METHOD FOR CONTROLLING INFORMATION APPARATUS, COMPUTER-READABLE RECORDING MEDIUM, AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING INFORMATION

• US 20150177948A1
• Filed: 12/23/2014
• Published: 06/25/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: SASAKI, Takamitsu, NAITO, Eiichi
• Granted Patent: US 9,804,739 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/00 Arrangements for transmitting signals characterised by the use of a wireless electrical link
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/282 based on user interaction within the home receiver circuitry for displaying additional information being controlled by a remote control apparatus H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/025 for remote control or remote monitoring of applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks

Abstract

A control method according to the present disclosure causes a computer of an information apparatus to: display on a display a display screen representing a floor plan including one or more rooms; and using at least one memory that associates first information indicating a type of each of one or more device icons representing one or more target devices with second information indicating an attribute of each of the one or more rooms, display each of the one or more device icons in a region on the display screen corresponding to a room that corresponds to each of the one or more device icons in accordance with the type of each of the one or more device icons.

Claims

1. A method for controlling an information apparatus having a display and being connected to a network, over which one or more target devices are controlled,

the method causing a computer of the information apparatus to:

display on the display a display screen representing a floor plan including one or more rooms;

using at least one memory that associates first information with second information, the first information indicating a type of each of one or more device icons representing the one or more target devices and the second information indicating an attribute of each of the one or more rooms, display each of the one or more device icons in a region on the display screen corresponding to a room that corresponds to each of the one or more device icons in accordance with the type of each of the one or more device icons;

when selection of any of the one or more device icons is sensed in a region corresponding to any of the rooms included in the floor plan, display a control screen for at least any of operation and state confirmation of a target device corresponding to the selected device icon on the display screen representing the floor plan; and

output to the network a control command for at least any of the operation and the state confirmation of the target device corresponding to the selected device icon, based on an operation on the control screen.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the room corresponding to each of the one or more device icons is determined in accordance with the type of each of the one or more device icons using the first information and the second information, and

each of the one or more device icons is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to the determined room.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the at least one memory further stores third information indicating a position of each of the one or more rooms on the floor plan,

the region corresponding to each of the one or more rooms is determined using the third information, and

each of the one or more device icons is displayed in the region on the display screen corresponding to the room that corresponds to each of the one or more device icons in accordance with the type of each of the one or more device icons.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein

the at least one memory further stores third information indicating position of each of the one or more rooms on the floor plan,

the room corresponding to each of the one or more device icons is determined, in accordance with the type of each of the one or more device icons using the first information and the second information,

a region corresponding to each of the one or more rooms is determined using the third information, and

each of the one or more device icons is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to the determined room.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein

when it is determined that one device icon among the one or more device icons corresponds to a plurality of rooms among the one or more rooms based on the first information, the one device icon is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a largest room among the plurality of the corresponding rooms.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein

when the one device icon is determined to be a television set icon representing a television set based on the first information, the television set icon is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a living room.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein

when it is determined that a type of one device icon among the one or more device icons is a type to be displayed on the display screen for the first time and that the one device icon potentially corresponds to a plurality of rooms among the one or more rooms based on the first information, the one device icon is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a largest room among the plurality of potentially corresponding rooms.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein

when it is determined that a type of one device icon among the one or more device icons is a type to be newly displayed on the display screen and that the one device icon is a television set icon representing a television set based on the first information, the television set icon is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a living room.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein

when one device icon among the one or more device icons is determined to be a refrigerator icon representing a refrigerator based on the first information, the refrigerator icon is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a kitchen.

10. A method for providing information in an information management system which is connected to a network that controls one or more target devices associated with a same building ID and which manages information on the one or more target devices, the method comprising:

receiving registration notification representing that one target device among the one or more target devices has been newly registered in the information management system, from the one target device via the network;

using at least one memory that associates first information with second information, the first information indicating a type of each of one or more device icons representing each of the one or more target devices and the second information indicating an attribute of each of one or more rooms included in a display screen representing a floor plan of a building indicated by the building ID, determine an attribute of a room corresponding to a type of a device icon representing the one target device, based on the received registration notification information; and

transmitting, via the network, third information indicating the type of the device icon representing the one target device and fourth information indicating the determined attribute of the room, to an information apparatus which is associated with the same building ID and which displays the display screen representing the floor plan on a display, the device icon representing the one target device being displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a room that corresponds to the device icon at the information apparatus based on the third information and the fourth information.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein

when selection of any of the one or more device icons is sensed in a region corresponding to any of the rooms included in the floor plan, a control screen is displayed for at least any of operation and state confirmation of a target device corresponding to the selected device icon, on the display screen representing the floor plan at the information apparatus, and

a control command is output for at least any of the operation and the state confirmation of the target device corresponding to the selected device icon, from the information apparatus to the network based on an operation on the control screen.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein

the at least one memory further stores fifth information indicating position of each of the one or more rooms on the floor plan,

the method further comprising:

determining position information indicating a region corresponding to a room that corresponds to the type of the device icon representing the one target device, using the fifth information, and

transmitting the determined position information to the information apparatus via the network, the device icon representing the one target device being displayed in the region on the display screen corresponding to the room that corresponds to the device icon, at the information apparatus based on the transmitted position information.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein

when it is determined that the device icon representing the one target device corresponds to a plurality of rooms among the one or more rooms based on the first information, a largest room among the plurality of the corresponding rooms is determined as a room corresponding to the type of the device icon representing the one target device, and

information indicating an attribute of the determined room is transmitted as the fourth information to the information apparatus via the network.

14. The method according to claim 10, wherein

when the device icon representing the one target device is determined to be a refrigerator icon representing a refrigerator based on the first information, the refrigerator icon is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a kitchen, at the information apparatus.

15. The method according to claim 10, wherein

when the device icon representing the one target device is determined to be a television set icon representing a television set based on the first information, the television set icon is displayed in a region on the display screen corresponding to a living room.

16. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium which stores a program to be executed by an information apparatus having a display and being connected to a network, over which one or more target devices are controlled,

the program causing a computer of the information apparatus to:

display on the display a display screen representing a floor plan including one or more rooms;

using at least one memory that associates first information with second information, the first information indicating a type of each of one or more device icons representing the one or more target devices and the second information indicating an attribute of each of the one or more rooms, display each of the one or more device icons in a region on the display screen corresponding to a room that corresponds to each of the one or more device icons in accordance with the type of each of the one or more device icons;

when selection of any of the one or more device icons is sensed in a region corresponding to any of the rooms included in the floor plan, display a control screen for at least any of operation and state confirmation of a target device corresponding to the selected device icon on the display screen representing the floor plan; and

output to the network a control command for at least any of the operation and the state confirmation of the target device corresponding to the selected device icon, based on an operation on the control screen.