Telephone-responsive device for muting the sound output of a television set

• US 5,128,987 A
• Filed: 03/15/1990
• Issued: 07/07/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: John Sheridan
• Original Assignee: John Sheridan
• Inventors: Sheridan, John, McDonough, William B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ng, Jin F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Woo, Stella L.
• Application Number:
  US07/493,907
• Time in Patent Office: 845 Days
• Field of Search: 379/102, 379/104, 379/105, 379/66, 379/375, 379/378, 379/395, 379/110, 379/373, 358/194.1, 455/603
• US Class Current: 379/102.03
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/82 Line monitoring circuits for call progress or status discrimination for detecting caller identity H04M1/573
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/007 with remote control systems remote control in general G08C

Abstract

Apparatus responsive to the operation of a nearby telephone for selectively muting the sound output of a television set, including a ring detection circuit and an off-hook detection circuit coupled in parallel and responsive to either a ringing signal or an off-hook condition of the telephone for delivering an activating signal to a common output, remote-control circuitry selectively operable for muting the sound output of a television set, a controller circuit coupled between the common output and an input of the remote-control circuitry, and manually operated selection switches for providing four different modes of operation. In preferred embodiments the controller includes a plurality of permanently fixed internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to different remote volume control codings of various different makes or models of television sets, and manually operable circuitry are provided for selecting a particular one of the fixed internal logic circuits so as to enable the remote-control circuitry to mute the sound output of a television set whose remote volume control coding corresponds to that praticular fixed logic circuit.

Claims

1. Apparatus responsive to the operation of a nearby telephone for muting the sound output of a television set, comprising;

signal responsive means coupled to the telephone for detecting either a ringing signal or an off-hook condition of the telephone, and for producing an output signal in response thereto;

remote-control means having an input coupled to said signal responsive means and responsive to an output signal therefrom for muting the sound output of the television set; and

manually operable means for selectively disabling said signal responsive means to prevent the manually operable means from responding to an off-hook condition of the telephone while still permitting it to respond to a ringing signal.

2. Apparatus as in claim 1 wherein:

said signal responsive means includes an off-hook detection circuit and a ring detection circuit;

said manually operable means includes a single-pole, singlethrow, switch connected in series with said off-hook circuit; and

the series combination of said off-hook detection circuit and said switch is coupled in parallel with said ring detection circuit.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 which further includes a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

4. The apparatus of claim 2 which further includes a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

5. Apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said signal-responsive means includes:

a microchip circuit having an input, an output, a logical clock for controlling its internal operation, and a plurality of internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to the respectively different remote volume control codings of various different makes of television sets,

an interrupt-request line coupled to said input of said microchip circuit for delivering an activating signal thereto, and

signal detection means including a ring detection circuit and an off-hook detection circuit coupled both to the telephone and to said interrupt-request line and responsive to operation of the telephone for delivering the activating signal to said interrupt-request line; and

wherein said remote-control means includes an infrared signal transmitting means connected to said output of said microchip circuit.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 which further includes a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

7. Apparatus as in claim 2 wherein said signal-responsive means includes:

a microchip circuit having an input, an output, a logical clock for controlling its internal operation, and a plurality of internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to the respectively different remote volume control codings of various different makes of television sets,

an interrupt-request line coupled to said input of said microchip circuit for delivering an activating signal thereto, and

signal detection means including a ring detection circuit and an off-hook detection circuit coupled both to the telephone and to said interrupt-request line and responsive to operation of the telephone for delivering the activating signal to said interrupt-request line; and

wherein said remote-control means includes an infrared signal transmitting means connected to said output of said microchip circuit.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 which further includes a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

9. A device used cooperatively with a telephone and with a nearby television set selected from various makes of television sets that are responsive to remote volume control by infrared signals in accordance with respectively different volume control codings, for responding to a signal from the telephone and for automatically muting the sound output of the television set so long as the telephone is in use, comprising:

a microchip circuit having an input, an output, and a logical clock for controlling its internal operation;

an interrupt-request line coupled to said input of said microchip circuit for delivering an activating signal thereto;

signal detection means coupled both to the telephone and to said interrupt-request line and normally responsive to the operation of the telephone for supplying an activating signal to said interrupt-request line;

infrared signal transmitting means connected to said output of said microchip circuit;

said microchip circuit also having a plurality of internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to the respectively different remote volume control codings of the various different makes of television sets;

a dual inline switch having a plurality of switch members each manually settable to a selected 0 or 1 condition;

said dual inline switch being so connected to said microchip circuit that a predetermined group of settings of said switch members may be chosen in order to select a particular one of said internal logic circuits that corresponds to the remote volume control coding of the selected television set, so that said microchip circuit responds to an activating signal at said input thereof for producing at said output thereof a coded signal corresponding to the remote volume control coding for the selected television set which is then transmitted through said infrared signal transmitting means to said selected television set and mutes the output sound volume thereof so long as an activating signal continues to be received from the telephone; and

manually operable means for selectively superseding the normal operation of said signal detection means.

10. A device used cooperatively with a telephone and with a nearby television set selected from various makes of television sets that are responsive to remote volume control by infrared signals in accordance with respectively different volume control codings, for responding to a signal from the telephone and for automatically muting the sound output of the selected television set so long as the telephone is in use, comprising:

a microchip circuit having an input, an output, and a logical clock for controlling its internal operation;

an interrupt-request line coupled to said input of said microchip circuit for delivering an activating signal thereto;

signal detection means including a ring detection circuit and an off-hook detection circuit, coupled both to the telephone and to said interrupt-request line, and responsive to operation of the telephone for delivering the activating signal to said interrupt-request line;

infrared signal transmitting means connected to said output of said microchip circuit;

said microchip circuit also having a plurality of internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to the respectively different remote volume control codings of the various different makes of television sets;

a dual inline switch having a plurality of switch members each manually settable to a selected 0 or 1 condition;

said dual inline switch being so connected to said microchip circuit that a predetermined group of settings of said switch members may be chosen in order to select a particular one of said internal logic circuits that corresponds to the remote volume control coding of the selected television set, so that said microchip circuit responds to an activating signal at said input thereof for producing at said output thereof a coded signal corresponding to the remote volume control for the selected television set which is then transmitted through said infrared signal transmitting means to said selected television set and mutes the output sound volume thereof so long as an activating signal continues to be received from the telephone; and

manually operable switch means for selectively disabling said off-hook detection circuit.

11. A device used cooperatively with a telephone and with a nearby television set selected from various makes of television sets that are responsive to remote volume control by infrared signals in accordance with respectively different volume control codings, for responding to a signal from the telephone and for automatically muting the sound output of the selected television set so long as the telephone is in use, comprising:

a microchip circuit having an input, an output, and a logical clock for controlling its internal operation;

an interrupt-request line coupled to said input of said microchip circuit for delivering an activating signal thereto;

signal detection means including a ring detection circuit and an off-hook detection circuit, coupled both to the telephone and to said interrupt-request line, and responsive to operation of the telephone for delivering the activating signal to said interrupt-request line;

infrared signal transmitting means connected to said output of said microchip circuit;

said microchip circuit also having a plurality of permanently fixed internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to the different remote volume control codings of the various different makes of television sets;

manually operable means for selectively generating a group of code settings which represent a desired one of said remote volume control codings; and

means for applying said group of code settings to said microchip circuit such that said microchip circuit responds to an activating signal at said input thereof for producing at said output thereof a coded signal corresponding to the desired one of said remote volume control codings for the selected television set which is then transmitted through said infrared signal transmitting means to said selected television set and mutes the output sound volume thereof so long as an activating signal continues to be received from the telephone.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein said means for selectively generating a group of code settings includes a DIP switch.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein said means for selectively generating a group of code settings includes a key pad and a selection set store.

14. The apparatus of claim 11 which further includes manually operable switch means for selectively disabling said off-hook detection circuit.

15. The apparatus of claim 12 which further includes manually operable switch means for selectively disabling said off-hook detection circuit.

16. The apparatus of claim 13 which further includes manually operable switch means for selectively disabling said off-hook detection circuit.

17. Apparatus responsive to the operation of a nearby telephone for muting the sound output of a television set, comprising;

signal responsive means coupled to the telephone for detecting either a ringing signal or an off-hook condition of the telephone, including a ring detection circuit and an off-hook detection circuit coupled in parallel between the telephone and a common output and responsive to operation of the telephone for delivering an activating signal to said common output;

remote-control means havin an input, and being selectively operable for muting the sound output of a television set;

a controller circuit coupled between said common output of said ring detection and off-hook detection circuits, and said input of said remote-control means, and having a plurality of permanently fixed internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to the different remote volume control codings of various different makes or models of television sets; and

manually operable means for selecting a particular one of said fixed internal logic circuits so as to enable said remote-control means to respond to operation of the telephone for muting a television set whose remote volume control coding corresponds to said particular one fixed logic circuit.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 which further includes manually operable means for selectively disabling said signal responsive means to respond to an off-hook condition of the telephone while still permitting it to respond to a ringing signal.

19. Apparatus as in claim 18 wherein said manually operable means includes a single-pole, single-throw, switch connected in series with said off-hook detection circuit between the telephone and said common output.

20. The apparatus of claim 17 which further includes a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

21. The apparatus of claim 17 which further includes manually operable switch means for selectively disabling said off-hook detection circuit.

22. The apparatus of claim 19 which further includes a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 which further includes a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

24. Apparatus responsive to the operation of a nearby telephone for selectively muting the sound output of a television set, comprising;

signal responsive means including a ring detection circuit and an off-hook detection circuit coupled in parallel between the telephone and a common output, for detecting either a ringing signal or an off-hook condition of the telephone, and responsive to operation of the telephone for delivering an activating signal to said common output;

remote-control means having an input, and being selectively operable for muting the sound output of a television set;

a controller circuit coupled between said common output of said ring detection and off-hook detection circuits, and said input of said remote-control means, and including a plurality of permanently fixed internal logic circuits which respectively correspond to different remote volume control codings of various different makes or models of television sets;

manually operable means for selecting a particular one of said fixed internal logic circuits so as to enable said remote-control means to respond to operation of the telephone for muting the sound output of a television set whose remote volume control coding corresponds to said particular one fixed logic circuit; and

a manually operable, push-button type, momentary contact switch coupled to the input of said remote-control means for selectively superseding the operation of said signal responsive means.

25. The apparatus of claim 24 which further includes manually operable switch means for selectively disabling said off-hook detection circuit.

26. Apparatus as in claim 25 wherein said manually operable switch means includes a single-pole, single-throw, switch connected in series with said off-hook detection circuit between the telephone and said common output.