Transferring data from one device to another

• US 6,778,225 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2001
• Issued: 08/17/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: David, Valdo
• Primary Examiner(s): Hsia, Sherrie
• Application Number:
  US09/794,980
• Publication Number:
  US 20010029555A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,266 Days
• Field of Search: H04/N.544, H04/N.550, H04/N.5222, 348/734, 348/725, 348/570, 348/722, 341/176, 341/173, 341/177, 340/825, 340/825.22, 340/825.23, 340/825.24, 340/825.72, 340/825.73, 340/825.29, 340/10.52, 340/5.64, 725/78, 725/80, 725/81, 725/85
• US Class Current: 348/734
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 1/0025 in a remote control unit remote control tuning in general H03J9/00
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 9/06 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves, e.g. light

Abstract

In a method and arrangement for installing or updating a large number of television receivers in, e.g., hotels, one of the television receivers (1) is manually programmed. The data is then downloaded from the television receiver into a remote control unit (3) by modulating a conventional status LED (17) of the television receiver. In accordance with the invention, the status LED is of a type which emits visible light (171) as well as infrared light (172). The modulated infrared light beam (172) is detected by an infrared detector (34) of the remote control device and stored (35) therein. The data stored in the remote control unit is subsequently uploaded to other television receivers using the conventional infrared channel (33,15).

Claims

1. A device comprising a memory for storing operational data of said device and transfer means for transferring said data to an external device, characterized in that the device comprises a light-emitting diode capable of emitting both visible and infrared light, and control means for selectively controlling said LED to emit a static light indicating device status information represented by said visible light, or to modulate the light emitted by said LED with said stored data to transfer said stored data to said external device as a modulated infrared light stream.

2. The device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said device further comprises means for receiving transferred data from said external device and for storing said transferred data in said memory.

3. The device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said device is a broadcast receiver and said external device is a remote control unit for controlling said broadcast receiver.

4. The device as claimed in claim 3, wherein said data is tuning data representing receivable broadcast transmitters and stored in said memory in response to programming commands received from said remote control unit.

5. A system comprising a broadcast receiver and a remote control unit as defined in claim 3.

6. A method of transferring data stored in a device to an external device, the device comprising a light-emitting diode capable of emitting both visible and infrared light, the method comprising the steps:

controlling said LED to emit static light indicating device status information represented by said visible light ;

and

modulating a signal applied to the LED thereby modulating the light emitted by said LED with said stored data to transfer said stored data to said external device as a modulated infrared light stream.

7. A method of transferring data stored in a device to a plurality of further devices, said method comprising the steps:

transferring said data to an external device in accordance with the method as claimed in claim 6; and

transferring said data from said external device to said plurality of further devices.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7, wherein said device and further devices are broadcast receivers and said external device is a remote control unit for controlling one of said devices.