Remote control apparatus, remote control system and device-specific information display method

• US 7,986,299 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2007
• Issued: 07/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ota, Motoari, Misawa, Takeshi, Miyashita, Takeshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Sherman; Stephen G
• Application Number:
  US11/715,462
• Publication Number:
  US 20070214368A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,601 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/168, 345/169, 345/158, 340/825, 340/825.57, 340/825.62, 340/825.69, 34042613-42615, 340/222.1, 348/14.05, 348/114, 348/734, 348/208.4, 348/294
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/42 Transmitting or receiving remote control signals via a network
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/93 Remote control using other portable devices, e.g. mobile phone, PDA, laptop
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 23/04 using light waves, e.g. infrared
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00323 with a measuring, monitoring or signaling apparatus, e.g. for transmitting measured information to a central location
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera

Abstract

The present invention relates to a technique for acquiring information specific to a device via an imaging element and performing remote-control of a desired device based on the acquired information specific to the device, and an object thereof is to suspend information display of certain devices in order to suppress disorderliness of a screen and enable remote control of devices to be easily performed. By arranging displaying of the information specific to the device to be suspended according to device state information, the present invention can reduce the risk of remote control being impeded by specific information displayed in an indiscriminant and disordered manner, and efficient remote control operations may be achieved.

Claims

1. A remote control apparatus, comprising:

an acquisition section that continually acquires, by an imaging element, an image in which a subject thereof comprises a remote control target device, information specific to the device that is optically transmitted from the device, and state information of the device;

a display section that superimposes the image with the information specific to the device continually acquired by the acquisition section and displays the superimposed image;

an instruction acceptance section that accepts, from a user, instructions regarding a selection of information specific to a desired remote control target device among devices for which the information specific to the device has been acquired and a selection of desired control contents regarding the device for which the information specific to the device has been selected;

a remote control section that transmits a remote control signal corresponding to the desired control contents selected at the instruction acceptance section to a device for which the information specific to the device has been selected at the instruction acceptance section; and

a display control section that controls the display section to suspend superposition/display of the information specific to the device onto the image according to the state information of the device continually acquired by the acquisition section, said state information of the device comprising sleep information of the device.

2. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control section commences the suspended superposition/display of the information specific to the device in a response to an instruction to the instruction acceptance section.

3. The remote control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the sleep information of the device includes information indicating that control of original operations of the devices is restricted.

4. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sleep information of the device includes information indicating that control of original operations of the devices is restricted.

5. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sleep information of the device comprises information on the device when the device is substantially inoperable.

6. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sleep information of the device comprises information indicating that control of original operations of the device is one of disabled and restricted.

7. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in a sleep state, the device superimposes the sleep information indicating that the device is in the sleep state in addition to the information specific to the device.

8. The remote control apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the sleep state comprises a standby state.

9. The remote control apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the sleep state comprises an idle state.

10. The remote control apparatus according to claim 7, wherein in the sleep state minimal functions required for activating the device are operational, and control of original operations of the device is one of disabled and restricted.

11. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display section displays the sleep information and the information specific to the device.

12. The remote control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in a sleep state, the device continually transmits to the acquisition section the sleep information indicating that the device is in the sleep state and the information specific to the device.

13. A remote control system, comprising:

a device that optically transmits specific information and state information;

an acquisition section that continually acquires, by an imaging element, an image in which a subject thereof comprises the device, information specific to the device that is optically transmitted from the device, and the state information of the device;

a display section that superimposes the image with the information specific to the device continually acquired by the acquisition section and displays the superimposed image;

an instruction acceptance section that accepts, from a user, instructions regarding a selection of information specific to a desired remote control target device among devices for which the information specific to the device has been acquired and a selection of desired control contents regarding the device for which the information specific to the device has been selected;

a remote control section that transmits a remote control signal corresponding to the desired control contents selected at the instruction acceptance section to a device for which the information specific to the device has been selected at the instruction acceptance section; and

a display control section that controls the display section to suspend superposition/display of the device-specific information onto the image according to the state information of the device continually acquired by the acquisition section, said state information of the device comprising sleep information of the device.

14. A device-specific information display method, comprising:

continually acquiring, by an imaging element, an image in which a subject thereof comprises a remote control target device, information specific to the device that is optically transmitted from the device, and state information of the device;

superimposing the image with the information specific to the device continually acquired by the imaging element and displaying the superimposed image; and

controlling the displaying to suspend superposition/display of the information specific to the device onto the image according to the state information of the device continually acquired, said state information of the device comprising sleep information of the device.