JPH08190367A - Screen controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To display plural screens of work stations, personal computers, etc., as one screen on the screen of a multitype display device and thereby to offer a large amount of information to an operator at the same time. CONSTITUTION: The data of screen signals from each work station 2 is stored in a data memory 105. The data from the mouse 4 makes the processor 100 determine the constitution of display screen and set the read address from the memory device in a memory device timing control circuit 104, 106. The read data is once set in a buffer memory device 109 and transferred in synchronization with plural display data memory devices 107 to simultaneously display on a multi-screen display 5 through a D/A converter.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for displaying screen data such as a workstation and a personal computer, and can be used in various fields handling information processing. Further, it is particularly effective for connecting to a multi-screen display that displays a plurality of video signals as one screen.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a multi-screen display device described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-210371, a plurality of displays are used to display a plurality of screens in one screen. However, the following matters were not considered.

1) There is an operation area (menu bar) on the screen of a personal computer or the like, which is an unnecessary display area when only the display is considered. In the conventional technology, the area could not be deleted, so that an appropriate multi-screen could not be constructed.

2) In the prior art, since the operations such as screen movement (scrolling) and partial enlargement (zoom) of the screen are not taken into consideration when displaying on a plurality of displays, an appropriate screen display is obtained for the operator. I couldn't.

[0005]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention
Display all screens of other workstations, personal computers, etc., and remove the screen operation area from that screen so that it can be displayed. This enables the following items.

1) The operator should be able to display only necessary video information on the screen.

2) When information of other workstations, personal computers, etc. is displayed in a multi-screen, it is possible to perform operations such as screen movement (scrolling) and obtain an appropriate screen display.

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems The following means are added to a display device.

Means 1): A means for receiving and storing screen data from another workstation, a personal computer or the like is provided.

Means 2): A plurality of output devices are provided, and means for enabling a plurality of screens to be synchronously controlled by scanning and controlling all outputs at the same scanning speed.

Means 3): A means for sequentially selecting and displaying the stored screen data from another device and the stored screen data in the own device is provided, and the partial deletion of the display screen, the size of the display screen,
A means for setting the position etc. from the outside is provided.

[0012]

With the function of the means 1), the screen data of other workstations and personal computers are always prepared in the connection device, and the display corresponding to the request can be immediately performed.

With the function of the means 2), it is possible to display a multi-screen as one continuous screen, and it is possible to move the continuous whole screen in synchronization.

With the function of the means 3), the operator can freely set the screen configuration and an appropriate screen display is possible.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 shows the overall configuration. A plurality of workstations 2 are connected to the screen control device 1. The screen control device synthesizes its own screen data with the screen data of another device (workstation) and displays it on the display 3. The screen data setting method is performed by the pointing device 4 (mouse in the embodiment) connected to the control device. It should be noted that a plurality of displays 5 are connected to the screen control device and constitute one screen as a whole and are used for multiple screens.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a case where it is displayed on the display. On the workstation screen, see Fig. 3 (a).
The operation area (menu bar) is prepared as shown in.
It is necessary when creating screen data, but unnecessary when considering only the display. Therefore, when displaying on the display 5, it is necessary to delete the shaded portion in FIG.

FIG. 4 shows an example of a case where a multi-screen is constructed. By deleting the operation area (menu bar) of the workstation, you can connect the screens. In this example, since there are four screens, one screen configuration is realized by deleting them and then moving them to the center part.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a setting procedure of the screen data creating method. In this example, we will explain with the procedure using a mouse, but since the same type of operation can be realized with other devices,
You don't have to worry about it. First, press the mouse button twice in succession (hereinafter, pressing the mouse button is referred to as clicking).
At that point, the setting screen is selectively displayed. FIG. 5 shows a display example of the setting screen. Details will be described later. Then, click once on the workstation selection area in the setting screen with the mouse. By that action,
The entire screen of the workstation corresponding to the selected area is displayed on the display. Next, the operation area (menu bar) is deleted from the display screen. Since it will be displayed in a window, four points are sequentially clicked from the screen to determine the size and position of display. If you like, click the word "OK". If you want to reset, click the word "NG" and reset. The same operation is sequentially repeated for the screens of other workstations. When the operation to select the workstation to be displayed is completed, click the word "End". When the character “End” is clicked, the composition screen of the set workstation is displayed on the entire surface of the display 5.

A specific example will be described with reference to the example of the setting screen shown in FIG. First, click the WS1 area at the bottom of the screen in FIG. The WS1 screen is displayed in a portion other than the selection area as shown by the solid line in FIG. Click the positions (X positions) corresponding to the four corners of the rectangle. At that time, the position of the window is displayed on the screen by a broken line so that the selected position can be known. Then, the size of the window is determined by clicking the character "OK". If you want to reset, click the word "NG" and the broken line display disappears and you can reset. In the same procedure, WS2, WS
For 3 and WS4, the size and position of the window will be determined. Finally, when the word "end" is clicked, the screen configuration displayed on the multi-screen is determined. If the user wants to change after the composition screen is displayed, the above procedure may be repeated.

Further, to display on a plurality of displays, the screen is moved (scrolling) and the screen is partially enlarged (zoom).
An operation for instructing an operation such as will be described with reference to FIG.

Although a plurality of displays and a plurality of workstations are connected, there is a strong demand for displaying a large amount of information on a multi-screen, so data of more than the number of displays is transmitted. It is possible that individual workstations own multiple planes of data, and the number of workstations should be connected to more than the number of displays. You will see the large amount of information while moving.

In the example of FIG. 7A, there is an information amount for 9 screens. It is assumed that the upper left information is displayed on the display 5. Suppose you want to change it to the lower right screen display. In that case, as shown in FIG. 7 (b), click an arbitrary position on the screen of the display 3 with the mouse, move the button as if holding it, move it by the desired amount of movement, and then release the button. . As a result, the vicinity of the central portion of the information to be displayed is displayed on the display 3, and the desired information can be displayed on the display 5.

In the partial enlargement (zoom) of the screen, a part of the information amount is enlarged and displayed. In the example of FIG. 7A, when the display data is halved vertically and horizontally and is displayed on the display 5, the display data is doubled to obtain a partially enlarged display. The magnification is selected by clicking the numbers in the lower area shown in FIG. 7 (b).

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of this apparatus. The screen data from each workstation 2 is transmitted as a serial digital signal. The transmitted data is sequentially stored in the data storage device 105. The write timing at that time is performed in synchronization with the transmission signal of each workstation. The screen data is updated each time it is received. The processor 100 transfers the data in the data storage device 105 via the storage device read timing control circuit 104 to the display target data (video data excluding the operation area) to the display data storage device 107. Video data to be displayed at present from the data storage device 107 is passed through the multiplexer 113 to the buffer storage device 10.
Transfer to 9. The data stored in the buffer storage device is
All are transferred to the video storage device 111 at a timing synchronized with each other. The data in the video storage device is the D / A converter 11
Display 5 converted to analog video signal by 2
Is displayed in.

The interface circuit 103 transmits the button signal from the mouse and the movement amount to the processor 100.
The processor 100 determines the area of the screen data to be displayed based on the data, and determines the address from which the data should be read in each of the memory device timing control circuits 104, 106 and 10.
Set to 8,110. The ROM 101 and the RAM 102 store data to be displayed on the display 3 for operation instructions in addition to the data to be used by the processor 100. Data is read from the selected address and stored in the monitor display data storage device 117. The data to be displayed on this display device includes the setting screen described in this embodiment. In addition, if it is stored in advance, it is possible to display the instruction manual of the apparatus with the current configuration.

The storage device timing control circuit 104 controls the write / read timing of the data storage device. In the present embodiment, since the storage devices having different write and read data lines are adopted, it is possible to write and read at the same time. However, it is not necessary to change the data being read in the middle, so in consideration of the overlapping of both timings, a dual data storage device is prepared for one workstation. Writing to the storage device is performed at the timing synchronized with the transmission signal of each workstation. On the other hand, the reading is performed at the timing synchronized with the operation of the processor 100. Control of data storage is centered on writing. Writing to the data storage device is performed alternately, and a flag indicating the location of updated latest data is provided. Based on the flag, it is read from the storage device. Therefore, when a read request is issued during writing, the flag causes the previous data to be read from the storage device on the side where it is stored. Also, if a write request is issued during reading, the flag causes writing to another storage device. The flag is
Change at the end of writing. The storage device timing control circuit performs the above switching so that the consistency of the screen data can be obtained.

The details will be described with reference to FIG.
A read start address and an end address are set in the registers 201 and 202, respectively. Counter 203
Counts in synchronization with the clock of the processor 100. The adder 204 includes a register 201 and a counter 203
Are added and transmitted to the data storage device 105.
The comparison circuit 205 compares the contents of the adder and the register 202, and if they match, stops the counter 203 and clears it. The flag 207 is set and reset by a signal from the data storage device 105. Depending on the state of the flag 207, the timing is transmitted from the data selection circuits 206 and 208 to either one of the data storage devices 105. The outputs of the data selection circuits 206 and 208 are connected to different storage devices.

On the other hand, the data storage device 105 has a built-in counter circuit, and an address is designated by the counter value. Further, when the counter value overflows, a pulse is output to set and reset the flag 207.

Next, a method of transferring the data in the data storage device 105 to the next storage device as video data excluding the operation area will be described. The scanning address is set by the processor 100 in the storage device read timing control circuit 104 so that only the video data excluding the data operation area to be displayed is accessed. for that reason,
As described above, the read start address and end address are set in the registers 201 and 202, respectively.
At the time of the operation described in the example of the setting screen of FIG. 5, the processor 100 calculates and determines the scanning address from the data taken in.

The control for transferring the data in the display data storage device 107 to the buffer storage device 109 will be described. In order to display on multiple displays, it is necessary to perform processing corresponding to operations such as screen scrolling and screen zooming. Therefore, a combination of the storage device read timing control circuit 106 and the multiplexer 113 is required.
A scanning address is set in the storage device read timing control circuit 106 by the processor 100 so that only video data to be displayed can be accessed. The multiplexer 113 determines to which of the plurality of displays the data selected from the display data storage device is transferred. The decision is made by the processor 100 setting each multiplexer.

Next, the operation of displaying on the display 3 will be described. The data from the processor 100 is set in the video storage device 117 via the gate circuit 118.

Also, the multiplexers 114, 115, 1
By means of 16, the contents in each data storage device can be confirmed and settings for various processes can be made. The data selected by the multiplexer is set in the video storage device 117, and D
The converted signal is converted into an analog video signal by the / A converter 112 and displayed on the display 3.

All data in the data storage device 105 can be displayed by the multiplexer 114. After setting by the screen data creating method described with reference to FIG. 6, only the video data excluding the data operation area is displayed. The data in the display data storage device 107 can be confirmed by the multiplexer 115. Normally, it is set to select and display the vicinity of the central portion of the entire displayed multi-screen. Therefore, when the scroll operation is performed, the operation can be facilitated. Multiplexer 1
The contents of the buffer storage device 109 can also be confirmed from 16.

In order to enable the above processing, the processor 100, the ROM 101 and the RAM 102 execute the operation of the flowchart shown in FIG. All operations start after clicking the mouse, so you have to wait for the click. If it is two clicks, it is interpreted as a setting screen display and that screen is output. Since the subsequent operations are linked, the fact that the setting screen is displayed is stored. The memory is cleared by clicking the "End" area.
When the mouse is moved while it is clicked, it is interpreted as a scroll operation, the amount of movement is calculated, and the screen is moved. 1
In the case of clicking once, various operations can be considered, and the subsequent operation is interpreted and processed depending on the condition, place, etc. at the time of clicking.

[0035]

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention: 1) There is an operation area (menu bar) on the screen of a workstation, a personal computer or the like, which is an unnecessary display area when only the display is considered. Since the area can be deleted and displayed, an appropriate multi-screen can be constructed.

2) Moving (scrolling) screens when displaying a single screen using a plurality of displays,
Since it enables operations such as partial enlargement (zoom) of the screen,
An appropriate screen display can be obtained for the operator.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a screen control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an overall configuration diagram of a system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a screen display example of the display device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a screen display example on a multi-screen according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a setting screen according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a setting procedure of a screen data synthesizing method according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating operations such as scrolling and zooming according to the embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 8 is a configuration example of a data storage device and a storage device timing control circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a process flowchart of the processor according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

100 ... Processor, 103 ... Interface circuit,
104, 106, 108, 110 ... Storage device timing control circuit, 105 ... Data storage device, 107 ... Display data storage device, 109 ... Buffer storage device, 111, 117
... Video storage device, 113, 114, 115, 116 ...
Multiplexer.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Terunobu Kawahara, 5-2-1, Omika-cho, Hitachi-shi, Ibaraki, Hitachi Process Computer Engineering Co., Ltd. (72) Yuichi Ito 5--2, Omika-cho, Hitachi, Ibaraki No. 1 Hiritsu Process Computer Engineering Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroshi Kobayashi 5-2-1 Omika-cho, Hitachi-shi, Ibaraki Hitachi Ltd. Omika Plant

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. Receiving screen data from another display device,
A receiving / storing means for storing, an address setting means for setting an address so that the screen data can be partially read out for all address areas storing the received and stored screen data, and a plurality of partial reading by the address setting means And a combined display means for combining the displayed screen data and displaying the combined screen data. 2. The screen control device according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of buffer storage devices for temporarily storing partially read screen data, each buffer storage device including a plurality of display outputs. A screen control device that outputs to the device based on the same synchronization signal. 3. The screen control device according to claim 1, wherein the address setting means calculates an area to be read out based on a signal from the interface circuit for the external device and sets the address. apparatus. 4. An image display system comprising the screen control device according to claim 1, a terminal device connected to the screen control device, and a display device connected to the screen control device.