JP2603967Y2 - External interface device - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an external interface device that uses a display signal sent to a display for controlling a peripheral interface or a signal of an external device to a personal computer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a computer system, for example, an external device other than a display and a personal computer are connected via a peripheral interface to exchange signals with each other.
Then, the processing result of the signal is used such that a person monitors the processing result through a display. Therefore, the display is mainly used only for the purpose of viewing the processing result.

On the other hand, the matching of the peripheral interface is determined by a certain rule, and when it is difficult to add a function or when the addition is required, it is necessary to add a multi-interface unit or a dedicated board and to control these. Complicated software needs to be added or modified.

[0004]

However, when it is intended to increase the number of devices such as signal control of external devices to the personal computer as described above, the equipment such as a multi-interface unit is used. Necessary dedicated software is required, so that the whole system becomes large-scale, and there is a problem that a significant increase in cost cannot be avoided.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and displays a processing result of a personal computer on a display, and partially displays the message data from the personal computer to an external interface. An object of the present invention is to realize such a control function simply and at low cost by using the control function for controlling peripheral interfaces and external devices.

[0006]

An external interface device according to the present invention includes a display signal input section for a video signal or R, G, B signals sent from a personal computer to a display;
A synchronizing signal input section for a horizontal synchronizing signal and a vertical synchronizing signal obtained from the video signal; and a set switch for designating a specific position on the screen of the display as a message display location, and a screen position set by the set switch. Is used as a gate signal to output the video signal or the R, G, B signals corresponding to the screen position data from the gate circuit, and the output signal is used as the message to control an external device or a peripheral interface. It was done.

[0007]

[Action] The external interface device in this invention is:
From the horizontal synchronization signal and the vertical synchronization signal in the video signal sent from the personal computer to the display, a position on the screen of the display is designated, and the video signal or the R, G, B signals displayed at the designated position are controlled by the control signal. To control a control operation of an external device or the like for the personal computer.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an external interface device 1 according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 2 denotes a display signal input portion for a video signal or R, G, B signals sent from a personal computer to a display; Synchronization signal input units 5 and 5 for the horizontal synchronization signal and the vertical synchronization signal obtained from the signals are set switches for designating a specific position on the screen of the display as a message display location.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a screen position selecting device for outputting the data of the screen position set by the set switch 5 as a gate signal based on the horizontal synchronizing signal and the vertical synchronizing signal, and 7 corresponds to the screen position data. A gate circuit that outputs the video signal or the R, G, and B signals, and controls the external device or the peripheral interface using the output signal as the message.

FIG. 2 shows the above for a PC display signal.
1 shows a computer system having an external interface device 1. In FIG. 1 , reference numeral 11 denotes a personal computer to which a printer 12, an external disk 13 and an RS-232C interface installed inside the personal computer 11 are connected. Is used to transmit and receive signals.

A keyboard 14 is provided between the keyboard 14 and the personal computer 11, for example, a bar code reader or a handy terminal from an external signal input line 15.
A keyboard in-line interface 16 is connected as a peripheral interface for converting a data signal such as a data signal into a signal similar to that when the keyboard 14 is operated and inputting the signal to the personal computer 11.

Further, reference numeral 17 denotes a display, and the external interface device 1 is connected as a personal computer display interface between the display 17 and the personal computer 11. The external interface device 1 and the keyboard line interface 16 are connected to the gate circuit. 7 is connected by a connection line 18 that supplies a display on a partial screen of a display 17 based on the output of the display 7 as a message signal to a keyboard in-line interface 16. 19 is an RS connected to the personal computer 11.
-232C line.

In such a computer system, the data signal from the external signal input line 15 is
Is converted to a signal similar to the signal output by operating
The data input is sequentially taken in, and predetermined data is displayed on the screen of the display 17.

In this case, the external signal line 1
When there is no way to instruct the keyboard 14 from the personal computer 11 to perform the data processing in the procedure of temporarily stopping the input of the data signal from the PC 5, the external processing shown in FIG. Since the interface device 1 is provided as a personal computer display interface, a display 20 such as a small square character is output as a message at a lower right corner of the screen of the display 17 so as not to interfere with other displays. .

That is, the external interface device 1
With the circuit configuration shown in FIG. 1, a signal corresponding to the display portion is extracted. A video signal or R, G, B signals, a horizontal synchronizing signal and a vertical synchronizing signal sent from the personal computer 11 to the display 17 are taken out to the display signal input section 2 and the respective synchronizing signal input sections 3 and 4, and the horizontal synchronizing signal is obtained. The target position of the display 20 synchronized with the signal and the vertical synchronizing signal is set by the image position selecting device 6.

The setting of the display 20 is performed by the set switch.
This is performed by the designation operation by the user 5 . Then, a gate signal is generated based on the position designation signal, sent to the gate circuit 7, gates the video signal or the R, G, B signals, determines whether or not there is a display, and outputs a signal to the output terminal 21. I do.

Here, when the signal of the output terminal 21 is ON, that is, when the display 20 is lit, the ON signal is output as a message output to the external signal input line 15 on the keyboard in-line interface 16.
Stop the signal from. When the processing is completed, the display 20 is turned off by the personal computer 11, and
The operation of inputting again is performed.

That is, in the present invention, control of peripheral interfaces and external devices can be performed without using a large-scale and expensive multi-interface by using display data corresponding to the output of the gate circuit.

The screen position selection circuit 6 in FIG.
By configuring the gate circuit 7 and the set switch 5 as circuits for selectively gating each of the R, G, and B signals, it is possible to realize three-system control.

For example, by associating the external interface device 1 with eight positions, eight rectangular displays 20-1 to 20-8 are turned on, as shown in FIG.
Only by turning off, it is possible to output the one-byte control signal. It is also possible to output not only such ON / OFF control signals but also 256 types of message signals.

[0021]

As described above, according to the present invention, the video signal or R, R,
A display signal input section for G and B signals, a synchronization signal input section for a horizontal synchronization signal and a vertical synchronization signal obtained from the video signal, and a set switch for specifying a specific position on the screen of the display as a message display location. And using the data of the screen position set by the set switch as a gate signal to output the video signal or the R, G, B signals corresponding to the screen position data from the gate circuit, and transmitting the output signal to the message As it is configured to control external devices or peripheral interfaces, the processing result of the personal computer is displayed on the display,
A part of the display can be extracted from the personal computer as message data for the external interface, and this can be used for controlling peripheral interfaces and external devices.
Therefore, an expensive and large-scale multi-interface unit or the like as in the related art is not used, and only a small amount of software is required.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an external interface device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external view showing a computer system using the external interface device of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a display example of a message output on a screen of a display according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Display signal input section 3, 4 Synchronous signal input section 5 Set switch 7 Gate circuit 11 Personal computer 16 Peripheral interface

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] A display signal input section for a video signal or R, G, B signals sent from a personal computer to a display; a synchronization signal input section for a horizontal synchronization signal and a vertical synchronization signal obtained from the video signal; A set switch for designating a specific position on the screen as a message display location; and using the data of the screen position set by the set switch as a gate signal, the video signal or the R, G, B signals corresponding to the screen position data are transmitted. A gate circuit for outputting the output signal as the message and controlling an external device or a peripheral interface.