JP2003230184A - Appliance control system and method therefor using mobile communication terminal, and home gateway - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an appliance control system and method therefor, and a home gateway which are capable of remotely controlling all types of electrical home appliances by using a mobile communication terminal. <P>SOLUTION: A database 71 in a database center 7 stores an appliance control program required for operating each of all types of electrical home appliances of all manufacturers. In a household area 3, the electric home appliances 4 are connected to a home gateway 6 via a household network 5. This gateway 6 collectively controls information about the storage destinations of the appliance control programs on the database 71 together with various types of information giving the appliances 4. A mobile communication terminal 2 refers to the gateway 6 to acquire from the database 71 only the program of an appliance 4 which a user desires to operate, interprets and executes the program, and instructs the desired operation to the appliance 4. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device control system and method using a mobile communication terminal and a home gateway, and more specifically, to moving a plurality of home appliances (electric appliances in the home). The present invention relates to a system that can be remotely controlled by a communication terminal, a remote control method thereof, and a home gateway configured in the system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, household appliances have been used for mobile communication terminals (mobile phones, etc.) on the go using public lines and the Internet.
There are various technologies developed to remotely control the device. For example, there is a technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-242242 regarding remote operation related to reserved recording of a video tape recorder (VTR), and in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-242242 regarding remote operation of a plurality of home electric appliances. The technologies described in these publications require an operation instruction signal transmitted from a mobile communication terminal to be transmitted to a required device control signal (power ON / OFF) in a specific device (corresponding to a controller) separately provided in the home. The target home electric appliance is controlled after being converted into a format such as a command or code for actually operating the home electric appliance such as OFF or start recording.

[0003]

[Patent Document 1] JP-A-9-102827

[Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-284757

[0004]

However, in the technique described in the above publication, the operation instruction signal must be converted into a predetermined format. Therefore, when remote operation is desired for a plurality of home electric appliances, Information (for example, a device control program) necessary to define a device control signal for all of the plurality of home appliances needs to be provided in advance in a specific device. Here, since which manufacturer owns which home appliances, etc., differs for each user,
After all, a specific device needs to be provided with all device control programs for each manufacturer and each type of home electric device. Therefore, there is a problem that the storage area required for a specific device becomes huge. In addition, since the device control program provided in a specific device is limited to a home electric device that actually exists at the time of manufacturing, there is also a problem that it cannot support a new product that appears later.

[0005] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a home electric appliance that a user now owns and / or will own in the future without needlessly holding a device control program.
An object is to provide a device control system and method and a home gateway that enable remote control using a mobile communication terminal.

[0006]

The present invention has the following features in order to achieve the above object. First
Of the invention is a device control system capable of remotely controlling an arbitrary home electric appliance within a predetermined local area by using a mobile communication terminal, and for defining a signal for directly controlling the home electric appliance for various home electric appliances. At least one required
Database that stores one device control information and one or more home appliances that store access information of the database that stores its own device control information as storage destination information, and connect the home appliances with the local area network and Remote control of home appliances based on the device control information stored in the database by using the home gateway that collectively manages the storage destination information held by the home appliances and the storage destination information that is collectively managed by the home gateway. A mobile communication terminal for performing the above, and a network for mutually connecting the database, the home gateway, and the mobile communication terminal.

A second aspect of the invention is dependent on the first aspect of the invention, wherein one piece of device control information is stored in the database for each home electric appliance and the storage destination information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information. It is a device control system that In this system, when the mobile communication terminal receives a request to execute remote control of a home electric appliance, the home gateway sends the storage destination information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal. The mobile communication terminal acquires, from the database, device control information for the specific home electric appliance to be controlled, based on the storage destination information received from the home gateway. Furthermore, the mobile communication terminal interprets and executes the acquired device control information, and transmits a control signal according to the desired operation content to the home gateway. The home gateway is characterized by giving the received control signal to the specific home electric appliance.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a plurality of device control information is stored in the database for each home electric appliance, and the storage destination information is information that can specify two or more of the plurality of device control information. , A device control system according to the first invention. In this system, when the mobile communication terminal receives a request to execute remote control of a home electric appliance, the home gateway sends the storage destination information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal. The mobile communication terminal selectively acquires desired device control information from the database based on the storage destination information received from the home gateway, from the two or more device control information for the specific home electric appliance to be controlled. Furthermore, the mobile communication terminal interprets and executes the acquired device control information, and transmits a control signal according to the desired operation content to the home gateway. The home gateway is characterized by giving the received control signal to the specific home electric appliance.

A fourth aspect of the invention is dependent on the first aspect of the invention, wherein one piece of device control information is stored in the database for each home electric appliance and the storage location information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information. It is a device control system that In this system, the home gateway acquires device control information specified by the storage destination information of the home electric appliance from the database in advance when the home electric appliance is connected to the local area network. Upon receiving a request to execute remote control of home electric appliances from the mobile communication terminal, the home gateway sends an operation screen based on the device control information to the mobile communication terminal.
The mobile communication terminal uses the operation screen received from the home gateway to instruct the home gateway about the desired operation content of the specific home electric appliance to be controlled. The home gateway is characterized by interpreting and executing the device control information according to the received instruction, and giving a control signal according to a desired operation content to a specific home electric device.

A fifth invention is an equipment control system according to the second invention. In this system, the home gateway manages the storage destination information together with the device name predetermined for the home electric appliance, and transmits the device name together with the storage destination information to the mobile communication terminal upon request. The mobile communication terminal is characterized in that it is possible to select a specific home electric appliance by referring to the appliance name received from the home gateway.

A sixth invention is an equipment control system according to the fifth invention. In this system, the home gateway further manages the device status related to the operation and setting of the home electric appliance, and transmits the device status together with the storage location information and the device name to the mobile communication terminal upon request. The mobile communication terminal can determine the effectiveness of the operation content by referring to the device status received from the home gateway.

A seventh aspect of the present invention is a device control system according to the first aspect of the invention, characterized in that the storage destination information generally managed by the home gateway can be arbitrarily changed.

The eighth invention relates to various home electric appliances,
A database that stores at least one device control information required to define a signal that directly controls a home electric device, and one or more home appliances that hold access information of a database that stores the device control information of its own as storage destination information In a system in which a home gateway, which is connected to a device via a local area network, and a mobile communication terminal are connected to each other via a network, the mobile communication terminal is used to remotely control an arbitrary home appliance within a predetermined local area. A device control method, wherein when a home gateway connects home electric appliances to a local area network, the storage destination information held by the connected home electric appliances is acquired and managed, and the mobile communication terminal is managed by the home gateway. The device stored in the database using the storage location information And performing remote control of home appliances, based on your information.

A ninth aspect of the invention is dependent on the eighth aspect of the invention, wherein one piece of device control information is stored in the database for each home electric appliance and the storage destination information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information. This is a method for controlling the equipment. In this method, the home gateway includes a step of transmitting the storage destination information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal when receiving a request for performing remote control of the home electric appliance from the mobile communication terminal. The mobile communication terminal includes a step of acquiring, from a database, device control information for a specific home electric appliance to be controlled, based on the storage destination information received from the home gateway. Further, the mobile communication terminal includes a step of interpreting and executing the device control information acquired from the database, and transmitting a control signal according to a desired operation content to the home gateway. The home gateway then provides the control signal received from the mobile communication terminal to a specific home electric appliance.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, a plurality of device control information is stored in the database for each home electric appliance, and the storage destination information is information capable of specifying two or more of the plurality of device control information. It is a device control method according to the eighth invention. In this method, the home gateway includes a step of transmitting the storage destination information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal when receiving a request for performing remote control of the home electric appliance from the mobile communication terminal. The mobile communication terminal includes a step of selectively obtaining desired device control information from two or more device control information for a specific home electric device to be controlled from a database based on the storage destination information received from the home gateway. Further, the mobile communication terminal includes a step of interpreting and executing the device control information acquired from the database, and transmitting a control signal according to a desired operation content to the home gateway. And the home gateway
Providing the control signal received from the mobile communication terminal to a specific home electric appliance.

In the eleventh aspect of the invention, one piece of device control information is stored in the database for each home electric appliance, and the storage destination information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information.
It is a device control method according to the eighth invention. In this method, the home gateway includes a step of previously acquiring device control information specified by storage destination information of the home electric appliance from the database when the home electric appliance is connected to the local area network. Further, the home gateway includes a step of transmitting an operation screen based on the device control information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal when receiving a request for remote control of the home electric appliance from the mobile communication terminal. The mobile communication terminal includes a step of instructing the home gateway of a desired operation content of a specific home electric appliance to be controlled, using the operation screen received from the home gateway. Then, the home gateway interprets and executes the device control information according to an instruction received from the mobile communication terminal, and gives a control signal according to a desired operation content to a specific home electric device.

A twelfth invention is a device control method according to the ninth invention. In this method, the home gateway manages the storage destination information together with the device name predetermined for the home electric appliance, and further comprises a step of transmitting the device name together with the storage destination information to the mobile communication terminal in response to a request. Then, the mobile communication terminal is further provided with a step of referring to the device name received from the home gateway and selecting a specific home electric device.

A thirteenth invention is a device control method according to the twelfth invention. In this method, the home gateway further manages the device status related to the operation and setting of the home electric appliance, and further includes a step of transmitting the device status together with the storage location information and the device name to the mobile communication terminal in response to a request. The mobile communication terminal is further provided with a step of determining the effectiveness of the operation content by referring to the device status received from the home gateway.

A fourteenth invention is a device control method according to the eighth invention, and is characterized in that the storage destination information managed by the home gateway can be arbitrarily changed.

A fifteenth aspect of the invention is, for various home electric appliances, a database storing at least one piece of equipment control information necessary for defining a signal for directly controlling the home electric appliances, and equipment control information stored in the database. With a mobile communication terminal for remote control of home appliances based on
A home gateway that is a home gateway connected by a network and is connected by a local area network to one or more home appliances that hold access information of a database that stores own device control information as storage destination information. It is characterized by acquiring and managing the storage destination information held by.

A sixteenth invention is a home gateway subordinate to the fifteenth invention, and when receiving a request for remote control of a home electric appliance from the mobile communication terminal, transmits storage location information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal. To do. When the home gateway receives a control signal according to a desired operation content from the mobile communication terminal, the home gateway gives the control signal to a specific home electric appliance.

A seventeenth aspect of the present invention is a home gateway according to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, which obtains device control information specified by the storage destination information of the electric home appliance from a database when the electric home appliance is connected via a local area network. To do. When the mobile communication terminal receives a request to execute remote control of a home electric appliance, the home gateway sends an operation screen based on the device control information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal. When a desired operation instruction is received from the mobile communication terminal, the device control information acquired in advance is interpreted and executed to generate a control signal for the operation instruction, and the control signal is given to a specific home electric appliance.

An eighteenth invention is a home gateway subordinate to the sixteenth invention, which manages storage destination information together with a device name predetermined for home electric appliances, and stores the device name together with the storage destination information in response to a request. Is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal.

A nineteenth invention is a home gateway subordinate to the eighteenth invention, which further manages a device state relating to the operation and setting of the home electric appliance, and stores the device state together with the storage destination information and the device name in response to a request. Is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal.

A twentieth invention is a home gateway subordinate to the fifteenth invention, and is characterized in that the storage destination information to be managed can be arbitrarily changed.

[0026]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION (First Embodiment) FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a device control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the device control system according to the first embodiment is a home area in which a mobile communication terminal 2 for instructing an operation of an electric home appliance via a network 1 such as a public line or the Internet and an electric home appliance to be operated exist 3 and the database center 7 are connected to each other. In the following embodiments, the case where the mobile communication terminal 2 is a mobile phone will be described as an example. Therefore, FIG. 1 shows a configuration in which a wireless base station is interposed between the network 1 and the mobile communication terminal 2. However, both may be directly connected by a wired line. Further, the area where the home electric appliances 4 are present is not limited to the home, and the same can be applied to a local area such as a school or a hospital.

In the home area 3, each home electric appliance 4 to be remotely controlled is connected to a home gateway 6 by a home network 5. The home gateway 6 comprehensively manages control and information of the home electric appliances 4 and also functions as an interface with the network 1. The database center 7 includes a database 71 in which device control programs for home appliances of all manufacturers and types are stored, and a database control unit 7 that interfaces between the network 1 and the database 71.
2 and. The number of database centers is not limited to one, and a plurality of database centers may exist for each manufacturer or each type.

First, the configurations of the mobile communication terminal 2, the home gateway 6 and the home electric appliance 4 will be described with further reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 shows a specific configuration example of the mobile communication terminal 2 assuming a mobile phone. In FIG. 2, the mobile communication terminal 2 includes a communication interface unit 21 and a control unit 22.
A program execution unit 23 and a user interface unit 24. The communication interface unit 21 transmits and receives signals exchanged between the network 1 and the control unit 22. The control unit 22 is configured by a CPU, a memory, and the like, and controls the entire mobile communication terminal 2, such as acquisition of a device control program during remote operation and operation of home appliances by a device control signal. The program execution unit 23 executes the device control program transmitted from the database center 7 and outputs a device control signal as needed. The user interface unit 24 is a keyboard, a display, a speaker, a microphone, and the like, and inputs / outputs information necessary for operating the device from / to the user.

FIG. 3 shows a specific configuration example of the home gateway 6. In FIG. 3, the home gateway 6
Is a communication interface unit 61 for the network 1.
A control unit 62, a home electric appliance information management unit 63, and a communication interface unit 64 for the home network 5. The communication interface unit 61 is the network 1
And the control unit 62 exchanges signals with each other. The control unit 62 includes a CPU, a memory, and the like, and controls the entire home gateway 6 such as construction of home electric appliance information and provision of information to the mobile communication terminal 2. The home electric appliance information management unit 63 manages various information of the home electric appliances 4 connected to the home network 5. The communication interface unit 64 transmits and receives signals exchanged between the home network 5 and the control unit 62.

FIG. 4 shows a specific configuration example of the home electric appliance 4. In FIG. 4, the home electric appliance 4 includes a communication interface unit 41, a control unit 42, and a home electric appliance functional block 43. The communication interface unit 41 transmits and receives signals exchanged between the home network 5 and the control unit 42. The control unit 42 is configured by a CPU, a memory, and the like, and controls the initial setting when connecting to the home network 5 and the processing to the home electric appliance function block 43 based on the device control signal. The home appliance function block 43 is for the home appliance 4
It is a constituent part necessary for executing a unique function, and the contents of the structure are different for each home electric appliance 4.

Next, in the device control system according to the first embodiment having the above-described configuration, a device control method for remotely controlling the home electric appliance 4 using the mobile communication terminal 2 will be described with reference to FIGS.
3 will be described in detail with further reference.

First, a method of registering the home electric appliance information of each home electric appliance 4 connected by the home network 5 in the home gateway 6 will be described. As a premise, in the device control system of the first embodiment, the database center 7
The device control programs for the home electric appliances 4 of various manufacturers and types are stored in advance in the database 71 managed by, for example, as shown in FIG. At this time, database 7
A unique storage destination (for example, URL) is set for each home electric appliance 4 so that each appliance control program stored in 1 can be uniquely specified. This database 71
Is appropriately updated when a device control program for a new home electric appliance 4 is added, or a device control program for an existing home electric appliance 4 is changed or deleted. In the first embodiment, the data stored in advance in the database 71 is described as the device control program. However, if the information is necessary for defining the device control signal of the home electric appliance, other data will be used. It doesn't matter. On the other hand, the storage destination of its own device control program in the database 71 is stored in advance in each of the home electric appliances 4. The device control program storage destination is the control unit 42.
However, it may be stored and retained in the functional block 43 of the home electric appliance.

Referring to FIG. 6, in the home area 3,
When an electric home appliance 4 is connected to the home network 5, the home electric equipment 4 sends a device information registration request including its own device name, device unique information, and device control program storage destination to the home network 5. It transmits (broadcasts) to the home gateway 6 via the (step S101). Upon receiving the device information registration request from the home electric appliance 4, the home gateway 6 determines whether new home electric appliance information can be registered (steps S102, S).
103). At this time, the home gateway 6 determines whether or not registration is possible by determining whether or not there is a vacant area in a predetermined information management table used for registration of home electric appliance information that the home electric appliance information management unit 63 has.

Here, an example of the information management table will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 7, the managed information items include a device name, a device control program storage destination, a device address, an installation location, device unique information, and a device status. The device name and the device control program storage destination are the information transmitted by the device information registration request described above. The device address is a unique address for uniquely identifying the home electric device 4 connected to the home network 5, and is issued and managed by the home gateway 6.
The installation location is information that gives the location where the home electric appliance 4 is installed. This information is provided so that the user can distinguish each other when there are a plurality of home appliances of the same type such as an air conditioner and a lighting device, and the information operating unit (provided on the home gateway 6 (Not shown)
Through the, the user can freely set the information after registering home appliance information. Further, in order to distinguish a plurality of home appliances of the same type, the user may freely set the device name (for example, S-VHS video and VH).
S-video), the home gateway 6 may automatically add serial numbers to the device names in the order of registration (for example, TV-1 and TV-2). The device-specific information is information (manufacturer, product number, etc.) specific to the home electric device 4 that is set at the time of manufacturing, and is transmitted by the device information registration request described above. The device status is information for notifying the operation and setting status of the home electric appliance 4. This device state will be described later. When a device control program different from the device control program set at the time of registration may be used, the device control program storage destination may be changed using the information operating unit.

When it is determined in step S103 that the home electric appliance information can be registered, the home gateway 6 issues the device address on the home network 5 of the home electric appliance 4 which has requested the registration, and the home electric appliance. Information is registered in the information management table (step S1)
04). Then, the home gateway 6 sends a registration success response including the device address and the address on the home network 5 of itself (home GW address), to the home electric device 4
(Step S105). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S103 that the home electric appliance information cannot be registered, the home gateway 6 sends a registration failure response indicating that the home electric appliance information could not be registered to the home electric appliance 4. Yes (step S10
6).

The home electric appliance 4 receives the response transmitted from the home gateway 6 and determines whether it is a registration success or a registration failure (steps S107 and S108).
When it is determined in step S108 that the response is a successful registration response, the home electric appliance 4 stores and holds the transmitted device address and home GW address in the control unit 42 or the home electric appliance functional block 43 (step S109). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S108 that the response is a registration failure response, the home electric appliance 4 confirms that it is not connected to the home network 5, and ends the registration request process. In this case, the home electric appliance 4 may continuously retransmit the device information registration request to the home gateway 6, or may retransmit the device information registration request after a certain period of time. Through the above processing, the connection of the home electric appliance 4 to the home network 5, that is, the registration of the home electric appliance information regarding the home electric appliance 4 in the home gateway 6 (home electric appliance information management unit 63) is completed. FIG. 8 shows a sequence example in the case of registering VTR and television (TV) home appliance information.

The device status items of the above-mentioned information management table (FIG. 7) will be described in detail. In the present invention, this item is used in order to avoid the problem that the effectiveness (valid / invalid or necessary / unnecessary) of the operation content instructed from the mobile communication terminal 2 is known only after the operation instruction is transmitted. Then, the device state of each home electric appliance 4 is regularly managed. The device states of the home electric appliances 4 managed by the information management table are as follows, for example.

When the home electric appliance 4 is a video tape recorder, the power state (ON / OFF), the operating state (stop, play, record, fast forward, rewind, etc.), the selected channel, the recording reservation state (on / off) ), Recording mode (standard / 3 times / 5 times), tape status (inserted / not inserted, remaining amount), and the like. When the home electric appliance 4 is a television, the power source status, the selected channel, the volume, and the like. When the home electric appliance 4 is an air conditioner, the power supply state, the operating state (stop, cooling, heating, dehumidification, etc.), the temperature state (indoor, outdoor), etc. are set. When the home electric appliance 4 is a microwave oven, the power supply state, the operating state (stop, range operation, oven operation, toaster operation,
The operation level is strong / weak, etc., the state of the inside (with / without food), etc. When the home electric appliance 4 is a washing machine, it is in a power state, an operating state (stop, wash, rinse, dry, etc.), a tub state (with / without laundry), and the like. When the home electric appliance 4 is a lighting device, it is in a power state, an operating state (full lighting, half lighting, small lamp lighting, etc.).

Such a device state is set at a predetermined timing after the home electric device information is registered in the information management table (when the state of the home electric device 4 transits or when the mobile communication terminal 2 requests the device operation). Etc.) and time intervals (every 1 hour, etc.), the home gateway 6 automatically acquires and updates. The mobile communication terminal 2 can refer to this device state and judge in advance whether or not the operation content to be instructed is valid.

Next, a method of remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 using the home electric appliance information registered in the information management table of the home gateway 6 will be described. Referring to FIG. 9, when an input to operate the home electric appliance 4 is received from the user, the mobile communication terminal 2 determines that the network 1
A device information acquisition request is transmitted to the home gateway 6 via (step S111). When the home gateway 6 receives the device information acquisition request from the mobile communication terminal 2, the home gateway 6 uses a predetermined format of home appliance information (hereinafter referred to as specific home appliance information) based on the content of the information management table managed by the home appliance information management unit 63. ) Is created and transmitted to the mobile communication terminal 2 (steps S112 to S114). In addition,
This specific home appliance information includes at least the device name and the device control program storage destination.

The mobile communication terminal 2 has a home gateway 6
Upon receiving the specific home electric appliance information transmitted from, the home electric appliance list is displayed on the display according to this information and the user waits for the input of a selection instruction (step S115,
S118). When the specific home electric appliance information cannot be correctly acquired, the mobile communication terminal 2 displays an error message on the display and transmits the device information acquisition request to the home gateway 6 again (steps S116 and S117). Then, when a user selects a certain home appliance 4 from the list of home appliances displayed on the display, the mobile communication terminal 2 causes the selected home appliance 4 (hereinafter referred to as the target home appliance 4) to be a device. According to the control program storage destination, an acquisition request for the device control program of the target home electric device 4 is transmitted to the database center 7 (step S119).

The mobile communication terminal 2 has a database center 7
The device control program transmitted in response to the acquisition request from the communication interface unit 21 is interpreted and executed by the program execution unit 23 (step S12).
2). When the device control program cannot be correctly acquired, the mobile communication terminal 2 displays an error message on the display and transmits the device control program acquisition request again to the database center 7 (steps S120 and S121). . Interpretation / execution of this device control program is performed until the desired operation content of the target home electric device 4 is determined by the interactive form with the user through the user interface unit 24 while appropriately using the specific home electric device information. Be seen. An example of this interactive format is shown in FIGS. 12 and 13. Note that FIG. 12 shows an example in which the target home appliance 4 is an air conditioner, and FIG. 13 shows
This is an example when the target home appliance 4 is a video tape recorder. Then, when the operation content of the target home appliance 4 is determined, the mobile communication terminal 2 transmits a device control signal corresponding to the operation content to the home gateway 6 (step S123).

Referring to FIG. 10, home gateway 6
After receiving the device control signal from the mobile communication terminal 2, after performing the necessary processing (address conversion, protocol conversion, message conversion, etc.) on the device control signal according to the communication format with the target home appliance 4. , To the target home electric appliance 4 (steps S124 and S125). The target home appliances 4 are
The device control signal given from the home gateway 6 is received, the content is interpreted / confirmed, and it is judged whether the operation content instructed is correct (step S126-).
S128). When it is determined in step S128 that the operation content is correct, the target home electric appliance 4 causes the home electric appliance function block 43 to execute the processing of the operation content instructed by the device control signal (step S129). Then, when the processing is completed, the target home device 4 transmits a processing completion response to the home gateway 6 (step S130). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S128 that the operation content is not correct, the target home device 4 transmits a processing error response indicating that the processing according to the instruction operation cannot be performed to the home gateway 6 (step S131).

The home gateway 6 is the target home electric appliance 4
When receiving the response transmitted from the device, the response is subjected to necessary processing (address conversion, protocol conversion, message conversion, etc.) according to the communication format with the target home appliance 4, and then transmitted to the mobile communication terminal 2. (Steps S132, S
134). If the response is not received correctly,
The home gateway 6 requests the target home appliance 4 to retransmit the response (step S133). Through the above processing, the remote operation of the home electric appliance 4 by the mobile communication terminal 2 is executed. FIG. 11 shows a sequence example when a remote operation is performed on the VTR.

As described above, according to the device control system and the device control method according to the first embodiment of the present invention, the device control programs necessary for the operation regarding various home electric appliances are made into a database and collected on the network. Manage,
In the home, the information that gives the storage location of the device control program is collectively managed by the home gateway together with various types of information regarding home appliances. As a result, in the mobile communication terminal,
By referring to the home gateway and acquiring only the device control program of the home electric appliance to be operated from the database and interpreting / executing it, it becomes possible to give a desired operation instruction to the target home electric appliance. Therefore, it is not necessary to wastefully hold the device control program in the mobile communication terminal and the home gateway. In addition, the user can perform remote control of all home appliances that are currently owned and / or will be owned in the future without updating the information of the mobile communication terminal or changing the model.

(Second Embodiment) In the first embodiment, assuming that there is one device control program available for one home electric appliance 4, the database 71 of the database center 7 stores the home electric appliances. It is assumed that one device control program (corresponding to all functions) is stored for each of the four manufacturers and types (see FIG. 5). Therefore, the home gateway 6 has a device control program storage destination that can uniquely specify a storage location such as a URL for each home electric device 4. However, in actuality, when remotely controlling the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2, it is almost sufficient if a part of all the functions of the home electric appliance 4 can be operated. In addition, even if the contents of device control are the same, it is conceivable that a device control program in which an operation screen, an operation procedure, or the like has its own uniqueness is provided from a third vendor or the like against the manufacturer. Therefore, in the second embodiment, the information that gives the storage location of the device control program in the database 71 is not a URL or the like that can uniquely specify the storage location, but
A device control system will be described in which information (hereinafter, referred to as device profile information) classified in advance according to usable functions is used.

The configuration of the device control system according to the second embodiment of the present invention is the same as that of the device control system according to the first embodiment (see FIG. 1). The second embodiment and the first embodiment are different from the database 7 as described above.
1. The information that gives the storage location of the device control program of each home electric appliance 4 and the home gateway 6 is different, and the selection list provided to the mobile communication terminal 2 is also different. Less than,
With further reference to FIG. 14 to FIG. 19, in the device control system according to the second embodiment, a device control method for remotely controlling the home electric device 4 using the mobile communication terminal 2 will be described in detail focusing on this different part. explain.

First, in the device control system according to the second embodiment, in the database 71 managed by the database center 7, the device control programs of the household appliances 4 of various manufacturers and types are preliminarily set as shown in FIG. It is stored. In FIG. 14, in the database 71, the types of home electric appliances 4 are classified into the major categories and the home appliances 4 are classified into the middle categories.
Of the device profile information (cl
is set, and the device control program and its provider (maker, third vendor, etc.) are stored according to each classification. In this embodiment, class1 and class2 are classified as device profile information.
Corresponding to ..., Which function of the home electric appliance 4 can be executed is defined in advance. For example, the VTR of FIG.
For example, class 1 can execute all the functions of the home electric appliance 4, and class 2 can execute only the function of setting / releasing the reserved recording of the home electric appliance 4, c
It is possible to define each so that the class 3 can execute only the function of confirming the contents of the reserved recording of the home electric appliance 4. In this case, the device control program that can execute all the functions in class 1, the device control program that can execute only the function of setting / releasing the reserved recording in class 2, and the function of confirming the contents of the reserved recording in class 3 only. A device control program that can be executed is stored for each program provider. On the other hand, device profile information (class) that specifies a function that can be used during remote operation is stored in advance in each of the home appliances 4. This device profile information is
It is preferably stored and held in the control unit 42, but may be stored and held in the home electric appliance function block 43.

Referring to FIG. 15, when a home electric appliance 4 is connected to the home network 5 in the home area 3, the home electric appliance 4 displays its own device name, device unique information, device profile information and the like. The included device information registration request is transmitted to the home gateway 6 via the home network 5 (step S201). Upon receiving the device information registration request from the home electric appliance 4, the home gateway 6 determines whether new home electric appliance information can be registered (steps S202 and S203). This determination method is as described above. In the information management table of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 16, the device control program storage destination of the information management table of the first embodiment (see FIG. 7) is replaced with device profile information.

When it is determined in step S203 that the home electric appliance information can be registered, the home gateway 6 issues the device address on the home network 5 of the home electric appliance 4 which has requested the registration, and the home electric appliance. Information is registered in the information management table (step S2)
04). Then, the home gateway 6 sends a registration success response including the device address and the home GW address on the home network 5 of the home gateway 6 to the home electric device 4 (step S205). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S203 that the home electric appliance information cannot be registered, the home gateway 6 transmits to the home electric appliance 4 a registration failure response indicating that the home electric appliance information could not be registered. (Step S206).

The home electric appliance 4 receives the response transmitted from the home gateway 6 and determines whether it is a registration success or a registration failure (steps S207 and S208).
When it is determined in step S208 that the response is a successful registration response, the home electric appliance 4 stores and stores the transmitted device address and home GW address in the control unit 42 or the home electric appliance functional block 43 (step S209). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S208 that the response is a registration failure response, the home electric appliance 4 confirms that it is not connected to the home network 5, and ends the registration request process. Through the above processing, the connection of the home electric appliance 4 to the home network 5, that is, the registration of the home electric appliance information regarding the home electric appliance 4 in the home gateway 6 is completed. The sequence example when registering the home electric appliance information is equivalent to the case where the device control program storage destination is replaced with the device profile information in FIG.

Next, a method for remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 using the home electric appliance information registered in the information management table of the home gateway 6 will be described. With reference to FIG. 17, when a user inputs an instruction to operate home electric appliance 4, mobile communication terminal 2 transmits a device information acquisition request to home gateway 6 via network 1. (Step S211). When the home gateway 6 receives the device information acquisition request from the mobile communication terminal 2, the home gateway 6 creates specific home appliance information based on the content of the information management table managed by the home appliance information management unit 63 and transmits it to the mobile communication terminal 2. (Steps S212 to S2
14). In addition, at least the device name and the device profile information are included in the specific home electric device information.

The mobile communication terminal 2 has a home gateway 6
When the specific home electric appliance information transmitted from is received, the home electric appliance list is displayed on the display according to this information and the input of the selection instruction from the user is waited for (step S215,
S218). When the specific home electric appliance information cannot be correctly acquired, the mobile communication terminal 2 displays an error message on the display and transmits the device information acquisition request to the home gateway 6 again (steps S216 and S217). Then, when a user selects a certain home appliance 4 from the list of home appliances displayed on the display, the mobile communication terminal 2 causes the database center 7 to select the device profile of the selected target home appliance 4. The acquisition request of the program provider corresponding to the information (class) is transmitted, and the information of the program provider is acquired (step S219). The mobile communication terminal 2 generates a program provider list as shown in FIG. 18 based on the acquired program provider information and displays it on the display, and waits for the user to input a selection instruction (step S).
220). Then, when a user selects a certain program provider from the program provider list displayed on the display, the mobile communication terminal 2 causes the database center 7 to control the equipment of the selected program provider. Send a program acquisition request (step S)
221).

The mobile communication terminal 2 has a database center 7
The device control program transmitted from the device in response to the acquisition request is received and interpreted / executed (step S224). If the device control program cannot be acquired correctly, the mobile communication terminal 2 displays an error message on the display and transmits the device control program acquisition request to the database center 7 again (steps S222 and S223). Then, when the operation content of the target home appliance 4 is determined, the mobile communication terminal 2 transmits a device control signal corresponding to the operation content to the home gateway 6 (step S225). The subsequent processing is the same as the content described with reference to FIG. Further, FIG. 19 shows a sequence example when the remote communication is performed from the mobile communication terminal 2 to the VTR by the above processing.

As described above, according to the device control system and the device control method according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the storage location can be uniquely specified as the information giving the storage destination of the device control program in the database. Instead of URL or the like, device profile information classified in advance according to available functions is used. As a result, the database can be provided with a plurality of device control programs each having its own uniqueness for the same device control, so that the user can broaden the range of control program selections, and the third vendor etc. Can get a business opportunity to enter the equipment control system.

In the first embodiment described above, only the information of the device control program storage destination is used, and in the second embodiment, only the device profile information is used. However, both information are used together. I don't mind. in this case,
The user may be allowed to select which information to use.

(Third Embodiment) In the first and second embodiments described above, the mobile communication terminal 2 acquires a desired device control program from the database center 7 and interprets / executes the same, so that the home gateway 6 The method of realizing the control of the home electric appliance 4 via the has been described. However, in the case of this method, a real-time instruction from the mobile communication terminal 2 to the home gateway 6 is required when performing control, so that a communication link is always established between the mobile communication terminal 2 and the home gateway 6. The issue remains that it must be maintained. Therefore, in the third embodiment, the home gateway 6 obtains a desired device control program from the database center 7, receives a series of control-related instructions from the mobile communication terminal 2, and appropriately interprets / executes the program to perform mobile communication. A method for realizing control of the home electric appliance 4 without establishing a communication link between the terminal 2 and the home gateway 6 will be described.

The configuration of the device control system according to the third embodiment of the present invention is similar to that of the device control system according to the first embodiment (see FIG. 1), but the mobile communication terminal 2
And the configuration of the home gateway 6 is slightly different. Less than,
With further reference to FIGS. 20 to 27, in the device control system according to the third embodiment, the device control method for remotely controlling the home electric device 4 using the mobile communication terminal 2 will be described in detail centering on this different part. explain.

FIG. 20 shows a specific example of the configuration of the mobile communication terminal 2 which is assumed to be a mobile phone. 20, the mobile communication terminal 2 includes a communication interface unit 21 and a control unit 22.
And a user interface unit 24. Figure 21
A concrete configuration example of the home gateway 6 is shown in FIG. In FIG. 21, the home gateway 6 includes a communication interface unit 61 for the network 1 and a control unit 62.
, Home electric appliance information management unit 63, and program execution unit 23
And a communication interface unit 64 for the home network 5. As can be seen from FIGS. 20 and 21, in the device control system according to the third embodiment, the program execution unit 23 that executes the device control program transmitted from the database center 7 and outputs a device control signal as necessary. Are provided in the home gateway 6 instead of the mobile communication terminal 2.

In the device control system according to the third embodiment having the above configuration, a device control method for remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 using the mobile communication terminal 2 will be described. In the database 71 managed by the database center 7 of the third embodiment, similar to the first embodiment, the device control programs of the home appliances 4 of various manufacturers and types are stored in advance (FIG. 5). See). In addition, the information management table included in the home electric appliance information management unit 63 of the home gateway 6 has an area in which a device control program can be stored for each home electric appliance 4, as shown in FIG.

First, a method of registering the home electric appliance information of each home electric appliance 4 connected by the home network 5 in the home gateway 6 will be described. Referring to FIG. 23, when a certain home electric appliance 4 is connected to the home network 5 in the home area 3, the home electric appliance 4 includes its own device name, device unique information, device control program storage destination, and the like. The device information registration request is sent to the home gateway 6 via the home network 5 (step S301). Upon receiving the device information registration request from the home electric appliance 4, the home gateway 6 determines whether new home electric appliance information can be registered (steps S302 and S3).
03). This determination method is as described above. If it is determined in step S303 that the home electric appliance information can be registered, the home gateway 6 issues the device address on the home network 5 of the home electric appliance 4 that has requested the registration, and manages the information of the home electric appliance information. Register in the table (step S304). Next, the home gateway 6 transmits an acquisition request for the corresponding device control program to the database center 7 according to the device control program storage destination of the home electric device included in the device information registration request (step S305). When the home gateway 6 can acquire the device control program,
A registration success response including the device address and the home GW address on the home network 5 of the home device is transmitted to the home electric appliance 4 (steps S306 and S307). On the other hand, if the home gateway 6 cannot register the home appliance information or cannot acquire the device control program, the home gateway 6 sends a registration failure response to that effect to the home appliance 4 (steps S303, S306, S30
8).

The home electric appliance 4 receives the response transmitted from the home gateway 6 and judges whether it is a registration success or a registration failure (steps S309 and S310).
When it is determined in step S310 that the response is a successful registration response, the home electric appliance 4 stores and stores the transmitted device address and home GW address in the control unit 42 or the home electric appliance functional block 43 (step S311). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S310 that the response is a registration failure response, the home electric appliance 4 confirms that it is not connected to the home network 5, and ends the registration request process. Through the above processing, the connection of the home electric appliance 4 to the home network 5, that is, the registration of the home electric appliance information regarding the home electric appliance 4 in the home gateway 6 is completed. In FIG. 24,
The example of a sequence at the time of registering household electric appliance information of VTR is shown.

Next, a method for remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 using the home electric appliance information registered in the information management table of the home gateway 6 will be described. With reference to FIG. 25, when a user inputs an instruction to operate the home electric appliance 4, the mobile communication terminal 2 transmits a device information acquisition request to the home gateway 6 via the network 1. (Step S321). When the home gateway 6 receives the device information acquisition request from the mobile communication terminal 2, the home gateway 6 creates specific home appliance information based on the content of the information management table managed by the home appliance information management unit 63 and transmits it to the mobile communication terminal 2. Yes (steps S322 to S3
24). In addition, at least the device name is included in the specific home electric device information.

The mobile communication terminal 2 has a home gateway 6
Upon receiving the specific home electric appliance information transmitted from, the home electric appliance list is displayed on the display according to this information and the user waits for an input of a selection instruction (step S325).
S328). When the specific home appliance information cannot be correctly acquired, the mobile communication terminal 2 causes the display to display an error message and transmits the device information acquisition request to the home gateway 6 again (steps S326 and S327). Then, when a user selects a certain home appliance 4 from the list of home appliances displayed on the display, the mobile communication terminal 2 controls the home gateway 6 to control the selected target home appliance 4. The request is transmitted (step S329). The home gateway 6 receives the device control request from the mobile communication terminal 2 and interprets / executes the device control program of the target home electric device 4 (steps S330 and S331). Then, the home gateway 6 generates predetermined device control screen information based on the device control program, and transmits it to the mobile communication terminal 2 (steps S332, S333).

The mobile communication terminal 2 has a home gateway 6
The device control screen information is received from the device, the device control screen information is interpreted and displayed on the display (display as in FIG. 12 or 13), and the input of the selection instruction from the user is waited for (steps S334 and S335). Then, when the user determines the operation content of the target home appliance 4, the mobile communication terminal 2 transmits a device control signal corresponding to the determined operation content to the home gateway 6 (step S336).

Referring to FIG. 26, home gateway 6
When receiving the device control signal from the mobile communication terminal 2, the device interprets / executes the device control signal according to the device control program, and performs the necessary processing on the device control signal according to the communication format with the target home appliance 4. After that, the information is transmitted to the target home electric appliance 4 (steps S337 to S339). The target home electric appliance 4 receives the equipment control signal given from the home gateway 6, interprets / confirms the content, and judges whether or not the instructed operation content is correct (step S).
340-S342). When it is determined in step S342 that the operation content is correct, the target home electric appliance 4 causes the home electric appliance functional block 43 to execute the processing of the operation content instructed by the device control signal (step S34).
3). Then, when the processing is completed, the target home appliance 4 transmits a processing completion response to the home gateway 6 (step S344). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S342 that the operation content is incorrect, the target home appliance 4
Transmits a processing error response indicating that the processing corresponding to the instruction operation cannot be performed to the home gateway 6 (step S34).
5).

The home gateway 6 is the target home appliance 4
When the response transmitted from the device is received, the response is subjected to necessary processing according to the communication format with the target home appliance 4, and then the device control signal is interpreted / interpreted according to the device control program.
It is executed (steps S346 and S347). If the response is not received correctly, the home gateway 6
Requests the target home appliance 4 to resend the response (step S348). And home gateway 6
Generates device control screen information based on the device control program and transmits it to the mobile communication terminal 2 (step S34).
9, S350). Through the above processing, the mobile communication terminal 2
The remote operation of the home electric appliance 4 is executed. In FIG. 27,
An example of a sequence when a remote operation is performed on the VTR is shown.

As described above, according to the device control system and the device control method of the third embodiment of the present invention, since the home gateway acquires and holds the device control program, the storage resources of the mobile communication terminal are saved. It can be used effectively.
In addition, since the mobile communication terminal gives a series of control instructions to the home gateway, there is no need to establish a communication link between the mobile communication terminal and the home gateway even when it is time to actually control the home gateway. It is possible to control home appliances with the gateway alone.

(Fourth Embodiment) The first to third embodiments described the device control system in which the home gateway 6 manages the information of the device control program storage destination of the home electric appliance 4 and the device profile information. . This information is
Since the data size is not large, management by the mobile communication terminal 2 may be considered. Therefore, in the fourth embodiment, a device control system will be described in which the home gateway 6 is eliminated and the mobile communication terminal 2 manages information of the device control program storage destination of the home electric appliance 4 and device profile information.

FIG. 28 is a schematic diagram showing the structure of a device control system according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 28, the device control system according to the fourth exemplary embodiment uses a network 1 such as a public line or the Internet to
The mobile communication terminal 2 for instructing the operation of the home electric appliance, the home area 3 where the home electric appliance to be operated exists, and the database center 7 are mutually connected. In the home area 3, each home electric appliance 4 to be remotely controlled is connected to the network 1 via the home network 5. The database center 7 includes a database 71 in which device control programs for home appliances of all manufacturers and types are stored, and a database control unit 72 for interfacing between the network 1 and the database 71.

FIG. 29 shows a specific example of the configuration of the mobile communication terminal 2 assuming a mobile phone. In FIG. 29, the mobile communication terminal 2 includes a communication interface unit 21 and a control unit 22.
A program execution unit 23, a user interface unit 24, and a home electric appliance information management unit 63. As can be seen from FIG. 29, in the device control system according to the fourth embodiment, home appliance information management for managing various information of the home appliances 4 connected to the home network 5 using a predetermined information management table. The mobile communication terminal 2 is provided with the unit 63. The specific configuration of the home electric appliance 4 is as illustrated in FIG.

In the device control system according to the fourth embodiment having the above configuration, a device control method for remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 using the mobile communication terminal 2 will be described. In the database 71 managed by the database center 7 of the fourth embodiment, similar to the first embodiment, the device control programs of the household appliances 4 of various manufacturers and types are stored in advance (FIG. 5). See). The information management table included in the home electric appliance information management unit 63 of the mobile communication terminal 2 has an area in which a device control program can be stored for each home electric appliance 4, as shown in FIG.

Next, a device control method for remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 using the mobile communication terminal 2 in the device control system according to the fourth embodiment having the above configuration will be described. Referring to FIG. 31, when a household electric appliance 4 is connected to the home network 5 in the home area 3, the household electric appliance 4 includes its own equipment name, equipment address, equipment control program storage destination, and the like. A device information registration request is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal 2 via the home network 5 (step S401). Upon receiving the device information registration request from the home electric appliance 4, the mobile communication terminal 2 determines whether new home electric appliance information can be registered (step S40).
2, S403). At this time, the mobile communication terminal 2 determines whether or not registration is possible by determining whether or not there is a free area in a predetermined information management table used for registration of home electric appliance information held by the home electric appliance information management unit 63. .

When it is determined in step S403 that the home electric appliance information can be registered, the mobile communication terminal 2
Registers the home electric appliance information in the information management table (step S404). Then, the mobile communication terminal 2 transmits a registration success response including the device address to the home electric appliance 4 (step S405). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S403 that the home electric appliance information cannot be registered, the mobile communication terminal 2 sends a registration failure response indicating that the home electric appliance information could not be registered, to the home electric appliance 4
(Step S406).

The home electric appliance 4 receives the response transmitted from the mobile communication terminal 2 and judges whether it is a registration success or a registration failure (steps S407 and S408). If it is determined in step S408 that the registration is successful,
The home electric appliance 4 stores and holds the transmitted device address in the control unit 42 or the home electric appliance functional block 43 (step S409). On the other hand, when it is determined in step S408 that the response is a registration failure response, the home electric appliance 4 confirms that it has not been connected to the home network 5, and ends the registration request process. In this case, the home electric appliance 4 may continuously retransmit the device information registration request to the mobile communication terminal 2, or may retransmit the device information registration request after a certain period of time. Through the above processing, the connection of the home electric appliance 4 to the home network 5, that is, the registration of the home electric appliance information regarding the home electric appliance 4 in the mobile communication terminal 2 (home electric appliance information management unit 63) is completed. FIG. 33 shows VTR and T
The example of a sequence at the time of registering the household electric appliance information of V is shown.

Referring to FIG. 32, the home electric appliance 4 is sent from the user.
If the mobile communication terminal 2 receives an input to perform the operation
Displays the home electric appliance list on the display based on the contents of the information management table managed by the home electric appliance information management unit 63, and waits for an input of a selection instruction from the user (step S411). Then, when a user selects a home electric appliance 4 from the list of home electric appliances displayed on the display, the mobile communication terminal 2 determines that the database center according to the device control program storage destination of the selected target home electric appliance 4. A request for acquiring the device control program of the target home electric device 4 is transmitted to the target home electric device 4 (step S412). In the mobile communication terminal 2, the communication interface unit 21 receives the device control program transmitted in response to the acquisition request from the database center 7, and the program execution unit 23 interprets / executes it (step S414). When the device control program cannot be acquired correctly, the mobile communication terminal 2 displays an error message on the display and transmits the device control program acquisition request to the database center 7 again (step S413, step S413).
S414). Then, when the operation content of the target home electrical appliance 4 is determined, the mobile communication terminal 2 transmits a device control signal corresponding to the operation content to the target home electrical appliance 4 (step S).
415).

The target home electric appliance 4 receives the equipment control signal given from the mobile communication terminal 2, interprets / confirms the content and judges whether or not the operation content instructed is correct (steps S416-). S418). This step S
When it is determined in 418 that the operation content is correct, the target home electric appliance 4 causes the home electric appliance function block 43 to execute the processing of the operation content instructed by the device control signal (step S419). Then, when the processing is completed, the target home appliance 4 transmits a processing completion response to the mobile communication terminal 2 (step S420). On the other hand, step S41
If it is determined in 8 that the operation content is not correct, the target home appliance 4 transmits a processing error response indicating that the processing according to the instruction operation cannot be performed to the mobile communication terminal 2 (step S4).
21). The mobile communication terminal 2 receives the response transmitted from the target home appliance 4 (step S423). If the response cannot be correctly received, the mobile communication terminal 2 requests the target home appliance 4 to retransmit the response (step S424). Through the above processing, the remote operation of the home electric appliance 4 by the mobile communication terminal 2 is executed. In FIG. 34, V
An example of a sequence when a remote operation is performed on TR is shown.

As described above, according to the device control system and the device control method according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, a desired home electric appliance can be selected from a mobile communication terminal without providing a home gateway in a home area. It becomes possible to give operation instructions. In addition, in the fourth embodiment, the device control system using the information of the storage destination of the device control program has been described in association with the first embodiment.
Needless to say, the same effect can be obtained by using the device profile information described in the second embodiment. Further, the device control program storage destination information and the device profile information may be used together.

Typically, the device control methods described in the first to fourth embodiments are storage devices (ROM, RAM,
It is realized by interpreting and executing predetermined program data stored in a hard disk or the like) and capable of executing the above-described processing procedure. In this case, the program data may be introduced into the storage device via a recording medium such as a CD-ROM or a flexible disk. Alternatively, the program data may be directly executed on the recording medium.

[0080]

According to the inventions of claims 1 and 8, the device control information (preferably the device control program) necessary for the operation of various home appliances is made into a database and managed collectively on the network. In the home, the information which gives the storage destination of the device control information is collectively managed by the home gateway together with various information related to the home electric appliances.
This allows the mobile communication terminal to refer to the home gateway, obtain predetermined information regarding the home electric appliance to be operated from the database, and give a desired operation instruction to the target home electric appliance. Therefore, it becomes unnecessary to wastefully hold the device control information in the mobile communication terminal and the home gateway. In addition, the user currently owns and / or does not update the information of the mobile communication terminal or changes the model.
Alternatively, it becomes possible to perform remote control on all home appliances that will be owned in the future.

According to the second and ninth aspects of the invention, the mobile communication terminal refers to the home gateway that manages the storage location information in general, and obtains the device control information of the home electric appliance to be operated from the database. By interpreting / executing it, it is possible to give a desired operation instruction to the target home electric appliance.

According to the inventions according to claim 3 and claim 10, when there is a plurality of device control information for one home electric appliance, the mobile communication terminal refers to the home gateway which manages the storage destination information in general, By selectively acquiring only one piece of device control information of the home electric appliance to be operated from the database and interpreting / executing it, it becomes possible to give a desired operation instruction to the target home electric appliance.

According to the inventions of claims 4 and 11, the home gateway acquires and holds the device control program, so that the storage resources of the mobile communication terminal can be effectively utilized. In addition, since the mobile communication terminal gives a series of control instructions to the home gateway, there is no need to establish a communication link between the mobile communication terminal and the home gateway even when it is time to actually control the home gateway. It is possible to control home appliances with the gateway alone.

According to the inventions of claims 5 and 12, the home gateway notifies the mobile communication terminal of the device names and storage destination information of all the home appliances connected to the home network. The person can easily select the home electric appliance to be operated.

According to the sixth and thirteenth aspects of the present invention, the home gateway notifies the mobile communication terminal of the device state of the home electric appliance, so that it is possible to perform in advance an impossible operation or an unnecessary operation. This can be avoided and the convenience of the user can be improved.

If the user can arbitrarily change the storage destination information of the home gateway as in the inventions according to claims 7 and 14, other device control information necessary for controlling the home electric appliances can be used. It becomes possible to do.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a device control system according to first to third embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of a mobile communication terminal 2 of the first and second embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of home gateways 6 of the first and second embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of a home electric appliance 4 according to the first to fourth embodiments.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of data stored in advance in a database 71 of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a registration process of home electric appliance information about a home electric appliance 4 in the home gateway 6 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of an information management table included in the home electric appliance information management unit 63 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a sequence example of home electric appliance information registration processing according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a process of remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process of remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a sequence example of remote control processing of the home electric appliance 4 according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a screen display example of the mobile communication terminal 2 based on home electric appliance information of an air conditioner according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a screen display example of the mobile communication terminal 2 based on home electric appliance information of the video tape recorder according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of data stored in advance in a database 71 of the second embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart illustrating a registration process of home electric appliance information about a home electric appliance 4 in the home gateway 6 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of an information management table included in the home electric appliance information management unit 63 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a part of a flowchart illustrating a process of remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a screen display example of the mobile communication terminal 2 presenting the program provider list according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing a sequence example of remote control processing of the home electric appliance 4 according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of a mobile communication terminal 2 according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of the home gateway 6 of the third embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating an example of an information management table included in the home electric appliance information management unit 63 according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart illustrating a registration process of home electric appliance information on home electric appliance 4 in home gateway 6 according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing a sequence example of home electric appliance information registration processing according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart illustrating a process of remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart illustrating a process of remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 27 is a diagram showing a sequence example of remote control processing of the home electric appliance 4 according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a device control system according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 29 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 30 is a diagram illustrating an example of an information management table included in the home appliance information management unit 63 according to the fourth embodiment.

[Fig. 31] Fig. 31 is a flowchart illustrating a registration process of home electric appliance information about a home electric appliance 4 in the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 32 is a flowchart illustrating a process of remotely operating the home electric appliance 4 from the mobile communication terminal 2 according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 33 is a diagram showing a sequence example of home electric appliance information registration processing according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 34 is a diagram showing a sequence example of remote control processing of the home electric appliance 4 according to the fourth embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Network 2 ... Mobile communication terminal 3 ... Home area 4 ... Home appliances 5 ... Home network 6 ... Home gateway 7 ... Database Center 21, 41, 61, 64 ... Communication interface section 22, 42, 62 ... Control unit 23 ... Program execution unit 24 ... User interface section 43 ... Functional block for home appliances 63 ... Home Appliance Information Management Department 71 ... Database 72 ... Database control unit

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    F-term (reference) 5B089 GA23 GA25 GA31 JA35                 5K048 AA13 BA01 BA13 DA02 DA05                       EB02 FC01 GC01 HA01 HA02                 5K101 KK11 LL12 MM07

Claims (20)

[Claims] 1. A device control system capable of remotely controlling an arbitrary home appliance within a predetermined local area using a mobile communication terminal, for defining a signal for directly controlling the home appliance for various home appliances. A database that stores at least one device control information necessary for the storage, one or more home appliances that store access information of the database that stores the device control information of itself as storage destination information, and The home gateway that manages the storage destination information held by the connected home appliances together with the connection, and the storage destination information that is collectively managed by the home gateway, is stored in the database. A mobile communication terminal for remote control of home appliances based on device control information; , And a network for interconnecting the home gateway and the mobile communication terminal,
Equipment control system. 2. The database contains one for each home appliance.
One of the device control information is stored, the storage destination information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information, and when the mobile communication terminal receives a request to execute remote control of home electric appliances, the home The gateway transmits the storage destination information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal, and the mobile communication terminal, based on the storage destination information received from the home gateway, the device control information for a specific home electric appliance to be controlled. From the database, interpret and execute the acquired device control information, and send a control signal according to the desired operation content to the home gateway, the home gateway, the received control signal the specific It supplies to household appliances, The claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned.
The equipment control system according to. 3. The database stores a plurality of the device control information for each home electric appliance, and the storage destination information is information that can identify two or more of the plurality of device control information. When receiving a request to execute remote control of a home electric appliance from the mobile communication terminal, the home gateway transmits the storage destination information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal, the mobile communication terminal from the home gateway. Based on the received storage destination information, desired device control information is selectively acquired from the database from two or more device control information for a specific home electric device to be controlled,
Interpreting and executing the acquired device control information, transmitting a control signal according to the desired operation content to the home gateway, the home gateway gives the received control signal to the specific home electric appliance And claim 1
The equipment control system according to. 4. The database contains one for each home appliance.
One of the device control information is stored, the storage destination information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information, the home gateway, when the home appliance is connected by a local area network, When the device control information specified by the storage destination information is acquired from the database in advance, and the mobile communication terminal receives a request to execute remote control of home electric appliances, the home gateway displays an operation screen based on the device control information. Is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal, the mobile communication terminal uses the operation screen received from the home gateway to instruct the home gateway of desired operation contents of a specific home electric appliance to be controlled, and the home gateway is Interpret and execute the device control information according to the received instructions, and set the desired operation content. The device control system according to claim 1, wherein a corresponding control signal is given to the specific home electric device. 5. The home gateway manages the storage destination information together with a device name predetermined for home electric appliances, and sends the device name together with the storage destination information to the mobile communication terminal in response to the request. The device control system according to claim 2, wherein the mobile communication terminal is capable of selecting a specific home electric device by referring to the device name received from the home gateway. 6. The home gateway further manages device status related to operation and settings of home appliances,
The device status is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal together with the storage location information and the device name in response to the request, and the mobile communication terminal refers to the device status received from the home gateway to execute the operation content. The device control system according to claim 5, wherein the device control system is capable of determining the sex. 7. The device control system according to claim 1, wherein the storage destination information collectively managed by the home gateway can be arbitrarily changed. 8. For various home appliances, at least one required to define a signal that directly controls the home appliance.
Mobile communication, a database that stores one device control information, a home gateway that is connected to one or more home appliances that store access information of a database that stores its own device control information as storage destination information by a local area network, and mobile communication A terminal, in a system interconnected by a network, is a device control method for remotely controlling any home appliance within a predetermined local area using a mobile communication terminal, wherein the home gateway is a home appliance. When connecting via a local area network, the storage destination information held by the home electric appliance to be connected is acquired and managed, and the mobile communication terminal uses the storage destination information managed by the home gateway, Of home appliances based on the device control information stored in the database And performing interval control, the device control method. 9. The database contains one for each home appliance.
One of the device control information is stored, the storage destination information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information, and when the mobile communication terminal receives a request to execute remote control of home electric appliances, the home A gateway transmits the storage destination information of a home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal, and the mobile communication terminal, based on the storage destination information received from the home gateway, the device for a specific home electric appliance to be controlled. A step of acquiring control information from the database, the mobile communication terminal, interpreting and executing the device control information acquired from the database, a step of transmitting a control signal according to a desired operation content to the home gateway, , The home gateway transmits the control signal received from the mobile communication terminal to the specific home appliance. 9. The device control method according to claim 8, further comprising: a step of providing the device. 10. The database stores a plurality of the device control information for each home electric appliance, and the storage destination information is information capable of specifying two or more of the plurality of device control information. When the home communication device receives a request to execute remote control of a home electric appliance from the mobile communication terminal, the home gateway transmits the storage destination information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal; Selectively acquiring desired device control information from the database from the two or more device control information for a specific home appliance to be controlled based on the storage destination information received from the gateway; and the mobile communication terminal. Interprets and executes the device control information acquired from the database, and outputs a control signal according to a desired operation content to the home gate. The device control method according to claim 8, further comprising: a step of transmitting the control signal received from the mobile communication terminal to the specific home electric appliance, the step of transmitting the control signal to the way. 11. The database stores one piece of the device control information for each home electric appliance, and the storage destination information is information that can uniquely identify the device control information, and the home gateway includes: When connecting a home electric appliance via a local area network, a step of previously acquiring the device control information specified by the storage destination information of the home electric appliance from the database, and a request to execute remote control of the home electric appliance from the mobile communication terminal. Upon receiving, the home gateway, a step of transmitting an operation screen based on the device control information of home appliances to the mobile communication terminal, the mobile communication terminal, using the operation screen received from the home gateway, Instructing the home gateway of desired operation contents of a specific home electric appliance to be controlled, The home gateway comprises a step of interpreting and executing the device control information according to the instruction received from the mobile communication terminal, and providing a control signal according to a desired operation content to the specific home electric device. The device control method according to claim 8. 12. The home gateway manages the storage destination information together with a device name predetermined for home electric appliances, and transmits the device name together with the storage destination information to the mobile communication terminal in response to the request. 10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising: a step of selecting the specific home electric appliance by the mobile communication terminal referring to the device name received from the home gateway. Equipment control method. 13. The home gateway further manages a device state related to the operation and setting of home electric appliances, and transmits the device state together with the storage location information and the device name to the mobile communication terminal in response to the request. 13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising: a step of determining the effectiveness of the operation content by the mobile communication terminal referring to the device status received from the home gateway. Equipment control method. 14. The device control method according to claim 8, wherein the storage destination information managed by the home gateway can be arbitrarily changed. 15. A database that stores at least one device control information necessary to define a signal for directly controlling the home electric device for various home electric devices, and a database based on the device control information stored in the database. One or more home appliances that are home gateways connected to a mobile communication terminal that remotely controls the home appliances by a network and that retain access information of the database that stores the device control information of the home appliances as storage destination information. Is connected to a local area network, and the storage destination information held by the connected home electric appliance is acquired and managed. 16. When the mobile communication terminal receives a request to execute remote control of a home electric appliance, the storage destination information of the home electric appliance is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal, and the mobile communication terminal responds to a desired operation content. The home gateway according to claim 15, wherein when the control signal is received, the control signal is given to a specific home electric appliance. 17. When the home electric appliance is connected to a local area network, the device control information specified by the storage destination information of the home electric appliance is acquired in advance from the database, and remote control of the home electric appliance is performed from the mobile communication terminal. When receiving a request to execute, transmits an operation screen based on the device control information of the home electric appliance to the mobile communication terminal, and when receiving a desired operation instruction from the mobile communication terminal, interprets the device control information acquired in advance and 16. The home gateway according to claim 15, which is executed to generate a control signal corresponding to an operation instruction and give the control signal to a specific home electric appliance. 18. The storage destination information is managed together with a device name predetermined for a home electric appliance, and the device name is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal together with the storage destination information in response to the request. 17. The home gateway according to claim 16. 19. A device state relating to operation and setting of a home electric appliance is further managed, and the device state is transmitted to the mobile communication terminal together with the storage location information and the device name in response to the request. 19. The home gateway according to claim 18. 20. The home gateway according to claim 15, wherein the storage destination information to be managed can be arbitrarily changed.