Augmented remote controller and method for operating the same

• US 8,910,243 B2
• Filed: 12/03/2010
• Issued: 12/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Kang, Mingoo, Kang, Haengjoon, Park, Jongsoon, Park, Jinyung, Kim, Jongchul, Park, Junho
• Primary Examiner(s): Colin, Carl
• Assistant Examiner(s): ZAIDI, SYED A
• Application Number:
  US12/959,714
• Publication Number:
  US 20110138444A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,467 Days
• Field of Search: 726/3, 709/222, 380/205, 380/252
• US Class Current: 726/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication

Abstract

An image display may be displayed by augmented reality on a remote controller. This may include identifying an electronic device having playable content, receiving information regarding a locked status of the playable content of the identified electronic device, and displaying, on a screen, an object indicating a locked status when the playable content of the identified electronic device requires a user authentication for playing the content. A user authentication input may be received and a determination may be made whether the received user authentication input matches a previously stored user authentication information. The playable content may be released from the locked status when it is determined that the received user authentication input matches the previously stored user authentication information, and information relating to the released playable content may be displayed.

Claims

1. A method of controlling an image display on a remote controller based on augmented reality, the method comprising:

capturing, by a camera that includes an identification unit, a real image around a user;

identifying, via the identification unit, an electronic device having playable content in the real image that is captured by the camera;

receiving, via a wireless communication module, information regarding a locked status of the playable content of the identified electronic device;

displaying, on a screen, an object indicating a locked status, wherein the object is displayed on the screen with the real image captured by the camera when the playable content of the identified electronic device requires a user authentication for playing the content;

receiving a user authentication input;

determining whether the received user authentication input matches a previously stored user authentication information;

releasing the playable content from the locked status when it is determined that the received user authentication input matches the previously stored user authentication information; and

displaying, on the screen, information relating to the released playable content.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein displaying the object indicating the locked status includes displaying, on the screen, an object corresponding to the identified electronic device while simultaneously displaying the object indicating the locked status.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the playable content having the locked status is one content having an age limit for viewing or content set as locked by a user.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein receiving the information of the locked status includes receiving the information of the locked status from the identified electronic device.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising accessing a network server or a home server over a wireless communication network, wherein receiving the information regarding the locked status includes receiving the information regarding the locked status of the playable content from the network server or the home server.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user authentication input is input of one of voice information, iris information, finger print information, gesture information, or face information of a user.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user authentication input is an input of a still image of at least one object or a moving picture of at least one object.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user authentication input includes a password input.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the displayed information regarding the released playable content includes information relating to one of a title, a saved position, a source position, a thumbnail image, a genre, or a play time of the released playable content.

10. A remote controller comprising:

an identification unit to capture a real image around a user by a camera and to identify an electronic device having playable content in the real image that is captured by the camera;

a wireless communication unit to receive information regarding a locked status of the playable content of the identified electronic device;

a display to provide an image display based on augmented reality; and

a controller to control the display to display the real image captured by the camera, and to control the display to display an object indicating a locked status on the display with the displayed real image when the playable content of the identified electronic device requires a user authentication for playing the content, the controller to determine whether a received user authentication input matches a previously stored user authentication information, and to release the playable content from the locked status when it is determined that the received user authentication input matches the previously stored user authentication information, and the controller to control the display to display information relating to the released playable content.

11. The remote controller according to claim 10, wherein the user authentication input is an input of a still image of at least one object or a moving picture of at least one object.

12. The remote controller according to claim 10, wherein the playable content having the locked status is content having an age limit for viewing or content set as locked by a user.

13. The remote controller according to claim 10, wherein the remote controller receives the information of the locked status includes receiving the information of the locked status of the playable content from the identified electronic device.

14. The remote controller according to claim 10, wherein the user authentication input is one of voice information, iris information, finger print information, gesture info nation, or face information of a user.

15. The remote controller according to claim 10, wherein the user authentication input includes a password input.

16. A method of controlling an image display on a remote controller based on augmented reality, the method comprising:

registering a user authentication setting;

receiving a user authentication input at the remote controller;

capturing, by a camera that includes an identification unit, a real image around a user,

identifying, via the identification unit, an electronic device in the real image captured by the camera;

displaying, on the screen, the real image captured by the camera; and

displaying, on the screen, information regarding playable content in the identified electronic device based on the user authentication input and based on the registered user authentication setting, wherein the information is displayed on the screen while displaying the real image captured by the camera.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the user authentication setting includes one of user information, a user authentication input method, or a user access class.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein displaying the information includes displaying the info nation regarding the contents differently based on the user authentication input.

19. The method according to claim 16, further comprising displaying an object that indicates a locked status when a content is not allowed for a user corresponding to the user authentication input.

20. The method according to claim 16, wherein displaying the information includes displaying only information about a content allowed for a user corresponding to the user authentication input.