KR100715522B1 - Camera control apparatus, image data displaying apparatus and method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

A preview image data having a preview region having at least two divided preview storage regions, the preview image data being recorded from one of the preview storage regions simultaneously with the recording of preview image data in one of the preview storage regions; A dual port memory capable of reading a readout and an LCD controller control signal, reading the preview image data from the dual port memory according to the LCD controller control signal, and generating a driver control signal for controlling the driver; An LCD controller configured to transfer the preview image data and the driver control signal to the LCD module, and read image data from the image sensor, convert the image data into the preview image data, and record the image data in the dual port memory. The LCD controller It relates to a camera control device including an image controller for outputting the LCD controller control signal for controlling. Even if the size of the LCD module is doubled, the operation speed of the controller does not need to double in proportion to it.

Display, Video Data, Dual Port, Memory, Chip

Description

Camera control apparatus, image data display apparatus and method thereof {Camera control apparatus, image data displaying apparatus and method}

1 is a view showing the configuration of an example of a system for displaying image data in a portable terminal according to the prior art.

2 is a diagram showing the configuration of another example of a system for processing video data in a portable terminal according to the prior art;

3 is a configuration diagram of the LCD module shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a camera control device included in a portable terminal and an image data display device including the same according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a block diagram of an LCD module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a divided state of a storage area of dual port memory.

7 is a flowchart of a method of displaying image data according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

110: image sensor

120: microcontroller unit

130: controller

140: memory

150, 350: LCD Module

300: camera control device

310: image controller

320: LCD controller

330: dual port memory

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for displaying image data, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for displaying image data using a one-chip dual port memory and including a controller of an LCD module in a camera control apparatus.

As an example of an electric / electronic device (digital processing device), a portable terminal refers to an electronic device that is formed in a small size to facilitate a user's portability in order to perform a function such as a game or mobile communication. The portable terminal includes a mobile communication terminal, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable multimedia player (PMP), and the like.

Among them, a mobile communication terminal is essentially a device implemented so that a mobile user can make a telephone call with a remote receiver. However, due to the development of science and technology, recent mobile communication terminals have additional functions such as a camera function and a multimedia data reproduction function in addition to the essential functions such as a telephone call function, a short message transmission and reception function, and an address book management function.

Due to the camera function, the portable terminal captures an image through a camera lens, processes image data on an image captured by an image sensor, and displays the image data on an LCD module provided in the terminal.

1 is a view showing the configuration of an example of a system for displaying image data in a portable terminal according to the prior art.

Referring to FIG. 1, an image data display system includes an image sensor 110, a micro controller unit (MCU) 120, a controller 130, a memory 140, and an LCD module 150.

The image sensor 110 generates image data by processing an external image photographed through a camera, a lens, or the like provided in the portable terminal. This image data is stored in the memory 140 and also displayed on the LCD module 150. To this end, the microcontroller unit 120, which is basically a main system of the portable terminal, transmits a control command related to image processing to the controller 130, and accordingly, the controller 130 controls storage and display of image data. Done.

The memory 140 is formed separately from a chip constituting the controller 130. In addition, the image data of the image sensor 110 is stored in the memory 140 through the controller 130 according to the command of the microcontroller unit 120, and the image data stored in the memory 140 is stored through the controller 130. It is displayed on the LCD module 150. In this case, the memory 140 is a single port memory, and a read operation and a write operation cannot be performed at the same time. Therefore, when the memory 140 does not perform any other operation in order to perform a write operation from the image sensor 110 to the memory 140 or a read operation from the memory 140 to the LCD 150. There is a problem waiting until.

In addition, since the controller 130 is configured as a separate chip from the memory 140, at least four control buses (Control_Bus 1 to 4) and data buses (Data_Bus 1 to 4) are external interfaces for performing the above-described operation. 4) must have. As a result, a large number of pins, which are interfaces for inputting and outputting various signals, are required when configuring a chip, which increases the size of the entire system and has a problem of being disposed with a size reduction target for portability in a portable terminal.

2 is a diagram showing the configuration of another example of a system for processing video data in a portable terminal according to the prior art.

Referring to FIG. 2, unlike the system illustrated in FIG. 1, the memory 140 and the controller 130 are configured on one chip to be one chip. Buses (Control_Bus 3, Data_Bus 3) connected to the memory 140 among the control bus and the data bus shown in FIG. 1 exist inside the chip, thereby reducing the number of pins to the outside compared to the system shown in FIG. The chip size of the controller can be reduced.

However, in order to display the image data of the image sensor 110 on the LCD module 150, as described above, the image data of the image sensor 110 is stored in the memory 140 and then stored in the memory 140. Stored image data should be displayed on the LCD module 150. At this time, the read operation and the write operation to the memory 140 cannot be performed at the same time, so that the display of the image takes a long time.

3 is a configuration diagram of the LCD module 150 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Referring to FIG. 3, the LCD module 150 includes an LVDS unit 10, a timing controller 20, a power supply unit 30, a gate driver 40, a source driver 50, and a liquid crystal panel 60. .

In the liquid crystal panel 60, a plurality of gate lines and a data line cross each other, and a thin film transistor is disposed at a portion where each gate line and the data line intersect to display an image. The source driver 50 applies a driving voltage for driving the data line of the liquid crystal panel 60, and the gate driver 40 applies a driving voltage for driving the gate line of the liquid crystal panel 60.

The low voltage differential signal (LVDS) unit 10 compresses a plurality of data signals applied from the controller 130 and provides them to the timing controller 20. The timing controller 20 supplies data signals of R, G, and B to the source driver 50 and controls the timing of the source driver 50 and the gate driver 40. Although not shown in the figure, a memory for storing data applied from the controller 130 should exist separately.

When the size of the liquid crystal panel 60 of the LCD module 150 is small, the operation speed of the controller 130 that applies a plurality of data signals, that is, a clock, is increased to increase the operating speed of the controller 140 and the memory 140. The recording operation from 140 is performed at a high speed so that smooth image reproduction in the LCD module 150 is achieved.

However, the size of the liquid crystal panel 60 has increased from 128 × 160 and 120 × 160 to 320 × 240, 320 × 320 or more. In order for the movement of the image displayed on the human eye to be unbroken and a natural image, a speed of displaying about 30 frames should be displayed. Here, 30 frames means that 30 images are naturally connected per second. Increasing the size of the liquid crystal panel 60 means that the capacity of the memory 140 to store an image must be increased and the speed of accessing the memory 140 must be increased. This means that the pixels constituting the liquid crystal panel 60 should be moved more during 1 second, and when the size of the liquid crystal panel 60 is doubled in the memory 140 of the same capacity, the reading to the memory 140 is performed. Both speed and recording speed should be twice as fast. This means that the operation speed of the chip constituting the controller 130 should be increased twice, but the operation speed of the actual controller 130 did not increase much.

Therefore, in the environment in which the controller 130 has the same operation speed, the preview image displayed on the liquid crystal module 60 may have a low frame rate and frequently break or a motion may not be able to follow the actual motion. There is a phenomenon.

Accordingly, in order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a camera control apparatus, an image data display apparatus, and a method thereof, which can prevent the number of pins from increasing by reducing the interface with the outside by configuring the memory and the controller together in one chip. to provide.

In addition, the present invention is a camera control device, the image data display device such that the image controller reads the image from the image sensor and writes it to the memory using the dual port memory and the LCD controller reads the image data from the memory at the same time And a method thereof.

In addition, the present invention is a camera control device, image data display device using a dual-port memory, even if the size of the liquid crystal panel of the LCD module is doubled, the operation speed of the image controller and the LCD controller does not need to be doubled in proportion to it. And a method thereof.

The present invention also provides a camera control device, an image data display device, and a method thereof, which can reduce the size of the device by integrating the LVDS, the timing controller, and the memory in the LCD module into the LCD controller and the dual port memory in the camera control chip. do.

Other objects of the present invention will be readily understood through the following description.

In order to achieve the above objects, according to an aspect of the present invention, an image sensor and an LCD module included in a portable terminal having a camera function, wherein the LCD module is a liquid crystal panel for displaying a screen by an applied voltage, and the liquid crystal A camera control device coupled between a driver for applying the applied voltage to a panel and a power supply for supplying power to the driver, the camera control device comprising: a preview area having at least two divided preview storage areas; A dual port memory capable of reading preview image data recorded from one of the preview storage regions simultaneously with writing of preview image data in one of the preview storage regions, wherein the preview image Data has a data format displayable on the LCD module; Receives an LCD controller control signal, reads the preview image data from the dual port memory and generates a driver control signal for controlling the driver according to the LCD controller control signal, and outputs the preview image data and the driver control signal An LCD controller for transmitting to the LCD module; And an image controller configured to read image data from the image sensor, convert the image data into the preview image data, record the image data in the dual port memory, and output the LCD controller control signal for controlling the LCD controller. Control devices may be provided.

In order to achieve the above object, according to another aspect of the present invention, in the image data display device included in a portable terminal having a camera function, an image for generating the image data by converting the optical image taken through the camera into an electrical signal sensor; An LCD module including a liquid crystal panel displaying a screen by an applied voltage, a driver applying the applied voltage to the liquid crystal panel, and a power supply unit supplying power to the driver; A dual port having a preview area having at least two divided preview storage areas, and capable of reading preview video data recorded from another of the preview storage areas simultaneously with recording of preview video data in one of the preview storage areas. Memory, wherein the preview image data has a data format displayable on the LCD module; Receives an LCD controller control signal, reads the preview image data from the dual port memory and generates a driver control signal for controlling the driver according to the LCD controller control signal, and outputs the preview image data and the driver control signal An LCD controller for transmitting to the LCD module; And an image controller configured to read image data from the image sensor, convert the image data into the preview image data, record the image data in the dual port memory, and output the LCD controller control signal for controlling the LCD controller. A data display device can be provided.

Preferably, the dual port memory, the image controller and the LCD controller may be implemented on one chip.

In addition, the image controller may be controlled by a micro controller unit of the portable terminal.

Preferably, the dual port memory has at least two first and second access ports, so that the preview image data can be simultaneously read and written through the first and second access ports. The image controller may record the preview image data by transmitting a recording control signal through the first access port. The LCD controller may read the preview image data by transferring a read control signal generated from the LCD controller control signal through the second access port. In addition, the LCD controller, LVDS unit for compressing the preview image data; And a timing controller generating the driver control signal from the LCD controller control signal and transferring the compressed preview image data and the driver control signal to a driver of the LCD module.

Preferably, the preview image data has a continuous frame, and the preview image data recorded in one of the preview storage regions at an arbitrary time point is less than the preview image data read from the other of the preview storage regions. It may correspond to a frame of a lower priority.

In addition, the image controller may include a scaler for converting the image data to match the size of the liquid crystal panel.

The dual port memory may have an image storage area, and the image controller may separately record the image data in the image storage area.

In order to achieve the above objects, according to another aspect of the present invention, the LCD module-image data having a continuous frame generated by the image sensor included in the portable terminal having a camera function, wherein the LCD module is applied voltage A liquid crystal panel for displaying a screen by means of a display device, a driver for applying the applied voltage to the liquid crystal panel, and a power supply unit for supplying power to the driver, the method comprising: (a) a first frame; Generating first preview image data for the; (b) recording the first preview image data in one of storage areas of a dual port memory having at least two divided storage areas; (c) reading second preview image data already recorded in another one of the storage areas of the dual port memory; And (d) displaying the second preview image data on the LCD module, wherein steps (b) and (c) are performed simultaneously.

Preferably, the first preview image data may correspond to a frame having a lower priority than the second preview image data.

The first or second preview image data may convert image data generated by the image sensor into a data format displayable by the LCD module.

In addition, steps (a) to (d) may be repeated.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Numerals (eg, first, second, etc.) used in the description of the present specification are merely identification symbols for sequentially distinguishing the same or similar entities.

In addition, the camera control device, the image data display device and the method according to the present invention is a digital processing device or system capable of capturing or displaying image data (for example, a mobile communication terminal equipped with a camera, PDA, PMP (Portable) Multimedia players, digital cameras, digital televisions, and the like, as well as portable terminals and / or home digital devices provided in the home, etc.), of course, the following description focuses on portable terminals for convenience of explanation and understanding. Let's explain. In addition, through the following description it will be readily understood that the portable terminal to which the present invention can be applied is not limited to a specific type of terminal and may be equally applicable to a terminal including a camera, an image sensor, and an LCD module. .

4 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a camera control device included in a portable terminal and an image data display device including the same, according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a view illustrating an LCD module according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram. 6 is a diagram illustrating a divided state of a storage area of a dual port memory.

Referring to FIG. 4, the image data display device includes an image sensor 110, a microcontroller unit 120, a camera control device 300, and an LCD module 150. The camera control device 300 includes an image controller 310, an LCD controller 320, and a dual port memory 330 on one chip. As an implementation method, a method such as a package on package (POP) can be used.

The image sensor 110 is a device for reproducing an external image by using a property in which a semiconductor reacts to light. Image sensor 110 consists of an array of small photosensitive diodes called pixels or pixels. The pixel senses the light and wavelength of different light from each subject and reads it as an electric value to make it possible to process the signal. That is, the image sensor 110 is a semiconductor device that converts an optical image into an electrical signal. Hereinafter, an electrical signal obtained by converting an external optical image by the image sensor 110 is called image data. The image data is transmitted to the image controller 310 by a control signal from the camera control device 300.

Here, the image data is an electrical signal obtained by converting an optical image captured through a lens of a camera (not shown). Since the image data does not have a data format that can be directly displayed on the LCD module 350, which will be described later, the image data is converted into a signal having an RGB format or a color difference signal YCbCr format, which can be displayed on the LCD module 350. Should be. In the present invention, the image data converted into the RGB format or the YcbCr format that can be displayed on the LCD module 350 is called preview image data. The conversion is performed in the image controller 310 to be described later.

The LCD module 350 converts the preview image data into visual information that can be visually identified, that is, optical images.

The LCD module 350 displays a screen necessary for a user for a phone call function, a short message transmission / reception function, an address book management function, etc. which are basic functions of the portable terminal. In addition, the present invention converts the preview image data converted by the image controller 310 to the image captured by the camera or the preview image being prepared for shooting to visual information again and displayed on the screen.

Previously, the LCD module included a controller and memory separately. The memory temporarily stores the preview image data to be displayed on the liquid crystal panel of the LCD module, and the controller is responsible for displaying the preview image data stored in the memory on the liquid crystal panel. However, in the present invention, the LCD module 350 does not include a controller and a memory, and the preview image data is displayed on the screen by using the LCD controller 320 and the dual port memory 330 included in the camera control device 300. Will be displayed.

Referring to FIG. 5, the LCD module 350 according to the present invention includes a power supply unit 30, a gate driver 40, a source driver 50, and a liquid crystal panel 60.

In the liquid crystal panel 60, a plurality of gate lines and a data line cross each other, and a thin film transistor is disposed at a portion where each gate line and the data line cross each other to display an image.

The gate driver 40 applies a driving voltage for driving the gate line of the liquid crystal panel 60, and the source driver 50 applies a driving voltage for driving the data line of the liquid crystal panel 60.

The power supply 30 applies DC power to operate the gate driver 40 and the source driver 50.

The source driver 50 includes data voltages of R, G, and B, a power source for driving a digital circuit, a power source for driving each thin film transistor of a liquid crystal, and control signals for controlling them.

The gate driver 40 and the source driver 50 apply a driving voltage for driving the liquid crystal panel 60 by the driver control signal transmitted through the fifth control bus Control_Bus 5.

The microcontroller unit (MCU) 120 is a main processor that is basically provided in a portable terminal. The basic functions of the portable terminal are a phone call function, a short message transmission function, and an address book management function. In the present invention, the microcontroller unit 120 serves as a main system for controlling the camera control device 300 by serving a function of processing image data or preview image data in addition to the above-described basic functions. Control the flow of control signals and image data to the image sensor 110, the LCD controller 320, the dual port memory 330, the LCD module 350, etc. through the image controller 310 of the camera control device 300. do.

The camera control device 300 may include an image controller 310, an LCD controller 320, and a dual port memory 330.

The image controller 310 reads out image data generated by the image sensor 110. The image controller 310 transmits a control signal through the second control bus Control_Bus 2 according to a control signal from the microcontroller unit 120 through the first control bus Control_Bus 1, and the image according to the control signal. The image data generated in the sensor 110 is read through the second data bus Data_Bus 2.

Since the image data does not have a data format that can be directly displayed on the LCD module 350, when the image controller 310 records the image data in the dual port memory 330, the LCD module 350 It is desirable to convert to a data format that can be displayed directly in. That is, the image data stored in the dual port memory 330 may be preview image data having an RGB format, which is a primary color signal of each pixel, or a YCbCr format, which is a color difference signal.

The image controller 310 accesses the dual port memory 330 through the third control bus Control_Bus 3 and the third data bus Data_Bus 3, and records the preview image data in a specific area according to the write control signal. Here, the write control signal includes information such as address information that can be accessed on the dual port memory 330, recordable data, and the like.

The image controller 310 generates an LCD controller control signal for controlling the LCD controller 320 and outputs it to the LCD controller 320. The LCD controller control signal causes the LCD controller 320 to read the preview image data recorded in the dual port memory 330 and generate a driver control signal capable of controlling the drivers 40 and 50 of the LCD module 350. . Here, the LCD controller control signal is a specific address where the preview image data is stored, an access command for instructing the LCD controller 320 to access the dual port memory 330, and transfers the first preview image data to the LCD module 350 to display the screen. A display command for instructing display on the image, and the like.

In addition, the image controller 310 may include a scaler for converting the preview image data according to the size of the liquid crystal panel 60 of the LCD module 350. For example, when the number of pixels of the liquid crystal panel 60 of the LCD module 350 is one quarter of the pixels of the generated preview image data, a method of leaving only one pixel for every four pixels of the preview image data is used. Scaling is possible. This is merely an example and can be scaled by other methods.

The LCD controller 320 receives the LCD controller control signal from the image controller 310 through the sixth control bus Control_Bus 6. Read preview image data stored in a specific area in the dual port memory 330 through the fourth control bus Control_Bus 4 and the fourth data bus Data_Bus 4 according to the read control signal generated using the LCD controller control signal. . The controller generates a driver control signal for controlling the drivers 40 and 50 of the LCD module 350 according to the LCD controller control signal. The preview image data is transmitted to the LCD module 350 through the fifth data bus Data_Bus 5 and the driver control signal through the fifth control bus Control_Bus 5.

The LCD controller 320 may include an LVDS unit and a timing controller. The LVDS unit compresses a plurality of input preview image data and provides the same to the timing controller. The timing controller delivers the compressed preview image data of R, G, and B to the source driver, and controls the timing of applying the driving voltages of the source driver 50 and the gate driver 40. As a result, the preview image data is expressed on the liquid crystal panel 60 of the LCD module 350.

The dual port memory 330 is a structure used by the combined controller, and should have an access port corresponding to the number of controllers sharing the dual port memory 330. Here, the controller includes an image controller 310 and an LCD controller 320. In addition, the microcontroller unit 120 may be included.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, if the dual port memory 330 is commonly coupled to the image controller 310 and the LCD controller 320, two access ports 410 and 420 should be provided. .

That is, the two access ports are divided into a first port 410 and a second port 420 so that the first port 410 is connected to the image controller 310 and the second port 420 is an LCD controller ( 320). The first port 410 is connected to the image controller 310 through a third control bus Control_Bus 3 and a third data bus Data_Bus 3. The second port 420 is connected to the LCD controller 320 through the fourth control bus Control_Bus 4 and the fourth data bus Data_Bus 4. Clock, write enable, and read enable signals may be included in the write control signal transmitted through the third control bus Control_Bus 3 or the read control signal transmitted through the fourth control bus Control_Bus 4. , Chip select, data address, and the like.

The storage area of the dual port memory 330 may be divided into partition areas corresponding to the number of combined controllers. This is to allow each controller to simultaneously access each partition and perform a write operation or a read operation. For example, when two controllers, that is, the image controller 310 and the LCD controller 320 are combined in the dual port memory 330, at least two areas (the first preview storage area 440 and the second preview storage area) are combined. And the image controller 320 and the LCD controller 320, respectively.

While the image controller 310 accesses the first preview storage area 440 to record the preview image data, the LCD controller 320 accesses the second preview storage area 450 to record the preview image data previously recorded. Can be read and displayed on the screen. The image controller 310 and the LCD controller 320 may access both the first preview storage area 440 or the second preview storage area 450. However, the image controller 310 and the LCD controller 320 do not simultaneously access the same preview storage area 440 or 450. Each preview storage area 440, 450 is an area that can be accessed individually unless it is assigned to a dedicated area of a particular controller and accessed at the same time. This is to maintain the temporal consistency of the data continuously by setting the next processing to proceed after the processing of one controller is completed. Of course, even if there are two controllers coupled to the dual port memory 330, the storage area of the dual port memory 330 may be divided into three or more.

The image controller 310 may control access to the dual port memory 330 of the LCD controller 320 using the LCD controller control signal. Accordingly, the image controller 310 recognizes the preview storage area that is currently being accessed, and receives an LCD controller control signal for allowing the LCD controller 320 to access another preview storage area to read out the preview image data already recorded. send.

The dual port memory 330 may further include an image storage area 460 in addition to the preview storage areas 440 and 450. The preview storage areas 440 and 450 have a preview image data in which the data format is converted and, if necessary, the size of the converted image in order to show the optical image captured by the image sensor 110 to the LCD module 350 as soon as possible. Is saving. In contrast, the image storage area 460 stores the optical image captured by the image sensor 110 in a file format such as JPEG, RAW, TIFF, etc. by a predetermined operation (for example, shooting due to pressing the shutter). Storage area for Preview image data and general image data of the same optical image may be simultaneously stored in the preview storage regions 440 and 450 and the image storage region 460, respectively. Alternatively, only the optical image selected by a predetermined operation such as being photographed by the user may be stored in the image storage area 460.

For example, when the image sensor 110 captures continuous image data composed of several frames and displays the same on the LCD module 350, the image controller 310 may include a first preview storage area 440. ) Stores the preview image data for the first frame. In addition, while the image controller 310 stores the preview image data for the second frame in the second preview storage area 450, the LCD controller 320 controls the first preview storage area 440 under the control of the image controller 310. ), The preview image data for the first frame previously stored is read out and displayed on the screen. Then, while the image controller 310 stores the preview image data for the third frame in the first preview storage area 440, the LCD controller 320 accesses the second preview storage area 450 to the second frame. The preview image data is read out and displayed on the screen. By repeating this process, write and read operations to the dual port memory 330 can be simultaneously performed, compared to when using a single port memory without doubling the operation speed of the image controller 310. 2 times the image data can be delivered within the same time.

The size of each partition of the dual port memory 330 (that is, the first preview storage area 440, the second preview storage area 450, and the image storage area 460) is preset as a default or The image controller 310 may be divided into arbitrary sizes, or may be set to be changed by the image controller 310 at every required time point (eg, when the data to be recorded is greater than or equal to the size of the recordable area).

That is, address information of the divided storage areas among the storage areas of the dual port memory 330 may be set and managed by the image controller 310. In this case, the information about the divided storage area of the dual port memory 330 may be recognized by each controller during the booting process of the portable terminal.

In addition, if the dual port memory 330 is an SDRAM, regions may be divided in bank units. A typical SDRAM includes a RAS address, a CAS address, and a bank address, and typically consists of four banks.

When dividing the storage area of the dual port memory 330 into a plurality of partitions, it is most ideal to divide the storage area into internal block units. Thus, for example, two banks are allocated to the image storage area 460, and the other two banks are respectively allocated. The first preview storage area 440 and the second preview storage area 450 may be allocated.

As described above, the first controller or the second preview storage area 440 or 450 is limited to allow only one controller 310 or 320 to be accessible at any point in time, so that the image controller 310 stores the respective preview storage area 440,. Information regarding access of 450) should be managed.

The dual port memory 330 may include one memory controller 430, and the memory controller 430 may provide a function of controlling the shared memory in response to address decoding and control signals received from other controllers. To perform.

The microcontroller unit (MCU) 120 is a main processor that is basically provided in a portable terminal. The basic functions of the portable terminal are a phone call function, a short message transmission function, and an address book management function. In the present invention, the microcontroller unit 120 serves as a main system for controlling the image controller 310 in addition to the above-described basic functions to handle image data. The image controller 310 controls the flow of control signals and image data to the image controller 310, the LCD controller 320, the dual port memory 330, the LCD module 350, and the like.

The image controller 310 transmits a control signal to the image sensor 110, the LCD controller 320, and the dual port memory 330 to process the image data, and controls the flow of the image data accordingly. According to a control signal received from the microcontroller unit 120 through the first control bus Control_Bus 1, the image sensor 110, the dual port memory 330, and the LCD controller 320 are directly controlled and the result thereof or The data is transmitted through the first data bus Data_Bus 1. Here, the control signal may include a processing command, a control command, and the like, and as a result, the data may include status information, a response signal (Ack), a processing completion response, operation status / setting status confirmation information on another processor, and the like. have.

Read preview image data from the image sensor 110 as a control signal, write to the dual port memory 330, read preview image data recorded in the dual port memory 330, display on the LCD module 350, and the like. This may be included. The image controller 310 transmits a response signal, a processing completion response, and the like, to the microcontroller unit 120.

The image controller 310 transmits a control signal to the image sensor 110 through the second control bus Control_Bus 2. The control signal converts an optical image captured by a camera (not shown) into an electrical signal, and then preview image data converted from a data format is transferred from the image sensor 310 through the second data bus Data_Bus 2. 310).

The write control signal is transmitted to the dual port memory 330 through the third control bus Control_Bus 3. The write control signal includes a storage location and a storage address in the dual port memory 330. In addition, the write control signal allows the preview image data received from the image controller 310 to be stored at a predetermined position or a predetermined address on the dual port memory 330. The preview image data is transferred from the image controller 310 to the dual port memory 330 through the third data bus Data_Bus 3.

The image controller 310 transmits the LCD controller control signal through the sixth control bus Control_Bus 6 to output the access timing of the LCD controller 320 to the dual port memory 330, the access address, and the output to the LCD module 350. To control.

The interface with the outside in the camera control device 300 according to the present invention is the first control bus (Control_Bus 1) and the first data bus (Data_Bus 1), the second control bus (Control_Bus 2) and the second data bus (Data_Bus) 2) The fifth control bus (Control_Bus 5) and the fifth data bus (Data_Bus 5) has a minimum number of pins according to one chip.

Hereinafter, a detailed operation of a method of continuously displaying image data in an image data display device including a camera control device will be described. The terms used in FIG. 7 below will be used the same as the terms shown in FIGS. 4 to 6.

7 is a flowchart illustrating a method of displaying image data according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, in operation S705a, the image sensor 110 generates first image data obtained by converting an optical image captured by a camera or the like into an electrical signal.

In operation S710a, the image sensor 110 receives a control signal from the image controller 310 and transfers the generated first image data to the image controller 310.

In operation S715a, the image controller 310 generates first preview image data obtained by converting the first image data into a data format that can be expressed by the LCD module 350.

In operation S720a, the image controller 310 searches for the preview storage area 440 or 450 of the dual port memory 330 capable of storing the first preview image data, and writes a write control signal (writeable specific signal) to the dual port memory 330. First preview image data together with the address, recordable information, etc.). Here, the specific address is a data access address on the dual port memory 330 which may be preset or changed by the image controller 310. In this example, first, it is assumed that the first preview storage area 440 is accessible. If access to all preview storage areas is not possible, access may be performed after a predetermined time has elapsed, or after the access right to the dual port memory 330 is transferred.

In operation S725a, the image controller 310 transmits an LCD controller control signal to the LCD controller 320. In the LCD controller control signal, a specific address at which the first preview image data is stored, an access command for instructing the LCD controller 320 to access the dual port memory 330, and the first preview image data are transmitted to the LCD module 350 to display the image on the screen. Display instructions for instructing the display to be displayed.

In operation S730a, the LCD controller 320 accesses the first preview storage area 440 of the dual port memory 330 by using the information included in the LCD controller signal, and reads the first preview image data. The driver control signal is generated using an LVDS unit, a timing controller, and the like so that the LCD module 350 can be expressed.

In operation S735a, the LCD controller 320 transmits the read first preview image data and the driver control signal to the LCD module 350.

In step S740a, the LCD module 350 displays the first preview image data on the liquid crystal panel 60 according to the driver control signal.

In operation S705b, the image sensor 110 generates second image data obtained by converting an optical image captured by a camera or the like into an electrical signal.

In operation S710b, the image sensor 110 receives a control signal from the image controller 310 and transmits the generated second image data to the image controller 310.

In operation S715b, the image controller 310 generates second preview image data obtained by converting the second image data into a data format that can be expressed by the LCD module 350.

In operation S720b, the image controller 310 searches for the preview storage area 440 or 450 of the dual port memory 330 capable of storing the second preview image data, and writes to the dual port memory 330 a control signal (recordable specific). The second preview image data together with the address, recordable information, etc.). Since the first preview storage area 440 is accessed by the LCD controller 320, the second preview storage area 450 can be accessed.

In operation S725b, the image controller 310 transmits an LCD controller control signal to the LCD controller 320. In the LCD controller control signal, a specific address where the second preview image data is stored, an access command for instructing the LCD controller 320 to access the dual port memory 330, and the second preview image data is transmitted to the LCD module 350 to display the image on the screen. Display instructions for instructing the display to be displayed.

In operation S730b, the LCD controller 320 accesses the second preview storage area 450 of the dual port memory 330 by using the information included in the LCD controller signal, and reads out the second preview image data. The driver control signal is generated using an LVDS unit, a timing controller, and the like so that the LCD module 350 can be expressed.

In operation S735b, the LCD controller 320 transmits the read second preview image data and the driver control signal to the LCD module 350.

In step S740b, the LCD module 350 displays the second preview image data on the liquid crystal panel 60 according to the driver control signal.

Here, while the LCD controller 320 reads the first preview image data from the first preview storage area 440 and displays the first preview image data on the LCD module 350 in steps S730a to S740a, the image controller 310 through step S720b. The operation of recording the second preview image data in the second preview storage area 450 may be simultaneously performed. This is because each of the controllers 310 and 320 can be accessed separately and simultaneously read or write to each preview storage area 440 or 450 due to the characteristics of the dual port memory 330.

In the present invention, the first or second ordered preview image data means an order on consecutive frames.

In the present invention, the dual port memory 330 is divided into two preview storage areas 440 and 450. However, the dual port memory 330 is divided into three or more preview storage areas. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that recording and reading operations can be performed at the same time, and thus detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As described above, the image data display method and the apparatus according to the present invention can prevent the increase in the number of pins by reducing the interface with the outside by configuring the memory and the controller together in one chip.

In addition, the dual port memory allows the controller to read images from the image sensor and write them to the memory, and the LCD module to read the image data from the memory at the same time.

In addition, even if the size of the LCD module is doubled, the operation speed of the controller does not need to double in proportion to it.

In addition, the device's size can be reduced by integrating the controller and memory from the LCD module into the controller and dual port memory in the camera control chip.

Although the above has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims below It will be appreciated that modifications and variations can be made.

Claims (22)

An image sensor and an LCD module included in a portable terminal having a camera function, wherein the LCD module includes a liquid crystal panel displaying a screen by an applied voltage, a driver for applying the applied voltage to the liquid crystal panel, and a power source for the driver. Including a power supply for supplying a camera control device coupled between, A preview image data having a preview region having at least two divided preview storage regions, the preview image data being recorded from one of the preview storage regions simultaneously with the recording of preview image data in one of the preview storage regions; A dual port memory capable of reading of the data, wherein the preview image data has a data format displayable on the LCD module; Receives an LCD controller control signal, reads the preview image data from the dual port memory and generates a driver control signal for controlling the driver according to the LCD controller control signal, and outputs the preview image data and the driver control signal An LCD controller for transmitting to the LCD module; And An image controller which reads image data from the image sensor, converts the image data into the preview image data, records the image data in the dual port memory, and outputs the LCD controller control signal for controlling the LCD controller. Camera control device comprising a. The method of claim 1, The dual port memory has at least two first and second access ports, so that the preview image data can be simultaneously read and written through the first and second access ports. The method of claim 2, And the image controller transmits a recording control signal through the first access port to record the preview image data. The method of claim 3, And the LCD controller reads the preview image data by transferring a read control signal generated from the LCD controller control signal through the second access port. The method of claim 4, wherein The LCD controller, An LVDS unit compressing the preview image data; And And a timing controller generating the driver control signal from the LCD controller control signal and transferring the compressed preview image data and the driver control signal to a driver of the LCD module. The method of claim 1, The preview image data has a continuous frame, And the preview image data recorded in one of the preview storage regions at an arbitrary time point corresponds to a frame having a lower priority than the preview image data read out from the other of the preview storage regions. The method of claim 1, The image controller comprises a scaler (scaler) for converting the image data to fit the size of the liquid crystal panel. The method of claim 1, The dual port memory has an image storage area, And the image controller separately records the image data in the image storage area. In the video data display device included in a portable terminal having a camera function, An image sensor converting an optical image photographed through a camera into an electrical signal to generate image data; An LCD module including a liquid crystal panel displaying a screen by an applied voltage, a driver applying the applied voltage to the liquid crystal panel, and a power supply unit supplying power to the driver; A dual port having a preview area having at least two divided preview storage areas, and capable of reading preview video data recorded from another of the preview storage areas simultaneously with recording of preview video data in one of the preview storage areas. Memory, wherein the preview image data has a data format displayable on the LCD module; Receives an LCD controller control signal, reads the preview image data from the dual port memory and generates a driver control signal for controlling the driver according to the LCD controller control signal, and outputs the preview image data and the driver control signal An LCD controller for transmitting to the LCD module; And An image controller which reads image data from the image sensor, converts the image data into the preview image data, records the image data in the dual port memory, and outputs the LCD controller control signal for controlling the LCD controller. Image data display device comprising a. The method of claim 9, And the dual port memory has at least two first and second access ports so that the preview image data can be read and written simultaneously through the first and second access ports. The method of claim 10, The image controller, And a recording control signal is transmitted through the first access port to record the preview image data. The method of claim 11, The LCD controller, And a read control signal generated from the LCD controller control signal through the second access port to read the preview image data. Claim 13 was abandoned upon payment of a registration fee. The method of claim 12, The LCD controller, An LVDS unit compressing the preview image data; And And a timing controller which generates the driver control signal from the LCD controller control signal and transmits the compressed preview image data and the driver control signal to a driver of the LCD module. Claim 14 was abandoned when the registration fee was paid. The method of claim 9, The preview image data has a continuous frame, And preview image data recorded in one of the preview storage regions at a certain point of time corresponds to a frame having a lower priority than preview image data read from the other of the preview storage regions. Claim 15 was abandoned upon payment of a registration fee. The method of claim 9, And the image controller comprises a scaler for converting the image data to match the size of the liquid crystal panel. The method of claim 9, The dual port memory has an image storage area, And the image controller separately records the image data in the image storage area. The method of claim 9, And the dual port memory, the image controller and the LCD controller are implemented on one chip. Claim 18 was abandoned upon payment of a set-up fee. The method of claim 9, And the image controller is controlled by a micro controller unit of the portable terminal. LCD module, wherein the LCD module displays image data having a continuous frame generated by an image sensor included in a portable terminal having a camera function, wherein the LCD module displays the screen by an applied voltage; 1. A method of displaying on a display comprising a driver for applying a voltage and a power supply for supplying power to the driver. (a) generating first preview image data for the first frame; (b) recording the first preview image data in one of storage areas of a dual port memory having at least two divided storage areas; (c) reading second preview image data already recorded in another one of the storage areas of the dual port memory; And (d) displaying the second preview image data on the LCD module; And (b) and (c) are performed simultaneously. Claim 20 was abandoned upon payment of a registration fee. The method of claim 19, And the first preview image data corresponds to a frame having a lower priority than the second preview image data. The method of claim 19, And the first or second preview image data converts the image data generated by the image sensor into a data format displayable by the LCD module. The method of claim 19, And (d) repeating the steps (a) to (d).

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