Television – Receiver circuitry – Remote control
Patent
1997-07-16
2000-05-30
Peng, John K.
Television
Receiver circuitry
Remote control
348 55, 348734, 34082531, 34082569, 34082572, 345158, 341176, 359142, 359146, H04N 716, H04N 544, H04Q 522, G08C 1900
Patent
active
060696729
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a remote control for a receiver, more particularly for a television set.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In local receiver networks, as operated in hotels and clinics or hospitals, in particular in so-called pay TV networks having individual pay TV channels in addition to the usual station channels of private and public broadcasting stations, keeping a record of reception or viewing time of channels subject to payment, namely pay TV channels, necessitates a special technical reequipment for the pay TV operator. In known pay TV systems the viewing hours relevant to individual television sets are each signalled via a separate line from each television set to a central accounting point and from there in conclusion to final invoicing of the guest or patient at the end of his stay in the hotel or hospital. Due to the lines and circuitry necessary for this purpose central accounting is highly complicated.
Television sets are already known for which authorization cards can be acquired by purchasing. These authorization cards are introduced into a card reader, a so-called swipe, in the television set which is then unblocked. The drawback of this solution is that constructional changes need to be made to the television set.
DE 42 17 649 A1 discloses using a swipe to unblock a television set or telephone, the swipe being included in a bed control unit. This bed control unit comprises entry keys which can be used for switching the television set ON/OFF and for channel selection. As an alternative it is proposed to eliminate these entry keys on the bed control unit and to provide instead a telephone or an infrared control means. As a further alternative the entry keys are to be provided on the swipe.
In DE 42 17 648 A1 a bed control unit having a swipe is disclosed, the control unit being connected to a control means in a remote control means, whereby headphones are connectable to the remote control means and unblocking use of a television set follows depending on the information stored in a swipe card.
DE 42 18 125 A1 shows that a control unit having the form of a telephone receiver can be used for remote control of a display monitor, an authorization check being implemented in the telephone receiver as to whether the user of the telephone receiver has authority to use a television set or not. It is proposed that this check be made via a corresponding chip card.
In EP-A-317404 a pay TV system is described in which a card reader is provided in the television set.
FR-A-2696888 discloses a remote control in which the function of the remote control can be determined by a plug-in storage card.
In DE-A-4212200 a remote control system is disclosed which serves to operate household appliances by using an IC card and a remote public telephone capable of processing said IC card via a public telephone network.
The aforementioned devices have, however, the disadvantage that monitoring ON of the television set necessitates means of a relatively complex configuration and installing these means is relatively complicated.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention thus has the object to simplify, and thus also to make cheaper, means for monitoring ON of various television sets including the devices necessary therefor such as e.g. remote controls and, where desired, clocking the ON times of individual or all program channels of a receiver.
This object is achieved by a cordless remote control for a television set of a pay TV system comprising a reader for a data medium, said data medium containing information for activating said remote control and/or at least one program channel of said receiver, wherein said remote control is assigned a code (C); and said remote control comprises a device for writing said code (C) of said remote control on said data medium, a device for reading said code (C) from said data medium on said remote control, and a device for comparing said read code (C) to said code (C) of said remote control and for controlling the unblocking
REFERENCES:
patent: 5353016 (1994-10-01), Kurita et al.
patent: 5410326 (1995-04-01), Goldstein
patent: 5420573 (1995-05-01), Tanaka et al.
patent: 5488411 (1996-01-01), Lewis
C.I.S. Hotel Communications GmbH
Natnael Paulos M.
Peng John K.
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