ES2293783B2 - WIRELESS REMOTE CONTROL SYSTEM FOR VISUALIZATION SYSTEMS. - Google Patents

Abstract

Wireless remote control system for display systems

The invention consists of a wireless system which allows you to remotely control the operation of a information processing system that includes the possibility of data visualization. A well known example of This type of display system is a television. Physically the part of the system that the operator must manipulate consists of a rounded object, constructed in such a way that it is shock resistant, which is resistant to immersion in liquids and soft enough to allow it to be compressed with hand. The operator communicates with this object by moving it, turning it on itself or squeezing it. As visual feedback of these actions, the system displays an object on the screen virtual whose appearance and behavior changes with manipulation of the physical object. The device provides feedback acoustics and some level of haptic feedback.

Description

Wireless remote control system for display systems

Technical sector

Remote control of systems that include the possibility of viewing images such as a TV or a computer screen. Interface devices with the operator in virtual reality systems. Interfaces in Computer applications.

State of the art

The remote control of the devices of information display such as the TV is done currently with remote controls that include a large number of buttons and that do not produce any, or have very little, visual, acoustic or haptic feedback.

These types of devices have several limitations On the one hand, it is difficult to increase the chances of the remote control without increasing the number of buttons and on the other part are not resistant to shock or contact with liquids when, however, these circumstances are common in the most of the environments in which they are used.

In recent years, patents for several devices that could perform functions comparable to those carried out by the invention:

The GB2319590 patent is a device of remote control that measures the pressure exerted by the operator with strain gauges, and acceleration information with about accelerometers Its housing is rigid.

US2002113775 is a device for remote control that measures travel orders with a "track ball", includes push buttons and their physical configuration Ergonomic based on a rigid housing.

WO8903569 is a device for remote control coupled to each of four of the fingers of the hand with two push buttons per finger and that is capable of feedback to the operator with some sense of touch.

WO9602878 is a device for remote control that includes a pressure sensor in such a way that allows to obtain different degrees of force with which the operator You can code your orders. It has a semi-rigid housing.

US5229756 is a device for control the appearance of an image based on the measurement and recognition of operator movements. To do it uses a mechanical device with a joint whose angle It varies with the movements of the operator. The device includes a computer system capable of interpreting the movements of the operator.

The devices described in these patents separately include some features close to those of the invention presented. None of them, however, explodes The possibilities of optical and acoustic feedback, is free from  push buttons, or has a flexible shock resistant and liquids

Explanation of the invention.

The invention is composed of two components main. The device operated by the operator, which we will call "Command", and the device receiving the orders, We will call "Receiver."

I send

The physical aspect of the Command is that of an object rounded with a flexible cover and of a size such that it can Hold with one or both hands. Figure 1 shows a Schematic representation of this object.

The Command performs the following functions:

?

Measure the movements of the device produced by the operator

?

Identify the gestures of operator among a number of preset possibilities.

?

Measure the pressure with which compress the cover.

?

Send this information by a wireless system

?

Provide a vibration for indicate specific situations of the control process.

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To perform these functions, the Command has the following components:

Motion sensors consisting of three accelerometers placed in orthogonal directions.

Sensor to measure the force with which the operator presses the knob consisting of a pressure sensor connected to a flexible air bag located inside the I send.

A vibrator that allows generating the haptic feedback.

A communication transmission module Wireless low consumption.

An electronic circuit built around a microcontroller capable of integrating and managing components previous.

A power supply, accumulator of electric power, which uses a rechargeable battery. The recharge of the battery can be performed by inductive coupling or by a connector protected with an airtight cap.

A program that runs on the microcontroller capable of performing the described functions. He control algorithm encoded in this program consists of a infinite loop in which the sequence is repeated: Read Sensors, Recognize Gesture, Control Vibrator, Send Data. All these Programming components, less Recognize Gesture, are elementary. The Recognize Gesture function can be resolved by any of the techniques available in the scientific area of Recognition of Patterns

Receiver

The Receiver, which would be physically integrated With the system to be controlled, it consists of an electronic circuit able to perform the following functions:

?

Receive the information sent by the Command

?

Produce on the screen of display system the image of a virtual object that will serve so that the operator receives visual feedback of the actions of  control performed.

?

Produce acoustic feedback of operator actions

?

Communicate to the system under control the corresponding orders.

To perform these functions the Receiver It includes the following components:

Communications reception module wireless capable of receiving the signal emitted by the Command.

Communications module with the system a control. This system can be a personal computer or similar and will communicate with the receiver through one of the buses of standardized communications such as USB.

Sound emission device. Preferably it will be part of the system to be controlled. If of a personal computer will be the audio card that these computers They carry normally integrated.

Receiver control computer program. This program will normally run on a processor since available on the equipment to be controlled or if necessary in a built-in auxiliary processor This program encodes the following Algorithm executed as an infinite loop: Read the orders that arrive from the Command, Update the image of the virtual object in the display, emit sound if necessary, transmit orders to the system under control. Repeat the loop.

The invention constitutes a generic interface of Remote control and as such has numerous applications. How example of its operation describes a simple application in which acts as a remote control to select a channel from television.

The command consists of a rubber ball of such size that can be held with one hand. Suppose the TV is turned off, although with the receiver of the device remote control on. The operator picks up the Command and squeezes it. He  command will then emit a radio frequency signal. Upon receiving this signal the receiver turns on the television and presents in the screen a prism like the one in figure 2 on whose faces are written the titles of the channels to select. By turning the knob  on itself the operator can see how the prism rotates while a characteristic sound is heard (TOC-TOC-TOC) and feel in your hand a impact tapping associated with this sound produced by the vibrator, as the title of each channel goes through the front face of the prism The movements of the Command and those of the prism are synchronized thanks to the interpretation of the gestures of the operator. When the name of the desired channel occupies the position front the operator presses the knob making the receiver tune in

In combination with a viewing program of virtual reality you can use the command as a pointer with possibilities of action in a virtual world of three dimensions. For example a three-dimensional icon in the form of a hand that closes and  "grab" objects in the virtual world when the operator press the Command and then "drag" when you move the command without tightening.

Description of the drawings

Figure 1 represents a scheme of device indicating all its components. Figure 2 shows a simple example of the virtual object that serves as feedback visual. Figure 3 shows the representation of an embodiment of the device in the operator's hand. In these figures you can identify the following elements:

(one)

Pressure sensor

(2)

Motion sensors

(3)

Processor

(4)

Transmitter - Receiver

(5)

Drums

(6)

Inner capsule with support material and circuit protection

(7)

Airbag

(8)

Outer covering

(9)

Pressure tap

(10)

Access plug to recharge connector

(eleven)

Vibrator

(12)

Flexible and spongy material that keeps the circuit centered inside the control.

Detailed statement of at least one embodiment of the invention

A possibility of realization of the invention It is based on the use of the following materials:

Command: The electronic circuit is built around a PIC18F2525 microcontroller. Sensors movement are three accelerometers ADXL202 of the company Analog Devices placed on three perpendicular axes and the sensor Pressure is an MPX5700 from the Motorola company. For communication wireless a bluetooth module is used EYMF2CAMM-XX of the company BT Designer. This circuit is powered by a rechargeable battery from the outside through an induction system. The vibrator is operated by one of the outputs of the microcontroller and is of the type of those used in mobile phones. Microcontroller run a program capable of performing the described functions more above. It is programmed using c language with the environment of MPLAB programming of the Microchip company and implements for the recognition of several simple gestures an algorithm based on the use of Markov's Hidden Chains.

The electronic circuit including the bag air connected to the pressure sensor has been locked in a ball rubber. The ball has been filled with polyurethane foam and tightly closed.

Receiver: The receiver is built as a peripheral of a personal computer. The only physical component that must be added to this is a BlueTooth adapter - USB as per example the Dlink DBT-120. This peripheral receives the information from the Command. Through a computer program proper executed on this personal computer is done the transmission of orders to the system to be controlled. Including as another personal computer peripheral a television tuner of the commercially available systems can be made Complete of a remote controlled television. The program IT has been developed in C ++ language. The only component that has some complexity is what allows the creation and update of the icon image that serves as visual feedback This image was generated using a tool for the production of virtual worlds called OpenInventor

Industrial application

Development of wireless devices of remote control for information display systems. These include a wide variety of applications that go from the TV remote control to a pointer to the Three-dimensional environment of a virtual reality cave.

Claims (3)

1. Wireless remote control system display systems comprising

to.

a command comprising three motion sensors placed in orthogonal addresses, a communication transmission module wireless, an electric energy accumulator and a circuit electronic based on a microcontroller all enclosed tightly under a plastic cover (8), whose filling is complete with a flexible plastic material (12), and

b.

a receiver integrated with the display system comprising a wireless communications reception module, a module communication with the system to be controlled, an emission device of sound and a processor capable of representing a virtual object in the display system;

characterized in that the command includes

-

a pressure sensor (1) connected to a flexible air bag (7) located inside the control, between the flexible material (12) and the outer cover (8), such that when pressed with a determined force the outer cover (8) of the control, the pressure of the air inside the flexible bag (7) varies indicating it to the sensor (1) through a pressure outlet (9), and

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a vibrator (11) that acts when the receiver has received the signal from the command, feedback to the command so that the user can receive command position information.

2. Display procedure through the wireless system defined in claim 1 characterized in that the microcontroller:

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read the data of the motion and pressure sensors,

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recognize the gesture of the operator,

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control the vibrator and

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send the data to the receiver.

3. Display procedure according to claim 2 characterized in that the receiver processor:

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interprets the data arriving from I send,

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update the virtual object image on the screen,

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issues the feedback sound, and

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transmit orders to the system under control