CN100447722C - Cursor switching method in multi-display system and multi-display system - Google Patents

Abstract

A method for switching cursors in a multi-display system, comprising: judging whether a cursor rapid positioning mechanism is triggered; if not, performing normal processing on input information; if yes, starting a cursor rapid positioning mechanism; receiving input cursor movement information, and Display the prompt information of cursor movement, convert the operation according to the prompt information into cursor switching information; send the cursor to the designated target display according to the conversion result. A multi-display system, comprising a host, a plurality of displays connected to the host, and an input device; the host is provided with a cursor quick positioning mechanism; the input device is used for inputting trigger information of the cursor quick positioning mechanism; and inputting movement of the cursor information; after the cursor rapid positioning mechanism is triggered, the host receives the input cursor movement information, and displays the prompt information of cursor movement, converts the operation according to the prompt information into cursor switching information and controls the cursor between multiple displays switch.

Description

Cursor switching method in multi-display system and multi-display system

technical field

The invention relates to the control technology of a multi-display data processing system, in particular to a method for switching cursors in the multi-display system and the multi-display system.

Background technique

With the continuous development of computers and information technology, information display is extremely important, and it is increasingly required to display more information on the display.

Throughout the history of computer development, it can be found that as a human-machine interface for computers, the size of monitors is getting larger and larger, from the initial 14 inches to the current 17 inches, and even 20 inches, and there are also projections over 150 inches. The screen is used for demonstration and explanation; the resolution has also changed from the original CGA and EGA to the current high resolution, such as 1024×768 or even higher; the color has also changed from monochrome to 16-color, 256-color, to the current 24-bit color, etc. etc., these all mean that more information can be displayed on the display.

However, due to the limitation of display technology, the cost of large-size and high-resolution display devices is relatively expensive, such as large-size displays such as liquid crystals and plasmas. In addition, limited by the current technical level, the viewing angle and position of a single large-screen display are limited.

Generally, using multiple monitors to display more information content is a good way to save costs and effectively improve work efficiency. On the one hand, the cost of a small-sized display is low, and the angle of a single small-sized display is easy to adjust, and the position is also arbitrary. The prior art discloses a variety of multi-display systems: for example, European Patent No. EP 0827066 describes the application of two displays on an ATM machine; British Patent No. GB 2333391 describes how to use two small displays to splice into one large display. display method.

In addition, the display adapter has also developed greatly, with strong dynamic display and static display performance. Currently, the ones used in portable computers can generally support two displays to display different page content, and they all perform well in terms of display performance. The Japanese Patent Document Publication No. 2000-339130 in the prior art describes two display application scenarios. This method collects content to be displayed on a large screen and then displays it on the large screen. US Patent No. US 2004263426 in the prior art solves the problem of switching display windows between two display devices under different display modes in a system.

Figure 1 shows how a notebook computer works when connected to two external monitors. In this case, the user can simultaneously see three files on three different monitors (i.e. the notebook monitor 1 in the middle and the external monitors 2 and 3 on both sides), and each file is optimally displayed on the respective monitors. Therefore, when modifying the file displayed on the middle display 1, you can refer to the contents on the two displays 2 and 3 at the same time, so as to improve work efficiency.

In the prior art, under the multi-screen extended display mode of a plurality of displays, the effect is equivalent to enlarging the display screen, so that the cursor 7 can input devices at the position, such as a track pad (Track PAD) 4, a touch stick (Track PAD) Move freely on any display under the control of Point)5 or Mouse6.

But, there are also some problems in this prior art: because there are three display screens, if the cursor 7 is moved from the display 2 to the display 3, it must pass through the display 1, and the moving distance of the cursor is relatively long, so it needs to be moved substantially. Mouse and other position input devices, or use the wrist to lift the mouse and move it back and forth several times to complete the switching of the cursor, and it will be more troublesome if you use a touchpad and a touch stick.

In the prior art, U.S. Patent No. 6,667,740 discloses a method for quickly moving a cursor on a touchpad, which makes the cursor jump quickly by identifying the time and direction before and after the jumping movement of two fingers on the touchpad . The method described is capable of moving the cursor on the screen substantially, but it is not sufficient to ensure that the cursor just jumps to another display. In addition, this method also has problems related to the user's usage habits, and the jumping rhythm of the two fingers is not well grasped.

In addition, Lenovo Group, the applicant of this patent application, proposed a method of using a camera to assist the positioning and switching of the cursor on multiple displays. This invention is based on a premise: if you want to perform input editing operations on a certain display, then Be sure to point the user's eyes or face at the display. The method can meet the needs of most users, but the cost of the camera is relatively high; and the premise of the invention makes it obviously unsuitable for some professionals, because professionals often use touch typing input methods: reading manuscripts with eyes or reading other If you do not look at the keyboard and the screen that is being input, this method will not work at this time, so the application is subject to certain restrictions.

In the prior art, manufacturers of display adapters such as MATROX and NVIDEA propose a method of using a mouse wheel to switch multiple displays. This method is easy to operate, especially suitable for a few monitors placed in a row or column, but the disadvantage is that the scroll wheel can only be rotated sequentially, and cannot be switched at will, especially when more than 4 to 5 monitors are placed in two or three rows. Sometimes, it is very inconvenient.

To sum up, there are defects in the method of cursor switching in the multi-display system of the prior art: for example, when moving and switching on multiple displays, there are relatively large obstacles, which makes the operator feel very uncomfortable when using it. It is convenient, and in severe cases, it will cause sore arms of the operator and even occupational diseases; another example, the operator feels more inconvenient when using it, which affects work efficiency.

Contents of the invention

Aiming at the deficiencies of the prior art, the technical problem solved by the present invention is to provide a method for switching cursors in a multi-display system and a multi-display system, which are easy to operate and can quickly switch the cursor between different displays, thereby improving work efficiency .

For this reason, the technical scheme that the present invention solves technical problem is: provide a kind of method of cursor switching in the multi-display system, comprise steps:

1) Judging whether the cursor quick positioning mechanism is triggered; if yes, then start the cursor quick positioning mechanism, and enter step 2); if not, then enter step 4);

2) Receive the input cursor movement information, and display the prompt information of cursor movement, and convert the operation according to the prompt information into cursor switching information;

3) sending the cursor to the designated target display according to the aforementioned conversion result;

4) Perform normal processing on the input information.

Preferably, the prompt information includes: a dialogue window at the current cursor position, the dialogue window displays the arrangement of the displays in the multi-display system; displays the respective display numbers on each display, and displays each Display number; Preferably, the triggering method of step 1) includes: operating the cursor quick positioning mechanism trigger component set on the input device and/or operating the input device in a predetermined manner.

Preferably, the triggering component of the cursor quick positioning mechanism is a combination of a new key and an existing key on a mouse, a touch pad or a keyboard; A specific location for the trackpad.

Preferably, the conversion in step 2) includes: taking the movement of the input device by a predetermined number of units as a grid for the cursor to switch on the display.

The present invention also provides a multi-display system, including a host, multiple displays connected to the host, and input devices;

The host is provided with a cursor quick positioning mechanism;

The input device is used to input the trigger information of the cursor fast positioning mechanism; and input the movement information of the cursor;

After the cursor fast positioning mechanism is triggered, the host computer receives the input cursor movement information, displays the prompt information of the cursor movement, converts the operation according to the prompt information into cursor switching information, and controls the movement of the cursor between multiple displays. switch.

Preferably, the host includes:

A quick cursor customization mechanism starting unit, configured to start the cursor quick positioning mechanism when the input device inputs the trigger information of the cursor quick positioning mechanism;

The cursor control unit is used to control the position of the cursor. When the cursor fast positioning mechanism is activated, it processes the cursor movement information input by the input device according to the fast cursor positioning mechanism; when the cursor fast positioning mechanism is released, it returns to normal Way of working.

Preferably, the host computer further includes: a quick cursor positioning prompt unit, configured to display information of each display and prompt information of cursor movement after the quick cursor positioning mechanism is activated.

Preferably, the input device is provided with a quick cursor positioning mechanism triggering component.

Preferably, the triggering component of the cursor quick positioning mechanism is a combination of newly added keys and existing keys on the mouse, touch pad or keyboard.

Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are: since the multi-display system of the present invention is provided with a cursor quick positioning mechanism, and the quick positioning mechanism is triggered by an input device, after triggering the cursor quick positioning mechanism, the multi-display system The cursor control part only needs to perform relatively simple actions to move the cursor to the target display. Therefore, the input device can be used to switch the movement of the cursor on each display at will, and the cursor can be quickly positioned on a certain display. Improve the work efficiency in multi-monitor extended display mode, especially the efficiency of the cursor moving between the various monitors; it has a wide range of applications, and can be applied to various PCs, notebooks, workstations, TVs, etc. with multiple display devices; it can reduce Chances of occupational disease due to frequent and large mouse movements.

The additional advantage of the present invention is that when the quick positioning mechanism is triggered, the user can easily find the current position of the cursor, so that the user does not need to shake the mouse back and forth to find the current position of the cursor.

Description of drawings

Figure 1 is the working method of connecting two external monitors to a notebook computer;

2 is a schematic diagram of a multi-display system of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is the flowchart of the method for cursor switching in the multi-display system of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a prompt window when the cursor quick positioning mechanism is triggered in an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a trigger component in an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed ways

The main idea of the present invention is: set the cursor fast positioning mechanism in the multi-display system, when the cursor fast positioning mechanism is triggered, the cursor control part of the multi-display system only needs to perform relatively simple actions and a relatively short moving distance to move The cursor moves to the target display, and when the cursor quick positioning mechanism is released, the cursor control part returns to the normal working mode.

Among them, the cursor rapid positioning mechanism can be triggered in various ways, such as setting a trigger unit in the input part of the multi-display system, including but not limited to buttons, combined button methods, software button buttons, special parts of the touchpad, touchpad special clicks on the touch stick, etc.

Please refer to FIG. 2 , which is a schematic diagram of the multi-display system of the present invention.

The multi-display system includes a host 210 , a plurality of displays 220 and an input device 230 connected to the host. The multi-monitor system is provided with a quick cursor positioning mechanism for fast switching of the cursor between multiple monitors.

The input device 230 is used for inputting the trigger information of the quick cursor positioning mechanism, triggering the quick positioning mechanism for switching the cursor between multiple displays 220 ; and for inputting the movement information of the cursor.

The input device 230 can trigger the cursor quick positioning mechanism in various ways. For example, the input device 230 is provided with a quick cursor positioning mechanism triggering part 231 .

The cursor quick positioning mechanism triggering part 231 can be a new key on the mouse, a touchpad or a keyboard, a combination of existing keys (not shown), etc. When the user operates the triggering part 231, the quick positioning mechanism is triggered.

In addition, the cursor quick positioning mechanism may also be triggered in other ways, for example, a specific finger movement pattern of the touchpad or a touchstick, a specific position of the touchpad, and the like.

The host 210 includes a quick cursor customization mechanism starting unit 211 and a cursor control unit 212 .

The quick cursor customization mechanism starting unit 211 is configured to start the quick cursor positioning mechanism when the input device 230 inputs trigger information of the quick cursor positioning mechanism.

The cursor control unit 212 is used to control the position of the cursor. When the cursor quick positioning mechanism is started, it processes the cursor movement information input by the input device 230 according to the quick cursor positioning mechanism; when the cursor quick positioning mechanism is released, Then resume the normal working mode.

In addition, the host 210 also includes a quick cursor positioning prompt unit 213 for displaying the information of each display 220 and the prompt information of cursor movement after the quick cursor positioning mechanism is activated, so as to facilitate the user's operation.

Please refer to FIG. 3 , which is a flow chart of the cursor switching method in the multi-display system of the present invention.

Step S311 , judging whether the cursor quick positioning mechanism is triggered; if yes, start the cursor quick positioning mechanism, and go to step S312 ; if not, go to step S315 .

The cursor quick positioning mechanism can be triggered in various ways. For example, the input device is provided with a quick cursor positioning mechanism triggering component.

The triggering part of the cursor rapid positioning mechanism can be a new key on the mouse, a touch panel or a keyboard, a combination of existing keys (not shown), etc. When the user operates the triggering part, the rapid positioning mechanism is triggered.

In addition, the cursor quick positioning mechanism may also be triggered in other ways, for example, a specific finger movement pattern of the touchpad or a touchstick, a specific position of the touchpad, and the like.

Step S312, displaying prompt information of cursor movement at the position of the existing cursor.

Please also refer to FIG. 4. When the cursor quick positioning mechanism is triggered, a small dialogue window pops up next to the current cursor position. The dialogue window displays the arrangement of the monitors in the multi-monitor system, corresponding to the actual monitors respectively.

In order to distinguish clearly, the individual display number can be displayed on each display, and it can also be displayed on the window, and a reduced arrangement diagram of all the displays can be displayed on the window.

Step S313, receiving the input cursor movement information, and converting the operation performed according to the prompt information into cursor switching information.

Referring to FIG. 4 , the user selects a display on the dialog window through the cursor, and clicks to transfer the cursor to the designated display.

Step S314, sending the cursor to the designated target display according to the aforementioned conversion result.

In step S315, the multi-monitor system normally processes the input information.

It should be noted that, when the cursor quick positioning mechanism is triggered, other similar methods may also be used to process the cursor movement information. For example, moving the input device by one unit or a small number of units is used as one grid for display switching, and a prominent display on the selected display indicates that it is selected. Or display the cursor prominently, for example, the cursor is enlarged, the cursor is blinking, and the cursor contains the serial number of the display where the prominent object is located.

Sending the cursor to the specified target display is an existing technology, and only needs to tell the operating system the coordinate position of the target display, and then let the operating system display the cursor within the coordinate range of the display. Just hide the cursor at the original position. Another approach can also be to inform the operating system to move the cursor a certain distance.

In order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, the present invention will be described in detail below in conjunction with examples.

Embodiment one

Referring to FIG. 5 , a cursor quick positioning key 511 is set on the mouse 510 .

Taking a right-handed mouse as an example, the cursor quick positioning key 511 is set near the position of the thumb on the side of the mouse body. When the thumb presses the button, the cursor quick positioning mechanism is triggered; when the button is released, the window disappears and the mouse operation returns to normal.

Embodiment two

In the second embodiment, a quick positioning button (not shown) is set near the touch panel.

Embodiment three

The quick positioning key (not shown) is set near the button of the touch stick to realize the quick movement of the cursor.

Embodiment four

In the fourth embodiment, a key is set on the keyboard, or a hot key (not shown) is selected.

Embodiment five

In the fifth embodiment, a specific position is used as the trigger condition on the touch panel, and the middle position of the bottom of the touch panel is selected as the trigger feature. When the finger touches this position, the fast moving window pops up near the cursor. When the cursor selects a display window and clicks, the fast moving window disappears and the cursor moves to the target display. The touchpad then resumes normal operation.

Embodiment six

In the sixth embodiment, a specific finger gesture action is used as a trigger condition on the touch panel, and the trigger condition is: quickly draw a circle clockwise on the touch panel within a specified time. When the touchpad driver detects this gesture, it triggers the quick pointing mechanism.

Embodiment seven

In the seventh embodiment, a quick double click on the right button of the touch panel is used as a trigger condition.

The above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it should be pointed out that, for those of ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the principle of the present invention, some improvements and modifications can also be made, and these improvements and modifications can also be made. It should be regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. A method for cursor switching in a multi-display system, characterized in that, comprising steps: 1) Judging whether the cursor quick positioning mechanism is triggered; if yes, then start the cursor quick positioning mechanism, and enter step 2); if not, then enter step 4); 2) Receive the input cursor movement information, and display the prompt information of cursor movement, and convert the operation according to the prompt information into cursor switching information; 3) sending the cursor to the specified target display according to the aforementioned conversion result; 4) Perform normal processing on the input information. 2. The method for switching cursors in a multi-display system according to claim 1, wherein the prompt information includes: a dialogue window at the existing cursor position, and the arrangement of displays in the multi-display system is displayed on the dialogue window ;Display the respective monitor number on each monitor and display each monitor number on the dialog window. 3. The method for switching cursors in a multi-display system according to claim 1, characterized in that, the triggering mode of said step 1) comprises: operating the triggering part of the cursor quick positioning mechanism set on the input device and/or pressing the predetermined way to operate the input device. 4. the method for cursor switching in the multi-display system according to claim 3, is characterized in that, described cursor rapid location mechanism triggering part is the combination of newly-added button on the mouse, trackpad or keyboard, existing button; The predetermined manner includes: a specific finger motion pattern of the touchpad or the touchstick, and a specific position of the touchpad. 5 . The method for switching cursors in a multi-display system according to claim 1 , wherein the conversion in step 2) includes: using a predetermined number of units of movement of the input device as a grid for switching the cursor on the display. 6. A multi-display system, comprising a host, a plurality of displays connected to the host and input devices; characterized in that: The host is provided with a cursor quick positioning mechanism; The input device is used to input the trigger information of the cursor fast positioning mechanism; and input the movement information of the cursor; After the cursor fast positioning mechanism is triggered, the host computer receives the input cursor movement information, displays the prompt information of the cursor movement, converts the operation according to the prompt information into cursor switching information, and controls the movement of the cursor between multiple displays. switch. 7. The multi-display system according to claim 6, wherein the host computer comprises: A quick cursor customization mechanism starting unit, configured to start the cursor quick positioning mechanism when the input device inputs the trigger information of the cursor quick positioning mechanism; The cursor control unit is used to control the position of the cursor. When the cursor fast positioning mechanism is activated, it processes the cursor movement information input by the input device according to the fast cursor positioning mechanism; when the cursor fast positioning mechanism is released, it returns to normal Way of working. 8. The multi-display system according to claim 7, characterized in that, the host computer further comprises: a quick cursor positioning prompt unit, which is used to display the information of each display and the prompt information of cursor movement after the quick cursor positioning mechanism is activated . 9. The multi-display system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the input device is provided with a quick cursor positioning mechanism triggering component. 10 . The multi-display system according to claim 9 , wherein the triggering component of the rapid cursor positioning mechanism is a combination of a mouse, a touchpad, or a new key and an existing key on a keyboard. 11 .

Images