JP2007072137A - Display apparatus and display method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To optimize a visible range of an image and to improve visibility of the image without incorporating an adjusting mechanism by a special hardware in a display apparatus that displays different images visible in different directions on a common display screen. <P>SOLUTION: The apparatus includes a display control unit 10 that adjusts picture qualities of a first image IM1 and a second image IM2 so as to obtain each desired visible range in the visible ranges of the first image and the second image separated from each other by an overlap of the first image IM1 and the second image IM2. Thereby, the visible ranges of the images can be optimized and visibility of images can be improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a display device, and more particularly to a display device that can visually recognize different images from different directions on a common display screen.

As a so-called dual view display in which different images can be viewed from different directions on a common (single) display screen, for example, a parallax barrier is provided in front of a liquid crystal panel, and light from the backlight is supplied for each pixel. There is known one that can display different information (images) on the left and right by sorting the traveling directions (see, for example, Patent Document 1). By mounting such a display device on the vehicle, the passenger in the passenger seat can watch other images such as a television while the driver is watching the navigation image.
JP 2005-78080 A

By the way, in the display device as described above, so-called crosstalk in which both the left and right images are mixed occurs depending on the direction of viewing the display screen. For example, if the TV image on the passenger seat side leaks to the driver seat side and overlaps the navigation image while the driver is watching the navigation image, the driver may not be able to clearly identify the navigation information.
In addition, since the position where the crosstalk occurs varies depending on the brightness of the displayed image, the image on the passenger seat side is included in the image observed by the driver on the driver side due to a change in the display image or the like. There is also the possibility of overlap.
In order to solve the above problem, it is possible to positively adjust the range and direction of occurrence of crosstalk by providing an adjustment mechanism configured by hardware for adjusting the position of the parallax barrier in the display device. Conceivable.
However, when an adjustment mechanism for adjusting the position of the parallax barrier is provided in the display device, there are problems that the cost of the display device increases and the hardware configuration of the display device becomes complicated and large.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a special hardware adjustment mechanism in a display device that can visually recognize different images from different directions on a common display screen. It is an object of the present invention to provide an inexpensive and small display device and a display method that can improve the visibility of an image by optimizing the visible range of the image without providing an image.

The display device according to the present invention is a display device that displays a first image and a second image on a common display unit so that the first image and the second image can be viewed from different directions, and the first image and the second image overlap each other. The visible range of the first image and the visible range of the second image that are separated from each other by the visible region are adjusted so as to be within a predetermined range by adjusting the image quality of at least one of the first image and the second image. It has a display control means to control.
According to this configuration, by adjusting the image quality of at least one of the first image and the second image, the position of the crosstalk area where the first image and the second image appear to overlap can be adjusted, and the special hardware is used. The visibility of the image can be improved by optimizing the visible range of the image without providing an adjustment mechanism.

  In the above configuration, the display control unit can employ a configuration for controlling the visible range to be constant according to the brightness around the display unit. According to this configuration, it is possible to prevent the visible range from fluctuating due to fluctuations in brightness around the display means.

  In the above configuration, the display control means may employ a configuration that controls so that one of the visible ranges of the first and second images is wider than the other in the initial state. According to this configuration, when the display device is applied to a vehicle, the visible range on the driver's seat side is secured wider than the visible range on the passenger seat side regardless of the visible range defined by hardware such as a parallax barrier. For example, the first and second visible ranges can be arbitrarily set in the initial setting.

  In the above configuration, the display control unit can adjust the image quality of one of the first and second images and adjust the image quality of the other accordingly. According to this configuration, by adjusting the image quality of both the first and second images, the adjustment range of the visible range can be expanded and the adjustment accuracy can be increased.

  In the above configuration, the display control means can employ a configuration in which when the image quality of one of the first and second images is adjusted, the other image quality is adjusted so that the visible range is maintained constant. According to this configuration, it is possible to automatically correct the change in the visible range when the image quality is forcibly adjusted by the user or the like.

  In the above configuration, a configuration in which the image quality includes at least one of the luminance, contrast, color tone, and gamma value of the image can be employed. According to this configuration, the first and second visible ranges can be adjusted to be in a desired range by adjusting any of luminance, contrast, color tone, and gamma value.

  In the above configuration, the display control means can employ a configuration that controls the visible range in accordance with a command input from the outside. According to this configuration, the visible range can be adjusted according to a command input from the outside such as a signal by manual operation or a detection signal of the sensor.

  In the above configuration, the display control unit can employ a configuration in which the image quality is adjusted according to the type of the supply source that supplies the first image or the second image. According to this configuration, for example, even when the visible range fluctuates due to a change in a supply source that supplies an image such as a television, a DVD, or a navigation, this can be automatically corrected.

  In the above configuration, the display control unit may employ a configuration in which the visible range is displayed on the display unit so as to be visible. According to this configuration, the user can visually recognize the current visible range by viewing the display means.

A display method for a display device according to the present invention is a control method for a display device that displays a first image and a second image on a common display unit so that the first image and the second image can be viewed from different directions, respectively. Desirable to adjust the image quality of at least one of the first image and the second image between the visible range of the first image and the visible range of the second image separated from each other by a region where the second image appears to overlap. It is characterized by being controlled to be in range.
According to this configuration, by adjusting the image quality of at least one of the first image and the second image, the position of the crosstalk area where the first image and the second image appear to overlap can be adjusted, and the special hardware is used. The visibility of the image can be improved by optimizing the visible range of the image without providing an adjustment mechanism.

  According to the present invention, a display device that can visually recognize different images from different directions on a common display screen, can optimize the visible range of the image, and can improve the visibility of the image. Thus, a small display device and a display method can be provided.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a basic configuration of a dual view display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 1, the display device includes a display control unit 10 as a display control unit, a display unit 100 as a display unit, and the like.
The display control unit 10 is supplied with the image data DT1 from the first image source 300A as the supply source and the image data DT2 from the second image source 300B as the supply source. The image data ADT including the image data DT1 and DT2 is output to the common display unit 100. A specific configuration of the display control unit 10 will be described later.
The first and second image sources 300A and 300B include a camera, a TV receiving unit, a DVD playback unit, an HD playback unit, a navigation unit, and the like, which will be described later.

  As will be described later, the display unit 100 includes a liquid crystal panel, a backlight, a parallax barrier, and the like, and the first image IM1 based on the first image data DT1 can be viewed from the right by the observer OBR. The second image IM2 based on the second image data DT2 is displayed on the common display screen so that the observer OBL can visually recognize from the left direction. A specific configuration of the display unit 100 will be described later.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example in which the display device according to one embodiment of the present invention is applied to a vehicle.
As shown in FIG. 2, the display unit 100 is disposed between the driver seat DS and the passenger seat AS on the dashboard portion of the vehicle. The display unit 100 is provided with an operation unit 150 for manually operating the display device.
In the case shown in FIG. 2, an occupant seated in the driver's seat DS is the observer OBR, and an occupant seated in the passenger seat AS is the observer OBL. These passengers can simultaneously view different first images IM1 and second images IM2 displayed on the display unit 100 from the driver seat DS side or the passenger seat AS side, respectively.

  3 to 9 are diagrams showing a specific configuration of the display device according to the embodiment of the present invention, where FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of the display device, and FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram showing a configuration of the control unit. 5 is a functional block diagram of the first and second image quality adjustment circuits, FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of the image output unit, FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining the cross-sectional structure and operation of the liquid crystal panel, and FIG. FIG. 9 is a front view of the panel, and FIG. 9 is a circuit diagram of the TFT substrate.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the display device includes a display unit 100, a control unit 20, a distribution circuit 30, first and second image quality adjustment circuits 50A and 50B, an image output unit 70, and the like. The display control unit 10 includes a control unit 20, a distribution circuit 30, first and second image quality adjustment circuits 50A and 50B, an image output unit 70, and the like.

As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 20 includes a processor (CPU) 21, an interface 22, a ROM 23, a RAM 24, and the like, and comprehensively controls the display device according to a program stored in the ROM 23.
Further, as will be described later, the control unit 20 controls the visible range of the first image IM1 and the second image separated from each other by the overlap of the first image IM1 and the second image IM2 displayed on the display unit 100. The visible range of IM1 is controlled to be within a predetermined range by adjusting the image quality of at least one of the first image IM1 and the second image IM2.

As shown in FIG. 3, the control unit 20 includes a camera 310 that captures the surroundings of a vehicle as a supply source that is mounted on the vehicle and supplies images and sounds, and a CD / MD (compact disc) that reproduces music and images. / Mini-disc) Music information and images from the reproduction unit 320, the radio reception unit 330 that receives radio broadcast waves from the antenna, the TV reception unit 340 that receives TV broadcast waves from the antenna via the selector 341, and a DVD (digital versatile disc). The DVD playback unit 350 for playing back images, the HD playback unit 360 for playing back image and music information recorded on HD (hard disk), the road information received by the VICS information receiving unit 371, and the geographic information received by the GPS information receiving unit 372 Connected to a navigation unit 370 or the like that outputs a map or route guidance image based on To control these together to exchange chromatography data.
In addition, the control unit 20 transmits and receives infrared signals and wireless signals to and from the external memory 140 that stores various data, the operation unit 150 for operating the display device, and the remote control 171 for operating the display device by remote control. A remote control transmission / reception unit 170, a brightness detection sensor 190 configured to detect brightness in the vehicle by being configured with a light switch or a light sensor provided in the vehicle, a pressure sensitive sensor provided in a driver seat or a passenger seat, and the like. An occupant detection sensor 200 or the like for detecting the vehicle is connected, and the control unit 20 can perform various controls based on various data obtained therefrom.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the distribution circuit 30 is supplied from the camera 310, the CD / MD playback unit 320, the radio reception unit 330, the TV reception unit 340, the DVD playback unit 350, the HD playback unit 360, the navigation unit 370, and the like. The audio data and image data to be processed are distributed to the audio adjustment circuit 60, the first image quality adjustment circuit 50A, or the second image quality adjustment circuit 50B in accordance with a control command from the control unit 20.

  The audio adjustment circuit 60 adjusts the audio data supplied from the distribution circuit 30 and outputs it to the speaker 61 as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 5, each of the first and second image quality adjustment circuits 50A and 50B includes a contrast adjustment unit 51, a luminance adjustment unit 52, a color tone adjustment unit 53, a gamma value adjustment unit 54, and the like. The image quality (contrast, brightness, color tone, gamma value) of the first and second image data is adjusted respectively according to the control command from.

As shown in FIG. 6, the image output unit 70 includes first and second documents in which the first and second image data adjusted in image quality by the first and second image quality adjustment circuits 50A and 50B, respectively, are written. Embedded circuits 71 and 72, a VRAM (Video RAM) 73, a liquid crystal panel driving unit 74, and the like.
The first and second write circuits 71 write to the predetermined addresses of the VRAM 73 to synthesize the first and second image data adjusted in image quality by the first and second image quality adjustment circuits 50A and 50B. .
The VRAM 73 holds image data obtained by combining the first and second image data. The synthesized image data corresponds to each pixel of the display unit 100.
The liquid crystal panel drive unit 74 is a circuit that drives a liquid crystal panel 110 described later, and drives corresponding pixels of the liquid crystal panel 110 based on the composite image data held in the VRAM 73.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the display unit 100 includes a liquid crystal panel 110, a backlight 120 that illuminates illumination light from the back side of the liquid crystal panel 110, a touch panel 130 for inputting a signal for operating the display device, and the like. . Although not shown, the touch panel 130 is formed in a transparent sheet shape and attached to the front surface of the liquid crystal panel 110.

As shown in FIG. 7, the liquid crystal panel 110 is a color filter substrate having a polarizing plate 111, a TFT (Thin Film Transistor) substrate 112, a liquid crystal layer 113, and RGB pixels arranged in order from the backlight 120 side. 114, a parallax barrier 115, a glass plate 116, a polarizing plate 117, and the like.
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the liquid crystal panel 110 has a display screen in which, for example, 800 pixels in the horizontal direction and 480 pixels in the vertical direction are arranged. Pixels 118 (hereinafter also referred to as passenger seat side display pixels 118) and right side display pixels 119 (hereinafter also referred to as driver seat side display pixels 119) are alternately arranged.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the parallax barrier 115 is formed in a stripe shape and includes a shielding part and a translucent part. The shielding part is formed by the adjacent left display pixel 118 and right display pixel 119. Arranged between. By disposing the parallax barrier 115 on the front surface of the color filter substrate 114, the illumination light transmitted through the left display pixel 118 selectively passes through the light-transmitting part of the parallax barrier 115 selectively toward the left side, and is displayed on the right side. Of the illumination light transmitted through the pixel 119, only the illumination light directed toward the right side selectively passes through the light transmitting portion of the parallax barrier 115. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, the first image IM1 can be viewed from the right side (driver's seat side) of the liquid crystal panel 110, and the second image IM2 can be viewed from the left side (passenger seat side). ing.
The parallax barrier 115 can be the same as those disclosed in JP-A-10-123461 and JP-A-11-84131.

As shown in FIG. 9, the TFT substrate 112 includes a data line driving circuit DR1, a scanning line driving circuit DR2, scanning lines SCL arranged in a vertical direction, data lines DTL arranged in a horizontal direction, scanning lines SCL and data lines. Each of the regions surrounded by the scanning line SCL and the data line DTL constitutes a sub-pixel SBP. The pixel electrode EP is formed corresponding to the TFT element EL formed in each region intersecting with the DTL. The sub-pixels SBP in each column along the data line DTL are alternately assigned to the left display pixel 118 and the right display pixel 119.
The data line driving circuit DR1 is controlled in driving timing by the liquid crystal panel driving unit 74, and controls the voltage applied to the pixel electrode EP.
The scanning line driving circuit DR2 selectively scans the TFT element EL by controlling the driving timing by the liquid crystal panel driving unit 74.

  Here, a driving principle of a TN (Twisted Nematic) type liquid crystal as an example of the liquid crystal will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. In the TN type liquid crystal, light does not pass as shown in FIG. When a twisted liquid crystal is sandwiched between two polarizing filters Fa and Fb (polarizing plates) whose polarization directions are orthogonal to each other, light entering from above is twisted 90 degrees along the gap between the liquid crystal molecules. Can pass through Fb. As shown in FIG. 10 (b), when a voltage is applied to the liquid crystal, the liquid crystal molecules stand upright and become twisted, and light entering from above is directed downward, so that it cannot pass through the lower filter Fb. That is, as shown in FIG. 11, light is transmitted when no voltage is applied to the liquid crystal molecules, and when the voltage is applied, the light is blocked and becomes black on the screen. The liquid crystal functions as a light shutter by the voltage. Fulfill. For this reason, the brightness can be controlled by controlling the voltage applied to the liquid crystal. Further, by controlling the voltage applied to the liquid crystal corresponding to the left display image and the right display image, it is possible to control the luminance of the left image and the right image.

  The memory 140 is configured by, for example, an electrically rewritable nonvolatile memory such as a flash memory or a battery-backed volatile memory, and stores data necessary for control by the control unit 20. Specifically, for example, setting information for setting a visible region, which will be described later, and vehicle information such as a steering wheel position of the vehicle are stored and held.

Next, a method for controlling the visible range of the first and second images IM1 and IM2 will be described with reference to FIGS.
Here, FIG. 12A is a graph showing a relationship in luminance between the observation angle of the display screen of the display unit 100 and the light intensity transmitted through the driver seat side display pixel 119, and FIG. It is the graph which showed the relationship between the angle and the light intensity which permeate | transmits the passenger's seat side display pixel 118 and the driver's seat side display pixel 119 in piles.

As shown in FIG. 12A, the light transmitted through the driver seat side display pixel 119 is distributed not only on the driver seat side but also on the passenger seat side, regardless of the presence of the parallax barrier 115. In addition, the direction in which the maximum luminance is observed changes according to the luminance level of the image. For example, when the luminance level is 255, the direction in which the maximum luminance is observed is a direction of about 30 degrees on the driver's seat side (right side), and this angle is a value defined by the arrangement of the parallax barrier 115. Such characteristics are the same for the passenger side display pixel 118.
Therefore, as shown in FIG. 12B, the light transmitted through the passenger seat side display pixel 118 and the driver seat side display pixel 119 is distributed to overlap both the driver seat side and the passenger seat side. . For this reason, in the region where the difference between the luminance of the image displayed on the passenger seat side display pixel 118 and the luminance of the image displayed on the driver seat side display pixel 119 is small, the first image IM1 (hereinafter referred to as the driver seat). Crosstalk is observed in which the side image IM1) and the second image IM2 (hereinafter also referred to as passenger side image IM2) overlap each other. As shown in FIG. 12B, the center line of the crosstalk is a direction perpendicular to the display screen (0 degree) if the left side (passenger seat side) image and the right side (driver seat side) image have the same brightness. In the direction).

FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the relationship between the crosstalk area and the visible range.
When the brightness of the driver seat side image IM1 and the passenger seat side image IM2 is the same (for example, 255), as shown in FIG. 13, the display unit 100 has a direction in which the crosstalk region CR is perpendicular to the display screen. And visible ranges K1 and K2 are formed on both sides of the crosstalk region CR, respectively.
Here, the crosstalk region CR is a region where the luminance difference between the driver seat side image IM1 and the passenger seat side image IM2 is small, and in this region, the driver seat side image IM1 and the passenger seat side image IM2 are observed to overlap each other. The
The visible range K1 is a region in which the luminance difference between the driver seat side image IM1 and the passenger seat side image IM2 is relatively large, and is a range in which the driver seat side image IM1 can be clearly observed.
The visible range K2 is a region where the luminance difference between the driver seat side image IM1 and the passenger seat side image IM2 is relatively large, and is a range where the passenger seat side image IM2 can be clearly observed.
The two visible ranges K1 and K2 are separated from each other by the crosstalk region CR, but the boundary that defines the visible ranges K1 and K2 and the crosstalk region CR does not clearly exist.

In the present embodiment, at least one of the image quality of the driver seat side image IM1 and the passenger seat side image IM2 is adjusted in order to change or maintain the range of the visible ranges K1 and K2. That is, by adjusting the relationship between the image quality of the driver seat side image IM1 and the image quality of the passenger seat side image IM2, the relationship between the brightness (brightness) of the driver seat side image IM1 and the passenger seat side image IM2 is adjusted.
Specifically, when it is desired to expand the visible range K1 and narrow the visible range K2, as shown in FIG. 14, for example, the luminance of the driver seat side image IM1 is maintained at 255 and the luminance of the passenger seat side image IM2 is increased. The value is reduced to 200, and the maximum luminance value of both images is made different. As a result, the center position of the crosstalk area CR moves to the passenger seat side, the visible range K1 is enlarged, and the visible range K2 is narrowed.
When it is desired to widen the visible range K2 and narrow the visible range K1, for example, as shown in FIG. 15, for example, the luminance of the driver seat side image IM1 is lowered to 200 and the luminance of the passenger seat side image IM2 is decreased to 255. Keep the maximum brightness of both images different. As a result, the center position of the crosstalk region CR moves to the driver's seat side, the visible range K2 is expanded, and the visible range K1 is narrowed.
The case where the visible range K1 and K2 are controlled by changing one of the brightness of the driver seat side image IM1 and the brightness of the passenger seat side image IM2 has been described. However, according to the brightness adjustment (image quality adjustment) of one image. The brightness of the other image may be adjusted (image quality adjustment), or the brightness of one image may be increased instead of decreasing the brightness of one image, and the procedure for adjusting the brightness (image quality) can be changed as appropriate.

Next, the relationship between the image quality adjustment and the luminance (brightness) of the driver seat side image IM1 or the passenger seat side image IM2 will be described with reference to FIGS.
16 is a diagram showing the luminance of the image signal before and after adjustment by the luminance adjustment unit, FIG. 17 is a diagram showing the luminance of the image signal before and after contrast adjustment by the contrast adjustment unit, and FIG. 18 is a gamma value by the gamma value adjustment unit. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing the luminance of the image signal before and after the adjustment, and FIG. 19 is a diagram showing the luminance of the image signal before and after the color tone adjustment by the color tone adjustment unit.
By adjusting the luminance of the image signal in the luminance adjusting unit 52 of the first and second image quality adjusting circuits 50A and 50B, as shown in FIG. 17, the luminance of the image signal is totally adjusted from a dark region to a bright region. it can.

  When the contrast adjustment unit 51 appropriately adjusts the contrast of the image signal, if the adjustment is made to increase the contrast of the image signal, the bright area becomes brighter and the dark area becomes darker as shown in FIG. Therefore, by adjusting the contrast, the luminance of the image signal can be changed, and the visible range K1, K2 can be controlled.

  When the gamma value adjusting unit 54 adjusts the gamma value of the image signal, the intermediate luminance of the image signal changes as shown in FIG. At this time, the luminance changes for all of the RGB signals. For example, as shown in FIG. 18B, assuming that the luminance data value of the RGB signal before adjustment (point a in FIG. 18A) is (150, 120, 130), the luminance data value after adjustment. (Point b in FIG. 18A) changes as (200, 160, 175). Therefore, the luminance of the image signal can be changed by adjusting the gamma value, and the visible range K1, K2 can be controlled.

  When the color tone adjustment unit 53 adjusts the color tone of the image signal, the intermediate luminance of the image signal changes as shown in FIG. At this time, the luminance of any one of the RGB signals changes. Specifically, assuming that the luminance data value of the RGB signal before adjustment (point a in FIG. 19A) is (150, 120, 130), the luminance data value after adjustment (in FIG. 19A). The point b) changes as (200, 120, 130), the brightness of the R signal increases, and the adjusted image is entirely reddish. Therefore, the luminance of the image signal can be changed by color tone adjustment, and the visible range K1, K2 can be controlled.

  As described above, the luminance adjustment of the first image IM1 and the second image IM2 can be performed by any one or a combination of luminance adjustment, contrast adjustment, gamma value adjustment, and color tone adjustment.

Next, an example of the initial setting process of the visible range of the display unit 100 based on the image quality adjustment by the control unit 20 will be described with reference to FIGS.
Here, FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing an example of the initial setting process of the visible range by the control unit 20, and FIG. 21 is a diagram for explaining the visible range at the time of initial setting.
As shown in FIG. 20, the control unit 20 first determines whether to set the visible ranges K1 and K2 for the first time (step ST1), and when the setting processing of the visible ranges K1 and K2 has already been performed, The previous setting information is read from the memory 140, and the visible ranges K1 and K2 are set according to the setting information (step ST2).

  On the other hand, when the setting process of the visible ranges K1 and K2 is the first time, the vehicle information stored in the memory 140 is read (step ST3). The vehicle information includes vehicle handle position information, information indicating the relationship between the display unit 100 and the driver's seat, and the like.

When the vehicle information is read from the memory 140, the control unit 20 determines whether the steering wheel position (driver's seat) of the vehicle is on the right side (step ST4). If the vehicle position is on the right side, as shown in FIG. The center of the talk is moved from the center to the right, and the image quality is set so that the visible range on the right side of the display unit 100 is wider than the visible range on the left side (step ST5). Note that adjustment values necessary for image quality setting at this time are stored in the memory 140 in advance.
On the other hand, when the steering wheel position of the vehicle is on the left side, the image quality is set so that the visible range on the left side of the display unit 100 is wider than the visible range on the right side (step ST6).

Next, the control unit 20 stores image quality setting value information and the like in the memory 140 (step ST7).
And the control part 20 displays the 1st and 2nd image on the display part 100 according to setting content (step ST8).

  As described above, in the initial state, the visible range on the driver's seat side can be sufficiently ensured by controlling the visible range on the driver's seat side to be expanded according to the vehicle conditions such as the position of the driver's seat.

Next, FIG. 20 shows an example of a setting screen for setting the visible range by manual operation.
Here, an angle defined by the visible range K1 or K2 and the center position of the crosstalk region CR is defined as a viewing angle. In the following description, control of the visible range and control of the viewing angle are synonymous. It shall be.
When setting the visible range, the control unit 20 displays a setting screen as shown in FIG. 22 on the display screen of the display unit 100, for example.
As shown in FIG. 22, in this setting screen, the viewing angle AGR on the driver seat side and the viewing angle AGL on the passenger seat side, which are defined by the viewing angle boundary position CTS that is the center line of the crosstalk area, are visually recognized. It is displayed as you can. That is, by displaying the viewing angles AGR and AGL defined according to the visible range on the driver's seat side and the visible range on the passenger seat side as a graphic, the user can display the current viewing angle (visible range) state. Easy to grasp.
Further, on this setting screen, buttons BT1 and BT2 for changing the viewing angles AGR and AGL are displayed. By touching these buttons BT1 and BT2, a signal is input from the touch panel 130 to the control unit 20, Control for changing the viewing angles AGR and AGL is executed. That is, the viewing angles AGR and AGL (visible range) can be changed by manual operation.
Note that the viewing angle can be changed manually by the remote controller 171 or the operation unit 150 shown in FIG.

Next, an example of data stored in the memory 140 used for viewing angle control by the control unit 20 will be described with reference to FIGS.
Here, FIG. 23 is a diagram for explaining an example of data stored in the memory 140, FIG. 24 is a diagram for explaining a setting value of the viewing angle, and FIG. 25 is a driver seat set according to the viewing angle. It is a figure which shows an example of the setting value for brightness | luminance adjustment of a side and a passenger seat side.
As shown in FIG. 23, the memory 140 stores vehicle data including vehicle type data unique to each vehicle such as information for specifying the steering wheel position, equipment data, and various data for viewing angle control. ing.
The viewing angle control data includes, for example, viewing angle setting information (last memory) set in the previous viewing angle control, a viewing angle initial value, a viewing angle preset value, and the like.
The viewing angle preset value is, for example, a brightness adjustment value on the driver seat side and the passenger seat side corresponding to each viewing angle 1 to 7 as shown in FIG. Each viewing angle 1 to 7 is set between the driver seat side and the passenger seat side, for example, as shown in FIG.
This viewing angle preset value is, for example, a value corresponding to the ambient brightness of the display unit 100 for daytime or nighttime, a value corresponding to the type of image source to be displayed, the number of occupants of the vehicle or the seating position of the occupants. Corresponding ones can be considered.
In addition, the memory 140 also stores setting information that permits or disallows changing of the viewing angle in accordance with, for example, source change or occupant information change.
The memory 140 is preferably composed of a nonvolatile memory such as a flash EEPROM.

Next, an example of the viewing angle control process by the control unit 20 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
When the control unit 20 detects that the user has adjusted the image quality on the driver's seat side of the display unit 100 to the user's preference (step ST11), the control unit 20 sets the viewing angle to be kept constant from the setting information in the memory 140. (Step ST12).

  When the setting is such that the viewing angle should be kept constant, the control unit 20 performs image quality adjustment of the screen on which the user has not changed the image quality, and controls the viewing angle to be maintained at a predetermined value ( Step ST13).

If it is not the setting that should keep the viewing angle constant in step ST12, the control unit 20 determines whether the viewing angle has been preferentially set from the setting information from the memory 140. This superior setting is a setting that enlarges one of the viewing angles more than the other.
When the superior setting is made, the control unit 20 determines which of the viewing angles is set wider (step ST15), and executes image quality adjustment according to the determination result (step ST16). , ST17).
Then, the control unit 20 stores the image quality adjustment value in the memory 140 and ends the process (step ST18).
By executing the processing as described above, the viewing angle (visible range) can be prevented or suppressed from changing when the image quality of one screen of the display unit 100 is changed by the user.

Next, another example of the viewing angle control process by the control unit 20 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
As shown in FIG. 27, when the power of the display device is turned on, the control unit 20 first executes a process similar to the initial setting process described in FIGS. 20 and 21 (steps ST31 to ST33).

  Next, the control unit 20 determines whether the illumination in the vehicle is turned on (step ST31). Whether the illumination is turned on can be determined from a detection signal of the brightness detection sensor 190, a state of a switch for turning on / off the illumination, and the like.

When the illumination is turned on, the control unit 20 performs control so that the viewing angle is maintained by image quality adjustment based on the data stored in the memory 140 (step ST35). That is, since the brightness around the display unit 100 changes due to the lighting of the illumination, the viewing angle is prevented from fluctuating due to the change in brightness.
When the illumination is not lit, the control unit 20 determines whether there is a change in occupant information (occupant seating position, etc.) based on the detection signal of the occupant detection sensor 200 (step ST36).

  When there is a change in the occupant information, the control unit 20 first determines from the information stored in the memory 140 whether the viewing angle change is permitted according to the change in the occupant information, and is permitted. In this case, the image quality is adjusted based on the data stored in the memory 140 so that the viewing angle corresponds to the passenger information (step ST38).

  Next, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the source for supplying the image to the display unit 100 has been changed (step ST39). If the source has been changed, whether or not the viewing angle change according to the source change is permitted. Judgment is made based on the data in the memory 140 (step ST40), and if permitted, the viewing angle is kept constant according to the changed source (the type of supply source that supplies the image). The image quality is adjusted (step ST41).

  Next, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the user intends to manually adjust the image quality (step ST42). If the user manually adjusts the image quality, the image quality adjustment corresponding to the operation is executed (step ST43). . At this time, as described with reference to FIG. 26, the control unit 20 may perform control so that the viewing angle is maintained constant.

  Next, the control unit 20 determines whether or not the user is manually changing the viewing angle (step ST44), and when changing the viewing angle, the image quality adjustment according to the viewing angle to be changed is performed in the data in the memory 140. (Step ST45).

Next, the control unit 20 stores information related to image quality adjustment in the memory 140. Further, the changed viewing angle and image quality adjustment value can be displayed on the display screen of the display unit 100 as shown in FIG. 22, for example (step ST46).
Next, the control unit 20 determines whether the power of the display device is turned off (step ST47). If not turned off, the control unit 20 returns to step ST34 and repeats the above processing.

In the above embodiment, the fixed parallax barrier 115 in the display unit 100 is used. However, the parallax barrier 115 is not limited to this, and a movable visual field barrier made of liquid crystal or the like can also be used.
For example, as shown in FIG. 28, a movable parallax barrier 600 is disposed to face the color filter substrate 114. The parallax barrier 600 includes a light shielding part 610 and a light transmitting part 620 formed of liquid crystal, and the light shielding part 610 and the light transmitting part 620 are interlocked with each other.

  In the liquid crystal panel to which the movable parallax barrier 600 is applied, when the center line of the crosstalk region is set in a direction perpendicular to the display screen, the arrangement of the light shielding unit 610 and the light transmitting unit 620 is shown in FIG. If the arrangement shown in FIG. 28A is used, and the center line of the crosstalk area is to be tilted to the left, the light shielding portion 610 and the light transmitting portion 620 are moved to the left as shown in FIG. If desired, the light shielding unit 610 and the light transmitting unit 620 are moved to the right as shown in FIG. Thus, the viewing angle can be controlled, but the viewing angle can also be controlled by using the movable parallax barrier 600 and the image quality adjustment described above in combination. That is, if the viewing angle is coarsely adjusted using the movable parallax barrier 600 and the viewing angle is finely adjusted by adjusting the image quality, more precise viewing angle control can be performed.

FIG. 29 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration in the case where the viewing angle control data is formed based on the vehicle information and the image quality is adjusted based on the viewing angle control data.
As shown in FIG. 29, an occupant detection sensor 200, a handle position information setting unit 710, an in-vehicle LAN transceiver 700, and the like are connected to the control unit 20.
The control unit 20 includes various control devices for controlling a vehicle such as an engine control device (EFI ECU) 810 and a body control device (body ECU) 820, which are connected to the in-vehicle LAN transceiver 700 through the in-vehicle LAN (Local Area Network). To obtain various vehicle information such as vehicle driving information via the in-vehicle LAN. The control unit 20 also acquires various types of vehicle information from the occupant detection sensor 200, the steering wheel position information setting unit 710, and the like. For example, since the EFI ECU 810 and the body ECU 820 store vehicle ID data unique to the vehicle, the EFI ECU 810 and the body ECU 820 generate viewing angle control data optimal for the vehicle based on the vehicle ID. Alternatively, the viewing angle may be controlled by detecting occupant information (sitting position) in real time from the lines 200FR to 200LL installed in each seat. Further, a handle position setting information unit 710 configured by a switch is provided, and a high level signal is output to the control unit 20 in the case of the left handle, and a low level signal is output to the control unit 20 in the case of the right handle. Thus, the viewing angle control data may be generated.
The control unit 20 forms viewing angle control data from the acquired vehicle information, stores the vehicle information and the viewing angle control data in the memory 140, and reads the viewing angle control data when executing the viewing angle control. Then, a control signal is output to the first and second image quality adjustment circuits 50A and 50B to adjust the image.
With such a configuration, optimal viewing angle control can be performed based on various vehicle information.

FIG. 30 is a diagram for explaining another method of image quality adjustment for viewing angle control.
In FIG. 30, the data line driving circuit DR10 includes a source driver DR10A that drives the data line DTL and a reference voltage generation circuit DR10B that outputs a reference voltage to the source driver DR10B.
The reference voltage generation circuit DR10B changes the reference voltage output to the source driver DR10B when the reference voltage switching instruction signal is input from the image output unit 70.
The control unit 20 receives a command for controlling the viewing angle from the operation unit 150, the memory 140, the touch panel 130, and the like, and outputs a viewing angle control signal corresponding to the command to the image output unit 70. Accordingly, the image output unit 70 generates a reference voltage switching signal in synchronization with the display timing of each image, that is, the drive timing of the data line.
Thus, in this example, the image quality is adjusted by controlling the operation of the liquid crystal by switching the reference voltage of the liquid crystal panel 100 based on the viewing angle control data.
In this example, the case where the image quality is adjusted by changing the reference voltage of the data driving circuit DR10 that drives the liquid crystal panel 110 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. It is possible to adjust the image quality by providing two backlights respectively corresponding to the display pixels, and the present invention is not limited to this, and other image quality adjustment methods can also be used.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the display unit 100 is disposed near the dashboard of the vehicle has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and a rear display unit is provided near the rear seat, and the rear display unit is also described above. Similar viewing angle control can be applied.

  In the above embodiment, the case where a liquid crystal panel is used for the display unit 100 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a flat panel display other than the liquid crystal panel, for example, an organic EL display panel, a plasma display panel, a cold cathode A flat panel display or the like can also be used.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the VRAM 73 combines the first image data and the second image data and drives the corresponding pixel of the liquid crystal panel by the common liquid crystal panel driving unit has been described. It is also possible to provide a configuration in which a liquid crystal panel driving unit is provided for each image data and the corresponding pixels of the liquid crystal panel are driven without synthesizing the second image data. Also, other pixel structures can be adopted for the pixel structure of the liquid crystal panel.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the viewing angle (visible range) is graphically displayed and displayed on the display screen has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the viewing angle (visible range) and the center position of the crosstalk are set. It is also possible to display numerically.

  The above embodiment is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

It is a figure for demonstrating the basic composition of the display apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the example of application to the vehicle of a display apparatus. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of a display apparatus. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of a control part. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of the 1st and 2nd image quality adjustment circuit. It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of an image output part. It is a figure which shows the cross-section of a display part. It is a front view of a liquid crystal panel. It is a circuit diagram of a TFT substrate. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation | movement principle of a liquid crystal. It is a figure for demonstrating the function of the liquid crystal as a shutter. (A) is a graph which shows the relationship in each brightness | luminance with the observation angle of the display screen of a display part, and the light intensity which permeate | transmits the driver-side display pixel, (B) is an observation angle, the passenger-side display pixel, and the driver's seat It is the graph which showed the relationship with the light intensity which permeate | transmits the pixel for a side display in piles. It is a figure for demonstrating the relationship between a crosstalk area | region and a visible range. It is a figure for demonstrating the method to expand the visible range by the side of a driver's seat. It is a figure for demonstrating the method to expand the visible range by the side of a passenger seat. It is a graph which shows the luminance change of the image before and behind adjustment by the luminance adjustment part. It is a graph which shows the luminance change of the image before and behind adjustment by the contrast adjustment part. It is a graph which shows the luminance change of the image before and behind adjustment by the gamma value adjustment part. It is a graph which shows the luminance change of the image before and behind adjustment by the color tone adjustment part. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the initialization process of a visible range by a control part. It is a figure for demonstrating the visible range at the time of initialization. It is a figure which shows an example of the setting screen for setting a visible range by manual operation. It is a figure for demonstrating the example of data memorize | stored in memory. It is a figure for demonstrating the setting value of a viewing angle. It is a figure which shows an example of the setting value for brightness | luminance adjustment of the driver's seat side and front passenger seat side which were set according to the viewing angle. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the viewing angle control process by a control part. It is a flowchart which shows the other example of the viewing angle control process by a control part. It is a figure for demonstrating an example of the viewing angle control at the time of using a movable parallax barrier. It is a figure which shows an example of a system configuration | structure in the case of forming viewing angle control data based on vehicle information, and adjusting image quality based on the formed viewing angle control data. It is a figure for demonstrating the other example of image quality adjustment for viewing angle control.

Explanation of symbols

10. Display control unit (display control means)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 ... Control part 30 ... Distribution circuit 50A, 50B ... 1st and 2nd image quality adjustment circuit 60 ... Audio | voice adjustment circuit 70 ... Image output part 100 ... Display part 110 ... Liquid crystal panel 120 ... Backlight 130 ... Touch panel 140 ... Memory 150 ... Operation part 170 ... Remote control transmission / reception part 190 ... Brightness detection sensor 200 ... Occupant detection sensor 300A, 300B ... Image source (supply source)
310 ... Camera 320 ... CD / MD playback unit 330 ... Radio reception unit 340 ... TV reception unit 350 ... DVD playback unit 360 ... HD playback unit 370 ... Navigation unit DS ... Driver's seat AS ... Passenger seat

Claims (10)

A display device that displays a first image and a second image on a common display means so that they can be viewed from different directions,
The visible range of the first image and the visible range of the second image separated from each other by a region where the first image and the second image appear to overlap each other, and the first image and the second image A display device comprising display control means for adjusting the image quality of at least one of the above to be within a desired range.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit performs control so that the visible range is maintained constant according to brightness around the display unit.   2. The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit controls, in an initial state, one of the visible ranges of the first and second images is wider than the other.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit adjusts one image quality of the first and second images and adjusts the other image quality accordingly.   The display control means adjusts the other image quality so that the visible range is maintained constant when the image quality of one of the first and second images is adjusted. The display device according to 1.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit controls at least one of luminance, contrast, color tone, and gamma value.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit controls the visible range in accordance with a command input from the outside.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit adjusts an image quality according to a type of a supply source that supplies the first image or the second image.   The display device according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit displays the visible range on the display unit so as to be visible. A display method for displaying a first image and a second image on a common display means so that they can be viewed from different directions,
The visible range of the first image and the visible range of the second image separated from each other by a region where the first image and the second image appear to overlap each other are represented by the first image and the second image. Adjust at least one image quality and control it to the desired range,
A display method characterized by that.

Images