Display control method and display controller

• US 6,710,763 B1
• Filed: 08/29/2000
• Issued: 03/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Iinuma, Takaaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Mengistu, Amare
• Application Number:
  US09/649,976
• Time in Patent Office: 1,302 Days
• Field of Search: 345/63, 345/102, 345/214, 345/77, 315/169.9, 315/169.3
• US Class Current: 345/102
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2320/0626 for control of overall brightness
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2360/144 the light being ambient light
• 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 5/10 Intensity circuits

Abstract

In a dimmer control technique of the invention, the outside light detection period is made variable and the intensity adjustment speed is changed and is made variable so as to deal with outside light change in largely different use environments, such as the inside of a room and the inside of a moving car. Cases are preset, outside light is converted into a voltage for each representative environment condition, the provided voltage is read by a microcomputer as input voltage, intensity control is performed, the relationship between the read period data and the reference voltage to be compared therewith is stored in a storage unit such as non-volatile memory, and data is fetched from the storage unit for performing control.

Claims

1. A display control method for adjusting an intensity of an image display in accordance with time change of outside light said display control method comprising the steps of:

detecting the light amount of the outside light; and

adjusting the intensity in response to the detected light amount, wherein said detecting step comprises a processing step of changing the intensity only if light amount change of the outside light is held a constant value or more for a constant time, a duration of said constant time being variable and based on an external setting, the detecting step thereby absorbing intermittent changes in the outside light;

wherein said detecting step comprises the additional steps of;

a variable period setting step of further setting a read period.

2. A display control method for adjusting an intensity of an image display in accordance with time change of outside light, said display control method comprising the steps of:

detecting the light amount of the outside light; and

adjusting the intensity in response to the detected light amount, wherein said detecting step comprises;

a variable period setting step of setting a read period, a duration of the read period being variable and based on an external setting; and

a detecting step of detecting the light amount every period set at the setting step;

wherein said detecting step comprises the additional steps of;

the processing step of changing the intensity only if light amount change of the outside light is held a constant value or more for a constant time, thereby absorbing intermittent change in the outside light.

3. A display control method for adjusting an intensity of an image display in accordance with time change of outside light, said display control method comprising the steps of:

detecting the light amount of the outside light; and

adjusting the intensity in response to the detected light amount, wherein said detecting step comprises;

a variable period setting step of setting a read period, a duration of the read period being variable and based on an external setting; and

a detecting step of detecting the light amount every period set at the setting step;

wherein said detecting step comprises the additional step of executing photoelectric conversion of the light amount of the outside light to a voltage value and outputting the light amount as the voltage value.

4. A display control method for adjusting an intensity of an image display in accordance with time change of outside light, said display control method comprising the steps of:

detecting the light amount of the outside light; and

adjusting the intensity in response to the detected light amount, wherein said detecting step comprises;

a variable period setting step of setting a read period, a duration of the read period being variable and based on an external setting; and

a detecting step of detecting the light amount every period set at the setting step;

wherein said variable period setting step is to read data from among data stored in a storage unit and set the read data as the read period.

5. A display control method for adjusting an intensity of an image display in accordance with time change of outside light said display control method comprising the steps of:

detecting the light amount of the outside light; and

adjusting the intensity in response to the detected light amount, wherein said detecting step comprises a processing step of changing the intensity only if light amount change of the outside light is held a constant value or more for a constant time, a duration of said constant time being variable and based on an external setting, the detecting step thereby absorbing intermittent changes in the outside light;

wherein said detecting step comprises the additional step of executing photoelectric conversion of the light amount of the outside light to a voltage value and outputting the light amount as the voltage value.

6. A display control method for adjusting an intensity of an image display in accordance with time change of outside light said display control method comprising the steps of:

detecting the light amount of the outside light; and

adjusting the intensity in response to the detected light amount, wherein said detecting step comprises a processing step of changing the intensity only if light amount change of the outside light is held a constant value or more for a constant time, a duration of said constant time being variable and based on an external setting, the detecting step thereby absorbing intermittent changes in the outside light;

wherein said variable period setting step is to read data from among data stored in a storage unit and set the read data as the read period.

7. A display control method for adjusting an intensity of an image display in accordance with time change of outside light said display control method comprising the steps of:

detecting the light amount of the outside light; and

adjusting the intensity in response to the detected light amount, wherein said detecting step comprises a processing step of changing the intensity only if light amount change of the outside light is held a constant value or more for a constant time, a duration of said constant time being variable and based on an external setting, the detecting step thereby absorbing intermittent changes in the outside light;

wherein the display is an in-car display.

8. A display controller comprising:

variable period setting means for allowing an operator to set a read period, a duration of the read period being variable and based on an external setting;

detection means for detecting a light amount of outside light every setup read period; and

intensity adjustment means for adjusting intensity of a display in response to the detected light amount of outside light;

wherein said intensity adjustment means adjusts the intensity only if light amount change of the outside light is held a constant value or more for a constant time, thereby absorbing intermittent change in the outside light.

9. A display controller comprising:

variable period setting means for allowing an operator to set a read period, a duration of the read period being variable and based on an external setting;

detection means for detecting a light amount of outside light every setup read period; and

intensity adjustment means for adjusting intensity of a display in response to the detected light amount of outside light;

wherein said variable period setting means comprises a photoelectric conversion of the light amount of the outside light to a voltage value and outputting the light amount as the voltage value.

10. A display controller comprising:

variable period setting means for allowing an operator to set a read period, a duration of the read period being variable and based on an external setting;

detection means for detecting a light amount of outside light every setup read period; and

intensity adjustment means for adjusting intensity of a display in response to the detected light amount of outside light;

wherein said variable period setting means comprises a storage unit and set the read data as the read period.

11. A display controller comprising:

variable period setting means for allowing an operator to set a read period, a duration of the read period being variable and based on an external setting;

detection means for detecting a light amount of outside light every setup read period; and

intensity adjustment means for adjusting intensity of a display in response to the detected light amount of outside light;

wherein said display is an in-car display.