Two Way Control of a Set Top Box using Optical Character Recognition

摘要

Features of various implementations are used to control operation of a second electronic device from a first electronic device using indirect control methods and optical character recognition. In some implementations, communication between a primary set-top box and a supplemental set-top box is configured in order to avoid the need for one or more provider-specific APIs. For example, one aspect of the disclosure is a method of identifying commands that can be used to control one or more features of a primary set-top box (e.g., DVR or VOD features) by a supplemental set-top box issuing commands to the primary set-top box via a wireless (e.g., IR) transmitter, and then using optical character recognition to identify the outcomes of those commands as displayed on a primary TV display or secondary display.

主权项

1. A computer-implemented method of controlling an electronic device, comprising:
at a first electronic device coupled to a display and a first output connection of a second electronic device, the first electronic device including one or more processors and memory:
sending a first command sequence to the second electronic device via a wireless connection different from the first output connection, wherein the first command sequence is not known to be correct;in response to the sending, capturing display data provided by the second electronic device via the first output connection; analyzing the display data to determine whether the first command sequence was performed correctly by the second electronic device; and when the first command sequence was not performed correctly, sending a second command sequence to the second electronic device via the wireless connection, wherein the second command sequence is not known to be correct.