Index of /dsl-cdrom/unsw/projects/remotetv

 Name                    Last modified      Size  Description
 Parent Directory                             -   
 appendixa/              08-Feb-2005 16:00    -   
 appendixb/              08-Feb-2005 16:00    -   
 appendixc/              08-Feb-2005 16:00    -   
 thesis/                 08-Feb-2005 16:00    -

Companion CD-ROM Remote TV Directory

Current Directory:	CD-ROM Root / unsw / projects / remotetv • View as a list of files.
Quick Links:	CD-ROM Root • unsw • gnutools • xilinx • examples • reference • board • utils

Companion CD-ROM: /unsw/projects/remotetv directory

The /unsw/projects/remotetv directory contains the full inmplementation details of the design of an Internet enabled device for femote control and Monitoring of cable TV channels

This work was developed as part of the a thesis entitled Design of an Internet Enabled Device for Remote Control and Monitoring of Cable TV Channels by Yu-Fang Wu in 2003.

Thesis Title

Design of an Internet Enabled Device for Remote Control and Monitoring of Cable TV Channels

Thesis Abstract

The principal aim of this thesis is to create a new feature for the existing cable TV systems, allowing viewers to remotely control the viewing of their desired programs and pay accordingly. This is achieved by designing an embedded application using programmable microcontroller and FPGAs on the DSLMU board. The embedded application is interfaced to the TV tuner, Philips FM1216, and controls its operations.

There are four main stages in this thesis project:

Understanding the hardware - DSLMU Board and Philips FM1216 Tuner
Understanding the software - DSLMU onboard software, eCos, Redboot, I2C bus protocols and GNU tools
Porting eCos Redboot onto the DSLMU Board
Developing applications to control and monitor the TV tuner remotely

The current status of this thesis project is as follows:

A fully operational Redboot image is ported onto the DSLMU board with additional packages to support flash, serial connection and ethernet connection.
An application developed to control the TV tuner via the Spartan FPGA. The TV tuner application is compiled with I2C bus protocols.
In addition to the TV tuner application, a feature is developed to enable the display of messages on the LCD screen, allowing users to identify the TV tuning status.
To facilitate the control and access to the TV tuner via the web connection, the Redboot source code has been modified and a new function is created to allow users to pre-select TV channels via a Telnet session.
A security measure is installed into the TV tuner application to verify the user's authorization to view a chosen channel.

Recommendations for future research:

Instead of accessing the TV tuner application via a Telnet session, a web page interface would be an easier access.
A clock and a calendar can be incorporated into the TV tuner application. This feature allows users to pre-book their chosen TV programs by specifying the dates and time.
To execution the TV tuner application in a real-time fashion, the application should be linked to a complete eCos build. This allows multi-thread execution and removes the inconvenience from the current Redboot's single thread execution.