Patent Publication Number: US-2011077751-A1

Title: Systems and methods for controlling appliances via a network

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     A. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to remote control systems and, more particularly, to systems and methods for remotely controlling appliances via a network. 
     B. Description of Related Art 
     In the last several years, home networks have become increasingly common throughout the world. Home networks are often radio frequency-based so that computers and printers in different places in the home can easily communicate with one another regardless of their location and without installing wires. 
     The vision of the future home often includes home appliances, such as telephones and heating and cooling equipment, integrated into the home network. Such an integration would permit the addition of new appliances and allow these devices to easily communicate with each other. One day, all household appliances from refrigerators to televisions may be integrated into this home network. 
     The problem with such an integration is that it requires the appliance to be manufactured with the networking capability built into it. Because individuals typically keep the same appliances for decades or more, it may be a very long time before all of the appliances in a typical household include the networking capability. 
     Some conventional appliances, such as stereos and televisions, include a wireless control device in the form of a remote control. To control the operation of one of these devices, a user must physically push a button on a uniquely associated or universal remote control. The user normally gets audio or visual queues that the requested operation was received and performed by the appliance (e.g., the television changes the channel after the user presses a button on the remote control device). These appliances are not, however, easily integrated in a home network. 
     As a result, a need exists for a mechanism that facilitates the integration of conventional appliances in a home network. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Systems and methods consistent with the present invention address this need by providing a mechanism that permits conventional appliances to be integrated in a home network, thereby permitting the appliances to be controlled via a device directly or indirectly connected to the home network. 
     In accordance with the purpose of the invention as embodied and broadly described herein, a remote control device controls the operation of an appliance. The remote control device includes a receiver or transceiver, a controller, and a transmitter. The receiver/transceiver receives a network packet that includes at least one command. The controller analyzes the network packet to determine whether the packet is intended for the remote control device. The transmitter outputs a signal to control operation of the appliance based on the command when the controller determines that the packet is intended for the remote control device. 
     In another implementation consistent with the present invention, a network with multiple appliances includes a device and a remote control. The device generates a command for controlling one of the appliances. The remote control receives the command from the device, generates a control signal based on the command, and transmits the control signal to the appliance to control operation of the appliance. 
     In yet another implementation consistent with the present invention, a device in a network, including at least one device connected to multiple appliances via at least one remote control, includes a graphical user interface and a processor. The graphical user interface presents to a user a list of appliances and control options. The processor broadcasts a request to identify remote controls connected to the network and capabilities of the remote controls, receives responses from the remote controls, and generates the list of the appliances and control options from the received responses. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate the invention and, together with the description, explain the invention. In the drawings, 
         FIG. 1  is a diagram of an exemplary network consistent with the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exemplary diagram of a user device consistent with the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is an exemplary diagram of a remote control in an implementation consistent with the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a flowchart of processing for controlling an appliance in an implementation consistent with the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a diagram of an exemplary graphical user interface that may be provided by the network device and/or the user device of  FIG. 1  in an implementation consistent with the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is an exemplary diagram of a remote control in another implementation consistent with the present invention; and 
         FIG. 7  is a flowchart of processing for controlling an appliance in another implementation consistent with the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following detailed description of the invention refers to the accompanying drawings. The same reference numbers in different drawings identify the same or similar elements. Also, the following detailed description does not limit the invention. Instead, the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and equivalents. 
     Systems and methods consistent with the present invention facilitate the connection of conventional appliances to a home network. As such, the appliances may be controlled by a device either directly or indirectly connected to the network. 
     Exemplary Network  
       FIG. 1  is a diagram of an exemplary network  100  consistent with the present invention. The network  100  may include a user device  110  connected to one or more appliances  120  via a network  130  and a remote control  140 . The user device  110  may also connect to a network device  150  via a network  160 . The user device  110  may include a personal computer, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, or a similar device. 
       FIG. 2  is an exemplary diagram of the user device  110  consistent with the present invention. The user device  110  may include a processor  210 , main memory  220 . a read only memory (ROM)  230 , a bus  240 , an input device  250 , an output device  260 , and a communication interface  270 . 
     The processor  210  may include any type of conventional processing device that interprets and executes instructions. Main memory  220  may include a random access memory (RAM), a large capacity storage device, such as a magnetic or optical recording medium and its corresponding drive, or another type of dynamic storage device. Main memory  220  may store information, instructions, and temporary variables for use by processor  210 . ROM  230  may include a conventional ROM device or another type of static storage device that stores static information and instructions for the processor  210 . The bus  240  may include a set of hardware lines (i.e., conductors) that permits data transfer among the components of the user device  110 . 
     The input device  250  may include conventional input mechanisms, such as a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, biometric mechanisms, or the like. The output device  260  may include conventional output mechanisms, such as a display, a pair of speakers, or the like. The communication interface  270  enables the user device  110  to communicate with other devices/systems via any communications medium. For example, the communication interface  270  may include a wireless transmitter for communicating with a remote control  140  ( FIG. 1 ) via the network  130  or a modem for communicating with the network device  150  via the network  160 . Alternatively, the communication interface may include any other type of interface that enables communication between the user device  110  and other devices or systems. 
     Returning to  FIG. 1 , the appliances  120  may include conventional devices, such as televisions, video cassette recorders (VCRs), digital versatile disk (DVD) players, stereos, camcorders, etc., that include infrared receiving ports. These conventional appliances  120  are designed to perform specific functions in response to commands received via their infrared (IR) receiving ports. 
     The network  130  may include a wireless network that permits the user device  110  to communicate with the remote control  140  using, for example, radio frequency (RF) technologies. The network  160  may include the Internet, an intranet, a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), the public switched telephone network (PSTN), or another type of network. The network  160  permits the network device  150  to communicate with the user device  110 . The network device  150  may include a personal computer, a laptop, a PDA, a cellular or digital telephone, or the like, and may be configured similarly to the user device  110  described with respect to  FIG. 2 . The network device  150  may communicate with the user device  110  to control an appliance  120  via a remote control  140 . 
     The remote control  140  sends command signals to the appliances  120  to instruct the appliances  120  to perform certain operations, such as changing channels or volume, playing or recording a movie or a song, etc.  FIG. 3  is an exemplary diagram of the remote control  140  in an implementation consistent with the present invention. The remote control  140  may include an antenna  310 , a receiver  320 , a microcontroller  330 , a transmitter controller  340 , a transmitter  350 , input keys  360 , and an input controller  370 . 
     The antenna  310  may include a conventional antenna for receiving RF signals. The receiver  320  may include an RF receiver that interprets the RF signals received by the antenna  310  and an analog-to-digital converter that converts the RF signals to digital signals for use by the microcontroller  330 . The microcontroller  330  may include any processing device with simple networking capabilities. The microcontroller  330  analyzes the digital signals from the receiver  320  to determine whether the digital signals are addressed to the remote control  140  and whether the remote control  140  is capable of performing any command included in the digital signals. 
     The transmitter controller  340  may include a conventional control device that controls the transmission of IR signals via the transmitter  350 . The transmitter controller  340  receives inputs from the microcontroller  330  and the input keys  360  via the input controller  370 . The input keys  360  may include conventional input controls, such as buttons, that permit a user to input particular commands into the remote control  140 . The input controller  370  includes a conventional control device that interprets the operation of the input keys  360  and generates a command signal for transmission by the transmitter  350 . The transmitter  350  may include an IR transmitter that transmits an IR signal as instructed by the transmitter controller  340 . 
     Exemplary Processing  
       FIG. 4  is a flowchart of processing for controlling an appliance in an implementation consistent with the present invention. Processing might begin with a user entering an instruction into the network device  150  or the user device  110  [step  410 ]. The network device  150  and user device  110  may be preprogrammed with a list of appliances  120  and their capabilities. In this case, the devices  150  and  110  may present the user with a list of appliances  120  and corresponding options from which the user may select. The devices  150  and  110  may provide graphical user interfaces to the user to facilitate the user&#39;s selection. 
       FIG. 5  is a diagram of an exemplary graphical user interface  500  for controlling a television that may be provided by the network device  150  and/or the user device  110  in an implementation consistent with the present invention. The graphical user interface  500  may include an appliance identifier  510 , such as “Sony 53 Inch Television,” to uniquely identify the appliance  120  being controlled, and one or more command components  520 , such as channel and volume command components, to control the operation of the appliance  120 . 
     Once the user enters the instruction, the network device  150  or user device  110  analyzes the instruction and generates a command signal therefrom [step  420 ]. If the user enters the instruction via the network device  150 , the network device  150  transmits the command signal to the user device  110  via the network  160 . For example, the network device  150  might use a modem to transmit the command signal to the user device  110 . 
     The user device  110  generates a network packet from the command signal and transmits the network packet to the remote control  140  using conventional RF transmission techniques [step  430 ]. The receiver  320  ( FIG. 3 ) of the remote control  140  receives the network packet and may convert it from analog to digital form [step  440 ]. The microcontroller  330  analyzes the packet to determine whether it is addressed to the remote control  140 . To make this determination, the microcontroller  330  might compare a destination address in the packet to the network address of the remote control  140 . 
     If the packet is not addressed to the remote control  140 , the microcontroller  330  may simply discard it. If it is addressed to the remote control  140 , the microcontroller  330  reads the packet to identify the command contained therein. The microcontroller  330  may then determine whether the remote control  140  can perform this command [step  450 ]. To make this determination, the microcontroller  330  may compare the command to a table of known commands. For example, if the command includes an instruction to increase the volume on a stereo, the microcontroller  330  determines whether it has the capability to increase the volume on the stereo. 
     If the command is not one that the remote control  140  can perform, the microcontroller  330  may discard it. If it is one that the remote control  140  can perform, the microcontroller  330  sends appropriate signals to the transmitter controller  340  to instruct it to generate an IR signal corresponding to the command. The signals sent by the microcontroller  330  may emulate signals generated by the input controller  370  in response to the same command being input via the input keys  360 . 
     The transmitter controller  340  generates the IR signal [step  460 ] and transmits it to the IR receiving port of the intended appliance  120  [step  470 ]. To facilitate the transmission of the IR signal, it may be necessary that the transmitter  350  of the remote control  140  be pointed in the direction of the appliance  120 . 
     Network Remote Control  
       FIG. 6  is an exemplary diagram of a remote control  600  in another implementation consistent with the present invention. The remote control  600  has similar components to the remote control  140  of  FIG. 3 , but differs from the remote control  140  in that the remote control  600  has more networking capabilities and acts as a node in the network  100 . The remote control  600  may include an antenna  610 , a transceiver  620 , a microcontroller  630 , a transmitter controller  640 , a transmitter  650 , input keys  660 , and an input controller  670 . 
     The antenna  610  may include a conventional antenna for transmitting and receiving RF signals. The transceiver  620  may include an RF transceiver that interprets the RF signals received by the antenna  610 , an analog-to-digital converter that converts the RF signals to digital signals for use by the microcontroller  630 , and a digital-to-analog converter that converts digital signals from the microcontroller  630  to analog RF signals for transmission via the network  130 . 
     The microcontroller  630  may include any processing device with networking capabilities that permit the remote control  600  to participate in the network  130  as a normal peripheral node. The microcontroller  630  may maintain information on the capabilities of the remote control  600  and respond to queries by providing this capability information to another device connected to the network  130 . The microcontroller  630  may acknowledge and analyze commands received from the network. 
     The transmitter controller  640  may include a conventional control device that controls the transmission of IR signals via the transmitter  650 . The transmitter controller  640  receives inputs from the microcontroller  630  and the input keys  660  via the input controller  670 . The input keys  660  may include conventional input controls, such as buttons, that permit a user to input particular commands. The input controller  670  includes a conventional control device that interprets the operation of the input keys  660  and generates a command signal for transmission by the transmitter  650 . The transmitter  650  may include an IR transmitter that transmits an IR signal as instructed by the transmitter controller  640 . 
     Exemplary Processing with Network Remote Control  
       FIG. 7  is a flowchart of processing for controlling an appliance in another implementation consistent with the present invention. Processing might begin with the user device  110  ( FIG. 1 ) determining what remote controls  600  are available on the network. For example, the user device  110  may transmit a query, such as a standard “service discovery protocol,” on the network  130  to determine what remote controls  600  are connected to the network  130  and their respective capabilities [step  710 ]. Each of the remote controls  600  may respond to the user device  110  with its network address and capabilities [step  720 ]. 
     The user device  110  may provide the information received from the remote controls  600  to a user via a graphical user interface. For example, the user device  110  may present the user with a list of appliances  120  and corresponding options from which the user may select. If the user accesses the network  130  via a network device  150 , instead of the user device  110 , the network device  150  may obtain the information regarding the capabilities of the remote controls  600  from the user device  110  via the network  160 . 
     In either case, the user device  110  or network device  150  receives an instruction from the user [step  730 ]. The user device  110  or network device  150  analyzes the instruction and generates a command signal therefrom [step  740 ]. If the user enters the instruction via the network device  150 , the network device  150  transmits the command signal to the user device  110  via the network  160 . For example, the network device  150  might use a modem to transmit the command signal to the user device  110 . 
     The user device  110  may then generate a network packet from the command signal and transmit the network packet to a remote control  600  having the required capabilities [step  750 ]. The user device  110  may use conventional RF transmission techniques to transmit the packet. 
     The transceiver  620  ( FIG. 6 ) of the remote control  600  receives the network packet and may acknowledge its receipt [step  760 ]. The microcontroller  630  may then analyze the packet to determine whether it is addressed to the remote control  600 . To make this determination, the microcontroller  630  might compare a destination address in the packet to the network address of the remote control  600 . If the packet is not addressed to the remote control  600 , the microcontroller  630  may discard it. 
     If the packet is addressed to the remote control  600 , the microcontroller  630  reads the packet to identify the command contained therein. The microcontroller  630  may then send the appropriate signals to the transmitter controller  640  to instruct it to generate an IR signal corresponding to the command. The signals sent by the microcontroller  630  may emulate signals generated by the input controller  670  in response to the same command being input via the input keys  660 . 
     The transmitter controller  640  generates the IR signal [step  770 ] and transmits it to the IR receiving port of the intended appliance  120  [step  780 ]. To facilitate the transmission of the IR signal, it may be necessary that the transmitter  650  of the remote control  600  be pointed in the direction of the appliance  120 . 
     CONCLUSION 
     Systems and methods consistent with the present invention permit conventional appliances to be controlled over a network. A user within a household may control the operation of one or more appliances using, for example, a personal computer. In addition, a user outside of the household may control these appliances using a device connected to a network, such as the Internet. 
     The foregoing description of preferred embodiments of the present invention provides illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the invention. For example, while series of steps have been described with regard to  FIGS. 4 and 7 , the order of the steps does not matter. 
     In addition, the preceding description described the remote control as controlling the operation of an appliance based on an instruction from a user. In another implementation consistent with the present invention, the user device  110  may be preprogrammed to automatically issue a command signal to the remote control for controlling the appliance based on what the user is doing on the user device. 
     The scope of the invention is defined by the claims and their equivalents.