Claims
- 1. A system, comprising:
an image detection device to obtain an image of a consumer electronic device; and a transmitter to transmit control instructions to the consumer electronic device responsive to information extracted from the image.
- 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the consumer electronic device comprises a television.
- 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the consumer electronic device comprises a video recorder, and the image includes a front panel of the video recorder.
- 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the image detection device comprises a camera having a field of view including the consumer electronic device.
- 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the image detection device comprises a plurality of photo cells attached to the consumer electronic device.
- 6. The system of claim 1, further comprising a first database coupled to a processor to extract the information from the image, the first database comprising a conversion table to provide the control instructions to the transmitter.
- 7. The system of claim 6, further comprising a second database comprising an icon table to be accessed by the processor to extract the information from the image.
- 8. A system, comprising:
a camera to obtain an image of a consumer electronic device, the image comprising at least one visual indication of an operating state of the consumer electronic device; a computer coupled to the camera to receive the image and determine the operating state based upon the image; a database including instructions to change the operating state; and a transmitter to transmit the instructions to the consumer electronic device.
- 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the consumer electronic device comprises a video recorder.
- 10. The system of claim 8, wherein the consumer electronic device comprises a television.
- 11. A method, comprising:
obtaining an image of a consumer electronic device, wherein the image comprises at least one visual indication a first operating state of the consumer electronic device; determining the first operating state based on the image; generating at least one control signal responsive to the first operating state; and signaling the consumer electronic device to change to a second operating state different from the first operating state using the at least one control signal.
- 12. The method of claim 11, wherein a processor decodes the image to compare the first operating state to the second operating state to generate the at least one control signal.
- 13. The method of claim 11, wherein the consumer electronic device comprises a video recorder.
- 14. The method of claim 11 wherein the consumer electronic device comprises a television.
- 15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:
obtaining the image using a camera.
- 16. The method of claim 11, wherein determining the first operating state comprises:
accessing a database comprising images.
- 17. A machine-accessible medium having associated instructions, wherein the instructions, when accessed, result in a machine performing:
obtaining an image of a consumer electronic device, wherein the image comprises at least one visual indication a first operating state of the consumer electronic device; determining the first operating state based on the image; generating at least one control signal responsive to the first operating state; and signaling the consumer electronic device to change to a second operating state different from the first operating state.
- 18. The machine-accessible medium of claim 17, wherein consumer electronic device comprises a television, and wherein the instructions, when accessed, further result in the machine performing:
obtaining the image using a camera.
- 19. The machine-accessible medium of claim 17, wherein the instructions, when accessed, further result in the machine performing:
accessing a first database to determine the at least one control signal; and accessing a second database to determine the first operating state.
Parent Case Info
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/219,134, filed on Dec. 22, 1998, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Continuations (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09219134 |
Dec 1998 |
US |
Child |
10899741 |
Jul 2004 |
US |