Activity-based remote control device
First Claim
1. A remote control system, comprising:
- a storage device that is configured to store a plurality of activity sets, a remote control device that is configured to selectively access each activity set of the plurality of activity sets from the storage device, wherein;
each activity set includes a mapping of select component functions to assigned keys of the remote control device, the select component functions being associated with a plurality of components, and the remote control device is configured to control a first component of the plurality of components when a key in a first set of the assigned keys are activated, and to control a second component of the plurality of components when a key in a second set of the assigned keys are activated, based on the selectively accessed activity set.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
A remote control device provides commands and options based on the configuration of components in a user'"'"'s environment, and based on a defined user activity. A storage device contains a user profile that includes the configuration of components at the user'"'"'s environment, and defined set of user activities, such as “watching television”, “viewing a movie”, “watching a sports program”, and so on. Each user activity has a corresponding mapping of keys on the remote control device to facilitate the user activity. When the user identifies a preferred activity, the remote control device communicates commands to the components of the system to support the activity, and subsequently communicates commands to each component corresponding to this activity. A user may define multiple user activities, and the storage device may contain configurations and activities from multiple users.
93 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A remote control system, comprising:
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a storage device that is configured to store a plurality of activity sets, a remote control device that is configured to selectively access each activity set of the plurality of activity sets from the storage device, wherein;
each activity set includes a mapping of select component functions to assigned keys of the remote control device, the select component functions being associated with a plurality of components, and the remote control device is configured to control a first component of the plurality of components when a key in a first set of the assigned keys are activated, and to control a second component of the plurality of components when a key in a second set of the assigned keys are activated, based on the selectively accessed activity set. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
the remote control device is further configured to provide an initial sequence of commands to at least one of the first and second components to effect the selectively accessed activity set. -
3. The remote control system of claim 1, wherein
the storage device is located at an Internet web site, and the remote control system further includes an Internet access device that is configured to facilitate access to the storage device by the remote control device. -
4. The remote control system of claim 1, further including
a user interface that facilitates creation of the plurality of activity sets. -
5. The remote control system of claim 1, further including
an activity manager that facilitates creation of the plurality of activity sets. -
6. The remote control system of claim 5 wherein
at least one of the activity manager and the storage device is located at an Internet site.
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7. An activity manager, comprising:
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a user interface that is configured to obtain user input regarding an activity set, and a control device interface that is configured to provide a plurality of control codes to a remote control device, based on the activity set, wherein the activity set identifies a mapping of functions among a plurality of components, the plurality of control codes that are provided to the remote control device correspond to more than one component of the plurality of components, and, each control code of the plurality of control codes is uniquely mapped to a key of a plurality of keys of the remote control device. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
a storage device that is configured to store the activity set as one of a plurality of activity sets, and wherein the control device interface is further configured to facilitate a selection from among the plurality of activity sets. -
9. The activity manager of claim 7, wherein
the activity manager is configured to obtain the user input via an Internet connection. -
10. The activity manager of claim 7, wherein
the activity manager is configured to provide the plurality of control codes to the remote control device via an Internet connection. -
11. The activity manager of claim 7, wherein
at least some of the activity manager is located at an Internet web site. -
12. The activity manager of claim 7, wherein
the activity manager is further configured to effect one or more control options when a user selects the activity set.
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13. A remote control device comprising:
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a plurality of keys, and a storage device that is configured to store control codes corresponding to each of a plurality of activity sets, wherein each of the plurality of activity sets identifies a mapping of the plurality of keys to control codes of a plurality of components, at least one key of the plurality of keys facilitates a selection of a select activity set of the plurality of activity sets.
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14. A method of providing a plurality of activity sets to a remote control device, comprising:
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for each activity set;
defining an activity selection key of the remote control device to facilitate selection of the activity set, determining a set of control functions corresponding to other keys of the remote control device, defining a mapping of the set of control functions to a plurality of components, determining control codes corresponding to the set of control functions and the plurality of components, and communicating the control codes to the remote control device for storage at the remote control device to facilitate use of the control codes corresponding to the activity set when the activity selection key is used. - View Dependent Claims (15)
the control codes include codes corresponding to more than one component of the plurality of components.
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Specification