This section provides overview, applications, and principles of remote control. Also, please take a look at the list of 50 remote control manufacturers and their company rankings.
Table of Contents
Remote control transmitters (reciever modules) control various devices in various situations, including AV equipment such as TVs. A remote control is a unit that receives signals from the remote control transmitter.
Specifically, it receives optical signals from the remote control transmitter, converts them into electrical signals, amplifies the signals, and converts them into digital signals. This signal is then output to a microcontroller or other device control unit built in a subsequent stage.
A device that uses remote controls can be thought of as a device that uses remote controls transmitter. Its use can also be considered in place of the use of the remote controls transmitter.
Remote controls transmitters are used in home appliances such as air conditioners and lighting fixtures, as well as in AV equipment such as TVs, Blu-ray and HDD recorders and players, and audio equipment such as AV components.
In the case of a typical TV, the remote controls transmitter can control almost all functions of the device, such as power on/off, volume control, channel selection, input switching, and menu display and selection. In the case of the other devices mentioned above, as with televisions, the remote controls transmitter can generally control most of the functions of the device.
To better understand, the principle of the remote controls transmitter/receiver system, including the remote controls receiver unit, is explained below.
The remote controls transmitter uses a light-emitting diode to output a light signal irradiated to the remote controls receiver unit. Near-infrared light with a wavelength of 940 nm or 960 nm is used.
Since remote controls transmitters are generally powered by batteries, the original signal is modulated at 37.9 kHz and transmitted in order to limit the signal ON period to a few percent to prolong battery life. This modulated light is received by the remote controls.
The remote controls receives the light signal and converts it into an electrical signal using a light receiving element, which amplifies the signal, demodulates the modulated wave at 37.9 kHz, and outputs it as a digital signal of about 3 to 6V. This is to match the operating voltage of the power supply voltage of the microcontroller, etc., connected in the subsequent stage.
The microcontroller receiving the remote controls signal analyzes the contents of the signal and controls the device according to the results.
The remote controls has a very high gain, so it is sensitive to noise. Therefore, if the remote controls has shield case, make sure to connect it to GND.
Generally, remote controls light receiving modules are designed to be used indoors. When used outdoors, the current output of the photodiode becomes extremely large when sunlight shines on it, saturating the amplifier circuit that receives it and making it impossible to receive near-infrared light from the remote controls transmitter. Therefore, equipment used outdoors (e.g., cameras and other photographic equipment) should employ a remote controls light receiving module that has been designed to prevent saturation by sunlight.
If the environment in which the remote controls light receiving module is used contains noise sources (e.g., ambient light noise from inverter fluorescent lamps, etc., power supply ripple, electromagnetic noise in power circuits, etc.), the remote controls reception distance may be shortened by these sources, so it is necessary to devise ways to avoid them. While power supply ripple and noise contamination in the power supply circuit can be addressed in circuit design, structural devices such as blocking light from the ceiling direction are necessary to prevent the effects of fluorescent lamps.
*Including some distributors, etc.
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