Adaptive control of LCD display utilizing imaging sensor measurements

• US 6,816,676 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2002
• Issued: 11/09/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/19/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Bianchi, Mark John, Battles, Amy E
• Primary Examiner(s): Gray, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): Smith, Arthur A
• Application Number:
  US10/125,488
• Publication Number:
  US 20030198466A1
• Time in Patent Office: 935 Days
• Field of Search: 359/158, 396/201, 396/232, 396/281, 396/282, 396/287, 396/289, 348/333.01
• US Class Current: 396/282
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/18 Signals indicating condition of a camera member or suitability of light indicating depth of field G03B13/30
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/064 by time modulation of the brightness of the illumination source
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3406 Control of illumination source illumination devices structurally associated with liquid crystal cells G02F1/1336

Abstract

A method and arrangement of controlling the attributes of a camera display is disclosed. The method and arrangement obtain information relating to a scene and detect a sensitivity value associated with a camera. Using this information, at least a brightness of the camera display associated with the camera is controlled in accordance with the obtained information and the detected sensitivity value.

Claims

1. A method of controlling attributes of a scene-renderable camera-display device, comprising:

obtaining information relating to a scene;

detecting a sensitivity value associated with a camera;

providing the scene-renderable camera-display with image data; and

controlling, separately from the step of providing with image data, at least a brightness of the scene-renderable camera-display device in accordance with the obtained information and the detected sensitivity value.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information obtained relating to the scene is an exposure value.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sensitivity value is an ISO value.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein a contrast and a backlighting of the scene-renderable camera-display device are controlled in accordance with the obtained information and the detected sensitivity value.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein controlling includes calculating a brightness value, and the brightness value is used to control the brightness, contrast and backlighting of the scene-renderable camera-display device.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the brightness value is compared to brightness values stored in a lookup table to determine a specific level of brightness, contrast and backlighting applied to the scene-renderable camera-display device.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein controlling includes calculating a brightness value, and the brightness value is used to control at least the brightness of the scene-renderable camera-display device.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the brightness value is compared to brightness values stored in a lookup table to determine a specific level of brightness applied to the scene-renderable camera-display device.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein controlling comprises:

calculating a brightness value using the obtained information relating to the scene and the detected sensitivity value; and

comparing the calculated brightness value with reference brightness values stored in a lookup table to control the brightness of the scene-renderable camera-display device.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein controlling comprises:

calculating a brightness value using the obtained information relating to the scene and the detected sensitivity value; and

comparing the calculated brightness value with reference brightness values stored in a lookup table to control the brightness and a contrast and backlighting of the scene-renderable camera-display device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the information relating to a scene is an exposure value;

the camera includes an imager; and

the step of obtaining information includes

making a trial exposure image of a prospectively-photographed scene via the imager, and

operating upon the trial exposure image to determine the exposure value.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of controlling controls the brightness to take one of at least three levels of brightness.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtained information relates to optical characteristics of the scene.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the image data is an electronic representation of one of the scene to which the obtained information relates and a different scene.

15. A method of controlling attributes of a scene-renderable camera-display device, comprising:

obtaining information relating to optical characteristics of a scene;

detecting a sensitivity value associated with a camera; and

controlling at least a backlighting of the scene-renderable camera-display device in accordance with the obtained information and the detected sensitivity value.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein controlling comprises:

calculating a brightness value using the obtained information relating to the scene and the detected sensitivity value; and

comparing the calculated brightness value with a reference brightness value to control the backlighting of the scene-renderable camera-display device.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein if the calculated brightness value is greater than the reference brightness value, the backlighting of the scene-renderable camera-display device is changed by a first percentage, and if the calculated brightness value is less than the reference brightness value, the backlighting of the scene-renderable camera-display device is changed by a second percentage.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein:

the information relating to a scene is an exposure value;

the camera includes an imager; and

the step of obtaining information includes

making a trial exposure image of a prospectively-photographed scene via the imager, and

operating upon the trial exposure image to determine the exposure value.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the step of controlling controls the brightness level to take one of at least three values.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

providing the scene-renderable camera-display device with data;

wherein the step of controlling controls the backlighting separately from the step of providing with image data.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the image data is an electronic representation of one of the scene to which the obtained information relates and a different scene.

22. A camera comprising:

an imager to obtain information relating to a scene;

a scene-renderable camera-display device; and

a controller operable to

provide the scene-renderable camera-display device with image data,

detect a sensitivity value associated with the camera, and

control, separately from the providing with image data, at least a brightness of the scene-renderable camera-display device based upon the obtained information and the detected sensitivity value.

23. The camera according to claim 22, further comprising:

a lookup table relating a plurality of reference brightness level to at least one of associated predetermined display backlighting values, brightness values and contrast values, respectively;

wherein the controller is operable to control the brightness of the scene-renderable camera-display device based upon relationships represented by the look up table.

24. The camera of claim 22, wherein:

the controller element is further operable to

cause a trial exposure image to be made of a prospectively-photographed scene via the imager, and

determine exposure information based upon the trial exposure image.

25. The camera of claim 22, further comprising:

a backlight unit to illuminate the scene-renderable camera-display device;

wherein the controller is operable to control the brightness of the scene-renderable camera-display device by controlling output intensity of the backlight unit.

26. The camera of claim 25, wherein the controller is further operable to cause the backlight unit to take one of at least three levels of output intensity.

27. The camera of claim 22, wherein the obtained information relates to optical characteristics of the scene.

28. The camera of claim 22, wherein the image data is an electronic representation of one of the scene to which the obtained information relates and a different scene.