RADIO WAKE-UP FOR RADIO CONTROL OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES

Abstract

Methods, apparatus, and systems that couple a first device to a radio control circuit of the second device can store identification information of the first device, operate a host circuit of the second electronic device in a sleep mode, detect a radio announcement signal from the first device by the radio control circuit of the second device and wake the host circuit of the second device from the sleep mode, and establish a control connection between the first device and the host circuit of the second device.

Description

PRIORITY

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 435,888, filed December 29, 2022, the contents of which are hereby incorporated in their entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present disclosure relates to remote control of electronic devices, particularly to waking up an electronic device in response to a radio announcement signal and controlling the electronic device with radio control signals. BACKGROUND

[0003] In system-on-chip (SOC) electronic devices, a radio module such as a Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE) module may include a radio controller such as a BLE controller, a host, and an application. In such electronic devices, the radio controller (e.g., the BLE controller) may listen for a radio announcement from a remote controller, such as a smartphone, to transition the electronic device from low-energy mode to high-energy mode.

[0004] In other electronic devices, a microprocessor unit (MPU) separate from the wireless controller, e.g., separate from the BLE controller, can control low-power modes of operation, including wake-up via a physical power switch or a separate infrared (IR) remote control. The MPU can include an operating system such as Linux, a wireless host stack such as Bluetooth® low energy (BLE) or Wi-Fi®, and an application. Electronic devices include, for example, music servers, household appliances, audio devices, video devices (TVs), and mains-powered electronic devices.

[0005] A typical electronic system comprises an electronic device (containing a microprocessor unit running a Linux operating system) that responds to commands from a remote controller, such as a smartphone, without restriction via the BLE stack. The electronic device is awakened from low-power standby mode by either: (1) pressing a physical POWER button on the electronic device itself or (2) sending an infrared signal via an infrared remote controller. An electronic device must be awake to receive BLE commands from a smartphone because, in low-power or standby mode, the radio host stack is turned off to achieve a standby power of less than 0.5 W (UL).After the electronic device is woken up and operating in a high-energy mode, which involves turning on the host radio stack, the smartphone can communicate with the electronic device via radio signals to control the electronic device.

[0006] Alternatively, electronic devices can be controlled by the MPU to operate continuously in a high-energy mode, meaning they remain fully powered all the time so that the smartphone can establish a control connection when needed. However, continuous operation in a high-energy mode does not provide any energy savings for the electronic device.

[0007] There is a need for electronic devices that can be fully woken up, turned on, or powered by a remote control, such as a smartphone, without requiring the user to press a physical POWER switch on the electronic device or use a separate infrared remote control to wake the electronic device from a low-power standby mode. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Aspects provide systems, apparatus, and methods that wake up an electronic device through a remote control announcement signal so that the remote control, such as a smartphone, can establish a control connection with the electronic device, without limitation.

[0009] According to one aspect, a method is provided, comprising: establishing communication between a first device having first device identification information and a second device having a radio control circuit and a host circuit, wherein the first device identification information is transmitted to and stored by the radio control circuit of the second device; operating the second electronic device in a sleep mode that maintains operating power to the radio control circuit without maintaining operating power to the host circuit; detecting, by the radio control circuit of the second device, an announcement signal from the first device that includes the first device identification information;and waking the second device from the sleep mode in response to detecting the announcement signal to operate in a wake mode that maintains operating power for both the radio control circuitry and the host circuitry, wherein in the wake mode the first device is capable of establishing a control connection with the host circuitry of the second device;

[0010] One aspect provides an apparatus comprising: a radio antenna; a microprocessor in signal communication with the radio antenna and comprising: a radio control circuit in communication with the radio antenna to store identification information of a remote controller and detect an announcement signal from a remote controller including identification information of the remote controller; and a host circuit in communication with the radio antenna to establish a control connection with the remote controller;wherein the device is operable in a low-power mode, wherein operating power is maintained for the radio control circuit and not maintained for the host circuit, wherein the device is operable in a high-power mode, wherein operating power is maintained for both the radio control circuit and the host circuit, and wherein the device switches from the low-power mode to the high-power mode in response to detection by the radio control circuit of an announcement signal containing the identification information of the remote control;

[0011] According to one aspect, a system is provided comprising: a remote control having remote control identification information; and a mains-powered electronic device comprising: a radio antenna; a radio control circuit in communication with the radio antenna, the radio control circuit storing identification information of a remote control and detecting an announcement signal from a remote control including the identification information; a host circuit in communication with the radio antenna, the host circuit establishing a control connection with the remote control; the radio control circuit waking up the host circuit in response to detection by the radio control circuit of an announcement signal including the remote control identification information. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The figures illustrate examples of systems, apparatus, and methods that wake up an electronic device through a smartphone announcement signal so that the smartphone can subsequently establish a control connection with the electronic device without the user pressing a physical POWER switch on the electronic device or using a separate IR remote control to wake the electronic device from a low-power standby mode. Fig. 1 shows a block diagram of an electronic device and a remote control, the electronic device having a radio control circuit and a host circuit. Fig. 2 shows a block diagram of an electronic device and a remote control, wherein the electronic device comprises a radio control circuit with a BLE controller and a microprocessor with a host circuit. Fig. 3 shows a block diagram of an electronic device and a remote control, the electronic device having a radio antenna and a microprocessor with a radio control circuit and a host circuit. Fig. 4 shows a block diagram of an electronic device and a remote control, the electronic device having a radio control circuit and a host circuit. Fig. Figure 5 shows a schematic diagram of an electronic device including a radio antenna, a radio control circuit, and a microprocessor with a host circuit. Fig. Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram of an electronic device including a radio antenna and a microprocessor with a radio control circuit and a host circuit. Fig. 7 shows the flowchart of a method for coupling devices, operating a device in sleep mode, detecting an advertisement signal, and waking a device to establish a control connection between devices. The reference numerals for each illustrated element appearing in several different figures have the same meaning in all figures, and mention or discussion of an illustrated element in connection with a particular figure also applies to any other figure in which the same illustrated element is shown, if any. DESCRIPTION

[0013] Aspects provide systems, apparatus, and methods that wake an electronic device through a remote control, such as a smartphone, radio announcement signal, so that the smartphone can then establish a control connection with the electronic device without the user pressing a physical power switch on the electronic device or using a separate infrared (IR) remote control to wake the electronic device from a low-power standby mode.Aspects of this disclosure provide a radio control circuit of an electronic device that listens for a radio announcement signal from a remote control, compares identification information in the radio announcement signal to a stored list of remote control identification information, and wakes up the electronic device to allow an acknowledged remote control to establish a control connection with the electronic device.

[0014] Aspects provide an electronic device that wakes itself from a sleep mode when it detects and recognizes a radio announcement signal from a previously paired smartphone. If a previously paired smartphone is not recognized by the electronic device, the electronic device may remain in sleep mode to conserve power. If a previously paired smartphone is recognized, the electronic device may be placed in a wake mode in which the electronic device may be fully controlled by the smartphone. The smartphone may then act as a remote controller for the electronic device.

[0015] The signal from the remote control to an electronic device may be a wireless signal selected from the group consisting of Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi®, and ZigBee®. Furthermore, the wireless signal may be formatted according to at least one communication standard selected from the group consisting of Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi®, and ZigBee®. Bluetooth® is a registered trademark of Bluetooth® SIG. Wi-Fi® is a registered trademark owned by the Wi-Fi Alliance. ZigBee® is a registered trademark owned by the ZigBee Alliance.

[0016] The remote control can be any device capable of providing control commands, e.g., a smartphone, without limitation. In some aspects, a radio antenna of the electronic device can communicate with the remote control. The radio antenna of the electronic device can be used to communicate with a user device (remote control) capable of remotely controlling the electronic device. This can include dedicated remote controls, smartphones, tablet computers, laptops, or any other user device capable of communicating with the radio antenna of the electronic device. This communication can occur directly or via a local area network, such as a homeowner's network (e.g., via Wi-Fi), which can further include access to a central server, such as a cloud-based server.In other cases, communication may occur via a local communication node or bridge. Communication may occur directly with a central or cloud-based server (e.g., via a cellular connection). In other cases, communication may occur directly between the remote control and the electronic device. Remote controls may include, without limitation, iPhone, iPad, Android, and BlackBerry personal digital assistants. Such devices may use a mobile device platform including, without limitation, Java, Java ME, iPhone, iOS, iPad, Android, Windows Mobile, Windows Phone, BlackBerry OS, Symbian, bada, and others. The remote controls may be capable of local wireless communication, such as, without limitation, Wi-Fi (e.g., 802.11x); Wi-Max; cellular (e.g., 3G, 4G, LTE, CDMA, etc.); LoRa, Zigbee; Zigbee Pro; Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), which uses Bluetooth 4.0.0 protocol, currently implemented in iOS®5+ and Android® OS 4.3+ operating systems; Near Field Communication (NFC), Z-Wave; 6LoWPAN; Thread; RFID; and other applicable wireless protocols. In a specific example, the remote control is an application running on a smartphone, with the smartphone communicating with the electronic device via BLE.

[0017] Electronic devices can be switched from a low-power mode to a high-power mode when a radio announcement signal from a previously paired smartphone is detected. An electronic device can be switched to high-power mode when a radio announcement signal from a previously paired smartphone is detected, which can then enable the smartphone to be connected for remote control.

[0018] The remote control may establish communication via a radio announcement signal, such as a BLE announcement signal, without limitation. One aspect is detecting a BLE announcement signal from a previously paired smartphone and using that detection to trigger a wake-up of a microprocessor unit in an electronic device. One aspect may provide the microprocessor unit with a very simple Bluetooth® Low Energy (BLE) function that listens for announcements and, upon detecting a BLE announcement signal from a previously paired smartphone, generates a wake-up signal (either a pin toggle or a UART message). Another aspect provides a subfunction in the BLE module of a microprocessor unit that disables all functions except listening for BLE announcements.This function can then listen for BLE advertisement signals and wake up the rest of the microprocessor system when a BLE advertisement signal is detected from a previously paired smartphone. This listening and wake-up functionality can be provided at the host controller interface (HCI) level of a radio control circuit, which can then be used as part of an MPU Linux subsystem.

[0019] Fig. 1 shows a block diagram of a system 100 including an electronic device 110 and a remote controller 150. The electronic device 110 includes a radio control circuit 114 and a host circuit 130. The remote controller 150 sends a radio announcement signal 152 to the radio control circuit 114. The remote controller 150 may also establish a control connection 154 via radio signals with the host circuit 130 of the electronic device 110. The electronic device 110 may be any electronic device, such as music servers, appliances, audio devices, video devices (televisions), and mains-powered electronic devices. The remote controller 150 may be a smartphone, e.g., an iPhone or an Android-based device. In one aspect, a Bluetooth® Low Energy stack may be divided into two distinct layers: the Bluetooth Low Energy Controller and the Bluetooth Low Energy Host. In Fig. 1, the radio control circuit 114 may be a Bluetooth Low Energy controller and the host circuit 130 may be a Bluetooth Low Energy host. These software subsystems may be executed either on the same IC or on two separate ICs that may be connected via a physical serial interface and the standard Host Controller Interface (HCI) protocol.

[0020] Fig. 2 shows a block diagram of a system 200 comprising an electronic device 210 and a remote controller 250. The electronic device 210 comprises a microprocessor 260 and a radio control circuit 214, e.g., a BLE controller 262. The microprocessor 260 comprises an operating system 264, a host circuit 230, e.g., a BLE stack 266, and an application 268 in a memory 261. The remote controller 250 sends a radio advertisement signal 252 to the BLE controller 262. The remote controller 250 can also establish a control connection 254 via radio signals with the BLE stack 266 of the electronic device 210. Bluetooth comprises several protocol layers that form the Bluetooth protocol stack. The lower layers are located in the BLE controller 262, which contains the radio interface. The upper layers are located in a BLE stack 266, which deals with the data at the highest level. As in Fig. 2, the BLE controller 262 is located outside the MPU 260. Alternatively, the BLE controller 262 may not be physically separated from the BLE stack 266. If physically separated, a host controller interface (HCI) may handle communication between the BLE controller 262 and the BLE stack 266 via HCI data packets 226. The BLE controller 262 may provide a host controller interface (HCI) at the radio level. In particular, the BLE controller 262 may include an HCI driver 222 and the BLE stack 266 may include an HCI driver 234, which communicate via HCI packets 226.

[0021] As in Fig. 2, the HCI driver 222 in the BLE controller 262 communicates with the HCI driver 234 in the BLE stack 226 of the microprocessor 260, and the BLE controller 262 may be configured to: listen for radio advertisement signals 252 from smartphones, wherein the radio advertisement signals 252 include smartphone identification information, compare detected identification information from advertisement signals with a stored list of identification information from previously paired smartphones, and issue a wake-up signal to the BLE stack 266 when a previously paired smartphone is identified.

[0022] In a sleep mode, the MPU is turned off, asleep, or in a similar power-saving mode. The BLE controller 262 is not part of the MPU and is powered to listen for BLE advertisement signals from a previously paired smartphone. The BLE controller 262 can listen continuously, or if the advertisements occur every 250 ms, the BLE controller 262 can sleep between those time intervals. For example, it can listen for 300 ms and then go to sleep for 200 ms or more. The interface to the MPU 260 can operate according to a predefined standard known as a Host Controller Interface (HCI). The BLE controller 262 can be extended with a function that detects the presence of a previously paired device and uses this detection to wake the MPU 260 from the sleep or off state, or a similar power-saving mode.

[0023] The BLE controller 262 of the electronic device 210 may remain powered on while the MPU 260 is powered off or in a low-power sleep mode. The smartphone 250 may generate BLE advertisement signals. The BLE controller 262 may listen for BLE advertisement signals from the smartphone 250 while the MPU 260 remains in a low-power sleep mode. The BLE controller 262 may compare the identification information from detected BLE advertisement signals with the identification information from a stored list of previously paired smartphones. If a match is found, the BLE controller 262 may send a wake-up signal to the MPU 260. The MPU 260 may then boot up and be available for a full BLE connection with the identified smartphone 250.The BLE controller 262 may at this time perform typical BLE operations to control the electronic device via commands transmitted via BLE signals sent from the identified remote controller.

[0024] The list of identification information for previously paired smartphones may be populated as individual smartphones are paired with the MPU 260 so that the BLE advertisement signals of those smartphones can be compared with the populated list. An electronic device 210, such as a stereo, radio, television, or other electronic device, may be turned ON, for example, via a physical power button on the electronic device or via push buttons on an infrared remote control. The electronic device may then be paired with a smartphone 250 via radio signals. After pairing, the identification information, e.g., the MAC ID and other characteristics, of the smartphone 250 may be stored in a memory 228 in the BLE controller 262 to create a list of identification information for previously paired smartphones.Subsequently, when the BLE controller 262 detects the BLE advertisement signal of a previously paired smartphone 250, the BLE controller 262 may turn ON the MPU 260 and the BLE stack 266, once turned on, may connect the electronic device 210 to the smartphone 250 to gain full control of the smartphone 250 even if the MPU 260 is in standby mode.

[0025] When a smartphone 250 is paired with the electronic device 210 for the first time, the pairing information from the electronic device 210 may be stored in the BLE controller 262 or in memory accessible by the BLE controller 262. Detection of an advertisement signal from a previously paired smartphone may allow the smartphone 250 to control the electronic device 210 at full power. The user may then use a smartphone application to communicate with the electronic device 210. Later, when the electronic device 210 is not in use and enters a low-power standby mode, the BLE controller 262 may remain active and listen for BLE advertisement signals from the smartphone 250.When the previously paired smartphone 250 is detected by the electronic device 210, in particular by the BLE controller 262, the BLE controller 262 may cause the electronic device to provide an internal signal from the BLE controller 262 to wake up or power the entire electronic device 210, e.g., to wake up or power the MPU 260. In this way, the electronic device 210 may remain in a low-power mode according to standard standby protocols, while the electronic device 210 may be powered by the previously paired smartphone 250.

[0026] Fig. 3 shows a block diagram of a system 300 including an electronic device 310 and a remote control 350. The remote control 350 may be a Bluetooth Low Energy-enabled smartphone. The electronic device 310 includes a radio antenna 370 and a microprocessor 360. The microprocessor 360 includes a radio control circuit 314, a host circuit 330, and applications 346. The radio control circuit 314 may include a protocol stack including the radio 316, link control 318, link manager 320, host control interface (HCI) driver 322, and physical bus driver 324 layers. The host circuit 330 may also include a protocol stack having the following layers: a physical bus driver 332, an HCI driver 334, an audio 336, a Logical Link Control and Adaption Protocol (L2CAP) 338, a controller 340, and higher layers 342. The protocol may be Bluetooth®, Wi-Fi®, ZigBee@, or a combination thereof.The remote controller 350 sends a radio announcement signal 352 to the radio control circuit 314. The remote controller 350 can also establish a control connection 354 with the host circuit 330 via the radio antenna 370 and the radio control circuit 314.

[0027] Fig. 4 shows a block diagram of a system 400 including an electronic device 410 and a remote controller 450. The remote controller 450 may be a Bluetooth Low Energy-enabled smartphone. The electronic device 410 includes a radio control circuit 414 and a host circuit 430. The radio control circuit 414 includes a radio circuit 472, a memory circuit 474, and a comparator circuit 476. The radio circuit 472 may handle radio communication with the remote controller 450. The memory circuit 474 may store identification information for remote controllers 450 coupled to the radio circuit 472. The comparator circuit 476 may compare identification information for remote controllers 450 that transmit radio announcement signals to the radio circuit 472 with identification information for remote controllers stored in the memory circuit 474.The remote controller 450 sends a radio announcement signal 452 to the radio control circuitry 414. The remote controller 450 may also establish a control connection 454 via radio signals with the host circuitry 430 of the electronic device 410.

[0028] Fig. 5 shows a block diagram of an electronic device 510 including a radio antenna 570, a radio control circuit 514, and a microprocessor 560. The microprocessor 560 may include a host circuit 530. The microprocessor 560 and the radio control circuit 514 may receive signal information from the radio antenna 570. In a sleep mode, the microprocessor 560 with the host circuit 530 is turned off or asleep. The radio control circuit 514 may remain turned on while the microprocessor 560 with the host circuit 530 is turned off or in a low-power sleep mode. The radio control circuit 514 may listen for BLE advertisement signals even when the microprocessor 560 with the host circuit 530 is in sleep mode.Radio control circuitry 514 may store identification information for previously paired remote controls and use the stored identification information to detect whether a previously paired remote control is transmitting a radio announcement signal. Radio control circuitry 514 may wake up microcontroller 560 with host circuitry 530 when a previously paired remote control is detected.

[0029] Fig. 6 shows a block diagram of an electronic device 610 including a radio antenna 670 and a microprocessor 660. The microprocessor 660 may include a radio control circuit 614 and a host circuit 630. The microprocessor 660 may receive signal information from the radio antenna 670. In a sleep mode, the host circuit 630 is turned OFF or asleep. The radio control circuit 614 may remain ON while the host circuit 630 is turned OFF or in a low-power sleep mode. The radio control circuit 614 may listen for BLE advertisement signals even when the host circuit 630 is in sleep mode. The radio control circuit 614 may store identification information for previously paired remote controls and use the stored identification information to detect whether a previously paired remote control is transmitting a radio advertisement signal.The radio control circuit 614 may wake up the host circuit 630 when a previously paired remote control is detected.

[0030] Aspects of this disclosure may be used with any electronic device that is in a low-power state and then awakened upon detection of a BLE announcement from a previously paired remote control.

[0031] One aspect provides a method for controlling an electronic device, such as a television, a headset, or other device. A first device (e.g., a smartphone or other device) is paired with a second device (e.g., a television, a headset, or other device). As part of the pairing process, an ID is transmitted from the first device to the second device and stored in the radio control (BLE) circuitry of the second device. The first device may move away, be turned off, or otherwise disconnect from the second device. After a period of time without any activity on the second device (from the first device or something else, or a combination thereof), the second device may enter power-saving mode.The first device may re-establish communication with the second device, with the first device transmitting an advertisement signal containing the ID of the first device at specified intervals. The second device has a radio control circuit, which may include a scanner that wakes up according to a specified schedule to detect the advertisement signal. However, the second device is in a power-saving mode (e.g., a television in sleep mode). The radio control circuit of the second device receives data from the advertisement signal and compares the ID of the advertisement signal with the stored ID from the pairing process (multiple devices may be stored from previous pairing processes). If there is a match, action is taken, specifically waking the second device from power-saving mode.

[0032] Fig.7 shows a flowchart for a method. A first device having first device identification information establishes communication 710 between a second device having radio control circuitry and a host circuitry, wherein the first device identification information is transmitted to and stored by the radio control circuitry of the second device. One way to establish communication is through pairing. The second electronic device operates 720 in a sleep mode that maintains operating power to the radio control circuitry without maintaining operating power to the host circuitry. The radio control circuitry of the second device detects 730 a radio announcement signal from the first device that includes the first device identification information.The radio control circuitry of the second device detects 730 in response to detecting the radio announcement signal from the first device including the identification information of the first device, wakes 740 at least a portion of the second device from the sleep mode to operate in a wake mode that maintains operating power for both the radio control and the host circuitry, wherein the first device in the wake mode is capable of establishing a control connection with the host circuitry of the second device.

[0033] Radio control circuits, radio circuits, host circuits, memory circuits, and comparison circuits may each be implemented by instructions in a medium for execution by a processor, a function, a library call, a subroutine, a shared library, software as a service, an analog circuit, a digital circuit, control logic, digital logic circuits programmed by a hardware description language, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a programmable logic device (PLD), or any other suitable combination thereof or other suitable mechanism, whether in a single device or distributed across multiple devices.

[0034] In one aspect, the radio control circuitry processes radio signals according to Bluetooth Low Energy and WiFi protocols, and the host circuitry processes radio signals according to the Bluetooth Low Energy protocol.

[0035] Although the examples above are descriptive, other variations and examples may be derived from this disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of these disclosed examples. QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] US 63 / 435,888

[0001]

Claims

[1] Method comprising: Establishing communication between a first device having first device identification information and a second device having a radio control circuit and a host circuit, wherein the first device identification information is transmitted to and stored by the radio control circuit of the second device; Operating the second electronic device in a sleep mode that maintains operating power to the radio control circuitry without maintaining operating power to the host circuitry; detecting a radio announcement signal from the first device containing the identification information of the first device by the radio control circuit of the second device; and Waking the second device from the sleep mode in response to detecting the radio announcement signal to operate in a wake mode that maintains operating power for both the radio control circuitry and the host circuitry, wherein in the wake mode the first device is capable of establishing a control connection with the host circuitry of the second device. [2] The method of claim 1, comprising establishing the control connection between the first device and the host circuit of the second device after the radio control circuit has detected the radio announcement signal of the first device including the identification information of the first device. [3] The method of claim 1, wherein the identification information of the first device is transmitted via a signal selected from Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and ZigBee. [4] The method of claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the announcement signal comprises a Bluetooth Low Energy radio signal. [5] A method according to claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3, comprising comparing, by the radio control circuit, the detected first device identification information contained in the radio announcement signal of the first device with the stored first device identification information. [6] The method of claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the second electronic device comprises a microprocessor comprising the host circuitry and the host circuitry comprises a BLE stack. [7] The method of claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the second electronic device comprises a microprocessor comprising the radio control circuitry and the host circuitry. [8] A method according to claim 1, claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the electronic device is a mains-powered electronic device. [9] Device comprising: a radio antenna; a microprocessor in signal communication with the radio antenna which has: a radio control circuit in communication with the radio antenna for storing identification information of a remote control and detecting an announcement signal from a remote control including identification information of the remote control; and a host circuit in communication with the radio antenna to establish a control connection with the remote control; wherein the device is operable in a low-power mode, wherein the operating power is maintained for the radio control circuit and is not maintained for the host circuit, wherein the device is operable in a high-power mode, wherein the operating power is maintained for both the radio control circuit and the host circuit, and wherein the device switches from the low power mode to the high power mode in response to detection by the radio control circuit of a radio announcement signal containing the identification information of the remote control. [10] The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the radio control circuit switches the apparatus to the high power mode when the radio control circuit detects the radio announcement signal including the identification information of the remote control. [11] The apparatus of claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the remote control is an application of a smartphone, and the radio control circuit pairs with the smartphone and stores the smartphone identification information from the pairing. [12] The device of claim 11 or claim 10, wherein the remote control is an application of a smartphone, and wherein the radio control circuit performs pairing with the smartphone by transmitting a signal selected from Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and ZigBee. [13] The apparatus according to claim 9, comprising a comparator circuit for comparing the remote control identification information stored by the radio control circuit with the remote control identification information of the radio announcement signal. [14] The apparatus of claim 9 or claim 13, wherein the radio control circuit processes radio signals according to Bluetooth Low Energy and WiFi protocols, and wherein the host circuit processes radio signals according to the Bluetooth Low Energy protocol. [15] A device according to claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the device is a mains-powered electronic device. [16] System that has: a remote control having remote control identification information; and a mains-operated electronic device comprising: a radio antenna; a radio control circuit in communication with the radio antenna, the radio control circuit storing identification information of a remote controller and detecting a radio announcement signal from a remote controller containing the identification information; a host circuit in communication with the radio antenna, the host circuit establishing a control connection with the remote control; wherein the radio control circuit awakens the host circuit in response to the radio control circuit detecting a radio announcement signal including the remote control identification information. [17] The system of claim 16, wherein the radio control circuitry and the host circuitry are capable of processing radio signals according to Bluetooth Low Energy protocols. [18] A system according to claim 16 or claim 17, comprising a comparator circuit capable of comparing remote control identification information stored by the radio control circuit with remote control identification information of a radio announcement signal. [19] The system of claim 16, comprising a microprocessor comprising the radio control circuitry and the host circuitry. [20] The system of claim 16 or claim 19, wherein the mains-powered electronic device is capable of operating in a sleep mode, wherein the mains-powered electronic device is capable of operating in a wake mode, and wherein waking the host circuitry comprises switching from the sleep mode to the wake mode.

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