Automatic Configuration of Displays for Slide Presentation

• US 20150113411A1
• Filed: 10/18/2013
• Published: 04/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Torchin, Evan S., Underwood, David A., Lucas, Allen W.
• Granted Patent: US 9,535,578 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/730
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7445 Display arrangements, e.g. multiple display units
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/464 involving a plurality of displays
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1647 including at least an additional display G06F1/1692 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/84 output devices, e.g. displays or monitors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1423 controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4122 additional display device, e.g. video projector digital output for controlling a plurality of local displays G06F3/1423

Abstract

Systems, methods, and devices are provided for automatically configuring a display layout for a slide presentation to allow a presenter to seamlessly perform effective, professional slide presentation even in unfamiliar locales. A method for doing so may involve receiving connected display information that describes the electronic displays currently connected to the electronic device. When the connected display information indicates that multiple electronic displays are currently connected, the processor of the electronic device may automatically choose, without explicit user assignment, a main presentation display and one or more presenter displays. The main presentation display may display a slide presentation from among the multiple electronic displays, while the presenter displays may display information other than only the slide presentation to aid the presenter. The main presentation display and the presenter displays may be chosen based at least in part on the connected display information.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, into a processor of an electronic device, connected display information that describes electronic displays currently connected to the electronic device; and

when the connected display information indicates that multiple electronic displays are currently connected to the electronic device, using the processor to automatically choose without explicit user assignment;

a main presentation display to display a slide presentation from among the multiple electronic displays; and

one or more presenter displays to display information other than only the slide presentation to aid a presenter of the slide presentation from among the one or more multiple electronic displays not chosen to be the main presentation display;

wherein the main presentation display and the one or more presenter displays are chosen based at least in part on the connected display information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the main presentation display and the one or more presenter displays are chosen based at least in part on an indication by the connected display information that one of the multiple electronic displays is an internal display, an external display, a television, a projector, or a primary display of an operating system running on the processor, or any combination thereof.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the main presentation display is chosen to be:

when only one external display is indicated as connected to the electronic device and the only one external display does not include an operating system menu bar that is otherwise not present on a connected internal display, the only one external display;

otherwise, when one or more of the multiple electronic displays is indicated as a projector, one or more of the one or more projectors;

otherwise, when one or more of the multiple electronic displays is indicated as a television, one or more of the one or more televisions; and

otherwise, when one of the multiple electronic displays is indicated as a primary display of an operating system running on the processor.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed upon entering a presentation mode of a slide presentation program.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed upon connecting another electronic display while running a slide presentation program.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed upon disconnecting one of the multiple electronic displays while running a slide presentation program.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising, when disconnecting the one of the multiple electronic displays results in only one electronic display being connected to the electronic device, using the processor to automatically choose without explicit user selection the only one electronic display as the main presentation display when the only one electronic display was previously chosen as one of the one or more presenter displays and when the only one electronic display was previously chosen as the main presentation display.

8. An electronic device for performing a slide presentation comprising:

an internal electronic display; and

a processor configured to run a slide presentation program to perform the slide presentation, wherein, when one or more external electronic displays are connected to the electronic device while the slide presentation is running, the processor is configured to;

obtain connected display information describing the internal electronic display and the one or more external electronic displays, wherein the connected display information comprises;

one or more DisplaylD or EDID fields for each respective electronic display; and

one or more display descriptions determined by an operating system running on the processor, wherein the one or more display descriptions comprises an indication of whether the described display is the internal display or one of the one or more external displays; and

assign each respective one of the internal electronic display and the one or more external electronic displays, based at least in part on the connected display information, to be either a main presentation display that displays the slide presentation in full screen or to be one of a plurality of presenter displays that display information other than a full-screen view of the slide presentation.

9. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein the processor is configured to assign each respective one of the internal electronic display and the one or more external electronic displays by:

comparing the connected display information to a previous presentation display configuration that is associated with a previous set of electronic displays that was previously connected to the electronic device, wherein the previous presentation display configuration describes an assignment of each of the previous set of electronic displays to a respective role in the slide presentation program; and

when the connected display information matches the previous set of electronic displays, assigning each of the electronic displays currently connected to the electronic device the respective role in the slide presentation program prescribed by the previous presentation display configuration when there is a match.

10. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein the processor is configured to assign by default one of the one or more external electronic displays to be the main presentation display and to assign the internal electronic display to be one of the plurality of presenter displays.

11. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the plurality of presenter displays comprises a primary presenter display that includes a graphical presentation control interface lacking on all other of the plurality of presenter displays, wherein the processor is configured to assign the internal electronic display to be the primary presenter display.

12. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein the one or more DisplayID or EDID fields for each respective electronic display comprise one or more identification fields that uniquely identify that respective electronic display.

13. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein the one or more DisplayID or EDID fields for each respective electronic display comprise information relating to resolution, size, or type, or any combination thereof, of that respective electronic display.

14. The electronic device of claim 8, wherein the one or more display descriptions determined by an operating system running on the processor comprise information relating to resolution, size, and type, or any combination thereof, of each respective electronic display.

15. One or more tangible, non-transitory machine-readable media comprising instructions to:

obtain connected display information providing characteristics of a first set of electronic displays currently connected to an electronic device;

obtain a previous presentation display configuration associated with a second set of electronic displays previously connected to the electronic device, wherein the previous presentation display configuration describes an assignment of each of the electronic displays of the second set of electronic displays to a respective role in a slide presentation program;

determine whether the first set of electronic displays exactly matches or substantially matches the second set of electronic displays; and

when the first set of electronic displays exactly matches the second set of electronic displays, assign each of the electronic displays currently connected to the electronic device a respective role in the slide presentation program according to the previous presentation display configuration;

or

when the first set of electronic displays substantially matches the second set of electronic displays, assign each of the electronic displays currently connected to the electronic device the respective role in the slide presentation program according to the previous presentation display configuration.

16. The machine-readable media of claim 15, wherein the first set of electronic displays is determined to exactly match the second set of electronic displays when all of the connected display information associated with the first set of electronic displays matches previous connected display information associated with the second set of electronic displays.

17. The machine-readable media of claim 15, wherein the first set of electronic displays is determined to exactly match the second set of electronic displays when each electronic display of the first set of electronic displays shares a respective common unique identifier

18. The machine-readable media of claim 17, wherein the unique identifiers are from a field from DisplayID or EDID data deriving from each electronic display.

19. The machine-readable media of claim 17, wherein the unique identifiers are values that attempt to uniquely identify the electronic displays based at least in part on the characteristics of the electronic displays indicated by the connected display information other than DisplayID or EDID data.

20. The machine-readable media of claim 15, wherein the first set of electronic displays is determined to substantially match the second set of electronic displays when more than a threshold amount of the connected display information associated with the first set of electronic displays exactly matches previous connected display information associated with the second set of electronic displays.

21. The machine-readable media of claim 15, wherein the first set of electronic displays is determined to substantially match the second set of electronic displays when more than a threshold number of EDID or DisplayID fields associated with the first set of electronic displays exactly matches respective EDID or DisplayID fields associated with the second set of electronic displays.

22. A method comprising:

while running a slide presentation program on an electronic device connected to a first electronic display, receiving an indication in the electronic device that the electronic device has been connected to a second electronic display; and

automatically, in the electronic device, assigning the first electronic display and the second electronic display to respectively be either a main presentation display that displays a slide presentation in full screen or to be a presenter display that displays information to aid a presenter other than a full-screen representation of the slide presentation based at least in part on characteristics of the first and second electronic displays.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the characteristics of the first and second electronic displays include indications that the second electronic display is a projector and that the first electronic display is not a projector, and wherein the second electronic display is assigned to be the main presentation display and the first electronic device is assigned to be the presenter display.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the characteristics of the first and second electronic displays include indications that the second electronic display does not include an operating system menu bar and that the first electronic display does include the operating system menu bar, and wherein the second electronic display is assigned to be the main presentation display and the first electronic device is assigned to be the presenter display.

25. One or more tangible, non-transitory machine-readable media comprising instructions to:

receive, via an electronic device, a user request to enter a rehearse mode in a slide presentation program running on the electronic device;

assign, via the electronic device, one of a plurality of electronic displays currently connected to the electronic device to be a primary presenter display; and

cause, via the electronic device, all of the currently connected displays except the primary presenter display to display a particular image while information relevant to aid a presenter of a slide presentation is displayed on the primary presenter display.

26. The machine-readable media of claim 25, wherein the particular image is a black screen.

27. The machine-readable media of claim 25, wherein the instructions to assign the one of the plurality of electronic displays to be the primary presenter display comprise instructions to first assign a different one of the plurality of electronic displays to be a main presentation display that would, in a presentation mode, display a full screen view of the slide presentation, before selecting from among the remaining ones of the plurality of electronic displays to be the primary presenter display.