SPECIFICATION
Electronic product light-emitting diode message display system and display method
(1) Field of the invention
The present invention relates to an electronic product light- emittuig diode message display system and display method More specifically, it relates to an electronic product light- em ttmg diode message αιsp._ay system ana display method which can provide an electronic product with flexible and convenient functions, permit the user of the electronic product to edit light-emitting diode light emission patterns and himself set relations between the light-emitting diode light emission patterns ana electronic product states, and, at the same time, can provide an effect wnereby electronic products are iradc more attractive.
(2) Background technology
Accompanying the broadening applications and tne ever- mcreasmg ownership of various types of electronic products, people's da y lives a~e qαietly changing, desk-top and portable computers provide people with work and learning tools possessirg imoroved functions, palm computers and personal data assistants (PDA) provide people with excellent detailed assistance, digital household electrical appliances provide people with a r ch variety of facilities for living and entertainment, mobile communication user terminals provide people w th fast and convenient communication systems, vehicle-mounted glooal positioning systems (GPS) provide people w th convenient traffic directions for trips, and the
use of these various types of electronic products is gradually becoming part of people's everyday lives.
The mam systems employed for giving notifications of the states of an electronic product while people are using the abovenoted electronic products comprise message display screen indications and a ringing tone or an alerting sound indications. However, in some situations or circumstances, it may be unsuitable for the user to use a ringing tone or alerting sound indication, or it may not be easy for the user to directly view the content of a message which is displayed en a message display screen, and light-emitting diodes are therefore being used more and more as supplementary message display devices for electronic products . As well as providing users with further message display systems which are clear at a glance, these lignt-em ttmg diode message display systems cf electronic products also increase the attractiveness of electronic products thanks to the rich variety of their light emission effects, and they are therefore pleasing to the users of the products.
With current light-emitting diode message display systems of electronic products, users can only make simple settings in respect of light-emitting diode light emission functions. For example, in some of today's mobile telephone products, a user can only make a simple light emission turn-on or turn-off setting for a light-emitting diode display system which displays messages indicating the mobile telephone signal strength or battery level, etc., or, in order to effect a display of certain telephone states, make selections within a number of l ghc-emittinc diode light emission patterns which already exist m the mobile telephone, but it is not possible to edit light-emitting diode light emission patterns m
accordance with the individual preferences of a user. Users want message display systems in. various electronic products which are daily coming into greater and greater use to be able to provide more individuality in order to differentiate them from other users' settings. Thus, the abovedescribed function design with whicn users can only make simple settings of light-emitting diode light emission patterns cannot properly satisfy users' demands.
(3) Content cf the invention
The present _nventιon is targeted at the abovedescribed function design with which users can only make simple settings of light-emitting diode light emission patterns, and its object is to provide a light-emitting diode message display system and display method which not only provide electronic products w tn flexible and convenient message display functions but also support tne editing of light-emitting diode light emission patterns by users of electronic products and the setting cf relations between light-emitting diode light emission patterns and electronic product states by the users themselves, thereby meeting users' demands for personalization, and which at the same time can also improve the attractiveness of electronic products.
The above obiect of the invention is realized by the following technological scheme: An electronic product light-enuttmg diode message display system which is characterized in that t comprises a physical storage medium unit, a file system unit, a man-rrachme interface unit, a display scheduling un t, a hardware drive un t and a light-emitting diode hardware un t: light erission pattern files are stored in the physical storage medium unit, and these light emission pattern files
are used tc set the light emission patterns of tne light- emittmg diode hardware unit; tne file system unit constitutes the store of the light emission pattern file in the physical storage medium unit; the man-machine interface unit accesses the physical storage medium unit via the file system unit, and supports the editing and management of the light emission pattern files by a user and the setting, by the user himself, of relations between electronic product states and light emission patterns of the light-emitting diode hardware unit; the display scheduling unit schedules the displays of electronic product state messages; the hardware drive unit accesses tne physical storage medium un t via the file system unit, ana, using the iigbf-e tting diode light emission pattern files, drives the light-emitting diode hardware unit.
According to one aspect of the invention, the abovenoted electronic product is a mobile telephone; the physical storage medium un t comprises a flash memory card; the light pattern files compr_se light-emittmg diode colors, light-emitting diode brightnesses and light-emittmg diode light emission sequence and ligπt-emitting diode light emission maintenance t me settings m correspondence to the number of light- emittmg diodes; tne file system unit s compatible with an FAT file system; the man-machine interface unit comprises a mobile telephone keypad, a mobile telephone display screen, a light emission pattern file editor and a user menu; the display scheduling unit effects scheduling m accordance with the priority levels of electronic product state messages which need tc be displayed; the hardware drive unit comprises a drive circuit ana drive programs; the light-emitting diode hardware unit comprises 7 light-emittmg d.odes.
An electronic product light-emitt g diode message display method wnich is characterized that it comprises tne following steps, the states of an electronic product trigger a display scheduling unit, having been triggered, tne display scheduling mr effects scheduling in respect of displays of electronic product state messages, interrogates light emission pattern files which relate to these and which a user has n self set via a man-machine interface, and issues a light emission -nstruction to a hardware drive unit; having received this light emission instruction, the hardware drive unit accesses a physical storage medium unit via a file system un t, acquires the designated light emission pattern f le, and drives a light-emitt g diode hardware unit, the light- erritt g diode nardware unit emits light accordance witn the light emission pattern set in this light emission pattern
According to another aspect of the invention, the electronic product is a mobile telephone, and the mobile telephone state triggers comprise mobile telephone incoming calls, rrobile telephone snort messages, jnconnected incoming calls, and low mobile telephone battery levels.
(4) Description of attached drawings
The objectives and special features of the invention will now be described m detail by means of an example of ιrplementαt_on toget-ier with the attached drawings This example of implementation is illustrative, and is not limiting.
Fig 1 snows the electronic product light-emitting diode message display system of tne invention.
Fig. 2 shows the electronic product light-emitting diode message display system of the invention.
Fig. 3 shows a light-emitting diode hardware unit in the electronic product light-emitting diode message display system provided in one example of implementation of the invention.
Fig. 4 shows the hardware drive circuit of the light-emitting diode hardware unit provided in one example of implementation of the invention.
Fig. 5 shows a file system unit and a physical storage medium unit in the light-emitting diode message display system provided in one example of implementation of the invention.
(5) Specific example of implementation
Example of implementation of the invention shown in Fig. 3, Fig. 4 and Fig. 5: a mobile telephone light-emitting diode message display method.
As shown in Fig. 3, 7 light-emitting diodes ( ED1, LED2, LED3, ..., LED7) are disposed around and at the outer side of the face-plate of the keypad of a mobile telephone, and constitute the light-emitting diode hardware unit of the light-emitting diode message display system. The circuit shown in Fig. 4 is the hardware drive circuit of the light-emitting diode hardware unit. Each of the 7 light-emitting diodes has one electrode connected to a direct-current power supply (DC) and its other electrode connected to a protective resistance (resistance 1, resistance 2, resistance 3,..., resistance 7) and also to a drive transistor (transistor 1, transistor 2, transistor 3, ..., transistor 7,), and conduction/cut-off control of the 7 light-emitting diodes is effected by independent control signals (control 1, control 2, control 3,..., control 7); the 7 light-emitting diodes are also
subjected to master control and drive effected by pulse width modulation master control signals (PWM master control) and a master-control transistor, and the light emission brightnesses of the 7 light-emitt g diodes are controlled by the duty ratios of the pulse width inoculation master control signals; together w th corresponding drive programs, the abovenoted drive circuit constitutes the hardware drive unit of the light-emitt g diode message display system. What s shown m Fig. 5 is the file system unit and physical storage medium unit of the light-emittmg diode message display system, and, within these, the physical storage medium unit uses a flasn memory card (flash memory) to store light-emitting diode light emission pattern files; the light emission pattern files are used to set the light emission patterns of the light-emitt g diode hardware unit, and they contain light-emitting diode colors, light-emitting diode brightnesses and light-emitting diode light emission sequence and light-emitting diode light emission maintenance time settings m correspondence to the number of light-emitt g diodes; the file system unit comprises a flash memory storage system and an FAT file system, ana it can support the use of application programs of the FAT file system. The mobile telephone keypad, a mobile telephone display screen, a light emission pattern file editor and a user menu constitute the man-machine interface unit of the light-emittmg diode message display system, and this man- machine interface accesses the physical storage medium, unit via the file system unit, supports editing by a user and management operations such as the new establishment, duplication, downloading and deletion, etc. of light emission pattern files via the light emission pattern file editor, and also allows the user to himself set relations between light- emitt g diode light emission patterns and electronic product states by means of the user menu. The display scheduling unit
of the light-emitting diode message display system effects scheduling in accordance with the priority levels of electronic product state messages which need to be displayed, and it interrogates light emission pattern files which relate to these and have been set by the user himself via the man- machine interface. The abovedescribed physical storage medium unit, file system unit, man-machine interface unit, display scheduling unit, hardware drive unit and light-emitting diode hardware unit constitute the mobile telephone's light-emitting diode message display system.
Apart from the method of message display screen and ringing tone or alerting sound indications, which are the main indications used, the abovedescribed mobile telephone light- emitting diode message display system also provides other flexible and convenient mobile telephone message display functions, whose display method is as follows: When the mobile telephone enters into certain states, such as those of mobile telephone incoming calls, mobile telephone short messages, unconnected incoming calls and low mobile telephone battery levels, etc., these various states of the mobile telephone are caused to act as triggers and they activate the disp'lay scheduling unit; having been thus activated, the display scheduling unit effects scheduling of the displays of electronic product state messages in accordance with the priority level settings of the mobile telephone state messages which need to be displayed, selects the mobile telephone state message whose priority level is highest, interrogates the light emission pattern file which relates to this and has been set by the user himself via the man-machine interface unit, and issues a light emission instruction to the hardware drive unit; having received this light emission instruction, the hardware drive unit accesses the physical storage medium unit
via the file system unit, acquires the light emission pattern file which is designated in the light emission instruction, and drives the light-emitting diode hardware unit; the light- emitting diode hardware unit emits light in accordance with the light emission pattern which is set in the light emission pattern file, and this light emission pattern indicates to the user the state the mobile telephone is currently in, and provides the user with a mobile telephone state message which he can acquire at a glance.
It can be seen from the example of implementation described above that, as well as providing an electronic product with flexible and convenient message display functions, the light- emitting diode message display system and display method of the invention also support the editing of light-emitting diode light emission patterns by the user of the electronic product and the setting, by the user himself, of relations between the light-emitting diode light emission patterns and electronic product states, thereby meeting user demands for individualization and, at the same time, making possible an effect whereby the attractiveness of the electronic product is increased.