Display device and networking method thereof

Abstract

A display device and a networking method thereof are provided. The display device includes a hub, a universal serial bus (USB) port, a switching circuit, a network interface controller (NIC), and a display control device. The switching circuit is controlled by a control signal. In response to the control signal being in a first state, the USB port is linked to network through the hub, the switching circuit, and the NIC. In response to the control signal being in a second state, the display control device is connected to network through the switching circuit and the NIC.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to corresponding technology for a display device, and more particularly to a display device and a networking method. [Previous Technology]

[0002] With the development of technology, more and more monitors on the market are now equipped with Universal Serial Bus (USB) Type-C interfaces and Ethernet ports (such as RJ45 ports) as signal input and network connection interfaces. Electronic devices (such as laptops, tablets, and smartphones) can be connected to the monitor via the USB Type-C interface to serve as the monitor's signal source. In addition, the monitor can also connect to a local area network (such as a wireless router) via the RJ45 port or related wireless modules to enjoy multimedia network streaming services.

[0003] As displays increasingly move towards Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) technology, their functions are becoming more diversified. However, this also leads to a gradual increase in the hardware costs of displays. [Summary of the Invention]

[0004] The present invention provides a display device and a networking method thereof, wherein the circuit structure adopted by the display device can save hardware construction costs.

[0005] A display device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a hub, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port, a switching circuit, a Network Interface Controller (NIC), and a display control device. The USB port is coupled to the hub. The switching circuit is coupled to the hub. The switching circuit is controlled by a control signal. The NIC is coupled to the switching circuit. The display control device is coupled to the hub. In response to the control signal being in a first state, the USB port connects to the network through the hub, the switching circuit, and the NIC. In response to the control signal being in a second state, the display control device connects to the network through the switching circuit and the NIC.

[0006] A networking method for a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the display device including a hub, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port, a switching circuit, a network interface controller, and a display control device. The networking method includes: in response to a control signal being in a first state, enabling the USB port to connect to a network through the hub, the switching circuit, and the network interface controller; and in response to a control signal being in a second state, enabling the display control device to connect to the network through the switching circuit and the network interface controller.

[0007] Based on the above, the display device of this embodiment enables electronic devices to access the Internet via a wired network through a USB port and a NIC with USB signal transmission function, without needing to connect to the Internet through the microprocessor in the display control device. Therefore, when the microprocessor in the display device does not need to have networking capabilities, the hardware implementation cost of the display device can be saved.

Implementation Method

[0008] The display devices of the various embodiments of the present invention can connect to the cloud network or Ethernet without the need for other electronic devices (such as personal computers or laptops). Furthermore, the display device can automatically implement related applications via the cloud network, such as firmware updates, self-functionality assessment and diagnosis, remote debugging, artificial intelligence (AI) related functions, energy-saving adjustments, and ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) related power consumption feedback, etc.

[0009] Furthermore, if the display device can connect to the network via an Ethernet port, the embodiments of the present invention also enable electronic devices to connect to the aforementioned network via a USB Type-C interface on the display device. In other words, the display device enables electronic devices to access the internet via a wired network through a USB Type-C interface and a Network Interface Controller (NIC) with USB signal transmission functionality. The control module or microprocessor in the display device does not need to have networking functionality (also known as Media Access Control (MAC) functionality) to enable electronic devices to access the internet, thereby saving hardware implementation costs of the display device when it has networking functionality. The following are embodiments conforming to the present invention.

[0010] FIG1 is a block diagram of a display device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The display device 100 may be a screen display, a liquid crystal panel, or a smart TV. The display device 100 may display multimedia data such as images, videos, and audio from a signal source. The aforementioned signal source may be an electronic device connected to a USB port (e.g., a smartphone, a laptop, a multimedia streaming service on the network, and a corresponding server).

[0011] The display device 100 mainly includes a hub 110, a USB port 112, a switching circuit 120, a network interface controller (NIC) 130, and a display control device 140. The display device 100 may also include an Ethernet port 132 (e.g., an RJ45 port) and a display screen (not shown).

[0012] Hub 110 includes a first terminal P1, a second terminal P2, a third terminal P3, and a transmission terminal P4. USB port 112 is coupled to the transmission terminal P4 of hub 110. In this embodiment, USB port 112 can also be referred to as USB uplink port.

[0013] Switching circuit 120 is coupled or electrically connected to hub 110. Switching circuit 120 is controlled by control signal CS1. In one embodiment, switching circuit 120 of FIG1 may include a first switch SW1 and a second switch SW2. The first connection terminal P11 of the first switch SW1 is coupled to the first terminal P1 of hub 110, and the control terminal of the first switch SW1 receives control signal CS1. The first connection terminal P21 of the second switch SW2 is coupled to the second terminal P2 of hub 110, and the control terminal of the second switch SW2 receives control signal CS1. The communication terminal of NIC 130 is coupled to Ethernet port 132 to connect to network 107. The first transmission terminal of NIC 130 is coupled to the transmission terminal TP1 of the first switch SW1. The second transmission terminal of NIC 130 is coupled to the transmission terminal TP2 of the second switch SW2. In one embodiment, the first switch SW1 conforms to USB3 version of the USB protocol and uses USB3 version to transmit data, and the second switch SW2 conforms to USB2 version of the USB protocol and uses USB2 version to transmit data.

[0014] NIC 130 is coupled to Ethernet port 132 to connect to network 107 via a wired network line. NIC 130 is coupled to switching circuit 120. In one embodiment, NIC 130 uses USB version 3 and USB version 2 of the USB protocol to transmit data.

[0015] When the control signal CS1 is in the first state (e.g., enabled state), the electronic device 105 connected to the USB port 112 connects to the network 107 via the hub 110, the switching circuit 120, and the NIC 130. The electronic device 105 is, for example, a smartphone, a personal computer, a laptop, a tablet computer, etc. In other words, the electronic device 105 in this embodiment can connect to the network 107 via the display device 100.

[0016] On the other hand, when the control signal CS1 is in the second state (e.g., disabled state), the display control device 140 is connected to the network 107 through the switching circuit 120 and the network interface controller 130. For example, the microprocessor 141 in the display control device 140 can upload data from the display device 100 to the server on the network 107 for self-functional assessment and diagnosis, remote debugging, artificial intelligence (AI) related functions, energy-saving adjustments, ESG-related power consumption reports, etc. The microprocessor 141 in the display control device 140 can obtain firmware update data from the server on the network 107 and determine whether to perform a firmware update on the display device 100 based on this firmware update data.

[0017] In one embodiment, the display control device 140 includes a microprocessor (MCU) 141, a scaler 142, and a third switch SW3. The microprocessor 141 is coupled to the second connection terminal P22 of the second switch SW2 in the switching circuit 120. The scaler 142 is coupled to the microprocessor 141. In one embodiment, the scaler 142 communicates with the microprocessor 141 via Universal Asynchronous Receiver and Transmitter Protocol (UART). The first connection terminal P31 of the third switch SW3 is coupled to the third terminal P3 of the hub 110, the second connection terminal P32 of the third switch SW3 is coupled to the scaler 142, and the transmission terminal TP3 of the third switch SW3 is coupled to the second connection terminal P22 of the second switch SW2.

[0018] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the device 100 shown in Figure 1 when the control signal CS1 is in the first state. When the control signal CS1 is in the first state (e.g., the enabled state), the transmission terminal TP1 of the first switch SW1 is coupled to its first connection terminal P11 (as shown by arrow A210), and the transmission terminal TP2 of the second switch SW2 is coupled to its first connection terminal P21 (as shown by arrow A220). The electronic device 102 can be coupled to the hub 110 through the USB port 112, as shown by arrow A230. Therefore, by adjusting the firmware and functions of the NIC 130, the electronic device 102 can be connected to the network 107 through the hub 110, the first switch SW1 and the second switch SW2, and the NIC 130. In one embodiment, the hub 110 and the first switch SW1 transmit data based on the USB 3D protocol. In this embodiment, the hub 110 and the second switch SW2 transmit data based on the USB2 version of the transmission protocol U2D.

[0019] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the display device 100 in Figure 1 when the control signal CS1 is in the second state. When the control signal CS1 is in the second state (e.g., disabled state), the transmission terminal TP1 of the first switch SW1 is coupled to its second connection terminal P12 (as shown by arrow A310), while the second connection terminal P12 is not coupled to any other components. On the other hand, the transmission terminal TP2 of the second switch SW2 is coupled to its second connection terminal P22 (as shown by arrow A320). The microprocessor 141 in the display control device 140 is connected to the network 107 through the second switch SW2 and the NIC 130. In one embodiment, the microprocessor 141 can process data of the USB2 version of the USB protocol, so the microprocessor 141 and the second switch SW2 transmit data based on the USB2 version of the transmission protocol U2D, as shown by arrow A330.

[0020] Therefore, in this embodiment, a component without networking capabilities can be selected to implement the microprocessor 141, and a costly local area network (LAN) switch is not required to implement the switching circuit 120. When the microprocessor in the display control device 140 has networking requirements, it can connect to the network 107 through the NIC 130. In this way, the hardware implementation cost of the microprocessor 141 is saved while meeting the networking requirements of the display device 100.

[0021] In other embodiments conforming to the present invention, the microprocessor 141 may also be selected to process data of the USB3 version of the USB protocol, and the switching circuit 120 may be implemented using a switch that can process data of the USB3 version of the USB protocol. That is, the transmission terminal TP1 of the first switch SW1 may be coupled to the microprocessor 141 through its second connection terminal P12.

[0022] The third switch SW3 conforms to USB 2.0 version of the USB protocol for data transmission. The third switch SW3 is controlled by the switching signal CS2. When the electronic device 105 is used as a signal source, the control signal CS2 can be enabled, and the first connection terminal P31 of the third switch SW3 is coupled to its transmission terminal TP3. In this way, the electronic device 105 can transmit data to the scaler 142 to present corresponding multimedia data. On the other hand, when the scaler 142 needs to receive data from the network 107, the control signal CS2 can be disabled, and the second connection terminal P32 of the third switch SW3 is coupled to its transmission terminal TP3. In this way, the scaler 142 can transmit data through the third switch SW3 and the second switch SW2, based on the USB 2.0 version of the transmission protocol U2D.

[0023] Both the first switcher SW1 and the second switcher SW2 are controlled by the control signal CS1. In this embodiment, the control signal CS1 can be controlled by one or a combination of the microprocessor 141 and the scaler 142, depending on how the control of the control signal CS1 is implemented. In other words, there are multiple ways to implement the switching mechanism of the control signal CS1. For example, the control signal CS1 can be adjusted by the microprocessor 141 through an application (APP) connected to the display device 100; the control signal CS1 can be adjusted by the scaler 142 through corresponding control technologies of High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) (such as Video Data Mapping (VDM), High Definition Digital Content Protection (HDCP), etc.); the control signal CS1 can be adjusted by the scaler 142 or the microprocessor 141 through the function options and time settings of the OSD menu; etc. Here, the function options of the OSD menu are used to adjust the control signal as an example to illustrate Figures 4 and 5.

[0024] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the OSD (On-Screen Display) menu 400 in the display device 100 of Figure 1. The user can select 'Network Setting Mode 410' in the OSD menu 400 and adjust the Network Setting Mode 410 to Automatic Mode 420 or Manual Mode 430 according to the user's needs. Furthermore, Manual Mode 430 can be set to on or off. The network connection method of the display device described in this embodiment (e.g., 'Network Setting Mode 410') can be adjusted according to the aforementioned method to selectively adjust the judgment behavior mode of the control signal SC1.

[0025] Figure 5 is a flowchart of a networking method for a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to Figures 1 and 5 simultaneously, in step S502, the display device (e.g., display device 100 in Figure 1) operates normally. In step S505, it is determined which networking mode to enter, for example, automatic or manual networking mode. The networking mode setting can be adjusted by referring to Figure 4 and the corresponding embodiments.

[0026] When entering the automatic network connection mode, the process proceeds from step S505 to step S510 to determine whether to adjust the control signal to the first or second state based on the corresponding judgment conditions. For example, the scaler 142 in the display device 100 may receive a switching command from the corresponding control technology of High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) (such as Video Data Mapping (VDM), High Definition Digital Content Protection (HDCP), etc.); or, the connection pins of the USB port 112 may be used to determine whether the USB port 112 is disconnected from the electronic device 105; or, the user may set one or more setting time periods in the display device 100, and the display device 100 may determine whether the current time has reached the aforementioned setting time period. Users of this embodiment can adjust the judgment conditions in step S510 according to their needs, and these judgment conditions can be implemented one by one or combined with each other using logical operations.

[0027] If one of the aforementioned steps S510 is true, then proceed to step S520, whereby the control signal is set to the second state. Then, in step S530, the display control device 140 connects to the network 107 through the second switch SW2 in the switching circuit 120 and the network interface controller 130. After the display control device 140 connects to the network 107, it can upload the data of the display device 100 to the server on the network 107 through the microprocessor 141 in the display control device 140, and can perform corresponding operations accordingly.

[0028] In step S540, similar to the various judgment conditions in step S510, such as the zoomer 142 in the display control device 140 receiving a switching command again, the USB port 112 being disconnected from the electronic device 105, or the current time exceeding the set time period, etc., if the judgment condition in step S540 is true, then the process proceeds from step S540 to step S550, setting the control signal CS1 to the first state so that the electronic device 105 connects to the network 107.

[0029] When entering the manual network connection mode, the process proceeds from step S505 to step S511 to determine whether the manual mode is 'on' or 'off'. If it is 'off' (step S511 is 'no'), it indicates that the user does not use the network connection method of this embodiment, and the process returns from step S511 to step S502. If it is 'on' (step S511 is 'yes'), the process proceeds to step S521, where the control signal is set to the second state. Then, in steps S560 to S590, the display control device 140 connects to the network 107 through the second switch SW2 in the switching circuit 120 and the network interface controller 130, and can perform operations such as firmware updates for the display device.

[0030] For example, in step S560, it is determined whether the scaler 142 has received control-related instructions from the network 107 or the corresponding application, or whether it has received a debugging instruction from a remote end. If no such instruction is received, the process proceeds from step S560 to step S570, where, according to the preset settings, the scaler 142 uploads the data from the display device 100 to the server on the network 107 via the microprocessor 141. Furthermore, the scaler 142 can obtain firmware update data from the server on the network via the microprocessor 141 and determine whether to perform a firmware update.

[0031] On the other hand, if a corresponding instruction is received, the process proceeds from step S560 to step S580. The scaler 142 performs the operation according to the received instruction and sends back relevant memory data or debugging information to the server on the network for remote control or debugging. After steps S570 and S580 are completed, the process proceeds to step S590 to end this networking method.

[0032] FIG6 is another block diagram of a display device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In addition to the microprocessor 141, scaler 142, network interface controller 130, and hub 110, the display device 100 in FIG6 also includes an external cache memory 610. When the microprocessor 141 successfully connects to the server 620 on the network 107, the microprocessor 141 receives the latest firmware update data pushed by the server 620. The microprocessor 620 or each chip or component (e.g., component set 630) within the display device 100 compares its own firmware version with the version in the aforementioned firmware update data. If one of these components finds its own firmware version to be older, it can perform a firmware update through the microprocessor 141. In this embodiment, the firmware update can be performed in the background process of the display device 100, thus not affecting the normal operation of the display device 100.

[0033] In one embodiment, the microprocessor may be a GD32E50X chip. This chip does not have networking capabilities, but it has a USB2 version data transfer interface and supports the USB OTG (On-The-Go) standard. The network interface controller 130 may be an RTL8156 chip.

[0034] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a scaler 142, a microprocessor 141, and related code in a display device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG7, the scaler 142 and the microprocessor 141 communicate with each other through a Universal Asynchronous Receiver and Transmitter Protocol (UART) 710. In one embodiment, the microprocessor 141 does not have an operating system, but uses low-level instructions in network technology and USB technology to implement its operation.

[0035] For example, in one embodiment, the microprocessor 141 runs a Common Module for Industrial Smart Infrastructure Services (CMISIS) 720, a user application 730, and a Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) protocol 740. The user application 730 communicates with the scaler 142 via CMISIS 720 and UART 710 to perform corresponding functions. On the other hand, the user application 730 connects to the network 107 via MQTT 740.

[0036] The code in the user application 730 may include multiple programs, such as the main program main.c, the first program usbh_usr.c, the second program gd32e51x_it.c, the third program gd32e51x_usb_hw.c, and the fourth program netconf.c. The main program main.c serves as the program's entry point, containing the main function, which is the program's starting point.

[0037] The first program, usbh_usr.c, mainly defines processing functions for Change Data Capture (CDC), such as device connection, descriptor processing, speed detection, data sending and receiving processing, etc., a series of data transmission and processing functions. Through these functions, users can realize communication operations with electronic devices (such as devices or hosts with USB interfaces).

[0038] The second program, gd32e51x_it.c, mainly defines the relevant functions of the interrupt service routine, enabling it to handle various interrupt events. The third program, d32e51x_usb_hw.c, mainly defines the hardware-related initialization and configuration code for USB. The fourth program, netconf.c, mainly defines the code related to network configuration, such as functions for controlling Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), network interface initialization, network function updates, management and control of DHCP state machine processing functions, etc. Through the code in the fourth program, netconf.c, it is possible to dynamically obtain IP addresses, initialize the network interface, and handle various network communication tasks.

[0039] In one embodiment, the first program usbh_usr.c is mainly used to connect the microprocessor 141 and the network interface controller 130 to connect to the network, and to process the various parameters required for connecting to the network through the CDC type processing function, thereby realizing the transmission and reception of data.

[0040] In summary, the display devices of the various embodiments of the present invention enable electronic devices to access the Internet via a wired network through a USB Type-C interface and a Network Interface Controller (NIC) with USB signal transmission function. The control module or microprocessor in the display device does not need to have networking functionality (also known as Media Access Control (MAC) function) to enable the electronic device to access the Internet, thereby saving hardware construction costs for the display device even when it has networking functionality.

[0041] Although the present invention has been disclosed above by way of embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Anyone skilled in the art can make some modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention shall be determined by the appended claims. [Simplified Explanation of the Diagram]

[0042] FIG1 is a block diagram of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the display device of FIG1 when the control signal is in a first state. FIG3 is a schematic diagram of the display device of FIG1 when the control signal is in a second state. FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the OSD menu in the display device of FIG1. ​​FIG5 is a flowchart of a networking method of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG6 is another block diagram of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG7 is a structural schematic diagram of a scaler, microprocessor and related code of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Claims

1. A display device, comprising: Hub; A Universal Serial Bus (USB) port is coupled to the hub; A switching circuit coupled to the hub, wherein the switching circuit is controlled by a control signal; A network interface controller, coupled to the switching circuit; A display control device coupled to the hub is provided, wherein, in response to a first state of the control signal, the USB port is connected to the network through the hub, the switching circuit, and the network interface controller; in response to a second state of the control signal, the display control device is connected to the network through the switching circuit and the network interface controller; wherein the switching circuit includes: a first switch coupled to the hub and controlled by the control signal; and a second switch coupled to the hub and controlled by the control signal; wherein, in response to a first state of the control signal, the USB port is connected to the network through the hub, one of the first switch and the second switch, and the network interface controller; in response to a second state of the control signal, the display control device is connected to the network through the second switch and the network interface controller.

2. The display device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the network interface controller transmits data using USB version 3 and USB version 2 of the USB protocol, the first switch conforming to the USB version 3 and the second switch conforming to the USB version 2.

3. The display device as claimed in claim 2, wherein an electronic device connected to the USB port communicates with the network interface controller based on either the USB3 version or the USB2 version.

4. The display device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the display control device comprises: The microprocessor is coupled to the switching circuit; A scaler, coupled to the microprocessor; And a third switch, coupled to the switching circuit and the hub, wherein in response to the control signal in a second state, the microprocessor connects to the network through the switching circuit and the network interface controller.

5. The display device as claimed in claim 4, wherein the third switch conforms to USB2 version of the USB protocol.

6. The display device as claimed in claim 4, wherein the microprocessor does not have networking capabilities.

7. The display device as claimed in claim 4, wherein the microprocessor uploads data of the display device to a server on the network.

8. The display device as claimed in claim 4, wherein the microprocessor obtains firmware update data from a server and determines whether to perform a firmware update on the display device based on the firmware update data.

9. The display device as claimed in claim 4, wherein the control signal is controlled by one or a combination of the microprocessor and the scaler.

10. The display device as claimed in claim 4, wherein the microprocessor obtains firmware update data from a server on the network and determines whether to perform a firmware update on the display device based on the firmware update data.

11. A networking method for a display device, wherein the display device includes a hub, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port, a switching circuit, a network interface controller, and a display control device, the networking method comprising: In response to the control signal being in the first state, the USB port connects to the network through the hub, the switching circuit, and the network interface controller; In response to the control signal being in a second state, the display control device connects to the network through the switching circuit and the network interface controller; wherein the switching circuit includes: a first switch controlled by the control signal; and a second switch controlled by the control signal, wherein in response to the control signal being in a first state, the USB port connects to the network through the hub, one of the first switch and the second switch and the network interface controller, and in response to the control signal being in a second state, the display control device connects to the network through the second switch and the network interface controller.

12. The networking method as described in claim 11 further includes: Determine whether the network connection mode is manual or automatic; And adjust the control signal to the first state or the second state according to the manual mode or the automatic mode.

13. The networking method as described in claim 12, wherein the step of adjusting the control signal to the first state or the second state according to the manual mode or the automatic mode includes: In the automatic mode, it is determined whether the scaler in the display control device has received a switching command, whether the USB port is disconnected from the electronic device, or whether it is within a set time period; if the scaler in the display control device has received a switching command, the USB port is disconnected from the electronic device, or it is within the set time period, the control signal is set to the second state to enable the display control device to connect to the network; In cases where the scaler in the display control device does not receive a switching command, the USB port is not disconnected from the electronic device, or the device is not in the set time period, the control signal is set to the first state to enable the electronic device to connect to the network.

14. The networking method as described in claim 11, wherein the step of connecting the display control device to the network includes: The microprocessor in the display control device uploads the data of the display device to the server on the network.

15. The networking method as described in claim 11, wherein the step of connecting the display control device to the network includes: Obtain firmware update data from the server on the network; And based on the firmware update data, determine whether to perform a firmware update on the display device.

16. The networking method as described in claim 11, wherein the network interface controller transmits data using USB version 3 and USB version 2 of the USB protocol, the first switch conforms to the USB version 3 and the second switch conforms to the USB version 2, and the electronic device connected to the USB port communicates with the network interface controller based on one of the USB version 3 and the USB version 2.

17. The networking method as described in claim 11, wherein the display control device comprises: The microprocessor is coupled to the switching circuit; A scaler, coupled to the microprocessor; and a third switch, coupled to the switching circuit and the hub, wherein in response to the control signal in a second state, the microprocessor connects to the network through the switching circuit and the network interface controller, wherein the third switch conforms to USB2 version of the USB protocol.

18. The networking method as described in claim 17, wherein the microprocessor does not have networking capabilities.

Images