The present disclosure provides a device control method, which comprises capturing, by a portable device, a first image of a specific area containing a number of electronic devices connected to a communication network; transmitting a connection signal to a selected electronic device on a device list containing all the electronic devices connected to a communication network; determining whether the selected electronic device is in the first image captured based on whether a response has been received from the selected electronic device; identifying the selected electronic device on the device list and the relative position of the selected electronic device on the first image captured upon determined that the selected electronic device is in the first image; and continuing the device identification process until all the connected electronic devices on the device list has been verified, to identify the relative positions of all electronic devices contained in the first image.

An information processing apparatus includes a control unit (140) that executes a detection process of detecting, on the basis of user-specified position information in a space and target position information in the space, a plurality of processing targets that is continuously selected by a user from a plurality of selection targets within the space, and a batch operation process of executing a batch operation on the detected plurality of processing targets on the basis of processing policy information indicating a processing policy specified by the user for the detected plurality of processing targets.

A load control system may include devices for performing communications for controlling an amount of power provided to an electrical load. The devices may include load control devices that may communicate by transmitting digital messages. A user device having an adjustable wireless communication range may be used for discovering devices, configuring devices, and/or diagnosing devices in the load control system. The user device may detect whether devices are within an established wireless communication range of one another for performing communications. The user device may detect digital messages transmitted from a device and/or digital messages received at a device to determine whether the digital messages are correctly communicated in the load control system. The user device may provide an indication to a user indicating whether a digital message is correctly transmitted or received by a device in the load control system.

In accordance with a first aspect of the present disclosure, a control system is provided for controlling electronic devices, the control system comprising: an ultra-wideband communication unit configured to receive ultra-wideband signals from the electronic devices, and a processing unit configured to select a specific electronic device among said electronic devices for further communication, wherein the processing unit is configured to select said specific electronic device using an angle of arrival of the ultra-wideband signals received from the electronic devices. In accordance with a second aspect of the present disclosure, a corresponding control method for controlling electronic devices is conceived. In accordance with a third aspect of the present disclosure, a computer program is provided, comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a control system for controlling electronic devices, cause said control system to carry out or control a method of the kind set forth.

Disclosed is a method for controlling a command input device. The method includes: sensing contact between a home appliance and the command input device; based on sensing the contact between the home appliance and the command input device, determining the home appliance as a target home appliance to be controlled by the command input device; and based on the determination of the home appliance as the target home appliance to be controlled by the command input device, activating a remote controller provided by the command input device and configured to control the target home appliance.

A system, method, and apparatus for controlling a plurality of devices are provided. The system includes a remote control device comprising a processor configured to generate a carousel zone comprising at least a subset of graphical icons of a plurality of graphical icons, determine a first target device and a second target device from the plurality of devices, generate a first user interface based on the first target device, the first user interface associated with a first set of commands, in response to a user input, generate a second user interface based on the second target device, the second user interface associated with a second set of commands, control the first target device based on the first set of commands, and control the second target device based on the second set of commands.

To provide a mechanism that can further improve security of an electronic key installed in a vehicle interior. There is provided a housing device configured to store an electronic key configured to perform wireless communication with an in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle, the housing device comprising: a housing formed by using a material that shields a first signal transmitted by the in-vehicle device; a trigger signal reception antenna configured to receive a trigger signal transmitted by a portable device carried by a user; and a control mechanism configured to control whether or not to enable the first signal to reach an inside of the housing based on the trigger signal, wherein the second signal transmitted by the electronic key that has received the first signal is used to control a control target device installed in the vehicle.

A first remote control application is configured to cause a smart device to transmit at least one command for controlling at least one functional operation of a controllable appliance in response to a user interface element of the smart device being activated while a second remote control application of a bridge device is configured to cause the bridge device to transmit at least one command for controlling at least one functional operation of the controllable appliance in response to receiving at the bridge device the at least one command transmitted from the smart device. The at least one command is transmitted from the smart device using a first transmission protocol and the at least one command is transmitted from the bridge device using a transmission protocol recognized by the controllable appliance.

A communication terminal includes: a network communication section configured to communicate with a device that possesses a target to be accessed and access information; a setting section configured to set, for a transmission means that is used to carry out transmission by communication carried out by a program for exchanging messages, (i) specifying information for specifying the target and (ii) an action that the device is caused to execute with respect to the access information, the specifying information and the action being set by an operation of a user so as to be associated with each other; and an execution control section configured to send the transmission means to the device, and cause the device to execute, with respect to the access information on the target that is specified by the specifying information having been set for the transmission means, the action having been set for the transmission means.

In response to a detected presence of an intended target appliance within a logical topography of controllable appliances identity information associated with the intended target appliance is used to automatically add to a graphical user interface of a controlling device an icon representative of the intended target appliance and to create at a Universal Control Engine a listing of communication methods for use in controlling corresponding functional operations of the intended target appliance. When the icon is later activated, the controlling device is placed into an operating state appropriate for controlling functional operations of the intended target appliance while the Universal Control Engine uses at least one of the communication methods to transmit at least one command to place the intended target appliance into a predetermined operating state.