US20040199678A1 - Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit - Google Patents
Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20040199678A1 US20040199678A1 US10/827,249 US82724904A US2004199678A1 US 20040199678 A1 US20040199678 A1 US 20040199678A1 US 82724904 A US82724904 A US 82724904A US 2004199678 A1 US2004199678 A1 US 2004199678A1
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- unit
- power
- display
- computer
- mode
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- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F1/00—Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00
- G06F1/26—Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof
- G06F1/32—Means for saving power
- G06F1/3203—Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
- G06F1/3234—Power saving characterised by the action undertaken
- G06F1/3287—Power saving characterised by the action undertaken by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
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- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F1/00—Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00
- G06F1/16—Constructional details or arrangements
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F1/00—Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00
- G06F1/26—Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
- G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
- G06F1/00—Details not covered by groups G06F3/00 - G06F13/00 and G06F21/00
- G06F1/26—Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof
- G06F1/32—Means for saving power
- G06F1/3203—Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02D—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES [ICT], I.E. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES AIMING AT THE REDUCTION OF THEIR OWN ENERGY USE
- Y02D10/00—Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
Definitions
- the present invention relates to a computer system whose peripheral unit such as a display, a CD-ROM drive, a hard disk drive, etc. can be operated independently from a main portion of the computer.
- the integrated display personal computer wherein a display unit comprising a liquid-crystal display panel and a computer unit (hereinafter referred to as a “PC unit” for abbreviation) are integrated into a single structural combination. Component parts of the PC unit are housed in a housing of the display unit.
- the integrated display personal computer of such a configuration has a merit that a display screen can be enlarged without being restricted by its installation location. Therefore, it is conceivable that this computer is used, for example, as a display for other notebook-sized personal computer or as a display for other device such as a portable DVD player.
- the display unit of the conventional integrated display personal computer cannot be operated solely, which is different from the case of the normal desktop personal computer (comprising a PC unit and a display unit separately). Therefore in a way of use as mentioned above, that is, even in a case where the PC unit doesn't need to be operated, the entire personal computer including the PC unit needs to be operated, and consequently useless power consumption occurs.
- peripheral units This applies to not only the integrated display personal computer but also other general personal computer having peripheral units.
- a personal computer with a built-in peripheral unit having a function of reproducing a medium, such as a CD-ROM drive etc. is used as a media player rather than part of a computer.
- a hard disk drive thereof is occasionally used as a storage device of other personal computer.
- these peripheral units cannot be operated solely, but can only be operated together with other useless parts, and hence electric power is consumed uselessly.
- a computer system is provided with a power distributor for supplying the electric power to a computer unit and to a peripheral unit separately and when the peripheral unit thereof is operated, the computer unit is not supplied with the electric power or is set in a power-saving mode, so that useless power consumption can be avoided.
- Another computer system is provided with a power distributor for supplying the electric power to a computer unit and to a peripheral unit separately, and further provided with a signal selector for connecting either of the computer unit or another computer to the peripheral unit, wherein, when the other computer is connected to the peripheral unit, the computer unit is not supplied with the electric power or is set in a power-saving mode, whereby the peripheral unit can be operated without consuming the extra electric power uselessly.
- FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a whole constitution of the integrated display personal computer as a first embodiment of the computer system according to the present invention
- FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the main portion of the first embodiment
- FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment
- FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the main portion of a second embodiment
- FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the second embodiment.
- FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a variation of the second embodiment.
- FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a whole constitution of the integrated display personal computer as the first embodiment according to the present invention.
- the personal computer 10 comprises a main portion 12 and a keyboard 14 .
- the keyboard 14 is connected to the main portion 12 through a cable 16
- a mouse 18 is connected to the keyboard 14 through a USB cable 20 .
- Connection between the keyboard 14 , the mouse 18 , and the main portion 12 may be done by wireless connection such as the infrared ray communication etc.
- the main portion 12 comprises a housing 22 made of a synthetic resin and a liquid-crystal display unit 24 comprising a liquid-crystal display panel.
- the housing 22 comprises a flat and hollow base 26 of a box like shape having such dimensions of a width size L1 and a depth size L2 that allow a B5 size computer; and a stand 28 which is also hollow and extends upwardly from a rear end of an upper wall of the base 26 .
- the stand 28 has a comparable width size L1 to that of the base 26 .
- the base 26 houses function parts such as a CD-ROM drive 30 etc.
- a power switch 32 and an input/output terminal 34 such as an RGB (red, green, and blue) terminal 34 etc.
- a card slot 36 into which a PC card is to be installed.
- FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the circuit configuration of then main portion 12 .
- the main portion 12 is divided roughly into a display unit 50 and a PC unit 40 .
- the PC unit 40 comprises a CPU 42 , system controller 44 , memory 46 , and video RAM (VRAM) 47 , and graphics controller 48 .
- the display unit 50 comprises an LCD (liquid-crystal display) panel 52 , horizontal driver (H driver) 54 , vertical driver (V driver) 56 , LCD panel controller 58 , back light 60 , and inverter 62 .
- the type of an input/output interface may be of an analog type or a digital type. If the display unit 50 has an external digital RGB (8 ⁇ 3) input, it is necessary to input the digital RGB (8 ⁇ 3) signal. Therefore, if the interface is a digital/analog RGB, it is desirable to connect a converter after the input terminal 72 for converting the input signal to a signal having a format suitable for the display unit 50 .
- the signal selector 66 selects and outputs either of the first input signal or the second input signal. This selection may be performed manually or automatically. For the automatic selection, the signal sector 66 is normally switched to the first input terminal side, and outputs the signal from the PC unit 40 .
- the signal selector 66 is switched to the second input terminal side and outputs the signal from the other personal computer 80 instead of the signal from the PC unit 40 .
- the detection of the connection of the other personal computer 80 can be performed by detecting that a signal is inputted to the input terminal 72 .
- the output signal of the signal selector 66 is supplied to the LCD panel controller 58 of the display unit 50 .
- Outputs of the panel controller 58 are supplied to the H driver 54 and the V driver 56 , respectively, which drive the LCD panel 52 .
- the inverter 62 receives DC power and supplies AC power to the back light 60 .
- the AC power supplied by the commercial power supply to the main portion 12 is inputted to a power source 70 and converted to the DC power.
- This DC power is supplied to the power distributor 68 , which supplies the DC power to both the PC unit 40 and the display unit 50 or only to the display unit 50 .
- the output of the battery 86 is supplied to the power distributor 68 as well as the DC output from the power source circuit 70 .
- the power distributor 68 supplies the DC power to both the PC unit 40 and the display unit 50 in a first mode thereof; it supplies the DC power not to the PC unit 40 but only to the display unit 50 in a second mode thereof.
- the power distributor 68 operates in interlocking with the signal selector 66 .
- the power distributor 68 when the signal selector 66 is switched to the first input terminal side, the power distributor 68 is also set in the first mode. When the signal selector 66 is switched to the second input terminal side, the power distributor 68 is also set in the second mode. Because of this setting, the power distributor 68 also is normally set in the first mode where it supplies the DC power to both of the PC unit 40 and the display unit 50 . When the connection of the other personal computer 80 is detected, it is switched to the second mode where it supplies the DC power not to the PC unit 40 but only to the display unit 50 . As described above, the signal selector 66 may be operated manually or automatically, and the power distributor 68 also may be operated manually or automatically. In the above description, when the power distributor 68 is in the second mode, power supply to the PC unit 40 is halted. However, it may be allowed that the power distributor 68 is set in a power-saving mode where the power distribution is not completely blocked off.
- step S 12 The AC power supply is turned on at step S 12 . Since the power distributor 68 is normally in the first mode, the electric power is supplied to the PC unit 40 and the display unit 50 at step S 14 . Since the selector 66 also is normally switched to the first input terminal side, the output of the PC unit 40 is supplied to the display unit 50 and displayed.
- step S 16 it is determined whether or not the other personal computer 80 is connected to the input terminal 72 . If the other personal computer 80 is not connected, the condition of step S 14 is maintained until power-off (e.g., turn off of a power switch of the main body 12 ) is detected at step S 18 .
- power-off e.g., turn off of a power switch of the main body 12
- step S 16 When the connection of the other personal computer 80 is detected at step S 16 , the signal selector 66 is switched to the second input terminal side at step S 20 , so that the signal from the other personal computer 80 is supplied to the display unit 50 and is displayed, as well as the power distributor 68 is switched to the second mode where the power distributor 68 halts the power supply to the PC unit 40 and supplies the electric power only to the display unit 50 .
- step S 22 it is determined whether or not the other personal computer 80 is still connected to the input terminal 72 . When the other computer 80 is still connected, the condition of step S 20 is maintained until the power-off of the main body 12 is detected at step S 24 .
- the power distributor 68 for supplying the electric power to the PC unit 40 and to the display unit 50 separately, and also provided is the signal selector 66 for supplying either of the signal from the PC unit 40 or the signal from the other computer 80 selectively to the display unit 50 .
- the PC unit 40 is not supplied with the electric power or is set in the power-saving mode, whereby only the display unit 50 can be operated as a display unit for the other device without consuming the extra electric power uselessly.
- the other device to be connected to the input terminal 72 is not limited to the personal computer and any kind of devices having displays smaller than this display, for example, a portable DVD player etc. are allowed to be connected to the input terminal 72 .
- FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a personal computer 100 of the second embodiment.
- the personal computer 100 is divided into two parts: one part being a PC unit 102 whose construction is the same as that of the PC unit 40 of the first embodiment; and the other part being a drive unit 104 such as a floppy disk drive, a hard disk drive, a CD-ROM drive, etc. as a peripheral unit.
- a keyboard, a display, etc. are included in the PC unit 102 .
- a bus line of the PC unit 102 is connected to a first terminal of a signal selector 106 .
- a bus line of a PC unit 124 inside another personal computer 120 is connected to a second terminal of the signal selector 106 .
- an input/output terminal 122 of the other computer 120 is connected to an input/output terminal 110 of this personal computer 100 .
- the signal selector 106 selects and connects either of the first terminal or the second terminal to a movable terminal. The selection may be performed manually or automatically.
- the signal selector 106 is normally switched to the first terminal side, selecting the PC unit 102 , and when the connection of the other personal computer 120 is detected, the signal selector 106 is switched to the second terminal side, selecting the other personal computer 120 instead of the PC unit 102 .
- the detection of the connection of the other personal computer 120 can be performed by detecting that a signal is inputted to the input/output terminal 110 .
- the movable terminal of the signal selector 106 is connected to the drive unit 104 .
- the AC power supplied from the commercial power supply to the personal computer 100 is inputted to a power source 112 and converted to the DC power.
- This DC power is supplied to the power distributor 108 , which supplies the DC power to both of the PC unit 102 and the drive unit 104 or only to the drive unit 104 .
- the output of the battery 126 is supplied to the power distributor 108 as well as the DC output from the power source circuit 112 .
- the power distributor 108 supplies the DC power to both of the PC unit 102 and the drive unit 104 in a first mode thereof; it supplies the DC power not to the PC unit 102 but only to the drive unit 104 in a second mode thereof.
- the power distributor 108 operates in interlocking with the signal selector 106 . That is, when the signal selector 106 is switched to the first terminal side, the power distributor 108 is also set in the first mode. When the signal selector 106 is switched to the second terminal side, the power distributor 108 is also set in the second mode. Because of this setting, the power distributor 108 also is normally set in the first mode where it supplies the DC power to both of the PC unit 102 and the drive unit 104 . When the connection of the other personal computer 120 is detected, it is switched to the second mode where it supplies the DC power not to the PC unit 102 but only to the drive unit 104 . As described above, the signal selector 106 may be operated manually or automatically. The power distributor 108 also may be operated manually or automatically.
- the power distributor 108 when the power distributor 108 is in the second mode, the power supply to the PC unit 102 is halted. However, it may be allowed that the power distributor 108 is set in a power-saving mode where the power distribution is not completely blocked off.
- step S 42 The AC power supply is turned on at step S 42 . Since the power distributor 108 is normally in the first mode, the electric power is supplied to the PC unit 102 and the drive unit 104 at step S 44 . Since the selector 106 also is normally switched to the first terminal side, the selector 106 connects the PC unit 102 to the drive unit 104 so that the PC unit 102 can access the drive unit 104 .
- step S 46 it is determined whether or not the other personal computer 120 is connected to the input/output terminal 110 . If the other personal computer 120 is not connected, the condition of step S 44 is maintained until the power-off of the personal computer 100 is detected at step S 48 .
- step S 46 When the connection of the other personal computer 120 is detected at step S 46 , the power distributor 108 is switched to the second mode at step S 50 where the power distributor 108 halts the power supply to the PC unit 102 and supplies the electric power only to the drive unit 104 , as well as the selector 106 is switched to the second terminal side so that the other personal computer 120 is connected to the drive unit 104 and the other personal computer 120 can access the drive unit 104 .
- step S 52 it is determined whether or not the other personal computer 120 is still connected to the input/output terminal 110 . When the other personal computer 120 is still connected, the condition of step S 50 is maintained until the power-off of the personal computer 100 is detected at step S 54 .
- the power distributor 108 for supplying the electric power to the PC unit 102 and to the drive unit 104 separately, and also provided is the signal selector 106 for connecting either of the bus line of the PC unit 102 of the present computer 100 or the bus line of the PC unit 124 of the other computer 120 selectively to the drive unit 104 .
- the PC unit 102 is not supplied with the electric power or is set in the power-saving mode, whereby only the drive unit 104 can be operated as a drive unit for the other device without consuming the extra electric power uselessly.
- the drive unit 104 is not operated as a drive unit for the other device but the drive unit 104 is either a CD-ROM drive or a DVD drive that can be used for its own purpose, it is conceivable that the drive unit is operated solely as a CD player or a DVD-audio player, not as a peripheral unit of the other device and the own device. In this case, the signal selector 106 is unnecessary and only the power distributor needs to be provided.
- FIG. 6 shows this modification.
- the personal computer 200 is divided into two parts: one part being a PC unit 202 whose construction is the same as that of the PC unit 40 of the first embodiment; and the other part being a drive unit 204 such as a CD-ROM drive, DVD drive, etc. as a peripheral unit.
- a sound board, speaker, etc. for reproducing sound are regarded as a part of the drive unit 204 with respect to power supply.
- the AC power supplied from the commercial power supply to the personal computer 200 is inputted to a power source 212 and converted to the DC power.
- This DC power is supplied to the power distributor 208 , which supplies the DC power to both of the PC unit 202 and the drive unit 204 or only to the drive unit 204 .
- the output of the battery 226 is supplied to the power distributor 208 as well as the DC output from the power source circuit 212 .
- the power distributor 208 supplies the DC power to both of the PC unit 202 and the drive unit 204 in a first mode thereof; it supplies the DC power not to the PC unit 202 but only to the drive unit 204 in a second mode thereof.
- a user interface 230 including operation switches, such as reproduction, stop, etc., is connected to a drive control unit 232 .
- the drive control unit 232 detects an operation of the user interface 230 for instructing the operation of the drive unit 204 , the drive control unit 232 supplies a selection signal to the power distributor 208 .
- the power distributor 208 When the selection signal is supplied, the power distributor 208 is switched to the second mode where it supplies the DC power not to the PC unit 202 but only to the drive unit 204 .
- the power distributor 208 may be operated manually. Further, in the above description, when the power distributor 208 is in the second mode, the power supply to the PC unit 202 is halted. However, it may be allowed that the power distributor 208 is set in a power-saving mode where the power distribution is not completely blocked off.
- the integrated display computer such that only a display thereof can be operated, or the computer such that only a peripheral unit thereof can be operated.
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Abstract
An integrated display personal computer in which a display unit such as a liquid-crystal panel and a PC unit are integrated into a single housing. The display unit can be used as a display for other notebook-sized personal computer or as that for a potable DVD player. The integrated display personal computer is provided with an input terminal and a signal selector for supplying either of a signal from the PC unit and a signal from the other device to the display unit selectively. Provided is a power distributor for supplying the electric power to the PC unit and the display unit selectively in response to the operation of the signal selector. When the signal from the PC unit is supplied to the display device, the power source power distributor supplies the electric power to both the PC unit and the display unit, while when the signal from the other device is supplied to the display device, the power distributor supplies the power to the display unit.
Description
- The present invention relates to a computer system whose peripheral unit such as a display, a CD-ROM drive, a hard disk drive, etc. can be operated independently from a main portion of the computer.
- In recent years, as a novel configuration of the personal computer in the light of being space-saving, there is being developed the integrated display personal computer wherein a display unit comprising a liquid-crystal display panel and a computer unit (hereinafter referred to as a “PC unit” for abbreviation) are integrated into a single structural combination. Component parts of the PC unit are housed in a housing of the display unit. The integrated display personal computer of such a configuration has a merit that a display screen can be enlarged without being restricted by its installation location. Therefore, it is conceivable that this computer is used, for example, as a display for other notebook-sized personal computer or as a display for other device such as a portable DVD player.
- However, the display unit of the conventional integrated display personal computer cannot be operated solely, which is different from the case of the normal desktop personal computer (comprising a PC unit and a display unit separately). Therefore in a way of use as mentioned above, that is, even in a case where the PC unit doesn't need to be operated, the entire personal computer including the PC unit needs to be operated, and consequently useless power consumption occurs.
- This applies to not only the integrated display personal computer but also other general personal computer having peripheral units. For example, it is conceivable that a personal computer with a built-in peripheral unit having a function of reproducing a medium, such as a CD-ROM drive etc., is used as a media player rather than part of a computer. Or, a hard disk drive thereof is occasionally used as a storage device of other personal computer. Also in this case, these peripheral units cannot be operated solely, but can only be operated together with other useless parts, and hence electric power is consumed uselessly.
- As described above, conventional personal computers are not be furnished with a function of making a peripheral unit thereof operate solely. Therefore, even when the peripheral unit is required to be operated only as a mere peripheral unit, not as part of the computer in operation, the whole computer needs to be operated and hence part of consumed electric power is being wasted.
- Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a computer system capable of making a peripheral unit thereof operate solely.
- It is another object of the present invention to provide a computer system whose peripheral unit that is provided therein can be used as a peripheral unit of another device.
- A computer system according to the present invention is provided with a power distributor for supplying the electric power to a computer unit and to a peripheral unit separately and when the peripheral unit thereof is operated, the computer unit is not supplied with the electric power or is set in a power-saving mode, so that useless power consumption can be avoided.
- Another computer system according to the present invention is provided with a power distributor for supplying the electric power to a computer unit and to a peripheral unit separately, and further provided with a signal selector for connecting either of the computer unit or another computer to the peripheral unit, wherein, when the other computer is connected to the peripheral unit, the computer unit is not supplied with the electric power or is set in a power-saving mode, whereby the peripheral unit can be operated without consuming the extra electric power uselessly.
- Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the present invention.
- The objects and advantages of the present invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.
- The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate presently preferred embodiments of the present invention and, together with the general description given above and the detailed description of the preferred embodiments given below, serve to explain the principles of the present invention in which:
- FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a whole constitution of the integrated display personal computer as a first embodiment of the computer system according to the present invention;
- FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the main portion of the first embodiment;
- FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment;
- FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of the main portion of a second embodiment;
- FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the second embodiment; and
- FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a variation of the second embodiment.
- A preferred embodiment of a computer system according to the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
- First Embodiment
- FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a whole constitution of the integrated display personal computer as the first embodiment according to the present invention.
- The
personal computer 10 comprises amain portion 12 and akeyboard 14. Thekeyboard 14 is connected to themain portion 12 through acable 16, and amouse 18 is connected to thekeyboard 14 through a USB cable 20. Connection between thekeyboard 14, themouse 18, and themain portion 12 may be done by wireless connection such as the infrared ray communication etc. Themain portion 12 comprises ahousing 22 made of a synthetic resin and a liquid-crystal display unit 24 comprising a liquid-crystal display panel. Thehousing 22 comprises a flat andhollow base 26 of a box like shape having such dimensions of a width size L1 and a depth size L2 that allow a B5 size computer; and a stand 28 which is also hollow and extends upwardly from a rear end of an upper wall of thebase 26. The stand 28 has a comparable width size L1 to that of thebase 26. Thebase 26 houses function parts such as a CD-ROM drive 30 etc. On the right side wall of thebase 26, provided is apower switch 32 and an input/output terminal 34 such as an RGB (red, green, and blue)terminal 34 etc. On the right side wall of the stand 28, provided is acard slot 36 into which a PC card is to be installed. - FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the circuit configuration of then
main portion 12. Here, themain portion 12 is divided roughly into adisplay unit 50 and aPC unit 40. ThePC unit 40 comprises aCPU 42,system controller 44,memory 46, and video RAM (VRAM) 47, andgraphics controller 48. Thedisplay unit 50 comprises an LCD (liquid-crystal display)panel 52, horizontal driver (H driver) 54, vertical driver (V driver) 56,LCD panel controller 58,back light 60, andinverter 62. - In the
PC unit 40, display data processed by theCPU 42 are written into theVRAM 47, and the output of theVRAM 47 is outputted via thegraphics controller 48. An output of thegraphics controller 48 is supplied to a first input terminal of thesignal selector 66. To a second input terminal of thesignal selector 66, provided is an output of aVRAM 78 in another personal computer 80 (this being not necessarily limited to the desktop computer, and the notebook-sized computer also being able to be a candidate) via agraphics controller 76. To supply the signal from the otherpersonal computer 80 to the computermain portion 12, anoutput terminal 74 of theother computer 80 is connected to aninput terminal 72 of the computermain portion 12. The type of an input/output interface may be of an analog type or a digital type. If thedisplay unit 50 has an external digital RGB (8×3) input, it is necessary to input the digital RGB (8×3) signal. Therefore, if the interface is a digital/analog RGB, it is desirable to connect a converter after theinput terminal 72 for converting the input signal to a signal having a format suitable for thedisplay unit 50. Thesignal selector 66 selects and outputs either of the first input signal or the second input signal. This selection may be performed manually or automatically. For the automatic selection, thesignal sector 66 is normally switched to the first input terminal side, and outputs the signal from thePC unit 40. When the connection of the otherpersonal computer 80 is detected, thesignal selector 66 is switched to the second input terminal side and outputs the signal from the otherpersonal computer 80 instead of the signal from thePC unit 40. The detection of the connection of the otherpersonal computer 80 can be performed by detecting that a signal is inputted to theinput terminal 72. - The output signal of the
signal selector 66 is supplied to theLCD panel controller 58 of thedisplay unit 50. Outputs of thepanel controller 58 are supplied to theH driver 54 and theV driver 56, respectively, which drive theLCD panel 52. Theinverter 62 receives DC power and supplies AC power to theback light 60. - The AC power supplied by the commercial power supply to the
main portion 12 is inputted to apower source 70 and converted to the DC power. This DC power is supplied to thepower distributor 68, which supplies the DC power to both thePC unit 40 and thedisplay unit 50 or only to thedisplay unit 50. It is possible to provide abattery 86 in addition to the AC input. The output of thebattery 86 is supplied to thepower distributor 68 as well as the DC output from thepower source circuit 70. Thepower distributor 68 supplies the DC power to both thePC unit 40 and thedisplay unit 50 in a first mode thereof; it supplies the DC power not to thePC unit 40 but only to thedisplay unit 50 in a second mode thereof. Thepower distributor 68 operates in interlocking with thesignal selector 66. That is, when thesignal selector 66 is switched to the first input terminal side, thepower distributor 68 is also set in the first mode. When thesignal selector 66 is switched to the second input terminal side, thepower distributor 68 is also set in the second mode. Because of this setting, thepower distributor 68 also is normally set in the first mode where it supplies the DC power to both of thePC unit 40 and thedisplay unit 50. When the connection of the otherpersonal computer 80 is detected, it is switched to the second mode where it supplies the DC power not to thePC unit 40 but only to thedisplay unit 50. As described above, thesignal selector 66 may be operated manually or automatically, and thepower distributor 68 also may be operated manually or automatically. In the above description, when thepower distributor 68 is in the second mode, power supply to thePC unit 40 is halted. However, it may be allowed that thepower distributor 68 is set in a power-saving mode where the power distribution is not completely blocked off. - Referring to FIG. 3, the operation of the present invention will be described. The AC power supply is turned on at step S12. Since the
power distributor 68 is normally in the first mode, the electric power is supplied to thePC unit 40 and thedisplay unit 50 at step S14. Since theselector 66 also is normally switched to the first input terminal side, the output of thePC unit 40 is supplied to thedisplay unit 50 and displayed. At step S16, it is determined whether or not the otherpersonal computer 80 is connected to theinput terminal 72. If the otherpersonal computer 80 is not connected, the condition of step S14 is maintained until power-off (e.g., turn off of a power switch of the main body 12) is detected at step S18. - When the connection of the other
personal computer 80 is detected at step S16, thesignal selector 66 is switched to the second input terminal side at step S20, so that the signal from the otherpersonal computer 80 is supplied to thedisplay unit 50 and is displayed, as well as thepower distributor 68 is switched to the second mode where thepower distributor 68 halts the power supply to thePC unit 40 and supplies the electric power only to thedisplay unit 50. At step S22, it is determined whether or not the otherpersonal computer 80 is still connected to theinput terminal 72. When theother computer 80 is still connected, the condition of step S20 is maintained until the power-off of themain body 12 is detected at step S24. - As described above, according to the first embodiment, in the integrated display personal computer, provided is the
power distributor 68 for supplying the electric power to thePC unit 40 and to thedisplay unit 50 separately, and also provided is thesignal selector 66 for supplying either of the signal from thePC unit 40 or the signal from theother computer 80 selectively to thedisplay unit 50. When the signal from theother computer 80 is selected to thedisplay unit 50, thePC unit 40 is not supplied with the electric power or is set in the power-saving mode, whereby only thedisplay unit 50 can be operated as a display unit for the other device without consuming the extra electric power uselessly. It is conceivable that the other device to be connected to theinput terminal 72 is not limited to the personal computer and any kind of devices having displays smaller than this display, for example, a portable DVD player etc. are allowed to be connected to theinput terminal 72. - Other embodiments of the computer system according to the present invention will be described. The same portions as those of the first embodiment will be indicated in the same reference numerals and their detailed description will be omitted.
- Second Embodiment
- Next, the second embodiment pertaining to the general personal computer, not limited to the integrated display computer, will be described. Whereas in the first embodiment the peripheral unit that is intended to be operated solely is the display; the second embodiment is an example where the peripheral unit is a storage device. Therefore, a target computer may be the desktop computer or the notebook-sized computer, or additionally the integrated display computer. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration of a
personal computer 100 of the second embodiment. Thepersonal computer 100 is divided into two parts: one part being aPC unit 102 whose construction is the same as that of thePC unit 40 of the first embodiment; and the other part being adrive unit 104 such as a floppy disk drive, a hard disk drive, a CD-ROM drive, etc. as a peripheral unit. Here, a keyboard, a display, etc. are included in thePC unit 102. - A bus line of the
PC unit 102 is connected to a first terminal of asignal selector 106. To a second terminal of thesignal selector 106, connected is a bus line of aPC unit 124 inside another personal computer 120 (it is not limited only to the desktop computer but the notebook-sized computer also may be a candidate). For the supply of this signal, an input/output terminal 122 of theother computer 120 is connected to an input/output terminal 110 of thispersonal computer 100. Thesignal selector 106 selects and connects either of the first terminal or the second terminal to a movable terminal. The selection may be performed manually or automatically. In the case of the automatic selection, thesignal selector 106 is normally switched to the first terminal side, selecting thePC unit 102, and when the connection of the otherpersonal computer 120 is detected, thesignal selector 106 is switched to the second terminal side, selecting the otherpersonal computer 120 instead of thePC unit 102. The detection of the connection of the otherpersonal computer 120 can be performed by detecting that a signal is inputted to the input/output terminal 110. - The movable terminal of the
signal selector 106 is connected to thedrive unit 104. - The AC power supplied from the commercial power supply to the
personal computer 100 is inputted to apower source 112 and converted to the DC power. This DC power is supplied to thepower distributor 108, which supplies the DC power to both of thePC unit 102 and thedrive unit 104 or only to thedrive unit 104. It is possible to provide abattery 126 in addition to the AC input. The output of thebattery 126 is supplied to thepower distributor 108 as well as the DC output from thepower source circuit 112. Thepower distributor 108 supplies the DC power to both of thePC unit 102 and thedrive unit 104 in a first mode thereof; it supplies the DC power not to thePC unit 102 but only to thedrive unit 104 in a second mode thereof. Thepower distributor 108 operates in interlocking with thesignal selector 106. That is, when thesignal selector 106 is switched to the first terminal side, thepower distributor 108 is also set in the first mode. When thesignal selector 106 is switched to the second terminal side, thepower distributor 108 is also set in the second mode. Because of this setting, thepower distributor 108 also is normally set in the first mode where it supplies the DC power to both of thePC unit 102 and thedrive unit 104. When the connection of the otherpersonal computer 120 is detected, it is switched to the second mode where it supplies the DC power not to thePC unit 102 but only to thedrive unit 104. As described above, thesignal selector 106 may be operated manually or automatically. Thepower distributor 108 also may be operated manually or automatically. Further, in the above description, when thepower distributor 108 is in the second mode, the power supply to thePC unit 102 is halted. However, it may be allowed that thepower distributor 108 is set in a power-saving mode where the power distribution is not completely blocked off. - Referring to FIG. 5, the operation of the second embodiment will be described. The AC power supply is turned on at step S42. Since the
power distributor 108 is normally in the first mode, the electric power is supplied to thePC unit 102 and thedrive unit 104 at step S44. Since theselector 106 also is normally switched to the first terminal side, theselector 106 connects thePC unit 102 to thedrive unit 104 so that thePC unit 102 can access thedrive unit 104. At step S46, it is determined whether or not the otherpersonal computer 120 is connected to the input/output terminal 110. If the otherpersonal computer 120 is not connected, the condition of step S44 is maintained until the power-off of thepersonal computer 100 is detected at step S48. - When the connection of the other
personal computer 120 is detected at step S46, thepower distributor 108 is switched to the second mode at step S50 where thepower distributor 108 halts the power supply to thePC unit 102 and supplies the electric power only to thedrive unit 104, as well as theselector 106 is switched to the second terminal side so that the otherpersonal computer 120 is connected to thedrive unit 104 and the otherpersonal computer 120 can access thedrive unit 104. At step S52, it is determined whether or not the otherpersonal computer 120 is still connected to the input/output terminal 110. When the otherpersonal computer 120 is still connected, the condition of step S50 is maintained until the power-off of thepersonal computer 100 is detected at step S54. - As described above, according to the second embodiment, provided is the
power distributor 108 for supplying the electric power to thePC unit 102 and to thedrive unit 104 separately, and also provided is thesignal selector 106 for connecting either of the bus line of thePC unit 102 of thepresent computer 100 or the bus line of thePC unit 124 of theother computer 120 selectively to thedrive unit 104. When theother computer 120 is connected to thedrive unit 104, thePC unit 102 is not supplied with the electric power or is set in the power-saving mode, whereby only thedrive unit 104 can be operated as a drive unit for the other device without consuming the extra electric power uselessly. In the case where thedrive unit 104 is not operated as a drive unit for the other device but thedrive unit 104 is either a CD-ROM drive or a DVD drive that can be used for its own purpose, it is conceivable that the drive unit is operated solely as a CD player or a DVD-audio player, not as a peripheral unit of the other device and the own device. In this case, thesignal selector 106 is unnecessary and only the power distributor needs to be provided. - FIG. 6 shows this modification. The
personal computer 200 is divided into two parts: one part being aPC unit 202 whose construction is the same as that of thePC unit 40 of the first embodiment; and the other part being adrive unit 204 such as a CD-ROM drive, DVD drive, etc. as a peripheral unit. Though not shown, a sound board, speaker, etc. for reproducing sound are regarded as a part of thedrive unit 204 with respect to power supply. The AC power supplied from the commercial power supply to thepersonal computer 200 is inputted to apower source 212 and converted to the DC power. This DC power is supplied to thepower distributor 208, which supplies the DC power to both of thePC unit 202 and thedrive unit 204 or only to thedrive unit 204. It is possible to provide abattery 226 in addition to the AC input. The output of thebattery 226 is supplied to thepower distributor 208 as well as the DC output from thepower source circuit 212. Thepower distributor 208 supplies the DC power to both of thePC unit 202 and thedrive unit 204 in a first mode thereof; it supplies the DC power not to thePC unit 202 but only to thedrive unit 204 in a second mode thereof. Auser interface 230 including operation switches, such as reproduction, stop, etc., is connected to adrive control unit 232. When thedrive control unit 232 detects an operation of theuser interface 230 for instructing the operation of thedrive unit 204, thedrive control unit 232 supplies a selection signal to thepower distributor 208. When the selection signal is supplied, thepower distributor 208 is switched to the second mode where it supplies the DC power not to thePC unit 202 but only to thedrive unit 204. Thepower distributor 208 may be operated manually. Further, in the above description, when thepower distributor 208 is in the second mode, the power supply to thePC unit 202 is halted. However, it may be allowed that thepower distributor 208 is set in a power-saving mode where the power distribution is not completely blocked off. - As described in the foregoing, according to the present invention, there can be provided the integrated display computer such that only a display thereof can be operated, or the computer such that only a peripheral unit thereof can be operated.
- Additional advantages and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the resent invention in its broader aspects is not limited to the specific details representative devices and illustrated examples shown and described herein. Accordingly various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the general inventive concept as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents. For example, in the above-mentioned embodiments, the number of a peripheral unit that is intended to be operated solely is only one. However, a variant embodiment may be carried into practice where the display unit and the drive unit are operated solely in a selective manner by combining the first embodiment and the second embodiment together.
Claims (11)
1-16. (Canceled)
17. A computer system comprising:
a computer having a processor and a graphic-controller;
a display connected to the computer;
a terminal to which another device can be connected;
a controller which is connected to the terminal, the computer, and the display and which supplies an output from the graphic-controller to the display in a first mode and an output from the other device to the display in a second mode.
18. The computer system according to claim 17 further comprising:
a power supply which supplies power to the computer and to the display in the first mode and power to the display in the second mode.
19. The computer system according to claim 17 , further comprising:
a detector which detects a connection of the other device to the terminal and a mode setter which sets the second mode upon detection of the connection of the other device to the terminal.
20. A method of operating a computer system comprising a computer having a processor and a graphic-controller and a display connected to the computer, the method comprising:
selecting one of a first and a second mode in accordance with a detection of a connection of another device wherein the computer and the display are operated in the first mode and the display is operated in the second mode; and
supplying an output from the graphic-controller to the display in the first mode and an output from the another device to the display in the second mode.
21. The method according to claim 20 , further comprising:
when in the second mode, supplying power to the computer when the other device is connected to the computer system.
22. The method according to claim 21 , further comprising:
supplying power to the computer and to the display, in the first mode upon a power-on of the computer system.
23. The method according to claim 20 , wherein the selecting step comprises:
detecting the connection of the other device;
setting the second mode upon detection of the connection of the other device.
24. A computer system comprising:
a computer having a processor and a graphic-controller;
a display connected to the computer;
a terminal to which another device can be connected;
a controller which is connected to the terminal, the computer, and the display,
wherein the controller receives a signal from the graphic-controller and supplies the received signal to the display in a first mode, and receives a signal from the another device and supplies the received signal to the display in a second mode.
25. The system according to claim 24 , further comprising:
a power supply which supplies power to the computer and to the display in the first mode and power to the display in the second mode.
26. The system according to claim 24 , further comprising:
a detector which detects a connection of the other device to the terminal and a mode setter which sets the second mode upon the detection of the connection of the other device to the terminal.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US10/827,249 US20040199678A1 (en) | 2000-08-16 | 2004-04-20 | Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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US09/639,637 US6735640B1 (en) | 2000-08-16 | 2000-08-16 | Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit |
US10/827,249 US20040199678A1 (en) | 2000-08-16 | 2004-04-20 | Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
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US09/639,637 Continuation US6735640B1 (en) | 2000-08-16 | 2000-08-16 | Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit |
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US20040199678A1 true US20040199678A1 (en) | 2004-10-07 |
Family
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US09/639,637 Expired - Fee Related US6735640B1 (en) | 2000-08-16 | 2000-08-16 | Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit |
US10/827,249 Abandoned US20040199678A1 (en) | 2000-08-16 | 2004-04-20 | Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit |
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US09/639,637 Expired - Fee Related US6735640B1 (en) | 2000-08-16 | 2000-08-16 | Computer system and method for operating a computer unit and a peripheral unit |
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TW (1) | TWI221244B (en) |
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JP4593834B2 (en) * | 2001-07-02 | 2010-12-08 | 富士フイルム株式会社 | Digital camera and system |
US7689724B1 (en) * | 2002-08-16 | 2010-03-30 | Cypress Semiconductor Corporation | Apparatus, system and method for sharing data from a device between multiple computers |
US20040252114A1 (en) * | 2003-06-11 | 2004-12-16 | Steve Lin | Power supply system for flat panel display and method for the same |
WO2010070530A1 (en) * | 2008-12-19 | 2010-06-24 | Nxp B.V. | Electronic apparatus comprising a common bus |
US8856561B2 (en) | 2012-05-10 | 2014-10-07 | Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. | Allocating and distributing power |
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US6735640B1 (en) | 2004-05-11 |
TWI221244B (en) | 2004-09-21 |
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