JP2004236034A - Remote control signal transmitter - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a remote control signal transmitter capable of making a setting operation simple without making remote control code setting inaccurate in the remote control signal transmitter for remotely controlling a device to remotely controlled (especially receiver for broadcasting). <P>SOLUTION: A remote control unit 10 is provided with a remote control button 11, an acceleration sensor 12 for detecting a tilt attitude of the remote control unit 10, a storing part 13 for storing a relation between the tilt attitude of the remote control unit 10 and a remote control instruction and outputting a remote control instruction corresponding to the tilt attitude of the remote control unit 10 at prescribed timing, a power source 15 for feeding power to the acceleration sensor 12, a switch 16 for switching the on/off of the acceleration sensor 12, a microcomputer 17 for controlling a data input-output and changing the switch 16, and a remote control signal modulating/transmitting part 14 for modulating a remote control instruction from the storing part 13 into a remote control signal for transmission and transmitting the modulated remote control signal to the receiver for broadcasting. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a remote control signal transmitting device for transmitting a predetermined remote control signal to a remotely controlled device to be remotely controlled, and more particularly to a remote control signal transmitting device for remotely controlling a broadcast receiving device such as a television or a VTR. It is about.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a remote control signal transmission device (hereinafter, simply referred to as a remote control device) for remotely controlling a broadcast receiving device such as a television or a VTR is provided on a surface of the remote control device when inputting a command to the remote control device. Generally, various operation buttons are pressed.
[0003]
However, many recent broadcast receivers have a large number of functions, and in many cases, selecting a desired operation button from various types of operation buttons is considered to be troublesome.
[0004]
In particular, in BS digital broadcasting, which has been rapidly spreading in recent years, data broadcasting (including interactive services) which is a text and image service, and EPG (electronic program guide) data for displaying the contents of programs to be broadcast are also included. Being broadcast. In these services, it is necessary to perform an operation to select one of a plurality of selection elements (for example, see FIG. 6) arranged on the display screen of the broadcast receiving device.
[0005]
In order to select one of the plurality of selection elements as described above, a remote control device is used, and a remote control button for moving in each of up, down, left, and right directions is appropriately pressed, and focus ( In general, the user moves the cursor (cursor) and presses the "decision" remote control button when the focus (cursor) matches the desired selection element. Therefore, it is necessary to press a large number of remote control buttons before obtaining desired information, and it is necessary to perform operation while comparing the display screen of the broadcast receiver and the remote control buttons as needed.
[0006]
In order to reduce the complexity of such button operations, when an operator shakes a remote control, a predetermined remote control code is transmitted to a broadcast receiving device in accordance with the direction of the shake and the speed of the shake. It has been known.
[0007]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-4-334197 (Patent No. 2641638)
[0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the technology described in Patent Document 1, since the remote control code to be transmitted is determined according to the direction in which the remote control is moved and the speed thereof, a circuit or software for the determination is required. And variations in the determination of the remote control code due to uncertainty.
[0009]
That is, the operator may be confused as to how fast the remote control should be shaken for a valid operation, and when a different remote control code is determined depending on the speed of the shake, the operation is difficult. There was a problem of becoming.
[0010]
The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a remote control signal transmission device capable of simplifying the setting operation without making the setting of the remote control code of the remote control signal transmission device inaccurate. It is intended to do so.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, a remote control signal transmitting device of the present invention is a remote control signal transmitting device that transmits a predetermined remote control signal to a remotely controlled device to be remotely controlled,
A tilt attitude detecting means for detecting a tilt attitude of the remote control signal transmission device,
Remote control signal storage means for storing a remote control signal defined in advance so as to correspond to the tilt posture of the remote control signal transmitting device,
Remote control signal reading means for reading a predetermined remote control signal from the remote control signal storage means based on the tilt attitude detected by the tilt attitude detection means;
Remote control signal transmitting means for transmitting a remote control signal read from the remote control signal reading means to the remote controlled device.
[0012]
In this case, the circuit for detecting the tilt posture of the remote control signal transmitting device in the tilt posture detecting means is such that when the remote control signal transmitting device is not operated, the power input is turned off, and any circuit of the remote control signal transmitting device is turned off. The power input is turned on when an operation element is operated, and the power input is turned off at a point in time when a predetermined time has elapsed since the operation element was operated. preferable.
[0013]
Further, the tilt attitude of the remote control signal transmitting device, which is detected by the tilt attitude detecting means when the power input of the circuit is turned on, is stored and held as a reference attitude until the power input is turned off. Reference attitude storage means,
Based on the difference between the reference attitude stored in the reference attitude storage means and the tilt attitude of the remote control signal transmission device detected by the tilt attitude detection means at a later point in time, Effective operation determination means for determining whether the tilt posture is due to a valid operation,
The remote control signal reading unit is configured to read the predetermined remote control signal corresponding to the tilt posture from the remote control signal storage unit only for the tilt posture determined by the valid operation determining unit to be a valid operation. Is preferred.
[0014]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, a remote control signal transmission device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0015]
A remote control signal transmission device according to the present embodiment (hereinafter, referred to as a remote control device) is a remote control device that transmits a predetermined remote control signal to a broadcast receiving device such as a television or a VTR on which a remote control operation is performed. By detecting a tilt posture of the remote control device and transmitting a remote control signal corresponding to the detected tilt posture, button operations of the remote control device are simplified.
[0016]
That is, the remote control device 10 according to the present embodiment is specifically configured as shown in FIG. 1, and includes a remote control button 11 including a plurality of button groups for inputting a predetermined remote control command, and a remote control device 11. An acceleration sensor 12 for detecting the inclination posture of the vehicle 10 is provided. In addition, the relationship between the tilt posture of the remote control device 10 and the remote control command is stored in advance, and in response to the input of the tilt posture of the remote control device 10 at an arbitrary timing obtained by the acceleration sensor 12, this corresponds. A storage unit 13 that outputs a remote control command, a power supply 15 that supplies power to the acceleration sensor 12, and a switch 16 that switches on / off whether or not to supply power from the power supply 15 to the acceleration sensor 12 are provided. . Also, the microcomputer 17 controls the input / output of data between these units and outputs an on / off switching signal of the switch 16, and converts the remote control command output from the storage unit 13 into a remote control signal for transmission. And a remote control signal modulation / transmission section 14 for transmitting the modulated remote control signal to a predetermined broadcast receiving apparatus.
[0017]
In the remote control device 10 corresponding to a general broadcast receiving device, the button 11 is, for example, a channel button 11A of 1 to 12 provided on the outer surface of the remote control device 10 in FIG. , A power button 11B, a BS channel switching button 11C, a decision button 11D for validating an element whose focus (cursor) has moved on the screen, and a setting for displaying an item display screen for setting various items. A button 11E is provided, and in response to a pressing operation of each button 11, a predetermined remote control signal 21 by infrared light from an infrared light emitting LED (not shown) is output.
[0018]
Further, the number of buttons 11 of the remote control device 10 shown in FIG. 2 is greatly reduced as compared with the conventional one. This is because, in the embodiment, the tilt posture of the remote control device 10 together with the button 11 is an element for inputting a remote control command.
[0019]
Further, as described above, when the remote control device 10 is tilted, the amount of tilt is detected by the acceleration sensor 12. The acceleration sensor 12 is based on the direction of gravity when determining the direction of acceleration, and can be used as a sensor that senses the inclination posture. In this embodiment, the acceleration sensor 12 determines the direction of gravity. A tilt amount in two orthogonal axes in a vertical plane is detected, and a digital signal corresponding to the detected value is output.
[0020]
In order to select one element from a plurality of elements arranged on the display screen of the broadcast receiving apparatus, the remote control apparatus is set in the same or corresponding direction as the direction in which the focus (cursor) in the screen is to be moved. By inclining 10, the focus is moved for the number of times of inclining in that direction or the time of inclining in that direction, and the determination button 11D is pressed in a state where the focus (cursor) is located on a desired element I do.
[0021]
Therefore, the button 11 of the remote control device 10 need only be pressed once after the completion of the focus moving operation, and the button operation of the remote control device 10 can be simplified.
[0022]
The circuit for detecting the amount of tilt of the remote control device 10 outputs a switch 16 for switching on / off whether or not to supply power from the power supply 15 to the acceleration sensor 12 and an on / off switching signal for the switch 16. The microcomputer 17 is turned on when the remote control device 10 is not operated, and the power input is turned on when an arbitrary button 11 of the remote control device 10 is pressed, for a predetermined time (for example, three minutes). When the state in which the button 11 is not depressed continues for a period of time, the power input is turned off to save power consumption.
[0023]
In addition, it is considered that the remote control device 10 is grasped in an unconsciously inclined posture due to a habit of a person who operates the remote control device. Therefore, the circuit for detecting the amount of tilt of the remote control device 10 determines the tilt posture of the remote control device 10 detected by the acceleration sensor 12 when the power input of the remote control device 10 is turned on, and determines whether the power input is off. The reference posture is stored and stored in the storage unit 13 until the reference posture, and based on the difference between the stored and retained reference posture and the inclination posture of the remote control device 10 detected by the acceleration sensor 12 at a later time, The microcomputer 17 determines whether the detected tilt posture is due to a valid operation, and only when the microcomputer 17 determines that the detected tilt posture is due to a valid operation, the microcomputer 17 determines a predetermined remote control signal corresponding to the tilt posture. Is read from the storage unit 13.
[0024]
Therefore, it is possible to perform a predetermined remote control signal transmission operation only when the operator is consciously tilting the remote control device 10, and the remote control device 10 is prepared carelessly due to the habit of the operator holding the remote control device 10. Therefore, such an inconvenience that an unexpected remote control signal transmission operation is performed due to the gripping can be prevented.
[0025]
The reference posture stored and stored in the storage unit 13 is overwritten by the reference posture of the remote control device 10 detected when the power input of the remote control device 10 is turned on next time.
[0026]
【Example】
Hereinafter, an embodiment of a remote control device for a BS digital receiver, which is one of the applications to which the present invention is particularly useful, will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3, 4, 5, and 6 described above.
[0027]
FIG. 3 shows an example of the arrangement of the buttons 11 of the remote control device 10a of the BS digital receiver, and FIG. 4 shows the relationship between the inclination amount of the remote control device 10a (acceleration sensor 12) and the duty ratio of the output pulse. FIG. 5 is a graph for explaining that a tilt amount corresponding to the tilt posture of the remote control device 10a is detected, and FIG. 6 is a graph showing a BS digital broadcast data broadcast. It shows an operation example of the remote control device 10a when using. Here, the remote controller 10a of the present embodiment basically has all the configurations and functions of the remote controller 10 described in the above embodiment.
[0028]
In FIG. 1, when a remote control button 11 including a plurality of button groups is pressed, the microcomputer 17 recognizes the pressed button 11 and reads a code of a remote control signal corresponding to the button 11 from the storage unit 13. In accordance with this code, the microcomputer 17 generates a PCM (pulse code modulation) remote control signal. This remote control signal is transmitted to the BS digital receiver after the infrared signal is modulated by the remote control signal modulation / transmission unit 14.
[0029]
As a method of generating, modulating, and transmitting such a signal, a method similar to a remote control device attached to a commercially available BS digital receiver is used. The remote control button 11 only needs to have the same function as the remote control device attached to the commercially available BS digital receiver, and as shown in FIG. It is also possible to configure so that buttons for moving to the “down” and “left / right” directions are omitted.
[0030]
Here, the duty ratio between the amount of inclination of the acceleration sensor 12 and the output pulse from the acceleration sensor 12 will be described with reference to FIG. The acceleration sensor 12 detects the tilt amount of the remote control device 10a, in response thereto, as shown in FIG. 4 (b), the ratio of pulse period T _{2 (fixed)} and H level period T _{1 (variable)} there duty ratio and outputs a pulse signal such that T _{1 /} T _2. That is, when the tilt posture of the remote control device 10a is horizontal, a pulse signal having a duty ratio of 0.5 is output. Based on this pulse signal, when the remote control device 10a is tilted to the left (the amount of tilt is negative), the duty ratio is reduced. When it is smaller than 0.5 and inclined to the right (the amount of inclination is positive), a pulse signal whose duty ratio is larger than 0.5 is output.
[0031]
The graph in FIG. 4 illustrates this, and a similar pulse signal is output even when the front side (axis in the front-rear direction) of the remote control device 10a is tilted up and down. However, the pulse signal according to the amount of tilt in the up-down direction is configured to be distinguishable from the above-mentioned pulse signal in the left-right direction. When the remote control device 10a is tilted, two tilts in the two axial directions are obtained from the acceleration sensor 12. An independent pulse signal is transmitted to the microcomputer 17 for each amount.
[0032]
This will be described more specifically with reference to FIG. In the remote control device 10a, as shown in FIG. 5A, the tilt postures in two axial directions orthogonal to each other in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction are detected. Here, FIG. 5B is a view of the remote control device 10a as viewed from the position of Y in FIG. 5A, and FIG. 5C is a view of the remote control device 10a with X in FIG. 5A. It is the figure seen from the position of.
[0033]
As shown in FIG. 5B, when the right side of the remote control device 10a is tilted in the direction of gravity from the reference value (horizontal position) of the tilt, the duty ratio indicating the tilt amount of the left-right axis becomes larger than 0.5. Conversely, when the left side is inclined in the direction of gravity from the inclination reference value (horizontal position), the duty ratio becomes smaller than 0.5.
[0034]
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5C, when the rear side of the remote controller 10a is tilted in the direction of gravity from the reference value of the tilt, the front side of the remote controller 10a is tilted upward (slightly upward), and The duty ratio indicating the amount of inclination of the direction axis becomes larger than 0.5.
Conversely, when the front side of the remote control device 10a is tilted in the direction of gravity from the reference value of the tilt, the front side of the remote control device 10a is tilted downward (facing slightly downward), and the duty ratio becomes smaller than 0.5.
[0035]
When the power input is turned on, the acceleration sensor 12 always detects the amount of inclination (inclination posture) of the remote controller 10a and sends a pulse signal to the microcomputer 17 as shown in FIG. .
[0036]
The microcomputer 17 calculates a relative value between the reference attitude value A stored and held in the storage unit 13 and the tilt attitude value B output when the remote control device 10a is tilted during a period in which power is supplied to the acceleration sensor 12. B-A is calculated, and if the value exceeds a predetermined reference value in each of the "up / down" and "left / right" directions (if the absolute value of the duty ratio exceeds a predetermined value) , It is determined that the axis is tilted in that direction (an effective tilt posture). When the determination is made in this way, a remote control signal similar to the case where the "up / down" and "left / right" directional arrow buttons of the remote control buttons of a commercially available BS digital receiver are pressed is generated. The infrared signal is modulated by the remote control signal modulation / transmission unit 14 and transmitted to the BS digital receiver.
[0037]
As described above, when the front and rear axes are tilted, the front side of the remote control device 10a tilts up and down, and for the operator, the operation of tilting the remote control device 10a moves the focus (cursor) up and down on the setting screen. This will intuitively match the operation of moving in the direction.
[0038]
Next, an operation example of using the BS digital broadcast data broadcast by the remote controller 10a of the BS digital receiver described above will be described with reference to FIGS. In this example, a display 32 for high definition is connected to the BS digital broadcast receiver 31, and elements 33 relating to the data broadcast of the BS digital broadcast are displayed on the display screen of the display 32.
[0039]
First, in order to use data broadcasting in BS digital broadcasting, the "d" button 11F of the remote control device 10a as shown in FIG. 3 is pressed. At this point, the switch 16 is turned on, so that the power input of the acceleration sensor 12 is turned on, and the reference value of the inclination is stored in the storage unit 13. Next, the remote control device 10a is tilted a plurality of times (or tilted for a predetermined time) in either the “up / down” or “left / right” direction, and focus is set on the data broadcast setting screen as shown in FIG. The (cursor) is moved to the position of the desired element 33. When the “enter” button 11G is pressed in this state, a desired data broadcast program is received (in the example of FIG. 6, a data broadcast of typhoon information is received).
[0040]
In the above-described embodiment, the basic functions of the remote control device 10a have been described. However, other functions can be added according to the situation. For example, since the amount of inclination of the “tilt” intended by the operator differs depending on the operator, a sensitivity adjustment function of the “tilt” for compensating for the difference may be provided.
[0041]
More specifically, several types of threshold values of the amount of tilt for determining that the remote control device 10a has been tilted are determined and stored in the microcomputer 17 in advance, and when the operator uses the remote control device 10a, The threshold may be selected by a button operation or the like, or the operator may set a desired threshold by a button operation or the like.
[0042]
In addition, the function when the remote control device 10a is tilted for a predetermined time may be configured to be settable and changeable using a personal computer or the like.
[0043]
Further, the inclination posture detecting means of the remote control signal transmission device of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned acceleration sensor, but can detect the inclination posture of the remote control signal transmission device satisfactorily and output a signal corresponding to the detected value. Other types of sensors can be used.
[0044]
In addition, as described above, the two orthogonal axes for detecting the inclination posture are the front-back direction and the left-right direction, but other orthogonal two axes may be used.
[0045]
In addition, it is desirable to use a plurality of infrared light emitting LEDs that output a predetermined remote control signal using infrared rays in response to the pressing operation of each remote control button described above in order to broaden the directivity of infrared rays.
[0046]
【The invention's effect】
According to the remote control signal transmission device of the present invention, a predetermined remote control signal is transmitted to a remotely operated device (broadcast receiving device) based on the tilt posture detected by the tilt posture detection means, As in the related art in which the remote control code is determined according to the moving direction and the speed of the remote control signal transmission device, it is possible to solve the problem that the operation for determining the remote control code to be transmitted is likely to be inaccurate, Also, the circuit configuration and software are simplified.
[0047]
Therefore, the setting operation can be simplified without setting the remote control code of the remote control signal transmitting device inaccurately.
[0048]
Further, when it is necessary to select a desired element by moving a focus (cursor) from a plurality of elements on a setting screen, such as a data broadcast in BS digital broadcasting, tilt the remote control signal transmitting device, The focus can be moved in the same direction as the tilted direction, and the button of the remote control signal transmission device is pressed only when the element is determined (determined), so that the button operation of the remote control signal transmission device can be performed. It can be greatly simplified.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a remote control signal transmitting apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic view illustrating an arrangement of remote control buttons of the remote control signal transmitting apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of button arrangement of a remote control device of the BS digital receiver according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 shows a relationship between an inclination amount of the acceleration sensor shown in FIG. 1 and a duty ratio of an output pulse from the acceleration sensor. (A) showing a graph and a diagram (b) for defining a duty ratio of an output pulse thereof.
5 is a diagram for explaining that a tilt amount corresponding to the tilt posture of the remote control device shown in FIG. 3 is detected. FIG. 6 uses a BS digital broadcast data broadcast of the remote control device shown in FIG. For explaining an operation example at the time of operation [Explanation of reference numerals]
10, 10a Remote control device 11 Remote control button 12 Acceleration sensor 13 Storage unit 14 Remote control signal modulation / transmission unit 15 Power supply 16 Switch 17 Microcomputer 21 Remote control signal 31 BS digital broadcast receiver 32 Display 33 Element

Claims (4)

In a remote control signal transmitting device that transmits a predetermined remote control signal to a remote controlled device to be remotely controlled,
A tilt attitude detecting means for detecting a tilt attitude of the remote control signal transmission device,
Remote control signal storage means for storing a remote control signal defined in advance so as to correspond to the tilt posture of the remote control signal transmitting device,
Remote control signal reading means for reading a predetermined remote control signal from the remote control signal storage means based on the tilt attitude detected by the tilt attitude detection means;
A remote control signal transmitting unit for transmitting a remote control signal read from the remote control signal reading unit to the remotely operated device. The circuit for detecting the tilt attitude of the remote control signal transmitting device in the tilt attitude detecting means is such that when the remote control signal transmitting device is not operated, the power input is turned off, and any operation element of the remote control signal transmitting device is operated. Wherein the power input is turned on when the power input is performed, and the power input is turned off when a predetermined time has elapsed from the time when the operation element was operated. Item 7. The remote control signal transmitting device according to Item 1. A reference attitude for storing and holding the tilt attitude of the remote control signal transmission device, detected by the tilt attitude detection means at the time when the power input of the circuit is turned on, as the reference attitude until the power input is turned off. Storage means;
Based on the difference between the reference attitude stored in the reference attitude storage means and the tilt attitude of the remote control signal transmission device detected by the tilt attitude detection means at a later point in time, Effective operation determination means for determining whether the tilt posture is due to a valid operation,
The remote control signal reading unit is configured to read the remote control signal corresponding to the tilt posture from the remote control signal storage unit only for the tilt posture determined by the valid operation determination unit to be a valid operation. The remote control signal transmission device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The tilt posture detecting means comprises an acceleration sensor, and the acceleration sensor outputs a pulse signal having a duty ratio corresponding to the detected magnitude of the tilt posture. Item 7. The remote control signal transmission device according to Item 1.

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