Wireless control device

Abstract

A wireless control device (1) comprises an antenna (5) and a power harvester (2) to generate power for the device from a radio frequency signal (7) incident on the antenna. The device further comprises an upconverter stage; the upconverter stage comprising a first port (21) to receive a control signal (13) to be upconverted and a second port (34) to receive the incident radio frequency signal (7) and to output the upconverted control signal at upper and lower sideband frequencies (8). The antenna is coupled to the second port.

Description

technical field [0001] The present invention relates to a wireless control device, in particular for consumer electronics, such as personal computers or entertainment devices. Background technique [0002] Usually all remote control devices require their own power source (typically batteries). However, in addition to the nuisance to the user when the battery dies, there is the environmental concern and attendant expense of the large number of batteries that must be safely disposed of, both for the user and the manufacturer. [0003] Many schemes have been proposed in order to reduce the power consumption of these devices so that the batteries are not replaced as often, but this only reduces the problem rather than avoiding it. An example of this is US6507763 which mentions the use of radio frequency wireless keyboards instead of infrared keyboards because RF keyboards consume less power. It doesn't solve the hassle for the user of having to keep a lot of spare batteries of...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

However, this keyboard still requires a separate power supply located inside the keyboard, with the attendant problem of

Also, the input signal may be relatively weak, limiting the distance at which the remote control device can work

Images