Method of automatically enabling or disabling backlight of electronic device based on a predetermined time

• US 7,095,400 B2
• Filed: 07/28/2003
• Issued: 08/22/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/28/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Inventec Appliances Corporation (Inventec Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Inventec Appliances Corporation (Inventec Corporation)
• Inventors: Chen, Xu Dong, Tsai, Shih Kuang, Ho, Tai Shui
• Primary Examiner(s): Shalwala, Bipin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Patel, Nitin
• Application Number:
  US10/627,809
• Publication Number:
  US 20050024318A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,121 Days
• Field of Search: 345/102, 345/169, 345/156, 345/168, 345/172, 345/162, 345/170, 345/77, 345/87, 345/90, 455/127.4, 455/127.5, 455/343.1, 455/343.3, 455/550, 455/556, 455/566, 455/574, 315/158
• US Class Current: 345/102
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3406 Control of illumination source illumination devices structurally associated with liquid crystal cells G02F1/1336
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/22 Illumination; Arrangements for improving the visibility of characters on dials
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72448 with means for adapting the functionality of the device according to specific conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/027 by controlling a display operation or backlight unit
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

The present invention is to provide a method of automatically enabling or disabling backlight of an electronic device based on a predetermined time, which is implemented in the electronic device including a memory having an established backlight control database containing a predetermined enabled and disabled time of backlight respectively. In response to a user pressing a key of the keypad as determined by the electronic device, the electronic device is able to automatically read and inquire the predetermined enabled or disabled time of backlight, and activate or deactivate the keypad backlight immediately when a predetermined condition (i.e., the predetermined enabled or disabled time of backlight) has been reached.

Claims

1. A method of automatically and manually enabling or disabling a backlight of an electronic device based on a predetermined time, the method being implemented in the electronic device including a memory having an established backlight control database containing a predetermined enabled time of the backlight and a predetermined disabled time of the backlight, one of the keys of a keypad of the electronic device being set as a default backlight activation key in the database, and a microprocessor which, in response one key being pressed, performs the steps of:

for automatically enabling and disabling the backlight;

reading the predetermined enabled time of the backlight and the predetermined disabled time of the backlight from the database of the memory, and determining whether the predetermined enabled time of backlight or the predetermined disabled time of backlight has been reached;

in response to having reached the predetermined enabled time of backlight or the predetermined disabled time of backlight, activating a keypad LED of the electronic device to enable or disable a keypad backlight of the electronic device;

for manually enabling and disabling the backlight when the default backlight activation key is pressed and a backlight condition of the electronic device is in a disabled state;

determining whether the default backlight activation key is pressed;

in response to the default backlight activation key being pressed, activating a power circuit to supply power to the keypad LED and cause the keypad LED to emit light;

enabling a timer circuit to begin a time count; and

disabling the power circuit to supply power to the keypad LED when the time count of the timer circuit has reached a predetermined period of time, disabling the keypad LED and thereby turning off the keypad backlight.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the keypad LED is maintained at the disabled state in response to pressing any key other than the default backlight activation key.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the default backlight activation key is a MENU key.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the default backlight activation key is an OPTION key.