# US 5,703,624 A · Portable image viewer

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- Number: US 5,703,624 A
- Document ID: US5703624A
- Status: Granted
- Kind: A
- Application number: 08/599,303
- Filed: 1996-02-09
- Granted: 1997-12-30
- Earliest claimed: 1996-02-09
- Inventors: Timothy van Kruistum
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US5703624A

## CPC

- G06T 1/00: General purpose image data processing
- Y10S 345/901: Electronic book with display
- G06T: IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
- Y10S: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS

## Abstract

A portable image viewer including a compact housing with a cover for protecting a top surface thereof. Also included is a liquid crystal display situated on the top surface of the housing for displaying purposes. A standard floppy disk drive has a receiving aperture for accepting a non-volatile floppy disk and extracting data therefrom. An input port is included for accepting data from a conventional computer. Finally, hardware based control circuitry is situated within the housing and connected to the display and floppy disk drive. The control circuitry, in a first mode, is adapted to retrieve a specific file from the floppy disk and automatically fit the image from the file on the display. In a second mode of operation, the control circuitry is adapted to accept a file via the input port and utilize similar imaging fitting techniques. In both the first mode and second mode of operation, after the image is displayed, the control circuitry is adapted to enlarge the image and pan in multiple directions thereon for viewing more closely different portions thereof.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A new and improved portable image viewer comprising, in combination:
a generally rectangular compact housing with a top surface, a lower surface, and a periphery formed therebetween defining an interior space, the housing comprising a cover with a size corresponding to that of the top surface and having a first end hingably coupled to a first side edge of the housing and further having a protrusion formed on a second end thereof for releasably coupling with a detent formed in a second side edge of the housing for selectively protecting the top surface of the housing;
a liquid crystal display situated on the top surface of the housing;
a standard floppy disk drive having a receiving aperture for accepting a non-volatile floppy disk and extracting data therefrom;
an input port for accepting data from a conventional computer; and
hardware based control circuitry situated within the housing and connected to the display and the floppy disk drive, the control circuitry in a first mode adapted to actuate upon the depression of a power key, to depict on the display a file directory containing files existent on the floppy disk upon the insertion of the floppy disk into the disk drive and depression of a file key, to designate and select a directory upon the depression of a pair of scroll keys and a select key respectively, to designate and select a file upon the depression of the pair of scroll keys and the select key respectively, to determine lower left extent coordinates and upper right extent coordinates of the file, to configure the display coordinates so as to accommodate the lower left extent coordinates and the upper right extent coordinates of the file, and to output the file on the display as an image for viewing by a user; the control circuitry in a second mode adapted to actuate upon the depression of the power key, to accept a file via the input port, to determine lower left extent coordinates and upper right extent coordinates of the file, to configure the display coordinates so as to accommodate the lower left extent coordinates and the upper right extent coordinates of the file, and to output the file on the display as an image for viewing by the user; upon the output of the file on the display, the control circuitry in both the first mode and second mode further adapted to enlarge the image upon the depression of a zoom in key; upon the image being enlarged, the control circuitry adapted to pan right on the image upon the depression of a right key, to pan left on the image upon the depression of a left key, to pan up on the image upon the depression of an up key, to pan down on the image upon the depression of a down key, and to zoom out on the image upon the depression of a zoom out key.

### Claim 2

A portable image viewer comprising:
a compact portable housing;
a display situated on the housing;
a standard floppy disk drive disposed within the housing having a receiving aperture for accepting a non-volatile floppy disk and extracting data therefrom; and
hardware based control circuitry situated within the housing and connected to the display and the floppy disk drive, the control circuitry adapted to actuate upon the depression of a power key, to select a file existent on the floppy drive, and to output the file on the display as an image for viewing by a user;
wherein the control circuitry is further adapted to depict on the display a file directory containing files existent on the floppy disk upon the insertion of the floppy disk into the disk drive and depression of a file key, to designate and select a directory upon the depression of a pair of scroll keys and a select key respectively, to designate and select a file upon the depression of the pair of scroll keys and the select key respectively.

### Claim 3

A portable image viewer comprising:
a compact portable housing;
a display situated on the housing;
a standard floppy disk drive disposed within the housing having a receiving aperture for accepting a non-volatile floppy disk and extracting data therefrom; and
hardware based control circuitry situated within the housing and connected to the display and the floppy disk drive, the control circuitry adapted to actuate upon the depression of a power key, to select a file existent on the floppy drive, and to output the file on the display as an image for viewing by a user;
wherein the control circuitry upon the output of the file on the display is further adapted to enlarge the image upon the depression of a zoom in key; and wherein upon the image being enlarged, the control circuitry is adapted to pan right on the image upon the depression of a right key, to pan left on the image upon the depression of a left key, to pan up on the image upon the depression of an up key, to pan down on the image upon the depression of a down key, and to zoom out on the image upon the depression of a zoom out key.