Texas Instruments (TI) has announced the new IntelliBright suite of image processing algorithms designed to intelligently boost image brightness and contrast in mobile displays. The new algorithm is also said to minimise power consumption – increasingly important with little improvement in battery technology on the horizon.
TI says that IntelliBright will enhance all classes of new DLP Pico products – mobile phones, tablets, digital video players, mobile accessories and near-eye displays. It will do this by intelligently analysing image content real-time, creating brighter, higher contrast images without raising net power consumption. For consumers, IntelliBright means clearer, more vivid images in bright lighting conditions as well as longer battery life. For manufacturers, IntelliBright is said to offer further flexibility to tailor product performance to the specific needs of their customers and markets.
The IntelliBright suite consists of two distinct, patent-pending algorithms: Content-Adaptive Illumination Control (CAIC) and Local Area Brightness Boost (LABB). Since these algorithms operate autonomously, manufacturers can tune them independently to achieve desired product performance.
The CAIC algorithm operates by adjusting red, green and blue illumination strength on a frame-by-frame basis. The algorithm can be configured to maintain “constant image brightness” (which results in lower power consumption) or to maintain “constant illumination power” (which results in higher image brightness). This enables manufacturers to select their desired amount of brightness boost versus power savings.
To combat variable ambient light conditions that can affect image visibility, manufacturers have the option of integrating ambient light sensor readings into the CAIC and LABB algorithms. Exact brightness increases and power consumption decreases are completely dependent on content and ambient light factors, along with manufacturer decisions, and therefore cannot be generalized.
