KR20090124089A - Apparatus and method for partially deactivating display - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A method and an apparatus for partly activating a display for reducing the driving electricity of the display are provided to reduce power consumption by partially activating the display. CONSTITUTION: A display driver(30) drives a display(32). A controller(20) sets up an activation domain of the display and deactivates the domain of the display except for the activation domain. If the input for adjusting the size or the location of the activation domain exists, the controller varies the size or the location of the activation domain through the display drive unit. The deactivation cuts off the pixels comprising the display.

Description

Method and device for partially activating display {APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR PARTIALLY DEACTIVATING DISPLAY}

The present invention relates to a display, and more particularly, to a method and an apparatus capable of reducing power consumption of a display.

The mobile terminal has a disadvantage that its power is limited due to its portability. Therefore, many techniques have been proposed for securing a minimum battery capacity for using a telephone function, which is a basic function, in a mobile terminal. One such technique is that the mobile terminal restricts the operation of its additional functions when the battery capacity of the mobile terminal is low. For example, when the mobile terminal is operating as an MP3 player and the battery capacity of the mobile terminal is low, the mobile terminal stops playing the MP3 music file.

Alternatively, the mobile terminal reduces the power consumption by adjusting the amount of power of the components consumed by the mobile terminal. For example, power consumption is reduced by adjusting illumination time or screen brightness of a display provided in the mobile terminal.

However, even if the content displayed on the display does not occupy the entire screen of the display, since the entire area of the display is activated, power consumption increases, which causes a problem of speeding up battery discharge of the mobile terminal.

To solve this problem, U.S. Patent 5,881,299 provides first and second display regions on a display, and when the display cover covers the display panel, the covered area of the display regions cuts off power supply and is not covered. The technique of supplying power to the unopened area is disclosed.

However, this conventional technology not only controls the power supply according to the closing of the display cover, but also the power is supplied to all the display areas when the display cover is opened, and thus the above problem cannot be solved.

An object of the present invention to solve the above problems is to provide a method and apparatus that can reduce power consumption by partially activating the display.

An embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object, a display, a display driver for driving the display, and an activation area on the display, and through the display driver to the area on the display excluding the activation area And a controller for deactivating and changing the size or position of the activation area when there is an input for adjusting the size or position of the activation area.

Here, the deactivation may be to turn off the pixels constituting the display.

Here, if the display is a liquid crystal display (LCD), the deactivation may be to turn off the backlight elements of the liquid crystal display.

Here, if the display is an organic light emitting diode (OLED) panel, the deactivation may be to lower the brightness of the pixels constituting the OLED panel.

Here, the controller may reduce the display screen according to the size of the activation area and display it on the display.

Here, the shape of the activation region may be a rectangle.

Here, input for adjusting the size of the activation area may be achieved by the user selecting one of the activation area ratios for the entire area of the display.

Here, the predetermined ratio may be one of a ratio of 1/4, a ratio of 1/3, and a ratio of 1/2 with respect to the entire area of the display.

Another embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object, in the device comprising a display, and a display driver for driving the display, setting the activation area on the display, and through the display driver Inactivating a region on the display except for changing the size or position of the activation region if there is an input for adjusting the size or position of the activation region. Provide a method.

Here, the deactivating step may be a step of turning off the pixels constituting the display.

The deactivating may include turning off backlight elements of the liquid crystal display when the display is a liquid crystal display (LCD).

Here, if the display is an organic light emitting diode (OLED) panel, the display may be a step of lowering the brightness of pixels forming the OLED panel.

Here, the method of partially activating the display may further include reducing the display screen according to the size of the activation area and displaying it on the display.

Using the apparatus and method for partially activating the display according to the present invention as described above has the effect of reducing the amount of power consumed in relation to the display.

As the invention allows for various changes and numerous embodiments, particular embodiments will be illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the written description. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to specific embodiments, it should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention. In describing the drawings, similar reference numerals are used for similar elements.

Terms such as first, second, A, and B may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component may be referred to as the second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as the first component. The term and / or includes a combination of a plurality of related items or any item of a plurality of related items.

When a component is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another component, it may be directly connected to or connected to that other component, but it may be understood that other components may be present in between. Should be. On the other hand, when a component is said to be "directly connected" or "directly connected" to another component, it should be understood that there is no other component in between.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the present invention. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this application, the terms "comprise" or "have" are intended to indicate that there is a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in the specification, and one or more other features. It is to be understood that the present invention does not exclude the possibility of the presence or the addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, components, or a combination thereof.

Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. Terms such as those defined in the commonly used dictionaries should be construed as having meanings consistent with the meanings in the context of the related art and shall not be construed in ideal or excessively formal meanings unless expressly defined in this application. Do not.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, a configuration of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1. Herein, the mobile terminal may be a terminal such as a handheld computer, a mobile phone, or a personal digital assistant (PDA). The present invention is not limited thereto and may be commonly applied to all terminals having a display. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the mobile terminal includes a key input unit 10, a controller 20, a display device 30, and a display 32.

The display 30 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light emitting diode (OLED) panel, or the like.

The controller 20 controls the overall operation of the mobile terminal, and partially activates the display through the display driver 30 according to the present invention. In detail, the controller 20 sets an activation area on the display in the display low power mode and deactivates an area on the display except the activation area. In the present invention, activation refers to the case where power consumption related to the display is general, and deactivation refers to the case where the power consumption related to the display is reduced.

In detail, the panel of the display 30 is composed of many pixels, and each pixel may be individually turned on or off. Thus, activating an area of the display 30 may mean applying a voltage to the pixels forming the area. In addition, deactivating an area of the display 30 may mean turning off the voltage by not applying a voltage to the corresponding pixel.

LCDs include backlight elements that do not self-luminous and provide backlight. Therefore, if the display panel is an LCD, the activation area of the display 30 may be activated or deactivated by turning on / off the pixels constituting the LCD panel or turning on / off backlight elements provided corresponding to the pixels.

In addition, the brighter the OLDE panel, the higher the power consumption. Therefore, if the display panel is an OLED panel, it is possible to deactivate the display 30 area by turning off the pixels constituting the OLED panel or lowering its brightness.

The display driver 30 drives each pixel constituting the panel of the display 30. In detail, the display driver 30 selectively supplies a driving voltage to the pixels constituting the display panel.

In addition, the controller 20 may change the size or position of the set activation area according to an input from the user through the key input unit 10.

In another embodiment, the controller 20 may reduce the display screen to fit the size of the set activation area and display it on the display 30. In addition, when the display screen is reduced and displayed according to the size of the active area, the controller 20 scales the display screen according to the size of the changed area when the size of the active area changes according to an input from the user. Display on the display 30.

In another embodiment, the display may be implemented as a touch screen. In this case, the mobile terminal includes a touch screen panel (TSP). The touch screen panel detects a user's touch input and provides a control signal corresponding thereto to the controller 20.

If the user touches the touch screen to adjust the size or position of the activation area, the control unit 20 detects it through the touch screen panel and changes the size or location of the activation area in response to the touch input. do.

In this case, when the user's hand or the touch pen touches the activation area displayed on the touch screen, for example, the center or the corner of each side of the rectangle, the controller 20 may display an indicator so that the user can change the size of the activation area. I can display it. When the user moves the indicator on the touch screen in a predetermined direction, the controller 20 enlarges or reduces the active area in the predetermined direction.

Thus, when the display is a touch screen, the user can change the size or position of the activation area more conveniently.

In addition, the activation area may be directly set by the user. According to this embodiment, the controller 20 determines the activation area according to the touch input on the touch screen. Accordingly, the user may determine the activation area of the desired shape. If the user divides the touch screen into two parts by using a hand or a touch pen, the controller 20 may activate or deactivate one of the two areas on the touch screen according to the two parts.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a method for partially activating a display according to embodiments of the present invention will be described.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a first embodiment of a method for partially activating a display in a mobile terminal according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, the mobile terminal first determines whether to enter the display low power setting mode in step 110. The display low power setting mode may be selected by the user. Upon entering the display low power setting mode, the mobile terminal sets an active area on the display in step 120.

The activation area may be individually set according to the current operation mode of the mobile terminal. If the mobile terminal is a communication terminal and is in a standby mode, the activation area may be an upper area on the display screen. In the standby mode, an indicator indicating whether a message is received, an indicator indicating a communication state, and an indicator indicating a battery level are displayed in an upper area of the display screen. Thus, if only the upper area of the display is activated, the user can obtain the necessary information. Alternatively, the activation area may be a fixed area regardless of the operation mode of the mobile terminal.

On the other hand, the shape of the active area is preferably a rectangle, because the display efficiency is good, and is similar to the shape of the screen of a general display.

If the activation area is set on the display, the mobile terminal deactivates the screens of the display except for the activation area in step 130. Subsequently, the mobile terminal checks whether there is an input for adjusting the size of the activation area in step 140. To this end, the mobile terminal can provide a user with a menu for adjusting the size or position of the activation area. When the user selects a menu for adjusting the size of the activation area, the mobile terminal allows the user to adjust the size of the activation area through key input.

If there is an input for adjusting the size of the activation area, the mobile terminal changes the size of the activation area on the display according to an input from the user in step 150.

3 is a diagram for describing a case in which the size of an active area on a display is adjusted. Referring to FIG. 3A, an activation area 210 is set and activated on the display screen 200. In addition, other areas on the display except for the active area are inactivated.

The activation area 210 of FIG. 3A may be reduced or enlarged according to a user's input. For example, the activation region 210 of FIG. 3A may be enlarged like the activation region 220 of FIG. 3B. The size of the activation area may be adjusted by the user on the top, bottom, left, and right sides of the activation area using the key, or may be adjusted by the user selecting one of the ratios of the activation area to the entire area of the display.

In this case, of course, the mobile terminal changes the activation area or the deactivation area of the display through the display driver 30 according to the changed size of the activation area.

Subsequently, the mobile terminal checks whether there is an input for adjusting the position of the activation area in step 160. When the user selects a menu for adjusting the location of the activation area, the mobile terminal allows the user to adjust the location of the activation area through key input.

If there is an input for adjusting the position of the activation area, the mobile terminal changes the position of the activation area on the display according to an input from the user in step 170.

4 is a view for explaining the case where the position of the activation area on the display is adjusted. Referring to FIG. 4A, an activation area 230 is set and activated on the display screen 200. The position of the activation area 230 in FIG. 4A may be changed according to a user's input. For example, the activation area 210 of FIG. 4A is located above the display screen 200. Like the activation area 240 of FIG. 4B, the activation area 210 may be located below the display 200. have.

Even in this case, the mobile terminal changes the activation area or the deactivation area of the activation area through the display driver 30 according to the changed position of the activation area.

The mobile terminal 20 determines whether the display low power setting mode ends in step 180, and returns to step 140 if the display low power setting mode has not ended. When the user finishes editing the activation area on the display, the user may select the end key provided in the key input unit 10 to end the display low power setting mode. When the display low power setting mode ends, the mobile terminal drives the display 32 through the display driver 30 according to the setting.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a second embodiment of a method for partially activating a display in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, since steps 310 to 330 in the flowchart of FIG. 5 are similar to steps 110 to 130 of the flowchart of FIG. 2, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Referring to FIG. 5, the mobile terminal first determines whether to enter the display low power setting mode in step 310, and when entering the display low power setting mode, the mobile terminal sets an activation area on the display 32 in step 320. If the activation area is set on the display, the mobile terminal deactivates the screens of the display except for the activation area in step 130. Subsequently, in step 340, the mobile terminal 340 reduces the display screen according to the size of the activation area and displays it on the display 32.

6 is a diagram for describing a case in which a display screen is reduced. In FIG. 6A, an image is displayed using the entire area of the display. An activation area may be set on the display to display a display screen on the activation area. 6B, the display screen 250 is reduced in size. That is, the screen 200 of FIG. 6A is reduced to the screen 250 of FIG. 6B.

Subsequently, the mobile terminal checks whether there is an input for adjusting the size of the activation area in step 350. To this end, the mobile terminal can provide a user with a menu for adjusting the size or position of the activation area. When the user selects a menu for adjusting the size of the activation area, the mobile terminal allows the user to adjust the size of the activation area through key input.

Similarly to the first embodiment, the size of the activation area may be adjusted on the user's top, bottom, left, and right sides of the activation area using the key, or the user may be adjusted by selecting one of the activation area ratios for the entire area of the display. have. The predetermined ratio may be one of a ratio of 1/4, a ratio of 1/3, and a ratio of 1/2 to the entire screen.

Subsequently, if there is an input for adjusting the size of the activation area in step 350, the mobile terminal changes the size of the activation area on the display according to an input from the user in step 36. If the size of the active area on the display is changed, the mobile terminal scales the display screen according to the size of the changed area in step 370 to display it on the display. Scaling the display screen means reducing or enlarging the display screen. That is, the display screen is reduced or enlarged according to the changed size of the active area.

In this case, of course, the mobile terminal changes the activation area or the deactivation area of the display through the display driver 30 according to the changed size of the activation area.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described mainly with reference to a display other than a touch screen, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited thereto and may be applied even when the display is a touch screen.

For example, user input may be performed via a touch screen, and any input technology known in the touch screen art may be applied to the present invention.

As described above, although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, those skilled in the art can variously modify and modify the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims below. It will be appreciated that it can be changed.

1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal according to the present invention.

2 is a flowchart illustrating a first embodiment of a method for partially activating a display in a mobile terminal according to the present invention.

3 is a diagram for describing a case in which the size of an active area on a display is adjusted.

4 is a view for explaining the case where the position of the activation area on the display is adjusted.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a second embodiment of a method for partially activating a display in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a diagram for describing a case in which a display screen is reduced.

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

10: key input unit 20: control unit

30: display driver

32: display

Claims (13)

With display, A display driver for driving the display; Setting an activation area on the display and changing the size or position of the activation area if there is an input for deactivating an area on the display except the activation area and adjusting the size or position of the activation area through the display driver; Apparatus for partially activating the display comprising a control. The method of claim 1, And the deactivation is to turn off the pixels constituting the display. The method of claim 1, And if the display is a liquid crystal display (LCD), the deactivation is to turn off the backlight elements of the liquid crystal display. The method of claim 1, If the display is an organic light emitting diodes (OLED) panel, the deactivation is to lower the brightness of the pixels constituting the OLED panel. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to reduce and display a display screen on the display in accordance with the size of the activation area. The device of claim 1, wherein the shape of the activation area is rectangular. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the input for adjusting the size of the activation area is achieved by the user selecting one of the activation area ratios for the entire area of the display. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the predetermined ratio is one of a ratio of 1/4, a ratio of 1/3, and a ratio of 1/2 to the entire area of the display. In an apparatus comprising a display and a display driver for driving the display, Setting an activation area on the display; Deactivating an area on the display other than the active area by the display driver; Changing the size or position of the activation area if there is an input for adjusting the size or position of the activation area. The method of claim 9, And wherein the deactivating step is to turn off pixels constituting the display. The method of claim 9, And if the display is a liquid crystal display (LCD), turning off the backlight elements of the liquid crystal display (LCD). The method of claim 9, And if the display is an organic light emitting diodes (OLED) panel, lowering brightness of pixels forming the OLED panel. 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising reducing the display screen to fit on the size of the activation area and displaying it on the display.

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