Selective monitor control

Reducing energy usage by a monitor includes a map manager between a monitor interface and a processor that divides a display area of a monitor into areas and stores display information in a staging area. The map manager distinguishes an active window selected by a user from the remainder inactive, unselected areas of a display, and further determines a used subset of areas within the active window distinguished from the remainder unused areas as a function of a user preference. Accordingly, the map manager drives the monitor at each of the used area active window areas with the processor display information stored in the staging area at a normal luminance specified by the processor display information, and at each of the remainder unused, inactive and unselected areas of the total display area at a reduced luminance lower than the specified normal luminance.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to the selective energizing of portions of video monitor displays.

Reduction of power consumption by computer monitors is desired to accomplish energy savings and otherwise effect environmentally friendly or “green” information technology environments. Various schemes have been proposed for reducing energy usage by identifying opportunities for reducing energy provided to inactive screens or inactive windows within said screens. However, any such approach is limited in recognizing and realizing available energy expenditure and light emissions savings while still meeting the needs of a user of the screen.

BRIEF SUMMARY

One embodiment of the present invention is a method for reducing energy usage by a monitor which includes dividing a display area of a monitor into areas and storing display information from a processor in a staging area in response to a display instruction from the processor. A top-focused active window selected by a user is distinguished within the processor display information from the remainder of inactive and unselected areas of a total display area and has a top-focused plurality of the areas. The method also includes determining that a subset of a totality of the top-focused areas comprehends a used window area distinguished from a remainder of the unused area of the top-focused window areas as a function of a user preference. According, the method drives the monitor at each of the used area subset top-focused window areas with the processor display information stored in the staging area at a normal luminance specified by the processor display information, and at each of the remainder, unused and unselected areas of the total display area at a reduced luminance that is lower than the normal luminance specified by the processor display information.

In another embodiment, a computer system for reducing energy usage by a monitor includes a map manager between a monitor interface and a processor wherein the map manager divides a display area of a monitor into areas and stores display information from the processor in a staging area in response to a display instruction from the processor. The map manager further distinguishes a top-focused active window selected by a user within the processor display information from a remainder inactive unselected area of a total display area of the processor, the top-focused active window comprising a top-focused plurality of the areas. The map manager determines that a subset of a totality of the top-focused plurality of areas comprises a used window area distinguished from a remainder unused area of the top-focused window areas plurality as a function of a user preference. Accordingly, the map manager drives the monitor at each of the used area subset top-focused window areas with the processor display information stored in the staging area at a normal luminance specified by the processor display information; and at each of the remainder unused, inactive and unselected areas of the total display area at a reduced luminance that is lower than the normal luminance specified by the processor display information.

In another embodiment, a computer program product for reducing energy usage by a monitor includes a computer readable storage medium and program instructions stored thereon. The program instructions are to divide a display area of a monitor into at least one plurality of areas and store display information from a processor in a staging area in response to a display instruction from the processor. The instructions are also to distinguish a top-focused active window selected by a user within the processor display information from a remainder inactive unselected area of a total display area of the processor, and to determine that a subset of a totality of the top-focused plurality of areas within the active window define a used window area distinguished from a remainder unused area of the active window as a function of a user preference. Lastly, the instructions are also to drive the monitor at each of the active window used areas with the processor display information stored in the staging area at a normal luminance specified by the processor display information, and at each of the remainder of the active window unused areas and inactive unselected areas of the total display area at a reduced luminance that is lower than the normal luminance specified by the processor display information.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now toFIG. 1, an embodiment of a method or system for reducing energy usage by a monitor as a function of partial screen area activity according to the present invention is illustrated. At102a map manager interposed or otherwise provided between a monitor interface and a processor divides a display area of a monitor into one or more pluralities of areas. Division of the display area of the monitor for a color generation process according to the present embodiment includes two types of plurality divisions (though other embodiments may practice more or less), physical divisions into area blocks or cells of back lights, and logical divisions of blocks or cells of color information arrangement for luminance of cells. More particularly, the monitor display is physically and logically divided into blocks or cells that may each be selectively and separately driven at discrete luminance and/or backlight values. In some embodiments, back-light blocks/cells are different from color luminance blocks/cells, and wherein each of the pluralities are controlled by separate display controller components, and they may also differ in number and size of blocks.

Either or both of the back-light physical division and the logical division of the color luminance logical division may be a user selection, or they may be predetermined or implemented, for example by a display manufacturer, manager entity or service provider. Embodiments using multiple types of logical and physical divisions may thus provide additional energy savings capabilities; for example, some portions of the display area may be selected to receive full color lumen data but no backlight energy, others backlight but low-energy level lumen data, still other alternating combinations, and wherein any specific combination may be selected to maximize energy savings, extend display service life, or serve some other parameter or objective.

It will also be apparent that increasing the granularity of either of the backlight physical divisions or the color luminance logical divisions will increase the amount of emission control possible, thus increasing possible power savings through reducing areas of the monitor needlessly backlit or driven at full color luminance. Further, backlight power is not required while RGB color information is altered in a refresh, offering additional energy saving in a refresh of such divisions, cells or screen areas.

At104the map manager stores display information from the processor in a staging area in response to a display instruction from the processor. At106the map manager distinguishes a top-focused active window selected by a user within the processor display information from a remainder, inactive and unselected area of a total display area of the processor, and wherein the top-focused active window comprises a plurality of the division blocks.

At108the map manager utilizes a user preference to determine a subset or portion of a totality of the top-focused window division blocks defining a used area as distinguished from a remainder of the top-focused window division blocks that are actually unused. More particularly, after receipt of a user's preference input as a display choice, at110the map manager causes the monitor to be driven by the processor display information by (i) driving the monitor at the used area subset division blocks of the top-focused window with full backlight intensity and with the processor display information stored in the staging area at a color luminance level provided by the processor display information (for example, an original or specified luminance provided by the display information; and (ii) reducing a color luminance level of the monitor and/or causing a low or no backlight intensity at the remaining unused division blocks of the top-focused window, as well as at the rest of the display (i.e. the remainder inactive, unselected area of the total display area, that area outside of the top-focused window), resulting in lower power outputs and/or a lower level of color luminance at the used area subset division blocks of the top-focused window.

Energizing only active, used portions of a monitor surface according to the present invention may thereby reduce total energy usage and emission of light from a video display computer monitor, in some examples resulting in savings of approximately 70% to 80% of total power consumption over prior art methods which typically effect power savings by either sending an entire display area into a stand-by mode for power saving wherein nothing is visible on the screen while in power saving mode, including active areas of interest to a user. Other methods may distinguish active windows from other inactive areas, but they provide no teachings with respect to realizing energy savings through differentiated luminance energy usage within different regions of an active window.

According to the present invention, the lower luminance level of the unused division blocks of an active window and the remainder, inactive display areas outside of the active window may be one or both of a no-power (for example, no backlight power) and a no-color luminance data level. It may also be a lower emission, predefined color combination that minimizes radiation emissions; for example, some RGB color tones may have higher radiation emissions than others, and accordingly those high-emission tones may be minimized or eliminated for the low-level setting. For example, in some embodiments, lower luminance level color combinations comprise low-contrast combinations selected and provided to the active/unused and inactive division blocks in order to replace and avoid high-contrast color combinations present in original RGB input information as rendering high-contrast images may require higher emissions by a monitor, substituting low-contrast combinations, or reducing the color contrast in the original input color information, enables further energy savings over the prior art.

The substitute or color combination alteration practices by the present invention may be user-specified. For example, predefined color combinations may be provided to the map manager to account for user color blindness, the color tones of the lower luminance levels selected to avoid combinations that may be unintelligible for those with color blindness, to instead provide certain contrasting color tones to enable a color-blind user to distinguish distinct display elements within the low-level active/unused and inactive areas (for example, window boundaries, elements within inactive windows and tool bars, etc). The term “color-blindness” refers to a variety of different conditions. Illustrative but not exhaustive examples include protanopia, the absence of red sensitivity, also referred to as red dichromacy; protanomalia, a red weakness; deuteranopia, the absence of green sensitivity, also referred to as green dichromacy; deuteranomalia, green weakness; tritanopia, the absence of blue sensitivity, also referred to as blue dichromacy; and, theoretically, tritanomalia, blue weakness. Optimizing color levels to account for one or more of these different color-blind conditions may be ineffective or even deleterious with respect to accounting for others; thus, embodiments of the present invention may allow for user selection or customization of color tone combinations for known user requirements (i.e. one combination for a red weakness, another different one for a blue dichromacy, etc.)

In another aspect, activating or powering only a used/active portion of a monitor surface may correspondingly reduce an amount of eye strain experienced by a user in using and reading information from a monitor surface.

FIG. 2illustrates a monitor surface202divided into a grid of division blocks or cells204. The processor display information comprises an active area206, which is a top-focused screen element in active use by user of a computer system in communication with the monitor. Typically, the active area206is an application window206on a desktop display202which enables a user to interact with data and process associated with said application. Illustrative but not exhaustive examples of windows206include those provided and configured by operating systems such as WINDOWS (WINDOWS is a trademark of the Microsoft Corporation in the United States or other countries), MAC OS X (MAC OS X is a trademark of the Apple Corporation in the United States or other countries), LINUX (LINUX is a trademark of the Linux Foundation in the United States or other countries), and still others appropriate for use with the present invention will be apparent to one skilled in the art. The window206may be recognized or designated as active in response to a variety of inputs from several input devices, for example from a graphical user interface (GUI) mouse, keyboard, cursor, etc. or through an operating system or application routine.

According to the present invention, the active window/area206is further divided into a used area210and an unused area212as a function of a division of the display surface of a target monitor, wherein the map manager may generate different color information and backlight intensities for each of the division blocks204of each of the areas210/212. The inactive area208of the display202is defined as the remainder of the total display area202not included within the active window206. These include blocks204cwhich are not otherwise selected by the user, and accordingly which may have no or lower power consumption.

The active/used areas210and active/unused areas212may be defined by a user, system or administrator through a variety of methods. In the present example, the user-defined used area210is defined to comprise each of the blocks204athat are both within the three rows214of blocks that are encompassed within an upper or top area of the active window206and including an area being used by the user within the active window206(for example, including a cursor or text being edited or selected by the user, etc.). The blocks204bwithin the next two, lower rows216may thus be treated like the blocks204coutside of the active window206in the inactive area208, wherein each of the blocks204band204cmay have a lower or no backlight or color luminance, thereby providing energy efficiencies greater than that obtained by prior art methods wherein all of the entire active window/area206has a higher or full luminance.

Other embodiments may use other user-selection criteria. In one example, used/unused area criteria include selecting a specified number of horizontal rows and vertical columns within an active window that are proximate to a focal point (for example, cursor, text being read, highlighted or edited, etc.), for example including the focal point. An entire active sub-area or window, radio button, dialog box or other discrete area within the active window206may be specified. Corner cells about a focal point or other pre-defined cells may be selected to demarcate boundaries of an area or window of interest, for example identifying only those cells including a portion of text or item selection, or those one or two cells or other range of cells surrounding a focal point. Still others will be apparent to one skilled in the art.

User or system preferences may thus be provided to the map manager, in some embodiments from a computer-readable storage medium in communication with the map manager. Used/active area210selection may be manually triggered by a user, for example through use of a dedicated hardware button or selection of a GUI input by a cursor. It may also be automatically initiated by an application or a device driver, for example as a default power-saving setting that may be deselected by a user, in some instances as part of a screen-saver or other power management options

In some embodiments, differing levels of low/no luminance may be practiced within the respective blocks204b/204c. For example, the unused blocks204bwithin the active window206may be visually distinguished from the inactive area208blocks204cthrough use of a different lower luminance level and/or backlight intensity, or with a low level wherein the inactive blocks204chave no luminance, etc. For example, in one embodiment, both the active window/unused blocks204band the inactive area/unused blocks204cmay receive a same lower luminance level, but wherein the active window/unused blocks204breceive backlight power and the inactive area/unused blocks204care instead powered off and receive no backlight power. Still other combinations will be apparent to one skilled in the art.

Some areas within the display may also receive different, distinguishing treatment as a function of unique status. For example, a task bar area218(at the bottom of the screen in the present example) may be designated as a permanent area218wherein it may remain illuminated at a higher level relative to the other unused blocks204band204c, in some examples at a level equivalent to the used/active blocks204a.

FIG. 3provides an exemplary implementation of an embodiment of the present invention, for example of the method and process ofFIG. 1discussed above. A device302driving a monitor display comprises or is in communication with a main monitor board304which outputs display information through an RGB color information interface306for driving a display monitor202. The device302may be a computer or other programmable device, or it may be a non-programmable device, for example a television or camera circuit302. A map manager circuit308is interposed between the display202and the main monitor board304and comprises a microprocessor or other processing device310in circuit communication with the RGB output interface306. A map manager device312is in circuit communication with the processor310and with a staging area memory device314. In response to (as a function of) user (or default) selection criteria316, the map manager312divides the monitor display into a plurality of blocks or cells (for example the blocks204ofFIG. 2).

The map manager312communicates with the processor310and receives instructions to read data from the staging area314and maps the data to the monitor interface322to focus light accordingly on the display screen202as a function of the user selection data316input. The user selection data316is in communication with the monitor202, wherein the differential division block emission process and system may be activated through initiation of a button on the physical monitor202by a user, and wherein the monitor202may also provide feedback to the circuit308in some examples. The processor310may be responsible for a variety of process executions, for example including a color generation request from the map manager312for the active area/unused section212; understanding or defining the active area/window206or used portion thereof210; processing of a power circuit request for the map manager312to enable a back light for the active/used area portion210; sending color information to divisions204afor the active/used area portion210; providing data in response to a color information request from the map manager312if a user changes a display choice; and receiving Z-Order information from a Video Graphics Array (VGA) input from the RGB color information interface306. It will be understood that the term “Z-order” refers to the ordering of objects in a display with respect to a Z-axis in coordinate geometry, where X refers to a horizontal axis (left to right) and Y to a vertical axis (up and down), and Z refers to the axis perpendicular to the other two (forward or backward). Thus, if application windows in a GUI are considered as a series of planes parallel to the surface of the monitor, the windows are typically stacked along the Z-axis, and the Z-order information thus specifies the front-to-back ordering of the windows on the screen, with a top window sheet having the highest Z value.

In contrast to prior art methods, embodiments of the present invention divide the monitor display area into one or more pluralities of divisions or cells wherein each may be managed with a different controller. In the present embodiment, the monitor display blocks204may be selectively driven at discrete luminance and backlight values by the map manager312through use of a power controller318and a separate display controller320in communication with a monitor interface322, for example, through use of separate Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memories (EEPROM's)318/320.

The physical division of backlight arrangement for powering the display screen202is achieved through use of the power controller318. At system boot, it may provide power to all screen blocks204, and by default after receipt of a Z-Order it may set for active screen-only with full intensity at the used area screen blocks204a. After receipt of user's input data316as a display choice, the power controller318may provide power wherein the intensity at each of the used/active area210blocks204awill be high, and each of the active/unused area212blocks204bwill be low; thus, a separate backlight may be provided for each physical division block204. This is contrasted with prior art liquid crystal (LCD) display methods which generally require uniform backlighting and provide no mechanism to selectively control backlighting in unused sections of active monitors, for example wasting power in lighting white unused screen areas.

In a second type of division, a logical division of color information arrangement for luminance of logically-divided cells204comprises generation of two different color information outputs by the display controller320, one for the used/active area210and the other for the active/unused area212. Thus, the map manager may send the respective logical blocks204of information for the used/active area210and the active/unused area212as well as actual color information from the staging area314, generally generating colors with less luminance for the active/unused area212after conversion of actual colors for the used/active area210.

As discussed generally above, in some embodiments, backlight luminance blocks controlled by the power controller318may differ from luminance blocks controlled by display controller320, and more particularly they may differ in number and/or size of blocks. Either or both of the physical division of each of the backlight blocks or cells and the logical division of the color luminance blocks or cells may be a user selection, for example a decision of a display manufacturer. Embodiments using multiple types of logical divisions may thus provide additional energy savings capabilities; for example, active area/unused blocks204band inactive area blocks204cmay be selected to receive full color lumen data but not backlight energy, or backlight but low-energy level lumen data, or alternating combinations with respect to inactive area blocks204cwhich are in a permanent area task bar, etc., and wherein a specific combination may be selected to maximize energy savings, extend display service life, or serve some other parameter or objective. Further, backlight power is not required while RGB information is altered in a refresh or otherwise of an active area/unused block204bor an inactive block204caccording to the present invention.

Staging RGB and backlight information in the staging area314before the monitor interface322enables further energy efficiencies over the prior art. The staging area314stores RGB data from the source (for example, main monitor board304) and caters as the RGB source for the monitor interface322. The map manager312may map as per the staging area314data onto the monitor screen204for pixel to pixel, and once mapped a monitor refresh is performed. In one aspect, timely refreshment of RGB generation in the display202need only involve the active area/used blocks204a, and not the other blocks204band204c, and may further require RGB refresh only at times required by the active area/used monitor blocks204aas indicated by the interface322. This provides further energy savings over prior art methods that refresh the entire screen, in one aspect as refresh timing is different from standard and whole-screen refreshing.

The processor310receives user selection and other input data316from the map manager312and directs the map manager312to read the display information from staging area314. Once data is available to processor310and it receives acknowledgement from the staging area314, it sends instructions for color generation as per the user's input316. Prior art light-emitting diode (LED) display methods are generally unable to find the last data of inactive sections once an LED display has been turned off; to remember a last-used screen emission profile, those LED's with lesser illumination must be powered on those, thus needlessly energizing some portions of the display when the LED monitor is turned back on. In contrast, embodiments of the present invention may retrieve color information data relative to previously inactive sections from the staging area314before turning the monitor back on; there is no need to power the unused portions at power on.

In some embodiments, the distinguishing active area/used blocks204afrom area/unused blocks204band inactive area blocks204cmay be through a Boolean logic “AND” process, thus sending the higher energy levels only to blocks that are both in an active window and identified as used through application of the user selection criteria316. In one embodiment, the user selection data316and active areas determination are part of the map manager312, with the used and unused area determinations inputs for the power controller318and the display controller320for their processing, the display controller320generating colors with less luminance for the unused area208.

The implementation of the map manager circuit308inFIG. 3comprises various components, some of which are illustrated. More particularly, it will be understood that the device302and the map manager circuit308may include processing units, inclusive of central processing units (CPU's), for example the processor310in communication with one or more external I/O devices/resources304and322and which may include computer-readable storage systems (for example,314,316,305, etc.). In general, the processing unit310and map manager312may execute computer program code, such as the code to implement one or more of the process steps illustrated inFIG. 1, which may be stored in the memories314,316and/or305.

One embodiment performs process steps of the invention on a subscription, advertising, and/or fee basis. That is, a service provider could offer to reduce energy usage by a monitor as a function of partial screen area activity. In this case, the service provider can create, maintain, and support, etc., a computer infrastructure, such as all or part of the network computer infrastructure ofFIG. 3that performs the process steps of the invention for one or more customers. In return, the service provider can receive payment from the customer(s) under a subscription and/or fee agreement and/or the service provider can receive payment from the sale of advertising content to one or more third parties.

In still another embodiment, the invention provides a computer-implemented method for executing one or more of the processes, systems and articles for reducing energy usage by a monitor as a function of partial screen area activity as described above. In this case, a computer infrastructure, such as all or part of the computer infrastructure ofFIG. 3, can be provided and one or more systems for performing the process steps of the invention can be obtained (e.g., created, purchased, used, modified, etc.) and deployed to the computer infrastructure. To this extent, the deployment of a system can comprise one or more of: (1) installing program code on a computing device, such as the computers/devices302/304/308, from a computer-readable medium; (2) adding one or more computing devices to the computer infrastructure; and (3) incorporating and/or modifying one or more existing systems of the computer infrastructure to enable the computer infrastructure to perform the process steps of the invention.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, it is understood that the terms “program code” and “computer program code” are synonymous and mean any expression, in any language, code or notation, of a set of instructions intended to cause a computing device having an information processing capability to perform a particular function either directly or after either or both of the following: (a) conversion to another language, code or notation; and/or (b) reproduction in a different material form. To this extent, program code can be embodied as one or more of an application/software program, component software/a library of functions, an operating system, a basic I/O system/driver for a particular computing and/or I/O device, and the like.

Certain examples and elements described in the present specification, including in the claims and as illustrated in the Figures, may be distinguished or otherwise identified from others by unique adjectives (e.g., a “first” element distinguished from another “second” or “third” of a plurality of elements, a “primary” distinguished from a “secondary,” one or “another” item, etc.) Such identifying adjectives are generally used to reduce confusion or uncertainty, and are not to be construed to limit the claims to any specific illustrated element or embodiment, or to imply any precedence, ordering or ranking of any claim elements, limitations or process steps.