Automatic brightness control for displays

Abstract

An automatic brightness adjustment for devices with displays includes the capability to assess ambient light. The assessment may be made using circuitry, such as a light meter circuit, by exploiting exposure control circuitry, or using other approaches. The ambient light value is sent to a brightness adjustment driver, which may employ a look-up table to keep track of brightness adjustments for particular ambient conditions. The look-up table may include distinct adjustment values

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A mobile apparatus comprising:
 a display;   an imager to capture an image, provide an exposure for the image and adjust a brightness of the display, wherein said imager comprises a light sensor to detect an amount of light in a surrounding area, wherein the light sensor accumulates light energy over an integration interval to provide an indication of the amount of light; and   a processor to determine a perceived brightness value based on an equation whose value varies with the detected amount of light, wherein the equation comprises a factor that is a direct adaptation effect and a factor that is a lateral adaptation effect, and wherein conflicts between direct and lateral adaptations of a user's eye are to be avoided based on the perceived brightness value, wherein lateral adaptation effect comprises a sum of weighted adaptations to spot luminances in proportion to their angular displacements from an axis of vision.