Method and system for displaying data from auxiliary display subsystem of a notebook on a main display of the notebook

• US 20070236407A1
• Filed: 04/05/2006
• Published: 10/11/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/05/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NVIDIA Corporation
• Original Assignee: PortalPlayer USA, Inc. (NVIDIA Corporation)
• Inventors: Toorians, Arman
• Granted Patent: US 9,195,428 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/1.100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1637 Details related to the display arrangement, including those related to the mounting of the display in the housing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1643 the display being associated to a digitizer, e.g. laptops that can be used as penpads details related to the relative motion of the display enclosure with respect to the body enclosure, e.g. to move between laptop and tablet PC configuration G06F1/1615
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3265 Power saving in display device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3293 by switching to a less power-consuming processor, e.g. sub-CPU
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1438 using more than one graphics controller
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2330/021 Power management, e.g. power saving
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/06 Use of more than one graphics processor to process data before displaying to one or more screens
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2370/047 using display data channel standard [DDC] communication
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/3208 organic, e.g. using organic light-emitting diodes [OLED]
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 3/36 using liquid crystals
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/50 in wire-line communication networks, e.g. low power modes or reduced link rate

Abstract

In some embodiments, a notebook including a main display, a main graphics subsystem, and an auxiliary display subsystem, but typically not an auxiliary display, wherein the notebook is configured to display on the main display one or both of data from the auxiliary display subsystem (or a scaled or otherwise processed version of such data), and data from the main graphics subsystem. Preferably, the notebook is configured to display a scaled version of data from the auxiliary display subsystem on part of the main display'"'"'s screen. Other embodiments are timing controllers and other circuitry for use in such a notebook and methods for displaying data from such a notebook'"'"'s auxiliary display subsystem on all or part of the main display'"'"'s screen. The notebook can include a timing control subsystem for asserting to the main display one or both of display data from the auxiliary display subsystem (or a processed version thereof) and display data from the main graphics subsystem. The timing control subsystem can include a scaler for receiving raw auxiliary display data and a multiplexer having inputs for receiving the output of the scaler and display data from the main graphics subsystem.

Claims

1. A notebook, including:

a main display having a screen;

a timing control subsystem;

a main graphics subsystem, coupled and configured to assert main display data to the timing control subsystem; and

an auxiliary display subsystem, coupled and configured to assert raw auxiliary display data to the timing control subsystem,

wherein the timing control subsystem is operable to assert the main display data to the main display with timing for display on the screen and is operable to assert, in response to the raw auxiliary display data, auxiliary display data to the main display with timing for display on at least a portion of the screen.

2. The notebook of claim 1, wherein the timing control subsystem includes a scaler coupled to receive the raw auxiliary display data and configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data.

3. The notebook of claim 2, wherein the timing control subsystem is operable to assert the main display data to the main display with timing for display on at least a first region of the screen, and is also operable to assert the auxiliary display data to the main display with timing for display on a region of the screen that is substantially smaller than the first region.

4. The notebook of claim 1, wherein the timing control subsystem includes:

a scaler coupled to receive the raw auxiliary display data and configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data; and

a multiplexer having at least one input coupled to receive the auxiliary display data, at least one other input coupled to receive the main display data, and at least one output coupled to the main display.

5. The notebook of claim 4, wherein the multiplexer is operable to assert combined data at the at least one output, wherein the combined data include at least some of the auxiliary display data and at least some of the main display data.

6. The notebook of claim 5, wherein the multiplexer is operable to assert the combined data to the main display with timing for display of the auxiliary display data of said combined data on a region of the screen and display of the main display data of said combined data on another region of the screen.

7. The notebook of claim 1, wherein the timing control subsystem includes:

a multiplexer having at least one input coupled to receive one of the raw auxiliary display data and the auxiliary display data, at least one other input coupled to receive the main display data, and at least one output coupled to the main display.

8. The notebook of claim 1, wherein the timing control subsystem is configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data, and the timing control subsystem is operable to assert the auxiliary display data to the main display with timing for display on a portion of the screen.

9. The notebook of claim 1, wherein the auxiliary display data are identical to the raw auxiliary display data.

10. A notebook operable in any one of a fully powered state and at least one low-power state, said notebook including:

a main display;

a timing control subsystem coupled to the main display;

a main graphics subsystem, coupled and configured to assert main display data to the timing control subsystem; and

an auxiliary display subsystem, coupled and configured to assert raw auxiliary display data to the timing control subsystem,

wherein the timing control subsystem is configured to be operable when the raw auxiliary display data are asserted thereto and the notebook is in at least one said low-power state, to assert auxiliary display data to the main display with timing for display on said main display.

11. The notebook of claim 10, wherein the timing control subsystem includes a scaler coupled to receive the raw auxiliary display data and configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data.

12. The notebook of claim 11, wherein the main display has a screen, the timing control subsystem is operable to assert the main display data to the main display with timing for display on at least a first region of the screen, and the timing control subsystem is also operable to assert the auxiliary display data to the main display with timing for display on a region of the screen that is substantially smaller than the first region.

13. The notebook of claim 10, wherein the timing control subsystem includes:

a scaler coupled to receive the raw auxiliary display data and configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data; and

a multiplexer having at least one input coupled to receive the auxiliary display data, at least one other input coupled to receive the main display data, and at least one output coupled to the main display.

14. The notebook of claim 13, wherein the multiplexer is operable to assert combined data at the at least one output, wherein the combined data include at least some of the auxiliary display data and at least some of the main display data.

15. The notebook of claim 10, wherein the timing control subsystem includes:

a multiplexer having at least one input coupled to receive one of the raw auxiliary display data and the auxiliary display data, at least one other input coupled to receive the main display data, and at least one output coupled to the main display.

16. The notebook of claim 10, wherein the main display has a screen, the timing control subsystem is configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data, and the timing control subsystem is operable to assert the auxiliary display data to the main display with timing for display on a portion of the screen.

17. The notebook of claim 10, wherein the auxiliary display data are identical to the raw auxiliary display data.

18. A timing control system configured for use in a notebook having a main display, a main graphics subsystem which generates main display data, and an auxiliary display subsystem which generates raw auxiliary display data, said timing control system including:

at least one input configured to be coupled to receive the raw auxiliary display data;

at least one other input configured to be coupled to receive the main display data;

at least one output configured to be coupled to the main display; and

circuitry, coupled between each said input and each said output and configured to be operable to assert the main display data to the at least one output with timing for display on a screen of the main display, and to be operable to assert auxiliary display data at said at least one output in response to the raw auxiliary display data with timing for display on at least a portion of the screen.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein said circuitry includes a scaler coupled to the at least one input, said scaler configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein said circuitry includes:

a scaler coupled to the at least one input, said scaler configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data; and

a multiplexer having at least one input coupled to receive the auxiliary display data, and at least one other input coupled to receive the main display data.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the multiplexer is coupled and configured to be operable to assert combined data at the at least one output, said combined data including at least some of the auxiliary display data and at least some of the main display data.

22. The system of claim 18, wherein said circuitry includes:

a multiplexer having at least one input coupled to receive one of the raw auxiliary display data and the auxiliary display data, and at least one other input coupled to receive the main display data.

23. The system of claim 18, wherein said circuitry is configured to downscale the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data, and to assert the auxiliary display data to the at least one output with timing for display on a portion of the screen of the main display.

24. The system of claim 18, wherein the auxiliary display data are identical to the raw auxiliary display data.

25. A method for displaying auxiliary display data from an auxiliary display subsystem of a notebook on a main display of the notebook, said main display having a screen, said method including the steps of:

(a) asserting raw auxiliary display data to a subsystem of the notebook;

(b) scaling the raw auxiliary display data in said subsystem to generate auxiliary display data; and

(c) asserting the auxiliary display data to the main display with timing for display on a portion of the screen.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein step (b) includes the step of downscaling the raw auxiliary display data to generate the auxiliary display data.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein step (c) includes the steps of:

asserting the auxiliary display data to a multiplexer; and

controlling the multiplexer to pass through the auxiliary display data to the main display.

28. The method of claim 25, also including the steps of:

(d) asserting main display data, from a main graphics subsystem of the notebook, to the multiplexer; and

(e) controlling the multiplexer to pass through at least some said main display data to the main display.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein step (c) is performed while the notebook is in a low-power state, and steps (d) and (e) are performed while the notebook is in a fully powered state.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein steps (a), (b), and (c) are performed while the notebook is in the low-power state.

31. The method of claim 25, wherein at least step (c) is performed while the notebook is in a low-power state.

32. The method of claim 25, wherein steps (a), (b), and (c) are performed while the notebook is in a low-power state.