US20090131176A1

US20090131176A1 - Game processing device

Info

Publication number: US20090131176A1
Application number: US12/265,704
Authority: US
Inventors: Nai-sheng Cheng; Ganesh-Kumar Thangaraj
Original assignee: MStar Semiconductor Inc Taiwan
Current assignee: MStar Semiconductor Inc Taiwan
Priority date: 2007-11-21
Filing date: 2008-11-05
Publication date: 2009-05-21
Also published as: TWI450749B; TW200922667A

Abstract

A game processing device in a displaying apparatus is capable of receiving a game data from an electronic device outside the displaying apparatus. The game processing device comprises: a transmission interface module, for receiving a game data, wherein the game data is used for rendering at least one game image; and a processing module, coupled to the transmission interface module, for rendering the game image according to the game data.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a game processing device, and particularly to a game processing device that utilizes a graphic processor and/or a processor disposed in a displaying apparatus to render game images.
2. Description of the Prior Art
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a prior art game device 10 and a displaying apparatus 100. The game device 10 is for playing video game and the display apparatus 100 is used for displaying the game images. As shown in FIG. 1, the game device 10 includes a graphic processing unit 11 for rendering each frame (game image) of the whole game process. After the graphic processing unit 11 renders a game image, the game image is temporarily stored to a storage unit 12, and the stored game image is then output to the output interface 13 and subsequently transmitted to the displaying apparatus 100. When the game image is complicated or has a higher resolution, such as 3° D. game image, the game device 10 needs a powerful graphic processing unit 11 and a storage unit 12 with a large storage space for respectively rendering and storing the game image. Additionally, since the game device 10 outputs a complete game image, the total data amount is large and an output interface 13 with a large bandwidth and high speed is required.
As techniques improve, the displaying chip in the displaying apparatus 100 includes more and more powerful functions, and can even include the graphic processing function in some cases. The game device 10, however, cannot utilize the device in the displaying apparatus 100 to render the game image in the prior art, and must comprise the graphic processing unit 11 and the storage unit 12. Accordingly, the cost of the game apparatus 10 remains high.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One objective of the present invention is therefore to provide a game processing device that utilizes a graphic processor and/or a processor of a displaying apparatus to render the game image.
One embodiment of the present invention discloses a game processing device in a displaying apparatus. The game processing device is capable of receiving a game data from an electronic device outside the displaying apparatus, and comprises: a transmission interface module, for receiving a game data, wherein the game data is used for rendering at least one game image; and a processing module, coupled to the transmission interface module, for rendering the game image according to the game data, wherein the processing module at least includes a graphic processor and/or a processor of the displaying apparatus.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the game data is from an electronic device that can be a mobile phone, a PDA or a computer.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the game processing device further includes an interface signal transforming device. The interface signal transforming device is coupled between the electronic device and the transmission interface module, and is for transforming a first signal format, which is used by the electronic device to output the game data, into a second signal format.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the game processing device comprises: an interface signal transforming device, for transforming a game data, received from an electronic device, in a first signal format into transformed game data in a second signal format, wherein the game data is used for rendering at least one game image; a transmission interface module, for receiving game data from the interface signal transforming device; and a processing module, coupled to the transmission interface module, for rendering the game image according to the transformed game data; wherein the interface signal transforming device and the electronic device are outside of a displaying apparatus, and the transmission interface module and the processing module are disposed in the displaying apparatus.
These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a prior art game device and displaying apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a game processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a game processing device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As techniques improve, TV/display sizes increase, and the TV/display therefore has a higher resolution and quality. Modern TVs utilize a powerful graphic processor and a powerful processor to process image frames of high quality. Accordingly, the present invention provides a game processing device that utilizes the graphic processor and/or the processor in the TV to process a game image, such that the game can be played on an electronic device or a game device without powerful processing capability.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a game processing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 2, the game processing device 200 includes a transmission interface module 201 and a processing module 203. The transmission interface module 201 is used for receiving game data GD that includes information related to rendering a game image such as: image information of the game characters, background information of the game image, and location and/or shift information of the game characters. The processing module 203 is coupled to the transmission interface module 201 for rendering the related game images according to the game data GD, wherein the processing module 203 is disposed in a display or a TV. In one embodiment, the processing module 203 can be a graphic processor and/or a processor in the TV. The game processing device 200 can further include a storage device 207 for temporarily storing game images that are already rendered or being rendered. The storage device 207 can, for example, be a DRAM.
In this embodiment, the game data GD comes from an electronic device 20 that can be a personal computer, a PDA (personal digital assistant), a mobile phone or a game device. Such electronic devices usually have an operation system such as Linux, thus the game processing device 200 can further has a driving program (not illustrated) corresponding to the operation for controlling the electronic device 20 to transmit the game data GD to the transmission interface module 201. The driving program can be a pre-designed program corresponding to a particular operation system. The driving program can also correspond to a plurality of operation systems, and the type of operation system in the electronic device 20 is detected when the electronic device 20 is connected to the game processing device 200. Thereafter, a suitable command is provided to control the electronic device 20 to transmit the game data GD to the transmission interface module 201. Additionally, a suitable driving program can be pre-installed in the electronic device 20, and then the game processing device 200 can control or communicate with the electronic device 20 when the electronic device 20 is connected to the game processing device 200.
In one embodiment, the data and instructions from the electronic device 20 are first received by the game processing device 200, and it is then determined to which operation system the data and instruction belong to, so that the resource of software or hardware can be assigned. Such an operation can be executed via the processing module 203, in one example. The mechanism of determining the operation system is well known by persons skilled in the art and is therefore omitted here for brevity. It should be noted that the transmission interface module 201 can be integrated with the processing module 203, but can also be independent from the processing module 203.
Rendering a game image can be executed by the game processing device 200 when the electronic device 20 executes the game program. The electronic device 20 transmits the game data GD, such as image information of the game characters, background information of the game image, and location and/or shift information of the game characters, to the game processing device 200. After that, the processing module 203 utilizes the game data GD to render game images. In other words, the electronic device 20 is only for the controlling of the game, and the game processing device 200 in the TV is for processing the game data GD and then rendering the game images. In one embodiment, the game data GD further includes audio data, and the processing module 203 can construct the sound and music of the game according to the audio data.
According to the above-mentioned description, since the electronic device 20 first transmits the game data to the processing module and then renders the game image, rather than the prior art method that transmits the game image after it is rendered, the data transmission amount can be largely reduced. In this way, the transmission interface between the electronic device 20 and the game processing device 200 can be a transmission interface, for example, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface, a Bluetooth interface, or a Wi-Fi interface. Of course, the transmission interface between the electronic device 20 and the game processing device 200 can also be a high-speed transmission interface such as an HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) or a DVI (Digital Visual Interface). Therefore, the various transmission interfaces as mentioned above can be applied to the transmission interface module 201 to receive game data GD from the electronic device 20.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a game processing device 300 according to another embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the game processing device 300 includes a transmission interface module 301, a processing module 303, an interface signal transforming device 305 and a storage device 307. The operation and the function of the transmission interface module 301, the processing module 303 and the storage device 307 are the same as in the above-mentioned embodiments, and thus details are omitted here for brevity. The interface signal transforming device 305 is coupled between the electronic device 20 and the transmission interface module 301, and is for transforming a first signal format, which is used by the electronic device 20 to output the game data, into a second signal format. In one embodiment, the interface signal transforming device 305 is for transforming game data GD that is transmitted by the electronic device 20 in USB format into game data GD in transport stream format. Also, in another embodiment, the interface signal transforming apparatus 305 is for transforming game data GD that is transmitted by the electronic device 20 in USB format into game data GD′ in I²C (Inter-integrated Circuit) signal format. Practically, the interface signal transforming device 305 can be built in the TV/display, but also can be outside of the TV/display. Additionally, the interface signal transforming device 305 outside of the TV/display can be coupled between the electronic device 20 and the game processing device 300 within the TV/display.
Since a conventional TV/display does not include a USB interface and most mobile electronic devices only have USB interfaces, the interface signal format output from the electronic device 20 can be transformed to the interface signal format supported by the transmission interface module 303 via the transforming operation performed by the interface signal transforming device 305 shown in FIG. 3. The connection between the game processing device 300 and the electronic device 20 is therefore made possible, and the electronic device 20 can be connected to the game processing device 300 of the TV/display without extra or expensive connection interfaces.
According to the above-mentioned embodiment, the game processing device according to the present invention utilizes a graphic engine or a processor (i.e. a processing module) that is originally disposed in the TV/display to render game images. In this way, the graphic processing unit and a large storage unit are not essential components of the game device, such that the cost for a game device can be significantly decreased.
Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the apparatus and method may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention.

Claims

1. A game processing device in a displaying apparatus, wherein the game processing device is capable of receiving a game data from an electronic device outside the displaying apparatus, comprising:

a transmission interface module, for receiving the game data, wherein the game data is used for rendering at least one game image; and

a processing module, for rendering the game image according to the game data.

2. The game processing device of claim 1, wherein the game data comprises at least one of: image information of game characters of the game image, background information of the game image, and location and/or shift information of the game characters.

3. The game processing device of claim 1, wherein the game data includes audio data, and the processing module generates game sounds and music according to the audio data.

4. The game processing device of claim 1, wherein the electronic device is one of a mobile phone, a PDA and a computer.

5. The game processing device of claim 1, wherein the game processing device transmits a control signal to the electronic device for controlling the electronic device to transmit the game data to the transmission interface module.

6. The game processing device of claim 1, wherein the game processing device have a driving program for driving the electronic device.

7. The game processing device of claim 1, wherein the game data is transmitted to the game processing device when the electronic device executes a game program.

8. The game processing device of claim 1, further comprising an interface signal transforming device coupled between the electronic device and the transmission interface module, for transforming a first signal format, which is used by the electronic device to output the game data, into a second signal format.

9. The game processing device of claim 8, wherein the second signal format is a signal format supported by the transmission interface module.

10. The game processing device of claim 8, wherein the first signal format is a signal format supported by a USB interface.

11. The game processing device of claim 8, wherein the second signal format is a transport stream signal format or an I²C signal format.

12. The game processing device of claim 1, further comprising a storage device, for temporarily storing the game image.

13. The game processing device of claim 1, wherein the transmission interface module is one of a USB interface, a Bluetooth interface, a Wi-Fi interface, an HDMI interface and a DVI interface.

14. A game processing device, comprising:

an interface signal transforming device, for transforming a game data, received from an electronic device, in a first signal format into transformed game data in a second signal format, wherein the game data is used for rendering at least one game image;

a transmission interface module, for receiving game data from the interface signal transforming device; and

a processing module, coupled to the transmission interface module, for rendering the game image according to the transformed game data;

wherein the interface signal transforming device and the electronic device are outside of a displaying apparatus, and the transmission interface module and the processing module are disposed in the displaying apparatus.

15. The game processing device of claim 14, wherein the game data comprises at least one of: image information of game characters of the game image, background information of the game image, and location and/or shift information of the game characters.

16. The game processing device of claim 14, wherein the game processing device transmits a control signal to the electronic device for controlling the electronic device to transmit the game data to the interface signal transforming device.

17. The game processing device of claim 14, wherein the game data is transmitted to the game processing device when the electronic device executes a game program.

18. The game processing device of claim 14, wherein the first signal format is a signal format supported by a USB interface.

19. The game processing device of claim 14, wherein the second signal format is a transport stream signal format or an I²C signal format.