Control unit with variable visual indicator

Abstract

A system for controlling an apparatus ( 11, 21, 31 ), which system comprises a control unit ( 13, 23, 33 ) adapted to transfer control signals to the apparatus dependent on the control data. Said control unit comprises data input means ( 14, 24, 34, 44 ) to input said control data, and said apparatus comprises interpreting means adapted to translate said control signal into an action. Aiming to indicate for a user of the control unit, which action the apparatus is arranged to take when activating the data input means, a visual indicator is arranged on said data input means. The invention is characterized in that said data input means comprises a variable presentation means ( 45, 57 ), arranged to realise said indicator, wherein said control unit comprises a first storage means ( 53 ) adapted to store the visual data presentable with said presentation unit. Preferably, said control unit comprises several separate data input means, each provided with a presentation means, in which each presentation means comprises separate displays, arranged to present a picture dependent on said visual data.

1 - 42 . (canceled)  
   
   
       43 . A method of configuring a display onboard at least one touchable input of a control unit linked to an electronic device with the control unit controlling operation of the electronic device, comprising the steps of: 
 (a) providing image appearance data comprising at least one image displayable on the display of the at least one touchable input;    (b) communicating the image appearance data to the control unit; and    (c) displaying the at least one image using the communicated image appearance data on the display of the at least one touchable input.    
   
   
       44 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is retrieved from a database on the Internet to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       45 . The method of  claim 44  wherein there are a plurality of touchable inputs each having an onboard display and wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises image appearance data for a plurality of images each displayable by a different one of the touchable input displays.  
   
   
       46 . The method of  claim 45  further comprising the additional step of retrieving configuration data from the database on the Internet designating for each one of the touchable input displays which one of the plurality of images to show.  
   
   
       47 . The method of  claim 46  wherein the plurality of touchable inputs that each have an onboard display comprise a keyboard or keypad having a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns of touchable inputs and the electronic device comprises an apparatus capable of executing a computer program.  
   
   
       48 . The method of  claim 47  wherein the apparatus capable of executing a computer program comprises a computer.  
   
   
       49 . The method of  claim 44  wherein the touchable input display comprises a 16×16 pixel display and wherein the image data retrieved from the database on the Internet defines an image displayable on a 16×16 pixel display.  
   
   
       50 . The method of  claim 43  wherein there are a plurality of touchable inputs each having an onboard display and wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises image appearance data for a plurality of images each displayable by a different touchable input display retrieved via a network to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       51 . The method of  claim 50  further comprising the additional step of retrieving configuration data via the network that designates for each touchable input display which one of the plurality of images from the image appearance data to show.  
   
   
       52 . The method of  claim 51  wherein the image appearance data and the configuration data are retrievable from a database of the network.  
   
   
       53 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises an image obtained using a pixel map visualized on a display of an electronic apparatus capable of executing a computer program wherein the pixel map visualized on the display is comprised of a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns of editable pixels.  
   
   
       54 . The method of  claim 53  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises an image obtained by marking at least one of a plurality of pixels of the pixel map using a human interface device.  
   
   
       55 . The method of  claim 54  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises an image obtained by selecting a button visualized on the display using the human interface device to accept the marked pixels as the image.  
   
   
       56 . The method of  claim 55  wherein the human interface device comprises a mouse that comprises a pointer that is used to activate each one of the pixels marked to construct the image that provides the image appearance data and that is used to select the button visualized on the display to accept the marked pixels as the image that provides the image appearance data.  
   
   
       57 . The method of  claim 53  wherein the pixel map is used to obtain an image that is displayable on a 16×16 pixel display.  
   
   
       58 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is comprised of an image obtained by (1) showing a pixel map on a display of an electronic apparatus comprised of a plurality of rows and a plurality of columns of editable pixels, and (2) marking a plurality of pixels of the pixel map shown on the display using a human interface device to construct or edit an image.  
   
   
       59 . The method of  claim 58  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is retrieved from a network to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       60 . The method of  claim 58  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is retrieved via a network from a database to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       61 . The method of  claim 58  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is retrieved via the Internet to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       62 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises a picture transformed into the image appearance data and the image appearance data is retrieved via a network to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       63 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises a picture transformed into the image appearance data and the image appearance data is retrieved from a database on the Internet to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       64 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises an image obtained by selecting one of a plurality of images visualized on a display of an electronic apparatus.  
   
   
       65 . The method of  claim 64  wherein selecting one of a plurality of images visualized on a display of an electronic apparatus is performed using a human interface device.  
   
   
       66 . The method of  claim 65  wherein the human interface device comprises a mouse and the electronic apparatus comprises a computer.  
   
   
       67 . The method of  claim 65  wherein image appearance data comprising the selected image is transmitted over a network to which the electronic device is connectable and wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is retrieved from the network to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       68 . The method of  claim 64  wherein image appearance data comprising the selected image is transmitted to a database on a network to which the electronic device is connectable and wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is retrieved from the database via the network to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       70 . The method of  claim 64  wherein image appearance data comprising the selected image is transmitted to a database on the Internet to which the electronic device is connectable and wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) is retrieved from the database via the Internet to which the electronic device is connectable.  
   
   
       71 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises an image obtained by selecting one of a plurality of images of a table or matrix shown on a display of an electronic apparatus.  
   
   
       72 . The method of  claim 43  wherein there are a plurality of touchable inputs each having an onboard display and wherein the image appearance data provided in step (a) comprises (1) displaying at least one of a plurality of image sets each comprised of a plurality of images on a screen of an electronic apparatus, (2) displaying a visual representation of each one of the plurality of touchable input displays on the screen of the electronic apparatus, (3) selecting one of the plurality of images of one of the plurality of image sets, and (4) associating the selected image with one of the plurality of touchable input displays.  
   
   
       73 . The method of  claim 72  wherein the selected image is associated with a designated one of the plurality of touchable input displays using a human interface device.  
   
   
       74 . The method of  claim 73  wherein the human interface device and the selected image is associated with the designated one of the plurality of touchable input displays by selecting the selected image on the screen of the electronic apparatus using the mouse and dragging the selected image to the corresponding visual representation of the designated one of the plurality of touchable input displays.  
   
   
       75 . A method of configuring a display onboard at least one touchable input of a control unit linked to an electronic device that is connectable to the Internet with the control unit controlling operation of the electronic device, comprising the steps of: 
 (a) obtaining image appearance data comprising at least one image displayable on the display of the at least one touchable input from a database on the Internet;    (b) communicating the image appearance data to the control unit; and    (c) displaying the at least one image using the communicated image appearance data on the display of the at least one touchable input.    
   
   
       76 . A method of configuring a display onboard each one of a plurality touchable inputs of a control unit linked to an electronic device that is connectable to a network with the control unit controlling operation of the electronic device, comprising the steps of: 
 (a) obtaining image appearance data via the network comprising an image for each one of the touchable input displays;    (b) obtaining configuration data via the network designating which image is displayable on which one of the plurality of touchable input display for each one of the touchable input displays; and    (c) using the image appearance data and the configuration data to display on each one of the touchable input displays a corresponding image from the image appearance data designated by the configuration data.