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, 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 silkscreened. 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 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 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 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 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 and South Station, 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'' 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 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 signs 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, 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