LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY APPARATUS

• US 20070070007A1
• Filed: 08/09/2006
• Published: 03/29/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Japan Display Central Incorporated (Japan Display Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Matsushita Display Technology Co Ltd (Japan Display Incorporated)
• Inventors: Nakamura, Takashi, Imai, Takayuki, Mori, Hideaki, Ishikawa, Miyuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,675,508 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/89
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0626 for control of overall brightness
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/144 the light being ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/145 the light originating from the display screen
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3406 Control of illumination source illumination devices structurally associated with liquid crystal cells G02F1/1336
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3611 Control of matrices with row and column drivers
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3648 using an active matrix G09G3/367 - G09G3/3696 take precedence

Abstract

In order to prevent reduction in performance due to variations in illuminance of external light, a liquid crystal display unit includes: a pixel section including pixels arranged at each of intersections where a plurality of scanning lines and a plurality of signal lines intersect, and optical sensor circuits provided to at least part of the pixels; an imaging section which generates a multi-gradation image based on detection results of the optical sensor circuits; and a gradient value calculation section which calculates a gradient value which is a ratio of a variation in a gradation tendency value of the multi-gradation image to a variation in sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits.

Claims

1. A liquid crystal display apparatus, comprising:

a pixel section including pixels arranged at each of intersections where a plurality of scanning lines and a plurality of signal lines intersect, and optical sensor circuits provided to at least part of the pixels;

an imaging section which generates a multi-gradation image based on detection results of the optical sensor circuits; and

a gradient value calculation section which calculates a gradient value which is a ratio of a variation in a gradation tendency value of the multi-gradation image to a variation in sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits.

4. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein

the gradient value calculation section calculates the gradient value when the gradient value correlates with illuminance of external light.

5. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein

in each of the optical sensor circuits, a capacitor is charged until inter-electrode voltage thereof reaches precharge voltage, and the inter-electrode voltage is binarized when exposure time has passed since start of discharge by a photoelectric conversion device, and

the gradient value is a ratio of a variation in the gradation tendency value of the multi-gradation image to a variation in the precharge voltage, with the exposure time being fixed.

8. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:

a backlight provided on back of the pixel section;

a backlight adjustment section which changes luminance of the backlight based on the gradient value.

11. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein

the gradient value calculation section calculates the gradation tendency value of the multi-gradation image after a waiting time has passed since the change of the sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits, and calculates the gradient value using the calculated gradation tendency value.

12. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

the sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits is represented by any one of precharge voltage and exposure time.

13. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

the waiting time is one frame period.

15. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein

the gradation tendency value is a median of the multi-gradation image generated by the imaging section.

2. A liquid crystal display apparatus, comprising:

a pixel section including pixels arranged at each of intersections where a plurality of scanning lines and a plurality of signal lines intersect, and optical sensor circuits provided to at least part of the pixels;

an imaging section which generates a multi-gradation image based on detection results of the optical sensor circuits;

a recognition section which recognizes a recognition object on the pixel section based on the multi-gradation image;

a gradient value calculation section which calculates a gradient value which is a ratio of a variation in a gradation tendency value of the multi-gradation image to a variation in sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits;

a gradation tendency value calculation section which calculates, based on the gradient value, a target gradation tendency value for increasing a recognition rate of the recognition section; and

a sensitivity adjustment section which changes the sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits so as to cause the multi-gradation image to have the calculated target gradation tendency value.

6. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 2 and 3, wherein

the sensitivity adjustment section reduces a difference between the target gradation tendency value and the gradation tendency value obtained from the multi-gradation image to a difference not more than a tolerance.

7. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 2 and 3, wherein

in each of the optical sensor circuits, a capacitor is charged until inter-electrode voltage thereof reaches precharge voltage, and the inter-electrode voltage is binarized when exposure time has passed since start of discharge by a photoelectric conversion device, and

the sensitivity adjustment section includes at least one of:

an exposure time adjustment section which changes the exposure time with the precharge voltage being fixed; and

a precharge voltage adjustment section which changes the precharge voltage with the exposure time being fixed.

9. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 2 and 3, further comprising:

an area ratio adjustment section which changes an area ratio of a black image to a white image in a black and white image based on the gradient value, the area ratio being an index of the recognition object.

10. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

the area ratio adjustment section causes the area ratio of the black image in the black and white image to be not less than 0.8.

14. The liquid crystal display apparatus according to any one of claims 2 and 3, wherein

the sensitivity adjustment section calculates the gradation tendency value of the multi-gradation image after a waiting time has passed since the change of the sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits, and changes the sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits using the calculated gradation tendency value.

3. A liquid crystal display apparatus, comprising:

a pixel section including pixels arranged at each of intersections where a plurality of scanning lines and a plurality of signal lines intersect, and optical sensor circuits provided to at least part of the pixels;

an imaging section which generates a multi-gradation image based on detection results of the optical sensor circuits;

a recognition section which recognizes a recognition object on the pixel section based on the multi-gradation image;

a gradient value calculation section which calculates a gradient value which is a ratio of a variation in a gradation tendency value of the multi-gradation image to a variation in sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits;

a threshold value determination section which determines whether the gradation tendency value is not less than a threshold value when the sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits is caused to be a sensitivity;

a gradation tendency value calculation section which reads a beforehand stored target gradation tendency value when the gradation tendency value is not less than the threshold value, and which calculates, based on the gradient value, a target gradation tendency value for increasing a recognition rate of the recognition section when the gradation tendency value is less than the threshold value; and

a sensitivity adjustment section which changes the sensitivity of the optical sensor circuits so as to cause the multi-gradation image to have the read or calculated target gradation tendency value.