Registration of devices using a wireless home entertainment hub

• US 8,634,573 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2011
• Issued: 01/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rateze Remote Mgmt. L.L.C. (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Porto Vinci Ltd LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Igoe, Patrick T.
• Primary Examiner(s): SMITH, CREIGHTON H
• Application Number:
  US13/182,878
• Publication Number:
  US 20110271308A1
• Time in Patent Office: 922 Days
• Field of Search: 348 1401- 1406, 725/105, 725/109, 725/110
• US Class Current: 381/81
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/2807 Exchanging configuration information on appliance services in a home automation network arrangements for maintenance or administration involving network analysis for automatically determining the actual topology of a network H04L41/12; hardware or software tools for network management using graphical user interfaces H04L41/22; address allocation H04L61/50
• 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 12/2838 Distribution of signals within a home automation network, e.g. involving splitting/multiplexing signals to/from different paths adaptations of television systems for transmission by electric cable for domestic distribution H04N7/106; hybrid transport H04L12/6418; home network arrangements specially adapted for distribution of digital video signals H04N7/24
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2841 Wireless
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2012/2849 Audio/video appliances

Abstract

A method for controlling presentation of data through a wireless home entertainment hub in a home entertainment system includes obtaining a registration for one or more source devices and for one or more sink devices. An indication is received at the wireless home entertainment hub that at least one of the source devices has become active. An instruction is transmitted to the sink devices to receive data from the at least one active source device. An indication is transmitted to at least one active source device that at least one of the sink devices is ready to receive data.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

registering one or more devices with a wireless home entertainment hub;

performing error checking during the registration of each of the devices by comparing a list of capabilities received from each of the devices with a list of expected capabilities stored in the wireless home entertainment hub; and

storing an indication of the registration in response to a determination that the list of capabilities matches the list of expected capabilities.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the devices are at least one of source devices and sink devices.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the devices are wireless devices.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the wireless home entertainment hub is included in one of the devices.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the devices comprise a set of coordinated devices, each including a coordinated identifier.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

reinitiating registration of the one or more devices in response to performing error checking.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying a role of each device during registration.

8. A method comprising:

transmitting a list of capabilities of a device to a wireless home entertainment hub;

obtaining a registration of the device with the wireless home entertainment hub; and

storing an indication of the registration in response to a determination that the list of capabilities matches a list of expected capabilities stored at the wireless home entertainment hub.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the device is one of a source device or a sink device.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the device is a wireless device.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the device is a coordinated device of a set of coordinated devices, each coordinated device including a coordinated identifier.

12. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving an instruction from the wireless home entertainment hub to activate.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the device is a source device, and further comprising:

incrementing an internal reference count in response to receiving the instruction from the wireless home entertainment hub to activate.

14. A wireless home entertainment hub comprising:

a processor that performs error checking during registration of the one or more devices by comparing a list of capabilities received from each device with a list of expected capabilities; and

a memory that stores registration information for the one or more devices and the list of expected capabilities.

15. The wireless home entertainment hub of claim 14, wherein the wireless home entertainment hub is included in one of the devices.

16. The wireless home entertainment hub of claim 14, wherein the processor reinitiates error checking in response to determining that the list of capabilities received from a respective device does not match the stored list of expected capabilities.

17. The wireless home entertainment hub of claim 14, wherein the processor identifies a role of each device during registration.

18. The wireless home entertainment hub of claim 14, wherein the processor transmits an instruction to one of the devices to activate.

19. The wireless home entertainment hub of claim 18, wherein the processor transmits an instruction to the activated device to increment an internal reference count.

20. The wireless home entertainment hub of claim 14, wherein the memory stores registration information for each device in response to the list of capabilities of each respective device matching the list of expected capabilities.