JPH11231983A - Portable information device and computer system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the unnecessary power consumption of a computer without being aware of it by controlling the execution/non-execution of a power saving function of a computer by radio. SOLUTION: A user stands with a portable information device 41 in both hands and a shoulder bag 43 storing a note-sized PC 42 over the shoulder. The user performs various processing by utilizing radio communication with the PC 42 while operating a user operating part 15 (pen 15a, ON/OFF button 15b, Sus/Res button 15c, a freeze button 15d, etc.). When the user selects resume with the button 15c of the device 41, a radio wave representing selection information is transmitted from an antenna 3, it is received by an antenna 23 of the PC 42 and the PC 42 becomes a resume state. Also, when the user selects suspend with the button 15c, the PC 42 becomes a suspend state according to the transmission and receiving of the same radio wave.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a portable information device, and more particularly, to a portable information device capable of wireless communication with a computer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, notebook personal computers (hereinafter, referred to as notebook PCs) have become remarkably popular. More.
However, when such a notebook PC is used in a train, for example, it is operated in a narrow seat, so that the operability is poor.
In addition, it may be annoying to others. Furthermore, it is almost impossible to open and use the notebook PC while standing on the train.

[0003] In such a situation, many users use an electronic organizer when managing an activity schedule or the like on the go. However, applications that run on notebook PCs are easy to handle, so users who use notebook PCs and electronic notebooks both inside and outside the office, store management information in their respective devices, and synchronize management information between the two. Many.

[0004]

In order to synchronize as described above, a dedicated device is required, and the processing takes time and effort. Note that a notebook PC having the same size as an electronic organizer has been developed, but when it is used in an office where the user is away from home, the user remains unsatisfied in terms of hard disk capacity, screen size, and the like. Under such circumstances, the information stored in the notebook PC can be easily taken out of the place where the notebook PC is carried, without directly operating the notebook PC.
There is a demand for the development of portable information devices that can easily perform various remote operations on notebook PCs.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and controls the resume / suspend of a computer in a wireless manner in synchronization with an operation performed on the computer, whereby the unnecessary power consumption of the computer is unknowingly reduced. It is an object of the present invention to provide a portable information device capable of preventing a computer from operating for a long time and capable of receiving information from the computer for a long time, and a computer system including the portable information device and a computer associated therewith. I do.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a portable information device which is highly convenient for a user by eliminating the need for a conventional synchronizing process by wirelessly receiving and using information stored in a computer. Another object of the present invention is to provide a computer system including the portable information device and a computer associated with the portable information device.

Still another object of the present invention is to make the processing means for processing image information or audio information the same specifications as the processing means of the computer, so that it is only necessary to receive information in a simpler form from the computer. It is an object of the present invention to provide a portable information device capable of overcoming a narrow transmission band, and a computer system including the portable information device and a computer associated therewith.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable information device capable of performing wireless communication with a computer having a power saving function. It is characterized by comprising a control means for controlling by (1).

In this portable information device, execution / non-execution of a power saving function of a computer from which information is obtained wirelessly is controlled. Therefore, power saving of the computer can be achieved without directly operating the computer.

[0010] The portable information device according to claim 2 is a portable information device according to claim 1.
Wherein the control means has means for controlling the resume / suspend of the computer in accordance with the operation of turning on / off the power of the apparatus itself or the operation of resume / suspend.

In this portable information device, power on / off,
Alternatively, the resume / suspend of the computer is controlled according to the resume / suspend operation. Therefore,
It is possible to reduce the power consumption of the computer without particularly considering the operation of the computer.

[0012] The portable information device according to the third aspect is the first aspect.
Or 2) means for wirelessly receiving image data and / or audio data stored in the computer, and means for reproducing an image and / or audio corresponding to the received image data and / or audio data. It is characterized by having.

In this portable information device, information stored in a computer is received and used. Therefore, there is no need to synchronize, the convenience is high, the power consumption of the CPU is small, and the size and weight can be reduced.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the portable information device capable of receiving image information and / or audio information from a computer by wireless communication, the processing means for processing the received image information and / or audio information is provided. , And has the same processing function as the image information and / or audio information processing means of the computer.

This portable information device uses information processing means having the same specifications as a computer. Therefore, image information or audio information received from a computer can be compressed information or code information in a simple format, and a sufficient amount of information can be received even in a narrow transmission band.

A portable information device according to claim 5 is the portable information device according to claim 3.
In the fourth aspect, the display device further includes a display unit that displays the moving image, and a stopping unit that stops the moving image displayed on the display unit.

In this portable information device, the display image on the screen is arbitrarily stopped. Therefore, a multi-screen can be configured by combining with a display image on a computer. In addition, information from the computer can be visually recognized at a location away from the computer.

A portable information device according to claim 6 is a portable information device according to claim 5.
Wherein the power saving function of the computer is executed while the stopping means is operating.

In this portable information device, when the display image on the screen is stopped, the power saving function of the computer is controlled to a higher level to suspend the computer. Therefore, further power saving of the computer can be achieved.

A portable information device according to claim 7 is a portable information device according to claim 3.
Or 4) means for determining whether or not image data is transmitted from the computer, and, when determining that image data is transmitted, changing the screen resolution of the computer according to its own screen resolution. Setting means.

In this portable information device, the screen resolution of the computer is automatically set according to its own screen resolution. Therefore, an optimal screen resolution can be realized by a computer when used in conjunction with the portable information device and when used alone, and user convenience is improved.

A computer system according to claim 8 is
In a computer system including a computer having a power saving function and a portable information device capable of wireless communication with the computer, the portable information device wirelessly controls execution / non-execution of the power saving function of the computer. It is characterized by having control means.

In this computer system, the power saving function of the computer is executed by wireless communication from the portable information device. Therefore, it is possible to use the computer for a long time without directly operating the computer.

A computer system according to claim 9 is:
In a computer system including a computer that stores image information and / or audio information and a portable information device that receives the image information and / or audio information from the computer by wireless communication, the computer includes:
A first processing unit configured to process the image information and / or the audio information;
Alternatively, there is provided a second processing means for processing voice information and having the same processing function as the first processing means.

In this computer system, a portable information device and a computer having the same specifications are used as processing means for processing image information and / or audio information. Therefore, image information or audio information transmitted from the computer to the portable information device can be compressed information or code information in a simple format, and a sufficient amount of information can be transmitted even in a narrow transmission band.

[0026]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be specifically described below with reference to the drawings showing the embodiments. (First Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a portable information device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numerals 1 and 2 denote a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus for transmitting data between hardware, which will be described later.
It is an ISA (Industry Standard Architecture) bus. An antenna 3 transmits and receives radio waves to and from a notebook PC described later.

A CPU 5 and a memory 6 having a capacity of several MB are connected to the PCI bus 1 via a first bridge circuit 4, a wireless unit 7 for controlling transmission / reception processing by the antenna 3, and switching between resume / suspend. A power saving control unit 8 for controlling power saving, a frame memory 9 for storing image data from a notebook PC, and a second bridge circuit 10 are also connected to the PCI bus 1. A display unit 12 having an LCD is connected to the frame memory 9 via an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) driver 11. The LCD of the display unit 12 is a VGA (Video Graphi
cs Array).

The ISA bus 2 includes the second bridge circuit 10, a D / A converter 13 for converting digital voice data from a notebook PC into analog data, and a software program required for the operation of the portable information device. Is connected in advance. Second bridge circuit
A user operation unit 15 for a user to perform an external input operation is connected to 10, and the user operation unit 15 includes a pen 15a for data input.
, ON / OFF button 15b to determine power on / off, Sus / Res button 15c to determine resume / suspend,
Freeze button to stop the image on the display unit 12 screen
15d etc. The D / A converter 13 is connected to a speaker 16 for reproducing analog audio data.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the notebook PC. FIG.
In the figure, reference numerals 21 and 22 denote a PCI bus and an ISA bus for transmitting data between hardware described later. An antenna 23 transmits and receives radio waves to and from the portable information device.

A CPU 25 and a memory 26 having a capacity of several tens of megabytes are connected to the PCI bus 21 via a first bridge circuit 24, and a wireless unit 27 for controlling transmission / reception processing by the antenna 23 and a resume / suspend mode. A power saving control unit 28 for switching to control power saving, an image decoder 29 for decoding compressed image data, a graphics accelerator 30 for controlling image drawing, and a second bridge circuit 31 are also connected to the PCI bus 21. Graphics accelerator
Reference numeral 30 denotes a frame memory 32 for storing image data or image drawing information. A display unit 34 having an LCD is connected to the graphics accelerator 30 via an LCD driver 33. The LCD of the display unit 34
XGA (Extended Graphics Array) resolution
The screen can be displayed at any resolution of GA and PGA.

The ISA bus 22 has a second bridge circuit 31, a sound source unit 35 for supplying sound waveform data corresponding to a specified sound source type, and a D / A for converting digital audio data into analog data. Converter 36, notebook PC
A ROM 37 that stores in advance software programs necessary for the operation described above is connected. Second bridge circuit 31
Is connected to a user operation unit 38 for a user to perform an external input operation.The user operation unit 38 determines a keyboard and mouse for data input, an ON / OFF button for deciding power on / off, and a resume / suspend. And a Sus / Res button. The D / A converter 36 is connected to a speaker 39 for reproducing analog audio data.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a user use state in which a portable information device having such a configuration is linked to a notebook PC. The user stands, for example, on a commuter train, holding the portable information device 41 in both hands and putting the shoulder bag 43 containing the notebook PC 42 over his shoulder. In such a situation, the user operates the user operation unit 15 (the pen 15a, the ON / OFF button 15b, the Sus / Res button 15c, the freeze button 15d, etc.) while using the wireless communication with the notebook PC 42. Performs various processes.

In this case, when the user sets Sus /
When a resume is selected by the Res button 15c, a radio wave indicating the selected information is transmitted from the antenna 3 and the note P
The signal is received by the antenna 23 of C42, and the notebook PC 42 is in the resume state. When the user selects suspend using the Sus / Res button 15c, the notebook PC 42 is suspended by the same radio transmission and reception.

As described above, the resume suspend on the notebook PC 42 side is determined according to the resume suspend selection on the portable information device 41 side.
The power saving mode of the notebook PC 42 can be changed without being aware of the state 42. Therefore, the notebook PC 42 consumes power only when the portable information device 41 is activated, and the power of the backlight and the like can be constantly saved, so that the notebook PC 42 can be used for a long time.

The portable information device 41 receives data and the like in the hard disk (HD) of the notebook PC 42 from the notebook PC 42 by wireless communication and reproduces the data. That is,
The portable information device 41 that has received the bitmap image data from the notebook PC 42 temporarily stores the image data in the frame memory 9 and then displays an image corresponding to the image data on the display unit 12. The portable information device 41 that has received the audio waveform data from the notebook PC 42 converts the waveform data into analog data with the D / A converter 13 and reproduces the audio with the speaker 16.

As described above, since the data necessary for processing in the portable information device 41 is transmitted and supplied from the notebook PC 42, there is no need to synchronize the portable information device 41 and the notebook PC 42, and the user can save time and convenience. Is high. In addition, since a sufficient amount of data can be obtained even if the memory 6 has a small capacity, the portable information device 41 can be reduced in size and weight.
User convenience is good.

As described above, by using the wireless communication, the notebook PC 42 can be handled without opening the notebook PC 42.
Even in a small place, the data stored in the notebook PC 42 can be accessed. In addition to the usage situation as shown in FIG. 3, when the user is on the train, the bag containing the notebook PC 42 is placed on a shelf in the car, and the user sitting on the seat operates the portable information device 41. It is also possible to use such a situation.

Next, an example in which the notebook PC 42 is opened and the portable information device 41 and the notebook PC 42 are used together will be described. By pressing the freeze button 15d of the portable information device 41, the display screen of the display unit 12 can be stopped. In this case, the display screen of the display unit 34 of the notebook PC 42 is not stopped. Therefore, by stopping the image on the portable information device 41 side, the two display units 1
A multi-display with 2, 34 can be realized. As a result, it is possible to perform processing using the screen of the display unit 34 of the notebook PC 42 while referring to the display image on the display unit 12 of the portable information device 41. Also, even if the portable information device 41 is brought to a place where radio waves cannot reach,
The display image on the display unit 12 can be confirmed.

It is considered that the situation in which the user presses the freeze button 15d is often the case where the processing in the portable information device 41 is interrupted. Therefore, in order to cope with such a case, when the freeze button 15d is pressed, the power saving degree of the notebook PC 42 is increased, that is, the notebook PC 42 is wirelessly controlled from the portable information device 41 to the suspended state. As a result, useless power consumption of the notebook PC 42 can be suppressed.

It is determined whether image data is transmitted from the notebook PC 42 to the portable information device 41, and if so, the screen resolution of the notebook PC 42 is matched with the screen resolution of the portable information device 41. Specifically, the screen display by the XGA on the display unit 34 is switched to the screen display by the same PGA as the portable information device 41. This makes it possible to set an optimum screen resolution for each of the case where the portable information device 41 is used and the case where the notebook PC 42 is used alone, thereby improving user convenience. I do.

Further, a user operation input from the portable information device 41 is wirelessly transmitted to the notebook PC 42, thereby enabling remote operation of the notebook PC 42. For example, the input information of the pen 15a is transmitted, and the mouse operation of the notebook PC 42 is controlled.

The portable information device 41 of the present invention can automatically determine whether to perform processing in cooperation with the notebook PC 42 or to perform processing alone. FIG.
Is a flowchart showing an operation procedure for this determination.

An activation signal is transmitted by radio waves from the portable information device 41 to the notebook PC 42 (step S1). Then, it is determined whether or not an OK signal indicating that linking is possible has been received from the notebook PC 42 (step S2). When the OK signal is received (S2: YES), the processing of the portable information device 41 described above in cooperation with the notebook PC 42 is performed using mutual wireless communication (step S3). If the OK signal cannot be received (S2: NO), it is determined whether a predetermined time has elapsed (step S4). If the OK signal cannot be received even after the predetermined time has elapsed (S4: NO). , Portable information equipment
41 alone is performed (step S5).

As described above, it is possible to automatically recognize whether the processing is the cooperative processing or the independent processing. Therefore, the user can determine whether the notebook PC 42 exists within the effective range of the radio wave, whether the power of the antenna 23 of the notebook PC 42 is on, and the like. It does not need to be considered and is easy to use.

(Second Embodiment) The wireless communication band between the portable information device 41 and the notebook PC 42 is generally narrow. Therefore, in the configuration for transmitting raw data (bitmap image data and audio waveform data) as in the first embodiment, it is considered that the amount of information that can be transmitted per unit time is small. In the second embodiment described below, it is possible to overcome this narrow band and increase the amount of information transmitted per unit time.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a portable information device according to the second embodiment of the present invention. 5, the same parts as those in FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted. Note that the configuration of a notebook PC that cooperates with the portable information device of the second embodiment is the same as that shown in FIG.

The PCI bus 1 has a first bridge circuit 4
In addition to the wireless unit 7, the power saving control unit 8 and the second bridge circuit 10, an image decoder 17 for decoding compressed image data and a graphics accelerator 18 for controlling image drawing are connected. The display unit 12 is connected to the graphics accelerator 18 via the LCD driver 11. The ISA bus 2 has the second
In addition to the bridge circuit 10, the D / A converter 13, and the ROM 14, a sound source unit 19 for supplying sound waveform data according to the type of the specified sound source is connected.

The image decoder 17, graphics accelerator 18 and sound source unit 19 provided in the portable information device are combined with the image decoder 29, graphics accelerator 30 and sound source unit 35 provided in the associated notebook PC. Each has the same design specification, and performs the same processing operation according to the same input data.

With such a portable information device configuration,
Instead of raw data (bitmap image data and audio waveform data), simplified data can be received from the notebook PC to realize image display or audio reproduction. Specifically, for example, MPEG (Moving Picture Expert Gr)
oup) Compressed image data compressed according to the standard
The portable information device transmitted from C decodes the compressed image data into the original image data by the image decoder 17 and displays an image corresponding to the image data on the display unit 12. Alternatively, drawing command information from the notebook PC to the portable information device (for example, when a circle is displayed, information on its center and radius).
Is transmitted, a desired image is displayed on the display unit 12 by the processing of the graphics accelerator 18 based on the command information. In the case of voice, when command information for specifying a sound source (for example, information for specifying a piano, a flute, or the like) is transmitted from a notebook PC to a portable information device, the sound source unit 19 performs processing based on the command information. Is reproduced by the speaker 16.

As described above, compressed image data and command information are transmitted instead of raw image data and audio data.
As compared with the embodiment, the amount of data to be transmitted can be significantly reduced. As a result, sufficient information can be transmitted from the notebook PC to the portable information device even in a narrow transmission band.

Note that other operation processing in this second embodiment (remote control of resume / suspend for the notebook PC, freeze processing for the display screen, suspend processing for the notebook PC linked to the freeze processing, note P
C. Automatic setting of screen resolution for C) and effects (power saving of notebook PC by remote control of resume / suspend, reduction in size and weight of portable information equipment accompanying data transmission from notebook PC, multi-display by freeze processing) Realization, improvement of convenience by automatic setting of screen resolution, etc.)
Are the same as those in the first embodiment, and the description is omitted.

In the above-described example, the resume suspend of the notebook PC is determined according to the resume / suspend setting of the portable information device (selection of the Sus / Res button 15c). The resume / suspend of the notebook PC may be determined according to the disconnection setting (selection of the ON / OFF button 15b).

In the above-described example, a case where a notebook PC is used as a computer linked to a portable information device has been described. However, in a configuration in which a function of a PHS or a portable telephone is added to the portable information device, the portable information device is far away. Wireless communication with the computer is also possible, in such a case,
As the cooperating computer, for example, a desktop computer in an office, a server computer in the office, or the like can be used, and the portable information device of the present invention can be similarly applied to these computers.

[0054]

As described above, in the portable information device of the present invention, the resume / suspend of the wirelessly linked computer is controlled in synchronization with the operation for itself, so that the computer is not conscious of unnecessary power consumption. The computer can be operated for a long time, and the information can be received from the computer for a long time.

Further, since information stored in a cooperating computer is wirelessly received and used, a conventional synchronizing process is not required, and user convenience is improved.

Further, the image decoder for processing the compressed image data, or the graphics accelerator or the sound source unit for processing the instruction information has the same specifications as those provided in the cooperating computer, so that a simpler operation can be achieved. It is only necessary to receive the data in the form from the computer, and the narrow transmission band can be overcome.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a portable information device (first embodiment) of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a notebook PC that cooperates with the portable information device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a user use state of the portable information device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation procedure of the portable information device of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a portable information device (second embodiment) of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 3 Antenna 5 CPU 7 Wireless unit 12, 34 Display unit 14 ROM 15 User operation unit 15b ON / OFF button 15c Sus / Res button 15d Freeze button 17,29 Image decoder 18,30 Graphics accelerator 19,35 Sound source unit 41 Mobile information Equipment 42 Notebook PC (notebook personal computer)

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A portable information device capable of wireless communication with a computer having a power saving function, comprising a control unit for wirelessly controlling execution / non-execution of a power saving function of the computer. machine. 2. The portable information device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit has a unit that controls the resume / suspend of the computer in accordance with a power on / off operation or a resume / suspend operation of the control unit. 3. A means for wirelessly receiving image data and / or audio data stored in the computer, and means for reproducing an image and / or audio corresponding to the received image data and / or audio data. The portable information device according to claim 1, further comprising: 4. A portable information device capable of receiving image information and / or audio information by wireless communication from a computer, wherein the processing means for processing the received image information and / or audio information includes image information and And / or a portable information device having the same processing function as voice information processing means. 5. The portable information device according to claim 3, further comprising: display means for displaying a moving image; and stopping means for stopping the moving image displayed on the display means. 6. The computer according to claim 5, wherein the power saving function of the computer is executed while the stopping means is operating.
The portable information device described. 7. A means for judging whether or not image data is transmitted from the computer, and, when judging that image data is transmitted, changing the screen resolution of the computer according to its own screen resolution. The portable information device according to claim 3, further comprising: 8. A computer system comprising a computer having a power saving function and a portable information device capable of wireless communication with the computer, wherein the portable information device executes / non-executes the power saving function of the computer. A computer system having control means for controlling wirelessly. 9. A computer system comprising: a computer that stores image information and / or audio information; and a portable information device that receives the image information and / or audio information from the computer by wireless communication. A first processing unit that processes image information and / or audio information, wherein the portable information device processes the image information and / or audio information and has a second processing function that has the same processing function as the first processing unit; A computer system comprising means.