Remote control including touch-sensing surface

• US 9,024,894 B1
• Filed: 08/29/2012
• Issued: 05/05/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC (Charter Communications Incorporated)
• Inventors: Smith, Robert Todd
• Primary Examiner(s): Shankar, Vijay
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sarma, Abhishek
• Application Number:
  US13/598,111
• Time in Patent Office: 979 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-174, 348/734, 725/39, 715/863
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/422 Input-only peripherals , i.e. input devices connected to specially adapted client devices, e.g. global positioning system [GPS] input devices also receiving signals from specially adapted client devices H04N21/4104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42224 Touch pad or touch panel provided on the remote control

Abstract

As discussed herein according to one configuration, a remote controller device includes a touch-sensing surface, touch processing logic, and a communication interface. The touch-sensing surface includes an array of sensors to detect a gesture inputted by a subscriber indicating how to control settings of a content management device. The touch processing logic processes the detected gesture and converts the detected gesture into control information. The communication interface of the remote controller device transmits the control information over a communication link to control settings of the content management device. Gesture-based remote control as discussed herein provides more advanced control compared to conventional button-type remote control techniques.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

establishing a communication session between a remote controller device in a subscriber domain and a remote server over a network;

receiving control information from the remote controller device operated in the subscriber domain, the control information indicating a gesture sensed by a touch-sensing surface of the remote controller device;

forwarding the control information over the communication session to the remote server to control a content management device in the subscriber domain;

wherein the gesture is a swipe gesture, the method further comprising;

utilizing a velocity of the swipe gesture to determine a command as indicated by the swipe gesture, the swipe gesture specifying a first command based when the velocity of the swipe command is above a threshold value, the swipe gesture specifying a second command when the velocity of the gesture is below the threshold value;

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a first swipe gesture is above the threshold value;

i) executing the first command, execution of the first command including initiating display of a graphical user interface on the remote controller device, the graphical user interface displaying multiple available channels, and ii) based on a tap input to a particular channel on the graphical user interface displayed on the touch-sensing surface, tuning to the particular channel selected from the graphical user interface; and

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a second swipe gesture is below the threshold value, executing the second command, execution of the second command including tuning to a different channel than the current selected channel.

2. The method as in claim 1, wherein the content management device is a set-top box located in a subscriber domain of a shared cable network environment.

3. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

establishing the communication session over a communication link between a navigation application executing on the content management device and the remote server, the navigation application being registered as a valid client for receiving the control information from the remote server.

4. The method as in claim 1 further comprising:

prior to detecting the gesture inputted by the subscriber indicating how to control settings of the content management device, calibrating an inputted swipe gesture to be a different number of pixels depending on size attributes of the touch-sensing surface.

5. The method as in claim 1, wherein tuning to the different channel than the current selected channel includes:

tuning to a next higher channel in response to detecting that the second swipe gesture is in a first direction; and

tuning to the next lower channel in response to detecting that the second swipe gesture is in a second direction, the second direction opposite the first direction.

6. A method comprising:

based on activation of multiple sensors in a touch-sensing surface of a remote controller device, detecting a gesture inputted by a subscriber indicating how to control settings of a content management device;

wherein the gesture is a swipe gesture, the method further comprising;

utilizing a velocity of the swipe gesture to determine a command as indicated by the swipe gesture, the swipe gesture specifying a first command based when the velocity of the swipe command is above a threshold value, the swipe gesture specifying a second command when the velocity of the gesture is below the threshold value;

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a first swipe gesture is above the threshold value;

i) executing the first command, execution of the first command including initiating display of a graphical user interface on the remote controller device, the graphical user interface displaying multiple available channels, and ii) based on a tap input to a particular channel on the graphical user interface displayed on the touch-sensing surface, tuning to the particular channel selected from the graphical user interface;

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a second swipe gesture is below the threshold value, executing the second command, execution of the second command including tuning to a different channel than the current selected channel;

converting the detected gesture into control information;

transmitting the control information over a communication link to control settings of the content management device, the content management device configured to stream selected content to a display device in accordance with the control information.

7. Computer-readable storage hardware having instructions stored thereon, the instructions, when carried out by a processing device, causes the processing device to perform operations of:

establishing a communication session between a remote controller device in a subscriber domain and a remote server over a network;

receiving control information from the remote controller device operated in the subscriber domain, the control information indicating a gesture sensed by a touch-sensing surface of the remote controller device;

forwarding the control information over the communication session to the remote server to control a content management device in the subscriber domain;

wherein the gesture is a swipe gesture, the instructions further comprising;

utilizing a velocity of the swipe gesture to determine a command as indicated by the swipe gesture, the swipe gesture specifying a first command when the velocity of the swipe command is above a threshold value, the swipe gesture specifying a second command when the velocity of the gesture is below the threshold value;

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a first the swipe gesture is above the threshold value;

i) executing the first command, execution of the first command including initiating display of a graphical user interface on the remote controller device, the graphical user interface displaying multiple available channels, and ii) based on a tap input to a particular channel on the graphical user interface displayed on the touch-sensing surface, tuning to the particular channel selected from the graphical user interface; and

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a second swipe gesture is below the threshold value, executing the second command, execution of the second command including tuning to a different channel than the current selected channel.

8. A system comprising:

computer processor hardware; and

a hardware storage resource coupled to the computer processor hardware, the hardware storage resource storing instructions that, when executed by the computer processor hardware, causes the computer processor hardware to perform operations of;

establishing a communication session between a remote controller device in a subscriber domain and a remote server over a network;

receiving control information from the remote controller device operated in the subscriber domain, the control information indicating a gesture sensed by a touch-sensing surface of the remote controller device;

forwarding the control information over the communication session to the remote server to control a content management device in the subscriber domain;

wherein the gesture is a swipe gesture, the system further comprising;

utilizing a velocity of the swipe gesture to determine a command as indicated by the swipe gesture, the swipe gesture specifying a first command when the velocity of the swipe command is above a threshold value, the swipe gesture specifying a second command when the velocity of the gesture is below the threshold value;

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a first the swipe gesture is above the threshold value;

i) executing the first command, execution of the first command including initiating display of a graphical user interface on the remote controller device, the graphical user interface displaying multiple available channels, and ii) based on a tap input to a particular channel on the graphical user interface displayed on the touch-sensing surface, tuning to the particular channel selected from the graphical user interface; and

responsive to detecting that the velocity of a second swipe gesture is below the threshold value, executing the second command, execution of the second command including tuning to a different channel than the current selected channel.

9. The system as in claim 8 further comprising:

establishing the communication session over a communication link between a navigation application executing on the content management device and the remote server, the navigation application being registered as a valid client for receiving the control information from the remote server.

10. The system as in claim 8, wherein tuning to the different channel than the current selected channel includes:

tuning to a next higher channel in response to detecting that the second swipe gesture is in a first direction; and

tuning to the next lower channel in response to detecting that the second swipe gesture is in a second direction, the second direction opposite the first direction.