CN1570810A

Movatterモバイル変換

Info

Publication number: CN1570810A
Application number: CN 03147487
Authority: CN
Inventors: 林文正; 杨世州
Original assignee: Silicon Integrated Systems Corp
Current assignee: Silicon Integrated Systems Corp
Priority date: 2003-07-14
Filing date: 2003-07-14
Publication date: 2005-01-26
Anticipated expiration: 2023-07-14
Also published as: CN1265262C

Abstract

The invention provides a method for playing multimedia data by a computer system. The computer system includes a CPU for controlling the operation of the computer system, a storage device for reading the multimedia data, a bridge circuit electrically connected between the CPU and the storage device for coordinating the data transmission between the CPU and the storage device, and an output device. The method includes providing a video-audio playing controller for the computer system, the video-audio playing controller being electrically connected between the storage device and the output device, controlling the storage device to transmit the multimedia data to the video-audio playing controller without starting the bridge circuit to process the multimedia data, and using the video-audio playing controller to process the multimedia data and drive the output device to play the multimedia data.

Description

Translated fromChinese

可降低计算机系统播放多媒体数据所消耗功率的方法Method for reducing power consumed by computer system playing multimedia data

技术领域technical field

本发明涉及一种计算机系统播放多媒体数据的方法，特别是涉及一种可降低计算机系统播放多媒体数据时所消耗的功率的方法。The invention relates to a method for playing multimedia data by a computer system, in particular to a method for reducing power consumption when the computer system plays multimedia data.

背景技术Background technique

在现今信息社会中，广泛应用于各种产业的计算机系统(computer system)正在许多公司中扮演着重要的角色，而随着储存容量的增加，运算速度的提升，生产成本的降低，以及更方便的使用者接口(user interface)，计算机系统，例如一个人计算机(personal computer，PC)，还可用来作为一信息处理中心。如今，多媒体技术可提供使用者更刺激的娱乐效果，举例来说，一电影影片可记录在一多功能数字盘片(digital versatile disc，DVD)或者一激光视盘片(video compact disc，VCD)上，所以若个人计算机上安装有一光驱(optical disc drive)，则该个人计算机便可驱动该光驱撷取出对应该电影影片的档案数据，然后，该个人计算机便可依据该档案数据来播放该电影影片。请参阅图1，图1为已知计算机系统10的功能方块示意图。计算机系统10包含有一中央处理器(central processing unit，CPU)12，一北桥电路(north bridgecircuit)14，一南桥电路(south bridge circuit)16，一存储器(memory)18，一光驱20，一显示系统(display system)22，一输入装置24，以及一屏幕(monitor)26。另外，显示系统22包含有一显示控制电路(display controller)28以及一视讯传输电路(video transmitter)30。中央处理器12用来控制计算机系统10的运作，北桥电路14电连接于中央处理器12，用来控制中央处理器12与高速外围装置(例如存储器18与显示控制电路28)之间的讯号传输，而南桥电路16电连接于北桥电路14，用来控制北桥电路14与低速外围装置(例如光驱20与输入装置24)之间的讯号传输。存储器18，例如一动态随机存取存储器(dynamic random access memory，DRAM)，其用来储存数据。光驱20则用来读取一光盘片(optical disc)上所纪录的数据。另外，输入装置24用来接收一使用者所下达的控制指令，例如输入装置24为一键盘(keyboard)，用来输入字符讯号至计算机系统10，或者输入装置24为一鼠标(mouse)，用来输入指针讯号至计算机系统10。显示系统22用来驱动屏幕26显示影像画面，其中显示控制电路24可执行2D图形运算及3D图形运算，以及输出相对应影像讯号至视讯传输电路30，而视讯传输电路30可转换该影像讯号为适合驱动屏幕26的相对应驱动讯号，举例来说，若屏幕26为一液晶显示(liquid crystal display，LCD)屏幕，因此视讯传输电路30将该影像讯号转换为符合数字影像接口(digital visual interface，DVI)的驱动讯号，以便该影像讯号可顺利地驱动该液晶显示屏幕显示影像画面。In today's information society, computer systems (computer systems), which are widely used in various industries, are playing an important role in many companies. With the increase of storage capacity, the improvement of computing speed, the reduction of production costs, and more convenient A user interface (user interface), a computer system, such as a personal computer (personal computer, PC), can also be used as an information processing center. Nowadays, multimedia technology can provide users with more exciting entertainment effects. For example, a film can be recorded on a digital versatile disc (digital versatile disc, DVD) or a laser video disc (video compact disc, VCD). , so if an optical disc drive is installed on the personal computer, then the personal computer can drive the optical disc drive to retrieve the file data corresponding to the film, and then the personal computer can play the film according to the file data . Please refer to FIG. 1 , which is a functional block diagram of a known computer system 10 . Computer system 10 comprises a central processing unit (central processing unit, CPU) 12, a north bridge circuit (north bridge circuit) 14, a south bridge circuit (south bridge circuit) 16, a memory (memory) 18, an optical drive 20, a display System (display system) 22, an input device 24, and a screen (monitor) 26. In addition, the display system 22 includes a display controller 28 and a video transmitter 30 . The central processing unit 12 is used to control the operation of the computer system 10, and the north bridge circuit 14 is electrically connected to the central processing unit 12, and is used to control the signal transmission between the central processing unit 12 and high-speed peripheral devices (such as memory 18 and display control circuit 28). , and the south bridge circuit 16 is electrically connected to the north bridge circuit 14, and is used to control signal transmission between the north bridge circuit 14 and low-speed peripheral devices (such as the optical drive 20 and the input device 24). The memory 18, such as a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), is used to store data. The optical drive 20 is used to read data recorded on an optical disc. In addition, the input device 24 is used to receive a control command issued by a user, for example, the input device 24 is a keyboard (keyboard), used to input character signals to the computer system 10, or the input device 24 is a mouse (mouse), used to To input the pointer signal to the computer system 10 . The display system 22 is used to drive the screen 26 to display image images, wherein the display control circuit 24 can perform 2D graphics operations and 3D graphics operations, and output corresponding image signals to the video transmission circuit 30, and the video transmission circuit 30 can convert the image signals into The corresponding driving signal suitable for driving the screen 26, for example, if the screen 26 is a liquid crystal display (liquid crystal display, LCD) screen, so the video signal transmission circuit 30 converts the video signal into a digital video interface (digital visual interface, DVI) driving signal, so that the image signal can smoothly drive the LCD screen to display image images.

当计算机系统10开机启动后亦会同时启动(power on)光驱20，然后计算机系统10便执行一开机程序，例如一自我功能测试(power-on-self-test，POST)。当一操作系统(operating system，OS)顺利加载后，使用者便可使用光驱20来撷取光盘片上所储存的数据，例如使用者利用输入装置24来命令中央处理器12执行一播放应用程序(playback application)，然后该播放应用程序便可控制光驱20来撷取光盘片(例如一数字多功能盘片或一激光视盘片)中所纪录的影像数据。然后，光驱20便会经由南桥电路16与北桥电路14将该影像数据传输予中央处理器12所执行的播放应用程序，而该播放应用程序便命令显示控制电路28对该影像数据进行相关译码运算以产生相对应的影像讯号，并输出该影像讯号至视讯传输电路30以便通过视讯传输电路30来驱动屏幕26。最后，使用者便可通过屏幕26观赏到对应该光盘片所记录的影像数据的电影影片。When the computer system 10 is turned on, the optical drive 20 will be powered on simultaneously, and then the computer system 10 will execute a boot program, such as a power-on-self-test (POST). After an operating system (operating system, OS) is successfully loaded, the user can use the optical drive 20 to retrieve the data stored on the optical disc, for example, the user uses the input device 24 to order the central processing unit 12 to execute a playback application program ( playback application), and then the playback application can control the optical drive 20 to retrieve the image data recorded in the optical disc (such as a digital versatile disc or a laser video disc). Then, the optical drive 20 will transmit the image data to the playback application program executed by the central processing unit 12 via the south bridge circuit 16 and the north bridge circuit 14, and the playback application program will instruct the display control circuit 28 to perform correlation translation on the image data. code operation to generate a corresponding image signal, and output the image signal to the video transmission circuit 30 so as to drive the screen 26 through the video transmission circuit 30 . Finally, the user can watch the movie corresponding to the image data recorded on the optical disc through the screen 26 .

如上所述，为了播放光盘片上所储存的影像数据，计算机系统10首先必须执行开机程序以启动内部所有电路组件，然而，计算机系统10中的组件会消耗许多电力。以笔记型计算机(laptop computer)为例，运作时所需电力主要由电池装置所提供，对于Pentium4的计算机系统而言，整体的功率消耗会大于100瓦。然而，并非计算机系统10中的每一电路组件均与播放光盘片上所记录的数据的操作有关，例如一硬盘(hard-disk drive)此时并不需使用，但是该硬盘仍会消耗电力以旋转其磁盘片(magnetic disk)，明显地，计算机系统10会因为消耗较多电力而产生较多热量，所以散热便变成一个十分重要的课题。此外，在如此耗电的状态下，电池装置的供电时间也随之缩短，所以，使用者亦无法方便地使用笔记型计算机(计算机系统10)来播放多功能数字盘片(DVD)或激光视盘片(VCD)上所储存的影像数据。As mentioned above, in order to play the image data stored on the optical disc, the computer system 10 must first execute a boot program to activate all internal circuit components. However, the components in the computer system 10 consume a lot of power. Taking a laptop computer as an example, the power required for operation is mainly provided by a battery device. For a Pentium4 computer system, the overall power consumption will be greater than 100 watts. However, not every circuit component in the computer system 10 is related to the operation of playing the data recorded on the optical disc. For example, a hard-disk drive is not used at this time, but the hard-disk drive still consumes power to rotate As for the magnetic disk, obviously, the computer system 10 will generate more heat due to more power consumption, so heat dissipation becomes a very important issue. In addition, in such a state of power consumption, the power supply time of the battery device is also shortened, so the user cannot conveniently use the notebook computer (computer system 10) to play multi-function digital disc (DVD) or laser video disc. The image data stored on the disc (VCD).

发明内容Contents of the invention

因此本发明的主要目的在于提供一种可降低计算机系统播放多媒体数据时所消耗的功率的方法，以解决上述问题。Therefore, the main purpose of the present invention is to provide a method for reducing the power consumed by a computer system when playing multimedia data, so as to solve the above problems.

为了实现本发明的上述目的，本发明披露了一种计算机系统(computersystem)播放一多媒体数据的方法。该计算机系统包含有一中央处理器(centralprocessing unit，CPU)用来控制该计算机系统的运作，一储存装置(storagedevice)用来读取该多媒体数据，一桥接电路(bridge circuit)，电连接于该中央处理器与该储存装置之间，用来协调该中央处理器与该储存装置之间的数据传输，以及一输出装置。该方法包含有提供一影音播放控制器予该计算机系统，该影音播放控制器电连接于该储存装置与该输出装置之间，控制该储存装置传输该多媒体数据至该影音播放控制器，而不启动该桥接电路处理该多媒体数据，以及使用该影音播放控制器处理该多媒体数据与驱动该输出装置播放该多媒体数据。In order to achieve the above object of the present invention, the present invention discloses a method for playing multimedia data by a computer system. The computer system includes a central processing unit (CPU) used to control the operation of the computer system, a storage device (storagedevice) used to read the multimedia data, a bridge circuit (bridge circuit), electrically connected to the central Between the processor and the storage device, used for coordinating the data transmission between the central processing unit and the storage device, and an output device. The method includes providing an audio-visual playback controller to the computer system, the audio-visual playback controller is electrically connected between the storage device and the output device, and controls the storage device to transmit the multimedia data to the audio-visual playback controller without The bridge circuit is started to process the multimedia data, and the video and audio playing controller is used to process the multimedia data and drive the output device to play the multimedia data.

由于本发明计算机系统包含有一影音播放控制器，其可在该计算机系统未执行开机程序而保持关机状态下正常地运作，所以本发明计算机系统在播放该多媒体数据的过程，仅有部分组件会消耗电力，因此所产生的功率消耗便可大幅地降低。Since the computer system of the present invention includes an audio-visual playback controller, which can operate normally when the computer system does not execute the boot program and remains in the shutdown state, only some components of the computer system of the present invention will be consumed during the process of playing the multimedia data. Electricity, so the power consumption generated can be greatly reduced.

附图说明Description of drawings

图1为已知计算机系统的功能方块示意图。FIG. 1 is a schematic functional block diagram of a known computer system.

图2为本发明计算机系统的功能方块图。Fig. 2 is a functional block diagram of the computer system of the present invention.

附图标号说明Explanation of reference numbers

10、40 计算机系统 12、42 中央处理器10, 40Computer system 12, 42 Central processing unit

14、44 北桥电路 16、46 南桥电路14, 44North bridge circuit 16, 46 South bridge circuit

18、48 存储器 20 光驱18, 48 memory 20 optical drive

22 显示系统输入装置2422 Display system Input device 24

26、56 屏幕 28、50 显示控制电路26, 56Screen 28, 50 Display control circuit

30、62 视讯传输电路 51 音效处理电路30, 62Video transmission circuit 51 Audio processing circuit

52 光驱 54 影音播放控制器52Optical drive 54 Audio and video playback controller

57 喇叭 58 影像译码器57Speaker 58 Video Decoder

60 换算电路 64 音效译码器60conversion circuit 64 audio decoder

具体实施方式Detailed ways

请参阅图2，图2为本发明计算机系统40的功能方块图。计算机系统40包含有一中央处理器(central processing unit，CPU)42，一北桥电路(north bridgecircuit)44，一南桥电路(south bridge circuit)46，一存储器48，一显示控制电路(display controller)50，一音效处理电路(audio processor)51，一光驱(optical disk drive)52，一影音播放控制器(playback controller)54，一屏幕(monitor)56，以及一喇叭(speaker)57。影音播放控制器57包含一影像译码器(video decoder)58，一换算电路(scaling circuit or scaler)60，一视讯传输电路(video transmitter)62，以及一音效译码器(audio decoder)64。Please refer to FIG. 2 , which is a functional block diagram of thecomputer system 40 of the present invention.Computer system 40 includes a central processing unit (central processing unit, CPU) 42, a north bridge circuit (north bridge circuit) 44, a south bridge circuit (south bridge circuit) 46, amemory 48, a display control circuit (display controller) 50 , an audio processing circuit (audio processor) 51, an optical disk drive (optical disk drive) 52, an audio-visual playback controller (playback controller) 54, a screen (monitor) 56, and a speaker (speaker) 57. The video andaudio playback controller 57 includes a video decoder (video decoder) 58, a scaling circuit (scaling circuit or scaler) 60, a video transmission circuit (video transmitter) 62, and an audio decoder (audio decoder) 64.

中央处理器42用来控制计算机系统40的运作，北桥电路44用来控制中央处理器42与高速外围装置(例如存储器48与显示控制电路50)之间的讯号传输，而南桥电路46则是用来控制北桥电路44与低速外围装置(例如光驱52)之间的讯号传输。存储器48用来储存数据，举例来说，存储器48可以是易失性存储器(volatile memory)，例如动态随机存取存储器(dynamicrandom access memory，DRAM)，或者存储器48亦可以是非易失性存储器(non-volatile memory)，例如闪速存储器(flash memory)。显示控制电路50用来进行2D图形运算以及3D图形运算，并产生影像讯号以驱动屏幕56输出相对应影像画面。另外，音效处理电路51用来转换数字声音数据为相对应相对应模拟声音讯号以驱动喇叭57，举例来说，音效处理电路51为设置于一声卡(soundcard)或是计算机系统40的主机板(motherboard)上的已知音效处理芯片(audio chip)。此外，光驱52用来撷取一光盘片(optical disk)上所记录的数据，举例来说，若该光盘片为一多功能数字盘片，则光驱52便是一DVD光驱；同样地，若该光盘片为一激光视盘片或一音乐光盘片(audio compact disk，audio CD)，则光驱52便是一CD光驱。如图2所示，影音播放控制器54则是电连接于光驱52与显示控制电路50。Thecentral processing unit 42 is used to control the operation of thecomputer system 40, thenorth bridge circuit 44 is used to control the signal transmission between thecentral processing unit 42 and high-speed peripheral devices (such as thememory 48 and the display control circuit 50), and thesouth bridge circuit 46 is It is used to control signal transmission between thenorth bridge circuit 44 and low-speed peripheral devices (such as the optical drive 52). Thememory 48 is used to store data. For example, thememory 48 can be a volatile memory (volatile memory), such as a dynamic random access memory (dynamic random access memory, DRAM), or thememory 48 can also be a non-volatile memory (non-volatile memory). -volatile memory), such as flash memory (flash memory). Thedisplay control circuit 50 is used to perform 2D graphics calculation and 3D graphics calculation, and generate video signals to drive the screen 56 to output corresponding video frames. In addition, the soundeffect processing circuit 51 is used to convert digital sound data into corresponding analog sound signals to drive thespeaker 57. For example, the soundeffect processing circuit 51 is set on a sound card (soundcard) or a motherboard of the computer system 40 ( Known audio processing chip (audio chip) on the motherboard). In addition, theoptical drive 52 is used to retrieve data recorded on an optical disk (optical disk). For example, if the optical disk is a multi-functional digital disk, theoptical drive 52 is a DVD optical drive; similarly, if The optical disc is a laser video disc or a music compact disc (audio compact disk, audio CD), then theoptical drive 52 is exactly a CD optical drive. As shown in FIG. 2 , the video andaudio playback controller 54 is electrically connected to theoptical drive 52 and thedisplay control circuit 50 .

计算机系统40的操作叙述如下。计算机系统40中的组件分别归属于两电源区块66a、66b，如图2所示，电源区块66a包含有中央处理器42，北桥电路44，南桥电路46，存储器48，以及显示控制电路50，另一方面，电源区块66b则包含有光驱52，影音播放控制器54，屏幕56，以及喇叭57。假设计算机系统40为一笔记型计算机(laptop computer)，且处于关机状态。若一使用者欲观看储存于一多功能数字盘片(DVD)或一激光视盘片(VCD)上所储存的电影影片，则在本实施例中，仅有电源区块66b会被启动，而电源区块66a则不会启动。举例来说，若该使用者按压光驱52的壳体上的按钮(例如一”OPEN”按钮或一”PLAY”按钮)，则电源区块66b会被选取而启动，亦即一电池装置便会开始提供隶属于电源区块66b的装置所需的操作电压。此时，光驱52便可读取任何加载至光驱52的光盘片，因此记录在该光盘片上的影像数据便可传输至影音播放控制器54。如业界所已知，影像数据会经由一预定算法(例如MPEG-2)进行编码处理，所以当影音播放控制器54接收记录在该光盘片上的影像数据后，影像译码器58可对该影像数据进行译码处理，并输出译码后的影像数据至换算电路60。换算电路60用来调整该译码后的影像数据以便符合屏幕56所支持的显示分辨率(displayresolution)，例如该影像数据是对应640×480的显示分辨率，亦即需要640*480个像素来输出对应该影像数据的电影影片中的每一影像画面，然而假若屏幕56所设定使用的显示分辨率为1280×1024，亦即屏幕56使用1280*1024个像素来显示影像，则换算电路60便需调整原本对应640×480的显示分辨率的影像数据，以便影像数据可顺利地显示于对应1280×1024的显示分辨率的屏幕56上；另一方面，若该影像数据系对应1280×1024的显示分辨率，亦即需要1280*1024个像素来输出对应该影像数据的电影影片中的每一影像画面，然而假若此时屏幕56所设定使用的显示分辨率为640×480，亦即屏幕56使用640*480个像素来显示影像，则换算电路60便需调整原本对应1280×1024的显示分辨率的影像数据，以便影像数据可顺利地显示在对应640×480的显示分辨率的屏幕56上。The operation ofcomputer system 40 is described as follows. Components in thecomputer system 40 belong to twopower supply blocks 66a, 66b respectively. As shown in FIG. 50. On the other hand, thepower block 66b includes anoptical drive 52, an audio-visual playback controller 54, a screen 56, and aspeaker 57. Assume that thecomputer system 40 is a notebook computer (laptop computer) and is in a power-off state. If a user wants to watch a film stored on a DVD or VCD, in this embodiment only thepower block 66b will be activated, and Thepower block 66a will not be activated. For example, if the user presses a button (such as an "OPEN" button or a "PLAY" button) on the housing of theoptical drive 52, thepower block 66b will be selected and activated, that is, a battery device will be activated. Start supplying the operating voltage required by the devices belonging to thepower block 66b. At this point, theoptical drive 52 can read any optical disc loaded into theoptical drive 52 , so the image data recorded on the optical disc can be transmitted to the audio-video playback controller 54 . As known in the industry, image data will be encoded through a predetermined algorithm (such as MPEG-2), so when the audio-visual playback controller 54 receives the image data recorded on the optical disc, theimage decoder 58 can The data is decoded, and the decoded image data is output to theconversion circuit 60 . Theconversion circuit 60 is used to adjust the decoded image data so as to conform to the display resolution (display resolution) supported by the screen 56. For example, the image data corresponds to a display resolution of 640*480, that is, 640*480 pixels are required to Each image frame in the movie film corresponding to the image data is output, but if the display resolution set by the screen 56 is 1280*1024, that is, the screen 56 uses 1280*1024 pixels to display the image, then theconversion circuit 60 It is necessary to adjust the image data originally corresponding to the display resolution of 640×480 so that the image data can be successfully displayed on the screen 56 corresponding to the display resolution of 1280×1024; on the other hand, if the image data corresponds to 1280×1024 display resolution, that is, 1280*1024 pixels are required to output each image frame in the movie corresponding to the image data, but if the display resolution set by the screen 56 is 640*480 at this time, that is The screen 56 uses 640*480 pixels to display images, so theconversion circuit 60 needs to adjust the image data originally corresponding to the display resolution of 1280×1024, so that the image data can be successfully displayed on the screen corresponding to the display resolution of 640×480 56 on.

紧接着，转换后的影像数据便传输至视讯传输电路62，本实施例中，视讯传输电路62可转换该影像数据为适用于屏幕56的驱动讯号。请注意，屏幕56可以是内建于笔记型计算机的液晶显示屏幕，或者是一外接的显示装置(例如一电视机或一阴极射线管屏幕)，或者是一外接的液晶显示屏幕。举例来说，若屏幕56为一液晶显示屏幕，则视讯传输电路62便会将影像讯号转换为符合数字影像接口(digital visual interface，DVI)规格的驱动讯号；同样地，若屏幕56为一电视机，则视讯传输电路62便会将影像讯号转换为S端子(S-video)讯号、RGB讯号、或YP_bP_r讯号，用来驱动一般规格的电视机或是高分辨率的电视(HDTV)。对于储存在数字多功能盘片或激光视盘片上的数据来说，该数据不仅含有影像数据，其还伴随有声音数据。所以，当数据由光驱52输出后亦会传输至音效译码器64以译码该数据中已编码的声音讯号，然后译码后的声音讯号便会输出至喇叭57以驱动喇叭57。Next, the converted image data is transmitted to thevideo transmission circuit 62 . In this embodiment, thevideo transmission circuit 62 can convert the image data into a driving signal suitable for the screen 56 . Please note that the screen 56 can be a built-in liquid crystal display screen of the notebook computer, or an external display device (such as a TV or a cathode ray tube screen), or an external liquid crystal display screen. For example, if the screen 56 is a liquid crystal display screen, thevideo transmission circuit 62 will convert the image signal into a driving signal conforming to the digital visual interface (DVI) specification; similarly, if the screen 56 is a TV machine, then thevideo transmission circuit 62 will convert the image signal into an S terminal (S-video) signal, an RGB signal, or a YP_b P_r signal, which is used to drive a general specification TV or a high-resolution TV (HDTV ). For data stored on a Digital Versatile Disc or Laser Video Disc, the data contains not only image data but also audio data. Therefore, when the data is output from theoptical drive 52, it will also be transmitted to theaudio decoder 64 to decode the encoded audio signal in the data, and then the decoded audio signal will be output to thespeaker 57 to drive thespeaker 57.

请注意，电源区块66a并未被启动，因此没有操作电压会供给中央处理器42、北桥电路44、南桥电路46、存储器48或者显示控制电路50，所以，计算机系统40并不会经由已知自我功能测试(power-on-self-test，POST)而开机启动，亦即南桥电路46并无法处理光驱52所输出的数据，而计算机系统40便由于仅启动电源区块66b而可大幅地降低其整体的功率消耗。Please note that thepower supply block 66a has not been activated, so no operating voltage will be supplied to theCPU 42, thenorth bridge circuit 44, thesouth bridge circuit 46, thememory 48 or thedisplay control circuit 50, so thecomputer system 40 will not be powered by the Knowing that the self-function test (power-on-self-test, POST) starts, that is, thesouth bridge circuit 46 cannot process the data output by theoptical drive 52, and thecomputer system 40 can greatly increase the power due to only starting the power supply block 66b. to reduce its overall power consumption.

假设笔记型计算机(计算机系统40)已经完成开机程序而启动时，则影音播放控制器54的操作叙述如下。此时，本发明实施例之一为使用南桥电路46处理光驱52所输出的数据，请注意，当计算机系统40开机后，两个电源区块66a、66b均会启动，所以设置在电源区块66a、66b中的任何组件皆可正常地运作。当使用者置入储存有对应一电影影片的影像数据的多功能数字盘片或激光视盘片至光驱52时，计算机系统40可命令光驱52传输该影像数据至南桥电路46，然后，南桥电路46便会进一步地传输该影像数据至北桥电路44。如业界所已知，该影像数据经由一预定算法(例如MPEG-2)而被编码处理过，此外，中央处理器42所执行的已知播放应用程序(playbackapplication)则可对编码的影像数据进行译码处理以还原该影像数据，最后显示控制电路50转换对应该影像数据的影像讯号为驱动讯号，而该驱动讯号便进一步地传输至影音播放控制器54。此时，设置于影音播放控制器54中的视讯传输电路62即会处理该驱动讯号来正确地驱动屏幕56。同样地，伴随该影像数据的声音数据亦会同时被中央处理器42所执行的已知播放应用程序所译码，然后该已知播放应用程序输出译码后的声音数据至音效处理电路51，而音效处理电路51便转换数字的声音数据为模拟的声音讯号以进一步驱动喇叭57。请注意，如上所述，本发明影音播放控制器54可兼容(compatible)于已知影音播放的机制。Assuming that the notebook computer (computer system 40 ) has completed the boot process and starts up, the operation of the video andaudio playback controller 54 is described as follows. At this time, one of the embodiments of the present invention is to use thesouth bridge circuit 46 to process the data output by theoptical drive 52. Please note that when thecomputer system 40 is turned on, the twopower supply blocks 66a, 66b will be activated, so they are set in the power supply area Any of the components inblocks 66a, 66b can function normally. When a user inserts a multi-function digital disc or a laser video disc that stores image data corresponding to a film into theoptical drive 52, thecomputer system 40 can order theoptical drive 52 to transmit the image data to thesouth bridge circuit 46, and then the south bridge Thecircuit 46 further transmits the image data to thenorth bridge circuit 44 . As known in the industry, the image data is encoded through a predetermined algorithm (such as MPEG-2). In addition, the known playback application program (playback application) executed by thecentral processing unit 42 can perform encoding on the encoded image data. The decoding process is used to restore the image data, and finally thedisplay control circuit 50 converts the image signal corresponding to the image data into a driving signal, and the driving signal is further transmitted to the audio andvideo playback controller 54 . At this time, thevideo transmission circuit 62 disposed in the video andaudio playback controller 54 will process the driving signal to drive the screen 56 correctly. Similarly, the audio data accompanying the image data will also be decoded by the known playback application program executed by thecentral processing unit 42, and then the known playback application program outputs the decoded audio data to the audioeffect processing circuit 51, The soundeffect processing circuit 51 converts the digital sound data into an analog sound signal to further drive thespeaker 57 . Please note that, as mentioned above, the audio/video playback controller 54 of the present invention is compatible with known audio/video playback mechanisms.

本发明的另一实施例为光驱52所输出的数据系直接传输至影音播放控制器54，而不需经由南桥电路46进行相关数据传输的控制与处理。如业界所已知，编码的影像数据可经由一软件(software)或一硬件(hardware)来进行相对应的译码运算，对于图2所示的计算机系统40来说，影音播放控制器54作为一硬件译码器以译码该编码的影像数据，同样地，影音播放控制器54亦可处理伴随该影像数据的声音数据，换句话说，影音播放控制器54取代已知播放应用程序来提供译码功能以降低中央处理器42的工作负载(loading)，因此当该播放应用程序执行时便会命令光驱52将该多功能数字盘片或该激光视盘片所读取的数据直接传送至影音播放控制器54。Another embodiment of the present invention is that the data output by theoptical drive 52 is directly transmitted to the audio-video playback controller 54 without going through thesouth bridge circuit 46 for controlling and processing related data transmission. As known in the industry, the coded image data can be decoded by a piece of software (software) or a piece of hardware (hardware). For thecomputer system 40 shown in FIG. A hardware decoder is used to decode the encoded image data. Similarly, the audio-visual playback controller 54 can also process the audio data accompanying the image data. In other words, the audio-visual playback controller 54 replaces the known playback application program to provide The decoding function is to reduce the workload (loading) of thecentral processing unit 42, so when the playback application program is executed, it will order theoptical drive 52 to directly transmit the data read by the multi-function digital disc or the laser video disc to the audio-visual Playback controller 54 .

如前所述，影像译码器58以及音效译码器64分别地用来处理影像数据与声音数据，换算电路60以及视讯传输电路62则控制屏幕56上所显示的影像画面，以及音效译码器64会转换数字的声音数据为模拟的音效讯号以驱动喇叭57。另外，南桥电路46并不处理光驱52所输出的数据，所以当使用者使用计算机系统40来播放储存在多功能数字盘片或激光视盘片上的电影影片时，对于电源区块66a中的组件来说，其有关数据传输的工作负载亦大幅地减轻，亦即相较于已知技术，电源区块66a中的组件所产生的功率消耗因此大幅地降低，造成计算机系统40在播放储存在多功能数字盘片或激光视盘片上的电影影片时，其整体功率消耗因而大幅地减少。As mentioned above, theimage decoder 58 and theaudio decoder 64 are used to process image data and audio data respectively, and theconversion circuit 60 and thevideo transmission circuit 62 control the image displayed on the screen 56 and the audio decoding Thedevice 64 converts the digital sound data into an analog sound signal to drive thespeaker 57 . In addition, thesouth bridge circuit 46 does not process the data output by theoptical drive 52, so when the user uses thecomputer system 40 to play movies stored on the versatile digital disc or laser video disc, the components in thepower supply block 66a In other words, the workload related to data transmission is also greatly reduced, that is, compared with the known technology, the power consumption generated by the components in thepower supply block 66a is thus greatly reduced, causing thecomputer system 40 to play the data stored in multiple The overall power consumption is thus drastically reduced when playing movies on digital disc or laser disc.

由上述说明可知，当计算机系统40为一笔记型计算机时，无论该笔记型计算机(计算机系统40)处于关机状态或开机状态，影音播放控制器54均可用来降低该笔记型计算机的功率消耗而延长该笔记型计算机的电池装置的供电时间，此外，影音播放控制器54亦可用来处理仅记录着声音数据的盘片，例如普通的音乐光盘片(audio CD)，目前推广中的SACD盘片，或者目前推广中的DVD-AUDIO盘片，而上述盘片的相关播放操作与前述影像数据的播放操作类似，因此仅简述如下。As can be seen from the above description, when thecomputer system 40 is a notebook computer, no matter whether the notebook computer (computer system 40) is in the shutdown state or the power-on state, the audio-visual playback controller 54 can be used to reduce the power consumption of the notebook computer. Prolong the power supply time of the battery device of this notebook computer, in addition, audio-visual play controller 54 also can be used for processing the disk that only records sound data, such as common music compact disc (audio CD), the SACD disc in promotion at present , or DVD-AUDIO disks currently being promoted, and the relevant playback operations of the above-mentioned disks are similar to the playback operations of the aforementioned image data, so they are only briefly described as follows.

假设计算机系统40为一笔记型计算机，且原本处于关机状态，所以当一使用者按压光驱52壳体上的一按钮(例如一”PLAY”按钮或一”OPEN”按钮)时，则电源区块66b会被启动，请注意，电源区块66a仍保持关闭而无法执行已知开机程序，例如一自我功能测试(power-on-self-test，POST)。所以，该使用者便可置入储存有声音数据的盘片(例如一音乐光盘片)至光驱52，光驱52此时便可撷取该盘片上所纪录的声音数据，并传输该声音数据至影音播放控制器54。然后，音效译码器64便随即处理该声音数据，以及转换数字的声音数据为模拟的声音讯号，最后，音效译码器64便依据该声音讯号来驱动喇叭57。此外，音效译码器64亦可作为一数字均衡器(digital equalizer)，用来调整对应该声音讯号的频率响应(frequencyresponse)，所以，经由音效译码器64的辅助，喇叭57所输出的声音的品质便可因此而进一步地提升。Assuming that thecomputer system 40 is a notebook computer, and it is in the power-off state originally, so when a user presses a button (such as a "PLAY" button or an "OPEN" button) on the housing of theoptical drive 52, thepower block 66b will be activated, please note that thepower block 66a remains off and cannot perform known boot procedures, such as a power-on-self-test (POST). Therefore, the user can insert a disk (such as a music CD) storing audio data into theoptical drive 52, and theoptical drive 52 can retrieve the audio data recorded on the disk and transmit the audio data to theoptical drive 52. Audio-visual playback controller 54. Then, thesound effect decoder 64 processes the sound data immediately, and converts the digital sound data into an analog sound signal, and finally, thesound effect decoder 64 drives thespeaker 57 according to the sound signal. In addition, thesound effect decoder 64 can also be used as a digital equalizer (digital equalizer), used to adjust the frequency response (frequency response) corresponding to the sound signal, so, through the auxiliary of thesound effect decoder 64, the sound output by thespeaker 57 The quality can thus be further improved.

若计算机系统40已执行开机程序而处于开机状态，则操作电压便会输入隶属于电源区块66a、66b的每一组件，换句话说，此时该声音数据如同影像数据一般而可经由计算机系统40中一硬件(例如影音播放控制器54)或者中央处理器42所执行的一软件(例如一已知播放应用程序)来进行译码运算。假设该声音数据由已知播放应用程序来进行译码处理，则计算机系统40会禁止使用影音播放控制器54来译码该声音数据，因此光驱52所输出的声音数据便会传输至南桥电路46，然后，南桥电路46再将其所接收的声音数据输出至北桥电路44，最后中央处理器42便可存取该声音数据，而目前执行中的已知播放应用程序便开始对该声音数据进行译码运算。译码后的声音数据便输出至音效处理电路51，当音效处理电路51完成转换数字的声音数据为模拟的声音讯号后，音效处理电路51即依据该模拟的声音讯号来驱动喇叭57。此外，值得注意的是本发明影音播放控制器54可兼容于已知影音播放的机制。If thecomputer system 40 has executed the boot program and is in the boot state, the operating voltage will be input to each component belonging to thepower supply blocks 66a, 66b. In other words, at this time, the audio data can pass through the computer system like image data A piece of hardware in 40 (such as the audio-visual playback controller 54 ) or a piece of software (such as a known playback application program) executed by thecentral processing unit 42 performs the decoding operation. Assuming that the sound data is decoded by a known playback application program, thecomputer system 40 will prohibit the use of thevideo player controller 54 to decode the sound data, so the sound data output by theoptical drive 52 will be transmitted to thesouth bridge circuit 46, then, thesouthbridge circuit 46 outputs the received sound data to thenorthbridge circuit 44 again, and finally thecentral processing unit 42 can access the sound data, and the known playing application program currently executing starts to process the sound data. The data is decoded. The decoded audio data is output to theaudio processing circuit 51. When theaudio processing circuit 51 converts the digital audio data into analog audio signals, theaudio processing circuit 51 drives thespeaker 57 according to the analog audio signals. In addition, it is worth noting that the video andaudio playback controller 54 of the present invention is compatible with known video and audio playback mechanisms.

若影音播放控制器54用来直接译码该声音数据，而不需经由南桥电路46进行相关数据传输的控制与处理，所以计算机系统40会禁止使用南桥电路46处理该声音数据的相关数据传输事宜，因此光驱52所输出的声音数据便直接传输至影音播放控制器54，然后，音效译码器64开始对所接收的声音数据进行译码运算，并转换数字的声音数据为模拟的声音讯号，最后，音效译码器64依据该模拟的声音讯号来驱动喇叭57。由于设置于电源区块66a中的电路组件并没有用来处理由光驱52所输出的声音数据，所以计算机系统40的功率消耗便随的降低。If the audio-visual playback controller 54 is used to directly decode the audio data, without the need to control and process related data transmission via theSouth Bridge circuit 46, thecomputer system 40 will prohibit the use of theSouth Bridge circuit 46 to process the related data of the audio data. Therefore, the audio data output by theoptical drive 52 is directly transmitted to the audio-visual playback controller 54, and then theaudio decoder 64 starts to decode the received audio data, and converts the digital audio data into analog audio Finally, thesound effect decoder 64 drives thespeaker 57 according to the analog sound signal. Since the circuit components disposed in thepower block 66a are not used to process the audio data output by theoptical drive 52, the power consumption of thecomputer system 40 is reduced accordingly.

计算机系统40可以是如上所述的笔记型计算机，或者是一桌上型计算机(desktop computer)。对于桌上型计算机来说，设置在电源区块66b中的组件的运作与该组件设置在前述笔记型计算机时的操作相似。举例来说，影音播放控制器54兼容于已知影音播放的机制，此外，影音播放控制器54可直接处理光驱52所输出的多媒体数据，而不需启动南桥电路46来处理该多媒体数据，所以该桌上型计算机的功率消耗也随的降低。当该桌上型计算机处于关机状态或开机状态时，设置于电源区块66a中的组件不会干预该多媒体数据的处理，此外，仅有电源区块66b中的组件被启动来处理该多媒体数据，所以本发明播放影音数据的架构亦可达到减少桌上型计算机的功率消耗的目的。Computer system 40 may be a notebook computer as described above, or a desktop computer. For a desktop computer, the operation of the components disposed in thepower block 66b is similar to that of the aforementioned notebook computer. For example, the audio-visual playback controller 54 is compatible with known audio-visual playback mechanisms. In addition, the audio-visual playback controller 54 can directly process the multimedia data output by theoptical drive 52 without activating thesouth bridge circuit 46 to process the multimedia data. Therefore, the power consumption of the desktop computer is also reduced accordingly. When the desktop computer is turned off or turned on, the components disposed in thepower block 66a will not interfere with the processing of the multimedia data, and in addition, only the components in thepower block 66b are activated to process the multimedia data , so the framework of the present invention for playing audio-visual data can also achieve the purpose of reducing the power consumption of the desktop computer.

在上述实施例中，使用者可选择性地(selectively)采用已知播放影音数据的机制来播放多媒体数据或使用本发明播放影音数据的机制来播放多媒体数据，亦即，本发明影音播放控制器54可依据已知播放影音数据的机制或本发明播放影音数据的机制而正常地运作，所以本发明影音播放控制器54的用途与操作方式十分具有弹性(flexible)。In the above-mentioned embodiments, the user can selectively (selectively) play multimedia data by using a known mechanism for playing audio-visual data or use the mechanism for playing audio-visual data of the present invention to play multimedia data, that is, the audio-visual playback controller of the present invention The 54 can operate normally according to the known mechanism for playing audio-visual data or the mechanism for playing audio-visual data of the present invention, so the use and operation mode of the audio-video playback controller 54 of the present invention are very flexible.

此外，图2所示的喇叭57可包含有多个喇叭单元(speaker unit)，用来在计算机系统40播放电影影片时产生极佳的环绕音效。对于影音播放控制器54来说，影音播放控制器54可以是设置在主机板上的单一芯片或者是设置在电连接于该主机板的插槽(slot)或连接器(connector)的扩充卡(expansioncard)上。举例来说，单芯片(system-on-a-chip，SOC)的技术已十分成熟，所以影像译码器58，换算电路60，音效译码器64，以及视讯传输电路62等电路均可整合在同一芯片中而因此对应较小的芯片尺寸与产生较低的功率消耗，而该芯片便作为一多媒体播放系统来处理记录在一影碟上的影像数据以及记录于一音乐光盘片上的声音数据。若影音播放控制器54安装在该扩充卡上，则影音播放控制器54的启动与否主要是依据所需操作电压是否经由相对应的插槽或连接器而输入影音播放控制器54，举例来说，该扩充卡适用于笔记型计算机所使用的PCMCIA插槽或者适用于桌上型计算机所使用的PCI插槽，所以当对该PCMCIA插槽或该PCI插槽供电时，则该PCMCIA插槽或该PCI插槽便可提供操作电压以启动设置有影音播放控制器54的扩充卡。In addition, thespeaker 57 shown in FIG. 2 may include a plurality of speaker units for producing excellent surround sound effects when thecomputer system 40 plays movies. For the audio-visual playback controller 54, the audio-visual playback controller 54 can be a single chip arranged on the motherboard or an expansion card ( expansion card). For example, the technology of a single chip (system-on-a-chip, SOC) is very mature, so theimage decoder 58,conversion circuit 60,audio decoder 64, andvideo transmission circuit 62 and other circuits can be integrated In the same chip, corresponding to smaller chip size and lower power consumption, the chip is used as a multimedia playback system to process image data recorded on a video disc and audio data recorded on an audio CD. If the audio-visual playback controller 54 is installed on the expansion card, whether the audio-visual playback controller 54 is activated or not is mainly based on whether the required operating voltage is input to the audio-visual playback controller 54 through the corresponding slot or connector, for example Said that the expansion card is suitable for the PCMCIA slot used by the notebook computer or the PCI slot used by the desktop computer, so when the PCMCIA slot or the PCI slot is powered, the PCMCIA slot Or the PCI slot can provide the operating voltage to start the expansion card provided with the audio-visual playing controller 54 .

请注意，影像数据与声音数据可储存在一光盘片或一磁盘片(magneticdisk)上，如上所述，计算机系统40使用光驱52来撷取记录于光盘片上的数据，然而，计算机系统40亦可应用一磁盘驱动器(magnetic disk drive)，例如一硬盘机(hard-disk drive)，来撷取记录于磁盘片上的数据。依据图2所示的功能方块图，光驱52可由一磁盘驱动器来替换以使计算机系统40可存取磁盘片上的数据，亦即该磁盘驱动器会归属于电源区块66b，对于播放多媒体数据而言，明显地，该磁盘驱动器的操作与光驱52的操作相同，而为了便于说明，因此直接使用图2的功能方块图来说明该磁盘驱动器的操作。假设一已知磁盘驱动器取代了图2所示的光驱52而设置在计算机系统40中，当计算机系统40未开机启动时，位于电源区块66b中的磁盘驱动器可如同光驱52一般地传输记录于磁盘片上的多媒体数据至影音播放控制器54，然后，影音播放控制器54便驱动屏幕56以输出对应该多媒体数据的影像画面。同样地，当计算机系统40已执行开机程序而启动时，位于电源区块66b中的磁盘驱动器亦可如同光驱52一般地直接传输记录于磁盘片上的多媒体数据至影音播放控制器54，而不需输出该多媒体数据至南桥电路46以通过南桥电路46进行数据传输的控制与处理，然后，影音播放控制器54便驱动屏幕56以输出对应该多媒体数据的影像画面。换句话说，数据储存装置(例如一光驱或一磁盘驱动器)必须设置于电源区块66b中，亦即任何用来输出所需的多媒体数据的数据储存装置系设置于电源区块66b，所以当电源区块66b启动时，位于电源区块66b中的数据储存装置便可顺利地输出所需的多媒体数据至影音播放控制器54，然后影音播放控制器54便直接处理该多媒体数据而成功地达到省电的主要目的。Please note that image data and audio data can be stored on an optical disc or a magnetic disk. As mentioned above, thecomputer system 40 uses theoptical drive 52 to retrieve the data recorded on the optical disc. However, thecomputer system 40 can also A magnetic disk drive, such as a hard-disk drive, is used to retrieve data recorded on the magnetic disk. According to the functional block diagram shown in FIG. 2, theoptical drive 52 can be replaced by a disk drive so that thecomputer system 40 can access the data on the disk, that is, the disk drive will belong to thepower block 66b, for playing multimedia data , obviously, the operation of the disk drive is the same as that of theoptical drive 52, and for the convenience of description, the functional block diagram of FIG. 2 is directly used to illustrate the operation of the disk drive. Assuming that a known disk drive is installed in thecomputer system 40 instead of theoptical drive 52 shown in FIG. The multimedia data on the disk is sent to the audio-visual playback controller 54, and then the audio-visual playback controller 54 drives the screen 56 to output an image frame corresponding to the multimedia data. Similarly, when thecomputer system 40 has executed the boot program and started, the disk drive located in thepower supply block 66b can also directly transmit the multimedia data recorded on the disk to the audio-visual playback controller 54 just like theoptical drive 52, without the need to Output the multimedia data to thesouth bridge circuit 46 to control and process the data transmission through thesouth bridge circuit 46, and then, the audio-visual playback controller 54 drives the screen 56 to output the image frame corresponding to the multimedia data. In other words, the data storage device (such as an optical drive or a magnetic disk drive) must be arranged in thepower block 66b, that is, any data storage device used to output the required multimedia data is arranged in thepower block 66b, so when When thepower supply block 66b starts, the data storage device positioned in thepower supply block 66b can successfully output the required multimedia data to the audio-visual playback controller 54, and then the audio-visual playback controller 54 will directly process the multimedia data and successfully achieve The main purpose of power saving.

相较于已知计算机系统，本发明计算机系统包含有一影音播放控制器，其可在该计算机系统未执行开机程序而保持关机状态下正常地运作，所以若一使用者想要播放对应一电影影片的影像数据时，仅有影音播放控制器，屏幕，以及喇叭会启动，换句话说，本发明计算机系统在播放该多媒体数据的过程由于仅有部分组件消耗电力，因此所产生的功率消耗便大幅地降低。此外，因为使用者不需要启动计算机系统完全地进入开机状态便可使用该计算机系统播放多媒体数据，所以使用者即可十分方便且简单地利用该计算机系统来播放多媒体数据，而不需等待该计算机系统完成冗长的开机程序。另外，由于不需启动该计算机系统执行开机程序，所以该计算机系统的功率消耗亦因此而降低。若该计算机系统已进入开机状态，本发明影音播放控制器可直接处理该多媒体数据而不需南桥电路以及中央处理器等的干预，所以，在此状况下，该计算机系统的功率消耗亦因此而降低。Compared with the known computer system, the computer system of the present invention includes an audio-visual playback controller, which can operate normally when the computer system does not execute the boot program and remains in the shutdown state, so if a user wants to play a corresponding movie When the video data is displayed, only the audio-visual playback controller, the screen, and the speaker will be activated. In other words, the computer system of the present invention consumes power because only some components consume power during the playback of the multimedia data, so the power consumption generated is greatly increased. lowered. In addition, because the user can use the computer system to play multimedia data without starting the computer system to completely enter the power-on state, so the user can use the computer system to play multimedia data very conveniently and simply without waiting for the computer The system completes the lengthy boot process. In addition, since the computer system does not need to be started to execute the boot program, the power consumption of the computer system is also reduced accordingly. If the computer system has entered the power-on state, the audio-visual playback controller of the present invention can directly process the multimedia data without the intervention of the south bridge circuit and the central processing unit, etc., so in this case, the power consumption of the computer system is also reduced accordingly. And lower.

以上所述仅为本发明的较佳实施例，凡依本发明权利要求所做的均等变化与修饰，均应属本发明专利的涵盖范围。The above descriptions are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, and all equivalent changes and modifications made according to the claims of the present invention shall fall within the scope of the patent of the present invention.