Patent Publication Number: US-2015065116-A1

Title: Remote control device and wireless communication system comprising the same

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a remote control device, more particularly to a remote control device for controlling a portable wireless communication device. The invention also relates to a wireless communication system comprising the remote control device. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     A conventional Bluetooth device for a vehicle is usually disposed proximate to a driver seat, and is operable to connect with a user&#39;s cellular phone via the Bluetooth protocol. The user is able to control operation of the cellular phone, such as answering an incoming telephone call or terminating a telephone call, by operating the conventional Bluetooth device. Accordingly, the user does not need to hold the cellular phone with one hand while driving, thereby lowering the risk of accidents. 
     Since an input platform of the conventional Bluetooth device is usually composed of buttons or a touch panel which needs to be pushed or to be touched in order to control the cellular phone, attention of the user still might be distracted when operating the conventional Bluetooth device. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a remote control device that may minimize user distraction while driving the vehicle. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a remote control device that is easy to operate and that may alleviate the aforementioned drawback of the prior art. 
     According to one aspect of the present invention, a remote control device is adapted for communicating with and controlling a portable wireless communication device, and comprises a communication module for wirelessly communicating with the portable wireless communication device, a detecting module for detecting movement of an object within a predetermined space, and a control unit electrically coupled to the detecting module and the communication module. The control unit is operable to determine whether the object moves in a predetermined direction according to detection result from the detecting module, and to transmit through the communication module a control signal to the portable wireless communication device so as to control operation of the portable wireless communication device when it is determined that the movement of the object detected by the detecting module is in the predetermined direction. 
     According to another aspect of the present invention, a wireless communication system comprises a portable wireless communication device and a remote control device. The remote control includes a communication module for wirelessly communicating with the portable wireless communication device, a detecting module for detecting a movement direction of an object within a predetermined space, and a control unit electrically coupled to the detecting module and the communication module. The control unit is operable to determine whether the object moves in a predetermined direction according to detection result from the detecting module, and to transmit through the communication module a control signal to the portable wireless communication device to control operation of the portable wireless communication device when it is determined that the movement of the objected detected by the detecting module is in the predetermined direction. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
       Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawing, of which: 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a preferred embodiment of a wireless communication system according to the invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , the preferred embodiment of a wireless communication system  100  of this invention is shown to include a portable wireless communication device  1  and a remote control device  2 . In this embodiment, the portable wireless communication device  1  is a cellular phone. For example, in the case that the wireless communication system  100  is used in a vehicle, the remote control device  2  is disposed proximate to a driver seat of the vehicle. It should be noted that the wireless communication system  100  is not limited for use in a vehicle, and can be used in other occasions and situations. 
     The remote control device  2  includes a communication module  21 , a detecting module  22 , and a control unit  23 . 
     The communication module  21  is operable to wirelessly communicate with the portable wireless communication device  1 . In this embodiment, the communication module  21  is a Bluetooth module, and the portable wireless communication device  1  includes a Bluetooth module that is capable of communicating with the communication module  21  via the Bluetooth protocol. However, communication between the portable wireless communication device  1  and the communication module  21  is not limited to the disclosure of this embodiment. 
     The detecting module  22  is configured to detect movement of an object  200  within a predetermined space. In this embodiment, the detecting module  22  is, but should not be limited to, an infrared detecting module. That is, the detecting module  22  is operable to transmit infrared signals, receiving infrared signals reflected from the object  200 , and determining a movement direction of the object  200  based on the received infrared signals. In this embodiment, the object  200  is a user&#39;s hand. That is, when the user&#39;s hand is moving in the predetermined space, the detecting module  22  is capable of determining the movement direction of the user&#39;s hand. 
     The control unit  23  is electrically coupled to the detecting module  22  and the communication module  21 , and is operable to determine whether the object moves in a predetermined direction according to detection result from the detecting module  22 . When it is determined that the movement of the object  200  detected by the detecting module  22  is in the predetermined direction, the control unit  23  is further operable to transmit through the communication module  21  a control signal to the portable wireless communication device  1  so as to control operation of the portable wireless communication device  1 . In this embodiment, the predetermined direction is a bottom-top direction, which means the control unit  23  is capable of determining if the user&#39;s hand is moving in the bottom-top direction according to the movement direction of the object  200  detected by the detecting module  22 . In this embodiment, the control unit  23  is operable to transmit the control signal to control the portable wireless communication device  1  (i.e., the cellular phone) to answer an incoming telephone call and/or to terminate a telephone call. Therefore, the user only needs to put his/her hand into the predetermined space and move in the bottom-top direction when the incoming telephone call needs to be answered. Similarly, the user only needs to put his/her hand into the predetermined space and move in the bottom-top direction to terminate the telephone call. 
     In practice, the control unit  23  may be further operable to determine if the object  200  moves in one of four predetermined directions according to the movement direction detected by the detecting module  22 . In this case, the four predetermined directions are bottom-top, top-bottom, left-right, right-left directions. Besides, the control unit  23  is capable of transmitting one of four different control signals, which correspond respectively to the four predetermined directions, through the communication module  21  to control the portable wireless communication device  1  to execute a corresponding operation. For example, the control signals corresponding to the four predetermined directions may cause the portable wireless communication device  1  to execute four different operations, respectively, such as to answer an incoming telephone call, to terminate a telephone call, to play music, and to stop playing music. 
     To sum up, the detecting module  22  of the remote control device  2  according to the present invention works as an input platform that allows the user to easily operate the portable wireless communication device  1  by moving his/her hand in the predetermined space while driving the vehicle, thereby minimizing user distraction and lowering the risk of accidents. 
     While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.