KR20040051635A - A remote control device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A REMOTE CONTROLLER is provided to universally control various kinds of equipments through remote control. CONSTITUTION: A remote control transmitter(320) transmits a remote control signal controlling external equipments. A remote control receiver(310) receives a remote control signal from the outside. A digital interface(330) provides digital data communication with the external equipments. A system control unit(350) controls the remote control transmitter(320), the remote control receiver(310), and the digital interface(330). A remote controller(300) receives the remote control signal through the remote control receiver(310) for encoding waveform information of the remote control signal into digital data to provide the digital data to the external equipments through the digital interface(330). The remote controller(300) receives an equipment control command from the outside for receiving waveform information of the remote control signal corresponding to the equipment control command from the external equipment through the digital interface(330) to generate the remote control signal from the waveform information.

Description

Remote control device

The present invention relates to a remote control device for remotely controlling various types of devices, in which a specific control command is applied to a specific device from the outside in a state where waveform information of various remote control signals is placed in a predetermined data storage location. And a waveform information of a remote control signal for controlling the device applied from the data storage location, and generates a waveform of a desired remote control signal from the waveform information to perform the above-described function control. will be.

In the past, an infrared remote controller has been widely used as a means for conveniently controlling home appliances, air conditioners, and the like. Such a remote controller has been generally used because of its relatively easy implementation and low cost. However, the remote control has some disadvantages, and the representative ones are that a separate remote control is required for each device and that the user must have a plurality of remote controls. The point is to be close. These disadvantages became more problematic as the so-called home network system began to be introduced, because there are many kinds of controlled devices under the home network system, and there is a demand for the user to perform the device control remotely through the network. . Therefore, some point out that the remote control control system in the home network system is not suitable.

However, in spite of the disadvantages of the above-described remote control, the advantages of ease of implementation and low cost implementation of the device control system using the remote control are very attractive. Therefore, the above-mentioned disadvantages can be overcome by using the remote control method. Is required.

For this purpose, "Universal Remote Control and Control Frequency Code Data Downloading Device Using Application No. 20-2001-0035976, filed with a utility model registration to the Korean Intellectual Property Office on November 22, 2001, is controlled by various electronic device sets. A control frequency code data download device and a universal remote control using the same have been disclosed so that the frequency code data is mounted on a server and downloaded and automatically set as necessary to perform a remote control function. However, this invention is only to have a similarity in the overall technical field with the present invention, and does not disclose at all about the configuration and operation of the remote control device of the present invention.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a remote control device for remotely controlling various types of devices, in which a specific control command for a specific device is externally generated while waveform information of various remote control signals is located at a predetermined data storage location. When applied from the data storage site, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a remote control device which obtains waveform information of a remote control signal for controlling the device, recovers the remote control waveform from this, and performs the above-described function control on the device. have.

1 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which the remote control apparatus of the present invention operates in a control mode in its operation mode.

Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which the remote control apparatus of the present invention operates in a learning mode in its operation mode.

3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of an internal configuration of a remote control apparatus of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart showing an overall operating embodiment of the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

5 is a diagram showing waveforms of a typical remote control control signal.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an embodiment of encoding bits " 0 " and bits " 1 " corresponding to one binary symbol in a typical remote control control signal waveform.

7 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment in which a counter value corresponding to a pulse width is measured and derived according to a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention;

8 is a view showing an embodiment in which a 16-bit count value is divided in order to efficiently process waveform information of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

9 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of an operation of dividing a 16-bit count value in order to efficiently process waveform information of a remote control control signal in a remote control apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing another embodiment of the operation of recording a predetermined reservation value according to the value of the upper two bits of the 16-bit count value in the flowchart of FIG.

Fig. 11 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a basic configuration for generating a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

Fig. 12 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of operation of generating a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

Figure 13 is a flow chart showing another operation embodiment for generating a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

Fig. 14 is a flowchart showing another operation embodiment of generating a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

Fig. 15 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of an operation for calculating a timer setpoint for generating a remote control signal waveform from waveform information of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100, 200, 300: remote control device

150, 230: remote control

140: controlled device

310: remote control receiver

320: remote control transmitter

330: digital interface unit

340: memory

350: system control unit

In order to achieve the object of the present invention as described above, the present invention includes a remote control transmitter for transmitting a remote control signal for controlling an external device; A remote control receiver for receiving a remote control signal from an external device; A digital interface unit for providing digital data communication with an external device; And a system controller for controlling the remote controller transmitter, the remote controller receiver, and the digital interface unit, wherein the remote controller receives a remote controller control signal from the outside through the remote controller receiver to generate a waveform of the remote controller control signal. Information is encoded into digital data and provided to the external device through the digital interface unit, and the remote control unit receives a device control command from the outside and supplies waveform information of a remote control control signal corresponding to the device control command to the digital interface unit. Provides a remote control device characterized in that received from the external device through the remote control to generate a remote control signal from the waveform information and transmits through the remote control transmitter.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail the present invention.

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which the remote control apparatus 100 of the present invention operates in a control mode in its operation mode. In the control mode, the remote control apparatus 100 of the present invention receives a control command for a specific device applied from the outside (110, 130, 150), generates a remote control control signal waveform corresponding to the control command to the controlled device (140). To this end, in the embodiment of the present invention shown in Figure 1, the remote control device 100 is a remote control transmitter 100 for transmitting a remote control signal to the outside (100: 2), a digital interface for connecting to other devices ( 100: 3), a remote controller receiver for receiving a remote controller control signal from the outside, and a memory unit 100: 4 for holding digital data. Among them, the memory unit 100: 4 is a configuration for providing a workspace for processing and storing information such as waveform information of a remote control signal as necessary. The control microcomputer provides a sufficient internal memory and provides all waveforms. It may not be necessary if the information is provided from outside.

There are various possible paths through which control commands for a specific device are applied from the outside. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, three examples are illustrated. That is, the user may provide a device control command through the remote control receiver 100: 1 using a kind of universal remote controller 150 implemented to operate as a pair with the remote control apparatus of the present invention. Using a device control tool such as a web-pad of 110, a device control command may be provided through the digital interface unit 100: 3. The device control command may be provided using the computer 130 at a remote place through the network.

When the device control command is received from the outside through such a path, the remote control apparatus 100 of the present invention analyzes the contents of the device control command to analyze the device and the specific functional command to be controlled. Since a person who implements the present invention may arbitrarily design and use it with a communication protocol for an external interface, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. As such, when the information on the control target device and the specific function command is obtained, the remote control apparatus 100 generates and sends a remote control signal in response thereto.

The remote control apparatus 100 of the present invention can obtain waveform information for generating a remote control signal through various routes. In FIG. 1, as an example, the memory unit 100 included in the remote control apparatus 100 is provided. Obtain waveform information from (4). However, this is only an example, and according to the implementation, the waveform information may be obtained from an external storage device or a computer system connected through the digital interface unit 100: 3. Specific information on the waveform of the control signal for a specific device may be accumulated through the learning mode operation of the present invention as shown in FIG. 2 or may be downloaded from an external web server or the like, and may be enclosed with the product. For example, it may be obtained through a CD-ROM or the like provided. There is no particular limitation on this in the present invention.

2 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which the remote control apparatus 200 of the present invention operates in the learning mode in its operation mode. In the learning mode, the remote control apparatus 200 of the present invention receives a remote control signal from an external device and analyzes the signal waveform, and then converts the waveform information into digital data according to a predetermined format to store a predetermined data storage location. It is stored in the memory unit 200: 4, the storage unit 210, or the external computer 220. In FIG. 2, the memory unit 200: 4 means a memory space provided inside the remote control apparatus 200, and the storage unit 210 is connected to the digital interface unit 200: 3 and provided to the outside. Means storage space.

As the above-described memory units 200: 4, conventionally used memory modules such as ordinary S-RAM and D-RAM can be used, and flash memory, smart media, and the like, which are frequently used in recent years, can also be used. In addition, for example, a hard disk unit may be used as the storage unit 210. In this case, the digital interface unit 200: 3 may be an IDE interface, a SCSI interface, or a USB interface. In addition, a storage space provided by a so-called residential gateway may also be used as the storage unit 210. In this case, the digital interface unit 200: 3 may use an Ethernet interface, a power line interface, or an IEEE1394 interface. This can be The range of the digital interface unit 200: 3 is not limited to wired technology, but also includes wireless technology such as WLAN or Bluetooth.

For smooth learning mode operation, the meaning of the remote control signal transmitted through the remote control receiver 200: 1 needs to be provided to the remote controller 200. That is, in order to learn and use the remote control signal currently applied to the remote control receiver 200: 1, the remote control apparatus 200 must first have information on what the meaning of the remote control signal is. The method for this can be implemented in various ways according to the person implementing the present invention, for example, it is possible to provide information using the learning remote control provided with the remote control device 200 of the present invention, or remotely via a network It may be provided through a user interface of the computer 220 connected to the control device 200.

In the learning mode, a process of converting information on the waveform of the remote control signal received from the outside into digital data will be described later with reference to FIG. 5 and later.

3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the internal configuration of the remote control device 300 of the present invention. An embodiment of the illustrated remote control apparatus 300 includes a remote controller transmitter 320 for transmitting a remote controller control signal for an external device, a remote controller receiver 310 for receiving a remote controller control signal from the outside; A digital interface unit 330 for providing data communication with an external device; And a system controller 350 for controlling the remote controller transmitter, the remote controller receiver, and the digital interface, and may further include a memory unit 340 for storing digital data as described above.

In the configuration of FIG. 3, the remote controller transmitter 320 is a module for transmitting a waveform of a remote controller control signal for controlling an external device to the outside, and is preferably configured using an infrared photo transistor (IR photo transiter). In order to generate a remote control control signal waveform, the system controller 350 generally includes a PWM signal generating module therein and sets a timer value corresponding to a desired pulse width in a predetermined control register of the PWM signal generating module. When it is set and activated, a signal waveform having a desired pulse width is output. When this signal output is connected to the control terminal of the above-described infrared photo transistor, for example, a base terminal, the infrared signal is transmitted as a remote control control signal waveform. At this time, it is common that the phase between the signal waveform applied to the control terminal of the photo transistor and the infrared signal transmitted from the output terminal of the photo transistor is inverted by 180 degrees from each other. Only the concept of

In the remote control device 300 of the present invention, in order to be able to control a plurality of devices that are distributed in various places spatially, the remote control transmitter 320 preferably includes a plurality of transmitting elements, that is, a photo transistor. Do. For example, depending on the characteristics of the effective transmission angle of the transmitting element to be used, if the four transmitting elements have an angle of 90 degrees to each other or if the three transmitting elements have an angle of 120 degrees to each other and are arranged in the terminal of the remote control transmitter 320, It becomes possible to control the devices located in all places. However, the spirit of the present invention is not limited thereto, and includes one configured by using one transmitting element.

The remote control signal received from the outside is received by the remote control receiver 310 and transmitted to the system control unit 350, which is encoded into digital data, which may be somewhat different according to the embodiment, but in the learning mode the remote control The waveform information of the control signal is stored as a digital data in a predetermined data storage place for later use. On the other hand, in the control mode, after receiving the remote control signal and interpreting the meaning of the control command, the waveform of the remote control signal is generated. It may be to generate and transmit to the remote control transmitter 320.

The digital interface unit 330 is for providing data communication with an external device. For example, the digital interface unit 330 is configured with a simple device connection bus type such as IDE or SCSI as well as a digital interface configured with a network type such as Ethernet, USB, or IEEE1394. Digital interface is also included. As described above with reference to FIG. 2, an implementation method of the digital interface unit 330 is appropriately selected according to the type of external device to be connected, and various types of digital interface technologies may be mixed according to the purpose. .

Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing the overall operation of the remote control apparatus of the present invention, showing the basic operation performed by the remote control apparatus. First, the remote control apparatus of the present invention waits for a control command from the outside (ST415), and if the control command comes in, analyzes the type (ST420), and in the case of the learning mode command (ST425), branching and learning. If it is not a mode command, it is recognized as a command of the control mode and branches to (ST445).

First, when the control command is a learning mode command, since the remote control signal is input through the remote control receiver, the controller waits for the input of the remote control receiver (ST425) and checks whether it is timed out (ST430). It returns to the beginning again and waits for a control command (ST415). If it is not timed out, it is checked whether or not data has been received in the remote controller receiver (ST435). If no data is received, the controller waits for input again from the remote controller receiver (ST425). The control unit recognizes the control command data and performs a predetermined learning mode operation as described later (ST440).

If the control command is not a learning mode command, the command is recognized as a control mode command and the meaning of the control mode command input as described above with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3 is analyzed (ST445). Obtain the waveform information of the remote control control signal from a predetermined storage location such as an external unit or an external storage device (ST450), generate a remote control control signal waveform from the waveform information (ST455), and transmit the generated remote control control signal through the remote control transmitter. Transmit to the outside (ST460).

Fig. 5 is a diagram showing waveforms of a conventional remote control signal, in which the remote control signal is shown using an oscilloscope measuring instrument. The control signal waveform shown in FIG. 5 is composed of two different key code portions 510 and 520, and the specific shape of the waveform differs slightly according to the key code. Referring to the waveform of Figure 5, the waveform of the remote control control signal is basically a square wave (square wave), it is represented by the pulse width modulation (PWM) method, there is a specific starting section (530, 540) at first It is possible to detect whether the control signal starts. Accordingly, in the present specification, it is assumed that the waveform of the remote control control signal transmitted by the remote control transmitter is basically modulated by a square wave and PWM method. However, the scope of the present invention is not limited to this, for example, even in the case of sawtooth wave (sawtooth wave) it is to be interpreted that only the waveform generation circuit is appropriately used, the idea of the present invention can be equally applied.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an embodiment of encoding bits "0" and bits "1" corresponding to one binary symbol in a conventional remote control control waveform. The remote control waveform shown in FIG. 6 is an example of encoding using a typical PWM method. The encoding 610 of bit “0” shown in FIG. 6 (a) has a high interval of 500 usec and a low interval. In the encoding 620 of bit "1" shown in FIG. 6 (b), the high period is 500 usec and the low period is 1000 usec. Therefore, when the signal level drops from the high level to the low level, time is measured, and when it reaches the high level at about 500 usec, it is bit "0", and when it is more than about 1000 usec, it is called bit "1". You can judge.

The remote control waveform encoding rule shown in FIG. 6 is merely an embodiment, and specific encoding rules, that is, time intervals for maintaining the high level and the low level, differ from one manufacturer to another. That is, the value of the keycode for a particular function key called "volume up" is generally different from manufacturer to manufacturer, even though it is the same, especially when representing bits "0" and bits "1". The rules for the time interval between maintaining the low and low levels differ from manufacturer to manufacturer. Accordingly, in the remote control apparatus of the present invention, in order to be able to control various kinds of devices universally, the waveform information of the remote control signal can be provided in digital data format, and the waveform information suitable for this situation in a specific situation. After acquiring, generate and transmit a remote control control signal based on the waveform information.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment in which a counter value 740 corresponding to a pulse width is measured and derived according to a waveform 710 of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention. As described above, the waveform 710 of the remote control control signal is typically a PWM type square wave. In an embodiment of the present invention, a free running counter (free) is used to measure the width of the high level section and the low level section of the waveform 710. -running counter). That is, as shown in FIG. 7A, the system interrupts 720 and 730 are set to be generated at the rising edge and the falling edge of the remote control signal waveform 710. As shown in Fig. 7 (b), when the system interrupt occurs due to the rising edge and the falling edge, the aforementioned free running counter is reset / restarted and the counter value of the free running counter immediately before the reset is reset. Capture (750,760) to a predetermined internal register. Referring to the counter trace 740 shown in FIG. 7B, it can be seen that the value of the free running counter is reset / restarted every time an interrupt occurs due to the rising edge and the falling edge.

Since many control microcomputers currently have a free running counter function therein, it is preferable to configure the system control unit 350 as a control microcomputer with a built-in free running counter in the configuration of FIG. This type of free-running counter is generally used by dividing a microcomputer's system clock in a pre-scaler as its reference clock. Since the system clock is usually several to several tens of MHz, the reference clock of the free-running counter is also usually several MHz. to be. In this case, in order to properly measure the pulse width of the remote control control signal as shown in Figs. 5 to 7, it is desired that the above-described free running counter is 16 bits or more, since too many overflows occur when the number of bits is small. to be.

In this case, in FIG. 7, 16 bits of counter value data corresponding to the pulse width are generated for each width of the section in which the waveform 710 of the remote control control signal is high level or low level. When combined, waveform information for the remote control control signal is constructed, and if only this waveform information is provided, it is possible to reconstruct substantially the same waveform as described later.

On the other hand, as described above with reference to Figure 7 (b), it is not necessarily required that the free-running counter is reset / restarted when an interrupt due to the rising edge and falling edge occurs. That is, even if only the counter value at the time of interruption is captured while free running without reset / restart, the counter value corresponding to the pulse width can be obtained by performing the subtraction operation with the previous counter value. However, in any of the two methods described above, that is, a method of performing a reset / restart and a method of simply freering, the overflow event of the freer counter is calculated in calculating a counter value corresponding to the pulse width. Consideration is essential.

As described above, when acquiring the waveform information of the remote control signal, 16 bits of data are generated for each of the high level and low level sections of the remote control waveform. Significantly more data can be generated for a single key code. Since the remote control device of the present invention intends to support various function control for various types of controlled devices, if the waveform information of all these remote control signals is summed, This can be quite large.

Furthermore, in the internal configuration of the present invention shown in FIG. 3, most of the controlling microcomputers used as the system control unit 350 have a small internal memory space, and when operated as described above, one key code is used. Since it is practically difficult to guarantee that the size of the waveform information of the remote control control signal for R 2 is always smaller than this internal memory space size, in order to improve the stability of the system, the memory unit 340 is separately provided outside the system control unit 350. ), Which causes an increase in product price and an increase in complexity. Accordingly, the present invention is to improve the efficiency by providing a kind of data compression method in digitalizing the waveform information of the remote control control signal.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which a 16-bit count value is divided in order to efficiently process waveform information of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 8A illustrates the division of the 16-bit counter values B15 to B0 for waveform information into the most significant bit group 810, the valid bit group 820, and the discard bit group 830. As a preferred embodiment of bit allocation for each bit group 810, 820, 830, the most significant two bits are allocated to the most significant bit group 810, and the next 8 bits are allocated to the valid bit group 820. The remaining lower 6 bits are allocated to the truncated bit group 830. However, the allocation of the number of bits shown in FIG. 8 (a) is merely a preferred embodiment, and the bit allocation may be appropriately adjusted according to the selection of the person implementing the remote control apparatus of the present invention.

In the present invention, in configuring the waveform information data of the remote control control information, among the bit groups 810, 820, and 830 shown in Fig. 8A, the truncated bit group 830 ignores the contents, and the effective bit group ( 820 uses the content as it is, and the most significant bit group 810 is processed separately. That is, the specific value of the six bits corresponding to the truncation bit group 830 among the 16-bit counter value data is ignored. When obtaining and storing the control signal waveform information as shown in FIG. 7, it is discarded. In constructing the remote control control signal from the control signal waveform information, this part of the 16 bits is assumed to be a predetermined value. Among the 16-bit counter value data, the 8 bits corresponding to the valid bit group 820 are used as they are, and as shown in FIG. 7, the control signal waveform information is included in the waveform information data as it is. As described later, in configuring the remote control control signal from the control signal waveform information, the value of the file information data is used as it is among 16 bits.

Lastly, two bits corresponding to the most significant bit group 810 among the 16-bit counter value data are processed separately. As shown in FIG. 7, when obtaining and storing the control signal waveform information, a predetermined reservation is made according to the value of this portion. The value is inserted into the file information data, and when the remote control control signal is constructed from the control signal waveform information as described later, this portion is appropriately set corresponding to the form in which the predetermined value described above is found. That is, as shown in Fig. 8B, a predetermined reserved value (0xFF) is inserted into the file information data by one or more numbers according to the value of the most significant bit group 810. The most significant bit group 810 If the value of 0 is 0, the reserved value 0xFF is not inserted. If the value of 1 is 0, one reserved value 0xFF is inserted; if the value is 2, two reserved value 0xFF is inserted; if 3, the reserved value 0xFF is inserted 3 Insert. In the present invention, the predetermined reserved value described above is selected in consideration of the number of bits of the effective bit group 820 of FIG. 8 (a). In this embodiment, since the effective bit group 820 is 8 bits, 0xFF is selected for convenience. However, a value other than 0xFF may be selected as the above predetermined reservation value within a range not exceeding an 8-bit range.

On the other hand, in the present invention, the number of bits allocated to each bit group 810, 820, 830 is not arbitrarily set, and it is preferable that the selection be made in consideration of the operability of the remote control apparatus of the present invention. That is, it is preferable to determine the number of bits allocated to the truncated bit group 830 in consideration of the resolution of the waveform information data. For example, in the embodiment of FIG. Assuming that the reference clock is 4.0 MHz, the resolution of the waveform information data in the current state is calculated to be 16 usec. If the resolution needs to be increased further, the number of bits allocated to the truncated bit group 830 is reduced, and conversely, If the value is even lower, the number of bits allocated to the truncation bit group 830 may be increased.

In addition, the number of bits allocated to the effective bit group 820 and the most significant bit group 810 should be selected in consideration of the efficiency of waveform information data processing and the efficiency of digital data encoding. That is, in most micom systems, data access is performed in units of 8 bits or 16 bits, and therefore, if the number of bits of the effective bit group 820 is selected, for example, 5 bits or 7 bits, inefficiency in processing waveform information data will be involved. And therefore not very desirable. In addition, when the number of bits of the most significant bit group 810 is too large, the number of predetermined reserved values inserted into the waveform information data will increase accordingly as described above, and thus the size of the waveform information data will increase. Again not very desirable. Accordingly, the number of bits allocated to the effective bit group 820 and the most significant bit group 810 should be selected in consideration of the efficiency of waveform information data processing and the compression efficiency of digital data encoding.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary embodiment of dividing a 16-bit count value in order to efficiently process waveform information of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the bit allocation of each bit group 810, 820, and 830 for dividing the 16-bit count value is the same as that shown in FIG. It is assumed that a system interrupt occurs for the falling edge and the overflow event of the free running counter, and the free running counter is reset / restarted on the rising and falling edges of the remote control control waveform.

When a system interrupt occurs in the remote control apparatus of the present invention, an interrupt service routine for this interrupt is performed (ST910). First, the cause of the interrupt is checked (ST915). In the case of an interrupt, 0xFF, which is a predetermined reservation value, is written four times (ST955), and the interrupt service routine is terminated (ST960). On the other hand, if the interrupt is not due to the overflow event, the cause of the interruption is the rising edge or the falling edge of the control signal waveform, and branches to (ST920). Of course, if the remote control device is actually configured, various interrupts may occur in addition to this, but the description herein assumes only system interrupts due to these three causes.

In the case of a system interrupt due to the rising or falling edge of the control signal waveform, the 16-bit counter value is read (ST920), and the region corresponding to the most significant 2 bits, that is, the most significant bit group, is extracted from the counter value (ST925). If the value is not 0, 0xFF, a predetermined reserved value is recorded as many times as the value (ST930), and an area corresponding to B13 to B6, that is, an area corresponding to a valid bit group, is extracted from the 16-bit counter value. After that (ST935) it is checked whether or not the value of this area is equal to the above-mentioned predetermined reservation value, i.e., 0xFF (ST940), and if it is the same, the value corresponding to the above-mentioned valid bit group is different from the predetermined reservation value, For example, it is set to 0xFE (ST945), and finally, a value corresponding to this valid bit group is recorded (ST950), and the interrupt service routine is terminated (ST960).

In the above, it is checked whether or not the value of the area corresponding to the effective bit group is equal to the predetermined reserved value (ST940) and if it is the same, setting it to a value different from the predetermined reserved value then reconstructs the waveform of the remote control control signal. This is to prevent an error from occurring. Therefore, since the value of the effective bit group is unavoidably changed from the original value to the above-mentioned "different value", it is particularly preferable that this "different value" is selected to be different from the "predetermined reserved value" but similar. Also in this embodiment, OxFF was used as the "predetermined reserve value" and 0xFE was used as the "different value".

The above description of the embodiment of FIG. 9 is made assuming that 2 bits, 8 bits, and 6 bits are allocated to the most significant bit group, the valid bit group, and the discard bit group, respectively, as shown in FIG. However, the bit number allocation for each of these bit groups can be selected differently as described above, in which case the flowchart shown in Fig. 9 is modified accordingly in the specific number accordingly.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing another embodiment of operations (ST925, ST930) for recording a predetermined reservation value in accordance with the value of the upper two bits of the 16-bit count value in the flowchart of FIG. As described above with reference to Fig. 9, at (ST925) and (ST930), a predetermined reserved value 0xFF is recorded as many times as the most significant two-bit value of the 16-bit counter value. Unlike ST925 and ST930, it may be implemented as shown in FIG. 10. That is, first, it is checked whether the value of the most significant bit (T16 [15]) of the 16-bit counter value T16 is 0 (ST1015). If the value is not 0, 0xFF, which is a predetermined reservation value, is recorded twice (ST1020). Subsequently, it is checked whether the value of the next higher bit T16 [14] of the 16-bit counter value T16 is 0 (ST1025). If the value is not 0, the predetermined reserved value 0xFF is recorded once (ST1030). . Even if the flowchart shown in Fig. 10 is followed, the same effects as those in (ST925) and (ST930) of Fig. 9 can be obtained.

11 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a basic configuration for generating a waveform 1110 of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention. 11 illustrates an example of generating a waveform 1110 of a remote control control signal using a PWM signal generation module. However, the spirit of the present invention is not limited thereto. The PWM signal generation module used in this embodiment has a predetermined control register. When the signal generation module is started after setting an appropriate timer value in this control register, the timer value is counted down using a reference clock. -down) to function as a timer, inverting the high / low levels of the remote control control signal waveform 1110 and generating a system interrupt when reaching zero.

In the embodiment of the present invention shown in Fig. 11, the control register is set to a value T16x (1150) corresponding to the desired high level pulse width and the signal generation module is started at time t1 (1120). Uses a reference clock to count down T16x 1150 and inverts the level of the remote control control waveform 1110 to low at time t2 1130, at which point the value reaches zero, generating a system interrupt. Subsequently, if a value of T16y (1160) corresponding to the next desired low level pulse width is set in the control register and the signal generation module is started at time t2 (1130), the signal generation module uses T16y (1160) using the reference clock. ) Is counted down and the level of the remote control signal waveform 1110 is inverted to high at a time t3 (1140), and a system interrupt is generated.

In the above embodiment, the calculation of the timer value to be used to generate the next pulse interval may be performed before the system interrupt for the current pulse occurs or after the system interrupt occurs. That is, in FIG. 11, the timer value T16y (1160), which is a timer value to be set in the control register to generate a low period between the time point t2 (1130) and the time point t3 (1140), is, for example, T16x before the time point t2 (1130). It may be calculated after setting 1150 and starting the signal generation module, or may be calculated in, for example, an interrupt service routine after a system interrupt occurs at time t2 1130. The former implementation is more desirable to generate an accurate remote control control signal waveform 1110, but the latter implementation is not impossible unless it is very sensitive to accuracy.

On the other hand, according to the PWM signal generation module, the first and second control registers are provided to generate the PWM signal. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 11, the T16x 1150 and the T16y are respectively provided in the first control register and the second control register. If the signal generation module is started after setting (1160) or (T16x (1150) + T16y (1160)) and T16y (1160), the remote control control signal between the time points t1 (1120) to the time point t3 (1140). Some waveforms 1110 may be operable to be generated at one time. At this time, the system interrupt may be a signal generation module that operates to occur at both the time t2 (1130) and the time t3 (1140), or there may be a signal generation module that operates only to occur at the time t3 (1140).

12 is a flowchart showing an embodiment of generating a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention. In the embodiment of FIG. 11, one control register of the signal generation module is provided and a timer for the next pulse width is shown. An embodiment in which the set value is calculated before the interrupt occurs is shown. In this embodiment, in order to generate the waveform of the remote control control signal, the PWM signal generation module is initialized first (ST1215), and the timer set value T16 corresponding to the desired pulse width in the waveform of the control signal is calculated (ST1220). After that, the control register of the signal generation module is set using this timer set value T16 (ST1225), and then the PWM signal generation module is started (1230). Then, it is checked whether the waveform generation of the remote control control signal is completed (ST1235), and when the waveform generation is completed (ST1250), otherwise, the routine ends at the next desired pulse width in the waveform of the control signal. The corresponding timer setting value is calculated in advance (ST1240) and waits for generation of a system interrupt (ST1245). Then, when a system interrupt occurs, the process proceeds to ST1225 and sets the control register using the timer set value calculated in advance in ST1240.

An operating embodiment of the waveform generation shown in FIG. 12 is a reverse process of the waveform information extraction process of the remote control control signal described above with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, and corresponds to the waveform information of the remote control control signal provided as digital data. It describes the process of generating a remote control signal waveform. The calculation process of the timer set values used in the ST1220 and the ST1240 in the above-described operating embodiment will be described later with reference to FIG. 15. In addition, in the above-described operating embodiment, the process of checking whether or not waveform generation of the remote control control signal used in ST1235 is completed may be accomplished by checking whether valid data exists in the waveform information data. For example, if all of the waveform information data portions that have not yet been processed in the waveform information data for the currently generated key code are predetermined values, for example, it may be considered that the waveform generation process of the remote control control signal is completed.

Fig. 13 is a flowchart illustrating another operation embodiment of generating a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention. The operation embodiment shown in Fig. 13 is largely the same as the operation embodiment shown in Fig. 12, except that the process of calculating a timer setpoint for a desired next pulse width is performed after an interrupt occurs, for example, in an interrupt service routine. (ST1320). For other portions, the above descriptions are made with reference to FIG.

Fig. 14 is a flowchart illustrating another operation embodiment of generating a waveform of a remote control control signal in the remote control apparatus of the present invention. The operation embodiment shown in Fig. 14 is also similar to the operation embodiment shown in Fig. 12 except that the first and second control registers are provided in the signal generation module to operate to generate two levels of waveforms at once. Has some differences. At this time, as described above, the interrupt may occur once for the entire waveform of the two levels, or may be generated twice separately depending on the used microcomputer. If the operation is to be performed twice, the interrupt is interrupted as in (ST1450). The cause of operation is checked to be ignored in case of an interrupt caused by the first control register, that is, an interrupt caused by a previous pulse width end. For other parts, reference is made to the above description with reference to FIG.

On the other hand, although not shown, even when the first and second control registers are provided as shown in FIG. 14, the first and second timer set values for generating the next two levels of waveforms as in the operation embodiment shown in FIG. The process of calculating the time can be configured to be performed after an interrupt occurs, for example, in an interrupt service routine, in which the embodiment of the present invention can be easily carried out by those skilled in the art from the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13 and 14. I can think of it.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing an exemplary embodiment of calculating a timer setpoint for generating a remote controller signal waveform from waveform information of a remote controller control signal recorded in the remote controller of the present invention; FIG. This corresponds to the reverse process of the above-described operating embodiment with reference to FIG.

In order to calculate the 16-bit timer set value from the waveform information of the remote control control signal, the timer set value variable is initialized first (ST1515), and data of 8 bits (the number of bits assigned to the effective bit group) is read from the waveform information data ( ST1520) It is checked whether or not the value of this data is equal to the predetermined reserved value (ST1525), and if it is the same, add 0x4000 (value corresponding to the highest bit group) to the timer setpoint variable (ST1530) and then return to (ST1520). If different, the value of this data is shifted left by 6 bits (the number of bits allocated to the discarding bit group) to obtain 16-bit temporary data (ST1535). Then, it is more preferable to add a predetermined offset value to compensate for the data discard by the truncated bit group to this temporary data (ST1540). If the error of the control signal due to the truncated bit group is not a problem, the offset is offset. It is not necessary to add a value. In the embodiment of the present specification, since the number of bits allocated to the truncated bit group is 6 bits, an offset value of 0x20 corresponding to a power of 2 is appropriate. Then, by adding the temporary data value to the timer setpoint variable (ST1545), the calculation of the 16-bit timer setpoint is completed.

On the other hand, the process of adding the above-described offset value may be implemented slightly differently from that shown in FIG. 15. For example, in step ST1515, if the value of the variable T16 is initialized to a predetermined offset value, for example, 0x20 (ST1540). Offset value addition process such as is not necessary.

By driving the PWM signal generation module as described above with reference to Figs. 11 to 14 using the calculated timer set values, a waveform of a desired remote control signal can be obtained.

According to the remote control apparatus of the present invention, there is an advantage in that the remote control can be universally performed for various types of devices.

In addition, the remote control device of the present invention has the advantage of controlling the device from a remote place through a network such as the Internet.

As used herein, "remote control" refers to controlling a device remotely, and should be interpreted as not necessarily meaning wireless in that manner. That is, in the present specification, although the remote control apparatus of the present invention controls the device by using infrared communication used in a conventional remote controller, the idea of the present invention is not limited thereto, and includes controlling the device by wire.

As used herein, the term “memory section” generally refers to a module that provides a memory function in a known technology, and is not limited to a conventional D-RAM or S-RAM, and does not contradict the description of the specific invention herein. However, it should be interpreted as broadly including modules such as flash memory and ROM.

As used herein, the term "predetermined storage location" does not necessarily refer to a predetermined fixed storage location, and the inventor of the present invention, for example, through the so-called information integration repository as described in CORBA technology, the information of desired information. We used the meaning to include a configuration such as obtaining a location of a material and then accessing the point.

Claims (19)

A remote control transmitter for transmitting a remote control signal for controlling an external device; A remote control receiver for receiving a remote control signal from an external device; A digital interface unit for providing data communication with an external device; And a system controller for controlling the remote controller transmitter, the remote controller receiver, and the digital interface unit, wherein the remote controller receives a remote controller control signal from the outside through the remote controller receiver to generate a waveform of the remote controller control signal. Encode digital data into digital data to generate digital waveform information and provide the digital waveform information to the external device through the digital interface unit, wherein the remote controller receives a device control command from an external device and responds to the device control command. And receiving digital waveform information of a control signal from the external device through the digital interface and generating a remote control control signal from the digital waveform information and transmitting the digital waveform information through the remote control transmitter. A remote control transmitter for transmitting a remote control signal for controlling an external device; A remote control receiver for receiving a remote control signal from an external device; A memory unit for storing digital data; A digital interface unit for providing data communication with an external device; And a system controller for controlling the remote controller transmitter, the remote controller receiver, the memory unit, and the digital interface, wherein the remote controller receives a remote controller control signal from the outside through the remote controller receiver. Generating digital waveform information by encoding a waveform of a control signal into digital data and storing the digital waveform information in the memory unit, wherein the remote control device receives a device control command from the outside through the digital interface unit to control the device control command. And receiving digital waveform information of a remote control signal corresponding to the control unit from the memory unit, generating a remote control signal from the digital waveform information, and transmitting the digital waveform information through the remote control transmitter. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the remote control transmitter comprises a plurality of transmitting elements. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the generating of the digital waveform information data from the waveform of the remote control signal received through the remote control receiver comprises: initializing the data of the digital waveform information and a previous counter variable; An interrupt is generated in the system controller in response to an overflow event of the rising edge and the falling edge of the remote controller control signal and a predetermined n-bit counter for free running, and the n-bit counter for the rising edge and the falling edge. A first step of setting a value of to be captured in a predetermined register; Waiting for an interrupt to occur in the system controller; Checking a cause of occurrence of the generated interrupt; A fourth step of recording an overflow event in a predetermined overflow variable when the interrupt is an interrupt due to the overflow event; A fifth step of obtaining pulse width data corresponding to a pulse width of the waveform from the register, the overflow variable and the previous counter variable when the interrupt is an interrupt due to the rising edge or the interrupt due to the falling edge; Separating the lower n-bit valid data and the overflow data above it from the pulse width data; When the value of the overflow data is not 0, the operation of recording a predetermined m-bit reserved value in the data of the digital waveform information by the number corresponding to the k power of 2 is performed as many times as the value of the overflow data. Step 5c; A fifth step of recording the m-bit reserved value by the number of times corresponding to the upper k-bit value of the valid data in the data of the digital waveform information when the upper k-bit value of the valid data is not zero; And when the value of the m-bit data consecutively below the upper k-bit in the valid data is different from the m-bit reserved value, the value of the m-bit data is recorded in the data of the digital waveform information. A fifth step of recording a predetermined m-bit value different from the m-bit reserved value in data of the digital waveform information; A sixth step of checking whether the digital waveform information is completed and proceeding to the second step if it is not completed; And a seventh step of outputting data of the digital waveform information. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the generating of the digital waveform information data from the waveform of the remote control signal received through the remote control receiver comprises: initializing the data of the digital waveform information; Interrupts are generated in the system control unit for rising and falling edges of the n-bit counter, and a value of a predetermined n-bit counter for free-running with respect to the rising and falling edges is captured in a predetermined register. A first step of setting to reset / restart; Waiting for an interrupt to occur in the system controller; Reading a valid data corresponding to the n-bit counter value from the register; If the upper k-bit value of the valid data is not 0, step 3b of recording the m-bit reserved value in the data of the digital waveform information by the number of times corresponding to the upper k-bit value of the valid data; And when the value of m-bit data consecutive to the upper k bits or less in the valid data is different from the m-bit reserved value, the value of the m-bit data is recorded in the data of the digital waveform information, and in the case of the same, the digital A third step of recording a predetermined m-bit value different from the m-bit reserved value into data of waveform information; A fourth step of checking whether the digital waveform information is completed and proceeding to the second step if it is not completed; And a fifth step of outputting data of the digital waveform information. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the generating of the digital waveform information data from the waveform of the remote control signal received through the remote control receiver comprises: initializing the data of the digital waveform information; Interrupts are generated in the system control unit for the rising edge and falling edge of and the overflow event of a predetermined n-bit counter for free running, and the value of the n-bit counter is predetermined for the rising edge and the falling edge. Setting the n-bit counter to be reset / restarted while being captured in a register of; Waiting for an interrupt to occur in the system controller; Checking a cause of occurrence of the generated interrupt; If the interrupt is an interrupt due to the overflow event, writing a predetermined m-bit reserved value into the data of the digital waveform information by the number of times corresponding to a power of 2; A fifth step of reading valid data corresponding to the n-bit counter value from the register when the interrupt is an interrupt due to the rising edge or an interrupt due to the falling edge; If the upper k-bit value of the valid data is not 0, step 5b of recording the m-bit reserved value in the data of the digital waveform information by the number of times corresponding to the upper k-bit value of the valid data; And when the value of m-bit data consecutive to the upper k bits or less in the valid data is different from the m-bit reserved value, the value of the m-bit data is recorded in the data of the digital waveform information, and in the case of the same, the digital A fifth step of recording a predetermined m-bit value different from the m-bit reserved value into data of waveform information; And a sixth step of checking whether the digital waveform information is completed and proceeding to the second step if it is not completed. And a seventh step of outputting data of the digital waveform information. A remote control transmitter for transmitting a remote control signal for controlling an external device; A digital interface unit for providing data communication with an external device; And a system control unit for controlling the remote control transmitter and the digital interface unit, the remote control device receiving a device control command from an external device and receiving digital waveform information of a remote control control signal corresponding to the device control command through the digital interface unit. A remote control device provided from the external device and generating a remote control control signal from the digital waveform information and transmitting the remote control control signal through the remote control transmitter; A remote control transmitter for transmitting a remote control signal for controlling an external device; A memory unit for storing a waveform information database of a remote control control signal; A digital interface unit for providing data communication with an external device; And a system controller for controlling the remote controller transmitter, the memory unit, and the digital interface unit, wherein the remote control device receives a device control command from the outside through the digital interface unit and responds to the device control command. And receiving the digital waveform information of the remote control signal from the memory unit, generating a remote control signal from the digital waveform information, and transmitting the digital waveform information through the remote control transmitter. The remote control apparatus according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the remote control transmitter comprises a plurality of transmitting elements. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the remote control control signal from the digital waveform information is assigned to the generation of the remote control control signal by the system controller. A first step of initializing the generated signal generation module; A second step of calculating an n bit count value from the digital waveform information; Setting a predetermined control register for controlling a pulse width of an output signal in the signal generation module using the n-bit count value; A fourth step of starting the signal generation module; A fifth step of checking whether the generation of the remote control signal is completed and ending the generation of the remote control signal when completed; A sixth step of calculating the n-bit count value in advance from the digital waveform information; And a seventh step of waiting for an interrupt to occur from the signal generation module and proceeding to the third step if an interrupt occurs, wherein the second and sixth steps respectively calculate the n-bit count value. A step of initializing the n-bit count value to a predetermined initial value; B) reading m-bit data from the digital waveform information; C) checking whether the m-bit data is a predetermined m-bit reserved value and adding the value of a power of 2 (n-k) to the n-bit count value if it is the same; And d) adding an n-bit value, which is a value obtained by shifting the m-bit data left by (n-k-m) bits, to the n-bit count value. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the second and sixth steps further comprise an e-step of adding a predetermined offset value, which is a natural number less than a power of two (nkm), to the n-bit count value. Step d and step e is a remote control device, characterized in that irrelevant in the front and rear order. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the remote control control signal from the digital waveform information is assigned to the generation of the remote control control signal by the system controller. A first step of initializing the generated signal generation module; A second step of calculating an n bit count value from the digital waveform information; Setting a predetermined control register for controlling a pulse width of an output signal in the signal generation module using the n-bit count value; A fourth step of starting the signal generation module; A fifth step of checking whether the generation of the remote control signal is completed and ending the generation of the remote control signal when completed; And a sixth step of waiting for an interrupt to occur from the signal generation module and proceeding to the second step if an interrupt occurs, wherein the second step includes: counting the n-bit count to calculate the n-bit count value; A second step of initializing a value to a predetermined initial value; A second step of reading m-bit data from the digital waveform information; A second step of checking whether the m-bit data is a predetermined m-bit reserved value and adding the value of a power of 2 (n-k) to the n-bit count value if it is the same; And a second step of adding an n-bit value, which is a value obtained by shifting the m-bit data left by (n-k-m) bits, to the n-bit count value. 13. The method of claim 12, wherein the second step further includes a second e step of adding a predetermined offset value, which is a natural number less than a power of two (nkm), to the n-bit count value, wherein the second d step and the Step 2e is remote control device, characterized in that independent of each other in the order before and after. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the remote control control signal from the digital waveform information is assigned to the generation of the remote control control signal by the system controller. A first step of initializing the generated signal generation module; A second step of calculating first and second n-bit count values from the digital waveform information; A third step of setting predetermined first and second control registers for controlling a pulse width of an output signal in the signal generation module using the first and second n bit count values; A fourth step of starting the signal generation module; A fifth step of checking whether the generation of the remote control signal is completed and ending the generation of the remote control signal when completed; A sixth step of calculating in advance the first and second n-bit count values from the digital waveform information; And a seventh step of waiting for an interrupt to occur from the signal generation module and proceeding to the third step if an interrupt occurs, wherein the second and sixth steps respectively include the first and second n bits. A step of initializing an n-bit variable to a predetermined initial value for each of the first and second count values to calculate a count value; B) reading m-bit data from the digital waveform information; C) checking whether the m-bit data is a predetermined m-bit reserved value and adding the value of a power of 2 (n-k) to the n-bit variable in the same case, and proceeding to step b; D) adding an n-bit value, which is a value obtained by shifting the m-bit data left by (n-k-m) bits, to the n-bit variable; And e-counting the n-bit variable as a result and outputting the n-bit variable as a result. 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the seventh step comprises: a seventh step of waiting for an interrupt to occur from the signal generation module; A seventh step of checking a cause of occurrence of the generated interrupt; And a seventh step of proceeding to the seventh step if the cause of the occurrence is due to the first control register, and otherwise proceeding to the third step. . 15. The method of claim 14, wherein calculating the n-bit count value further includes adding a predetermined offset value, which is a natural number less than a power of two (nkm), to the n-bit variable before step e. Including the step d and the step de is remote control device, characterized in that irrelevant in the front and rear order. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating of the remote control control signal from the digital waveform information is assigned to the generation of the remote control control signal by the system controller. A first step of initializing the generated signal generation module; A second step of calculating first and second n-bit count values from the digital waveform information; A third step of setting predetermined first and second control registers for controlling a pulse width of an output signal in the signal generation module using the first and second n bit count values; A fourth step of starting the signal generation module; A fifth step of checking whether the generation of the remote control signal is completed and ending the generation of the remote control signal when completed; And a sixth step of waiting for an interrupt to occur from the signal generation module and proceeding to the second step if an interrupt occurs, wherein the second step includes: calculating the first and second n-bit count values; A step of initializing an n-bit variable to a predetermined initial value for each of the first and second count values; B) reading m-bit data from the digital waveform information; C) checking whether the m-bit data is a predetermined m-bit reserved value and adding the value of a power of 2 (n-k) to the n-bit variable in the same case, and proceeding to step b; D) adding an n-bit value, which is a value obtained by shifting the m-bit data left by (n-k-m) bits, to the n-bit variable; And e-counting the n-bit variable as a result and outputting the n-bit variable as a result. 18. The method of claim 17, wherein the sixth step comprises: a sixth step of waiting for an interrupt to occur from the signal generation module; Checking a cause of occurrence of the generated interrupt; And a sixth step of proceeding to the sixth step if the cause of the occurrence is due to the first control register, and otherwise proceeding to the second step. . 18. The method of claim 17, wherein calculating the n-bit count value further includes adding a predetermined offset value, which is a natural number less than a power of two (nkm), to the n-bit variable before the e-th step. Including the step d and the step de is remote control device, characterized in that irrelevant in the front and rear order.