Display adjustments using a light sensor

• US 9,495,915 B1
• Filed: 12/20/2010
• Issued: 11/15/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Manyam, Vijay, Bowen, James Samuel
• Primary Examiner(s): Zhou, Hong
• Application Number:
  US12/973,500
• Time in Patent Office: 2,157 Days
• Field of Search: 345/207, 345105-107, 345 87-120, 345/204, 345/690, 345/695, 345/12, 362603-615, 362/249.02
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/041 Temperature compensation
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0606 Manual adjustment
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0626 for control of overall brightness
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/066 for control of contrast
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/144 the light being ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3406 Control of illumination source illumination devices structurally associated with liquid crystal cells G02F1/1336
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/344 based on particles moving in a fluid or in a gas, e.g. electrophoretic devices electrophoretic devices per se G02F1/167

Abstract

Techniques and apparatuses are disclosed to adjust an intensity of light emitted from front lights and/or to adjust a visual representation of content displayed by an electronic device based at least in part on a measurement of light intensity by a light sensor. An electronic display may present a visual representation of objects including text and images, which may be subject to changes in size and contrast due to the measured levels of ambient light. A display controller may also control activation and/or intensity of lights used to illuminate the electronic display based on the measurement of light intensity by the light sensor in addition to or separate from the adjustments to contrast and size of the content.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

a light sensor to measure a light intensity of ambient light;

a temperature sensor to measure temperature;

a reflective light display to render a visual presentation of a content;

a front light assembly to emit light on a front side of the reflective light display, the front light assembly including a plurality of lights and light piping, the light piping to evenly disperse the light from the plurality of lights onto the front side of the reflective light display; and

memory to store instructions that, when executed on the one or more processors, are operable to;

receive a user input associating a contrast level of a plurality of contrast levels to at least one predetermined ambient light intensity;

receive a light intensity value that is measured by the light sensor;

turn on and incrementally increase or incrementally decrease light output from a subset but not all of the plurality of lights to provide a substantially uniform light intensity over the reflective light display, the light output based at least in part on the light intensity value;

receive an ambient temperature value that is measured by the temperature sensor;

determine a waveform from a display profile based at least in part on the light intensity value, the ambient temperature value, and the user input, the waveform being configured to adjust a contrast of the content rendered on the reflective light display; and

adjust the contrast of the content rendered on the reflective light display using the waveform.

2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein receiving the light intensity value that is measured by the light sensor occurs on a continual basis.

3. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the reflective light display is an electronic ink display.

4. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the front light assembly removably couples to the reflective light display.

5. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein:

the reflective light display renders the visual presentation of the content using electronic ink; and

the waveform is implemented as a numerical value that is based at least in part on a viscosity of the electronic ink.

6. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the light intensity value is an average light intensity measured over a predetermined period of time.

7. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the memory further stores instructions that, when executed on the one or more processors are operable to:

receive an additional user input that associates an image size of a plurality of image sizes to the at least one predetermined ambient light intensity; and

adjust an image size of the content rendered on the reflective light display, based at least in part on the light intensity value and the additional user input.

8. An electronic device comprising:

a light sensor to measure a light intensity of ambient light;

an electronic paper display configured to present a visual representation of a content by selectively moving particles through associated capsules, a particle of the particles representing a pixel of the content and the associated capsules being aligned substantially perpendicular to a display surface of the electronic paper display;

a front light assembly to illuminate the electronic paper display, the front light assembly including a plurality of lights; and

a display controller in communication with at least the light sensor to;

receive a light intensity value that is measured by the light sensor;

turn on and incrementally increase or incrementally decrease light output from a subset but not all of the plurality of lights to provide a substantially uniform light intensity over the display surface of the electronic paper display, the light output based at least in part on the light intensity value;

determine a power consumption rate associated with a current use of the electronic device;

determine, based at least in part on the light intensity value that is measured by the light sensor, a waveform that controls movement of the particles to adjust a contrast of the visual representation of the content presented on the electronic paper display; and

adjust the contrast of the visual representation of the content presented on the electronic paper display using the waveform, and further based at least in part on the power consumption rate.

9. The electronic device as recited in claim 8, wherein the front light assembly comprises the plurality of lights surrounding light piping, the light piping located adjacent to an outward-facing side of the electronic paper display.

10. The electronic device as recited in claim 8, wherein the display controller adjusts an amount of light emitted by the front light assembly on a continual basis.

11. The electronic device as recited in claim 8, wherein the light sensor measures the light intensity of ambient light, partly in response to an expiration of a predetermined duration of time.

12. The electronic device as recited in claim 8, wherein the front light assembly is offset from the electronic paper display such that a location of the front light assembly is adjustable with respect to the electronic paper display and such that the front light assembly is positioned to disperse light emitted from the front light assembly to cover at least a portion but not all of the electronic paper display.

13. A method comprising:

measuring a light intensity of ambient light that is proximate to a display device to determine a first light intensity value, the display device including a front light assembly to illuminate a front side of a reflective light display, the front light assembly comprising a plurality of lights and light piping, the light piping to evenly disperse the light from the plurality of lights onto the front side of the reflective light display;

turning on and incrementally increasing or decreasing light output from a subset but not all of the plurality of lights to provide a substantially uniform light intensity over the reflective light display, the light output based at least in part on the first light intensity value;

receiving a user input associating a contrast level of a plurality of contrast levels to at least one predetermined ambient light intensity;

measuring the light intensity of ambient light proximate to the display device to determine a second light intensity value; and

adjusting a contrast of a content rendered on the display device, based at least in part on the second light intensity value and based at least in part on the user input.

14. The method as recited in claim 13, further comprising adjusting an image size of an object in the content rendered on the display device based at least in part on the light intensity of ambient light and at least partly in response to the user input.

15. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein the adjusting the contrast of the content comprises decreasing the contrast of the content rendered on the display device in response to the light intensity of ambient light being more intense than a previous measurement of the light intensity of ambient light.

16. The method as recited in claim 13, further comprising, receiving a page turn request at the display device, wherein the page turn request is a signal generated in response to an additional user input;

and

wherein adjusting the contrast of the content rendered on the display device is further based at least in part on the page turn request.

17. An apparatus comprising:

a light sensor to measure a light intensity of ambient light;

a temperature sensor to measure temperature;

a reflective light display to render a visual representation of a content;

a front light assembly to illuminate a front side of the reflective light display, the front light assembly including a plurality of lights; and

a display controller in communication with the light sensor to;

receive a first light intensity value that is measured by the light sensor;

turn on and incrementally increase or incrementally decrease light output from a subset but not all of the plurality of lights to provide a substantially uniform light intensity over the reflective light display, the light output based at least in part on the first light intensity value;

determine a power consumption rate associated with a current use of the apparatus;

receive a request for a new page or a next page of the content;

based at least partly on the request, receive a second light intensity value that is measured by the light sensor;

receive an ambient temperature value that is measured by the temperature sensor; and

determine a waveform for a display profile based at least in part on the second light intensity value, the ambient temperature value, and the power consumption rate, the waveform being configured to adjust a contrast of the content rendered on the reflective light display.

18. The apparatus as recited in claim 17, further comprising a lens to direct light emitted from the plurality of lights onto the front side of the reflective light display.

19. The apparatus as recited in claim 18, wherein the plurality of lights are located around at least a portion of a perimeter of the reflective light display, and wherein the lens comprises light piping adjacent to the front side of the reflective light display, the light piping to redirect light from the plurality of lights onto the reflective light display.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the display controller is further configured to:

receive a user input that associates a particular size of non-textual portions of the content with a predetermined ambient light intensity value, the particular size being different from an initial size of the non-textual portions of the content; and

adjust the initial size of the non-textual portions of the content, based at least in part on the second light intensity value and the user input.