Configurable controlling device having an associated editing program

• US 7,266,777 B2
• Filed: 09/02/2005
• Issued: 09/04/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Universal Electronics, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Universal Electronics, Inc.
• Inventors: Scott, Cheryl, Scott, Wayne, Ammari, Ramzi, Yuh, Han-Sheng, Chambers, Christopher Alan
• Primary Examiner(s): Bayerl; Raymond J.
• Application Number:
  US11/218,900
• Publication Number:
  US 20060050142A1
• Time in Patent Office: 732 Days
• Field of Search: 715/762, 715/765, 715/866, 715/847, 715/771, 715/773, 715/763, 715/967, 715/970, 715/853, 715/501.1, 345/172, 345/168, 348/734
• US Class Current: 715/762
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/20 Binding and programming of remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/21 Programming remote control devices via third means
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/30 User interface
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/92 Universal remote control
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 23/04 using light waves, e.g. infrared
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42224 Touch pad or touch panel provided on the remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42227 the keys being reprogrammable, e.g. soft keys
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 715/967 Visual or iconic programming

Abstract

A configurable controlling device and associated editor program that allows a consumer to create on a personal computer for downloading to the controlling device a user interface comprised of user interface pages having icons which icons, when activated on the controlling device, cause the controlling device to perform a function, such as to transmit a command to an appliance, to change the user interface page being displayed, etc. The editor program allows for the visualization of links created between user interface pages, single step assigning of commands to logical groups of function keys (both iconic and hard keys), single step assigning of backgrounds to groups of user interface pages, and pre-rendering of user interface pages prior to the downloading of the user interface to the controlling device.

Claims

1. A computer-readable media having instructions executable on a computing device for editing a controlling device user interface downloadable to a controlling device and comprised of a plurality of individual GUI pages including a first GUI page and a second GUI page, the instructions performing steps comprising:

accepting input to edit the controlling device user interface, the input being used to create a link between the first GUI page and the second GUI page where the link is executable on the controlling device via actuation of a GUI element of the first GUI page to cause the controlling device to transition from the first GUI page to the second GUI page;

accepting input to cause a simultaneous display of an image representative of the first GUI page, an image representative of the second GUI page, and an image representative of the link between the first GUI page and the second GUI page wherein the image representative of the link has an associated label which indicates the GUI element to be actuated to cause the controlling device to transition from the first GUI page to the second GUI page; and

accepting input to initiate a download of the edited controlling device user interface to the controlling device.

2. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein accepting input to edit the controlling device user interface includes accepting input used to assign a command to be transmitted from the controlling device to an appliance in response to actuation of the GUI element of the first GUI page.

3. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein the edited controlling device user interface is downloadable to the controlling device via a network connection.

4. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein the edited controlling device user interface is downloadable to the controlling device via a docking station.

5. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein the edited controlling device user interface is downloadable to the controlling device directly from the computing device.

6. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 1, wherein the image representative of the first GUI page and the image representative of the second GUI page comprise a thumbnail image of the first GUI page and a thumbnail image of the second GUI page, respectively.

7. A method for interacting with a computing device to edit a controlling device user interface downloadable to a controlling device and comprised of a plurality of individual GUI pages including a first GUI page and a second GUI page, the method comprising:

editing the controlling device user interface on the computing device by providing input that is used by the computing device to create a link between the first GUI page and the second GUI page where the link is executable on the controlling device via actuation of a GUI element of the first GUI page to cause the controlling device to transition from the first GUI page to the second GUI page;

causing the computing device to simultaneously display an image representative of the first GUI page, an image representative of the second GUI page, and an image representative of the link between the first GUI page and the second GUI page wherein the image representative of the link has an associated label which indicates the GUI element to be actuated to cause the controlling device to transition from the first GUI page to the second GUI page; and

causing a download of the edited controlling device user interface to the controlling device.

8. The method as recited in claim 7, comprising editing the controlling device user interface on the computing device by providing input that is used by the computing device to create an association between the GUI element of the first GUI page and a command to be transmitted from the controlling device to an appliance in response to actuation of the GUI element of the first GUI page.

9. The method as recited in claim 7, wherein the image representative of the first GUI page and the image representative of the second GUI page comprise a thumbnail image of the first GUI page and a thumbnail image of the second GUI page, respectively.