Selective Display Frame Updates for Low-Bandwidth Refresh

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Solution Overview

Problem

High-resolution displays with high refresh rates require significant bandwidth and power, and existing methods for reducing bandwidth and power consumption, such as partial frame updates, are not efficient in scenarios where image changes are minimal.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a lid controller hub that processes sensor data locally in the lid of a computing device, reducing latency and power consumption by synchronizing touch and display refresh rates, enabling features like Wake on Voice and Face ID, and allowing for partial frame updates.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Use of energy by moving object

If compressed mode is used to reduce bandwidth and power requirements, then power consumption and bandwidth are reduced, but image quality and refresh rate performance may be degraded

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepower consumptionVSAvoidimage quality

Core Design Contradiction:

Use of energy by moving objectVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The display frame is divided into multiple scanline segments that can be independently processed and transmitted. This allows the system to send only the necessary portions of the frame (partial frame updates) rather than compressing the entire frame, maintaining image quality while reducing data transmission requirements and power consumption.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs partial frame updates by transmitting only the changed scanlines or portions of the frame rather than the complete frame. This partial action approach reduces bandwidth and power requirements while maintaining sufficient image quality for the user experience.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

2Use of energy by moving object

If partial frame updates are implemented to reduce power and bandwidth, then power consumption and bandwidth are reduced, but efficiency is insufficient when image changes are minimal

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepower consumptionVSAvoidupdate efficiency

Core Design Contradiction:

Use of energy by moving objectVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary analysis of the frame buffer to identify changed scanlines before transmission. By pre-processing the frame data to detect changes, the system can efficiently determine what needs to be updated, improving the efficiency of partial frame updates even when changes are minimal.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses feedback from frame buffer analysis to dynamically adjust the update strategy. By monitoring change detection results and transmission effectiveness, the system can optimize the balance between power consumption and update efficiency based on actual image change conditions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS12482436B2Technologies for selective frame update on a display

Publication Date: 2025.11.25 INTEL CORP

AI summary

Techniques for selectively updating regions of a display are disclosed. In the illustrative embodiment, a display engine of a computing device sends messages to a display to update particular update regions of the display. As not the entire frame is sent, sending only the update regions can save bandwidth and power. In the illustrative embodiment, some of the update regions for a frame sent to the display may be compressed and some of the update regions for the frame may be uncompressed. Due to overhead in the compression, sending small update regions uncompressed may reduce the bandwidth and/or power used.