Patent Publication Number: US-2006015905-A1

Title: Wireless communication system having program upgrade function and method thereof

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
      This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119 from Korean Patent Application No. 2004-54439 filed on Jul. 13, 2004 with the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of the Invention  
      The present general inventive concept relates to a wireless communication system having a program upgrade function and a method thereof. More specifically, the present general inventive concept relates to a wireless communication system capable of upgrading programs on a transmitter and a receiver by using a memory card and a wireless channel, and a method of upgrading the programs.  
      2. Description of the Related Art  
      A wireless communication system is a system to transmit additional information about data, and audio and video signals through a wireless channel, and includes a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter transmits the audio and video signals to the receiver through the wireless channel, and the receiver processes the transmitted audio and video signals to be displayed.  
      The transmitter transmits the additional information about data to the receiver over the wireless channel, and receives from the receiver an ACK signal in correspondence to the transmitted additional information.  
      The transmitter and the receiver store programs that perform specific communication operations. For example, the transmitter and the receiver respectively have a booting program, and a data transmission program or a data receiving program.  
      Usually a memory card is used to upgrade the programs stored in the transmitter and the receiver. That is, if a user wants to upgrade the programs stored in the transmitter, the user needs to use a transmitter memory card where the data transmission program is stored. In like manner, if the user wants to upgrade the data receiving program stored in the receiver, the user needs to use a receiver memory card where the data receiving program is stored.  
      Therefore, in a conventional wireless communication system, if the user wants to upgrade the data transmission and data receiving programs on the transmitter and the receiver of the wireless communication system, the user had to upgrade the data transmission and data receiving programs on the transmitter and the receiver separately. Since the transmitter memory card and the receiver memory card used in the conventional wireless communication system are separately manufactured, a manufacturing cost of the memory card increases.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      The present general inventive concept provides a wireless communication system having a program upgrade function, capable of upgrading programs of a transmitter and a receiver without considerable difficulty by employing one single memory card and a wireless channel, and a method thereof.  
      Additional aspects and advantages of the present general inventive concept will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the general inventive concept.  
      The above and/or other aspects and advantages of the present general inventive concept may be achieved by providing a wireless communication system having a program upgrade function, the system including a transmitter to download a common upgrade program and a transmitter side upgrade program from a memory card that stores the common upgrade program, the transmitter side upgrade program and a receiver side upgrade program, and to transmit the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program over a wireless channel, and a receiver to receive and store the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are transmitted over the wireless channel.  
      The transmitter may include an interface where the memory card may be mounted, a first storage to store a predetermined common program and a predetermined transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the first storage, a first wireless communication unit to transmit the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program over the wireless channel, and a first central processing unit (CPU) to download the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card onto the first storage to upgrade the predetermined common program and the predetermined transmitter side program when the memory card is mounted on the interface, and to control the first wireless communication unit to transmit the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program stored in the memory card.  
      If the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program stored in the memory card are later versions than the predetermined common program and the predetermined transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the first storage, the first CPU upgrades the predetermined common program and the predetermined transmitter side program.  
      The receiver may include a second wireless communication unit to receive the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program over the wireless channel, a second storage to store the predetermined common program and a predetermined receiver side program that are pre-stored in the second storage, and a second CPU to download the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are received through the second wireless communication unit onto the second storage, and to upgrade the predetermined common program and the predetermined receiver side program.  
      The transmitter may be a set-top box to receive and process audio and video signals from an image source, and the receiver may be a television (TV) to reproduce the audio and video signals received from the transmitter.  
      Alternatively, the transmitter may be the TV to reproduce the audio and video signals received from the receiver, and the receiver may be the set-top box to receiver and process the audio and video signals from the image source.  
      The foregoing and/or other aspects and advantages of the present general inventive concept are also achieved by providing a method of upgrading programs in a wireless communication system, the method including downloading a common upgrade program and a transmitter side upgrade program from a memory card that stores the common upgrade program, the transmitter side upgrade program and a receiver side upgrade program, transmitting the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program over a wireless channel, and receiving and storing the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are transmitted over the wireless channel.  
      The transmitting of the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program may include mounting the memory card, downloading the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card, upgrading a predetermined common program and a predetermined transmitter side program that are pre-stored, and transmitting the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program stored in the memory card to a receiver over the wireless channel.  
      The receiving of the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program may include receiving the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are transmitted over the wireless channel, and upgrading the predetermined common program and a predetermined receiver side program that are pre-stored with the received common upgrade program and the received receiver side upgrade program.  
      The transmitting of the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program may be executed in a set-top box to receive and process audio and video signals from an image source, and the receiving of the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program may be executed in a TV to reproduce the audio and video signals received from a transmitter.  
      Alternatively, the transmitting of the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program may be executed in the TV to reproduce the audio and video signals received from the receiver, and the receiving of the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program may be executed in the set-top box to receive and process the audio and video signals from the image source and to output the image and audio signals to the TV. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      These and/or other aspects and advantages of the present general inventive concept will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:  
       FIG. 1  is a schematic block diagram of a wireless communication system having a program upgrade function according to an embodiment of the present general inventive concept;  
       FIG. 2  illustrates a common upgrade program, a transmitter side upgrade program and a receiver side upgrade program stored in a memory card of  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart of a method of upgrading programs in the wireless communication system of  FIG. 1 ; and  
       FIG. 4  is a schematic block diagram of a wireless communication system having a program upgrade function according to another embodiment of the present general inventive concept. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
      Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the present general inventive concept, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present general inventive concept by referring to the figures.  
       FIG. 1  is a schematic block diagram of a wireless communication system  100  having a program upgrade function according to an embodiment of the present general inventive concept.  
      Referring to  FIG. 1 , the wireless communication system  100  includes a transmitter  200  and a receiver  300 . The wireless communication system  100  transmits audio and video signals and additional information about data to a digital television (TV) over a wireless channel. The audio and video signals are transmitted uni-directionally while the additional information about data is transmitted bi-directionally.  
      The transmitter  200  may be a set-top box that encodes the audio and video signals input from an image source, and transmits the audio and video signals to the receiver  300 . The receiver  300  may be the digital TV that reproduces the audio and video signals transmitted from the transmitter  200 .  
      As shown in  FIG. 1 , the transmitter  200  includes an encoder  210 , a first wireless communication unit  220 , a first storage  230 , an interface  240 , a user input unit  250 , and a first central processing unit (CPU)  260 .  
      The encoder  210  encodes (or compresses) the input audio and video signals in an MPEG (Motion Pictures Experts Group) format. The audio and video signals are input from the image source, for example, a DVD player, a satellite, or a broadcasting station.  
      The first wireless communication unit  220  transmits the encoded audio and video signals input from the encoder  210 , a common upgrade program and a receiver side upgrade program stored in a memory card  200   a  to the receiver  300  over the wireless channel.  
      The first storage  230  stores a transmitter control program to control and manage the overall operation of the transmitter  200 , a transmitter boot program to boot the transmitter  200 , and a transmitter side program to execute diverse functions of the transmitter  200 . The transmitter side program is a predetermined transmitter application program. The boot program and the transmitter side program are pre-stored in the first storage  230  and may be upgraded to new versions.  
      The interface  240  is mounted with the memory card  200   a  and connects the memory card  200   a  and the first CPU  260 .  
       FIG. 2  illustrates the common upgrade program, the transmitter side upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program stored in the memory card of  FIG. 1 . The memory card  200   a , as shown in  FIG. 2 , is a storage medium that stores the common upgrade program, the transmitter side upgrade program, and the receiver side upgrade program. The memory card  200   a  may be detachably attached to the transmitter  200  by the interface  240 . Examples of the memory card  200   a  include memory sticks, media cards, flash memory cards, or smart media.  
      A common program may be installed in the transmitter  200  and the receiver  300 . The common program may include, for example, the transmitter boot program. The common upgrade program is primarily used to upgrade the common program that is pre-stored in the first storage  230 . That is, the common upgrade program is a new version of the pre-stored common program of the transmitter  200  and the receiver  300 .  
      The transmitter side upgrade program upgrades the transmitter side program used in the transmitter  200 . Similarly, the receiver side upgrade program upgrades a receiver side program used in the receiver  300 .  
      The user input unit  250  is a user interface to output to the first CPU  260  a signal to request a function that is supported by the transmitter  200 . To this end, the user input unit  250  includes a plurality of operation keys including number keys, direction keys, and an OK key.  
      When the memory card  200   a  is mounted on the interface  240 , the user input unit  250  outputs to the first CPU  260  a program upgrade request signal to upgrade the common program and the transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the first storage  230 .  
      The first CPU  260  controls the overall operation of the transmitter  200  according to the transmitter control program stored in the first storage  230  and an operation of the user input unit  250 . Accordingly, the first CPU  260  controls the encoder  210  and the first wireless communication unit  220  to encode the input audio and video signals and transmit the encoded audio and video signals to the receiver  300 .  
      In particular, the first CPU  260  downloads, when the memory card  200   a  is mounted on the interface  240 , the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card  200   a  onto the first storage  230 , in order to upgrade the common program and the transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the first storage  230 .  
      In effect, the first CPU  260  automatically downloads the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program as soon as the memory card  200   a  is mounted. Moreover, when the program upgrade request signal is received from the user input unit  250  after the memory card  200   a  is mounted, the first CPU  260  is allowed to download the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card  200   a.    
      The first CPU  260  checks the version of each program before downloading the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card  200   a . In other words, the first CPU  260  downloads the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card  200   a  when they are later versions of the common program and the transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the first storage  230 .  
      When the pre-stored common program and the pre-stored transmitter side program are upgraded by the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program, respectively, the first CPU  260  controls the first wireless communication unit  220  to transmit to the receiver  300  the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program stored in the memory card  200   a . The common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program are transmitted from the transmitter  200  to the receiver  300  over the wireless channel.  
      The receiver  300  upgrades the common program and the receiver side program that are pre-stored therein with the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are transmitted over the wireless channel.  
      To this end, the receiver  300  includes a second wireless communication unit  310 , a decoder  320 , a buffer  330 , a second storage  340 , and a second CPU  350 .  
      The second wireless communication unit  310  receives the audio and video signals from the transmitter  200 , and provides the received audio and video signals to the decoder  320 . Also, the second wireless communication unit  310  receives the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program from the transmitter  200 , and provides the received common upgrade and receiver side upgrade programs to the buffer  330 .  
      The decoder  320  decodes the audio and video signals provided from the second wireless communication unit  310  in the MPEG format.  
      The buffer  330  temporarily stores the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are input from the second wireless communication unit  310 .  
      The second storage  340  stores a receiver control program to control and manage the overall operation of the receiver  300 , a receiver boot program to boot the receiver  300 , and the receiver side program to execute diverse functions of the receiver  300 . The receiver side program is a predetermined receiver application program. The boot program and the receiver side program are pre-stored in the second storage  340  and may be upgraded to new versions.  
      The second CPU  350  controls the overall operation of the receiver  300  on the basis of the receiver control program stored in the second storage  340 . Accordingly, the second CPU  350  controls the second wireless communication unit  310  and the decoder  320  to decode the input audio and video signals from the second wireless communication unit  310 .  
      The second CPU  350  also controls the second wireless communication unit  310  to provide the buffer  330  with the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program, and checks the versions of the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are temporarily stored in the buffer  330 , the pre-stored common program and the pre-stored receiver side program. If the common upgrade and receiver side upgrade programs in the buffer  330  are new versions, the second CPU  350  downloads the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program from the buffer  330  onto the second storage  340 , and upgrades the pre-stored common program and the pre-stored receiver side program.  
       FIG. 3  is a flowchart of a method of upgrading programs in the wireless communication system  100  of  FIG. 1 .  
      Referring to  FIG. 1  through  FIG. 3 , when the program upgrade request signal is received from the user input unit  250  after the memory card  200   a  is mounted on the interface  240 , the first CPU  260  checks if the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program in the memory card  200   a  are new versions (S 310 , S 320 , S 330 ).  
      More specifically, if the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program stored in the memory card  200   a  are later versions than the pre-stored common program and the pre-stored transmitter side program, respectively, stored in the first storage  230 , the first CPU  260  determines that the versions of the common upgrade and transmitter side upgrade programs in the memory card  200   a  are new, compared with the pre-stored common and transmitter side programs in the first storage  230 .  
      If the common upgrade and transmitter side upgrade programs in the memory card  200   a  are new versions in operation  330 , the first CPU  260  downloads the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card  200   a  onto the first storage  230  (S 340 ).  
      The first CPU  260  upgrades the common program and the transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the first storage  230  with the downloaded common upgrade program and transmitter side upgrade program (S 350 ).  
      Following the upgrade, the first CPU  260  controls the first wireless communication unit  220  to read the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program from the memory card  200   a , and transmit the common upgrade and receiver side upgrade programs to the receiver  300  (S 360 ).  
      The second CPU  350  controls the second wireless communication unit  310  to receive the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are transmitted over the wireless channel, and to provide the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program to the buffer  330  (S 370 ). Therefore, the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program are temporarily stored in the buffer  330 .  
      The second CPU  350  checks whether the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are temporarily stored in the buffer  330  are new versions (S 380 ). If the temporarily stored common upgrade program and the temporarily stored receiver side upgrade program are new versions, the second CPU  350  downloads the temporarily stored common upgrade program and the temporarily stored receiver side upgrade program from the buffer  330  onto the second storage  340 , and upgrades the pre-stored common program and the pre-stored receiver side program (S 390 ).  
      The memory card  200   a  may be mounted on one of the transmitter  200  (that is, the set-top box) and the receiver  300  (that is, the digital TV) and may upgrade the pre-stored common and transmitter side programs installed in the transmitter  200  and the pre-stored common and receiver side programs installed in the receiver  300 . In other words, unlike a conventional wireless communication system using two separate memory cards (not shown) to upgrade the programs of the transmitter and the receiver, the wireless communication system of the present general inventive concept uses only one memory card  200   a  to upgrade the pre-stored common and transmitter side programs of the transmitter  200  and the pre-stored common and receiver side programs of the receiver  300 .  
       FIG. 4  is a schematic block diagram of a wireless communication system  400  having a program upgrade function according to another embodiment of the present general inventive concept.  
      As shown in  FIG. 4 , the wireless communication system  400  includes a memory card  500   a , a transmitter  500  and a receiver  600 . Since the operations of the memory card  500   a , the transmitter  500  and the receiver  600  of  FIG. 4  are quite similar to the memory card  200   a , the transmitter  200 , and the receiver  300  in  FIG. 1  through  FIG. 3 , descriptions about the operations thereof will be omitted. Referring to  FIGS. 1 through 4 , the receiver  600  may be the set-top box, encoding input audio and video signals from the image source and transmitting the encoded signals to the transmitter  500 . The transmitter  500  may be the digital TV, reproducing the audio and video signals transmitted from the receiver  600 .  
      After attaching the memory card  500   a  to the transmitter  500 , the transmitter  500  downloads a common upgrade program and a transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card  500   a , and transmits the common upgrade and receiver side upgrade programs to the receiver  600 . To this end, the transmitter  500  includes a third wireless communication unit  510 , a decoder  520 , a third storage  530 , an interface  540 , a user input unit  550 , and a third CPU  560 .  
      The third wireless communication unit  510  receives the audio and video signals that are transmitted from the receiver  600 , and provides the programs to the decoder  520 .  
      The decoder  520  decodes the received audio and video signals provided from the third wireless communication unit  510  in the MPEG format.  
      The third storage  530  stores a transmitter control program, a transmitter boot program to boot the transmitter  500 , and a transmitter side program to execute predetermined functions. The transmitter boot program and the transmitter side program are pre-stored in the third storage  530  and may be upgraded to new versions. The common upgrade program may upgrade the pre-stored common program stored in third storage  530 .  
      The interface  540  is mounted with the memory card  500   a , and connects the memory card  500   a  and the third CPU  560 . The memory card  500   a  is similar to the memory card  200   a  as shown in  FIG. 2 , and is a storage medium to store the common upgrade program, the transmitter side upgrade program, and the receiver side upgrade program. The memory card  500   a  may be detachably attached to the transmitter  500  by the interface  540 .  
      When the memory card  500   a  is mounted on the interface  540 , the user input unit  550  outputs to the third CPU  560  a program upgrade request signal to upgrade the common program and the transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the third storage  530 .  
      The third CPU  560  controls the overall operation of the transmitter  500 , on the basis of the transmitter control program stored in the third storage  530 . Accordingly, the third CPU  560  controls the third wireless communication unit  510  and the decoder  520  to receive and decode the audio and video signals transmitted from the receiver  600 .  
      In particular, the third CPU  560  downloads, when the memory card  500   a  is mounted on the interface  540 , the common upgrade program and the transmitter side upgrade program from the memory card  500   a  onto the third storage  530 , in order to upgrade the common program and the transmitter side program that are pre-stored in the third storage  530 .  
      Following the upgrade, the third CPU  560  controls the third wireless communication unit  510  to transmit the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program stored in the memory card  500   a  to the receiver  600 . The common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program are transmitted to the receiver  600  over a wireless channel.  
      The receiver  600  upgrades the common program and the receiver side program that are pre-stored therein with the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are transmitted from the transmitter  500  over the wireless channel. To this end, the receiver  600  includes an encoder  610 , a fourth wireless communication unit  620 , a buffer  630 , a fourth storage  640 , and a fourth CPU  650 .  
      The encoder  610  encodes the input audio and video signals in the MPEG format.  
      The fourth wireless communication unit  620  transmits the input audio and video signals from the encoder  610  to the transmitter  500  over the wireless channel. Also, the fourth wireless communication unit  620  receives the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program from the transmitter  500 , and provides the common upgrade and receiver side upgrade programs to the buffer  630 .  
      The buffer  630  temporarily stores the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are input from the fourth wireless communication unit  620 .  
      The fourth storage  640  stores a receiver control program, a receiver boot program to boot the receiver  600 , and a receiver side program to execute diverse functions of the receiver  600 . The receiver boot program and the receiver side program are pre-stored in the fourth storage  640  and may be upgraded to new versions. The common upgrade program may upgrade the pre-stored common program stored in the fourth storage  640 .  
      The fourth CPU  650  controls the overall operation of the receiver  600  on the basis of the receiver control program stored in the fourth storage  640 . Accordingly, the fourth CPU  650  controls the fourth wireless communication unit  620  to provide the buffer  630  with the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program received from the transmitter  500 .  
      If the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program that are temporarily stored in the buffer  630  are later versions than the common program and the receiver side program that are pre-stored in the fourth storage  640 , the fourth CPU  650  downloads the common upgrade program and the receiver side upgrade program from the buffer  630  onto the fourth storage  640 , thereby upgrading the pre-stored common program and the pre-stored receiver side program with the downloaded common upgrade program and receiver side upgrade program, respectively.  
      As described above, the memory card  500   a  is mounted on only the transmitter  500  (that is, a digital TV), and upgrades the pre-stored common and transmitter side programs installed in the transmitter  500  and the pre-stored common receiver side programs installed in receiver  600 .  
      Moreover, the transmitters  200  and  500  of the wireless communication systems  100  and  400  according to the various embodiments of the present general inventive concept are capable of downloading upgrade programs not only from the memory cards  200   a  and  500   a , but also from a computer (not shown) where the common upgrade program and the transmitter and receiver side upgrade programs are stored. In this embodiment, the transmitter  200  or  500  is connected to the computer by a communication unit, for example, a serial interface, a parallel communication, a universal serial bus (USB) communication a local area network (LAN) communication, an Internet communication, or a wireless communication, to communicate with the computer to receive the common upgrade program and the transmitter and receiver side upgrade programs. Since the computer stores the common upgrade program and the transmitter and receiver upgrade programs, the computer is used as the memory card  200   a  or  500   a.    
      As described above, the wireless communication system having the program upgrade function and the method of upgrading the program thereof can upgrade programs in the transmitter and the receiver of the wireless communication system by employing only a single memory card storing the common upgrade program, the transmitter side upgrade program, and the receiver side upgrade program.  
      The use of one memory card consequently reduces the manufacturing cost because the single memory card can be used to upgrade both a transmitter and a receiver.  
      The commonly used programs in the transmitter and the receiver can be upgraded using the memory card. Thus, it is possible to reduce the capacity of the entire program stored in the memory card.  
      Although a few embodiments of the present general inventive concept have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the general inventive concept, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.