Method and apparatus for controlling illumination of a display in a portable wireless communication device
First Claim
1. A method for controlling an illumination of a display screen in portable wireless communication device comprising:
- illuminating the display screen;
determining at least one illumination time parameter corresponding to a message displayed on the display screen, wherein the at least one illumination time parameter is based on at least one of a length of the message, a number of lines of the display screen required to display the message, and a type of message to be displayed;
maintaining the illumination of the display screen for a period of time that is based on the at least one illumination time parameter, wherein maintaining the illumination of the display screen for a period of time comprises;
determining a time value based on the at least one illumination time parameter;
decrementing the time value to produce a remaining time value; and
terminating the illumination of the display screen when the remaining time value no longer exceeds zero.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A portable wireless communication device having a display screen, a light source that is capable of illuminating the display screen, and a processor coupled to the light source, dynamically adjusts a period of time during which the display screen is illuminated. The processor couples power to the light source to illuminate the display screen, determines at least one illumination time parameter associated with information to be displayed on the display screen, and maintains a coupling of power to the light source for a period of time that is based on the at least one illumination time parameter. In other embodiments of the present invention, the processor may further determine to not illuminate the display screen, or to terminate illumination of the display screen prior to expiration of the period of time, based on a received instruction or a detected level of ambient light.
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Citations
12 Claims
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1. A method for controlling an illumination of a display screen in portable wireless communication device comprising:
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illuminating the display screen; determining at least one illumination time parameter corresponding to a message displayed on the display screen, wherein the at least one illumination time parameter is based on at least one of a length of the message, a number of lines of the display screen required to display the message, and a type of message to be displayed; maintaining the illumination of the display screen for a period of time that is based on the at least one illumination time parameter, wherein maintaining the illumination of the display screen for a period of time comprises; determining a time value based on the at least one illumination time parameter; decrementing the time value to produce a remaining time value; and terminating the illumination of the display screen when the remaining time value no longer exceeds zero. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. An apparatus for controlling illumination of a display screen in portable wireless communication device comprising:
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a light source for providing illumination for a display screen; a processor coupled to the light source that couples power to the light source to illuminate the display screen, determines at least one illumination time parameter corresponding to a message displayed on the display screen, wherein the at least one illumination time parameter is based on at least one of a length of the message, a number of lines of the display screen required to display the message, and a type of message to be displayed, and maintains a coupling of power to the light source for a period of time that is based on the at least one illumination time parameter; a timer coupled to the processor; and wherein the processor maintains the illumination of the display screen for a period of time by determining a time value based on the at least one illumination time parameter, wherein the time value corresponds to the period of time, sets the timer based on the time value, decrements the timer to produce a remaining time value, and terminates the illumination of the display screen when the remaining time value no longer exceeds zero. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An apparatus for controlling illumination of a display screen in a portable wireless communication device comprising:
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a display screen; a light source for illuminating the display screen; a processor coupled to the light source that couples power to the light source to illuminate the display screen, wherein the coupling of power to the light source causes the light source to illuminate the display screen; a light sensor coupled to the processor that senses a level of ambient light and conveys a signal corresponding to the sensed level of ambient light to the processor; and wherein the processor further compares the level of ambient light to an ambient light threshold that is maintained in a memory device coupled to the processor, couples power to the light source to illuminate the display screen when the level of ambient light is less than the ambient light threshold, and determines to not illuminate the display screen when the level of ambient light is greater than the ambient light threshold. - View Dependent Claims (12)
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Specification