Method and system for updating of displays showing deterministic content

• US 8,004,514 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2007
• Issued: 08/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Snaptrack Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm MEMS Technologies Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sampsell, Jeffrey B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shankar; Vijay
• Application Number:
  US11/673,330
• Publication Number:
  US 20070200839A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,656 Days
• Field of Search: 345204-215, 345690-698, 382/232, 382/236
• US Class Current: 345/212
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/0473 Use of light emitting or modulating elements having two or more stable states when no power is applied
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2310/04 Partial updating of the display screen
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/021 Power management, e.g. power saving
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/02 Handling of images in compressed format, e.g. JPEG, MPEG
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/16 by control of light from an independent source
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/20 for presentation of an assembly of a number of characters, e.g. a page, by composing the assembly by combination of individual elements arranged in a matrix no fixed position being assigned to or needed to be assigned to the individual characters or partial characters
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3466 based on interferometric effect
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/18 Timing circuits for raster scan displays specially adapted for television H04N ; synchronisation between the display unit and other display units, videodisc player G09G5/12

Abstract

A method and apparatus for displaying image data is disclosed. The method includes receiving one of a plurality of sets of stored image update data to be displayed on a display device, wherein each set corresponds to one image in a sequence of images and wherein the plurality of sets of image update data comprise information identifying pixels that change from a previous image in the sequence of images, wherein the display device comprises an array of bi-stable display elements. The method further includes updating a portion of the display device, the portion containing the pixels identified in the received set of stored image update data.

Claims

1. A system for displaying image data, comprising:

means for bi-stably displaying image data;

means for storing a plurality of sets of image update data corresponding to a plurality of images in a sequence of images and wherein the plurality of sets of image update data comprise one or more pixel identifiers, each of the pixel identifiers identifying a particular pixel to be changed from a previous image in the sequence of images;

means for receiving from the storing means one of the stored sets of image update data; and

the receiving means for updating a portion of the display means, the portion containing the identified particular pixels.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the displaying means comprises an array of interferometric modulators.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the storing means comprises memory.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the driver means comprises an array driver.

5. A method of displaying image data, comprising:

receiving image update data to be displayed on a display device comprising an array of bi-stable display elements, the image update data corresponding to a following image in a sequence of images and comprising one or more pixel identifiers, each of the pixel identifiers identifying a particular pixel in the following image that differs from a preceding image in the sequence of images; and

displaying the following image by changing a state of the identified particular pixels.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving image data corresponding to the preceding image, the image data corresponding to the preceding image identifying all of the pixels in the preceding image.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

displaying the preceding image prior to displaying the following image.

8. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving image data corresponding to the preceding image, the image data corresponding to the preceding image identifying fewer than all of the pixels in the preceding image.

9. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

displaying the following image in response to receiving the interrupt command.

10. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

receiving the image data in response to receiving the interrupt command.

11. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command;

receiving the image update data in response to the interrupt command; and

displaying the following image in response to the interrupt command.

12. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

receiving image data corresponding to a refresh image, the image data corresponding to the refresh image identifying all of the pixels in the refresh image.

13. The method of claim 12, receiving the interrupt command after displaying the following image, further comprising:

displaying the refresh image in accordance with the image data corresponding to the refresh image.

14. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

maintaining the state of at least one element in the array during the change from the preceding image to the following image.

15. The method of claim 5, the image update data excluding identification of pixels in the following image that do not change from the preceding image.

16. The method of claim 5, the preceding image immediately preceding the following image.

17. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

displaying an intermediate image after the preceding image and prior to displaying the following image.

18. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

identifying a set of image update data to be received from a memory in response to the received interrupt command.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising receiving a memory address identifying a memory space containing the identified set of image update data to be received from memory in response to the received interrupt command.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the memory address is contained in a memory map, the memory map further comprising data indicating that image update data stored at the received memory address corresponds to the identified set of image update data to be received in response to the received interrupt command.

21. The method of claim 5, further comprising run length decoding the received set of image update data, wherein the received set of image update data is run length coded.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable storage machine comprising instructions which when executed by a computer, cause a computer to perform a method of displaying image data, comprising:

receive image update data to be displayed on a display device comprising an array of bi-stable display elements, the image update data corresponding to a following image in a sequence of images and comprising one or more pixel identifiers, each of the pixel identifiers identifying a particular pixel in the following image that differs from a preceding image in the sequence of images; and

display the following image by changing a state of the identified particular pixels.

23. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving image data corresponding to the preceding image, the image data corresponding to the preceding image identifying all of the pixels in the preceding image.

24. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 23, the method further comprising:

displaying the preceding image prior to displaying the following image.

25. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving image data corresponding to the preceding image, the image data corresponding to the preceding image identifying fewer than all of the pixels in the preceding image.

26. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

displaying the following image in response to receiving the interrupt command.

27. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

receiving the image data in response to receiving the interrupt command.

28. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command;

receiving the image update data in response to the interrupt command; and

displaying the following image in response to the interrupt command.

29. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

receiving image data corresponding to a refresh image, the image data corresponding to the refresh image identifying all of the pixels in the refresh image.

30. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 29, the method further comprising:

displaying the refresh image in accordance with the image data corresponding to the refresh image.

31. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

maintaining the state of at least one element in the array during the change from the preceding image to the following image.

32. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the image update data excluding identification of pixels in the following image that do not change from the preceding image.

33. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the preceding image immediately preceding the following image.

34. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

displaying an intermediate image after the preceding image and prior to displaying the following image.

35. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising:

receiving an interrupt command; and

identifying a set of image update data to be received from a memory in response to the received interrupt command.

36. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 35, the method further comprising receiving a memory address identifying a memory space containing the identified set of image update data to be received from memory in response to the received interrupt command.

37. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 36, wherein the memory address is contained in a memory map, the memory map further comprising data indicating that image update data stored at the received memory address corresponds to the identified set of image update data to be received in response to the received interrupt command.

38. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 22, the method further comprising run length decoding the received set of image update data, wherein the received set of image update data is run length coded.