JP2005165401A - Electronic device and method for obtaining code - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To accurately obtain the codes of keys depressed during a predetermined processing period. <P>SOLUTION: This electronic device has a memory 5 that stores a BIOS and a keyboard controller (KBC) 2. The KBC 2 has a first buffer 21 that is used to temporarily store the scan codes of the keys depressed and to transfer the scan codes to a register used by the BIOS, and a second buffer 22 that stores the scan codes of the keys depressed and outputs the scan codes when a dump list command is issued from the BIOS. The BIOS issues the dump list command after the initialization of the KBC 2 to obtain the scan codes stored in the second buffer 22. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic device including a BIOS and a code acquisition method.

  A BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) provided in a computer or the like can realize the following functions by determining a key on a keyboard pressed at the time of activation.

-BIOS and KBC rewrite function for rewriting BIOS and KBC (Keyboard Controller) firmware-Boot select function for selecting boot device-BIOS setup function for performing BIOS setup process The method of determining the pressed key is as follows: It is as follows.
(1) The BIOS checks whether there is a pressed key while POST (Power On Self Test) is being performed.

  (2) If it is found that there is a pressed key, a scan code is acquired.

  (3) The acquired scan code is determined, and the status is reflected in the internal flag.

  (4) When determining the execution request of the BIOS function, the internal flag is referred to and it is checked whether the pressed key is a key requesting the execution of the BIOS function.

  In addition, the method of checking for the presence of a pressed key and the method of acquiring a scan code are slightly different before and after the KBC initialization process performed by the BIOS. In other words, until the KBC initialization process, the status register (corresponding to I / O 64H) is checked for presence of a pressed key, and the data register (corresponding to I / O 60H) is referred to. Get a scan code. On the other hand, after the KBC initialization process, a scan code is acquired using a keyboard interrupt program (corresponding to INT 09H).

Although not directly related to the above-described BIOS technology, Patent Document 1 discloses that the key operation of the pressed key on the keyboard is stored in the storage unit (RAM) so that past key operations can be viewed. A keyboard device is disclosed.
JP-A-6-102981

  However, the above-described prior art has the following disadvantages regarding access from the BIOS to the KBC, and there is a problem that the startup time of the system is increased and the capacity of the BIOS is exceeded.

(A) The pressed key may not be recognized. I / O (64H / 60H) is used for the BIOS-BKC interface. The BIOS performs command transmission to the KBC, command response reception from the KBC, scan code reception from the KBC, and the like via this I / O. The KBC gives priority to the command response over the scan code. Therefore, the BIOS cannot recognize the pressed key when the following series of processing is performed when transmitting a command to the KBC in the KBC initialization processing.

    1) The BIOS confirms that there is no pressed key.

    2) The KBC recognizes the pressed key and writes the scan code to the data register.

    3) The BIOS sends a command to the KBC.

    4) The KBC writes a command response to the command to the data register.

    5) The BIOS acquires a command response.

  In this case, the scan code is overwritten on the command response. This is because the KBC writes the scan code to the data register at the timing of the process 2).

(B) Key input may malfunction. After the KBC initialization process, the following sequence of processes is performed when switching the scan code acquisition method from the KBC to the method using the keyboard interrupt program. In such a case, a malfunction occurs with respect to key input.

    1) Change the scan code acquisition method before acquiring all the scan codes of the pressed key.

    2) Since the keyboard interrupt program is executed in the middle of acquiring the scan code, the program performs wrong recognition, and malfunctions occur due to the recognition.

(C) System startup may be delayed In order to prevent the key being pressed from being lost, generally, the presence or absence of the pressed key is checked at regular intervals. If the key is kept pressed, the scan code is transmitted from the KBC at regular intervals, and the BIOS cannot execute the next process until it is confirmed that there is no pressed key. As a result, system activation is delayed.

  Further, as in Patent Document 1, the above problem cannot be solved simply by providing a storage unit for storing the code of the pressed key on the keyboard.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an electronic device and a code acquisition method that can reliably acquire a code of a key pressed during a predetermined processing period without making a mistake. To do.

  An electronic device according to the present invention is an electronic device including a memory for storing a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) and a keyboard controller, wherein the keyboard controller temporarily stores a code of a pressed key, and A first buffer used for transferring to a register used by the BIOS, and a second buffer for storing a code of a pressed key and outputting the code when a predetermined command is issued from the BIOS And the BIOS includes means for acquiring the code stored in the second buffer by issuing the predetermined command after the initialization process of the keyboard controller. To do.

  A code acquisition method according to the present invention is a code acquisition method applied to an electronic device including a memory for storing a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) and a keyboard controller, and on the keyboard controller side, The code of the pressed key is temporarily stored in the first buffer and transferred to the register used by the BIOS, and the code is stored in the second buffer. On the BIOS side, the code of the keyboard controller is stored. The code stored in the second buffer is obtained by issuing the predetermined command after the initialization process.

  The code of the key pressed during the predetermined processing period can be reliably acquired without making a mistake.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an electronic apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The electronic device shown in the figure is a personal computer, for example, and includes a keyboard 1, a keyboard controller (hereinafter referred to as KBC) 2, a host CPU 3, a memory 4, a BIOS-ROM 5, a register 6, and the like.

  The keyboard 1 includes a plurality of keys, and sends a corresponding signal to the KBC 2 when a certain key is pressed.

  The KBC 2 includes a RAM 20, a bus interface 23, a CPU 24, a ROM 25, and the like. The RAM 20 stores various types of information, and includes a first buffer (recording area) 21 and a second buffer (storage area) 22.

  The first buffer 21 is realized as a FIFO that temporarily stores the scan code of the pressed key, and is used to transfer the temporarily stored scan code to the register 6 used by the BIOS.

  The second buffer 22 stores the scan code of the pressed key, and outputs the code when a predetermined command (hereinafter referred to as a dump list command) is issued from the BIOS.

  The bus interface 23 performs interface processing between the system bus to which the BIOS-ROM 5 or the like is connected and the internal bus of the KBC 2, and uses I / O (64H / 60H) or the like. This I / O is used by the BIOS to transmit a command to the KBC 2, receive a command response from the KBC 2, and receive a scan code from the KBC 2.

  The CPU 24 governs the overall operation of the KBC 2. For example, when a dump list command is issued from the BIOS to the KBC 2, the CPU 24 sends information indicating the size of the scan code stored in the second buffer 22 and the scan code via the bus interface 23. A function of notifying the BIOS. The CPU 24 also has a function of erasing (clearing) the scan code stored in the second buffer 22 when the system is restarted.

  The ROM 25 stores programs used by the CPU 24.

The host CPU 3 controls the operation of the entire electronic device, and controls the memory 4 and the KBC 2.
The memory 4 is, for example, a RAM, and various programs are resident therein and used as a work area for the host CPU 3.

  The BIOS-ROM 5 stores the BIOS. The BIOS in the present embodiment performs general processing such as diagnosis of various hardware and initialization processing when the power is turned on. In particular, when a key is pressed during the initialization processing of the KBC 2, the first buffer 21. A function that reads and discards the code transferred from the register 21 to the register 6 and issues a dump list command after the initialization of the KBC 2 to collectively acquire the scan codes stored in the second buffer 22 ing.

  In addition, the BIOS in the present embodiment can realize the following functions by determining a key on the keyboard that is pressed when the system is started, as in a normal BIOS.

-BIOS and KBC rewrite function for rewriting BIOS and KBC firmware-Boot select function for selecting boot device-BIOS setup function for BIOS setup process Register 6 is a status register (equivalent to I / O 64H) And the data register (corresponding to I / O 60H), the KBC2 writes various statuses indicating the scan code output from the first buffer, its size information, presence / absence of the pressed key, etc. Used to refer to information.

Next, the operation of the key input process on the KBC 2 side will be described with reference to FIG.
The KBC 2 monitors whether there is an input of a key on the keyboard 1 (step A1). Here, when there is a key input, the scan code of the pressed key is temporarily stored in the first buffer 21 and sent to the register 6 via the bus interface 23 (step A2). However, the scan code sent to the register 6 is not used in the present embodiment, and is discarded later.

  Further, it is determined whether or not the scan code of the pressed key can be stored (saved) in the second buffer 22 (step A3). If the capacity is sufficient and can be saved, the scan code is stored (saved) in the second buffer 22 (step A4).

  Next, the dump list command response operation on the KBC 2 side will be described with reference to FIG.

  The KBC 2 monitors whether a command has been issued from the system bus to the KBC 2 (step B1). When the KBC 2 receives any command through the bus interface 23, the KBC 2 determines whether or not the command is a dump list command issued from the BIOS (step B2). If applicable, the KBC 2 sequentially sends information indicating the size of the scan code stored in the second buffer 22 and the scan code to the register 6 via the bus interface 23 (step B3). As a result, the BIOS acquires the scan code.

Next, a series of operations on the BIOS side will be described with reference to FIG.
When the BIOS is turned on, the BIOS immediately starts to initialize the hardware including the memories (step C1). In this hardware initialization, KBC2 is initialized (step C2). The BIOS checks the presence or absence of the key pressed during the initialization process of the KBC 2 by referring to the register 6 (step C3). If there is a pressed key, the corresponding scan code on the register 6 is read and discarded (step C4).

  When the initialization process of the KBC2 is finished (step C5) and the initialization process of the remaining hardware is finished (step C6), the BIOS then issues a dump list command to the KBC2. The scan code stored in the second buffer 22 is acquired (step C7).

  Here, the BIOS determines whether or not an execution request for any of the three BIOS functions described above is indicated (step C8). If indicated, the corresponding BIOS function is executed (step C9).

Next, with reference to FIG. 5, an operation when there is a restart will be described.
When the system is restarted, the BIOS issues a dump list clear command to the KBC 2. Based on this command, the KBC 2 clears the scan code secured in the second buffer (steps D1 and D2).

  Next, the BIOS immediately starts to initialize the hardware including the memories (Step D3). In this hardware initialization, KBC2 is initialized (step D4). The BIOS checks the presence or absence of a key pressed during the initialization process of the KBC 2 by referring to the register 6 (step D5). If there is a pressed key, the corresponding scan code on the register 6 is read and discarded (step D6).

  When the initialization process of the KBC2 is finished (step D7) and the initialization process of the remaining hardware is finished (step D8), the BIOS then issues a dump list command to the KBC2. The scan code stored in the second buffer 22 is acquired (step D9).

  Here, the BIOS determines whether or not an execution request for any of the three BIOS functions described above is indicated (step D10). If indicated, the corresponding BIOS function is executed (step D11).

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, there is no need to be aware of the scan code transmitted from the KBC when performing various hardware diagnosis and initialization processing on the BIOS side, and the scan code is discarded. By issuing a dump list command after the initialization process, a desired scan code can be definitely acquired and determined correctly. In addition, various drawbacks in the prior art can be overcome.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of components disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, constituent elements over different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement of the key input process by the KBC side. The flowchart which shows the operation | movement of the dump list command response by the KBC side. The flowchart which shows a series of operation | movement by the BIOS side. The flowchart which shows operation | movement when there exists restart.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Keyboard, 2 ... Keyboard controller (KBC), 3 ... Host CPU, 4 ... Memory, 5 ... BIOS-ROM, 6 ... Register, 20 ... RAM, 21 ... 1st buffer (recording area), 22 ... 2nd Buffer (storage area), 23 ... bus interface, 24 ... CPU, 25 ... ROM.

Claims (8)

An electronic device including a memory for storing a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) and a keyboard controller,
The keyboard controller is
A first buffer used to temporarily store the code of the pressed key and transfer it to a register used by the BIOS;
A second buffer for storing a code of a pressed key and outputting the code when a predetermined command is issued from the BIOS;
The BIOS is
An electronic apparatus comprising: means for acquiring a code stored in the second buffer by issuing the predetermined command after initialization processing of the keyboard controller.   2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the BIOS reads and discards the code transferred from the first buffer to the register when a key is pressed during the initialization process of the keyboard controller.   The keyboard controller has means for notifying the BIOS of information indicating the size of a code stored in the second buffer and the code when the predetermined command is issued from the BIOS. The electronic device according to claim 1, characterized in that:   2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the keyboard controller has means for erasing a code stored in the second buffer when the system is restarted. A code acquisition method applied to an electronic device having a memory for storing a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System) and a keyboard controller,
On the keyboard controller side, the code of the pressed key is temporarily stored in the first buffer and transferred to the register used by the BIOS, and the code is stored in the second buffer,
On the BIOS side, after the initialization process of the keyboard controller, the code stored in the second buffer is acquired by issuing the predetermined command.   6. The code acquisition method according to claim 5, wherein when a key is pressed during the initialization process of the keyboard controller, the code transferred from the first buffer to the register is discarded.   6. The code according to claim 5, wherein when the predetermined command is issued from the BIOS, the BIOS is notified of information indicating a size of the code stored in the second buffer and the code. Acquisition method.   6. The code acquisition method according to claim 5, wherein the code stored in the second buffer is erased when the system is restarted.

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