JP2020141241A - Broadcasting system, broadcasting system control method, downconverter, and upconverter - Google Patents

Abstract

To perform handling flexibly without replacement of a device of down-converter or up-converter system equipment even when the channel layout is changed.SOLUTION: An head end device 20 includes setting means (setting unit 27) that sets a channel to be down-converted, down-conversion means (down converters 22-1 to 22-N) that down-converts a broadcast signal of the channel set by the setting means, and transmitting means (mixer 23) that transmits a signal down-converted by the down-converting means, and an up-converter 40 includes up-conversion means (up-conversion unit 42-1 to 42-N) that up-converts the broadcast signal of the channel down-converted by the down-conversion means to the broadcast signal of the original frequency, and output means (mixer 43) that outputs the broadcast signal up-converted by the up-conversion means.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a broadcasting system, a control method for a broadcasting system, a down converter, and an up converter.

Patent Document 1 describes a CATV broadcast signal of 70 to 770 MHz by dividing a BS broadcast signal in the band of 103 to 1337 MHz into two blocks on the transmitting side and down-converting these blocks by local signals of different frequencies. A technique of accommodating in a band and up-converting a down-converted signal on the receiving side to restore the original BS broadcast signal is disclosed.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-86477

By the way, in the technique disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the division method and the accommodation destination of the divided blocks are fixed in the band of 70 to 770 MHz, there is a problem that the system cannot flexibly cope with the change of the channel arrangement. There is a point.

Further, when the channel arrangement is changed, there is a problem that it cannot be easily dealt with such as equipment replacement of the system equipment of the down converter and the up converter.

The present invention is for solving such a problem, and a broadcasting system, a control method of a broadcasting system, a down converter, and an up converter capable of flexibly responding even when the channel arrangement is changed. Is to provide.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention down-converts the broadcast signal of a part of a plurality of channels with a down converter, transmits it via a transmission line, and up-converts it with an up converter to output it. In a broadcasting system, the down converter has a setting means for setting a channel to be down-converted, a down-converting means for down-converting a broadcast signal of a channel set by the setting means, and a signal down-converted by the down-converting means. The upconverter has an upconverting means for up-converting a broadcast signal of a channel down-converted by the down-converting means to a broadcast signal of the original frequency, and the up-converting means. It is characterized by having an output means for outputting an up-converted broadcast signal.
According to such a configuration, even if the channel arrangement is changed, it is possible to flexibly deal with it.

Further, in the present invention, the down-converting means down-converts the BS / CS right-handed broadcast signal and the BS / CS left-handed broadcast signal into the frequency band of the CATV broadcast signal, and the up-convert means is the frequency of the CATV broadcast signal. It is characterized in that a broadcast signal down-converted to a band is up-converted to the frequency band of a BS / CS right-handed broadcast signal and a BS / CS left-handed broadcast signal.
According to such a configuration, the BS / CS broadcast signal can be down-converted to the CATV broadcast signal and transmitted, and it is possible to flexibly respond to a change in the channel arrangement.

Further, in the present invention, the down converter has a transmission means for transmitting information about a channel to be down-converted to the up converter as setting information, and the up converter is a receiving means for receiving the setting information. A second setting means for setting the up-conversion means based on the setting information received by the receiving means.
According to such a configuration, it is possible to easily change the settings of a plurality of upconverters existing based on the setting information.

Further, in the present invention, the upconverter specifies a down-converted channel included in a broadcast signal transmitted from the down converter, and a specific means for specifying a frequency for up-converting the broadcast signal of the specified channel. It is characterized by having a control means for controlling the up-conversion means based on the information specified by the specific means.
With such a configuration, the upconverter can set automatically.

Further, the present invention relates to a method for controlling a broadcasting system in which a broadcast signal of a part of a plurality of channels is down-converted by a down converter and transmitted via a transmission line, and up-converted by an up converter and output. , The down converter transmits a setting step for setting a channel to be down-converted, a down-conversion step for down-converting a broadcast signal of the channel set in the setting step, and a down-converted signal in the down-conversion step. The upconverter has a transmission step, and the upconverter is up-converted in the up-conversion step of up-converting the broadcast signal of the channel down-converted by the down-conversion step to the broadcast signal of the original frequency and the up-conversion step. It is characterized by having an output step for outputting a broadcast signal.
According to such a method, even if the channel arrangement is changed, it is possible to flexibly deal with it.

Further, the present invention is the down converter of a broadcasting system in which a broadcast signal of a part of a plurality of channels is down-converted by a down converter, transmitted via a transmission line, up-converted by an up converter, and output. In the setting means for setting the channel to be down-converted, the down-converting means for down-converting the broadcast signal of the channel set by the setting means, and the transmitting means for transmitting the down-converted signal by the down-converting means. It is characterized by having.
According to such a configuration, even if the channel arrangement is changed, it is possible to flexibly deal with it.

Further, the present invention is the upconverter of a broadcasting system in which a broadcast signal of a part of a plurality of channels is downconverted by a downconverter, transmitted via a transmission line, upconverted by an upconverter, and output. In the up-conversion means for up-converting the broadcast signal of the channel down-converted by the down-convert means of the down converter to the broadcast signal of the original frequency, and the output for outputting the broadcast signal up-converted by the up-convert means. It is characterized by having means and.
According to such a configuration, even if the channel arrangement is changed, it is possible to flexibly deal with it.

According to the present invention, a broadcasting system, a broadcasting system control method, a down converter, which can flexibly respond to changes in channel arrangement without the need for equipment replacement of down converters and up converter system equipment. And, it becomes possible to provide an upconverter.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of the broadcasting system which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the configuration example of the down converter shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the configuration example of the upconverter shown in FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation of 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating an example of the process executed in the down converter shown in FIG. It is a flowchart for demonstrating an example of the process executed in the upconverter shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the down converter which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the up converter which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart for demonstrating an example of the process executed in the down converter shown in FIG. 7. It is a flowchart for demonstrating an example of the process executed in the upconverter shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the modified embodiment of this invention.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

(A) Explanation of Configuration of First Embodiment of the Present Invention FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a broadcasting system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the broadcasting system according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes an antenna 10, a headend device 20, a transmission line 30, an upconverter 40, and a television (TV) receiver 50. There is. In FIG. 1, for simplification of the drawings, only one upconverter 40 and one television receiver 50 are shown, but in reality, there are a plurality of these. The antenna 10 and the head-end device 20 are arranged on the head-end side, and the up-converter 40 and the television receiver 50 are arranged in the home of the subscriber.

Here, the antenna 10 receives, for example, a BS right-handed broadcast signal, a 110 ° CS right-handed broadcast signal, a BS left-handed broadcast signal, and a 110 ° CS left-handed broadcast signal and supplies them to the headend device 20. Although omitted in FIG. 1 for simplification of the drawings, other headend signals are also supplied to the transmission line 30.

The head-end device 20 transmits a BS right-handed broadcast signal, a 110 ° CS right-handed broadcast signal, a BS left-handed broadcast signal, and a 110 ° CS left-handed broadcast signal in the 70 to 770 MHz band supplied from the antenna 10 in the band 1032 to 3224 MHz. Downconvert to and output.

The transmission line 30 is composed of, for example, a coaxial cable or the like, and transmits an electric signal output from the head-end device 20.

The up converter 40 receives the broadcast signal transmitted through the transmission line 30, and up-converts the down-converted signal to restore the original broadcast signal, and supplies the broadcast signal to the television receiver 50.

The television receiver 50 demodulates the broadcast signal supplied from the upconverter 40, reproduces the video signal, audio signal, text information, and the like, displays them on the liquid crystal display, and emits sound from the speaker as audio. ..

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration example of the headend device 20 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the head-end device 20 includes a distributor 21, a down converter 22-1 to 22-N (N> 1), a mixer 23, a control unit 24, a storage unit 25, a transmission unit 26, and It has a setting unit 27.

Here, the distributor 21 distributes the broadcast signal input from the antenna 10 and supplies it to the down converters 22-1 to 22-N, respectively.

The down converters 22-1 to 22-N have demodulation units 22-1a to 22-Na and modulation units 22-2b to 22-Nb, respectively. The demodulation units 22-1a to 22-Na extract a signal of a predetermined channel from the broadcast signal supplied from the distributor 21, demodulate it, and output it. The modulation units 22-1b to 22-Nb down-convert the signals output from the demodulation units 22-1a to 22-Na into signals having a frequency specified by the control unit 24 and output the signals. As a result, for example, the broadcast signal in the 1032 to 3224 MHz band is down-converted to the 70 to 770 MHz band and output.

The mixer 23 mixes the signals output from the down converters 22-1 to 22-N with other headend signals and outputs the signals to the transmission line 30.

The control unit 24 controls the entire device based on a program or the like stored in the storage unit 25. The storage unit 25 stores a program for controlling the device and setting information for setting the down converters 22-1 to 22-N.

The transmission unit 26 transmits the setting information for setting the upconverter 40 to the upconverter 40 via the mixer 23.

The setting unit 27 is input with setting information for setting the down converters 22-1 to 22-N and the up-conversion units 42-1 to 42-N described later.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration example of the upconverter 40 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the upconverter 40 includes a distributor 41, an upconvert unit 42-1 to 42-N (N> 1), a mixer 43, a control unit 44, a receiving unit 45, and a storage unit 46. Have.

Here, the distributor 41 distributes the broadcast signal input from the transmission line 30 and supplies it to the up-conversion units 42-1 to 42-N.

The up-conversion units 42-1 to 42-N have BPF42-1a to BPF42-Na and frequency conversion units 42-1b to 42-Nb, respectively. BPF42-1a to BPF42-Na extract a signal of a predetermined channel from the broadcast signal supplied from the distributor 41 and output it. The frequency conversion units 42-1b to 42-Nb up-convert the signals output from the BPF42-1a to 42-Na into signals having a frequency specified by the control unit 24 and output the signals. As a result, for example, a signal in the 70 to 770 MHz band is up-converted to the 1032 to 3224 MHz band and output.

The mixer 43 mixes the signals output from the up-convert units 42-1 to 42-N with other signals and outputs the signals to the television receiver 50.

The control unit 44 controls the entire device based on a program or the like stored in the storage unit 46. The storage unit 46 stores a program for controlling the device and setting information for setting the up-conversion units 42-1 to 42-N.

The receiving unit 45 receives the setting information for setting the upconverter 40 transmitted from the headend device 20 and supplies the setting information to the control unit 44.

(B) Description of Operation of First Embodiment of the Present Invention Next, the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining an outline of the operation of the first embodiment. The horizontal axis of FIG. 4 indicates the frequency, and each rectangle indicates the channel of the broadcast signal.

If the administrator of the broadcasting system inputs information (setting information) for setting the allocation of the channel arrangement by operating the setting unit 27, the control unit 24 stores the setting information in the storage unit 25. At this time, the administrator also inputs the setting change timing information indicating the timing (for example, date and time) for changing to the new setting as the setting information. Such setting change timing information is also stored in the storage unit 25.

Next, the control unit 24 generates setting information for the upconverter (details will be described later) based on the setting information stored in the storage unit 25. The control unit 24 transmits the setting information for the upconverter including the setting change timing information to the upconverter 40 via the mixer 23. The receiving unit 45 of the upconverter 40 receives the setting information including the setting change timing information transmitted from the headend device 20, and supplies the setting information to the control unit 44. The control unit 44 stores the setting information including the setting change timing information in the storage unit 46.

In the above state, when the timing indicated in the setting change timing information is reached, the control unit 24 refers to the setting information stored in the storage unit 25 and down converters 22-1 to 22-N. Change the settings of.

More specifically, the control unit 24 is set to input the broadcast signals of channels A to D shown in FIG. 4 (A), down-convert and output them as shown in FIG. 4 (B). More specifically, for example, the demodulation unit 22-1a of the down converter 22-1 selects, demodulates, and outputs the broadcast signal of the channel A shown in FIG. 4A. Set the broadcast signal to be selected. Further, the control unit 24 has a frequency (1) down-converted by the modulation unit 22-1b so that the broadcast signal of channel A shown in FIG. 4 (A) becomes the broadcast signal of channel A'shown in FIG. 4 (B). Set the frequency of the local signal).

Similarly, the control unit 24 sets the down converter 22-2 to down-convert the broadcast signal of channel B shown in FIG. 4 (A) to the broadcast signal of channel B'in FIG. 4 (B), and down-converters. 22-3 is set so that the broadcast signal of channel C shown in FIG. 4 (A) is down-converted to the broadcast signal of channel C'in FIG. 4 (B), and the down converter 22-4 is shown in FIG. 4 (A). The broadcast signal of the indicated channel D is set to be down-converted to the broadcast signal of the channel D'of FIG. 4 (B). Although only channels A to D are shown in FIG. 4, there are actually channels other than these, and the control unit 24 down-converts the channels other than these to the channels to be processed. Set the frequency.

The control unit 44 of the upconverter 40 refers to the setting change timing information stored in the storage unit 46, and when the timing indicated in the setting change timing information comes, the setting information stored in the storage unit 46 is stored. Refer to it and change the settings of the up-conversion units 42-1 to 42-N.

That is, the control unit 44 is set to input the broadcast signals of the channels A'to D'shown in FIG. 4 (B), up-convert and output as shown in FIG. 4 (C). More specifically, for example, the BPF42-1a of the up-conversion unit 42-1 sets the pass band of the BPF42-1a so that the broadcast signal of the channel A shown in FIG. 4B is passed. Further, the control unit 44 has a frequency that the frequency conversion unit 42-1b up-converts so that the broadcast signal of channel A'shown in FIG. 4 (B) becomes the broadcast signal of channel A shown in FIG. 4 (C). (Frequency of local signal) is set.

Similarly, the control unit 44 sets the up-conversion unit 42-2 to up-convert the broadcast signal of channel B'shown in FIG. 4 (B) to the broadcast signal of channel B of FIG. 4 (C). The conversion unit 42-3 is set to up-convert the broadcast signal of channel C'shown in FIG. 4 (B) to the broadcast signal of channel C of FIG. 4 (C), and the up-conversion unit 42-4 is set to up-convert to FIG. The broadcast signal of channel D'shown in B) is set to be up-converted to the broadcast signal of channel D in FIG. 4 (C). Although only channels A to D are described in FIG. 4, there are actually channels other than these, and the control unit 44 describes the channels through which the channels other than these are passed and the frequencies to be up-converted. Set.

When the setting is completed by the above operation, the headend device 20 and the upconverter 40 are restarted to enable the setting. It is desirable that such a restart is performed, for example, at a time when there are few viewers such as midnight or during a broadcasting pause time.

When the setting is enabled by restarting, the following operations are executed and the broadcasting system transmits the broadcasting signal.

That is, in the head-end device 20, the down converter 22-1 down-converts the broadcast signal of channel A shown in FIG. 4 (A) to the broadcast signal of channel A'shown in FIG. 4 (B). Similarly, the down converter 22-2 down-converts the broadcast signal of channel B shown in FIG. 4 (A) to the broadcast signal of channel B'shown in FIG. 4 (B), and the down converter 22-3 is shown in FIG. 4 (B). The broadcast signal of channel C shown in A) is down-converted to the broadcast signal of channel C'shown in FIG. 4 (B), and the down converter 22-4 displays the broadcast signal of channel D shown in FIG. 4 (A). It is down-converted to the broadcast signal of channel D'shown in 4 (B). The down converters 22-5 to 22-N also down-convert and output the broadcast signal of the channel set in the same manner.

The broadcast signal down-converted as described above is mixed by the mixer 23 and transmitted to the upconverter 40 via the transmission line 30.

In the upconverter 40, the distributor 41 distributes the received signal and supplies it to the upconvert units 42-1 to 42-N.

In the up-conversion unit 42-1, the BPF 42-1a passes the broadcast signal of channel A'shown in FIG. 4 (B), and the frequency conversion unit 42-1b transmits the broadcast signal of channel A'shown in FIG. 4 (B). It is up-converted so that it becomes the broadcast signal of channel A shown in FIG. 4 (C).

Similarly, in the up-conversion unit 42-2, the BPF 42-2a passes the broadcast signal of the channel B'shown in FIG. 4 (B), and the frequency conversion unit 42-2b passes the broadcast signal of the channel B'shown in FIG. 4 (B). The broadcast signal is up-converted so as to be the broadcast signal of channel B shown in FIG. 4 (C). In the up-conversion unit 42-3, the BPF 42-3a passes the broadcast signal of the channel C'shown in FIG. 4 (B), and the frequency conversion unit 42-3b transmits the broadcast signal of the channel C'shown in FIG. 4 (B). It is up-converted so that it becomes the broadcast signal of channel C shown in FIG. 4 (C). In the up-conversion unit 42-4, the BPF 42-4a passes the broadcast signal of the channel D'shown in FIG. 4 (B), and the frequency conversion unit 42-4b transmits the broadcast signal of the channel D'shown in FIG. 4 (B). It is up-converted so that it becomes the broadcast signal of channel D shown in FIG. 4 (C).

When the channel settings are changed again, the same processing as described above is executed, and the settings of the headend device 20 and the upconverter 40 are changed.

As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, in the headend device 20, the channel to be down-converted can be freely set, and the frequency to be down-converted can be freely set. .. Further, in the upconverter 40, the channel to be up-converted can be freely set, and the frequency to be up-converted can be freely set. Therefore, the frequencies to be down-converted and up-converted can be freely selected according to the availability of the frequency band of the down-conversion destination.

Further, by setting the headend device 20 based on the setting information, transmitting this setting information to the upconverter 40, and making the same setting in the upconverter 40, it is possible to reliably set a large number of upconverters 40. Can be done.

Next, the details of the processing executed in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing executed in the headend device 20 shown in FIG. When the processing of the flowchart shown in FIG. 5 is started, the following steps are executed.

In step S10, the control unit 24 obtains input of setting information from the setting unit 27. More specifically, the down-conversion frequency of each channel shown in FIG. 4 is input as setting information, and the setting change timing information indicating the timing of setting change is input.

In step S11, the control unit 24 stores the setting information (information including the setting change timing information) input from the setting unit 27 in the storage unit 25.

In step S12, the control unit 24 generates the setting information of the upconverter 40 with reference to the setting information input in step S10. More specifically, the setting information is generated based on the frequency of the down-converted channel, the up-conversion frequency for returning the down-converted broadcast signal, and the setting change timing information.

In step S13, the control unit 24 transmits the setting information for the upconverter generated in step S12 via the transmission unit 26. As a result, the upconverter 40 receives this information in step S30 shown in FIG.

In step S14, when the control unit 24 refers to the setting change timing information stored in the storage unit 25, determines whether or not it is the timing to change the setting, and determines that it is the setting change timing (step S14: In Y), the process proceeds to step S15, and in other cases (step S14: N), the same process is repeated.

In step S15, the control unit 24 sets 1 as an initial value in the variable i for counting the number of processes.

In step S16, the control unit 24 sets the i-th down-conversion unit. For example, the control unit 24 executes the setting of the down converter 22-i. More specifically, the frequency of the channel selected by the demodulation unit 22-ia is set, and the frequency to be down-converted by the modulation unit 22-ib is set. For example, when i = 1, the frequency of the channel selected by the demodulation unit 22-1a is set, and the frequency to be down-converted by the modulation unit 22-1b is set.

In step S17, the control unit 24 increments the value of the variable i by 1.

In step S18, the control unit 24 determines whether or not i ≦ N (N = 4 in the example of FIG. 4) is satisfied, and if it is satisfied (step S18: Y), returns to step S16 and described above. The same process as in the above is repeated, and in other cases (step S18: N), the process proceeds to step S19.

In step S19, the control unit 24 restarts the device. As a result, the setting by the loop processing of steps S16 to S18 is enabled.

Next, with reference to FIG. 6, the details of the processing executed in the upconverter 40 shown in FIG. 3 will be described. When the processing of the flowchart shown in FIG. 6 is started, the following steps are executed.

In step S30, the receiving unit 45 receives the setting information transmitted in step S13 of FIG.

In step S31, the control unit 44 stores the setting information received in step S30 in the storage unit 46.

In step S32, the control unit 44 refers to the setting change timing information included in the setting information, determines whether or not the setting change timing has been reached, and determines that the setting change timing has been reached (step S32: Y). The process proceeds to step S33, and in other cases (step S32: N), the same process is repeated.

In step S33, the control unit 44 sets 1 as an initial value in the variable i for counting the number of processes.

In step S34, the control unit 44 sets the i-th up-conversion unit. For example, the control unit 44 executes the setting of the up-conversion unit 42-i. More specifically, the frequency of the channel selected by BPF42-ia is set, and the frequency to be up-converted by the frequency conversion unit 42-ib is set. For example, when i = 1, the control unit 44 sets the frequency of the channel selected by the BPF42-1a and sets the frequency to be up-converted by the frequency conversion unit 42-1b.

In step S35, the control unit 44 increments the value of the variable i by 1.

In step S36, the control unit 44 determines whether or not i ≦ N (N = 4 in the example of FIG. 4) is satisfied, and if it is satisfied (step S36: Y), returns to step S34 and described above. The same process as in the above is repeated, and in other cases (step S36: N), the process proceeds to step S37.

In step S37, the control unit 44 restarts the device. As a result, the setting by the loop processing of steps S34 to S36 is valid.

According to the above processing, the operation of the first embodiment described above can be realized.

(C) Description of the configuration of the second embodiment of the present invention Next, the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. 7 and 8 are diagrams showing a configuration example of the second embodiment. In FIGS. 7 and 8, the parts corresponding to those in FIGS. 2 and 3 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted.

In FIG. 7, the transmission unit 26 is excluded as compared with FIG. Other configurations are the same as in FIG. Further, in FIG. 8, as compared with FIG. 3, the receiving unit 45 is excluded and the analysis unit 47 is newly added. The configuration other than these is the same as in FIG.

In the second embodiment, the headend device 20 does not transmit the setting information to the upconverter 40. The upconverter 40 is different from the first embodiment in that the analysis unit 47 analyzes the broadcast signal to automatically generate the setting information and perform the setting based on the setting information.

(D) Description of Operation of Second Embodiment of the Present Invention Next, the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the following, after explaining the schematic operation of the second embodiment, the detailed operation will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.

In the second embodiment, the head-end device 20 sets the down converters 22-1 to 22-N based on the setting information input from the setting unit 27, as in the first embodiment, but generates the setting information. Then, the process of transmitting to the upconverter 40 is not performed. When the setting of the down converters 22-1 to 22-N is completed, the system is restarted and the down conversion is executed based on the set information. For example, the broadcast signal shown in FIG. 4 (B) is the up converter 40. Will be sent to.

In the upconverter 40, the analysis unit 47 analyzes the received signal, specifies the frequency of the down-converted channel, and specifies the original frequency (up-converted destination frequency) of the down-converted channel. For example, in the example of FIG. 4, the channels A to D shown in FIG. 4B are specified as the down-converted channels, and the frequencies of these channels A to D are specified. Further, as the frequency to be up-converted, the original frequency of the broadcast signal of each channel shown in FIG. 4C is specified.

The control unit 44 stores the information analyzed by the analysis unit 47 in the storage unit 46, and sets the up-conversion units 42-1 to 42-N based on the above-mentioned information stored in the storage unit 46. To do. As a result, when the channel setting is changed, each upconverter 40 can automatically analyze the channel and reset it.

Next, details of the processing executed in the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining an example of the process executed in the headend device 20 shown in FIG. 7. In the process shown in FIG. 9, the parts corresponding to those in FIG. 5 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. In FIG. 9, step S12 and step S13 are excluded as compared with FIG. Other than these, it is the same as in FIG. That is, in FIG. 9, as compared with FIG. 5, the setting information is not generated, and the process of transmitting the setting information to the upconverter 40 is not executed.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining an example of processing executed in the upconverter 40. In the process shown in FIG. 10, the same reference numerals are given to the parts corresponding to those in FIG. 6, and the description thereof will be omitted. In FIG. 10, as compared with FIG. 6, the processes of steps S30 to S32 are excluded, and the processes of steps S51 to S55 are added. Other than these, it is the same as in FIG. Hereinafter, the processes of steps S51 to S55 will be described.

In step S51, the analysis unit 47 executes an analysis process of the received signal. More specifically, the analysis unit 47 analyzes the frequency component of the received signal at a predetermined cycle and compares it with the past analysis result to detect that the setting has been changed due to the change in the channel arrangement.

In step S52, the analysis unit 47 determines whether or not the setting has been changed based on the analysis result in step S51, and if it is determined that the setting has been changed (step S52: Y), the process proceeds to step S53. In other cases (step S52: N), the process returns to step S51 and the same process as described above is repeated.

In step S53, the analysis unit 47 identifies the channel to be up-converted. More specifically, when the arrangement of the frequency components changes from the conventional one, the analysis unit 47 identifies the channel to be up-converted by specifying the changed channel. Alternatively, the arrangement state of the channel that does not include the down-converted signal is stored in the storage unit 46, and by comparing this information with the analysis result by the analysis unit 47, the channel to be up-converted is specified. ..

In step S54, the analysis unit 47 specifies the frequency of the channel specified in step S53. For example, the frequencies of the broadcast signals of the channels A to D shown in FIG. 4B are specified.

In step S55, the analysis unit 47 identifies the frequency of the up-conversion destination by analyzing the content of the broadcast signal of the channel specified in step S53. For example, the frequencies of channels A to D shown in FIG. 4C are specified.

In steps S33 to 36, the up-conversion units 42-1 to 42-N are set based on the analysis results of steps S51 to S55. As a result, for example, a setting for converting the broadcast signals of channels A to D shown in FIG. 4 (B) into the broadcast signals of channels A to D shown in FIG. 4 (C) is executed. Then, when the setting is completed, a reboot is executed and the setting is activated.

As described above, according to the second embodiment of the present invention, the analysis unit 47 of the upconverter 40 detects the change in the channel setting and generates and outputs the setting information. It is no longer necessary for the end device 20 to generate and transmit the setting information.

(E) Description of Modified Embodiments It goes without saying that each of the above embodiments is an example, and the present invention is not limited to the cases described above. For example, in each of the above embodiments, the case where the transmission line 30 connecting the headend device 20 and the upconverter 40 is a coaxial cable has been described as an example. However, for example, as shown in FIG. 11, the transmission line 35 is It may be configured by an optical cable. In this case, the E / O unit 51 may be provided in the rear stage of the headend device 20, and the O / E unit 52 may be provided in the front stage of the upconverter 40.

Further, in the above second embodiment, the upconverter 40 automatically generates the setting information and restarts immediately after the generation is completed to enable the setting. However, for example, the same as in the first embodiment. The setting change timing information may be transmitted from the headend device 20 to the upconverter 40, and the headend device 20 and the upconverter 40 may change the settings in synchronization with the setting timing information.

Further, in the above first embodiment, the setting change is performed for all the upconverters 40 connected to the transmission line 30, but for example, the setting change is executed by designating a specific upconverter 40. You may do so. For example, the setting may be changed by selecting a region, or the setting may be changed by specifying the hardware version of the upconverter 40.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, the power source of the upconverter 40 is not mentioned, but some of the upconverters 40 receive power supply from the television receiver 50. In such a configuration, when the power of the television receiver 50 is turned off, the power of the power is not supplied to the upconverter 40. In this case, the upconverter 40 cannot receive information such as setting information transmitted from the headend device 20, and the settings cannot be changed. Therefore, the head-end device 20 may transmit the setting information or the like a plurality of times over a certain period (for example, a period of one week to one month) instead of transmitting the setting information once. Further, if the setting change timing is reached while the power supply power is being supplied to the upconverter 40, the system is restarted after the setting change is performed, and the power supply power is not supplied at the setting change timing after that. When the power supply power is supplied to the power supply, the setting may be changed and the system may be restarted when the power supply power is supplied. That is, when the channel arrangement is changed, some channels cannot be viewed, so it is desirable to change the settings and restart as soon as possible.

Further, it goes without saying that the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 5, 6, 9 and 10 are examples, and the present invention is not limited to the processing of these flowcharts.

10 Antenna 20 Head-end device 21 Distributor 22-1 to 22-N Down converter 22-1a to 22-Na Demodulation unit 22-1b to 22-Nb Modulation unit 23 Mixer 24 Control unit 25 Storage unit 26 Transmission unit 27 Setting Part 30 Transmission line 35 Transmission line 40 Upconverter 41 Distributor 42-1 to 42-N Upconvert part 42-1a to 42-Na BPF
42-1b to 42-Nb Frequency converter 43 Mixer 44 Control 45 Receiver 46 Storage 47 Analysis 50 Television receiver 51 E / O
52 O / E

Claims (7)

In a broadcasting system in which broadcast signals of some of a plurality of channels are down-converted by a down converter, transmitted via a transmission line, and up-converted by an up converter and output.
The down converter
Setting means to set the channel to be down-converted,
A down-conversion means that down-converts the broadcast signal of the channel set by the setting means, and
It has a transmission means for transmitting a signal down-converted by the down-conversion means.
The upconverter
An up-conversion means for up-converting a broadcast signal of a channel down-converted by the down-conversion means to a broadcast signal of the original frequency,
It has an output means for outputting a broadcast signal up-converted by the up-conversion means.
A broadcasting system characterized by that. The down-conversion means down-converts the BS / CS right-handed broadcast signal and the BS / CS left-handed broadcast signal into the frequency band of the CATV broadcast signal.
The up-conversion means up-converts a broadcast signal down-converted to the frequency band of a CATV broadcast signal to the frequency bands of a BS / CS right-handed broadcast signal and a BS / CS left-handed broadcast signal.
The broadcasting system according to claim 1. The down converter has a transmission means for transmitting information about a channel to be down-converted to the up converter as setting information.
The upconverter has a receiving means for receiving the setting information and a second setting means for setting the upconverting means based on the setting information received by the receiving means.
The broadcasting system according to claim 1 or 2. The upconverter identifies the down-converted channel included in the broadcast signal transmitted from the down converter, and also identifies the frequency for up-converting the broadcast signal of the specified channel, and the specific means. A control means for controlling the up-conversion means based on the identified information,
The broadcasting system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the broadcasting system has. In the control method of a broadcasting system in which a broadcast signal of a part of a plurality of channels is down-converted by a down converter and transmitted via a transmission line, and then up-converted by an up converter and output.
The down converter
Setting steps to set the channel to be down-converted,
A down-conversion step that down-converts the broadcast signal of the channel set in the setting step, and
It has a transmission step of transmitting a down-converted signal in the down-conversion step.
The upconverter
The up-conversion step of up-converting the broadcast signal of the channel down-converted by the down-conversion step to the broadcast signal of the original frequency,
It has an output step for outputting an up-converted broadcast signal in the up-conversion step.
A method of controlling a broadcasting system, which is characterized in that. In the down converter of a broadcasting system, a broadcast signal of a part of a plurality of channels is down-converted by a down converter, transmitted via a transmission line, up-converted by an up converter, and output.
Setting means to set the channel to be down-converted,
A down-conversion means that down-converts the broadcast signal of the channel set by the setting means, and
A transmission means for transmitting a signal down-converted by the down-conversion means, and
A down converter characterized by having. In the upconverter of a broadcasting system in which a broadcast signal of a part of a plurality of channels is downconverted by a downconverter, transmitted via a transmission line, upconverted by an upconverter, and output.
An up-conversion means for up-converting a broadcast signal of a channel down-converted by the down-conversion means of the down converter to a broadcast signal of the original frequency,
An output means that outputs a broadcast signal up-converted by the up-conversion means, and
An upconverter characterized by having.