KR100709424B1 - Preference channel service method and television receiver thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a preferred program service method for setting a plurality of programs broadcasted at the same time as a preferred program and facilitating easy switching between the set plurality of preferred programs, and a television broadcast receiver accordingly. .

In the preferred program service method of the television broadcast receiver according to the present invention, receiving a plurality of favorite programs corresponding to a channel and a broadcast time through a user interface of the television broadcast receiver and registering them in a preferred program table of a memory unit, the user interface Checking whether the preference program switching command is input through the controller; if the preference program switching instruction is input, displaying a list of preferred programs registered in the preference program table corresponding to a current time; and displaying the displayed preference program. If any one of the selected ones is selected through the user interface, tuning a channel corresponding to the selected preferred program.

TV broadcast receiver, reservation, program

Description

Preferred program service method and corresponding television broadcasting receiver {PREFERENCE CHANNEL SERVICE METHOD AND TELEVISION RECEIVER THEREOF}

1 is a block diagram of a television broadcast receiver to which the present invention can be applied.

2 shows an example of a preferred program table according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

3 and 4 are flowcharts of a preferred preferred program service method of the present invention.

5 is a diagram illustrating an example of an OSD for switching a preferred program according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: control unit

102: memory

104: micom

106: user interface

108: tuner

110: broadcast signal processing unit

112: video signal processing unit

114: audio decoder

116: audio signal output unit

118: Speaker

120: video signal output unit

122: display

The present invention relates to a television broadcast receiver, and more particularly, to register a plurality of programs as a preferred program at the same time, and to facilitate switching between the preferred programs, and a television broadcast receiver accordingly. It is about.

With the development of technology, a variety of functions for user convenience are provided in a television broadcast receiver. In particular, a television broadcast receiver has a function of setting a channel or program that a user prefers so that the user can easily switch to the preferred channel or program.

For example, the patent application No. 20-1997-0006934, filed with the Korean Patent Office under the name of "Reserved viewing apparatus for television receivers," automatically tunes a particular channel that broadcasts the program at a particular time when the program is broadcast. Disclosed is a reservation viewing technology that allows a user to watch a program without missing it.

In addition, Patent Application No. 10-1998-0012165, filed under the name of “Reservation viewing method for multi-screen TV” to the Korean Intellectual Property Office, after setting the reservation time and channel, when the reservation time arrives, A technique of displaying a program of a channel and displaying a program of the set channel on a sub screen is disclosed.

As described above, various reservation viewing functions have been proposed in which a user automatically tunes a desired channel at a desired time.

However, the introduction of digital television broadcasting technology has led to a significant increase in broadcast channels. Accordingly, the user may want to reserve one or more of the programs broadcasted at the same time, but in the related art, only one channel or program can be reserved, and thus, the user cannot satisfy various needs.

In addition, if only the preferred channel is set separately regardless of the program to enable switching between the preferred channels, it is not a reservation per program. Therefore, since the programs that the user does not like are often broadcast, the preferred channel list needs to be updated frequently. there is a problem.

Accordingly, in the related art, it is urgently required to develop a technology that enables not only to set a large number of programs that are broadcast at the same time but also to switch between a plurality of preferred programs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to overcome the above-described problems, and a preferred program service method for setting a plurality of programs broadcasted at the same time as a preferred program and enabling easy switching between the set plurality of preferred programs and the same An object of the present invention is to provide a television broadcast receiver.

The preferred program service method of the television broadcast receiver according to the present invention for achieving the above object and solve the problems of the prior art, the memory unit receives a plurality of preferred programs corresponding to the channel and the broadcast time through the user interface of the television broadcast receiver; Registering in the preference program table, checking whether the preference program switching command is input through the user interface, and when the preference program switching command is input, corresponding to a current time of the preference program registered in the preference program table. And displaying a list, and if one of the displayed preferred programs is selected through the user interface, tuning a channel corresponding to the selected preferred program.

In particular, the preferred program list is characterized in that the OSD is displayed on the screen currently being output.

The channel and broadcast time of the program may be provided from program guide information or input through the user interface.

The television broadcast receiver according to the present invention includes a tuner for tuning a predetermined channel, a broadcast signal processing unit for restoring a TS from a broadcast signal received through the tuner, and audio and video processing for restoring and outputting audio and video streams from the TS. / Output unit, a user interface for providing an interface with the user, a memory unit having a preference program table in which a plurality of preferred programs corresponding to channels and broadcast times are registered, and a preferred program corresponding to a channel and a broadcast time through the user interface. Receiving a plurality of inputs and registering them in the preferred program table of the memory unit, and when the preferred program switching command is input through the user interface, a list of preferred programs registered in the preferred program table corresponding to the current time is displayed, and the displayed preferred program If any one of the selected through the user interface, characterized in that it comprises a control unit for controlling the tuner to tune the channel corresponding to the selected preferred program.

In particular, the channel and the broadcast time of the program is characterized in that it is provided from the program guide information or input through the user interface.

The present invention sets a plurality of programs broadcasted at the same time as a preferred program, and enables easy switching between the plurality of set preferred programs.

The configuration of the television broadcast receiver according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

The control unit 100 not only controls the television broadcast receiver as a whole, but also sets a preferred program according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, displays an OSD menu for switching the set preferred program, and displays the OSD menu. The tuning channel is switched according to the user's switching command through.

The memory unit 102 stores various types of information including the processing program of the control unit 100, and particularly includes a preference program table as shown in FIG. 2 in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

The preference program table corresponds to a program set by a user for each broadcast time and channel, and one or more programs may be set as a preference program for each time. For example, at 9 o'clock the first program broadcasted on the first channel and the third program broadcasted on the third channel are set as the preferred program, and at 10 o'clock the first program broadcasted on the first channel and the second program broadcasted on the first channel. It is set as the second program, the third program broadcasted on the third channel, the fourth program broadcasted on the fourth channel, and only the fourth program broadcasted on the fourth channel at 12 o'clock is set as the preferred program.

The microcomputer 104 provides various commands or information of the user through the user interface 106 to the controller 100.

The tuner 108 tunes a broadcast signal of a channel under the control of the controller 100 among the broadcast signals and provides the tuner 108 to the broadcast signal processor 110.

The broadcast signal processor 110 restores the broadcast signal to a transport stream and provides the broadcast signal to the video signal processor 112.

The video signal processor 112 restores an audio stream, a video stream, and a data stream from a transport stream provided by the broadcast signal processor 110 under control of the controller 100, and restores the video stream to video data. The signal is output to the display 122 through the output unit 120. In addition, the video signal output unit 120 receives OSD data under the control of the controller 100 and outputs the OSD data to the display 112.

The video signal processor 112 provides the audio stream to the audio decoder 116. The audio decoder 116 restores the audio stream to audio data and outputs the audio stream to the speaker 118 through the audio signal output unit 118.

The video signal processor 112 provides the data stream to the controller 100, and the data stream includes electronic program guide information (EPG) for program guide.

Now, a preferred program service method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention applicable to the television broadcast receiver will be described in detail.

First, a preferred program setting method will be described with reference to FIG. 3.

The controller 100 checks whether the user commands setting of the preferred program through the user interface 106.

When the user commands the setting of the preferred program, the controller 100 displays a program guide for guiding the guide for the broadcast program on the screen. The program guide guides programs by broadcasting time and broadcasting channel, and also guides categories, plots, and the like for each program.

When the program guide is displayed, the user may select a program to be viewed by referring to the displayed program guide.

When the program is selected, the controller 100 registers the selected program as a preferred program corresponding to a broadcast time and a broadcast channel for the preferred program. That is, the preferred program is stored in the preferred program table corresponding to the broadcast time and broadcast channel.

In the above embodiment, only the program selection is implemented through the program guide, but it is obvious to those skilled in the art by selecting the program by directly inputting the program broadcast time and broadcast channel.

A switching method of the preferred program set through the above process will now be described with reference to FIG. 4.

The controller 100 checks whether the user commands a preference program switching through the user interface 106.

When the user instructs the user to switch the preferred program, the controller 100 displays a list of the stored favorite programs on the screen through the OSD. Referring to FIG. 5, which shows a preferred program list display example, if the current time is 10 o'clock and the preferred program being broadcast at 10 o'clock is the first to fourth program, the controller 100 may be configured for the first to fourth programs. Displays an OSD (CG) composed of identification informations. The user may select any one of the first to fourth programs according to the OSD.

After displaying the list of preferred programs as described above, the controller 100 checks which one of the displayed preference programs the user selects through the user interface 106.

When the user selects a favorite program, the controller 100 controls the tuner 108 to tune a channel corresponding to the favorite program, and the tuner 108 tunes the channel through the channel. Audio and video signals of the selected preferred program being broadcasted are output through the speaker 118 and the display 122.

Embodiments of the present invention described above include a computer readable medium including program instructions for performing various computer-implemented operations. The computer readable medium may include program instructions, data files, data structures, etc. alone or in combination. The program instructions on the media may be those specially designed and constructed for the purposes of the present invention, or they may be of the kind well-known and available to those having skill in the computer software arts. Such computer-readable recording media include magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tape, optical media such as CD-ROMs, DVDs, and floppy disks. Magneto-optical media, and ROM, RAM, flash memory, and the like may be employed, and may include hardware devices specifically configured to store and execute program instructions. The medium may also be a transmission medium such as an optical or metal wire, a waveguide, or the like including a carrier wave for transmitting a signal specifying a program command, a data structure, or the like. The program instructions include not only machine code generated by a compiler, but also high-level language code executable by a computer using an interpreter or the like.

As described above, the present invention has an advantage of maximizing ease of use by setting a plurality of programs broadcasted at the same time as a preferred program and enabling easy switching between the set plurality of preferred programs.

As described above, the present invention has been described by way of limited embodiments and drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, which can be variously modified and modified by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Modifications are possible.

Accordingly, the spirit of the present invention should be understood only by the claims set forth below, and all equivalent or equivalent modifications thereof will belong to the scope of the present invention.

Claims (5)

In the preferred program service method of the television broadcast receiver, Receiving a plurality of preferred programs corresponding to a channel and a broadcast time of a program provided from program guide information through a user interface of the television broadcast receiver, and registering them in a preferred program table of a memory unit; Checking whether the preferred program switching command is input through the user interface; Displaying a list of preferred programs registered in the preferred program table corresponding to a current time when the preferred program switching command is input; And And if any one of the displayed preferred programs is selected through the user interface, tuning a channel corresponding to the selected preferred program. The method of claim 1, The preferred program list is displayed in the OSD on the screen currently being output, the preferred program service method. delete In a television broadcast receiver, A tuner for tuning a predetermined channel; A broadcast signal processor for recovering a TS from the broadcast signal received through the tuner; An audio and video processing / output unit for restoring and outputting audio and video streams from the TS; A user interface providing an interface with a user; A memory unit including a preference program table in which a plurality of preference programs corresponding to channels and broadcasting times are registered; And If a plurality of preferred programs corresponding to the channel and the broadcast time of the program provided from the program guide information are received through the user interface, a plurality of preferred programs are registered in the preferred program table of the memory unit, and if the preferred program switching command is input through the user interface, the current time Displaying a list of preferred programs registered in the preferred program table corresponding to the control unit, and if any one of the displayed preferred programs is selected through the user interface, controlling the tuner to tune a channel corresponding to the selected preferred program. And a control unit. delete

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