IMAGE DISPLAY CONTROL APPARATUS AND IMAGE DISPLAY CONTROL METHOD

• US 20120154307A1
• Filed: 11/09/2011
• Published: 06/21/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: NUNOMAKI, Takashi
• Granted Patent: US 9,703,403 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3231 Monitoring the presence, absence or movement of users
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3262 Power saving in digitizer or tablet
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

An image display control apparatus and method are used to detect an object that is in proximity to a display. A display controller is used to change the display from a first display state to a second display state after the object is not detected for a predetermined time period. The display state is then restored to the first display state when the detector detects the object being in proximity to the display. In another aspect, the display controller changes the display to the first display state from the second display state when the detector detects the object being in proximity to the display, where the second display state is a lower power state than the first display state.

Claims

1. An image display control apparatus comprising:

a detector that detects an object being in proximity of a display; and

a display controller that

changes the display from a first display state to a second display state after the object is not detected for a predetermined time period, and restores the display to the first display state when the detector detects the object being in proximity to the display.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

the display, the display being a touchpanel display that includes the detector.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the first display state is a steady state, and the second display state is a low-luminance state.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the first display state is a low-luminance state, and the second display state is a black-out state.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the first display state is a steady state, and the second display state is a button-off state.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein

when the display controller operates the display in the button-off state, and the detector detects the object being in proximity to the display, the display controller changes the display to the steady state.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the detector detects one of a user finger, a user palm and a dielectric object as the object.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a processing circuit that detects a movement gesture of the object while the object remains in proximity to the display and compares the movement gesture with a registered gesture, wherein the display controller restores the display to a steady state when the movement gesture matches the registered gesture.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein

the registered gesture is one of a user registered gesture and a pre-installed gesture.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the display controller causes an indicator to be displayed on the display when the detector detects the object to be in proximity to the display.

11. An image display control apparatus comprising:

a detector that detects an object being in proximity of a display; and

a display controller that

changes the display to a first display state from a second display state when the detector detects the object being in proximity to the display, the second display state being a lower power state than the first display state.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising:

the display, the display being a touchpanel display that includes the detector.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein

the first display state is a steady state, and the second display state is one of a low-luminance state and a black-out state,

the detector detects a touch of the object to the display as a touch event, and

the display controller also restores the display to the steady state when the display is in one of the low-luminance state and the black-out state and the detector detects the touch event.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein

the detector detects the touch event, and

a processing circuit that performs a tapping operation in response to the touch event detected by the detector.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein

the detector is configured to detect a proximity of one of a user finger, a user palm and a dielectric object as the object.

16. The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising:

a processing circuit that detects a movement gesture of the object while the object remains in proximity to the display and compares the movement gesture with a registered gesture, wherein

the display controller restores the display to a steady state when the movement gesture matches the registered gesture.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein

the registered gesture is one of a user registered gesture and an installed registered gesture.

18. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein

the display controller causes an indicator to be displayed on the display when the detector detects the object to be in proximity to the display.

19. An image display control method, comprising:

changing with a display controller a display from a first display state to a second display state after an object is not detected as being proximate to the display for a predetermined time period;

detecting with a detector that the object is moved into proximity of the display; and

restoring the display to the first display state when the detecting detects the object as being in proximity to the display.

20. An image display control method, comprising:

detecting with a detector an object being in proximity of a display; and

changing with a display controller the display to a first display state from a second display state when the object is detected as being in proximity to the display, the second display state being a lower power state than the first display state.