1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the field of information handling system manufacture, and more particularly to an information handling system display integration system and process.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Portable information handling systems have become widely accepted by business and consumer users as an alternative to desktop information handling systems. In part, portable information handling systems have enjoyed greater acceptance because of the flexibility they provide for use on the move, however, more recently with the greater processing power available from newly developed components, end users have increasingly sought portable information handling systems as a replacement for desktop systems. A portable information handling system typically includes integrated power, such as a battery, and integrated I/O devices, such as a keyboard and display built into the system chassis. Integrated power and I/O devices allow an end user full use of the system free from hard wire connections to peripherals or a fixed power source. Business users take advantage of such flexibility by taking portable information handling systems on business trips to stay in touch through wireless communications, to work while traveling and to provide access to business presentations and forms. Consumer users take advantage of such flexibility by working or reading in hot spots, such as coffee shops, or by watching media entertainment, such as movies.
Although business and consumer portable information handling systems largely overlap in their configurations, one difference that often comes up is the preference of consumer users for a glossy or shiny finish on the integrated display versus the preference of business users for more ergonomic anti-glare finish. Consumers tend to prefer a shiny finish, such as Dell Inc.'s “True Life Polarizer”, because it makes multimedia presentations appear more lifelike. Business users tend to prefer an anti-glare finish as less taxing on vision during lengthy periods of preparing documents. This duopoly compounded by alternate sourcing of a given display panel to maintain continuity of supply means a large and diverse inventory of LCD panels must typically be managed for production of portable information handling systems. Maintaining a large inventory adds to the expense of the manufacture process since the inventory is purchased with capital and stored near production sites. The greater the number of parts that are maintained in inventory, the greater the complexity of having enough parts to meet production needs at each production location. In addition, having a greater number of parts increases the likelihood that some parts will become outdated before they are used, damaged during storage or built into an incorrect system.
Therefore a need has arisen for a system and method which reduces the inventory of LCD panels for a given information handling system manufacture process.
In accordance with the present invention, a system and method are provided which substantially reduce the disadvantages and problems associated with previous methods and systems for maintaining LCD panel inventory for the production of portable information handling systems. An inventory of LCD panel supports manufacture of first and second types of information handling systems. LCD panels assembled into the second type of information handling system have a predetermined treatment at the assembly location that is not applied to LCD panels assembled into the first type of information handling systems.
More specifically, LCD panels manufactured at an LCD manufacture location are configured for assembly into a consumer type portable information handling system, such as with a glossy polarized finish. The LCD panels are shipped to a portable information handling system manufacture location and maintained in and LCD panel inventory. LCD panels are pulled from the inventory as needed for manufacture of portable information handling systems. LCD panels used to assemble consumer type portable information handling systems are provided to the manufacture line without alteration to the glossy polarized surface. LCD panels used to assemble business type portable information handling systems are modified with an anti-glare film at a point in the portable information handling system assembly. Thus, an inventory of substantially identical LCD panels support manufacture of both consumer and business type portable information handling systems. After manufacture, the portable information handling systems are shipped from the manufacture location to the end user location.
The present invention provides a number of important technical advantages. One example of an important technical advantage is that the number of different types of LCD panels needed for manufacture of portable information handling systems is reduced by adjusting an existing inventory for multiple uses at the manufacture location. Having fewer types of LCD panels in inventory allows greater flexibility in the manufacture process with fewer numbers of each type of LCD panel. Changes in demand for production of one type of LCD panel are met with related LCD panels by adjusting the number of panels treated with ante-glare film. Better production inventory management reduces manufacture cost and production times to provide high quality products to end users in less time and for less money.
The present invention may be better understood, and its numerous objects, features and advantages made apparent to those skilled in the art by referencing the accompanying drawings. The use of the same reference number throughout the several figures designates a like or similar element.
Assembly of portable information handling systems for consumer and business use with a common inventory of LCD panels is accomplished by selectively applying a treatment to the LCD panel based on the planned end use of each information handling system. For purposes of this disclosure, an information handling system may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, or other purposes. For example, an information handling system may be a personal computer, a network storage device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. The information handling system may include random access memory (RAM), one or more processing resources such as a central processing unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic, ROM, and/or other types of nonvolatile memory. Additional components of the information handling system may include one or more disk drives, one or more network ports for communicating with external devices as well as various input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a video display. The information handling system may also include one or more buses operable to transmit communications between the various hardware components.
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Although the present invention has been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made hereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.