KR20070041252A - Apparatus of functioning as an instant-on and methode of controlling the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an instant on function implementing apparatus for controlling an instant on function in a system using an instant on function stored in an external memory, and a control method thereof. The present invention is characterized in that a program for performing an instant on function is stored in an external flash memory and operated by executing a program of a corresponding instant on function from an external memory when the system is driven. Therefore, the present invention does not need to include a program according to the instant-on function in the hard disk provided inside the main body, so that the usage capacity of the hard disk can be expanded. In addition, the present invention implements the instant on function in the external memory, so that the instant on function can be selectively used to obtain an effect of further expanding the user's selection range. In addition, the present invention can also be obtained by using an external memory that implements one instant on function under the same specifications can be used for multiple terminals.

Instant On, External Memory

Description

Apparatus of Functioning as an Instant-On and Methode of Controlling the same}

1 is a perspective view of a typical portable computer,

2a is a control block diagram of a computer in which a conventional instant on function is implemented;

Figure 2b is a hardware configuration diagram loaded with a conventional instant on function,

3 is an operation flowchart for controlling a conventional instant on function;

4 is a control block diagram of an apparatus for implementing an instant on function according to the present invention;

5 is a configuration diagram of an external memory storing an instant on operation program according to the present invention;

6 is a control flowchart of an instant on function implementing device according to the present invention;

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

100: portable computer body 113: main memory

114: power controller 116: hard disk

118: arithmetic unit 120: external memory

The present invention relates to a device for implementing an instant on function and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to an instant on function implementing device for controlling an instant on function in a system using an external memory in which an instant on operation program is stored, and a method for controlling the same. will be.

In modern society, everything is done by computers. Many users use computers to store and store information, from personal information to corporate affairs and many other subsidiary tasks. Recently, due to the development of semiconductors and the development of technology, chips used in computers have become very small and their functions have been greatly expanded. Therefore, recently, a portable computer is used to watch movies, listen to music, and control various electronic devices in the home.

As more and more users enjoy various entertainments using a computer, an Instant On function is implemented that enables users to watch TV or DVD without booting the computer normally. The instant on is characterized in that it is possible to reduce the unnecessary boot process and time by separately installing the operating system (OS) for the entertainment system on the computer.

1 and 3 illustrate an instant on control device and a control method implemented in a conventional portable computer.

As shown in the figure, a computer consists of the structure of the liquid crystal display 8, the keyboard 7, and the main body 1. As shown in FIG. The main body 10 is provided with a keyboard and a mouse button.

The main body 1 has a power button 3, a DVD button 4, a music button 5, a volume control button 6, and the like on the upper end of the keyboard 7. The DVD button and the music button are buttons for performing an instant on function.

That is, the computer operates various applications of the system while a normal operating system is booting and running, and plays DVDs or MP3s and CDs while the normal operating system is not booted and running. The instant on function that performs the same relatively simple operation is mounted.

The instant on function is configured to be executed by an input of a DVD button or a music button, and the instant on function is configured to operate a DVD play mode or a music play mode set to be executed under the operating system while another operating system (Linux) is booted. It is done.

2A is a control block diagram for controlling an application of a conventional portable computer.

The portable computer includes a CPU 10, a video controller 11, a north bridge 12 that controls a memory, a main memory 13, and an input / output controller I. / O Controller (14), South Bridge (15), Hard Disk (HDD) (16), Keyboard Controller (17), which is a collection of registers that manage I / O functions of peripheral devices. It is configured to include. The keyboard controller 17 analyzes the received signal and outputs a corresponding control signal according to a selection of an instant on function or a normal system boot function. Therefore, the main body of the computer is provided with various buttons for selecting a specific operating system and / or playing a specific media, and selecting a multimedia button under a specific operating system enables booting to a predetermined operating system and executing applications in each operating system environment. .

The hard disk 16 is mounted with at least two operating systems. As shown in FIG. 2B, the first boot area 16a on which the Linux operating system (Linux O / S) is mounted, the second boot area 16b on which the Windows operating system (Window O / S) is mounted, And the C drive 16c, the D drive 16d, and the like.

Next, the operation of the conventional portable computer having the above configuration will be described.

When the system is off (step 200), when the user selects the DVD button 4 (step 215), the keyboard controller 17 analyzes the signal and determines that it is a signal corresponding to the instant on function.

When the keyboard controller 17 instructs the execution of the instant on function, a signal for controlling the Linux operating system to be uploaded to the main memory 13 and to read the Linux operating system from the hard disk 16 is then generated. step).

The Linux uploaded to the main memory 13 in step 218 is booted by the ROM BIOS, and an instant on player is executed under the Linux operating system (step 221).

The instant on player supports various audio formats (CDDA, MP3) and video formats (DVD, DVD + VR, DVD-VR, VCD, SVCD). As shown in step 221, the instant on player is executed on the display unit 8 of FIG. 1.

In step 221, the instant on player is executed, and since the button selected in step 215 is a DVD button, the DVD mode is performed on the instant on player to perform DVD playback (step 224).

Therefore, the user selects the DVD button 4 once to perform the operation from power on to system booting, instant on player execution, and DVD playback at once.

Next, when the system is off (step 200) and the button selected by the user is not a DVD button and the music button 5 is selected (step 227), the keyboard controller 17 analyzes the signal and instant-on. It is determined that the signal corresponds to the function.

When the keyboard controller 17 instructs execution of the instant on function, the Linux operating system is read from the hard disk 16 and the Linux operating system is controlled to be uploaded to the main memory 13 (step 230).

The Linux uploaded to the main memory 13 in step 230 is booted by the ROM BIOS, and an instant on player is executed under the Linux operating system (step 233).

The instant on player supports various audio formats (CDDA, MP3) and video formats (DVD, DVD + VR, DVD-VR, VCD, SVCD). As illustrated in the step 233, an instance on player is executed on the display unit 8 of FIG. 1.

In step 233, the instant on player is executed, and since the button selected in step 227 is a music button, a music mode is performed on the instant on player to play a CD or an MP3 file (step 236).

Therefore, the user selects the music button 5 once, and thus is performed at once from power on to system booting, instant on player execution, and music playback, thereby providing convenience and convenience in use.

Next, when the system is off (step 200), if the button selected by the user selects the power button 3 other than the DVD button 4 and the music button 5 (step 203), the keyboard controller 17 Analyze the signal and determines that the signal corresponds to a normal operating system boot.

The keyboard controller 17 reads the Windows operating system from the hard disk 16 and controls the Windows operating system to be uploaded to the main memory 13 (step 206).

Then, the window is booted (step 209), and then the application program of a specific function selected by the user is executed under the Windows operating system (step 212). The operation process of an application program under the Windows operating system is the same as that of a general computer operation process.

As described above, in the conventional computer, an operating system (or program) related to the instant on function is configured to be used in a predetermined portion of the hard disk. For this reason, the conventional instant on function has a limitation in that it operates only within a computer equipped with a hard disk storing an operating system according to the instant on function.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an instant on function implementing device and a method for controlling the instant on function in any computer using an external memory storing an instant on operation program.

An apparatus for implementing an instant on function according to the present invention for achieving the above object comprises: an instant on signal detecting means for detecting a button input according to the instant on function and outputting a corresponding instant on signal; Power supply control means for controlling power supply to a corresponding element in accordance with an output value of the detection means; A system main body having a computing means for controlling an instant on function according to an output value of the sensing means;

It is detachable and attachable to the system main body, and consists of an external memory storing a main program according to an instant on command ID and an instant on function, and at least one instant on function operation program.

When the instant on function is selected, the instant on function is operated by a program stored in the external memory.

The system main body of the present invention is characterized in that it further comprises a hard disk that stores the operating system operating in the normal operating state.

The external memory of the present invention is characterized by storing an instant on audio program and an instant on video program.

The external memory of the present invention may be configured to further store an instant on program having a new function.

The sensing means of the present invention is characterized in that the keyboard controller.

In addition, the instant on function control method according to the present invention includes a determination step of determining whether the external memory storing the instant on operation program is mounted; if it is determined that the external memory is mounted in the determination step, any instant on function is selected A monitoring step of monitoring whether it is possible; A power supply step of supplying power to a device corresponding to the instant on function selected in the monitoring step; A driving step of driving an instant on main program stored in an external memory; After the main program is driven by the driving step, the step of executing the desired program from the instant-on operation program stored in the external memory is configured to include.

If it is determined that the external memory is mounted in the determination step of the present invention, the method further includes a reading step of reading an instant on command ID stored in the external memory.

Hereinafter, an apparatus implementing the instant on function and a control method thereof will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The portable computer main body 100 of the present invention comprises a central processing unit (CPU: 110), a memory control hub (MCH: northbridge: 112), an input / output control hub (ICH: south bridge: 115), and data in the system. And an arithmetic unit 118 for controlling the transmission and processing of the data. In addition, a video controller 111 for controlling display of video output, a main memory 113 for storing a program to be initially operated for system operation such as a BIOS, and the like are processed in the system. And a hard disk (HDD) 116 for storing various data, a keyboard controller 117, a power controller 114 for controlling power supply in each system configuration, and the like. In addition to this, the audio control configuration and other components included in the general portable computer are further included, but a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The keyboard controller 117 analyzes the input signal and outputs the control signal according to the selection of the instant on function or the normal system boot function. Accordingly, the keyboard is provided with various buttons for selecting a specific operating system and / or playing a specific media, and selecting a multimedia button under a specific operating system enables booting to a predetermined operating system and executing applications in each operating system environment. That is, the portable computer main body 100 of the present invention is provided with a general power button and various DVD buttons, music buttons, and the like according to the configuration of the perspective view shown in FIG. The configuration of FIG. 1 will be used as it is in the following description of the present invention.

The hard disk 116 of the present invention includes a region in which a Windows operating system (Window O / S) is driven that is operated under normal power-on button operation, and other C and D drives.

The system BIOS is stored in the main memory 113. The system BIOS is configured to set a mode for determining whether to insert an external memory according to a user selection. When the instant on function is selected, the POST routine is executed to enter the instant on mode instead of the normal operating system.

The present invention further comprises an external memory 120 that can be detached and mounted in the portable computer main body 100. The external memory 120 includes an input / output terminal and is configured to transmit and receive a signal to and from the computing device 118 of the portable computer main body 100. That is, the external memory 120 is preferably implemented as an interface according to the instant on function.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, the external memory 120 stores various programs for implementing an instant on function. For example, the instant on audio program 121 is operated at the time of the instant on function of audio, and the instant on video program 122 is operated at the time of the instant on function of a video such as a DVD. 123 denotes a command ID corresponding to the instant on function, and 124 denotes an instant on main program. The instant on main program includes an operating system for performing instant on driving. The external memory 120 uses a flash memory, and is configured to additionally load another program for implementing an instant on function as needed.

Next, the operation of the portable computer according to the present invention having the above configuration will be described.

When an initial power source for initial operation of the system is applied to the computing device 118, the computing device 118 drives the ROM BIOS stored in the main memory 113. The ROM bios first determines whether the external memory 120 is mounted (operation 300). When the external memory 120 is mounted, the instant on command ID 123 stored in the external memory 120 is read to determine whether a command according to the instant on function is input (operation 310).

When the user selects the DVD button 4 or the music button 5 according to the instant on function (step 320), the BIOS may be configured to supply power to the corresponding device for the operation of the input instant on function. 114 to provide a signal. If the user selects the DVD instant on function button 4, the BIOS outputs a control signal so that power can be supplied to the minimum device necessary for DVD operation control. The power controller 114 controls the power supply to the DVD operation controller including the video controller 111 (step 330). In addition, when the user selects the music button 5 according to the instant on function, the BIOS outputs a signal so that power can be supplied to the minimum device necessary for controlling the audio operation, and the power controller includes an audio controller. The power is supplied to the audio operation controller.

In addition, the BIOS controls the booting operation according to the instant-on mode, not the booting operation according to the normal operation, to the next operation. In other words, instead of initializing all hardware in the system, only hardware required by DVD driving or audio driving is initialized, thereby helping to improve power management and booting speed (step 340).

In step 340, the component is required for the instant on function, and the input / output check of each device is performed. The operation is controlled by an instant on bios stored in main memory 113. In other words, it is an instant on BIOS required for instant on booting. The instant on BIOS performs a minimum hardware initialization necessary for the instant on function so as to quickly boot, and the hardware initializes the chipsets necessary for performing the instant on function with a video chip, an audio chip, and a main chip.

If the components and devices necessary for the instant on function are not abnormal by the above operation, the instant on main program 124 stored in the external memory 120 is driven (operation 350). The main program 124 is driven by a specific operating system required for the instant on function, for example, a program such as a Linux program.

When the Linux program is executed and booting to the Linux operating system is completed, it is controlled to execute a specific application according to the instant on button signal selected in operation 320 (operation 360). That is, when the DVD button is selected, the DVD mode is controlled to be executed, and when the music button is selected, the corresponding player is executed to perform the music mode.

On the other hand, if the signal input through the keyboard controller 117 in step 320 is a button signal input in the normal operation state, it instructs the system BIOS (Hardware Initialization) to initialize the hardware, power each part It is controlled to be supplied (step 370).

The system BIOS reads a Windows program stored in the hard disk 116 and loads it into the main memory 113. The system BIOS is a program stored in the ROM BIOS. The system BIOS checks input / output of various devices such as a graphics card, a keyboard, and the like in order to boot a window. If there is no problem with each component and device, booting starts with Windows (steps 380 and 390). That is, the boot record of the hard disk 116 is checked, and a Windows program is read and loaded into the memory. It then transfers full control of the computer's operation and management to the Windows operating system.

When the Windows operating system is executed, the booting process ends. Thereafter, when the user selects a specific media playback signal, the specific application program is executed under the Windows operating system environment (step 395).

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention should not be limited to the contents described in the detailed description of the specification but should be defined by the claims.

The instant-on function implementing apparatus and control method thereof according to the present invention described above store a program according to the instant-on function in an external memory, and the instant-on function based on the program stored in the memory when the user selects the instant-on function. It is controlled to be performed. Therefore, the present invention does not need to include a program according to the instant-on function in the hard disk provided inside the main body, so that the usage capacity of the hard disk can be expanded. In addition, the present invention implements the instant on function in the external memory, so that the instant on function can be selectively used to obtain an effect of further expanding the user's selection range. In addition, the present invention can also be obtained by using an external memory that implements one instant on function under the same specifications can be used for multiple terminals.

Claims (7)

Instant on signal detecting means for detecting a button input according to the instant on function and outputting a corresponding instant on signal; Power supply control means for controlling power supply to a corresponding element in accordance with an output value of the detection means; A system main body having a computing means for controlling an instant on function according to an output value of the sensing means; It is detachable and attachable to the system main body, and consists of an external memory storing a main program according to an instant on command ID and an instant on function, and at least one instant on function operation program. And selecting the instant on function, wherein the instant on function is operated by a program stored in the external memory. The method of claim 1, The system main body further includes a hard disk storing an operating system operating in a normal operating state. The method of claim 1, And the external memory stores an instant on audio program and an instant on video program. The method of claim 1, The external memory, the instant on function implementation device, characterized in that configured to further store a new function instant on program. The method of claim 1, And the sensing means is a keyboard controller. A determination step of determining whether the external memory storing the instant on operation program is mounted; A monitoring step of monitoring whether an instant on function is selected when it is determined that the external memory is mounted in the determining step; A power supply step of supplying power to a device corresponding to the instant on function selected in the monitoring step; A driving step of driving an instant on main program stored in an external memory; And a step of executing a desired program among instant-on operation programs stored in an external memory after driving the main program by the driving step. The method of claim 6, And a reading step of reading an instant on command ID stored in the external memory when it is determined that the external memory is mounted in the determining step.

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