JP2004193822A - Communication system and communication method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a communication system and a communication method capable of applying interface control to many apparatuses by suppressing a memory capacity for storing particular commands to the utmost and allowing a user to be able to immediately use a newly connected apparatus after the connection without the need for the user awaiting preparation of a model. <P>SOLUTION: When an opposite apparatus is connected to the communication apparatus, the communication apparatus inquires about apparatus information (step S1), and checks whether or not the communication apparatus has already acquired command data particular to the apparatus on the basis of the apparatus information obtained by the inquiry by checking a storage means (step S3). When the storage means stores no local command, the communication apparatus is connected to a server via an external network, receives the local command data of the model from the server and stores the data to the storage means (steps S5 to S8). Thus, the communication apparatus can use the local command data related to the opposite apparatus. Further, the communication apparatus can perform operations by basic commands even during the reception period. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a communication apparatus and a communication method, and more particularly to a communication apparatus and a communication method for efficiently obtaining and using a special local command among control commands for controlling another device by a digital interface.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When controlling other devices using a digital interface such as IEEE 1394 standard by the American Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), basic control command information is commonly held by each device with a digital interface. By issuing these control commands from the device, the partner device can appropriately interpret the control command and perform an operation corresponding to the command.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, often, in the control by the digital interface, there are local commands peculiar to each maker or a specific device in addition to the basic control commands as described above. Cannot be interpreted and the intended operation cannot be performed.
[0004]
Therefore, in order to be able to use commands for as many devices as possible, special commands unique to each maker or device group should be stored in advance in the device. In order to accumulate special commands for, a large memory capacity is required. In addition, when the number of devices to be connected is limited, the special command information is stored although it is unnecessary, except for a part, and the memory capacity is consumed for useless information. And when a new command is set for a new device, the information cannot be included.
[0005]
Downloading necessary software and data when a device that has not been connected before is connected is widely used in personal computers. However, in this case, it is customary to download and install the newly connected device before using it, and it takes time and effort to prepare, and the newly connected device can be used immediately after connection. There is no problem.
[0006]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a communication device and a communication method capable of controlling an interface with a large number of devices while minimizing a memory capacity for storing a special command.
[0007]
It is another object of the present invention to provide a communication device and a communication method that allow a user to use a newly connected device immediately after connection without waiting for preparation of a model.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, a communication device of the present invention includes an inter-device communication unit that communicates with a partner device that performs an operation according to a received command, and a network connection for connecting to an external server via a network. Means, command storage means for storing and accumulating commands in inter-device communication, device information obtaining means for inquiring device information of the other device by inquiring of the other device, and device information obtaining device information obtained by the device information obtaining device. It is determined whether or not a command specific to the device is stored in the command storage means. If the command is not stored in the command storage means, the apparatus controls the network connection means and transmits device information to the connected server to transmit the device information. To send and receive the unique command to the partner device, and store the received unique command in the command storage means. And a command management unit. Until the operation of receiving the command transmitted from the server specific to the partner device and storing the command in the command storage unit is completed, only the basic commands other than the specific command are used to communicate between devices. A command is issued to the partner device via the communication means, and after the storing operation is completed, a command to the partner device is issued via the inter-device communication means, including a specific command.
[0009]
According to the present invention, when connected to a partner device to be communicated, device information of the partner device is obtained, and based on the device information, it is determined whether a command specific to the partner device is stored in the command storage means. If the command is not stored in the command storage unit, a command unique to the partner device can be obtained from a server connected via an external network and stored in the command storage unit. Even during the storage of the command unique to the partner device, the basic command already stored in the command storage means can be transmitted to the partner device to control the operation of the partner device.
[0010]
Further, in order to achieve the above object, the communication method of the present invention provides a method of inquiring device information of a partner device and receiving device information from the partner device at the time of connection with a partner device performing an operation according to a received command. A second step of determining whether or not a command unique to the partner device is stored in a command storage unit that stores a command for inter-device communication based on the received device information; If it is determined in the step that the command unique to the partner device is not stored in the command storage means, the device is connected to an external server via a network, and the device information of the partner device is sent to the server to send the device information to the server. A third step of requesting transmission of a command specific to the device, and receiving a command specific to the other device transmitted from the server and storing the command Until the fourth step of storing the command in the column and the operation of receiving the command specific to the other device transmitted from the server and storing the command in the command storage means are completed, only the basic command other than the specific command is used. A fifth step of issuing a command to the device and issuing a command to the partner device including a specific command after the operation of storing the command is completed.
[0011]
According to the present invention, similarly to the communication device of the present invention, when a command specific to the partner device is not stored in the command storage means, a command specific to the partner device is obtained from a server connected via an external network. The basic command already stored in the command storage means is transmitted to the counterpart device while the command specific to the counterpart device is being stored in the command storage means. Thus, the operation of the partner device can be controlled.
[0012]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of an example of a communication system suitable for a communication device according to the present invention. In the figure, a communication device 10 is the communication device of the present invention. The communication device 10 has a communication path between devices connected between the internal device communication interface 11 and the communication interface 21 inside the communication device 20, through which a command is issued from the communication device 10 to the communication device 20. , The communication device 20 can be operated.
[0013]
Therefore, for example, the communication device 10 is a display device, and the communication device 10 as a video signal reproduction device acquires and reproduces an image to be displayed on the display unit of the display device. From the communication device 20 to the communication device 20.
[0014]
According to such a communication system, even if the viewer is sitting in front of the communication device 10 and the communication device 20 is in another room, these communication devices 10 and 20 are connected by the communication path between the devices. Then, the communication device 10 issues a command to the communication device 20 in accordance with an instruction from the user via a user interface such as a remote controller, and thereby a desired video signal is transmitted from the communication device 20 to the communication device 20 via the inter-device communication path. 10, and the content can be displayed on the screen of the communication device 10. According to a digital interface such as IEEE 1394, control data such as commands and continuous data such as video and audio can be simultaneously transmitted through one cable.
[0015]
The communication device 10 also has a network interface, as described later, separately from the inter-device communication interface 11, and can be connected to an external server 32 via a network 31 such as the Internet. The server 32 stores a database of commands unique to each maker, and by accessing the database, necessary command data can be downloaded.
[0016]
Now, it is assumed that the communication device 20 is connected to the communication device 10 for the first time. The communication device 20 is a playback device for video and audio. For functions generally performed by the playback device, such as playback, stop, fast forward, and rewind, the communication device 20 issues commands from the communication device 10 using the IEEE 1394 interface. Can perform the operation. The communication device 20 further has functions such as special effects X and special effects Y, and a command for performing those functions is a special command that is not generally assumed in a standard such as IEEE1394. .
[0017]
FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of an embodiment of the communication device according to the present invention. The communication device of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is the communication device 10 of FIG. 1, and is actually a display device or a recording / reproducing device. Therefore, in addition to the blocks shown in FIG. However, a display unit, a tuner, a recording / reproducing unit, and the like are appropriately provided.
[0018]
The communication apparatus 10 controls the entire apparatus, and mainly includes a microprocessor 12 for processing data, a network interface 13 for connecting to an external server via the Internet or the like, and communication with other devices. A device communication interface 11 for exchanging control information and data such as video and audio; a user interface 14 such as a remote control and a visual display for user operation; a program for the microprocessor 12 to perform various controls; A storage means 15 for storing various data such as command data for controlling a partner device by the inter-communication interface 11 is connected to each other through a bidirectional bus 16 and exchanges signals. Here, the bus 16 is composed of a control bus and a data bus, but these control bus and data bus may be provided separately.
[0019]
Next, the operation of the communication device 10 will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, when the communication device 20 is connected via the inter-device communication interface 11, the communication device 10 issues a device information request command to the communication device 20 to transmit device information of the communication device 20 which is a partner device. An inquiry (step S1) and a response (device information) to the inquiry are awaited (step S2).
[0020]
If a response can be received, it is determined whether command data unique to the device has already been obtained in the communication device 10 based on device information (such as a manufacturer name and a model name) transmitted as a response from the communication device 20. This is checked by checking the storage unit 15 in the communication device 10 (step S3).
[0021]
For example, it is assumed that a command for performing the special effect X is currently unified by each maker, but for a model before a certain age, it is assumed that each maker uses its own different command. Under such circumstances, if this device is an old model based on the model name of the communication device 20, it is not a current unified command for this communication device 20, but the manufacturer of the communication device 20 in the past You need to use the local command you used.
[0022]
In such a case, when the local command is stored in the storage unit 15 in the communication device 10, the local command held by the communication device 10 is made usable (step S4). On the other hand, when the local command is not stored in the storage unit 15 in the communication device 10, the process proceeds to step S5, and the communication device 10 is connected to the predetermined server 32 via the external network 31 using the network interface 13. Then, the device information of the communication device 20 obtained from the communication device 20 in the previous steps S1 and S2 is transmitted to the server 32 (step S6).
[0023]
In response, the server 32 returns a command set (local command data) of the model. The microprocessor 12 of the communication device 10 checks whether the local command data from the server 32 has been received (step S7). If the local command data has been received, the local command data sent from the server 32 is stored in the storage unit 15. It is stored (step S8). Thus, the local command data relating to the communication device 20 can be used.
[0024]
Although the device information of the communication device 20 is obtained, even if the communication device 10 does not know what command the communication device 20 uses at that time, the server 32 transmits the device information of the communication device 20 to the server 32. If sent as it is, the server 32 holds detailed data on various devices of each manufacturer, so that an appropriate command data collection can be sent.
[0025]
Next, with reference to FIG. 4, an example in which the communication device 10 operates before and after downloading the command set will be described. The thick arrows in FIG. 4 indicate the flow of time, and the upper side of the arrow indicates the user's operation, and the lower side indicates the operation of the communication device 10. A broken arrow indicated by a thick arrow indicates that the communication device 10 performs an operation at the end point in response to a user operation at the start point.
[0026]
In FIG. 4, first, when the communication device 20 is connected to the communication device 10 (step S11), the communication device 10 inquires of the communication device 20 about device information (step S12). Then, if the communication device 10 confirms that the local command has not been obtained, the communication device 10 performs an operation of obtaining the local command via the network (steps S13 and S14). At this time, it is not always possible to download the local command instantaneously, and it may take a long time before the local command can be obtained because the server is busy.
[0027]
Therefore, the operation may be performed on the communication device 20 via the communication device 10 even during the download. In the figure, while downloading a local command, the user first instructs "playback of communication device" (step S15). The command "play" is a very basic command, and a unified command is used in any device, and it is assumed that there is no local command. For such a command, even before the local command of the communication device 20 is obtained, the communication device 10 sends a playback command to the communication device 20 and sends a video / audio playback signal from the communication device 20 to the communication device 10. (Step S16).
[0028]
Thus, for example, when the communication device 10 is a display device, a reproduced video signal from the communication device 20 as a recording / reproducing device can be displayed on the screen, and a reproduced audio signal can be emitted from the speaker. Can be enjoyed immediately after connection to the communication device 10.
[0029]
Thereafter, it is assumed that the user performs an operation of “special effect X” during reproduction of the communication device 20 (step S17). Here, when the communication device 20 is designed, the “special effect X” uses a local command in each maker, and if the download of the command set is not completed, an appropriate command is transmitted via the inter-device communication interface. It cannot be emitted.
[0030]
In this case, since the communication device 10 is downloading the local command via the network, the communication device 10 notifies the user that this operation cannot be used at this time (step S18). As a notification method, a message such as “This operation is currently unavailable. Please try later” may be issued on the communication device 10 or a display screen connected to the communication device 10. As another notification method, a method in which the communication device 10 displays a menu of instructions for the communication device 20 on a display built in the communication device 10 or connected to the communication device 10, and a user selects from the menu. Before the command set is downloaded, it indicates that the functions that require local commands cannot be operated by displaying the function names in light letters, etc. In this menu, thin characters may be changed to normal characters so that operation can be performed.
[0031]
Then, in FIG. 4, after the operation of obtaining the local command of the communication device 20 is completed (step S19), the user instructs “special effect X” again (step S20). At this point, the communication device 10 can use the previously obtained local command of the communication device 20, and thus transmits the “special effect X” in the obtained local command to the communication device 20 (step S21). ). This allows the communication device 20 to perform reproduction with the special effect X applied thereto, and display a video with the desired special effect X on the display of the communication device 10.
[0032]
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the communication device 10 and the communication device 20 are both recording and reproducing devices, and the video signal and the audio signal reproduced by the communication device 20 are transmitted to the communication device 10. It is also possible to use such as dubbing recording, and various other modifications are possible. Further, the communication path between the communication device 10 and the communication device 20 may be any of a wired communication channel and a wireless communication channel.
[0033]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, when a command unique to a partner device is not stored in the command storage unit, a command unique to the partner device is obtained from a server connected via an external network. By storing in the command storage means, it is not necessary to store in the command storage means all the commands for controlling the operation of all the counterpart apparatuses of various manufacturers at various times. Can be obtained and stored in the command storage means, so that the storage capacity of the command storage means can be significantly reduced as compared with the related art.
[0034]
Further, according to the present invention, even while a command specific to the partner device is being stored in the command storage unit, the basic command already stored in the command storage unit is transmitted to the partner device to control the operation of the partner device. Since control can be performed, communication based on basic commands can be performed between the partner device and the partner device immediately after connection with the partner device without waiting for the completion of the command storage operation specific to the command storage unit. The time and effort required to prepare for storing the command can be reduced.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication system suitable for the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a communication device according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of an operation example of a communication device before and after downloading a command set.
[Explanation of symbols]
Reference Signs List 10 communication device 11 of the present invention inter-device communication interface 12 microprocessor 13 network interface 14 user interface 15 storage means 16 bus 20 communication device 31 network 32 server

Claims (2)

Inter-device communication means for communicating with a partner device that performs an operation according to the received command;
A network connection means for connecting to an external server via a network;
Command storage means for storing and storing commands in inter-device communication;
Device information obtaining means for obtaining the device information of the partner device by inquiring the partner device,
Based on the device information obtained by the device information obtaining unit, it is determined whether a command specific to the counterpart device is stored in the command storage unit, and when the command is not stored in the command storage unit, the network connection is determined. The device information is transmitted to the server connected by controlling the means, and a command specific to the partner device is transmitted and received from the server, and the received specific command is stored in the command storage means. Command management means, and only basic commands other than the specific commands are received until the operation of receiving a command specific to the counterpart device transmitted from the server and storing the command in the command storage means is completed. Command is issued to the partner device via the inter-device communication means, and after the storing operation is completed, Communication device also via the communication means between the device including commands and performs a command to the remote device. A first step of inquiring device information of the partner device and receiving the device information from the partner device at the time of connection with the partner device performing an operation according to the received command;
A second step of, based on the received device information, determining whether a command unique to the counterpart device is stored in a command storage unit that stores a command in device-to-device communication;
When it is determined in the second step that a command unique to the partner device is not stored in the command storage means, the server is connected to an external server via a network, and the server is connected to the external server. A third step of transmitting device information and requesting transmission of a command specific to the partner device;
A fourth step of receiving a command unique to the partner device transmitted from the server and storing the command in the command storage unit;
Until the operation of receiving the command specific to the counterpart device transmitted from the server and storing the command in the command storage unit is completed, a command to the counterpart device is issued only by a basic command other than the specific command. And performing a command to the counterpart device including the specific command after the storing operation is completed.

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