EP1188313A1

EP1188313A1 - Method for programming an electronic device and associated electronic device

Info

Publication number: EP1188313A1
Application number: EP00940482A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Denis Crespel; Serge Harzo; Luc Roux
Original assignee: Thomson Licensing SAS
Current assignee: Thomson Licensing SAS
Priority date: 1999-06-18
Filing date: 2000-06-09
Publication date: 2002-03-20
Also published as: WO2000079788A1; FR2795273A1; CN1357196A; FR2795273B1; JP2003502954A; AU5541200A

Abstract

The invention concerns a method for accessing a transmission channel identified by at least a character in an electronic device (1), a plurality of channels respectively identified by a character which can be selected by a control signal (Si). The invention is characterised in that when the device is in standby mode, the reception of n signals spaced by a time interval less than a given duration DELTA t determines the access to a channel identified by concatenation of n characters respectively associated to the n signals. The invention also concerns an electronic device comprising a storage implementing said method, and a system comprising said device and control means such as a remote control for controlling access to the channel desired by the user. The invention is particularly applicable to a television set, decoder, record player and/or recorder, video tape recorder.

Description

METHOD FOR PROGRAMMING AN ELECTRONIC APPARATUS AND ASSOCIATED ELECTRONIC APPARATUS

The present invention relates to a method of programming an electronic device in the standby state and more particularly a method of accessing a channel of this device, each channel being identified by a number. The invention also relates to an electronic device and a system comprising a controlled device and control means. The controls, and more particularly the remote controls, for television receivers, decoders, video recorders, disc players or recorders, or other electronic devices generally include a certain number of keys. In the case of remote controls, these make it possible to transmit coded signals transmitted, most often by infrared carrier, to the receiver to be controlled. In what follows, to simplify the description, reference will only be made to a television receiver controlled by a remote control device. However, the invention applies more generally to any type of device capable of being controlled by a control device, such as a decoder, a video recorder, a disc player and / or recorder, etc.

With the television receiver in working order, accessing a channel identified by a number with at least two digits is often felt to be a complex operation. To access a given two-digit channel, the user must successively select the tens digit key for the channel and then the units key.

This same operation becomes all the more laborious if the receiver is put in standby state, to limit its energy consumption. Indeed, the user is faced with two methods of accessing the desired channel. He can press any key on the remote control, which leads him to the channel associated with this key, then perform the operation described above for selecting two keys corresponding to the digits of the desired channel to access it. He can otherwise press the restart button, generally designated "ON", which brings him to the channel on which the user was before the last standby, then, similarly to above, perform the operation of selecting two keys corresponding to the digits of the desired channel. These two methods of accessing the desired channel are obviously complex and time consuming.

The object of the invention is to simplify the operations of the user in the latter context.

The subject of the present invention is a method for controlling an electronic device capable of receiving data from a plurality of transmission channels, each channel being respectively identified by at least one character, each character being selected by a specific control signal. , characterized in that, the device being in standby state, it further comprises the following steps:

- reception of n signals spaced by a time interval less than a given duration Δt determines the identification of a channel by the concatenation of the n characters associated respectively with the n signals, - activation of the device,

- selection by the device of the previously identified channel.

Thus, the method of selecting the desired channel is found to be simplified and the ignition of the device faster for the user because, the device being in the initial standby state, the user can, thanks to the invention, directly reach the desired channel without having to go through an intermediate start button.

The invention also relates to a method for controlling an electronic device capable of receiving data from a plurality of transmission channels, each channel being respectively identified by at least one character, each character being selected by a control signal. (Si) specific, characterized in that, the device being in standby state, it further comprises the following steps: - acquisition and storage of the character associated with the first command signal received, and iteratively,

construction and storage of a word of characters determined by the concatenation of the character associated with a control signal received with the last word memorized, if said signal is received within a time less than a duration Δt determined with respect to the reception of the signal previous, the selected channel being determined by the last word of stored characters followed by failure to receive control signals for the duration Δt,

- device activation,

- selection by the device of the previously identified channel.

According to one embodiment, the step of accessing the last stored word is conditioned by a step of checking the consistency of this last word verifying the validity of this word. According to one embodiment, a character is an alphanumeric value.

According to one embodiment, a control signal is a message comprising a bit field comprising a digital value specific to a means for selecting a channel, of the type of a key.

The invention also relates to an electronic device, comprising means for receiving a plurality of received control signals (Si), each control signal (Si) being associated respectively with a character for the identification of a channel. transmission, first storage means for storing at least one character associated with a control signal, means for selecting the transmission channels identified by at least one character, control means for controlling the selection means on the identified channel by the character stored in the storage means, a means for restarting the electronic device, characterized in that it further comprises: second storage means comprising a program for restarting the device in good condition standby, calculation means for executing the program stored in said storage means, the program comprising the following steps: the app areil being in standby state, a step of acquiring the character associated with the first received control signal which is memorized, and iteratively, a construction step then a step of memorizing a word of characters determined by the concatenation of the character associated with a control signal received with the last word memorized in the first storage means, if said signal is received within a period of less than a duration Δt determined with respect to the reception of the previous signal, the calculation means controlling the access means of the channel determined by the last memorized character word followed an absence of reception of control signals during the duration Δt,

The invention also relates to an electronic device, comprising means for receiving a plurality of received control signals, each control signal being associated respectively with a character for the identification of a transmission channel, first means storage means for storing at least one character associated with a control signal, means for selecting the transmission channels identified by at least one character, control means for controlling the selection means on the channel identified by the character stored in the storage means, a means for restarting the electronic device, characterized in that the device further comprises, for restarting it from a standby state: calculation means for iteratively constructing a character word determined by the concatenation of the character associated with a control signal received with the last word stored in the first storage means if said signal is received within a period of less than a duration Δt determined with respect to the reception of the previous signal, the control means controlling the selection means on the channel determined by the last word of characters stored in the first storage means followed by an absence of reception of control signals during the duration Δt, said control means further controlling the restarting means.

According to one embodiment, the device comprises means of comparison between the content of the last word stored and the content of a set of words stored in the device respectively identifying all the existing channels to verify the conformity of the latter .

The invention also relates to a system comprising a controlled device and second control means for transmitting control signals for controlling said device, in particular remote control means of the type of a remote control, of a keypad, characterized in that said device is the electronic device described above.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear with the description of some of its embodiments, this being carried out with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 schematically represents a system comprising a remote control unit and a television set,

FIG. 2 represents a remote control unit,

FIG. 3 represents a diagram of a circuit contained in this box,

- Figure 4 shows a flowchart of sequencing of operations to select the channel and switch on the device.

To simplify the description, the same references will be used to designate the elements fulfilling identical functions.

The device of FIG. 1 comprises a television set 1 provided with:

a tuner 2 receiving a signal for example from an antenna 3 and transposing the frequency of this signal to an intermediate frequency intended for a video intermediate frequency amplifier 4 and a sound intermediate frequency amplifier 5 which follow it, a demodulator 6, according to the sound intermediate frequency amplifier 4, which delivers the audio signals in baseband to an audio power amplifier 7, supplying a loudspeaker 8,

a demodulator 9, following the video intermediate frequency amplifier 4, producing a baseband video signal for a video amplifier 10 delivering the ad-hoc signals to the electrodes of a picture tube 1 with cathode rays,

- a central unit 12, comprising a microprocessor 121 and a control element 122, for managing all of these functions. The control element can be integrated into the microprocessor. A memory block 13, connected to the microprocessor 12, includes a first memory 131 provided for storing data, including, among other things, the current values of the various settings of the television set. A second memory 132 of the memory 13 comprises a program for restarting the television in the standby state. The central unit is of course connected by a bus 14 to all the elements of the device which can be controlled by the control element: the tuner (choice of channels), the video and sound circuits (different level settings) , possibly scanning circuits not shown for the choice of different image formats.

- A command receiver 15 for receiving, in series, signals S of infrared light from a remote control unit 16, and transmitting them to the microprocessor 12. The remote control unit 16 in FIG. 2 has a key of standby 17, a pair of keys 18 making it possible to increase or decrease the value of a parameter, for example the power of the sound, a numeric keypad 19 allowing in particular the choice of a channel, keys 20 allowing by example of increasing or decreasing the number of the channel received. It is by means of the keys of the numeric keypad 19 that a channel identified by a two-digit number can be communicated to the television set 1, as will be seen below.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a circuit usable for such a remote control unit. A battery 21 supplies a specialized microprocessor 22 and a light emitting diode 23, controlled by a transistor 24. The microprocessor contains a processor known per se, as well as necessary ROM and RAM memories, and includes a modulator which delivers pulses (intended for the diode 23) whose duration and number are programmable, and it has an output for controlling the transistor 24.

A table 25 of ten positions is provided in the memory of the remote control, in which is recorded, in each position corresponding to a numerical value of the keys, a numerical value corresponding to a channel. In general, the first nine channels of the channels usually referenced 1, 2, 3, ... are recorded on the ten positions, and it is possible to additionally register a channel at the position of the 0 key.

The control signal Si (i corresponding to the number of control signals transmitted to the television) coming from the remote control intended for the television, whether it is in operating or standby state, comprises a control message of a type known per se. It includes a field containing a numerical value ranging from 0 to 9, containing the numerical value selected by the user by pressing the corresponding key. It can, moreover, start with a field containing a start bit "one", a field to describe the system that the command claims to reach (video recorder, television set, decoder, reader and / or recorder of discs, ...).

The present invention operates as follows: The television being in standby state, when the user presses a key on the remote control, the microprocessor 22 causes the emission, by the diode 23, of a message transmitting the digital value programmed associated with the position of the selected key. The television receives the infrared signal from the remote control, which transmits it to the microprocessor 12. The latter uses the standby software module stored in memory 13.

The standby software essentially includes the following functions:

- acquisition of infrared signals,

- decoding of these infrared signals making it possible to decipher the digital values transmitted by the remote control,

- construction of a connection message according to the algorithm of the following standby software module: the connection message being made up subsequently of the decoded digital values, the algorithm for construction of the connection message implemented in memory 132 and executed by the microprocessor follows the following steps: - at time t1, after decoding of the first message decrypting a first digital value, the latter is stored in memory 131,

- at time t2 = t1 + Δt, with Δt = 200 ms (according to this embodiment), two possibilities arise: 1. If no message has been decoded and if the stored digital value corresponds to a sequence of digits (coherence of the connection message), then the application software is launched starting all the elements to allow the effective connection on the desired channel and the operation of the television set, 2. If a second message is decoded during the delay Δt deciphering a second value digital, then the construction of the connection message is done by replacing in memory 131 the first numerical value by a new number having as tens digit the first numerical value and as units digit the second numerical value.

In an iterative manner, the decoding of several other messages succeeding each other with a delay of less than Δt results in the deciphering of the digital values corresponding to these messages and the taking into account of the latter in each new memorized connection message (during the taking into account of a new numerical value, the numerical value corresponding formerly to the digit of the units is shifted on the left to correspond from now on to the digit of tens, the numerical value formerly corresponding to the digit of tens is shifted on the left to correspond to the digit of tens , etc).

- verification of the consistency of the final connection message corresponding to the final number stored in the memory 131: as previously explained, it is verified that the stored numerical value corresponds to a sequence of digits and does not correspond to an inconsistent sequence of commands of the type of the successive selection of the keys ^•• 1 "," + "then" CH ". If an inconsistency in the connection message is detected, the standby software does not execute the application software. On the other hand, if the consistency of the message is validated, the application software controls access to the channel whose number is closest to the number requested by comparison of the latter with the content of a database of all the channels comprising programs.

The flow diagram of FIG. 4 illustrates the sequence of operations carried out by the standby software module stored in memory 13. In step 1, the module waits for the reception of a message from the remote control. He jumps to step 2 when he receives a message. In step 2, the module tests whether it has already received a message, that is to say, if the memory 131 already contains a first message corresponding to the selection of a channel. If yes (step 3), the module shifts the messages: the message corresponding to the units becomes that corresponding to the tens. If there is already a message corresponding to the tens, it is overwritten by the new one. In step 4, whatever the previous events, the place of the units is free to receive the new message. Then (step 5), the module starts a timer and watches for, during this, a new message is received. If yes, the module loops in step 3, to make room and then memorize this new message. If ncπ. the user has not pressed a key on his remote control, he therefore validates the list of messages sent to the television receiver. In step 6, the module launches the television restart program displaying the channel whose number is the concatenation of the message of tens and units.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment described in the present application. For example, although the term channel corresponds to a specific frequency band in the case of the embodiment described, this may correspond to a track of the apparatus in the case of the disc player and / or recorder. Likewise, the invention is not limited to the introduction of a two-digit channel number, but to one or more digits.

Likewise, one can imagine that a channel is identified by a character word of the "C +", "MTV" type (in the case where the control means comprises alphanumeric keys). The consistency step will therefore have to take into account the existence of such channel names.

Claims

1. Method for controlling an electronic device (1) capable of receiving data from a plurality of transmission channels, each channel being respectively identified by at least one character, each character being selected by a control signal (Si) specific, characterized in that, the device being in standby state, it further comprises the following steps:

- reception of n signals spaced by a time interval less than a given duration Δt determines the identification of a channel by the concatenation of the n characters associated respectively with the n signals,

- device activation,

- selection by the device of the previously identified channel.

2. Method for controlling an electronic device (1) capable of receiving data from a plurality of transmission channels, each channel being respectively identified by at least one character, each character being selected by a control signal (Si) specific, characterized in that, the device being in standby state, it further comprises the following steps: - acquisition and storage of the character associated with the first command signal received, and iteratively,

construction and storage of a word of characters determined by the concatenation of the character associated with a control signal received with the last word memorized, if said signal is received within a time less than a duration Δt determined with respect to the reception of the signal previous, the selected channel being determined by the last stored word of characters followed by an absence of reception of control signals during the duration Δt,

- device activation, - device selection of the previously identified channel.

3. Method according to claim 2, characterized in that the step of identifying the last word stored is conditioned by a step of checking the consistency of this last word verifying the validity of this word.

4. Method according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a character is an alphanumeric value.

5. Method according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that a control signal (Si) is a message comprising a bit field comprising a digital value specific to a means for selecting a channel, of the type a touch.

6. Electronic device, comprising means for receiving a plurality of control signals (Si) received, each control signal (Si) being associated respectively with a character for the identification of a transmission channel, first means storage (131) for storing at least one character associated with a control signal, means for selecting (2) the transmission channels identified by at least one character, control means for controlling the selection means on the identified channel by the character stored in the storage means, a means for restarting the electronic device, characterized in that it further comprises: second storage means (132) comprising a program for restarting the apparatus in the standby state, calculation means (12) for executing the program stored in said storage means, the program comprising the following steps: the apparatus being in standby state, a step of acquiring the character associated with the first received control signal which is memorized, and iteratively, a step of construction then a step of memorizing a word of characters determined by the concatenation of the character associated with a control signal received with the last word stored in the first storage means, if said signal is received within a period of less than a duration Δt determined relative to the reception of the previous signal, the calculation means controlling the selection means l accession of the channel determined by the last word of characters memorized followed by an absence of reception of control signals during the duration Δt, a step of activation of the restarting means.

7. Electronic device, comprising means for receiving a plurality of control signals (Si) received, each control signal (Si) being associated respectively with a character for the identification of a transmission channel, first means of storage (131) for storing at least one character associated with a control signal, means for selecting (2) the transmission channels identified by at least one character, control means for controlling the selection means on the channel identified by the character stored in the storage means, a means of restarting the electronic device, characterized in that the device further comprises, for its restart from a standby state: calculation means ( 12) to construct iteratively a word of characters determined by the concatenation of the character associated with a control signal received with the last word stored in the first storage means if said signal is received within a time less than a duration Δt determined by report to the reception of the previous signal, the control means controlling the selection means on the channel determined by the last word of cara ctères stored in the first storage means followed by an absence of reception of control signals for the duration Δt, the said control means further controlling the restarting means.

8. Apparatus according to claim 7, characterized in that it comprises means of comparison between the content of the last word stored and the content of a set of words stored in the apparatus respectively identifying all of the existing channels for checking compliance of the latter.

9. System comprising a controlled device (1) and second control means (16) for transmitting control signals (Si) to control said device, in particular remote control means (16) of the type of a remote control, a keyboard with keys, characterized in that said device is the electronic device according to claim 6 to 8.