Luminous power control of a light source of a multimedia processing system

• US 8,508,520 B2
• Filed: 07/09/2009
• Issued: 08/13/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
• Original Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
• Inventors: Porwal, Gunjan
• Primary Examiner(s): Zhou, Hong
• Application Number:
  US12/499,800
• Publication Number:
  US 20110006997A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,496 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-173, 345/102, 345/204, 345211-212, 713320-324, 382117-118
• US Class Current: 345/211
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/021 Power management, e.g. power saving
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/14 Detecting light within display terminals, e.g. using a single or a plurality of photosensors
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3406 Control of illumination source illumination devices structurally associated with liquid crystal cells G02F1/1336

Abstract

A method, apparatus, and system of luminous power control of a light source of a multimedia processing system are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method is described. The method includes capturing a digital image of a face of a user. The method also includes applying, with a processor, an algorithm capable of detecting a digital facial feature of the face of the user based on one or more markers of the digital image. In addition, the method includes determining whether the digital image includes the digital facial feature according to the marker. The method further includes causing a light source to illuminate an electronic display at an active-mode luminous power level that includes a luminous power level different than a power-saving mode luminous power level of the light source when the digital image includes the digital facial feature.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

verifying, through execution of a facial detection module stored in a memory communicatively coupled to a processor, whether an electronic display is illuminated by a light source at an active-mode luminous power level that is higher than a power-saving mode luminous power level thereof;

periodically capturing, solely when the electronic display is verified to be at the active-mode luminous power level, a digital image of a face of a user, wherein the digital image does not require user intervention for the periodic capturing thereof;

applying, with the processor, an algorithm associated with the facial detection module capable of detecting a digital facial feature of the face of the user based on a marker of the digital image;

determining whether the periodically captured digital image comprises the digital facial feature according to the marker;

maintaining the electronic display at the active-mode luminous power level when the periodically captured digital image comprises the digital facial feature;

resetting, through the processor, a counter to an initial count value whenever the periodically captured digital image is determined to include the digital facial feature;

allowing the counter to reach a final value thereof when the periodically captured digital image is determined to not include the digital facial feature;

transitioning the electronic display to the power-saving mode luminous power level of the light source when the periodically captured digital image is determined to not include the digital facial feature; and

maintaining the electronic display at the power-saving mode luminous power level of the light source when the periodically captured digital image does not include the digital facial feature until the user manually activates the electronic display.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

converting, with an image sensor, an optical image of the face of the user to the digital image.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

periodically capturing the optical image from an area substantially parallel to a plane of the electronic display.

4. The method of claim 3, comprising providing a capability to the user to set the active-mode luminous power level.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic display is located in a mobile device.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

instructing a light source driver to cause the light source to operate at the active-mode luminous power level when the periodically captured digital image comprises the digital facial feature.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

instructing the light source driver to cause the light source to operate at the power-saving mode luminous power level when the periodically captured digital image does not comprise the digital facial feature.

8. The method of claim 1, comprising enabling the power-saving mode luminous power level to be sufficient to maintain the data in a memory of the mobile device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the processor is part of a mobile device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the electronic display comprises a touch screen.

11. The method of claim 1, comprising enabling the active-mode luminous power level to be sufficient for the user to ascertain a content presented on the electronic display.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein a machine is caused to perform the method of claim 1 when a set of instructions in a form of a non-transitory machine-readable medium is executed by the machine.

13. A multimedia processing system comprising:

an image sensor to periodically capture a digital image of a face of a user of the multimedia processing system, the digital image not requiring user intervention for the capturing thereof;

a memory;

a processor;

an electronic display;

a light source;

a facial detection module stored in the memory and configured to execute through the processor to;

determine whether the periodically captured digital image comprises a digital facial feature, verify whether the electronic display is illuminated by the light source at an active-mode luminous power level that is higher than a power-saving mode luminous power level thereof, and to enable the periodic capturing of the digital image of the face of the user solely when the electronic display is verified to be at the active-mode luminous power level;

a light-source driver to cause the light source to illuminate the electronic display at an active-mode luminous power level when the periodically captured digital image comprises the digital facial feature and to maintain the electronic display at a power-saving mode luminous power level of the light source when the periodically captured digital image does not include the digital facial feature until the user manually activates the electronic display,

wherein the light-source driver is communicatively coupled with the facial detection module,

wherein the active-mode luminous power level is higher than the power-saving mode luminous power level, and

wherein the processor is configured to execute instructions to;

reset a counter to an initial count value when the periodically captured digital image includes the digital facial feature, prevent the resetting of the counter to the initial count value to enable the counter to reach a final value thereof when the periodically captured digital image does not include the digital facial feature, and transition the electronic display to the power-saving mode luminous power level of the light source when the periodically captured digital image is determined to not include the digital facial feature.

14. The multimedia processing system of claim 13, wherein the facial detection module analyzes the digital image with a facial detection algorithm.

15. The multimedia processing system of claim 13, wherein the multimedia processing system comprises a mobile device.

16. The multimedia processing system of claim 13, wherein the power-saving mode luminous power level is sufficient to maintain information and data in a memory of the multimedia processing system.

17. The multimedia processing system of claim 13, wherein the image sensor periodically captures the digital image from an area substantially parallel to a plane of the electronic display.

18. A method comprising:

verifying, through execution of a facial detection module stored in a memory communicatively coupled to a processor of a mobile device, whether a display screen of the mobile device is illuminated by a light source at an active-mode luminous power level that is higher than a power-saving mode luminous power level thereof;

periodically acquiring, with a digital camera of a mobile device, an image from an area substantially parallel to the display screen of the mobile device solely when the display screen is verified to be at the active-mode luminous power level, wherein the image does not require user intervention for the periodic acquisition thereof;

detecting a face of a user in the image;

maintaining the display screen at the active-mode luminous power level whenever the face of the user is detected in the image;

resetting, through the processor, a counter to an initial count value when the periodically acquired image includes the face of the user;

allowing the counter to reach a final value thereof when the periodically acquired image does not include the face of the user; and

maintaining the display screen at the power-saving mode luminous power level when the face of the user is not detected in the image until the user manually activates the display screen.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

illuminating the display screen at an illumination level sufficient to aid the user while viewing a content of the display screen when the face of the user is detected in the image.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

illuminating the display screen at the power-saving mode luminous power level when the face of the user is not detected in the image.