Electronic device for controlling external device and control method thereof

Abstract

This electronic device comprises: a communication interface; and at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor: identifies whether a low power state of an external device is supported, on the basis of identification information of the external device according to a preconfigured condition; controls the communication interface to transmit a first control command corresponding to the low power state of the external device to the external device when the external device supports the low power state; and controls the communication interface to transmit a second control command corresponding to power control of the external device to the external device when the external device does not support the low power state.

Description

Electronic device for controlling an external device and method for controlling the same

[0001] The present invention relates to electronic devices and control methods thereof, and more particularly, to electronic devices for controlling external devices and control methods thereof.

[0002] Household electronic appliances for various purposes have been developed, and the number of these appliances in homes has recently increased. As the number of appliances increases, the motivation to efficiently manage their total power consumption is also increasing.

[0003] There are various ways to manage power consumption, but they usually involve the inconvenience of requiring users to manually activate low-power consumption modes or input commands to each appliance to activate the mode.

[0004] Consistently switching multiple appliances to low-power mode can be inconvenient because the various appliances in a home use different communication methods, and older appliances may not be able to receive commands from servers, user terminals, etc. to activate low-power mode.

[0005] For example, home appliances that can communicate with a server can switch to low-power mode indoors or outdoors using user terminals, etc., but legacy devices (i.e., devices that cannot communicate with a server) have difficulty efficiently managing power consumption because they cannot receive commands from the server to switch to low-power mode.

[0006] Therefore, it would be desirable to have a method to efficiently manage the total power consumption of a home by operating home appliances that use various communication methods in an appropriate low-power mode.

[0007] According to one embodiment, an electronic device includes a communication interface and at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor identifies whether a low power state of the external device is supported based on identification information of the external device according to a preset condition, and if the external device supports the low power state, controls the communication interface to transmit a first control command corresponding to the low power state of the external device to the external device, and if the external device does not support the low power state, controls the communication interface to transmit a second control command corresponding to power control of the external device to the external device.

[0008] In a method for controlling an electronic device according to one embodiment, the method includes the steps of identifying whether a low power state of an external device is supported based on identification information of the external device according to preset conditions, transmitting a first control command corresponding to the low power state of the external device to the external device if the external device supports the low power state, and transmitting a second control command corresponding to power control of the external device to the external device if the external device does not support the low power state.

[0009] A computer-readable recording medium including a program for executing a control method of an electronic device according to an embodiment, the control method of the electronic device includes the steps of: identifying whether a low-power state of the external device is supported based on identification information of the external device according to preset conditions; transmitting a first control command corresponding to the low-power state of the external device to the external device if the external device supports the low-power state; and transmitting a second control command corresponding to power control of the external device to the external device if the external device does not support the low-power state.

[0010] Figure 1 is a drawing for explaining multiple electronic devices located in a home.

[0011] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an electronic device.

[0012] Figure 3 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that transmits a control command to an external device.

[0013] Figure 4 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that transmits an IR signal to an external device.

[0014] Figure 5 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that retransmits an IR signal.

[0015] Figure 6 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that detects the operation of an external device.

[0016] FIG. 7 is a drawing illustrating an electronic device that transmits control commands to an external device that is communicating with the electronic device.

[0017] FIG. 8 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that transmits a control command to an external device connected by a wire to the electronic device.

[0018] Figure 9 is a drawing for explaining preset conditions.

[0019] Figure 10 is a flowchart for explaining a control method of an electronic device.

[0020] Hereinafter, the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0021] The terms used in the embodiments of this disclosure have been selected from widely used, current terms, taking into account the functions of this disclosure. However, these terms may vary depending on the intentions of those skilled in the art, precedents, the emergence of new technologies, etc. Furthermore, in certain cases, terms may be arbitrarily selected by the applicant, and in such cases, their meanings will be described in detail in the description of the relevant disclosure. Therefore, the terms used in this disclosure should not be defined simply as names of terms, but rather based on the meanings of the terms and the overall content of this disclosure.

[0022] In this specification, expressions such as “has,” “can have,” “includes,” or “may include” indicate the presence of a feature (e.g., a number, function, operation, or component such as a part), and do not exclude the presence of additional features.

[0023] The expression "at least one of A and / or B" should be understood to mean either "A" or "B" or "A and B".

[0024] As used herein, the expressions “first,” “second,” “first,” or “second,” etc., may describe various components, regardless of order and / or importance, and are only used to distinguish one component from another, but do not limit the components.

[0025] When it is said that a component (e.g., a first component) is “(operatively or communicatively) coupled with / to” or “connected to” another component (e.g., a second component), it should be understood that the component may be directly coupled to the other component, or may be connected through another component (e.g., a third component).

[0026] Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this application, terms such as "comprise" or "consist of" are intended to indicate the presence of a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in the specification, but should be understood not to preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

[0027] In the present disclosure, a "module" or "part" performs at least one function or operation and may be implemented as hardware or software, or as a combination of hardware and software. Furthermore, multiple "modules" or multiple "parts" may be integrated into at least one module and implemented as at least one processor (not shown), excluding any "modules" or "parts" that need to be implemented as specific hardware.

[0028] In this specification, the term user may refer to a person using an electronic device or a device using an electronic device (e.g., an artificial intelligence electronic device).

[0029] An embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to the attached drawings below.

[0030] Figure 1 is a drawing for explaining multiple electronic devices located in a home.

[0031] Referring to FIG. 1, the devices of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may be various types of electronic devices.

[0032] In particular, the devices of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) are implemented as Internet of Things (IoT) devices and can communicate with other electronic devices, user terminal devices, remote control devices, servers (100), etc. provided in a home. The plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may additionally or alternatively be configured to include an IR transceiver to transmit and receive IR signals from other electronic devices, user terminal devices, remote control devices, etc. In addition, it goes without saying that a subset of the electronic devices among the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may perform wired / wireless communication with other electronic devices to transmit and receive control signals.

[0033] The plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) illustrated in FIG. 1 may be of various types, and may be, for example, air conditioning equipment, kitchen / cooking equipment, wired / wireless cleaning equipment, image processing equipment, or clothing care equipment.

[0034] For example, the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may include at least one of a television, a user terminal device, a tablet personal computer, a mobile phone, a video phone, an e-book reader, a desktop personal computer, a laptop personal computer, a netbook computer, a workstation, a server, a Personal Digital Assistant, a Portable Multimedia Player, an MP3 player, a medical device, a camera, a virtual reality (VR) implementation device, or a wearable device. Here, the wearable device may include at least one of an accessory type (e.g., a watch, a ring, a bracelet, an anklet, a necklace, glasses, a contact lens, or a head-mounted device (HMD)), a fabric or clothing-integrated type (e.g., an electronic garment), a body-attached type (e.g., a skin pad or a tattoo), or a bio-implantable circuit. In some embodiments, each of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may include at least one of a television, a digital video disk (DVD) player, an audio, a refrigerator, an air conditioner, a vacuum cleaner, an oven, a microwave oven, a washing machine, an air purifier, a source device (e.g., a set-top box, a cloud server, an over-the-top media service (OTT) server, etc.), a home automation control panel, a security control panel, a media box (e.g., Samsung HomeSync™, Apple TV™, or Google TV™), a game console (e.g., Xbox™, PlayStation™, Switch™), an electronic dictionary, an electronic key, a camcorder, or an electronic picture frame.

[0035] In another embodiment, each of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may be one or more of various medical devices (e.g., various portable medical measuring devices (e.g., blood glucose meter, heart rate meter, blood pressure meter, or body temperature meter, etc.), magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), camera, or ultrasound machine, etc.), navigation device, global navigation satellite system (GNSS (global navigation satellite system)), event data recorder (EDR), flight data recorder (FDR), automobile infotainment device, electronic equipment for ships (e.g., marine navigation device, gyrocompass, etc.), avionics, security device, head unit for vehicles, industrial or home robots, drones, ATMs of financial institutions, point of sales (POS) of stores, or Internet of Things devices (e.g., light bulbs, various sensors, sprinkler devices, fire alarms, thermostats, street lights, toasters, exercise equipment, hot water tanks, It may include at least one of the following (heater, boiler, etc.).

[0036] For example, to reduce the total power consumption of a home based on the power consumption of a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60), the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may operate in a low power state or low power mode.

[0037] For example, when a request is provided to enter a low power consumption state based on a user input via a user terminal device, the server (100) or the first electronic device (10) installed in the home is configured to transmit a control command for the low power state to the electronic device (10, 20, ..., 60).

[0038] For example, when a low power consumption state is requested, the server (100) or the first electronic device (10) is configured to transmit a control command suitable for the low power state to a subset of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60). In this example, the subset includes electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) that support the low power state. The server (100) or the first electronic device (10) is configured to transmit a control command corresponding to a power control operation, such as power off, to the remaining electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) that do not support the low power state.

[0039] Here, the operations and functions of the server (100) may be performed by any one of a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) provided within the home. For example, if the first electronic device (10) operates as a hub device within the home, and the first electronic device (10) receives a control command from the server (100) upon activation of a low power consumption state, the first electronic device (10) may transmit the control command to each of the remaining electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60).

[0040] In the past, when a low power consumption state was requested, the server (100) was configured to transmit a control command corresponding to the low power state (or to operate the low power state) only to devices that were previously registered among a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) in the home, and the control command could not be transmitted to devices that were not previously registered with the server (100).

[0041] Therefore, conventionally, even if the low power consumption state is activated, only devices already registered in the server (100) can be operated in the low power state (or power off state), and devices not already registered in the server (100) cannot be operated in the low power state, so there was a limit to reducing the total power consumption of the home.

[0042] Additionally, devices that cannot communicate with the server (100), for example, devices that do not include a communication interface, cannot register with the server (100) and cannot receive control commands for low-power state operation from the server (100). This limits the reduction in available power consumption, as these devices continue to operate in a normal state without transitioning to a low-power state even when the low-power state is activated. Such devices that do not include a communication interface may be referred to herein as "legacy devices."

[0043] In order to solve the above-described problem, the first electronic device (10) can be configured to reduce the total power consumption of the home by operating each of the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 60) in a low power state or turning them off, even if each of the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 60) among the plurality of electronic devices is not a device previously registered with the server (100) or is a device that cannot communicate with the server (100).

[0044] Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an electronic device.

[0045] Referring to FIG. 2, the electronic device (10) includes a communication interface (11), a memory (12), and at least one processor (13).

[0046] The communication interface (11) may include wired or wireless input / output interfaces (or input / output terminals). These may be provided according to various standards. For example, the communication interface (11) may include various interfaces such as HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface), MHL (Mobile High-Definition Link), USB (Universal Serial Bus), DP (Display Port), Thunderbolt, VGA (Video Graphics Array) port, RGB port, D-SUB (D-subminiature), DVI (Digital Visual Interface), AP-based Wi-Fi (Wireless LAN network), Bluetooth, Zigbee, wired / wireless LAN (Local Area Network), WAN (Wide Area Network), Ethernet, IEEE 1394, AES / EBU (Audio Engineering Society / European Broadcasting Union), optical, coaxial, etc.

[0047] The communication interface (11) is configured to transmit a control command corresponding to a low power state or a command to operate in a low power state to electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) under the control of at least one processor (13).

[0048] The memory (12) is configured to store data required for various functions as described herein. Depending on the data storage purpose, the memory (12) may be implemented in the form of memory embedded in the electronic device (10) or may be implemented in the form of memory that can be attached or detached to the electronic device (10).

[0049] For example, data for operation / driving of the electronic device (10) may be stored in a memory embedded in the electronic device (10), and data for extended functions of the electronic device (10) may be stored in a memory that is detachable from the electronic device (10). In the case of memory embedded in the electronic device (10), it may be implemented as at least one of volatile memory (e.g., dynamic RAM (DRAM), static RAM (SRAM), or synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM)), non-volatile memory (e.g., one time programmable ROM (OTPROM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasable and programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable and programmable ROM (EEPROM), mask ROM, flash ROM, flash memory (e.g., NAND flash or NOR flash), hard drive, or solid state drive (SSD)). In addition, in the case of memory that can be attached or detached to the electronic device (10), it may be implemented in the form of a memory card (e.g., compact flash (CF), secure digital (SD), micro secure digital (Micro-SD), mini secure digital (Mini-SD), extreme digital (xD), multi-media card (MMC), etc.), external memory that can be connected to a USB port (e.g., USB memory), etc.

[0050] The memory (12) can store a computer program or a set of instructions or at least one instruction including instructions for controlling the electronic device (10).

[0051] The memory (12) can store identification information of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) in a plurality of electronic devices.

[0052] For example, in a plurality of electronic devices, the identification information of each of the electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may include information on whether each device can support a low-power state and information on a communication standard that enables communication with the device. Accordingly, the communication information may correspond to a communication method supported by the device, etc.

[0053] The identification information of each of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) may also include location information of the device.

[0054] Memory (12) includes spatial information corresponding to a space (e.g., a house), and the spatial information can divide the space into a plurality of sub-spaces. In the present disclosure, the space can include a preset area.

[0055] For example, spatial information is a map corresponding to a space within a home, and each of the plurality of sub-spaces may include a work space defined by the user, an independent work space (e.g., a living room, a kitchen, a closet, etc.) surrounded by obstacles (e.g., a wall, a threshold, etc.).

[0056] Spatial information can also categorize multiple sub-spaces into public or private spaces. For example, a public space (e.g., a living room) may be a sub-space with a relatively large number of users (e.g., three or more), while a private space (e.g., a bedroom) may be a sub-space with a relatively small number of users (e.g., one or two).

[0057] At least one processor (13) may be configured to control the overall operation of the electronic device (10).

[0058] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, at least one processor (13) may be implemented as a digital signal processor (DSP), a microprocessor, or a timing controller (TCON) for processing a digital signal. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and may include one or more of a central processing unit (CPU), a micro controller unit (MCU), a micro processing unit (MPU), a controller, an application processor (AP), a communication processor (CP), an ARM processor, or an artificial intelligence (AI) processor. In addition, at least one processor (13) may be implemented as a system on chip (SoC) having a built-in processing algorithm, a large scale integration (LSI), or may be implemented in the form of a field programmable gate array (FPGA). At least one processor (13) may be configured to perform various functions by executing computer executable instructions stored in a memory (12).

[0059] At least one processor (13) may be configured to identify whether a low power state of an external device is supported based on identification information of the external device according to preset conditions. Here, the preset conditions may include a user inputting a command requesting activation of a low power consumption state.

[0060] For example, at least one processor (13) may, upon receiving a control command from the server (100) to activate a low power state based on a user input activating a low power consumption state, identify whether the other electronic device supports the low power state based on identification information of the other electronic device stored in the memory (12).

[0061] For example, at least one processor (13) may control the communication interface (11) to transmit a first control command to the other electronic device to operate the other electronic device in a low power state if the other electronic device supports a low power state. For example, at least one processor (13) may transmit the first control command to the other electronic device using a communication method corresponding to communication standard information included in the identification information of the other electronic device.

[0062] For example, at least one processor (13) may control the communication interface (11) to transmit a second control command to the other electronic device to control the power of the other electronic device (e.g., turn off the other power device) if the other electronic device does not support a low power state. For example, at least one processor (13) may transmit the second control command to the other electronic device using a communication method corresponding to communication standard information included in the identification information of the other electronic device.

[0063] In one example, at least one processor (13) may operate in a low power state according to a control command received from the server (100).

[0064] <Transmitting control commands to each of multiple electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60)>

[0065] According to one example of the present disclosure, at least one processor (13) may operate in a low power state if the first electronic device (10) supports a low power state based on identification information of the first electronic device (10) in response to a user input activating a power consumption reduction state.

[0066] For example, at least one processor (13) may control power of the first electronic device (10) if the first electronic device (10) does not support a low power state (e.g., may turn off power of the first electronic device (10).

[0067] According to an example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a first control command to some electronic devices supporting a low power state based on identification information of each of the second electronic devices (20) to the sixth electronic devices (60) provided in a space (or a preset area), and transmit a second control command to the remaining electronic devices not supporting the low power state. Here, the first control command may be a control command for activating the low power state, and the second control command may be a control command for turning off the device.

[0068] <Transmitting control commands to some of the electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60)>

[0069] According to an example of the present disclosure, at least one processor (13) may identify some electronic devices (e.g., a second electronic device (20)) adjacent to the first electronic device (10) (or located in the same sub-space as the first electronic device (10)) among a plurality of sub-spaces based on spatial information stored in the memory (12) in response to a user input activating a power consumption reduction state.

[0070] In one example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a first control command if the second electronic device (20) supports a low power state based on identification information of the second electronic device (20). In one example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a second control command if the second electronic device (20) does not support a low power state.

[0071] <Transmitting a control command to some electronic devices corresponding to an absent user among multiple electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60)>

[0072] At least one processor (13) according to an example of the present disclosure can obtain usage pattern information corresponding to a user.

[0073] For example, at least one processor (13) can detect a user through a sensor (or sensor unit) provided in the electronic device (10) or communicate with the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 60) to identify the electronic device that the user mainly uses and the time at which the user mainly uses the electronic device, thereby obtaining usage pattern information. Meanwhile, at least one processor (13) can obtain usage pattern information corresponding to the user, and of course, the server (100) can transmit the usage pattern information to the electronic device (10) after obtaining it.

[0074] According to one example of the present disclosure, when a user input for activating a power consumption reduction state is received from a user, at least one processor (13) can identify some electronic devices (e.g., a first electronic device (10) and a second electronic device (20)) that the user primarily uses, based on usage pattern information corresponding to the user.

[0075] According to an example of the present disclosure, when the absence of a user is identified within a space (e.g., within a home) (or within a preset area), at least one processor (13) may identify some electronic devices (e.g., a first electronic device (10) and a second electronic device (20)) primarily used by the user based on usage pattern information corresponding to the absent user. For example, the at least one processor (13) may identify the absence of the user through a sensor (e.g., a camera, a microphone, etc.) (or a sensor unit) provided in the electronic device (10).

[0076] At least one processor (13) according to an example can transmit a first control command or a second control command to some electronic device primarily used by the user.

[0077] For example, at least one processor (13) may operate the first electronic device (10) in a low power state according to a first control command if the first electronic device (10) supports a low power state based on identification information of the first electronic device (10) primarily used by the user.

[0078] For example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a second control command to the second electronic device (20) to control power of the second electronic device (20) (e.g., to turn off the second electronic device (20)) if the second electronic device (20) does not support a low power state based on identification information of the second electronic device (20) primarily used by the user.

[0079] FIG. 3 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that transmits a control command to an external device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0080] According to one example of the present disclosure, upon receiving a user input activating a power consumption reduction state from a user, or at a preset time (e.g., a time for activating a power consumption reduction state), the server (100) may transmit a control command to the electronic device (10) to switch to a low power state.

[0081] For example, if each of a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) provided within a space (or within a preset area) is a device pre-registered with the server (100), the server (100) can transmit a control command to switch each of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) to a low power state.

[0082] However, if some of the multiple electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) are not devices already registered with the server (100) or are devices that cannot communicate with the server (100), a control command to switch to a low power state cannot be received from the server (100).

[0083] Referring to FIG. 3, according to an example of the present disclosure, the second electronic device (20) (e.g., an air conditioner) may be a device that is not registered with the server (100), a device that cannot be registered with the server (100), or a device that cannot communicate with the server (100). According to an example, the second electronic device (20) may be a device (e.g., IoT) that has a communication interface and is capable of wired / wireless communication (e.g., Zigbee, Wi-Fi, etc.) with the first electronic device (10). For example, whether or not the device can be registered with the server (100) may vary depending on the manufacturer of the device. According to an example, the first electronic device (10) may be registered with the server (100), but the second electronic device (20) may be equipped with a communication interface but may not be able to be registered with the server (100).

[0084] According to an example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a first control command to the second electronic device (20) if the second electronic device (20) supports a low power state based on identification information of the second electronic device (20). According to an example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a second control command to the second electronic device (20) if the second electronic device (20) does not support a low power state.

[0085] According to an example, at least one processor (13) can identify each of the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 60) provided in the space through a sensor (e.g., a camera) (or a sensor unit) provided in the first electronic device (10) and obtain identification information of each of the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 60).

[0086] According to an example, at least one processor (13) can obtain identification information of each of the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 60) when the product name of each of the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 60) is input by the user.

[0087] According to an example, at least one processor (13) may receive identification information of each of a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 60) provided in a space from a server (100).

[0088] FIG. 4 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that transmits an IR signal to an external device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0089] Referring to FIG. 4, according to an example of the present disclosure, the seventh electronic device (70) (e.g., a fan) may be a device (e.g., a legacy device) that is unable to communicate with the server (100).

[0090] For example, the seventh electronic device (70) includes an IR transceiver, receives an IR signal (or an IR control signal) from a remote control device for controlling the seventh electronic device (70), and can operate according to the IR signal.

[0091] According to an example, a first electronic device (10) includes an IR transceiver, and can obtain (or receive, sniff) an IR signal for controlling a seventh electronic device (70) positioned adjacent to the first electronic device (10) through the IR transceiver provided in the first electronic device (10).

[0092] At least one processor (13) according to an example may obtain a set of control codes for controlling the seventh electronic device (70) based on the received IR signal. At least one processor (13) according to an example may also obtain identification information of the seventh electronic device (70) based on the received IR signal.

[0093] According to an example of the present disclosure, at least one processor (13) may control an IR transceiver provided in the first electronic device (10) to transmit a first IR control signal corresponding to a first control command or a second IR control signal corresponding to a second control command, depending on whether the low power state of the seventh electronic device (70) is supported, when it is determined that communication with the seventh electronic device (70) through the communication interface (11) is impossible based on the identification information of the seventh electronic device (70).

[0094] For example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a first IR control signal corresponding to a first control command for operating the seventh electronic device (70) in a low power state based on a control code set when the communication method supported by the seventh electronic device (70) is identified as IR communication based on the identification information of the seventh electronic device (70).

[0095] For example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a second IR control signal corresponding to a second control command for turning off the seventh electronic device (70) based on a control code set, if the seventh electronic device (70) does not support a low power state based on the identification information of the seventh electronic device (70).

[0096] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an electronic device for retransmitting an IR signal according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0097] According to one example of the present disclosure, if the seventh electronic device (70) does not support a low power state, at least one processor (13) may transmit a second IR control signal to turn off the seventh electronic device (70) based on a set of control codes.

[0098] For example, the IR control signal for turning on the seventh electronic device (70) included in the control code set and the IR control signal for turning off the seventh electronic device (70) may be the same (for example, the on button and the off button in the remote control device for controlling the seventh electronic device (70) may be the same).

[0099] At least one processor (13) can identify whether the seventh electronic device (70) is operating after transmitting the IR control signal for turning on / off the seventh electronic device (70) if the IR control signal for turning on the seventh electronic device (70) included in the control code set and the IR control signal for turning off the seventh electronic device (70) are the same.

[0100] In one example, at least one processor (13) may retransmit an IR control signal to turn on / off the seventh electronic device (70) when the seventh electronic device (70) is identified as being operational (or is identified as being operational).

[0101] FIG. 6 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that detects the operation of an external device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0102] For example, the first electronic device (10) may be equipped with a sensor (e.g., a camera (13), a microphone (14), etc.) (or a sensor unit). At least one processor (13) may identify whether an external device is operating based on sensing data (e.g., a video signal, an audio signal, etc.) acquired through the sensor. Here, the sensing data is a term for convenience of explanation, and it is obvious that it may include various types of data.

[0103] At least one processor (13) according to an example can acquire an image signal including the seventh electronic device (70) through the camera (13) after transmitting an IR control signal for turning the seventh electronic device (70) on / off.

[0104] At least one processor (13) can identify whether the seventh electronic device (70) is operating based on the image signal.

[0105] At least one processor (13) according to an example can obtain a sound signal (e.g., noise, vibration, etc.) according to the operation of the seventh electronic device (70) through a microphone (14) after transmitting an IR control signal for turning the seventh electronic device (70) on / off.

[0106] At least one processor (13) can identify whether the seventh electronic device (70) is operating based on the voice signal.

[0107] At least one processor (13) can retransmit an IR control signal to turn on / off the seventh electronic device (70) when the seventh electronic device (70) is operating (or is operating) based on the identification result.

[0108] FIG. 7 is a drawing illustrating an electronic device transmitting a control command to an external device in communication with an electronic device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0109] According to an example of the present disclosure, the eighth electronic device (80) (e.g., an AI speaker) may be a device (e.g., a BT device) having a communication interface and capable of wireless communication (e.g., Bluetooth communication) with the first electronic device (10).

[0110] An eighth electronic device (80) according to an example of the present disclosure may be switched to a low power state (or a sleep state, a standby state, etc.) when it is disconnected from a master device (e.g., a first electronic device (10)) and is not reconnected with the master device for a certain period of time.

[0111] According to an example, at least one processor (13) may disconnect from an eighth electronic device (80) connected to a first electronic device (10) when a power saving state is activated. For example, when an eighth electronic device (80) connected to the first electronic device (10) via Bluetooth communication is identified, the at least one processor (13) may disconnect the Bluetooth connection, and the eighth electronic device (80) disconnected from the master device (e.g., the first electronic device (10)) may be switched to a low power state.

[0112] For example, an eighth electronic device (80) whose Bluetooth connection has been disconnected may transmit a connection request signal to the master device for a certain period of time.

[0113] For example, when a connection request signal for reconnection is received from the eighth electronic device (80) after the Bluetooth connection is disconnected, at least one processor (13) may deny the connection request signal received from the eighth electronic device (80) for a certain period of time (or a threshold time), and may cause the eighth electronic device (80) that is not reconnected with the master device to be switched to a low power state.

[0114] FIG. 8 is a drawing for explaining an electronic device that transmits a control command to an external device connected by wires to an electronic device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0115] According to an example of the present disclosure, upon receiving a user input for activating a power consumption reduction state from a user, or upon a preset time (e.g., a time for activating the power consumption reduction state), the server (100) may transmit a control command to the first electronic device (10) for switching to a low power state.

[0116] According to an example of the present disclosure, the ninth electronic device (90) (e.g., a set-top box) may be a device having a communication interface and connected to the first electronic device (10) by a wire to perform wired communication (e.g., USB, HDMI, etc.).

[0117] At least one processor (13) according to an example of the present disclosure can identify whether the ninth electronic device (90) supports a low power state based on identification information received from the ninth electronic device (90).

[0118] In one example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a first control command to the ninth electronic device (90) if the ninth electronic device (90) supports a low power state. In one example, at least one processor (13) may transmit a second control command to the ninth electronic device (20) if the ninth electronic device (90) does not support a low power state.

[0119] FIG. 9 is a drawing for explaining preset conditions according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0120] According to an example of the present disclosure, a user terminal device (1000) may support a user UI for executing a power consumption reduction state within a space.

[0121] For example, in response to a user input for executing a power consumption reduction state within a space (or a user input for executing a function corresponding to power consumption reduction), the server (100) may transmit a control command for executing a low power state to a device among a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 90) that is registered with the server (100) and can communicate with the server (100).

[0122] For example, when a first electronic device (10) receives a control command from a server (100), the first electronic device (10) can transmit a first control command or a second control command to the remaining electronic devices (20, ..., 90) depending on whether they support a low power state.

[0123] A user UI according to an example may include a UI for operating at least one of a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 90) in a low power state, and may also display status information of each of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 90).

[0124] A user UI according to an example may support restricted operations (e.g., Disable functions), expected power consumption, etc. when each of the plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 90) is operating in a low power state.

[0125] A user UI according to an example may support total power consumption in the current household and the power consumption expected to decrease when an external device corresponding to a user identified as absent is switched to a low power state.

[0126] Returning to FIG. 2, at least one processor (13) can identify power consumption information for each of a plurality of electronic devices (10, 20, ..., 90) located within the space.

[0127] According to an example of the present disclosure, identification information corresponding to an electronic device (10) may include power consumption information according to the use of the electronic device (10).

[0128] At least one processor (13) according to an example of the present disclosure can identify, based on power consumption information of the electronic device (10), whether the electronic device (10) is a device that requires transition to a low power state when a power consumption reduction state is activated.

[0129] For example, at least one processor (13) may identify the first electronic device (10) as a device requiring transition to a low power state to reduce power consumption in the home, based on power consumption information of the first electronic device (10), if the power consumption is greater than a threshold value, since the first electronic device (10) has relatively high power consumption. Hereinafter, a device requiring transition to a low power state will be collectively referred to as a power consumption reduction target device.

[0130] For example, at least one processor (13) may turn off the first electronic device (10) according to a second control command that turns off the first electronic device (10) depending on whether the first electronic device (10) is a target device for power consumption reduction, if the first electronic device (10) does not support a low power state.

[0131] As another example, at least one processor (13) may identify whether the second electronic device (20) is a target device for power consumption reduction based on power consumption information included in the identification information of the second electronic device (20). Then, if the second electronic device (20) does not support a low power state and the second electronic device (20) is identified as a target device for power consumption reduction, the at least one processor (13) may transmit a second control command to the second electronic device (20) for turning off the second electronic device (20).

[0132] As another example, at least one processor (13) may not turn off the second electronic device (20) if the second electronic device (20) does not support a low power state and the second electronic device (20) is not identified as a device for which power consumption reduction is to be performed.

[0133] In the various examples described above, at least one processor (13) may not transmit a second control command to the electronic device (10) to turn off the electronic device (10) even if the power consumption reduction state is activated, if the electronic device (10) that does not support the low power state is not a device to be reduced in power consumption.

[0134] For example, if the power consumption of the electronic device (10) is below a threshold value, the expected decrease in power consumption due to turning off the electronic device (10) is minimal, and thus the electronic device (10) may not be turned off. For example, the electronic device (10) whose power consumption is below a threshold value may be a sensor device (e.g., a door sensor, a light sensor, a gas detector, a smoke detector, etc.) that must always be kept on, and thus may not be turned off.

[0135] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0136] A method for controlling an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure identifies whether a low power state of an external device is supported based on identification information of the external device according to preset conditions (S1010).

[0137] Next, if the external device supports a low power state, a first control command corresponding to the low power state of the external device is transmitted to the external device (S1020).

[0138] Next, if the external device does not support a low power state, a second control command corresponding to power control of the external device is transmitted to the external device (S1030).

[0139] A control method according to an example of the present disclosure further includes a step of identifying an external device as a low-power state target device based on power consumption information acquired for each of a plurality of external devices within a preset area, wherein step S1020 of transmitting a first control command includes a step of transmitting the first control command if the external device supports the low-power state, and step S1030 of transmitting a second control command includes a step of transmitting the second control command if the external device does not support the low-power state.

[0140] A control method according to an example of the present disclosure may further include a step of identifying an external device that consumes more than a threshold power among a plurality of external devices as a device to be subject to power consumption reduction based on power consumption information.

[0141] A control method according to an example of the present disclosure may further include a step of transmitting a first IR signal corresponding to a first control command or a second IR signal corresponding to a second control command depending on whether the external device supports a low power state when communication with the external device is impossible.

[0142] A control method according to an example of the present disclosure may include a step of retransmitting the second IR signal when the external device is identified as operating based on data acquired through a sensor unit provided in the electronic device after transmitting the second IR signal.

[0143] Data according to an example of the present disclosure may include at least one of a video signal acquired through a camera included in the sensor unit or a voice signal acquired through a microphone included in the sensor unit.

[0144] A control method according to an example of the present disclosure may include a step of obtaining a code set corresponding to control of an external device based on a control signal for controlling an external device, and a step of obtaining a first IR signal or a second IR signal based on the code set.

[0145] A control method according to an example of the present disclosure may include a step of controlling to disconnect the connection with the external device through the Bluetooth communication interface according to preset conditions when connected to the external device through the Bluetooth communication interface, and a step of controlling to deny a connection request signal from the external device through the Bluetooth communication interface for a threshold time.

[0146] Step S1020 of transmitting a first control command and step S1030 of transmitting a second control command according to an example of the present disclosure may include a step of transmitting the first control command or the second control command depending on whether a low power state is supported through the wired communication interface when connected to an external device through a wired communication interface.

[0147] A preset condition according to an example of the present disclosure may include at least one of a user input for executing a function corresponding to power consumption reduction within a preset time or preset area. However, it goes without saying that various embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied not only to electronic devices but also to various types of electronic devices capable of communicating with external devices.

[0148] Meanwhile, the various embodiments described above may be implemented in a computer-readable recording medium or a similar device using software, hardware, or a combination thereof. In some cases, the embodiments described herein may be implemented by the processor itself. In a software implementation, embodiments, such as the procedures and functions described herein, may be implemented as separate software modules. Each of the software modules may perform at least one function and operation described herein.

[0149] Meanwhile, computer instructions for performing processing operations of the display device (100) according to the various embodiments of the present disclosure described above may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium. When the computer instructions stored in the non-transitory computer-readable medium are executed by a processor of a specific device, they cause the specific device to perform processing operations in the display device (100) according to the various embodiments described above.

[0150] A non-transitory computer-readable medium refers to a medium that permanently stores data and can be read by a device, rather than a medium that stores data for a short period of time, such as a register, cache, or memory. Specific examples of non-transitory computer-readable media include CDs, DVDs, hard disks, Blu-ray discs, USBs, memory cards, and ROMs.

[0151] Although the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have been illustrated and described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the specific embodiments described above, and various modifications may be made by a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure pertains without departing from the gist of the present disclosure as claimed in the claims, and such modifications should not be understood individually from the technical idea or prospect of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. In electronic devices, Communication interface; and comprising at least one processor; At least one processor of the above, Identify whether the external device supports a low power state based on the identification information of the external device according to preset conditions, If the external device supports the low power state, the communication interface is controlled to transmit a first control command corresponding to the low power state of the external device to the external device, An electronic device that controls the communication interface to transmit a second control command corresponding to power control of the external device to the external device if the external device does not support the low power state.

2. In paragraph 1, At least one processor of the above, An electronic device, wherein when an external device is identified as a low-power state target device based on power consumption information acquired for each of a plurality of external devices within a preset area, the electronic device transmits the first control command or the second control command depending on whether the external device supports the low-power mode.

3. In paragraph 2, At least one processor of the above, An electronic device that identifies an external device that consumes more than a threshold power among the plurality of external devices as a target device for power consumption reduction based on the power consumption information.

4. In paragraph 1, Including an IR transceiver; At least one processor of the above, An electronic device that controls the IR transceiver to transmit a first IR signal corresponding to the first control command or a second IR signal corresponding to the second control command depending on whether the low power state is supported when communication with the external device is not possible through the communication interface.

5. In paragraph 4, It further includes a sensor section, At least one processor of the above, An electronic device that controls the IR transceiver to retransmit the second IR signal when the external device is identified as operating based on data acquired through the sensor unit after transmitting the second IR signal.

6. In paragraph 5, The above sensor part, Includes at least one camera or microphone, The above data is, An electronic device comprising at least one of a video signal acquired through the camera or a voice signal acquired through the microphone.

7. In paragraph 4, At least one processor of the above, Based on the control signal for controlling the external device obtained through the IR transceiver, a code set corresponding to the control of the external device is obtained, An electronic device that obtains the first IR signal or the second IR signal based on the code set.

8. In paragraph 1, The above communication interface is, Includes a Bluetooth communication interface connected to the above external device, At least one processor of the above, Control to disconnect the connection with the external device through the Bluetooth communication interface according to the above-mentioned preset conditions, An electronic device that controls to deny a connection request signal from an external device through the Bluetooth communication interface for a critical period of time.

9. In paragraph 1, The above communication interface is, Includes a wired communication interface connected to the above external device by wire, At least one processor of the above, An electronic device that transmits the first control command or the second control command depending on whether the low power state is supported through the wired communication interface.

10. In paragraph 1, The above conditions are set, An electronic device comprising at least one user input for executing a function corresponding to reducing power consumption within a preset time or preset area.

11. In a method for controlling an electronic device, A step of identifying whether a low power state of an external device is supported based on identification information of the external device according to preset conditions; a step of transmitting a first control command corresponding to the low power state of the external device to the external device if the external device supports the low power state; and A control method, comprising: a step of transmitting a second control command corresponding to power control of the external device to the external device if the external device does not support the low power state; 12. In paragraph 11, The above control method is, Further comprising a step of identifying the external device as a low power state target device based on power consumption information acquired for each of a plurality of external devices within a preset area; The step of transmitting the above first control command is: If the external device supports the low power state, the step of transmitting the first control command is included; The step of transmitting the second control command is: A control method, comprising: a step of transmitting the second control command if the external device does not support the low power state; 13. In paragraph 12, The above control method is, A control method further comprising: a step of identifying an external device consuming more than a threshold power among the plurality of external devices as the target device for power consumption reduction based on the power consumption information.

14. In paragraph 11, The above control method is, A control method further comprising: a step of transmitting a first IR signal corresponding to the first control command or a second IR signal corresponding to the second control command depending on whether the external device supports the low power state when communication with the external device is impossible.

15. In paragraph 14, The above control method is, A control method, comprising: a step of retransmitting the second IR signal when the external device is identified as operating based on data acquired through a sensor unit provided in the electronic device after transmitting the second IR signal;

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