Wireless remote control system for a television receiver

• US 5,146,210 A
• Filed: 07/26/1990
• Issued: 09/08/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Deutsche ITT Industries GmbH
• Original Assignee: Deutsche ITT Industries GmbH
• Inventors: Heberle, Klaus
• Primary Examiner(s): Weldon, Ulysses
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chin, Jick
• Application Number:
  US07/558,261
• Time in Patent Office: 775 Days
• Field of Search: 455/663, 358/194.1, 358/183, 340/706, 340/709, 340/712, 340/825.72, 341/176, 359/142, 359/159
• US Class Current: 715/856
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0304 Detection arrangements using opto-electronic means constructional details of pointing devices not related to the detection arrangement using opto-electronic means G06F3/033; optical digitisers G06F3/042
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 1/0025 in a remote control unit remote control tuning in general H03J9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 2200/22 Remote control device controlling cursor and/or including a cursor detecting device
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 9/06 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves, e.g. light
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/47 End-user applications

Abstract

A system for remotely controlling a television receiver has a position-dependant transmitter and an electrooptical arrangement which controls the motion of a cursor on a television screen. The electrooptical arrangement also generates menu entries to facilitate the selection of functions for tuning and operating the television receiver. The menu entries are selected by means of the cursor. The electrooptical arrangement includes adaptive filters which stabilize the position of the cursor on the screen and thereby allow for an increased number of control functions to be implemented.

Claims

1. A system for remotely controlling a video display apparatus having a screen for displaying at least one video signal, said system comprising:

transmitter means for transmitting a plurality of electromagnetic positional signals having radiation intensities indicative of the motion of said transmitter means, and for transmitting an electromagnetic command signal containing at least one coded command, wherein an unsteady motion of said transmitter means creates a high frequency component in each one of said plurality of positional signals; and

electrooptical means responsive to said transmitted electromagnetic positional signals for controlling said video apparatus by moving a cursor on the screen in response to the motion of said transmitter means, said electrooptical means including;

receiving means for receiving said command signal and said plurality of positional signals;

digitizing means, responsive to said receiving means, for digitizing said command signal and each one of said positional signals, the digital value of each one of said digitized positional signals being indicative of the radiation intensities of said correspondign one positional signal;

adaptive filter means, responsive to said digitizing means, for filtering out said high frequency component from each one of said digitized positional signals;

resolving means, responsive to said adaptive filter means, for resolving said plurality of filtered digitized positional signals into coordinate values indicative of the position fo the cursor on the screen; and

menu controller means for processing said command signal and, in accordance with said coordinate values determined by said resolving means, for displaying the position of the cursor on the screen and for controlling said video display apparatus.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein said adaptive filter means increases its cutoff frequency in response to increases in the frequency of said digitized positional signal and wherein said adaptive filter means decreases said cutoff frequency in response to decreases in the frequency of said digitized positional signal.

3. A system according to claim 2, wherein each one of said adaptive filter means operates on a corresponding digitized positional signal (Ii) according to the algorithm:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">Ii=[(1-K)Io+KIi].sup.z-n

4. A system according to claim 3, wherein each one of said adaptive filters means includes an adder means, a first multiplier means for multiplying the digitized positional signal (Ii) by the variable filter coefficient (K), the output of said first multiplier being coupled to one input of said adder means, delay element means for delaing the output of said adder means by at least oen full sampling period, the output of said delay element means providing the output (Io) of said adaptive filter means, and a second multiplier means for multiplying the output of the delay element means by the value 1-K, the output of said second multiplier being coupled to another input of said adder means.

5. A system according to claim 3, wherein said electrooptical means includes a programmable microprocessor, and wherein said algorithm is programmed in said programmable microprocessor, whereby said programmable microprocessor performs the adaptive filtering operation.

6. A system according to claim 3, wherein the weighting factor (K) is determined by the equation:

space="preserve" listing-type="equation">K=(K max-K min) absolute (Ii-Io)/I max+K min

7. A system according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of positional signals includes first, second and third positional signals, wherein said first and second positional signals have varying radiation patterns, wherein said third positional signal has a flat radiation pattern and wherein said first, second and third positional signals are time-division multiplexed.

8. A system according to claim 7, wherein said first second and third positional signals are transmitted along first, second and third optical axes, respectively, said optical axes being aligned in parallel, each one of said first, second and third optical axes determining a reference plane, and wherein said first and second electromagnetic signals have monotonically rising/falling radiation patterns.

9. A system according to claim 7, wherein said receiving means includes a radiation detector means for receiving said command signal and said first, second and third positional signals and for providing a single analog output signal, and wherein said digitizing means includes an analog to digital converter means for converting said analog output signal into a digital output signal and decoder means for separating said digital output signal into a digitized command signal and digitized first, second and third positional signals.

10. A system according to claim 9, wherein said receiving means further includes variable amplifying means interposed between said radiation detector means and said analog to digital converter means for amplifying said analog signal by a gain factor, said gain factor being responsive to changes in the value of said digitized third positional signal.

11. A system according to claim 10, wherein said command si.gnal includes a click command, and .wherein the coordinates of the cursor are stored in said memory controller at the time said click command is issued.

12. A system according to claim 11, wherein the screen is resolved into rectangular coordinates, and wherein said resolving means determines the movement of the transmitter means by evaluating the relation between signal intensity values of said digitized first, second and third positional signals, and generates rectangular coordinates which correspond to the position of the cursor on the screen.

13. A system according to claim 12, wherein a value ymax corresponds to the height of the screen and a value xmax corresponds to the width of the screen, wherein said resolving means includes a first divider means for dividing the filtered, digitized first positional signal by the filtered, digitized third positional signal, and a first multiplier means for multiplying the output of said first divider means by xmax, whereby the output of said first multiplier means is an x-coordinate value, and wherein said resolving means further includes a second divider means for dividing the filtered, digitized second positional signal by the filtered, digitized third positional signal, and a second multiplier means for multiplying the output of said second divider means by ymax, whereby the output of said second multiplier means is a y-coordinate value.

14. A system according to claim 11, wherein said menu controller means displays a video signal over a substantial portion of the screen and further displays a plurality of additional video signals in corresponding insets, each video signal corresponding to a unique television channel, and wherein one of said additional video signals is selected for display over the substantial portion of the screen by moving the cursor to the associated inset and actuating said click command.

15. A system according to claim 11, wherein said cursor is a rectangular frame and wherein said menu controller displays a portion of the video signal in said rectangular frame.

16. An electrooptical apparatus, responsive to the motion of a transmitter, for controlling a cursor on the screen of a television receiver, the transmitter transmitting a plurality of positional signals having intensities which are indicative of the motion of the transmitter, wherein an unsteady motion of said transmitter creates a high frequency component in each one of the positional signals;

said apparatus comprising;

receiving means for receiving said command signal and said plurality of positional signals;

digitizing means, responsive to said receiving means, for digitizing said command signal and each one of said positional signals, the digital value of each one of said digitized positional signals being indicative of the radiation intensities of said corresponding one positional signal;

adaptive filter means, responsive to said digitizing means, for filtering out said high frequency component from each one of said digitized positional signals;

resolving means, responsive to said adaptive filter means, for resolving said plurality of filtered digitized positional signals into coordinate values indicative of the position of the cursor on the screen; and

menu controller means for displaying the position of the cursor on the screen in accordance with said coordinate values determined by said resolving means.