WO2005116974A1

WO2005116974A1 - Video screen saver system with subliminal modification of display parameters

Info

Publication number: WO2005116974A1
Application number: PCT/AT2004/000188
Authority: WO
Inventors: Maximilian Zamorsky; Alexander Hartenau
Original assignee: Maximilian Zamorsky; Alexander Hartenau
Priority date: 2004-05-28
Filing date: 2004-05-28
Publication date: 2005-12-08

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for displaying images (9) on a display surface (3) during which, in trigger intervals, a display parameter (P) in at least one area of the display surface (3) is modified for a subliminal duration that is shorter than the human limit of perception. The display parameter (P) is preferably selected from the display brightness, color, illumination, contrast or focus. This measure realizes a video screen saver that permanently functions and acts without being perceived by a viewer of the display surface (3). The latency-independent operating mode ensures an optimally uniform illumination of the display surface independent of the computer use.

Description

SCREEN SAVER SYSTEM WITH SUBLIMINAL CHANGE OF DISPLAY PARAMETERS

The invention relates to a method for displaying an image on a display surface of a display.

With many types of displays, e.g. in electroluminescent displays, vacuum fluorescent displays, plasma displays, cathode ray tubes, etc., when the same images are displayed for a long time, a so-called “burn-in” effect occurs, ie light pixels, phosphor layers, etc. of the displays age prematurely, which either leads to weaker brightness or permanent glowing. In any case, the quality of the screen is impaired. To prevent these "burn-in" effects on displays, "screen savers" are known which interrupt the display of images after a predetermined or adjustable latency or by other images replace.

The term “images” is to be understood in the broadest sense and includes text, graphics and any other visual information that can be shown on a display.

A disadvantage of the known screen savers is that they generally only become active after a predetermined latency period has elapsed, for example if a user of a computer has not given any input for a certain time or if there have been no changes to the display area for a predetermined time. When activated, these screensavers switch off the display or display a different image. However, such screen savers do not prevent burn-in effects in any way, since even with intensive keyboard input, for example when using a word processing program, the display changes only in a small area of the display area, whereas standing pictures are displayed in the remaining area, e.g. Window frames, menus, background images, etc. Conversely, however, the intensive input or the change of the image in a small part of the display area means that such a known screen saver is never active.

The problem of burn-in effects also exists in particular in the case of head-up displays (hereinafter: HUDs), which, due to developments in the motor vehicle industry, will be installed in series production in motor vehicles to an ever greater extent in the coming years. These HUDs display the same images over a long period of time, which is why, as with monitors, the known "burn-in effects" occur. Unlike screens, HUDs cannot switch to a screensaver mode during operation because they are ineffective and consequently the vehicle occupants would endanger. In order to remedy the problem of the infrequent activation of screen savers which only become active after a latency period has expired, a display system is proposed in US patent application 2001/0026285 A 1 in which an image between a first pixel position to prevent burn-in effects and a second pixel position is shifted, the second pixel position being offset only a few pixels from the first position. The image is preferably briefly displayed both at the first position and at the second position and then only at the second position. However, this known display system also does not adequately solve the problem of burn-in effects, since the still images are generally not limited to individual rows of pixels, but rather affect larger areas of the display area and, for practical reasons, it is not possible to move the display as far, that any burn-in effect is excluded.

There is therefore still a need for a screen saver that reliably prevents burn-in effects from occurring on a display, but does not hinder or disturb a viewer of the display.

The present invention solves this problem by providing a method and a display system for displaying an image on a display surface of a display, characterized in that, in trigger intervals, a display parameter is changed in at least one area of the display surface, the change for a subliminal period of time that is below the human perceptibility limit.

The present invention solves the problem of conventional screen savers which only come into effect after a display has not undergone any changes for a certain latency period or after no input has been made over the latency period, during which latency period constant heat development does occur the quality of the monitor and the display is impaired.

The screen saver according to the invention, however, can work permanently without waiting for latency or the like and thus also permanently prevents the burn-in process. The screen saver according to the invention works in such a way that the pixels of the display are used as uniformly as possible, their radiation changes again and again and the monitor temperature is kept constant. The striking thing about this idea according to the invention is that a viewer does not notice anything about the mode of operation of the screen saver according to the invention, since it takes place in the subliminal area, that is, only for such a short duration that the human brain does not consciously perceive this change in the display parameter , However, the display does respond to this change in the display parameter, which prevents a burn-in process.

It should be mentioned that it has long been known to "so-called" subliminal information ", that is information whose duration is below the ability of the human eye or brain to be blended into films, videos or television signals. It has been proven that a viewer the subliminal information can not perceive consciously, but reacts to it subconsciously. This effect is used, for example, to suggest a message to people, for example the message "Eat less". This effect of importing subliminal information has nothing to do with the present screen saver according to the invention. According to the invention, the displayed information is not changed, influenced or replaced by other information, but a display parameter is changed to such an extent that the burn-in process is prevented. The screen saver according to the invention thus also differs from all known screen savers in which, when activated, the image displayed on the screen is replaced by another image.

According to the invention, the screen saver works by changing a display parameter in at least one area of the display area for a subliminal period of time that is below the human perception limit. The display brightness, color, illumination, contrast or focus of the display is preferably selected as the display parameter to be changed.

The subliminal time period within which a person cannot consciously perceive changes in a display parameter varies from individual to individual and also with the state of the day, etc. However, it has been shown that the subliminal time period is in any case short enough if it is 0 , 06 s does not exceed. It is also optionally provided that the viewer can adjust the sub-criminal duration in order to optimally adapt it to his own sensitivity and at the same time to achieve optimal protection of the display.

In a further development of the invention it is also provided that in time intervals that are larger than the trigger intervals, the display parameter in at least one area of the Display area is changed for an optionally adjustable supraliminal period that is above the human perception limit. This gives the user the certainty that the process is being carried out and the user is consciously reminded of the effectiveness and mode of action.

The trigger interval defines the time intervals in which the display parameter is changed. In trials, a trigger interval of less than 20 s, preferably between 2 and 20 s, has proven to be favorable for most types of display. In order to enable an individual adaptation to the respective display, provision can, however, be made for the trigger interval to be set by a user or a random generator or the like to a value which is kept constant or is varied at random. In a further embodiment of the invention, provision is also made to set the trigger interval in accordance with a value profile, which profile can be a profile adapted to the ambient brightness, for example. To protect the display from damage due to trigger intervals that are set too high or too low, it can also be provided that the trigger interval can only be varied within predetermined limits.

In order to adapt to the performance of a computer or display controller or to achieve as uniform a stress as possible on the display, it can further be provided that the position and / or size of the area of the display area that is changed is varied.

The method according to the invention is particularly suitable for implementation by means of a computer, whereby different approaches can be chosen. If, for example, the method is processed in a computer that has an operating system that allows the display of several superimposed display levels on a display surface, a transparent area can be provided as the top display level, which is not complete for the subliminal period of time according to the display parameter transparent mode is switched. If such a computer is also designed to display windows, a transparent window can be placed over at least one area of the visual information and the transparent window can be switched to a not completely transparent mode for the subliminal period of time according to the display parameter. In an alternative embodiment of the method according to the invention in a computer with an operating system which is designed to display a plurality of display windows, of which a display window can be selected as an active display window, on which user inputs act, a Display parameters can be changed in the active window. In another alternative embodiment of the invention, if it is implemented in a computer with an operating system that allows the display of several superimposed display windows on a display surface, the change of an area of the display surface can be carried out according to the invention by means of a window that is displayed for the subliminal period of time. has the display properties specified by the display parameter.

To achieve the object according to the invention, in the case of a computer program product which is suitable for displaying visual information on a display surface, the invention provides that the computer program product can be loaded directly into a memory of a computer and comprises software code sections, the method according to the invention being used with the computer can be processed if the computer program product is processed on the computer. The computer program product can be stored on a computer-readable medium.

In order to achieve the object according to the invention, it is provided in a computer according to the invention that the computer has a computing unit and an internal memory and that the computer program product is processed in accordance with the paragraph above.

The present invention also includes a display system with a display and at least one display controller that represents an image on a display surface of the display. According to the invention, screen saver means, which are designed to change a display parameter in trigger intervals in at least one area of the display area for a subliminal period of time which is below the human perception limit, act on the display controller. The display parameter is preferably off

Display brightness, color, lighting, contrast or focus selected. As already mentioned above, the subliminal time period varies from individual to individual and also over the course of the day. The subliminal time period is preferably set to a maximum of 0.06 seconds, since tests have shown that at this value the invention delivers good results for everyone, although, as mentioned, longer time periods can also be used in individual cases. For optimal results, it is provided that the sub-criminal duration can be set. To adapt to the different displays, provision can also be made for the trigger interval to be adjustable to a value or a value profile by a user or a random generator, the variability of the trigger interval preferably being within predetermined limits in order to prevent undesired results. In order to prevent excessive uniformity in the subliminally short change of a display parameter, which may have the effect of the invention A screen saver could reduce, it is provided in a development of the display system according to the invention that the position and / or size of the area of the display area that is changed can be varied. When varying the position and / or size of the area, the technical performance of the screensaver means can also be taken into account.

The invention will now be explained in more detail by means of non-limiting exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawings. 1 shows a block diagram of a display system 1 according to the invention, FIG. 2 shows a display area to explain an embodiment of the method according to the invention, and FIG. 3 shows a display area to explain another embodiment of the method according to the invention.

1 shows a block diagram of a display system 1 according to the invention. The display system 1 comprises a display 2 with a display surface 3 for displaying visual information or images 9, these two terms having to be interpreted broadly and containing any form of text, graphics or otherwise the display area include information that can be displayed. Although the display 2 is shown as a screen in Fig. 1, it is not limited to this, but includes all types of displays, e.g. Electroluminescent displays, vacuum fluorescent displays, cathode ray tubes, LCDs, plasma displays, head-up displays, but also projection devices, video beamers and the like. The display 2 is controlled by a display controller 4, which supplies the corresponding control signals S for displaying the image 9 and display parameters P to the display 2, with which display parameters P the display properties of the display area 3 are determined. The display parameters P include display brightness, color, illumination, contrast, focus, or the like. According to the invention, the display system 1 further comprises screen saver means 5 which act on the display controller 4 and which are designed to change a display parameter P in trigger intervals in at least one area of the display area 3 for a subliminal period of time which is below the human perception limit ,

The inventors have recognized that a screen saver can always work in the background if the changes that it makes at regular intervals on the display surface are so short that they do not exceed the sub-criminal duration. The screen saver according to the invention can work permanently without waiting for latency or the like and thus also permanently prevents the burn-in process. The operation of the screen saver according to the invention is such that the pixels of the Displays are used as evenly as possible, their radiation changes again and again and the monitor temperature is kept constant. The striking thing about this idea according to the invention is that a viewer does not notice anything about the mode of operation of the screen saver according to the invention, since it takes place in the subliminal area, that is, only for such a short duration that the viewer does not notice this change in the display parameter. However, the display does respond to this change in the display parameter, which prevents a burn-in process.

The subliminal time period within which a person cannot consciously perceive changes in a display parameter varies from individual to individual and also with the daily constitution, etc. However, it has been shown that the subliminal time period is in any case chosen short enough if it Does not exceed 0.06 s. It is also optionally provided that the viewer can adjust the sub-criminal duration in order to optimally adapt it to his own sensitivity.

The trigger interval in turn defines the time intervals at which the display parameter is changed. In experiments, a trigger interval between 5 and 20 s has proven to be expedient for most types of display. In order to enable individual adaptation to individual displays, the trigger interval can be set by the viewer of the display area or by a random generator or the like to a value which is kept constant or is varied at random. In a similar way, the trigger interval can be set according to a value profile, which value profile is, for example, a profile adapted to the ambient brightness. To protect against settings outside the reasonable range, it is also provided that the trigger interval can only be varied within predetermined limits.

The display system 1 can be implemented, for example, by a computer 8 with a connected display 2. The computer 8 in turn comprises the screen saver means 5, which is designed as a computing unit, and the display controller 4, which is designed as a graphics card. In addition, the computer 8 has an internal memory 7 for processing computer programs, which can be read from a computer-readable medium 6, such as a diskette, a hard disk or can also be loaded into the internal memory 7 via a data network, such as the Internet.

Although the inventive method for displaying images or visual

If information can be implemented on a display surface as a hardware device or chip, it is also particularly suitable for software implementation using the computer 8. ie as a computer program product that is stored on the computer-readable medium 6 and can be processed in the computer 8. Various approaches can be selected for implementing the method according to the invention, as will be explained in more detail with the aid of the following examples.

2 shows the display area 3 for the case in which the computer 8 has an operating system which allows the display of several superimposed display levels on one display area. Figure 9 is shown in the lowest display level 3a. A transparent area is provided as the top display level 3b, which is switched over to the subliminal duration according to the display parameter P into a mode that is not completely transparent. The viewer of the display area 3 does not notice this subliminal change in the representation. It should be mentioned that the uppermost display level does not have to extend over the entire display area 3, but rather has been recognized as sufficient for the functioning of the invention if it occupies only part of the display area 3, e.g. the area 3c, which, however, should be regularly changed in position and / or size, so that all pixels of the display area come to lie in the area 3c an equal number of times. The reference number 10 denotes a mouse pointer 10.

If the computer 8 is designed to display windows in the display area 3, as shown schematically in FIG. 3, where a display window 1 la contains the image 9, a transparent window 1 lb can be placed in the display area 3 and this transparent window 1 lb for the subliminal period according to the display parameter in a not fully transparent mode. Instead of the window 1 lb which can be switched between a transparent and a not completely transparent mode, a window 1 lc which is not completely transparent can also be faded in and out again for the subliminal period. In an alternative embodiment, not shown, the display of the currently active display window can be changed according to a display parameter for a subliminal period. Active windows usually have a light background, e.g. if a

Word processing program is used, and therefore a screen saver acting on the active window is particularly useful.

It is an essential feature of the invention that the display of the visual information or the images on the display surface is changed so strongly for a subliminally short period of time compared to the other display that the burn-in process is reliably prevented. As mentioned, to achieve this changed representation for the Subliminal time period changes a display parameter, which includes display brightness, color, illumination, contrast, focus or the like.

From a technical point of view, the changed representation on the display surface of a display can be caused by image build-up and breakdown, pixel build-up and breakdown, image / pixel fade-in and fade-out, image / pixel overlay or image / pixel change. To bring about the changes described, the alpha value of a bitmap can be set to a non-transparent value from a programming point of view. The number of manipulated pixels can be varied, a repeat timer can be programmed that defines the trigger interval.

To ensure that the user is also certain that the computer-implemented method according to the invention is actually being processed by the computer, an icon can, for example, be shown in a task bar of the display area. However, it can also be provided that the user can switch the computer into a mode in that the change in the display parameter is carried out occasionally or by user intervention for a super-temporal period of time, so that the user can consciously recognize the change in the display.

Claims

claims:

1. A method for displaying an image (9) on a display surface (3) of a display (2), characterized in that a display parameter (P) is changed at least in a region of the display surface in trigger intervals, the change being for a

Subliminal duration takes place, which is below the human perceptibility limit.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the display parameter (P) is selected from display brightness, color, illumination, contrast or focus.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the sub-criminal duration is set to a maximum of 0.06 seconds.

4. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the sub-criminal duration is adjustable.

5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at time intervals that are greater than the trigger intervals, the display parameter (P) in at least one area of the display area for an optionally adjustable, super criminal time period that is above the human Perception limit lies, is changed.

6. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the trigger interval can be set by a user or a random generator to a value or a value profile, the variability of the trigger interval preferably being within predetermined limits.

7. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the position and / or size of the area of the display surface (3) that is changed is varied.

8. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, which is processed in a computer (8) with an operating system that allows the display of several superimposed display levels (3a, 3b) on a display surface (3), characterized in that as the top display level (3b ) a transparent area is provided, which is switched to a not completely transparent mode for the subliminal period according to the display parameter.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the operating system of the computer is designed to display windows, characterized in that a transparent window (11b) is placed over at least a region of the image (9), and the transparent window for the subliminal period is switched to a mode which is not completely transparent in accordance with the display parameter.

10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the operating system of the computer is designed to display a plurality of display windows, of which a display window can be selected as an active display window on which user inputs act, characterized in that a display parameter is changed in the active window.

11. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, which is processed in a computer with an operating system that allows the display of several superimposed display windows on a display surface, characterized in that the change of an area of the display surface by a window displayed for the subliminal period ( 1 1c) is performed, which has display properties predetermined by the display parameter.

12. Computer program product which is suitable for displaying an image (9) on a display surface (3) of a display (2) and which can be loaded directly into a memory (7) of a computer (8) and comprises software code sections, with the computer ( 8) the method according to claims 1 to 9 can be processed if the computer program product is processed on the computer.

13. Computer program product according to claim 12, wherein the computer program product is stored on a computer-readable medium (6).

14. Computer (8) with a computing unit and an internal memory (7) that processes the computer program product according to claims 10 and 11.

15. Display system (1), comprising a display (2) and a display controller (4), which represents an image (9) on a display surface (3) of the display (2), characterized by on the display controller (4 ) acting screen saver means (5), which are designed to change a trigger parameter (P) in at least one area of the display surface (3) for a subliminal period of time that is below the human perception limit.

16. The display system according to claim 14, characterized in that the display parameter (P) is selected from display brightness, color, illumination, contrast or focus.

17. Display system according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that the subliminal period is set to a maximum of 0.06 seconds.

18. Display system according to one of claims 15 to 17, characterized in that the subliminal period is adjustable.

19. Display system according to one of claims 15 to 18, characterized in that in time intervals that are greater than the trigger intervals, the display parameter (P) in at least one area of the display area for an optionally adjustable, super criminal time period that is above the human perception limit is changeable.

20. Display system according to one of claims 15 to 19, characterized in that the trigger interval can be set by a user or a random generator to a value or a value profile, the variability of the trigger interval preferably being within predetermined limits.

21. Display system according to one of claims 15 to 20, characterized in that the position and / or size of the area of the display surface (3) that is changed can be varied.