Home appliance, and method and system for operating home appliance

Abstract

Disclosed is a home appliance capable of automatically registering peripheral home appliances in a batch. A home appliance according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may comprise: a communication interface for performing wired communication with a plurality of peripheral home appliances and performing wireless communication with a user terminal and a server; and a processor for registering the home appliance with the server according to a request received from the user terminal, acquiring device list information including a plurality of identifiers respectively corresponding to the plurality of peripheral home appliances, transmitting the acquired device list information to the server, receiving, from the server, a registration request for registering one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances among the plurality of peripheral home appliances with the server, and registering the one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances with the server according to the received registration request.

Description

Home appliances, methods of operation of home appliances, and systems

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a method for automatically registering a product to a server.

[0002] With the recent popularization of mobile devices such as smartphones and the advancement of IoT (Internet of Things) technology, the adoption of home appliances equipped with communication capabilities is increasing.

[0003] Home appliances equipped with communication capabilities can be connected to a server or mobile terminal through an access point (AP), such as a router within the home.

[0004] In addition, users can conveniently check the status of home appliances and remotely control their operation via mobile devices such as phones. Furthermore, users can easily register home appliances through their mobile devices.

[0005] Users use a home appliance management application for managing home appliances to register products such as home appliances.

[0006] However, conventionally, there was a cumbersome and inconvenient problem because users had to register other products in the same space one by one through a home appliance management application.

[0007] The purpose of the present disclosure may be to automatically register multiple products within the same space.

[0008] The purpose of the present disclosure may be to automatically register one or more unregistered peripheral appliances sequentially or in batches.

[0009] The purpose of the present disclosure may be for a single home appliance to recognize a plurality of unregistered peripheral home appliances and automatically map the identifier of each device to a user account.

[0010] The purpose of the present disclosure may be to reduce the time required for network setup of unregistered peripheral home appliances.

[0011] The purpose of the present disclosure may be to efficiently register unregistered home appliances located in shaded areas.

[0012] A home appliance according to one embodiment of the present disclosure may register the home appliance to a server in accordance with a request received from a user terminal, obtain device list information including a plurality of identifiers corresponding to each of a plurality of peripheral home appliances, transmit the obtained device list information to the server, receive a registration request from the server to register one or more peripheral home appliances among the plurality of peripheral home appliances that are not registered to the server, and register one or more peripheral home appliances that are not registered to the server in accordance with the received registration request.

[0013] The above-mentioned home appliance can automatically register one or more of the above-mentioned unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server sequentially or in batches.

[0014] The above-mentioned home appliance can transmit a registration command to the server to match and store the identifiers of each of the one or more unregistered surrounding home appliances in the user account.

[0015] The above-mentioned home appliance can transmit network information of the router to one or more unregistered surrounding home appliances through the above-mentioned communication interface.

[0016] If the above-mentioned home appliance supports an automatic registration function in which the home appliance automatically registers one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server sequentially or in batches, it may receive a request for device list information from the server and transmit the device list information to the server in response to the received request.

[0017] The above home appliance transmits information about the router to an unregistered nearby home appliance in accordance with the registration request, and when it receives a router search failure message from the unregistered nearby home appliance, it operates in bridge mode to register the unregistered nearby home appliance to the server.

[0018] The above home appliance receives a request to operate in bridge mode from an unregistered peripheral home appliance, and can register the unregistered peripheral home appliance to the server by operating in bridge mode according to the received request.

[0019] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, by automatically registering multiple products located within the same space without the user having to register them individually, user convenience can be improved and the time and complexity required for the registration procedure can be reduced.

[0020] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, registration can be performed sequentially or in batches without the user having to perform the registration procedure individually, thereby improving registration convenience and simultaneously ensuring the efficiency and stability of the system initial setup process.

[0021] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a single home appliance can recognize multiple unregistered home appliances in the vicinity and automatically map the identifier of each device to a user account, thereby simplifying the registration process for multiple devices and facilitating integrated management based on user accounts.

[0022] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the time required for product registration and initial network setup can be drastically reduced by sharing the network information and registration status of a first-registered product without the need to repeat the process of inputting network information, searching for devices, and authentication for each product.

[0023] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, since a continuous registration procedure is possible regardless of the physical location of unregistered home appliances, the effect of improving the registration efficiency and user convenience of multiple home appliances can be obtained without additional relay devices.

[0024] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of a home appliance according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0026] FIG. 3 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of a user terminal according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a server according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram for explaining a product registration method of a system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] FIG. 6 is a drawing illustrating an example of displaying an automatic registration popup window according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0030] FIGS. 7a to 7c are drawings illustrating the process of automatically registering unregistered home appliances through a previously registered home appliance according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0031] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the process of registering an unregistered home appliance located in a shaded area through a previously registered home appliance according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the process of registering a home appliance located in a shaded area through a home appliance management application according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0033] FIGS. 10a and FIGS. 10b are drawings illustrating a scenario in which a registration of a household appliance located nearby is proposed according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, and additional registration of the household appliance is automatically performed according to the proposal.

[0034] FIGS. 11a and FIGS. 11b are sequence diagrams illustrating a product registration method of a system according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0035] Hereinafter, embodiments related to the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings. The suffixes "module" and "part" for components used in the following description are assigned or used interchangeably solely for the ease of drafting the specification, and do not inherently have distinct meanings or roles.

[0036] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 1, the system (1) may include a plurality of home appliances (10-1, 10-2, 10-3), a user terminal (20), a router (30), and a server (40).

[0038] The system (1) can provide a service for remotely controlling multiple home appliances (10-1, 10-2, 10-3) in the home through a user terminal (20).

[0039] Each of the multiple home appliances (10-1, 10-2, 10-3) may be a device that is placed in a home or building and performs various operations. The home appliance may be any one of a refrigerator, a washing machine, an air purifier, a water purifier, an air conditioner, an indoor unit, or an outdoor unit.

[0040] In Figure 1, two home appliances were used as an example, but this is not limited to two appliances and more than two appliances may be provided.

[0041] The user terminal (20) may include a mobile terminal that the user can carry while moving, such as a smartphone, tablet PC, smart watch, smart glasses, etc., or a fixed terminal such as a PC.

[0042] The router (30) can connect multiple home appliances (10-1, 10-2, 10-3) to the server (40). For example, the multiple home appliances (10-1, 10-2, 10-3) include a Wi-Fi circuit that supports Wi-Fi wireless communication and can be connected to the router (30) through the Wi-Fi circuit.

[0043] The shared device (30) can be referred to as a router.

[0044] The server (40) is a device that provides home appliance management services and can be managed by a manufacturer or a service provider. The server (40) can store information about each user who uses the home appliance management service. For example, information about each user may include user accounts, information about user terminals (20), information about routers (30), information about registered home appliances, etc.

[0045] When the server (40) receives a control command for a specific home appliance from a user terminal (20), it can transmit the received control command to the home appliance through the router (30). The home appliance (10) can operate based on the received control command.

[0046] FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of a home appliance according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 2, the home appliance (10) may include a communication interface (110), an input interface (120), an output interface (130), a driving unit (140), a memory (150), and a processor (190).

[0048] The communication interface (110) can transmit and receive data with external devices such as other home appliances, user terminals (20), routers (30), and servers (40) using wired and wireless communication technology.

[0049] The communication interface (110) may be equipped with a Wi-Fi communication circuit for wireless communication.

[0050] The input interface (120) may include a camera for inputting a video signal, a microphone for receiving an audio signal, a user input interface for receiving information from a user, etc.

[0051] The output interface (130) can output information. The output interface (130) may include a display that displays a video signal and a speaker that outputs an audio signal.

[0052] The drive unit (140) may include elements for performing operations related to the functions provided by the home appliance (10). For example, if the home appliance (10) is a washing machine, the drive unit (140) may include a drum motor, a water supply device, etc.

[0053] The memory (150) can store various software and data related to the operation of the home appliance (10).

[0054] The processor (190) can control the overall operation of the home appliance (10).

[0055] When the processor (190) requires the connection of an external device to perform the operation of the home appliance (10), it can generate a control signal to control the external device and transmit the generated control signal to the external device.

[0056] The processor (190) can control at least some of the components of the home appliance (10) to run an application stored in memory (150).

[0057] FIG. 3 is a block diagram for explaining the configuration of a user terminal according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0058] Referring to FIG. 3, the user terminal (20) may include a communication circuit (210), an input interface (220), a memory (230), an output interface (240), and a processor (290).

[0059] The user terminal (20) can be implemented as a fixed device or a mobile device, such as a projector, mobile phone, smartphone, desktop computer, laptop, digital broadcasting terminal, PDA (personal digital assistants), PMP (portable multimedia player), navigation, tablet PC, wearable device, set-top box (STB), DMB receiver, radio, desktop computer, etc.

[0060] The user terminal (20) may include a communication circuit (210), an input interface (220), a memory (230), an output interface (240), and a processor (290).

[0061] The communication circuit (210) can transmit and receive data with external devices such as other user terminals or servers using wired and wireless communication technology.

[0062] The communication circuit (210) can perform communication using any one of the following communication standards: GSM (Global System for Mobile communication), CDMA (Code Division Multi Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution), 5G, WLAN (Wireless LAN), Wi-Fi (Wireless-Fidelity), Bluetooth, RFID (Radio Frequency Identification), Infrared Data Association (IrDA), ZigBee, and NFC (Near Field Communication).

[0063] The input interface (220) may include a camera for inputting a video signal, a microphone for receiving an audio signal, a user input interface for receiving information from a user, etc.

[0064] Here, cameras or microphones can be treated as sensors, and signals acquired from cameras or microphones can be referred to as sensing data or sensor information.

[0065] The memory (230) can store various software and data related to the operation of the user terminal (20).

[0066] The output interface (240) may include a display (241) that displays a video signal received from the outside and a speaker (242) that outputs an audio signal.

[0067] The processor (290) can control the overall operation of the user terminal (20).

[0068] When the processor (290) requires the connection of an external device to perform the operation of the user terminal (20), it can generate a control signal to control the external device and transmit the generated control signal to the external device.

[0069] The processor (290) can control at least some of the components of the user terminal (20) to run an application stored in memory (230).

[0070] The processor (290) can operate two or more of the components included in the user terminal (20) in combination with each other to operate the application program.

[0071] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a server according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0072] Referring to FIG. 4, the server (40) may include a wireless communication interface (410), a database (420), and a processor (430).

[0073] The wireless communication interface (410) can transmit and receive data with a user terminal (20) or home appliances (10-1, 10-2, 10-3) using wireless communication technology. The wireless communication interface (410) can perform communication using any one of the communication standards of LTE (Long Term Evolution), 5G, WLAN (Wireless LAN), and Wi-Fi (Wireless-Fidelity).

[0074] The database (420) may store information of the user terminal (20), information of multiple home appliances (10-1, 10-2, 10-3), and information of the router (30).

[0075] The information of the user terminal (20) may include information about the user account of the user terminal (20).

[0076] Information on each home appliance may include at least one of the name of the home appliance, the type of home appliance, or the identifier of the home appliance.

[0077] The information of the router (30) may include the SSID and password of the router (30).

[0078] The processor (430) can control the overall operation of the server (40). The processor (430) can transmit and receive data with the user terminal (20) through a home appliance management application installed on the user terminal (20).

[0079] The processor (430) can transmit a control command to the home appliance according to the operation command of the home appliance received from the user terminal (20) through the wireless communication interface (410).

[0080] In the following, the router may be referred to as an AP (Access Point).

[0081] FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram for explaining a product registration method of a system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0082] In the following, the registration of the home appliance (10) may be a process of matching the identification information and network information (information of the router (30) of the home appliance (10) to a user account and storing it. Upon registration of the home appliance (10), the user can control the home appliance (10) through a home appliance management application.

[0083] The user account may be an account logged into a home appliance management application for managing home appliances installed on the user terminal (20).

[0084] The identification information of the home appliance (10) may include an identifier capable of identifying the home appliance (10). The identifier of the home appliance (10) may include one or more of the model name of the home appliance (10) or the MAC (Media Access Control) address of the modem included in the home appliance (10). The MAC address may be a network identifier of the home appliance (10). That is, the MAC address may be a unique ID that identifies the home appliance (10).

[0085] Network information may include information about a network for communication between a home appliance (10) and a server (40). Network information may include a Service Set Identifier (SSID) and a password of the router (30).

[0086] Additionally, the second appliance (10-2) and the third appliance (10-3) may each be referred to as peripheral appliances in that they are located around the first appliance (10-1).

[0087] The connection mode of the home appliance (10) may include an AP (Access Point) mode in which the home appliance (10) establishes a connection with surrounding home appliances without a router (30), and a station mode in which the home appliance (10) establishes a connection through a router (30).

[0088] Referring to FIG. 5, the processor (290) of the user terminal (20) can register the first home appliance (10-1) with the server (40) (S501).

[0089] A home appliance management application for managing home appliances may be installed on the user terminal (20).

[0090] In one embodiment, the processor (290) can execute a home appliance management application and display an execution screen, and can receive user input (or user request) related to product registration of a home appliance through the execution screen and perform a registration procedure for the first home appliance (10-1).

[0091] In another embodiment, the processor (290) can photograph a QR code attached to the first home appliance (10-1) through a camera (not shown) and can extract first identification information that identifies the first home appliance (10-1) from the photographed QR code. The processor (290) can transmit the extracted first identification information and user account to the server (40). The server (40) can match the received first identification information to the user account and register the first home appliance (10-1) to the user account.

[0092] The registration of the first home appliance (10-1) may be a process of matching and storing first identification information and network information that identify the first home appliance (10-1) in a user account. The matched information may be stored in a user terminal (20) or a server (40).

[0093] The processor (190) of the second home appliance (10-2) can receive first identification information from the first home appliance (10-1) (S503) and can receive third identification information of the third home appliance (10-3) from the third home appliance (10-3) (S505).

[0094] In one embodiment, the second home appliance (10-2) can receive first identification information from the first home appliance (10-1) via wired communication and can receive third identification information from the third home appliance (10-3).

[0095] Wired communication may use either the UART (Universal Asynchronous Receiver / Transmitter) method or the SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) method.

[0096] The UART method is a low-speed serial communication method that transmits and receives data asynchronously through two TX / RX lines without a clock. It is suitable for 1:1 communication with a simple hardware configuration and can be used for basic control signal exchange.

[0097] The SPI method is a high-speed serial communication method that transmits and receives data synchronously based on a clock signal. It enables real-time data transmission in a master-slave structure and is suitable for high-speed communication over short distances.

[0098] The communication interface (110) of each home appliance (10) may be equipped with a wired communication circuit for a UART method or an SPI method.

[0099] In one embodiment, when the power is turned on, the processor (190) of the second home appliance (10-2) can collect the first identification information of the first home appliance (10-1) and the third identification information of the third home appliance (10-3).

[0100] In another embodiment, the second home appliance (10-2) may receive the first identification information and the third identification information via wireless communication.

[0101] The second home appliance (10-2) can generate device list information including received first identification information, received third identification information, and second identification information identifying the second home appliance (10-2).

[0102] The processor (190) of the second home appliance (10-2) can transmit device list information including the first identification information, the second identification information of the second home appliance (10-2), and the third identification information to each of the first home appliance (10-1) and the third home appliance (10-3) (S507, S509).

[0103] The processor (190) of the second home appliance (10-2) can transmit device list information to the first home appliance (10-1) and the third home appliance (10-3) via wired communication.

[0104] In FIG. 5, the second appliance (10-2) is shown as an example of collecting identification information of another appliance, but it is not limited to this, and the first appliance (10-1) may directly collect the second identification information of the second appliance (10-2) and the third identification information of the third appliance (10-3).

[0105] The processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can transmit device list information received from the second home appliance (10-2) to the server (40) through the communication interface (110) (S511).

[0106] The processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) already registered in the user account can transmit device list information to the server (40) through a Wi-Fi communication circuit provided in the communication interface (110).

[0107] In one embodiment, when the processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) receives a request for device list information from the server (40), it may transmit the device list information to the server (40). After the first home appliance (10-1) is registered to a user account or the server (40), the server (40) may determine whether the registered first home appliance (10-1) supports an automatic registration function based on a plurality of functions supported by the registered first home appliance (10-1). The server (40) may request device list information only from home appliances that support the automatic registration function.

[0108] In another embodiment, the processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can periodically transmit device list information to the server (40) even if it does not receive a request for a list of peripheral devices from the server (40).

[0109] The first home appliance (10-1) can support an automatic registration function that can register unregistered home appliances in bulk or sequentially. Only home appliances that support the automatic registration function can receive a request for device list information from the server (40).

[0110] The processor (430) of the server (40) can obtain information about unregistered home appliances based on device list information received from the first home appliance (10-1), and can send an automatic registration inquiry message to the user terminal (20) to proceed with automatic registration of unregistered home appliances based on the obtained information about unregistered home appliances (S513).

[0111] The processor (430) of the server (40) can extract identification information for identifying unregistered home appliances from the device list information based on the information stored in the database (420).

[0112] The database (420) may store identification information of one or more home appliances matched to a user account. The processor (430) of the server (40) may compare the information stored in the database (420) with the device list information to obtain identification information of home appliances not matched to a user account as information about unregistered home appliances.

[0113] For example, if the identification information matched to the user account includes only the first identification information, the processor (430) of the server (40) may extract the second home appliance (10-2) corresponding to the second identification information and the third home appliance (10-3) corresponding to the third identification information as unregistered home appliances. In this case, the information regarding the unregistered home appliances may include the second identification information and the third identification information.

[0114] The automatic registration inquiry message may be asking whether to automatically proceed with the process of registering unregistered home appliances to the user account.

[0115] The processor (190) of the user terminal (20) can display an automatic registration pop-up window according to the received automatic registration progress inquiry message through the output interface (130) (S515).

[0116] The processor (190) of the user terminal (20) can display an automatic registration pop-up window on the display (241) based on receiving an automatic registration progress inquiry message.

[0117] FIG. 6 is a drawing illustrating an example of displaying an automatic registration popup window according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0118] Referring to FIG. 6, the user terminal (20) can display the execution screen (600) of a home appliance management application on the display (241).

[0119] The user terminal (20) may display an automatic registration pop-up window (610) on the display (241) based on an automatic registration progress inquiry message received from the server (40). The automatic registration pop-up window (610) may include text indicating that there is an additional product (device 1) available for registration. FIG. 6 assumes that there is only one additional product available for registration, but this is merely an example and there may be multiple.

[0120] The automatic registration pop-up window (610) may be displayed on the general screen regardless of whether the home appliance management application is running.

[0121] Again, Figure 5 is explained.

[0122] When the processor (190) of the user terminal (20) receives an acceptance command through an automatic registration pop-up window, it can send the automatic registration acceptance command to the server (40) through the communication interface (110) (S517).

[0123] The user terminal (20) can obtain user input selecting an accept button (611) included in the automatic registration pop-up window (610) shown in FIG. 6 as an accept command.

[0124] The processor (430) of the server (40) can transmit a registration request for automatic registration of an unregistered home appliance to the first home appliance (10-1) based on an automatic registration acceptance command received from the user terminal (20) (S519).

[0125] The processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can register the second home appliance (10-2) and the third home appliance (10-3) in batches or sequentially in response to a registration request received from the server (40) (S521).

[0126] The processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can register the unregistered second home appliance (10-2) and the unregistered third home appliance (10-3) to the user account in accordance with the registration request received from the server (40).

[0127] The processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can transmit a registration command to the server (40) to store the second identification information of the second home appliance (10-2) and the third identification information of the third home appliance (10-3) by matching them to a user account. Additionally, the processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can transmit network information of the router (30) to each of the second home appliance (10-2) and the third home appliance (10-3) to enable communication over the same network.

[0128] In one embodiment, the processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can first register the device closest to the router (30) among the second home appliance (10-2) and the third home appliance (10-3).

[0129] The router (30) can collect the Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) with each home appliance and can transmit the collected RSSIs to the first home appliance (10-1).

[0130] The processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can select the device corresponding to the RSSI having the largest value among the second home appliance (10-2) and the third home appliance (10-3) as the device to be registered first, based on the RSSIs collected from the router (30).

[0131] In another embodiment, the processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can register the second home appliance (10-2) and the third home appliance (10-3) in bulk. To do this, the processor (190) of the first home appliance (10-1) can send a registration command to the server (40) to store the second identification information and the third identification information in bulk by matching them to a user account.

[0132] The processor (430) of the server (40) can update the information stored in the database (420) as the second home appliance (10-2) and the third home appliance (10-3) are registered to the user account.

[0133] That is, the processor (430) of the server (40) can additionally match the second identification information and the third identification information in addition to the first identification information already registered in the user account, and store the matched result in the database (420).

[0134] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the remaining home appliances are automatically registered by the operation of registering one home appliance provided in the home, so the user does not need to perform a separate registration procedure, and thus the user's convenience can be greatly improved.

[0135] FIGS. 7a to 7c are drawings illustrating the process of automatically registering unregistered home appliances through a previously registered home appliance according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0136] In FIGS. 7a to 7c, a user terminal (20), a router (30), a first indoor unit (700-1), a second indoor unit (700-2), a third indoor unit (700-3), and an outdoor unit (700-4) may be provided in the house.

[0137] Each of the first indoor unit (700-1), the second indoor unit (700-2), the third indoor unit (700-3), and the outdoor unit (700-4) may be an example of the home appliance (10) of FIG. 2 and may include all components of the home appliance (10).

[0138] The outdoor unit (700-4) can perform wired communication with each of the first indoor unit (700-1), the second indoor unit (700-2), and the third indoor unit (700-3).

[0139] The user terminal (20) can perform wireless communication with the server (40) through the router (30). The wireless communication standard may be a Wi-Fi standard, but this is merely an example.

[0140] Each of the first indoor unit (700-1), the second indoor unit (700-2), and the third indoor unit (700-3) can perform wireless communication with the server (40) through the router (30).

[0141] Each of the first indoor unit (700-1), the second indoor unit (700-2), and the third indoor unit (700-3) can perform wireless communication with each other through a Soft AP (Software Access Point) function. The Soft AP function may be a function that allows a device operating as a client to operate as an access point (AP) in software and connect with other devices through Wi-Fi standards.

[0142] Meanwhile, the first indoor unit (700-1) may include a first modem (710-1) or be connected to the first modem (710-1) via a wire. The second indoor unit (700-2) may include a second modem (710-2) or be connected to the second modem (710-2) via a wire. The third indoor unit (700-3) may include a third modem (710-3) or be connected to the third modem (710-3) via a wire.

[0143] Each modem may be an interface that relays wireless communication so that each indoor unit can transmit and receive data with a user terminal (20) or a server (40).

[0144] Each modem may be included in each indoor unit or provided separately from each indoor unit. The MAC address of each modem may be used as identification information to identify each indoor unit.

[0145] In the following, where a modem is included in an indoor unit, a signal transmitted to the modem may be considered as a signal transmitted to an indoor unit wired to the modem, and an operation performed by the modem may be considered as being performed by the indoor unit.

[0146] Referring to FIG. 7b, this is a diagram illustrating operations corresponding to the sequence diagram of FIG. 5.

[0147] S1. The user terminal (20) can transmit a registration request to the first modem (710) for the registration of the first indoor unit (700-1).

[0148] S2. The first modem (710) may accept registration in response to a registration request. During this process, the user terminal (20) may receive the first MAC address of the first modem (710). The first MAC address may be identification information that identifies the first indoor unit (700-1).

[0149] S3. The user terminal (20) can register the first MAC address to the user account. That is, the user terminal (20) can send a new product registration request to the server (40) to map the first MAC address to the user account and store it. The server (40) can map the first MAC address to the user account and store it in the database (420) in accordance with the received new product registration request.

[0150] S1 to S3 may be processes corresponding to step S501 of FIG. 5.

[0151] S4. The server (40) can transmit a request for a list of peripheral devices (a request for device list information) to the first modem (710-1) that requests identification information for peripheral home appliances.

[0152] S5. The first modem (710) can transmit the received peripheral device list request to the wired first indoor unit (700-1). The first indoor unit (700-1) can receive device list information in advance from the outdoor unit (700-4). Referring to FIG. 7c, when power is applied, the outdoor unit (700-4) can receive, respectively, a first MAC address (721) identifying the first indoor unit (700-1) from the wired first indoor unit (700-1), a second MAC address (722) identifying the second indoor unit (700-2) from the second indoor unit (700-2), and a third MAC address (723) identifying the third indoor unit (700-3) from the third indoor unit (700-3). This process may correspond to steps S503 and S505 of FIG. 5.

[0153] The outdoor unit (700-4) can generate device list information (720) including a first MAC address (721), a second MAC address (722), and a third MAC address (723), and can transmit the generated device list information (720) to each indoor unit. This process may correspond to steps S507 and S509 of FIG. 5.

[0154] S6. The first indoor unit (700-1) can transmit the device list information received from the outdoor unit (700-4) to the first modem (710-1) in response to a request for a list of peripheral devices.

[0155] S7. The first modem (710-1) can transmit device list information received via wireless communication to the server (40). S6 and S7 may be processes corresponding to step S511 of FIG. 5.

[0156] S8. The server (40) can obtain identification information for an unregistered home appliance based on device list information received from the first modem (710-1), and can send a message to the user terminal (20) inquiring about the automatic registration of the unregistered home appliance based on the obtained identification information for the unregistered home appliance. S8 may be a process corresponding to step S513 of FIG. 5.

[0157] S9. The user terminal (20) may display an automatic registration pop-up window in accordance with the received automatic registration progress inquiry message, receive an acceptance command, and transmit an automatic registration acceptance command to the server (40). S9 may be a process corresponding to steps S515 and S517 of FIG. 5.

[0158] S10 / S11. The server (40) may transmit a registration request for automatic registration of an unregistered home appliance to the first modem (710-1) based on an automatic registration acceptance command received from the user terminal (20). S10 / S11 may be a process corresponding to step S519 of FIG. 5.

[0159] S12 / S13. The first modem (710-1) can register the second modem (710-2) and the third modem (710-3) in batches or sequentially in response to a registration request received from the server (40).

[0160] As such, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in a space where multiple products are installed (e.g., home, building, store, etc.), a user can enjoy the effect of automatic registration of all products with just one registration.

[0161] In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the time required for product registration and initial network setup can be drastically reduced by sharing the network information and registration status of a first-registered product without the need to repeat the process of inputting network information, searching for devices, and authentication for each product.

[0162] FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating the process of registering an unregistered home appliance located in a shaded area through a previously registered home appliance according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0163] It is assumed that the first indoor unit (700-1) is a registered device, the second indoor unit (700-2) is an unregistered device, and is located in a shaded area that cannot be connected to the router (30).

[0164] Additionally, it is assumed that the first indoor unit (700-1) includes the first modem (710-1) and the second indoor unit (700-2) includes the second modem (710-2).

[0165] S8-1. The server (40) can send a registration request to the first modem (710-1) for the registration of the unregistered second indoor unit (700-2) through the router (30).

[0166] S8-2. The first modem (710-1) can transmit network information to the second modem (710-2) in response to a registration request. The network information is information from the router (30) and may include an SSID and a password.

[0167] S8-3. The second modem (710-2) can search for the router (30) based on the received network information. If the second modem (710-2) fails to search for the router (30), it can send a router search failure message to the first modem (710-1).

[0168] S8-4. When the first modem (710-1) receives a router search failure message, it may transmit bridge information to the second modem (710-2) to perform a bridge function. The bridge information may include the SSID and password of a Soft AP temporarily configured by the first modem (710-1). The bridge function of the first modem (710-1) may be a function that allows it to act like a router and connect the second modem (710-2) to the router (30) and the server (40). As described above, the bridge function may be a function that operates in AP mode, where the home appliance directly establishes a connection with surrounding home appliances without a router (30). AP mode may be referred to as bridge mode.

[0169] S8-5. The second modem (710-2) can be connected to the first modem (710-1) based on bridge information. After connection, the first modem (710-1) can proceed with product registration of the second modem (710-2). The first modem (710-1) can receive the second MAC address of the second modem (710-2) from the second modem (710-2).

[0170] S8-6. The first modem (710-1) can send a registration command to the server (40) through the router (30) to store the second MAC address of the second modem (710-2) by matching it to a user account.

[0171] In this way, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, even if an unregistered home appliance is in a shaded area, a registered home appliance temporarily performs the role of a network bridge or Soft AP, thereby enabling the smooth registration of the unregistered home appliance.

[0172] Accordingly, since a continuous registration process is possible regardless of the physical location of unregistered home appliances, the registration efficiency and user convenience of multiple home appliances can be improved without additional relay devices.

[0173] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating the process of registering a home appliance located in a shaded area through a home appliance management application according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0174] It is assumed that the first indoor unit (700-1) is a registered device, the second indoor unit (700-2) is an unregistered device, and is located in a shaded area that cannot be connected to the router (30).

[0175] Additionally, it is assumed that the first indoor unit (700-1) includes the first modem (710-1) and the second indoor unit (700-2) includes the second modem (710-2).

[0176] S9-1. The user terminal (20) can transmit a registration request for the registration of the second indoor unit (700-2) to the second modem (710-2) through a home appliance management application. The registration request may include information of the router (30).

[0177] S9-2. The second modem (710-2) can search for the router (30) based on the information of the received router (30).

[0178] S9-3. If the second modem (710-2) fails to search for the router (30), it may send a bridge connection request to the first modem (710-1). The bridge connection request may be a request to have the first modem (710-1) perform a bridge function. The bridge connection request may be a request to have the first modem (710-1) operate in bridge mode.

[0179] S9-4. The first modem (710-1) can transmit bridge information to the second modem (710-2) in response to a bridge connection request, and after the connection, the first modem (710-1) can proceed with product registration of the second modem (710-2). The first modem (710-1) can receive the second MAC address of the second modem (710-2) from the second modem (710-2).

[0180] S9-5. The first modem (710-1) can send a registration command to the server (40) through the router (30) to store the second MAC address of the second modem (710-2) by matching it to a user account.

[0181] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, even if an unregistered home appliance is in a shaded area, a registered home appliance temporarily performs the role of a network bridge or Soft AP, thereby enabling the smooth registration of the unregistered home appliance.

[0182] Accordingly, since a continuous registration process is possible regardless of the physical location of unregistered home appliances, the registration efficiency and user convenience of multiple home appliances can be improved without additional relay devices.

[0183] FIGS. 10a and FIGS. 10b are drawings illustrating a scenario in which a registration of a household appliance located nearby is proposed according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, and additional registration of the household appliance is automatically performed according to the proposal.

[0184] Each of the following screens may be a screen displayed upon execution of a home appliance management application.

[0185] Referring to FIG. 10, the user terminal (20) may display a first screen (1010) indicating that the registration of a home appliance has been completed. The first screen (1010) may include a name editing menu (1011) that allows editing the name of the registered home appliance.

[0186] The user terminal (20) may display a second screen (1020) when the confirmation button (1012) is selected. The second screen (1020) may include a guide (1021) for automatically adding a new home appliance (system air conditioner) found in the vicinity.

[0187] When the accept button (1022) included in the second screen (1020) is selected, the user terminal (20) may display a third screen (1030) including a first notification (1031) indicating automatic addition of the system air conditioner.

[0188] Referring to FIG. 10b, when the registration of the system air conditioner is completed, the user terminal (20) may display a second notification (1041) indicating that the additional registration of the system air conditioner is completed. The second notification (1041) may be provided on any screen (1040) displayed on the user terminal (20).

[0189] The user terminal (20) can display the home screen (1050) of the home appliance management application according to a command to select the second notification (1041). The home screen (1050) may include a device item (1051) corresponding to an additionally registered system air conditioner.

[0190] The user can control the operation of the system air conditioner through the operation menu provided according to the selection of the device item (1051).

[0191] FIGS. 11a and FIGS. 11b are sequence diagrams illustrating a product registration method of a system according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0192] FIGS. 11a and FIGS. 11b may be embodiments describing the embodiment of FIG. 5 in more detail.

[0193] The Ambient Link function may be a connection function that enables registration and synchronization through a connection with a peripheral device (e.g., another already registered product) even if the product is not directly connected to the internet. The Ambient Link function may be a function in which the first home appliance (10-1) described in FIG. 5 automatically registers unregistered home appliances (10-2, 10-3) in bulk.

[0194] The system may include a user terminal (20), a ThinQ Service server (TSS, 1110), a common server (1120), and a home appliance (10). It is assumed that the user terminal (20) has a home appliance management application running.

[0195] The TSS (1110) and the common server (1120) may be configured as a single server. For example, the server (40) may include the TSS (1110) and the common server (1120).

[0196] Explains the product registration steps.

[0197] The user terminal (20) can request device registration from the TSS (1110) (S1101).

[0198] TSS (1110) can respond to the request and reply to the user terminal (20) whether the device is registered (S1102).

[0199] The home appliance (10) can transmit a product connection request to the common server (1120) (S1103), and the common server (1120) can transmit the product connection request to the TSS (1110) (S1104).

[0200] TSS (1110) can transmit a product connection message indicating that the home appliance (10) is connected to a user terminal (20) via the MQTT (message queuing telemetry transport) protocol (S1105).

[0201] Next, the function synchronization step is explained.

[0202] After device registration is complete, the home appliance (10) can send a funcSync request to the common server (1120) (S1111) and can transmit the funcSync request to the TSS (1110) (S1112). The funcSync request may include information about multiple functions possessed by the home appliance (10). The funcSync request may include multiple funcSync values ​​corresponding to each of the multiple functions.

[0203] A function synchronization request is a request to provide multiple functions possessed by a home appliance (10) to a user terminal (20), and may be a request transmitted to configure the multiple functions to be compatible with the user terminal (20).

[0204] TSS (1110) can generate modelJson data containing function information of the home appliance (10) upon receiving a function synchronization request (S1113), and can transmit the generated modelJson data to the user terminal (20) via the mqtt protocol (S1114).

[0205] TSS (1110) can determine whether to support ambient link functions based on multiple function synchronization values ​​included in the function synchronization request (S1115).

[0206] TSS (1110) can determine whether the ambient link function can be performed in real time (S1116), and if the home appliance (10) determines that the ambient link function can be performed in real time, it can perform a request step for looking up the MAC list (MAC address list, device list information) (S1117).

[0207] TSS (1110) can register a schedule to query the MAC list in 1-minute intervals (S1118) and can call the registered schedule (S1119).

[0208] After registering the schedule, TSS (1110) can perform a MAC list lookup request step if a certain amount of time (e.g., 10 seconds) has passed (S1120).

[0209] Next, the steps for requesting a MAC list lookup are explained.

[0210] Referring to FIG. 11b, the TSS (1110) can send a MAC list lookup request to the common server (1120) (S1121), and the common server (1120) can send the MAC list lookup request to the home appliance (10) (S1122). The MAC list may include the MAC addresses of each of the other home appliances collected by the registered home appliance (10).

[0211] The home appliance (10) can send the MAC list to the common server (1120) in response to a request to look up the MAC list (S1123), and the common server (1120) can send the MAC list to the TSS (1110) (S1124).

[0212] TSS (1110) can obtain information about unregistered home appliances based on the MAC list and send a message to the user terminal (20) inquiring whether to perform the Ambient link function for automatic registration of the obtained unregistered home appliances (S1125).

[0213] Next, we will explain the Ambient Link acceptance steps.

[0214] The user terminal (20) can display an automatic registration popup window according to the message received from the TSS (1110) (S1131).

[0215] If the user terminal (20) refuses to perform the Ambient link function through the automatic registration popup window, it may terminate the display of the automatic registration popup window (S1132).

[0216] If the user terminal (20) accepts the performance of the Ambient link function through the automatic registration pop-up window, it can transmit the acceptance status to the TSS (1110) (S1133).

[0217] The TSS (1110) can resend the MAC list lookup request to the common server (1120) (S1134), and the common server (1120) can forward the MAC list lookup request to the home appliance (10) (S1135). This is because, in S1123 and S1124, the common server (1120) and the TSS (1110) may delete the MAC list without storing it after receiving it.

[0218] Meanwhile, the TSS (1110) can send a response result to the user terminal (20) indicating whether it has received acceptance (S1136).

[0219] The home appliance (10) can send the MAC list to the common server (1120) in response to a request to look up the MAC list (S1137), and the common server (1120) can send the MAC list to the TSS (1110) (S1138).

[0220] TSS (1110) can perform SAC Ambient operation for automatic registration of unregistered home appliances based on the received MAC list (S1139). The SAC Ambient operation may be an operation that causes registered home appliances (10) to automatically register unregistered home appliances in bulk.

[0221] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the above-described method can be implemented as code that is readable by a processor on a medium on which a program is recorded. Examples of media that are readable by a processor include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tape, floppy disk, optical data storage device, etc.

[0222] The display device described above is not limited to the configuration and method of the embodiments described above; rather, all or part of each embodiment may be selectively combined to allow for various modifications to be made.

Claims

1. Regarding home appliances, A communication interface that performs wired communication with multiple peripheral home appliances and performs wireless communication with a user terminal and a server; and A processor comprising: registering the home appliance to the server in accordance with a request received from the user terminal; obtaining device list information including a plurality of identifiers corresponding to each of the plurality of peripheral home appliances; transmitting the obtained device list information to the server; receiving a registration request from the server to register one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances among the plurality of peripheral home appliances to the server; and registering the one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server in accordance with the received registration request. Home appliances.

2. In Paragraph 1, The above processor Automatically registering one or more of the above unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server sequentially or in batches Home appliances.

3. In Paragraph 2, The above processor Sending a registration command to the server to match and store the identifiers of one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances in the user account through the communication interface above. Home appliances.

4. In Paragraph 3, The above processor Transmitting the router's network information to one or more unregistered surrounding home appliances through the above communication interface Home appliances.

5. In Paragraph 1, The above processor Receiving the plurality of identifiers from any one of the plurality of peripheral home appliances, or directly collecting the plurality of identifiers Home appliances.

6. In Paragraph 1, The above processor If the above-mentioned home appliance supports an automatic registration function that automatically registers one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server sequentially or in batches, it receives a request for the device list information from the server, and Transmitting the device list information to the server in response to the received request Home appliances.

7. In Paragraph 1, The above processor Transmitting router information to unregistered nearby home appliances in accordance with the above registration request, and upon receiving a router search failure message from the said unregistered nearby home appliance, operating in bridge mode to register the said unregistered nearby home appliance to the server. Home appliances.

8. In Paragraph 1, The above processor Receiving a request to operate in bridge mode from an unregistered peripheral home appliance, and operating in bridge mode according to the received request to register the unregistered peripheral home appliance to the server. Home appliances.

9. Regarding the method of registering home appliance products, A communication interface that performs wired communication with multiple peripheral home appliances and performs wireless communication with a user terminal and a server; and A processor comprising: registering the home appliance to the server in accordance with a request received from the user terminal; obtaining device list information including a plurality of identifiers corresponding to each of the plurality of peripheral home appliances; transmitting the obtained device list information to the server; receiving a registration request from the server to register one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances among the plurality of peripheral home appliances to the server; and registering the one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server in accordance with the received registration request. How to register home appliances.

10. In Paragraph 9, The above-mentioned registration step A step comprising automatically registering one or more of the above-mentioned unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server sequentially or in batches. How to register home appliances.

11. In Paragraph 10, The above-mentioned registration step The step of transmitting a registration command to the server to match and store the identifiers of each of the one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances in the user account. How to register home appliances.

12. In Paragraph 11, The method further includes the step of transmitting the router's network information to one or more of the aforementioned unregistered peripheral home appliances. How to register home appliances.

13. In Paragraph 9, The method further comprises the step of receiving the plurality of identifiers from any one of the plurality of peripheral home appliances or the step of directly collecting the plurality of identifiers. How to register home appliances.

14. In Paragraph 9, The step of transmitting the above device list information to the server If the above-mentioned home appliance supports an automatic registration function that automatically registers one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server sequentially or in batches, the step of receiving a request for the device list information from the server and The step of transmitting the device list information to the server in response to the received request How to register home appliances.

15. In Paragraph 9, The above-mentioned registration step A step of transmitting router information to unregistered surrounding home appliances in accordance with the above registration request, and When a router search failure message is received from the aforementioned unregistered nearby home appliance, the method includes the step of operating in bridge mode to register the aforementioned unregistered nearby home appliance with the server. How to register home appliances.

16. In Paragraph 9, The above-mentioned registration step A step of receiving a request to operate in bridge mode from an unregistered peripheral home appliance and Includes the step of operating in bridge mode in response to a received request to register the unregistered peripheral home appliance to the server. How to register home appliances.

17. In a system including a user terminal, a home appliance, and a server, The above home appliance is Registering the home appliance to the server in accordance with a request received from the user terminal, obtaining device list information including a plurality of identifiers corresponding to each of the plurality of peripheral home appliances, and transmitting the obtained device list information to the server. The above server is Based on the above device list information, an inquiry message for the automatic registration of one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances among the above plurality of peripheral home appliances is transmitted to the user terminal, and The above user terminal Displays an automatic registration pop-up window in accordance with the above inquiry message, and if an acceptance command is received through the displayed automatic registration pop-up window, transmits the automatic registration acceptance command to the above server, and The above server is A registration request to register one or more unregistered peripheral appliances among the plurality of peripheral appliances above to the server is transmitted to the appliance, and The above home appliance is Register one or more of the unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server in accordance with the received registration request, and The above server is Matching the identifiers of one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances to the user account according to the above registration and storing them in the database System.

18. In Paragraph 17, The above home appliance is Automatically registering one or more of the above unregistered peripheral home appliances to the server sequentially or in batches System.

19. In Paragraph 18, The above home appliance is Sending a registration command to the server to store the identifier of each of the one or more unregistered peripheral home appliances in the user account. System.

20. In Paragraph 19, The above home appliance is Transmitting the router's network information to one or more of the aforementioned unregistered surrounding home appliances System.

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