JP2504739B2 - TV receiver channel selection program device - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a channel selection program device for a television receiver that stores an arbitrary television program and automatically performs channel selection operation according to the stored program.

[Prior Art and its Problems] At present, television receivers are predominantly used in almost all households, but the VTR (video tape recorder) is also remarkably widespread. Then, the above VTR
In general, a reservation recording function is provided. When performing this reserved recording, it is possible to program-set arbitrary programs by specifying the time and channel.
Regarding the program to be reserved, it is necessary to confirm the channel and the broadcast date and time of the program together with the desired program by the TV section of the newspaper or the TV guide, and the confirmation operation is very troublesome.

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and it is possible to easily display a designated program by displaying a television program guide on a television screen and designating a desired program from the displayed programs. An object of the present invention is to provide a channel selection program device for a television receiver capable of performing program setting.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a program that stores a television program guide including broadcast date / time data, broadcast station data, and program name data, and stores flags corresponding to display and recording in the television program guide. Information storage means, display means for displaying a television program guide stored in the program information storage means on the screen, input means for switching the state of the flag based on the display of the display means, and a clock circuit And comparing the time data of the clock circuit with the broadcast date / time data of the stored program and detecting the presence / absence of the flag, and when the broadcast time of the stored program is reached, an operation corresponding to the flag And a control means for performing the operation described above so that the operation preset by the flag is performed when the broadcast time of the stored program is reached.

Embodiments of the Invention Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, the overall circuit configuration will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 1, a tuner 11 selects a broadcast radio wave of a desired channel from the television broadcast radio waves induced in the antenna 10 in accordance with an instruction from the television control unit 12, converts it to an intermediate frequency, and outputs it to the TV circuit 13. This TV circuit 13 is a tuner 11
A tuning signal is created by the TV signal from the, and is output to the TV control unit 12, and after the TV signal is amplified, processing such as video detection, sync separation, and audio detection is performed, and the display switching circuit 14 is used. Video signal on CRT display 1
5 and outputs a voice signal from a speaker (not shown). A touch switch 16 is provided on the front surface of the CRT display unit 15. The touch operation of the touch switch 16 is detected by the key sense circuit 17 and sent to the CPU 18.

A keyboard 19 having various control keys and a clock circuit 20 for measuring the current time and date are connected to the CPU 18, and the television control section is connected via a bus line 21.
12, a display switching circuit 14, a program memory 22 for storing TV program information, an input device 23 for inputting TV program information,
A work memory 24, a display memory 25, a channel voltage generation circuit 26, a mouse 27, and a VTR control unit 28 are connected. The channel voltage generation circuit 26 generates a channel voltage according to the channel designation code from the CPU 18, and the TV control unit
12 and VTR control unit 28. This VTR controller 28 has
The VTR 29 is connected, and the reproduction output A of the VTR 29 is input to the display switching circuit 14. This display switching circuit 14 is
Select the input signal according to the control command from the CRT display section 1
Output to 5.

Thus, the program memory 22 stores, for example, one month's worth of program information, and the address area is divided by date, and the head address (address x) is set for each.
FIG. 2 shows the configuration of a partial area of the program memory 22. As program information, date, channel, day of the week, start time, end time, type of program, and broadcast indicating that the program is being broadcast. A medium flag F1, a broadcast end flag F2 indicating that the program has ended, a television reservation flag F3 for reserving a TV operation, a VTR reservation flag F4 for reserving a VTR operation, a program name, etc. are set. These program information are stored in the input device of FIG.
Input from 23, and as an input means, there is a method using a bar code reader, for example.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be described. First, for example, the program information for one week or one month printed on a bar code on a TV guide is read by the input device 23 and stored in the program memory 22 under the control of the CPU 18. C
After writing the television program information in the program memory 22, the PU 18 executes the initial process according to the flowchart shown in FIG.

That is, the CPU 18 sets the designated address N of the program memory 22 to "1" (start address) as shown in step A1 of FIG. 3, and reads the contents of the designated address N from the program memory 22 in step A2. Then, as shown in step A3, the date of the program read from the program memory 22 and the clock circuit 20
If the current date is larger than the current date (the current day) that is being clocked in, that is, if the broadcast date has already ended before yesterday, go to step A4 and set the flag. Set F2, then go to step A6. If the current date and the date of the program match, the process proceeds from step A3 to step A5, and it is determined whether or not the current time measured by the clock circuit 20 has passed the end time of the program, If the current time has passed the end time of the program, the process proceeds to step A4 and the flag F2 is set. However, if the current time has not passed the end time of the program, step A5
To Step A6. If it is determined in step A3 that the current date is smaller than the program date, that is, the program has not been broadcast yet, step
Go to A6. In step A6, it is determined whether the designated address N of the program memory 22 has reached the final address. If the final address has not been reached, the designated address N is incremented by "+1" in step A7, and then the process returns to step A2. Thereafter, similar processing is repeated, and the program information is sequentially read from the program memory 22 to determine whether or not the broadcast has ended. If the broadcast has ended, the flag F2 is set. When the designated address N of the program memory 22 reaches the final address, that state is detected in step A6, and the initial processing is terminated.

After the TV program information is stored in the program memory 22 as described above and the initial process is completed, the keyboard 19
The TV program guide can be displayed on the CRT display unit 15 by
, And an arbitrary program can be set based on the displayed program. The program setting operation will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, as shown in step B1, the date of the program to be programmed is input from the keyboard 19, and the "program guide" key for instructing the display of the program guide is operated. When the above key operation is performed, the CPU 18 reads the specified date data in step B2, and sets the start address x and the end address x _END for the corresponding date area of the program memory 22 in accordance with the date data as shown in step B3. appear. Then, the CPU 18 sets the program memory 22 as shown in step B4.
The designated address N for is set to the head address x, and the stored information for one program is read from the program memory 22 in step B5. Next, the program information read from the program memory 22 is output to the work memory 24 as shown in step B6. After that, the process proceeds to step B7, it is determined whether the memory designated address N reaches the end address x _END , and the end address x
If it has not reached _END , the memory designated address N is incremented by "+1" in step B8 and then the process returns to step B5. Less than,
By repeating the same operation, the program information on the specified date is read from the program memory 22 to the work memory 24. Then, when the memory designated address N reaches the end address x _END , the determination result of step B7 becomes YES and the process proceeds to step B9. CPU18
Displays the program information read to the work memory 24.
At B9, it is edited in a form that is easy to see, and then the edited result is output to the display memory 25 as shown in step B10. The list of programs written in the display memory 25 is sent to the display switching circuit 14. In the above program setting mode, CPU1
The display switching circuit 14 displays the display memory 25 according to the control command from 8.
The television program guide that has been switched to the side and is stored and held in the display memory 25 is sent to the CRT display unit 15 and displayed. In this television program table, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, daily programs, days of the week, channels, programs and broadcast times of the day are displayed in correspondence with each other, and "TV" and "VT" are displayed.
"R""and" END "operation specification items are displayed. Above "T
"V" is a program tuning mode for automatically selecting a designated program and displaying an image. "VTR" is a reserved recording mode, "END".
Is an operation designation item for instructing the end of processing. Then, in the program guide, operation marks M indicating operation positions are provided so as to correspond to each program and operation designation item. The operation mark M is displayed at a position corresponding to each touch electrode of the touch switch 16.

Then, the user looks at the contents of the program displayed on the CRT display unit 15, first specifies the operation mode of "TV" or "VTR", and then touches the desired program with his / her finger. This touch operation is detected by the touch switch 16 and the key sense circuit 17, and the detection signal is sent to the CPU 18. The CPU 18 detects the key sense signal sent from the key sense circuit 17 in step B11 in FIG. 4 to determine the content thereof, and if the TV mode is selected, the process proceeds to step B12, where "VT
If it is the "R" mode, the process goes to step B13 to perform the recognition process of the designated programs. When the program recognition processing in step B12 above is completed, the process proceeds to step B14 and the program memory 2
Set the TV reservation flag F3 of 2 and then step B11
Return to and wait until the next key touch input. When the program recognition processing in step B13 is completed, step B15
Go to and set the VTR reservation flag F4 of the program memory 22,
After that, the process returns to step B11 and waits until the next key touch input. Thereafter, the same operation is performed every time the program is reserved by the key touch operation, and the TV reservation flag F3 or the VTR reservation flag F4 is set in the program memory 22. After the program reservation operation is completed, the item "END" on the TV screen is touched. Above "END"
The touch operation of the item is detected in step B11, and the program reservation process ends.

When the above program reservation is made, the CPU 18
Constantly compares the contents of the program memory 22 with the timekeeping data of the clock circuit 20, and when the broadcast start time of the reserved program is reached, channel selection for that program and further VTR recording operation are performed. The operation will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The clock circuit 20 always measures the current time, and the current time information and today's date information are stored in the CPU 18
Supply of. As shown in step C1 of FIG. 8, the CPU 18 constantly performs the detection process of the 1-minute pulse sent from the clock circuit 20, and when the 1-minute pulse is detected, the process proceeds to step C2 and the clock circuit 20 outputs the 1-minute pulse. Read date data. Then, the CPU 18 generates a start address x and an end address x _END for the corresponding date area of the program memory 22 according to the date data of the current day read from the clock circuit 20 as shown in step C8. Then, the CPU 18 designates the designated address N for the program memory 22 as shown in step C4.
As the start address x, and the program memory is stored in step C5.
Read the stored contents of 22. Then, in step C6, it is determined whether or not the broadcast end flag F2 is set, and if the flag F2 is not set, the process proceeds to step C7 to determine the magnitude relationship between the current time and the broadcast start time. If the current time is past the broadcast start time, proceed to step C8 to determine whether the current time has reached the broadcast end time.If the current time has not reached the broadcast end time, that is, the current broadcast If it is medium, proceed to Step C9. Further, if it is determined in step C6 that the flag F2 is set (broadcast end), and further if it is determined in step C7 that the current time has not reached the broadcast start time, the process proceeds to step C9 and the memory It is judged whether the specified address N has reached the end address x _END , and the end address x is still
If it has not reached _END , the memory designated address N is incremented by "+1" in step C10, and then the process returns to step C5. If it is determined in step C9 that the memory designated address has reached the end address x _END , step C1
It returns to and waits until the next 1-minute pulse is input.

If it is determined in step C7 that the current time matches the broadcast start time, step C11
Go to and determine whether the TV reservation flag F3 is set, and if the TV reservation flag F3 is set,
Proceed to step C12 and turn on the TV. Then C
The PU 18 then sets the program memory 2 as shown in step C13.
The channel code of the program read from 2 is output to the channel voltage generation circuit 26. The channel voltage generation circuit 26 generates a channel voltage according to the channel code from the CPU 18 and outputs it to the television control unit 12. The television control unit 12 controls the tuner 11 according to the channel voltage from the channel voltage generation circuit 26 and selects a designated channel. The TV signal selected by the tuner 11 is processed by the TV circuit 13 to extract a video signal, which is sent to the CRT display unit 15 for display. On the other hand CPU18
When the processing of step C13 is completed, or when it is determined that the television reservation flag F3 is not set in step C11, it is determined whether or not the VTR reservation flag F4 is set in step C14, If it is not set, the broadcasting flag F1 is set as shown in step C18, and then the process returns to step C9. But above VTR
If the reservation flag F4 is set, the process proceeds from step C14 to step C15 to turn on the power of the VTR29 and then to step C1.
As shown in 6, channel selection is performed by the VTR control unit 28. Next, the CPU 18 gives a recording command to the VTR control unit 28,
The recording operation of the VTR 29 is started as shown in step C17. Then, after setting the on-air flag 1 in step C18, the process returns to step C9.

As described above, automatic TV channel selection and VTR automatic recording are started, but after that, the end time of the program is reached, and the current time measured by the clock circuit 20 in step C8 is the end of the program. If it is determined that the times match, the process proceeds from step C8 to step C19 and the TV reservation flag F3
Is set, and the TV reservation flag
If F3 is set, proceed to step F12 to turn off the TV. Next, in step C21, the television reservation flag F3 is reset, and then the process proceeds to step C22. If it is determined in step C19 that the TV reservation flag F3 is not set, step C22 is immediately executed.
Proceed to. In this step C22, it is judged whether or not the VTR reservation flag F4 is set, and if it is set, the power of the VTR 29 is turned off in step C23, and the step
The VTR reservation flag F4 is reset in C24, and then the process proceeds to step 25. Also, in step C22 above, the VTR reservation flag
If it is determined that F4 is not set, the process immediately proceeds to step C25. In this step C25, the broadcasting flag F1
Is reset, then the broadcast end flag F2 is set in step C26, and the process returns to step C9. As described above, the automatic channel selection process for the reserved program and the automatic recording process are performed.

In the above embodiments, the method of storing the TV program information in the program memory 22 is shown by the bar code reader, but other methods such as a memory pack, a cassette tape, or an IC card may be used. You can also use the Videotex to read TV program information from the Videotex information center and store it in the program memory.
It may be stored in 22. If the program guide cannot be displayed at one time on the screen, it may be divided and displayed by scrolling or page breaks.

[Effects of the Invention] As described in detail above, according to the present invention, a television program guide including broadcast date / time data, broadcast station data, and program name data is stored, and each of the display and recording is performed in the television program guide. Program information storage means for storing the corresponding flag, display means for displaying the television program guide stored in the program information storage means on the screen, and for switching the state of the flag based on the display of the display means. Of the input means, the clock circuit, the time data of the clock circuit and the broadcast date / time data of the stored program, and the presence or absence of the flag are detected, and when the broadcast time of the stored program is reached, The control means for performing the operation corresponding to the flag is provided, and the operation preset by the flag is performed at the broadcast time of the stored program. Even if you don't have a hearing, you can check the contents of the program by displaying the TV program guide on the TV screen and easily recognize the setting status of the program by the flag. Moreover, the program setting of the designated program is simple because it is sufficient to store the designated flag, and a predetermined operation can be automatically performed by a simple means called the designated flag. Further, since the flag is stored in the program guide of the storage means, the search of the program information in the program memory and the comparison and selection of the designated program can be efficiently performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

The drawings show one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a circuit configuration, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of information storage in a program memory, FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing an initial processing operation, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the program reservation operation,
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a display example of a television program guide, and FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing an operation when performing automatic channel selection and automatic recording for a reserved program. 10 …… antenna, 11 …… tuner, 12 …… television control section, 13 …… TV circuit, 14 …… display switching circuit, 15 …… CRT display section, 16 …… touch switch, 17 …… key sense circuit,
18 ... CPU, 19 ... Keyboard, 20 ... Clock circuit, 21 ...
… Bus line, 22 …… Program memory, 23 …… Input device, 24
...... Work memory, 25 …… Display memory, 26 …… Channel voltage generation circuit, 28 …… VTR control section, 29 …… VTR.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-58-137334 (JP, A) JP-B-52-15329 (JP, B2)

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. Program information storage means for storing a television program guide including broadcast date / time data, broadcast station data, and program name data, and storing flags respectively corresponding to image display and recording in the television program guide. A display means for displaying the television program guide stored in the program information storage means on the screen; an input means for switching the state of the flag based on the display of the display means; a clock circuit; The circuit time data and the stored broadcast date / time data of the program are compared, and the presence or absence of the flag is detected, and when the broadcast time of the program designated by the flag is reached, the operation corresponding to the flag is performed. A channel selection program device for a television receiver, comprising: a control unit.