Luminance suppression power conservation

• US 10,140,945 B2
• Filed: 10/12/2009
• Issued: 11/27/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Plut, William J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Boddie, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): Elnafia, Saifeldin
• Application Number:
  US12/577,493
• Publication Number:
  US 20100026736A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,333 Days
• Field of Search: 345204-215, 345690-699
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/021 Power management, e.g. power saving
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/20 for presentation of an assembly of a number of characters, e.g. a page, by composing the assembly by combination of individual elements arranged in a matrix no fixed position being assigned to or needed to be assigned to the individual characters or partial characters
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/024 using colour registers, e.g. to control background, foreground, surface filling G09G5/06 takes precedence

Abstract

Described herein are systems and methods that reduce power consumption for an electronics device including a display. The systems and methods alter video information in a display area and reduce power for a display device when a graphics item is enlarged and the enlargement threatens to increase perceived luminance for the graphics item or increase aggregate luminance for the display area. Altering the video information reduces the luminance of video information in at least the graphics item when enlarged. This may offset perceived luminance gained by human visual processing when an item increases in size. If the graphics item is smaller than the display area after enlargement, then other video information in the display area may also be altered to conserve power.

Claims

1. A method for reducing power consumed by an electronics device that includes a display device, the method comprising:

increasing a size of a graphics item to create a larger graphics item;

in response to increasing the size of the graphics item, altering, if a portion of the graphics item includes a color that increases a brightness, video information for at least a portion of the larger graphics item to produce an altered larger graphics item with a reduced luminance; and

displaying the larger graphics item based on the altered video information without altering video information of other graphics items displayed on the display device,

wherein the display device consumes less power when displaying the larger graphics item based on the altered video information than would be consumed for the larger graphics item without the video information alteration.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the graphics item is already displayed on the display device at a smaller size before the increase in size.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the graphics item contributes to an initial aggregate luminance output by the display device and the larger graphics item based on the altered video information contributes to a reduced aggregate luminance for the display device that is less than a new aggregate luminance that would be produced without the video information alteration.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the reduced aggregate luminance is less than the initial aggregate luminance.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein the reduced aggregate luminance is within an error band of the initial aggregate luminance.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein increasing the size of the graphics item includes initiating the graphics item.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein initiating the graphics item includes initiating a program corresponding to the graphics item.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the graphics item includes a graphics window and the portion includes a central white portion of the graphics window.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the display device is an LCD device and reducing power consumption for the display device includes changing a backlight to a lower backlight luminance level and altering the video information includes changing the transmissivity of the video information.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the LCD device includes a single backlight.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the display device is an OLED device and altering the video information includes reducing a red, green or blue pixel value that also reduces power consumption for the OLED device.

12. A non-transitory computer readable medium including instructions executable by a processor for reducing power consumed by an electronics device that includes a display device, the instructions specifying a method comprising:

increasing a size of a graphics item to create a larger graphics item;

in response to increasing the size of the graphics item, altering, if a portion of the graphics item includes a color that increases a brightness, video information for at least a portion of the larger graphics item to produce the larger graphics item that includes a reduced luminance; and

displaying the larger graphics item based on the altered video information without altering video information of other graphics items displayed on the display device,

wherein the display device consumes less power when displaying the larger graphics item based on the altered video information than would be consumed for the larger graphics item without the video information alteration.

13. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 12, wherein the method further comprises:

calculating an initial aggregate luminance output by the display device before the increase in size, instructions for calculating a new aggregate luminance after the increase in size but before the video information alteration, and

calculating a reduced aggregate luminance after the video information alteration.

14. A system for reducing power consumed by an electronics device that includes a display device, the system comprising:

at least one processor configured to;

determine, when a size of a graphics item is increased to create a larger graphics item, aggregate luminance for a display area of the display device; and

alter, in response to increasing a size of a portion of the graphics item having a color that increases a brightness, video information of the larger graphics item to produce altered video information with a reduced luminance for the larger graphics item or a reduced aggregate luminance for the display device, without altering video information of other graphics items displayed on the display device,

wherein the display device consumes less power when displaying the larger graphics item based on the altered video information than would be consumed without the video information alteration.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the display device is an organic light emitting display device or a liquid crystal display device.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the liquid crystal display device includes a single backlight.

17. The system of claim 14 wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

determine the alteration to the video information according to stored power conservation instructions, and

output a signal indicative of the alteration.

18. The system of claim 17 wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

receive the signal produced by the power conservation control, and

alter the video information based on the signal.