U.S. patent application number 10/979304 was filed with the patent office on 2005-04-28 for portable internet-enabled controller and information browser for consumer devices.
Invention is credited to Allport, David E..
Application Number | 20050088333 10/979304 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 21698219 |
Filed Date | 2005-04-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050088333 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Allport, David E. |
April 28, 2005 |
Portable internet-enabled controller and information browser for
consumer devices
Abstract
A remote control uses IR (infrared) commands to control various
consumer appliances made by various manufactures. The remote
control is low-cost, consumer-friendly, programmable, has its own
graphical display so it does not interfere with a TV or other
viewing screen, and is capable of interacting with the internet or
other data source to provide a rich set of functionality.
Inventors: |
Allport, David E.; (Palo
Alto, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DISCOVISION ASSOCIATES
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT
2355 MAIN STREET, SUITE 200
IRVINE
CA
92614
US
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Family ID: |
21698219 |
Appl. No.: |
10/979304 |
Filed: |
November 2, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10979304 |
Nov 2, 2004 |
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09483577 |
Jan 14, 2000 |
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09483577 |
Jan 14, 2000 |
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09001873 |
Dec 31, 1997 |
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6104334 |
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09483577 |
Jan 14, 2000 |
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09001841 |
Dec 31, 1997 |
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6097441 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
341/176 ;
348/E5.103; 348/E5.108; 348/E7.031; 348/E7.077; 348/E7.081 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G11B 27/105 20130101;
G11B 27/107 20130101; G11B 2220/65 20130101; H04N 5/4403 20130101;
H04N 21/4755 20130101; G11B 27/34 20130101; G08C 23/04 20130101;
H04N 5/44582 20130101; H04N 21/4221 20130101; G11B 27/002 20130101;
H04N 7/163 20130101; H04N 21/485 20130101; G06F 3/0489 20130101;
H04N 21/8186 20130101; G06F 1/1626 20130101; H04N 7/088 20130101;
G11B 2220/41 20130101; H04N 21/47 20130101; G06F 1/1671 20130101;
G11B 27/11 20130101; H04N 5/4401 20130101; H04N 21/43632 20130101;
A63F 2300/403 20130101; H04N 21/42209 20130101; G06F 1/169
20130101; H04N 7/147 20130101; G06F 8/65 20130101; G08C 2201/92
20130101; H04N 21/42226 20130101; H04N 21/47214 20130101; H04N
21/42204 20130101; G11B 2220/2545 20130101; H04N 21/4117 20130101;
H04N 21/42222 20130101; H04N 21/482 20130101; H04B 1/202 20130101;
H04N 21/42224 20130101; H04N 7/14 20130101; H04N 21/42221 20130101;
H04N 21/426 20130101; A63F 2300/407 20130101; G11B 2220/90
20130101; G08C 2201/21 20130101; H04N 21/47217 20130101; G08C
2201/33 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
341/176 |
International
Class: |
H04N 005/44 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A method of controlling a first device comprising the steps of:
providing a second device capable of sending commands, the second
device having a memory, a screen, and a display; accessing
title-based descriptions in the memory of the second device;
arranging the title based descriptions; displaying the title based
descriptions on the display; and identifying a command sequence to
be sent to the first device from the second device to cause the
first device to perform an action, said action occurring in
response to an activation of an area on the screen corresponding to
one of said title-based descriptions.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the title-based descriptions are
loaded into the memory of the second device from a network.
3. The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of loading the
title-based descriptions into the memory of the second device from
a computing device.
4. The method of claim 1 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise broadcast TV program names and one or more items of
associated data.
5. The method of claim 1 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise media on demand program names and one or more items of
associated data.
6. The method of claim 1 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise pay per view program names and one or more items of
associated data.
7. The method of claim 1 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise one or more items of data that are stored in a fixed or
removable storage medium.
8. The method of claim 1 wherein said action comprises playing a
program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions.
9. The method of claim 1 wherein said action comprises ordering a
program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions.
10. The method of claim 1 wherein said action comprises retrieving
a program associated with said one of said title-based descriptions
from a fixed or removable storage medium.
11. The method of claim 1 wherein said first device is an output
device.
12. The method of claim 11 wherein said output device is a
television.
13. The method of claim 1 wherein said commands are wireless
commands.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein said wireless commands are sent
via a wireless internet protocol.
15. An apparatus, comprising: a memory, a screen, a display, and an
output port capable of sending commands; title-based descriptions
capable of residing in said memory, said title-based descriptions
capable of being arranged and displayed on said display; and said
port adapted to send a command sequence to a device to cause said
device to perform an action, said action occurring in response to
an activation of an area on the screen corresponding to one of said
title-based descriptions.
16. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the title-based descriptions
are loaded into the memory from a network.
17. The apparatus of claim 15 further comprising a computing device
capable of loading the title-based descriptions into said
memory.
18. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise broadcast TV program names and one or more items of
associated data.
19. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise media on demand program names and one or more items of
associated data.
20. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise pay per view program names and one or more items of
associated data.
21. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise one or more items of data that are stored in a fixed or
removable storage medium.
22. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein said action comprises playing
a program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions.
23. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein said action comprises
ordering a program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions.
24. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein said action comprises
retrieving a program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions from a fixed or removable storage medium.
25. The apparatus of claim 51 wherein said device is an output
device.
26. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein said output device is a
television.
27. The apparatus of claim 15 wherein said commands are wireless
commands.
28. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein said wireless commands are
sent via a wireless internet protocol.
29. A system for controlling a first device, comprising: means for
providing a second device capable of sending commands, the second
device having a memory means, a screen means, and a display means;
means for accessing title-based descriptions in the memory means of
the second device; means for arranging the title based
descriptions; means for displaying the title based descriptions on
the display means; and means for identifying a command sequence to
be sent to the first device from the second device to cause the
first device to perform an action, said action occurring in
response to an activation of an area on the screen means
corresponding to one of said title-based descriptions.
30. The system of claim 29 wherein the title-based descriptions are
loaded into the memory means of the second device from a
network.
31. The system of claim 29 further comprising means for loading the
title-based descriptions into the memory means of the second device
from a computing device.
32. The system of claim 29 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise broadcast TV program names and one or more items of
associated data.
33. The system of claim 29 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise media on demand program names and one or more items of
associated data.
34. The system of claim 29 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise pay per view program names and one or more items of
associated data.
35. The system of claim 29 wherein the title-based descriptions
comprise one or more items of data that are stored in a fixed or
removable storage medium.
36. The system of claim 29 wherein said action comprises playing a
program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions.
37. The system of claim 29 wherein said action comprises ordering a
program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions.
38. T he system of claim 29 wherein said action comprises
retrieving a program associated with said one of said title-based
descriptions from a fixed or removable storage medium.
39. The system of claim 29 wherein said first device is an output
device.
40. The system of claim 39 wherein said output device is a
television.
41. The system of claim 29 wherein said commands are wireless
commands.
42. The system of claim 29 wherein said wireless commands are sent
via a wireless internet protocol.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of co-pending U.S.
application Ser. No. 09/483,577, filed Jan. 14, 2000, to which
priority is hereby expressly claimed. This application contains
subject matter related to co-pending U.S. patent application Ser.
No. 09/001,873, filed Dec. 31, 1997, and now U.S. Pat. No.
6,104,334 issued on Aug. 15, 2000 and U.S. patent application Ser.
No. 09/001,841, filed Dec. 31, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,097,441
issued Aug. 1, 2000 invented by the same inventor as the present
invention, and assigned to the same assignee as the present
invention. The entire original disclosures of the above-referenced
co-pending applications are hereby expressly incorporated herein by
reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates generally to remote controls
for controlling consumer devices, and more particularly to remote
controls for controlling a variety of consumer devices from various
manufacturers, and which are capable of using data downloaded from
the internet or other data sources to do so.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Consumers use remote controls for controlling a variety of
devices such as TVs (televisions), radios, VCRs (video cassette
recorders), and other home appliances. Typically, the remote
controls use IR (infrared) communications to send signals to the
devices to be controlled. IR communications operate effectively
only within a limited range, but nonetheless IR remote controls
provide a great benefit for consumers because they allow consumers
to control the desired devices from a couch, a chair, a bed, a
desk, or some other relaxing remote location without having to
manually adjust the controls on the device being controlled.
[0004] A particular manufacturer will establish a proprietary IR
protocol (i.e., sequence of IR commands that a device will
recognize) for a particular device or series of devices, and will
typically provide a proprietary remote control with the necessary
IR commands already loaded into its memory to allow the consumer to
control the device or devices. Protocols from one manufacturer may
and usually do differ from protocols of other manufacturers for
similar devices.
[0005] Many types of remote controls exist, each with their own
features, and each with their own limitations. For example, the
most basic remote controls are dedicated to a single device made by
a single manufacturer. These remote controls usually are fairly
simple to operate, and are not programmable. For the same reason,
however, they have limited functionality. Furthermore, once a
consumer attains many devices from various manufacturers as is
extremely common, managing the multitude of various remote controls
for the various devices becomes very burdensome both physically and
mentally.
[0006] One attempt to solve the problems associated with remote
controls dedicated to a single device led to what is commonly known
as "universal" remote controls. With universal remote controls, the
IR protocols for various devices are typically pre-loaded into the
remote control's memory. Even so, the consumer might have to use a
trial-and-error basis to determine which protocol to use for a
particular device. And it is possible that the proper protocol for
the device to be controlled was not pre-loaded by the manufacturer
of the remote control, because the device was too old, too new, or
simply not popular enough as determined by the manufacturer of the
remote control. In any of those cases, the consumer would typically
be required to have the protocol loaded by a professional at a
service location, or may even be required to send the remote
control to the manufacturer of the remote control, and even then it
may be difficult for the third party to correctly ascertain and
load the proper protocol.
[0007] Some universal remotes are "programmable" to allow specific
IR command sequences to be associated with specific physical
buttons, but the remote control does not help the consumer
associate the physical buttons with the actual function performed
by the buttons, and the consumer is thus forced to memorize the
function each button is programmed for each time the remote control
is re-programmed. Custom-made labels could be used to associate the
buttons with their functions, but that creates an additional
problem of tying a button to a single function, thus limiting the
remote control's functionality. Creating more buttons could solve
that problem, but in turn would result in a consumer-unfriendly
device due to its complexity.
[0008] Another type of universal remote control has the additional
feature of allowing the consumer to load the IR protocols into the
universal remote's memory by modem line or PC (personal computer).
The "Program Master" by Scottsdale Technologies is of this type.
The "Program Master" may be "programmed" by the consumer using
companion PC software to select the desired information (e.g., TV
programs to be taped) and then initiating the downloading of the
information into the "Program Master" by pressing a button (the
only button) on the "Program Master." The internal clock of the
"Program Master" causes the remote control to send appropriate IR
command sequences to the consumer's VCR, TV, and cable receiver at
the desired times. But once the "Program Master" is programmed,
there is no way to modify the settings except by re-programming it
using the companion PC software.
[0009] Other universal remotes, such as the Marantz RC2000, have a
display so the buttons could be programmed to allow greater
functionality, and each button may correspond to several different
functions depending on the "mode" setting of the remote. A
description of each function associated with each programmed button
for a given mode may appear on the display next to the button, but
display space is typically limited. The Marantz RC2000, for
example, has space for only five characters per button. Another
remote control, the Lexicon 500T, overcomes this problem to some
extent, because it has the additional feature of a touch screen and
graphical display 256 pixels by 128 pixels so the consumer may
control the size and layout of the graphical buttons to some
degree. However, the Lexicon 500T retails for several thousand
dollars, and is very limited in its use of internet data. For
example, though the Lexicon 500T is capable of accessing IR
protocols from the internet and downloading them into its memory,
with companion PC software mapping the specified IR command
sequences to the specified areas on the display screen, it cannot,
like the "Program Master" described previously, make automated use
of internet data such as desired TV programs to be taped.
[0010] Some remote controls obtain more functionality and more
power by communicating with the controlled devices through a
proprietary base station. The base station is generally located at
the site of the devices to be controlled, and the base station, not
the remote controls, actually control the devices. The remote
controls communicate solely with the base stations. The base
stations in turn interact with the devices to be controlled through
a variety of protocols such as X10 (power line communications),
CEBus (common for communication over a home local area network),
and RS232 (IEEE serial communication via a communication port in a
PC). Examples of these types of remotes are the "RHOC" by Full
House Control Corp., and the "IntelliControl" home automation
system by Niles Audio Corp. These systems are fairly powerful, in
that once the base stations are programmed, they can typically
recognize a variety of industry standard protocols, so consumers
could use the remotes to operate various devices made by various
manufacturers. However, the base stations are costly, and
installation and programming of the base stations are fairly
complex and usually require a trained professional. Furthermore,
the remote controls are limited in their ability to provide
information back to the consumer, due to limited or total lack of
display. The "RHOC," for example, though equipped with some
programmable physical buttons, has a limited display of
128.times.64 pixels. The Intellicontrol, available in both a
hand-held and table-top version, has no display at all, though the
base stations associated therewith may have a two-character LCD
(Liquid Crystal Display) and/or several LEDs (light-emitting
diodes).
[0011] Another common type of remote control is that which is
linked to a primary display such as a TV display. Remote controls
used to operate Web TV fit into this category. Though they allow a
consumer to exercise parental control, monitor E-mail, place
internet bookmarks, view web content related to real time TV
events, and perform other web-related tasks, they affect the TV
viewing screen in the process, thus limiting use of the screen for
viewing regular TV-based content. Another example is Sony's S-Link
control bus system which allows use of the TV display in
conjunction with the automated control of home appliances, such as
Sony CD players and Sony TVs. All of these systems, however, affect
the TV viewing screen because control information is displayed on
the screen, thus impacting the overall view of the display. And
some of the systems (e.g., Sony's S-link control bus system) are
further limited because they are compatible only with proprietary
devices.
[0012] It is also possible to use the IR communications capability
of palm-top PCs to control consumer appliances. However, palm-top
PCs are relatively costly for this type of application, since they
are manufactured and intended to be used as general purpose
computers. For that reason, they also require knowledge and use of
PC operating system software such as MS-DOS, Windows, or other
operating systems. Moreover, because the hardware is designed
primarily for computer data transfer, the physical range of IR
commands from palm-tops is limited, and the reliability of the
execution of the commands themselves also drops as the distance
between the remote control and the device being controlled
increases.
[0013] Thus, though there are many variations of remote controls
available for controlling consumer devices, each has some
drawbacks. It would be desirable to automate control of various
consumer appliances made by various manufactures, using a single,
low-cost, consumer-friendly, programmable remote control that does
not interfere with the primary viewing screen, and that is capable
of interacting with the internet or other data sources to provide a
rich set of functionality.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0014] As used in this application, "consumer" refers generally to
any person that may use the remote control described herein,
whereas "user" is used to distinguish one particular consumer from
other consumers generally. The use of "consumer" versus "user" is
not intended to have any substantive effect on this application,
but is made solely to simplify understanding of certain parts of
the application, as will become apparent.
[0015] Also as used in this application, the verb "to play" is used
generally to describe the result of a device producing its intended
output. For example, a broadcast TV program is "played" on the TV;
a song is played on the radio; a video cassette is played by a VCR,
a music CD is played by a CD player; etc.
[0016] Also as used in this application, the term "program" (when
used as a noun) and the term "title" are sometimes used
interchangeably to refer to the name of a particular event being
played, to be played, or having been played. For example, a program
or title may be a broadcast TV event; a song title or album title
from a CD; an event recorded on a video cassette; etc. There may
also be titles within titles, as in the case where an album title
further contains individual song or track titles.
[0017] Also as used in this application, the term "IR command
sequence" is sometimes used interchangeably with the terms "IR
command" or "IR commands." An IR command sequence is simply a
predefined series of IR commands which may include only one IR
command, or multiple IR commands to a single device, or IR commands
to more than one device.
[0018] The present invention relates to a remote control dedicated
to the control of various consumer devices made by various
manufacturers, and to methods of its use. It has programmable
function keys (both physical and on-screen), and a graphical
display used to show status and help information on the devices
being controlled, identify the function associated with each key,
and allow the consumer to browse, select, or otherwise manipulate
data related to the control of the consumer devices. The remote
control communicates directly with the devices being controlled, or
through other proprietary base stations with known protocols (e.g.,
X10 or CEBus) if necessary.
[0019] The remote control of the present invention is relatively
inexpensive, as compared to the cost of palm-top computers, or
other remote control systems that require base stations, etc. The
cost of implementing the remote control of the present invention is
also not affected by the potential legacy nature of the devices
being controlled, because the controlled devices do not require
special hardware or software. All the remote control needs in order
to control a device is the IR command sequences that the device
responds to so that the commands may be loaded into the memory of
the remote control for later execution. The information is
generally available from the manufacturer of the device, or from
the internet, or from any of several other sources.
[0020] The remote control of the present invention is also
consumer-friendly in its appearance and ease of use. There are a
manageable number of physical buttons, for example approximately
eight to twelve. The drawings show a preferred embodiment having
nine physical buttons. More important, however, is that the actual
functions performed by the buttons are visibly associated with the
buttons themselves, so the consumer does not have to memorize such
associations or rely on mnemonics printed on labels or limited
displays. Another consumer-friendly aspect of the present invention
is that it allows the consumer to access desired CDs, TV programs,
satellite or cable programs, video cassettes, web sites, etc.
through consumer-friendly associations (such as program name, song
title, album title, consumer-defined sequence name, video cassette
title, etc.) instead of through channel, track number, device name,
or other non-consumer-friendly associations.
[0021] The term used in this application to describe this aspect of
the consumer-friendly nature of the invention is "title-based
direct access control." It is title-based because the type of
entertainment requested is based on the title of the media program.
It is direct access because from the consumer's point of view,
access to the media program follows directly from the consumer's
title-based request. The underlying associations (of specific IR
commands to specific devices) that must be determined to satisfy
the consumer's request is controlled by the remote control.
Similarly, the term used in this application to describe the
consumer-friendly nature of the actual descriptions displayed (such
as program name, song title, album title, consumer-defined sequence
name, etc.) for browsing, editing, selecting, etc., is "title-based
descriptions." This is to be distinguished from information that is
not title-based, such as a slot number in a CD tower, or a channel
on a TV, or a track number on a CD, etc. Having to use information
that is not title-based to access a desired program is not as
intuitive as using title-based descriptions to access the
program.
[0022] On-display help also simplifies the initial device
configuration, and status and other feedback information is
available on-display during actual operation. All of the above
features, and others as will be described herein, are designed to
allow the consumer to use the remote control of the present
invention in an efficient, powerful, and easy manner to control a
broad range of devices from the comfort of a location remote to the
actual devices being controlled, yet close enough to enjoy the
entertainment or other services they provide.
[0023] In addition to having some physical buttons with fixed
functions, the remote control of the present invention may be
programmed such that some fixed buttons and certain areas of the
display that represent command buttons or "soft keys" may be
defined by the consumer to control specified functions on specified
devices. Passwords and filters may be programmed into the remote
control either by integrated software, downloaded applets, or
companion PC software, to limit or deny access to certain
information. This may be useful, for example, to assist parents in
controlling what programs or channels their children may
access.
[0024] Another important feature is that the integrated display
allows the consumer to view associated information without
interfering with the viewing screen of the primary display such as
the TV. This is an improvement over many of the remote controls
previously described herein.
[0025] One of the most powerful aspects of the remote control of
the present invention is its ability to interact with and gather
data from the internet or other data sources such as a PC, and make
use of a wide variety of data thus obtained. Specifically, the
remote control is capable not only of downloading device
configuration information (i.e., IR command libraries) from the
internet as existing universal remotes are, but is capable also of
receiving other internet data that can be used in interacting with
the controlled devices. For example, title-based descriptions such
as TV schedules can be downloaded into the memory of the remote
control, and then listed and browsed on the display of the remote
control, while the corresponding information needed to associate
the consumer-friendly title-based descriptions (e.g., program name)
with the proper IR command sequences is downloaded therewith in a
manner that does not need to concern the consumer. The
corresponding information is sufficiently related to the
title-based descriptions such that the remote control (preferably
through the use of integrated software) is able to determine a
proper IR command sequence to send to the device or devices being
controlled in order to effect the playing of the program or
programs selected by the consumer. The corresponding information
may include, for example, the broadcast time, channel, and duration
of each broadcast TV program for which the title-based descriptions
(i.e., program name) was downloaded. All the consumer cares about
is that the consumer may thereafter simply select the desired
program from the list being browsed on the display of the remote
control, by touching the corresponding function key, button, or
other area of the display.
[0026] Another example is that CD track data can be downloaded from
the currently available CDDB internet database
(http://www.cddb.com), preventing the need for a consumer to
manually enter the data. The consumer-friendly descriptions (such
as title, song, etc.) may then be viewed on the display of the
remote control and selected by the consumer without regard to the
physical location of a CD in a CD tower, or the physical location
of a particular song on a particular CD.
[0027] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to
provide an improved remote control for controlling a variety of
consumer devices made by a variety of manufacturers.
[0028] It is a further object to provide a remote control that
allows a consumer to download data from the internet or other data
source into the memory of the remote control for use in controlling
the consumer devices using title-based direct access control.
[0029] It is a further object to provide a remote control with a
graphical display that allows a consumer to achieve the
above-mentioned objects without interfering with the display screen
of any of the devices being controlled or of any other devices
other than the remote control itself.
[0030] It is a further object to provide a remote control with a
graphical display, the remote control being programmable so that
predetermined areas of the display may be defined by the consumer
to control specified functions on specified devices.
[0031] It is a further object to provide improved methods of using
a remote control to control a variety of consumer devices from a
variety of manufacturers.
[0032] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will
become apparent from the detailed description of preferred
embodiments which follow, when read in conjunction with the
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0033] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the hierarchical relationship
between some of the available screens in a preferred embodiment of
the remote control of the present invention.
[0034] FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of the remote control
with a variety of physical actuating buttons, and a blank
display.
[0035] FIG. 3 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Welcome" screen of FIG. 1.
[0036] FIG. 4 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Pictures" screen of FIG. 1.
[0037] FIG. 5 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "List Alternatives" screen of FIG. 1
that is used in conjunction with the "Pictures" screen of FIG. 1
when the remote control is in an updates-disabled mode.
[0038] FIG. 6 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "List Alternatives" screen of FIG. 1
that is used in conjunction with the "Pictures" screen of FIG. 1
when the remote control is in an updates-enabled mode.
[0039] FIG. 7 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Browse Favorite Alternatives" screen
of FIG. 1 that is used in conjunction with the "Pictures" screen of
FIG. 1.
[0040] FIG. 8 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Music" screen of FIG. 1.
[0041] FIG. 9 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "List Alternatives" screen of FIG. 1
that is used in conjunction with the "Music" screen of FIG. 1.
[0042] FIG. 10 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Browse Favorite Alternatives" screen
of FIG. 1 that is used in conjunction with the "Music" screen of
FIG. 1 when the remote control is in an updates-disabled mode.
[0043] FIG. 11 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Browse Favorite Alternatives" screen
of FIG. 1 that is used in conjunction with the "Music" screen of
FIG. 1 when the remote control is in an updates-enabled mode.
[0044] FIG. 12 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Current & Future Programs" screen
of FIG. 1.
[0045] FIG. 13 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Past Programs" screen of FIG. 1.
[0046] FIG. 14 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "New Info" screen of FIG. 1.
[0047] FIG. 15 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Update Info" screen of FIG. 1.
[0048] FIG. 16 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "Update Users" screen of FIG. 1.
[0049] FIG. 17 shows the remote control of FIG. 2 displaying a
preferred embodiment of the "New Screen Layout" screen of FIG.
1.
[0050] FIG. 18 is a high-level schematic of hardware used in a
preferred embodiment of the remote control of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0051] The remote control of the present invention, and methods of
its use, will first be described in terms of its functionality and
associated software, and the hardware components will be described
thereafter.
[0052] The actual software may be written in any convenient
programming language or languages, and preferably comprises an
underlying system control component and an application interface
component. The system component controls the execution of the
actual commands necessary to control consumer devices. It controls
the storage, access, and other data management tasks necessary for
proper functioning. Preferably, a relational database of entries is
maintained, each entry describing multiple features of a particular
title or program, such as the time of day of its showing, which
source device it is derived from (TV, satellite, etc.), which
artists are featured, and what category it belongs to (comedy,
drama, sports, etc.). Some of the fields are not applicable to all
types of entries.
[0053] For example, each track on a CD would be one entry, and
although a duration is associated therewith, there is no start or
end time because it is assumed to be available from a multiple-disc
CD player at any time desired. Much of the database information is
derived from the internet, but additional information may come from
other data sources, or even be entered by the consumer as described
herein. The system component also retains an internal
representation of each device being controlled, its type (CD
player, TV, etc.), name, and associated icon if applicable. The
system component also maintains a table of IR commands for each
device, along with associated data such as the representation of
the commands on the remote control's display.
[0054] The application interface component (also controlled by the
system component) acts as a front-end for the consumer to program
and otherwise make use of the system component, without ever having
to understand the details of the system component. It is designed
to be consumer-friendly, as described herein, and in a preferred
embodiment is implemented such that a control algorithm allows the
consumer to navigate through the available screens to accomplish
the desired title-based direct access control over consumer
devices. The hierarchical relationships among some of the available
screens in a preferred embodiment of the remote control is shown in
FIG. 1. These high-level relationships will be described first, and
the details of the individual screens will follow thereafter.
However, to better understand the benefits and operation of the
remote control, it will be helpful to keep this high-level
relationship in mind even as the individual screens are described
in detail thereafter.
[0055] The remote control may be programmed using an integrated
graphical keyboard for simple tasks such as entering and modifying
passwords, or for more complex programming, but the latter is
preferably done with the use of companion software using an IR
keyboard in conjunction with the remote control's display or
another display, or using PC software on a PC. For example, the
functions to be performed by certain buttons may be programmed by
companion software using an IR keyboard in conjunction with the
remote control's display or another display, or using PC software
on a PC, and the display would then show the association of
physical or touch screen actuating buttons with the actual
functions they perform, as will be described herein. Passwords and
filters may be programmed to assist parental control or other
monitoring, and screen layouts may also be designed. These concepts
will be described herein in more detail. Java applets or similar
predefined functions may also provide a source of filters or other
information and may be downloaded from the internet or other data
source. Examples include: recommended viewing or listening lists
from well-known organizations or other critics; IR command
libraries; local TV schedules; and CD track data. The remote
control supports standard interface protocols (e.g., Java's
Abstract Window Toolkit, Netscape's Internet Foundation Classes,
etc.), and therefore the consumer may simply select desired lists
using simple third-party software, and then download the lists and
their associated information to the remote control's memory.
[0056] The software is preferably programmable by the consumer and
presents a unified system view of various devices being controlled.
For example, there may be volume and channel controls on one screen
which control the volume of a stereo speaker connected to a TV
output and the channel on a cable box connected to the TV input
respectively. The ease of this system contrasts with that of known
universal remote controls where it is necessary to first select a
"stereo" mode, then change volume, then select "cable" mode to
change channel.
[0057] For the following descriptions, it is presumed that the
memory of the remote control already has the information necessary
to allow the remote control to perform the functions described. The
actual methods of loading the information into the memory will be
described subsequently.
[0058] Turning now to FIG. 1, the "welcome" screen 15 (described in
more detail in conjunction with the description of FIG. 3) will
appear on the display of the remote control 10 when the remote
control 10 is first turned on, and after the proper password or
other "log-on" means (such as use of a "smart card") has been
entered in response to an appropriate query if a password or other
log-on means are required. This screen provides the consumer with a
variety of first-level options to choose from. For example, the
consumer may choose to be entertained by pictures, in which case
the consumer would select the "pictures" screen 20 by depressing
the appropriate physical button or display area as will be
described shortly. If the consumer wished to be entertained by
music, the consumer would select the "music" screen 25 in a similar
manner.
[0059] The physical source of the entertainment (e.g., a video,
DVD, satellite, TV broadcast, VCR, etc. for pictures, or a
phonograph, tape player, CD player, radio, DVD, etc. for music)
would not be of concern to the consumer. The consumer would simply
request the entertainment type, and the remote control 10 would
send the appropriate IR commands to whatever devices needed to be
controlled to satisfy the consumer's request. This
consumer-friendly concept of presenting information to the consumer
in a manner related to how the consumer thinks (i.e., in terms of
type of entertainment) as opposed to physical devices (such as a
TV, cable box, tape player, etc.) is consistent with the
title-based direct access control that is an important aspect of
the invention. Once the type of entertainment is selected,
title-based direct access control as previously described allows
the consumer to select specific entertainment based on song title,
program name, etc., and not based on such non-intuitive factors as
channel, track, CD slot, etc. The remote control 10 hides the
complexity of the associations formed by the consumer's request to
the actual IR commands that must be executed to satisfy the
request. The consumer controls what he or she sees or hears; the
remote control 10 controls the devices necessary to make it so.
[0060] Both the "pictures" screen 20 and the "music" screen 25
present the consumer with the option of selecting lower-level "list
alternatives" screens 30a and 30b respectively or "browse favorite
alternatives" screens 35a and 35b respectively. The "list
alternatives" screens 30a and 30b provides the consumer with the
available TV programs, CD titles or songs, radio broadcasts, DVD
titles, or whatever other type of entertainment is available
depending on which higher level screen the "list alternatives"
screen depends from. On the "list alternatives" screens 30a and
30b, the consumer could tag desired entries for later browsing
through the "browse favorite alternatives" screens 35a and 35b, or
could un-tag them so that they would no longer appear on the
"browse favorite alternatives" screens 35a and 35b.
[0061] To control devices that are not primarily for entertainment
and would therefore not be accessible from the "pictures" screen 20
or from the "music" screen 25, the "other" screen 40 is selected,
which would in turn present the consumer with a list of further
available options appropriate to the specific devices. Devices
controlled from the "other" screen 40 may include kitchen
appliances, a web browser on an advanced TV, a security system, a
baby monitor, etc. Though these devices typically do not have
title-based descriptions associated with them to the same degree as
the picture- and music-producing devices do, nonetheless these
devices may be accessed through icons or other consumer-friendly
associations. Also, as is true even when picture- or
music-producing devices are operating under the control of the
remote control 10, IR commands may be sent to one device to effect
a change to video output without affecting the audio output of
another device. For example, while listening to music from a CD
player, a request to view the security camera pictures on the TV
will change the video output on the TV, but the music will continue
to play uninterrupted. Similarly, IR commands may be sent to one
device to effect a change to audio output without affecting the
video output of another device. For example, while watching TV with
a baby sleeping in a dark room elsewhere in the house, a request to
hear the audio from the baby monitor will change the audio output,
but the video output from the TV will be unaffected.
[0062] Also preferably available from the "welcome" screen 15 is an
option to access a scheduling feature of the remote, by selecting
the "scheduler" screen 45. The "scheduler" screen 45 allows the
consumer to monitor and control the current status of the devices,
the future tasks scheduled to be performed by the devices, and the
prior history of the tasks performed by the devices under the
control of the remote control 10. This is done through the "current
& future programs" screen 50 and the "past programs" screen
55.
[0063] The "updates" screen 60 available from the "welcome" screen
15 allows the consumer to identify new devices to the remote
control 10 and load the required IR commands for the new devices
into the memory of the remote by accessing the "update system"
screen 65. It also allows the consumer to identify new users of the
remote control 10 (e.g., various members of the family) using the
"update users" screen 70; load new title-based descriptions (e.g.,
TV schedules, CD song titles, etc.) into the memory of the remote
control 10 using the "new info" screen 75; and modify or create
screen layouts to appear on the display of the remote control 10
using the "new screen layout" screen 80.
[0064] Additional relationships may exist, and additional screens
may exist, though they are not shown in FIG. 1. For example, the
consumer will preferably be able to navigate from a particular
screen back to its parent screen, or from a first-level screen to
any of the lower-level screens depending therefrom, or from a
first-level screen to another first-level screen. The exact
navigational algorithm used is not important, but what is important
is that the information and options are presented in a
consumer-friendly manner. The above-described relationships
represent only one possible organization of the screens.
[0065] Before describing individual screens, it will be helpful to
provide a brief description of the display area 85 and buttons
surrounding the display area 85 as seen in FIG. 2. The physical
display area 85 that allows the screens to be presented to the
consumer is part of the remote control 10 itself. The display is
preferably an LCD and is 320 pixels by 240 pixels (1/4 VGA). It may
have better resolution (i.e., greater than 320 pixels and/or
greater than 240 pixels) or lesser resolution, but preferably not
lesser. It may be monochrome or color, and is preferably touch
sensitive. As for physical size, the drawing is not to scale, but
preferably the remote control 10 is a hand-held size on the order
of only several inches long by several inches wide by a few inches
deep, such that it may be carried comfortably in one hand or in a
shirt pocket. Various physical actuating buttons, such as sliders,
push buttons, switches, touch-sensitive pads, levers, toggles,
dials, knobs, pull buttons, a mouse, etc., are present on the
remote control 10. The various physical actuating means surround
the display 85 as seen in FIG. 2. There may be, for example, up to
twenty physical buttons, or less than twenty, and more preferably
less than fifteen, and more preferably less than twelve, and still
more preferably ten or less.
[0066] For example, there is an on/off toggle switch 90 connected
to a power source by a battery terminal or an AC circuit (not
shown). There is also an updates button 95 (shown as a slider) that
is used to prevent the accidental addition, deletion, or
modification of the remote control's 10 settings. If the updates
button 95 is in the disable position, the "updates" screen 60 will
be inaccessible, or at least be unusable to effect any changes to
the remote control's 10 settings. Other screens may also vary
depending on the position of switch 95, and there may also be
software to provide this type of security.
[0067] A "help" button 100 allows the consumer to access
information about the particular screen being viewed, or about a
particular button as applied to the screen being viewed. If the
button 100 is pressed and released, help information related to the
screen appears. This information includes the name of the screen,
the overall purpose of the screen, its relationship to other
screens, how to access the screen, and other helpful information.
Pressing and releasing the button 100 again returns the consumer to
the screen being viewed prior to pressing the help button 100. If
the button 100 is pressed, and while being held down a second
button (either physical or on-display) is pressed or otherwise
selected, help information appears for the second button. This
information includes the specific function of the button as applied
to the screen being viewed. To view help for another button, the
consumer simply presses the new button instead of the second
button, while still holding down the help button 100. Discontinuing
to press down a the help button 100 and the button for which help
is being sought, sends the consumer back into the general help
mode, from where the consumer may simply press and release the help
button 100 as described to return to the original screen being
viewed prior to transferring into help mode. Thus, when not in help
mode, pressing button 100 and either releasing it or concurrently
selecting another button transfers the consumer into help mode.
When in help mode, pressing and releasing the button 100 exits the
consumer out of help mode and returns back to the operative screen.
If the help information to be displayed could not fit onto the
display 85, the consumer could view the remainder of the
information by actuating a specified button or touch screen area to
scroll the information. Buttons 90, 95, and 100 are not
programmable and are dedicated to the specific functions described
herein. The other buttons, however, may be used for various
functions depending on the active screen and the position of button
95.
[0068] A slider button 105 with a spring mechanism biased to the
center of a slot 110 may exist for controlling functions such as up
and down channel. A similar slider button 115 without a spring
mechanism is moveable within another slot 120 and may be used for
controlling volume or other functions whose full range may be
represented by the limited physical distance available within the
slot 120. Button 125 is used as a mute toggle in conjunction with
some screens, and for other functions in connection with other
screens as described herein. Other buttons may exist for
controlling other attributes of the remote control 10 or of the
devices being controlled. For example, button 130 is commonly,
though not always, used as a "parent screen" button that allows the
consumer to return to the screen that is logically the parent of
the screen being viewed, as could be determined from FIG. 1. In the
context of the "pictures" screen 20 as described in conjunction
with FIG. 1, pressing the "parent screen" button 130 from the "list
alternatives" screen 30a would return the consumer to the
"pictures" screen 20 as seen in FIG. 1.
[0069] Some physical buttons (e.g., buttons 135 and 140) may be
programmable and may control functions such as navigation between
screens, navigation within a screen, sending IR commands, altering
the contents of memory within the remote control 10, or any other
function that may be applicable. Certain areas of the graphical
display 85 will indicate the function of a particular programmable
physical key at any given time. The graphical display 85 will also
have some programmable buttons, known as "soft keys," as will be
described in conjunction with particular screens shortly.
[0070] Turning now to individual screens, FIG. 3 shows a typical
"welcome" screen. The different users of the remote control 10 may
be identified by text, graphical icons, or other images including
scanned photos, as shown in area 141. The current user may be
indicated by highlighting as seen in area 142, or by clearing the
display of all other users, or in any other manner. Access to the
various functions is obtained from buttons 125, 130,135, and 140,
or by soft keys (not shown) if there are more functions available
than there are physical buttons. For example, buttons 125,130, 135,
and 140 are shown to transfer the consumer to the "pictures" screen
20, the "music" screen 25, the "scheduler" screen 45, and the
"other" screen 40 respectively, which are four of the high-level
screens available as seen in FIG. 1. If button 95 is in
updates-enabled mode, an area on the display 85 would exist to
allow the consumer to transfer to the "updates" screen 60.
[0071] A typical "pictures" screen 20 of FIG. 1 is shown in FIG. 4.
Various areas on the display 85 are defined by the system component
of the integrated software, and each area is used to display
specified information to the consumer. The exact layout may be
designed by the consumer using integrated or independent software,
or the layout may be chosen from a set of templates provided to the
consumer through the integrated software, or the layout may be
fixed at the time of manufacture. The layouts shown in this
application are illustrative only of one possible format, and it is
to be understood that many different layouts may be used without
departing from the concepts of the present invention.
[0072] Turning to the examples shown in FIG. 4, a first area 145 is
used to display a description 150 of the current program being
watched on the primary display such as the TV. The information may
include the source of the picture entertainment (e.g., cable, VCR,
satellite TV, etc.), the station or channel (e.g., Ovation, HBO,
channel 2, etc.), the name of the program (e.g., Miles Davis in
Europe), and the start and end time of the picture entertainment.
Other areas 155, 160,165, and 170, are used to indicate the current
function of corresponding physical buttons 125, 130, 135, and 140
respectively, which functions may vary according to the specific
screen presented to the consumer. On the "pictures" screen 20, area
155 shows that button 125 is used as a mute/un-mute toggle button.
Area 160 indicates that button 130 returns the consumer to the
"welcome" screen 15, which as seen in FIG. 1 would be the parent
screen. Areas 165 and 170 indicate the functions of the
programmable buttons 135 and 140 as "best" and "prior"
respectively. Pressing button 135 from the "pictures" screen 20
will thus command the device or devices needed in order to display
the "best" program on the primary viewing screen (e.g, the TV
screen). The "best" program for the current time period would have
been previously tagged from the "list alternatives" screen 30a or
"browse favorite alternatives" screen 35a. Pressing button 140 from
the "pictures" screen 20 will command the current device being
controlled to switch to the program the device was showing "prior"
to the remote control 10 commanding the device to switch to the
program then being shown.
[0073] The slider button 105 is used to change channels, or instead
of using slider 105, the consumer may enter the desired channel
directly via a numeric keypad displayed in area 180. Slider 115 is
used to control volume, if applicable.
[0074] Areas 185 and 190 are used in the "pictures" screen 20 as
soft keys. Area 185 is used to allow the consumer to transfer from
the "pictures" screen 20 to the "list alternatives" screen 30a as
seen in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 and which will be described shortly. Area
190 is used to allow the consumer to transfer from the "pictures"
screen 20 to the "browse favorite alternatives" screen 35a as seen
in FIG. 7 and which will be described shortly.
[0075] More specifically, by touching or otherwise selecting area
185, the integrated software presents the consumer with a "list
alternatives" screen 30a, of which a typical layout is shown in
FIG. 5 and FIG. 6. FIG. 5 shows the "list alternatives" screen 30a
when the updates are disabled, as indicated by the position of
button 95, while FIG. 6 shows the screen when the updates are
enabled. Though the areas on the "list alternatives" screen 30a are
preferably defined to occupy the same physical spaces whether the
remote control 10 is in the updates-disabled mode (FIG. 5) or in
the updates-enabled mode (FIG. 6), the actual information displayed
and/or functions performed may vary depending on the mode. The
display areas may be shaded differently in the different modes, to
alert the consumer as to whether the remote control 10 is enabled
for updates or not. Similarly, the various functions performed by
the various buttons may be classified into categories such as:
navigational, sending IR commands, controlling the screen (or
functions associated therewith), or labeling or describing the
function of some part of the remote control 10, and these
categories may be immediately apparent to the consumer from the
visual appearance of the buttons. With a color display 85, this
could be accomplished by color-coding the various categories. Other
methods of visually alerting the consumer as to the category that a
particular button belongs to at any given time include using
distinguishing text or graphics attributes such as fonts, shading,
blinking, size, reverse-video, additional markers, etc.
[0076] Turning to FIG. 5, area 195 indicates the date, day, and
time-line for the programs listed, as will be explained shortly.
Areas 200, 205, 210, and 215 display icons 200a, 205a, 210a, and
215a respectively that indicate the source of the listed programs,
while corresponding areas 200b, 205b, 210b, and 215b indicate the
actual programs being considered by the consumer. For example,
icons 200a-215a could represent broadcast TV, cable, satellite TV,
and VCR respectively. To further promote the concept of title-based
direct access control, it may actually be desirable to eliminate
the icons 200a-215a from the display 85, as the actual source of
the entertainment should be of little concern to the consumer. That
would allow for more display area for other information. There may
therefore be an option for the consumer to choose whether to have
the sources indicated on the "list alternatives" screen 30a. The
option may be available directly from the screen 30a, or it may be
an option determined during initial configuration and setup of the
remote control 10.
[0077] The display in FIG. 5 thus indicates that Casablanca is
available on broadcast TV and covers the entire time-line (i.e.,
8:00-10:00); Evita is available on Cable and started prior to 8:00
(as indicated by arrow 220) and ends at 9:00, at which time
Terminator begins and continues (as indicated by arrow 225) past
10:00; Sports Marathon is available from satellite TV and started
before 8:00 and ends some time after 10:00; and "Granny and Grandpa
at Grand Canyon" is available from the VCR. If the consumer touches
an area displaying a particular program (e.g., area 220), that
program (i.e., Evita) will be tagged and added to the list of
favorite selections and can then later be listed and browsed from
the "browse favorite alternatives" screen 35a. If the program was
already in the list, it would be removed therefrom. Programs that
are already in the favorites list are highlighted in some manner
(e.g., bold, italics, underline, or capital lefters), so that
touching the associated area would highlight or un-highlight the
program and correspondingly add or remove the program from the
list. Sources other than those shown in FIG. 5 may be available, in
which case the consumer would be able to scroll the information on
the display 85 vertically using slider 105. Other sources of
picture entertainment may be a DVD device, a slide projector, a
cam-corder, a closed-circuit camera, or some other device. Slider
115 is used to control the volume of the amplifier or amplifiers
responsible for the audio portion of the current entertainment.
[0078] A line 175 is used to separate time-dependent "picture"
entertainment from time-independent "picture" entertainment. Time
dependent entertainment, as shown in FIG. 5, may come from a TV
broadcast, cable, satellite broadcast, etc., while time-independent
entertainment may come from a DVD device, video tape, cam-corder,
etc. A similar line 175 may appear on the screens used in
conjunction with the "music" screen 25, though such a line is not
shown in the drawings. Time-dependent music may come from a radio
or satellite broadcast, for example, while time-independent
entertainment may come from a CD, tape, DVD, etc.
[0079] Areas 230 and 235 are used to indicate the functions of
buttons 125 and 140 respectively, which are to scroll the
information on the display 85 to the right or left showing the
consumer which programs are available at earlier or later times.
Preferably, the time-line as displayed in area 195 decreases or
increases in half hour increments. When the consumer has scrolled
to the beginning or the end of the time-line (as determined by the
amount of information then stored in the memory of the remote
control 10), the corresponding button 125 or 140 will become
inactive, and the associated display area 230 or 235 will either
become blank or have an appropriate icon indicating the button is
inactive.
[0080] The "parent screen" button 130 returns the consumer to the
"pictures" screen 20, as indicated in area 240, while the button
135 referred to by area 245 would allow the consumer to transfer
directly to the "browse favorite alternatives" screen 35a without
first having to return to the "pictures" screen 20. Note here that
though areas 230, 235, 240, and 245 serve the same functions as
areas 155,160, 165, and 170 do in the "pictures" screen 20, namely
to identify the functions of buttons 125, 130, 135, and 140, the
areas have been identified by a different set of reference numerals
to emphasize that even though the areas may occupy the same
physical space on the display 85 in both screens 20 and 35a, that
is not necessary. For example, the text describing the function of
a button may vary in length from only a few characters to several
words, in which case the latter would usually occupy a larger area
of the display 85.
[0081] Turning now to FIG. 6, which shows the "list alternatives"
screen 30a when the updates are enabled as indicated by the
position of button 95, it can be seen that the areas on this screen
are defined to occupy the same physical spaces as those on the
screen in FIG. 5. However, that is not required, and some of the
information displayed and/or the functions performed vary from that
of FIG. 5.
[0082] For instance, with updates enabled, touching area 200, 205,
210, or 215 presents the consumer with a screen full of options
available to control the attributes of the selected source. Thus,
pressing or otherwise selecting area 200 presents the consumer with
a screen to control the color, tint, balance, contrast, brightness,
or other attributes of the TV display. In one embodiment, the
screen presented may be a graphical representation of the actual
proprietary remote controller manufactured specifically for the
device being controlled. If the graphical representation could not
fit entirely within the display area 85 of the remote control 10, a
virtual representation could be displayed with scroll bars to allow
the consumer to access the portions of the proprietary remote
controller not then visible on the display 85. Integrated software
is programmed such that the remote control 10 is responsive to
commands entered via the graphical representation as if the
commands were entered on the proprietary remote controller, and
thus sends the same IR command sequence to the device or devices
controlled by the proprietary remote controller as if the analogous
commands were entered directly on the proprietary remote
controller.
[0083] If a consumer wants to record a particular program without
using the "scheduler" screen 45, this could be accomplished from
the "list alternatives" screen 30a with the remote control 10 in
updates-enabled mode as follows. The consumer touches or otherwise
selects the program name from the display 85, and while continuing
to touch or select the program name the consumer touches or selects
a recordable media icon (e.g., VCR or DVD). If the time to record
coincides with the time the consumer selects the program, the
appropriate IR commands are then sent to the associated device to
set the device for recording the selected program. If, however, the
time to record is in the future, the remote control 10 programs
itself to send the appropriate IR commands at the required time.
The remote control 10 has an integrated real time clock for this
sort of timing.
[0084] FIG. 6 also shows that the functions of buttons 130 and 135
are different than when button 95 is in the updates-disabled mode
as in FIG. 5. Button 130 is used to "clear" the remote control's
memory of the previously tagged or selected favorites (for the day,
week, etc., depending on the consumer's configuration of the remote
control 10), as indicated by display area 240, and would also cause
display area 240 to then show "restore." Button 130 thus is used as
a toggle to clear and restore lists of previously selected favorite
programs. Button 135 is used to tag the previously selected program
as the "best" for the specified time and day. The previously marked
"best" program, if any, for the specified time and day would be
replaced. As previously described, if the consumer subsequently
presses the "best" button 135 from the "pictures" screen 20, the
appropriate IR commands will are sent to the appropriate device so
that the device switches to the program the consumer tagged as his
or her "best" program as just described.
[0085] The "browse favorite alternatives" screen 35a, which may be
accessed from either the "pictures" screen 20 or from the "list
alternatives" screen 30a as previously described, is illustrated in
FIG. 7. The display 85 here shows the list of programs selected by
the consumer from the "list alternatives" screen 30a as previously
described. If no selections were made, the default options (as set
from the "update users" screen 70 described in connection with FIG.
16) for the current user, and optionally an appropriate message
indicating that no selections had been made, would be shown. Button
130 returns the consumer to the "pictures" screen 20 as indicated
by area 240, and button 135 transfers to the "list alternatives"
screen 30a directly without requiring the consumer to first return
to the "pictures" screen 20. Programmable button 140 is set to
"surf" as indicated by area 235, and causes the display of the
controlled device to cycle through all of the favorite selections,
pausing on each selection for a predetermined amount of time, which
time could be programmed by the consumer within a range of for
example one second to ten seconds. Slider 105 changes programs
between selected favorites, and does not require explicit selection
of the source device because the scheduled data that is downloaded
has already been associated with the proper IR commands.
[0086] The previously described screens were related to the control
of visual media devices. A description of the screens that are
related to the control of musical or sound media devices will now
follow. FIG. 8 shows a typical "music" screen 25 of FIG. 1. Similar
to the "pictures" screen 20 and to the other screens described
herein, various areas on the display 85 are defined by the system
component of the integrated software, and each area is used to
display specified information to the consumer. Again, the exact
layout is not important, and the examples to be described herein
are illustrative of only one possible embodiment.
[0087] Turning to the examples shown in the drawings, and starting
with FIG. 8, a first area 250 is used to display a description 255
of the current title being heard. The information will typically
include the artist and title, and may also include other
information such as the playing time, track title, device being
controlled, or other consumer-defined data that may be associated
with each title through the use of software. Areas 260, 265, 270,
and 275 are used to indicate the current function of corresponding
physical buttons 125,130,135, and 140. On the "music" screen 25,
area 260 shows that button 125 is used to "stop" the title then
being played. Area 265 indicates that button 130 returns the
consumer to the "welcome" screen 15, which as seen in FIG. 1 would
be the parent screen. Areas 270 and 275 indicate the functions of
the programmable buttons 135 and 140 as "next" and "play/pause"
respectively. Pressing button 135 from the "music" screen 20 thus
sends the appropriate IR commands to begin playing the next title
(e.g., the next song on a CD or DVD player, or the next CD or tape
in a consumer-defined sequence) or switch to the next station on a
radio, etc. Button 140 from the "music" screen 25 acts as a
standard play/pause button on tape players. Of course, if these
functions are not applicable to the device being controlled, areas
270 and/or 275 would be blank or otherwise indicate so, or the
buttons 135 and 140 would be used for other applicable functions
and those functions would be appropriately indicated in areas 270
and 275 respectively. Area 280 contains standard transport controls
such as stop, rewind, start of previous track, play/pause, start of
next track, and forward. Some of the functions shown in area 280
may also be available from the physical buttons (e.g., buttons 125
and 140 in FIG. 8).
[0088] Slider 105 is used to move forward or backward through the
available music selection as would be shown in area 250, while
slider 115 controls volume as with the "pictures" screen 20,
although the specific amplifier controlled by slider 115 here, as
well as the source of input into the amplifier, may differ from the
amplifier controlled by slider 115 from the "pictures" screen 20
and the input source associated therewith.
[0089] Areas 285 and 290 are used in the "music" screen 25 as soft
keys similar to the soft keys described in conjunction with the
"pictures" screen 20. Thus, area 285 is used to allow the consumer
to transfer from the "music" screen 25 to the "list alternatives"
screen 30b as seen in FIG. 9 and which will be described shortly.
Area 290 is used to allow the consumer to transfer from the "music"
screen 25 to the "browse favorite alternatives" screen 35b as seen
in FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 and which will be described shortly. More
specifically, by touching or otherwise selecting area 285, the
integrated software presents the consumer with a "list
alternatives" screen 30b, of which a typical layout is shown in
FIG. 9, and of which the overall function of the screen 30b is
similar as that of the "list alternatives" screen 30a used in
conjunction with the "pictures" screen 20.
[0090] FIG. 9 shows that screen 30b contains the available artists
295 as well as the individual album titles 300 associated with the
artists 295. Instead of or in addition to the album titles 300,
graphical representations of the album covers may be displayed. If
the consumer touches or otherwise selects an icon 302 within area
301, area 300 will change to list individual song or track titles
for the album title associated with icon 302. In FIG. 9, for
example, selecting the uppermost icon 302 causes the individual
song or track titles associated with "Kind of Blue" to appear in
area 301 for browsing and selecting. Area 295 may correspondingly
change to display only the artist (Miles Davis in this example) of
the currently selected album title. Icons 302 may be graphical
representations of a CD as shown, so that the functions associated
with the icons 302 (i.e listing individual song titles) is
intuitive.
[0091] If the consumer touches an area displaying a particular
artist (e.g., area 295a), that artist (i.e., Miles Davis) will be
tagged and all titles associated with the artist will be added to
the list of favorite selections and can then later be listed and
browsed from the "browse favorite alternatives" screen 35b. If the
artist was already in the list, the titles associated with that
artist would be removed therefrom. Artists already in the favorites
list are highlighted in some manner (e.g., bold, italics,
underline, or capital letters), so that touching the associated
area would highlight or un-highlight the artist and correspondingly
add or remove the titles associated with the artist from the list.
If the updates button 95 is enabled, the current set of selections
may be stored as a sequence under consumer-defined labels such as
"wild jazz," "party music," "relaxing music," etc.
[0092] Icons 303 or other text or both indicate the category of the
associated album, disc, or other music sequence or collection based
upon information derived from the CDDB internet database, the
consumer, or another data source.
[0093] Button 125 is used to determine the order in which the
selections are displayed. For example, the selections may be
displayed in alphabetical order by artist name, in order of music
genre, by album title or by any other criteria available, including
consumer-defined criteria. Repeatedly pressing button 125 will
cycle through the available sort options. Area 305 may indicate the
current sort criteria in effect, or it may indicate the next
available sort criteria to take effect if button 125 were pressed,
as is the case in FIG. 9. In the latter case, another area of the
display 85 may indicate the sort criteria in effect. Button 135 is
used as a "hot key" to sort the information by "album title" (as
indicated by area 315), or some other criterion commonly used by
the consumer, even though the same criterion may be available
through the cycling of button 125. Button 140 is similarly
programmed as a "hot key" to sort the information by "song title"
as indicated by area 320, regardless of the actual artist, album,
CD, etc. which contains the title. This feature is useful for the
consumer to directly access a desired song without the concern for
who the artist is or what album the song is on. In addition, a
search function may be available to allow the consumer to search
for a specific artist, song title, album title, or any other text.
Text may be entered using a graphical keyboard or an IR
keyboard.
[0094] Slider 115 is used to control volume on the controlled
device, while slider 105 allows the consumer to scroll through the
list of available titles without actually affecting the music being
heard or the display on the device or devices being controlled, or
of any other device.
[0095] The "parent screen" button 130 returns the consumer to the
"music" screen 25, as indicated in area 310. Note here that though
areas 305, 310, 315, and 320 serve the same function as areas 260,
265, 270, and 275 do in the "music" screen 25, namely to identify
the functions of buttons 125,130,135, and 140, the areas have been
identified by a different set of reference numerals to emphasize
that even though the areas may occupy the same physical space on
the display 85 in both screens 25 and 30b, that is not
necessary.
[0096] Referring back to FIG. 8, by touching or otherwise selecting
area 290, the integrated software presents the consumer with a
"browse favorite alternatives" screen 35b, of which a typical
layout is shown in FIG. 10 and FIG. 11. FIG. 10 shows the "browse
favorite alternatives" screen 35b when the updates are disabled, as
indicated by the position of button 95, while FIG. 11 shows the
screen when the updates are enabled. Though the areas on this
screen are preferably defined to occupy different physical spaces
depending on whether the remote control 10 is in the
updates-disabled mode (FIG. 10) or in the updates-enabled mode
(FIG. 11), the actual information displayed and/or functions
performed may be the same. The display areas may be shaded
differently in the different modes, to alert the consumer as to
whether the remote control 10 is enabled for updates or not.
[0097] Turning to FIG. 10, the "browse favorite alternatives"
screen 35b for musical entertainment is shown with button 95 in the
updates-disabled mode. The majority of the display 85 is devoted to
listing the various sequences of music 325 as categorized by the
consumer from the "list alternatives" screen 30b as previously
described. Thus, consumer-defined music sequences such as
"relaxing," "cocktail party," etc. will be available as seen in
FIG. 10, as well as music associated with a particular artist or
other source, if the consumer created such a category from the
"list alternatives" screen 30b. When the consumer touches or
otherwise selects the name of a music sequence, details associated
with that sequence are displayed. If the consumer has not created
any selections, all default music selections would be available.
The default selections may be all available CDs, or a particular
subset defined for the particular user, for example.
[0098] Area 330 indicates the function of button 125 as
"play/pause," which causes the currently selected sequence to begin
playing, or pause if it is currently playing. Area 335 indicates
button 130 returns the consumer to the "music" screen. Programmable
buttons 135 and 140 are labeled as "random" and "intros" by areas
340 and 345 respectively. Pressing button 135 thus plays the
selected sequence one title at a time in random sequence, while
button 140 causes the intros of each of the titles in the selected
sequence to play sequentially, allowing the consumer to "surf the
available titles until a desired title is found. Pressing button
140 during "surf" mode would end the surfing and the then-selected
title would continue to play its full length. The exact amount of
time each title is played in "surf" mode may be programmed by the
consumer, or it may be predetermined. A typical amount of time is
about five seconds.
[0099] A soft key is displayed at area 350 with a symbol 355 or
other text to indicate the function of the key is to cycle or
repeat play of the selected sequence after it has reached an end.
Area 350 acts as a toggle, and an indication of whether it is
active may be established by highlighting or other means. Touching
or otherwise selecting area 350 when it is active thus deactivates
the cycle or repeat function, and un-highlights or otherwise
indicates to the consumer that the function is not active.
[0100] For each of the applications where a series of titles is
played sequentially (i.e., an album, random list, consumer-defined
sequence, intros, etc.) the remote control 10 determines when a
particular title is complete based on the track data or other data
of the title as previously loaded into the remote control 10. Thus,
if a first IR command is sent to play a first title (song) that
lasts three minutes, the remote control should theoretically send
the next IR command (for the second song to be played) three
minutes after the first command was sent, and continue on sending
the third IR command for the third song after a predetermined time
had passed that is equal to the known play-time of the second song,
etc. However, that might not accomplish the desired goal of having
each song played in its entirety, because the start-time of each
song might not occur immediately after the end-time of the previous
song due to physical load and seek time of the song-playing
devices. This problem is solved by one of the following
methods.
[0101] First, there may be logical cue commands in each sequence
between the end of one song and the start of the next. For example,
on a multiple-disc CD player, in a sequence which contains disc 3
track 4 followed by disc 148 track 9, the remote control 10 will
send a cue command when disc 3 track 4 finishes playing to load
disc 148, and set the CD player in pause mode ready to play track
9. After a predefined delay, the remote control 10 will send a
"play" command to start track 9. If this is followed in the
sequence by track 10 on the same CD, the cue command in this case
would be a null command--no additional IR commands need to be sent
to the CD player. The insertion of cue commands in program
sequences will normally be hidden from the consumer, but if the
consumer wishes to customize the cue delay for some CD players
(e.g., if disc loading is especially slow or fast for that device),
the consumer may do so.
[0102] The remote control 10 determines whether to send the next IR
command, and whether a delay is needed before starting the internal
timer to begin counting down the play-time of the next song.
Factors considered are the physical location of the current title
to the previous title, and the physical specifications of the
devices being controlled, as described above, all of which are
known to the remote control 10.
[0103] More specifically, it may take some time, up to several
seconds, for the next song to actually begin playing due to the
mechanical load and/or seek time. Thus, if two consecutive songs
are located physically on consecutive tracks of a single CD, the
remote control 10 would not send a new IR command to begin playing
the second song because the second song will begin play
automatically in sequence immediately after the previous song had
completed play. If, however, the second song was on a later track
of the same CD, or a different CD in the same CD tower, or a
different CD in a different CD player, the remote control 10 would
send the IR command to begin play of the second song, then to pause
the CD player, and then would wait a predetermined amount of time,
before sending an IR command to disengage pause mode and begin
counting down the play-time of the second song. The predetermined
time would be chosen conservatively to err on the side of extra
delay, so that the remote control 10 would not consider a title to
be done playing prior to it actually being so, which could be the
case if the timer were started prior to the actual start of the
title. If a consumer detects that the delay is routinely too long,
the consumer may reset the delay time to be a shorter time by using
an option from the "updates" screen 60 or another screen. For
media-playing devices that have the ability to send IR commands, a
command can be sent by the device to the remote control 10
acknowledging the completion of a title, and the determination of
an appropriate delay time would be unnecessary.
[0104] Slider 115 is used as a volume control button as on the
"music" screen 25, and slider 105 is used to select a particular
sequence of those available.
[0105] A preferred view of the "browse favorite alternatives"
screen 35b for musical entertainment in the updates-enabled mode is
shown in FIG. 11. In an area 360 at the top of the screen is a
description of the sequence currently being updated. The
description is typically supplied by the consumer, but may be
automatically supplied by the integrated software or other software
based upon how the sequence is selected. For example, if the
consumer selects a sequence based on variables already known to the
software, such as by album, CD, artist, etc., the software may
provide the description to correspond to the known variables. In
either case, the consumer will be able to edit the sequence name if
desired. The main area 365 of the screen is devoted to listing the
individual titles in the currently selected sequence. The titles
are preferably listed in the order in which they will play, and the
consumer may alter the order by touching or otherwise selecting a
particular title, and then "dragging" the title to the desired
location within the sequence. Slider 105 is used to scroll through
the information on the screen.
[0106] Button 125 is used as a "play/pause" key as indicated by
area 370, similar to its use as described in connection with FIG.
10. Area 375 indicates that button 130 returns the consumer to the
"music" version of the "list alternatives" screen 30b, where the
consumer could then add more titles to the sequence if desired. To
delete a title from the sequence, the consumer would select the
title and then use button 135, as indicated by area 380 which
displays "delete." Area 385 shows that button 140 is used to "save"
the current sequence, which may have been modified due to deletion
of titles, and/or rearranging of titles as explained. A pop-up
dialog box at that time would provide the consumer the opportunity
to change the description of the sequence if so desired.
[0107] "Scheduler" screen 45 is not shown in the drawings, but
typically will be a simple screen allowing the consumer to select a
lower-level screen, which in FIG. 1 are shown to be the "current
& future programs" screen 50 and the "past programs" screen 55.
FIG. 12 shows a typical "current & future programs" screen.
This screen allows a particular user to control the programs and/or
sources available to them and other users. Depending on the user
currently "signed on," (as will be described herein) the particular
users' settings that can be modified may differ. For example, a
parent with a "supervisor" password may have access to all users'
settings, while a child may have access only to their own settings.
The particular user whose settings are being updated is indicated
by highlighting (as seen in FIG. 12 at 390) or other means.
[0108] This screen allows the sources, and/or individual programs
from those sources to be made unavailable to specified users, as
seen by the function of buttons 125 and 130 as displayed on the
display 85. Thus, a parent could set a child's settings such that
the child could not access the TV during certain time periods; or
not access certain channels of the
[0109] TV; or not access certain programs within a certain channel
of the TV, etc. Programming of these limits are what has been
referred to herein as filters. The purpose of the filters is simply
to limit or deny access to certain entertainment or control of
other devices as seen fit by the user with the authority to do so.
Thus, a parent could create filters that cause only a predetermined
subset of the title-based descriptions in the memory of the remote
control 10 to be displayed to a particular user.
[0110] Another feature that may be available is the use of a time
budget for certain users. Thus, a parent could limit the total TV
time of a child using this feature. This could also be accomplished
by use of a "smart card" which the parent can create with
predefined amounts of time, and which the remote control 10 could
then update each time the card was used. The smart card may also
have identifying information encoded thereon such that the remote
control 10 could identify the user. Of course, the remote control
10 may still require the user to enter a password to gain access to
its activating features, in order to prevent an unauthorized user
from using the smart card. Button 140 returns the consumer to the
"welcome" screen 15.
[0111] The "past programs" screen 55 is shown in FIG. 13. The
screen layout is similar to that of the "current & future
programs" screen 50 as seen in FIG. 12, but that is not required.
The purpose of this screen 55 is to allow review of what a
particular user has used the remote control 10 for. The integrated
software tracks the specific IR commands sent by the remote control
10, and associates the commands with a particular user based on the
password or other means used to activate the remote control prior
to the programs being selected that resulted in the IR commands
being sent.
[0112] Button 140 returns the consumer to "welcome" screen 15 as in
the "current & future programs" screen 50. The other buttons,
however, provide new functions. Pressing button 125 results in a
display of which programs the particular user being reviewed has
seen. Again, the user being reviewed may be indicated by
highlighting as seen in area 395, or by other means. The programs
are preferably sorted in chronological order, with the most
recently viewed or listened to program appearing on top. However,
any sort order may be used, and options to select the sort order
may be available. Button 130 is a "hot key" to provide the summary
sorted by source, as just described. Button 135 allows review of
the time budget of the user being reviewed, and may be used in
conjunction with a "smart" card if the smart card feature is
available, so the reviewing person (usually a parent) would have
extra monitoring means to ensure the reviewed users (usually the
kids) are not abusing their privileges.
[0113] The "updates" screen 60 is not shown in the drawings, but
similar to the "scheduler" screen 45, this screen 60 will typically
just provide the consumer with the options of selecting the
available lower-level screens, which as seen in FIG. 1 would be
screens 75, 65, 70, and 80. The "new info" screen 75 is shown in
FIG. 14. This screen simply provides soft keys 400 and 405 which
allow the consumer to update certain information then known to the
remote control 10. Key 400 would be used to download new viewing or
listening schedules which may have been recently obtained from the
internet and which reflect the next day's or next week's
programming. Key 405 would be used to update information regarding
the available CD collection. For example, the consumer may have
purchased new CDs, or removed some others from the CD player, and
the relevant information would need to be loaded into the remote
control 10 so the actual CDs correspond to what the remote control
10 has stored in its memory.
[0114] The "update system" screen 65 is shown in FIG. 15. This
screen presents the consumer with soft keys for various options to
update system variables. For example, if the consumer changes
internet service providers (ISPs), the requirements for accessing
the ISP can be updated using soft key 410 labeled "new/changed
information source." Similarly, if the access method is changed
(e.g., from one of USB, IrDA, RS232, modem, etc. to another of USB,
IrDA, RS232, modem, etc.), this information may be communicated to
the remote control 10 by a soft key 415 labeled "new/changed
connection." Another available option is to identify a new device
to or delete an old device from the devices known to the remote
control 10. This is accomplished from a soft key 420 labeled
"new/changed device." For identifying a new device, the IR command
library for the device must be loaded into the memory of the remote
control 10. If the proper library is certain, for example if the
library is associated with the exact make and model of the device,
then the identified library may simply be loaded. If, however, it
is not certain whether the library to be loaded is the proper
library, the consumer may be required to load the library and then
test the remote control 10 to determine if the library was the
correct library. This may have to be repeated until the proper
library is verified.
[0115] In the case where it is uncertain if the library to be
loaded is the proper library, the consumer may have to load, test,
unload, load, test, unload, etc. repeatedly until the proper
library is identified. Or to avoid this, the consumer may load
multiple libraries at once, and then cause the remote control 10 to
cycle through the selected set of libraries, testing each library
until the proper library is determined. If the device has the
capability of sending IR communications, and the remote control 10
has the ability to receive IR communications, the device could
signal the remote control 10 once the proper library has been
identified, and the remote control 10 could then cease the testing
cycle. The consumer could then purge the unnecessary IR command
libraries from the memory of the remote control 10. If, however,
the device does not have the ability to send IR communications, or
if the remote control 10 does not have the ability to receive IR
communications, then the consumer may be required to monitor the
testing cycle to manually halt the cycle once the proper library is
determined, and to thereafter program the remote control 10 to
associate the identified library with the device and optionally to
purge the other libraries that were being tested. Even in that
situation, however, there is an advantage to being able to use the
remote control 10 to cycle automatically through libraries and test
them in an attempt to find a desired library to operate the device.
The consumer has only to issue one command (i.e., a "cycle and
test" command), instead of several commands (i.e., "test library
#1," "test library #2," "test library #3," . . . "test library
n."). The consumer is thus free to watch a program uninterrupted,
and will be interrupted only when the remote control finds a
desired library, or otherwise indicates that none of the available
libraries can operate the device.
[0116] So cycling through a series of IR command libraries after
loading the series of libraries into the memory of the remote
control 10 is accomplished by actuating only one button on the
remote control 10, which causes the cycling to begin. The cycling
then automatically occurs, and comprises selecting a library,
sending an IR command associated with the selected library from the
remote control 10 to the device, determining if the device
responded to the IR command sent, and then continuing on to test
the next library in the same manner (or automatically stopping the
cycle if the device communicates back to the remote control 10 to
indicate that the device recognized the command sent). The consumer
may hit a "stop" button on the remote control 10 to end the
cycling, for example when it is determined that the proper library
has been found, or for any other reason.
[0117] Other options available from the "update system" screen 65
could be an option to allow the current settings (for all users) to
be saved onto an alternate storage device, such as another remote
control, a PC's hard disk, a tape or floppy disk backup, etc., or
an option to access information about the technical specifications
of the device, with phone numbers of the manufacturer or other
available help sources. Other miscellaneous options related to the
overall maintenance and programming of the remote control 10 could
also be available from this or other screens.
[0118] Both the "new info" screen 75 as shown in FIG. 14 and the
"update system" screen 65 as shown in FIG. 15 may vary in both
appearance as well as in functionality depending on whether the
remote control 10 is being used in conjunction with a PC to access
an outside data source. For example, the "new/changed information
source" soft key 410 may not be applicable if information was being
loaded from the PC, even though the source of the information
downloaded to the PC may have changed.
[0119] FIG. 16 shows the "update users" screen 70, which is where
all of the settings are made for each individual user's profile or
configuration. Thus, each user may select their screen name, the
associated icon or image, which pictures and music selections they
would prefer to exclude from those available, and to some degree
the screen layouts that they will see. The name and icons are
simply used to identify the user on the other screens, so it is
clear which user is currently signed on, or which user is being
reviewed, whichever the case may be. The pictures and music
selections may be used, for example, if a child does not want to
have to sift through mom and dad's music but would prefer instead
to only sift through his or her own collection. In that case, the
child could set their default to not show mom and dad's music when
listing available music, so there would be less information to
browse through.
[0120] The screen layouts option allows the user to select from a
predefined set of possible layouts that might be more visually
pleasing or easier to use. For example there may be one layout with
cartoon icons suitable for children, another with the minimum
number of on-screen buttons for those who prefer less clutter,
another with designer patterns, etc. In addition, within a
predefined layout each user may customize the screen layouts using
available field-manipulation commands, as will be described
shortly. Other options set here, though not shown in FIG. 16,
include the user's password and possibly the user's security level,
which would determine which other profiles the user could access
and/or update.
[0121] Another available option from the "updates" screen 60 is the
"new screen layout" screen 80, as is seen in FIG. 17, and the
screen is preferably shaded, as seen, to indicate that the
information being viewed is not available for actual use, but is
instead available only for changing its layout. The screen shown in
FIG. 17 is the "pictures" screen 20 as seen in FIG. 4.
[0122] A particular area on the screen may have a button added or
deleted, moved to another area, sized, or edited. The various
functions could be accomplished by touching or otherwise selecting
the area, then holding down the appropriate physical button 125,
130, 135, or 140 while continuing to touch the area. The functions
of buttons 125, 130, 135, and 140 in this context are not
displayed, as doing so would impede the view of the current layout
being updated. It may be desirable, however, to display the
associated functions in a very small font just above the buttons,
such that their function is apparent and the screen layout is only
minimally impaired. Otherwise, the consumer could view the
information from a help screen (available by using button 100), or
simply know the functions of the buttons from reading an associated
manual or becoming accustomed to their use in this context.
[0123] To add an area on the screen layout, the consumer selects
the area, and a pop-up menu appears with various types of shapes,
etc to choose from. If the area already has an object associated
with it, then pressing the add / delete button would delete the
object (possibly after confirmation) associated with the area. To
move an object on the layout, it could be touched and "dragged," or
it could be moved by selecting a final destination. Sizing an
object may occur similarly by touching and dragging (away or
towards the center of the object to increase or decrease its size
respectively), or by otherwise selecting a final desired size.
Editing an object causes a pop-up menu to appear with the available
options to edit. Options include the name, the image, the function
(label, navigation, sending IR commands, edit, etc.), a copy and a
paste option, and save and exit options.
[0124] Another possible method of creating screen layouts is
through the use of the internet HTML (Hypertext Markup Language).
The remote control 10 will be compatible with and understand most
and preferably all of the constructs of HTML, which is used to
define the layout of web pages. It is therefore possible, when
programming with companion PC software, to use one of the many
available web page design tools to design a customized set of
screens. However, the HTML format will only be used for defining
the look of the screens. Other programming concepts would be needed
to associate functionality with the various HTML customized screen
areas.
[0125] To get to a particular screen layout to update, the consumer
could navigate to the desired screen and press a hot key on the
screen to switch to screen-update mode (though such a hot key is
not shown in the drawings). Or a selection of available screens may
be presented to the consumer from the "new screen layout" screen
80.
[0126] Turning now to the "other" screen 40 (which is not shown in
the drawings), this screen 40 provides other functions not
previously discussed. For example, control of kitchen appliances, a
web browser on an advanced TV, a security system, a baby monitor,
etc. may be accomplished through options presented on the "other"
screen 40. Another option could be a pre-loaded list of popular web
sites from which useful information could be downloaded. Control of
other consumer devices may be performed from the "other" screen 40
as well. An option may be available to "close down" all devices,
such that selecting the option causes all devices under control of
the remote control 10 to power-down. The preceding examples are
only illustrative, and by no means limiting of the types of
function that could be available from the "other" screen.
[0127] A preferred embodiment of the remote control 10 of the
present invention has just been described in relation to how the
remote control 10 would be used to control visual media, sound
media, and other devices. It is to be understood for these
descriptions, that the specific screen layouts, navigational
algorithms, and described functions of the buttons, may be modified
greatly without departing from the concepts of the present
invention.
[0128] Several examples have been provided of the type of data from
the internet or other data source that could be loaded into the
remote control 10. Some of those examples will be discussed in more
detail here, along with other examples, as this is an important
aspect of the invention. One application would allow the consumer
to load TV schedules appropriate to their area into the remote
control 10, and then list and browse the schedules. One person
could be browsing the schedule of programs available on alternative
channels, without disturbing the view of others who are watching
the primary screen such as the TV. If an alternative program is
more appealing, it could be selected from the remote control 10 by
simply touching the particular button corresponding to that
program. The schedules may be provided by subscription, or by an
arrangement between the vendor of the remote control 10 and third
parties supplying the information. A similar technique is used to
select a program to be recorded on a VCR.
[0129] Another application would allow the consumer to load
information relating to the consumer's entire CD collection into
the remote control 10. Once the CDs are catalogued and then stored
in a multi-disc CD player (units holding up to 200 CDs or more are
common), the consumer could choose which music to play using only
title-based direct access control. That is, the consumer could
select by album or song title rather than by track numbers or slot
numbers. And as previously described, individual sequences may be
defined for specific moods. This method of browsing and selecting
music differs from that of the currently available Sony S-link
control bus system, because unlike the Sony system, the present
invention allows the selection and display of titles on CD players
from multiple manufacturers and does not require the use of a TV at
all, let alone a specially-equipped Sony TV. Furthermore, the
process of entering the descriptive data for the CD collection is
greatly simplified, because the data can be loaded from the
internet. Or the data can be loaded from a PC or other data source.
A device (such as a PC) with a digital CD drive (CD-ROM, CD-R,
CD-RW, or any type of software-controllable CD drive) could gather
the information needed to load into the memory of the remote
control 10. In one embodiment, the remote control 10 has an
integrated CD drive, and in another the remote control 10 has
hardware to connect to a CD drive. In each case, the.CD drive may
be compatible with standard CD sizes, or smaller or larger CDs, or
any combination thereof. In any of the cases described, the
consumer does not have to individually enter the information for
each CD, but instead is able to use an automated device such as a
CD drive to gather the information, and then use the information to
gather associated information and title-based descriptions from an
outside data source such as the internet. The CD information read
by the CD drive, and the associated information and title-based
descriptions from the outside data source, may then be loaded into
the memory of the remote control. A preferred method includes the
consumer placing a CD in the CD drive of a PC (or of the remote
control 10, or of any CD drive accessible by the remote control
10), such that the track data can be appropriately read. Software
can derive the track name, title, artist, playing time, and other
information from the internet CDDB database, and the data can then
be downloaded into the remote control 10. The consumer would place
the CD in the CD player, and inform the software of the location of
the CD within the CD player. When the consumer later selects or
otherwise works with titles from a particular CD by browsing
information on the display 85 of the remote control 10, the
necessary IR commands are already associated with any tasks the
consumer would want to perform that involve the particular
titles.
[0130] Another example of the type of data that the remote control
10 could download is of course the IR libraries or protocols for
specified devices. Though the remote control 10 will preferably be
pre-loaded with a significant set of IR libraries for known
manufacturers and devices, there may be some devices for which the
protocols are not pre-loaded. In the latter case, the data (IR
protocol) for a specific device could be loaded from the internet
or other data source.
[0131] Reviews and other details of particular movies may be loaded
into the remote control, and are currently available at internet
sites such as the Internet Movie Database (http://www.us.imdb.com).
"Playlists" may be compiled by friends, family members, or other
third parties such as movie critics, comprising title-based
descriptions such as recommended viewing or listening, and the
remote control 10 may be programmed to load the playlists into its
memory such that the consumer may list, browse, edit, and select
programs from the playlists.
[0132] The examples provided herein are illustrative of the types
of information that can be loaded into the memory of the remote
control 10, but by no means-are the examples provided to be
exclusive. The important concept is that data related to the
control of consumer devices may be obtained from an independent
data source and loaded into the remote control 10 such that the
remote control 10 can control the consumer devices in a manner
described herein as title-based direct access control. Software,
which may be PC software, integrated software, or some other
software, controls the loading of the data into the memory of the
remote control 10. The software also controls the associations
needed to present a unified set of screens to the consumer which
associate the appropriate layouts with the appropriate physical and
on-screen actuating buttons such that the consumer may exercise
title-based direct access control of the consumer devices. The
software further controls the associations needed between the
commands requested by the consumer (e.g., by pressing buttons or
other areas of the display 85) and the actual IR commands
corresponding to those requests. For example, slider 115 may send
IR commands to the amplifier of one device when the displayed
screen is the "pictures" screen 20, but it may send IR commands to
the amplifier of another device when the displayed screen is the
"music" screen 25. The underlying associations are all controlled
by the software (and/or hardware), such that the consumer is free
to exercise title-based direct access control.
[0133] The prior description dealt mainly with the methods of using
the remote control 10, as well as some of the software aspects of
the remote control. The following description will focus on the
hardware aspects of the present invention, some of which may have
already been briefly described.
[0134] FIG. 18 is a high-level schematic of hardware used in a
preferred embodiment of the remote control 10 of the present
invention. The hardware is in the same class and similar to that of
known personal data organizers such as the Palm Pilot by US
Robotics.
[0135] A data bus 595 connects an RTC (real-time clock) 600, CPU
(Central Processing Unit) 605, memory chips 610, 615, 620, and 625,
Input/Output Application Specific Integrated Circuit (10-ASIC) 630,
and USB (Universal Serial Bus) port 635. Various other
communications ports 640, 645, 650, and 655, are connected to the
IO-ASIC 630 as will be described shortly. The remote control has a
touch screen 660 and LCD 665 as previously described, and may also
have a speaker 670 for sound. The power source 672 is shown
preferably as four M batteries or a 6V DC from an external PSU
(power source unit).
[0136] The CPU 605 is preferably the Mitsubishi M3200OD4AFP, but
that is not required. The RTC 600 is preferably a crystal-based
clock, and is used to synchronize IR commands with the proper TV
broadcast, radio broadcast, satellite broadcast, or other signals
to satisfy the consumer's requests. In addition, the RTC 600 is
used to determine when a particular title or titles from a CD have
completed based on the play-time associated with the title or
titles.
[0137] Memory 610 is a boot ROM for holding the system software,
which includes the system control component and may include some or
all of the application interface component, though the application
interface component is preferably stored in the flash ROM 625.
Flash ROM 625 also stores downloaded information such as TV
schedules, CD track data, etc. The flash ROM 625 is preferably at
least 2-8 Megabytes. Pre-loaded IR command libraries are preferably
stored in the flash ROM 625. Memory chips 615 and 625 are RAM chips
used for working memory. Memory 615 is shown as a DRAM, and is
preferably at least 4 megabytes. Memory 620 is shown as an SRAM and
is preferably at least 256-512 Kilobytes. The SRAM 620 is optional,
but if it is present it may be used for certain operations that may
require faster speed than other operations.
[0138] The IO-ASIC 630 is preferably a Mitsubishi M65455FP, but
that is not required. It comprises a UART (Universal Asynchronous
Transmitter and Receiver) 675, a 32-channel ICU (Interrupt
Controller Unit) 680, a 2-bank DRAMC (DRAM controller) 685, an
8-channel CSC (Chip Select Controller) 690, an LCD controller 695,
its own 16-bit 4-channel timer 700, and a PWM (Pulse Width
Modulator) 705. The UART 675 is used to transmit data through port
640 which is a control IR port, and to transmit and receive data
through ports 645, 650, and 655. Control IR port 640 or its
equivalent is essential because the data sent through control IR
port 640 are the IR commands to control devices. The other ports
(635, 645, 650, and 655) are optional, but at least one is required
in order for the remote control 10 to connect to an outside data
source such as the internet. Port 645 is an IrDA (Infrared Data
Association) port used for wireless communication. (There may also
be additional hardware for RF (radio frequency) communications,
though such hardware is not shown.) Port 650 is an RS232 port for
connection to a standard serial port of a PC. Port 655 is a modem
port for connection directly to telephone lines. Port 635 is a USB
port which is an industry standard port for "plug and play"
connection to PCs. The USB port 635 is connected directly to bus
595 and can transfer data at a rate of up to 4 megabytes per
second, much faster than the UART 675 which can typically transfer
data at a rate of only up to about 115 kilobytes per second. The
ports other than the USB port 635 are connected to bus 595 only
through the UART 675 in the IO-ASIC 630.
[0139] The ICU 680 coordinates and controls requests to the CPU 605
from various input and output devices either integrated with the
remote control 10 or connected thereto. The DRAMC 685 controls
access to the DRAM 615, and the CSC 690 processes the consumer's
touch screen 660 requests, which first pass through a 10-bit
analog-to-digital converter 710. The CSC 690 also interacts with
the flash ROM 625, the modem port 655, and other components, and
serves a fairly general control function in the IO subsystem. The
LCD controller 695 controls what is displayed on the LCD display
665 (in FIG. 18 LCD 665 represents the display 85 seen in the other
drawings). The timer 700 is used for short timing (on the order of
milliseconds) within the IO-ASIC 630 (such as repeated checking of
interface status, refreshing the LCD display 665, etc.). The PWM
705 sends digital signals to a digital to analog amplifier 715
which passes the signal to speaker 670. The speaker 670 may be used
to alert the consumer of errors on input when programming, or
attempted unauthorized access to certain data, or a pending
request, or any other event through the use of various beeping or
buzzing sounds of various frequencies, volumes, and/or durations.
Or the speaker 670 may be used for voice sound that states
title-based descriptions so that seeing-impaired persons may
benefit from the present invention. The voice sounds may be loaded
from an outside data source, such as the internet, or there may be
suitable text-to-voice software for creating the voice data from
the title-based descriptions.
[0140] Thus, the remote control 10 has hardware for generating IR
commands suitable for controlling consumer devices, and may also
have hardware for receiving IR communications (e.g., through IrDA
port 645). It may have hardware for higher-bandwidth wireless data
communications such as fast IrDA, and may also have physical
connections for wired data communications, such as a modem (port
655) for direct phone connection, or wired connections (port 635 or
650) to a PC. There are large amounts of non-volatile memory (flash
ROM 625, preferably at least 1 megabyte, and more preferably at
least 2 megabytes) for the storage of data relevant to the
operation of the consumer devices to be controlled, and large
amounts of working memory (DRAM 615 and SRAM 620) as well. The
remote control 10 will be powered preferably by batteries (672),
though it is possible to provide another DC power source or even an
AC power source. The batteries may be rechargeable, and may be
associated with a table-top docking station which provides power
for recharging or table-top use, and which may also provide the
various connections needed for communications as described herein
(e.g., modem for direct internet connection and intelligent
telephony control, connections with a home PC, etc.). The docking
station may also include a CD drive for reading CD track data,
and/or a printer for printing information from the remote control's
memory such as user configuration files, information related to
past programs viewed by particular users, help information, or any
other information.
[0141] As described herein, the remote control 10 may connect to
the internet or other data source directly or by a home PC. The
connection may be through wired communications or by wireless.
Wired connections may be made through a USB connection or other
serial connection to a PC or other hardware device, or through a
standard connection to telephone lines. Wireless communications may
be through the use of IrDA protocols or other wireless links (e.g.,
RF with the use of additional hardware) to a PC or the phone
lines.
[0142] In the case of a direct link, the remote control 10 will
either have a standard telephone connection point with an internal
modem, or else hardware and software enabling wireless
communication with a standard domestic wireless phone base, such
that a telephone connection could be made between the remote
control 10 and the internet. The source connected to may be a
standard ISP company, in which case the remote control would
contain all of the necessary internet protocols and web client
technology to be able to send "http" requests and receive data or
download program "applets" in response. The source connected to may
instead be dedicated solely to serving remote controls 10 of the
present invention. In that case, the consumer would not have to
have access to a pre-existing ISP account, as the necessary data
for initial setup and configuration of the remote control 10 for a
particular set of devices could be performed simply by a phone
connection, with companion server software and server hardware at a
remote location providing all the necessary access to third party
internet locations.
[0143] With connection via a home PC, companion PC software could
use a pre-existing service with an ISP to download all relevant
data, for subsequent transfer to the remote control 10. If the
consumer does not have an ISP account, but the PC is equipped with
a modem, the same companion remote server may be used as for the
case described where there is a direct telephone connection from
the remote control 10. When used in conjunction with a PC, the
remote control 10 would not require all of the communications
hardware and software herein described, and hence an embodiment
without all or part of the communications hardware and/or software
may provide an attractive lower-cost alternative for consumers who
already own a PC. For those without a PC, the embodiment of the
remote control 10 with internet connection hardware and software
built in might be more expensive than the embodiment without it,
but still it would likely be much less expensive than purchasing a
PC and would avoid the complexities associated with PCs which may
not be necessary for operation of the remote control 10.
[0144] As noted herein, the remote control 10 may have an
integrated software keyboard or other input means, but it might be
desirable for certain programming tasks to be performed using
companion software with an IR keyboard in conjunction with the
remote control's display or another display, or using PC software
on a PC. That is because the typical PC display would provide a
larger viewing area than that on the remote control 10 itself, and
the keyboard and mouse may facilitate input of data for many
consumers that are used to such input means. Even without a
companion PC and companion software, programming of the remote
control 10 may be simplified through the use of an IR keyboard.
[0145] The remote control 10 may also have an integrated CD drive,
but if it does not, a separate CD drive would be needed for
cataloguing the consumer's CD collection. That is because to free
the consumer from having to enter in the details of every CD in a
collection, the track data from the CD must be read from a
software-controllable CD drive so that the data can be associated
with the corresponding internet CDDB data. As previously stated,
even if the CD drive is not integrated with the remote control 10,
the CD drive may nonetheless be accessible by the remote control
10.
[0146] To catalog a CD for future control by the remote control 10,
the consumer would place the CD in a CD drive. Software would then
determine the track numbers and lengths, and correlate the
information with the data from the CDDB or other data source. The
consumer would place the CD in the CD player in the slot where the
software expects the CD to be, and the CD data would be transferred
to the remote control 10 using wired or wireless communications as
described herein. The remote control 10 would then be prepared to
display song titles, album titles, artists, track data, etc., and
allow the same to be listed, browsed and/or selected for play.
[0147] While certain embodiments are illustrated in the drawings
and have just been described herein, it will be apparent to those
skilled in the art that many modifications can be made to the
embodiments without departing from the inventive concepts
described.
[0148] Accordingly, the invention is not to be restricted except by
the claims which follow.
* * * * *
References