Abstract:
A portable information terminal which comprises a recording unit configured to record a markup language file for controlling controlled objects, a recognition unit configured to recognize an addition to, a deletion from, or a change to the controlled objects, and a control unit configured to change the description of the markup language file recorded in the recording unit on the basis of the results of recognition by the recognition unit.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
         [0001]    This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-081918, filed Mar. 22, 2002, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    The present invention relates to a portable information terminal that selectively controls a plurality of pieces of information equipment using a markup language. Moreover, the present invention relates to information equipment that is controlled by a portable information terminal using a markup language. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a portable information terminal-based information equipment control system in which a portable information terminal selectively controls a plurality of pieces of information equipment using a markup language.  
           [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0005]    As is well known, in recent years a system has been developed which controls various pieces of home information equipment by radio through the use of a portable information terminal. This type of control system is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2000-209675.  
           [0006]    However, the system disclosed in this Patent Publication is configured such that a portable information terminal controls various pieces of information equipment in accordance with a previously registered control method. For this reason, it is very difficult to make additions or changes to or deletions from the contents of control and the information equipment, making it inconvenient for users to handle the system.  
           [0007]    In addition, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-86257, the control equipment is adapted to obtain equipment information from the controlled equipment whenever necessary and carry out control of the controlled equipment based on that equipment information. This allows for flexible changes to the controlled equipment.  
           [0008]    Furthermore, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-251532, a telephone line-based data communications means is provided between a portable information terminal and a television receiver. Television operating buttons are attached to the portable information terminal. Thereby, access to the television receiver can be made by the portable information terminal in the same form of operation as with usual remote controllers.  
           [0009]    However, the techniques described in these publications remain insufficient in many respects for application to actual equipment. For practical use, there is room to make various improvements in particulars.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    It is therefore an embodiment of the present invention to provide a portable information terminal, information equipment, and a portable information terminal-based information equipment control system which allow the controlled equipment and the contents of control to be added, deleted or changed with ease, provide users with great freedom in handling, and are suitable for practical use.  
           [0011]    According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable information terminal comprising: a recording unit configured to record a markup language file for controlling controlled objects; a recognition unit configured to recognize an addition to, a deletion from, or a change to the controlled objects; and a control unit configured to change the description of the markup language file recorded on the recording unit on the basis of the results of recognition by the recognition unit.  
           [0012]    According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided information equipment which is controlled by a portable information terminal having a recording unit configured to record a markup language file for controlling controlled objects, a recognition unit configured to recognize an addition to, a deletion from, or a change to the controlled objects, and a control unit configured to change the description of the markup language file recorded on the recording unit on the basis of the results of recognition by the recognition unit, comprising: a receiving unit configured to receive control signals output from the portable information terminal; and an operating unit configured to instruct each component to perform a predetermined operation in response to the control signal received by the receiving unit.  
           [0013]    According to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable information terminal-based information equipment control system comprising: a portable information terminal comprising a recording unit configured to record a markup language file for controlling controlled objects, a recognition unit configured to recognize an addition to, a deletion from, or a change to the controlled objects, and a control unit configured to change the description of the markup language file recorded on the recording unit on the basis of the results of recognition by the recognition unit; and information equipment comprising a receiving unit configured to receive control signals output from the portable information terminal, and an operating unit configured to instruct each component to perform a predetermined operation in response to the control signal received by the receiving unit. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING  
       [0014]    [0014]FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a home information equipment control system according to an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 2 is a block diagram of that section of the home information equipment which makes radio communications with the portable information terminal in the home information equipment control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 3 is a block diagram of that section of the portable information terminal which controls the home information equipment in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 4 is a flowchart for use in explanation of the operation of the portable information terminal to control the home information equipment in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 5 is a diagram for use in explanation of a controlled equipment selection menu that appears on the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 6 is a diagram for use in explanation of a control command selection menu that appears on the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 7 is a block diagram for use in explanation of that section of the portable information terminal which is necessary to change the contents of control of the home information equipment in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 8 is a block diagram for use in explanation of that section of the portable information terminal which is necessary to add controllable home information equipment in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 9 is a flowchart for use in explanation of the operation of the portable information terminal in the case of additions of or changes to controllable home information equipment in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 10 is a diagram for use in explanation of a specific example of control of the home information equipment by the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 11 is a diagram for use in explanation of another specific example of control of the home information equipment by the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 12 is a diagram for use in explanation of still another specific example of control of the home information equipment by the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 13 is a diagram for use in explanation of a further specific example of control of the home information equipment by the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 14 is a diagram for use in explanation of a still further specific example of control of the home information equipment by the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1; and  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 15 is a diagram for use in explanation of a specific example of control of a charger for use with the portable information terminal by the portable information terminal in the control system of FIG. 1. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0029]    A home information equipment control system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 schematically illustrates the home information equipment control system. In this figure, reference numerals  11   a  to  11   d  denote pieces of home information equipment each of which has an internal information source and means for making radio communication with other equipment.  
         [0030]    Reference numeral  12  denotes a portable information terminal, which has means for making radio communication and controls the home information equipment  11   a  to  11   d  on the basis of information obtained therefrom through radio communication. The portable information terminal  12  is, for example, a mobile TV (television) receiver and functions as a browser as well.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 2 shows that section of the home information equipment  11   a  which makes radio communication with the portable information terminal  12 . The other pieces of home information equipment  11   b  to  11   d  remain unchanged in configuration from the home information equipment  11   a  and hence the description thereof is omitted.  
         [0032]    Reference numeral  21  denotes an information source. Reference numeral  22  denotes a notification information detector which detects notification information issued from the information source  21 . Reference numeral  23  denotes an operating unit, which issues instructions to the information source  21 . Reference numeral  24  denotes a radio communications unit, which converts notification information detected by the notification information detector  22  into radio signals for transmission. Reference numeral  25  denotes an antenna for transmission and reception of radio signals.  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 3 shows the details of the portable information terminal  12 . Reference numeral  31  denotes a memory, which stores a markup language file and driver software to control the home information equipment  11   a  to  11   d  by radio. Reference numeral  32  denotes a markup language browsing unit, which analyzes the markup language file read from the memory  31 , presents the analysis and receives user-keyed inputs.  
         [0034]    Reference numeral  33  denotes a markup language authoring unit, which changes the description of the markup language file in the memory  31 . Reference numeral  34  denotes a controlled equipment change recognizing unit, which recognizes additions, deletions and changes for the home information equipment  11   a  to  11   d  which are controlled objects.  
         [0035]    Reference numeral  35  denotes a control unit, which writes a markup language file and driver software into the memory  31 . The control unit  35  also controls the markup language browsing unit  32  to acquire user&#39;s key events. Further, the control unit  35  is responsive to information from the controlled equipment change recognizing unit  34  to instruct the markup language authoring unit  33  to change the description of the markup language file.  
         [0036]    Reference numeral  36  denotes a radio communications unit, which transmits and receives information under the control of the control unit  35 . Reference numeral  37  denotes an antenna, which exchanges radio waves with reference to the radio communications unit  36 . Reference numeral  38  denotes a display unit which is comprised of, for example, a liquid crystal display. The display unit  38  provides visual presentation of information to the user as instructed by the markup language browsing unit  32 .  
         [0037]    Reference numeral  39  denotes a key entry unit, such as a software keyboard, which accepts key inputs from the user and passes them to the markup language browsing unit  32 . Reference numeral  40  denotes a control file acquisition unit, which is requested by the control unit  35  to acquire various files, such as markup language files, driver files, etc., which are needed anew.  
         [0038]    [0038]FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the portable information terminal  12  to selectively control each of the pieces of home information equipment  11   a  to  11   d . First, when the power is applied, the portable information terminal  12  starts processing (step S 11 ). Then, the control unit  35  of the portable information terminal  12  causes the main selection menu to appear on the display unit  38  in step S 12 .  
         [0039]    The control unit  35  determines, in step S 13 , which of functions was selected by the user from the main menu. If “END” was selected, the control unit terminates processing (step S 14 ). If a function other than control of the home information equipment  11   a  to  11   d  is selected, the control unit  35  carries out processing corresponding to that selected function in step S 15  and then returns to the processing in step S 12 .  
         [0040]    If control of home information equipment was selected in step S 13 , the control unit  35  activates the browser function in step S 16  and causes controlled equipment selection menu to appear on the display unit  38  in step S 17 . Through this controlled equipment selection menu, the user is allowed to select one piece of home information equipment to be controlled by the portable information terminal  12 .  
         [0041]    Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, on the display unit  38  of the portable information terminal  12  there appears items indicating types of the pieces of home information equipment  11   a  to  11   d , such as television receiver, DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) player, D-VHS (Digital Video Home System) equipment, etc. The item “RETURN” is also displayed on the controlled equipment selection menu.  
         [0042]    In step S 18 , the control unit  35  determines which home information equipment was selected from the controlled equipment selection menu by the user. In this case, the method of selecting operation by the user is to, first, make a selection using directional keys  39   a  forming the key entry unit  39  and then decide the selection with a decision key  39   b . As an alternative to this approach, a tablet may be used for direct selection.  
         [0043]    If “RETURN” was selected in step S 18 , the control unit  35  terminates the browser function in step S 19  and then returns to the processing in step S 12 . If the home information equipment  11   c  (television receiver) was selected in step S 18 , the control unit  35  causes a control command selection menu to appear on the display unit  38  in step S 20 . This control command selection menu allows the user to select the contents of control for the selected home information equipment  11   c.    
         [0044]    Specifically, as shown FIG. 6, on the display unit  38  of the portable information unit  12  there appear items indicating the contents of control, such as volume control, channel up/down, channel number selection, input switching, two pictures, etc., and RETURN.  
         [0045]    In step S 21 , the control unit  35  determines which item of control was selected from the control command selection menu by the user. In this case, the method of selecting operation by the user is to, first, make a selection using the directional keys  39   a  forming the key entry unit  39  and then decide the selection with the decision key  39   b . As an alternative to this approach, a tablet may be used for direct selection.  
         [0046]    If “RETURN” was selected in step S 21 , the control unit  35  returns to the processing in step S 17 . If channel up was selected in step S 21 , the control unit  35  sends a control command corresponding to the selected content of control to the home information equipment  11   c  in step S 22 .  
         [0047]    Subsequent to this process, the control unit  35  is placed in the receiving state for a response from the home information equipment  11   c  in step S 23 . When the response is received, a determination is made in step S 24  as to whether the received response indicates the normal state or an abnormal or time-out state.  
         [0048]    If the response indicates the normal state, then the CPU  35  directly returns to the processing in step S 20 . If the response indicates an abnormal or time-out state, on the other hand, the control unit  35  displays an abnormal response message on the display unit  38  in step S 25  and then returns to step S 20 .  
         [0049]    Next, the processing when home information equipment controllable by the portable information terminal  12  is changed will be described. FIG. 7 shows that section of the portable information terminal  12  which is necessary for that processing. The controlled equipment change recognizing unit  34  includes a controlled equipment identification unit  41  and a change-to-set-equipment detection unit  42 .  
         [0050]    The controlled equipment identification unit  41  extracts controlled equipment names from controlled equipment information collected by the control unit  35  through radio negotiation and then identifies pieces of controlled equipment. The change-to-equipment-setup detection unit  42  detects (identifies) portions of equipment setup that need to be changed and notifies the control unit of them by acquiring the controlled equipment names from the controlled equipment identification unit  41  and taking the difference from the description of the markup language file in the memory  31 .  
         [0051]    First, the controlled equipment identification unit  41  requests the control unit  35  to collect controlled equipment information, creates a list of controlled equipment names from obtained information, and outputs it to the change-to-equipment-setup detection unit  42 .  
         [0052]    The change-to-equipment-setup detection unit  42  then reads the markup language file from the memory  31  to extract a list of effective controlled equipment names, and compares it with the list of controlled equipment names obtained from the controlled equipment identification unit  41  to detect the names of pieces of controlled equipment which have been removed and/or added.  
         [0053]    The control unit  35  requests the markup language authoring unit  33  to cause the change to controlled equipment setup to be reflected in the markup language.  
         [0054]    An example of a description of the markup language file will be explained. When describing in HTML 4.0, one html file that forms the root (hereinafter referred to as the root html) and an html file for each controlled equipment name (hereinafter referred to as the sub*html) are prepared in the memory  31 .  
         [0055]    First, concerning the root html file, a p element is allocated to each controlled equipment and a class attribute and a CSS standard 2.0 display characteristic are appended to the p element. p elements corresponding to a maximum number of pieces of controlled equipment are prepared beforehand. If a piece of effective controlled equipment exists, block is set in the corresponding display characteristic and the controlled equipment name is set in the corresponding class attribute. Conversely, to nullify a piece of controlled equipment, a value of none is set in the corresponding display characteristic.  
         [0056]    If an a element is set as a child element of each p element and the controlled equipment name is written therein, the name is displayed. Each a element is added with the href attribute that describes the url to the sub*html corresponding to the controlled equipment name. The sub*html contains the description of a Java (registered trade mark) script corresponding to the contents of control.  
         [0057]    Next, a description is given of the case where home information equipment controllable by the portable information terminal  12  is added. FIG. 8 shows the configuration of that section of the portable information terminal  12  which is necessary for the addition processing. The file acquisition unit  40  includes a network connection unit  51  and an automatic control file acquisition unit  52 .  
         [0058]    The network connection unit  51  has a function of connection to a predetermined server over a network. Upon receipt of a request for the addition of a new home information equipment control file from the control unit  35 , the automatic control file acquisition unit  52  is automatically connected to a support server already set by the network connection unit  51  to acquire and send a control driver and a markup language file to the control unit  35 .  
         [0059]    When notified of addition of controlled equipment from the controlled equipment change recognizing unit  34 , the control unit  35  checks the memory  31  for the presence or absence of a markup language file and a driver file for the controlled equipment to be added. If they are absent, the control unit  35  requests the control file automatic acquisition unit  52  to acquire them. The acquired markup language file and driver files are added to the memory  31 .  
         [0060]    [0060]FIG. 9 is a flowchart for the operation when home information equipment is changed or added. First, when the power is applied, the portable information terminal  12  starts processing (step S 26 ). Then, the control unit  35  of the portable information terminal  11  causes the main selection menu to appear on the display unit  38  in step S 27 .  
         [0061]    The control unit  35  determines, in step S 28 , which of functions was selected by the user from the main menu. If “END” was selected, the control unit terminates processing (step S 29 ). If a function other than addition of the home information equipment is selected, the control unit  35  carries out processing corresponding to that selected function in step S 30  and then returns to the processing in step S 27 .  
         [0062]    If the determination in step S 28  is that the addition of home information equipment was selected, the control unit  35  displays, in step S 31 , on the display unit  38  a message to the effect that a search will be made of home information equipment and then sends, in step S 32 , a command to search home information equipment.  
         [0063]    After that, the control unit  35  receives a response to the search command from each home information equipment in step S 33 , then performs controlled equipment identification processing in step S 34  and carries out change-to-controlled-equipment-setup detection processing in step S 35 .  
         [0064]    The control unit  35  makes a determination of whether or not there is a change in controlled equipment in step S 36 . If the determination is that there is no change (NO), the procedure returns to step S 27 . If the determination in step S 36  is that there is a change in controlled equipment, then the control unit  35  carries out the controlled equipment setup markup language file authoring process in step S 37 .  
         [0065]    After that, the control unit  35  acquires a to-be-added equipment control command setup markup language file in step S 38  and then acquires a to-be-added equipment driver file in step S 39 . The procedure then returns to step S 27 .  
         [0066]    According to the embodiment described above, the addition of the markup language browsing unit  32  and the markup language authoring unit  33  to the portable terminal equipment  12  allows a user interface for control to be added or changed readily. This provides greater freedom in home information equipment control.  
         [0067]    In addition, the configurations of the controlled equipment change recognizing unit  34  shown in FIG. 7 and the file acquisition unit  40  shown in FIG. 8 allow the user interface for control to be added or changed automatically, relieving the user of the burden of setup change processing.  
         [0068]    FIGS.  10  to  15  show specific examples of control operations by the portable information terminal  12  on each piece of home information equipment  11   a  to  11   b . First, FIG. 10 shows an example of an MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group)-4 motion picture reproduction system. As the corresponding home information equipment a video player  11   b  is used which has an MPEG-4 encoder built in. The portable information terminal  12  has an MPEG-4 video playback function built in.  
         [0069]    Upon receipt of a command from the user, the portable information terminal  12  instructs the video player  11   b  through the markup language browsing unit  32  to play back video and transmit it in MPEG-4 encoded form by radio. The portable information terminal  12  receives MPEG-4 video and decodes it for playback. Thus, the video can be viewed without attaching a display unit to the video player  11   b.    
         [0070]    [0070]FIG. 11 shows an application of the invention to an electronic program guide (EPG). As the corresponding home information equipment a set-top box  11   a  is used which is compatible with CS (Communication Satellite) or BS (Broadcasting Satellite)-based digital broadcasting. The portable information terminal  12  has an electronic program guide function built in.  
         [0071]    Upon receipt of a command from the user, the portable information terminal  12  instructs the set-top box  11   a  through the markup language browsing unit  32  to acquire SI information and transmit it by radio. The portable information terminal  12  receives the SI information and then performs the electronic program guide function to accept subscription from the user and send its contents to the set-top box  11   a . Thus, the user is allowed to make program subscription through the portable information terminal  12  with better operability than a remote controller for the set-top box.  
         [0072]    [0072]FIG. 12 shows another application of the invention to an electronic program guide. The set-top box  11   a  is used as the corresponding home information equipment. The portable information terminal  12  has an electronic program guide function, an MPEG-4 motion picture playback means, a broadcast station selecting function for selecting programs, and so on built in.  
         [0073]    Upon receipt of a command from the user, the portable information terminal  12  instructs the set-top box  11   a  through the markup language browsing unit  32  to acquire SI information and transmit it by radio. The portable information terminal  12  receives the SI information and then performs the electronic program guide function to accept subscription from the user and make it the program subscription by the portable information terminal itself. This system supposes mobile broadcasting. Thus, each broadcasting station is assumed to simulcast the same programs as terrestrial broadcasting to mobile receivers in MPEG-4 form. Thus, the utilization of SI information for terrestrial broadcasting allows program subscription to be made for mobile broadcasting receivers.  
         [0074]    [0074]FIG. 13 shows an example of a Japanese entry system. A BS digital television set  11   c  is used as the corresponding home information equipment and the portable information terminal  12  has Japanese entry means built in, which has a Kana-to-Kanji translation function.  
         [0075]    When receiving data broadcasting goes into the character entry state, the BS television set  11   c  sends a message to the effect that it is in the wait state for Japanese entry. Upon receipt of that message from the BS digital television set  11   c , the portable information terminal  12  displays a Japanese entry screen. When the user completes the entry of Japanese, the portable information terminal sends a Japanese character string. Thus, the user is allowed to enter Japanese with the portable information terminal  12  which is generally easier to operate than remote controllers for television sets.  
         [0076]    [0076]FIG. 14 shows an example of a data broadcasting contents browsing system. The BS digital television set  11   c  is used as the corresponding home information equipment and the portable information terminal  12  has data broadcasting contents processing means built in, which processes data broadcasting contents into contents of character information alone.  
         [0077]    When instructed to send data broadcasting contents by the portable information equipment  12 , the BS digital television set  11   c  sends digital broadcasting contents. The portable information equipment  12  performs browsing by processing data broadcasting contents into contents of character information alone so as not to display object elements. Thus, even the portable information terminal  12  that is lower in resolution than television sets is allowed to browse data broadcasting easily.  
         [0078]    [0078]FIG. 15 shows an example of a stored-broadcasting compatible system. A portable information terminal charger  61  is provided, which has a hard disk drive (HDD)  61   a  for use with the portable information terminal  12  built in. Stored-contents acquisition means to acquire stored contents from broadcasting signals is added to the portable information terminal  12 . It becomes possible to acquire stored contents during the process of charging the portable information equipment and store them on the HDD  61   a . Assuming the charger  61  to be stationary, it can incorporate an HDD of considerably large capacity, allowing stored-type broadcasting to be accommodated.