An idea to improve remote controls?

Question

shoot holes and offer ideas to improve please.


Okay, you know how on cordless phones, if you misplace the phone itself, there is a button on the base unit that causes the handset to make a noise to assist one in finding it.

They need to put something similar on all devices that are controlled by a remote, particularly if the remote can do some things that the device cannot. Like on a dvd player, sometimes you have to arrow thru menus to get to play. (kid lost dvd remote).

The existing weakness, as I see it is that, while cordless phones work off of a radio signal, remotes work by light, so if the remote were not in line of sight, pressing the panic button would do no good, and if it were in line of sight you would already see it.

What would prevent manufacturers from installing a tiny transmitter in the device and well as the remote, thereby making it findable without line of sight?

to justme

NICE ID!

Answer 1

with RF remotes they could do that, but they usually only make IR remotes because they are much cheaper to make.
Using RF, it wouldnt need to be line of sight, just in range of the transmitter. IR has the problem you described.

Bottom line, $$$ keeps them from doing it (but its a good idea).