Touch Screen Remote Control with Dynamic Keypad Layouts

• US 20100037180A1
• Filed: 08/08/2008
• Published: 02/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/08/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Jacobson, Neil A., Elias, Mark A., Soja-Molloy, Sherry
• Application Number:
  US12/188,315
• Publication Number:
  US 20100037180A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/840
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04886 by partitioning the display area of the touch-screen or the surface of the digitising tablet into independently controllable areas, e.g. virtual keyboards or menus
• 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 21/42224 Touch pad or touch panel provided on the remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42228 the reprogrammable keys being displayed on a display screen in order to reduce the number of keys on the remote control device itself
• 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

Abstract

A remote control device comprising a touch screen, a mode module, and a programming module. The touch screen is configured to display a plurality of buttons for interaction with a television. The mode module is configured to receive a mode request and to populate the touch screen with one of a plurality of button layouts based on the mode request. The programming module is in communication with the touch screen and with the mode module, and is adapted to receive a user defined button layout and to store the user defined button layout in the mode module.

Claims

1. A remote control device comprising:

a touch screen configured to display a plurality of buttons for interaction with a television;

a mode module configured to receive a mode request and to populate the touch screen with one of a plurality of button layouts based on the mode request; and

a programming module in communication with the touch screen and with the mode module, the programming module adapted to receive a user defined button layout and to store the user defined button layout in the mode module.

2. The remote control device of claim 1 further comprising:

a connection module in communication with the mode module, the connection module configured to receive a customized button layout from a device and to store the customized button layout in the mode module.

3. The remote control device of claim 1 further comprising:

a detection module in communication with the touch screen, the detection module configured to determine when the remote control device is in communication with a customer premises equipment and configured to populate the touch screen with one of the plurality of button layouts based on the communication with the customer premises equipment.

4. The remote control device of claim 1 wherein the plurality of button layouts corresponds to different devices.

5. The remote control device of claim 1 wherein the plurality of button layouts corresponds to different users.

6. The remote control device of claim 1 wherein the mode request can be selected from a group consisting a television mode, a set-top box mode, a digital video recorder mode, a digital video disc mode, a compact disc mode, a programming mode, and a custom mode.

7. A method comprising:

displaying a plurality of soft buttons on a touch screen for controlling customer premises equipment;

transmitting a control signal to the customer premises equipment corresponding to one of soft buttons;

enabling a first customized a layout of soft buttons;

associating the first customized layout with a user and the customer premises equipment; and

storing the first customized layout as one of a plurality of layouts.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising:

detecting the customer premises equipment prior to displaying the plurality of soft buttons.

9. The method of claim 7 further comprising:

receiving a second customized button layout from a device; and

storing the second customized button layout as one of the plurality of layouts.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein the touch screen is included on a telephone.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein the customer premises equipment is selected from a group consisting of a set-top box device, a television, a digital video recorder, a video cassette recorder, a digital video disc player, and a compact disc player.

12. A method comprising:

detecting a presence of customer premises equipment;

displaying a first plurality of soft buttons on a touch screen;

receiving a selection of one of the soft buttons;

ending the display of the soft buttons on the touch screen based on the selection of one of the soft buttons; and

displaying a second plurality of soft buttons on the touch screen for controlling the customer premises equipment based on the selection of the one of the first plurality of soft buttons.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising:

receiving a layout of a third plurality of soft buttons from a device; and

storing the layout of the third plurality of soft buttons.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein each of the first plurality of soft buttons are a different control mode of a remote control.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein each of the second plurality of soft buttons comprises a different control function associated with the customer premises device.

16. A computer readable medium comprising a plurality of instructions to manipulate a processor, the plurality of instructions comprising:

instructions to display a plurality of soft buttons on a touch screen for controlling customer premises equipment;

instructions to transmit a control signal to the customer premises equipment corresponding to one of soft buttons;

instructions to customize a layout of soft buttons;

instructions to associate the customized layout with a user and the customer premises equipment; and

instructions to store the customized layout as one of a plurality of layouts.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 16 further comprising:

instructions to detect the customer premises equipment prior to displaying the plurality of soft button.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 16 further comprising:

instructions to receive a new customized button layout from a device; and

instructions to store the new customized button layout as one of the plurality of layouts.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein the touch screen is included on a telephone.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein the customer premises equipment is selected from a group consisting of a set-top box device, a television, a digital video recorder, a video cassette recorder, a digital video disc player, and a compact disc player.