JP2001086421A - Internet television receiver and view controlling method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily use the Internet without a mode switching key by receiving the information of an Internet address, updating the information, converting the information into the forms of image and voice information, outputting the image and voice information, allocating the channel number of prescribed broadcasting to the address, storing the channel number and applying image and voice processing according to the selected channel number to output the image and voice information. SOLUTION: When channel numbers are set for a television broadcasting channel and an Internet Web page, the CPU 43 of an Internet module 40 is connected to the Internet through a network adapter 41. Then, the information on a Web page is read and stored in a memory part 42, and stored contents of the part 42 are updated by repeating this operation at previously set intervals. A television module 50 performs image and voice processing of image and voice signals transmitted from the module 40 and outputs the image and voice signals through a CPT 54 and a speaker 57.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an Internet television, and more particularly, to an Internet television receiver and a viewing control method for the same.

[0002] With the development into the information age, society, culture,
The Internet, which is the communication medium that provides the easiest way to obtain information covering all fields such as economy and sports, has occupied an important position in real life, and its development potential can be said to be unlimited. Accordingly, personal computers have been rapidly increasing as a medium for using the Internet, and televisions have simply removed the function of a unidirectional medium for receiving and viewing broadcasts, and have been able to receive and transmit information. In response to the demand for development of a possible bidirectional communication medium, Internet television capable of television broadcasting viewing and the Internet has been developed, and continuous technological development is being demanded in accordance with the development of the information age.

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 1, an Internet television receiver according to the prior art is roughly divided into an Internet module 10 for receiving and storing Internet information and converting it into video and audio forms. , And a television module 20 for outputting the Internet information of the Internet module 10 through a screen and a speaker.

[0004] First, the Internet module 10
A network adapter 11 for connecting a network such as an STN (public line network) / LAN / cable to the Internet module 10
A memory unit 12 for storing a basic program and various information; a CPU 13 for controlling information transmission / reception and video / audio conversion through the network adapter 11
And an input / output unit 14 for inputting / outputting control information of the television module 20 and the Internet module 10
And audio D / A for converting audio information of the Internet information input through the network adapter 11 to analog and transmitting the analog information to the television module 20.
A conversion unit 15, a graphic processing unit 16 for performing graphic processing of video information among Internet information input through the network adapter 11, and an NTSC encoding of an output of the graphic processing unit 16 to output to the television module 20. NTSC
And an encoder 17.

[0005] Then, the television module 20 outputs the video / video corresponding to the broadcast channel selected by the user.
Tuner for tuning and intermediate frequency processing of audio signals
IF unit 21, a color picture tube (CPT) 24 for outputting video and audio, and a speaker 27; a video / audio signal selected through the tuner / IF unit 21 by a switching signal;
A / V switching unit 22 for selectively outputting one of the video / audio signals transmitted through the memory, and a memory unit 2 for storing a basic program, a channel selection frequency by a channel, and the like.
8 and the television /
A microcomputer 29 for controlling each unit of the television module 20 including the A / V switching unit 22 according to an Internet mode switching instruction and various operation instructions;
Deflection processing unit 25 that performs electron beam deflection operation of CPT 24
And a video processing unit 23 and an audio processing unit 26 that perform signal processing so that the output of the A / V switching unit 22 can be output through the CPT 24 and the speaker 27, respectively.

[0006] A viewing method of the Internet television receiver of the prior art configured as described above will be described below. If the user wants to use the Internet while watching television, the user presses the television / internet mode switching key on the remote controller 30 to switch the operation state of the Internet television to the Internet mode. Therefore, the microcomputer 29 of the television module 20 recognizes the user's Internet mode switching command and sets the A / V switching unit 22 to the Internet module 1.
0, and an Internet mode switching command is transmitted through the input / output unit 14 of the Internet module 10.

Next, the CPU 13 of the Internet module 10 recognizes the Internet mode switching command, reads the Internet web page registered in the bookmark from the memory unit 12, and outputs the voice D so that it can be output through the television module 10. / A
Audio and video processing are performed through the conversion unit 15 and the graphic processing unit 16. And Internet module 1
The information subjected to audio and video processing from 0 is output to the CPT 24 and the speaker 27 via the A / V switching unit 22, the video processing unit 23 and the audio processing unit 26 of the television module 20. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the Internet web page registered in the bookmark is displayed,
The user selects a desired web page using the remote controller 30. At this time, if there is a linked subpage among the Internet web pages, for example, a communication service, the subpage is displayed together with the main page of the communication service.

Next, the CPU 13 of the Internet module 10 recognizes the Internet web page selected by the user, reads the video / audio information of the web page through the network adapter 11, and performs the above-described video / audio conversion process. After that, it is output to the television module 20. Accordingly, the television module 20 undergoes the CPT 24 through the video / audio processing process.
And the speaker 27 outputs video / audio information of the web page.

[0009]

The Internet television according to the prior art has the following problems.
First, when the user wants to use the Internet during television viewing, the user must press a separate mode switching key to switch to the Internet mode and select the Internet web page, which is troublesome. Second, since the device is connected to the Internet at the time of switching to the Internet mode and outputs the information after receiving the information, it is difficult to use the Internet quickly.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and to provide an Internet television that can easily use the Internet only by direct key input without a separate mode switching key, and a viewing control method therefor. The purpose is to provide.

Another object of the present invention is to update the information of the web page through a periodic Internet connection so that the information can be promptly output at the request of the user. And a viewing control method thereof.

[0012]

According to the present invention, there is provided an Internet television receiver for achieving the above object.
Receives the information of the preset Internet address every predetermined time, updates the information, and converts the information by the Internet address selected by the user among the updated information into a form of viewable video and audio information. A predetermined broadcast channel number assigned to a television broadcast channel and an Internet address and stored. If the channel number selected by the user is a channel number assigned to the Internet address, the Internet module A television module that outputs the Internet address to the video module, thereby performing video and audio processing on the video and audio information output from the Internet module, and outputs the processed video and audio information.

According to the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling viewing of an Internet television receiver according to the present invention, wherein a predetermined channel number is assigned to a television channel and an Internet address selected by a user and stored. And when the user selects a predetermined channel number, determining whether the channel number is a channel number corresponding to an Internet address among the storage channel numbers, and as a result of the determination,
If the channel number corresponds to the Internet address, a step of controlling the Internet module and the television module to output the video or audio Internet information at the address; Controlling a video module to output a video or audio broadcast signal.

According to the present invention, there is provided a method for controlling viewing of an Internet television receiver, comprising an Internet module and a television module, wherein channel numbers are set for television channels and Internet addresses. In the Internet television, a user operates a key input unit or a remote controller provided on a main body to select a desired channel number among the channel numbers, and the channel number selected by the user is stored in an Internet address. If it is a corresponding channel number, connecting to the Internet address through the Internet module, reading the information and outputting the information through the television module, Connected to, characterized in that it comprises a step of storing and updating by reading the information.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the Internet television receiver according to the present invention, FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a viewing control method for the Internet television receiver according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a diagram for describing a television selection method.

As shown in FIG. 3, the Internet television receiver according to the present invention receives Internet address information set at predetermined time intervals, updates the information, and updates the information. An Internet module 40 that converts information according to the Internet address selected by the user into a form of viewable video and audio information and outputs the information; and assigns and stores a predetermined broadcast channel number to a television broadcast channel and an Internet address; If the channel number selected by the user is a channel number assigned to an Internet address, the Internet address is output to the Internet module 40, whereby the video and audio output from the Internet module 40 are output. It is composed of a television module 50 for outputting information video and audio processing to.

At this time, the Internet module 10
Is a network adapter 41 for connecting a network network through the PSTN / LAN / CABLE or the like to the Internet module 40, a memory unit 42 for storing basic programs and various kinds of information, and preset at predetermined time intervals. CPU 43 for connecting to the Internet web page read, storing the information in the memory unit 42, updating the stored contents, and controlling information transmission / reception and video / audio conversion through the network adapter 41. An input / output unit 44 for inputting / outputting control information of the television module 50 and the Internet module 40; and converting audio information of the Internet information input through the network adapter 41 into analog and transmitting the analog information to the television module 50. D / A conversion to do 45, network adapter 41
Graphic processing unit 46 for performing graphic processing of video information among Internet information input through
And an NTSC encoder 47 for NTSC-encoding the output of the graphic processing unit 46 and outputting it to the television module 50.

Then, the television module 50
Tuner / IF unit 51 for selecting and intermediate frequency processing a video / audio signal corresponding to a broadcast channel selected by a user, and a CPT for outputting video and audio
54 and the speaker 57, and the switching signal
An A / V switching unit 52 for selecting and outputting one of a video / audio signal selected through the tuner / IF unit 51 and a video / audio signal transmitted through the Internet module 40, and a predetermined channel number are assigned. A memory unit 58 for storing the television broadcast channel and the Internet address, and if the channel number selected by the user is an Internet channel number among the channel numbers stored in the memory unit 58,
The Internet address is read from the memory unit 58 and output to the Internet module 40,
A microcomputer 59 for outputting a switching signal for switching the / V switching unit 52 to the Internet module 40 side, and a signal processing so that the output of the A / V switching unit 52 can be output through the CPT 54 and the speaker 57. Video processing unit 53 and audio processing unit 56
It is comprised including.

Hereinafter, the Internet viewing control method of the present invention configured as described above will be described with reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. First, the user selects a television broadcast channel or an Internet address desired by the user and sets a channel number (S40). That is, a television broadcast channel is selected, a predetermined channel number is set, and a predetermined channel number is set for an Internet address desired by the user. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, broadcasting channels such as broadcasting station A, broadcasting station B, broadcasting station C, and broadcasting station D are set for channel numbers Pr1 to Pr4, respectively, and channel numbers Rr30 to Rr30 are set.
A specific Internet web page such as E daily report, F securities, television channel guide, homepage, G communication service, etc. is set for Pr34, and a web page with subpages such as Gmail (Pr34) is set. , Sub-channel numbers Pr341 to Pr34
Set 4.

On the other hand, a channel number can be assigned from the CPU 43 of the Internet module 40 to a broadcast channel or an Internet address selected by the user. That is, the television module 5
The microcomputer 59 reads the information of the Internet address selected and bookmarked by the user in cooperation with the CPU 43 of the Internet module 40 by the microcomputer 59, assigns a predetermined channel number, and updates the channel map of the memory unit 58. . Therefore, a channel number is assigned to the Internet address added later by the above-described method.

As described above, when the channel numbers are set for the television broadcast channel and the Internet web page, the C of the Internet module 40 is set.
The PU 43 is connected to the Internet via the network adapter 41, reads the information of the web page, stores it in the memory unit 42, and repeats this at a preset cycle to update the storage content of the memory unit 42. Accordingly, when the user selects an Internet-related channel number thereafter, it does not require time to read the updated information, so that the Internet screen can be quickly displayed.

On the other hand, the user selects a desired channel number of a television broadcast channel or an Internet web page by pressing a channel up / down key, a numeric key, or a main / sub selection key (S41). Here, the selection of the channel number is performed indirectly using a channel up / down key, directly through a numeric key, or as shown in FIG.
Alternatively, the icon of the channel number in the channel number guidance window as shown in FIG. 6B is operated by operating the main / sub selection key and the channel up / down key.

At this time, the channel number guide window is displayed on one of the left and right sides of the screen in the form as shown in FIG. 6A, and is composed of vertically connected channel number icons. Among the channel number icons, the television channel and the Internet address can be classified by changing the hue of each icon or changing the pattern of the icon. If the channel number icon is a sub-channel, that is, an icon having a sub-broadcast channel or a sub-Internet address, a sub-channel display symbol is attached to one side of the icon, and a channel number icon having no sub-channel is displayed. Is classified. Then, the sub-channel number icons 421, 422, and 423 are displayed for the channel number icon (for example, 42) selected by the user among the channel number icons in which the sub-channels exist.

Also, the channel number guidance window is
As shown in FIG. 6b, a channel number icon is displayed on one side, for example, the left side, and a sub-channel number icon of the channel number icon selected by the user among the left channel number icons is displayed on the right side. Do it. Here, displaying the division between the television channel and the Internet address and the existence of the sub-channel is the same as in FIG. 6A.

On the screen of such a channel number guide window, the user presses the main / sub selection key of the remote controller to switch between the channel number and the sub channel number, and presses the channel up / down key to select the channel number or the sub channel number. A search and selection operation of the sub-channel number is performed. Accordingly, when a channel is selected, the microcomputer 59 of the television module 50 determines whether the channel number is a television channel number (S42).

Next, as a result of the determination (S42), if the switched channel number is not a television channel number, it is determined to be a channel number related to the Internet,
The Internet address corresponding to the channel number is read from the memory unit 58 and transmitted to the Internet module 40 (S43). A / V switching section 5
2 is switched to the Internet module 40 side (S
44).

Next, the CPU 43 of the Internet module 40 reads the information of the web page corresponding to the Internet address from the memory unit 42, and outputs the audio D / A conversion unit 45, the graphic processing unit 46, and the NTS
Television module 50 through C encoder 47
Is converted and processed so that it can be processed by (S45).
Then, the television module 50 processes the video and audio information transmitted from the Internet module 40 through the video processing unit 53 and the audio processing unit 56, and outputs the processed video and audio information through the CPT 54 and the speaker 57 (S46).

On the other hand, as a result of the determination (S42), if the switched channel is a television channel, A / A
The V switching unit 52 is switched to a television module, that is, a tuner / IF unit 51 (S47), and the selected channel is tuned and subjected to intermediate frequency processing.
3 and the video and audio processing through the audio processing unit 56,
Output through the CPT 54 and the speaker 57 (S4
8).

[0029]

The Internet television receiver and the viewing control method according to the present invention have the following effects. First, it is simple and easy to use the Internet through the same channel up / down key, numeric key, or key input through the channel number information window as when changing the television broadcast channel without operating a separate mode switching key. Can be used. Second, since the information of the preset Internet web page is always read, the memory is updated to the latest information, and the information is displayed as soon as the Internet web page is selected, so that the Internet can be used quickly.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an Internet television receiver according to a conventional technique.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an Internet / television selection method according to the related art.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an Internet television according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method of controlling viewing of Internet television according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the Internet / television selection method of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a channel number guidance window.

[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] June 6, 2000 (2000.6.6)

[Procedure amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Drawing

[Correction target item name] All figures

[Correction method] Change

[Correction contents]

FIG.

FIG. 5

FIG. 2

FIG. 6

FIG. 3

FIG. 4

Claims (10)

[Claims] An Internet television receiver receives information on a preset Internet address at predetermined time intervals, updates the information, and updates information according to an Internet address selected by a user among the updated information. An Internet module that converts and outputs the form of viewable video and audio information, and assigns and stores a predetermined broadcast channel number to a television broadcast channel and an Internet address, and the channel number selected by the user is stored in the Internet address. If the channel number is an assigned channel number, the internet address is output to the internet module, whereby the video and audio information output from the internet module is video and audio processed and output. Internet television receiver, characterized in that it comprises a television module. 2. A television module comprising: a tuner section for selecting a video / audio signal corresponding to a channel number selected by a user; a display module for outputting video; and a speaker for outputting audio. A video / audio switching unit for outputting one of a video / audio signal tuned through the tuner and a video / audio signal transmitted through the Internet module by a switching signal; A memory unit for storing the television broadcast channel and the Internet address, and determining whether the channel number selected by the user is a channel number assigned to the Internet address or a channel number assigned to the broadcast channel, The conclusion of that judgment Read the Internet address or tuning frequency from the memory unit and output it to the Internet module or tuner unit, so that a video / audio signal input from the Internet module or tuner unit can be input. A control unit for outputting a switching signal for switching the video / audio switching unit; and a video for signal processing so that the video signal output through the video / audio switching unit can be output through the display module. 2. The Internet television according to claim 1, further comprising: a processing unit; and an audio processing unit for performing signal processing so that an audio signal output through the video / audio switching unit can be output through the speaker. John receiver. 3. A viewing control method for an Internet television receiver provided with an Internet module and a television module, wherein a predetermined channel number is assigned to a television channel and an Internet address selected by a user, and stored. When a user selects a predetermined channel number, it is determined whether the channel number is a channel number corresponding to an Internet address among the storage channel numbers. As a result of the determination, a channel number corresponding to an Internet address is determined. If so, controlling the Internet module and the television module to output the video or audio Internet information of the address; Controlling the television module to output a video or audio broadcast signal, the method for controlling viewing of an Internet television receiver. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of setting a predetermined channel number for the Internet address includes the step of setting a predetermined channel number for each of the Internet address or the linked sub-address selected by the user. The method for controlling viewing of an Internet television receiver according to claim 3. 5. The step of setting a predetermined channel number for the Internet address, wherein the control unit of the television module sets a predetermined channel number for the Internet address selected by the user or the linked sub-address. The method for controlling viewing of an Internet television receiver according to claim 3, wherein the step is a stage. 6. The step of setting and storing a predetermined channel number for an Internet address selected by the user, wherein the user bookmarks an Internet address desired by the user on an Internet screen.
and (ng) reading the bookmarking information from the control unit of the television module, giving a predetermined channel number, and updating the own channel number map. 2. The viewing control method for an Internet television receiver according to the item 1. 7. The step of selecting a predetermined channel number by the user comprises watching a channel number guide window displayed in a predetermined area on one side of a screen and pressing an up / down or left / right direction key. 4. The step of selecting
2. The viewing control method for an Internet television receiver according to the item 1. 8. The channel number information window is divided into a channel number icon for a broadcast channel and a channel number icon for an Internet address, and is provided on one side of the channel number icon having a sub broadcast channel or a sub Internet address. 8. The method according to claim 7, comprising a channel number icon displaying a symbol. 9. The method according to claim 3, further comprising the step of connecting to a preset Internet address at predetermined time intervals, reading said information, storing and updating said information.
2. The viewing control method for an Internet television receiver according to the item 1. 10. An Internet television having an Internet module and a television module, wherein a channel number is set for a television channel and an Internet address, wherein a user operates a key input unit or a remote control provided on the main body. ,
Selecting a channel number desired by the user among the channel numbers, and, if the channel number selected by the user is a channel number corresponding to an Internet address, connecting to the Internet address through an Internet module and transmitting the information. A method for controlling viewing of an Internet television receiver, comprising the steps of: reading and outputting through a television module; and connecting to the Internet address at a predetermined cycle to read, store, and update the information.