JP2011065431A - Information processing apparatus, cursor display method of the same, and computer-executable program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information processing apparatus capable of improving visibility of a cursor even in an environment deteriorating visibility of the cursor on a screen, along with a cursor display method for the information processing apparatus and a computer-executable program. <P>SOLUTION: A cursor display aspect alteration program 32 changes a cursor display aspect of a mouse 19 based on at least one of luminance data L<SB>LCD</SB>of the screen of an LCD 5 and luminance data L<SB>ALS</SB>around a notebook PC 1 detected by an ALS 6. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing device, a cursor display method thereof, and a computer-executable program, and more specifically, an information processing device with improved cursor visibility, a cursor display method thereof, and a computer-executable program About.

  Conventionally, an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer displays a mouse cursor on the screen, selects a predetermined part of a sentence by operating the mouse, performs an editing operation, or positions the mouse cursor on a button and clicks to perform processing. And so on.

  At this time, if the screen of the information processing device is dark or the outside light is shining, such as outdoors, the mouse cursor is not located and the mouse cursor is moved to the left and right to follow it. The mouse cursor was found and moved to a predetermined position. For example, Patent Document 1 is known as a technique for displaying a mouse cursor in an easy-to-view manner.

  In Patent Document 1, in order to easily find the position of the mouse cursor and the position of the character cursor when the screen saver returns from the standby state, the mouse cursor or the character cursor on the display screen is set to a predetermined position when returning from the screen saver or the standby state. The display mode is changed.

JP 2002-41207 A

  However, in the above Patent Document 1, no consideration is given to the technology for improving the visibility of the mouse cursor in an environment where the screen of the information processing apparatus is dark or in an environment where the cursor on the screen is difficult to see, such as outdoors. It has not been.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an information processing apparatus capable of improving the visibility of a cursor even in an environment where the cursor on the screen is difficult to see, a cursor display method thereof, and a computer can be executed Aims to provide a simple program.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the present invention provides an input means for indicating a position of a cursor to be displayed on a monitor screen, and a cursor at a position on the monitor screen indicated by the instruction means. Cursor display control means for displaying, and display mode changing means for changing the display mode of the cursor based on at least one of the luminance of the monitor screen and the luminance around the device itself.

  Further, according to a preferred aspect of the present invention, it is desirable that the display mode changing means changes the display mode of the cursor when the brightness around the device becomes a first threshold value or more.

  Moreover, according to a preferable aspect of the present invention, it is desirable that the display mode changing means changes the display mode of the cursor when the brightness of the monitor screen becomes equal to or lower than a second threshold value.

  Further, according to a preferred aspect of the present invention, the display mode changing means includes a table for storing at least one of the brightness of the monitor screen and the brightness of the surroundings of the own device and the display mode of the cursor in association with each other. It is preferable to refer to the table and determine and change the display mode of the cursor corresponding to at least one of the detected luminance of the monitor screen and the luminance around the device itself.

  Further, according to a preferred aspect of the present invention, it is desirable that the change in the cursor display mode is at least one of a cursor size, a cursor color change, and a decorative display.

  Moreover, according to a preferable aspect of the present invention, it is desirable that the monitor is a self-luminous display device, and the change in the cursor display mode is a change in the brightness of the cursor.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the present invention includes a step of indicating a position of a cursor to be displayed on a monitor screen by an input means, and a position on the monitor screen indicated by the instruction means. It is desirable to include a step of displaying a cursor and a step of changing the display mode of the cursor based on at least one of the luminance of the monitor screen and the luminance around the device itself.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the present invention includes a step of indicating the position of the cursor to be displayed on the monitor screen by the input means, and the monitor screen instructed by the instruction means. The step of displaying a cursor at a position and the step of changing the display mode of the cursor based on at least one of the luminance of the monitor screen and the luminance around the device itself are characterized in that the computer executes.

  According to the information processing apparatus of the present invention, the input means for instructing the position of the cursor to be displayed on the monitor screen, and the cursor display control means for displaying the cursor at the position on the monitor screen instructed by the instruction means And a display mode changing means for changing the display mode of the cursor based on at least one of the brightness of the monitor screen and the brightness of the surroundings of the device. There is an effect that it is possible to provide an information processing apparatus capable of improving the visibility of the cursor.

FIG. 1 is a schematic external view of a notebook PC to which an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a schematic hardware configuration example of the notebook PC of FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a functional configuration related to the change of the cursor display mode. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of the cursor display mode determination table. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining cursor display mode change processing. FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically illustrating a functional configuration related to the change of the cursor display mode according to the second embodiment.

  Embodiments of an information processing apparatus, a cursor display method thereof, and a computer-executable program according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments. In addition, constituent elements in the following embodiments include those that can be easily assumed by those skilled in the art or that are substantially the same.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a schematic external view of a notebook PC to which an information processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. As shown in FIG. 1, the notebook PC 1 includes a main body side housing 2 and a display side housing 3 that are both substantially rectangular parallelepipeds. The main body side housing 2 includes an input unit 4 having a keyboard and track points (pointing devices). The display-side housing 3 includes a liquid crystal display device (hereinafter referred to as “LCD”) 5 and an ALS (Ambient Light Sensor) 6 that is disposed at a substantial center above the LCD 5 and measures ambient luminance. . Note that the arrangement location of the ALS 6 is not limited to this. For example, the ALS 6 may be arranged on the surface opposite to the LCD 5 arrangement surface of the display-side housing 3.

  Further, the main body side housing 2 and the display side housing 3 are connected to each other by a pair of left and right connecting portions (hinge portions) 7a and 7b at the respective end portions, and the connecting portions 7a and 7b are connected to these housings. Is supported to be openable and closable.

  In the present embodiment, the brightness of the screen of the LCD 5 is low and it is difficult to see the mouse cursor (hereinafter referred to as “cursor”), or even in an environment where the cursor is difficult to see, such as outdoors, where the cursor is difficult to see. The display mode of the cursor is changed based on the brightness of the screen of the LCD 5 and the brightness of the periphery of the notebook PC 1 detected by the ALS 6 so as to be found.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a schematic hardware configuration example of the notebook PC of FIG. As shown in the figure, the notebook PC 1 includes a CPU 11, a ROM 12, a memory 13, an HDD (hard disk) 14, an LCD video controller 15, an LCD 5, an embedded controller 17, a keyboard 18, a mouse 19, and a USB port. 20, a battery 21, a DC-DC converter 22, an AC adapter 23, and the like, and each unit is connected via a bus.

  The CPU 11 controls the notebook PC 1 as a whole by the OS 30 stored in the HDD 14 connected via the bus, and controls functions based on various programs stored in the HDD 14. The ROM 12 stores a BIOS (Basic Input / Output System: basic input / output system) 12a, data, and the like.

  The memory 13 includes a cache memory and a RAM, and is a writable memory that is used as a read area for an execution program of the CPU 11 and a work area for writing process data of the execution program.

  The HDD (hard disk) 14 is directed to a multi-window OS 30 for controlling the entire notebook PC 1, a cursor display mode change program (utility program) 32 for changing the cursor display mode, and a specific task. It has a function of storing the application program 33 and the like.

  The OS 30 controls basic operations of the notebook PC 1, manages various resources, and transmits, for example, instructions generated by the application program to the driver 31 and the BIOS 12a. Further, the OS 30 has a multitask function and a multiwindow function, and software such as an execution context of the application program 33 (a register set, a main memory image, a file handle, etc. used by a certain application program 33) and a GUI component. It also manages resources. As the OS 30, for example, Windows (registered trademark) XP, Windows (registered trademark) Vista, Windows (registered trademark) 7, or the like can be used.

  The OS 30 includes various drivers 31 for operating peripheral devices in hardware. For example, the OS 30 includes a display driver 31a for displaying an image on the LCD 5, a mouse driver 31b for operating the mouse 19, and the like. . Here, the OS 30 is described as including the driver 31, but the OS and the driver may be handled as independent ones.

  The LCD video controller 15 converts drawing information into a video signal under the control of the CPU 11 and outputs the converted video signal to the LCD 5. The drawing information written in the VRAM 15a and VRAM 15a in which the drawing information is written. Is converted into a video signal and output to the LCD 5. The ALS 6 measures the luminance around the notebook PC 1 and outputs it to the CPU 11 via the BIOS 12a.

  The LCD 5 is controlled by the CPU 11 and displays various information according to the video signal input from the LCD video controller 15.

  The embedded controller 17 controls the operation of a keyboard 18 composed of various keys for inputting characters, commands, etc., and a mouse 19 for moving a cursor on the screen and selecting various menus. The embedded controller 18 controls the power supply circuit to perform power supply control according to the system (ACPI state) state. Six states S0 to S5 are defined as system states (ACPI states), S0 is a full operation state, S1 is a low power consumption state (however, both the processor and the chipset are powered on), and S2 is a low power consumption state. (However, the processor and cache are powered off, the chipset is powered on), S3 is in a standby state, S4 is in a dormant state, and S5 is powered off by software.

  The AC adapter 23 is connected to a commercial power supply, converts an AC voltage into a DC voltage, and outputs the DC voltage to the DC-DC converter 22. The DC-DC converter 22 converts the DC voltage supplied from the AC adapter 23 into a predetermined voltage, supplies power to each unit, and charges the battery 20. The battery 20 is charged by the DC-DC converter 22 and supplies the charged voltage to each unit when the AC adapter 23 is not attached.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a functional configuration related to the change of the cursor display mode of the notebook PC 1 of FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an example of the cursor display mode determination table. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the cursor display mode change processing of the cursor display mode change program 32.

  In FIG. 3, the cursor display mode change program 32 is for changing the display mode of the mouse cursor displayed on the LCD 5 based on the brightness of the monitor screen of the LCD 5 and the surrounding brightness detected by the ALS 6. A cursor display mode determination table 32a is provided. The cursor display mode determination table 32a is referred to when the cursor display mode change program 32a executes a cursor display mode change process.

As shown in FIG. 4, the cursor display mode determination table 32a includes (1) the display mode of the cursor when only the luminance data L _{ALS of the ALS 6} changes, and (2) the case where only the luminance data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} changes. The display mode of the cursor and (3) the data of the display mode of the cursor when the brightness data L _{ALS of the ALS 6} and the brightness data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} change are registered respectively.

(1) When only the ALS6 luminance data L _ALS changes, if the changed ALS6 luminance data L _ALS ≧ first threshold value N1, the cursor is highlighted, and the changed ALS6 luminance data L _ALS <In the case of the first threshold value N1, the normal display of the cursor is performed. (2) Luminance data L _{LCD of LCD 5 If} only _LCD changes, if luminance data L _LCD after change ≦ second threshold value N 2, cursor highlighting display, luminance data L _{LCD of LCD 5} after change> In the case of the second threshold N2, normal display of the cursor is performed. (3) When the luminance data L _{ALS of the ALS 6} and the luminance data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} change, (1) only the luminance data L _{ALS of the ALS 6} changes, and (2) only the luminance data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} changes. Result of OR operation (when highlighting is “1” and normal display is “0”), luminance data L _ALS after change L _ALS ≧ first threshold value N1 and luminance of LCD 5 after change Highlighting is performed when at least one condition of data L _LCD ≦ second threshold value N2 is satisfied. Here, the highlighting is at least one of a cursor size, a cursor color change, and a decoration display (including a cursor shape change, animation, background display, and the like). The highlighting mode may be configured to be settable by the user in a dialog box or the like.

The cursor display mode change program 32 acquires the brightness data L _ALS detected by the _{ALS 6} and the brightness data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} (for example, the brightness of the backlight of the _{LCD 5} ) from the display driver 31a. The cursor display mode change program 32 determines the cursor display mode based on the luminance data L _ALS detected by the _{ALS 6} and the luminance data L _LCD of the _{LCD 5} with reference to the cursor display mode determination table 32a, and the mouse driver 31b. To change the display mode of the determined cursor.

The display driver 31 a is a driver for performing display control of the LCD 5, and writes drawing information into the VRAM 15 a of the LCD video controller 15 in accordance with an instruction from the OS 30. The display driver 31a manages and sets the luminance of the LCD 5 via the BIOS 12a, and sets the luminance (luminance data L _LCD ) of the _{LCD 5} via the BIOS 12a and the LCD video controller 15. The display driver 31a periodically acquires the luminance data L _ALS detected by ALS6. The display driver 31a, based on the detected luminance data L _ALS in ALS6, has an automatic light control function for adjusting the brightness of the LCD5 screen. The display driver 31 a outputs the luminance data L _{ALS of ALS 6} and the luminance data L _LCD of _{LCD 5} to the cursor display mode change program 32 in response to a request from the cursor display mode change program 32.

  The mouse 19 instructs the position of the cursor to be displayed on the monitor screen via the embedded controller 17. The mouse driver 31b is a driver for controlling the mouse 19 and controlling the display of the cursor in order to display the cursor at a position on the screen instructed by the mouse 19, and an instruction to insert the cursor and an instruction to change the display mode Is output to the LCD video controller 15.

  The LCD video controller 15 converts the drawing information in the VRAM 15a into a video signal, and outputs the video signal to the LCD 5 to display the drawing information on the VRAM 15a. Also, the LCD video controller 15 inserts a cursor display signal into the video signal when there is an instruction to insert a cursor from the mouse driver 31b when converting the drawing information in the VRAM 15a into a video signal. In this case, when there is an instruction to change the display mode of the cursor from the mouse driver 31b, a cursor display signal in which the display mode of the cursor is changed is inserted into the video signal. Since the cursor is not drawn on the VRAM 15a, the display mode can be changed independently of the drawing information.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the cursor display mode changing process of the notebook PC 1 of FIG. The cursor display mode change program 32 repeatedly executes the processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 5 at a predetermined cycle. In the figure, first, the cursor display mode changing program 32 acquires the luminance data L _ALS detected by the _{ALS 6} from the display driver 31a (step S1). In addition, the cursor display mode changing program 32 acquires the luminance data L _LCD of the _{LCD 5} from the display driver 31a (step S2). The cursor display mode change program 32 determines whether or not there is a change in the luminance value data L _ALS detected by the _{ALS 6} and the luminance data L _LCD of the _{LCD 5} (whether the change is more than a predetermined value from the previous detection value) (step). S3).

Cursor display mode changing program 32, when only LCD5 luminance data L _LCD is changed, the cursor display mode determination table 32a (2) with reference to the case where only the luminance data L _LCD is changed, the display change of the cursor After performing (step S4), the process proceeds to step S7. More specifically, if the brightness data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} after the change is equal to or less than the second threshold value N2, the cursor is highlighted. If the brightness data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} after the change is greater than the second threshold value N2, the cursor Normal display.

Further, in step S3, the cursor display mode change program 32, when only the luminance data L _ALS of ALS6 is changed, with reference to the case where only the luminance data LALS of (1) ALS6 cursor display mode determination table 32a is changed After changing the cursor display (step S5), the process proceeds to step S7. Specifically, when the luminance data L _ALS after the change A LLS ≧ the first threshold value N1, the cursor is highlighted, and when the luminance data L _ALS after the change L _ALS <the first threshold value N1, the cursor Normal display.

In step S3, the cursor display mode change program 32 (3) when the brightness data L _{ALS of the ALS 6} and the brightness data L _{LCD of the LCD 5} change, (3) the brightness data of the _{ALS 6} in the cursor display mode determination table 32a. With reference to the case where the luminance data L _LCD of L _ALS and _{LCD 5} changes, the cursor display is changed (step S6), and then the process proceeds to step S7. Specifically, highlighting is performed when the luminance data L _ALS of the changed _{ALS 6} ≧ first threshold value N1 and when the luminance data L _LCD of the changed _{LCD 5} satisfies the condition of at least one of the second threshold value N2. Otherwise, normal display. In step S3, the cursor display mode changing program 32 proceeds to step S7 when neither the luminance data L _{ALS of} ALS6 nor the luminance data LLCD of _{LCD 5} has changed.

  In step S7, the cursor display mode changing program 32 determines whether the system state is S3, S4, or S5, and if it is any of S3, S4, or S5 (“Yes” in step S7). On the other hand, if the flow is terminated, but is not any of S3, S4, and S5 (“No” in step S7), the process returns to step S1.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the cursor display mode change program 32 is applied to at least one of the luminance data L _LCD of the screen of the _{LCD 5} and the luminance data L _ALS around the notebook PC 1 detected by the _{ALS 6.} Since the display mode of the cursor of the mouse 19 is changed based on this, the cursor can be easily found even in an environment where the cursor on the screen is difficult to see, and the visibility of the cursor can be improved. .

Further, according to the present embodiment, the cursor display mode change program 32 changes the cursor display mode when the brightness data L _LCD of the screen of the _{LCD 5} becomes equal to or less than the second threshold value N2. The cursor can be easily found even in an environment where the brightness of the LCD 5 screen is low and the cursor is difficult to see.

Since the cursor display mode change program 32 changes the cursor display mode when the luminance data L _ALS around the notebook PC 1 detected by the _{ALS 6} is equal to or higher than the first threshold value N1, It is possible to easily find a cursor even in an environment where the surroundings are bright and the cursor on the screen of the LCD 5 is difficult to see.

  In addition, since the change of the cursor display mode is at least one of the cursor size, the cursor color change, and the decoration display, the cursor can be easily viewed by a simple method.

(Embodiment 2)
In the second embodiment, a case where an organic EL display device (hereinafter referred to as “OLED”) 30 is used as a display device instead of an LCD will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically illustrating a functional configuration related to the change of the cursor display mode according to the second embodiment. Parts having the same functions as those in FIG. 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, description of common parts is omitted, and only different points will be described.

  In FIG. 6, when the OLED 50 is used as the display device, only the brightness of the cursor on the screen can be changed when the display mode of the cursor is changed. Specifically, the brightness of the cursor can be increased in the highlighted display compared to the normal display.

The cursor display mode change program 33 acquires the brightness data L _ALS detected by the _{ALS 6} and the brightness data L _{LCD of the} OLED 50 (for example, the average brightness of the screen of the OLED 50) from the display driver 31a. Further, the cursor display mode change program 32 determines the cursor display mode based on the luminance data L _ALS detected by the _{ALS 6} and the luminance data L _OLED of the _OLED 50 with reference to the cursor display mode determination table 32a. The driver 31a is instructed to change to the determined cursor display mode.

The display driver 31a manages and sets drawing information (including color data and luminance data) displayed on the OLED 50. That is, the display driver 31a controls the luminance of the drawing information with the dot gradation of each image. The display driver 31 a outputs the luminance data L _ALS detected by the _{ALS 3} and the luminance data L _{LCD of the} OLED 50 to the cursor display mode changing program 33 in response to a request from the cursor display mode changing program 33. The display driver 31a writes drawing information (including luminance) in the VRAM 40a in accordance with an instruction from the OS 30. Further, the display driver 31a acquires the position of the cursor pointed by the mouse 19 from the mouse driver 31b, and writes the drawing information (including luminance) of the cursor to the VRAM 40a of the OLED video controller 40 via the BIOS 12a. When changing the cursor display mode, the cursor display mode change program 32 instructs the display driver 31a to change to the cursor display mode. When there is an instruction to change the display mode of the cursor from the cursor display mode change program 32, the display driver 31a writes the cursor drawing information whose cursor brightness has been changed to the VRAM 40a of the OLED video controller 40 via the BIOS 12a. The OLED video controller 40 converts drawing information drawn in the VRAM 40 a into a video signal and outputs the video signal to the OLED 50. In the OLED 50, since the brightness can be changed for each dot, only the brightness of the cursor can be changed and displayed. In the example shown in the figure, the case where the cursor brightness of the screen of the OLED 50 is increased is shown.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, when the OLED 50 is used as the display device and the display mode of the cursor is changed, the brightness of the cursor on the screen is changed. When the display device is used, the display mode of the cursor can be easily changed.

  In the above embodiment, a notebook PC has been described as an information processing apparatus. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to an information processing apparatus such as a desktop PC, a PDA, or a mobile phone. Can do.

  In the above embodiment, the mouse cursor has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this and can be applied to other cursors such as a keyboard cursor.

  The information processing apparatus, the cursor display method thereof, and the computer-executable program according to the present invention can be widely applied when improving the visibility of the cursor.

1 Notebook PC
2 Body side housing 3 Display side housing 4 Input unit 5 LCD (Liquid Crystal Display Device)
6 ALS (Ambient Light Sensor: Illuminance Sensor)
7a, 7b Connecting part 11 CPU
12 ROM
12a BIOS
13 Memory 14 HDD (Hard Disk)
15 LCD video controller 15a VRAM
17 Embedded Controller 18 Keyboard 19 Mouse 20 USB Port 21 Battery 22 DC-DC Converter 23 AC Adapter 30 OS
31 driver 31a display driver 31b mouse driver 33 application program 40 video controller for OLED 40a VRAM
50 OLED (organic EL display device)

Claims (8)

Input means for indicating the position of the cursor to be displayed on the monitor screen;
Cursor display control means for displaying a cursor at a position on the monitor screen instructed by the instruction means;
Display mode changing means for changing the display mode of the cursor based on at least one of the luminance of the monitor screen and the luminance around the device itself;
An information processing apparatus comprising:   2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display mode changing unit changes the display mode of the cursor when the luminance around the device becomes a first threshold value or more.   3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display mode changing unit changes the display mode of the cursor when the luminance of the monitor screen is equal to or lower than a second threshold value. 4. . A table for storing at least one of the brightness of the monitor screen and the brightness of the surroundings of the device and the type of display mode of the cursor in association with each other;
The display mode changing means refers to the table and determines and changes the detected display mode of the cursor corresponding to at least one of the brightness of the monitor screen and the brightness around the device itself. The information processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the change of the cursor display mode is at least one of a cursor size, a cursor color change, and a decoration display. .   The information according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the monitor is a self-luminous display device, and the change in display mode of the cursor is a change in luminance of the cursor. Processing equipment. Instructing the position of the cursor to be displayed on the monitor screen by input means;
Displaying a cursor at a position on the monitor screen instructed by the instruction means;
Changing the display mode of the cursor based on at least one of the brightness of the monitor screen and the brightness around the device;
A cursor display method for an information processing apparatus. Instructing the position of the cursor to be displayed on the monitor screen by input means;
Displaying a cursor at a position on the monitor screen instructed by the instruction means;
Changing the display mode of the cursor based on at least one of the brightness of the monitor screen and the brightness around the device;
A computer-executable program characterized by causing a computer to execute.

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