TW201738726A - Electronic device and image transmission control method - Google Patents

Abstract

An electronic device includes a data transmission connector, a hub unit coupled to the data transmission connector, an image input switch unit for selectively receiving an image signal from an external electronic device via the data transmission connector, and a control unit for controlling the electronic device to be operated in a device mode or a host mode. The control unit controls the hub unit to enable the electronic device to switch into the device mode and the control unit controls the image input switch unit to connect to the data transmission connector, so that the image input switch unit receives the image signal from the external electronic device via the data transmission connector.

Description

Electronic device and image transmission control method

The present invention relates to an electronic device and a video transmission control method, and more particularly to an electronic device and an image transmission control method capable of displaying a screen display content of an external electronic device and operating the external electronic device using a human interface unit.

With the advancement of technology, portable electronic devices, such as smart phones, tablets, wearable devices, notebook computers, cameras, etc., have become more and more popular. The portability of the portable electronic device also allows the user to use it in more occasions. In order to facilitate the user to carry around, the display screen of the portable electronic device is usually not large, and in some cases, it is impossible to provide a better image display.

Generally speaking, the user usually displays the display content of the portable electronic device on the external display through a docking station. However, the use of additional functions to expand the support of the base device still causes inconvenience to the user. Another method is to install a software program on the portable electronic device, compress the desired content, transfer it to a computer host with the same software program for decompression processing, and then display it on the screen of the computer host. Although the base device is not required to be additionally expanded, the display content is displayed on the screen of the host computer by software compression/decompression, and there is a serious delay in the case where the computing power of the device is insufficient. Therefore, the prior art is necessary for improvement.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides an electronic device and a video transmission control method capable of displaying a screen display content of an external electronic device and operating the external electronic device using a human interface unit.

The present invention provides an electronic device comprising: a data transmission connector; a hub unit coupled to the data transmission connector; and an image input switching unit for selectively receiving the data transmission connector An image signal of the external electronic device; and a control unit for controlling the electronic device to operate in a device end mode or a master mode; wherein the control unit controls the hub unit to switch the electronic device to the device end a mode, and the control unit controls the image input switching unit to be connected to the data transmission connector, so that the image input switching unit receives the image signal from the external electronic device via the data transmission connector.

The present invention further provides an image transmission control method for an electronic device, comprising: switching the electronic device to operate in a device end mode; receiving an image signal from an external electronic device via a data transmission connector; and displaying Image signal from the external electronic device.

Please refer to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The electronic system 1 includes at least one electronic device 10 and an electronic device 20. The electronic device 10 and the electronic device 20 can communicate with each other through a wired or wireless connection. The electronic device 10 includes a data transmission connector 102, a hub unit 104, a data transmission controller 106, an image input switching unit 108, a control unit 110, a display unit 112, and a graphics processing unit (Graphics Processing Unit) 114. .

The data transmission connector 102 is configured to receive an image signal from the electronic device 20. The image input switching unit 108 is configured to selectively receive the image signal (from the electronic device 20) received by the data transmission connector 102 or receive the image signal generated by the graphics processing unit 114 for display to the display unit 112 for display. . The control unit 110 is configured to control the electronic device 10 to operate in a device mode or a host mode. The control unit 110 can control the hub unit 104 to switch the electronic device 10 to operate in the master mode. For example, the control unit 104 enables the hub unit 104 to set the data transfer controller 106 as an upstream, causing the electronic device 10 to switch to operate in the master mode. In an embodiment, the control unit 110 controls the hub unit 104 such that one of the hub units 104 is connected to the data transfer controller 106 by an upstream port. In this case, the electronic device 10 will operate in the master mode. The control unit 110 can also control the hub unit 104 to switch the electronic device 10 to operate in the device end mode. For example, the control unit 104 enables the hub unit 104 to set the data transmission connector 102 as an uploading terminal to cause the electronic device 10 to switch to operate in the device-end mode. In an embodiment, the control unit 110 controls the hub unit 104 such that the upload port of the hub unit 104 is connected to the data transfer connector 102. In this case, the electronic device 10 will operate in the device end mode.

For example, the data transmission of the Universal Serial Bus interface is taken as an example. Please refer to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, and FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are respectively schematic diagrams of data transmission according to an embodiment of the present invention. For example, the electronic device 10 is a computer host, and the electronic device 20 is a smart phone. The electronic device 10 and the electronic device 20 can pass through a universal serial bus interface conforming to the universal serial bus type 3.1 Type-C specification. Transfer data. The data transmission connector 102, the hub unit 104, and/or the data transmission controller 106 also conform to the Universal Serial Bus 3.1 Type-C specification to transmit and receive signals conforming to the Universal Serial Bus 3.1 Type-C specification. That is to say, if the electronic device 10 is operated in the master mode, the electronic device 10 is one of the master terminals in the universal sequence bus specification. If the electronic device 10 is operating in the device end mode, the electronic device 10 is one of the device serial devices in the universal serial bus specification.

When the electronic device 10 wants to receive the image signal of the electronic device 20 and display it on the display unit 112, the control unit 110 can control the hub unit 104 to switch the electronic device 10 to operate in the device end mode. For example, the control unit 104 enables the hub unit 104 to set the data transmission connector 102 as an uploading terminal to cause the electronic device 10 to switch to operate in the device-side mode. In other words, the electronic device 10 switches to the device end mode by the control of the control unit 110. In this case, when the electronic device 10 is connected to the electronic device 20, the data can be transmitted from the electronic device 20 to the data transmission connector 102 of the electronic device 10. Further, since the Alternate Mode of the Universal Serial Bus 3.1 Type-C specification supports image signal transmission, when the electronic device 10 is connected to the electronic device 20 and the electronic device 10 is operated in the device end mode, the electronic device 20 can output The image signal is received by the data transmission connector 102 of the electronic device 10 to receive the image signal output by the electronic device 20. Further, the control unit 110 controls the image input switching unit 108 to switch to the data transmission connector 102, and switches the image signal input mode from the graphics processing unit input mode to the image input of the universal serial bus bar 3.1 of the data transmission connector 102. Display Port Alternate Mode (Alternate mode DP-In). In this manner, the image input switching unit 108 can receive the image signal from the electronic device 20 via the data transmission connector 102 and provide the image signal from the electronic device 20 to the display unit 112. As shown in FIG. 2, after the electronic device 10 and the electronic device 20 are connected through the data transmission connector 102, the image signal of the electronic device 20 is supplied to the display unit via the data transmission connector 102 and the image input switching unit 108. 112 to do display processing.

In the prior art, an electronic device using a conventional universal serial bus specification must transmit image data to a display of another electronic device through image compression and decompression processing or image processing of an additional docking station. . Moreover, the host computer is usually preset to the master mode in the preset settings transmitted by the universal serial bus interface, and cannot directly transfer the image data after the device is connected. In contrast, the electronic device 10 of the present invention controls the control unit 110 to cause the hub unit 104 to adjust the setting of the upload function, thereby allowing the electronic device 10 to operate in the device end mode. At the same time, the image input switching unit 108 switches the input mode to the data transmission connector 102 through the control of the control unit 110. In this case, when the electronic device 10 is connected to the electronic device 20, the image transmission signal 102 and the image input switching unit 108, which can be transmitted by the electronic device 20 to the electronic device 10, are further provided to the display unit 112 for display processing. .

On the other hand, when the electronic device 10 wants to play the image signal provided by the graphic processing unit 114 and displays it on the display unit 112, the control unit 110 can control the image input switching unit 108 to switch to the graphic processing unit 114 and input the image signal. The mode is switched to the graphics processing unit input mode, so that the image input switching unit 108 can receive the image signal provided by the graphics processing unit 114 and provide the image signal provided by the image signal of the graphics processing unit 114 to the display unit 112. That is, the image input switching unit 108 can selectively receive the image signal from the electronic device 20 or receive the image signal provided by the graphic processing unit 114 to provide to the display unit 112 via the control operation of the control unit 110. As shown in FIG. 3, the image signal generated by the graphics processing unit 114 is supplied to the display unit 112 for display processing.

In addition, the electronic device 10 further includes a Human Interface Device 116 for generating a human interface device command. When the electronic device 10 is operated in the device end mode, the human interface unit command generated by the human interface unit 116 can be provided to the electronic device 20, thereby controlling the electronic device 20. For example, if the electronic device 10 is a computer host, the electronic device 20 is a smart phone. When the electronic device 10 is operated in the master mode, if the user connects the electronic device 20 to the electronic device 10, the electronic device 20 is regarded as a general device-end device and cannot be utilized by the human-machine interface unit 116 of the electronic device 10. The electronic device 20 is operated. When the electronic device 10 is operated in the device-end mode, if the user connects the electronic device 20 to the electronic device 10, the user can use the human-machine interface unit 116 to generate a human-machine interface unit command and transmit it to the electronic device 20 for control. Electronic device 20. In short, through the control of the control unit 110, the user can display the screen display content of the electronic device 20 by using the display unit 112 of the electronic device 10, and at the same time, operate the electronic device 20 by using the human interface unit 116.

It should be noted that the electronic system 1 shown in FIG. 1 is used to illustrate an embodiment of the present invention, and those skilled in the art can appropriately adjust the implementation or operation mode of each component according to system requirements. For example, the electronic device 10, 20 can be a smart phone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a desktop computer, a smart TV, a wearable device, a portable audio player, a camera, etc., but not limited thereto. The data transmission connector 102, the hub unit 104, and/or the data transmission controller 106 conform to the Universal Serial Bus 3.1 Type-C specification or other transmission interface specifications for transmitting images. The image input switching unit 108 can be implemented by being integrated into a video signal converter, but is not limited thereto. The control unit 110 can be a hardware, a firmware (a combination of a hardware device and computer instructions and data, and computer instructions and data belong to a read-only software on a hardware device), for example, can be integrated into an embedded controller (Embedded) Controller) is implemented, but not limited to this. The human interface unit 116 can be a touch panel, a touch panel, a keyboard, a mouse, a button, a rocker, a switch, a trackball, and other input devices capable of generating human interface elements or combination.

In summary, the electronic device 10 of the present invention allows the user to display the screen display content of the electronic device 20 by using the display unit 112 on the electronic device 10 through the control of the control unit 110, and at the same time, the human-machine interface unit 116 can be utilized. The electronic device 20 is operated without additional expansion of the susceptor device and the complexity of the software compression/decompression is not required, thereby effectively improving the user's usability. The above are only the preferred embodiments of the present invention, and all changes and modifications made to the scope of the present invention should be within the scope of the present invention.

1‧‧‧Electronic system
10, 20‧‧‧ electronic devices
102‧‧‧Data transmission connector
104‧‧‧ Hub unit
106‧‧‧Data Transfer Controller
108‧‧‧Image input switching unit
110‧‧‧Control unit
112‧‧‧Display unit
114‧‧‧Graphic Processing Unit
116‧‧‧Human Machine Interface Unit

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an electronic system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 and 3 are schematic views of data transmission according to an embodiment of the present invention.

1‧‧‧Electronic system

10, 20‧‧‧ electronic devices

102‧‧‧Data transmission connector

104‧‧‧ Hub unit

106‧‧‧Data Transfer Controller

108‧‧‧Image input switching unit

110‧‧‧Control unit

112‧‧‧Display unit

114‧‧‧Graphic Processing Unit

116‧‧‧Human Machine Interface Unit

Claims (13)

An electronic device comprising: a data transmission connector; a hub unit coupled to the data transmission connector; and an image input switching unit for selectively receiving an external electronic device via the data transmission connector And a control unit for controlling the electronic device to operate in a device mode or a master mode; wherein the control unit controls the hub unit to switch the electronic device to the device mode, and The control unit controls the image input switching unit to be connected to the data transmission connector, so that the image input switching unit receives the image signal from the external electronic device via the data transmission connector. The electronic device of claim 1, further comprising a data transmission controller, wherein when the control unit enables the hub unit to set the data transmission controller as an uploading end, the electronic device switches operation In the master mode, and when the control unit enables the hub unit to set the data transmission connector as the uploading end, the electronic device switches to operate in the device mode. The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the control unit enables one of the hub units to be uploaded to the data transmission controller, the electronic device is switched to operate in the master mode, and the control The unit enables the uploading of the hub unit to be connected to the data transmission connector to cause the electronic device to switch to operate in the device end mode. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the device end mode is a device end mode conforming to a universal sequence bus bar specification, and the electronic device is in the universal sequence bus bar specification when operating in the device end mode a device-side device, and the master mode is a master mode conforming to the universal sequence bus bar specification, and the electronic device is one of the universal sequence bus bar specifications when operating in the master mode End device. The electronic device of claim 4, wherein the universal serial bus specification is a universal serial bus 3.1 Type-C specification, and the data transmission connector, the hub unit, and one of the electronic devices The controller complies with the General Sequence Bus 3.1 Type-C specification. The electronic device of claim 1, further comprising a human-machine interface unit for generating a human-machine interface unit command, wherein the human-machine interface unit command is used when the electronic device operates in the device-side mode Provided to the external electronic device to control the external electronic device. The electronic device of claim 1, further comprising a display unit for displaying an image signal from the external electronic device. An image transmission control method for an electronic device, comprising: switching the electronic device to operate in a device end mode; receiving an image signal from an external electronic device via a data transmission connector; and displaying the external device Image signal of an electronic device. The method of claim 8, wherein when the data transmission controller of the electronic device is set to an uploading end, the electronic device switches to operate in a master mode, and when the electronic device When the data transmission connector is set as the uploading end, the electronic device switches to operate in the device end mode. The method of claim 9, wherein when one of the hub units of the electronic device is uploaded to the data transmission controller, the electronic device switches to operate in the master mode, and when the upload is When connected to the data transmission connector, the electronic device switches to operate in the device end mode. The method of claim 8, wherein the device end mode is a device end mode conforming to a universal sequence bus bar specification, and the electronic device is in the universal sequence bus bar specification when operating in the device end mode a device-side device, and a master mode is a master mode conforming to the universal sequence bus bar specification, and the electronic device is one of the master terminals in the universal sequence bus bar specification when operating in the master mode Device. The method of claim 11, wherein the universal sequence bus specification is a universal sequence bus 3.1 Type-C specification, and the data transmission connector conforms to the universal sequence bus 3.1 Type-C specification. The method of claim 11, further comprising: generating a human interface unit command; and providing the human interface unit command to the external electronic device when the electronic device is operating in the device end mode To control the external electronic device.