JPH0832892A - Display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a display device in which the operability of selection and changeover of input signals of plural video equipments to be connected is improved. CONSTITUTION:A signal from a built-in tuner and a signal given to an external input terminal 1 are fed respectively to each terminal of three input changeover switches 2a, 2b, 2c. A synchronizing signal of each input is detected via the input changeover switch 2c and an input with a signal is stored in a microcomputer 8. A slave screen signal processing circuit 4 and a slave screen insert circuit 6 insert only the input with the signal into a mater screen as the slave pattern. The user uses an input selection key 10 to select a slave pattern while viewing the content of the slave pattern and to select the input.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a display device capable of connecting a plurality of video devices, and more particularly, to a display device having improved operability in selecting and switching input signals of a plurality of connected video devices. Regarding

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the widespread use of VTRs (video tape recorders), VDPs (video disc players), video movies, etc., display devices are equipped with a plurality of external input terminals so as to be compatible with a plurality of video equipment. ing. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a conventional display device. Note that FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a television receiver having three external input terminals.

In FIG. 7, a signal input to the external input terminal 11 is supplied to each terminal of the input changeover switch 12. The user presses the input selection switch 15 provided on the remote controller or the main body side to switch to the external input signal desired to be viewed. This selection signal is supplied to a microcomputer (hereinafter abbreviated as microcomputer) 14,
A control signal is supplied from the microcomputer 14 to the input changeover switch 12. The input selector switch 12 is switched to a desired input signal, and via the signal processing circuit 13,
The screen of the input image desired to be viewed is displayed on the display unit (CRT) 16.

Next, an example of the input selection key will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8A shows a case where selection is made by one key, and each time the key is pressed, the TV, input 1, input 2, input 3
Then, the input is switched to the input 3, and the input 3 returns to the television again. FIG. 8B shows a method in which selection is made by direct keys corresponding to respective inputs, and a method of directly switching by pressing a key of an input desired to be switched.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing another example of a conventional display device. The same parts as those in FIG. 7 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. The circuit shown in FIG.
A plurality of external input signals are respectively branched and also connected to a synchronization detection circuit to have a function of detecting the presence or absence of a synchronization signal of each input (that is, the presence or absence of an input signal).

In FIG. 9, the signal input to the external input terminal 11 is supplied to each terminal of the input changeover switch 12 and the synchronization detection circuits 17a, 17b, 17c.
The synchronization detection circuits 17a, 17b, 17c detect the synchronization signal of each input and supply the information to the microcomputer 24. The microcomputer 24 stores an external input terminal having a sync signal. When the user presses the input selection key 15, in the example shown in FIG. 8A, the operation is sequentially switched only to the terminal having the sync signal. For example,
If only input 1 and input 3 have sync signals,
The input 1 and the input 3 are switched in this order.

[0007]

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention When using a display device having a plurality of external input terminals, VTR, VDP,
Which terminal to connect an external device such as a video movie to is freely selected by the user. In the conventional circuit shown in FIG. 7, when these plural video devices are simultaneously connected,
The user cannot easily switch to the desired input signal unless the user always remembers what is connected to which terminal. Therefore, each time the input signal is switched, the input selector switch 12 must be sequentially switched until the desired input signal is obtained.

Further, in the conventional circuit shown in FIG. 9, when a plurality of input signals are present at the same time, all the inputs are synchronously detected, and as a result, all the input terminals are switched, so that the circuit shown in FIG. 7 is shown. Similar to the circuit, it has the drawback that it cannot easily switch to the desired input signal.
Further, there is a drawback that the cost is high because a synchronization detection circuit corresponding to the number of inputs is required.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, the present invention provides a signal detecting means for detecting whether or not a signal is present among a plurality of input video signals, and the signal. The detection means detects that there is a signal 1
Child screen processing means for processing and outputting one or a plurality of video signals so as to be displayed as a child screen on the same screen, an output signal of the child screen processing means, and a parent screen of the plurality of input video signals A display device for synthesizing and displaying a signal selected as a sub-screen, and when one of the displayed sub-screens is selected on the screen, the sub-screen display is stopped and the image is displayed. The present invention provides a display device having a screen selection means for displaying as a parent screen.

[0010]

Embodiments of the display device of the present invention will be described below.
Description will be given with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a display device of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a view showing an example of an input selection key, FIG. 3 is a view showing an input table in a microcomputer, and FIG. 4 is a description of a synchronization detection method. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a screen when a child screen is displayed, and FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the display device of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, signals input to the external input terminal 1 are input changeover switches 2a and 2 of three systems, respectively.
It is supplied to each terminal of b and 2c. Of the three systems of input selector switches 2a, 2b, 2c, the first input selector switch 2
a is the parent screen signal processing circuit (screen display means) 3, the second input selector switch 2b is the child screen signal processing circuit (child screen processing means) 4, and the third input selector switch 2c is the synchronization detection circuit (signal). The detecting means) 5 is connected to each. The three systems of input selector switches 2a, 2b, 2c are independently switched by a microcomputer (screen selecting means) 8.

The signal selected by the first input selector switch 2a is subjected to predetermined signal processing by the parent screen signal processing circuit 3 and supplied to the child screen insertion circuit (screen display means) 6. The signal selected by the second input selector switch 2b is subjected to predetermined signal processing by the small screen signal processing circuit 4 and supplied to the small screen insertion circuit 6. The sub-screen insertion circuit 6 inserts the sub-screen video signal into the main screen video signal, and the video signal is a cursor generation circuit (screen selection means).
It is displayed on the display unit (screen display means) 9 via 7.
Further, all the blocks are controlled by the microcomputer 8, and the microcomputer 8 has a 3-bit input table as shown in FIG. FIG. 2 shows an example of the input selection key 10. It consists of selection keys (△, ▽) and escape key for returning to the normal screen.

Next, the operation of the display device of the present invention will be described. First, a method of detecting the synchronization signal will be described. In FIG. 1, the third input selector switch 2c
Under the control of the microcomputer 8, the switching operation is always performed in sequence, external input signals are sequentially input, and the signals are supplied to the synchronization detection circuit 5. The synchronization detection circuit 5 detects the synchronization signal of each external input from the supplied signal and constantly supplies the information to the microcomputer 8. The processing in the microcomputer is shown in Fig. 4 below.
This will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in.

3 bits of the input table are cleared, that is, set to "000" (step 1 [S1]). Next, it is judged whether or not there is a sync signal on the input 1 (S2). When the sync signal is present on the input 1, the bit "D0" of the input table is set to "1" (S3). Sets bit "D0" of the input table to "0" (S
4). Then, it is determined whether or not there is a sync signal at the input 2 (S
5) When the input 2 has a sync signal, the bit "D1" of the input table is set to "1" (S6), and when there is no sync signal, the bit "D1" of the input table is set to "0". Set (S7).

Further, it is judged whether or not there is a synchronizing signal at the input 3 (S8), and when the synchronizing signal is present at the input 3, the bit "D2" of the input table is set to "1" (S9), and the synchronizing signal becomes If not, the bit "D2" of the input table is set to "0" (S10). And step 2 again
Return to By the above operation, synchronization detection of each external input is always performed, and whether or not a signal is supplied to each external input terminal is stored in the input table in the microcomputer 8.

Next, the display mode of the child screen will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 5. In FIG. 5, one child screen is displayed when there is only one external input, two child screens are displayed when two inputs are made, and three child screens are made when three inputs are made. For example, when the synchronization detection circuit 5 detects that there are three inputs, the second input selector switch 2b is controlled by the microcomputer 8 so as to switch to each terminal every few seconds. In the small screen signal processing circuit 4,
There is a field memory for two screens, and the images supplied from the second input changeover switch 2b can be sequentially stored.

A video image of an external input connected to the second input changeover switch 2b is a moving image for a few seconds of the connection, while the second input changeover switch 2b remains unconnected. Two externally input video images are displayed as child screens of the respective still images recorded in the field memories for two screens. Then, when several seconds have passed and the second input selector switch 2b is connected to the next external input, the moving image of the external input is displayed for several seconds this time.
During that time, a still image read from the field memory is displayed as the remaining image of the external input.

Further, the child screen is displayed, and the cursor (←) for input selection is displayed on-screen by the cursor generation circuit 7, and the cursor is moved according to the selection operation by the input selection key 10. Note that FIG. 5 shows a state in which the input 1 is selected.

Next, an example of the input switching operation will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First
The built-in tuner is selected by the input selector switch 2a, and the television broadcast is received on the main screen (step 11 [S
11]), and refers to the input table in the microcomputer 8 (S
12). Next, it is determined whether or not there is an external input, that is, whether or not the input table is "000" (S13). When there is no external input, the process returns to step 12, and when there is an external input, the image of the external input corresponding to the input table is displayed as a child screen in the parent screen as described in FIGS. 1 and 5. (S14).

Next, it is judged whether or not the escape key has been pressed (S15). If it is pressed, the child screen that has been displayed is erased (S23), and the process proceeds to step 24. If it has not been pressed, it is determined whether the input selection key 10 has been pressed (S16). If it is not pressed, the process returns to step 15. If it is pressed, the child screen selected with the cursor is converted to the parent screen (S17), and the child screen is erased.
The selection operation ends (S18).

Next, it is judged again whether or not the input selection key 10 has been pressed (S19). If the button is pressed, the parent screen is switched to TV input again (S21), a child screen corresponding to the input table is displayed (S22), and the process returns to step 15. If not pressed, the input table is "000"
It is determined whether or not (there is no external input) (S20). "0
If it is not "00", the process returns to step 19, and if it is "000", the parent screen is switched to TV input (S24).
Next, it is judged again whether or not the input selection key 10 has been pressed (S25), and if it has not been pressed, the process stands by. If it has been pressed, the process returns to step 12. With the above steps, the basic sequence is completed.

Next, a specific operation example will be described. It is assumed that a VTR is connected to the input 1, a VDP is connected to the input 2, and a video movie is connected to the input 3, respectively. (At first, it is assumed that the power is not turned on.) First, when the power of the TV is turned on, the screen for TV broadcasting appears. Here, when the power of the VTR is turned on, the input table in the microcomputer 8 becomes "001", and the video of the VTR is displayed as a child screen. If the user wants to check the image and see it as the main screen, he / she presses the input selection key 10 on the remote controller or the TV body. As a result, the first input selector switch 2
a switches from the tuner side to the input 1 side, and the main screen is V
It becomes a TR image and the inset screen disappears. This completes the input selection.

When the power of the VTR is turned on and the child screen is displayed, if the parent screen is not desired, the escape key is pressed. As a result, the sub screen disappears, and the input selection key is awaited. The same is true when the power of the VDP or video movie is turned on, and after confirming the image on the child screen and moving the cursor (←) to the position of the child screen, the image of the VDP or video movie becomes the parent screen. When the input selection key is pressed or the input table becomes "000" (when the sync signal is lost), the parent screen is returned to the TV input.

Next, the operation when there are a plurality of input signals at the same time will be described. Here, consider the case where the VTR and the video movie are powered on. Since the input table becomes "101" by the synchronization detection, the microcomputer determines that there are two inputs, input 1 and input 3. This allows
The images of input 1 and input 3 are displayed as a child screen. When the user positions the cursor on the input desired by the user, the external input of the child screen becomes the image of the parent screen, and the child screen disappears. This completes the selection of the input signal. The user presses the input selection key again or the input table is set to "00
When it becomes "0", the screen returns to the TV broadcast screen. That is, even when a plurality of external inputs are present at the same time, input switching is completed by a simple selection operation.

[0025]

As described in detail above, the display device of the present invention has the following effects. (a) Even if there are multiple external inputs at the same time,
Since it is possible to switch to the parent screen after checking the image on the child screen, the user does not need to remember which terminal is connected to which terminal, and the switching malfunction does not occur. (b) One input selector switch is always sequentially switched to detect the presence or absence of an input signal, and the information is stored in the input table in the microcomputer, so that only one signal detection circuit is required, which is inexpensive. (c) When displaying signals from multiple video devices as a sub screen,
The field memory for multiple screens is used, and the input selector switch is switched at regular intervals. The video equipment to which the input selector switch is connected displays moving images, and other than that, still images recorded in the field memory are displayed. A signal of a plurality of video devices can be displayed as a child screen with a simple configuration (display device according to claim 2). Therefore, the display device of the present invention has a practically excellent effect that the operability when selecting and switching the input signals of a plurality of connected video devices is significantly improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a display device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an input selection key.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an input table in the microcomputer.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining a synchronization detection method.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a screen when a child screen is displayed.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the display device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a conventional display device.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of an input selection key.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing another example of a conventional display device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 External Input Terminal 2a 1st Input Changeover Switch 2b 2nd Input Changeover Switch 2c 3rd Input Changeover Switch 3 Parent Screen Signal Processing Circuit (Screen Display Means) 4 Child Screen Signal Processing Circuit (Child Screen Processing Means) 5 Synchronization Detection circuit (signal detection means) 6 Sub-screen insertion circuit (screen display means) 7 Cursor generation circuit (screen selection means) 8 Microcomputer (screen selection means) 9 Display section (screen display means) 10 Input selection key (screen selection means)

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A signal detecting means for detecting whether or not a signal is present among a plurality of input video signals, and one or a plurality of video signals detected by the signal detecting means as having the same signal. Child screen processing means for processing and outputting so as to be displayed as a child screen on the screen, an output signal of the child screen processing means, and a signal selected as a parent screen of the plurality of input video signals, and displayed. And a screen display means for displaying the selected child screen, and when one of the displayed child screens is selected on the screen, a screen selecting means for stopping the child screen display and displaying the image as the parent screen is provided. A display device having. 2. The small screen processing means has a field memory for a plurality of screens, and a plurality of video signals detected as having a signal are sequentially switched and input and recorded in the field memory, the screen display means The image signal currently input by the child screen processing means is its image as a child screen, and the image signal not currently input by the child screen processing means is a still image recorded in the field memory as a child screen. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display device is inserted in the main screen.