Virtual Channel Allocation via Modified DisplayPort MST for Camera Sensors
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current DisplayPort technology is not well-suited for internal consumer electronics device operations, particularly in managing camera sensors with limited processing capabilities, as it requires substantial modifications to the underlying control scheme and provides unnecessary capabilities.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a method and apparatus for virtual channel allocation within consumer electronics devices, utilizing a System on a Chip (SoC) processor to manage camera sensors through a modified DisplayPort Multi-Stream Transport (MST) protocol, where the SoC acts as a sink node to dynamically adjust bandwidth and simplify network management, enabling efficient data transmission and resource allocation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If DisplayPort technology is used for internal consumer electronics device operations, then data transmission capability is improved, but device complexity and processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a bus interface as an intermediary layer between the DisplayPort interface and the sensor. This bus interface handles the complex protocol conversion and data routing, allowing the sensor to communicate via DisplayPort without requiring the sensor itself to have complex processing capabilities. The bus interface acts as a mediator that translates between the simple sensor output and the DisplayPort protocol requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the complex processing functions from the sensor and relocates them to a separate bus interface component. The sensor is designed to be simple, outputting raw data without embedded DisplayPort protocol handling. The protocol conversion, packetization, and virtual channel management functions are extracted and implemented in the bus interface, separating concerns and reducing sensor complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If full DisplayPort protocol capabilities are implemented, then adaptability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to substantial modifications required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a simplified version of the DisplayPort protocol rather than the full protocol suite. The bus interface implements only the necessary DisplayPort functions required for the specific application (sensor data transmission), omitting unnecessary features. This partial implementation reduces the complexity of control schemes while maintaining sufficient adaptability for the intended use case.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the DisplayPort protocol implementation into modular components within the bus interface. Different functional blocks handle different aspects of the protocol (packetization, virtual channel management, data routing), allowing independent configuration and simplifying the overall control scheme. Each segment can be independently optimized or disabled based on specific application requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatus for virtual channel allocation within an electronic device. In one exemplary embodiment, the device is a consumer electronics device having multiple camera sensors uses a modified high-speed protocol (e.g., DisplayPort Multi-Stream Transport (MST) protocol) to process camera data via one or more virtual channels. Unlike traditional solutions which rely on an intelligent source device to manage a network of devices, the present disclosure describes in one aspect a network of nodes internal to a consumer electronic device that is managed by the sink node (i.e., a “smart sink”). Additionally, since the full suite of protocol (e.g., DisplayPort) capabilities are unnecessary for certain design scenarios, certain further disclosed simplifications improve performance for sink nodes having very modest capabilities.