1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a backlight unit, and in particular to a backlight unit for a display device having a main screen and a sub screen. The backlight unit drives light-emitting diodes corresponding to the sub screen utilizing an independent circuit, thereby reducing current consumption.
2. Description of the Related Art
Liquid crystal displays (LCDs) are employed applied in variety of electronic devices, such as mobile phones, digital cameras, personal digital assistants, and other devices used in environments providing varying degrees of brightness. In order to provide adequate display brightness, backlight sources are provided located in an rear of the LCD panel.
Currently, many mobile phones have hinged displays with a main screen and a sub screen disposed on eacg side thereof. The main screen is disposed on the inner side of the hinged display and displays a main menu and related information. The sub-screen is disposed on the outer side of the hinged display and displays general information, such as data, time and so on. Generally, the main screen and the sub screen respectively have a light source and a light guide configured in a backlight unit within a liquid crystal module of the mobile phone. The described mobile phone suffer from the disadvantages of large volume and excessive power consumption.
To solve the described problems, light-emitting diodes (LEDs) coupled in series and one light guide are employed in a backlight unit for displaying images in the main screen and the sub screen.
Practically, when the mobile phone is in standby mode, the hinged cover is closed such that the sub screen SD1 on the outer side of the flip cover can be viewed. Meanwhile, the LEDs 1B and 1C corresponding to both screens MD1 and SD1, and LEDs 1A and 1D corresponding to the main screen MD1 are all driven to emit light. The lit LEDs 1A and 1D cause unnecessary power consumption and reduced battery life.
Additionally, LEDs 2A to 2D coupled in parallel are applied in a backlight unit, as shown in
Accordingly, one object, of the present invention is to provide a backlight unit for application in a display device comprising a main screen and a sub screen. The backlight unit respectively drives LEDs corresponding to the main screen and LEDs corresponding to the sub screen via two independent circuits.
According to the object described above, an embodiment of the present invention provides a backlight unit for a display device having a main screen and a sub screen. The backlight unit comprises a first light-emitting unit and a second light-emitting unit. When the display device uses the sub screen, the first light-emitting unit provides a first light to the sub screen. When the display device uses the main screen, the first and the second light-emitting units respectively emit a second light and a third light, and a first aggregate light including the second light and the third light is provided to the main screen.
The present invention further provides a display device. The display device comprises a main screen, a sub screen, a first light-emitting unit, a second light-emitting unit, and a control unit. The sub screen is disposed opposite to the main screen. When the display device uses the sub screen, the control unit drives the first light-emitting unit to provide a first light to the sub screen. When the display device uses the main screen, the control unit drives the first and second light-emitting units to respectively emit a second light and a third light, and a first aggregate light comprising the second light with the third light is provided to the main screen.
A detailed description is given in the following embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.
The present invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
a and 4b respectively show an inner side and an outer side of the LCD of
When receiving a first signal indicating that the sub screen SD3 is assigned to display images, the control unit C3 provides a first voltage to the anode of the LED 3B, such that the first light-emitting unit T1 emits light to the sub screen SD3. When receiving a second signal indicating that the main screen MD3 is assigned to display images, the control unit C3 provides the first voltage and a second voltage respectively to the anodes of the LEDs 3B and 3A, such that the first and second light-emitting units T1 and T2 emit light to the main screen MD3 simultaneously.
Moreover, when receiving the first signal, the control unit C3 further provides the first voltage and a third voltage respectively to the anodes of the LEDs 3B and 3A. The third voltage is less than the first voltage, so brightness of the first light-emitting unit T2 is lower than that of the second light-emitting unit T1.
In the present invention, the LED circuit corresponding to the sub screen SD3 and other LED circuits are controlled independently. When only the sub screen SD3 is assigned to display images, the corresponding LEDs 3B and 3C are lit while the other LEDs either remain unlit or emit light with low brightness. Therefore, less voltage is provided to the LEDs unrelated to the sub screen SD3, reducing power consumption and prolonging standby duration.
In the present invention, the number of serial LEDs of the first and second light-emitting units T1 and T2 can be determined according to system requirements, without limitation.
While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. To the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements (as would be apparent to those skilled in the art). Therefore, the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.
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