CZ2012486A3 - Device for automatic switching between computers using common mouse and common keyboard and method of such automatic switching - Google Patents

Abstract

The device allows to control one common peripheral unit (4), comprising a keyboard (42) and a computer mouse (41), two computers (1, 2), each of which has at least one display unit (131, 132, 231), using an automatic KVM switch (3). An automatic KVM switch (3) is connected to computers (1, 2) via their USB interface (11, 21). Automatic switching of the common peripheral unit (4) to the computer (1) or (2) is based on the evaluation of the absolute and relative coordinates of the mouse pointer position on the display units (131, 132 and 231) performed by the logic unit (32) of the automatic decision making system. KVM Switches (3).

Description

A device for automatically switching between computers using a common mouse and a common keyboard and a method for this automatic switching

Technical field

The invention relates to a device for automatically switching between computers by means of a common mouse and a common keyboard. The device comprises at least two computers, a KVM switch and an input peripheral unit comprising a common mouse and a common keyboard.

The invention also relates to a method of this automatic switching.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A common practice in computer control is to connect standard peripheral units for character input (usually a computer keyboard) and positioning (so-called pointing devices such as a computer mouse, tablet, joystick, etc.) directly to a computer system with a display unit - monitor. On the monitor, the movement of the pointing device is usually reflected as the movement of the cursor on the desktop, respectively. parts of the desktop. These peripheral units are generally known and standardized components of a computer system, and in addition to data input, in most cases they are used directly to control the system itself.

The trend of the last few years has been increasingly emerging computer systems, which allow using a special display subsystem with multiple outputs or several redundant display subsystems with a single output. Generate multiple outputs at the same time, eg to extend the desktop to several output display units - monitors . Typically, such a system is controlled by moving the pointing device or keyboard, if the system permits, and switching the cursor between the different display units when reaching the edge of a portion of the desktop occupying the physical surface of the display device. With the exception of systems that allow direct cursor control via the computer keyboard, this input peripheral has no function when switching the current display unit. This solution is used, for example, in railway traffic control at dispatching entry computers of a single service station, where the railroad embossing is usually displayed through several adjacent monitors, which can be switched by moving the mouse, respectively. using the arrow keys on the keyboard. The disadvantage of this solution when operating multiple discrete systems is that each system must have its own set of input peripheral units that occupy valuable desktop space while increasing the demands on the workplace by constantly thinking about which peripheral unit belongs to which system. For example, in rail transport, with an average of three separate systems per site, this solution, although widely used, appears to be inadequate.

To reduce the number of input peripherals while controlling multiple separate computer systems, KVM (Keyboard-Video-Mouse) switches allow you to route data signals from the input peripherals to and from the selected computer system by connecting a single set of input peripherals direct the output of the display subsystem to the connected display unit. The selection of the current computer system is usually made by pressing a button with the number of the switch output port set, or by a combination of several keys on specialized switches. The disadvantage of these solutions is the restriction of the possibility of directing only one output of the display subsystem for each computer system involved, which contradicts in the field of railway traffic control, eg the requirement to display the station relief across multiple monitors. Moreover, switching the output of the display subsystems is in contradiction with the requirement for railway traffic safety, where the operator must at all times have an overview of the entire control area and all related information systems. Although there is the possibility of connecting all display subsystem outputs directly to the display units and switching only the data signals of the input peripheral units, due to the lack of feedback to the operator in the form of switching the display subsystem output, this solution appears to be non-intuitive and therefore unusable.

US 2011/0010473 A1 discloses a manual KVM switch built directly into a monitor. The advantage of this solution is space saving, which is the only advantage over standard KVM switches.

US 5,748,189 discloses a method of automatically switching input peripheral units between multiple display subsystems of a single computer system simultaneously with the ability to switch between multiple such separate computer systems. The disadvantage, however, is the use of a local computer network for the transmission of events generated by the input peripheral units, which, for example in the case of railway traffic control, cannot be used due to the requirement for network closure of the station interlocking equipment. Another disadvantage is the need to install special software on each controlled computer system.

US 2009/0251413 A1 discloses a device for switching between computers. The device includes an automatic KVM switch that meets the requirements for automatic switching of input peripheral devices between computer systems. Data that is sent from the mouse is sent to the switch driver over a unidirectional communication channel. It is important to note that this data only signals the relative movement of the mouse since the last movement report. Therefore, this does not allow the driver to infer the position of the mouse pointer on the host computer screen. The switch driver has a two-way communication channel with software resident on the connected host computer. When the user moves the mouse pointer to the edge of its currently active display, the software resident on the host computer recognizes that the pointer is located at the edge of the display and sends a message to the driver inside the switch. The main claim states that each computer must have a pointer driver that controls the position of the pointer on the respective display. Furthermore, each computer must be provided with a resident controller that receives motion information of the pointing device through the switch device and a two-way communication channel and forwards the motion information to the pointer driver. Each computer must have a specialized service that monitors pointer movements using the pointer driver and communicates with the resident controller to ensure that the driver sends a message to the switch driver when the pointer performs a defined movement.

For this reason, this solution requires the installation of special software on each connected computer, and the software then instructs the switch driver. This technical solution utilizes two-way data communication between the computer system and the switch, which is unacceptable in the field of railway traffic control due to the requirement to ensure the required level of safety.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

These disadvantages will eliminate or substantially reduce the device for automatic switching between computers by means of a common mouse and a common keyboard according to the invention, which consists in that each computer comprises at least one USB interface connected to a USB / HID driver, each of which is connected common mouse driver and common keyboard driver. Each computer comprises at least one display system, each display system being connected to at least one display unit. The common mouse and the common keyboard of the input peripheral unit are unidirectionally connected to the computers via an automatic KVM switch, which includes a logical unit for recalculating the movement of the common mouse at the cursor position, unidirectionally connected to the logical unit for switching data output from the automatic KVM switch. The automatic KVM switch is unidirectionally connected to each computer via the computer's USB interface.

The apparatus provides a method of automatically switching between computers using a common mouse and a common keyboard according to the present invention, which is based on the fact that the user generates a common keyboard and common mouse, common mouse movement and mouse information by input peripheral unit. or release the 3 common keyboard key. The automatic KVM switch receives common mouse motion information, processes this information with its logical unit to convert relative mouse coordinate coordinates to absolute position indicators on the display units, and in the downstream logic unit, switching the output of the data signal decides to switch the keyboard KVM switch generates pointer position information on the display units in absolute coordinates for the same particular computer. The multilevel common mouse driver of each computer receives position information about the position of the position indicator on the automatic KVM switch display unit in absolute coordinates that it maps to the position of the pointer on the respective display units. If the absolute coordinates do not exceed a predetermined range, the signal is routed to the currently selected computer. If the absolute coordinates exceed a preselected range, then in the automatic KVM switch the logical unit switches the output of the data signal from the automatic KVM switch to the next specific computer.

The main advantage of the present invention is the automatic switching of the common keyboard and common mouse independently of the operating system of the computer without the need to install additional software, provided that the operating system supports the USB interface. Another advantage is the unidirectional data flow, which is important for the possibility of use in applications where high technical safety is required, such as in railway operation according to ČSN EN 50 129.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The automatic switching between computers using a common mouse and a common keyboard between two or more PCs according to the invention is described in detail in the exemplary embodiments shown in the attached schematic drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a two-computer device; Fig. 3 is a timing diagram of the automatic switching method.

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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Example 1 (Fig. 1)

When controlling the railway traffic at the dispatching station, the device according to the invention can be applied to reduce the number of input peripheral units 4 of multiple computers 1, 2 operated by one dispatcher. Typically, the first computer 1 is an input computer of a uniform service station, in which the railroad emboss is usually depicted on several adjacent display units 131, 132. The second computer 2 is generally a computer of the graphic-technological superstructure of the railway signaling equipment. The two computers 1, 2 can be moved smoothly by moving the common mouse 41.

FIG. 1 illustrates one possible example of connecting an automatic switching device between two computers 1, 2 using a common mouse 41 and a common keyboard 42 comprising a first computer 1, a second computer 2, a KVM switch 3 and an input peripheral unit 4.

The first computer 1 comprises a USB interface 11 connected to a USB / HID driver 12, which communicates with the mouse driver 121 and the common keyboard driver 122. The first computer 1 comprises a display system 13, e.g. a video card. The display system 13 is connected to the first display unit 131 and the second display unit 132.

The second computer 2 comprises a USB interface 21 downstream of the USB / HID driver 22, which communicates with the common mouse driver 221 and the common keyboard driver 222. The second computer 2 comprises a display system 23, e.g. a video card. The display system 23 is connected to the display unit 231.

The device according to the invention always comprises at least two computers 1, 2, as is simplified in the particular embodiment according to FIG. 1. In this exemplary embodiment, each of the computers 1, 2 has one USB interface H, 21. their greater number. Each computer 1, 2 may also have more display systems 13, 23 than one. Each display system 13, 23 is connected to at least one display unit 131, 132-231. The display unit 131, 132, 231 may be, for example, a monitor or a projector. A pointer, such as a cursor, is moved on the display unit 131, 132, 231.

The device according to the invention comprises one automatic KVM switch 3. The KVM switch 3 comprises one logical unit 31 for recalculating the movement of the common mouse 41 at the cursor position, and one logical unit 32 for switching the data signal output. The logic unit 31 is unidirectionally coupled to the logic unit 32.

The input peripheral unit 4 comprises a common mouse 41 and a common keyboard 42.

The common mouse 41 and the common keyboard 42 of the input peripheral unit 4 are unidirectionally connected to each computer 1, 2 via an automatic KVM switch 3. The automatic KVM switch 3 is unidirectionally connected to each computer 1, 2 via the USB interface 11, 21 of the respective computer 1, 2. .

Example 2 (Fig. 1)

On a device according to the invention comprising two computers 1, 2, an automatic KVM switch 3 and an input peripheral unit 4 comprising a common mouse 41 and a common keyboard 42 described in the previous embodiment, the automatic switching according to the invention is performed between computers 1, 2 using a common mouse 41 and common keyboard 42.

The user generates, by means of an input peripheral unit 4, a common keyboard 42 and a common mouse 41, information about moving the common mouse 41 and pressing or releasing the key of the common keyboard 42.

Common keyboard 42 keystroke or release information is processed by the keyboard driver 122, 222 of the respective computer 1, 2, and the switch to the corresponding computer 1, 2 is decided by the logical unit 32 of the automatic KVM switch 3 of the data signal as shown below.

The automatic KVM switch 3 receives information about the movement of the common mouse 41. It processes this information by its logic unit 31 for converting the relative coordinates of the movement of the common mouse 41 to absolute coordinates of the position indicator on the display units 131,132, 231. by exceeding the range of these absolute coordinates by switching the keyboard data signal 42 to the particular computer 1, 2. The automatic KVM switch 3 further generates pointer position information on the display units 131, 132, 231 in absolute coordinates for the same particular computer 1, 2. .

The multi-level controller 121, 221 of the common mouse 41 of each computer 1, 2 receives, via the USB interface 11, 21 and subsequently via the USB / HID controller 12, 22 of the respective computer 1, 2, the position indicator position information on the display units 121, 132, 231 automatic KVM switch 3 in absolute coordinates that this controller 121, 221 maps to the position of the pointer on the respective display units 131, 132, 231. The display systems 13, 23 generate an output signal for the display units 131, 132, 231.

If the absolute coordinates do not exceed a predetermined range, the signal is routed to the currently selected computer 1, 2.

If the absolute coordinates exceed a preselected range, then in the automatic KVM switch 3 the output in the logic unit 32 switches the output of the data signal from the automatic KVM switch 3 to the next specific computer 1, 2.

Example 3 (Fig. 2, 3)

Illustratively, the principle of the method of automatic switching between computers 1, 2 by means of a common mouse 41 and a common keyboard 42 is explained in the simplified device shown in Fig. 2 with a minimalist basic wiring. The device consists of two computers 1, 2 of the automatic KVM switch 3, a common mouse 41 and a common keyboard 42. The first computer 1 is assigned a display unit 131, the second computer 2 is assigned a display unit 231. A concrete possible concise timing of this method of automatic switching is shown in FIG. 3.

The default state in a particular example is that the common mouse 41 and the common keyboard 42 are switched to the first computer 1. If the user is working with the first computer 1, he moves the common mouse 41 or presses the common keyboard 42 within the first computer 7. Each time the common mouse 41 moves in the automatic KVM switch 3, the coordinates of the common mouse 41 are converted to an absolute coordinate system, and since only the first computer 1 is operated, the absolute coordinate range is not exceeded and the automatic KVM switch 3 remains switched to the first computer. 1.

Subsequently, the user decides to work with the second computer 2. The user uses the common mouse 41 to move the common mouse 41 beyond the display unit 131 of the first computer 1. In the automatic KVM switch 3, the coordinates of the common mouse 41 are converted to an absolute coordinate system. Due to the movement of the common mouse 41 beyond the edge of the display unit 131 of the first computer 1, the absolute coordinate range for this first computer is exceeded by switching to the second computer 2 by the automatic KVM switch 3.

Now the user has a common mouse 41 and a common keyboard 42 switched to the second computer 2. Subsequently, the user uses a common mouse 41 or the common keyboard 42 within this second computer 2. Each time the common mouse 41 moves In the automatic KVM switch 3, the coordinates of the common mouse 41 are converted to an absolute coordinate system. Due to operation only on the second computer 2, the absolute coordinate range is not exceeded and the automatic KVM switch 3 remains switched to the second computer 2.

For working on the first computer, the user has decided to control the first computer I, and move the common mouse 41 beyond the edge of the display unit 231 of the second computer 2. The automatic KVM switch 3 recalculates the coordinates of the common mouse 41 to an absolute coordinate system. Due to the movement of the common mouse 41 beyond the edge of the display unit 231 of the second computer 2, the absolute coordinate range is exceeded and switched to the first computer 1.

Thus, the common mouse 41 and the common keyboard 42 are switched to the first computer 1.

Example 4 (Fig. 2)

The automatic switching according to the present invention is based on the conversion of the relative coordinates of the movement of the common mouse 41 into absolute coordinates from a known predefined range and monitoring of its exceeding.

In general, switching between horizontal and vertical direction can be described by the following algorithm:

1) If, after adding the relative coordinate value increment to the current absolute coordinate value in the toggled direction, the range is below the minimum range value, then:

if the output of the common keyboard 42 and common mouse 41 is redirected to the USB interface 11 of the first computer 1, the absolute value of the coordinate is initialized to the minimum value of the range, otherwise the magnitude of the absolute coordinate range is added to the current absolute coordinate value; the maximum value of the absolute coordinate range minus its minimum value plus one, and the output of the common keyboard 42 and the common mouse 41 is redirected to the USB interface 11 of the first computer 1.

2) If, after adding the relative coordinate value increment to the current absolute coordinate value in the toggled direction, the range is exceeded above the maximum range value, then:

if the output of the common keyboard 42 and common mouse 41 is redirected to the USB interface 21 of the other computer 2, the absolute coordinate value is initialized to the maximum range value; otherwise, the magnitude of the absolute coordinate range in the switched direction is subtracted from the actual absolute coordinate value. the maximum value of the absolute coordinate range minus its minimum value plus one, and the output of the common keyboard 42 and the common mouse 41 is redirected to the USB interface 21 of the other computer 2.

Industrial applicability

The solution is suitable wherever simultaneous work of one user with more computers is needed.

Reference computer first computer

USB interface 11 of the first computer 1

USB / HID driver 12 of the first computer 1

121 mouse driver 121 of the first computer 1

122 keyboard controller 122 of the first computer 1 display system 13 of the first computer 1

131 first display unit 131 of the first computer 1

132 second display unit 132 of first computer 1 second computer

USB interface 21 of the second computer 2

USB / HID driver 22 of the second computer 2

221 mouse driver 221 of the second computer 2

222 keyboard 222 of the second computer 2 display system 23 of the second computer 2

231 first display unit 231 second computer 2 automatic KVM switch logic unit 31 to recalculate mouse movement at cursor position logic unit 32 to switch data output from automatic KVM switch input peripheral unit common mouse common keyboard

Claims (2)

PATENT CLAIMS An apparatus for automatically switching between computers using a common mouse and a common keyboard, comprising at least two computers (1,2), a KVM switch (3) and an input peripheral unit (4), comprising a common mouse (41) and a common keyboard (42) . characterized in that each computer (1,2) comprises at least one USB interface (11,21) connected to a USB / HID controller (12, 22), each of which is connected to a common mouse (121, 221) controller (121, 221) 41) and, secondly, on a common keyboard driver (122, 222), each computer (1, 2) includes at least one display system (13, 23), each display system (13, 23) being associated with at least one a display unit (131, 132,231), wherein the common mouse (41) and the common keyboard (42) of the input peripheral unit (4) are unidirectionally connected to the computers (1,2) via an automatic KVM switch (3) comprising one logical unit ( 31) to recalculate the movement of the common mouse (41) at the cursor position, unidirectionally connected to one logical unit (32) to switch the data signal output from the automatic KVM switch (3), and the automatic KVM switch (3) is unidirectionally connected to each computer , 2 ) via the USB interface (11, 21) of the respective computer (1,2). Method for automatically switching between computers (1,2) using a common mouse (41) and a common keyboard (42) on a device comprising at least two computers (1, 2), an automatic KVM switch (3) and an input peripheral unit (4) comprising a common mouse (41) and a common keyboard (42) according to claim 1, characterized in that the user generates, by means of an input peripheral unit (4), a common keyboard (42) and a common mouse (41) information about the movement of the common mouse (41) 41) and by pressing or releasing the common keyboard key (42), the automatic KVM switch (3) receives the common mouse movement information (41), processing this information by its logical unit (31) to convert the relative coordinates of the common mouse movement (41) to absolute coordinates of the position indicator on the display units (131,132, 231), and in the subsequent logic unit (32) the output switching by exceeding the range of these absolute coordinates by switching the data signal of the keyboard (42) to the respective particular computer (1, 2), and furthermore the automatic KVM switch (3) generates information about the position of the pointer on the display units (131, 132, 231). absolute coordinates for the same particular computer (1, 2), the mouse (41, 221) of the common mouse (41) of each computer (1,2) receives position indicator information on the display unit (131, 132, 231) of the automatic KVM switch (3) in absolute coordinates that this controller (121, 221) maps to the position of the pointer on the respective display units (131, 132, 231), and if the absolute coordinates do not exceed a predetermined range, the signal is routed to the currently selected computer (1) , 2) and if the absolute coordinates exceed the preselected range, then in the automatic KVM switch (3) k occurs switching in the logic unit (32) switching the output of the data signal from the automatic KVM switch (3) to the next particular computer (1,2).