1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a display or printing device which is capable, by selective energization of a number of segments, of displaying Arabic letters, numerals and words as well as European numerals.
There is a strong need for such a device in the manufacture of such apparatus as small computers, portable testing or communication equipment, etc. where production is suited to markets of the Arab people and where the requirements of relatively small display area and/or low production cost make the use of said device highly desirable.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The main problem in developing such a device is that it is more difficult to devise an arrangement of a limited number of segments which can be selectively operated to display Arabic words than it is for languages using the Latin alphabet. In the case of the latter said languages the starburst method has been successfuly and commonly employed (see, for example, GB No. 2001468) as disclosed, for example, in United Kingdom Pat. No. GB 2,001,468 B. Among the reasons for the aforementioned difficulty is that Arabic alphabetical characters do not lend themselves to simple goemetrical representation as readily as Latin letters. Another reason for the difficulty is that most Arabic letters take on two and sometimes three character forms, depending on their position in the printed word.