JP2011087205A - Recording/reproducing device or control server, and duplication control system employing them - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To duplicate digital contents recorded by a recording device which does not have unremovable recording media, finite times without violating the right of a copyright holder and without error. <P>SOLUTION: A duplication control system is disclosed in which a recording/reproducing device having device specific information and recording received contents, a duplicating device duplicating contents recorded by the recording/reproducing device and a control server managing the number of times of duplicating contents are connected so as to transmit/receive data. In the duplication control system, the control server includes a management section for storing information on the recorded contents received from the recording/reproducing device and the device specific information in association with each other together with the number of duplication-possible times. When duplicating recorded contents, the stored number of duplication-possible times is confirmed. When the number of duplication-possible times remains, it is decreased by one, and contents to be duplicated are transmitted from the recording/reproducing device to the duplicating device. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a recording / reproducing apparatus or a control server and a duplication control system using them.

  In order to protect the rights of copyright holders, program production companies, and broadcasters regarding the control of recording / duplication of digital content that does not degrade image quality and sound quality even when copying is repeated, with the spread of digital broadcasting, Operations that allow the number of copies have begun.

  However, this is limited to the case where recording is performed by a recording apparatus having a non-removable recording medium (HDD) in order to control the number of times of copying. For this reason, a finite number of copies cannot be realized when recording directly on a portable device having no non-removable area (small capacity) or on a removable recording medium (such as an SD card or an optical disk).

  In order to solve this, for example, as shown in Patent Document 1, when a recorded program recorded on a recording medium that can be copied a finite number of times is transferred over an AV network, it is detected that the program is being transferred. An invention has been proposed in which the copyable counter of the recorded program is reduced by 1 when a predetermined time has elapsed.

JP 2008-205554 A

  In the invention of Patent Document 1, since the number of possible copies is reduced only after a certain time has elapsed after data reading, for example, it is impossible to perform care when an error occurs on the receiving side thereafter. In addition, when recording is performed on a removable medium, copying cannot be realized in an environment where there is no recording apparatus.

  An object of the present invention is to enable copying of digital content recorded on a recording device or a removable recording medium that does not have a non-removable recording medium without infringing the rights of the copyright holder without a finite number of errors. There is.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a recording / reproducing apparatus that records the received content and has apparatus-specific information, a duplicating apparatus that duplicates the content recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus, and the number of times content is duplicated. A copy control system that is connected to a control server that manages the transmission and reception of data, the control server associating information related to the recorded content received from the recording / playback device and device-specific information. When the content recorded with the recording / reproducing apparatus is duplicated by the duplication device, the management unit includes a management unit that saves the duplication times and a control unit that controls the management unit. If the number of times that copying is possible remains, the number is reduced by one, and the control unit transmits the content to be copied from the recording / playback device to the copying device. To perform the processing for.

  In addition, when the information regarding the end of replication cannot be received from the replication apparatus, the management unit returns the number of possible replications reduced by one time.

  In addition, when the copy valid information cannot be received from the control server, the copy apparatus deletes the copied content.

  In another aspect of the present invention, data can be transmitted / received between a recording / reproducing apparatus that records the received content and having apparatus-specific information and a duplicating apparatus that duplicates the content recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus. The recording / playback apparatus includes a management unit that stores information related to recorded content and unique information of the apparatus in association with the permitted number of times of copying, and a control unit that controls the management unit. When duplicating the content recorded by the recording / playback device in the duplicating device, the management unit checks the stored duplicatable number of times, and if the duplicatable number of times remains, decreases the number of times, the control unit Performs processing for transmitting content to be copied from the recording / playback device to the copying device.

  In addition, when the information regarding the end of replication cannot be received from the replication apparatus, the management unit returns the number of possible replications reduced by one time.

  Further, when the copy valid information cannot be received from the recording / playback apparatus, the copy apparatus deletes the copied content.

  Digital contents recorded on a recording device or a removable recording medium that does not have a non-removable recording medium can be copied without error a finite number of times without infringing the rights of the copyright holder.

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of one Example of a digital content recording / reproducing apparatus and a duplication control system using the same. It is a figure which shows the broadcast content recording operation | movement flow in a digital content recording / reproducing apparatus and a duplication control system using the same. It is a figure which shows the broadcast content reproduction operation | movement flow in a digital content recording / reproducing apparatus and a replication control system using the same. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of one Example of a digital content recording / reproducing apparatus and a duplication control system using the same. It is a figure which shows the broadcast content recording operation | movement flow in a digital content recording / reproducing apparatus and a duplication control system using the same. It is a figure which shows the broadcast content reproduction operation | movement flow in a digital content recording / reproducing apparatus and a replication control system using the same.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described.

  Example 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a digital content recording / playback apparatus using the present invention and a copy control system using the same. The broadcast program reception recording / playback apparatus 1 includes a control unit 101, a broadcast program reception unit 102, a broadcast program recording unit 103, a device specific information holding unit 104, and a transmission / reception unit 105. The copy count control server 2 includes a control unit 201, a transmission / reception unit 202, and a recorded program information recording / management unit 203. The duplicating apparatus 3 includes a control unit 301, a transmission / reception unit 302, and a data recording unit 303.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an operation flow when a broadcast program is recorded by a digital content recording / playback apparatus using the present invention and a duplication control system using the same.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of an operation flow when a broadcast program is copied by a digital content recording / playback apparatus using the present invention and a copy control system using the same.

  The operation when recording a broadcast program will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The recording operation is started by a user operation on the broadcast program receiving / recording / reproducing apparatus 1 or a recording start request from a timer (not shown).

  Receiving the recording request, the control unit 101 outputs a broadcast program recording start request to the broadcast program recording unit 103 (S101).

  The broadcast program recording unit 103 checks whether or not a broadcast program received from a broadcast station not shown in the broadcast program receiving unit 102 can be recorded (S102).

  If the recording is not possible, the control unit 101 notifies the user that the recording is impossible using, for example, a display (not shown), and ends the operation (S103).

  If the recording is possible, the control unit 101 reads out the device-specific information from the device-specific information holding unit 104 and transmits it to the broadcast program recording unit 103 (S104). The unique information in this case uses, for example, the ID number of the B-CAS card inserted in the digital broadcast receiving apparatus, the serial number of the apparatus, or the like.

  The broadcast program recording unit 103 records the specific information and the broadcast program on a recording medium (not shown) (S105), and the user's operation on the broadcast program receiving / recording / reproducing apparatus 1 or recording from a timer (not shown). The operation is continued until the recording operation is terminated due to a stop request or the like (S106). As the recording medium in this case, for example, a removable medium such as an optical disk or a non-removable medium such as an HDD is used.

  After the recording operation is completed, the control unit 101 reads out the program information and the unique information of the device that has recorded at the same time from the broadcast program recording unit 103, and transmits the information to the duplication count control server 2 via the transmission / reception unit 105. (S107).

  When the signal received by the transmission / reception unit 202 of the copy number control server 2 is the program information and the unique information of the device that has been recorded at the same time, the control unit 201 records the received information as a recorded program information recording / management unit. It records in 203 (S108).

  Next, an operation for duplicating the recorded broadcast program will be described with reference to FIGS.

  The duplication operation is started by a user operation on the duplication device 3.

  Upon receiving the copy request, the control unit 301 outputs a broadcast program copy start request to the broadcast program reception recording / playback apparatus 1 via the transmission / reception unit 302 (S201).

  When the signal received by the transmission / reception unit 105 of the broadcast program reception recording / playback apparatus 1 is a broadcast program duplication start request, the control unit 101 can read the program information from the broadcast program recording unit 103 and duplicate the requested content. Whether or not (S202).

  If the copy is impossible, the control unit 101 notifies the copy apparatus 3 that the copy is impossible. In response, the copying apparatus 3 notifies the user that copying cannot be performed using, for example, a display (not shown), and ends the operation (S203).

  In the case where duplication is possible, in order to confirm the number of times of duplication (remaining number), the control unit 101 obtains the program information from the broadcast program recording unit 103 and the unique information of the device that has recorded at the same time. The data is read and transmitted to the copy number control server 2 via the transmission / reception unit 105 (S204).

  When the signal received by the transmission / reception unit 202 of the duplication number control server 2 is a duplication count inquiry, the control unit 201 applies the corresponding information from the received program information and the unique information of the device that has recorded at the same time. The number of times that the content can be copied is read from the recorded program information recording / management unit 203 and the remaining number of times that can be copied is confirmed (S205).

  When the number of times of duplication is “0”, the control unit 201 notifies the broadcast program recording / playback apparatus 1 and the duplication apparatus 3 that duplication is impossible. In response to this, the broadcast program recording / reproducing apparatus 1 and the duplicating apparatus 3 notify the user that duplication is impossible using, for example, a display (not shown), and the operation is terminated (S206).

  When the number of times of duplication is “1” or more, the control unit 201 subtracts “1” from the number of times of duplication of the corresponding content recorded in the recorded program information recording / management unit 203, and passes through the transmission / reception unit 202. Then, the broadcast program recording / reproducing apparatus 1 is notified that copying is possible (S207).

  In accordance with this notification, the control unit 101 reads out the corresponding content from a recording medium (not shown) via the broadcast program recording unit 103, and transmits the content addressed to the duplication device 3 via the transmission / reception unit 105 (S208).

  The control unit 301 of the copying apparatus 3 records the content transferred via the data recording unit 303 on a recording medium (S209). As the recording medium in this case, for example, a removable medium such as an optical disk or a non-removable medium such as an HDD is used.

  When the broadcast program recording / playback apparatus 1 finishes transferring the content to the end (S210), the broadcast program recording / playback apparatus 1 notifies the copy count control server 2 that all the content has been transferred (S211).

  In addition, when the recording to the end of the content is completed (S212), the duplication device 3 notifies the duplication count control server that all the content has been duplicated (S213). Note that the duplication device 3 can recognize the end of the content by grasping the length, content, and the like of the content at the start of recording.

  After receiving the transfer end information, the copy count control server 2 waits for transfer of the copy end information (S214).

  After receiving the replication end information, the control unit 201 transmits the replication valid information to the replication apparatus 3 via the transmission / reception unit 202 (S215).

  When the copy end information cannot be received (for example, when the connection with the copy apparatus 3 is disconnected or a write error occurs in the copy apparatus 3 or the end information cannot be received after a certain period), The subtractable copy count is returned to the original, and the process is terminated (S216).

  Upon receiving the copy valid information (S217), the control unit 301 validates the copy data via the data recording unit 303.

  When the copy valid information cannot be received (for example, when the connection with the copy count control server 2 is disconnected or a write error occurs in the copy apparatus 3, the valid information cannot be received after a certain period of time. ) Erase the duplicated data or perform electrical destruction, and terminate the process (S218).

  According to the present embodiment, even digital content recorded on a removable medium can be appropriately copied by managing the number of copies.

  In addition, the unique information of the device and the program information are associated and stored together with the number of times of duplication at the time of recording, and at the beginning of duplication, the number of times of duplication is first subtracted, and finally if the data cannot be validated, By returning it, it becomes possible to cope with illegal duplication and erroneous subtraction of errors.

  Although the broadcast program recording / playback apparatus 1 is used as the destination of inquiry for copying permission and program information, the copy count control server lists all the contents of the recording / playback apparatuses under its control so that the inquiry is limited to the server only. May be.

  Even when the broadcast program recording unit of the broadcast program recording / reproducing apparatus is a removable medium and the removable medium is set in an apparatus other than the broadcast program recording / reproducing apparatus that has recorded it at the time of duplication, Since the unique information and the program information are stored in association with the number of times of duplication, duplication can be realized in the same manner.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the case of recording a broadcast program has been described, but the present invention may be applied to recording of download-type content such as VOD.

  Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4, 5, and 6. FIG.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of a digital content recording / playback apparatus using the present invention and a copy control system using the same. 4, the recorded program information recording / management unit 106 of the copy number control server is added to the recording / playback apparatus of FIG. 1, and the copy number control server is eliminated.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of an operation flow when a broadcast program is recorded by a digital content recording / playback apparatus using the present invention and a duplication control system using the same.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an operation flow when a broadcast program is copied by a digital content recording / playback apparatus using the present invention and a copy control system using the same.

  The operation when recording a broadcast program will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG.

  The recording operation is started by a user operation on the broadcast program receiving / recording / reproducing apparatus 1 or a recording start request from a timer (not shown).

  Receiving the recording request, the control unit 101 outputs a broadcast program recording start request to the broadcast program recording unit 103 (S301).

  The broadcast program recording unit 103 checks whether a broadcast program received from a broadcast station not shown in the broadcast program receiving unit 102 can be recorded (S302).

  If recording is not possible, the control unit 101 notifies the user that recording is not possible using, for example, a display (not shown), and ends the operation (S303).

  If the recording is possible, the control unit 101 reads out the device-specific information from the device-specific information holding unit 104 and transmits it to the broadcast program recording unit 103 (S304). The unique information in this case uses, for example, the ID number of the B-CAS card inserted in the digital broadcast receiving apparatus, the serial number of the apparatus, or the like.

  The broadcast program recording unit 103 records the specific information and the broadcast program on a recording medium (not shown) (S305), and the user's operation on the broadcast program receiving / recording / playback apparatus 1 or recording from a timer (not shown). The operation is continued until the recording operation is terminated due to a stop request or the like (S306). As the recording medium in this case, for example, a removable medium such as an optical disk or a non-removable medium such as an HDD is used.

  After the recording operation is completed, the control unit 101 reads out the program information and the unique information of the recording apparatus that has been recorded at the same time from the broadcast program recording unit 103 (S307), and records them in the recorded program information recording / management unit 106. (S308).

  Next, the operation for duplicating the recorded broadcast program will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 6. FIG.

  The duplication operation is started by a user operation on the duplication device 3.

  Upon receiving the copy request, the control unit 301 outputs a broadcast program copy start request to the broadcast program recording / playback apparatus 1 via the transmission / reception unit 302 (S401).

  When the signal received by the transmission / reception unit 105 of the broadcast program reception recording / playback apparatus 1 is a broadcast program duplication start request, the control unit 101 can read the program information from the broadcast program recording unit 103 and duplicate the requested content. Whether or not (S402).

  If the copy is impossible, the control unit 101 notifies the copy apparatus 3 that the copy is impossible. In response, the copying apparatus 3 notifies the user that copying cannot be performed using, for example, a display (not shown), and the operation is terminated (S403).

  In the case where duplication is possible, in order to confirm the number of times of duplication (remaining number), the control unit 101 obtains the program information from the broadcast program recording unit 103 and the unique information of the device that has recorded at the same time. Read (S404).

  The control unit 101 confirms the number of times that the corresponding content can be copied from the program information that has been read and the unique information of the device that performed the recording, and the number of times that the remaining copy can be read from the recorded program information recording / management unit 106 (S405).

  When the number of times that copying is possible is “0”, the control unit 101 notifies the copying apparatus 3 that copying is impossible. In response to this, the copying apparatus 3 notifies the user that copying cannot be performed using, for example, a display (not shown), and ends the operation (S406).

  If the number of times of copying is “1” or more, the control unit 101 subtracts “1” from the number of times of copying of the corresponding content recorded in the recorded program information recording / management unit 106 (S407).

  The control unit 101 reads out the corresponding content from a recording medium (not shown) via the broadcast program recording unit 103, and transmits the content to the duplicating device 3 via the transmission / reception unit 105 (S408).

  The control unit 301 of the copying apparatus 3 records the content transferred via the data recording unit 303 on a recording medium (S409). As the recording medium in this case, for example, a removable medium such as an optical disk or a non-removable medium such as an HDD is used.

  When the broadcast program recording / playback apparatus 1 finishes transferring the content to the end (S411), it waits for the transfer of the replication end information.

  In addition, when the recording to the end of the content is completed (S410), the duplication device 3 notifies the broadcast program recording / playback device 1 that the duplication of all the content has been completed (S412). Note that the duplication device 3 can recognize the end of the content by grasping the length, content, and the like of the content at the start of recording.

  After receiving the replication end information, the control unit 101 transmits the replication valid information to the replication apparatus 3 via the transmission / reception unit 105 (S415).

  When the copy end information cannot be received (for example, when the connection with the copy apparatus 3 is disconnected or a write error occurs in the copy apparatus 3 or the end information cannot be received after a certain period), The subtractable number of times of copying is returned to the original, and the process is terminated (S414).

  Upon receiving the copy valid information (S416), the control unit 301 validates the copy data via the data recording unit 303.

  When the copy valid information cannot be received (for example, when the connection with the broadcast program recording / playback apparatus 1 is disconnected or a write error occurs in the copy apparatus 3, the valid information cannot be received after a certain period of time. In step S417, the copy data is erased or electrically destroyed, and the process is terminated.

  According to the above embodiment, in addition to the effects of the first embodiment, in the broadcast program recording / reproducing apparatus 1, the server-specific information and the program information at the time of recording the broadcast program are associated with each other and managed together with the permitted number of copies. This makes it possible to construct a replication control system at a low cost without preparing the system.

  Furthermore, this embodiment may also be applied to recording of downloadable content such as VOD.

  Further, when content is duplicated, it is possible to create duplicate data again from duplicate data by simultaneously recording the device-specific information and program information of the duplicate data.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Broadcast program reception recording / reproducing apparatus, 101 ... Control part, 102 ... Broadcast program receiving part, 103 ... Broadcast program recording part, 104 ... Apparatus specific information holding part, 105 ... Transmission / reception part, 2 ... Copy number control server, 201 ... Control unit, 202 ... Transmission / reception unit, 203 ... Recorded program information recording / management unit, 3 ... Replication device, 301 ... Control unit, 302 ... Transmission / reception unit, 303 ... Data recording unit

Claims (16)

Data is recorded between a recording / reproducing device that records the received content and having device-specific information, a duplicating device that duplicates the content recorded by the recording / reproducing device, and a control server that manages the number of times content is duplicated. A replication control system connected to be able to send and receive
The control server includes a management unit that stores information on the recorded content received from the recording / playback device and device-specific information in association with the number of times that can be copied, and a control unit that controls the management unit.
When duplicating the content recorded by the recording / playback device in the duplicating device, the management unit checks the stored duplicatable number of times, and if the duplicatable number of times remains, decreases the number of times, the control unit Performs a process for transmitting content to be copied from the recording / playback apparatus to the copying apparatus.   2. The multiple control system according to claim 1, wherein when the information regarding the end of replication cannot be received from the replication apparatus, the management unit returns the number of times of replication that is reduced by one time.   2. The multiple control system according to claim 1, wherein when the copy valid information cannot be received from the control server, the copy apparatus deletes the copied content.   The multiple control system according to claim 1, wherein the unique information is a serial number of a device or a B-CAS card number. Data is recorded between a recording / reproducing device that records the received content and having device-specific information, a duplicating device that duplicates the content recorded by the recording / reproducing device, and a control server that manages the number of times content is duplicated. A control server in a replication control system connected to be able to send and receive
A management unit that stores information on the recorded content received from the recording / playback device and device-specific information in association with the permitted number of times of copying, and a control unit that controls the management unit;
When duplicating the content recorded by the recording / playback device in the duplication device, the management unit confirms the number of times that the copy can be made, and if the number of duplication times remains, it is reduced by one time, and the previous control The control unit performs processing for transmitting content to be copied from the recording / playback device to the copy device.   6. The control server according to claim 5, wherein when the information regarding the end of replication cannot be received from the replication apparatus, the management unit returns the number of times of replication that is reduced by one time.   The control server according to claim 5, wherein when the information related to the end of replication is received from the replication device, the replication valid information is transmitted to the replication device.   6. The control server according to claim 5, wherein the unique information is a serial number of a device or a B-CAS card number. A replication control system connected to be able to transmit and receive data between a recording / reproducing apparatus that records the received content and having apparatus-specific information and a replication apparatus that replicates the content recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus. There,
The recording / reproducing apparatus includes a management unit that stores information related to recorded content and device-specific information in association with the permitted number of times of copying, and a control unit that controls the management unit.
When duplicating the content recorded by the recording / playback device in the duplicating device, the management unit checks the stored duplicatable number of times, and if the duplicatable number of times remains, decreases the number of times, the control unit Performs a process for transmitting content to be copied from the recording / playback apparatus to the copying apparatus.   10. The multiple control system according to claim 9, wherein when the information related to the end of replication cannot be received from the replication device, the management unit returns the number of times that replication can be reduced by one time.   10. The multiple control system according to claim 9, wherein when the copy valid information cannot be received from the recording / playback apparatus, the copy apparatus deletes the copied content.   The multiple control system according to claim 9, wherein the unique information is a serial number of a device or a B-CAS card number. In a duplication control system connected so that data can be transmitted and received between a recording / reproducing apparatus that records received content and having apparatus-specific information and a duplicating apparatus that duplicates content recorded by the recording / reproducing apparatus A recording / reproducing apparatus,
A management unit that stores information related to recorded content and device-specific information in association with the permitted number of times of copying, and a control unit that controls the management unit,
When duplicating the content recorded by the recording / playback device in the duplicating device, the management unit checks the stored duplicatable number of times, and if the duplicatable number of times remains, decreases the number of times, the control unit Performs a process for transmitting the content to be copied to the copying apparatus.   14. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein when the information regarding the end of copying cannot be received from the copying apparatus, the management unit returns the number of times that copying can be reduced by one time.   14. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein when the information about the replication end is received from the replication apparatus, the replication valid information is transmitted to the replication apparatus.   14. The recording / reproducing apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the unique information is a serial number of the apparatus or a B-CAS card number.

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