Automatic determination and retrieval of a favorite channel

• US 8,427,356 B1
• Filed: 11/28/2008
• Issued: 04/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/28/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Universal Electronics, Inc.
• Original Assignee: UEI Cayman Incorporated (Universal Electronics, Inc.)
• Inventors: Satish, Ramaiah
• Primary Examiner(s): Fureman, Jared
• Assistant Examiner(s): BAUER, SCOTT ALLEN
• Application Number:
  US12/315,169
• Time in Patent Office: 1,607 Days
• Field of Search: 341/176, 725/46
• US Class Current: 341/176
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42227 the keys being reprogrammable, e.g. soft keys
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44204 Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44222 Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/466 Learning process for intelligent management, e.g. learning user preferences for recommending movies services using the results of monitoring in broadcast systems H04H60/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4667 Processing of monitored end-user data, e.g. trend analysis based on the log file of viewer selections

Abstract

A remote control device tracks the Likely Current Channel (LCC) to which an associated controlled electronic consumer device is tuned. The remote determines an amount of time that the LCC remains unchanged. Based at least in part on this amount of time, the remote determines whether the LCC should be stored as a Favorite Channel (FC). When the user subsequently presses a favorite key on the remote, the remote uses a codeset and the stored FC information to output a transmitter operational signal. The operation signal carries the FC number such that the electronic consumer device is commanded to tune to the FC. Automatic detection, storage, and ranking of FCs eliminates the need for complex user programming of the remote. Because the ranking of FCs is automatically updated over time, changing user preferences are automatically accommodated without manual intervention, resulting in an effortless user interface.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

continually monitoring by a remote control device transmissions of tuning commands from the remote control device to an electronic consumer device to determine if the electronic consumer device is caused to be tuned to a channel for at least a predetermined length of time; and

when the remote control device is used to cause the electronic consumer device to be tuned to the channel for at least the predetermined length of time, storing in a memory of the remote control data indicative of an association between a predetermined key of the remote control device and the channel in lieu of any previously stored data indicative of an association between the predetermined key of the remote control device and a channel whereupon any subsequent activation of the predetermined key causes the remote control device to use the data indicative of the association between the predetermined key of the remote control device and the channel to issue a command transmission which will cause the electronic consumer device to tune to the channel and whereupon the channel remains associated with the predetermined key until such time as the channel is replaced in the association with the predetermined key of the remote control device with another channel for which it is determined that the consumer electronic device is being tuned to for at least the predetermined length of time.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the predetermined length of time is established at a time of manufacture of the remote control device.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the predetermined length of time is established by a user interacting with the remote control device.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the remote control device is caused to transmit a tuning command to the electronic consumer device in response to activation of channel up/down keys and channel number keys of the remote control device.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, comprising using a timing device of the remote control device when determining when the remote control device is used to cause the electronic device to be tuned to the channel for at least the predetermined length of time.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, comprising causing the timing device to be started in response to a tuning command being transmitted from the remote control device.

7. A non-transitory, computer-readable media having stored thereon executable instructions which, when executed by a processing device, perform the steps of:

continually monitoring by a remote control device transmissions of tuning commands from the remote control device to an electronic consumer device to determine if the electronic consumer device is caused to be tuned to a channel for at least a predetermined length of time; and

when the remote control device is used to cause the electronic consumer device to be tuned to the channel for at least the predetermined length of time, storing in a memory of the remote control data indicative of an association between a predetermined key of the remote control device and the channel in lieu of any previously stored data indicative of an association between the predetermined key of the remote control device and a channel whereupon any subsequent activation of the predetermined key causes the remote control device to use the data indicative of the association between the predetermined key of the remote control device and the channel to issue a command transmission which will cause the electronic consumer device to tune to the channel and whereupon the channel remains associated with the predetermined key until such time as the channel is replaced in the association with the predetermined key of the remote control device with another channel for which it is determined that the consumer electronic device is being tuned to for at least the predetermined length of time.

8. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the predetermined length of time is established at a time of manufacture of the remote control device.

9. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the predetermined length of time is established by a user interacting with the remote control device.

10. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the remote control device is caused to transmit a tuning command to the electronic consumer device in response to activation of channel up/down keys and channel number keys of the remote control device.

11. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the instructions use a timing device of the remote control device when determining when the remote control device is used to cause the electronic device to be tuned to the channel for at least the predetermined length of time.

12. The computer-readable media as recited in claim 7, wherein the instructions cause the timing device to be started in response to a tuning command being transmitted from the remote control device.