Controlling one or more source terminals based on remote control information

• US 10,148,900 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2015
• Issued: 12/04/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2014
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Banma Zhixing Network (Hongkong) Co., Limited
• Original Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Inventors: Wang, Guonai
• Primary Examiner(s): Garcia, Santiago
• Application Number:
  US14/798,873
• Publication Number:
  US 20160021327A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,239 Days
• Field of Search: 340 1223
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4113 PC
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application relate to a method, apparatus, and system for controlling one or more source terminals. The method includes acquiring remote control code information submitted via a remote control terminal, the remote control code information specifying an operation to be performed, determining among one or more source terminals a target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information, and sending to the target source terminal control instruction information corresponding to the remote control code information and causing the operation to be performed on the target source terminal.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

acquiring remote control code information submitted via a remote control terminal, the remote control code information specifying an operation to be performed;

determining among one or more source terminals a target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information, based at least in part on (i) a determination that a capability of at least one of the one or more source terminals matches a command associated with the remote control code information based at least in part on a result of querying a mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of one or more source terminals, wherein the mapping comprises control code information, and (ii) an identified one of the one or more source terminals contemporaneously providing an output to an output device, wherein the identified one of the one or more source terminals is identified by a video control equipment based on an input to the video control equipment made by at least one of the one or more source terminals to be identified; and

sending to the target source terminal control instruction information corresponding to the remote control code information and causing the operation to be performed on the target source terminal.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

parsing the remote control code information; and

generating the control instruction information corresponding to the remote control code information, wherein the control instruction information is readable by the target source terminal.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

determining a format of control instruction information used by the target source terminal, wherein the control instruction information is generated using the format of control instruction information used by the target source terminal.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining among the one or more source terminals of the target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information comprises:

using a video signal currently in use by a video display terminal connected to the one or more source terminals to determine among the one or more source terminals the target source terminal, wherein the target source terminal is a source terminal among the one or more source terminals that is providing the video signal currently in use by the video display terminal.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of which of the one or more source terminals corresponds to the target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information comprises:

detecting whether the remote control code information corresponds to a source terminal,

wherein the one or more source terminals correspond to the target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information is determined in the event that the remote control code information corresponds to a source terminal.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

detecting whether the remote control code information corresponds to a video display terminal that is connected to the one or more source terminals; and

in response to a determination that the remote control code information corresponds to the video display terminal, causing the control instruction information corresponding to the remote control code information to be executed on the video display terminal.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the acquiring of the remote control code information submitted via the remote control terminal comprises:

receiving the remote control code information from at least one of the one or more source terminals, wherein the remote control code information from the remote control terminal is received by the at least one of the one or more source terminals.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

pairing the remote control terminal to video control equipment.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the remote control code information submitted via the remote control terminal is received by video control equipment in the event that the video control equipment is paired with the remote control terminal.

28. The method of claim 1, wherein determining among one or more source terminals a target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information comprises selecting the target source terminal to which to send target source terminal control instruction information corresponding to the remote control code information based at least in part on the determination that the capability of at least one of the one or more source terminals matches the command associated with the remote control code information.

29. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more source terminals are determined to support the operation to be performed in response to a determination that the mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of the one or more source terminals comprises the control code information.

30. The method of claim 1, wherein the mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of one or more source terminals is queries based at least in part on the command associated with the remote control code information.

2. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a video equipment, control instruction information corresponding to remote control code information submitted by a remote control terminal via a video control equipment and forwarded to the video equipment, wherein the video equipment is identified by the video control equipment based at least in part on the remote control code information, and at least in part on (i) a determination that one or more of a capability of the video equipment matches a command associated with the remote control code information based at least in part on a result of querying a mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of one or more source terminals, wherein the mapping comprises control code information, and (ii) an identification of the video equipment contemporaneously providing an output to an output device, wherein the video equipment is identified by the video control equipment based on an input to the video control equipment from the video control equipment; and

executing the control instruction information.

11. A method, comprising:

receiving, by a video equipment, control instruction information corresponding to remote control code information submitted by a remote control terminal via a video control equipment and forwarded to the video equipment, wherein the video equipment is identified by the video control equipment based at least in part on the remote control code information, and at least in part on (i) a determination that one or more of a capability of the video equipment matches a command associated with the remote control code information based at least in part on a result of querying a mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of one or more source terminals, wherein the mapping comprises control code information, and (ii) an identification of the video equipment contemporaneously providing an output to an output device, wherein the video equipment is identified by the video control equipment based on an input to the video control equipment from the video control equipment; and

executing the control instruction information.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the video equipment is integrated with or comprised in a video display terminal or one or more source terminals.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the video equipment is connected to one or more source terminals.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

acquiring second remote control code information from the remote control terminal; and

sending the second remote control code information to the video control equipment.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the sending the second remote control code information to the video control equipment comprises:

sending unified remote control code information mapped from the second remote control code information to the video control equipment.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

detecting whether the second remote control code information corresponds to the video equipment,

wherein the sending the second remote control code information to the video control equipment comprises;

in response to a determination that the second remote control code information corresponds to other video equipment, sending the second remote control code information to the video control equipment.

17. A video control equipment, comprising:

at least one processor configured to;

acquire remote control code information submitted via a remote control terminal, the remote control code information specifying an operation to be performed;

determine among one or more source terminals a target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information based at least in part on (i) a determination that a capability of at least one of the one or more source terminals matches a command associated with the remote control code information based at least in part on a result of querying a mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of one or more source terminals, wherein the mapping comprises control code information, and (ii) an identified one of the one or more source terminals contemporaneously providing an output to an output device, wherein the identified one of the one or more source terminals is identified by the video control equipment based on an input to the video control equipment made by at least one of the one or more source terminals to be identified; and

send to the target source terminal control instruction information corresponding to the remote control code information and cause the operation to be performed on the target source terminal; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor and configured to provide the at least one processor with instructions.

18. The video control equipment of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to use a video signal currently in use by a video display terminal connected to the one or more source terminals as a basis for determining which of the one or more source terminals is the target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information.

19. The video control equipment of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

detect whether the remote control code information corresponds to a source terminal; and

in response to a determination that the remote control code information corresponds to the source terminal, determine which of the one or more source terminals is the target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information.

20. The video control equipment of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

receive remote control terminal-submitted remote control code information from at least one of the one or more source terminals, wherein the at least one of the one or more source terminals received the remote control code information from the remote control terminal.

21. The video control equipment of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to pair with the remote control terminal.

22. The video control equipment of claim 21, wherein the remote control code information submitted via the remote control terminal is received by the one or more processors in the event that the video control equipment is paired with the remote control terminal.

23. A video equipment, comprising:

at least one processor configured to;

receive control instruction information corresponding to remote control code information submitted by a remote control terminal via a video control equipment and forwarded to the video equipment, wherein the video equipment is identified by the video control equipment based at least in part on the remote control code information, and at least in part on (i) a determination that a capability of the video equipment matches a command associated with the remote control code information based at least in part on a result of querying a mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of one or more source terminals, wherein the mapping comprises control code information, and (ii) an identification of the video equipment contemporaneously providing an output to an output device, wherein the video equipment is identified by the video control equipment based on an input to the video control equipment from the video control equipment; and

execute the control instruction information; and

a memory coupled to the at least one processor and configured to provide the at least one processor with instructions.

24. The video equipment of claim 23, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

acquire second remote control code information from the remote control terminal; and

send the second remote control code information to the video control equipment.

25. The video equipment of claim 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

send unified remote control code information mapped from the second remote control code information to the video control equipment.

26. The video equipment of claim 24, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

detect whether the second remote control code information corresponds to the video equipment; and

in response to a determination that the second remote control code information corresponds to other video equipment, send the second remote control code information to the video control equipment.

27. A computer program product, the computer program product being embodied in a non-transitory computer readable storage medium and comprising computer instructions for:

acquiring remote control code information submitted via a remote control terminal, the remote control code information specifying an operation to be performed;

determining among one or more source terminals a target source terminal corresponding to the remote control code information based at least in part on (i) a determination that a capability of at least one of the one or more source terminals matches a command associated with the remote control code information based at least in part on a result of querying a mapping of control instruction information to capabilities of one or more source terminals, wherein the mapping comprises control code information, and (ii) an identified one of the one or more source terminals contemporaneously providing an output to an output device, wherein the identified one of the one or more source terminals is identified by a video control equipment based on an input to the video control equipment made by at least one of the one or more source terminals to be identified; and

sending to the target source terminal control instruction information corresponding to the remote control code information and causing the operation to be performed on the target source terminal.