Electrophoretic image display having an improved switching time

Claim 1

An electrophoretic visual display device comprising: an electrophoretic suspension comprising a dispersion of pigment particles in a dielectric suspending liquid, a dye adapted to provide the suspending liquid with a color contrasting to that of the pigment particles and a charging material for introducing a charge on the pigment particles; a first transparent electrode; at least one segmented electrode having a major surface in opposition to the major surface of said first transparent electrode and spaced therefrom by at least one thin insulating member, said electrodes and said thin insulation members forming a cell for containing said electrophoretic suspension; a transparent insulating layer positioned on the major surface of said segmented electrode opposed to said first transparent electrode; a mesh electrode in the shape of the segment electrode having holes barely visible to the naked eye positioned on said transparent insulating layer between said segmented electrode and said transparent insulating layer; one of said mesh electrode and said segmented electrode being formed of light reflective metal and voltage supply means for supplying a reversible electric field between said mesh electrode and said segmented electrode.