The present invention relates generally to a remote control systems for home electronics equipment, and more specifically to infrared remote control systems.
Equipment can be controlled from a remote location using a wide variety of applicable remote control systems. For example, in the field of home electronics, remote control systems are often used to control equipment such as stereo systems, television sets, computers and video equipment. In one class of remote controls commonly used in the home electronics field, an infrared signal, including embedded command codes, is generated at a location remote from the equipment to be controlled. The infrared signal propagates to the equipment to be controlled, where it is detected and decoded using an infrared detector and signal processing circuitry. These systems provide the convenience of remote operation without the nuisance of running wires or other cables from the equipment to the remote operation location.
While conventional infrared remote control systems are convenient in many respects, the use of infrared signals to transmit control commands does suffer certain limitations. For example, other sources of infrared energy can interfere with the infrared signal, thereby causing the detector or decoder to misread the infrared signal or to detect false signals. In the field of home electronics, plasma televisions and fluorescent lighting are common sources of infrared noise that can deleteriously interfere with the operation of a conventional infrared remote control system. For example, a typical plasma television generates infrared radiation in the non-visible light spectrum at approximately 1000 μm, while a typical infrared remote control broadcasts command signals at approximately 940 μm. In view of this, a noise-tolerant infrared remote control system has been developed that is capable of reliable operation near sources of infrared noise.
In accordance with the foregoing, in one embodiment of the present invention, a method for providing control commands to electronic equipment from a remote location comprises receiving a control command signal transmitted from a remote control. The control command signal has a first carrier wave that includes a noise component. The method further comprises removing the first carrier wave from the control command signal, such that the noise component is also removed, thereby producing a TTL signal. The method further comprises generating a second carrier wave having a frequency substantially equal to the first carrier wave. The method further comprises applying the second carrier wave to the TTL signal to produce an output command signal that is provided to the electronic equipment to be controlled remotely.
In another embodiment of the present invention, a method comprises receiving, at a detector, a command signal from a remote control. The command signal includes a spectrum of frequencies. The method further comprises determining a range of noise frequencies based on a noise source to which the detector is exposed. The method further comprises passing selected frequencies of the command signal to an output port. The range of noise frequencies is removed from the command signal.
In another embodiment of the present invention, a remote control apparatus comprises a photodetector configured to receive an infrared signal generated by a remote control. The photodetector is exposed to a source of electromagnetic noise. The apparatus further comprises an input circuit for generating a command signal from the infrared signal detected by the photodetector. The command signal includes a logic portion, a carrier portion and a noise portion. The apparatus further comprises a filter circuit for removing the carrier portion and noise portions of the command signal, thereby providing a TTL logic signal that is substantially free from effects of electromagnetic noise. The apparatus further comprises a circuit for generating a replacement carrier signal at a selected frequency, such as a clock circuit or a microcontroller. The replacement carrier signal is then added to the command signal logic portion. The apparatus further comprises an output terminal configured to output the command signal logic portion and the replacement carrier signal.
In another embodiment of the present invention, a system comprises a remote control for generating a command signal. The system further comprises a receiver box that is exposed to a source of electromagnetic noise. The receiver box is configured to receive the command signal form the remote control, remove a noise component of the command signal, and output a filtered command signal. The receiver box is positioned remotely from the remote control. The system further comprises an electronic component configured to receive the filtered command signal from the receiver box.
Exemplary embodiments of the remote control system described herein are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only. The drawings comprise the following figures, in which like numerals indicate like parts.
As described above, sources of background infrared radiation, such as plasma televisions and fluorescent lighting, can interfere with the operation of conventional infrared remote control systems, such as those often associated with home electronics systems. Specifically, conventional infrared detectors often cannot distinguish between the infrared signals generated by the remote control and background infrared noise. This can result in the detector misreading the infrared signal or detecting a false signal.
System Overview.
As illustrated, the system includes a handheld infrared remote control 100 capable of generating infrared signals, such as with an infrared light emitting diode (“LED”). For example, the remote control can generate a square wave plus carrier signal that is gated by a logic signal to thereby embed control data or codes. This signal is then used to drive or pulse one or more infrared LED emitters, wherein the logic signal modulates the square wave signal, which acts as a carrier.
In one example embodiment, the infrared remote control 100 comprises a user programmable “universal” remote control that is capable of providing control commands to a variety of different home electronics components, such as television sets, including plasma, CRT, and LCD television sets, satellite receivers, video cassette recorders, DVD players, digital video recorders, and stereo receivers. In other embodiments, the infrared remote control 100 is configured for use with a single component.
Still referring to
The infrared receiver 110 further includes electronic circuitry, described in greater detail below, configured to selectively remove or filter infrared noise detected by the detector 112, such as might be generated by plasma television sets, fluorescent lighting, or other sources of infrared radiation. The circuitry is optionally housed within a shielded chassis. Additionally, the infrared receiver 110 optionally includes a talkback LED 114 configured to emit visible light when the detector 112 detects an infrared signal. In such embodiments, the talkback LED 114 provides the user with an indication that the detector 112 has detected an infrared signal.
In one embodiment, the infrared receiver 110 has a compact design, thus facilitating its placement in small or inconspicuous locations, such as under shelf edges or cabinet ledges. For example, in one embodiment the infrared receiver 110 measures approximately 11 mm wide, approximately 8.5 mm deep, and approximately 55 mm long. Other dimensions can be used in other embodiments. The receiver optionally includes screw holes used to affix the receiver to a surface, such as a shelf, using screws or nails, though two-sided tape or other affixing mechanisms can be used as well.
Still referring to the exemplary embodiment illustrated in
The connecting block 120 is configured to provide the signal received from the infrared receiver 110 to one or more emitter ports E1, E2, E3, . . . En. An infrared emitter 124 is connected to an emitter port En, with the emitter mounted over, or in view of, the infrared detector on a home electronics component 126. The electronic component can include one or more television sets, satellite receivers, video cassette recorders, DVD players, digital video recorders, cable boxes, tuners, computers, and multichannel audio components. For example, in one embodiment, the infrared emitters 124 comprise E1 IR Emitters, available from Sonance (San Clemente, Calif.), though other infrared emitters can be used. In a modified embodiment, the connecting block 120 is eliminated, and the infrared receiver 110 is connected directly to a power supply and the infrared emitter 124, thereby directly providing the home electronics component 126 with the filtered signal produced by the infrared receiver 110.
Using the configuration described above, and illustrated in
Infrared Filter Circuit.
As described above, the infrared receiver 110 contains electronic circuitry configured to selectively remove noise detected by the detector 112, such as might be generated by plasma television sets or fluorescent lighting.
In the illustrated embodiment, the detector 112 is a photodiode. An exemplary embodiment of such circuitry is provided in
Referring now to
The infrared signal is detected by the infrared detector 112, which removes the carrier wave 204 to produce a transistor-transistor logic (“TTL”) signal 206, for example ranging between 0 volts and +5 volts. Exemplary infrared detectors 112 that can be used to remove the carrier wave 204 are manufactured by Panasonic (Osaka, Japan) under part numbers PNA 4602M/4612M (for removing a 38 kHz carrier wave) and PNA 4608M/4614M (for removing a 56.9 kHz carrier wave). Of course other voltage ranges can be used, including those that are compatible with CMOS circuitry, ECL circuitry, GaAs circuitry, and the like. In a modified embodiment, wherein infrared signals having different carrier frequencies are to be detected, the infrared receiver 110 includes a plurality of detectors 112, each tuned to detect an infrared signal 200 having a different carrier frequency.
Still referring to the exemplary technique illustrated in
In the exemplary technique illustrated in
While the foregoing detailed description discloses several embodiments of the present invention, it should be understood that this disclosure is illustrative only and is not limiting of the present invention. It should be appreciated that the specific configurations and operations disclosed can differ from those described above, and that the methods described herein can be used in contexts other than home electronics.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/546,500, filed on 20 Feb. 2004, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60546500 | Feb 2004 | US |