JP4556106B2 - Information processing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to the technical field of information processing apparatuses . More specifically, the present invention relates to a technical field that enables the setting of the object size for each resolution of the display screen and improves the usability of the information processing apparatus by improving the functionality.

  An information processing apparatus typified by a personal computer generally has a display, and a display screen having various information is displayed on the display. The display includes objects to be operated by the user, such as icons representing files, software, executable functions, etc., a scroll bar serving as an operation area for scrolling the window, and running applications. And a title bar indicating the title of the opened file, a menu bar for displaying various menus, and the like.

  On the other hand, some information processing apparatuses can change the resolution of a display screen displayed on a display and change the size of the display screen from the viewpoint of improving usability for a user (for example, Patent Document 1). reference).

JP 2003-256186 A

  By the way, when the resolution of the display screen is changed, if the object displayed on the display is not changed to a size that matches the display screen, a visually uncomfortable feeling may occur and it may be difficult to operate the object.

  However, in the conventional information processing apparatus that can change the resolution of the display screen, when the user changes the resolution of the display screen, the size of the object such as the icon is not changed. In order to make a change, the user himself has to change the size of the object by performing an operation different from the resolution changing operation.

  Therefore, if the user wants to change the object to a size that matches the display screen whose resolution has been changed in consideration of ease of viewing, the user must perform the operation separately from the operation for changing the resolution of the display screen. The operation of changing the size of the object has to be performed, which is troublesome and inconvenient.

Accordingly, an object of the information processing apparatus of the present invention is to overcome the above-described problems and to improve the usability of the information processing apparatus by improving the functionality with respect to the change of the size of the object.

The present invention an information processing apparatus, in order to solve the problems described above, possible to set the size of the object for each resolution changes and the display screen size of the object on the display as the operation target, the display screen If the size of the object for each resolution is not set, the default value of the object size stored in the registry is read and the read object is displayed. is there.

Therefore, in the information processing apparatus of the present invention, an object having a size set for each resolution of the display screen is displayed on the display when the resolution of the display screen is changed.

An information processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a registry in which default values of object sizes for each resolution of a display screen having various information are stored, and a display on which the display screen is displayed, and changes in the resolution of the display screen An information processing apparatus that can change the size of an object that is displayed on the display and is an operation target, and can set the size of the object for each resolution of the display screen. When the object size for each resolution is not set, a default value of the object size stored in the registry is read and the read object is displayed .

Therefore, each time the display screen resolution is changed, it is not necessary to change the size of the object by performing an operation different from the display screen resolution changing operation. Therefore, it is possible to display on the display without applying the information, and to improve the usability of the information processing apparatus. Also, the object setting operation by the user can be omitted.

The best mode of the information processing apparatus of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  The information processing apparatus of the present invention can be widely applied to various information processing apparatuses such as an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a network terminal, a portable information terminal, a workstation, and a mobile phone. The processing program of the present invention can be widely applied to processing programs in these various information processing apparatuses.

  The information processing apparatus 1 is configured by arranging necessary parts in a housing 2 (see FIG. 1). The housing 2 is formed in, for example, a horizontally long flat rectangular shape, and a display 3 such as a liquid crystal panel is provided on the front surface 2a.

  In the information processing apparatus 1, the display 3 is a touch panel (tablet), and a predetermined position on the display screen displayed on the display 3 is tapped with a finger or a dedicated input pen (stylus) (not shown). Various operations such as a selection operation and an input operation can be performed.

  FIG. 2 shows a hardware configuration example of the information processing apparatus, and shows an apparatus main body 100 and an apparatus (interface apparatus) 200 for connection with an external device.

  First, the configuration in the apparatus main body 100 will be described.

  A CPU 101 that is a control center is connected to a control device 102 via a bus (FSB: Front Side Bus). The control device 102 is in charge of control of the main memory 103 and control related to the graphic function, and mainly has a role of processing a large amount of data at high speed. In an AT compatible machine, it is called “North Bridge”, and a CPU 101, a main memory 103, a control device 104, and a graphic display device 105 such as a liquid crystal display device (same as the above display 3) are connected to the control device 102 shown in this example. Has been.

  The control device 104 mainly controls a control device for a user interface and performs a bus link of the device. It is called “South Bridge” in AT compatible machines, and “PCI to ISA bridge” has a role of bridging a bus (PCI: Peripheral Component Interconnect bus) to a low speed bus (ISA: Industry Standard Architecture bus, etc.). It has functions such as a controller and an IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) controller.

  The bus (PCI bus) is connected to a wireless (wireless) LAN (W-LAN) as the wireless communication device 106 and a device 107 for performing connection and control with an external memory or an external device. Examples of the external memory include a semiconductor memory device that can be attached to and detached from the apparatus main body 100, such as a control device 108 for reading and writing data in a stick-shaped memory medium, and a control device 109 for a card-type storage medium. Is provided. In addition, the device 107 has a function of an interface for connection with an external device (for example, “IEEE 1394” that defines hardware specifications for adding a serial device to a computer).

  The control device 104 is connected to a connection device 110 for a LAN (Local Area Network) and an input device 111 using a touch panel or the like is connected to a USB (Universal Serial Bus) port.

  For example, a drive device using a magnetic disk or an optical disk is used as the auxiliary storage device 112. In this example, a drive device using a large-capacity storage medium such as a hard disk is used. IDE controller).

  Also, an audio signal processing unit (Audio Codec) 113 connected to the control device 104 sends an audio signal that has been subjected to digital-analog conversion to, for example, a speaker 114 or a headphone 115 to output sound. Alternatively, in a device having a microphone, processing for digitizing voice input data is performed.

  The storage device 116 stores a control program for operating the computer, and is connected to the control devices 104 and 117 using an LPC (Low Pin Count: serial bus) or the like.

  The control device 117 is a general-purpose device that controls various signals. For example, an “EC” (Embedded Controller) is used, and functions such as a keyboard controller, system power control, and additional system functions are used. (The microcomputer is mounted on portable devices and the like.) Note that the computer control method can be changed by changing the control program in the storage device 116.

  An operation device 118 (pointing device 4h described later) constituting a stick-type pointing device (track point or the like) is connected to a port (PS / 2 (Personal System / 2) port or the like) of the control device 117. In addition, a signal from an operation unit 119 including a switch, an operation button, and the like provided in the apparatus main body 100 is sent to the control device 117.

  A USB connector is provided as a connection unit 120 for directly connecting an external device to the apparatus main body 100, and the connection unit 120 is connected to the control device 117.

  A power supply unit (not shown) is supplied with a commercial power supply voltage from an AC adapter or a DC power supply from a battery pack using a secondary battery or a fuel cell. For example, the EC (control device 117) detects the connection or mounting state of an AC adapter, a battery pack, etc., and holds various management information including the remaining battery level.

  Next, the configuration of the connection device 200 will be described.

  The apparatus main body 100 is connected to the connection apparatus 200 via a connection means such as a connector, whereby signal transmission is performed with an external device (not shown).

  A connector unit 201 for connecting an external display device with a VGA (Video Grapthics Array) connector or the like is connected to the control device 102 in the device main body unit 100, thereby outputting an image signal or the like to the external display device. The

  A connector unit 202 for connecting an external device or the like conforming to the “IEEE 1394” standard is connected to the device 107 in the apparatus main body unit 100, and a connector unit 203 for connecting a LAN cable or the like is provided in the apparatus main unit. It is connected to the device 110 in the unit 100.

  A USB hub is used as the concentrating device 204 connected to the control device 104 in the apparatus main body 100, and in this example, four USB connectors 205, 205,... Connectors 205, 205,... Are connected to a concentrator device 204 (USB hub).

  A plurality of operation buttons 4, 4,... Are provided at predetermined positions of the housing 2. As the operation buttons 4, 4,..., For example, the center button 4a, left button 4b, right button 4c, zoom button 4d, rotation button 4e, enter button 4f, cursor key 4g, pointing device 4h, function selection button 4i , A start button 4j, a brightness change button 4k, and the like are provided.

  The center button 4a, the left button 4b, and the right button 4c are buttons corresponding to the respective buttons of the mouse, and the zoom button 4d is a button for enlarging / reducing the display screen 5 displayed on the display 3, that is, for changing the resolution. The rotation button 4e is a button for rotating the display screen 5 by 90 °, the enter button 4f is equivalent to the enter key of the keyboard, and is a button for executing and confirming the operation, and the cursor key 4g is displayed on the display 3. The cursor is a button for moving the cursor up, down, left and right, the pointing device 4h is a button for moving a pointer displayed on the display 3, and the function selection button 4i is used to change the output volume or to an external display. The start button 4j is a button for starting specific software, and the brightness change button 4k is a display. A button for changing the brightness of 3.

  The information processing apparatus 1 is provided with a connector 4 l for connecting an external device on the side surface 2 b of the housing 2.

  A desired display screen 5 is displayed on the display 3 by a user's operation (see FIG. 3). The display screen 5 is displayed by executing each software installed in the information processing apparatus 1. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the display screen 5 can input character information, numeric information, symbol information, and the like. Is displayed. Such a display screen 5 is displayed, for example, with each icon for executing software displayed on the initial screen displayed after power-on of the information processing apparatus 1 is continuously performed twice with a finger or a dedicated input pen. And then tap and double click.

  On the display screen 5, objects 6, 6,... To be operated by the user, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, icons 6 a representing files, software, executable functions, and the like with symbols. , 6a,..., Scroll bars 6b and 6b serving as operation areas for scrolling the window, a title bar 6c indicating the title of the active application or an open file, and a menu bar for displaying various menus 6d etc. are displayed.

  In the information processing apparatus 1, as described above, the size of the display screen 5 displayed on the display 3 can be changed by operating the zoom button 4d. The resolution has, for example, five levels, 640 × 480 dots (VGA), 800 × 600 dots (SVGA), 1024 × 768 dots (XGA), 1280 × 1024 dots (SXGA), and 1200 × 1600 dots. (UXGA) exists.

  When the zoom button 4d is operated, the resolution selection frame 7 is displayed on the display 3 as shown in FIG. 4, and the size of the display screen 5 is changed by selecting a desired resolution displayed on the resolution selection frame 7. . If no resolution is selected when the zoom button 4d is operated and the resolution selection frame 7 is displayed on the display 3, for example, the resolution of VGA, SVGA or XGA is automatically selected. Thus, the display screen 5 is changed to a size different from that before the zoom button 4d is operated.

  In the information processing apparatus 1, the size of the objects 6, 6,... Can be set for each resolution of the display screen 5.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the size of the objects 6, 6,... Is displayed by operating a predetermined operation button to display the setting screen 8, and the objects 6, 6,. .. Operation of setting frames 8a, 8a,... For changing the size of each type, that is, setting frames 8a, 8a,... For icons 6a, scroll bar 6b, title bar 6c, menu bar 6d, etc. To do.

  In the information processing apparatus 1, by operating the font change setting frames 8b, 8b,... For each type of the objects 6, 6,. It is also possible to set the font size of the characters displayed on the objects 6, 6,... And on the objects 6, 6,.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of each part related to the size change of the objects 6, 6.

  The display 3 is controlled by the drawing control unit 9, and the drawing control unit 9 is, for example, an OS (operating system). The drawing control unit 9 executes general control relating to the display 3, for example, changing the resolution of the display screen 5, changing the size of the objects 6, 6,.

  Therefore, when the zoom button 4d is operated, the rendering control unit 9 performs a process for changing the resolution of the display screen 5 (resolution changing process).

  The drawing control unit 9 executes various processes based on commands from the input control unit 10. The input control unit 10 corresponds to, for example, a virtual input screen (not shown) displayed on the display 3, operation buttons 4, 4,..., An external hardware keyboard, and the like.

  The sizes of the objects 6, 6,... Are set in the size setting unit 11. The size setting unit 11 is software having a user interface. When the user inputs the size setting of the objects 6, 6,... Using the input control unit 10, the size setting value input from the drawing control unit 9 is output to the size setting unit 11. The size setting unit 11 sets the size of the objects 6, 6,... For each resolution of the display screen 5 (size setting step).

  The size setting value set by the size setting unit 11 is input to the registry 12 and managed centrally.

  The size setting values of the objects 6, 6,... Input into the registry 12 are the values set for the changed resolution when the resolution of the display screen 5 is changed. Is output. The object change processing unit 13 is software that executes a process of changing the size of the objects 6, 6,.

  On the other hand, when the zoom button 4d (input control unit 10) is operated, the drawing control unit 9 notifies the processing unit control unit 14 of an event related to a change in the resolution of the display screen 5. The processing unit control unit 14 is resident application software. When the event is notified to the processing unit control unit 14, the object change processing unit 13 is activated by the processing unit control unit 14, and the objects 6, 6,. A size change message is sent out.

  Based on the change message from the processing unit control unit 14, the object change processing unit 13 acquires the changed resolution value of the display screen 5 and reads the size setting value corresponding to the acquired value from the registry 12. The size of the objects 6, 6,... Is changed based on the set size value.

  A notification regarding the size change processing is sent from the object change processing unit 13 to the drawing control unit 9, and the objects 6, 6,... Are set by the drawing control unit 9 according to the resolution of the display screen 5. Is displayed on the display 3 (object display step).

  In the above description, the size changing process of the objects 6, 6,... Has been described, but the font changing process of the objects 6, 6,.

  As described above, in the information processing apparatus 1, when the resolution of the display screen 5 is changed, the objects 6, 6,... Of the size set by the user for each resolution are displayed. 3 is displayed.

  Therefore, each time the resolution of the display screen 5 is changed, it is not necessary to change the size of the objects 6, 6... By performing an operation different from the operation of changing the resolution of the display screen 5. .. Can be displayed on the display 3 without time and effort, and the usability of the information processing apparatus 1 can be improved.

  As described above, in the information processing apparatus 1, the size of the objects 6, 6,... Set by the user for each resolution of the display screen 5 is changed every time the resolution of the display screen 5 is changed. If the size of the objects 6, 6,... Is not set by the user, the default size values of the objects 6, 6,. Thus, the objects 6, 6,... Are displayed as follows (see FIG. 7).

  In the registry 12, default values of the sizes of the objects 6, 6,... Set for each resolution of the display screen 5 are input.

  When the zoom button 4d (input control unit 10) is operated, the drawing control unit 9 changes the resolution of the display screen 5 (resolution changing step).

  When the zoom button 4d (input control unit 10) is operated, the drawing control unit 9 notifies the processing unit control unit 14 of an event related to a change in the resolution of the display screen 5.

  When the event is notified to the processing unit control unit 14, the object change processing unit 13 is activated by the processing unit control unit 14, and the objects 6, 6,. A size change message is sent out.

  Based on the change message from the processing unit control unit 14, the object change processing unit 13 acquires the changed resolution value of the display screen 5 and reads the default value corresponding to the acquired value from the registry 12. The size of the objects 6, 6,... Is changed based on the default value.

  A notification regarding the size change processing is sent from the object change processing unit 13 to the drawing control unit 9, and the drawing control unit 9 sets the objects 6, 6,... With a default size corresponding to the resolution of the display screen 5. Is displayed on the display 3 (object display step).

  If the size of the objects 6, 6,... For each resolution of the display screen 5 is not set as described above, the objects 6, 6,. .. Is automatically displayed, so that the setting operation of the objects 6, 6,... By the user can be omitted.

  In the information processing apparatus 1, the display screen 5 displayed on the display 3 can be output to an external display device using the connection connector 15.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the connection connector 15 connects the connector portion 15 connected to the information processing device 1, the external connector portion 17 connected to an external display device, and the connector portion 15 and the external connector portion 17. Cable 18 to be used.

  The connector portion 15 of the connection connector 15 is provided with a switching button 16a for switching the output destination of the display screen 5. By operating the switch button 16a, the output destination of the display screen 5 is switched to the display 3 of the information processing device 1 or an external display device.

  Switching control when the switching button 16a is operated is performed as follows.

  The operation state of the switch button 16a is constantly monitored by the control device (EC) 117. When the switch button 16a is operated, a screen output destination change message is transmitted from the control device 117 to the message control driver that controls the message. Is done. The message control driver transmits a change message for changing the output destination to the video driver based on the received message. The video driver switches the output destination of the display screen 5 to the display 3 of the information processing device 1 or an external display device based on the received change message.

  As described above, by providing the connection connector 15 with the switching button 16a for switching the output destination of the display screen 5, the output destination of the display screen 5 is switched, and the output destination switching screen is displayed in the information processing apparatus 1. This eliminates the need for troublesome operations such as performing the operation.

  In addition, by providing the switch button 16 a on the connection connector 15 that is separate from the information processing apparatus 1, the space of the information processing apparatus 1 can be used effectively, which contributes to downsizing of the information processing apparatus 1.

  In addition, although the example which provided the switch button 16a in the connector part 16 of the connection connector 15 was shown above, it may replace with this and you may make it provide the switch button in the connector part 17 for external use.

  Further, a display screen 5 is displayed on an external connection device such as a port replicator or a docking station provided with various ports such as a parallel port, a serial port, and a USB (Universal Serial Bus) port. A switch button for switching the output destination may be provided.

  The specific shapes and structures of the respective parts shown in the above-described best mode are merely examples of the implementation of the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention is limited by these. It should not be interpreted in a general way.

2 to 8 show the best mode of the present invention, and this figure is a perspective view of the information processing apparatus. It is the block diagram which showed the hardware structural example of information processing apparatus. It is an enlarged front view which shows an example of a display screen. It is a front view of an information processor showing the state where a resolution selection frame was displayed. It is an enlarged front view of a display showing a state where a setting screen for changing the size of an object is displayed. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of each part related to the change of the size of an object. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of each part relevant to the change of the size of the object when the setting of the size of the object by the user is not performed. It is an expansion perspective view of a connection connector.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Information processing apparatus, 3 ... Display, 5 ... Display screen, 6 ... Object

Claims (1)

An information processing apparatus comprising: a registry in which default values of object sizes for each resolution of a display screen having various information are stored; and a display on which the display screen is displayed, the resolution of the display screen being changeable In
It is possible to change the size of the object displayed on the display and to be operated and to set the size of the object for each resolution of the display screen,
When the size of the object for each resolution of the display screen is not set, the default value of the object size stored in the registry is read and the read object is displayed. An information processing apparatus characterized by the above.

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