. It is also the northern end of the Harmelen–Breukelen railway. A new station was opened in 20 ...

, Holland File:An- und Abfahrtstafel-Hannover Hbf.jpg, Flap display as departure board at

Hannover Hauptbahnhof Hannover Hauptbahnhof () is the main railway station for the city of Hanover in Lower Saxony, Germany. The railway junction is one of the 21 stations listed as a railway Category 1 station by DB Station&Service. It is also the most important pub ...

, Germany File:Tatra KT8D5, čelní orientace, Vápenka (01).jpg, Split-flap display with the name of the end station on the tram

Tatra KT8D5 Tatra KT8D5 is a bidirectional tram, light rail vehicle currently ( , and not expected to retire soon, except in Brno) operating in Europe and Asia. In several variations, it was designed and manufactured by Czechs, Czech engineering corporatio ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

References

External links

SEGD Design Awards: A Sign of Democracy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Split-Flap Display Display technology Articles containing video clips Timekeeping Timekeeping components