Context-Sensitive Remote Controls
AssigneeMicrosoft Corporation
InventorsDaniel Zigmond, Dov Green
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Subject matter includes a reprogrammer for roving remote controllers that are capable of being used in multiple locations with different devices to be controlled at each location. An exemplary roving remote controller changes control code sets to operate whatever devices are present in a particular room. In one implementation, an exemplary multimedia system has reprogrammers for one or more roving remote controllers that adapt to their setting. When a remote controller is moved from a first room to a second room, the program content being controlled in the first room is automatically transferred to the second room.
Claims13
A multimedia system, comprising:
- a hub having access to multimedia content;
- one or more nodes communicatively coupled with the hub and with respective controllable devices for using the multimedia content;
- one or more portable remote controllers for communicating with the nodes, wherein in response to communicating with a particular node, a portable remote controller operates the controllable devices communicatively coupled with the particular node;
- and
- wherein in response to the portable remote controller moving from a first node to a second node, the hub discontinues providing the multimedia content to the first node and resumes providing the multimedia content to one of the controllable devices communicatively coupled with the second node.
A method, comprising:
- sensing a remote controller in a first location;
- instructing the remote controller to use a first code set to control a first device;
- sending a multimedia event to the first device;
- sensing the remote controller in a second location;
- instructing the remote controller to use a second code set to control a second device;
- and
- sending the multimedia event to the second device.
Nodes for controlling interactions between a hub, one or more controllable devices, and one or more portable remote controllers in a multimedia network system, each node comprising:
- a receiver for sensing a presence of one or more of the portable remote controllers;
- a communicator for sending an indication of a current presence of each of one or more of the portable remote controllers to the hub;
- wherein in response to a movement of one of the portable remote controllers, the hub sends multimedia content to a sequence of the nodes, wherein the sequence follows the movement of the portable remote controller.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.