UNIVERSAL REMOTE CONTROL PROGRAMMING

• US 20080174468A1
• Filed: 01/23/2007
• Published: 07/24/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Original Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Inventors: Drimusz, Laszlo
• Granted Patent: US 9,235,986 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 341/176
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 19/28 using pulse code
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/92 Universal remote control

Abstract

An apparatus and method for programming a universal remote control. The method includes receiving a transmitted signal of unknown modulation technique from a native remote control and characterizing the received signal in parameters of a pre-determined modulation technique.

Claims

1. A method comprising;

interpreting a command signal of unknown modulation technique received from a native remote control to provide a command code expressed in parameters of a pre-determined modulation technique.

2. A method according to claim 1, further comprising comparing the correspondence between the command code and the indicator with a database including command codes expressed in the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique.

3. A method according to claim 2, further comprising converting a database including command codes expressed in one of oversampled terms and run length code terms to a database including command codes expressed in parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique.

4. A method according to claim 2, further comprising repeating the interpreting and the comparing until a device code associated with the native remote control is identified.

5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the pre-determined modulation technique is pulse-width modulation.

6. A method according to claim 5, wherein the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique comprise ON and OFF time of a first symbol and ON and OFF time of a second symbol.

7. A method according to claim 5, wherein the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique comprise carrier frequency.

8. A method according to claim 1, further comprising receiving an IR signal.

55. A method according to claim 1, further comprising comparing successive transmissions of a data portion and smoothing the data portions to provide a smoothed data portion.

56. A method according to claim 55, wherein the smoothing comprises one of averaging and filtering.

9. An apparatus comprising:

a signal interpreter, for interpreting a command signal of unknown modulation technique from a native remote control to provide a command code expressed in parameters of a pre-determined modulation technique.

10. An apparatus in accordance with claim 9, wherein the signal interpreter is incorporated in a universal remote control.

11. An apparatus in accordance with claim 9, further comprising a signal analyzer for comparing the correspondence between the command code and the indicator with a searchable database.

12. An apparatus in accordance with claim 11, wherein the signal interpreter and the analyzer are in the same physical device.

13. An apparatus in accordance with claim 12, wherein the physical device is a remote control.

14. An apparatus in accordance with claim 12, wherein the physical device is an audio receiver or head unit;

15. An apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising an IR signal receiver;

16. A microprocessor readable medium encoding instructions to cause a microprocessor associated with a universal remote control to interpret a command signal of unknown modulation technique from a native remote control to provide a command code expressed in parameters of a pre-determined modulation technique.

17. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 16, wherein the instructions further cause the microprocessor to compare the correspondence of the command code and an indicator of a native remote control with a searchable database;

18. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 17, wherein the instructions further cause the microprocessor to convert a set of command codes expressed in at least one of oversampled terms and run length code terms to provide a set of command codes expressed in parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique.

19. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 17, wherein the instructions further cause the microprocessor to repeat the instructions causing the microprocessor to interpret and to compare until a device code associated with the native remote control is identified.

20. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 16, wherein the pre-determined modulation technique is pulse-width modulation.

21. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 20, wherein the parameters comprise ON and OFF time of a first symbol and ON and OFF time of a second symbol.

22. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 20, wherein the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique comprise carrier frequency.

57. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 16, further encoding instructions to compare successive transmissions of a data, portion and smooth the data portions to provide a smoothed data portion.

58. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 57, wherein, the instructions to smooth include instructions to average or filter the successive transmissions.

23. A method comprising:

interpreting a command signal of unknown modulation technique from a native remote control to provide a first command code expressed in parameters of a pre-determined modulation technique; and

determining, based on correspondence between the first indicator and the first command code, if a command set of the native remote control can be uniquely identified.

24. A method according to claim 23, further comprising in the event that the command set of the native remote control cannot be uniquely identified, repeating the interpreting and the determining until the command set of native remote control is uniquely identified.

25. A method according to claim 23, further comprising comparing the correspondence between the command code and the indicator with a database including command codes expressed in the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique.

26. A method according to claim 25 wherein the pre-determined modulation technique is pulse-width modulation.

27. A method according to claim 25, wherein the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique comprise ON and OFF time of a first symbol and ON and OFF time of a second symbol.

28. A method according to claim 25, wherein the parameters of the pre-determined modulation comprise carrier frequency.

29. A microprocessor readable medium encoding instructions causing a microprocessor to:

interpret a command signal of unknown modulation technique from a native remote control to provide a command code expressed in parameters of a pre-determined modulation technique; and

determine, based on correspondence between the first indicator and the first command code, if a command set of the native remote control can be uniquely identified.

30. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 29, wherein the instructions further cause the microprocessor, in the event that the command set of the native remote control cannot be uniquely identified, to repeat the instructions causing the microprocessor to interpret and to determine until the command set of the native remote control is uniquely identified.

31. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 29, wherein the instructions further cause the microprocessor to compare the correspondence between the command code and the indicator with a database including command codes expressed in the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique.

32. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 31, wherein the instructions further cause the microprocessor to convert a set of command codes expressed in at least one of oversampled terms and run length code terms to provide the plurality of command codes to a set of command codes expressed according to a pre-determined modulation technique.

33. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 31, wherein the pre-determined modulation technique is pulse-width modulation.

34. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 31, wherein the parameters of the pre-determined modulation technique comprise ON and OFF time of a first symbol and ON and OFF time of a second symbol.

35. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 31, wherein the parameters of the pre-determined modulation comprise carrier frequency.

36. An apparatus comprising:

a signal interpreter for interpreting a command signal of unknown modulation technique received from a native remote control to provide a command code expressed in parameters of a pre-determined modulation technique

an analyzer for determining, based on correspondence between the first indicator and the first command code, if the command set of the native remote control can be uniquely identified.

37. An apparatus in accordance with claim 36, wherein the signal interpreter and the analyzer are in the same physical device.

38. An apparatus in accordance with claim 37, wherein the physical device is a remote control.

39. An apparatus in accordance with claim 37, wherein the physical device is an audio receiver or head unit.

40. An apparatus in accordance with claim 36, further comprising an IR sensor for receiving the command signal.

41. A method for modifying a database including remote control command codes expressed in oversampled form or run-length code form, comprising:

determining unique On/Off sequences in the command codes;

expressing each of the unique On/Off sequences in parameters of a modulation technique; and

encoding each of the command codes in parameters of the modulation technique.

42. A method according to claim 41, wherein the modulation technique is pulse-width modulation.

43. A method according to claim 41, further comprising determining parameters that have common values for each of the command codes in the command set.

44. A method according to claim 43, wherein the parameters include at least one of carrier frequency and carrier duty cycle.

45. A method according to claim 43, wherein the parameters include at least one of leader On time and leader Off time.

46. A method according to claim 43, wherein the parameters include inter-code gap time.

47. A method according to claim 43, wherein the parameters include repeat behavior.

48. A microprocessor readable medium encoding instructions to cause the microprocessor to modify the records of a database of command codes expressed in oversampled form or run-length code form by:

determining unique On/Off sequences in the command codes;

expressing each of the unique On/Off sequences in parameters of a modulation technique; and

encoding each of the command codes in parameters of the modulation technique.

49. A microprocessor readable medium, according to claim 48, wherein the modulation technique is pulse-width modulation.

50. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 48, wherein the instructions cause the microprocessor to modify the records further by determining parameters that have common values for each of the command codes in the command set.

51. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 50, wherein the parameters include at least one of carrier frequency and carrier duty cycle.

52. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 50, wherein the parameters include at least one of leader On time and leader Off time.

53. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 50, wherein the parameters include inter-code gap time.

54. A microprocessor readable medium according to claim 50, wherein the parameters include repeat behavior.