Dynamic backlight control

• US 20060227125A1
• Filed: 03/29/2005
• Published: 10/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Kwong, Wah Yiu, Wong, Hong W.
• Application Number:
  US11/093,402
• Publication Number:
  US 20060227125A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/211
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0626 for control of overall brightness
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0686 with two or more screen areas displaying information with different brightness or colours
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/021 Power management, e.g. power saving
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/144 the light being ambient light
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3208 organic, e.g. using organic light-emitting diodes [OLED]
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/342 using several illumination sources separately controlled corresponding to different display panel areas, e.g. along one dimension such as lines
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/14 Display of multiple viewports

Abstract

Display power consumption may be reduced by identifying an interested area and one or more non-interested areas of an application executing within an active window and by reducing brightness of pixels associated with the non-interested areas.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

identifying an interested area of an application executing within an active window being displayed on a display of a computer system; and

reducing power consumption associated with at least one non-interested area of the application within the active window.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein reducing the power consumption comprises not illuminating pixels associated with the non-interested area of the application within the active window.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein not illuminating the pixels comprises turning off one or more backlights.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein not illuminating the pixels comprises reducing the emission of light by the pixels.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising reducing power consumption associated with the interested area within the active window based on ambient light.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising reducing power consumption associated with the interested area based on whether the interested area is being used for reading or for entering information.

7. A system comprising:

a processor;

a chipset coupled to the processor;

a display coupled to the chipset; and

a display logic coupled to the display, wherein the display logic is to reduce brightness of pixels associated with at least one non-interested area of an application executing within an active window.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the display includes multiple backlights and wherein reducing the brightness of the pixels comprises reducing the brightness of at least one backlight.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein reducing the brightness of the pixels comprises reducing the illumination of the pixels.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the display is an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the display logic is further to reduce brightness of at least one backlight associated with at least one non-active window.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the display logic is further to reduce brightness of pixels associated with the interested area based on ambient light.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the display logic is further to reduce brightness of pixels associated with the interested area based on how the interested area is being used.

14. An apparatus, comprising:

logic to identify at least one non-interested area of an application executing within an active window and to reduce brightness of pixels associated with the non-interested area.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

logic to identify at least one non-active window and to reduce brightness of pixels associated with the non-active window.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the logic to reduce the brightness of the pixels associated with the non-interested area and with the non-active window comprises logic to reduce brightness of at least one backlight.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the logic to reduce the brightness of the pixels associated with the non-interested area and with the non-active window comprises logic to control illumination of the pixels.

18. An article comprising a machine-accessible medium having one or more associated instructions, wherein the instructions, if executed, results in a machine performing:

identifying an interested area of an application executing within an active window; and

reducing display power consumption of at least one area of the application outside of the interested area.

19. The article of claim 18, wherein reducing the display power consumption comprises reducing brightness of one or more backlights or reducing illumination of pixels.

20. The article of claim 18, further comprising reducing display power consumption of the interested area when the interested area is partially occupied with information.