Simplified device drivers for hardware devices of a computer system
US7322035B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 1, 2006 |
| Grant date | Jan 22, 2008 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 29, 2026 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F13/102
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A computer system uses simplified device drivers for operating hardware devices. A simplified device driver for a hardware device of a given device type, such as a flatbed scanner, works with a system-supplied common driver for that given device type. The common driver and the simplified driver together function like a regular device driver. The simplified device driver implements a small number of entry point functions corresponding to a pre-selected set of operation commands “generic” to hardware devices of that given device type. When an application makes a request for an operation by the device, the request is passed through a device driver interface (DDI) to the common driver. The common driver then calls the entry point functions in the simplified device driver to carry out the requested operation.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.