Novel personal electronics device with display switching

• US 20030163666A1
• Filed: 01/13/2003
• Published: 08/28/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Arm Ltd. (United Kingdom) (SoftBank Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Dualcor Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Cupps, Bryan T., Glass, Timothy J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,184,003 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 712/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3293 by switching to a less power-consuming processor, e.g. sub-CPU
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2209/509 Offload
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/5027 the resource being a machine, e.g. CPUs, Servers, Terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2803 Home automation networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/271 controlled by voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72409 by interfacing with external accessories hands-free H04M1/60
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72415 for remote control of appliances
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72427 for supporting games or graphical animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/02 including a Bluetooth interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/027 by controlling a display operation or backlight unit
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/028 switching on or off only a part of the equipment circuit blocks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/029 reducing the clock frequency of the controller
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 : in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A novel personal electronic device includes a first (embedded) and second (non-embedded) processors including associated operating systems and functions. In one aspect, the first processor performs relatively limited functions, while the second processor performs relatively broader functions under control of the first processor. Often the second processor requires more power than the first processor and is selectively operated by the first processor to minimize overall power consumption. Protocols for functions to be performed by the second processor may be provided directly to the second processor and processed by the second processor. In another aspect, a display controller is designed to interface with both processors. In another aspect, the operating systems work with one another. In another aspect, the first processor employs a thermal control program. Advantages of the invention include a broad array of functions performed by a relatively small personal electronics device.

Claims

1. A personal electronics device comprising:

a first processor supporting a first operating system and a relatively limited number of functions, where the first processor is configured to provide a display output comprising M number of bits;

a second processor supporting a second operating system and a relatively large number of functions, where the second processor is configured to provide a display output comprising N number of bits, where M and N are different;

a display controller coupled to the first processor and the second processor and configured to normalize the display bits from the first processor and the second processor to generate a normalized display output; and

a display coupled to the display controller and configured to display images based on the normalized display output.

2. The personal electronics device of claim 1, wherein:

N is greater than M.

3. The personal electronics device of claim 1, wherein:

the normalized display output is K number of bits, where M, N and K are different.

4. The personal electronics device of claim 1, wherein:

the first processor is an ARM class processor supporting Windows CE; and

the second processor is a Pentium class processor supporting Windows XP.

5. The personal electronics device of claim 1, wherein:

the display is a 800×

300 pixel display.

6. The personal electronics device of claim 1 adapted to dock with a docking station coupled to a docked display, wherein:

the display controller is configured to change at least one display parameter to conform with the docked display when the personal electronics device is docked in the docking station.

7. The personal electronics device of claim 5 adapted to dock with a docking station coupled to a docked display having a greater number of pixels than the display, wherein:

the display controller is configured to change at least one display parameter to conform with the docked display when the personal electronics device is docked in the docking station.

8. The personal electronics device of claim 6, wherein:

the controller is configured to selectively disable the display;

the display controller is responsive to a user command to set the docked display at higher resolution than the display.

9. The personal electronics device of claim 7, wherein:

the controller is configured to selectively disable the display;

the display controller is responsive to a user command to set the docked display at higher resolution than the display.

10. A method of displaying image data from a first processor and a second processor on a display, comprising the steps of:

converting M number of display bits from the first processor to a normalized display output;

converting N number of display bits from the first processor to a normalized display output, where M and N are different; and

selectively displaying an image on the display in response to a user request.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein:

N is greater than M.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the normalized display output is K number of bits, where M, N and K are different.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the first processor is an ARM class processor supporting Windows CE; and

the second processor is a Pentium class processor supporting Windows XP.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the converting steps include the step of converting the display bits to a normalized display output for a 800×

300 pixel display; and

the selectively displaying step includes the step of displaying the image on a 800×

300 pixel display.

15. The method Of claim 10, wherein the personal electronics device is adapted to dock with a docking station coupled to a docked display, and the method further includes the step of:

changing at least one display parameter to conform with the docked display when the personal electronics device is docked in the docking station.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the personal electronics device is adapted to dock with a docking station coupled to a docked display having a greater number of pixels than the display, and the method further includes the step of:

changing at least one display parameter to conform with the docked display when the personal electronics device is docked in the docking station.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising the steps of:

selectively disabling the display;

responding to a user command to set the docked display at higher resolution than the display.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:

selectively disabling the display;

responding to a user command to set the docked display at higher resolution than the display.