Set top/back box, system and method for providing a remote control device

• US 10,187,685 B2
• Filed: 02/02/2017
• Issued: 01/22/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Enseo, LLC (Enseo, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Enseo, Inc.
• Inventors: Ogle, Vanessa, Fang, Bill, Miller, Tom, Horton, Scott
• Primary Examiner(s): Montoya, Oschta I
• Application Number:
  US15/422,667
• Publication Number:
  US 20170150201A1
• Time in Patent Office: 719 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/20 Binding and programming of remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/30 User interface
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/92 Universal remote control
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/93 Remote control using other portable devices, e.g. mobile phone, PDA, laptop
• 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 21/4131 home appliance, e.g. lighting, air conditioning system, metering devices home automation data switching networks exchanging configuration information on appliance services H04L12/2807
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42202 environmental sensors, e.g. for detecting temperature, luminosity, pressure, earthquakes
• 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 21/42206 characterized by hardware details
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42208 Display device provided on the remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42209 for displaying non-command information, e.g. electronic program guide [EPG], e-mail, messages or a second television channel
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4222 Remote control device emulator integrated into a non-television apparatus, e.g. a PDA, media center or smart toy remote control device for a television receiver integrated into a mobile phone H04M1/72415
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42221 Transmission circuitry, e.g. infrared [IR] or radio frequency [RF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42224 Touch pad or touch panel provided on the remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42226 Reprogrammable remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4367 Establishing a secure communication between the client and a peripheral device or smart card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4751 for defining user accounts, e.g. accounts for children
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 for social networking applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 : Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A set top/back box and system and method for providing a remote control device are disclosed. In one embodiment, one or more wireless transceivers are located within a housing, which also interconnectively includes television input/output, a processor, and memory. The set top/back box may establish a pairing with a programmable device, such as a proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device having a touch screen display, whereby formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions, including virtual buttons, may be transmitted to the programmable device for display on the touch screen display to create an experience parallel to the experience on the television. The set top/back box receives and processes virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the programmable device to control amenities associated with the set top/back box.

Claims

1. A set top/back box comprising:

a housing;

one or more wireless transceivers associated with the housing, the one or more wireless transceivers operable to communicate with a non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device;

a television input and a television output secured in the housing, the television input and the television output for receiving content from a source and forwarding content to a television;

a processor coupled to the one or more wireless transceivers and the television input and the television output;

a memory accessible to the processor, the memory including processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

send formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions to the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device paired with the set top/back box,

provide instructions for virtual buttons on a touch screen display associated with the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, the virtual buttons being associated with a particular amenity to enable the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device to have virtual remote control functionality,

receive and process virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, and

send a command to the particular amenity;

a configuration profile associated with the memory and processor-executable instructions that enables the set top/back box to control a plurality of proximate amenities, the plurality of proximate amenities including the particular amenity, the plurality of proximate amenities being selected from the group consisting of lights, thermostats, and shades;

the configuration profile, for each amenity of the plurality of amenities, including instructions for virtual buttons on a touch screen display, and instructions for associating virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the touch screen display with commands; and

wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that selectively display one or more sets of virtual buttons on the touch screen display, the one or more sets of virtual buttons relate to the plurality of amenities,

wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale an image on the television to the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device;

wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that display virtual buttons on a second portion of the touch screen display.

2. The set top/back box as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more wireless transceivers are configured to communicate with a standard selected from the group consisting of infrared (IR), 802.11, 3G, 4G, Edge, WiFi, ZigBee, near field communications (NFC), and Bluetooth.

3. The set top/back box as recited in claim 1, wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale, on a frame-by-frame basis, an image on the television to the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device.

4. The set top/back box as recited in claim 1, wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale, on a streaming basis, an image on the television to the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device.

5. The set top/back box as recited in claim 1, wherein the processor being caused to receive and process virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device further comprises receiving and processing the location of a touch-and-click operation on the touch screen display.

6. The set top/back box as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more transceivers are internal to the housing.

7. The set top/back box as recited in claim 1, wherein the one or more transceivers are external to the housing.

8. A set top/back box comprising:

a housing;

one or more wireless transceivers associated with the housing, the one or more wireless transceivers operable to communicate with a non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device;

a television input and a television output secured in the housing, the television input and the television output for receiving content from a source and forwarding content to a television;

a processor coupled to the one or more wireless transceivers and the television input and the television output;

a memory accessible to the processor, the memory including processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

send formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions to the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device paired with the set top/back box,

provide instructions for virtual buttons on a touch screen display associated with the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, the virtual buttons being associated with a particular amenity to enable the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device to have virtual remote control functionality,

receive and process virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, and

send a command to the particular amenity;

a configuration profile associated with the memory and processor-executable instructions that enables the set top/back box to control a plurality of proximate amenities, the plurality of proximate amenities including the particular amenity, the plurality of proximate amenities being selected from the group consisting of lights, thermostats, and shades; and

the configuration profile, for each amenity of the plurality of amenities, including instructions for virtual buttons on a touch screen display, and instructions for associating virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the touch screen display with commands,

wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale an image on the television to the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device;

wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that display virtual buttons on a second portion of the touch screen display.

9. The set top/back box as recited in claim 8, wherein the one or more wireless transceivers are configured to communicate with a standard selected from the group consisting of infrared (IR), 802.11, 3G, 4G, Edge, WiFi, ZigBee, near field communications (NFC), and Bluetooth.

10. The set top/back box as recited in claim 8, wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale, on a frame-by-frame basis, an image on the television to the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device.

11. The set top/back box as recited in claim 8, wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale, on a streaming basis, an image on the television to the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device.

12. The set top/back box as recited in claim 8, wherein the one or more transceivers are internal to the housing.

13. The set top/back box as recited in claim 8, wherein the one or more transceivers are external to the housing.

14. A set top/back box comprising:

a housing;

one or more wireless transceivers associated with the housing, the one or more wireless transceivers operable to communicate with a non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device;

a television input and a television output secured in the housing, the television input and the television output for receiving content from a source and forwarding content to a television;

a processor coupled to the one or more wireless transceivers and the television input and the television output; and

a memory accessible to the processor, the memory including processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

send formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions to the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device paired with the set top/back box,

provide instructions for virtual buttons on a touch screen display associated with the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device to enable the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device to have virtual remote control functionality, the virtual buttons being associated with a particular amenity, the particular amenity being selected from the group consisting of lights, thermostats, and shades,

receive and process virtual remote control functionality input instructions from the non-remote control proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device, and

send a command to the particular amenity,

wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that scale an image on the television to the touch screen display on the proximate wireless-enabled interactive handheld device;

wherein the formatted parallel audiovisual experience instructions include instructions that display virtual buttons on a second portion of the touch screen display.

15. The set top/back box as recited in claim 14, wherein the one or more wireless transceivers are configured to communicate with a standard selected from the group consisting of infrared (IR), 802.11, 3G, 4G, Edge, WiFi, ZigBee, near field communications (NFC), and Bluetooth.