KR100888032B1 - An apparatus and a method for converting broadcasting channel using position information in a mobile terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a broadcast channel switching apparatus and method using location information in a mobile terminal that allows the user to continuously watch the broadcast without disconnection of the channel during movement. As described above, the present invention enables at least two broadcast channels to be received using at least two broadcast receiving modules. In addition, based on the location information, by selecting the appropriate repeater and broadcast channel from the current location it is possible to watch a better quality broadcast.

Terrestrial wave, DMB, location information, channel switching

Description

An apparatus and method for converting broadcasting channel using position information in a mobile terminal}

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a broadcast channel switching apparatus using location information in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2A to 2B illustrate screen display examples of at least two broadcast channels according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a method of switching a broadcast channel using location information in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a method of switching a broadcast channel using location information in a mobile terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a mobile terminal, and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for converting a broadcast channel using location information in a mobile terminal to continuously watch a broadcast without disconnection of a channel during movement.

In general, digital broadcasting (or digital multimedia broadcasting) is classified into satellite digital broadcasting using satellites and terrestrial digital broadcasting using base stations.

In the terrestrial digital broadcasting (eg, T-DMB, DVB-H, etc.), when broadcasting stations transmit broadcasting signals using allocated frequencies, the terminal having a broadcasting receiving module receives the broadcasting signals through a terrestrial repeater. Use the way.

The terrestrial digital broadcasting service supports mobility so that a mobile terminal can receive a broadcast signal through a repeater in each region while moving at a high speed of 200 km / h. However, since the conventional portable terminal has only one broadcast receiving module, it can receive only one broadcast channel.

Therefore, when the user passes the overlapped cell region between the repeaters, there is a problem that a time delay or disconnection occurs when receiving a broadcast signal from another repeater. In particular, when a user moves a broadcast channel of the same program to another region, a user may see a different broadcast according to a currently set channel frequency or may not receive a broadcast signal when there is no broadcast on the corresponding channel. This not only inconveniences the user, but also lowers the reliability of the broadcast service, which may adversely affect the increase in sales of the operator.

An object of the present invention for solving the above problems is to provide a broadcast channel switching apparatus and method using the location information in the portable terminal to continuously watch terrestrial digital broadcasting without disconnection of the channel.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for converting a broadcast channel using location information in a mobile terminal capable of receiving a broadcast signal of a region adjacent to a current location using at least two broadcast receiving modules.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for converting a broadcast channel using location information in a mobile terminal capable of performing screen switching to broadcast of a repeater having better broadcast quality.

In order to achieve the above object, a broadcast channel switching apparatus using location information in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a main broadcast receiving unit for receiving broadcast radio waves from a repeater in a currently located region; At least one secondary broadcast receiver which receives broadcast waves from a repeater in an adjacent area; A multimedia unit for performing channel decoding and video decoding on the radio waves received by the main broadcast receiver and the sub broadcast receiver to restore respective original video data; A display unit for displaying at least one image data output from the multimedia unit; A position signal receiver for receiving a position signal; A storage unit for storing broadcast channel information and repeater information according to a location; When the location signal is received by controlling the location signal receiver according to the signal level of the broadcast wave for the specific broadcast channel received by the main broadcast receiver, and the current location according to the location signal is a boundary between the repeaters Control the secondary broadcast receiver to receive the same broadcast channel as the specific broadcast channel from the repeater in the adjacent area, the specific broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver and the specific broadcast channel received through the secondary broadcast receiver. And a controller for controlling to display the same broadcast channel on one screen.

In order to achieve the above object, a broadcast channel switching method using location information in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises the steps of: receiving and displaying a first broadcast channel from a repeater in a currently located region; If the signal level of the first broadcast channel is less than or equal to a preset threshold, receiving a location signal and calculating a current location; And if the calculated current location is a boundary area between repeaters, further comprising receiving a second broadcast channel corresponding to the first broadcast channel from at least one adjacent repeater in the corresponding area.

In order to achieve the above object, a broadcast channel switching method using location information in a mobile terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a screen for receiving a first broadcast channel and a second broadcast channel from a repeater in a currently located region. With the process of marking together; Calculating a current position by receiving a position signal when a signal level of one of the two broadcasting channels falls below a preset threshold value; If the calculated current position is a boundary area between repeaters, further comprising receiving a third broadcast channel corresponding to a broadcast channel whose signal level is below a threshold from at least one adjacent repeater in the corresponding area. It features.

According to the present invention, at least two broadcast receiving modules may be used to receive broadcast channels from at least two repeaters, respectively. In the following embodiments, a case in which two broadcast receiving modules are provided for convenience of description will be described. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that three or more broadcast receiving modules may be provided and operated according to the present invention as necessary.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the same elements in the figures are represented by the same numerals wherever possible. In addition, detailed descriptions of well-known functions and configurations that may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention will be omitted.

1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a broadcast channel switching apparatus using location information in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figures 2a to 2b is a screen display of at least two broadcast channels according to an embodiment of the present invention It is a figure which shows an example.

As shown in FIG. 1, the broadcast channel switching apparatus 100 using location information in a mobile terminal includes: a main broadcast receiver 112 which receives broadcast radio waves from a repeater in a current location; At least one sub broadcast receiver 114 for receiving broadcast radio waves from a repeater in an adjacent area; A multimedia unit (120) for performing channel decoding and video decoding on the radio waves received by the main / sub broadcast receiving units (112, 114) to restore respective original image data; A display unit 130 for displaying at least one image data output from the multimedia unit 120; A position signal receiver 140 for receiving a position signal; A storage unit 150 for storing data including broadcast channel and repeater information according to a location; The controller 160 controls the broadcast reception of the main / sub broadcast receivers 112 and 114 and the display of the broadcast screen of the display unit 130 according to the signal level and the position of the broadcast channel received by the main broadcast receiver 112. It may be configured to include.

The multimedia unit 120 includes a main channel decoder 122 for channel decoding of broadcast radio waves received by the main broadcast signal receiver 112; At least one sub channel decoder 124 for channel decoding of broadcast radio waves received by the at least one sub broadcast receiver 114; The video decoding unit 126 may be configured to decode the digital broadcast signal output from the main and sub channel decoders 122 and 124 into original image data (or stream).

The multimedia unit 120 may be implemented as one multimedia integrated circuit (IC).

The display unit 130 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD) module or a touch panel having an input function.

The position signal receiver 140 may be a positioning module such as a Simultaneous Global Positioning System (S-GPS) module.

The storage unit 150 may store various data such as electronic maps, user data, messages, multimedia contents, operating system data, as well as location-based broadcast channel / relay information.

The controller 160 receives a broadcast wave of a broadcast channel set by a user based on the broadcast channel information stored in the storage unit 150 from the repeater of the area currently located through the main broadcast receiver 112. In this case, the position signal may be received through the position signal receiver 140 to determine the current position. The position signal may be a Global Positioning System (GPS) signal. The broadcast wave received by the main broadcast receiver 112 is channel decoded by the main channel decoder 124 of the multimedia unit 120 and converted into a digital broadcast signal. The digital broadcast signal output from the main channel decoder 124 is decoded by the video decoder 126 to be converted into a video stream which is an original video signal and displayed on the display unit 130.

The controller 160 monitors the signal level of the broadcast wave received by the main broadcast receiver 112 and, when the signal level falls below a preset threshold, receives the position signal through the position signal receiver 140. The signal level may be a level of reception quality due to error correction or a level of received signal strength indication (RSSI).

The controller 160 checks the current position according to the received position signal and determines whether or not it is a boundary area. As a result of the determination, in the case of the border zone, the controller 160 corresponds to the broadcast channel currently being received by the main broadcast receiver 112 from the repeater in at least one adjacent region through the at least one sub broadcast receiver 114. A broadcast channel, that is, a broadcast channel of the same program is received. The controller 160 may read broadcast channel and repeater information according to a location stored in the storage unit 150 to determine the boundary area and receive a broadcast channel. The information may be stored in a table form in the storage unit 150.

The broadcast wave received through the sub broadcast receiver 114 is channel decoded by the sub channel decoder 124 of the multimedia unit 120 and converted into a digital broadcast signal. The digital broadcast signal output from the sub channel decoder 124 is decoded by the video decoder 126 and converted into a video stream that is an original video signal. The video stream is displayed on one side of the display unit 130 by the controller 160 or reproduced in the background.

That is, the controller 160 displays the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver 112 and the broadcast channel received through the sub broadcast receiver 114 using a picture in picture (PIP) function. ) Can be displayed together. In this case, as shown in FIG. 2A, the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver 112 is displayed on the main display area 210, and the broadcast channel received through the sub broadcast receiver 114 is displayed sub-display. The area 220 may be displayed. The display areas may be changed in size or position by a user's setting.

Alternatively, the controller 160 may display a broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver 112 on the display unit 130, and operate a broadcast channel received through the sub broadcast receiver 114 in the background. .

The controller 160 compares the signal level of the broadcast wave received by the main broadcast receiver 112 with the signal level of the broadcast wave received by the sub broadcast receiver 114, and receives the received signal to the sub broadcast receiver 114. When the signal level of the broadcast wave is greater, the screen switching between the broadcast channel received through the primary broadcast receiver 112 and the broadcast channel received through the secondary broadcast receiver 114 is performed. That is, the broadcast channel received through the sub broadcast receiver 114 may be displayed in the main display area 210, and the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver 112 may be displayed in the sub display area 220. have. Alternatively, the broadcast channel received through the sub broadcast receiver 214 may be displayed on the display unit 130, and the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver 112 may be operated in the background. After switching the screen, the controller 160 may stop the broadcast reception of the main broadcast receiver 112 when the signal level of the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver 112 is less than or equal to a preset minimum threshold. .

At this time, the role of the primary / secondary can be changed. That is, the sub broadcast receiver 114 becomes the main broadcast receiver and the main broadcast receiver 112 becomes the sub broadcast receiver, so that the signal level of the broadcast channel received by the sub broadcast receiver 114 is equal to or less than a preset threshold. If the current location is the boundary area between the repeaters, the main broadcast receiver 112 may receive broadcast waves from the repeaters of the adjacent area.

The controller 160 controls the main broadcast receiver 112 to receive a specific broadcast channel through a repeater of the currently located region when the currently located region is a boundary region between repeaters according to the position signal, and the sub broadcast. The receiver 114 may be controlled to receive a broadcast channel different from the specific broadcast channel from the repeater of the current location and display the same broadcast on a screen using the PIP function. In this case, the control unit 160 may receive the broadcast channel of the adjacent area through the sub broadcast receiver 114 according to the magnitude and the position of the signal level of the two broadcast channels and display them together on one side of the screen. For example, as shown in FIG. 2B, a broadcast channel received through one broadcast receiver (main broadcast receiver 112) is displayed on the first display area 210, and the other broadcast receiver (second broadcast receiver 114). The broadcast channel received through) may be displayed on the second display area 220, and the broadcast channel received through another broadcast receiver (the other sub broadcast receiver 114) may be displayed on the third display area 230. have. As described above, the display areas may be changed in size or position by a user's setting.

Broadcasting channel switching apparatus 100 using the location information in the mobile terminal, RF transmission and reception unit 170 for transmitting and receiving a wireless communication signal; It may be configured to further include an input unit 180 for input from the user.

In addition, although not shown, the broadcasting channel switching device 100 using the location information in the portable terminal, such as a storage medium insertion unit, a camera module, a speaker to enable data storage by inserting an external storage medium such as a memory card. And optionally further include units having additional functions such as audio signal output devices, voice signal input devices such as microphones, connection terminals for data exchange with external digital devices, charging terminals, and digital sound source reproduction modules such as MP3 modules. Can be configured.

Due to the convergence trend of digital devices, the variations of mobile devices are very diverse and cannot be enumerated. However, broadcast channels using the location information of the mobile terminal according to the present invention have a unit equivalent to the above-mentioned units. It can be easily understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the conversion device 100 may be further included and configured.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a method of switching a broadcast channel using location information in a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, in step S310, the controller 160 receives a broadcast channel (first broadcast channel) from a repeater of a current location and displays it on the screen. In step S320, the controller 160 determines whether a signal level of the received broadcast channel is equal to or less than a preset threshold. The signal level may be a level of reception quality or a level of RSSI according to error correction.

As a result of the determination, if the signal level is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, in step S330, the controller 160 receives a position signal and calculates a current position.

When the calculation of the current position is completed, in step S340, the controller 160 determines whether the current position is a boundary area between the repeaters.

As a result of the determination, when the calculated current position is a boundary area between the repeaters, in step S350, the controller 160 corresponds to a broadcast channel (first broadcast channel) received from at least one adjacent repeater in the corresponding area. Further receiving a broadcast channel (second broadcast channel), and in step S360, the controller 160 displays the broadcast channel further received using the PIP function on one side of the screen. Alternatively, as described above, it can be executed in the background.

In step S370, the controller 160 compares the signal level of the first broadcast channel (first broadcast channel) received later and the broadcast channel (second broadcast channel) received later. As a result of the comparison, when the signal level of the broadcast channel received later is greater than or equal to the signal level of the broadcast channel received first, the controller 160 performs screen switching between the two broadcast channels in step S380. That is, the screen of the first received broadcast channel is displayed on one side of the later received broadcast channel screen or operated in the background.

In step S390, the controller 160 determines whether a signal level of the first received broadcast channel is less than or equal to a predetermined minimum threshold value. When the determination result is less than or equal to a minimum threshold value, the controller 160 in step S400. ) May stop the reception of a broadcast channel having a signal level below the minimum threshold.

4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a broadcast channel switching method using location information in a mobile terminal according to another embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 4, in step S410, the controller 160 receives two broadcast channels (a first broadcast channel and a second broadcast channel) from a repeater in a currently located region, and performs a PIP function on the received broadcast channels. Display together on one screen.

In step S420, the controller 160 determines whether signal levels of the two broadcast channels received are less than or equal to a preset threshold.

As a result of the determination, if the signal level of one of the two broadcast channels (eg, the first broadcast channel) is equal to or less than a preset threshold, the controller 160 receives the position signal and calculates the current position in step S430.

When the calculation of the current position is completed, in step S440, the controller 160 determines whether the current position is a boundary area between the repeaters.

As a result of the determination, when the calculated current position is a boundary area between the repeaters, in step S450, the controller 160 broadcasts the signal level below the threshold value from at least one adjacent repeater in the corresponding area (first broadcast channel). A broadcast channel corresponding to the third broadcast channel is further received. Subsequently, in step S460, the controller 160 displays a broadcast channel (third broadcast channel) that is further received using the PIP function together on one side of the screen. Alternatively, as described above, it can be executed in the background.

In step S470, the controller 160 compares the signal level of the broadcast channel (first broadcast channel) whose signal level is less than or equal to the threshold with the broadcast channel (third broadcast channel) further received in step S450. As a result of the comparison, when the signal level of the broadcast channel (third broadcast channel) received later is equal to or higher than the signal level of the first broadcast channel (first broadcast channel) received in step S480, the controller 160 switches the screen between the two broadcast channels. Do this.

As described above, when the signal level of the broadcast channel (first broadcast channel) whose signal level is less than or equal to the threshold becomes the lowest threshold, reception of the corresponding broadcast channel may be stopped.

In the above, specific preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the gist of the present invention attached to the claims. will be.

As described above, the apparatus and method for switching a broadcast channel using location information in a mobile terminal according to the present invention, using at least two broadcast receiving modules (broadcasting receiver) from the repeater of the current location and the repeater of the adjacent area; By receiving the respective broadcast channels, there is an effect that the broadcast channel set by the user is not disconnected while moving.

In addition, the present invention determines the current position by using the position signal, and by selecting the broadcast channel and the repeater based on the current position, even when the broadcast channel moves to a different area, even if the user does not need to set up the same program There is an effect that you can watch.

In addition, the present invention has an effect of allowing the user to watch the best quality broadcast at the current location by performing the screen switching to a broadcast channel with a higher signal level in receiving and displaying at least two broadcast channels.

Claims (20)

A main broadcast receiver which receives a broadcast wave from a repeater in a currently located region; At least one secondary broadcast receiver which receives broadcast waves from a repeater in an adjacent area; A multimedia unit for performing channel decoding and video decoding on the radio waves received by the main broadcast receiver and the sub broadcast receiver to restore respective original video data; A display unit for displaying at least one image data output from the multimedia unit; A position signal receiver for receiving a position signal; A storage unit for storing broadcast channel information and repeater information according to a location; When the location signal is received by controlling the location signal receiver according to the signal level of the broadcast wave for the specific broadcast channel received by the main broadcast receiver, and the current location according to the location signal is a boundary between the repeaters Control the secondary broadcast receiver to receive the same broadcast channel as the specific broadcast channel from the repeater in the adjacent area, the specific broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver and the specific broadcast channel received through the secondary broadcast receiver. And a control unit for controlling to display the same broadcast channel on one screen as the broadcasting channel switching device using the position information in the mobile terminal. The method of claim 1, wherein the control unit A portable apparatus comprising receiving broadcast waves of a broadcast channel set by a user based on broadcast channel information stored in the storage unit and position signals received by the position signal receiver from a repeater in a region currently located through the main broadcast receiver. Broadcast channel switching device using the location information in the terminal. The method of claim 2, wherein the control unit And receiving a position signal through the position signal receiver when the signal level of the broadcast wave received by the main broadcast receiver falls below a preset threshold. The method of claim 3, wherein the control unit Receiving a broadcast wave corresponding to the broadcast channel of the main broadcast receiver from the repeater of at least one adjacent region through the at least one sub-broadcast receiver, when the current position is a boundary between the repeaters according to the received position signal Broadcast channel switching apparatus using the location information in the mobile terminal, characterized in that. The method of claim 4, wherein the control unit By using a picture in picture (PIP) function, the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver and the broadcast channel received through the sub broadcast receiver are displayed together on the display unit. Broadcast channel switching device. The method of claim 4, wherein the control unit And a broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver is displayed on the display unit, and a broadcast channel received through the secondary broadcast receiver is operated in the background. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein the control unit When the signal level of the broadcast wave received by the sub broadcast receiver is greater than the signal level of the broadcast wave received by the main broadcast receiver, the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver and the broadcast received through the sub broadcast receiver Broadcast channel switching apparatus using the position information in the mobile terminal, characterized in that for performing the screen switching of the channel. The method of claim 7, wherein the control unit After switching the screen, when the signal level of the broadcast channel received through the main broadcast receiver is less than the minimum threshold value, the broadcast channel switching device using the position information in the mobile terminal, characterized in that the broadcast reception of the main broadcast receiver is stopped. . The method of claim 1, wherein the control unit If the current location is not a boundary area between the repeaters according to the position signal, the main broadcast receiver is controlled to receive a specific broadcast channel from the repeater of the current location, and the sub broadcast receiver is controlled to control the current broadcast location. And a broadcasting channel different from the specific broadcasting channel from a local repeater and displayed together on a screen using a PIP function. The method of claim 9, wherein the control unit In accordance with the size and position of the signal level of the two broadcast channels, further receiving the broadcast channel of the adjacent area through the other sub-listener to display on the side of the screen of the display unit using the location information in the mobile terminal Broadcast channel switching device. The method of claim 1, wherein the multimedia unit A main channel decoder for channel decoding of broadcast radio waves received by the main broadcast signal receiver; At least one sub channel decoder for channel decoding of broadcast radio waves received by the at least one sub broadcast receiver; And a video decoder which decodes the digital broadcast signal outputted from the main / sub channel decoder into original image data. Receiving and displaying a first broadcast channel from a repeater of a current location; If the signal level of the first broadcast channel is less than or equal to a preset threshold, receiving a position signal to calculate a current position; And if the calculated current position is a boundary area between repeaters, further comprising receiving a second broadcast channel corresponding to the first broadcast channel from at least one adjacent repeater in the corresponding area. Broadcasting channel switching method using the location information of. The method of claim 12, wherein the second broadcast channel is The broadcast channel switching method using the position information in the mobile terminal, characterized in that displayed together on one side of the first broadcast channel screen. The method of claim 12, wherein the second broadcast channel is Broadcast channel switching method using the location information in the mobile terminal, characterized in that operated in the background. The method according to claim 13 or 14, Comparing signal levels of the first broadcast channel and the second broadcast channel; As a result of the comparison, when the signal level of the second broadcast channel is greater than or equal to the signal level of the first broadcast channel, the method further includes performing screen switching between the two broadcast channels. Broadcast channel switching method using. The method of claim 15, And stopping the reception of the first broadcast channel when the signal level of the first broadcast channel is less than or equal to the minimum threshold value. Receiving a first broadcast channel and a second broadcast channel from a repeater of a current location and displaying the same on a screen; Calculating a current position by receiving a position signal when a signal level of one of the two broadcasting channels falls below a preset threshold value; If the calculated current position is a boundary area between repeaters, further comprising receiving a third broadcast channel corresponding to a broadcast channel whose signal level is less than or equal to a threshold value from at least one adjacent repeater in the corresponding area. Broadcast channel switching method using the location information in the portable terminal. The method of claim 17, wherein the third broadcast channel is The method of claim 1, wherein the first broadcast channel and the second broadcast channel are displayed together on one side of the screen. The method of claim 17, wherein the third broadcast channel is Broadcast channel switching method using the location information in the mobile terminal, characterized in that operated in the background. The method of claim 18 or 19, Comparing the signal level of the broadcast channel with the signal level below the threshold with the third broadcast channel; And, if the signal level of the third broadcast channel is greater than or equal to the signal level of the broadcast channel whose signal level is less than or equal to the threshold value, performing screen switching between the two broadcast channels. Broadcast channel switching method using the location information in the terminal.

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