KR20040082819A - Universal remote controller with batch processing and operating method for the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An integrated remote control having a collective processing function and a method for operating the same are provided to easily control a home theater by pressing one function key after combining a series of control commands. CONSTITUTION: A key input unit(220) includes figure keys, volume keys, a play key, and a collective processing function key operating a plurality of electronic equipments in order by one key operation. A display unit(260) displays an operational state of an integrated remote control to a user. A control code receiving unit(250) receives remote control code information from an external server and a collective processing control code freely made by the user. A control code database(280) stores control codes for the electronic equipments. A command information storing unit(270) stores each command information to collectively process the operations corresponding to the collective processing function key. A collective processing control code generator(230) generates a collective processing control code by extracting the control codes corresponding to the predetermined command information and combining the extracted control codes. An infrared signal transmitter(240) transmits an infrared signals to the electronic equipments according to the collective processing control code. A control unit(210) reads the command information to provide the command information to the collective processing control code generator(230).

Description

Universal remote controller with batch processing and operating method for the same}

The present invention relates to an integrated remote controller having a batch function key capable of simultaneously controlling a plurality of electronic devices with one key operation and a method of operating the same.

In general, a remote control device is a device for controlling each electronic device through a radio transmission of a control frequency remotely from a TV, DVD, video, audio, air conditioner, heating fan, cable broadcasting converter, satellite broadcasting converter, fan and other electronic devices. In order to distinguish the electronics of a specific manufacturer from the electronics of another manufacturer, the infrared signal is transmitted according to the control code which is written differently for each electronic device.

Control code coding of such a remote controller uses an encoding method. The encoding method is a binary form of a high signal and a low signal, and is made of a form of changing length (change of time and bit length). A general remote control signal includes a header, a group, a comment, and a stop code. Separated by. By using the header length and the value of the group code, the manufacturer or model name can be determined even if only the input for the specific key of the remote controller is received.

However, when using different types of electronic devices in one home, the corresponding number of remote controls are used, which makes it difficult to manage multiple remote controls, and when the user wants to select and use a new electronic device, the remote controller There was a discomfort due to the need to change. In order to solve this problem, an integrated remote controller capable of controlling several electronic devices with a single remote controller has recently been commercialized.

Due to the emergence of the integrated remote control, in order to control TV, RADIO, TAPE, CDP, DVD, VTR, etc., each of the remote control of the corresponding electronic device had to be controlled separately. All can be controlled. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the TV 111, the DVD 112, the VTR 113, the AMP 114, the RADIO 115, the TAPE 116, the CDP 117 and the like are integrally provided. A set of electronic devices such as a home theater can be efficiently controlled using the integrated remote controller 200.

However, in the case of the integrated remote controller for controlling the home theater as described above, it is inconvenient to press many keys to operate in a specific operation mode. For example, to enjoy DVD (i.e., enjoy surround stereo sound through AMP while watching a DVD picture on a TV), turn on the TV, AMP and DVD, and then enter the play mode and the TV receive the DVD picture. In channel mode, the AMP requires at least six integrated remote control key operations, such as changing to the DVD sound receiving channel mode.

Likewise, at least four keystrokes are required to enjoy music through the CD player. Therefore, in order to enjoy a home theater system, it is inconvenient to use the integrated remote controller because a plurality of key operations are required on the integrated remote controller. In addition, users who are not familiar with the use of electronic products, such as the elderly and children, may not be able to fully enjoy the home theater system, and they may not be able to enjoy the home theater system sufficiently, and they may make more key operations by selecting the wrong key operation. There was a risk of adversely affecting.

The present invention has been proposed to solve the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to implement an integrated remote control having a batch function key that can collectively control a plurality of electronic devices with a single key operation instead of the conventional complex key operation It is done. In addition, an object of the present invention is to implement a method of operating an integrated remote controller having the above batch processing function keys.

1 is a state diagram illustrating a state of controlling an electronic device set with an integrated remote controller.

2 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of an integrated remote controller having a batch processing function according to the present invention.

3 is an external perspective view of an integrated remote controller having a batch processing function according to the present invention.

4 is a diagram for describing content of command information stored in the command information storage unit.

5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating a state in which a control code is received from a specific server on the Internet.

6 is a flowchart illustrating the operation steps of the integrated remote controller according to the present invention.

* Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings *

200: integrated remote controller 210: control unit

220: key input unit 230: batch processing control code generation unit

240: infrared signal transmitter 250: control code receiver

260: display unit 270: command information storage unit

280: control code database

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a batch processing function key on the integrated remote controller so that a plurality of electronic devices can be simultaneously controlled by one key operation. An operation command corresponding to the key is transmitted to each electronic device.

Accordingly, the integrated remote controller according to the present invention includes a key input unit having a numeric key for controlling an electronic device, a volume key, a playback key, and a batch processing function key for sequentially operating a plurality of electronic devices by one key operation; A display window composed of LCD / TFT liquid crystal display, which displays the operation status of the integrated remote control to the user, a control code receiver which downloads electronic device remote control code information and a batch processing control code arbitrarily created by the user from an external server; And a control code database storing control codes of the electronic devices received through the control code receiving unit, and respective command information for collectively processing operations corresponding to the batch processing function keys as an information storage medium. A command information storage unit and predetermined command information stored in the command information storage unit. A batch control code generator for generating a batch control code for sequentially controlling a plurality of electronic devices by extracting and combining the corresponding control codes from the control code database, and controlling the batch processing with an infrared light emitting diode An infrared signal transmitter for transmitting an infrared signal to an electronic device according to a batch control code received from a code generator, and the command information storage unit for controlling each function unit and according to a batch function key signal received from the key input unit And a control unit for reading the series of command information and providing it to the batch control code generation unit.

In addition, the method of operating the integrated remote control may include receiving a batch processing function key input for sequentially operating a plurality of electronic devices by one key operation from a user or downloading the data from an external device and storing the stored key in a storage device. Reading command information from the integrated remote controller storage device for processing an operation corresponding to a processing function key; and sequentially combining control codes contracted for controlling electronic devices according to the command information read above, in a batch process. Generating a control code, and converting the generated batch control code into an infrared signal and transmitting the infrared signal.

Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

2 is a block diagram illustrating an internal configuration of the integrated remote controller according to the present invention.

The key input unit 220 is a function unit that is in charge of an interface for receiving a user's remote control operation command and transmitting the same to a controller, and has a keypad including a plurality of keys. The external appearance of the keypad is shown in FIG. 3, wherein the keypad includes a plurality of numeric keys in a matrix structure, a TV PLAY / STOP (223, hereinafter referred to as P / S), a DVD P / S 224, and a VTR P / S ( 225, a batch processing function key such as CDP P / S 226, RADIO P / S 227, volume key 221, playback position key 222, and electronic device selection key 228.

The volume key 221 is a key that receives an input for adjusting the volume of the currently operating electronic device, and the playback position key 222 performs a function of selecting a playback position of the currently operating electronic device. The home theater is a radio tuner. In case of operation, it may also be responsible for searching for radio frequencies.

In addition, the key input unit may be configured in a separate program form in order to increase the user's convenience in a remote control device having a touch panel such as a PDA.

The batch processing function keys 223, 224, 225, 226, and 227 are provided to sequentially operate a plurality of electronic devices by one key operation, and have a toggle structure to perform a corresponding batch operation when the key is pressed once. Press again to stop the current operation. In addition, when the corresponding batch processing function key is pressed for a predetermined time during the operation, all the electronic devices related to the batch processing operation are turned off.

For example, when the user presses the DVD P / S key 224, the integrated remote controller having a batch function according to the present invention can change [TV on + TV receiving channel to DVD video channel] + [AMP on + AMP]. Transmit receiving channel to DVD sound channel] + [DVD on + DVD PLAY] Sends out infrared signal for batch processing. If DVD P / S key is pressed while watching DVD, press [DVD STOP]. When the DVD P / S key is pressed for a long time, an infrared signal containing the command [TV OFF] + [AMP OFF] + [DVD OFF] is sent.

On the other hand, the integrated remote controller is provided with an electronic device selection key 228 in addition to the batch processing function key, when it is necessary to control the electronic devices individually without using the batch function key to perform a certain operation in succession Use the electronic device selection key. For example, if the electronic device selection key is pressed once, only the TV control mode is pressed, if it is pressed twice, only the DVD control mode is pressed, and if it is pressed three times, the mode is only the air conditioner control mode. If it is pressed, it enters the mode to perform only the heater control.

The display unit 260 is a display window formed of an LCD screen 261, such as an LCD, and functions to inform the user in advance of an operation state of the integrated remote controller so that the user can select a desired operation from among various batch operation contents.

The command information storage unit 270 stores a series of command information corresponding to each batch function key as an information storage medium such as a flash memory. The command information refers to information for performing an operation corresponding to the batch processing function key when the user presses a specific batch processing function key on the remote controller, and an example thereof is illustrated in FIG. 4.

For example, when the user presses the DVD P / S batch function key, the control unit controls the DVD PLAY command information 410 stored in the command information storage unit to provide DVD playback to the user, that is, [TV on + Change TV receiving channel to DVD video channel] + [AMP on + Change AMP receiving channel to DVD sound channel] + [DVD on + DVD PLAY] Command information is read and remote control is controlled. In addition, the command information storage unit receives [TV off] + [AMP off] + [DVD stop] command information 411 when a user inputs a DVD stop function key from the user, and receives a DVD off command during a DVD play operation. Off] + [AMP off] + [DVD off] command information 412 is stored.

Similarly, in the case of VTR play, the command information 421 of [Change AMP on + AMP receiving channel to VTR sound channel] + [VTR on + VTR play] + [Change TV on + TV receiving channel to VTR video channel] In the case of CDP play, the command information 431 includes [change AMP on + AMP receiving channel to CDP channel] + [CDP on + CDP play].

The control code database 280 stores a control code of each electronic device as a database storing the control code of each electronic device. Although a control code for specific electronic devices may be included in the control code database when the integrated remote controller is shipped, the control code may be received and stored in the control code database through the control code receiver 250 to be described later.

Hereinafter, the control code will be described in brief, and then the batch control code generation unit 230 and the control code receiving unit 250 will be described in detail.

In general, the remote control converts a control code related to predetermined control information into an infrared signal and then transmits the control code to an infrared receiver of the corresponding electronic device to control the electronic device. In addition, the control code system may vary depending on the function. Therefore, electronic devices require different remote controllers by manufacturer and model.

TABLE 1

NEC Domestic companies such as LG / Samsung and TOSHIBA RC5 Each company in Europe ZENITH ZENITH MITSUBISH MITSUBISH

At this time, looking at the code system by manufacturer, as shown in [Table 1], it can be seen that each manufacturer uses a different code system.

TABLE 2

Head pulse Custom code Code Data code Code

TABLE 3

Key content Code (HEX) Key content Code (HEX) power 08 channel- channel- TV / Video 0B Volume + 02 Multimedia 98 volume- 03 menu 43 Enter 44 Channel + 00 APC 40

As an example, looking at the configuration of the NEC code of the above-described code, as shown in [Table 2], and in more detail, looking at the details of the remote control code of the LG TV, consisting of hexa (HEXA) code [Table 3] Same as

As such, control codes classified by manufacturer and function are converted into an infrared form through an optical transmission means provided on the remote control, that is, an infrared light emitting diode, as the user presses a corresponding remote control key, and is input to an infrared receiver of the corresponding electronic device. . The infrared signal received by the infrared receiver of the electronic device performs a decoding operation and a user command by recognizing a corresponding operation command and controlling a related configuration.

In addition, the control code receiver generates a control command in advance so that the user can collectively operate not only electronic devices but also doors and lights according to their own tastes or lifestyles, while the home network is installed. It is stored in a device such as PDA or PDA and downloaded to the remote controller to perform the desired operation.

The batch control code generation unit 230 extracts a control code corresponding to the command information of the batch requested from the user from the command information stored in the command information storage unit 270 from the control code database, and then combines the batch control code. Create As a result, the batch control code may be referred to as a sequential combination of control codes corresponding to the requested command information.

For example, when the user presses the DVD P / S batch function key 224, the control unit controls the DVD PLAY command information 411, that is, [TV on + TV receiving channel to DVD video channel] + [AMP on]. + Changes the AMP receiving channel to the DVD sound channel] + [DVD on + DVD PLAY] is read from the command information storage unit and delivered to the batch control code generator, the batch control code generator 230 The control code corresponding to the command information is taken from the control code database 280 to generate a batch control code corresponding to the command information.

The generated batch control code is transmitted to the infrared signal transmitter 240 and sequentially transmitted to the infrared signal receiver of each electronic device as an infrared signal. The infrared signal transmitter 240 may have an infrared light emitting diode to generate an infrared signal corresponding to the control code received from the control code receiver.

The control code receiver 250 is an interface for receiving a control code and may be implemented as an internet access terminal or an infrared signal receiver. For example, when the control code is received from a specific server on the Internet, it is implemented as an internet access terminal. If the control code is received from an electronic device or a unique remote controller of the electronic device, the control code is implemented as an infrared signal receiver. As a result, the control code receiver 250 is implemented as an internet access terminal or an infrared signal receiving end and receives a control code of an electronic device to be controlled from an Internet-specific server or an electronic device (the corresponding remote controller) and stores the control code in a control code database. The batch control code generation unit may extract a necessary control code from the control code database when necessary to generate a batch control code.

Receiving a control code from a specific server on the Internet will be described in more detail later with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B.

On the other hand, if the integrated remote control wants to control the electronic device, the control code must have the control code in the control code database. The integrated remote control may have the control code of the electronic device at the factory, The control code of the electronic device can be received from the server through the control code receiver 250 and stored in the control code database.

Since the three methods for receiving the control code are various conventional technologies, only the parts necessary for implementing the present invention will be described below.

The first method, which receives a control code directly from an electronic device, implements the control code receiver as a near field wireless receiver to directly receive a control code by a short range wireless communication with the electronic device or control through frequency search. How to find out the code. The direct control code reception by the short range wireless communication method is to receive a control code directly from an electronic device by including a short range wireless communication receiver such as a Bluetooth receiver and an infrared receiver in the integrated remote controller. Among the numerous electronic device control codes pre-built at the factory, the control code is sequentially extracted and the frequency search is repeatedly performed until a match is detected with the control code of the electronic device to be controlled.

A second method of receiving a control code from a unique remote controller of the corresponding electronic device is to receive a control code of the corresponding electronic device from each unique remote controller of the electronic device to be controlled, and the control code receiver receives the infrared signal of the unique remote controller. It is implemented with an infrared signal receiver for receiving.

The third method, which receives a control code from a specific server on the Internet, downloads a control code of an electronic device to be controlled from a specific server on the Internet and automatically registers the control code with the integrated remote controller. Shown.

If the integrated remote controller 200 cannot directly access the Internet, as shown in FIG. 5A, a specific server 550 may be connected to the Internet using a personal computer 510 or a mobile communication terminal 520 capable of accessing the wired or wireless Internet. The control code is downloaded, and the Internet connection terminal of the integrated remote controller is composed of a wired / wireless short-range port, and the serial, universal serial bus (USB), Bluetooth (Bluetooth), and infrared communication (IrDA) are connected to the personal computer 510 or the mobile communication terminal 520. ) And so on.

If the integrated remote control is implemented as an integrated remote control combined PDA installed in a personal digital assistant (PDA), as shown in FIG. 5B, since the integrated remote control combined PDA 530 can directly access the Internet, FIG. The illustrated control code receiver 250 may be an internet access module that processes the TCP / IP protocol among the internal components of the integrated remote control PDA.

A method of configuring a batch processing function key desired by a user using the above configuration is as follows.

When a user sets a predetermined mode and inputs a series of remote control keys that the user wants to batch process by using a plurality of keys of the integrated remote controller that remotely controls a plurality of electronic devices, the input key is inputted as a command set. As a result, the operation is stored in the command storage unit so as to correspond to the batch processing function key and the predetermined mode is completed.

In addition, when performing a role as an integrated remote control using a PDA or a personal portable terminal, a batch processing function key is defined by storing a command set as an icon or a predetermined data type by sequentially combining a series of remote control keys.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a process of collectively processing a specific function in the integrated remote controller according to the present invention.

When a user receives a batch function key input (S610) that is a specific batch operation request such as a DVD play, the command information corresponding to the batch function key is read from the command information storage unit (S620). That is, the controller generates an address signal corresponding to the batch function key requested for operation, and reads the corresponding command information from the command information storage unit. For example, when there is a DVD play request, the DVD play command information shown in FIG. 4, that is, [TV on + TV receiving channel is changed to DVD video channel] + [AMP on + AMP receiving channel is changed to DVD sound channel] + Read the [DVD on + DVD PLAY] command information (411).

According to the read command information, the batch control code generation unit extracts the control code of each command in the corresponding command information from the control code database and generates a combined process control code (S630). The control code database is a place where the control code of the electronic device to be controlled is received and stored from each electronic device or from a specific server on the Internet as described above.

When the batch control code combination is completed as described above, the infrared signal according to the batch control code is transmitted using an infrared light emitting diode (S640).

On the other hand, in some cases, when there is a batch processing request from the user, it is necessary to send an infrared signal to turn off the operation of the electronic device associated with the requested batch processing before performing the batch processing function. This is a step for distributing the resources of the electromagnetic period under the control of the integrated remote controller. For example, if there is a request for watching DVD during CDP operation, if a DVD operation infrared signal is transmitted without turning off the CDP, the CDP and DVD devices are consequently transmitted. This is because there is a problem working at the same time.

In the detailed description of the embodiment of the integrated remote controller, only the function of the remote controller itself has been described, but as another embodiment of the present invention, an integrated remote controller may be implemented in a mobile communication terminal or personal information terminal such as a PCS or PDA. . By implementing the integrated remote control function in the terminal, there is an advantage that can easily download the control code of the electronic device to be controlled through the wireless Internet.

In particular, when the integrated remote control function is implemented on the PDA, since it is implemented in the form of a touch pad instead of a keypad, various remote control operation commands can be displayed and the user can easily input the remote control operation commands. As a result, the technical spirit of the present invention has been described in detail according to the preferred embodiment, but the above-described embodiment is for the purpose of description, and various embodiments within the scope of the technical spirit of the present invention are provided to those skilled in the art. You will understand that it is possible.

As described above, the present invention combines a series of control commands of the user's desired type and then presses one function key to perform the same function as if the user has operated 5 to 6 keys. Can be done very easily. Particularly, in the home network system as well as the widely used home theater, the integrated remote control control according to the present invention can control desired functions with a single key operation so that anyone can easily remotely control the home theater. There is an advantage.

Claims (9)

A key input unit having a plurality of key matrices for controlling electronic devices and a batch processing function key for sequentially operating the plurality of electronic devices with one key operation; A control code database storing remote control codes of each electronic device, A command information storage unit which stores respective command information for collectively processing the operations corresponding to the above batch processing function keys as an information storage medium; A control unit for generating a remote control signal by reading a series of command information from the command information storage unit according to a batch function key signal received from the key input unit; A batch processing control code generating unit for generating a batch processing control code for sequentially controlling a plurality of electronic devices by extracting and combining the control codes from the control code database according to the control signal received from the control unit; An integrated remote controller having a batch processing function having a control signal sending section for sending a predetermined control signal to an electronic device in accordance with the batch control code received from the batch control code generating section. The integrated remote controller of claim 1, wherein the integrated remote controller further comprises a display unit configured to display an operation state of the integrated remote controller to a user as a display window formed of a liquid crystal display. The integrated remote controller according to claim 1, wherein the integrated remote controller further comprises a display unit configured to display an operation content of a batch function key of the integrated remote controller as a display window formed of a liquid crystal display. The integrated remote controller according to claim 1, wherein the integrated remote controller further comprises a control code receiver which receives a control code of an electronic device from a specific server on the Internet through an Internet connection. The integrated remote controller of claim 1, wherein the integrated remote controller further includes a control code receiver for receiving an infrared signal to receive the control code of the electronic device from the dedicated remote controller of each electronic device. . A key input unit configured to perform a series of remote control key input by a user through a plurality of key matrices and a predetermined mode for controlling the electronic device; A command information storage unit for sequentially storing the series of key input information and storing key input information to correspond to a batch function key; A control unit for generating a remote control signal by reading a series of command information from the command information storage unit according to a batch function key signal received from the key input unit; A batch processing control code generating unit for generating a batch processing control code for sequentially controlling a plurality of electronic devices by extracting and combining the control codes from the control code database according to the control signal received from the control unit; An integrated remote controller having a batch processing function having a control signal sending section for sending a predetermined control signal to an electronic device in accordance with the batch control code received from the batch control code generating section. The integrated remote controller having a batch processing function according to claim 6, wherein the series of key input information is a plurality of electronic device remote control signals. The integrated remote controller according to claim 6, wherein the integrated remote controller further comprises a control code receiving unit for downloading a command set for batch processing function keys from a specific server on the Internet through an Internet connection. In the operation method for controlling a plurality of electronic devices with one integrated remote control, Receiving a batch function key input from a user for sequentially operating a plurality of electronic devices by one key operation; Reading command information for processing an operation corresponding to the batch processing function key from the integrated remote controller storage device; Generating a batch control code by sequentially combining the control codes contracted for controlling the electronic device according to the command information read above; Converting the generated batch control code into an infrared signal and transmitting the same; Operation method of the integrated remote control with a batch processing function including.