Home automation device pairing by NFC-enabled portable device

• US 8,498,572 B1
• Filed: 08/24/2012
• Issued: 07/30/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Heninwolf, Paul, Jones, Christopher, Schooley, Stephen
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TUAN HOANG
• Application Number:
  US13/593,727
• Time in Patent Office: 340 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.1, 455/41.2, 455/90.1, 455/550.1, 455/552.1, 455/553.1, 340/5.8, 340/10.51
• US Class Current: 455/41.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2809 indicating that an appliance service is present in a home automation network monitoring functionality H04L43/0817; discovery or management thereof, e.g. service location protocol [SLP] or web services, H04L67/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/282 based on user interaction within the home receiver circuitry for displaying additional information being controlled by a remote control apparatus H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2841 Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A method and device are disclosed that may include collecting information from a radio frequency readable tag of a first electrical device using a radio frequency tag reader in a portable device. A control application may be launched on the portable device in response to the collected information. A graphical user interface may be presented on the portable device display. Control parameters may be set for the first electrical device in response to inputs to the graphical user interface.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

collecting information from a radio frequency readable tag of a first electrical device using a radio frequency tag reader in a portable device;

collecting information by reading a radio frequency readable tag of a second electrical device;

launching a control application on the portable device in response to the collected information;

presenting a graphical user interface on the portable device display;

establishing by the portable device communication with a controller in a mesh network, wherein the portable device has temporary permission to connect to the network;

pairing the first electrical device with the second electrical device, wherein the paired first and second electrical devices operate in cooperation;

setting control parameters for the first electrical device and the second electrical device in response to inputs to the graphical user interface; and

transmitting control signals for controlling the first electrical device and the second electrical device based on the control parameters settings and control inputs received from the user interface presented on the portable device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface presents control parameters in a quick setting menu and a long setting menu.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the control parameter settings made in the quick setting menu are set of a duration that is less than the duration of the control parameter settings made in the long setting menu.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first electrical device and the second electrical device were not previously paired to one another in a network including the first electrical device and the second electrical device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the temporary permission allows the portable device to set the control parameters for a quick duration.

6. A method comprising:

collecting information from a radio frequency readable tag of a first electrical device using a radio frequency tag reader in a portable device;

launching a control application on the portable device in response to the collected information;

presenting a graphical user interface on the portable device display;

setting control parameters for the first electrical device in response to inputs to the graphical user interface;

receiving second data from a near field communication tag associated with a second electrical device, the second data providing information related to the second electrical device;

setting functions that pair the first electrical device to the second electrical device to allow cooperative operation of the paired first and second electrical devices;

in response to an input to the graphical user interface, selecting at least one control parameter from a plurality of control parameters presented in the graphical user interface for controlling the paired first electrical device and the second electrical device; and

in response to a control signal generated by the portable device and intended to control a first operation related to the first electrical device, transmitting control signals to the first electrical device to perform the first operation and to the second electrical device to perform a second operation that is different from the first operation and based on the selected control parameter.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

establishing communication with a controller in a mesh network.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

transmitting control signals based on the control parameter settings to the controller in the mesh network.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

receiving a notification at the conclusion of an event related to either the first or second device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein an event is at least one of a time of day, a date, and a response to an operation performed by another device.

11. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

sending control signals to the controller in the home mesh network to instruct the first electrical device to perform a function based on the control parameter settings.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein the controller is a device within the home mesh network that controls electrical devices in the mesh network.

13. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

generating a group of paired devices based on the first and second data, wherein the group of paired devices includes at least the first electrical device and the second electrical device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the generated group includes identified devices that are controllable as a group for a predetermined time period.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the generated group includes identified devices that are controllable as a group whenever the portable device is recognized by a home control network.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the generated group includes devices related to the identified devices, and whose NFC tags have not been read.

17. The method of claim 6, wherein control of the first electrical device and the second electrical devices is based on permission settings in a network including the first electrical device and the second electrical device.

18. A device, comprising:

a memory;

a near field communication tag reader;

a display device;

a transceiver communicatively coupled to a network; and

a processor configured to;

collect information from a radio frequency readable tag of a first electrical device from near field communication tag reader;

collecting information by reading a radio frequency readable tag of a second electrical device;

launch a control application in response to the collected information;

present a graphical user interface for inputting signals to the control application on the display device;

establishing by the portable device communication with a controller in a mesh network, wherein the portable device has temporary permission to connect to the network;

pairing the first electrical device with the second electrical device, wherein the paired electrical devices operate in cooperation; and

in response to inputs to a quick setting menu of the graphical user interface presented on the display device, set control parameters for the first electrical device, wherein the control parameter are set for a short time duration.

19. The device of claim 18, wherein the processor is configured to set control parameters by:

selecting, in the graphical user interface, at least one control parameter from a plurality of control parameters presented in the graphical user interface for controlling the first electrical device;

receiving second data from a radio frequency readable tag associated with a second electrical device, the second data providing information related to the second electrical device; and

setting functions that pair the first electrical device to the second electrical device.

20. The device of claim 18, wherein the first electrical device is an appliance or product with an NFC tag.

21. The device of claim 18, wherein the processor is further configured to:

generate control signals for controlling the first electrical device based on the control parameters settings.