Method and system for displaying an analog image by a digital display device

Abstract

A clock recovery circuit in a digital display unit for recovering a time reference signal associated with analog display data. The clock recovery circuit includes a phase-locked loop (PLL) implemented in digital domain and an analog filter to eliminate any undesirable frequencies from the output signal of the PLL. The PLL includes independent control loops to track long term frequency drifts of the time reference signal and the transient phase differences respectively. By providing such independent control loops, the generated clock can be better synchronized with the time reference signal.This invention is directed to a method of scaling a source image formed of a number of source image elements to provide a destination image formed of a number of destination image elements using a line buffer and no frame buffer.

1. A circuit for use in a digital display unit of a computer system, and circuit for generating a plurality of pixel data elements from an analog image data received by said digital display unit, said digital display unit further receiving a time reference signal associated with said analog image data, said time reference signal having a high frequency, said circuit comprising:
 an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) for receiving said analog image data, said ADC sampling said analog image data using a sampling clock to generate a plurality of pixel data elements corresponding to said plurality of pixels, wherein said sampling clock has a sampling frequency equal to said high frequency;   a clock generator circuit comprising a phase-locked loop (PLL) circuit for generating said sampling clock, wherein said sampling clock is synchronized with said time reference signal with a jitter of less than a few nano-seconds, said PLL comprising:   a discrete time oscillator (DTO) for receiving a digital input and generating a signal representative of said sampling clock with a frequency determined by said digital input; and
 a digital circuit for receiving said time reference signal and a feedback signal, wherein said feedback signal is generated by dividing said sampling clock, said digital circuit generating said digital input according to the difference of the phases of said time reference signal and said feedback signal, said digital input causing said DTO to generate said signal synchronized with said time reference signal, said digital circuit comprising:
 a frequency correction logic for adjusting the phase of said sampling clock according to the long-term drifts in the frequency of said time reference signal; and 
 a phase correction logic for adjusting the phase of said sampling clock according to the phase difference in said feedback signal and said time reference signal, 
 wherein said frequency correction logic and said phase correction logic are implemented as two separate control loops, 
 
   wherein a panel interface included in said digital display unit can generate display signals for a display screen based on said plurality of pixel data elements.   
     
     
       2. The circuit of  claim 1 , wherein said clock generator circuit further comprises an analog filter to eliminate any undesirable frequencies from said signal representative of said sampling clock to generate said sampling clock. 
     
     
       3. The circuit of  claim 1 , further comprising a phase and frequency detector for determining the difference of phase between said feedback signal and said time reference signal. 
     
     
       4. The circuit of  claim 3 , further comprising a charge/discharge control logic for determining the amount of phase correction to be made based on the determination of said difference of phase. 
     
     
       5. The circuit of  claim 1 , wherein said analog image data and said time reference signal are received on two separate signal paths. 
     
     
       6. The circuit of  claim 5 , wherein said reference clock comprises a binary signal. 
     
     
       7. The circuit of  claim 1 , wherein said digital circuit distributes phase error between said feedback signal and said reference signal during a comparison cycle by changing the phase of individual clock pulses in said sampling clock. 
     
     
       8. The circuit of  claim 1 , wherein said frequency correction logic generates a multi-bit number, wherein said multi-bit number is representative of the amount of phase advance of said sampling clock generated by said DTO during a DTO clock period, and wherein said multi-bit representation enables said PLL to reach said sampling frequency within a short duration. 
     
     
       9. The circuit of  claim 1 , wherein said frequency correction logic comprises:
 a first multiplexor accepting as input Pnom and Fdp values, wherein Pnom represents an expected frequency of said sampling clock and Fdp represents the correction due to the long-term frequency drifts;   a flip-flop for storing a value representative of the phase correction corresponding to the frequency correction logic;   an adder for adding or subtracting the output of said first multiplexor from the value stored in said flip-flop, wherein the output of said adder is stored in said flip-flop; and   a frequency correction control coupled to said flip-flop and said adder, wherein said frequency correction control causes said flip-flop to be set to Pnom at the beginning of a phase acquisition phase, and wherein said frequency correction control causes said adder to add or subtract Fdp depending on whether the sampling clock is early or late in comparison to said time reference.   
     
     
       10. The circuit of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a phase and frequency detector for determining the difference of phase between said feedback signal and said time reference signal, wherein said phase and frequency detector asserts an EARLY signal a number of clock pulses proportionate to the difference of phase by which said feedback signal is earlier than said time reference signal and a or a LATE signal a number of pulses proportionate to the difference of phase by which said feedback signal is later than said time reference signal; and   a charge/discharge control logic implemented using digital components, said charge/discharge control logic including a phase integrator, said charge/discharge control logic charging said phase integrator according to the number of pulses said EARLY signal or said LATE signal is asserted, said charge/discharge logic discharging over a longer period of time than the charging period so as to spread the difference in phase over a comparison cycle, wherein the phase of said sampling clock is corrected during the discharging period.   
     
     
       11. The circuit of  claim 10 , further comprising a sign and zero crossing detector for correcting any over-correction performed by said charge/discharge logic during said discharging period. 
     
     
       12. An integrated circuit, comprising:
 a first interface;   a line buffer;   an interpolator unit;   a second interface; and   a processor coupled with the line buffer, the first interface the interpolator unit, and the second interface, the processor arranged to convert a source image having a first aspect ratio to a destination image having a second aspect ratio without a frame buffer by executing instructions for performing at least the following operations:   receiving a first plurality of image elements from the source image at the first interface, the first plurality of image elements from the source image being in accordance with the first aspect ratio;   sending from the first interface at least some of the first plurality of image elements to the line buffer;   storing the image elements sent from the first interface at the line buffer;   sending selected ones of the image elements stored in the line buffer to the interpolator unit; and   outputting a second plurality of image elements from the interpolator unit to the second interface, the second plurality of image elements being in accordance with the destination image and used for presentation of the destination image at the second aspect ratio by a display device.   
     
     
       13. The integrated circuit as recited in claim 12, wherein the first plurality of image elements is associated with a single source image scan line. 
     
     
       14. The integrated circuit as recited in claim 13, wherein the second plurality of image elements is associated with a single destination image scan line. 
     
     
       15. The integrated circuit as recited in claim 14, wherein when the converting is upscaling, then the number of destination image elements is greater than the number of source image elements. 
     
     
       16. The pipelined imaging process as recited in claim 15, wherein a rate at which the interpolator unit outputs the second plurality of image elements is about the same as a rate of storing the first plurality of image elements in the line buffer. 
     
     
       17. The non-transient computer readable medium for storing computer code executable by a processor for performing a pipelined imaging process for converting a source image having a first aspect ratio to a destination image having a second aspect ratio without a frame buffer, comprising:
 computer code for storing a first plurality of image elements from the source image at a line buffer, the first plurality of image elements from the source image being in accordance with the first aspect ratio;   computer code for providing selected ones of the first plurality of image elements stored in the line buffer to an interpolator unit; and   outputting a second plurality of image elements from the interpolator unit to an output interface, the second plurality of image elements being in accordance with the second aspect ratio and used for presentation by a display device of the destination image.   
     
     
       18. The non-transient computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the first plurality of image elements is associated with a single source image scan line. 
     
     
       19. The non-transient computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein the second plurality of image elements is associated with a single destination image scan line. 
     
     
       20. The non-transient computer readable medium as recited in claim 17, wherein when the converting is upscaling, then the number of destination image elements is greater than the number of source image elements. 
     
     
       21. The non-transient computer readable medium as recited in claim 20, wherein a rate at which the interpolator unit outputs the second plurality of image elements is about the same as a rate of storing the first plurality of image elements in the line buffer. 
     
     
       22. The non-transient computer readable medium as recited in claim 21, wherein the pipelined imaging process is performed by a processing device, the processing device being in communication with the line buffer and the output interface. 
     
     
       23. The non-transient computer readable medium as recited in claim 22, wherein the processing device is incorporated into an integrated circuit. 
     
     
       24. An apparatus for performing a pipelined conversion of a source image having a first aspect ratio to a destination image having a second aspect ratio without a frame buffer, comprising:
 means for storing a first plurality of image elements from the source image at a line buffer, the first plurality of image elements from the source image being in accordance with the first aspect ratio;   means for providing selected ones of the first plurality of image elements stored in the line buffer to an interpolator unit; and   means for outputting a second plurality of image elements from the interpolator unit to an output interface, the second plurality of image elements being in accordance with the second aspect ratio and used for presentation by a display device of the destination image.   
     
     
       25. The apparatus as recited in claim 24, wherein the first plurality of image elements is associated with a single source image scan line. 
     
     
       26. The apparatus as recited in claim 25, wherein the second plurality of image elements is associated with a single destination image scan line. 
     
     
       27. The apparatus as recited in claim 26, wherein when the converting is upscaling, then the number of destination image elements is greater than the number of source image elements. 
     
     
       28. The apparatus as recited in claim 27, wherein a rate at which the interpolator unit outputs the second plurality of image elements is about the same as a rate of storing the first plurality of image elements in the line buffer. 
     
     
       29. A pipelined imaging process for converting a source image having a first aspect ratio to a destination image having a second aspect ratio without a frame buffer, comprising:
 storing a first plurality of image elements from the source image at a line buffer, the first plurality of image elements from the source image being in accordance with the first aspect ratio;   providing selected ones of the first plurality of image elements stored in the line buffer to an interpolator unit; and   outputting a second plurality of image elements from the interpolator unit to an output interface, the second plurality of image elements being in accordance with the second aspect ratio and used for presentation by a display device of the destination image.   
     
     
       30. The pipelined imaging process as recited in claim 29, wherein the first plurality of image elements is associated with a single source image scan line. 
     
     
       31. The pipelined imaging process as recited in claim 30, wherein the second plurality of image elements is associated with a single destination image scan line. 
     
     
       32. The pipelined imaging process as recited in claim 31, wherein when the converting is upscaling, then the number of destination image elements is greater than the number of source image elements. 
     
     
       33. The pipelined imaging process as recited in claim 32, wherein a rate at which the interpolator unit outputs the second plurality of image elements is about the same as a rate of storing the first plurality of image elements in the line buffer. 
     
     
       34. The pipelined imaging process as recited in claim 29, wherein the pipelined imaging process is performed by a processing device, the processing device being in communication with the line buffer and the output interface. 
     
     
       35. The pipelined imaging process as recited in claim 34, wherein the processing device is incorporated into an integrated circuit.