Image Display Device And Image Display Method

• US 20120139974A1
• Filed: 03/31/2010
• Published: 06/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Sakai, Tamotsu, Tanaka, Yuhji
• Granted Patent: US 9,093,033 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/690
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0626 for control of overall brightness
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0646 Modulation of illumination source brightness and image signal correlated to each other
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/066 for control of contrast
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/021 Power management, e.g. power saving
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/16 Calculation or use of calculated indices related to luminance levels in display data
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3426 the different display panel areas being distributed in two dimensions, e.g. matrix

Abstract

A display position information acquisition section of an image display device outputs display position identification data for identifying a display position on the screen. An LED output value calculation section divides an input image into a plurality of areas and obtains LED data which is data for emission luminances of LEDs in the areas. At this time, emission luminances of LEDs in a non-display area are set to 0 on the basis of the display position identification data. A display luminance calculation section obtains display luminances of the areas based upon the emission luminances. A partial display correction filter generation section generates a partial display correction filter having correction data for each pixel stored therein, based upon the display position identification data. An LCD data calculation section obtains liquid crystal data based upon the input image, the display luminances, and the correction data.

Claims

1. An image display device provided with a display panel including a plurality of display elements, the device having a full display function for displaying an image based on an externally provided input image on the entire display panel and a partial display function for displaying an image based on the input image in a partial region of the display panel, the device comprising:

a backlight including a plurality of light sources;

an emission luminance calculation section for dividing the input image into the same number of areas as the light sources and obtaining an emission luminance which is a luminance upon emission of the light source corresponding to each area;

a display luminance calculation section for calculating a display luminance for each area on the basis of the emission luminance of the light source corresponding to that area and emission luminances of light sources corresponding to predetermined areas surrounding that area, the display luminance being a luminance achievable upon display in that area;

a display position information acquisition section for acquiring display position identification data to identify a display region in which the image based on the input image should be displayed when performing partial display;

a correction filter having correction values stored therein in association with the areas or the display elements, the correction values being values determined in accordance with the display region identified by the display position identification data;

a display data calculation section for calculating display data for controlling a light transmittance of each display element, on the basis of the input image, the display luminance, and the correction values stored in the correction filter;

a panel driver circuit for outputting a light transmittance control signal for controlling the light transmittance of each display element to the display panel, on the basis of the display data; and

a backlight driver circuit for outputting a luminance control signal for controlling the luminance of each light source to the backlight, on the basis of the emission luminance.

2. The image display device according to claim 1, further comprising a correction filter selection section for selecting a correction filter to be referenced by the display data calculation section from among a full display filter and one or more partial display filters, which are prepared as the correction filters, on the basis of the display position identification data.

3. The image display device according to claim 1, further comprising a correction filter generation section for generating the correction filter, wherein,

when there is a change in the display region identified by the display position identification data,

the emission luminance calculation section calculates the emission luminance of the light source corresponding to each area, such that emission luminances of light sources corresponding to the display region after the change are set to a maximum possible luminance value for the light sources, and emission luminances of light sources corresponding to a non-display region after the change are set to a minimum possible luminance value for the light sources, and

the correction filter generation section generates the correction filter by setting the display luminance calculated by the display luminance calculation section as the correction value without modification.

4. The image display device according to claim 3, wherein, when there is a change in the display region identified by the display position identification data, the backlight driver circuit outputs the luminance control signal such that all of the light sources are turned off.

5. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein, when the display luminance corresponding to an arbitrary display element is 0, the display data calculation section sets the value of the display data for the display element to 0 and

when the display luminance corresponding to the display element is not 0, the display data calculation section calculates the value of the display data for the display element by dividing a product of a pixel value of the input image and the correction value by the display luminance or by dividing the pixel value of the input image by a product of the display luminance and the correction value.

6. The image display device according to claim 1, further comprising a drive control section for providing the input image to the emission luminance calculation section at different times in accordance with the display region identified by the display position identification data, such that the panel driver circuit and the backlight driver circuit operate in accordance with the display region.

7. The image display device according to claim 6, wherein, when the input image has a lower resolution than the display panel in performing partial display, the drive control section provides the input image to the emission luminance calculation section with the timing for full display.

8. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein, in performing partial display, a frame image is displayed in a non-display region, the frame image being a prepared image.

9. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein, when there is a change in the display region identified by the display position identification data, the display data calculation section sequentially refers to three or more correction filters over time between before and after the change, such that an image displayed on the display panel gradually changes, the filters having stored therein their respective different patterns of correction values.

10. An image display method in an image display device provided with a display panel including a plurality of display elements and a backlight including a plurality of light sources, the device having a full display function for displaying an image based on an externally provided input image on the entire display panel and a partial display function for displaying an image based on the input image in a partial region of the display panel, the method comprising:

an emission luminance calculation step for dividing the input image into the same number of areas as the light sources and obtaining an emission luminance which is a luminance upon emission of the light source corresponding to each area;

a display luminance calculation step for calculating a display luminance for each area on the basis of the emission luminance of the light source corresponding to that area and emission luminances of light sources corresponding to predetermined areas surrounding that area, the display luminance being a luminance achievable upon display in that area;

a display position information acquisition step for acquiring display position identification data to identify a display region in which the image based on the input image should be displayed when performing partial display;

a display data calculation step for calculating display data for controlling a light transmittance of each display element, on the basis of correction values, the input image, and the display luminance, the correction values being values determined in accordance with the display region identified by the display position identification data and being stored in a predetermined correction filter in association with the areas or the display elements;

a panel drive step for outputting a light transmittance control signal for controlling the light transmittance of each display element to the display panel, on the basis of the display data; and

a backlight drive step for outputting a luminance control signal for controlling the luminance of each light source to the backlight, on the basis of the emission luminance.

11. The image display method according to claim 10, further comprising a correction filter selection step for selecting a correction filter to be referenced in the display data calculation step from among a full display filter and one or more partial display filters, which are prepared as the correction filters, on the basis of the display position identification data.

12. The image display method according to claim 10, further comprising a correction filter generation step for generating the correction filter, wherein,

when there is a change in the display region identified by the display position identification data,

in the emission luminance calculation step, the emission luminance of the light source corresponding to each area is calculated, such that emission luminances of light sources corresponding to the display region after the change are set to a maximum possible luminance value for the light sources, and emission luminances of light sources corresponding to a non-display region after the change are set to a minimum possible luminance value for the light sources, and

in the correction filter generation step, the correction filter is generated by setting the display luminance calculated in the display luminance calculation step as the correction value without modification.

13. The image display method according to claim 12, wherein, when there is a change in the display region identified by the display position identification data, the luminance control signal is outputted in the backlight drive step, such that all of the light sources are turned off.

14. The image display method according to claim 10, wherein,

when the display luminance corresponding to an arbitrary display element is 0, in the display data calculation step, the value of the display data for the display element is set to 0 and

when the display luminance corresponding to the display element is not 0, in the display data calculation step, the value of the display data for the display element is calculated by dividing a product of a pixel value of the input image and the correction value by the display luminance or by dividing the pixel value of the input image by a product of the display luminance and the correction value.

15. The image display method according to claim 10, wherein, in performing partial display, a frame image is displayed in a non-display region, the frame image being a prepared image.

16. The image display method according to claim 10, wherein, when there is a change in the display region identified by the display position identification data, three or more correction filters are sequentially referenced in the display data calculation step over time between before and after the change, such that an image displayed on the display panel gradually changes, the filters having stored therein their respective different patterns of correction values.