KR100834756B1 - A proxy apparatus and method for controlling USB devices - Google Patents

Abstract

A relay device and method for controlling a USB device is provided. The relay device for controlling a USB device detects a controlled device connected to a heterogeneous network and analyzes at least one of information about an interface class and a protocol of the controlled device, according to the information of the analysis module and the analyzed interface class. And an output module for outputting a configuration module constituting a user interface) and a configured UI to a control screen of the control device.

USB, XHT, IEEE1394

Description

A proxy apparatus and method for controlling USB devices

1 is a conceptual diagram of USB device control in a conventional XHT network.

2 is a conceptual diagram for controlling a USB device connected to a heterogeneous network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a block diagram of a relay device for controlling a USB device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart of a USB device control method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a generation of a UI classified according to an interface class according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 illustrates an example of operating a USB device connected to a heterogeneous network through a relay device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols on main parts of the drawings>

300: relay device 310: analysis module

320: configuration module 330: output module

340: execution module

The present invention relates to a relay device and method for controlling a USB device, and more particularly, to a relay device and method for controlling a USB device to enable efficient control or use of USB-based devices connected to heterogeneous networks. .

With the breakthrough in digital audio / video processing technology, digital television, set-top box, DVD player and digital amplifier Various AV devices such as digital amplifiers are installed and used in homes and offices. In addition, a technology has been researched that allows a plurality of AV devices to be interconnected to be systemized as one, and allows a user to easily control a systemized AV device. As part of this research, the eXpandable Home Theater (XHT) technical standard, middleware for AV home networking, has been developed and presented. The XHT technology is a digital TV-centric home network solution developed by Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. and has been adopted as a standard specification of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).

XHT technology uses a IEEE1394 cable that can stably transmit a number of high definition (HD) signals, and a number of digital devices as well as AV devices connected to digital TV using the Internet Protocol, a communication standard commonly used on the Internet. Allows you to control the TV. With XHT technology, you can watch digital broadcasts using the digital broadcast reception function of digital TV in the living room even in the home. In addition, the low cost broadcast interface unit (NIU) using the XHT technology is in the form of a memory card, which makes it easy to change the reception method such as terrestrial, satellite, and cable, thereby reducing the economic burden on the broadcaster. In particular, XHT technology enables various types of portal services through a browser embedded in digital TV.

The XHT system has a basic structure of data stream transmission using IEC61883, inter-device control using AV / C, and graphical user interface (GUI) transmission based on HTTP / CEA2027 based on IEEE1394. In addition, the XHT system is configured based on the IEEE 1394 bus, and IEEE 1394 supports asynchronous transmission with guaranteed transmission integrity and isochronous transmission with guaranteed real time transmission. The IEC61883 is a protocol for transmitting real-time stream data over IEEE1394, and defines a transmission format and protocol for each stream type. In general, XHT AV network transmits AV data to MPEG2TS according to IEC61883 which defines related isochronous connection and streaming for streaming on the link layer, which is the basic transmission stage of IEEE1394.

1 is a conceptual diagram of USB device control in a conventional XHT network.

USB (Universal Serial Bus) is a master / slave serial bus, and peripheral devices using USB are connected to a host. The host is implemented on physical hardware according to a standardized host interface such as OHCI / UHCI (Open Host Controller Interface / Universal Host Controller Interface). In addition, the software controls plug and play information obtained through OHCI, UHCI, and Enhanced Host Controller Interface (EHCI) controller software and descriptors, depending on the hardware. It consists of the protocol stack according to the interface class and the part that finally uses the recognized device.

For example, when the digital TV 10 conforming to the XHT standard has a memory card reader 12 embedded therein, the memory card 14 of the digital camera can be used through the memory card reader 12, In the case of the AV gateway 20, the USB device 24 may be used through the USB host 22. In this case, the memory card reader 12 embedded in the digital TV 10 may be utilized only for the memory card 14 and may not be interworked on the network. In addition, the USB host 22 of the AV gateway 20 uses only mass storage among storage classes.

As such, in the related art, AV devices on the XHT network and USB-based devices interoperate with each other, thereby limiting a wide range of applications in controlling USB-based devices through a digital TV.

Accordingly, there is a need to efficiently control or use USB-based devices connected to heterogeneous networks.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a relay device and method for controlling a USB device.

The objects of the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned objects, and other objects that are not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

In order to achieve the above object, a relay device for controlling a USB device according to an embodiment of the present invention detects a controlled device connected to a heterogeneous network to obtain at least one of information about the interface class and protocol of the controlled device. It includes a configuration module constituting a user interface (UI) according to the information of the analysis module and the analyzed interface class to analyze and an output module for outputting the configured UI on the control screen of the control device.

In a relay method for controlling a USB device according to an embodiment of the present invention, detecting a controlled device connected to a heterogeneous network and analyzing at least one of information about an interface class and a protocol of the controlled device and an analyzed interface Configuring the UI according to the information of the class, outputting the configured UI to the control screen of the control device, and controlling the controlled device according to the UI, wherein the controlled device is a USB-based device. The interface class includes at least one of a storage class, an image class, and a printer class.

Specific details of other embodiments are included in the detailed description and the drawings.

Advantages and features of the present invention, and methods for achieving the same will be apparent with reference to the embodiments described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but can be implemented in various different forms, and only the embodiments make the disclosure of the present invention complete, and the general knowledge in the art to which the present invention belongs. It is provided to fully inform the person having the scope of the invention, which is defined only by the scope of the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

2 is a conceptual diagram for controlling a USB device connected to a heterogeneous network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The controlled device is connected to the control device 200 on the heterogeneous network 100 through the relay device 300 for controlling the USB device, which will be described later with reference to FIG. 3, wherein the control device 200 is the relay device 300. ) Can be used to control USB-based controlled devices. The heterogeneous network 100 includes, for example, HomePNA, Ethernet, IEEE1394, power line technology, Bluetooth, HomeRF, IrDA, and Wireless LAN, and the like. Examples include printers, camcorders, MP3 players, scanners, and hard disks.

The control device (eg, the digital TV 200) may control existing peripheral USB devices through the relay device 300 for controlling the USB device, which will be described later with reference to FIG. 3. That is, the UI list of the controlled devices (that is, the controllable target devices including peripheral USB devices) is displayed on the digital TV 200, and a predetermined command is given to the relay device 300 for controlling the USB device through the UI. In this case, the relay device 300 for controlling the USB device may transmit the command to the controlled device again to control peripheral USB devices.

Peripheral USB devices define interface classes and protocols to operate according to commands of the host, and endpoints as required transfer methods among bulk, interrupt, isochronous and control. Configure The master / slave device has an end point for plug and play for the recognition between the USB devices, and transmits various descriptors to the host through the end point, and the host grasps the specification of the connected device. When the host knows the endpoint specification through the descriptor, the host class knows what kind of USB device it is through the interface class (ie, device classification), and also knows the transfer protocol of the endpoint.

In addition, one or more transmission protocols exist for each interface class, and the interface classes typically include classes such as Human Interface Device (HID), storage, image, and printer.

The HID class includes input devices such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a joystick, and an endpoint and a protocol are defined for each input device. Storage classes include memory cards, hard disk drives (HDDs), floppy disk drives (FDDs), and compact disk drives (CDDs), and the like, through advanced technology attachment packet interfaces (ATAPIs) or small computer system interfaces (SCSIs). It is configured to send a command. The image class is mainly used in a camera device, and is used by transferring an image (file) through PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol). The printer class uses a printing function through a page description language / printer control program (PDL / PCP), and the PDL is used for a general manufacturer such as postscript and for a specific manufacturer (vendor specific). have.

For example, when a user controls USB-based devices through a list of USB devices output to a digital TV 200 on an IEEE1394 network conforming to the XHT standard, the user may interwork with the relay device 300 for controlling the USB devices. By operating the USB devices, various functions of the USB devices can be used, such as printing a printer, displaying images in a digital camera, or operating music of an MP3 player.

Hereinafter, a relay device and a relay method for controlling a USB device will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

3 is a block diagram of a relay device for controlling a USB device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The relay device 300 (hereinafter, also referred to as the relay device 300) for controlling the USB device includes an analysis module 310, a configuration module 320, an output module 330, and an execution module 340. The relay device 300 may be configured as a software / hardware module and embedded in a control device.

The analysis module 310 detects a controlled device connected to heterogeneous networks and analyzes at least one of information about an interface class and a protocol of the controlled device.

The heterogeneous networks include, for example, HomePNA, Ethernet, IEEE1394, power line technology, Bluetooth, HomeRF, IrDA, and wireless LAN. Existing USB devices, which are controlled devices, include, for example, printers, camcorders, MP3 players, scanners, and the like. Hard disks; When the USB device is connected to the relay device 300, the relay device 300 detects the USB device, analyzes a configuration descriptor, an interface descriptor, an endpoint descriptor, and the like. Identify the specifications of the device. The specification of a USB device includes, for example, information such as the type and number of interface classes, endpoints, protocols, specific manufacturer names and product names. In addition, the interface class includes at least one of a storage class, an image class, and a printer class.

The configuration module 320 configures a user interface (UI) according to the analyzed interface class information.

The interface class may be classified into a storage class, an image class, a printer class, and the like, and each class may be further classified according to the characteristics of each class to generate a detailed UI. For example, files (images, music, videos, etc.) can be classified and organized according to the storage class of each USB device. Also, image files can be classified according to the image class of each USB device. Alternatively, the image may be output in the form of an image album, and the like may be specified in the printer class and output to the printer.

On the other hand, for example, in an AV network conforming to the XHT standard, since a plug & play is performed by defining one logical AV device as a logical unit of 2027_file, the logical size of 2027_file is determined according to the analyzed controlled device information. After mapping in units, the UI may be configured. 2027_file includes information about information of USB devices, and a file name of 2027_file may be generated according to a specific manufacturer name and a product name among the analyzed controlled device information. That is, for example, a UI is configured by mapping supportable interface classes among the analyzed interface classes in a logical unit of 2027_file, and a user can use a USB device through a designated URI (Uniform Resource Locator) of the UI.

The output module 330 outputs the configured UI on the control screen of the control device.

For example, the configured UI may be output on the screen of the digital TV, and the UI may be configured and output in the form of HTML and XML. Therefore, the user can operate or use the USB device through the URL specified according to the UI.

The execution module 340 controls the controlled device according to the UI. For example, a user may select contents for printing an image class or a storage class through a UI of a control screen, and transmit the contents to a printer to proceed with printing. At this time, the image of the image class on the control screen can be output to the printer using the PTP (Picture Transfer Protocol). Also, for example, as a USB device uses a storage class using a SCSI command, the IEEE 1394 may use the storage class using a SCSI command in the serial bus protocol (SBP). That is, by changing the bus layer packet (bus layer packet) to transmit the SCSI command of the storage class through the SBP, the USB-based storage class can be used in the IEEE1394 network. Through the above method, existing IEEE1394 devices can access a USB-based storage class without any modification.

Details of the UI and the services provided according to the interface class are described below with reference to FIG. 5 and will be omitted below.

Each component shown in FIG. 3 may be implemented as a software component or a hardware component such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). However, it is not meant to be limited to software or hardware. The component may be configured to reside in an addressable storage medium or may be configured to execute one or more processors. Thus, as an example, the component may include elements such as software, object-oriented software, classes, and tasks, processes, functions, properties, and the like. , Procedures, sub-routines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, micro-codes, circuits (circuits), data (data), databases (databases), data structures (tables), arrays (arrays), and variables. The components may be subdivided into smaller components, or a plurality of components may be combined into one component.

4 is a flowchart of a USB device control method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

USB devices (that is, controlled devices) connected to heterogeneous networks may be controlled through the relay device 300. That is, for example, functions such as data handling, playback, printing, and copying of USB peripheral devices, such as MP3 players, digital cameras, and printers, which have been conventionally controlled through a PC, may be digital TVs over an IEEE1394 network. Can be operated from In this case, the relay device 300 for controlling the USB device may be configured as a software / hardware module and embedded in the control device. In this case, the digital TV constituting the home network with the AV devices may be a device conforming to the XHT standard, and the USB device is controlled by installing a relay device 300 for controlling USB devices between networks.

Hereinafter, the duplicated content described above with reference to FIG. 3 will be omitted, and the USB device control method will be described for each step.

First, by detecting a controlled device connected to a heterogeneous network, at least one of information about an interface class and a protocol of the controlled device is analyzed through the analysis module 310 (S401). The interface class includes at least one of a storage class, an image class, and a printer class.

A user interface (UI) is configured through the configuration module 320 according to the analyzed interface class information (S411).

The configured UI is output to the control screen of the control device through the output module 330 (S421). For example, the configured UI may be output on the screen of the digital TV, and the UI may be configured and output in the form of HTML and XML.

The controlled device is controlled through the execution module 340 according to the UI (S431). For example, each device-specific functions (e.g. data handling, playback, printing and copying) of USB peripherals such as MP3 players, digital cameras and printers, which were previously controlled through a PC, can be operated on a digital TV over an IEEE1394 network. You can.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a generation of a UI classified according to an interface class according to an embodiment of the present invention.

When the controlled device is connected to the control device on the network through the relay device 300 for controlling the USB device, the relay device 300 analyzes an interface class and a protocol through a descriptor of the controlled device. The interface class is further classified into the storage class 510, the image class 520, the printer class 530, and the like, and each class is further classified according to the characteristics of each class to generate a detailed UI. Can be configured. For example, files (images, music, videos, etc.) may be classified and configured according to the storage class 510 of each USB device, image files may be classified according to the image class 520 of each USB device, and images may be configured. An image (file) may be output in the form of an image viewer or an image album, and the files may be designated by the printer class 530 and output to a printer. Hereinafter, the process of configuring the UI for each class will be described.

First, in the storage class 510, for example, the relay device 300 may search a file system 510 (for example, FAT or NTFS) of a USB device and use a list of available files as a UI list. . The storage class 510 may be accessed using a protocol such as RBC, ATAPI, UFI, or SCSI, and the memory card and the HDD may preferably use SCSI. The relay device 300 according to the present embodiment accesses and searches a file system 510 (eg, FAT or NTFS) in the USB device through a predetermined SCSI command (eg, SCSI abstract DISC) to perform a search in the USB device. You can extract the files. Among the files, files such as image files (e.g. JPEG, PNG, etc.), music files (e.g., MP3 players, etc.) and video files (e.g., AVIs, etc.) are extracted, and the files are adapted to the corresponding format. Can be displayed on the control screen as a UI list. For example, the image file may be configured as an HTML-type UI such as an image viewer or an image album.

In the image class 520, the image files of the USB device may be searched for using a picture transfer protocol (PTP) and configured as a UI list. To this end, the relay device 300 first establishes a session with the USB device, collects the information of the PTP object 522 (for example, an image) in storage, and stores the PTP object ( The UI list may be configured through 522. The image file may be configured as an HTML-type UI such as an image viewer or an image album.

In addition, the image of the image class 520 on the control screen can be directly output to the printer using the PTP. For example, printers generally support a service (that is, PictBridge) that can be directly connected to a digital camera and print directly without a PC. The relay device 300 of the present embodiment is connected to a printer, and the relay device When the 300 is set to the image class 520, the PictBridge type printer may access and use the relay device 300 in the same manner as a digital camera. To this end, the USB device H / W is embedded in the relay device 300, and the relay device 300 receives the print content requested by the user through the control device and delivers the content of the content to be printed to the printer through the PTP. .

The files extracted from the storage class 510 and the image class 520 may be classified into a content list according to a type and may be configured as a UI in an HTML format. For example, images, music, and videos may be included in the content list. And the like. The user may perform a desired operation in the content list including the UI list by transmitting the desired operation to the USB device through the relay device 300.

In the printer class 530, the relay device 300 transmits the printable contents of the storage class 510 or the image class 520 to the printer and utilizes the PDL / PCP 532. Printing can be performed. For example, the control device may perform a print command for a predetermined image through the relay device 300 during the image viewer operation in the UI for the storage class 510.

6 illustrates an example of operating a USB device connected to a heterogeneous network through a relay device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

For example, as USB devices, the MP3 player 602, camcorder 604, storage device 606, printer 608 connect to the heterogeneous network 100 (e.g., IEEE1394) via the relay device 300. And control (operate) the USB devices through the digital TV 110. In this case, the digital TV 110 may form a home network with AV devices conforming to the XHT standard.

When the USB devices are connected to the relay device 300, the relay device 300 analyzes each interface class of the USB devices and configures a UI list for each content list according to the analyzed information. For example, extractable files (contents) by storage class, image class, and printer class, and display each content (image, music, video, text, etc.) file on the control screen of the digital TV 110 as a UI list. It can be configured and output. In this case, for example, in the case of the digital TV 110 conforming to the XHT standard in the IEEE1394 network, the UI may be configured after mapping the data into logical units of 2027_file according to the analyzed interface class information.

The user may perform a desired operation through the USB device through the UI list output to the digital TV 110. For example, images on the control screen can be output to the printer 608 using PTP, sent to the MP3 player 602 via IEC61883-6 for music files, or camcorders via IEC61883-4 for video files. 604 and the like, and transmit the same to a movie player.

In addition, by embedding a USB device H / W (for example, a port) in the relay device 300 and setting the relay device 300 to the image class 520, the print content requested by the user through the digital TV 110 is displayed. The relay device 300 may receive and output the content of the content to be printed to the printer through the PTP.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings, those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains may implement the present invention in other specific forms without changing the technical spirit or essential features thereof. I can understand that. Therefore, it should be understood that the embodiments described above are exemplary in all respects and not restrictive.

According to the relay device and method for controlling the USB device of the present invention as described above there is an advantage that can efficiently control or use USB-based devices connected to heterogeneous networks.

Claims (5)

An analysis module for detecting at least one controlled device connected to heterogeneous networks and analyzing at least one of information about an interface class and a protocol of the controlled device; A configuration module for configuring a user interface (UI) according to the analyzed interface class information; An output module for outputting the configured UI to a control screen of a control device; And And an execution module for controlling the controlled device according to the UI, wherein the interface class includes at least one of a storage class, an image class, and a printer class. The method of claim 1, The controlled device includes a USB-based device, relay device for controlling the USB device. The relay device of claim 2, wherein the heterogeneous network is an IEEE 1394 network, and the execution module outputs an image of the image class to the controlled device using a picture transfer protocol (PTP). The method of claim 3, wherein the configuration module is configured to map the logical unit of the 2027_file of the XHT standard protocol according to the information of the analyzed interface class to configure the UI, the execution module is SCSI in SBP (Serial Bus Protocol) Relay device for controlling a USB device using the storage class by using a command. Detecting at least one controlled device connected to a heterogeneous network and analyzing at least one of information about an interface class and a protocol of the controlled device; Constructing a user interface (UI) according to the analyzed interface class information; Outputting the configured UI to a control screen of a control device; And And controlling the controlled device according to the UI, wherein the controlled device is a USB-based device, and the interface class controls the USB device including at least one of a storage class, an image class, and a printer class. Relay way for.

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