Method and system for programming a remote control unit
Contents
1. 55 60 65 10 1 is not successful The remote control then prompts the user to test a mute command having a format dissimilar to that of mute command 1 Therefore mute command 2 is tested In this example the testing of mute command 2 is successful The remote control unit then eliminates all remaining code sets that include a mute command dissimilar to mute com mand 2 In this manner code set C is eliminated Because more than one code set remains code sets D and E another command is selected In this example the volume command is selected and a comparison is per formed The comparison determines that code set D includes volume command 7 and code set E includes volume com mand 8 The remote control unit prompts the user to test volume command 7 If volume command 7 works as it does in this example the remote control unit eliminates all remaining code sets that do not include volume command 7 In this manner code set E is eliminated Code set D is then the only remaining code set and is therefore identified as the best code set for the user s ZENITH brand television Code set D is then added to the remote control unit such that the remote control unit can use code set D to properly format commands to control operation of the ZENITH brand tele vision The method of programming a remote control unit as described above is further described with reference to the flow chart of FIG 5 The method begins at 100 At step 1052. example the code set that controls a SONY brand television is most likely different than the code set that controls a MAGNAVOX brand stereo The universal remote control unit therefore must be programmed by the user to operate each type brand and model of a device Programming a universal remote control unit during a set up process can be a tedious task Typically the user is 10 15 20 25 35 40 45 so 55 60 65 2 reguired to look in an instruction manual to identify the proper code set for each device to be controlled from a large number of possible code sets Perusing a user s manual to identify the correct code set for many different types and brands of devices is time consuming and interjects a high probability of error into the set up process Also each universal remote control unit is typically programmed by the user via a special seguence of program ming steps Most universal remote control units however do not provide the user with feedback during the program ming process A single mistake by the user during the programming process may cause the process to fail and thus may reguire that the entire process be repeated Program ming the universal remote control unit can therefore be a frustrating and time consuming endeavor Therefore a need exists for an automated set up process for a remote control unit thereby minimizing or eliminating the need for the user to use an instruction manual to
3. selected by the user The method then terminates at 300 In summary the present invention provides a method and system for programming a remote control unit to control the operation of a controllable device The preferred embodi ment of the present invention provides a set up process for programming a remote control unit by comparing code sets stored in the memory of the remote control unit to identify similarities and dissimilarities between command formats within respective code sets The preferred embodiment of the present invention utilizes user testing of commands and user feedback regarding the results of such testing to elimi nate code sets containing a command format that is dissimi lar to the format of the command that was successfully tested By eliminating code sets from the group of code sets and testing other commands the remote control unit even tually eliminates all but one code set The one remaining code set is identified as the best code set and is added to the remote control unit to allow the remote control unit to transmit signals to control operation of the controllable device From the foregoing it will be appreciated that the pre ferred embodiment of the present invention overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art described hereinabove From the description of the preferred embodiment equivalents of the elements shown therein will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and ways of constructing other embodi
4. 3 1997 E Primary Examiner Michael Horabik 51 ICI ita iii GOSB 19 04 assistant Examiner William H Wilson Jr 52 US Ol sne kan es 340 825 22 455 1514 Attorney Agent or Firm Jones amp Askew LLP 455 352 340 825 72 341 176 359 146 359 148 57 ABSTRACT 58 Field of Search ee 455 4 1 151 4 455 151 2 352 151 1 340825 69 825 72 10 control the operation of a controllable device A group of 829 1718253 12900 825 62 825 22 code sets k with a particular type and Grand of 341 176 22 359 142 145 146 148 147 5 fi datab f code set 348 734 360 69 1 1 controllable device are selected from a database of code sets z stored in the memory of the remote control unit The commands of each code set in the group of code sets are 56 Reterences Cited compared to identify similarities and dissimilarities between U S PATENT DOCUMENTS command formats within each respective code set The user 4 774 511 9 1988 Rumbolt et al ares EA Command anid provides feedback to the remote 4 825 200 4 1989 Evans et al 4 866 434 9 1989 Keenan 5 228 077 7 1993 Darbee 5 386 251 1 1995 Movshovich 5 410 326 4 1995 Goldstein control unit regarding the results of such testing When the 340 825 72 X B A 340 825 72 testing of a command is successful the remote control unit v 348 734 X eliminates code sets containing a command format that is m 348 734 diss
5. When the remote control unit identifies dissimilarities between command formats commands having dissimilar formats are tested to determine which command format is correct The display of FIG 3G is shown when the remote control unit determines that dissimilar command formats exist for various code sets corresponding to ZENITH brand televi sions Because there are more than one command formats for ZENITH brand televisions the remote control unit will select a command to test to eliminate incorrect command formats In an exemplary embodiment of the invention the power command is tested first The power command is tested because it is the command common to most control lable devices However commands other than the power command could be tested first To test the power command the user activates the button corresponding to the test option Upon activation of the test option the transmitter of the remote control unit trans mits a power command to the receiver of the ZENITH brand television The user determines if the power command works i e whether the testing of the power command caused the ZENITH brand television to turn on or turn off if the television was already on After the power command is tested the display of FIG 3H is provided to prompt the user to provide feedback to the remote control unit regarding the effect of the test If the power command did not work the user selects the no option and the display of FIG 3G i
6. back button 82 causes the previous screen to be displayed The mode button 84 displays a list of devices previously set up that can be controlled by the remote control unit The remote control unit also includes a setup button 70 It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the face of the remote control unit shown in FIG 2 or to any other specific configuration The preferred embodiment of the present invention may be implemented using any configuration of a remote control device that allows a user to control operation of a control lable device The user activates the setup button 70 when the user wants to program the remote control unit to operate a specific device When the user activates the setup button 70 pro gramming stored in the memory of the remote control unit is invoked to initiate the setup process The program causes the displays shown in FIGS 3A M to be displayed on the display 72 of the remote control unit during the setup process It should be understood however that the displays shown in FIGS 3A M are shown for purposes of describing the example below and other displays may be provided during the setup process The description below will describe the setup of the remote control unit to include the capability to control a ZENITH brand television It should also be understood that the associated displays and descrip tions of the setup process relating to a ZENITH brand telev
7. manually identify the correct code set for a controllable device SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a method and system for programming a remote control unit to control the operation of a controllable device The present invention provides a set up process for programming a remote control unit by selecting a group of code sets associated with a particular type and brand of device from a database of code sets stored in the memory of the unit The commands of each code set in the group of code sets are compared to identify similarities and dissimilarities between command formats within each respective code set The user tests a command and provides feedback to the universal remote control unit regarding the results of such testing When the testing of a command is successful the remote control unit eliminates code sets containing a com mand format that is dissimilar to the format of the command that was successfully tested By eliminating code sets from the group of code sets and testing other commands the remote control unit typically eliminates all but one code set The one remaining code set is identified as the best code set i e the code set most likely to be the code set that controls the controllable device The one remaining code set 1s then added to the remote control unit to allow the remote control unit to transmit signals to control operation of the controllable device BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWIN
8. ments of the present invention will suggest themselves to practitioners of the art Therefore the scope of the present invention is to be limited only by the claims below un 10 15 20 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 12 What is claimed is 1 A method for programming an input device to control operation of one of a predetermined group of controllable devices comprising the steps of a displaying a device selection prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit a command selecting one of the controllable devices and receiving a user input command selecting one of the controllable devices b selecting a group of code sets that may control the selected controllable device wherein each code set includes a plurality of commands c selecting one of the plurality of commands d comparing the selected command in each code set to the respective command in each other code set in the group of code sets to determine which respective commands have dissimilar formats e testing the selected command from at least one can didate code set to determine whether the command in the candidate code set operates the controllable device by displaying a first prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit the selected command for the candidate code set to the selected controllable device displaying a second prompt asking the user to use the input device to reply whether the selected command caused the co
9. remote control units and more specifically to a method and system for programming a remote control unit to control operation of a controllable device BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Many electronic devices freguently found in the home such as televisions video cassette recorders and stereos support remote control operational capabilities Remote control units are typically hand held units that allow the user to more easily and conveniently control the operation of a controllable device from a remote location by manipulating controls on the remote control unit rather than reguiring the user to manipulate buttons or other controls on the control lable device itself Remote control units typically include buttons switches or other control mechanisms that allow the user to perform most or all of the operations associated with the controllable device Remote control capability typically involves a remote control unit and a receiver associated with the device to be controlled The remote control unit includes a transmitter for sending command signals to the receiver Command signals are usually transmitted via an infrared signal responsive to the user activating a button on the remote control unit The infrared signal is detected by an infrared receiver located on or near the front surface of the device to be controlled Many different types of devices support remote control capabilities Each different device typically has a separate de
10. the S Z option because the television is a ZENITH brand television Upon selecting the S Z option the display of FIG 3E is shown which lists the brands having first letters corresponding to the range of letters S Z For the purposes of this example the display of FIG 3E shows a short illustrative list of brands having first letters S Z but it should be understood that the list may include many more brands than those shown The user then selects the button corresponding to the ZENITH option to select the correct brand 6 008 735 7 Upon selecting the ZENITH option the display of FIG 3F is shown The display informs the user that different commands will be tested to determine the proper code set for the user s ZENITH television The user activates the button corresponding to the OK option to continue As will be described more fully below the remote control unit accesses device code sets stored in a database in its memory to identify code sets corresponding to ZENITH brand televisions If more than one code set exists for ZENITH brand televisions the correct code set must be identified To identify the best code set i e the code set that the remote control unit determines to be the most likely to be the code set that controls the controllable device the remote control unit examines the formats of commands within the various code sets to determine which commands within the various codes sets are similar
11. the remote control unit to be similar when the command format of each command is either identical or within a predetermined tolerance of each respective command char acteristic of the same command in another code set Com mands in different code sets are determined by the remote control unit to be dissimilar when one or more of the command characteristics is not within the predetermined tolerance Of course commands in two code sets are deemed to be dissimilar when a command exists in one code set but no corresponding command exists in the other code set If a command characteristic for two corresponding com mands are not within the predetermined tolerance the 6 008 735 9 remote control unit assumes that the commands will be interpreted differently by a receiver and therefore the commands are dissimilar For example the tolerance for the carrier freguency characteristic may be 15 percent In this case a command in one code set with a carrier freguency that does not fall within the range of 15 percent above or below the carrier freguency of the corresponding command in another code set will be deemed dissimilar However it should be understood that the tolerances used in accordance with the present invention can be varied to be any tolerance that supports the reliable comparison of commands The tolerances used in the present invention are identified by examining and comparing the characteristics of command signals tha
12. to input data to the universal remote control unit and may comprise any combination of buttons switches and the like The remote control unit also includes a data link interface 24 The interface 24 can be connected to a computer 26 or other suitable device to allow data such as additional code sets to be downloaded from the computer 26 and stored in the memory 14 of the remote control unit In one embodiment the interface 24 is a Timex data link interface as described in pending U S patent application Ser No 08 394 659 entitled System and Method for Remotely Managing Memory in a Portable Information Device from an External Computer However the interface may be any other suitable type of interface such as an RS 232 serial interface The preferred embodiment of the present invention uti lizes the remote control unit shown in FIG 2 It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the specific arrangement of the controls for the remote control unit shown in FIG 2 but can be utilized with any suitable remote control unit Thus it should be understood that the remote control unit is the preferred mechanism by which the user communicates with the device to be controlled but that any suitable command input device for communicating commands to the controllable device will suffice FIG 2 illustrates the top surface or face 40 of an exemplary industrial design that may be used to house the components illustrate
13. to perform a function associated with the selected command and receiving a user input denoting an answer to the second prompt eliminating from consideration within the group of code sets those code sets in which the selected com mand has a format dissimilar to the format of the selected command in a tested code set that resulted in an affirmative answer to the second prompt g selecting another command and return to step d when more than one code set remains in the group of code sets and h programming the input device to control operation of the controllable device using the code set if one code remains in the group of code sets 18 The medium of claim 17 wherein if no respective commands have dissimilar formats as determined in step d then returning to step c 19 The medium of claim 17 wherein commands are determined to have dissimilar formats when at least one of 6 008 735 15 the command characteristics of each command is not within a predetermined tolerance 20 The medium of claim 19 wherein the command characteristics include the carrier freguency of the signal used to transmit the command from the input device to the device 21 The medium of claim 19 wherein the command characteristics include the number of bits and the pulse width of each bit comprising the signal used to transmit the command from the input device to the controllable device 22 The medium of claim 17 wherein the code sets are stor
14. 10 wherein if no respective commands have dissimilar formats as determined in d then returning to c 12 The input device of claim 10 wherein the selected command is determined to have dissimilar formats within the group of code sets that may control the selected con trollable device when at least one of the command charac teristics of the selected command in one of the code sets is not within a predetermined tolerance defined with respect to the command characteristic for the respective command in the other code sets in the group of code sets that may control the selected controllable device 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 so 55 60 65 14 13 The input device of claim 12 wherein the command characteristics include the carrier freguency of the signal used to transmit the command from the input device to the controllable device 14 The input device of claim 12 wherein the command characteristics include the number of bits and the pulse width of each bit comprising the signal used to transmit the command from the input device to the controllable device 15 The input device of claim 10 wherein the controllable device is selected from the group consisting of a television video cassette recorder cable box compact disk player tuner cassette player satellite receiver laser disk player and an appliance 16 The input device of claim 10 wherein commands are determined to have dissimilar formats when a comm
15. A DELETE ZA CUSTOMIZE V FIG A FIG B 72 TV BRAND TV ZZ AF VCR GM ZZ CABLE BOX NR ZZ lt CDPLAER Z sz ZZ FIG 3C FIG 3D U S Patent FIG 3E 72 TV CODE 1 OF 6 PRESS TEST TO TRY THE POWER COMMAND Wd V FIG 3G Dec 28 1999 Sheet 4 of 7 6 008 735 72 TV ZENITH YOU WILL NOW TEST DIFFERENT COMMANDS FIG 3F Wd FIG 3H U S Patent Dec 28 1999 72 CODE 1 OF 2 u PRESS TEST To TRY THE 75 COMMAND Za 76 TEST ZA 77 NEW DEVICE g ZENITH HAS BEEN V ADDED Ll Sheet 5 of 7 6 008 735 72 TV CODE 2 OF 6 DID THE FIG 2M U S Patent Dec 28 1999 Sheet 6 of 7 6 008 735 CODE SETS COMMANDS A B C D E POWER 3 3 4 4 4 MUTE 1 2 1 2 2 VOLUME 7 8 8 7 8 CHANNEL 5 5 5 6 5 CODE SET COMMAND TEST CODE SETS CODE SETS TEST TESTED SUCCESSFUL ELIMINATED REMAINING A POWER 3 A BCDE C POWER 4 YES AB C MUTE 1 NO D MUTE 2 YES C DE U S Patent Dec 28 1999 Sheet 7 of 7 6 008 735 100 START USER SELECTS DEVICE TYPE USER SELECTS DEVICE BRAND SELECT CODE SETS FROM DATABASE 120 105 110 115 14 YES 151 155 YES ELIMNATE CODE 221 SETS WITH DIFFERENT 1 178 COMMAND FORMAT NO MATCHING CODE SET FOUND 185 300 END FIC 5 6 008 735 1 METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROGRAMMING A REMOTE CONTROL UNIT TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates generally to
16. G FIG 1 is a block diagram of the remote control unit for an embodiment of the present invention FIG 2 shows the face of the remote control unit for an embodiment of the present invention FIGS 3A 3M are displays shown on the display of the remote control unit shown in FIG 2 during the set up process in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention FIGS 4A and 4B illustrate an example of the comparison and elimination of code sets performed during the set up process of an embodiment of the present invention FIG 5 is a flow chart describing the set up process in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention DETAILED DESCRIPTION Turning next to the figures the preferred embodiment will now be described in detail The preferred embodiment of the 6 008 735 3 present invention is directed to a method and system for programming a remote control unit to control the operation of a controllable device In general the preferred embodiment of the present invention provides a set up process for programming a remote control unit by comparing code sets stored in the remote control unit to identify similarities and dissimilarities between respective commands in the code sets The pre ferred embodiment utilizes user feedback to eliminate incor rect code sets and to determine the code set that controls the controllable device Turning first to the nomenclature of the specification the detailed description wh
17. US006008735A United States Patent 1 11 Patent Number 6 008 735 Chiloyan et al 45 Date of Patent Dec 28 1999 54 METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR 5 619 191 4 1997 Lambropoulos et al 340 825 69 PROGRAMMING A REMOTE CONTROL 5 629 868 5 1997 Tessier et al 364 514 R UNIT 5 650 774 7 1997 Drori 340 825 32 5 652 602 7 1997 Fishman et al 345 156 s i k 5 657 078 38 1997 Saito et al 348 180 75 Inventors John H Chiloyan Redmond Edwin A W Thorne III Seattle both of Wash 5 710 605 1 1998 Nelson eee 348 734 OTHER PUBLICATIONS 73 Assignee Microsoft Corporation Redmond Wash U S Patent application Ser No 08 394 659 entitled System and Method for Remotely Managing Memory In A Portable 5 Notice This patent issued on a continued pros Information Device From An External Computer inventors ecution application filed under 37 CFR Vinay Deo and Neil S Fishman filed Feb 2 1995 1 53 d and is subject to the twenty year U S Patent application Ser No 08 428 917 entitled Sys patent term provisions of 35 U S C tem and Method for Remotely Programming A Portable 154 a 2 Information Device Using Optical Serial Data Transmission From A Frame Scanning Graphics Display Device inven 21 Appl No 08 794 687 tors Victor Shiff Neil S Fishman and Philip Brzezinski filed Apr 25 1995 22 Filed Feb
18. and exists in at least one code set but no corresponding command exists in another code set 17 A computer readable medium on which is stored a program module for programming a computing device to control operation of one of a predetermined group of con trollable devices the program module comprising instruc tions which when executed by the computing device per form the steps of a displaying a device selection prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit a command selecting one of the controllable devices and receiving a user input command selecting one of the controllable devices b selecting a group of code sets that may control the selected controllable device wherein each code set includes a plurality of commands c selecting one of the plurality of commands d comparing the selected command in each code set to the respective command in each other code set in the group of code sets to determine which respective commands have dissimilar formats e testing the selected command from at least one can didate code set to determine whether the command in the candidate code set operates the controllable device by displaying a first prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit the selected command for the candidate code set to the selected controllable device displaying a second prompt asking the user to use the input device to reply whether the selected command caused the controllable device
19. associated with appropriate physical guantities for computing device operations and that these terms are merely conventional labels applied to physical guantities that exist within and during operation of the computing device It should also be understood that manipulations within the computing device are often referred to in terms such as adding comparing moving ete which are often associated with manual operations performed by a human operator The operations described herein are machine operations per formed in conjunction with a human operator or user that interacts with a remote control unit The machines used for performing the operation of the preferred embodiment of the present invention as will be understood include remote control units or other suitable computing devices Furthermore it should be understood that there is a distinction between the methods steps or operations com pleted by a computing device and the method of computa tion itself The present invention does not involve a method of computation Instead the present invention relates to methods processes steps or operations for a computing device and the processing of electrical or other physical signals to generate desired physical signals and to display results and interactions For the preferred embodiment the input device is imple mented as a hand held universal remote control unit capable of transmitting command signals for controlling the opera tion
20. d in FIG 1 The face 40 of the remote control unit includes a variety of buttons that are common to remote control units These include a power button 42 a channel up down button 44 a volume up down button 46 a mute button 48 a previous channel button 50 and a ten digit numeric keypad 52 with an associated enter button 54 The remote control unit also includes buttons that are common to other controllable devices such as video cassette recorders and the like These keys include a rewind button 56 a play button 58 a fast forward button 60 a pause button 62 a stop button 64 and a record button 66 The remote control unit also includes other buttons for controlling other operations of other devices A display screen 72 is provided on the remote control unit to display information to the user Buttons 74 75 76 and 77 are provided to allow the user to select an option that is provided on the display adjacent to the button Other buttons on the remote control unit include a thumb pad 78 having a four way directional control and an asso 10 15 25 30 35 40 45 so 55 60 65 6 ciated select button 79 and a menu button 80 Also provided on the remote control unit are a display page up down button 81 a back button X2 an exit button 83 and a mode button 84 The page button 81 causes additional pages to be dis played if more information is available than can be dis played on a single page of the display The
21. date code set in the group of code sets that may control the selected controllable device 25 A computer storage medium storing computer readable instructions for performing the method of claim 24 26 An input device configured to perform the method of claim 24
22. dicated remote control unit associated with it When a user wishes to control multiple devices the user must use the correct one of the multiple remote control units to operate the device For a typical entertainment center in the home three four or even more remote control units may be reguired to operate all devices This use of multiple remote control units can be cumbersome and confusing Universal remote control units have been devised to control multiple devices with a single remote control unit A universal remote control unit can be programmed to com municate with a number of different devices and thus replace a multiplicity of dedicated remote control units Universal remote control units can typically control multiple models or brands of a single type of device and also can control multiple types of devices For example not only can a universal remote control unit control different models and brands of televisions but such units can also control differ ent types of devices such as video cassette recorders stereos and the like Universal remote control units include programming that allows the user to perform a set up process to program the universal remote control unit to operate a specific device Typically a universal remote control unit includes a code set for each device that it controls A code set is a group of commands that operate a controllable device and are typi cally different for each type and brand of device For
23. ed in a database in the memory of the input device 23 The medium of claim 17 wherein commands are determined to have dissimilar formats when a command exists in at least one code set but no corresponding command exists in another code set 24 A method for programming an input device to control operation of a controllable device comprising the steps of displaying a device selection prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit a command selecting one of the controllable devices receiving a user input command selecting one of the controllable devices selecting a candidate code set from a group of code sets that may control the selected controllable device 10 15 20 16 testing the candidate code set to determine whether it operates the controllable device by displaying a first prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit a selected command from the candidate code set to the controllable device displaying a second prompt asking the user to use the input device to reply whether the selected command caused the controllable device to perform a function associated with the selected command and receiving a user input denoting an answer to the second prompt if the answer to the second prompt is affirmative pro gramming the input device with the candidate code set and if the answer to the second prompt is negative eliminating the candidate from the group of code sets and testing another candi
24. ich follows is represented largely in terms of processes and symbolic representations of opera tions by conventional computer components including a processing unit memory storage devices for the processing unit and a display device These operations include the manipulation of data bits by the processing unit and the maintenance of these bits within data structures resident in one or more of the memory storage devices Such data structures impose a physical organization upon the collec tion of data bits stored within memory and represent specific electrical or magnetic elements These symbolic represen tations are the means used by those skilled in the art of computer programming and the construction of computing devices to most effectively convey teachings and discoveries to others skilled in the art For the purposes of this discussion a process is generally a seguence of steps executed by a computing device leading to a desired result These steps generally reguire physical manipulations of physical guantities Usually although not necessarily these guantities take the form of electrical magnetic or optical signals capable of being stored transferred combined compared or otherwise manipulated It is conventional for those skilled in the art to refer to these signals as bits values elements symbols characters terms numbers records files or the like It should be kept in mind however that these and similar terms should be
25. imilar power commands among the five possible code sets the preferred embodiment of the present invention prompts the user to test the power command of one of the code sets In this example the user is prompted to test the power command 3 from code set A The table of FIG 4B is to be viewed in conjunction with FIG 4A and summarizes the testing of commands and the elimination of code sets based on the results of such tests If the test of the power command 3 from code set A does not work then the remote control unit prompts the user to test another power command with a dissimilar format from another code set Therefore the remote control unit prompts the user to test power command 4 In this example the test of power command 4 is successful Therefore the remote control unit eliminates all code sets that contain power commands other than power command 4 In this manner code sets A and B are eliminated After the correct power command is tested and multiple code sets remain another command is selected In the example of FIG 4A the mute command is selected The remote control unit performs a comparison of mute com mands for the remaining code sets C D and E The comparison determines that code set C includes mute com mand I and code sets D and E include mute command 2 The remote control unit then prompts the user to test mute command 1 In this example the testing of mute command 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 so
26. imilar to the format of the command that was success wee 348 734 fully tested By eliminating code sets from the group of code 5 455 570 10 1995 Cook et al 340 825 22 sets and testing other commands the remote control unit 5 488 571 1 1996 Jacobs et al 364 705 07 eliminates all but one code set The one remaining code set 5 490 209 2 1996 Kennedy et al 379 97 is identified as the best code set and is added to the remote S SS Darbre yo o control unit to allow the remote control unit to transmit 5 535 147 7 1996 Jacobs et al 364 705 07 5570297 10 1996 Brzezinski et al 364 514 R signals to control operation of the controllable device 5 590 192 12 1996 Lovett et al 360 69 X 5 594 462 1 1997 Fishman et al 345 2 26 Claims 7 Drawing Sheets 6 008 735 Sheet 1 of 7 Dec 28 1999 U S Patent LOL NJAJOJM T 3187 TIOHINOO 9 em A A A Eee aie 1 JOVJHALNI YNN VIVO AJO JINJOM WVYDOMd SL PL JOIAJO Nav TIOMINOD JSVEVIVO 9L gAAN4034 MJLLIWSNVAL OVdAJM JOlAJA LINN TOHLNOD J Idv TIO4LNOO 310 38 e87 gt E o l o B S A r o p ES 6 008 735 Sheet 2 of 7 Dec 28 1999 U S Patent U S Patent Dec 28 1999 Sheet 3 of 7 6 008 735 72 DEVICES NEW KZ VIEW KZ ZA Z
27. ision are for illustrative purposes only When the user activates the setup button the setup display of FIG 3A is shown on the display 72 of the remote control unit The display gives the user various options that can be selected by activating one of buttons 74 77 adjacent to the displayed option If the user wants to perform the setup process for a new device the user activates button 74 adjacent to the Devices option When the user selects the Devices option the devices display of FIG 3B is shown on the display 72 of the remote control unit To add a new device in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention the user selects the new option Upon selection of the new option the display of FIG 3C is displayed The user selects the type of device to be added It should be understood that a device is added when the remote control unit is pro grammed to control operation of that device The user selects the type of device to be added by serolling through a list of possible device types by using the page up down button 91 The scroll arrow 90 indicates to the user that additional items in the list may be displayed For the purposes of this example the user selects the button adjacent to the TV option The next display is shown in FIG 3D in which the user selects the button corresponding to the first letter of the brand of the television In this example the user selects the button adjacent to
28. llable device wherein each code set includes a plurality of commands c selecting one of the plurality of commands d comparing the selected command in each code set to the respective command in each other code set in the group of code sets to determine which respective commands have dissimilar formats e testing the selected command from at least one candidate code set to determine whether the com mand in the candidate code set operates the control lable device by displaying a first prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit the selected command for the candidate code set to the selected controllable device displaying a second prompt asking the user to use the input device to reply whether the selected com mand caused the controllable device to perform a function associated with the selected command and receiving a user input denoting an answer to the second prompt f eliminating from consideration within the group of code sets those code sets in which the selected command has a format dissimilar to the format of the selected command in a tested code set that resulted in an affirmative answer to the second prompt g selecting another command and return to step d when more than one code set remains in the group of code sets and h programming the input device to control operation of the controllable device using the code set if one code remains in the group of code sets 11 The input device of claim
29. minated When one code set remains it is identified as the best code set and the display of FIG 3K informs the user that the ZENITH brand television has been added to the remote control unit If no best code set can be identified then the displays of FIGS 3L and 3M are shown which respectively inform the user that no matching code sets were identified and instruct the user to refer to a user s manual for additional setup options The method by which the remote control unit determines the best code set for a controllable device is further described below with reference to FIGS 4A and 4B For the purposes of the example described with reference to FIGS 4A and 4B assume that the user desires to add a ZENITH brand television to the remote control unit When the user initiates the setup process the remote control unit searches the database of code sets stored in the memory of the remote control unit to identify all code sets for ZENITH brand televisions For purposes of this discussion assume that the remote control unit identifies five code sets in the database stored in its memory that are associated with ZENITH brand televi sions For example different models of televisions may cause multiple code sets to exist Therefore the setup process must be implemented to determine which of the five code sets is the best code set for the user s ZENITH brand television The five code sets associated with ZENITH brand tele visions are show
30. mplemented on a remote control unit that can control multiple models or brands of a single type of device and or multiple types of devices The primary components of the remote control unit 10 include a processing unit 12 a memory 14 a transmitter 18 a display 20 and a keypad 22 The memory 14 which is connected to the processing unit 12 stores one or more program modules 15 and a database 16 of code sets associated with various types and brands of devices The memory 14 can be implemented as a combi nation of read write memory such as static random access memory SRAM and read only memory such as electri cally programmable read only memory EPROM Preferably the program module implementing the set up process implemented by the preferred embodiment of the present invention is stored in the read only memory of the remote control unit 10 The transmitter 18 connected to the processing unit 12 transmits signals from the remote control unit to a receiver 30 associated with one of a plurality of controllable devices 284 Other controllable devices that can be controlled by the remote control unit are shown as devices 28b through 281 The transmitter 18 is preferably an infrared transmitter that transmits encoded infrared command signals to the receiver of a controllable device in a manner well known to those skilled in the art The receiver which is preferably imple mented as an infrared receiving device decodes the com mand signals t
31. n in FIG 4A as code sets A B C D and E For simplicity of this discussion assume that each code set includes only four commands power mute volume and channel Typically the volume command comprises two separate commands a volume up command and a volume down command Similarly the channel command typically comprises a channel up and a channel down command However for purposes of this example the volume and channel commands are each shown as a single command It should be understood that many more commands may be included within a code set Additionally each command within each code set is identified in FIG 4A as a number For the sake of discussion like numbers will indicate similar command formats whereas different numbers indicate dis similar command formats A command format refers to the physical characteristics of the signal used to transmit the command from the transmitter of the remote control unit to the receiver of the controllable device Characteristics of the signal may include the carrier freguency the number of bits comprising the signal the pulse width of each bit and the encoding of the bits to represent a command although other character istics may also be included Therefore each command in each code set has a command format that includes various command characteristics maintained in a database in the memory preferably ROM of the remote control unit Commands in different code sets are determined by
32. ntrollable device to perform a function associated with the selected command and receiving a user input denoting an answer to the second prompt eliminating from consideration within the group of code sets those code sets in which the selected com mand has a format dissimilar to the format of the selected command in a tested code set that resulted in an affirmative answer to the second prompt g selecting another command and returning to step d when more than one code set remains in the group of code sets and h programming the input device to control operation of the device using the code set when one code set remains in the group of code sets or when all of the untested commands in the code sets remaining in the group of code sets are similar 2 The method of claim 1 wherein if no respective commands have dissimilar formats as determined in step d then returning to step c 3 The method of claim 1 wherein commands are deter mined to have dissimilar formats when at least one of the command characteristics of each command is not within a predetermined tolerance 4 The method of claim 3 wherein the command charac teristics include the carrier freguency of the signal used to transmit the command from the input device to the control lable device 5 The method of claim 3 wherein the command charac teristics include the number of bits comprising the signal used to transmit the command from the input device to the con
33. ny At step 130 the remote control unit determines whether the comparison identified any dissimilarities between the selected command in the selected code sets If no dissimi larities exist the method follows no branch 132 to step 180 At step 180 it is determined whether more than one code set remains in the group of code sets If more than one code set remains the method follows yes branch 181 and returns to step 190 If only one code set remains the method follows no branch 182 to step 185 At step 185 the remaining code set is identified as the best code set and is added to the remote control unit The method then termi nates at 300 If at step 130 it is determined that dissimilarities exist between the compared commands in the group of selected 6 008 735 11 code sets the method follows yes branch 131 to step 135 It should be understood that if only one code set exists in the database for the device type and brand selected no dissimi larities between code sets can exist because there is no other code set available for comparison Nevertheless if only one code set exists at this point the method follows yes branch 131 to step 135 At step 135 the remote control unit selects a code set from among the smallest group of code sets having similar commands If at step 130 it is determined that dissimilarities do not exist between the compared com mands in the group of selected code sets the method follo
34. of different devices such as televisions video cassette recorders stereos and the like The preferred universal 10 15 20 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 4 remote control unit can include a directional keypad having distinct buttons or a joystick for allowing the user to control the movement of a cursor or other visible item on a screen or display in the up down left and right directions The remote control unit may also include keys for controlling relative changes to the volume or channel as well as a numeric key pad for controlling absolute changes to the channel The remote control unit and its functions are more fully described with respect to FIG 2 Selected operating functions of the device to be controlled are handled by an input device capable of supplying com mand signals to the controllable device Although the input device is preferably implemented as a universal remote control unit referred to herein as a remote control unit capable of controlling many different types of electronic eguipment it should be understood that the input device may also be implemented as any other device such as a personal computer with remote control functionality that is capable of transmitting commands to such electronic eguipment FIG 1 is a block diagram of the remote control unit in accordance with the invention showing the basic compo nents of the unit The preferred embodiment of the present invention is i
35. ransmitted from the remote control unit 10 After the receiver 30 decodes the command the command is executed by the controllable device 28 It should be understood that the controllable device 28 can be one of a number of various models brands or types of devices that can be controlled by the remote control unit A listing of some of the types of devices as well as a description of each type of device that may be controlled by the remote control unit 10 is provided in Table I below TABLE I Device Type Description TV Television VCR Video cassette recorder Cable Box Cable box CD Player Compact disk player 6 008 735 TABLE I continued Device Type Description Tuner Audio tuner Cassette Audio cassette Satellite Satellite tuner Laserdisc Laser disc player Appliance Lights It should be understood that additional types of devices not identified in Table I may be controlled by the remote control unit in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention Therefore Table I should be under stood to identify merely a subset of the types of devices that can be controlled in accordance with the present invention A display 20 is provided on the remote control unit 10 to visually display information to the user In one embodiment the display is a liguid crystal display but it should be understood that the present invention can be implemented with any other type of suitable display means The keypad 22 is used by the user
36. s again shown where the user is prompted to test another power command having a different command format from another code set If the power command worked the user selects the yes option and the remote control unit determines that the correct code set is one that includes a power command with a format similar to the format of the power command that worked Therefore the remote control unit eliminates from the setup process any code set that includes a power com mand having a format that is dissimilar to the format of the power command that worked If there are multiple code sets that contain the correct power command format the display of FIG 3I prompts the user to test another command The user activates the button corresponding to the test option to test another command e g the mute command The display of FIG 3J prompts the user to provide feedback as to whether the testing of the mute command worked If the mute command worked the user provides feedback by selecting the yes option and the remote control unit eliminates those code sets that include a mute command with a format dissimilar to the mute com mand format that worked The remote control unit also eliminates all code sets that do not support a mute command Additional commands are tested and feedback is provided 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 so 55 60 65 8 by the user in the manner specified above until all but one code set is eli
37. t control various controllable devices to determine the differences between characteristics of each respective command that controls each respective device The extent of the differences between the command characteristics can then be used to define the tolerances within which a par ticular characteristic must fall to be recognized as a particu lar command for a particular device After the five code sets are identified for ZENITH brand televisions as shown in FIG 4A the remote control unit compares the power command in each code set to the power command in every other code set to determine which code sets have similar power commands As stated above each command in FIG 4A is identified by a number but it should be understood that the remote control unit compares com mand characteristics associated with each command to make the determination whether commands are similar or dissimi lar The power command of each code set is compared to the power command of each other code set to determine which code sets contain similar power commands In the example of FIG 4A code sets A and B contain similar power commands because each power command is identified by the numeral 3 Code sets C D and E also contain similar power commands signified by the numeral 4 For purposes of this discussion it is assumed that the power commands 3 and 4 are dissimilar because they do not fall within a specified tolerance of each other Because there are diss
38. the user selects the type of device to be controlled The remote control unit displays a list of the types of devices the operation of which it can control At step 110 the user selects the brand of the device to be controlled At step 115 the remote control device selects from a database of code sets those code sets corresponding to the type and brand of device selected by the user At step 190 it is determined whether all commands in the code sets selected at step 115 have been compared If all commands have been compared the method follows yes branch 191 to step 210 If all commands have not been compared the method follows no branch 192 to step 120 At step 120 the remote control unit selects a command that will be compared among the code sets selected at step 115 Typically the first command to be compared is the power command as the power command is used for most of the devices controlled by the remote control unit At step 125 the comparison of the selected command is performed The remote control unit compares the selected command in each code set selected at step 115 to determine whether command formats in each code set are similar or dissimilar based on whether predetermined command char acteristics are within specified tolerances The remote con trol unit retains the results of the comparison such that the unit identifies which code sets include similar commands and which code sets include dissimilar commands if a
39. trollable device 6 The method of claim 3 wherein the command charac teristics include the pulse width of each bit comprising the signal used to transmit the command from the input device to the controllable device 7 The method of claim 1 wherein the code sets are stored in the input device 8 The method of claim 1 wherein the controllable device is selected from the group consisting of a television video 6 008 735 13 cassette recorder cable box compact disk player tuner cassette player satellite receiver laser disk player and an appliance 9 The method of claim 1 wherein the commands are determined to have dissimilar formats when a command exists in at least one code set but no corresponding command exists in another code set 10 An input device operative to control operation of one of a predetermined group of controllable devices compris ing a processing device a memory coupled to the processing device storing a program module and a database including a plurality of code sets associated with a plurality of controllable devices and the processing device responsive to instructions from the program module operative for a displaying a device selection prompt asking the user to use the input device to transmit a command selecting one of the controllable devices and receiv ing a user input command selecting one of the controlable devices b selecting a group of code sets that may control the selected contro
40. ws no branch 132 to step 180 After a code set is selected at step 135 the command from the selected code set is tested at step 140 At step 150 the user provides feedback to the remote control unit regarding whether the tested command worked If the tested command worked the method follows yes branch 151 to step 155 where the remote control unit eliminates from the group of code sets all code sets that include command formats dissimilar to the format of the tested command The method then proceeds to step 180 If the tested command did not work as determined at step 150 the method follows no branch 152 to step 220 At step 220 it is determined whether all the code sets that support the tested command have been selected If another code set that supports the tested command exists that has not been selected the method follows no branch 222 to step 175 At step 175 another code set is selected and the method returns to step 140 If all the code sets that support the tested command have already been selected the method follows yes branch 221 and the method returns to step 190 At step 210 it is determined whether any commands that have been tested have worked If a command has worked the method follows yes branch 211 to step 185 If no command has worked the method follows no branch 212 and the method proceeds to step 178 At step 178 it is determined that no best code set exists for the device
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