JP2012147184A - Portable information processor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To display on an external display device a content having a large number of pixels, by a simple hardware.SOLUTION: A portable information processor 1 is provided with: a body display screen 10 having a first number of pixels; an external display device connection part 12 capable of connecting with an external display device 2; a storage part 20 for temporarily writing the content; and a control part 16. The processor 1 secures in the storage part 20 a first frame buffer 21 having a capacity for a first number of pixels and at least one second frame buffers 22 having a capacity for a second number of pixels, writes content frames into the first frame buffer 21, displays read content frames on the body display screen 10, writes the content frames into the second frame buffers 22, and displays the content frames read from the second frame buffers 22, on the external display device 2 via the external display device connection part 12.

Description

  The present invention relates to a portable information processing apparatus, and more particularly, to a portable information processing terminal that includes a main body display screen that can reproduce and display content and reproduces and displays the content on an external display device.

  2. Description of the Related Art A mobile phone device having a television broadcast receiving function and an output function is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). The mobile phone device described in Patent Document 1 displays the received TV broadcast signal on the display screen of the main body, or displays it on a TV connected via a cradle (charging base) and a cable, as well as recording. can do.

  A personal computer having a function of outputting a digital television broadcast is known (see, for example, Patent Document 2). The personal computer described in Patent Document 2 includes an external display connection terminal that complies with the HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) standard, and outputs a received HDMI video signal to an HDMI-compatible television.

  Further, a remote controller (portable information processing apparatus) that has a display screen for reproducing and displaying content and is used in a home network has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 3). The remote controller described in Patent Document 3 can acquire content from devices connected to a home network and display the acquired content on its own display screen.

JP 2008-72542 A JP 2008-158208 A JP 2007-184745 A

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, the mobile phone device outputs a television broadcast signal or a video signal (content) to the external output device side via a cradle (charging base), and the external output device receives the signal from the cradle. The portable-size video signal is changed (scaled) to the size of the display screen of the external output device, and is output and displayed (paragraphs 0035 to 0036). In general, a terminal such as a mobile phone has limited processing capabilities such as a processor and a memory due to restrictions on size, weight, heat generation, and the like, and has a small number of pixels on a main body display screen. For this reason, the content received by the mobile terminal is scaled in accordance with the number of pixels on the main body display screen of the mobile terminal as necessary and displayed on the main body display screen. Since the television side receives the content frame scaled to a small number of pixels and rescales and displays it on a display screen having a large number of pixels, there is a problem that the definition is lowered.

  With the technique described in Patent Document 2, the personal computer can also scale and output the digital video signal in accordance with the number of pixels of the liquid crystal screen of the connected HDMI television (paragraph 0058). Since personal computers have abundant resources (processors, memories), the frame buffer for temporarily writing received content is dynamically expanded according to the number of TV pixels of the content display destination, video data, etc. It is possible to adopt a method of performing software-like scaling on the frame of content. However, since the portable information processing apparatus has a limited processing capability such as a processor, it is difficult to adopt such a method.

  By the way, the remote controller described in Patent Document 3 described above is a home network constructed from a device compliant with DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance (registered trademark)) (hereinafter referred to as “DLNA compatible device”). The content can be acquired from a DLNA compatible server connected to the network, and the acquired content can be displayed on the DLNA compatible display device connected to the home network and its own display screen. However, since the remote controller of Patent Document 3 transmits and receives content via a home network, it transmits and receives content via a home network to a device that does not comply with the DLNA standard (hereinafter referred to as “DLNA non-compliant device”). This content cannot be displayed on a DLNA non-compliant device.

  In recent years, digital broadcasting has been realized to display high-quality images, and the number of pixels of moving images has increased. For example, a moving image having a high-definition number of pixels such as HD (High Definition: 1280 × 720 pixels) and full HD (Full High Definition: 1920 × 1080 pixels) is normally broadcast. And the number of pixels of the television corresponding to these broadcasts is increasing. Furthermore, due to the improvement in camera performance, high-quality still images with more than 10 million pixels were normally transmitted and received through the home network.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and provides a portable information processing apparatus capable of displaying content with a large number of pixels on a connected external display device with simple hardware. With the goal.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, a mobile information processing apparatus of the present invention is a mobile information processing apparatus that displays content on an external display device, and has a main body display screen having a first number of pixels and pixels based on the first number of pixels. An external display device connection unit to which a large number of external display devices can be connected; a storage unit that temporarily writes the content; and a control unit that controls display of the content, wherein the control unit includes the first A first frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the number of pixels, and at least one second frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the number of second pixels having a number of pixels larger than the number of pixels; When displaying content on the main body display screen, the content frame read from the first frame buffer is written into the first frame buffer. Is displayed on the main body display screen and the content is displayed on the external display device, the content frame is written to the second frame buffer, and the content frame read from the second frame buffer is It displays on the said external display apparatus via an external display apparatus connection part, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  According to the present invention, a first frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the number of first pixels and at least one second frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the number of second pixels are secured in the storage unit, and content is stored on the main body display screen. When displaying, the content is written in the first frame buffer, and when displaying the content on the external display device, the content is written in the second frame buffer for the second number of pixels larger than the first number of pixels. Many contents can be displayed on the connected external display device. In addition, when the number of pixels of the content read from the second frame buffer is smaller than the number of pixels of the external display device, scaling is performed by hardware, and the content with the converted number of pixels is output to the external display device. Processing of the processor of the portable information processing apparatus can be reduced.

  In addition, since it is connected to a DLNA-compliant network and is connected to an HDMI-connected external display device, content acquired via the network can be displayed on an external display device that is not a DLNA-compatible device. Other effects will be described in the mode for carrying out the invention.

Explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the portable information processing apparatus of embodiment of this invention. Explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the network system to which a portable information processing apparatus is applied Flow chart showing content display processing Explanatory drawing showing an example of the menu screen The flowchart which shows the process which displays a content on a main body display screen A flowchart showing processing for displaying content on an external display device A flowchart showing processing for displaying the same content on both the main body display screen and the external display device

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, this invention is not limited to the following examples.

  The portable information processing apparatus of the present invention recognizes content stored in a device connected via a network or content stored in an internal flash memory, etc., and sends the content selected by the user to the portable information processing device. It is a device for displaying on a main display screen with a small number of attached pixels and / or an external display device having a larger number of pixels than the number of pixels on the main display screen connected via an external display device connecting section.

  The portable information processing apparatus of the present invention includes at least a frame buffer (first frame buffer) having a capacity corresponding to the first number of pixels of the main body display screen and a frame having a capacity corresponding to the second number of pixels larger than the first number of pixels. A buffer (second frame buffer) is secured in the memory area, and the selected content is written into the first frame buffer and / or the second frame buffer in accordance with the content type and display destination. The content whose display destination is the main body display screen is read from the first frame buffer and displayed on the main body display screen. The content whose display destination is the external display device is read from the second frame buffer and displayed on the external display device.

  As described above, in the portable information processing apparatus of the present invention, the first frame buffer with the first number of pixels for the main body display screen and the second frame buffer with the second number of pixels for the external display device more than that are used as the memory area. Since it is always secured, it is possible to always stably display content on the main body display screen or the external display device. On the other hand, when the content is displayed on the main body display screen, the second frame buffer is not used, and when the content is displayed on the external display device, the first frame buffer is not used. In the processing apparatus, an unnecessary area is secured in the memory area. However, in a device with limited processing capability, such as a portable information processing device, changing the capacity of the frame buffer in the memory area depending on the display destination cannot secure the necessary area or takes time to secure it. Therefore, there is a possibility that the operation becomes unstable. For this reason, in the present invention, the effect of always being able to supply an image stably is emphasized at the expense of consuming more memory area than originally intended. In addition, by securing a frame buffer in the memory area in advance, it is possible to share the drawing processing of a plurality of applications.

  The portable information processing apparatus according to the present invention matches the number of pixels of the content to the capacity of the frame buffer by software (a frame buffer input conversion unit of the control unit described later) before the content is written to each frame buffer. May be converted into the number of pixels. Furthermore, the number of pixels of the content read from the second frame buffer may be converted according to the number of pixels of the external display device by hardware (external display device connection unit described later). Hereinafter, the process of converting the number of pixels is referred to as “scaling”. Among these, the process of converting the number of pixels to a larger number of pixels is called “upscaling”, and the process of converting to a smaller number of pixels is called “downscaling”.

  The content is generally various digital data viewed by the user. For example, moving image data (movies, TV programs, etc.), still image data (photos), audio data (music, radio programs, Ringtones, ringtones, etc.), text data (documents, e-mails, etc.), and a combination of some of these (WEB screens, menu screens, etc.). Data, still image data, and a combination of moving image data and still image data). In the following description, collective data in which a plurality of moving images and a plurality of still images are arranged in a frame is also simply referred to as moving image data. Note that the portable information processing apparatus of the present invention may have a function of reproducing audio data having no image information.

  Furthermore, the portable information processing apparatus of the present invention is preferably connectable to a network system built in the home. When the portable information processing apparatus is connected to a network, the portable information processing apparatus can acquire content via the network, and can display the acquired content on its own main body display screen, or an external display device that is not connected to the network. It is also possible to display content on an external display device by connecting via a cable. First, the configuration of the portable information processing apparatus of the present invention will be described, and then an outline of a network system to which the portable information processing apparatus is applied will be described.

  FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the configuration of the portable information processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. The portable information processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a main body display screen 10, an external display device connection unit 12, a communication unit 14, a control unit 16, a main memory 20, a flash memory 24, and a storage medium connection unit 26. The portable information processing apparatus 1 may further include a switch unit, an audio device connection unit, a power connector, and the like (not shown).

  The main body display screen 10 is a screen for displaying content such as moving image data and still image data, and the number of pixels is referred to as a first number of pixels. In general, the number of first pixels, which is the number of pixels of a display used in a portable information terminal, is not so large due to restrictions on the screen size and processing capability. For example, WVGA (Wide VGA: 800 × 480 pixels), FWVGA ( Full Wide VGA: 854 × 480 pixels), SVGA (Super VGA: 800 × 600 pixels) or the like is employed.

  For the main body display screen 10, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD) can be used. In addition, the main body display screen 10 is not limited to this, and an organic EL display (Organic Electroluminescence Display), a plasma display (PDP: Plasma Display Panel), a field emission display (FED), or the like is also used. be able to.

  Furthermore, the main body display screen 10 preferably has a touch panel function and is configured to be operable by the user. For example, operation buttons, various application icons, a software keyboard, and the like are arranged on the screen. By operating these, the user can input various instructions to the portable information processing apparatus 1 and execute various processes. A menu screen may be displayed on the main body display screen 10. The menu screen is, for example, a screen for selecting a content display destination, a screen for selecting a content acquisition source, a screen showing a list of accessible contents, and the like. An example of the menu screen will be described later with reference to FIG.

  The external display device connection unit 12 is an interface that is connected to the external display device 2 via the communication cable 100 and inputs and outputs digital video signals and audio signals. For the external display device connection unit 12, for example, it is preferable to use a multimedia interface that conforms to the HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) standard. In this case, an HDMI cable is used as the communication cable 100. The external display device connection unit 12 preferably includes an external output conversion unit 13.

  The external output conversion unit 13 is a processing unit that performs scaling, and reads the number of pixels of the content read from the frame buffer and input to the external output conversion unit 13 with the number of pixels of the connected external display device 2. Or a predetermined number of pixels. The external output conversion unit 13 is realized using hardware (for example, a logic circuit that executes filter processing) in order to continuously process the moving image data read from the frame buffer at a predetermined timing. Preferably it is done. The scaling process by hardware is a standard process compared with the scaling by software, and is suitable for processing moving image data that requires the same scaling process at high speed continuously for each frame.

  The external output conversion unit 13 can convert the number of pixels of the content from a small number of pixels to a large number of pixels by complementing the signal (information) and generating pixels that did not exist in the original content. For example, if the number of pixels of the content input to the external output conversion unit 13 is 800 × 480 pixels and the maximum number of pixels of the external display device 2 is 1280 × 720 pixels, the external output conversion unit 13 The number of pixels of the content input to the external output conversion unit 13 is converted from 800 × 480 pixels to 1280 × 720 pixels by hardware.

  The external display device 2 is a device having a display function. For example, a display device, a liquid crystal television, a plasma television, a projection television, a projector, or the like can be used. In particular, the external display device 2 is preferably a high definition television (HDTV) capable of receiving a high definition television broadcast. The display screen of the external display device 2 includes a display screen having a number of pixels larger than the above-described first pixel number, for example, HD (1280 × 720 pixels) or full HD (1920 × 1080 pixels).

  The communication unit 14 is a communication interface for connecting to the network 80 (see FIG. 2). The communication unit 14 is preferably compatible with a wireless LAN (for example, WiFi). Further, the communication unit 14 may be configured to connect to the nearest access point (not shown) and directly connect to the Internet without going through the network 80.

  The control unit 16 controls content display processing. The control unit 16 performs processing by a processor (not shown) loading various programs stored in a flash memory 24 (to be described later) into the main memory 20 (to be described later), and reading and executing the various programs loaded on the main memory 20. The structure which implement | achieves may be sufficient. Also, some processes, such as DMA (Direct Memory Access) transfer, may be configured to be realized by a semiconductor integrated circuit.

  Specifically, as the content display process, the control unit 16 recognizes accessible content, displays content candidates to be displayed based on the user's operation, and acquires the content selected by the user. Then, based on the display destination selected by the user, the content is displayed on the main body display screen 10 and / or the external display device 2.

  Further, the controller 16 may be configured with a frame buffer input converter 17. The frame buffer input conversion unit 17 is a processing unit that performs upscaling or downscaling, and matches the number of pixels of the content input to the frame buffer input conversion unit 17 to the capacity of each frame buffer that is an output destination. Convert.

  The frame buffer input conversion unit 17 is preferably implemented using software in order to process still images having various numbers of pixels so as not to deteriorate image quality as much as possible. Scaling by software is slower than hardware scaling, and the load on the processor is large. However, it is possible to select a scaling process according to the image quality and purpose, and there is an advantage that degradation in image quality can be reduced. is there.

  As a scaling process executed by the external output conversion unit 13 and the frame buffer input conversion unit 17, for example, a linear interpolation method may be used. Linear interpolation is a method of calculating the pixel value of a newly generated pixel point based on the distance between the newly generated pixel point and a plurality of neighboring pixel points (for example, four pixel points). Note that the scaling processing of each conversion unit is not limited to this method (algorithm). Each conversion unit may employ an algorithm suitable for each required performance.

  The main memory 20 is a volatile semiconductor memory that can be directly accessed by a processor (not shown), and stores various programs executed by the processor. The main memory 20 is provided with a first frame buffer 21 and at least one second frame buffer 22 based on the control of the control unit 16. Further, the main memory 20 may be provided with a plurality of second frame buffers, or may be provided with a third frame buffer for duplicating a frame of content written in the first frame buffer. Hereinafter, the frame buffer may be simply referred to as “FB”.

  The first frame buffer 21 is a memory area having a capacity corresponding to the first number of pixels. A frame of content to be displayed on the main body display screen 10 is written in the first frame buffer. The content frame read from the first frame buffer is displayed on the main body display screen 10.

  The second frame buffer 22 is a memory area having a capacity corresponding to the second number of pixels. Here, the second pixel number is a pixel number larger than the first pixel number, and is preferably the same as the pixel number of the display screen of the connected external display device 2. For example, when the external display device 2 has an HDTV screen configuration, the second number of pixels is preferably set to 1280 × 720 pixels. For example, when the display screen of the external display device 2 has a full HDTV screen configuration, the second resolution is preferably set to 1920 × 1080 pixels. However, when the capacity of the main memory 20 is small and it is difficult to secure the second frame buffer 22 having a large capacity according to the display screen of the external display device 2, or when the processing capacity of the control unit 16 is insufficient, etc. The second pixel number may be set smaller than the pixel number of the display screen of the external display device 2 as long as it is larger than the first pixel number.

  Further, the capacity (setting of the second number of pixels) of the second frame buffer 22 may be switched between, for example, 1280 × 720 images and 1920 × 1080 pixels depending on the connected external connection device. However, since the operation may become unstable if the capacity of the second frame buffer 22 is dynamically changed, the capacity of the second frame buffer 22 is set to, for example, one of 1280 × 720 images and 1920 × 1080 pixels. It is preferable to fix.

  In the second frame buffer 22, a frame of content to be displayed on the external display device is written. The content frame read from the second frame buffer is input to the external display device connection unit 12, transmitted to the external display device 2 via the communication cable 100, and displayed on the display screen of the external display device 2. In this case, the external output conversion unit 13 may upscale the number of pixels of the input content as necessary.

  A plurality of second frame buffers 22 may be provided according to the type of content to be written or the difference in processing. Specifically, the second frame buffer 22a for still image data and the second frame buffer 22b for moving image data may be provided separately.

  Further, the main memory 20 may be provided with a memory area of the third frame buffer 23. The third frame buffer 23 is a memory area having a capacity corresponding to the number of first pixels. In the third frame buffer 23, a frame of content displayed on the main body display screen 10 is written. In this case, the control unit 16 copies the content frame written in the first frame buffer 21 to the third frame buffer 23. The content frame read from the first frame buffer 21 is displayed on the main body display screen 10, and the content frame read from the third frame buffer 23 is externally displayed via the external display device connection unit 12. Displayed on the device 2. In this case, the external output conversion unit 13 of the external display device connection unit 12 may upscale the number of pixels of the input content as necessary. Thereby, the portable information processing device 1 can display one content on both the main body display screen 10 and the external display device 2 at the same time.

  The flash memory 24 is a nonvolatile semiconductor memory. The flash memory 24 stores various programs for realizing various processes executed by the control unit 16. The flash memory 24 may store content in addition to various programs as a local memory of the portable information processing apparatus 1. In FIG. 1, the flash memory 24 is used as the local memory, but a hard disk or other storage medium may be used.

  The storage medium connection unit 26 is an interface for connecting a storage medium. As the storage medium, for example, an SD card (may be another memory card such as a picture card or a compact flash (registered trademark)), a USB memory, an external storage device (hard disk), or the like can be used. When connecting an SD card, the storage medium connection unit 26 includes a card slot into which the SD card can be inserted and a reading unit, and reads the content stored in the SD card inserted into the card slot. The storage medium connection unit 26 is configured in conformity with the USB (Universal Serial Bus) standard, and may be connected to a USB memory, or a hard disk or an external device (for example, a personal computer) via a USB cable (not shown). Etc. may be connected. The portable information processing apparatus 1 can read content stored in various connected storage media via the storage medium connection unit 26. In addition, the portable information processing device 1 can be connected to an external device (for example, a personal computer) and can transmit and receive data between the external device and the portable information processing device 1.

  That is, the portable information processing according to the present embodiment can acquire content from other devices through the communication unit 14 via a network or the Internet, can acquire content from an internal flash memory, Content can also be acquired from a storage medium connected to the connection unit 26. Moreover, these acquired contents can be displayed on the attached main body display screen 10, the external display device 2, or both.

  The portable information processing device 1 may further include a switch unit, an audio device connection unit, a power supply connection unit, and the like (not shown). The switch unit is provided for a user to perform operations such as power on / off, volume adjustment, cursor movement and selection on various menu screens, and operation cancellation. The audio device connection unit connects devices such as earphones and headphones. The power supply connection unit is connected to a power supply via a cable.

  By the way, when building a network in the home, if there is a device that does not comply with the network standard (for example, DLNA standard), this device cannot be connected to the network, and communicates with a device connected to the network. Can not do it. In the home, the purchase time of each device (information home appliance, personal computer, etc.) may be different, so there may be a mixture of devices that are compatible with the network and devices that are not compatible. The portable information terminal device of this embodiment also solves this problem. Since the portable information terminal device is connected to the network via the communication unit and further connected to the external display device via the external display device connection unit, the content is acquired from the device connected to the network, and the acquired content Can be displayed on an external display device.

  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a network system in which the portable information processing apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention is connected to the network 80.

  The network 80 is, for example, a network that conforms to the DLNA standard. The network 80 may be configured to be connected to each other by communication such as wireless and / or wired LAN, Bluetooth (registered trademark), infrared communication, or the like. In particular, since the portable information processing device 1 of the present invention is required to be portable, it is preferable that a wireless LAN (for example, WiFi) or wireless communication can be used for connection to the network 80. DLNA compatible devices are connected to this network 80. In FIG. 2, as the DLNA-compatible device, in addition to the portable information processing device 1, the content holding device 3, the router 4, and the external display device 5 are illustrated. Hereinafter, in the network system, the external display device 2 connected to the portable information processing device 1 via the external display device connection unit 12 is referred to as a “first external display device”, and the external display device 5 connected to the network 80. Is described as “second external display device”.

  In such a network system, the portable information processing device 1 is connected to the network 80 via the communication unit 14 and is connected to the first external display device 2 via the external display device connection unit 12. Since the portable information processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment indirectly connects the network 80 compliant with the DLNA standard and the first external display apparatus 2 that is HDMI-connected, the first external display apparatus 2 is the DLNA. A non-compliant device is preferred. That is, the portable information processing device 1 displays content via the network 80 in the same manner as the DLNA-compatible second external display device 5 in which the DLNA-incompatible first external display device 2 is directly connected to the network 80. Can do. In order to display a high-quality image on the first external display device 2, it is preferable that the first external display device 2 conforms to the HDMI standard.

  Note that the portable information processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is preferably applied to a network configured by DLNA-compatible devices, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, when a device that does not conform to a specific standard is connected to a network configured based on a specific standard, the portable information processing device 1 of the present embodiment is connected to the network based on the specific standard. It is also possible to connect a device that does not comply with a specific standard to the external display device connection unit 12 of the portable information processing device 1.

  Furthermore, although it has been described that the portable information processing device 1 and the external display device 2 that is a device not supporting DLNA are HDMI-connected, the present invention is not limited to this. The portable information processing device 1 may connect the external display device 2 by another connection method as long as it can output content to the external display device without going through a network. For example, the portable information processing device 1 and the external display device 2 may be connected wirelessly. Further, not only a DLNA non-compliant device, but also an external display device that is a DLNA compatible device and a portable information processing device may be connected.

  The content holding device 3 is a device that stores content. As the content holding device 3, for example, a personal computer, a server, a hard disk recorder, a digital camera, or the like can be used.

  The router 4 is a device that connects to the Internet 90. The portable information processing apparatus 1 can also acquire content from a Web server (not shown) on the Internet 90 by connecting to the Internet 90 via the router 4. In FIG. 2, the DLNA-compatible router 4 is shown. The router 4 is connected to the router 4 via the network 80 and further connected to the Internet 90 via the router 4. The device 1 can also be directly connected to the Internet 90 via the router 4 or the nearest access point (not shown) without the network 80 being interposed.

  The second external display device 5 reproduces and displays content such as video and images. For example, a device having a display function such as a DLNA-compatible high-definition television, a display device, or a projector can be used for the second external display device 5.

  In addition, according to the DLNA guidelines, DLNA-compatible devices include device classes such as digital media server (DMS: Digital Media Server), digital media player (DMP: Digital Media Player), digital media controller (DMC: Digital Media Controller), digital It is classified as a media renderer (DMR: Digital Media Renderer).

  A digital media server (hereinafter referred to as DMS) is a device that stores content (digital media) in a DLNA network. A digital media player (hereinafter referred to as DMP) is a device that searches and plays back content stored in a DMS. A digital media controller (hereinafter referred to as DMC) is a device that searches content stored in the DMS and reproduces and displays it in the DMR. A digital media renderer (hereinafter referred to as DMR) is a device that reproduces and displays content transmitted from a DMS based on control of the DMC.

  The content holding device 3 functions as a DMS serving as a content supply source in the network 80. The second external display device 5 functions as DMP or DMR in the network 80.

  The portable information processing device 1 uses the content held in its own built-in memory (flash memory 24) and the content held by the recording medium (SD card, USB memory, hard disk, etc.) connected to itself as DMP on the network 80. The second external display device 5 can be provided. In this case, the portable information processing device 1 functions as a DMS. Further, the portable information processing apparatus 1 can acquire content from the content holding device 3 that is DMS via the network 80 and can reproduce and display the acquired content on the main body display screen 10. In this case, the portable information processing device 1 functions as a DMP. In addition, the portable information processing device 1 can search for content in the content holding device 3 or the portable information processing device 1 that is DMS, and reproduce and display the searched content on the second external display device 5 as DMR. . In this case, the portable information processing device 1 functions as a DMC. As described above, the portable information processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment has a function as a DMS that provides content to the DMP on the network 80, a function as a DMP that reproduces and displays the acquired content on its own main body display screen 10, and It has a function as a DMC for reproducing and displaying the searched content on the DMR.

  Furthermore, the portable information processing device 1 can also acquire content from the content holding device 3 that is DMS via the network 80, reproduce the acquired content, and display the content on the first external display device 2. In this case, the portable information processing apparatus 1 functions as a DMP because it retrieves the content stored in the DMS and reproduces the acquired content. However, for the user, the portable information processing device 1 searches the content stored in the DMS and displays the content on the first external display device, although it is not a DMR based on the DLNA standard, in a device that does not support DLNA. On the other hand, it functions as a pseudo DMC.

  In addition, the portable information processing device 1 acquires content stored in its own internal memory (flash memory 24), content stored on a recording medium (SD card, USB memory, hard disk, etc.) connected to the mobile information processing device 1 or the Internet 90. The reproduced content can be reproduced and displayed on its own main body display screen 10 or can be displayed on the first external display device 2.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the portable information processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is configured to be able to use e-mail, video chat, voice chat, IP telephone functions, and the like by connecting to the Internet 90.

  Furthermore, it is preferable to have a function as a remote controller for each DLNA compatible device and non-DLNA compatible device. Specifically, the portable information processing apparatus 1 has a function of transmitting / receiving a control signal (command) for operating each device, a command execution result, and the like to / from each device.

  As described above, the portable information processing apparatus according to the present embodiment converts content stored in a DLNA-compatible device into a DLNA-incompatible device even in an environment where DLNA-compatible devices and DLNA-incompatible devices coexist in a home. Can be displayed. Furthermore, the portable information processing device can control DLNA compatible devices connected to each other via a network and non-DLNA compatible devices connected via HDMI, so it can be used as a remote control for a network system including DLNA non-compatible devices. You can also

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing content display processing. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a menu screen. Note that the menu screen shown in FIG. 4 is an example of a user interface, and the present invention is not limited to this. In addition, the content may be displayed as a list by type, or the accessible content may be displayed as a folder and a file so as to be searchable.

  First, when the power of the portable information processing apparatus is turned on, a home application for controlling the screen display of the main body display screen 10 is activated. In step 301, the control unit 16 controls the first frame buffer 21, the still image data A second frame buffer 22a, a second frame buffer 22b for moving image data, and a third frame buffer 23 are secured in the main memory 20. As described above, since each frame buffer is secured when the power is turned on, it is not necessary to newly set or change the frame buffer area each time an individual application is started. For this reason, the portable information processing apparatus of the present invention can perform a stable operation even if a moving image display application or a still image display application is activated and operated. A menu screen of the home application is also drawn in the first frame buffer.

  Next, in step 302, the control unit 16 displays a menu screen on the main body display screen 10. As shown in FIG. 4, the menu screen includes a tab menu 41 for still image data and a tab menu 42 for moving image data, and may further include a tab menu 43 for audio data. Each tab menu 41 to 43 displays a thumbnail 48 of each content. Each tab menu may be configured such that an active tab is switched by a user operation.

  The menu bar 44 includes a pull-down menu 45 for selecting a content acquisition source, a pull-down menu 46 for selecting a display destination, a playback display start button 47, and the like. The menu bar 44 displays a thumbnail 49 of the content selected by the user to be reproduced and displayed. The menu bar 44 may be configured to be minimized by touching and sliding the triangular mark.

  The pull-down menu 45 displays items indicating the content acquisition device 3, the storage medium connected to the storage medium connection unit 26, and the flash memory 24 as the content acquisition source. The user can select a content acquisition source from the pull-down menu 45. When a content acquisition source is selected, information on the content stored in the selected content acquisition source is acquired, and a thumbnail 48 of each content is tabbed for each type (for example, still image data, moving image data, audio data). Displayed in menus 41-43. The pull-down menu 46 displays content display destinations (main body display screen 10, external display device 2, both main body display screen 10 and external display device 2). The user can select a content display destination by using the pull-down menu 46. Further, the user drags a thumbnail 49 of the content to be reproduced and displayed among the thumbnails 48 of the content displayed on each tab menu, and drops the thumbnail on the area of the menu bar 44, thereby selecting the content to be displayed. You can choose. Further, the user can instruct the portable information processing apparatus 1 to execute the reproduction display of the content by operating the reproduction display start button 47.

  When the display destination of the content is selected and the reproduction / display of the content is instructed, in step 303 in FIG. 3, the control unit 16 acquires the selected content and information on the display destination of the content.

  In step 304, the control unit 16 determines whether the display destination of the content is “main body display screen 10” “external display device 2” or “both main body display screen 10 and external display device 2”. When it is determined in step 304 that the content display destination is the main body display screen 10, the control unit 16 executes a process of reproducing and displaying the content on the main body display screen 10 (step 305). Details of the processing in step 305 will be described later with reference to FIG. If it is determined in step 304 that the content display destination is the external display device 2, the control unit 16 executes a process of reproducing and displaying the content on the external display device 2 (step 306). Details of the processing in step 306 will be described later with reference to FIG. When it is determined in step 304 that the content display destination is the main body display screen 10 and the external display device 2, the control unit 16 executes a process of reproducing and displaying the content on the main body display screen 10 and the external display device 2. (Step 307). Details of the processing in step 307 will be described later with reference to FIG. Then, step 305, step 306, or step 307 is executed, and the content display process is terminated.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing processing 305 for displaying content on the main body display screen of the portable information processing apparatus. First, in step 501, the control unit 16 acquires content selected by the user. Next, in Step 502, the control unit 16 compares whether or not the number of pixels of the acquired content is equal to the first number of pixels set in the first frame buffer 21.

  As a result of the comparison in step 502, if the number of pixels of the content is not equal to the first number of pixels (No in step 502), the control unit 16 proceeds to the process of step 503 for scaling the content.

  In step 503, the frame buffer input conversion unit 17 performs scaling by software to convert the number of pixels of the content into the first number of pixels. If the number of pixels of the content is greater than the first pixel number, downscaling is executed. If the number of pixels of this content is less than the first number of pixels, upscaling is executed. However, even if the number of pixels of the content is smaller than the first number of pixels, the process may proceed to step 504 without performing upscaling.

  On the other hand, as a result of the comparison in step 502, when the number of pixels of the content is the same as the first pixel number (Yes in step 502), the control unit 16 proceeds to the process of step 504 without scaling the content.

  In step 504, the control unit 16 writes the content frame in which the number of pixels is converted into the first frame buffer 21 as necessary. In step 505, the control unit 16 displays the content frame read from the first frame buffer 21 on the main body display screen 10. Note that step 502 may be a step of determining whether or not the number of pixels of the acquired content is greater than the first pixel number, and downscaling is performed only when the number of pixels of the content is greater than the first pixel number. May be configured to execute.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a process 306 for displaying content on the external display device. First, in step 601, the control unit 16 acquires content selected by the user. Next, in step 602, the control unit 16 determines whether or not the content type is a moving image. When it is determined that the content is not a moving image, that is, when the content is still image data or the like (No in step 602), the control unit 16 determines in step 603 the number of pixels of the content and the second pixel. The number is compared, and if necessary, the frame buffer input conversion unit 17 is used to perform scaling by software to convert the number of pixels of the content into the second number of pixels. The processing in step 603 is the same as the processing in steps 502 to 503 shown in FIG. If the number of pixels of the content is the same as the number of second pixels, it is not necessary to perform scaling, and even if the number of pixels of the content is less than the second number of pixels, upscaling is not performed. May be.

  Next, in step 604, the control unit 16 writes the frame of the content with the number of pixels converted as necessary in the second frame buffer 22a for still image data.

  In step 605, the control unit 16 inputs the content frame read from the second frame buffer 22 a for still image data to the external display device connection unit 12. Note that the external display device connection unit 12 may use the external output conversion unit 13 to scale the input content as necessary. This scaling process is the same as the process in step 607 described later.

  In step 609, the content sent from the external display device connection unit 12 is displayed on the first external display device. If a plurality of still image data is selected in step 601, a plurality of still image data may be continuously displayed (slide show display) in step 609.

  On the other hand, when it is determined in step 602 that the acquired content is moving image data (Yes in step 602), the control unit 16 converts the acquired moving image data content into the second frame buffer for moving image data in step 606. Write to 22b. Note that the moving image data is preferably written into the second frame buffer 22b without performing upscaling by software. This is because there are various standards for moving image data and the number of frames is large, and therefore, if scaling is performed by software, the processing load of a processor or the like increases. On the other hand, since the amount of information about the still image data is small, the processing load on the processor is small. Therefore, as shown in step 603, the data can be scaled by software before being written to the second frame buffer 22a for still image data. For this reason, in the present embodiment, two second frame buffers, the second frame buffer 22a for still image data and the second frame buffer 22b for moving image data, are secured in the main memory 20.

  Next, in step 607, the control unit 16 inputs the content read from the second frame buffer 22b for moving image data to the external display device connection unit 12. In step 608, the external output conversion unit 13 of the external display device connection unit 12 upscales by hardware, and converts the number of pixels of the input content. Note that the scaling by hardware can be mechanically converted to a specific number of pixels and can be converted at high speed, so that the content that is moving image data can be scaled in the external output conversion unit 13. As described above, since the external display device connection unit (for example, the HDMI interface) independent of the processing of the processor executes the scaling, it does not depend on the processing capability of the control unit (processor) of the portable information processing device. Note that since the moving image data is continuously reproduced and displayed in units of frames, even if scaling is performed by hardware, image quality deterioration due to scaling is not a concern.

  In step 608, the external output conversion unit 13 of the external display device connection unit 12 determines the number of pixels of the input content (content read from the second frame buffer 22b for moving image data) by the connected first number. 1 Convert the number of pixels of the external display device 2 to a predetermined number of pixels, and send the content scaled as necessary to the first external display device 2.

  For example, when the number of pixels of the input content is the second pixel number (for example, 1280 × 720 pixels) and the display screen of the external display device 2 is full HDTV (1920 × 1080 pixels), The conversion unit 13 performs upscaling by hardware, converts the number of pixels of the input content from 1280 × 720 pixels to 1920 × 1080 pixels, and converts the content with the converted number of pixels to the first external display device 2. To send. Note that the external output conversion unit 13 may send the input content to the first external display device 2 as it is without upscaling. The first external display device 2 can also scale the received content using its own scaling function as necessary. The processing in the first external display device 2 will be supplemented in step 609.

  In addition, the number of pixels of the input content may be smaller than the second number of pixels set in the second frame buffer. The external output conversion unit 13 may convert the number of pixels of the input content into at least the second number of pixels, or may convert it into the number of pixels of the connected first external display device 2. For example, the number of pixels of the input content is 640 × 480 pixels, the second number of pixels is set to 1280 × 720 pixels, and the number of pixels of the connected first external display device 2 is 1920 × 1080 pixels. In this case, the external output conversion unit 13 may convert the number of pixels of the input content from 640 × 480 pixels to 1280 × 720 pixels or may be converted to 1920 × 1080 pixels.

  Thus, the necessity of scaling in the external output conversion unit 13 depends on the relationship between the number of pixels set in the second frame buffer 22 and the number of pixels on the display screen of the connected first external display device 2. And may be set as appropriate based on the scaling function of the first external display device 2 that is the display destination.

  Finally, in step 609, the content sent from the external display device connection unit 12 is displayed on the first external display device. In addition, when the number of pixels of the transmitted content is smaller than the number of pixels of the first external display device 2, the first external display device 2 uses the scaling function provided in itself to change the received content as necessary. You may scale. For example, when the received content has 1280 × 720 pixels and the first external display device 2 has 1920 × 1080 pixels, the first external display device 2 converts the received content into 1280 × 720. The pixel may be converted to 1920 × 1080. Also, the received content may be displayed in a partial area of its own display screen without scaling.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing processing (clone display processing) 307 for displaying the same content on both the main body display screen and the external display device. First, steps 701 to 704 are the same as steps 501 to 504 in FIG. That is, the control unit 16 appropriately scales the acquired content according to Steps 501 to 504 in FIG. 5 and writes it in the first frame buffer 21. In step 705, the control unit 16 displays the content read from the first frame buffer 21 on the main body display screen 10.

  On the other hand, in step 706, the control unit 16 copies the content frame written in the first frame buffer 21 to the third frame buffer 23. Next, in step 707, the control unit 16 inputs the content read from the third frame buffer 23 to the external display device connection unit 12. Step 708 is the same as the processing of step 608 shown in FIG. That is, the external display device connection unit 12 may convert the number of pixels of the input content into the number of pixels of the connected first external display device 2 by the external output conversion unit 13 or a predetermined number of pixels. You may convert into the number of pixels. In step 709, the content having the number of pixels converted as necessary is displayed on the first external display device 2. Thereby, the portable information processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment can display the same content on both the main body display screen 10 and the first external display device 2 connected thereto. In steps 704 to 706, the content frame written in the first frame buffer 21 has been described as being copied to the third frame buffer 23. However, the content frame is first written in the third frame buffer 23. The content frame may be copied to the first frame buffer.

  In FIG. 7, the process of clone-displaying content on both the main body display screen 10 and the first external display device 2 using the first frame buffer 21 and the third frame buffer 23 has been described, but in the present embodiment, The first frame buffer 21 and the second frame buffer 22 are used to reproduce and display the content on the main body display screen 10, while the content can be reproduced and displayed on the first external display device 2 with high image quality. That is, in the present embodiment, a process 305 for reproducing and displaying content on the main body display screen 10 shown in FIG. 3 (see FIG. 5 for specific processing) and a process 306 for reproducing and displaying content on the external display device 2 (specific (See FIG. 6). Specifically, after acquiring the content, the control unit 16 executes the processing of steps 502 to 505 in FIG. 5 and the processing after step 602 in FIG.

  In the clone display process using the first frame buffer 21 and the third frame buffer 23 described above, both still image data and moving image data are output to the first external display device 2 via the external output conversion unit 13. In this case, since the external output conversion unit 13 upscales the first pixel number to the second pixel number, the content may be displayed blurred on the first external output device 2.

  On the other hand, in the display process using the first frame buffer 21 and the second frame buffer 22, even if the acquired content is larger than the first pixel number, the content to be made to the first external display device 2 is Since the downscaling is not performed and the data is written in the second frame buffer 22 as it is, the acquired content can be reproduced and displayed on the first external display device 2 without degrading the image quality.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the portable information processing apparatus includes the first pixel separately from the first frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the first number of pixels for writing content to be displayed on its own main body display screen. Since the second frame buffer having a capacity larger than the number of second pixels is provided, high-quality content can be displayed on the external display device.

  Also, a second frame buffer for moving image data and a second frame buffer for still image data are provided. For moving image data having a large number of frames, scaling is not performed by software, but by hardware of the external display device connection unit. Since scaling is performed, processing is fast. In addition, the processing load can be reduced in a portable information processing apparatus with limited resources.

  On the other hand, for still image data having various numbers of pixels, scaling is performed by software for each still image data, and the number of pixels is converted in accordance with the number of pixels of the first external display device 2 that is the display destination. Still images can be displayed. In addition, since the third frame buffer for clone display is provided, one content can be simultaneously displayed on both the main body display screen and the display device.

  In addition, since the portable information processing apparatus of the present embodiment is connected to a DLNA-compliant network and is connected to an HDMI-connected external display device, the content acquired via the network is an external display device that is a DLNA-incompatible device. Can also be displayed. Further, the portable information processing apparatus of the present embodiment can be used as a controller for each connected device in a network.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Portable information processing apparatus 2 1st external display apparatus 3 Content possession apparatus 4 Router 5 2nd external display apparatus 10 Main body display screen 12 External display apparatus connection part 13 External output conversion part 14 Communication part 16 Control part 17 For frame buffer input Conversion unit 20 Main memory 21 First frame buffer 22 Second frame buffer 22a Second frame buffer 22b for still image data Second frame buffer 23 for moving image data Third frame buffer 24 Flash memory 26 Storage medium connection unit 80 Network 90 Internet 100 communication cable

Claims (8)

A portable information processing device for displaying content on an external display device,
A main body display screen having a first pixel number; an external display device connection unit capable of connecting an external display device having a number of pixels larger than the first pixel number; a storage unit for temporarily writing a frame of the content; A control unit for controlling the display,
The controller is
A first frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the number of first pixels and at least one second frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the number of second pixels having a number of pixels larger than the number of first pixels are secured in the storage unit. And
When displaying the content on the main body display screen, the content frame is written to the first frame buffer, and the content frame read from the first frame buffer is displayed on the main body display screen.
When displaying the content on the external display device, the content frame is written to the second frame buffer;
A portable information processing apparatus that displays a frame of content read from the second frame buffer on the external display device via the external display device connection unit. The controller is
Securing the second frame buffer for moving image data and the second frame buffer for still image data in the storage unit;
When displaying the content on the external display device, the frame of moving image data included in the content is written in the second frame buffer for moving image, and the frame of still image data included in the content is for the still image The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second frame buffer is written. The control unit includes a frame buffer input conversion unit that converts the number of pixels,
The frame buffer input conversion unit includes:
When the number of pixels of a frame of content to be written in the first frame buffer is larger or smaller than the first pixel number, the number of pixels is converted after the number of pixels of the frame of the content is converted to the first pixel number. Are written to the first frame buffer,
When the number of pixels of the content frame to be written to the second frame buffer for still image data is larger or smaller than the second number of pixels, the number of pixels after converting the number of pixels of the frame of the content into the second number of pixels Is written into the second frame buffer for the still image data,
Even if the number of pixels of the content frame to be written to the second frame buffer for moving image data is smaller than the second number of pixels, the number of pixels of the frame of the content is not converted and the first number for the moving image data The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the portable information processing apparatus writes in a two-frame buffer. The external display device connection unit includes an external output conversion unit that converts the number of pixels,
The external output conversion unit converts the number of pixels of a frame of content read from the second frame buffer into the number of pixels of the external display device or a predetermined number of pixels, and then converts the content with the converted number of pixels. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the portable information processing apparatus outputs the data to the external display device. The controller is
A third frame buffer having a capacity corresponding to the first number of pixels is secured in the storage unit;
Copying a frame of content written in the first frame buffer to the third frame buffer;
The mobile information according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a frame of content read from the third frame buffer is displayed on the external display device via the external display device connection unit. Processing equipment. The external display device connection unit includes an external output conversion unit that converts the number of pixels,
The external output conversion unit converts the number of pixels of the frame of the content read from the third frame buffer into the number of pixels of the external display device or a predetermined number of pixels, and then converts the content with the converted number of pixels. 6. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the information is output to the external display device.   The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the external display device connection unit conforms to an HDMI standard. The portable information processing apparatus
Furthermore, a communication unit that connects devices compliant with the DLNA standard to each other and connects to a network constructed in the home is provided.
The mobile information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein content is acquired from devices mutually connected to the network via the communication unit.

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