Apparatus, systems, and methods for configuring devices to accept and process remote control commands

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9582994-B2
Application number	US-201615076186-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 21, 2016
Priority date	Dec 21, 2012
Publication date	Feb 28, 2017
Grant date	Feb 28, 2017

Abstract

A particular device may configure one or more of other devices to accept and execute remote control commands from the particular device's remote control unit. This may be performed via one or more various communication links between the devices on that enables the devices to communicate with each other. For example, the remote control of a set-top box can be used to control both the set-top box and a television without a user having to specially program the set-top box or other universal remote control. One example of a communication link between the devices that enables the devices to communicate with each other is a device-to-device messaging protocol such as that provided by the High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) standard.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method in a system for configuring devices to accept remote control commands, comprising:
retrieving, by the system for configuring devices to accept remote control commands, remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with a first device and a remote control of the first device; and
communicating over a communications network, by the system for configuring devices to accept remote control commands, to a second device that is associated with another remote control that is different than the remote control of the first device, at least some of the retrieved remote control command information, for the second device to accept and execute one or more remote control commands received by the second device from the remote control of the first device, enabling the second device to cross reference the one or more remote control commands received by the second device from the remote control of the first device with one or more corresponding commands that the second device may execute.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the retrieving the remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with the first device and the remote control of the first device includes the first device retrieving the remote control command information on the first device.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the communications network is a device communication bus between consumer electronics devices.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the communicating over a communications network includes communicating to the second device the remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with the first device and the remote control of the first device using a device-to-device messaging protocol.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the device-to-device messaging protocol is based on a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) Consumer Electronics Control (CEC) bus standard.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the communications network includes at least a local area network, a wide area network, or the Internet.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the remote control command information includes information regarding one or more of how to interpret, identify or execute remote control commands received from the remote control of the first device.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the remote control command information includes information regarding one or more of: which pulses of infrared light represent specific command codes of the remote control of the first device, which radio frequency signals represent specific command codes of the remote control of the first device of the receiving device; which command codes of the remote control of the first device correspond to which device functions of the first device; which command codes of the remote control of the first device correspond to which device functions of the second device; a device code of the first device; a manufacturer command code of the first device indicative of remote control commands the first device can accept; a manufacturer command code of the first device indicative of remote control signals the first device can accept.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the remote control command information includes information regarding which various command codes of the remote control of the first device correspond to which device functions of the first device and which various device functions of the first device correspond to various specific remote control commands of a command protocol of a device communication bus that is the communications network.

10. A method in a system for configuring devices to accept remote control commands, comprising:
retrieving, by the system for configuring devices to accept remote control commands, remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with a first device and a remote control of the first device;
configuring, by the system for configuring devices to accept remote control commands, a second device that is associated with another remote control that is different than the remote control of the first device, to accept and execute one or more remote control commands received by the second device from the remote control of the first device based on the remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with the first device and the remote control of the first device;
the first device determining, at least in part by evaluating existing firmware programming of the first device, values of data representing the remote control command information; and
preparing the data representing the remote control command information for communication of the data to the second device.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the retrieving the remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with the first device and the remote control of the first device includes the remote control of the first device retrieving the remote control command information and the configuring includes the remote control of the first device communicating to the second device the remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with the first device and the remote control of the first device.

12. A system for configuring devices to accept remote control commands, comprising:
at least one processor; and
at least one memory area coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to:
receive remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands associated with a first device and a remote control of the first device;
storing on a second device that is associated with another remote control that is different than the remote control of the first device, at least some of the received remote control command information, for the second device to accept and execute one or more remote control commands received by the second device from the remote control of the first device, enabling the second device to cross reference the one or more remote control commands received by the second device from the remote control of the first device with one or more corresponding commands that the second device may execute; and
execute a device function on the second device in response to receiving a remote control command from the first device based on a determination made, based on the received remote control command information, of whether the device function corresponds to the remote control command received from the remote control of the first device.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein the at least one processor is in the second device.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein the receiving includes receiving the remote control command information from the first device.

15. The system of claim 13 wherein the receiving includes receiving the remote control command information from the first device over a device communication bus between consumer electronics devices.

16. A non-transitory computer readable medium having computer executable instructions thereon that, when executed by a computer processor, cause the computer processor to:
receive remote control command information useful for determining how to process a set of remote control commands asso

Assignees

• Echostar Technologies Llc

Inventors

• Richardson Jon

Classifications

• G08C17/02 Primary

  using a radio link · CPC title

• G08C17/00

  Arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless electrical link · CPC title

• G05B15/02

  electric · CPC title

• G08C2201/20

  Binding and programming of remote control devices · CPC title

• G08C2201/92

  Universal remote control · CPC title