Home appliance and method thereof

Abstract

The present invention relates to a home appliance and a method of operation thereof. A home appliance according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a user input interface unit, a storage unit that stores a database for response history, and a control unit. When an input requesting a previous response is received through the user input interface unit, the control unit checks whether a first response corresponding to the request for a previous response exists in the response history. If the first response exists, the control unit checks the type of a first command mapped to the first response. If the type of the first command is a first type, the control unit determines the first response as the previous response. If the type of the first command is a second type, the control unit generates a second response for the first command and determines the second response as the previous response. Various other embodiments are possible.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a home appliance and a method of operating the same. Background Technology

[0002] Home appliances are devices used for user convenience. Furthermore, home appliances used in designated spaces such as homes or offices, including display devices, air conditioners, washing machines, and refrigerators, each perform unique functions and operations according to user input.

[0003] Generally, home appliances provide a function that allows for the convenient re-execution of previously performed actions based on user input (hereinafter referred to as the "previous action function"). For example, if a user presses a specific button on the remote control (e.g., the previous channel button) while watching broadcast content on a TV, the TV can re-select the channel that was selected immediately before the current channel was selected and output broadcast content of the newly selected channel.

[0004] Meanwhile, when a home appliance provides a previous operation function, it generally stores a history of operations executed in response to commands entered by the user. When an input requesting the re-execution of a previous operation is received, the appliance sequentially re-executes the operations starting from the most recently executed ones, based on the history stored in the device. However, conventional home appliances merely use the data stored in the history as is when providing the previous operation function, which can lead to a problem where the result of the previous operation based on the history differs from the result desired by the user. For example, if a user sequentially checks the indoor and outdoor temperatures through an air conditioner and then executes the previous operation function after a certain period of time has elapsed, the user may want to check the current indoor temperature at that point in time; however, a problem may arise where the air conditioner simply provides the user with the information regarding the previously checked indoor temperature stored in the history.

[0005] Furthermore, when users utilize the previous action function, they generally expect the re-execution of previous actions that were performed during continuous use of the home appliance, and do not expect unexpected actions from a previous point in time to be re-executed. However, since conventional home appliances merely accumulate data regarding previous actions in the history, there is a possibility that actions from a previous point in time that the user did not expect may be executed when the previous action function is used. The problem to be solved

[0006] The present invention aims to solve the aforementioned problems and other problems.

[0007] Another objective is to provide a home appliance and a method of operation that can accurately perform actions desired by a user by taking into account changes over time when providing previous operation functions based on history stored in the device. means of solving the problem

[0008] A home appliance according to one embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above objective comprises a user input interface unit, a storage unit that stores a database for response history, and a control unit. When an input requesting a previous response is received through the user input interface unit, the control unit checks whether a first response corresponding to the request for a previous response exists in the response history. If the first response exists, the control unit checks the type of a first command mapped to the first response. If the type of the first command is of the first type, the control unit determines the first response as the previous response. If the type of the first command is of the second type, the control unit generates a second response for the first command and determines the second response as the previous response.

[0009] Meanwhile, a method of operation of a home appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention may include, when an input requesting a previous response is received, an operation of checking whether a first response corresponding to the request for a previous response exists in a database for response history; if the first response exists, an operation of checking the type of a first command mapped to the first response among the commands included in the database; if the type of the first command is a first type, an operation of determining the first response as the previous response; and if the type of the first command is a second type, an operation of generating a second response for the first command and determining the second response as the previous response. Effects of the invention

[0010] The effects of the home appliance and the method of operation according to the present invention are described as follows.

[0011] According to various embodiments of the present invention, when providing a previous operation function based on a history stored in a device, the user can accurately perform the desired previous operation by determining whether to use the data stored in the history as is or to generate new data based on the type of command stored in the history.

[0012] In addition, according to various embodiments of the present invention, by adding and updating the operation performed by the home appliance to the history while the same type of input is received, and by initializing the history when a different type of input is received, the user can prevent the unexpected re-execution of previous operations.

[0013] Further scopes of the applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description. However, since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention are clearly understood by those skilled in the art, specific embodiments, such as the detailed description and preferred embodiments of the present invention, should be understood as being given merely as examples. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0014] FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating a system according to one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is an example of an internal block diagram of the image display device of Figure 1. Figure 3 is an example of an internal block diagram of the control unit of Figure 2. FIGS. 4a and 4b are flowcharts of a method of operation of a home appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 5a to 7b are drawings referenced in the explanation of the operation method of a home appliance. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0015] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. In order to clearly and concisely explain the invention, parts unrelated to the description have been omitted from the drawings, and the same reference numerals are used throughout the specification for identical or extremely similar parts.

[0016] The suffixes "module" and "part" for components used in the following description are assigned solely for the ease of drafting this specification and do not inherently confer any particularly significant meaning or role. Accordingly, the terms "module" and "part" may be used interchangeably.

[0017] In this application, terms such as “comprising” or “having” are intended to specify the existence of the features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification, and should be understood as not precluding the existence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

[0018] Additionally, in this specification, terms such as first, second, etc. may be used to describe various elements, but these elements are not limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element from another.

[0019] FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating a system according to various embodiments of the present invention.

[0020] Referring to FIG. 1, the system (10) may include a home appliance (100), a remote control device (200) and / or a server (300).

[0021] In various embodiments of the present invention, home appliances, electronic devices, electronic equipment, etc. may be used interchangeably. In the drawings, a video display device is illustrated as an example of a home appliance (100), but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the home appliance (100) may include various devices such as an air conditioner, an air purifier, a refrigerator, a washing machine, etc.

[0022] A video display device, which is an example of a home appliance (100), may be a device that processes and outputs video. The home appliance (100) is not specifically limited to any device capable of outputting a screen corresponding to a video signal, such as a TV, a notebook computer, or a monitor.

[0023] The remote control device (200) is connected to the home appliance (100) via wired and / or wireless connections and can provide various control signals to the home appliance (100). At this time, the remote control device (200) may include a device that establishes a wired or wireless network with the home appliance (100) and, through the established network, transmits various control signals to the home appliance (100) or receives signals related to various operations processed at the home appliance (100) from the home appliance (100).

[0024] For example, various input devices such as a mouse, keyboard, spatial remote control, trackball, and joystick can be used as the remote control device (200).

[0025] The home appliance (100) may be connected to only a single remote control device (200) or simultaneously connected to two or more remote control devices (200), and may operate based on control signals provided from each remote control device (200).

[0026] The home appliance (100) can transmit and receive data to and from the server (300) via a network such as the internet.

[0027] The server (300) can process data received from the home appliance (100) via a network and can transmit data regarding the results of the processing to the home appliance (100). The server (300) can store various data regarding the home appliance (100).

[0028] FIG. 2 is an internal block diagram of a video display device, which is an example of a home appliance of FIG. 1. A home appliance (100) according to various embodiments of the present invention may include all or part of the configuration shown in FIG. 2 and may further include configurations according to each unique function and operation of the home appliance (100).

[0029] Referring to FIG. 2, a video display device, which is an example of a home appliance (100), may include a broadcast receiving unit (105), an external device interface unit (130), a network interface unit (135), a storage unit (140), a user input interface unit (150), an input unit (160), a control unit (170), a display (180), an audio output unit (185), and / or a power supply unit (190).

[0030] The broadcast receiving unit (105) may include a tuner unit (110) and a demodulating unit (120).

[0031] The tuner unit (110) can select a broadcast signal corresponding to a channel selected by the user or all previously stored channels among the broadcast signals received through an antenna (not shown) or a cable (not shown). The tuner unit (110) can convert the selected broadcast signal into an intermediate frequency signal or a baseband video or audio signal.

[0032] For example, the tuner unit (110) can convert the selected broadcast signal into a digital IF signal (DIF) if it is a digital broadcast signal, and convert it into an analog baseband video or audio signal (CVBS / SIF) if it is an analog broadcast signal. That is, the tuner unit (110) can process a digital broadcast signal or an analog broadcast signal. The analog baseband video or audio signal (CVBS / SIF) output from the tuner unit (110) can be directly input to the control unit (170).

[0033] Meanwhile, the tuner unit (110) can sequentially select broadcast signals of all broadcast channels stored through a channel memory function among the received broadcast signals and convert them into intermediate frequency signals or baseband video or audio signals.

[0034] Meanwhile, the tuner unit (110) may be equipped with multiple tuners to receive multiple channels of broadcast signals. Alternatively, a single tuner that simultaneously receives multiple channels of broadcast signals is also possible.

[0035] The demodulator (120) can receive the digital IF signal (DIF) converted by the tuner (110) and perform a demodulator operation.

[0036] The demodulation unit (120) can output a stream signal (TS) after performing demodulation and channel decoding. At this time, the stream signal may be a signal in which a video signal, an audio signal, or a data signal is multiplexed.

[0037] The stream signal output from the demodulation unit (120) can be input to the control unit (170). After performing demultiplexing, video / audio signal processing, etc., the control unit (170) can output video through the display (180) and output audio through the audio output unit (185).

[0038] The external device interface unit (130) can transmit or receive data with a connected external device. To this end, the external device interface unit (130) may include an A / V input / output unit (not shown).

[0039] The external device interface section (130) can be connected wirelessly or via wired connection to external devices such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), Blu-ray, game console, camera, camcorder, computer (laptop), set-top box, etc., and can also perform input / output operations with the external devices.

[0040] The A / V input / output unit can receive video and audio signals from an external device. For example, the A / V input / output unit may include an Ethernet terminal, a USB terminal, a CVBS (Composite Video Banking Sync) terminal, a component terminal, an S-video terminal (analog), a DVI (Digital Visual Interface) terminal, an HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) terminal, an MHL (Mobile High-definition Link) terminal, an RGB terminal, a D-SUB terminal, an IEEE 1394 terminal, an SPDIF terminal, a Liquid HD terminal, etc. Digital signals input through these terminals can be transmitted to the control unit (170). At this time, analog signals input through the CVBS terminal and the S-video terminal can be converted into digital signals through an analog-to-digital converter (not shown) and transmitted to the control unit (170).

[0041] The external device interface unit (130) may include a wireless communication unit (not shown) for short-range wireless communication with other electronic devices. Through this wireless communication unit, the external device interface unit (130) can exchange data with an adjacent mobile terminal. For example, the external device interface unit (130) can receive device information, information on an application being executed, an application image, etc. from a mobile terminal in mirroring mode.

[0042] The external device interface section (130) can perform short-range wireless communication using Bluetooth, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), infrared communication (IrDA, infrared Data Association), UWB (Ultra-Wideband), ZigBee, etc.

[0043] The network interface section (135) can provide an interface for connecting the home appliance (100) to a wired / wireless network including the internet.

[0044] The network interface section (135) may include a communication module (not shown) for connection with a wired / wireless network (400). For example, the network interface section (135) may include a communication module for a WLAN (Wireless LAN) (Wi-Fi), Wibro (Wireless broadband), Wimax (World Interoperability for Microwave Access), HSDPA (High Speed ​​Downlink Packet Access), etc.

[0045] The network interface unit (135) can transmit or receive data with other users or other electronic devices through the connected network or another network linked to the connected network.

[0046] The network interface unit (135) can receive web content or data provided by a content provider or network operator. That is, the network interface unit (135) can receive web content such as movies, advertisements, games, VOD, broadcast signals, and related information provided by a content provider or network provider through a network.

[0047] The network interface unit (135) can receive firmware update information and update files provided by the network operator and can transmit data to the internet or a content provider or network operator.

[0048] The network interface unit (135) can select and receive a desired application among the applications that are open to the public through the network.

[0049] The storage unit (140) may store programs for each signal processing and control within the control unit (170), and may also store signal-processed video, audio, or data signals. For example, the storage unit (140) may store applications designed for the purpose of performing various tasks that can be processed by the control unit (170), and may selectively provide some of the stored applications upon request from the control unit (170).

[0050] The program, etc. stored in the storage unit (140) is not specifically limited as long as it can be executed by the control unit (170).

[0051] The storage unit (140) may also perform the function of temporarily storing video, audio, or data signals received from an external device through the external device interface unit (130).

[0052] The storage unit (140) can store information regarding a predetermined broadcast channel through a channel memory function such as a channel map.

[0053] The storage unit (140) can store a database of the history of operations performed on the home appliance (100) (hereinafter, operation history). Here, the database of the operation history may include data on operations performed on the home appliance (100) in the order in which the operations were performed.

[0054] At this time, for each action included in the database for the action history, a command that instructed the execution of the corresponding action and / or a type of command may be mapped. Here, the type of command may include a type in which the content and result of the corresponding action remain the same over time (hereinafter referred to as the first type) and a type in which the content and result of the corresponding action change over time (hereinafter referred to as the second type).

[0055] Although the storage unit (140) of FIG. 2 is illustrated in an embodiment in which it is provided separately from the control unit (170), the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the storage unit (140) may be included within the control unit (170).

[0056] The storage unit (140) may include at least one of volatile memory (e.g., DRAM, SRAM, SDRAM, etc.) or non-volatile memory (e.g., flash memory, hard disk drive (HDD), solid-state drive (SSD), etc.). In various embodiments of the present invention, the storage unit (140) and memory may be used interchangeably.

[0057] The user input interface unit (150) can transmit a signal input by the user to the control unit (170) or transmit a signal from the control unit (170) to the user. For example, it can transmit / receive user input signals such as power on / off, channel selection, and screen settings from a remote control device (250), transmit user input signals input from local keys (not shown) such as a power key, channel key, volume key, and setting value to the control unit (170), transmit user input signals input from a sensor unit (not shown) that senses user gestures to the control unit (170), or transmit a signal from the control unit (170) to the sensor unit.

[0058] The input unit (160) may be provided on one side of the main body of the home appliance (100). For example, the input unit (160) may include a touch pad, a physical button, etc.

[0059] The input unit (160) can receive various user commands related to the operation of the home appliance (100) and can transmit a control signal corresponding to the input command to the control unit (170). The input unit (160) can transmit the control signal corresponding to the input command to the control unit (170) through the user input interface unit (150).

[0060] The input unit (160) may include at least one microphone (not shown) and may receive the user's voice through the microphone.

[0061] The control unit (170) may include at least one processor and can control the overall operation of the home appliance (100) using the included processor. Here, the processor may be a general processor such as a CPU (central processing unit). Of course, the processor may be a dedicated device such as an ASIC or a processor based on other hardware.

[0062] The control unit (170) can demultiplex a stream input through the tuner unit (110), demodulator unit (120), external device interface unit (130), or network interface unit (135), or process the demultiplexed signals to generate and output a signal for video or audio output.

[0063] The display (180) can generate a driving signal by converting a video signal, data signal, OSD signal, control signal processed by the control unit (170) or a video signal, data signal, control signal, etc. received from the external device interface unit (130).

[0064] The display (180) may include a display panel (not shown) having a plurality of pixels.

[0065] A plurality of pixels provided in the display panel may have RGB subpixels. Alternatively, a plurality of pixels provided in the display panel may have RGBW subpixels. The display (180) can convert an image signal, data signal, OSD signal, control signal, etc. processed by the control unit (170) to generate a driving signal for a plurality of pixels.

[0066] The display (180) can be a PDP (Plasma Display Panel), LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode), flexible display, etc., and can also be a 3D display. The 3D display (180) can be classified into a glasses-free type and a glasses type.

[0067] Meanwhile, the display (180) can be configured as a touch screen and used as an input device in addition to an output device.

[0068] The audio output unit (185) receives a voice-processed signal from the control unit (170) and outputs it as voice.

[0069] The image signal processed by the control unit (170) can be input to the display (180) and displayed as an image corresponding to the image signal. Additionally, the image signal processed by the control unit (170) can be input to an external output device through the external device interface unit (130).

[0070] The voice signal processed by the control unit (170) can be sound-outputted to the audio output unit (185). Additionally, the voice signal processed by the control unit (170) can be input to an external output device through the external device interface unit (130).

[0071] Although not illustrated in FIG. 2, the control unit (170) may include a demultiplexer, an image processing unit, etc. This will be described later with reference to FIG. 3.

[0072] In addition, the control unit (170) can control the overall operation within the home appliance (100). For example, the control unit (170) can control the tuner unit (110) to select (Tuning) a broadcast corresponding to a channel selected by the user or a previously stored channel.

[0073] Additionally, the control unit (170) can control the home appliance (100) by means of a user command or internal program input through the user input interface unit (150).

[0074] Meanwhile, the control unit (170) can control the display (180) to display an image. At this time, the image displayed on the display (180) may be a still image or a video, and may be a 2D image or a 3D image.

[0075] Meanwhile, the control unit (170) can make a predetermined 2D object appear within the image displayed on the display (180). For example, the object may be at least one of a connected web screen (newspaper, magazine, etc.), an EPG (Electronic Program Guide), various menus, widgets, icons, still images, videos, and text.

[0076] Meanwhile, the home appliance (100) may further include a shooting unit (not shown). The shooting unit can photograph the user. The shooting unit may be implemented with one camera, but is not limited thereto, and may be implemented with multiple cameras. Meanwhile, the shooting unit may be embedded in the home appliance (100) on the upper part of the display (180) or placed separately. Image information captured by the shooting unit may be input to the control unit (170).

[0077] The control unit (170) can recognize the user's location based on the image captured by the shooting unit. For example, the control unit (170) can determine the distance (z-axis coordinate) between the user and the home appliance (100). Additionally, the control unit (170) can determine the x-axis coordinate and y-axis coordinate within the display (180) corresponding to the user's location.

[0078] The control unit (170) can detect a user's gesture based on each of the images captured by the shooting unit or the signals detected by the sensor unit, or a combination thereof.

[0079] The power supply unit (190) can supply power throughout the home appliance (100). In particular, it can supply power to a control unit (170) which can be implemented in the form of a System On Chip (SOC), a display (180) for displaying images, and an audio output unit (185) for audio output.

[0080] Specifically, the power supply unit (190) may be equipped with a converter (not shown) that converts AC power into DC power and a DC / DC converter (not shown) that converts the level of DC power.

[0081] The remote control device (200) can transmit user input to the user input interface unit (150). To this end, the remote control device (200) may use Bluetooth, RF (Radio Frequency) communication, infrared (Infrared Radiation) communication, UWB (Ultra-wideband), ZigBee, etc. Additionally, the remote control device (200) may receive video, audio, or data signals output from the user input interface unit (150) and display or output audio from the remote control device (200).

[0082] Meanwhile, the block diagram of the home appliance (100) shown in FIG. 2 is merely a block diagram for one embodiment of the present invention, and each component of the block diagram may be integrated, added, or omitted according to the specifications of the home appliance (100) actually implemented.

[0083] That is, as needed, two or more components may be combined into a single component, or a single component may be subdivided into two or more components. In addition, the functions performed in each block are intended to explain embodiments of the present invention, and the specific operations or devices thereof do not limit the scope of the present invention.

[0084] Figure 3 is an internal block diagram of the control unit of Figure 2.

[0085] Referring to FIG. 3, the control unit (170) of the home appliance (100) may include a demultiplexer (310), an image processing unit (320), a processor (330), an OSD generation unit (340), a mixer (345), a frame rate converter (350), and / or a formatter (360). Additionally, it may further include an audio processing unit (not shown) and a data processing unit (not shown).

[0086] The demultiplexer (310) can demultiplex the input stream. For example, if an MPEG-2 TS is input, it can be demultiplexed to separate it into video, audio, and data signals, respectively. Here, the stream signal input to the demultiplexer (310) may be a stream signal output from the tuner (110), the demodulator (120), or the external device interface (130).

[0087] The image processing unit (320) can perform image processing of the demultiplexed image signal. To this end, the image processing unit (320) may be equipped with an image decoder (325) and a scaler (335).

[0088] The video decoder (325) can decode the demultiplexed video signal, and the scaler (335) can perform scaling so that the resolution of the decoded video signal can be output on the display (180).

[0089] The image decoder (325) may be equipped with decoders of various specifications. For example, it may be equipped with MPEG-2, H,264 decoders, 3D image decoders for color images and depth images, decoders for multiple viewpoint images, etc.

[0090] The processor (330) can control the overall operation within the home appliance (100) or within the control unit (170). For example, the processor (330) can control the tuner (110) to tune a broadcast corresponding to a channel selected by the user or a pre-stored channel.

[0091] Additionally, the processor (330) can control the home appliance (100) by means of a user command or an internal program input through the user input interface unit (150).

[0092] Additionally, the processor (330) can perform data transmission control with the network interface unit (135) or the external device interface unit (130).

[0093] Additionally, the processor (330) can control the operation of the demultiplexer (310), image processing unit (320), OSD generation unit (340), etc. within the control unit (170).

[0094] The OSD generation unit (340) can generate an OSD signal based on user input or independently. For example, based on a user input signal input through the input unit (160), it can generate a signal to display various information as graphics or text on the screen of the display (180).

[0095] The generated OSD signal may include various data such as a user interface screen of the home appliance (100), various menu screens, widgets, and icons. Additionally, the generated OSD signal may include 2D objects or 3D objects.

[0096] Additionally, the OSD generation unit (340) can generate a pointer that can be displayed on the display (180) based on a pointing signal input from the remote control device (200).

[0097] The OSD generation unit (340) may include a pointing signal processing unit (not shown) that generates a pointer. It is also possible for the pointing signal processing unit (not shown) to be provided separately rather than being provided within the OSD generation unit (240).

[0098] The mixer (345) can mix the OSD signal generated by the OSD generation unit (340) and the decoded video signal processed by the video processing unit (320). The mixed video signal can be provided to the frame rate conversion unit (350).

[0099] The frame rate converter (FRC) (350) can convert the frame rate of the input video. Meanwhile, the frame rate converter (350) can also output the video as is without separate frame rate conversion.

[0100] The formatter (360) can arrange the left eye image frame and the right eye image frame of the frame rate-converted 3D image. And, it can output a synchronization signal (Vsync) for opening the left eye glass and the right eye glass of the 3D viewing device (not shown).

[0101] Meanwhile, the formatter (360) can convert the format of the input video signal into a video signal for display on the display (180) and output it.

[0102] Additionally, the formatter (360) can change the format of the 3D video signal. For example, it can be changed to any one of various 3D formats such as Side by Side format, Top / Down format, Frame Sequential format, Interlaced format, Checker Box format.

[0103] Meanwhile, the formatter (360) may convert a 2D video signal into a 3D video signal. For example, according to a 3D video generation algorithm, an edge or selectable object within the 2D video signal may be detected, and the object or selectable object corresponding to the detected edge may be separated and generated into a 3D video signal. At this time, the generated 3D video signal may be separated and aligned into a left eye video signal (L) and a right eye video signal (R), as described above.

[0104] Meanwhile, although not shown in the drawing, it is also possible to place a 3D processor (not shown) for 3D effect signal processing after the formatter (360). This 3D processor can process the brightness, tint, and color adjustment of the video signal to improve the 3D effect. For example, it can perform signal processing to make the near distance sharp and the far distance blurry. Meanwhile, the function of this 3D processor can be merged into the formatter (360) or merged within the image processing unit (320).

[0105] Meanwhile, an audio processing unit (not shown) within the control unit (170) can perform voice processing of a demultiplexed voice signal. To this end, the audio processing unit (not shown) may be equipped with various decoders.

[0106] In addition, the audio processing unit (not shown) within the control unit (170) can process bass, treble, volume control, etc.

[0107] A data processing unit (not shown) within the control unit (170) can perform data processing of a demultiplexed data signal. For example, if the demultiplexed data signal is an encoded data signal, it can be decoded. The encoded data signal may be Electronic Program Guide information containing broadcast information such as the start time and end time of a broadcast program aired on each channel.

[0108] Meanwhile, the block diagram of the control unit (170) shown in FIG. 3 is merely a block diagram for one embodiment of the present invention, and each component of the block diagram may be integrated, added, or omitted according to the specifications of the control unit (170) actually implemented.

[0109] In particular, the frame rate converter (350) and the formatter (360) are not provided within the control unit (170), but are provided separately, or may be provided separately as a single module.

[0110] FIGS. 4a and 4b are flowcharts of a method of operation of a home appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0111] Referring to FIG. 4a, the home appliance (100) can receive user input in operation S401. For example, the home appliance (100) can receive a signal corresponding to user input transmitted from the remote control device (200) through the user input interface unit (150). For example, the home appliance (100) can receive voice spoken by the user as user input through a microphone included in the input unit (160).

[0112] The home appliance (100) can determine whether the received user input in the S402 operation is an input requesting the performance of a previous operation. For example, when a signal is received from the remote control device (200), the home appliance (100) can determine whether the user input corresponding to the signal received from the remote control device (200) is an input where the user presses a specific button regarding a previous operation function provided in the remote control device (200). For example, when voice is input through the microphone of the input unit (160), the home appliance (100) can determine whether the input voice contains a specific word regarding a previous operation function.

[0113] The home appliance (100) can determine whether the received user input is voice input in the S403 operation, if the received user input is not an input requesting the performance of the previous operation.

[0114] In the S404 operation, if the received user input is voice input, the home appliance (100) may request the server (300) to transmit data for an operation corresponding to a command included in the voice input.

[0115] For example, the home appliance (100) can perform voice recognition on the input voice to verify the command included in the voice input and transmit the command to the server (300). At this time, the home appliance (100) can verify the command included in the voice input by extracting words included in the voice through voice recognition using natural language processing (NLP). Here, natural language processing technology may refer to a technology that mechanically analyzes human language phenomena and processes them so that an electronic device can recognize the meaning of the corresponding language phenomena.

[0116] For example, the home appliance (100) can transmit the input voice to the server (300), and the server (300) can perform voice recognition on the voice received from the home appliance (100) to verify the command included in the voice.

[0117] Meanwhile, the server (300) can determine an action corresponding to a command included in the voice input and can transmit data regarding the action corresponding to the command to the home appliance (100). At this time, the server (300) can determine the type of command included in the voice input and can also transmit data regarding the command and the type of the command together.

[0118] The home appliance (100) can receive data regarding an operation corresponding to a command from the server (300) in operations S405 and S406, and can generate and perform an operation corresponding to a command based on the received data.

[0119] The home appliance (100) can update the operation history in the S407 operation. For example, the home appliance (100) can map a command included in the voice input to an operation corresponding to the command and add it to the operation history. At this time, the home appliance (100) can also map the type of the command to an operation corresponding to the command.

[0120] Meanwhile, the home appliance (100) can delete data for actions added later to the action history than the action performed by the previous action from the action history, and add data mapped to the action history of the command included in the voice input.

[0121] Meanwhile, the home appliance (100) can delete the operation history included in the database and perform the operation corresponding to the user input when the received user input is not voice input in the S408 and S409 operations. That is, considering that a user generally utilizes the same type of input while using the home appliance (100) continuously, when a user input that is not voice input is received, the home appliance (100) can delete the operation history for the operations performed by voice input and regenerate and update the operation history corresponding to the new type of user input.

[0122] Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 4b, the home appliance (100) can determine whether there is an action in the action history that corresponds to a request for the execution of a previous action when the received user input in the S411 operation is an input requesting the execution of a previous action. For example, the home appliance (100) can determine that there is no action in the action history that corresponds to a request for the execution of a previous action if the database for the action history does not contain data for the previous action, or if the previous action that was first added to the action history has been executed according to the previous action function.

[0123] At this time, if the home appliance (100) does not have an operation in the operation history corresponding to the request for the performance of a previous operation, it can output a message to the user through the display (180) and / or audio output unit (185) indicating that the previous operation does not exist.

[0124] Meanwhile, the home appliance (100) can check the type of command mapped to the operation if, in the S412 operation, there exists an operation in the operation history that corresponds to a request for the execution of a previous operation.

[0125] The home appliance (100) can check whether the result of the corresponding operation is the same as the first type in the S413 operation, the type of command mapped to the operation.

[0126] In the S414 operation, if the type of command mapped to the operation is not of the first type, that is, if it is of the second type in which the result of the corresponding operation changes over time, the home appliance (100) can transmit the command mapped to the operation to the server (300) and can request the server (300) to transmit data for the operation corresponding to the command.

[0127] The home appliance (100) can receive data regarding an operation corresponding to a command from the server (300) in operation S415, and can create a new operation corresponding to a command based on the received data. At this time, the content of the new operation may be different from the content of the operation existing in the operation history.

[0128] The home appliance (100) can update the operation history in operation S416. For example, the home appliance (100) can update the operation determined in the operation history to correspond to a request for the execution of a previous operation with a new operation created in operation S415.

[0129] In operation S417, if the type of command mapped to the operation is of the first type, the home appliance (100) can determine and execute an existing operation included in the operation history as the previous operation. Meanwhile, if the type of command mapped to the operation is of the second type, the home appliance (100) can determine and execute a new operation created in operation S415 as the previous operation.

[0130] FIGS. 5a to 7b are drawings referenced in the explanation of the operation method of a home appliance.

[0131] Referring to FIG. 5a, the home appliance (100) can perform the operation of outputting a screen (515) containing information about the current time through a display (180) in response to a voice (510) requesting confirmation of the current time spoken by a user (400).

[0132] Additionally, the home appliance (100) may add data regarding the action of checking the current time to a database of the action history. The data regarding the action of checking the current time may include information about the current time checked as a result of performing the action, a command to check the current time, and the type of the command to check the current time.

[0133] At this time, the command to check the current time can be determined as a second type because the content and result of the corresponding operation, that is, the current time being checked, varies according to changes in time.

[0134] Referring to FIGS. 5b to 5d, when a user (400) speaks in sequence a voice (520) requesting a check of the current weather, a voice (530) requesting a search for a director of a specific movie, and a voice (540) requesting the output of a home screen, the home appliance (100) can respond to each voice input and output a screen (525) containing information about the current weather, a screen (535) containing search results for a director of a specific movie, and a home screen (545) in sequence through a display (180).

[0135] Additionally, the home appliance (100) can add data for an action of checking the current weather, data for an action of searching for a director of a specific movie, and data for an action of displaying a home screen to a database of action history in the order in which the actions were performed.

[0136] In addition, each piece of data added to the operation history may include the content and result of each operation, the command corresponding to the operation, the type of the command, etc.

[0137] Referring to FIG. 6a, when a home screen (545) is displayed through the display (180) of the home appliance (100) and a user presses a specific button that executes a previous operation function provided in the remote control device (200), the home appliance (100) can determine, based on the operation history, the operation of searching for the director of a specific movie, which is the operation immediately preceding the operation of displaying the home screen (525), as the previous operation.

[0138] At this time, since the command to search for the director of a specific movie is a first type of command in which the search result is the same despite changes in time, the home appliance (100) can output the search result for the director of a specific movie included in the database for the operation history as is through the display (180).

[0139] Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 6b, if a user additionally presses a specific button that executes a previous operation function provided in the remote control device (200), the home appliance (100) can determine, based on the operation history, the operation of checking the current weather, which is the operation immediately preceding the operation of searching for the director of a specific movie, as the previous operation.

[0140] At this time, since the command to check the current weather is a second type of command in which the result changes depending on the time change, the home appliance (100) can request the server (300) to transmit data regarding the current weather, and can output a screen (625) containing information regarding the current weather that has been reconfirmed based on the data received from the server (300) through the display (180).

[0141] Additionally, referring to FIG. 6c, if a user additionally presses a specific button that executes a previous operation function provided in the remote control device (200), the home appliance (100) can determine, based on the operation history, the operation of checking the current time, which is the operation immediately preceding the operation of checking the current weather, as the previous operation.

[0142] At this time, since the command to check the current weather is also a second type of command in which the result changes according to the change of time, the home appliance (100) can request the server (300) to transmit data regarding the current time, and can output a screen (635) containing information regarding the current time reconfirmed based on the data received from the server (300) through the display (180).

[0143] Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 7a, when a user (400) speaks a voice (710) selecting a broadcast channel while a screen (635) containing information about the current time is displayed through a previous operation function, the home appliance (100) can execute a broadcast-related application and perform an operation to display the screen (715) of the broadcast channel selected by the user through a display (180).

[0144] Additionally, when voice input, which is a type of user input previously used, is received, the home appliance (100) can add data regarding the operation of outputting the screen of the broadcast channel selected by the user to the database for the operation history.

[0145] At this time, since the operation to check the current time was performed as a previous operation just before the user input to select a broadcast channel was received, the home appliance (100) can delete from the database the data for the operation to check the current weather, the operation to search for the director of a specific movie, and the operation to display the home screen (525), which were added to the operation history later than the operation to check the current time, and then add the data for the operation to display the screen of the broadcast channel selected by the user to the database for the operation history.

[0146] Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 7b, when a user (400) selects a broadcast channel using a button provided on a remote control device (200) while a screen (635) containing information about the current time is displayed through a previous operation function, the home appliance (100) can execute a broadcast-related application and perform an operation to display the screen (715) of the broadcast channel selected by the user through a display (180).

[0147] At this time, since the received user input is not voice input, which is a type of user input previously used, the home appliance (100) can delete the operation history for operations performed by voice input.

[0148] As described above, according to various embodiments of the present invention, when providing a previous operation function based on a history stored in a home appliance (100), the user can accurately perform the desired previous operation despite the passage of time by determining whether to use the data stored in the history as is or to generate new data based on the type of command stored in the history.

[0149] In addition, according to various embodiments of the present invention, while the same type of input is received, the operation performed by the home appliance (100) is added to and updated in the history, and when a different type of input is received, the history is initialized, thereby preventing the user from unexpectedly re-executing a previous operation.

[0150] The attached drawings are intended only to facilitate understanding of the embodiments disclosed in this specification, and the technical concept disclosed in this specification is not limited by the attached drawings; it should be understood that all modifications, equivalents, and substitutions included within the concept and technical scope of the present invention are included.

[0151] Meanwhile, the home appliance and the method of operation thereof according to the present invention can be implemented as processor-readable code on a processor-readable recording medium equipped in the home appliance. A processor-readable recording medium includes all types of recording devices in which data that can be read by a processor is stored. Examples of processor-readable recording media include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tape, floppy disk, optical data storage device, etc., and also include implementation in the form of a carrier wave, such as transmission via the Internet. Furthermore, the processor-readable recording medium may be distributed across networked computer systems, so that processor-readable code can be stored and executed in a distributed manner.

[0152] Furthermore, although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. It is understood that various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the essence of the invention as claimed in the claims, and such modifications should not be understood individually from the technical spirit or perspective of the present invention.

Claims

Claim 1 User input interface unit; network interface unit for communicating with a server; storage unit for storing a database of operation history; A home appliance comprising a control unit, wherein the control unit, when an input requesting the execution of a previous operation is received through the user input interface unit, checks whether a first operation corresponding to the request for the execution of the previous operation exists in the operation history; if the first operation exists, checks the type of the first command mapped to the first operation among the commands included in the database; if the type of the first command is a first type in which the result of the corresponding operation is the same over time, determines the first operation as the previous operation; if the type of the first command is a second type in which the result of the corresponding operation changes over time, requests the server to transmit data for the operation corresponding to the first command through the network interface unit; generates a second operation corresponding to the first command based on the data for the operation corresponding to the first command received from the server through the network interface unit; determines the second operation as the previous operation; and updates the first operation included in the operation history as the second operation. Claim 2 delete Claim 3 delete Claim 4 delete Claim 5 A home appliance according to claim 1, wherein the control unit checks whether the first input is a voice input when the first input is received through the user input interface unit, and if the first input is a voice input, generates a third operation corresponding to a second command included in the first input, maps the second command to the third operation, and adds it to the operation history. Claim 6 A home appliance according to claim 5, wherein the control unit requests the server to transmit data for an operation corresponding to the second command through the network interface unit, and receives data for an operation corresponding to the second command from the server through the network interface unit to generate the third operation. Claim 7 A home appliance according to claim 6, wherein data for an operation corresponding to the second command received from the server includes the type of the second command, and the control unit maps the type of the second command to the third operation. Claim 8 A home appliance according to claim 5, wherein the control unit, when an input requesting the previous operation is received immediately before the first input is received, deletes the data for the command added to the operation history after the data for the first command has been added to the operation history, and adds the data for the second command to the operation history. Claim 9 A home appliance according to claim 5, wherein the control unit deletes the operation history included in the database when the first input is not the voice input. Claim 10 A home appliance according to claim 5, further comprising an output unit having at least one of a display and a speaker, wherein the control unit outputs a message indicating that the previous operation does not exist through the output unit when the first operation does not exist. Claim 11 delete Claim 12 delete Claim 13 delete Claim 14 delete Claim 15 delete Claim 16 delete Claim 17 delete Claim 18 delete Claim 19 delete Claim 20 delete

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