Kelly A French

US Patent:

6879347, Apr 12, 2005

Filed:

Dec 30, 1999

Appl. No.:

09/475220

Inventors:

Kelly S. French - Hurst TX, US

Assignee:

Gateway, Inc. - Irvine CA

International Classification:

H04N007/08
H04N007/084
H04N007/087

US Classification:

348473, 348474, 348476, 348478, 348460, 725141

Abstract:

An information handling system controls a signal processing device by providing a control signal to the signal processing device. The control signal may be transmitted to the signal processing device as an infrared or R/F signal that is received and decoded by the signal processing device. The signal processing device is capable of receiving and processing an input signal, and is further capable of providing an output signal to the information handling system. In response to the control signal, the signal processing device encodes data onto the output signal provided to the information handling system, and the information handling system is capable of decoding the data from the output signal. The data encoded onto the output signal may include status information from the signal processing device, including the status of execution of the control signal. In one embodiment, the output signal is a video signal, such as the case where the signal processor is a VCR or the like, and the data is encoded onto a vertical blanking interval of the video signal such that state information is communicated from the signal processor to the information handling system via the vertical blanking interval.