JP2007242195A - Information reproducing device, information reproducing system and information reproducing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To limit a period for reproducing the information recorded on a recording medium. <P>SOLUTION: A disk player receives a limit information including a period information to permit reproduction of the information recorded on a DVD and stores the received limit information by making it relate with an disk identification information for identifying the DVD. The disk identification information is acquired (S01) from the DVD, and time information including a current time is acquired (S03), then on the basis of the acquired time information and the limit information relating to the acquired disk identification information, a decision is made (S05) whether the information recorded on the DVD is reproduced or not. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information reproducing apparatus, an information reproducing system, and an information reproducing method, and more particularly to an information reproducing apparatus, an information reproducing system for reproducing information recorded on a recording medium, and an information reproducing method executed by them.

  Currently, some recording media represented by DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) record parental management information in order to control the reproduction of the information recorded on the recording medium. The playback device reads the parental management information stored on the disc and prohibits playback of the information stored on the disc in accordance with preset settings (for example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2-7236).

This parental management information is not necessarily recorded on all discs, and there are discs on which no parental information is recorded. For this reason, for example, if parental management information is not recorded on a disc containing information that the child does not want to show, reproduction of the information recorded on the disc cannot be prohibited. Further, although parental information can be used to prohibit the reproduction of information recorded on the disc, there is a problem that the reproduction of the disc cannot be prohibited, for example, during a predetermined time period, for example, daytime. there were.
Japanese Patent Publication No.2-7236

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and one object of the present invention is to provide an information reproducing apparatus capable of limiting the time for reproducing information recorded on a recording medium. That is.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide an information reproducing system capable of limiting the time for reproducing a recording medium.

  Still another object of the present invention is to provide an information reproducing method capable of limiting the time for reproducing a recording medium.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to one aspect of the present invention, an information reproducing apparatus is received with restriction information receiving means for receiving restriction information including time information permitting reproduction of information recorded on a recording medium. Restriction information storage means for storing the restriction information in association with identification information for identifying the recording medium, identification information acquisition means for obtaining identification information for identifying the recording medium from the recording medium, and the current time Time information acquisition means for acquiring time information including: control means for controlling reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium based on the acquired time information and restriction information related to the acquired identification information; Is provided.

  According to this aspect, in association with the identification information for identifying the recording medium attached to the recording medium, restriction information including time information permitting reproduction of the information recorded on the recording medium is accepted, Remembered. Identification information for identifying the recording medium is acquired from the recording medium, time information including the current time is acquired, and recording is performed based on the acquired time information and restriction information related to the acquired identification information. The reproduction of information recorded on the medium is controlled. For this reason, the reproduction of the recording medium is limited by the time when the recording medium is reproduced. As a result, it is possible to provide an information reproducing apparatus capable of limiting the time for reproducing the recording medium.

  Preferably, an authentication means for restricting access to the restriction information stored in the restriction information storage means is further provided.

  According to this aspect, access to the stored restriction information is restricted. For this reason, since the restriction information is not changed by a person who does not have the access right source, the reproduction can be surely restricted.

  Preferably, the time information acquisition unit acquires time information from an external device.

  According to this aspect, since the time information is acquired from an external device, it is possible to prevent the time information from being illegally changed and to reliably restrict reproduction.

  According to another aspect of the present invention, an information reproduction system is an information reproduction system that includes a server device and an information reproduction device that are each connected to a network and can communicate with each other via the network. Restriction information receiving means for receiving restriction information including time information permitting reproduction of recorded information, restriction information storage means for storing the received restriction information in association with identification information for identifying a recording medium, Identification information acquisition means for acquiring identification information for identifying the recording medium from the recording medium, time information acquisition means for acquiring time information including the current time, acquired time information, and acquired identification information Control means for controlling reproduction of the information recorded on the recording medium based on the related restriction information.

  According to this aspect, it is possible to provide an information reproduction system capable of limiting the time for reproducing a recording medium.

  According to still another aspect of the present invention, an information reproduction method includes a step of receiving restriction information including time information permitting reproduction of information recorded on a recording medium, and the received restriction information is identified by the recording medium. A step of storing in association with identification information for performing, a step of acquiring identification information for identifying the recording medium from the recording medium, a step of acquiring time information including the current time, and the acquired time information And controlling the reproduction of the information recorded on the recording medium on the basis of the restriction information related to the read identification information.

  According to this aspect, it is possible to provide an information reproducing method capable of limiting the time for reproducing the recording medium.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals. Their names and functions are also the same. Therefore, detailed description thereof will not be repeated.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overall configuration of a disc reproducing apparatus according to the first embodiment. Referring to FIG. 1, a disc playback apparatus 100 is loaded with a DVD 20 on which image data and audio data in which images and audio are compression-encoded and loaded, and reads the image data and audio data from the DVD 20 to reproduce the image and audio To do.

  The disc playback apparatus 100 includes a system controller 10 that controls the entire disc playback apparatus 100, a LAN (Local Area Network) interface 15 connected to the system controller 10, an operation unit 12, a display unit 13, and a read buffer 26. A reproduction buffer memory 27 and a demultiplexer (DEMUX) 31.

  The DVD 20 is rotated by a spindle motor 22. The servo circuit 23 controls the rotation speed of the spindle motor 22 and the focus servo and tracking servo of the pickup 21. When reproducing the title recorded on the DVD 20, the data recorded on the DVD 20 is read by the pickup 21. The pickup 21 receives the light reflected by the DVD 20, converts the received light into an electrical signal by a photoelectric conversion element, and outputs the electrical signal to the demodulation unit 24. Since the electric signal input to the demodulator 24 is a signal modulated into a signal suitable for recording on the DVD 20, the demodulator 24 demodulates it and restores it to its original form. The error correction unit 25 performs error correction using a Reed-Solomon product code (RS-PC) correction method, and stores the error-corrected data in the read buffer 26.

  The system controller 10 includes a navigation information analysis unit 11. The navigation information analysis unit 11 reads data from the read buffer 26 and analyzes navigation information. The system controller 10 reads out the multiplexed data of the video packet, audio packet, sub-picture packet, and system additional information from the reading buffer 26 and outputs the data to the DEMUX 31. The DEMUX 31 transfers the video data from which the header is removed from the video packet input from the read buffer 26 to the video buffer 32, transfers the sub-picture unit from which the header has been removed from the sub-picture packet to the sub-picture buffer 33, and the audio packet. The audio data from which the header is removed is transferred to the audio buffer 34.

  The system controller 10 is connected to an EEPROM (Electronically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory) 28. The system controller 10 uses the information stored in the EEPROM 28 when executing a reproduction restriction process for restricting reproduction of information recorded on the DVD 20. The reproduction restriction process will be described later.

  The audio decoder 37 is connected to the buffer 37A, decodes the audio data read from the audio buffer 34, and outputs the decoded digital audio data.

  The video decoder 35 is connected to the buffer 35 A, reads video data from the video buffer 32, MPEG, H.264, and so on. The video data (moving image) obtained by decoding using the H.264 or VC-1E system is output to the mixer 38. The sub picture decoder 36 is connected to the buffer 36A, reads a sub picture unit from the sub picture buffer 33, decodes pixel data in the sub picture unit, and generates sub picture data. The sub-picture unit includes a table that controls a display position, a period, and the like of displayed pixel data. The sub-picture decoder 36 outputs the generated sub-picture data to the mixer 38 during the character display period.

  The mixer 38 mixes the video data input from the video decoder 35 and the sub-picture data input from the sub-picture decoder 36, and outputs the mixed data to the video encoder 39. The video encoder 39 converts the mixed data into a display image and outputs it.

  The LAN interface 15 is a communication interface for connecting the disc playback apparatus 100 to the Internet 16. Here, the LAN interface 15 is connected to the Internet 16, and the system controller 10 can communicate with a server 17 connected to the Internet. The server 17 is a general computer. Data that is compression-encoded according to the MPEG standard can be stored in the server 17, and the server 17 transmits the stored data in response to a request from the disk playback device 100. Therefore, the disc playback apparatus 100 receives data from the server 17 and plays back video and audio in the same manner as the data read from the DVD 20 described above. The data stored in the server 17 is not limited to data compressed and encoded according to the MPEG standard. It includes video data compressed and encoded by H.264 or VC-1, and audio data compressed and encoded by Dolby Digital Plus or DT-HD.

  The operation unit 12 includes a plurality of button switches provided on the front surface of the disc playback apparatus 100. The operation unit 12 accepts an input of an instruction from a user who operates the disc playback apparatus 100. The operation unit 12 can wirelessly communicate with a remote controller (remote controller) 14 using infrared rays. The remote controller 14 has a button switch for inputting an instruction similar to that of the operation unit 12. Therefore, the user can input an instruction similar to that input to the operation unit 12 using the remote controller 14.

  The display unit 13 is a fluorescent display tube, and displays the operation state of the disc playback apparatus 100, displays a user instruction input to the operation unit 12, and the like. Note that a liquid crystal display device, an organic electroluminescence display (ELD), an LED (Light Emitting Diode) panel, or the like may be used instead of or together with the fluorescent display tube.

  FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram showing an outline of the playback restriction function of the disc playback apparatus. Referring to FIG. 2, system controller 10 receives user authentication unit 41 for authenticating the operator, restriction information receiving unit 42 for receiving the restriction information and storing it in EEPROM 28, and identification information read from DVD 20. It includes an identification information receiving unit 43 that receives information, a time information acquisition unit 44 that acquires time information from the outside, and a restriction unit 45 that controls reproduction based on the time information and restriction information corresponding to the identification information.

  The EEPROM 28 includes a user information storage unit 61 that stores user information and a restriction information storage unit 62 that stores restriction information. The user information includes user identification information for identifying a user who operates the disc playback apparatus 100 and authentication information for authenticating the user. As the authentication information, a password is used here, but biometric information such as a fingerprint, an iris, and a vein pattern may be used. The restriction information defines a condition for restricting reproduction of information stored in the DVD 20. The restriction information includes disc identification information for identifying the DVD 20 that restricts reproduction of information stored therein, and time zone information for permitting reproduction. The disc identification information may be unique information attached to the DVD 20 or the size of a file stored on the DVD 20. As the file size, for example, the file system controlled by the navigation information analysis unit 11 searches for an EVO file under the HDDVD_TS directory in the DVD 20, and the total value of the file sizes of all the searched EVO files can be used. . The time zone information may include day or month information. Further, the restriction information includes a total time for which reproduction is permitted per day.

  The user authentication unit 41 is connected to the operation unit 12, and when a user operating the disc playback apparatus 100 inputs user identification information and authentication information to the operation unit 12, the user authentication information and authentication information of the user are input from the operation unit 12. Accept. The user authentication unit 41 compares the user identification information and authentication information received from the operation unit 12 with the user information stored in the user information storage unit 61. If user information that matches the user identification information and authentication information received from the operation unit 12 is stored in the user information storage unit 61, a signal indicating that the authentication is successful is output to the restriction information reception unit 42. If not, an error message is displayed on the operation unit 12 as an authentication failure. Here, user identification information and authentication information are used for user authentication, but only authentication information may be used. In this case, a password is used as the authentication information. Multiple users who know the password can be authenticated. In this case, the user information storage unit 61 may store only the password.

  The restriction information receiving unit 42 is connected to the operation unit 12 and receives restriction information from the operation unit 12 when the authenticated user inputs the restriction information to the operation unit 12. The restriction information reception unit 42 stores the restriction information received from the operation unit 12 in the restriction information storage unit 62 on condition that a signal indicating that the authentication is successful is input from the user authentication unit 41.

  Here, the restriction information will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the restriction information. The restriction information in FIG. 3 includes disc information 101 and reproduction management information 110. The disc information 101 includes disc identification information for identifying the DVD 20 subject to reproduction restriction. The disc information 101 can include a plurality of disc identification information.

  The reproduction management information 110 includes full prohibition information 111 that does not permit reproduction, time zone information 112, 113, and 114 that defines a time zone during which reproduction is permitted, exception information 115, and total reproduction that can be reproduced in one day. And total time information 116 defining time. Full prohibition information 111 defines that an external device cannot be confirmed. Here, the external device is the server 17, and the full prohibition information 111 includes a URL (Uniform Resource Locator) that is position information on the Internet 16 of the server 17. Note that the full prohibition information 111 may include an IP address that is location information of the server 17 on the network.

  The time zone information 112 to 114 defines a day of the week for which reproduction is permitted, a time zone for which reproduction is permitted, and a total reproduction time for which reproduction is permitted. For example, the time zone information 112 includes “Saturday” as the day of the week for which reproduction is permitted, 10:00:00 to 20:00 as the period of time for which reproduction is permitted, and a time limit of 2 hours as the total reproduction time for which reproduction is permitted. . The exception information 115 defines reproduction restriction exceptions respectively defined by the full prohibition information 111, the time zone information 112 to 115, and the total time information 116 described below. The exception information 115 defines a time zone in which playback is not restricted. Here, after 21:00, playback is not subject to restriction.

  The total time information defines a total reproduction time of one day during which reproduction on a day of the week not defined by the time zone information 112 to 114 is permitted.

  Here, the restriction information is associated with a plurality of pieces of disc identification information defined by the disc information 101, but the reproduction management information 110 is associated with each piece of disc identification information defined by the disc information 101. May be associated. By associating a plurality of pieces of reproduction management information with a plurality of pieces of disc identification information, conditions for restricting reproduction can be made different for each DVD 20.

  Returning to FIG. 2, the identification information receiving unit 43 receives the disk identification information read from the DVD 20. The system controller 10 receives the disk identification information by reading the disk identification information from the read buffer 26. Then, the identification information reception unit 43 outputs the received disk identification information to the restriction unit 45. The time information acquisition unit 44 accesses the URL defined by the full prohibition information 111 of the restriction information, and acquires time information from the server 17. The time information includes the current day of the week and time. When accessed from the disc playback apparatus 100, the server 17 returns time information including the current day of the week and time. The time information acquisition unit 44 receives the time information returned from the server 17 and outputs the received time information to the restriction unit 45. When the URL defined by the full prohibition information 111 of the restriction information cannot be accessed, the time information acquisition unit 44 outputs a signal indicating that the server 17 cannot be confirmed to the restriction unit 45.

  The restriction unit 45 determines whether or not the disc identification information input from the identification information receiving unit 43 is stored in the restriction information storage unit 62. If the disc identification information input from the identification information receiving unit 43 is stored in the disc information 101 of the limitation information stored in the limitation information storage unit 62, the playback of the mounted DVD 20 is performed according to the playback management information 110 of the limitation information. Limit. On the other hand, if the disc identification information input from the identification information receiving unit 43 is not stored, the DVD 20 is reproduced without restriction. The restriction unit 45 receives a signal indicating that the disk identification information input from the identification information receiving unit 43 is stored in the restriction information storage unit 62 and the server 17 cannot be confirmed from the time information acquisition unit 44. If so, the DVD 20 is not reproduced according to the full prohibition information 111.

  Further, if the disc identification information input from the identification information receiving unit 43 is stored in the limiting information storage unit 62, the limiting unit 45 determines that the current time included in the time information input from the time information acquiring unit 44 is It is determined whether or not reproduction is permitted by the reproduction management information 110. Specifically, time zone information that restricts playback of the current day of the week is extracted from the time zone information 112 to 114, and further, the time zone information that is defined by the time zone information extracted by the current time is permitted. Determine whether it is included. If the time zone information that restricts playback of the current day of the week is extracted and the current time is included in the time zone that restricts playback, playback of the DVD 20 is permitted. In addition, even when the time zone information that restricts the reproduction of the current day of the week is not extracted, the restriction unit 45 has the total reproduction time so far within the total reproduction time defined by the total time information 116. If so, reproduction of the DVD 20 is permitted.

  Furthermore, when the time zone information that restricts the reproduction of the current day of the week is not extracted, the restriction unit 45 determines whether or not the current time is included in the time zone that is not restricted by the reproduction defined by the exception information 115. The restriction unit 45 permits the reproduction of the DVD 20 if the current time is included in the time zone defined by the exception information 115 that is not restricted for reproduction, but does not allow the reproduction otherwise.

  FIG. 4 is a first diagram illustrating an example of the flow of the reproduction restriction process. This reproduction restriction process is executed by the system controller 10 when the system controller 10 executes the reproduction restriction program. Referring to FIG. 4, system controller 10 determines whether or not the disc identification information of DVD 20 loaded in disc playback apparatus 100 has been received (step S01). When the DVD 20 is loaded, the disc playback apparatus 100 reads the disc identification information stored in the DVD 20. Since the read disc identification information is stored in the read buffer 26, the system controller 10 reads the disc identification information from the read buffer 26, thereby receiving the disc identification information of the DVD 20 mounted in the disc reproducing apparatus 100. .

  In step S02, the restriction information is read from the restriction information storage unit 62 of the EEPROM 28. Then, the URL defined by the full prohibition information 111 of the restriction information is accessed, and time information is acquired from the server 17 (step S03). Here, the time information is acquired from the server 17, but the disk playback device 100 is provided with a device for acquiring time information including the day of the week and time from the outside such as a radio clock, and the device acquires time information. You may do it.

  In the next step S04, it is determined whether or not the mounted DVD 20 can be reproduced. If it is determined that reproduction is possible, the process proceeds to step S05. If it is determined that reproduction is not possible, the process proceeds to step S11.

Judgment that reproduction is possible is as follows.
(A1) The disc identification information of the mounted DVD 20 is not stored in the restriction information storage unit 62. This is because the DVD 20 specified by the disc identification information is not designated by the user as the target of playback restriction.
(A2) A case where the current time included in the time information acquired in step S03 is included in a reproducible time zone defined by the time zone information 112 to 114 of the reproduction management information 110. This is to enable playback on the day of the week and time zone set by the user so that playback is possible. However, the condition is that the reproducible time defined by the time zone information 112 to 114 of the reproduction management information 110 is not exceeded.
(A3) A case where the total of the playback times up to that date is within the total playback time defined by the total time information 116.
(A4) A case where the current time included in the time information acquired in step S03 is included in a time zone that is not restricted by reproduction defined by the exception information 115 of the reproduction management information 110.

It is determined in the following cases that reproduction is impossible.
(B1) The disc identification information of the loaded DVD 20 is stored in the restriction information storage unit 62, and the server 17 cannot be confirmed in step S03 and time information cannot be acquired. This is because if the time information cannot be acquired, it is not possible to determine to restrict reproduction according to the reproduction management information.
(B2) When it does not correspond to any of the above (A1) to (A4).

  In step S05, reproduction is started. The system controller 10 reads out the multiplexed data of the video packet, audio packet, sub-picture packet, and system additional information from the reading buffer 26 and outputs the data to the DEMUX 31. Then, it is determined whether or not the total reproduction time of the day is within the time limit. The time limit is a time limit determined by each of the time zone information 112 to 114 and the total time information 116 of the limit information read out in step S02. The system controller 10 stores the accumulated reproduction time of the day in the EEPROM 28, and rewrites the accumulated reproduction time while continuing the reproduction. If the total reproduction time of the day is within the time limit, the process proceeds to step S07, and if the time limit is exceeded, the process proceeds to step S09.

  In step S07, it is determined whether or not the reproduction is finished. If the reproduction is finished, the process proceeds to step S08. If the reproduction is not finished, the process is returned to step S06 and the reproduction is continued.

  In step S09, an error message is displayed on the display unit 13, the reproduction is terminated in the next step S10, and the process proceeds to step S08. The error message is, for example, “Today's playback time has exceeded the time limit and playback will end.” An error message may be output by voice.

  In step S08, the accumulated reproduction time is updated to the value at the time when reproduction is completed, and the process is terminated. Next, it is for determining whether or not to restrict the reproduction when the DVD 20 is loaded.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of restriction information registration processing. This restriction information registration process is a process executed by the system controller when the system controller 10 executes the reproduction restriction program. Referring to FIG. 5, system controller 10 determines whether or not the user authentication is successful (step S21). If user information that matches the user identification information and the authentication information received from the operation unit 12 is stored in the user information storage unit 61, it is determined that the authentication is successful and the process proceeds to step S22. If the authentication has failed, the process proceeds to step S26. Although user identification information and authentication information are used for user authentication, only authentication information may be used.

  In step S22, it is determined whether or not restriction information is newly registered. If it is a new registration, the process proceeds to step S23; otherwise, step S23 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S24. In step S23, the newly registered restriction information is added and stored in the restriction information storage unit 62.

  In step S24, it is determined whether or not there is an instruction to change the restriction information already stored in the restriction information storage unit 62. If there is a change instruction, the process proceeds to step S25. If there is no change instruction, step S25 is skipped and the process ends. In step S25, the restriction information is changed according to the change instruction.

  On the other hand, if user authentication fails in step S21, an error message is displayed (step S26), and the process is terminated. The error message may be, for example, “You do not have authority to access the restriction information”. This is to prevent the restriction information from being changed by an unauthorized user by prohibiting access to the restriction information when the user authentication fails.

  As described above, the disc reproducing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment accepts the restriction information related to the disc identification information of the DVD 20 and stores it in the EEPROM 28 in advance. When the DVD 20 is loaded, the disc identification information is read from the DVD 20, the time information including the current time is acquired from the server 17, and the DVD 20 is based on the time information and the restriction information related to the read disc identification information. Decide whether to play. For this reason, whether or not to reproduce the DVD 20 is determined according to the reproduction time of the DVD 20, so that the time for reproducing the DVD 20 can be limited.

  In addition, since access to the restriction information stored in the EEPROM 28 is permitted only to a user having access authority, the restriction information is not changed by a user who does not have access authority, and reproduction is surely restricted. Can do.

  Further, since the time information is acquired from the server 17, it is possible to prevent the time information from being changed illegally and to reliably restrict the reproduction.

  In the first embodiment described above, the disc playback apparatus 100 has been described, but it goes without saying that the invention can be understood as a playback restriction method or playback restriction program executed by the disk playback apparatus 100.

<Second Embodiment>
The disc reproducing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment stores the restriction information in the EEPROM 28. However, in the second embodiment, the restriction information is stored in the server 17. Since the hardware configurations of the disc playback apparatus 100 and the server 17 are the same as the hardware configurations in the first embodiment, description thereof will not be repeated here.

  FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram illustrating an overview of the server playback restriction function according to the second embodiment. Referring to FIG. 6, the server 17 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 210 that controls the entire server 17, a LAN interface 211 for connecting the server 17 to the Internet 16, and a memory that stores data in a nonvolatile manner. A hard disk drive (HDD) 212 which is a device and a timer 213 for measuring the date and time are included.

  The CPU 210 receives a user authentication unit 41A for authenticating an operator, a restriction information reception unit 42A for receiving restriction information and storing it in the HDD 212, and disc identification information of the DVD 20 attached thereto from the disc playback apparatus 100. The discriminating information receiving unit 43A, the discriminating unit 51 for discriminating whether or not to control the reproduction based on the time information acquired from the timer 213 and the restriction information corresponding to the disc discriminating information, and the judgment result to the disc reproducing device 100 And a determination result transmission unit 52 for transmission. The HDD 212 includes a user information storage unit 61A that stores user information and a restriction information storage unit 62A that stores restriction information.

  The user authentication unit 41A is connected to the LAN interface 211 and authenticates a user who operates the computer or the disk playback device 100 connected to the Internet 16. The user authentication unit 41A compares the user identification information and authentication information received from the LAN interface 211 with the user information stored in the user information storage unit 61A, and user information that matches the received user identification information and authentication information is obtained. If stored in the user information storage unit 61A, a signal indicating that the authentication is successful is output to the restriction information receiving unit 42A.

  The restriction information receiving unit 42A is connected to the LAN interface 211, and receives restriction information input to the computer or the disk playback device 100 connected to the Internet 16. The restriction information receiving unit 42A stores the received restriction information in the restriction information storage unit 62A on condition that a signal indicating that the authentication is successful is input from the user authentication unit 41A.

  FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram showing an outline of the playback restriction function of the disc playback apparatus in the second embodiment. Referring to FIG. 7, system controller 10 includes an identification information receiving unit 43 that receives disc identification information read from DVD 20, an identification information transmitting unit 46 for transmitting disc identification information to server 17, and transmission of identification information. Accordingly, a determination result receiving unit 47 that receives a determination result from the server 17 and a limiting unit 45A that controls reproduction based on the determination result are included.

  With reference to FIGS. 6 and 7, the identification information receiving unit 43 of the disk reproducing device 100 receives the disk identification information read from the DVD 20. Then, the identification information receiving unit 43 outputs the received disc identification information to the identification information transmitting unit 46. The identification information transmission unit 46 transmits the input disk identification information to the server 17 via the LAN interface 15.

  When the disc identification information is received from the disc playback apparatus 100 by the LAN interface 211, the identification information receiving unit 43A of the server 17 receives the disc identification information and outputs it to the determination unit 51. The determination unit 51 determines whether or not the disc identification information input from the identification information reception unit 43A is stored in the restriction information storage unit 62A. If the disc identification information input from the identification information receiving unit 43A is stored in the disc information 101 of the limitation information stored in the limitation information storage unit 62A, whether or not reproduction is possible according to the reproduction management information 110 of the limitation information is determined. judge. On the other hand, if the disc identification information input from the identification information receiving unit 43A is not stored, it is determined that reproduction is possible. The determination of whether or not reproduction is possible in the determination unit 51 is the same as the determination whether or not the restriction unit 45 in the first embodiment is reproducible. Therefore, description is not repeated here. The determination unit 51 outputs a determination result indicating that reproduction is possible to the determination result transmission unit 52 when it is determined that reproduction is possible, and indicates that reproduction is not possible when it is determined that reproduction is not possible. The determination result is output to the determination result transmission unit 52.

  The determination result receiving unit 47 of the disc playback apparatus 100 receives the determination result from the server 17 and outputs the received determination result to the limiting unit 45A. The restricting unit 45A restricts playback of the disc based on the input determination result. That is, if the determination result indicates that playback is possible, the mounted DVD 20 is played back. If the determination result indicates that playback is not possible, the mounted DVD 20 is not played back.

  In the second embodiment, since the server stores the restriction information, the restriction information registration process executed by the disk reproducing device 100 in the first embodiment is executed by the server 17.

  FIG. 8A is another flowchart showing an example of the flow of the playback restriction process executed by the disc playback apparatus. FIG. 8B is a flowchart illustrating an example of the flow of determination processing executed by the server. Referring to FIG. 8A, the difference from the reproduction restriction process shown in FIG. 4 is that steps S31, S32, and S04A are executed instead of steps S02 to S04. The other processes are the same as the reproduction restriction process shown in FIG. 4, and thus the description thereof will not be repeated here.

  In step S <b> 31, the system controller 10 transmits disk identification information to the server 17. And it will be in a standby state until it receives the determination result from the server 17 (it is NO at step S32), and if a determination result is received from the server 17, a process will be advanced to step S04A. In step S04A, it is determined whether or not the received determination result indicates that playback is possible. If the playback result indicates that playback is possible, the process proceeds to step S05. If the playback result indicates that playback is not possible, the process proceeds to step S11.

  Referring to FIG. 8B, CPU 210 of server 17 is in a standby state until it receives disk identification information from disk reproducing device 100 (NO in step S41). Advances to step S42. In step S42, the restriction information is read from the HDD 212. Then, time information is acquired from the timer 213 (step S43). Then, it is determined whether or not reproduction is possible from the disc identification information, time information and restriction information (step S44). Then, the determination result is transmitted to the disc playback apparatus 100 (step S45).

  As described above, in the disc playback apparatus 100 according to the second embodiment, since the server 17 determines whether or not playback of the mounted DVD 20 is possible, the processing load on the disc playback apparatus 100 is reduced. can do. Moreover, since access to the restriction information stored in the HDD 212 of the server 17 is permitted only to authorized users, it is possible to prevent the restriction information from being changed without permission. Furthermore, if only the administrator of the server 17 can set the timer 213 provided in the server 17, the user who searches the disc playback apparatus 100 cannot modify the time information, so the playback of the DVD 20 is surely limited. can do.

  In the above-described second embodiment, the disk playback device 100 and the server 17 have been described. However, the invention is understood as a playback restriction method and a playback restriction program executed by the disk playback device 100 and the server 17, respectively. Needless to say, you can.

  The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

<Appendix>
(1) The restriction information includes at least time zone restriction information that defines a time zone in which reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium is permitted,
The information reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a prohibiting unit that prohibits reproduction when a current time included in the acquired time information is not in a time zone in which the reproduction is permitted.
(2) further comprising a communication means for communicating with a server device connected to the network;
The information reproduction device according to claim 1, wherein the time information acquisition unit receives the time information from the server device.
(3) The restriction information includes an upper limit value of the reproduction time,
The information reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a prohibiting unit that prohibits reproduction when a cumulative reproduction time exceeds the upper limit.
(4) An information reproduction system including an information reproduction device and a server each connected to a network,
The server includes restriction information receiving means for receiving restriction information including time information for permitting reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium in association with identification information for identifying the recording medium attached to the recording medium. When,
Restriction information storage means for storing the received restriction information;
Identification information receiving means for receiving identification information from the information reproducing device;
Time information acquisition means for acquiring time information including a time at which the identification information was received in response to reception of the identification information;
Determining means for determining whether to restrict reproduction based on the restriction information related to the received identification information and the acquired time information;
A determination result transmission means for transmitting a determination result by the determination means to the information reproducing apparatus;
The information reproducing apparatus includes:
Identification information reading means for reading identification information for identifying the recording medium from the recording medium;
Identification information transmitting means for transmitting the read identification information to the server device;
An information reproduction system comprising: control means for controlling reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium based on the determination result received in response to transmission of the identification information.
(5) In (4), the server further comprises authentication means for restricting access to the restriction information stored in the restriction information storage means.

It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the disc reproducing | regenerating apparatus in 1st Embodiment. It is a functional block diagram which shows the outline | summary of the reproduction | regeneration restriction | limiting function of a disc reproducing | regenerating apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of restriction | limiting information. It is a 1st figure which shows an example of the flow of a reproduction | regeneration limitation process. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the flow of a restriction | limiting information registration process. It is a functional block diagram which shows the outline | summary of the reproduction | regeneration restriction | limiting function of the server in 2nd Embodiment. It is a functional block diagram which shows the outline | summary of the reproduction | regeneration restriction | limiting function of the disc reproducing | regenerating apparatus in 2nd Embodiment. (A) is another flowchart which shows an example of the flow of the reproduction | regeneration limitation process performed with a disc reproducing | regenerating apparatus, (B) is a flowchart which shows an example of the flow of the determination process performed with a server.

Explanation of symbols

  10 System Controller, 11 Navigation Information Analysis Unit, 12 Operation Unit, 13 Display Unit, 14 Remote Control, 15 Interface, 16 Internet, 17 Server, 20 DVD, 21 Pickup, 22 Spindle Motor, 23 Servo Circuit, 24 Demodulation Unit, 25 Correction 26, buffer for reading, 27 playback buffer memory, 31 DEMUX, 35 video decoder, 36 sub-picture decoder, 37 audio decoder, 38 mixer, 39 video encoder, 100 disc playback device.

Claims (5)

Restriction information receiving means for receiving restriction information including time information permitting reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium;
Restriction information storage means for storing the received restriction information in association with identification information for identifying the recording medium;
Identification information acquisition means for acquiring identification information for identifying the recording medium from the recording medium;
Time information acquisition means for acquiring time information including the current time;
An information reproducing apparatus comprising: control means for controlling reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium based on the acquired time information and restriction information related to the acquired identification information.   The information reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an authentication unit for restricting access to the restriction information stored in the restriction information storage unit.   The information reproduction apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the time information acquisition unit acquires the time information from an external device. An information reproduction system including a server device and an information reproduction device, each connected to a network and capable of communicating with each other via the network,
Restriction information receiving means for receiving restriction information including time information permitting reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium;
Restriction information storage means for storing the received restriction information in association with identification information for identifying the recording medium;
Identification information acquisition means for acquiring identification information for identifying the recording medium from the recording medium;
Time information acquisition means for acquiring time information including the current time;
An information reproduction system comprising: control means for controlling reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium based on the acquired time information and restriction information related to the acquired identification information. Receiving restriction information including time information permitting reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium;
Storing the received restriction information in association with identification information for identifying the recording medium;
Obtaining identification information for identifying the recording medium from the recording medium;
Obtaining time information including the current time;
A method of controlling reproduction of information recorded on the recording medium based on the acquired time information and restriction information related to the read identification information.

Images