Patent ID: 8120470

Claim:
A method of controlling an electronic appliance, comprising: collecting a sound wave generated for controlling the electronic appliance; acoustoelectrically converting the collected sound wave into a sound signal; generating an edge signal according to the sound signal, the edge signal indicating the generation timing of the sound wave; generating an edge pulse according to the edge signal; after a predetermined number of edge pulses are generated, displaying one of a plurality of control images, the respective control images being associated with a plurality of control operations of the electronic appliance, on a display of the electronic appliance in an active state in which the associated control operation is executable, and displaying the other control images on the display in an inactive state in which the associated control operations are not executable; if no edge pulse is generated within a predetermined period that one control image is displayed on the display in the active state, switching between the plurality of control images to switch the one control image from the active state to the inactive state and switch another control image adjacent to the one control image from the inactive state to the active state; and carrying out the control operation associated with a control image displayed in an active state on the display at the time when the edge pulse is generated.