Abstract:
A display device having an integral docking station to facilitate the display device to be used in conjunction with a palm sized computing device for applications executing on the palm sized computing device is disclosed. The display device includes a flat panel display, a display controller, a microcontroller, a docking station including a communication interface, and a chassis integrally housing the earlier enumerated elements. Together, the enumerated elements facilitate removable coupling of the palm sized computing device to the display device to allow the flat panel display to be used in conjunction with said palm sized computing device under the control of said microcontroller for applications executing on said palm sized computing device. In various embodiments, the display device additionally includes at least a selected one of a number of other I/O peripherals. In other embodiments, other extended I/O capabilities, such as storage media, keyboard and cursor control are also provided. In yet other embodiments, the I/O extending apparatus is included as an integral feature of an article of manufacture, such as a furnishing item.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0002]    The present invention relates to the field of digital computing devices. More specifically, the present invention relates to the coupling of a palm sized computing device having a relatively small integral display to a larger display device.  
           [0003]    2. Background Information  
           [0004]    Advances in microprocessor technology have led to the birth and increasing popularity of palm sized computing devices. Examples of palm sized computing devices include but not limited to the famous Palm series available from 3COM Inc of San Jose, Calif., Nino from Philips of the Netherlands, and Cassiopeia from Casio of.  
           [0005]    A hallmark feature of these devices is their compactness. Most of these devices are sufficiently small to be carried in one&#39;s shirt pocket. However, the compactness does come with a price in that it limits the power of the processor, the amount of storage capacity, the size of the display screen, as well as the type of input devices that may be employed with these compact palm sized computing devices. As a result, the earlier generation of these devices typically come with limited processor power and storage capacity, as well as a small display screen, and a stylus is employed for providing user inputs. Thus, the earlier applications were limited to basic applications, such as calendar and address book applications. The typical continuous duration of usage of these devices was not very long. Occasionally, there are situations, such as bulk entry, do require prolonged working with the data. To address this need or the input/output shortcoming of these devices, most applications may also be executed on personal computers having greater power and storage capacity, larger display screens and conventional keyboard and cursor control devices. The palm sized computing devices would be provided with a mechanism to attach themselves to the personal computers to facilitate synchronization of the data. The mechanism is typically in the form of a separate cradle unit having a parallel interface to the personal computer.  
           [0006]    Over the years, palm sized computing devices have become more powerful, and increasingly, they are equipped with more data storage capacity. As a result, a wide variety of more sophisticated applications, well beyond the original basic calendar and address book applications, may be made available on these palm sized computing devices. Either because of the volume of data or the inherent nature of these more sophisticated applications themselves, the continuous duration of usage is expected to be much longer than the first generation basic applications. However, the small display screen size and the employment of a stylus for use inputs remain an immutable and limiting characteristic of these devices. As a result, a need exist to provide the users of these computing devices with a more comfortable way of using these devices for a longer duration, to enable these more powerful and greater capacity palm sized computing devices to be used for more sophisticated applications directly.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0007]    The present invention is a display device having an integral docking station to facilitate the display device to be used in conjunction with a palm sized computing device for applications executing on the palm sized computing device. The display device includes a flat panel display, a display controller, a microcontroller, a docking station including a communication interface, and a chassis integrally housing the earlier enumerated elements. Together, the enumerated elements facilitate removable coupling of the palm sized computing device to the display device to allow the flat panel display to be used in conjunction with said palm sized computing device under the control of said microcontroller for applications executing on said palm sized computing device. In other embodiments, other extended I/O capabilities, such as storage media, keyboard and cursor control are also provided. In yet other embodiments, the display devcie is included as an integral feature of an article of manufacture, such as a furnishing item.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0008]    The present invention will be described by way of exemplary embodiments, but not limitations, illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which like references denote similar elements, and in which:  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1 illustrates a perspective view of the display device of the present invention in accordance with one embodiment;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 Illustrates an architectural view of the display device and a removably coupled palm sized computing device, in accordance with one embodiment each;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIGS. 3 a - 3   b  illustrate the operational flow of the device drivers of FIG. 2 in accordance with one embodiment;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIGS. 4 a - 4   b  illustrate further operational flow of the device drivers of FIG. 2 in accordance with another embodiment;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 5 illustrates an architectural view of the display device and a removably coupled palm sized computing device, in accordance with another embodiment each;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIGS. 6 a - 6   b  illustrate the operational flow of the device drivers of FIG. 5 in accordance with one embodiment;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of the display device of the present invention in accordance with yet another embodiment;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 8 illustrates an architectural view of the display device and a removably coupled palm sized computing device, in accordance with yet another embodiment each;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIGS. 9 a - 9   b  illustrate the further operational flow of the device drivers of FIG. 8 in accordance with one embodiment; and  
         [0018]    [0018]FIGS. 10 a - 10   b  illustrate couple of variants of the embodiment of FIG. 1.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0019]    In the following description, various aspects of the present invention will be described. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced with only some or all aspects of the present invention. For purposes of explanation, specific numbers, materials and configurations are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will also be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without the specific details. In other instances, well known features are omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the present invention. The phrase “in one embodiment” will be used repeatedly. It generally does not refer to the same embodiment, although it may.  
         [0020]    Referring now to FIG. 1, wherein a perspective view of the display deviceof the present invention in accordance with one embodiment is shown. As illustrated, for the embodiment of FIG. 1, display device  100  of the present invention is advantageously provided with integrally housed docking station  108  to allow palm sized computing device  200  to be removably coupled to display device  100  in an easy slip in manner. Once coupled, display device  100  may be used in conjunction with palm sized computing device  200  for applications  208  executing on palm sized computing device  200  (hereinafter simply computing device) to provide a user with a more comfortable experience in working with applications  208 .  
         [0021]    Referring now also to FIG. 2, wherein an architectural view of the display device of FIG. 1, i.e. display device  100 , and computing device  200  in accordance with one embodiment each is shown. As illustrated, docking station  108  of display device  100  includes communication interface  1   10 . Display device  100 , in addition to docking station  108  having communication interface  110 , further includes microcontroller  102 , memory  104 , display controller  112 , and flat panel display  114  coupled to each other and communication interface  110  as shown. Memory  104  includes device driver  106 . Elements  102 - 106  and  108 - 114  are integrally housed by chassis  150 . For the illustrated embodiment, chassis  150  has a form factor of a tablet, and flat panel display  114  is disposed on a front surface of chassis  150 . Docking station  108  is internally disposed, and exposed through opening  152  disposed at top side wall  154   a  of chassis  150 . In alternate embodiments, internally disposed docking station  108  may be exposed through an opening disposed at the bottom, left or right side wall  154   b ,  154   c , or  154   d  instead. In yet other embodiments, while docking station  108  may be internally disposed, the display of computing device  200  may be made visible through a transparent window (see FIGS. 10 a  and  10   b ). In any of these embodiments, display device  100  may in turn be integrally packaged with other furnishing items, e.g. a student&#39;s desk, a doctor&#39;s examination station, and so forth. Computing device  202  includes processor  202 , memory  204 , communication interface  210 , display controller  212 , and flat panel display  214 , coupled to each other as shown. Memory  204 , in addition to applications  208 , includes device driver  206 .  
         [0022]    Display controllers  112  and  212  control the operation of flat panel displays  114  and  214  respectively. Microcontroller  108  and processor  202 , executing device drivers  106  and  206 , control overall operation of display device  100  and computing device  200  respectively, including cooperation of the two devices (through communication interfaces  110  and  210 ), to allow outputs of applications  208  to be displayed on flat panel display  114 . For the illustrated embodiment, the outputs are additionally displayed, i.e. in addition to their display on flat panel display  214 . In alternate embodiments, display controller  212  may include a programmable switch to allow device driver  206  to shut off rendering of outputs of applications  208 , when cooperating with device driver  106  to render the outputs on flat panel display  114 .  
         [0023]    Except for the operations of device drivers  106  and  206 , elements  102 - 104 ,  110 - 114 ,  202 - 204 , and  210 - 214  individually are all intended to represent a broad range and configuration of these elements known in the art.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIGS. 3 a - 3   b  illustrate the operational flow of device drivers  206  and  106  of FIG. 2, in accordance with one embodiment each. As illustrated in FIG. 3 a , at  302 , device driver  206  monitors rendering commands issued by processor  202  for display controller  212 . Upon detection, at  304 , device driver  206  formulates and transmits a message to device driver  106  informing device driver  106  of the content of the display to be rendered (optionally, including the commands and parameters, if any, issued by processor  202 ). Over in display device  100 , as illustrated by FIG. 3 b , at  312 , device driver  106  awaits for messages from device driver  206 . Upon receipt, at  314 , device driver  106  causes microcontroller  102  to issue equivalent commands to display controller  112  to cause the appropriate content to be rendered on flat panel display  114 .  
         [0025]    For the illustrated embodiment, flat panel display  114  is a touch sensitive display that can be used to facilitate provision of user inputs to computing device  200 , when used in conjunction with display device  100 . Display controller  112  is further equipped with logic to facilitate such provision of user inputs.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIGS. 4 a   4   b  illustrate further operational flow of device drivers  206  and  106  of FIG. 2, in accordance with one embodiment each. As illustrated in FIG. 4 a , at  402 , device driver  106  monitors for user inputs entered through touch sensitive flat panel display  114 . Upon detection, at  404 , device driver  106  formulates and transmits a message to device driver  206  informing device driver  206  of the user inputs entered. Over in computing device  200 , as illustrated by FIG. 4 b , at  412 , device driver  206  awaits for messages from device driver  106 . Upon receipt, at  414 , device driver  206  forwards the received inputs to applications  208  for processing.  
         [0027]    Referring back to FIG. 1, although not illustrated in scale, it can be seen that flat panel display  114  of display device  110  of the present invention is physically larger than flat panel display  214  of computing device  200 . Accordingly, it can be seen, from the foregoing description, a user will be more comfortable working with applications executing on computing device  200  that involve a larger volume of data or for a longer continuous duration, through display device  100  of the present invention. Additionally, the user maintains the flexibility and freedom to retain all applications and data on the smaller form factor computing device  200 .  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 5 illustrates an architectural view of display device 100 ′ and computing device  200 ′ in accordance with another embodiment each. As illustrated, display device 100 ′ is similarly constituted as display device  100 , except display device  100 ′ is further provided with I/O peripheral controller(s)  116 , I/O peripheral(s)  118 , and corresponding device driver(s)  105 . During operation, device driver(s)  105  correspondingly control operations of I/O peripheral(s)  118  through controller(s)  116 .  
         [0029]    I/O peripheral controller(s)  116  and I/O peripheral(s)  118  may be one or more of a number of known removable media storage device controller and device pairs known in the art. Examples of such controller and device pairs include but not limited to diskette drive controller and diskette drive, CDROM drive controller and CDROM drive, and DVD drive controller and DVD drive. In the cases of CDROM and DVD drives, I/O peripheral(s)  118  may further include one or more speakers.  
         [0030]    The speakers may be controlled by the CDROM/DVD controller, or their own-controller. I/O peripheral controller(s)  116  and I/O peripheral(s)  118  may also be one or more of a number of known wireline or wireless communication interfaces known in the art, to allow applications executing on computing device  200 ′ to access remote data, e.g. from a web site, through display device  100 ′. Examples of such wireline or wireless communication interfaces include but not limited to network controllers, wireline and wireless modems or adapters, and the like.  
         [0031]    Computing device  200 ′ is similarly constituted as computing device  200 , except computing device  200 ′ is further provided with corresponding virtual I/O peripheral device driver stub(s)  207 . Applications  208  needing access to one of I/O peripheral(s)  118  call a corresponding one of virtual I/O peripheral device driver stub(s)  207  as if it is an actual device driver corresponding to an actual I/O peripheral of computing device  200 ′. Virtual I/O peripheral device driver stub(s)  207  redirects these service calls to device driver  206  for processing.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIGS. 6 a - 6   b  illustrate the further operational flow of device drivers  206  and  106  of FIG. 4, in accordance with one embodiment each. As illustrated in FIG. 6 a , at  602 , device driver  206  monitors for service calls redirected from virtual I/O peripheral stub(s)  207  as well as results to redirected service calls return from device driver  106 . Upon detection of the former, at  604 , device driver  206  formulates and transmits a message to device driver  106  informing device driver  106  of the service call (including the call parameters, if any), if computing device  200 ′ is coupled to display device  100 ′. Otherwise, device driver  206  returns an error to applications  208 . On the other hand, if the latter was detected instead, at  606 , device driver  206  forwards the returned results to an appropriate one of applications  208 . Over in display device  100 ′, as illustrated by FIG. 6 b , at  612 , device driver  106  awaits for messages from device driver  206  or results to service calls from I/O peripheral driver(s)  105 . Upon receipt of the former, at  614 , device driver  106  forwards the service call (including the call parameters, if any) to an appropriate one of I/O peripheral driver(s)  105  for processing. On the other hand, if the latter was detected instead, at  616 , device driver  106  formulates and transmits a message to device driver  106  informing device driver  206  of the results of the service call.  
         [0033]    Accordingly, it can be seen, from the foregoing description, a user may be provided with even a more richer experience, working with applications executing on computing device  200 ′ that access data and/or use I/O peripherals otherwise not available on computing device  200 ′, through display device  100 ′ of the present invention. An example usage of display device  100 ′ is to transform a user&#39;s computing device  200 ′ into e.g. an e-book, thereby eliminating the need for the user to own and pay the full cost of both devices, while allowing the user to maintain the flexibility and freedom to keep a number of applications and data on the smaller form factor computing device.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 7 illustrates display device  100 ″ of the present invention in accordance with yet embodiment. Again, display device  100 ″ is similarly constituted as display device  100 , except it is also provided with keyboard  122  and cursor control device  126 . Furthermore, display device  100 ″ has a form factor of a notebook computing device. However, for ease of understanding, the apparatus will continue be referred to as a “display device”. Flat panel display  114  is disposed on interior surface  158   a  of top half  156   a , whereas keyboard  122  and cursor control device  124  are disposed on interior surface  158   b  of bottom half  156   b . Docking station  108 ′ is exposed through opening  152 ′ disposed on left side wall  160   b . In alternate embodiments, docking station  108 ′ may be exposed through opening  152 ′ disposed on front, back or right side wall  160   a ,  160   c  or  160   d.    
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 8 illustrates an architectural view of display device  100 ″ of FIG. 7 and computing device  200 ″ in accordance with yet another embodiment each. As illustrated, display device  100 ″, in addition to the earlier mentioned keyboard  122  and cursor control device  126 , is further provided with keyboard and cursor device controllers  120  and  124 , and corresponding device drivers  107   a  and  107   b . During operation, device drivers  107   a  and  107   b  correspondingly control operations of keyboard  122  and cursor control device  126  through controllers  120  and  124 . Keyboard  122  and cursor control device  126 , their corresponding controllers  120  and  124  and device drivers  107   a - 107   b  may be any one of a number of these elements known in the art.  
         [0036]    Computing device  200 ″ is similarly constituted as computing device  200 , except computing device  200 ″ is further provided with corresponding virtual keyboard and cursor control device driver stubs  209   a  and  209   b . Applications  208  needing access to either keyboard  122  or cursor control device  126  (e.g. “locking” the device) call a corresponding one of keyboard/cursor control device driver stubs  209   a  or  209   b  as if it is an actual keyboard/cursor control device driver corresponding to an actual keyboard/cursor control of computing device  200 ″. Virtual keyboard/cursor control device driver stub  209   a / 209   b  redirects the service calls to device driver  206  for processing.  
         [0037]    [0037]FIGS. 9 a - 9   b  illustrate the further operational flow of device drivers  206  and  106  of FIG. 8, in accordance with one embodiment each. As illustrated in FIG. 9 a , at  902 , device driver  206  monitors for service calls redirected from virtual keyboard/cursor control device driver stub  207   a / 207   b  as well as keyboard/cursor control inputs from device driver  106 . Upon detection of the former, at  904 , device driver  206  formulates and transmits a message to device driver  106  informing device driver  106  of the service call (including the call parameters, if any), if computing device  200 ″ is coupled to display device  100 ″. Otherwise, device driver  206  returns an error to applications  208 . On the other hand, if the latter was detected instead, at  906 , device driver  206  forwards the keyboard/cursor control inputs to an appropriate one of applications  208 . Over in display device  100 ″, as illustrated by FIG. 9 b , at  912 , device driver  106  awaits for messages from device driver  206  or inputs from keyboard/cursor control device  122 / 124 . Upon receipt of the former, at  914 , device driver  106  forwards the service call (including the call parameters, if any) to an appropriate one of keyboard/cursor control device  122 / 124  for processing. On the other hand, if the latter was detected instead, at  916 , device driver  106  formulates and transmits a message to device driver  106  informing device driver  206  of the keyboard/cursor control inputs.  
         [0038]    Accordingly, it can be seen, from the foregoing description, a user may be provided with more flexibility on interacting with applications executing on computing device  200 ″ using input devices otherwise not available on computing device  200 ″, through display device  100 ″ of the present invention. Of course, the user experience may be even further enhanced by further extending display device  100 ″ with one or more of the I/O peripherals of earlier described display device  100 ′. An example usage of display device  100 ″ is to transform a user&#39;s computing device  200 ″ into e.g. a notebook computer, thereby eliminating the need for the user to own and pay the full cost of both devices, while allowing the user to maintain the flexibility and freedom to keep a number of applications and data on the smaller form factor computing device.  
         [0039]    Thus, a display device having an integral docking station for a palm sized computing device has now been described. While the display device of the present invention has been described in terms of the above illustrated embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described. The present invention may be practiced with modification and alteration within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. The above description is thus to be regarded as illustrative instead of restrictive on the present invention.