Learning-functionalized remote control receiver

• US 4,905,279 A
• Filed: 12/01/1988
• Issued: 02/27/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NEC Home Electronics, Ltd. (NEC Corporation)
• Original Assignee: NEC Home Electronics, Ltd. (NEC Corporation)
• Inventors: Nishio, Masaaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Buczinski, Stephen C.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gregory, Bernarr E.
• Application Number:
  US07/278,455
• Time in Patent Office: 453 Days
• Field of Search: 358/194.1, 340/539, 340/825.24, 340/825.44, 340/825.47, 340/825.48, 340/825.69, 340/825.72-825.76, 455/49, 455/66, 455/68, 455/70, 455/71, 455/74, 455/88, 455/89, 455/90, 455/92, 455/151, 455/344, 455/352, 455/353, 455/355, 455/603, 364/200, 364/900
• US Class Current: 455/352
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 9/06 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves, e.g. light

Abstract

A remote control receiver which can be "taught" to recognize a remote control signal from any of a plurality of remote control receivers as its control signal. For this purpose, the transmitting code and the carrier of a remote control signal are analyzed and the transmitting code is stored in connection with the instruction content during a learning mode. Then, during normal operation, a received remote control signal is filtered by a band pass filter in which the filter band is set in accordance with the carrier of the remote control signal stored during the learning mode. The filtered signal is then decrypted with reference to the stored transmitting code, thereby permitting receipt of the remote control signal transmitted from a heterogeneous remote control transmitter. In this manner, the remote control receiver may be "taught" to respond to commands from a remote control transmitter the user is accustomed to using.

Claims

1. A learning-functionalized remote control receiver, comprising:

signal analyzing means for receiving a remote control signal and determining its carrier and transmitting code in a learning mode of said remote control receiver;

storage means for storing during the learning mode the transmitting code of said remote control signal determined by said signal analyzing means in connection with the content of an instruction of said analyzed remote control signal;

band pass filter means having a filter band set in accordance with the determined carrier of said analyzed remote control signal in said learning mode; and

decryption means for decrypting a remote control signal transmitted in an operation mode of said remote control receiver in accordance with the transmitting code stored in said storage means during said learning mode.

2. A method of teaching a learning-functionalized remote control receiver the transmitting code of a remote control transmitting unit, comprising the steps of:

selecting a learning mode of the learning-functionalized remote control receiver;

transmitting a first remote control signal from said remote control transmitting unit to said learning-functionalized remote control receiver;

decrypting an instruction content of said first remote control signal;

storing said instruction content in storage means of said learning-functionalized remote control receiver;

transmitting a second remote control signal from a further remote control transmitting unit having the same instruction content as said first remote control signal;

analyzing said second remote control signal for its transmission code;

storing the transmission code of said second remote control signal in said storage means at a location corresponding to said stored instruction content of said first remote control signal; and

releasing said learning mode,

wherein the instruction contents of remote control signals subsequently received by said learning-functionalized remote control receiver are decrypted on the basis of a relationship between the transmission code of said second remote control signal stored in said storage means.

3. The teaching method of claim 2, comprising the further step of selectively band pass filtering said second remote control signal from said further remote control transmitting unit in accordance with a carrier frequency of said first remote control signal from said remote control transmitting unit.