The following relates generally to remote controls and, more particular, relates to a system and method for using an universal remote control to access extended operational functions of a device.
Universal remote controls, which are well-known in the art, typically offer a preprogrammed set of standardized keys for use in commanding common operational functions, such as volume, channel, transport, etc., for each device type supported by the universal remote control, e.g., TV, VCR, DVD, etc. However, unlike a remote control that is supplied with a device, an universal remote control is often incapable of commanding the full range of operational functions available on a device. In this regard, to avoid consumer confusion caused by the use of a large number of keys on an universal remote control, manufacturers of universal remote controls are often required to decide whether or not to provide a key for commanding uncommon functions of a possible target device. By way of example, a manufacturer of universal remote control must decide if the keypad should include a key to command selection of a preferred screen aspect ratio which may be supported by one TV, selection of closed captioning which may be supported by another TV, and/or selection of sophisticated picture-in-picture controls supported by still another TV.
To increase the amount of operational functions that may be commanded via an universal remote control, various methods have been proposed. Examples of such methods may be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,515,052, entitled “Universal Remote Control with Function Synthesis,” and U.S. Pat. No. 4,959,810, entitled “Universal Remote Control Device,” both of which are assigned to the assignee of this application and both or which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. While the methods disclosed in these patents have enjoyed some success, they disadvantageously require a consumer to engage in a sometimes lengthy interaction with an external data source, such as a reference manual, customer support hot line, or the like, to obtain numeric values which must then be entered into or programmed on the universal remote control to cause the universal remote control to transmit the desired command(s).
To address the disadvantages and other problems associated with known methods for programming an universal remote control to control extended operational functions of a device, an improved system and method for using an universal remote control to access extended operational functions of a device is hereinafter disclosed. Generally, the described system and method allows a consumer to program the universal remote control to transmit one or more code data values for causing a device to perform one or more extended operational functions, e.g., operational functions beyond those commonly supported by an universal remote control or those that are uniformly found in devices of a common type. The code data values that are made available for transmission to an intended target device are selected from a library comprising a plurality of code data values for all possible devices supported by the universal remote control.
To program the universal remote control to command an extended operational function, the consumer causes the universal remote control to transmit a code data value selected from the library to a target device while observing the effect of the transmitted code data value on the target device. As will be appreciated, the target device may or may not respond to a transmitted code data value since different devices may support different remotely controllable, operational functions. When the target device responds in a manner desired by the consumer, the consumer may tag the code data value that caused the desired effect and assign the tagged code data value to a programmable key on the universal remote control. The consumer may thereafter activate a programmable key to cause the transmission of the code data value assigned to the activated key to cause the device to perform the extended operational function corresponding to the transmitted code data value. In this manner, the described system and method has the advantage of allowing a consumer to quickly and conveniently program the universal remote control to command those extended operational functions that are: (a) supported by a target device; and (b) deemed important to the consumer.
A better understanding of the objects, advantages, features, properties and relationships of the subject system and method will be obtained from the following detailed description and accompanying drawings which set forth illustrative embodiments which are indicative of the various ways in which the principles of the system and method may be employed.
For a better understanding of the system and method for using an universal remote control to access extended operational functions of a device, reference may be had to preferred embodiments shown in the following drawings in which:
Turning now to the figures, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements, there is illustrated in
For use in remotely commanding a device to perform a common and/or extended operational function, the universal remote control 100, an example of which is illustrated in
By way of further example, referring to
To cause the universal remote control 100 to perform an action, the universal remote control 100 is adapted to be responsive to events, such as a sensed consumer interaction with the key matrix 302, receipt of a transmission, etc. In response to an event appropriate instructions and/or data within the memory devices are executed and/or accessed. For example, when a command key is activated on the universal remote control 100, the universal remote control 100 may retrieve a code data value corresponding to the activated command key from a memory device and access instructions to transmit the retrieved code data value to a device in a format recognizable by the device. It will be appreciated that the instructions within the memory devices can be used not only to cause the transmission of command codes and/or data to the devices but also to perform local operations. While not limiting, local operations that may be performed by the universal remote control 100 include displaying information/data, favorite channel setup, macro button setup, command function key relocation, etc. Since examples of local operations can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,481,256, 5,959,751, and 6,014,092 they will not be discussed in greater detail herein. A still further local operation, described hereinafter, allows the consumer to program the universal remote control 100 to access extended operational functions of a device.
By way of still further example, an exemplary ROM memory 308 may store both program instructions 402, e.g., to effect local operations of the universal remote control 100, and code data tables 404 which comprise a library of information for use in transmitting code data values to target devices. In the example illustrated in
To program the universal remote control 100 to access the common operational functions of a device, the consumer may use one or more known methods for setting up an universal remote control. In this regard, examples of known methods for performing an initial setup of an universal remote control may be found in, for example, the above mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,959,810 as well as U.S. Pat. No. 5,614,906, entitled “Method for Selecting a Remote Control Command Set,” or U.S. Pat. No. 4,703,359 entitled “Universal Remote Control Unit with Model Identification Capability,” each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Once the universal remote control 100 has been setup to control the common operational functions of one or more intended target devices, the consumer may then initiate an extended setup mode for the purpose of programming the universal remote control 100 to allow for the commanding of any extended operational functions of the same intended target device(s). In the extended setup mode, the consumer generally commands the universal remote control 100 to access additional code data values that may be available for a specific device, which device has been previously identified to the universal remote control 100 during the initial setup phase, and to transmit the accessed code data values to the device. Accessed code data values may be transmitted to the device, for example, one by one in sequence, either under the manual control of the consumer via activation of a “step” key or automatically at predetermined intervals. Still further, the sequence in which the code data values are accessed and transmitted may be such that an installed base is considered, i.e., code data values for commanding extended operational functions that have a higher percentage of inclusion in devices of a common device type are accessed and transmitted first. As code data values are being accessed and transmitted to the device, the consumer observes the reaction of the device and whenever a desirable response is invoked, the consumer may take action to assign the code data value just transmitted to one of the group of extended keys 204. If desired, code data value for use in controlling extended functions may also be assigned to override the default functions assigned to keys 202 which are part of the standard key set.
With reference to
With respect to common operational functions,
Since the universal remote control 100, by design, fails to have keys sufficient to be mapped to each of the additional, extended operational functions, (e.g., sixteen extra functions are illustrated as being provided for each device while there are only nine keys 204 available on the remote control available for assignment), provision is to be made to allow the consumer to select which of the additional, extended operational functions the consumer desires to assign to which key, and to store that information for use during future operation of the universal remote control 100.
To allow the consumer to select which of the additional, extended functions the consumer desires to assign to which key, after the consumer has completed the initial setup of the universal remote control 100 to operate the standard functions of one or more intended target devices, the extended configuration mode may be entered, for example, by entering a special setup code such as by activating the “9,” “7, ” and “9” keys on the universal remote control keypad. In response to the consumer entering the extended setup mode, the programming 402 may provide for the consumer to individually step through all of the available, extended operational functions, i.e., code data values, available for an intended target device (i.e., the device setup in the universal remote control 100 for the current device mode of the universal remote control 100), test the response of the target device to each transmitted code data value, and select those code data values the consumer wishes to assign to one or more of the programmable keys (extended keys 204 or standard key 208). In the example illustrated in
To store extended operational function selections made by a consumer, several methods may be used. For example, as illustrated in
A further method for storing extended operational function selections made by a consumer is illustrated in
Still further, as illustrated in
To select and assign operational functions to available keys using the table illustrated in
It is to be further appreciated that a mapping table, such as mapping table 902, can serve as a “user profile” so that, for example, should the consumer purchase a new device at some time in the future, e.g., to replace an old device, the functionality indicated as being desirable for a reference device, e.g., the old device, can be automatically included as part of a table entry for the new device. Populating the mapping table 902 for the new device considering the selections for a reference device, typically of the same device type, may be performed automatically (or at consumer discretion) as part of the programming that is used to initially setup the universal remote control 100 to command the operational functions of the new device. In the case where the universal remote control 100 has been setup to control multiple devices of the same device type, provision may be made to allow the consumer to select which of the multiple device setups is to be used as the reference setup. Once the mapping table is populated in this manner, the consumer may then edit the assignments should the new device fail to support previously specified operational functions, should the consumer desire to change the extended operational functions supported, etc. It is also contemplated that the mapping table 902, as well as other stored setup information, may be transferable between universal remote controls 100 to ease in the setting up of multiple universal remote controls 100. Still further, it is contemplated that a unique table can be maintained for each consumer that is to use the universal remote control 100, in cases where the universal remote control 100 is adapted to recognize individual users thereof, so that each consumer user can have access to those extended operational functions that are personally desirable. Finally, it will be appreciated that the universal remote control 100 may be provided with communications capabilities whereby the data that populates a composite operational function table, illustrated by way of example in
While various embodiments of a system and method for using an universal remote control to access extended operational functions of a device have been described in detail, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications and alternatives to those details could be developed in light of the overall teachings of the disclosure. For example, it should be appreciated that any of the above described methods can be used alone or in combination to setup an universal remote control. Additionally, the functionality of the universal remote control can be included in other devices such as PDAs, personal computers, home devices, or the like. Accordingly, it will be understood that the particular arrangements and procedures disclosed are meant to be illustrative only and not limiting as to the scope of the invention which is to be given the full breadth of the appended claims and any equivalents thereof.
This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/492,598, filed on Jul. 25, 2006, which application is a continuation of and claims benefit of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/401,378, filed on Mar. 28, 2003, which applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 11492598 | Jul 2006 | US |
Child | 14256482 | US | |
Parent | 10401378 | Mar 2003 | US |
Child | 11492598 | US |