DISPLAY APPARATUS AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

• US 20190311672A1
• Filed: 11/16/2017
• Published: 10/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: JEONG, Young-hoon, CHOI, Doo-seop, MOON, Young-su
• Granted Patent: US 10,909,910 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0876 Supplementary capacities in pixels having special driving circuits and electrodes instead of being connected to common electrode or ground; Use of additional capacitively coupled compensation electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/064 by time modulation of the brightness of the illumination source
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/16 Calculation or use of calculated indices related to luminance levels in display data
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/32 semiconductive, e.g. using light-emitting diodes [LED]
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/34 by control of light from an independent source
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/342 using several illumination sources separately controlled corresponding to different display panel areas, e.g. along one dimension such as lines

Abstract

A display apparatus and control method thereof are provided. The display apparatus including: a display configured to display an image; a backlight unit including a plurality of light sources configured to emit light to a screen of the display; an image processor configured to divide an input image into a plurality of blocks, identify target brightness for each block, and adjust a control value of each of the plurality of light sources based on priority of each of the plurality of light sources; and a driver configured to drive the plurality of light sources based on the control value. Thus, the duty for controlling the quality of light from the light source is identified considering the duty of the light source corresponding to an area of which previously identified priority is high, and thus dimming control is possible taking effects of light diffusion from adjacent neighboring light sources into account.

Claims

1. A display apparatus comprising:

a display configured to display an image;

a backlight unit (BLU) comprising a plurality of light sources configured to emit light to a screen of the display;

an image processor configured to divide an input image into a plurality of blocks, identify target brightness for each block, and adjust a control value of each of the plurality of light sources based on priority of each of the plurality of light sources; and

a driver configured to drive the plurality of light sources based on the control value.

2. The display apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the priority of each of the plurality of light sources is varied depending on a target brightness value of a block included in an area of which each of the plurality of light sources is in charge.

3. The display apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processor adjusts a control value for each of the plurality of light sources based on the priority, and then adjusts control values for each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto based on the priority.

4. The display apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image processor adjusts a control value for each of the plurality of light sources, based on a control value of a current light source, a brightness difference value of a block, which has a largest difference from target brightness with the BLU being driven by the control value of the current light source, among the blocks included in an area of which each of the plurality of light sources is in charge, and a rate of making light travel from each of the plurality of light sources to the block.

5. The display apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image processor adjusts control values for each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto, based on a control value of a current light source, a brightness difference value of a block, which has a largest difference from target brightness with the BLU being driven by the control value of the current light source, among the blocks included in an area of which each of the plurality of light sources is in charge, and a rate of making light travel from each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto to the block.

6. The display apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control value for each of the plurality of light sources is adjusted once or iteratively a predetermined number of times.

7. The display apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the control values for each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto are adjusted once or iteratively a predetermined number of times.

8. The display apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the target brightness is identified based on a weighted sum of a maximum pixel value and an average pixel value in a block.

9. The display apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processor estimates brightness according to pixels of the image based on the adjusted control value, and compensates pixel data of the image based on the estimated brightness.

10. A method of controlling a display apparatus, the method comprising:

dividing an input image into a plurality of blocks and identifying target brightness for each block;

adjusting a control value of each of the plurality of light sources based on priority of each of the plurality of light sources that constitute a backlight unit (BLU); and

driving the plurality of light sources to emit light to a display screen based on the control value.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the priority of each of the plurality of light sources is varied depending on a target brightness value of a block included in an area of which each of the plurality of light sources is in charge.

12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising adjusting a control value for each of the plurality of light sources based on the priority, and then adjusting control values for each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto based on the priority.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein the adjusting of the control value for each of the plurality of light sources comprises adjusting a control value for each of the plurality of light sources, based on a control value of a current light source, a brightness difference value of a block, which has a largest difference from target brightness with the BLU being driven by the control value of the current light source, among the blocks included in an area of which each of the plurality of light sources is in charge, and a rate of making light travel from each of the plurality of light sources to the block.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the adjusting of the control values for each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto comprises adjusting control values for each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto, based on a control value of a current light source, a brightness difference value of a block, which has a largest difference from target brightness with the BLU being driven by the control value of the current light source, among the blocks included in an area of which each of the plurality of light sources is in charge, and a rate of making light travel from each of the plurality of light sources and light sources adjacent thereto to the block.

15. The method according to claim 10, wherein the target brightness is identified based on a weighted sum of a maximum pixel value and an average pixel value in a block, and

the method further comprising:

estimating brightness according to pixels of the image based on the adjusted control value; and

compensating pixel data of the image based on the estimated brightness.