JP4612791B2 - Receiving apparatus and receiving method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a technique capable of changing display content at a broadcast station at an arbitrary time in a television broadcast program traversing a plurality of different media, and in particular, a streaming program provided by a television broadcast station. by being controlled by the event messages, etc., all viewers CM (C ommercial M essage) at any time with respect to the like are presented, it is and a technique that makes it possible to perform the switching seamlessly.

  With advances in technologies such as ADSL, cable TV, and optical fiber, high-speed Internet connection services, so-called broadband, are beginning to spread rapidly. These broadbands are now capable of higher-speed communication from 512 Kbps to several Mbps.

The conventional Internet connection by dial-up with an analog telephone line can only provide a communication speed of about 28.8 to 56 Kbps. ISDN (Integrated Digital Communication Network) that transfers all communication data digitally is 64 Kbps to 128 Kbps in a general service. Although it was difficult to transmit TV and VHS quality video signals in real time at about 128 Kbps, the use of the Internet and PCs can be expanded more and more, such as transmission of images etc. is sufficiently practical with broadband. It can be said that it has sex. Patent Document 1 ( Patent Document 2) discloses an apparatus that requests content, downloads it, and records / reproduces it.

  One of the services using the broadband is a streaming program. Streaming is a technology that enables sound data and video data in a server to be played sequentially while being downloaded via a network. By using streaming, video data with a large file size can be played back without wasting download time, and the video shot can be distributed in real time. By using this streaming technology in a broadband environment, users can enjoy high-quality content on a PC.

  In addition, there is a demand for operating the Internet, e-mails, still images of digital still cameras, etc. on the TV screen using the TV remote control in the same manner as watching TV, and such products are actually realized. Considering such a background, it is expected that a streaming program is also incorporated as a function of the television receiver. In this way, even those who are not good at operating PCs can enjoy streaming broadcasts easily on TV.

  On the other hand, various information has been digitized in recent years. Similarly, television broadcasting has been digitized, CS and BS broadcasting services have already started, and terrestrial broadcasting is also moving toward service initiation. One of the merits of digital broadcasting is information compression. With digital compression technology, it has become possible to transmit multiple channels in the bandwidth of one channel of conventional analog broadcasting. In fact, in BS digital broadcasting, multiple channels share one frequency band. Although it cannot be generally stated depending on the bit rate of the contents, 3 to 4 channels are commonly used in SD broadcasting.

JP 2001-318848 A US Patent Application Publication No. 2001/0042111

  However, even if it is possible to transmit a plurality of channels by digital compression technology, the frequency band is limited. When the broadcast station side provides a plurality of contents such as 10 to 20 or more as one program, it is difficult to provide the user with sufficient quality at present. Therefore, it is fully conceivable that there is a demand from the broadcasting station side to utilize the above streaming technology in order to provide such a multi-content program.

  When viewing a streaming program on a television receiver, switching between two media, broadcast waves and streaming, is the key. If this switching can be performed seamlessly, it can be said that the viewing environment is comfortable for the user. On the other hand, if the content is interrupted by this switching or if it takes a long time to switch, it cannot be said that the service sufficiently satisfies the user.

  An object of the present invention is to enable switching between a plurality of transmission media (media) such as the Internet and broadcast waves. For example, both communication data and broadcast data can be comfortably auditioned by the media switching control.

  Another object of the present invention is to avoid interruption of content of broadcast data due to media switching as much as possible.

The receiving device of the present invention includes a first data receiving unit that receives communication data from an external device via the Internet, and a second data receiving unit that receives broadcast data transmitted from a broadcasting station via a broadcast wave. A decoder capable of alternatively executing decoding processing of communication data received by the first data receiving means and decoding processing of broadcast data received by the second data receiving means; in response to an event message indicating a CM start received via the broadcast wave, a decoding process executed by the decoder, from the decode processing of the received communication data and the second by the first data receiving means switching the decoding processing of the received broadcast data by the data receiving means, indicate a CM end received via the broadcast wave event messages In response to the decoding process executed by the decoder switches to the decoding process of the received communication data by the second of said first data receiving means from the decoding of broadcast data received by the data receiving means And a memory for storing CM broadcast data received by the second data receiving means in response to an event message indicating the start of CM and an event message indicating the end of CM received via the broadcast wave. The decoder is switched from the decoding process of the communication data received by the first data receiving means to the decoding process of the broadcast data received by the second data receiving means, and then stored in the memory. The stored CM broadcast data is read and decoded .

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the omission of the head part of CM broadcast data due to the switching of the media library can be prevented, and it is possible to provide a viewing environment in which the viewer does not feel uncomfortable.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
<First Embodiment>
First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a television receiver 100 applicable to the present invention.
In FIG. 1, a signal received from an antenna is input to a tuner unit 101. The tuner unit 101 performs processing such as demodulation and error correction on the input signal to generate digital data in a format called a transport stream. Further, the generated transport stream (TS) data is output to the descrambler 102. The descrambler 102 outputs descramble key information included in the TS data and the IC card control unit 117 when TS data that is scrambled for viewing restriction is input from the tuner unit 101. Based on the key information, descrambling is performed and output to the demultiplexer 103.

  Here, the IC card control unit 117 includes an IC card that stores key information for solving key information for descrambler included in the user contract information and TS data, and is input from the descrambler 102. When there is key information for solving the descrambling key information, the key information is output to the descrambler 102. When descrambler 102 receives TS data that has not been scrambled from tuner unit 101, descrambler 102 outputs TS data to demultiplexer 103 as it is.

  The demultiplexer 103 is an operation unit selected from TS data in which video, audio data, electronic program guide (EPG) data, data broadcast data, etc. for a plurality of channels input from the descrambler 102 are time-division multiplexed. The video data D1 and the audio data D2 relating to the currently broadcast program are taken out on the channel selected by the operation of the remote controller 116 or the remote controller 116, and each is output to the decoder 104. The decoder 104 used in the present embodiment is assumed to be a media processor that performs decoding processing by providing software. This software and related libraries are obtained from the memory 107 via the bus 120. In addition, the demultiplexer 103 extracts the data broadcast / EPG data D3 from the above-described TS data and inputs the data broadcast / EPG data D3 to the data stream processing unit 121. The data broadcast / EPG data processed by the data stream processing unit 121 is taken into the memory 107 and stored in the hard disk 119 after software processing by the CPU described later.

Also, TS data is transmitted in packets, PID (P acket ID entification) is added to the beginning of the packet. The demultiplexer 103 reads this PID to identify video data D1, audio data D2, and data broadcast / EPG data D3.

  First, video data will be described. The decoder 104 performs MPEG2 decoding processing on the video data D1 input from the demultiplexer 103, and outputs the decoded video data to the display control unit 109. The display control unit 109 switches the screen according to the operation of the decoder 104 or the remote controller 116 or multiplexes and displays the image on the image display unit 111. When a plurality of image data selected from image data, audio data, data broadcast / EPG data, and the like are received, the images are combined here and output to the image display unit 111. Here, the screen configuration unit 108 will be described later. The screen display unit 111 includes a monitor and a video signal input terminal (not shown).

  Next, audio data will be described. The decoder 104 performs MPEG2 decoding processing on the audio data D2 input from the demultiplexer 103, and outputs the decoded audio data to the DAC 110. The DAC 110 performs D / A conversion processing on the audio data input from the decoder 104 and outputs the result to the audio output unit 112. The audio output unit 112 includes a speaker and an audio signal input terminal (not shown).

The data broadcast / EPG data D3 will be described. EPG (Electronic Program Guide) data is transmitted in a data structure defined by the standard “Program Display Information Used for Digital Broadcasting” by the Radio Industry Association (commonly known as ARIB). As the main configuration data, the name of the organization channel, name and the like of the broadcaster, SDT for transmitting information relating to the organization channel (S ervice D escription T able) , the name of the bouquet (group of organization channel), programmed channel or the like contained , BAT (B ouquet a ssociation T able) for transmitting information about the bouquet, the name of the program, broadcast start date and time, description, etc. of contents, transmission to EIT (E vent I nformation T able ) information about the program, Ya current date TDT to transmit information of the time (T ime D ata T able), and the like. EPG data is described as several items and descriptors in the EIT (event information table), and is configured and displayed in the form of so-called EPG by the data stream processing unit 121 and the screen configuration unit 108. .

In data broadcasting, digital data is repeatedly transmitted from a broadcasting station according to the DSMCC data carousel method defined in ISO / IEC13818-6. Text information in the filtered data broadcast data by the demultiplexer 103, script information, image information includes video and audio data, text information is described by BML (B roadcast M arkup L anguage ). The BML that scripting language used in digital broadcasting, a type of XML (e X tensible M arkup L anguage), ECMA Script can be used as the script.

  The data broadcast / EPG data D3 is decoded by the data stream processing unit 121 into EPG data composed of text information and image information, and data broadcast data composed of text information, image information, video / audio data, and then the bus 120 To be input to the memory 107. CPU 118 stores the processing result data including the display XML data in hard disk 119 after processing the data broadcast data. When a data broadcast display instruction is input from the operation unit 114 or the light receiving unit 115, the CPU 118 reads the display BML data from the hard disk 121 and outputs it to the screen configuration unit 108.

  The screen composition unit 108 is processed by the CPU 118 and outputs a video signal to the display control unit 109 based on the output data. As described above, the display control unit 109 outputs a video signal to the image display unit 112 in order to switch and display a video screen, a data broadcast screen, and the like.

The communication control unit 105 performs control according to the communication protocol via the Internet. The communication protocol, TCP / IP (T ransmission C ontrol P rotocol / I nternet P rotocol), UDP (User Datagram Protocol), and the like HTTP (H yper T ext T ransfer P rotocol). Using these protocols, a streaming data request is made to the streaming distribution server, and the data is received.

  106 is a FIFO which is a buffer, and performs buffering of streaming data necessary for reproducing a streaming program. When the decoder 104 decodes the streaming data D4, the decoder 104 switches to the streaming data decoding media library stored in the memory 107, reads the streaming data from the FIFO 106, and decodes each of video and audio. The decoded video is output to the display control unit 109, and the decoded audio is output to the audio output unit 112 via the DAC 110. 122 is a streaming information storage unit. If streaming playback is in progress, the elapsed time is held in units of hours, minutes, and seconds, such as [0:00:00]. Set the value of.

  An IEEE1394 interface 113 is further connected to the bus 120, and this television receiver 100 is used for protocol communication with a VTR 130 and a printer 131 connected to the outside.

  A configuration example of the remote controller 116 is shown in FIG. However, this figure shows only buttons for performing operations for realizing functions necessary for explaining the present embodiment, and buttons necessary for an actual receiving apparatus are not limited to this. In addition to the one shown in FIG. 2, a pointing device such as a mouse can be used in this embodiment.

  In FIG. 2, 200 is a light emitting unit for performing infrared communication between the remote controller and the light receiving unit 115 of FIG. 1, 201 is a power key for turning on / off the power, 202 is a selection cursor in four directions, up, down, left and right Cursor key for moving to, 203 is a decision key for deciding the area selection specified by the selection cursor, 204 is four keys called color keys, from the left "blue" "red" "green" "It is lined with" yellow ". The other keys shown are used for realizing various functions of the digital television receiver, but are not used for the operations in the present embodiment, so the description is omitted here.

The operation of the television receiver, media control system, and program distribution service in this embodiment with the above configuration will be described.
First, the contents of a broadcast program provided by the television broadcast station in this embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 shows a display example of the program (hereinafter referred to as a multi-view program) (300). 301 displays the program name of the multi-view program. Reference numeral 302 denotes a state in which the streaming program is displayed on the small screen. The small screen is displayed for streaming programs, here 12 programs. 303 is a program name corresponding to each streaming program, and 304 is a focus for selecting one of the streaming programs 302. The user can use the cursor key 202 of the remote control 116 to focus the streaming program to be viewed 304 and press the enter key 203 to view the desired streaming program. As a result of the determination, the streaming program is displayed on the full screen as shown in FIG. 4, and the streaming program is started through a series of procedures. The operation of the television receiver 100 until the full screen is displayed will be described later. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that a television broadcasting station provides a multi-viewing program using such a streaming program within a broadcasting time frame.

  The broadcast time frame of the multi-view program in this embodiment is 60 minutes. Like a normal program, a commercial is inserted for a few seconds in the middle of the main program. FIG. 5 (a) shows the time transition of the main part and CM of the multi-view program. 500 is a time when the main part is broadcast, and a streaming selection screen shown in FIG. 3 is displayed. When the commercial time is reached (501), the commercial is broadcast instead of the above-described mainstream streaming selection screen. The user can select a desired streaming program only during the main broadcast. FIG. 5B shows a temporal transition when the user selects a desired streaming program during the main broadcast. When the selected streaming program is 20 minutes, the streaming program acquired via the Internet for 20 minutes from the selected time (502) is displayed on the screen. However, when the CM broadcast time is reached (501), the streaming program is temporarily stopped and the screen is switched to the CM from the broadcast wave. After the end of the commercial (503), the program returns to the paused streaming program. After the selected 20-minute streaming program ends (504), the video (the main story or CM) from the broadcast wave is returned. In this way, the user can select and view a desired streaming program within the multi-viewing program broadcast time.

  FIG. 6 shows a moving image that is transmitted by PES (Pocketized Elementary Stream) using a broadcast wave of a multi-view program (600). In this embodiment, the information transmitted by PES is only video and does not include audio. A video that repeatedly plays a moving image for a streaming program such as 601 is broadcast as one program video for twelve.

  FIG. 7 shows a display example of BML data transmitted in a carousel by a broadcast wave of a multi-view program (700). Reference numeral 701 displays the program name of the program. This program name can be described in BML as characters, or can be incorporated into BML as an image. Reference numeral 702 denotes a frame display for each streaming program. Reference numeral 703 denotes a program name corresponding to each streaming program, which is written in BML as characters. Reference numeral 704 denotes a focus for explicitly showing the streaming program selected by the user, and can be moved by the cursor key 202 of the remote control 116. The above-described streaming program frame 702 can present the focus in an easy-to-understand manner using the navigation index and the focus style, and correctly describe the movement. The navigation index assigns an ID to each object and describes a focus movement destination with Nav-Up, Nav-Down, Nav-Left, and Nav-Right attributes. In addition, the focus style can explicitly indicate to the user where the focus is by specifying a style at the time of focus using a style sheet.

  When receiving the BML content by broadcast wave carousel transmission, the television receiving device 100 performs the decoding process as described above and activates the BML browser. Finally, an image as a multi-viewing program as shown in FIG. 3 is displayed on the image display unit 111 together with the moving image (FIG. 6) transmitted by the previous PES transmission. Note that the movement of the focus can be described by the above-described navigation index or can be described uniquely by a script.

  Next, an operation until the user selects a desired streaming content from the multi-view program displayed as shown in FIG. 3 will be described. The user moves the focus 304 on the screen to a desired streaming program by using the cursor key 202 of the remote control 116 while viewing the screen of the multi-view program. In this state, the streaming program is started by pressing the enter key 203 of the remote controller 116 (FIG. 4).

When a streaming program is selected by the user, the following two processes are performed by a script described in BML.
First, the URL of the streaming server to be connected is acquired from the selected BML object. Based on this URL, preparation for streaming reception is made through procedures for establishing streaming transmission / reception with the streaming server.

  The procedure for establishing streaming transmission / reception will be described below with reference to FIG. When the user selects a streaming program that the user wants to view by operating the BML browser using the remote controller 116, the URL of the WEB server that provides information on the corresponding program is acquired by a script described in BML. Then, an information file is requested from the WEB server (800). Upon receiving this request, the WEB server transmits an information file to the BML browser (801). The information file describes the location of the streaming server, the protocol, and the like.

  The BML browser that has received the information file passes this file to the communication control unit 105 (802). During this time, a decoder switching process (802) is entered as shown in FIG. The communication control unit 105 opens a bidirectional TCP connection to the streaming server based on the passed information file (803). This enables control by a specified storm protocol. The streaming server establishes a unidirectional UDP connection to the communication control unit 105 in accordance with the command according to the protocol, and starts transmitting content (804).

Second, the library of the media processor as a decoder is switched from one for broadcasting waves to one for streaming. Since the script representing such a description is undefined at this time, as a script described in BML,
Browser.setDecoder (xx);
Are newly defined. Either one of the values representing TS decoder or streaming decoder is set in the argument. Upon receiving such a request, the CPU 118 of the television receiving device 100 stops the decoding process of the TS currently being executed by the decoder 104, retrieves the streaming decoding library from the memory 107, and switches to this.

  After the procedure as described above, the streaming program content received by the communication control unit 105 is buffered by the FIFO 106, then decoded by the decoder 104, and displayed on the image display unit 111 via the display control unit 109 (see FIG. 4). During streaming program content playback, a streaming program content transmission continuation request or interruption request is made to the WEB server according to the amount of data in the FIFO 106. When streaming playback starts, the streaming information holding unit 122 acquires the playback elapsed time from a timer (not shown) and holds this.

  The television receiver 100 of the present embodiment extracts the data broadcast / EPG data D3 from the TS data received via the tuner 101, (descrambler 102) and the demultiplexer 103 even during decoding and display of the streaming program, and a data stream processing unit Continue to receive / analyze by 121. Here, the data received by the television receiving device is a DMSCC event message transmitted by a broadcasting station broadcasting a multi-viewing program to present a CM to the user. Or the event message sent out in order to show a user the latest information like a temporary news and the latest news may be sufficient.

  The DSMCC event message is a mechanism that enables a short message to be promptly notified from the broadcasting station to the tuner. Since this event message is transmitted not in a carousel but in a section format, there is a feature that it does not take time to receive. There are two types of event messages. One is an immediate firing type. When a broadcaster broadcasts an event message, the tuner receives the information and can take action quickly. The other is a time designation type, in which time information for causing an action is included in the event message. The broadcaster broadcasts the event message shortly before the action takes place. Even if a television receiver receives a time-designated event message, it does not immediately take an action but takes some action at the time designated in the message. In the present embodiment, the former immediate firing type event message is used, but it is clear that the same effect can be obtained in the latter time designation type event message.

  FIG. 9 shows the structure of DSMCC_section representing an immediate firing type event message. If the value column in the figure is blank, it is not something that is particularly cared for according to the standard in ARIB or in this embodiment. What should be noted here is the descriptor tag (*). In this embodiment, it is assumed that 0xC9, 0xCA, and 0xCB, which are reserved in the standard, are used as this value. Although details will be described later, descriptor tag = 0xC9 is a value indicating the start of CM, descriptor tag = 0xCA is a value indicating the end of CM, and descriptor tag = 0xCB is a value indicating the end of program.

  The broadcast station gives all the viewers of the multi-viewing program (both viewers watching the streaming selection screen and viewers watching the streaming program) the above-mentioned immediate firing type event message to present the CM at the same time. Is sent with descriptor tag = 0xC9. The data stream processing unit 121 of the television receiving device 100 that has received this event performs two types of processing according to the information held in the streaming information storage unit 122.

  If the streaming information storage unit 122 holds an invalid value (negative value) indicating that the streaming is stopped, the broadcast wave is continuously decoded as it is. Conversely, when the streaming information storage unit 122 holds the playback elapsed time indicating that the streaming program is being played, the streaming decoding is temporarily stopped, and the media library of the decoder 104 is switched to decode the TS from the broadcast wave. Here, the latter case is considered. Further, the streaming information storage unit 122 and the FIFO 106 when the decoding of streaming is temporarily stopped only hold the contents as they are. Further, the streaming server requests the temporary interruption of the streaming program content. At this time, as shown in FIG. 10 (a), if it takes time to switch the media library, there is a concern that the head portion of the CM from the broadcast wave cannot be presented to the viewer (1000).

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the data stream processing unit 121 that has received the CM start event message switches the media library of the decoder 104, and also prevents the CM broadcast from being lost in the memory 107 during this period. Accumulate TS data. When the switching of the media library is completed, the decoder 104 decodes the CM broadcast TS data stored in the memory 107 from the top, and displays it on the screen via the display control unit 109 and the image display unit 111. By doing this, it is possible to prevent the CM head portion from being lost due to the switching of the media library, which is a concern, and to provide a viewing environment that is very comfortable for the viewer.

  As with the event message indicating the CM start described above, the broadcast station transmits an immediate firing type event message indicating the CM end with descriptor tag = 0xCA. The data stream processing unit 121 of the television receiving device 100 that has received this event performs two types of processing according to the information stored in the streaming information storage unit 122, as in the case of receiving the CM start event message.

  If the streaming information storage unit 122 holds an invalid value (negative value) indicating that the streaming is stopped, the broadcast wave is continuously decoded as it is. Conversely, when the streaming information storage unit 122 holds the playback elapsed time indicating that the streaming program is being played back, the storage of the CM broadcast TS data in the memory 107 is stopped. Thereafter, as soon as all the CM broadcast TS data stored has been decoded and displayed, the media library of the decoder 104 is switched from the broadcast wave TS to the streaming data. After this series of processing, a streaming content re-transmission request is made to the streaming server, and the playback elapsed time of the streaming information storage unit 122 that has been stopped according to the decoding of the received data is started to be updated. As a result, the viewer can watch the continuation of the streaming program that was in the middle of viewing after successfully viewing the commercial.

  When the above-described processing is repeated and the streaming program is viewed to the end, the media library is switched to the broadcast wave TS, and the streaming program selection screen broadcast as the main part of the multi-view program is displayed. As long as the viewer is within the broadcast time of the multi-view program, the viewer can continue to select and view the desired streaming program.

  Hereinafter, a process in the case where the broadcast of the multi-view program ends while the viewer is viewing the streaming program will be described. The broadcast station sends out an immediate firing type event message indicating the end of the program with descriptor tag = 0xCB. However, the structure of the DSMCC_section in this case (FIG. 9) is partially different from that indicating the start and end of the CM, and a value indicating the start time of the next program is described in the reserved future use following the event msg group id. .

  The data stream processing unit 121 of the television receiver 100 that has received the event message indicating the end of the program performs two types of processing according to the information held in the streaming information storage unit 122. If the streaming information storage unit 122 holds an invalid value (negative value) indicating that the streaming is stopped, the broadcast wave is continuously decoded as it is. Conversely, when the streaming information storage unit 122 holds the playback elapsed time indicating that the streaming program is being played, the playback elapsed time value and the streaming program ID are stored in the memory 107 or the hard disk 119. If the viewer wishes to continue viewing the same streaming program during the next broadcast, the streaming server is requested from the designated time of the streaming program content with reference to these values. However, in this case, since the user may turn off the power of the television receiver 100, the memory 107 needs to be a nonvolatile memory NVRAM or the like.

  When receiving an event message indicating the end of the program during playback of the streaming program, the decoder 104 switches the media library from the one for streaming data to one for the broadcast wave TS. Even in this case, CM broadcast TS data is stored in the memory 107 in order to prevent missing of the head portion of the CM due to switching of the media library. However, if the normal CM broadcast during this time period is stored and played, there is a risk of affecting the next program. Therefore, after the completion of switching of the media library, all CMs stored in the memory 107 from the time when the event message is received to the start time of the next program described in DSMCC_section are all decoded and decoded from the switching completion time to the start of the next program. Chasing playback is performed so that it can be displayed (FIG. 11). This allows the viewer to watch from the beginning of the program that continues (1100).

  Finally, the processing when the viewer changes the channel to another broadcasting station while viewing the streaming program will be described. At this time, like the process at the end of the program, the streaming information storage unit 122 holds the value of the elapsed playback time and the streaming program ID. Further, a streaming content interruption request is issued to the streaming server, and the FIFO 106 empties the contents of the buffer and switches the media library of the decoder 104 to TS for broadcasting waves. Then, when the viewer returns the channel to the multi-view program again, if the user wishes to continue viewing the same streaming program, the streaming server is referred to the value of the streaming information storage unit 122 and the streaming program content is designated. And the media library of the decoder 104 is switched for streaming. This makes it possible to provide seamless switching between broadcasting and streaming even when the viewer performs zapping.

  In this embodiment, the descriptor tag of the DSMCC_section structure uses 0xC9, 0xCA, and 0xCB, but other values can be used as long as they are not reserved by the standard in ARIB. It is. Further, in this embodiment, the CM is stored in the memory 107, but it may be stored in the hard disk 119. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the information stored in the streaming information storage unit is the playback time of the streaming program, but may be information in units of frames. In addition, as described above, when content such as the latest news is provided instead of CM, reception of data transmitted via a plurality of media in response to an event message and / or as in this embodiment It is also preferable to switch the reproduction.

<Second Embodiment>
The second embodiment of the present invention has a different feature in switching the media library according to the first embodiment. In the following description of the second embodiment, only differences from the first embodiment will be described. The same configurations and operations as those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as those described in the first embodiment, and this is represented.

  FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a television receiver according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the first embodiment is that a streaming flag 123 and a streaming reception detection unit 124 are provided.

  The streaming flag 123 is turned on / off at the same time when the CPU 118 that has received the change request for the decoder 104 obtained via the remote controller 116 and the data stream processing unit 121 switches the media library of the decoder 104. When the CPU 118 changes the decoder's media library for streaming decoding, the streaming flag 123 is set to 1, otherwise it is set to 0.

  In addition, the streaming reception detection unit 124 plays a role of monitoring the communication control unit 105, and requests the CPU 118 to change the media library according to the start of reception of the streaming program and the state of the streaming flag 123. FIG. 13 shows a flowchart for explaining the processing of the streaming reception detection unit 124. The streaming reception detection unit 124 monitors the detection of streaming (S1300). Streaming reception detection is determined (S1301), and if reception is detected, on / off of the streaming flag 123 is checked (S1302). Here, if the streaming flag 123 is on, the streaming has already been decoded, so that the monitoring is continued (S1300). On the other hand, if the streaming flag 123 is off, the CPU 118 is notified of a request to change the decoder 104 to one for streaming decoding (S1303).

  Upon receiving this notification, the CPU 118 switches the media library of the decoder 104 for streaming, and turns on the streaming flag 123. After completing the series of processing, the streaming reception detection unit 124 continues to monitor the detection of streaming (S1300). On the contrary, in the detection detection of streaming (S1301), when the reception is not detected, the on / off of the streaming flag 123 is similarly checked (S1304). Here, when the streaming flag is off, the broadcast wave has already been decoded, so the process returns to monitoring (S1300). On the other hand, if the streaming flag 123 is on, the CPU 118 is notified of a request to change the decoder 104 to one for broadcast waves (S1305). Upon receiving this notification, the CPU 118 switches the media library of the decoder 104 to the broadcast wave and turns off the streaming flag 123. After completing the series of processing, the streaming reception detection unit 124 continues to monitor the detection of streaming (S1300). By doing this, even when there is no decoder request from the BML browser by a script, the media library of the decoder 104 can be switched quickly.

  According to the embodiment of the present invention, since streaming content can be controlled in conjunction with an event message (streaming flag) from a broadcasting station, a plurality of programs preferred by each viewer can be provided by streaming, It is possible to provide a service that presents the same content broadcast at the same time for the viewer.

  Further, according to the above embodiment, it is not necessary to add CM information to each streaming content, the burden on the content creator can be reduced, and a CM can be presented at the same time for all viewers.

  Furthermore, according to the embodiment, it is possible to provide a comfortable viewing environment without making the viewer aware of the difference between content from broadcast waves and streaming content.

  Also, in a program that uses streaming, for example, when a commercial is embedded in each streaming and presented to the user, the CM viewing time may be shifted by each user, and production efficiency may be poor. . The sponsor who provides the program is uneasy about whether or not the CM can be surely presented to all viewers, and it becomes difficult to provide a time-dependent CM. For content creators, embedding commercials in each piece of content is a heavy burden, and depending on changes in sponsors and broadcast times, the embedded commercials must be changed, which is inefficient. The present invention can solve such problems.

<Other embodiments>
Another object of the present invention is to supply a storage medium storing software program codes for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or apparatus, and the computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus stores the storage medium. Needless to say, this can also be achieved by reading and executing the program code stored in.

  In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiments, and the program code itself and the storage medium storing the program code constitute the present invention.

  As a storage medium for supplying the program code, for example, a flexible disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, a ROM, or the like can be used.

  Further, by executing the program code read by the computer, not only the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized, but also an OS (basic system or operating system) running on the computer based on the instruction of the program code. Needless to say, a case where the functions of the above-described embodiment are realized by performing part or all of the actual processing and the processing is included.

  Further, after the program code read from the storage medium is written in a memory provided in a function expansion board inserted into the computer or a function expansion unit connected to the computer, the function is determined based on the instruction of the program code. It goes without saying that the CPU or the like provided in the expansion board or function expansion unit performs part or all of the actual processing and the functions of the above-described embodiments are realized by the processing.

Examples of more preferred embodiments used in the present invention are listed below.
(Embodiment 1) Communication data receiving means for receiving communication data from an external device via the Internet;
Broadcast data receiving means for receiving broadcast data transmitted from a broadcast station via a broadcast network;
A decoder for decoding the communication data received by the communication data receiving means and the broadcast data received by the broadcast data receiving means by respective decoding methods;
And a switching means for switching a decoding method executed by the decoder.

(Embodiment 2) The switching means switches the decoding technique by the decoder from the decoding technique for communication data to the decoding technique for broadcasting according to the broadcast data received by the broadcast data receiving means. The receiving device according to aspect 1.

(Embodiment 3) It further has a first recording means for recording broadcast data received by the broadcast data receiving means,
The switching means starts control of switching decoding processing for the decoder from a decoding method for communication data to a decoding method for broadcasting in accordance with broadcast data received by the broadcast data receiving means, and the broadcast data receiving means Broadcast data to be received is recorded in the first recording means, and the decoder completes the first recording means when the switching process of the decoder processing from the decoding method for communication data to the decoding method for broadcasting is completed. The receiving apparatus according to Embodiment 2, wherein the broadcast data recorded in the data is decoded.

(Embodiment 4) When the broadcast data receiving means receives the event message indicating the start of CM (Commercial Message) or the start of content such as news, the switching means receives data from the first medium. The receiving apparatus according to Embodiment 2 or 3, wherein the receiving apparatus switches from the one transmitted via the second medium to the one transmitted via the second medium.

(Embodiment 5) It further comprises second recording means for recording information relating to communication data of a program received by the communication data receiving means,
The communication data receiving means interrupts reception of the communication data of the program when an event message indicating the end of the program is received, and then receives the second message when the reproduction of the program is requested again. 2. The receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein communication data of the subsequent program is received from the external apparatus based on information related to the communication data of the program recorded in the recording unit.

(Embodiment 6) The receiving apparatus according to Embodiment 5, wherein the information related to the communication data of the program includes identification information of the program and elapsed playback time of the program.

(Embodiment 7) The receiving apparatus according to Embodiment 4 or 5, wherein the event message is a DSMCC event message.

(Embodiment 8) A media control system in which a plurality of devices are communicably connected to each other.
8. A media control system, wherein at least one of the plurality of devices includes the receiving device according to any one of the first to seventh embodiments.

(Embodiment 9) Broadcast data receiving means for receiving communication data received by communication data receiving means for receiving communication data from an external device via the Internet, and broadcast data transmitted from a broadcasting station via a broadcast network A media control method, comprising: performing a switching control of a decoding method for a decoder that decodes broadcast data received by the respective decoding methods.

(Embodiment 10) A program for causing a computer to execute the media control method according to Embodiment 9.

(Embodiment 11) A computer-readable recording medium on which the program according to Embodiment 10 is recorded.

  According to the embodiment of the present invention, for a decoder that performs a decoding process on communication data received via the Internet such as a streaming program and broadcast data received via a broadcast network such as a CS program, for example. Since the decoding process switching control is made possible, the transmission medium (media) can be switched between the Internet and broadcast waves. For example, both communication data and broadcast data can be comfortably viewed by the medium switching control. it can.

  According to the embodiment of the present invention, when switching from the decoding process for communication data to the decoding process for broadcasting is started, the broadcast data is temporarily recorded from the start time of the switching process, and the switching process is performed. Since it is configured to execute the decoding process of the recorded broadcast data when it is completed, it is possible to avoid the interruption of the content of the broadcast data due to the switching of decoding. Here, in the present invention, it is only necessary to switch reception and / or reproduction of data obtained via a plurality of media, and switching of the decoding method is not essential.

It is the block diagram which showed the structure of the television receiver which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is an external view of the remote control applicable to the 1st and 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is an external view of a multi viewing program that is a streaming-linked program provided by a television broadcasting station. It is the figure which showed the example of a full screen display of the selected streaming program. It is the figure which showed the time transition of the streaming selection screen which is the main part of a multi viewing program, CM, and the selected streaming program. It is the figure which showed the moving image transmitted by PES with the broadcast wave of a multi viewing program. It is the figure which showed the example of a display of the BML data transmitted by the carousel by the broadcast wave of a multi viewing program. It is the figure which showed notionally the procedure for the streaming transmission / reception establishment between a streaming server and a television receiver. It is the figure which showed the example of 1 structure of DSMCC_section showing an immediate firing type | mold event message. It is a figure for demonstrating the timing of the media library switching by an event message. It is a figure for demonstrating the operation | movement at the time of the program end by an event message. It is the block diagram which showed the structure of the television receiver which concerns on the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. 10 is a flowchart for explaining a decoder switching operation according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Television receiver 101 Tuner part 102 Descrambler 103 Demultiplexer 104 Decoder 105 Communication control part 106 FIFO
107 Memory 108 Screen Configuration Unit 109 Display Control Unit 110 DAC
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 111 Image display part 112 Audio | voice output part 113 IEEE1394 interface 114 Operation part 115 Light reception part 116 Remote control 117 IC card control part 118 CPU
119 Hard disk 120 Bus 121 Data stream processing unit 122 Streaming information storage unit 123 Streaming flag 124 Streaming reception detection unit 130 VTR
131 Printer

Claims (2)

First data receiving means for receiving communication data from an external device via the Internet ;
Second data receiving means for receiving broadcast data transmitted from a broadcasting station via broadcast waves ;
A decoder capable of alternatively executing a decoding process of communication data received by the first data receiving unit and a decoding process of broadcast data received by the second data receiving unit;
In response to an event message indicating a CM start received via the broadcast wave, a decoding process executed by the decoder, from the decode processing of the received communication data and the second by the first data receiving means Switching to decoding processing of broadcast data received by the data receiving means, and in response to an event message indicating the end of CM received via the broadcast wave , the decoding processing executed by the decoder is changed to the second data reception. Switching means for switching from decoding processing of broadcast data received by the means to decoding processing of communication data received by the first data receiving means;
A memory for storing CM broadcast data received by the second data receiving means in response to an event message indicating the start of CM and an event message indicating the end of CM received via the broadcast wave;
The decoder switches from the decoding process of the communication data received by the first data receiving means to the decoding process of the broadcast data received by the second data receiving means, and then stores the CM stored in the memory. The broadcast data is read and decoded . A first data receiving step for receiving communication data from an external device via the Internet ;
A second data receiving step for receiving broadcast data transmitted from a broadcast station via a broadcast wave ;
A decoding process step that alternatively executes a decoding process of the communication data received by the first data receiving step and a decoding process of the broadcast data received by the second data receiving step;
In response to the event message indicating the start of CM received via the broadcast wave , the decoding process executed in the decoding process step is changed from the decoding process of the communication data received in the first data receiving step. Switching to the decoding process of the broadcast data received in the data reception step 2, and in response to the event message indicating the end of CM received via the broadcast wave , the decoding process executed by the decoding process step is the first possess a switching step of switching from the decoding of the broadcast data received by the second data reception step in the decoding process of the communication data received by the first data receiving step,
The decoding process step is switched from the decoding process of the communication data received by the first data receiving step to the decoding process of the broadcast data received by the second data receiving step, and then via the broadcast wave. In response to the received event message indicating the CM start and the event message indicating the CM end, the CM broadcast data stored in the memory storing the CM broadcast data received in the second data receiving step is read. And a decoding method.

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