TW202445341A - Media docking device - Google Patents

Abstract

A media docking device is provided and includes an input module, an output module, and a processing module. The input module is electrically connected to a media source device. The output module is electrically connected to multiple media play devices and obtains device data from the media play devices. The processing module sends the device data and screen numbers to the media source device through the input module. If it is determined to perform a display switch procedure, the processing module modifies the device data and the screen numbers, and sends the modified device data and the modified screen numbers to the media source device through the input module. The processing module also transfers media data from the media source device to the corresponding media play device.

Description

Media Switching Device

The present disclosure relates to a media switching device, which can change the settings of multiple media playback devices regarding extended screens.

In a business office setting, it is common for a laptop to be connected to multiple screens via an external docking station. Users can carry their laptops to different locations, where docking stations and screens can be set up so that users can use larger screens. When the docking station is connected to multiple screens, these screens can be considered as extensions of the display screen on the laptop. However, if the relative relationship between these screens and the display screen is to be set, the user needs to perform multiple operations to do so. How to allow users to conveniently set the above relative relationship is an issue of concern to technical personnel in this field.

The disclosed embodiment provides a media switching device, comprising an input module, an output module and a processing module. The input module is used to be electrically connected to a media source device. The output module is used to be electrically connected to a plurality of media playback devices and obtain device data of the media playback devices. The processing module is electrically connected to the input module and the output module, and is used to set the screen number of the media playback device, and transmit the device data and the screen number to the media source device through the input module. The processing module is used to determine whether to execute a display switching procedure. If it is determined that the display switching procedure is to be executed, the processing module modifies the device data and the screen number, and transmits the modified device data and the screen number to the media source device through the input module. The input module is used to receive media data and a play number from a media source device, wherein the play number indicates one of the screen numbers, and the processing module is used to transmit the media data to the media play device indicated by the play number through the output module.

In order to make the above features and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, embodiments are specifically cited below and described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The terms “first,” “second,” etc. used herein do not particularly refer to order or sequence, but are only used to distinguish elements or operations described with the same technical term.

FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B are schematic diagrams of the appearance of a media adapter according to an embodiment. In the example of FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B , the front side of the media adapter 100 includes a combo aux interface 101 and a plurality of Universal Serial Bus (USB) interfaces 102. The back side of the media adapter 100 includes a power interface 111, a Universal Serial Bus (type-B) 112, a display interface 113 (display port, DP), a High Definition Multimedia Interface (High Definition Multimedia Interface, HDMI) 114, an Ethernet interface 115, a Universal Serial Bus interface (type-A) 116, and an audio source output interface 117. The above-mentioned types, quantities and locations of the interfaces on the media adapter 100 are merely examples, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The present disclosure also does not limit the size and appearance of the media adapter 100.

The usage scenario of the media adapter 100 is shown in FIG2 . The media adapter 100 is electrically connected to a media source device 210 and a plurality of media playback devices 221-223. The media source device 210 is, for example, a laptop, but in other embodiments, it may also be a smart phone, a tablet computer, etc. The media playback devices 221-223 are, for example, screens, but in other embodiments, the media playback devices 221-223 may also be devices with display functions such as projectors and tablet computers. The media playback devices 221-223 may be regarded as extensions of the screen on the media source device 210. For example, when three external screens are detected, four graphic objects may be displayed on a setting page of the media source device 210, which are marked as "1", "2", "3", and "4", respectively, where "1" represents the screen of the media source device 210 itself, and "2", "3", and "4" represent the three external screens, respectively. These four numbers are also called screen numbers, and the user can adjust the positions of these four screens on this setting page. For the sake of explanation, the screen numbers "2", "3", and "4" are also marked on the media playback devices 221-223 in FIG. 2, which are not the contents displayed on the screens. The screen numbers are used to identify the corresponding media playback devices. In the example of FIG. 2 , the user wants the media source device 210 to be located at the far left as its own screen, and the media playback devices 221-223 can be used as three screens extending to the right, that is, "1", "2", "3", and "4" are arranged in sequence from left to right. However, the physical placement of the media playback devices 221-223 may not necessarily meet the user's expectations. In this example, the screen number of the media playback device 221 is "2", the screen number of the media playback device 222 is "4", and the screen number of the media playback device 223 is "3", but the user wants the screen number of the media playback device 222 to be "3" and the screen number of the media playback device 223 to be "4". Therefore, the user must perform a series of operations on this setting page to switch the display contents of the media playback devices 222 and 223. In this embodiment, the disclosure proposes a media switching method, which is executed by the media switching device 100 and can easily switch the display contents of the media playback devices 221-223. The media switching device 100 and the method will be described in detail below.

FIG3 is a schematic diagram of the internal circuit of a media switching device according to an embodiment. Referring to FIG3 , the media switching device 100 includes an input module 310, a processing module 320, an output module 330 and a physical button 350, wherein the processing module 320 is electrically connected to the input module 310, the output module 330 and the physical button 350. The input module 310 is used to electrically connect to the media source device 210 and receive media data from the media source device 210, such as video or picture, or may also include other types of data such as audio. The output module 330 is used to electrically connect to the media playback devices 221~223.

The input module 310 includes a video interface unit 311, a universal serial bus unit 312, an Internet unit 313, and a command receiving unit 314. The video interface unit 311 is, for example, a circuit that complies with the display port (DP), high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI), or digital visual interface (DVI) specifications. The universal serial bus unit 312 is, for example, a circuit that complies with the universal serial bus (USB) specifications. The Internet unit 313 is, for example, a circuit that complies with the Ethernet specification. The command receiving unit 314 is used to receive commands from the media source device 210. In some embodiments, the command receiving unit 314 can also be a circuit structured under the video interface unit 311 or the universal serial bus unit 312. For example, the Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) is defined in the specification of the High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) and can be used to transmit commands. Therefore, the command receiving unit 314 can also be hardware or firmware that complies with the Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) specification. Alternatively, the command receiving unit 314 can also be integrated with the Universal Serial Bus (USB). In some embodiments, the media adapter 100 is implemented on a circuit board, and the command receiving unit 314 can also be an integrated bus circuit (Inter-Integrated Circuit, I ² C). In some embodiments, the command receiving unit 314 can also include (or be) a Display Data Channel Command Interface (DDCCI). In some embodiments, the input module 310 may also include circuits of communication standards such as cellular network (or mobile network), near field communication, infrared communication, Bluetooth, and wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi). In some embodiments, the input module 310 may also include interfaces or interfaces such as optical fiber interface and Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI). The above-mentioned various interfaces, interfaces and buses are only examples, and the present disclosure is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments.

The processing module 320 includes a processor 321 and a memory 322. The processor 321 may be a central processing unit, a microprocessor, a microcontroller, a special application integrated circuit, etc. The memory 322 may be a random access memory, a read-only memory, a flash memory, etc. In some embodiments, the memory 322 may be omitted or disposed in the processor 321. The physical button 350 may be disposed on the surface of the media adapter 100 and electrically connected to the processing module 320. The processing module 320 may determine whether the physical button 350 is pressed according to the signal transmitted by the physical button 350.

The output module 330 includes a video interface unit 331, an audio unit 332, a universal serial bus unit 333, a command sending unit 334, and an Internet unit 335. The video interface unit 331, the universal serial bus unit 333, the command sending unit 334, and the Internet unit 335 are similar to the video interface unit 311, the universal serial bus unit 312, the command receiving unit 314, and the Internet unit 313, respectively, but are used to transmit media data. In some embodiments, the command sending unit 334 can also be integrated into the command receiving unit 314, and the Internet unit 335 can also be integrated into the Internet unit 313. The audio unit 332 is, for example, a TRS (Tip-Ring-Sleeve) or TS (Tip-Sleeve) terminal, or an interface that complies with the MIDI specification, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

In some embodiments, the Internet unit 313 and/or the Internet unit 335 is also connected to a remote device 340 via Internet communication. The remote device 340 is, for example, a computer operated by an information security personnel.

When the output module 330 is electrically connected to the media playback devices 221-223, the output module 330 receives device data from the media playback devices 221-223. The device data is, for example, extended display identification data (EDID), which is a data structure provided by the display device, wherein multiple fields may include information such as manufacturer name, identification code, physical characteristics, resolution, supported interfaces, etc. The processing module 320 also sets the screen numbers of these media playback devices 221-223. In one embodiment, the screen number is the port number in the LINK ADDRESS message in the Multi-Stream Transport (MST) technology. When the input module 310 is electrically connected to the media source device 210, the processing module 320 transmits the device information of the media playback devices 221-223 and the corresponding screen numbers to the media source device 210 through the input module 310. The media source device 210 provides the media data corresponding to each media playback device 221-223 to the input module 310, and the media source device 210 also provides the screen number corresponding to each piece of media data, and then the processing module 320 transmits each piece of media data to the corresponding media playback device 221-223 through the output module 330 according to the screen number. However, as shown in FIG. 2 , the content displayed by the media playback devices 221-223 may not be as expected by the user. For example, the processing module 320 can set the screen number according to the order in which the media playback devices 221-223 are connected to the output module 330. In this example, the screen number of the media playback device 221 is "2", the screen number of the media playback device 223 is "3", and the screen number of the media playback device 222 is "4". However, the user expects that the screen numbers are set from left to right according to the physical positions of the media playback devices 221-223.

To solve the above problem, the first approach is for the processing module 320 to reset the screen number and transmit the new screen number to the media source device 210. For example, the processing module 320 can first set a signal line on the input module 310 to a preset level, thereby transmitting a signal to the media source device 210. When the media source device 210 detects this signal, it indicates that the media playback devices 221-223 are disconnected and reconnected. Next, the processing module 320 sets the screen number of the media playback device 223 to "4" and the screen number of the media playback device 222 to "3", and transmits these settings to the media source device 210. However, some operating systems will record the previously connected screen information and their respective screen numbers, and will operate (configure) according to the previous records when reconnecting later. At this time, simply changing the screen number cannot change the display position. For example, FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the display status after reconnection according to the first method. Please refer to FIG. 4. After the above method, the objects displayed on the screen of the media source device 210 are the screen numbers "1", "2", "4", and "3" in sequence, and the screen numbers of the media playback devices 221~223 are "2", "3", and "4" respectively. Therefore, the content displayed on the media playback devices 221~223 is still not what the user expected.

Here, a second method is proposed. In addition to modifying the screen number, the device data is further modified. The purpose is to make the media source device 210 think that the media playback device 221-223 is a new device, so it will not operate according to the previous record. Please refer to Figure 3. First, when the media playback device 221-223 is connected to the media adapter 100 for the first time, the processing module 320 executes the default program, that is, the device data of the media playback device 221-223 and the default screen number are transmitted to the media source device 210 through the input module 310. Next, the processing module 320 determines whether to perform a display switching program, which can be implemented in many ways. In some embodiments, the processing module 320 determines whether the physical button 350 is pressed. When the physical button 350 is detected to be pressed, the processing module 320 determines that the display switching procedure should be executed. In some embodiments, the input module 310 receives an instruction from the remote device 340, and the processing module 320 determines whether to execute the display switching procedure according to the instruction. In some embodiments, the input module 310 receives an instruction from the media source device 210, and the processing module 320 determines whether to execute the display switching procedure according to the instruction.

When it is determined that the display switching procedure is not to be executed, the processing module 320 will not modify the device data and the screen number. When it is determined that the display switching procedure is to be executed, the processing module 320 will modify the device data of at least one of the media playback devices 221-223 and at least one screen number. For example, if the media playback devices 222 and 223 are to be modified, the device data and screen numbers of the media playback devices 222 and 223 will be modified. In some embodiments, the device data and screen numbers of all the media playback devices 221-223 may also be modified. The device data modified as described above may be any appropriate field in the extended display identification data, including but not limited to fields such as "Vendor & Product ID", "EDID Structure Version & Revision", "Basic Display Parameters and Features", "Display x, y Chromaticity Coordinates", "Established Timings I & II", "Standard Timings", and "18 Byte Descriptors". The "18 Byte Descriptors" field may include "Detailed Timing Descriptor", such as "Detailed Timing Descriptor 0", "Display Product Serial Number", "Display Product Name", or "Display Range Limits", or fields such as "Detailed Timing Descriptor 1" and "Detailed Timing Descriptor 2" may also be modified. In addition, if the extended display identification data includes the field "CTA Ext Block", this field may also be modified. This disclosure is not limited to the above fields.

The method of modifying the screen number can be accomplished by generating multiple permutations of the screen number. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. 3 , there are three media playback devices 221 to 223, so there are six permutations, including “234”, “243”, “423”, etc. Each time the display switching procedure is executed, one of these permutations can be selected to set the screen number of each media playback device 221 to 223. For example, when the display switching procedure is executed for the first time, the screen number of the media player 221 is "2", the screen number of the media player 222 is "4", and the screen number of the media player 223 is "3"; and when the display switching procedure is executed for the second time, the screen number of the media player 221 is "3", the screen number of the media player 222 is "4", and the screen number of the media player 223 is "2", and so on.

When it is determined that the display switching procedure is to be executed, the processing module 320 transmits a signal to the media source device 210 through the input module 310 to cut off the communication connection between the media source device 210 and at least one media playback device 221-223. The above-mentioned signal can be transmitted by changing the level on the signal line, or can also be transmitted through any communication protocol, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. After receiving the signal, the media source device 210 will receive the device data again. At this time, the processing module 320 will transmit the modified device data and the modified screen number to the media source device 210 through the input module 310. Since the device data has been modified, the media source device 210 will consider the currently connected device to be new and will not operate according to the previous record, but will operate according to the modified screen number. Next, the media source device 210 will generate four copies of media data, one for its own screen and one for the media playback devices 221-223. For each copy of media data to be sent to the media playback devices 221-223, the media source device 210 will also transmit a corresponding playback number to the input module 310, and this playback number indicates one of the above-mentioned multiple screen numbers. After receiving the media data and the corresponding playback number, the processing module 320 will transmit the media data to the media playback device indicated by the corresponding playback number through the output module 330. For example, if the play number of a certain media data is "2", the processing module 320 will transmit the media data to the media playback device 221, and so on. In the embodiment of executing the display switching procedure by pressing the physical button 350, since each time the button is pressed, a different arrangement combination of screen numbers will be generated, the user can continue to press the physical button 350 until the content displayed by the media playback devices 221-223 is what he expects. As shown in FIG. 5, the screen numbers displayed on the screen of the media source device 210 are "1", "2", "3", and "4" in sequence, and the screen numbers of the media playback devices 221-223 are "2", "3", and "4" respectively, which meets the user's expectations.

In some embodiments, due to different mechanisms for configuring bandwidth in the operating system, after the screen number is changed, the bandwidth configured by the operating system for each screen may change, resulting in changes in the resolution displayed on each screen. For example, if there are two screens with a resolution of 4K and one screen with a resolution of FHD in the media playback devices 221-223, the bandwidth configuration of the operating system will also change after the screen number is changed, which will cause the screen that can originally display a 4K resolution to only display an FHD resolution. This change in resolution can easily cause viewing discomfort. To solve this problem, the processing module 320 can set the resolutions of the media playback devices 221-223 to be the same.

Specifically, assume that the media playback devices 221-223 are three display screens, wherein the resolution of the media playback device 221 is 4K, the resolution of the media playback device 222 is 4K, and the resolution of the media playback device 223 is FHD. Before executing the display switching procedure, the processing module 320 modifies the device data of the media playback devices 221 and 222, so that the modified device data indicates that the resolutions of the media playback devices 221 and 222 are both FHD, that is, the same as the resolution of the media playback device 223. In some embodiments, the processing module 320 can modify a main frequency field "Detailed Timing Descriptor" of the extended display identification data (i.e., device data). This field is used to set the default resolution of the display. Here, the resolutions of the media playback devices 221-223 are made the same by changing this field. When the display switching procedure is executed (i.e., after determining to execute the display switching procedure), the processing module 320 does not change the main frequency field of the media playback devices 221-223 (i.e., the resolution is maintained unchanged through the device data), that is, the resolution of the media playback devices 221-223 does not change, and the resolution of the media playback devices 221-223 is still FHD after the display switching procedure is executed. Because the resolutions of the media playback devices 221-223 are the same and unchanged, the bandwidth configuration on the operating system will not cause the resolution to change.

FIG6 is a flow chart illustrating a media switching method according to an embodiment. Referring to FIG6 , this method is executed by the processing module 320. In step 601, the device data of multiple media playback devices are obtained through the output module. In step 602, the screen number of the media playback device is set, and the device data and the screen number are transmitted to the media source device through the input module. In step 603, it is determined whether to execute the display switching procedure. If the result of step 603 is yes, in step 604, the device data and the screen number are modified, and the modified device data and the screen number are transmitted to the media source device through the input module. If the result of step 603 is no, in step 605, the device data and the screen number are not modified. In step 606, the media data and the play number from the media source device are received, and the play number indicates one of the screen numbers. In step 607, the media data is transmitted to the media playback device indicated by the play number through the output module. The steps in Figure 6 have been described in detail above and will not be repeated here. It is worth noting that the steps in Figure 6 can be implemented as multiple program codes or circuits, and the present invention is not limited to this. In addition, the method of Figure 6 can be used in conjunction with the above embodiments or can be used alone. In other words, other steps can also be added between the steps of Figure 6.

In the above-mentioned media switching device and media switching method, the user can change the extension relationship between the media playing devices 221-223 and the media source device 210 in a simple manner.

Although the present invention has been disclosed as above by the embodiments, they are not intended to limit the present invention. Any person with ordinary knowledge in the relevant technical field can make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be defined by the scope of the attached patent application.

100: Media adapter 101: Combo audio interface 102: USB interface 111: Power interface 112: USB (type-B) 113: Display interface 114: High-definition multimedia interface 115: Ethernet interface 116: USB interface (type-A) 117: Audio output interface 210: Media source device 221~223: Media playback device 310: Input module 311: Video interface unit 312: USB unit 313: Internet unit 314: Command receiving unit 320: Processing module 321: Processor 322: Memory 330: Output module 331: Video interface unit 332: Audio unit 333: Universal serial bus unit 334: Command sending unit 335: Internet unit 340: Remote device 350: Physical button 601~607: Steps

FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B are schematic diagrams of the appearance of a media switching device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram of a usage scenario of a media switching device according to an embodiment. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an internal circuit of a media switching device according to an embodiment. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a display state after reconnection according to the first method. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a display state after reconnection according to the second method. FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a media switching method according to an embodiment.

601~607: Steps

Claims (10)

A media switching device comprises: an input module for electrically connecting to a media source device; an output module for electrically connecting to a plurality of media playback devices and obtaining device data of one of the plurality of media playback devices; and a processing module for electrically connecting to the input module and the output module, for setting a plurality of screen numbers of the plurality of media playback devices, and transmitting the device data and the plurality of screen numbers to the media source device through the input module, wherein the processing module is used to determine whether to execute a display switching procedure, If it is determined that the display switching procedure is to be executed, the processing module modifies the device data and the multiple screen numbers, and transmits the modified device data and the multiple screen numbers to the media source device through the input module, wherein the input module is used to receive media data from the media source device and a play number, the play number indicating one of the multiple screen numbers, and the processing module is used to transmit the media data to one of the multiple media playback devices indicated by the play number through the output module. A media adapter as described in claim 1, wherein the device data is one of multiple fields of extended display identification data (EDID). The media switching device as described in claim 1, wherein if it is determined that the display switching procedure is to be executed, the input module is used to send a signal to the media source device to cut off the communication connection between the media source device and one of the multiple media playback devices. The media switching device as described in claim 1, wherein the processing module is used to generate multiple permutations of the multiple screen numbers, and each time the display switching procedure is executed, the processing module selects one of the multiple permutations. The media switching device as described in claim 1 further comprises: A physical button electrically connected to the processing module, wherein when the physical button is detected to be pressed, the processing module determines to execute the display switching procedure. The media switching device as described in claim 1, wherein the input module is also communicatively connected to a remote device and receives a command from the remote device, wherein the processing module is used to determine whether to execute the display switching procedure according to the command. The media switching device as described in claim 1, wherein the input module is used to receive a command from the media source device, and wherein the processing module is used to determine whether to execute the display switching procedure according to the command. A media switching device as described in claim 1, wherein the multiple media playback devices are multiple display screens, and the resolution of a first display screen among the multiple display screens is different from the resolution of a second display screen among the multiple display screens, wherein before executing the display switching procedure, the processing module is used to set the device data of the first display screen and the second display screen to indicate that the resolution of the first display screen is the same as the resolution of the second display screen. A media switching device as described in claim 8, wherein the device data of the first display screen or the second display screen is extended display identification data, and the processing module is used to modify a main frequency field of the extended display identification data to indicate that the resolution of the first display screen is the same as the resolution of the second display screen. A media switching device as described in claim 9, wherein after determining to execute the display switching procedure, the processing module sets the device data of the first display screen and the second display screen to indicate that the resolution of the first display screen and the second display screen remains unchanged.

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