SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VOICE ACTUATED CONFIGURATION OF A CONTROLLING DEVICE

• US 20130132094A1
• Filed: 11/17/2011
• Published: 05/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/17/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Universal Electronics, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Universal Electronics, Inc.
• Inventors: Lim, Jonathan
• Granted Patent: US 9,847,083 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/275
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/00 Arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless electrical link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/21 Programming remote control devices via third means
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/31 Voice input
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/025 Phonemes, fenemes or fenones being the recognition units
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/228 of application context
• 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 21/42206 characterized by hardware details
• 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 21/42222 Additional components integrated in the remote control device, e.g. timer, speaker, sensors for detecting position, direction or movement of the remote control, microphone or battery charging device
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42226 Reprogrammable remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/435 Processing of additional data, e.g. decrypting of additional data, reconstructing software from modules extracted from the transport stream
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8186 specially adapted to be executed by a peripheral of the client device, e.g. by a reprogrammable remote control

Abstract

A speech recognition engine is provided voice data indicative of at least a brand of a target appliance. The speech recognition engine uses the voice data indicative of at least a brand of the target appliance to identify within a library of codesets at least one codeset that is cross-referenced to the brand of the target appliance. The at least one codeset so identified is then caused to be provisioned to the controlling device for use in commanding functional operations of the target appliance.

Claims

1. A method for configuring a controlling device to command functional operations of a target appliance, the method comprising:

receiving at a speech recognition engine voice data indicative of at least a brand of the target appliance whereupon the speech recognition engine uses the voice data indicative of at least a brand of the target appliance to identify within a library of codesets at least one codeset that is cross-referenced to the brand of the target appliance; and

causing the at least one codeset to be provisioned to the controlling device for use in commanding functional operations of the target appliance.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the speech recognition engine identifies a plurality of codesets that are cross-referenced to the brand of the appliance and the method further comprises receiving at the speech recognition engine voice data indicative of at least a model of the target appliance whereupon the speech recognition engine uses the voice data indicative of at least a model of the target appliance to identify within the plurality of codesets at least one codeset that is cross-referenced to the model of the target appliance and wherein the at least one codeset that is provisioned to controlling device is the at least one codeset that is also cross-referenced to the model of the target appliance.

3. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein the controlling device comprises a microphone for receiving voice input used in creating the voice data.

4. The method as recited in claim 3, wherein the controlling device comprises a memory having stored therein the library of codesets.

5. The method as recited in claim 4, wherein the controlling device comprises a processing device and instructions for providing the speech recognition engine.

6. The method as recited in claim 3, wherein the speech recognition engine is executed on a computing device remote from the controlling device.

7. The method as recited in claim 6, wherein the library of codesets is stored remotely from the controlling device and the at least one codeset is provisioned to the controlling device by being downloaded thereto.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the library of codesets is stored remotely from the controlling device and the at least one codeset is provisioned to the controlling device by being downloaded thereto.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the controlling device has a plurality of function keys activatable to cause a transmission of a command to the target appliance and wherein the method comprises receiving at the speech recognition engine voice data indicative of a command to be assigned to a function key of the controlling device whereupon the speech recognition engine uses the voice data indicative of a command to be assigned to a function key to identify within the at least one codeset command data that is cross-referenced to the command and causing the command data of the at least one codeset to be used by the controlling device in response to the function key being subsequently activated to cause a transmission of a command to the target device.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising receiving at the speech recognition engine voice data indicative of a command to be transmitted from the controlling device whereupon the speech recognition engine uses the voice data indicative of a command to be transmitted to identify within the at least one codeset command data that is cross-referenced to the command and causing the command data of the at least one codeset to be used to transmit a command to the target appliance.

11. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein location data is additionally utilized in the process of identifying the at least one codeset that is cross-referenced to the brand of the target appliance.

12. The method as recited in claim 2, wherein location data is additionally utilized in the process of identifying the at least one codeset that is cross-reference to the model of the target appliance.

13. A system for configuring a controlling device to command functional operations of a target appliance, the system comprising:

a processing device having associated instructions stored on a non-transient readable media which instructions, when executed by the processing device, cause a speech recognition engine to use received voice data indicative of at least a brand of the target appliance to identify within a library of codesets at least one codeset that is cross-referenced to the brand of the target appliance and to cause the at least one codeset to be provisioned to the controlling device for use in commanding functional operations of the target appliance.

14. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the instructions are downloaded to the controlling device in a downloadable app.

15. The system as recited in claim 14, wherein the controlling device comprises one of a smart phone or a tablet computing device.

16. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the speech recognition engine functions to identify a plurality of codesets that are cross-referenced to the brand of the appliance and the instructions further cause the speech recognition engine to use received voice data indicative of a model of the target appliance to identify within the plurality of codesets at least one codeset that is cross-referenced to a model of the target appliance whereupon the at least one codeset that is provisioned to controlling device is the at least one codeset that is also cross-referenced to the model of the target appliance.

17. The system as recited in claim 16, wherein the controlling device comprises a memory having stored therein the library of codesets.

18. The system as recited in claim 16, wherein the library of codesets is stored remotely from the controlling device and the at least one codeset is provisioned to the controlling device by being downloaded thereto.

19. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the processing device comprises one or more computing devices located remotely from the controlling device.

20. The system as recited in claim 19, wherein the controlling device comprises a memory having stored therein the library of codesets.

21. The system as recited in claim 19, wherein the library of codesets is stored remotely from the controlling device and the at least one codeset is provisioned to the controlling device by being downloaded thereto.

22. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the controlling device has a plurality of function keys activatable to cause a transmission of a command to the target appliance and wherein the instructions cause the speech recognition engine to use voice data indicative of a command to be assigned to a function key of the controlling device to identify within the at least one codeset command data that is cross-referenced to the command and to cause the command data of the at least one codeset to be used by the controlling device in response to the function key being subsequently activated to cause a transmission of a command to the target device.

23. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the instructions cause the speech recognition engine to use voice data indicative of a command to be transmitted from the controlling device to identify within the at least one codeset command data that is cross-referenced to the command and to cause the command data of the at least one codeset to be used to transmit a command to the target appliance.

24. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the instructions additionally cause location data to be considered when identifying the at least one codeset that is cross-referenced to the brand of the target appliance.

25. The system as recited in claim 16, wherein the instructions additionally cause location data to be considered when identifying the at least one codeset that is cross-reference to the model of the target appliance.