Patent Document

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. P99-63229, filed on Dec. 28, 1999, which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes as if fully set forth herein. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a data transmission method and apparatus, and more particularly to a liquid crystal display employing the data transmission apparatus. Also, the present invention is directed to a computer system employing the data transmission apparatus. Furthermore, the present invention is directed to a data driver integrated circuit for a liquid crystal panel that is adapted for minimizing an electromagnetic interference at a transmission line. 
     2. Discussion of the Related Art 
     Generally, the amount of information, transmitted over a transmission medium such as text information and video information, has been increased in comparison to audio information. Recently, the amount of the video information has been increased more and more so as to meet user needs for a high quality image. In addition, recently information has been transmitted at a high speed so that a user can make use of the information at an appropriate time. For these reasons, a frequency band occupied by the information signal must be increased and, simultaneously, the number of lines for transmitting the information must be increased, depending on the amount of information. 
     For example, in a data line driving apparatus shown in FIG. 1, video data transmitted from a controller  10  to a data drive integrated circuit chip  12 , hereinafter referred to as “D-IC”, including a shift register array  20  and a digital to analog converter  22 , has a higher frequency as the resolution mode of a picture becomes higher, that is, as the number of pixels on a liquid crystal panel becomes larger. More specifically, since more pixels are contained in the liquid crystal panel when the resolution mode of a picture is changed from the VGA mode to the XGA or SXGA mode, an amount of video data for one line transmitted in one horizontal period is increased. Thus, the frequency of video data transmitted from the controller  10 , via a data bus  11 , to the D-IC  12  becomes high. As the frequency of video data becomes high, a serious electromagnetic interference (EMI) is generated at the data bus  11  for successively transmitting 18 bit data (e.g., R, G and B data having 6 bits each) for one pixel from the controller  10  to the D-IC  12 . 
     In addition, as the frequency of the video data becomes high, the controller  10  must switch a high logic voltage and a low logic voltage at a high speed. Due to this, the controller  10  transmitting data to the data bus  11  has large power consumption, as the frequency of a video data increases. 
     Likewise, the EMI and the large power consumption as mentioned above are also generated by a data transmission system between a graphic card within a computer main body and a liquid crystal display device (i.e., a controller  10  in FIG.  1 ). 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is desired to provide a data transmission method and apparatus that is adapted for minimizing the power consumption and the electromagnetic interference that substantially obviates one or more of the problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art. 
     It is also desired to provide a data reception method and apparatus that is adaptive for minimizing the power consumption and the electromagnetic interference. 
     In order to achieve these and other objects of the invention, a method of transmitting pixel data for a display according to one aspect of the present invention, comprises generating from the pixel data pixel representation data having a frequency of bit transitions which is less than a frequency of bit transitions of said pixel data; transmitting the pixel representation data along a data bus; receiving from said data bus the pixel representation data; reconstructing the pixel data from the pixel representation data; and supplying the pixel data to the display. 
     A data transmission apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention includes a controller supplying pixel data comprising a plurality of bits; a data substitution unit receiving the pixel data and transmitting pixel representation data having a frequency of bit transitions which is less than a frequency of bit transitions of said pixel data; and a data driver integrated circuit connected to said data substitution unit and receiving the pixel representation data via a data bus, reconstructing the pixel data, converting the pixel data to analog pixel data, and supplying the analog pixel data to the display. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
     In the drawings: 
     FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a liquid crystal display driver to which the conventional data transmission method is applied; 
     FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a liquid crystal display driver to which a data transmission system according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied; and 
     FIG. 3 is a detailed circuit diagram of a data reconstructing unit included in the bit reconstruction unit array shown in FIG.  2 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 
     Referring to FIG. 2, there is shown a data driver for a liquid crystal panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. The data driver includes a data substitution unit  34  and a D-IC chip  36  connected, in series, between a controller  30  and a liquid crystal panel  32 . The controller  30  successively supplies the data substitution unit  34  with m-bit pixel data. The m-bit pixel data includes red (R) pixel data, green (G) pixel data and blue (B) pixel data. When pixel data has 18-bits, each of the R, G and B data has 6-bits. The controller  30  applies a data reset signal DRS to the data substitution unit  34  and the D-IC chip  36 . The data reset signal DRS is enabled to a specific logical value (e.g., high or low logic value) in a certain time interval when power is turned on, or is enabled to a specific logical value in a certain time interval whenever pixel data for one picture are transmitted. Also, the controller  30  applies a clock signal indicating a transmission frequency of a pixel data to the data substitution unit  34  and the D-IC chip  36 . 
     For each bit, the data substitution unit  34  compares the m-bit pixel data with m-bit pixel data from the previous line. The data substitution unit  34  transmits the compared result for each bit, that is, the compared m-bit data, via the m-bit data bus  31  to the D-IC chip  30 . To this end, the data substitution unit  34  includes a line memory  40  and an exclusive OR gate array  42  for commonly inputting a pixel data from the controller  30 . 
     The line memory  40  initializes pixel data for one line stored thereto in a time interval when the data reset signal DRS from the controller  30  has a specific logical value (e.g., “0” or “1”). The line memory  40  inputs new m-bit pixel data from the controller  30  every specific edge (i.e., rising edge or falling edge) of the clock signal from the controller  30  and, at the same time, applies m-bit pixel data input during a transmission interval for a prior line to the exclusive OR gate array  42 . In other words, the line memory  40  may be a shift register having a storage capacity able to store pixel data for one line. 
     The exclusive OR gate array  42  consists of m exclusive OR gates. The m exclusive OR gates distributively receive m-bit pixel data for the current line from the controller  30  and, at the same time, distributively receive m-bit pixel data for the previous line from the line memory  40 . Also, each of the m exclusive OR gates checks whether or not the bit pixel data for the current line is identical to the bit pixel data for the previous line. If both bit pixel data are same, then each exclusive OR gate delivers the compared bit data having a logical value of “0”, via the data bus  31 , to the D-IC chip  36 . Otherwise, if both bit pixel data have a different logical value, then each exclusive OR gate delivers the compared bit data having a logical value of “1”, via the data bus  31 , to the D-IC chip  36 . 
     Accordingly, the compared bit data has a logical value of “0” continuously while a logical value of “1” intermittently due to a characteristic of a picture that pixels having the same gray level value appear continuously in the vertical and horizontal direction. As a result, the frequency of the compared bit data is dramatically reduced compared to the original pixel data. 
     The D-IC chip  36  sequentially inputs m-bits of compared data for one line from the data bus  31 , and reconstructs pixel data for one line from the compared bit data for one line. The D-IC chip  36  also converts the pixel data for one line into analog pixel signals to apply the converted analog pixel signals for one line to n data lines DL 1  to DLn of the liquid crystal panel  32 . To this end, the D-IC chip  36  includes a shift register  44 , a bit reconstruction unit array  46  and a digital to analog converter array  48  that are connected between the data bus  31  and the liquid crystal panel  32  in cascade. 
     The shift register  44  inputs the m-bit compared data by from the data bus  31  on every specific edge (i.e., rising edge or falling edge) of the clock signal from the controller  30  to shift the same to the right. The shift register  44  applies the compared bit data for one line inputted thereto to the bit reconstruction unit array  46 . 
     The bit reconstruction unit array  46  includes data substitution units equal to the number of bits, e.g., (m·n)/3, of the compared bit data for one line. Each of these bit reconstruction units selectively inverts the pixel bit data stored previously in accordance with a logical value of the compared bit data from the shift register  44  to reconstruct the pixel bit data. More specifically, if a logical value of the compared bit data is “0,” then the corresponding bit reconstruction unit transmits the previously stored pixel bit data (i.e., the same pixel bit data as for the previous line) to the D-A converter array  48  as the pixel bit data at the current line. On the other hand, if a logical value of the compared bit data is “1,” then the corresponding bit reconstruction unit inverts the pixel bit data stored previously and transmits the inverted previously-stored pixel bit data to the D-A converter array  48  as the current pixel bit data. 
     The D-A converter array  48  includes D-A converters equal to the number of data lines DL 1  to DLn of the liquid crystal panel  32 . Each of these D-A converters inputs m pixel bit data (i.e., m-bit pixel data) from the bit reconstruction unit array  46 . Each of the D-A converters converts the m-bit pixel data into an analog pixel signal and applies the converted analog pixel signal to the corresponding data line DL 1  to DLn. 
     FIG. 3 is a detailed circuit diagram of the data reconstruction units of the bit reconstruction unit array shown in FIG.  2 . In FIG. 3, the data reconstruction unit includes an exclusive OR gate  50  inputting compared bit data TBD from the shift resistor  44 , and a flip-flop  52  having an input terminal D connected to an output terminal of the exclusive OR gate  50 . The exclusive OR gate  50  performs an exclusive OR operation on the compared bit data TBD and pixel bit data PBD of the previous line, fed back from an output terminal Q of the flip-flop  52 , and applies the operation result to an input terminal D of the flip-flop  52 . More specifically, if a logical value of the compared bit data TBD is “0”, then the exclusive OR gate  50  applies the pixel bit data PBD from the previous line to the input terminal of the flip-flop  52  as it is. On the other hand, if a logical value of the compared bit data TBD is “1”, then the exclusive OR gate  50  inverts the pixel bit data PBD from the previous line and applies the same to the input terminal D of the flip-flop  52 . In other words, the exclusive OR gate  50  selectively inverts the pixel bit data PBD to be fed back from the output terminal Q of the flip-flop  52  to the input terminal D thereof in accordance with a logical value of the compared bit data TBD. 
     The flip-flop  52  selectively responds to a data reset signal DRS applied from the controller  30  in FIG. 2 to its clear terminal CLR to initialize the pixel bit data PBD at the output terminal Q to a logical value of “0”. The pixel bit data PBD at the output terminal Q of the flip-flop  52  is initialized to a logical value of “0” when the data reset signal DRS has a low logic level. Also, the flip-flop  52  responds to a line pulse HP to latch a logical signal at the input terminal D into the output terminal Q. A logical signal at the input terminal D of the flip-flop  52  is latched into the output terminal Q every rising edge (or falling edge) of a line pulse. The operation of the flip-flop  52  as described above is just to carry out a function of a 1-bit memory for temporarily storing the previous pixel bit data. 
     As described above, the data transmission apparatus according to the present invention delivers bit data to be transmitted in the form of a comparison signal indicating whether or not it is identical to the previous bit data, so that it can dramatically lower the frequency (i.e., the frequency of logic changes) of a data file in which data having the same logical value appears several to tens of times consecutively in the horizontal and vertical direction. Accordingly, the data transmission apparatus according to the present invention can minimize the power consumption and the EMI. 
     Although the present invention has been explained by the embodiments shown in the drawings described above, it should be understood to the ordinary skilled person in the art that the invention is not limited to the embodiments, but rather that various changes or modifications thereof are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention. For instance, it should be understood that the data transmission line between the controller and the D-IC chip as shown in FIG. 2 has been described as an embodiment of the present invention, but the present invention is applicable to a transmission line between the graphic card within the computer main body and the controller as well as a data transmission line between the graphic card and the D-IC chip. Accordingly, the scope of the invention shall be determined only by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Technology Category: 3