Information communication system, terminal apparatus, base apparatus, information communication method, information processing method, and computer program and recording medium

• US 20080231761A1
• Filed: 08/30/2007
• Published: 09/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Nishikata, Natsuko, Suto, Kazunori, Katayama, Tamao
• Application Number:
  US11/897,549
• Publication Number:
  US 20080231761A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/734
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/42 Transmitting or receiving remote control signals via a network
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 23/04 using light waves, e.g. infrared
• 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 21/42221 Transmission circuitry, e.g. infrared [IR] or radio frequency [RF]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/436 Interfacing a local distribution network, e.g. communicating with another STB or one or more peripheral devices inside the home
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4363 Adapting the video stream to a specific local network, e.g. a Bluetooth® network

Abstract

An information communication system for performing bidirectional communication over a network, which may include a terminal apparatus, a base apparatus, and a memory supplied in at least one of the base apparatus and the terminal apparatus. A terminal control unit in the terminal apparatus may cause a transmission of a remote-control code information when the remote-control code information generated in the terminal apparatus matches identification information corresponding to a selected external, or a base control unit in the base apparatus may supply the remote-control code information to a remote-control transmission signal generation unit in the base apparatus when the remote-control code information supplied from the terminal apparatus matches identification information corresponding to a selected external device.

Claims

1. An information communication system for performing bi-directional communication by connecting a base apparatus with a terminal apparatus over a network, the information communication system, comprising the terminal apparatus including:

a remote-control signal receiving unit for receiving a remote control signal and generating a remote-control received signal;

a remote-control received signal processing unit for decoding the remote-control received signal generated in the remote-control signal receiving unit; and

a terminal control unit for causing a transmission of the remote-control code information to the base apparatus the base apparatus including a remote-control transmission signal generation unit for generating a remote-control transmission signal based on the remote-control code information; and

a remote-control signal transmission unit for transmitting a remote control signal based on the remote-control transmission signal generated in the remote-control transmission signal generation unit; and

a base control unit for supplying the remote-control code information supplied from the terminal apparatus to the remote-control transmission signal generation unit; and

a memory, provided in at least one of the base apparatus and the terminal apparatus, storing identification information for identifying a remote control signal used for an external device different from the base apparatus and the terminal apparatus, wherein the terminal control unit causes a transmission of the remote-control code information when the remote code information generated in the remote-control signal receiving unit matches identification information corresponding to a selected external device, or the base control unit supplies the remote-control code information to the remote-control transmission signal generation unit when the remote-control code information supplied from the terminal apparatus matches identification information corresponding to a selected external device.

2. The information communication system according to claim 1, wherein the memory stores format information indicative of a format of the remote control signal and model information indicative of a model remotely controlled with the remote control signal as the identification information.

3. The information communication system according to claim 1, wherein the terminal control unit of the terminal apparatus is configured to enable a selection of either of first and second operation modes based on the remote-control code information generated in the remote-control received signal processing signal, the first operation mode enabling a transmission of the remote-control code information and the second operation mode disabling a transmission of the remote-control code information.

4. An information communication method for performing bi-directional communication by connecting a base apparatus with a terminal apparatus over a network, the information communication method comprising the steps of:

in the terminal apparatus, receiving a remote control signal and generating a remote-control received signal;

generating a remote-control code information by decoding the remote-control received signal; and

transmitting the remote-control code information;

in the base apparatus, receiving the remote-control code information transmitted;

generating a remote-control transmission signal; and

transmitting a remote control signal based on the remote-control transmission signal; and

wherein, in the transmission step of the terminal apparatus, the generated remote-control code information is transmitted when the generated remote-control code information matches identification information pre-stored for identifying a remote control signal used for a selected external device, or in the receiving step of base apparatus, the remote-control transmission signal based on the remote-control code information is generated by the remote-control transmission signal generation step when the received remote-control code information matches the identification information.

5. A terminal apparatus, comprising:

a communication unit for performing bi-directional communication over a network;

a remote-control signal receiving unit for receiving a remote control signal and generating a remote-control received signal;

a remote-control received signal processing unit for decoding the remote-control received signal generated by the remote-control signal receiving unit, and generating remote-control code information;

a memory storing identification information for identifying a remote control signal used for an external device;

a terminal control unit for transmitting the remote-control code information from the communication unit, when the remote-control code information generated by the remote-control received signal processing unit matches identification information, in the memory, corresponding to a selected external device.

6. The terminal apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the memory stores format information indicative of a format of the remote control signal and model information indicative of a model remotely controlled by the remote control signal as the identification information.

7. The terminal apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the terminal control unit is configured to enable a selection of either of first and second operation modes based on the remote-control code information generated in the remote-control received signal processing signal, the first operation mode enabling a transmission of the remote-control code information and the second operation mode disabling a transmission of the remote-control code information.

8. An information communication method comprising:

receiving a remote control signal and generating a remote-control received signal;

generating remote-control code information by decoding the remote-control received signal; and

transmitting the remote-control code information, when the generated remote-control code information matches identification information pre-stored for identifying a remote control signal used for a selected external device.

9. A base apparatus, comprising:

a communication unit for performing bi-directional communication over a network;

a remote-control transmission signal generation unit for generating a remote-control transmission signal based on remote-control code information;

a remote-control signal transmission unit for transmitting a remote control signal based on the remote-control transmission signal generated by the remote-control transmission signal generation unit;

a memory storing identification information for identifying a remote control signal used for an external device; and

a base control unit for supplying the remote-control code information to the remote-control transmission signal generation unit, when the remote-control code information supplied through the communication unit matches identification information, in the memory, corresponding to a selected external device.

10. The base apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the memory stores format information indicative of a format of the remote control signal and model information indicative of a model remotely controlled by the remote control signal as the identification information.

11. An information processing method comprising:

generating a remote-control transmission signal based on remote-control code information, when the remote-control code information received matches identification information pre-stored for identifying a remote control signal used for a selected external device; and

transmitting the remote control signal based on the generated remote-control transmission signal.

12. A computer program for causing a computer to implement, comprising:

a step of identifying whether remote-control code information obtained by receiving a remote control signal and decoded the received remote control signal matches identification information pre-stored for identifying a remote control signal used for a selected external device; and

a step of transmitting the remote-control code information when the remote-control code information matches the identification information.

13. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded therein a program for causing a computer to implement:

a step of identifying whether remote-control code information obtained by receiving a remote control signal and decoded the received remote control signal matches identification information pre-stored for identifying a remote control signal used for a selected external device; and

a step of transmitting the remote-control code information when the remote-control code information matches the identification information.

14. A computer program for causing a computer to implement:

a step of identifying whether remote-control code information received matches identification information pre-stored for identifying a remote control signal used for a selected external device; and

a step of generating and transmitting the remote control signal based on the remote-control code information when the remote-control code information matches the identification information.

15. A computer-readable recording medium having recorded therein a program for causing a computer to implement:

a step of identifying whether remote-control code information received matches identification information pre-stored for identifying a remote control signal used for a selected external device; and

a step of generating and transmitting the remote control signal based on the remote-control code information when the remote-control code information matches the identification information.