WO2019042673A1 - A video wall system connection method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system and a method enabling data transnnission in a video wall system (1 ) comprising a plurality of display devices (2) connected to a control unit (3) processing source files to be displayed on a plurality of display devices (2). In particular, the present invention relates to a remotely controllable video wall system (1 ) having a serial HDMI transmission line (6) in between display devices.

Description

A VIDEO WALL SYSTEM CONNECTION METHOD

The present invention relates to a transmission system enabling data transfer in a video wall display system comprising a plurality of display devices connected to a control unit processing source files to be displayed on a plurality of display devices.

The display devices display images on their screens, and combining a plurality of display devices so as to form a wide-screen display system called a video wall, is a function achievable by simultaneously using a plurality of separate display devices together. In general, the video wall term implies generating a single video wall image by means of a plurality of display devices, from a combined image transmitted from a single video inlet. Video walls may generally have 1x4, 2x2, 3x3, 4x4 or much larger screen arrangements.

Essentially, video walls are preferred for being able to obtain a larger screen area by changing their arrangement and a higher pixel intensity per unit cost, and they provide advantage due to production costs of single screens and enable achieving an extraordinary resolution when they are thus combined.

Video walls are usually utilized at large, open public spaces such as stadiums. Video walls are driven by video graphics cards having a plurality of monitor ports, but complex arrangements require special graphic processors that are able to manage large video walls. However, software based video wall controllers use computers and network equipment.

In video wall applications, a separate cable connection is used for each one of the display devices in the system, enabling data communication with a central computer.

Video distribution can be performed by various methods. In one of such methods, a central video distribution system is used, and each image to be displayed on a single display device is distributed by said central video distribution system. An image is appropriately split by the central system. Although they are independent of each other, the screens are thus combined displaying as a whole. In order to split the image appropriately, the positions on the system needs to be identified of the display devices constituting the video wall system. In such systems constituted by a plurality of display devices, controlling from a single point is advantageous. Being able to control independent display devices is particularly critical in cases when reconfiguration is required in the planned number of display devices on which the image is to be reflected, and in case of a likely malfunction on one of the display devices. Such control can be managed by rearranging the physical connections of the system or by integrating an external control device to the structure. This makes it difficult for a user to control the video wall system and requires technical service assistance.

In video wall systems, performing controlling of the video wall systems in which video and sound data transmission infrastructure is formed by HDMI (high definition multimedia interface), through HDMI CEC (consumer electronics control) command packets aims to facilitate said control. HDMI CEC, is an HDMI feature designed for the users to command and control the devices connected through HDMI by using a single remote controller. For example, this enables using the remote controller of a display device for controlling a set-top box and/or a DVD player. HDMI CEC enables the devices connected by means of HDMI ports of the display device to communicate with and through the display device. Said devices may have some control over the display device, and the display devices may have some control over the other devices.

State of the art patent document no. US7786304 describes a packet generation method in a wireless HDMI media. Accordingly, sound and/or image data and control data can be transmitted through a single channel on HDMI.

State of the art patent document no. US2014119675 describes in a video wall system comprising a plurality of display devices, the method for performing data exchange of the display devices with the other devices in the system through a plurality of connections.

With the present invention, a serial connection is formed between adjacent display devices in a video wall system, identifying process of the positions of the display devices on said system being performed by enabling a plurality of display devices to communicate through HDMI CEC.

The video wall system realized to achieve the aim of the present invention and disclosed in the first claim and the dependent claims, comprises a plurality of display devices having a serial data transmission line in between, and transmitting an image or video signal to an adjacent device along said transmission line. Said display devices are generally arranged in a matrix structure, enabling a main image to be viewed on the entire matrix structure by displaying certain sections of the main image on their screens according to their physical positions. In the video wall system, at least one control unit is provided enabling data transfer through an HDMI CEC interface enabling the display devices to be able to communicate with each other. The control unit can be provided as one control unit on each display device, or as connected so as to control a plurality of display devices in the video wall system. HDMI CEC commands can be transmitted to the control unit by means of a device with controller function, or the control unit activated by a controller may be enabled to generate such command. A transmission system is formed by means of an HDMI CEC command transmitted to the control unit, enabling determining one of the display devices as the main display device, identifying a display device on a desired address by defining the position information of the other display devices in an HDMI CEC packet, and remotely controlling said identified display device. A user is thus enabled to remotely control the positions of the display devices in the video wall system.

In an embodiment of the invention, the video wall system comprises an HDMI multiplexer enabling HDMI data to be transmitted to a plurality of display devices. The HDMI multiplexer performs the function of transmitting HDMI data from one source to a plurality of devices. An HDMI port is provided on each display device, enabling data from the HDMI multiplexer to be transmitted to the display device. The HDMI data transmitted to the display device through its HDMI port, enables sound and video data transmission as well as command transmission through HDMI CEC data packets to said display device. A command sent from a single source is thus enabled to be transmitted to a plurality of targets.

In another embodiment of the invention, the video wall system comprises a control menu enabling a user to make a selection by displaying on a display device the commands sent by means of a controller. The commands are presented for selection to the user by a control menu viewable preferably on the screen of a display device. The main selection to be made on the control menu displayed on a screen, is to choose whether the controlled display device is going be the main display device. The function of said display device is determined by the options formed on the control menu “main display device selection and deselection”. When a display device is selected as the main display device, by means of HDMI CEC commands to be then opened on the control menu to user access, the option is created of sending commands to all display devices that are enabled data transmission by the HDMI transmission line in the video wall system. A user can thus remotely control the video wall system.

In another embodiment of the invention, the video wall system comprises a control unit enabling identifying the positions of the other display devices to which the main display device is connected through the HDMI transmission line, by using the MAC address of a related display device. The main display device appends to the HDMI CEC packet it uses to transmit commands to the other display devices in the video wall system, the command of processing the MAC address of the related display device and of communicating it back. The control unit processing the command from HDMI CEC, appends the MAC address of the related display device to the HDMI CEC packet and transmits it back to the main display device. By means of the CEC address formed specifically for the command sent in the content of the HDMI CEC packet, and the received MAC address of the target display device, the position of a display device on the video wall system is identified, enabling its control.

In another embodiment of the invention, in the video wall system, by means of the HDMI data transmission line between a main display device and the other display devices HDMI CEC commands are formed according to a user's selections, enabling operating a video wall system comprising a plurality of display devices between which the HDMI transmission line is formed, and enabling performing the user control via the main display device by defining a main display device in the video wall system. Said formed HMDI CEC command enables determining the positions of the display devices on the video wall system, by enabling the following steps to be performed respectively: providing duplex data transmission to the display devices by transmitting data from an HDMI multiplexer to the HDMI port on a display device, querying by the main display device the MAC address of any display device in the system through an HDMI CEC command, visually alerting the user by the display device being activated upon receiving said command, and identifying the position of said display device by the device transmitting back its MAC address and the CEC address in the incoming HDMI CEC command. When the display device is activated, preferably a predefined color is displayed on the screen of the display device, visually informing the user that the display device is activated, and when the address identification is completed, another predefined color is displayed on the screen, visually informing the user that address identification is performed. Said colors may be formed as displaying a red screen when the device is activated, and a green screen when address identification is completed. By means of the visual notification, a user can conveniently understand the execution state of a control command and which one of the display devices is controlled in the system, thereby providing ease of use.

A video wall system is realized by means of the invention, in which the command transmission efficiency between display devices is improved and ease of use is provided.

The video wall system realized to achieve the aims of the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a schematic view of a 3x3 video wall system of the prior art.

The elements in the figure are numbered individually and the correspondence of these numbers are given hereinafter.
1.Video wall system
2.Display device
3.Control unit
4.HDMI multiplexer
5.HDMI port
6. HDMI transmission line
7.Transmission system
8. Control menu
202.Main display device
K.Controller

The video wall system (1) comprises a plurality of display devices (2) between which a serial data transmission line is provided, transmitting an image or video signal to an adjacent device along the transmission line, at least one control unit (3) enabling data transfer by an HDMI CEC interface enabling the display devices (2) to communicate with each other, a controller (K) enabling the control unit (3) to be remotely controlled by transmitting HDMI CEC commands to the control unit (3), and an HDMI transmission line (6) enabling HDMI data transmission between the display devices (2); and comprises a transmission system (7) enabling: determining one of the display devices (2) as the main display device (202) by means of the HDMI CEC command transmitted to the control unit (3) through the controller (K), identifying a display device (2) at a desired address by defining the position information of the other display devices (2) in an HDMI CEC packet, and remotely controlling the identified display device (2). A plurality of display devices (2) are provided in the video wall system (1). HDMI data packets are enabled to be transmitted to the display devices (2) thanks to the HDMI transmission line (6). Along with sound and image content, said HDMI data packets comprise definable CEC commands, making it possible to transmit specific commands to the display devices (2), enabling performing functional adjustments. The commands are transmitted to the control unit (3) by means of a controller (K) suitable for the user to transmit commands. The control unit (3) processes the command received, enabling the display device (2) to perform the required operation. In order to be able to control the video wall system (1), it is required to define the position information of all display devices (2) in the system and to perform display sharing according to this position information, therefore a primarily positioned main display device (202) is determined in the system by means of the HDMI CEC command formed by a user's preference, and a transmission system (7) is formed in which position identification is performed by setting up a connection with the other display devices (2) in the system via said main device (202) by means of the HDMI transmission line (6). Remote controlling of the video wall system (1) by a user is thus facilitated.

In an embodiment of the invention, the video wall system (1) comprises an HDMI multiplexer (4) enabling HDMI data to be transmitted to a plurality of display devices (2), and an HDMI port (5) provided on each one of the display devices (2), enabling the data from the HDMI multiplexer (4) to be transmitted to a display device (2). The control of the entire video wall system (1) is performed from a single source by means of HDMI data. In order to be able to perform this, the data from a single source should be fed to all display devices (2) constituting the system. The HDMI multiplexer (4) provided in the video wall system (1) performs the transmission of HDMI data by providing connection to each one of the display devices (2) in the system by means of the HDMI ports (5) provided thereon. By this, all display devices (2) in the video wall system (1) are enabled to receive the commands sent by HDMI CEC, enabling a user to control each one of the display devices (2).

In another embodiment of the invention, the video wall system (1) comprises a control menu (8) enabling a user to make a selection by displaying on a display device (2) the commands sent by means of the controller (K). Any one of the display devices (2) is activated by the command sent via the controller (K), and a control menu (8) enabling a user to make a selection is displayed on the screen of the display device (2). The commands required to create the position information of the other display devices (2) can be provided via said control menu (8) by assigning as the main display device (202) the display device (2) on whose screen the control menu (8) is displayed. The control menu (8) enables executing the command by communicating directly with the control unit (3) (Figure 1). Thus, the user is enabled to select according to his/her preferences and to be informed about his/her selections.

In another embodiment of the invention, the video wall system (1) comprises a control unit (3) enabling identifying the positions of the other display devices (2) to which the main display device (202) is connected through the HDMI transmission line (6), by using the MAC address of a related display device (2). The display devices (2) capable of transmitting HDMI data between each other by means of the HDMI transmission line (6), receive the HDMI CEC command coming to the main display device (202). The MAC address sending request appended to the command packet, is transmitted to the related display device (2). While retransmitting the MAC address information to the source, said display device (2) also feeds back the source the CEC address formed according to the HDMI CEC command. By this, the display device (2) to which the command was sent, and the identity and the position in the video wall system of said display device (2) are identified.

In another embodiment of the invention, the operation of a video wall system (1) comprising a plurality of display devices (2) between which an HDMI transmission line (6) is formed, is enabled by performing the following steps: defining in the video wall system (1) of a main display device (202) thus enabling the user control to be performed via said main display device (202); enabling duplex data transmission to the display devices (2) by transmitting from the HDMI multiplexer (4) to the HDMI port (5) on a display device (2), HDMI CEC commands formed according to the user's selections by means of the HDMI transmission line (6) between the main display device (202) and the other display devices (2); querying by the main display device (202) the MAC address of any display device (2) in the system; visually alerting the user by the display device (2) being activated upon receiving said command; and identifying the position of said display device (2) upon said device retransmitting its MAC address and the CEC address in the received HDMI CEC command. The HDMI CEC command is reached by the HDMI multiplexer (4) to all display devices (2) in the video wall system (1), by means of the HDMI port (5) provided thereon. Any one of the display devices (2) is identified as the main display device (202), and data is transmitted to the other display devices (2) via the HDMI transmission line (6) by means of controlling the main display device (202). The control unit (3), if activated by the user, appends a query command for a defined MAC address to the HDMI CEC command packet, and transmits it to the display devices (2) through the HDMI transmission line (6). The display device (2) receiving said command activates, preferably displays a notification on its screen, and processes the command. Upon activation of the display device (2), the user is notified about which screen is controlled physically. The command coming to the display devices (2) is processed, and the information about the MAC address of the display device (2) and the CEC address of the command packet are transmitted to the main display device (202) via the same line. The display device displays an alert to notify the user when the information regarding the position on the system is successfully identified. By this, the identity of a display device (2) on the video wall system (1) and its position on the system is verified by a visual notification so that it can be controlled by a user.

In the video wall system (1) of the invention, a plurality of display devices (2) are enabled to communicate through HDMI CEC, the positions on the system of the display devices (2) are thus detected, enhancing remote controlling efficiency of said display devices (2).

Claims (5)

1. A video wall system (1) comprising a plurality of display devices (2) having a serial data transmission line in between, transmitting an image or a video signal along the transmission line to an adjacent device, at least one control unit (3) enabling data transmission by an HDMI CEC interface enabling the display devices (2) to communicate with each other, a controller (K) enabling the control unit (3) to be remotely controllable by transmitting HDMI CEC commands to the control unit (3), and an HDMI transmission line (6) enabling HDMI data transmission between the display devices (2),characterized by a transmission system (7) enabling

   - determining one of the display devices (2) as the main display device (202) by an HDMI CEC command transmitted to the control unit (3) by means of the controller (K),

   - identifying a display device (2) at a desired address by defining the position information of the other display devices (2) in an HDMI CEC packet, and remotely controlling the identified display device.
2. A video wall system (1) according to claim 1,characterized by an HDMI multiplexer (4) enabling HDMI data to be transmitted to a plurality of display devices (2),and by an HDMI port (5) provided on each one of the display devices (2), enabling the data from the HDMI multiplexer (4) to be transmitted to a display device (2).
3. A video wall system (1) according to claim 1 or 2,characterized by a control menu (8) enabling a user to make a selection by displaying on a display device (2) the commands sent by means of a controller (K).
4. A video wall system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims,characterized by a control unit (3) enabling identifying the positions of the other display devices (2) to which the main display device (202) is connected through the HDMI transmission line (6), by using the MAC address of a related display device (2).
5. A method for controlling a video wall system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims,comprising the steps of:

   - determining a main display device (202) in the video wall system (1) and enabling a user to control the system via said main display device (202),

   - providing duplex data transmission to the display devices (2) by transmitting from the HDMI multiplexer (4) to the HDMI port (5) on a display device (2), the HDMI CEC commands formed according to a user's selection by means of the HDMI transmission line (6) between the main display device (202) and the other display devices (2),

   - querying by the main display device (202), the MAC address of any display device (2) in the system through an HDMI CEC command,

   - visually alerting the user by the display device (2) being activated upon receiving said HDMI CEC command,

   - identifying the position of said display device (2) upon retransmitting its MAC address and the CEC address in the received HDMI CEC command.

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