Patent Application
20110156944
The typical home entertainment system often includes multiple interconnected electronic components configured to enhance a user's enjoyment of audio/video content, such as movies, sporting events, music, and the like. For example, a home entertainment system including a television, a television receiver or set-top box, and a digital versatile disc (DVD) player may allow a user to view various types of entertainment from multiple sources. In this case, the user may view live broadcast television programming, such as from a cable or satellite television content provider, as well as watch DVD-based content, from the same television. The addition of other system components, such as a standalone digital video recorder (DVR), compact disc (CD) player, or audio receiver and connected speakers, may allow further flexibility in enjoying audio and/or video content.
To enjoy a particular source of entertainment, such as broadcast television, DVD content, and the like, the components of the system required to deliver content that specific source must be powered on and configured appropriately. For example, to view broadcast television content, the television input corresponding to the set-top box must be selected, or the appropriate channel of the television tuner must be chosen, depending on how the set-top box and the television are connected to each other. Oftentimes, a user employs a separate remote control device associated with each component to place the system in the desired configuration. More recently, users have utilized “universal” remote control devices capable of controlling more than one electronic device to configure the system. Some universal remote controls require the user to place the remote in a mode corresponding to the device before issuing remote commands to that particular device. More sophisticated universal remote control devices may allow multiple commands to be issued to the different components by way of a single button press, such as to turn on or off the components.
More recently, manufacturers of electronic devices employing the High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI®) have begun utilizing a portion of the associated HDMI standard called Consumer Electronics Control (CEC). Generally, CEC employs a wire of each HDMI cable interconnecting the various entertainment system components as a control bus, thus allowing commands received by one component, such as those received from a remote control device for that component, to be transferred to other devices of the entertainment system. Thus, a single command from a remote control device may cause the electronic device that receives the command to transfer that command and/or others to other system components connected to the receiving component via the HDMI cabling to configure the system as desired. For example, a user desiring to watch a DVD may push a “play” button on a remote control configured to communicate with a television. In response, the television may receive the command, set its input to receive audio/video data from a DVD player connected to the television via HDMI, and then issue a command over the HDMI to the DVD player to power up and begin playing the loaded DVD. If an HDMI CEC-complaint audio receiver is also included in the system, the television may also forward a command to the receiver to turn on the receiver and select the DVD player as an input so that audio associated with the DVD may be routed to the receiver and played over attached speakers.
Restricting widespread use of the HDMI CEC functionality is the fact that many devices still being employed in the typical household entertainment system either do not include an HDMI connector, or provide such a connector but do not support CEC functionality. In other cases, one or more devices within a single entertainment system that provide an HDMI connector may not employ the same CEC functionality, thus rendering communication between such devices difficult.
Many aspects of the present disclosure may be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily depicted to scale, as emphasis is instead placed upon clear illustration of the principles of the disclosure. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views. Also, while several embodiments are described in connection with these drawings, the disclosure is not limited to the embodiments disclosed herein. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents.
The enclosed drawings and the following description depict specific embodiments of the invention to teach those skilled in the art how to make and use the best mode of the invention. For the purpose of teaching inventive principles, some conventional aspects have been simplified or omitted. Those skilled in the art will appreciate variations of these embodiments that fall within the scope of the invention. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that the features described below can be combined in various ways to form multiple embodiments of the invention. As a result, the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described below, but only by the claims and their equivalents.
While the operations of
One example of the wired consumer device control bus 102 is the portion of the High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) incorporating the Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) standard. In such embodiments, the translator 100 may allow CEC commands to be delivered to, and executed by, consumer devices that either do not support HDMI at all, or support HDMI media content delivery but do not specifically incorporate HDMI CEC functionality. Other implementations of the translator 100 may provide similar capability for types of wired media content control bus technology other than that provided by the HDMI CEC standards. Additional advantages may be recognized from the various implementations of the invention discussed in greater detail below.
The wired media content interface 302 is configured to receive control commands 320 intended for a consumer device via a media content interface cable 314A. As described earlier, the media content interface cable 314A may be an HDMI cable, with the control commands 320 conforming to the HDMI CEC standard. In this case, the wired media content interface 302 is an HDMI, CEC-compliant interface. Typically, a consumer device, such as a set-top box, television, CD or DVD player, DVR unit, or the like, serves as the source of the control commands 320.
Further, the wired media content interface is configured to receive media content 330 from the source consumer device into the translator 300 (or, in other implementations, transmit media content from the translator 300 to the source consumer device). In the case of HDMI, the media content 330 may take the form of audio and/or video data packets conforming to one of the Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG) formats, such as MPEG-2 or MPEG-4. Other media content interface standards, including varying media content data formats and related command protocols, may be utilized in other embodiments.
Also in the translator 300, the control circuitry 306 is configured to translate the received control command 320 into a wireless remote control command 322 compatible with another consumer device serving as the target of the wireless remote control command 322. Presumably, the target device is not configured to receive the control command 320 directly from the source device, likely because of a lack of a wired media content interface capable of receiving the control command 320. To this end, the control circuitry 306 may access a table or similar data structure associating the various control commands 320 to one or more wireless remote control commands 322 capable of carrying out the intended function of the received control command 320.
The control circuitry 306 is coupled with the wired media content interface 302 and the wireless remote control interface 304. The control circuitry 306 may include one or more processors, such as a microprocessor, microcontroller, or digital signal processor (DSP), configured to execute instructions directing the processor to perform the functions discussed more fully herein. The control circuitry 306 may also include memory or data storage adapted to contain such instructions. Such memory may also include data, such as the table mentioned above, to aid the control circuitry 306 in performing its translation function and related duties. In another implementation, the control circuitry 306 may be strictly hardware-based logic, or may include a combination of hardware, firmware, and/or software elements.
The wireless remote control interface 304 is configured to transmit the wireless remote control command 322 generated by the control circuitry 306 to the target consumer device. As a result, media content interface control commands 320 may ultimately be executed by devices not implementing a form of media content interface compatible with the wired commands 320 by way of a more commonly used wireless remote control interface. The wireless remote control interface 304 is configured to transmit (and also receive, depending on the implementation) wireless signals adapted to carry device commands. The wireless signals may include, for example, infrared (IR) signals or other optical signals, radio frequency (RF) signals, or acoustic signals. More specifically, the remote control interface 304 modulates a signal to yield the wireless remote control commands 322 so that they may be received, processed, and/or executed successfully by the target consumer device.
Presuming the remote control commands 322 are embodied as IR or other optical signals, the wireless remote control interface 304 may be designed to “blast” the wireless commands 322, or transmit the wireless commands 322 with sufficient intensity to allow the optical signals to be reflected by surrounding surfaces, such as walls and furniture so that the target consumer device may capture the commands 322 via its remote control interface without the benefit of direct line-of-sight between the translator 300 and the target consumer device. In another example, the wireless remote control interface 304 may include an optical “tether” or extension device configured to be positioned in direct line-of-sight of the remote control interface of the target device, thus allowing the remote control interface 304 to transmit the wireless commands 322 at a relatively low signal magnitude.
In several implementations, the translator 300 may include a second wired media content interface 308 configured to transfer the media content 330 received via the first wired media content interface 302 to the target consumer device over a second media content interface cable 314B. In another example, the media content 330 may be received at the second wired media content interface 308 and transmitted out the first wired media content interface 302. In one embodiment, the second wired media content interface 308 may also transfer any control commands 320 received via the first interface 302 over the same cable 314B. When passing from one of the wired interfaces 302, 308 to the other, the media content 330 and the control commands 320 may be merely passed through the translator 300 without any processing, or may be processed in some fashion, including signal regeneration, amplification, or the like. In one example, the second wired media content interface 308 is an HDMI to match the first wired media content interface 302. In another example, the second wired media content interface 308 may be any other audio and/or video content interface, such as an RF output, a composite or component video output with associated audio connections, or another type of content interface. In this case, the second wired media content interface 308 may include an HDMI decoder allowing the media content 330 received at the first wired media content interface 302 to be translated into media content 330 signals compatible with the particular media content output format employed for the second wired media content interface 308.
In another example, the translator 300 may include a third wired media content interface 309 to allow the translator 300 to be employed as a media content interface splitter. More specifically, the third wired media content interface 309 is configured to transfer the media content 330 received via the first wired media content interface 302 over a third media content interface cable 314C, thus allowing the content 330 to be transferred to two separate consumer devices.
Optionally, the translator 300 may include a separate user interface 310, such as a set of keys, switches, and the like, to allow a user to control various aspects of the translator 300. In another arrangement, the user interface 310 may be incorporated as part of the wireless remote control interface 304, thus allowing the user to provide input to the translator 300 via a separate remote control device associated with the translator 300. As shown in
For example, the control circuitry 306 may utilize the receiving device identification 340 to determine which of several internally-stored tables to employ when associating a received control command 320 with one or more wireless commands 322 to be transmitted, with each table relating each possible received control command 320 with wireless commands 320 compatible with a specific target device. Thus, by providing the receiving device identification 340, a user may configure the translator 300 for a particular target device the user is employing at that time.
If, instead, the control circuitry 306 does not store a table correlated with the target consumer device currently being used, the user may indicate a particular wireless command via a wireless command identification 342. Thereafter, the user may then transmit a wireless command to the wireless remote control interface 304 from a remote control device (not shown in
In another arrangement, the translator 300 may include a data interface 312, such as a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connection, Ethernet connection, Wi-Fi connection, or other communication link configured to receive remote control command information 344 for one or more potential target devices. In one example, the remote control command information 344 for a particular target device associates each possible received control command 320 with one or more wireless remote control commands 322 compatible with the target device of interest. The control circuitry 306 may store such information 344 as a table, as described above, which the control circuitry 306 may consult when a control command 320 is received in order to generate the appropriate wireless remote control commands 322. Such data 344 for multiple target devices may be received via the data interface 312, stored or updated in memory, and utilized by the control circuitry 306 as described above. Any other data necessary for proper operation of the translator 300, such as execution software or firmware updates for the control circuitry 306, may also be received via the data interface 312 in other implementations.
The amount of electrical power required for a particular translator 300 may depend on at least the amount of functionality that translator 300 is configured to perform. As a result, those translators 300 consuming less electrical energy may be powered by way of one or more of the media content interface cables 314. For those consuming more energy, a separate power supply may be necessary. For example, the translator 300 may incorporate a direct current (DC) power jack designed to accept power from an external DC power supply. In other examples, the translator 300 may include its own power supply, thus employing an alternating current (AC) power cord to be plugged into a household AC power outlet. In yet other examples, the translator 300 may employ a rechargeable battery.
In
Similarly, the embodiment of
In the embodiments of
In another example, the second consumer device 404 may transmit the wireless remote control command 321. The second consumer device 404 may take this action after receiving the same or similar command 321 from the remote control device 405. The second consumer device 404 may perform this function if the wireless remote control command 321 is embodied in a format that is incompatible with the translator 300. For instance, the remote control device 405 may issue commands in RF signals. In response to receiving such a signal, the second consumer device 404 may retransmit the wireless command 321 as an IR signal suitable for reception at the translator 300. In this arrangement, the second consumer device 404 may transmit the wireless command 321 as an IR blast, or by way of an IR tether, as described more completely above.
The implementations of
In embodiments in which the second media content interface cable 314B is not an HDMI cable connection, and is configured to receive the media content 331 from the second consumer device 404 (e.g.,
Depending on the embodiment, the standalone translator 300 may employ any or all of the embodiments described in
In yet other embodiments, the translator 300 may not depend upon an external stimulus, such as control commands 320, 324 of
The consumer electronics device 500 of
Additionally, other functional blocks of the consumer electronics device 500 may be included therein, depending on the primary functionality of the specific device 500. For example, presuming the consumer electronics device 500 is a television set-top box, the device 500 may include one or more tuners for receiving television programming from one or more selected broadcast programming channels, decrypting and decoding circuitry for extracting the programming of interest, an internal DVR unit for recording selected programs, and encoding circuitry for generating audio/video data for delivery to a television. Other consumer devices 500 may provide circuitry and logic for purposes specific to those devices 500 in much the same manner. Such functionality is not further described below to focus the discussion on the aspects of the device 500 pertaining to the transmission or reception of wireless remote control commands 522.
In the specific example of
In some embodiments, the user interface 510 may receive a wireless command identification 542 and/or a receiving device identification 540, thus providing information usable by the control circuitry 506 to generate the wireless remote control command 522, much in the same way the translator 300 of
In one scenario, the generation of the wireless command 522 is initiated by way of the device 500 receiving a wireless command issued by a user via a remote control device configured to control the device 500. In response to receiving such a command, the control circuitry 506 may then generate the wired control command 520 and the wireless remote control command 522 based on the received command from the remote control device. In another case, the control circuitry may perform this command generation based on a second wired control command 520 received at the second wired media content interface 508 from a third consumer device via a second media content interface cable 514B. In addition, the second wired media content interface 508 may receive media content 530 over the same cable 514B, which may then be processed and forwarded to the second consumer device via the first wired media content interface 504.
At least some embodiments as described herein thus allow a consumer electronics device, such as a set-top box, a television, or the like, to transmit or receive commands associated with a media content control bus, such as the CEC signals of the HDMI standard, to or from another consumer device not compatible with such a bus. Such incompatibility at the other device may include a lack of an HDMI connector, or an implementation of the HDMI that either does not employ CEC at all, or only utilizes some subset thereof. This overall functionality may be provided in a standalone translator device designed to communicatively couple the first and second devices, or may be incorporated within one of the devices. Further, the translator function may be further expanded to issue commands to one or more consumer devices without being initiated by an incoming control bus command.
While several embodiments of the invention have been discussed herein, other implementations encompassed by the scope of the invention are possible. For example, while various embodiments have been described within the context of a television set-top box and other entertainment electronics components, the design of other types of electronic systems that provide a mixture of wired and wireless command interface technologies may employ various aspects of the systems and methods described above to facilitate control command transfer among the devices. In addition, aspects of one embodiment disclosed herein may be combined with those of alternative embodiments to create further implementations of the present invention. Thus, while the present invention has been described in the context of specific embodiments, such descriptions are provided for illustration and not limitation. Accordingly, the proper scope of the present invention is delimited only by the following claims and their equivalents.
