FR2845181A1 - METHOD FOR SELECTING ELEMENTS FROM A LIST WITH AUTOMATIC INSERTION OF ELEMENTS AND DEVICE IMPLEMENTING THE METHOD - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of selecting an audiovisual element from a predetermined list of elements using navigation commands such as buttons on a remote control. The navigation control activates the selection of elements in an order determined in advance, for example according to the numbers of the channels broadcasting the elements. The method further comprises a step of selecting a new element not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements and which has a characteristic equivalent to a datum specific to the terminal. A characteristic of the element is for example the fact that at least one of its attributes corresponds to a criterion of preference of a user. The invention also relates to a device making it possible to implement the selection method.

Description

The invention relates to a method for navigating among a set of

  multimedia documents accessible using a multimedia receiver and a multimedia receiver provided with a user interface for implementing the method. The invention is particularly applicable in the case where descriptive data associated with audiovisual documents are available. Nowadays, a user interface uses descriptive data to develop menus that can be displayed on a television screen, thus allowing the user to choose 10 audiovisual documents. European patent application EP 822 713 under priority of French application FR96 / 09679 filed by the applicant describes a method for selecting television programs and a device incorporating a graphical interface allowing the user to navigate through lists of programs. The menus 15 allow the user to know the general content of an audiovisual program and thus to select it according to his tastes. The descriptive data, called "service information" are described in the standard relating to DVB-SI (acronym from English "Digital Video Broadcast - specification for Service Information") established by ETSI ("European 20 Telecommunications Standards Institute" ) published in September 1997 under

  the reference EN300 468 - V1.3.1 or under the reference REN / JTC-OODVB-43.

  This descriptive data of the documents disseminated is stored in a local database and constantly updated according to

  accessibility of associated documents.

  These documents either downloaded, or using a broadcasting network, or by a bidirectional link with a network, or by reading them from a medium capable of containing audiovisual broadcasts, a DVD (from English "Digital Video Disk ") for example. The elements of the database are grouped according to certain criteria defined by the document supplier and contained in the service information such as: the subject, the language, the level of morality, etc. This information is used by the user interface to determine the user profile, this profile being for example the list of service information characterizing the broadcasts generally.

selected by the user.

  The user interface receives navigation commands in order to present the user with the different programs available. The identifiers of the available programs are contained in a list and are displayed. The user uses two keys of a remote control associated with the receiver to navigate through this list, either forward or backward and select a so-called "current" program. In the case of a television receiver, the user navigates from one channel to another using the keys "P +" or "P-" to increment or decrement the number of the current channel. By pressing an "OK" key or leaving the same channel selected for a certain time, the selected channel is activated, the user can see

  the event broadcast on this channel.

  With the increase in the number of audiovisual documents and broadcasting channels, the user can access a very large number of documents. As a result, searching for documents with current user interfaces can be time consuming and tedious, as the user has to search through a long list of documents. The screen size being limited, it only shows part of this list, the user must therefore go from one screen page to another if he wants to find the right document. With the introduction of digital networks, 25 massive storage means have appeared, such as hard disks in digital decoders or fast communication interfaces allowing access to Internet-type networks. The user therefore has access to a very large quantity of multimedia documents of different types, such as audio, video, image, text, application / service, etc. The present invention proposes a new user interface making it possible to navigate among numerous audiovisual documents, and offering the user greater speed of finding documents and in particular of finding documents more quickly than the user desires, and this in an efficient manner and friendly. The subject of the invention is a method of selecting an audiovisual element in a terminal comprising a first selection step activated by a navigation command selecting the element close to the current element in a predetermined list of elements, characterized in that it includes a second selection step

  of an element not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements and which has a characteristic equivalent to data specific to the terminal, said second step being activated by a navigation command.

  In this way, the method according to the invention makes it possible to develop a new way of navigating by inserting, from the usual list of audiovisual elements, for example documents, programs or channels, elements which correspond to data specific to the

  terminal. In this way, navigation is personalized at the terminal.

  According to another refinement, the document selected during the second selection step has at least one element attribute which is equivalent to a criterion characterizing a preference of the user. 25 Thus, during navigation, the terminal selects elements which

  match the user's preferences, which favors their choice.

  The determination of a preferred element can be a calculation which takes into account a certain number of attributes of the elements, these attributes being correlated with a set of criteria characterizing the preferences of the user.

  According to another improvement, the second selection step occurs each time a predetermined number of first steps have been carried out. According to another refinement, two new second selection steps are separated by a determined duration. 5 According to another improvement, the second selection step takes place

randomly.

  According to another improvement, the elements available are

  received from a broadcasting network, the order of the ordered list of elements being defined by the identification numbers of the different channels io broadcasting the elements.

  According to another improvement, a second selection step

  is indicated by an optical or audible signal. Thanks to this improvement, the user is not confused by the unusual behavior of his navigation program because he immediately knows that an element not provided for in conventional navigation is inserted.

  The invention also relates to an audiovisual receiver comprising a central unit, a means of receiving audiovisual elements, a means of introducing a navigation command activating a means of selecting an audiovisual element within a 20 predetermined list of elements, characterized in that the selection means comprises means for inserting an element not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements, this element having a characteristic equivalent to a own data

at the terminal.

  According to an improvement, the receiver compares the criteria of

  user preferences with attributes related to audiovisual elements, and determines whether each of the elements corresponds to user preferences. Then the receiver inserts such elements into the navigation using the insertion means so that from time to time the user finds an element which corresponds to preferences.

  According to another refinement, the elements selected by the insertion means are ordered in a list, the first elements having the most attributes equivalent to the criteria defining the preferences of the user. According to an improvement, the receiver counts the number 5 of navigation commands, and inserts an element not provided for in the

  appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements following a certain number of commands. According to another improvement, the receiver inserts an element not provided for and preferred by the user at regular times. According to another improvement, the receiver inserts an element unexpected and preferred by the user at random.

  According to an improvement, the receiver manages a list of preferences containing the elements having a characteristic equivalent to data specific to the terminal. This list of preferences is updated with each navigation command. In this way, the list is updated when it is needed, that is to say during a

navigation control.

  According to an improvement, the receiver emits an optical or audible signal signaling the insertion of an element not provided for in conventional navigation. Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear

  now with more details in the context of the following description of illustrative embodiments with reference to

  appended figures which represent: - figure 1 presents a block diagram of a multimedia receiver for the implementation of an exemplary embodiment of the invention, - figure 2a is a chronogram presenting the various emissions diffused and the list of programs preferred by the user, - Figure 2b shows an example of a list of favorite programs according to an improvement of the exemplary embodiment, - Figure 3 is a flow diagram of an exemplary embodiment in software form of the present invention, - Figure 4 is a timing diagram showing an example of the various selections when the present embodiment of the invention is used. We will first describe the operation of a multimedia receiver 1 fitted with a display device 2. The receiver comprises a central unit 3 connected to a program memory 12, and an interface 5 for communication with a bus high speed local digital 6 for transmitting audio / video data in real time. This network is for example an IEEE 1394 network. The receiver can also receive audio / video data from a broadcasting network through a reception antenna associated with a demodulator 4. The receiver further comprises an infrared signal receiver 7 for receiving the signals from a remote control 8, a memory 9 for storing a database, and an audio / video decoding logic 10 for the generation of audiovisual signals sent to the television screen 2. The remote control has the direction keys "1, 1, 20 -> and E- and the keys:" OK "and" Select "which we will see later

function.

  The receiver also includes a circuit 11 for displaying data on the screen, often called an OSD circuit, from the English "On Screen Display" (literally meaning "display on the screen"). The OSD circuit 25 11 is a text and graphics generator which makes it possible to display on the screen menus, pictograms (for example, a number corresponding to the chain viewed) and which makes it possible to display the navigation menus in accordance to the present invention. The OSD circuit is controlled by the Central Unit 3 and a navigation user interface 30 12. This interface 12 is advantageously produced in the form of a program module recorded in a read only memory. It can also be realized in the form of a specialized circuit of the ASIC type by

example.

  The digital bus 6 and / or the broadcasting network transmit to the receiver data comprising multimedia documents and descriptive data of these documents. This data comes either from the broadcasting network or from the digital network 6. The descriptive data includes classification elements also called "attributes", accessible multimedia documents. The descriptive data are for example contained in the service information 1o specified in the DVB-SI standard. These data are stored in the storage memory 9 and are continuously updated. The memory 9 can advantageously consist of a hard disk capable of recording audiovisual programs, these programs adding to those available via the broadcasting network and via the digital bus 6. The receiver can also be connected to a player of

  medium such as a DVD player, magnetic cassette, magneto-optical disc, ... also making it possible to increase the number of audiovisual programs available. The navigation user interface then extracts the information from this database and processes it to produce the navigation menus displayed on the screen.

  In the following embodiment, the navigation user interface takes into account five types of attributes contained in the descriptive data: language, theme, sub-theme, source and producer. Here are examples of attributes set by the supplier of 25 documents to classify the documents available: English, French, German, Italian, Arabic, other film theme, information, documentary, sport, game / show sub-theme: * film: {adventure, drama, erotic, detective, fiction, other> 30 * information: {newspaper, radio, weather, stock market, sport, other> * documentary: {general, nature, culture, social, history) * game / show: { general, variety, circus, Talk Show} * sport: {General, football, tennis, basketball, athletics, nautical}; source TpSTM, Canal SatelliteTM, DVD living room, video recorder, Web.

  producer Spielberg, Coppola, Besson, Kubrick, Truffaud.

  The user interface can also take into account the title and the summary contained in identified fields of descriptive data. The title and the summary consist of strings which can be processed digitally. For example, the title of the film "The Teeth of the Sea" contains the significant words "teeth" and "Sea". The meaning of these words generally makes it possible to identify one or more subject (s) addressed in the document. The receiver filters the strings by retaining only the significant words. The filtering is carried out using a list of words which have a precise semantic content. If a word from the title or abstract is present in the list, then it is retained, otherwise it is not taken into account. The receiver associates a sixth type of attribute called "Title and summary" with the five previously mentioned for

classify each document.

  An important aspect of the present invention is the fact that navigation from one document to another takes place locally and dynamically. Since the receiver gives access to numerous documents whose availability changes over time, the navigation user interface constantly receives and analyzes descriptive information from these different sources and processes them to determine the preferred documents of the user so as to offer them in a privileged manner. All the documents and sources giving access to these documents constitute the list of preferences. During navigation, the user can display an identifier of a document or an identifier of the source broadcasting this document. The present invention covers either one or the other of the variants, since in the end, the user views the current document

  identified by its title or by the source that disseminates it.

  Take for example the case of a receiver which only allows to receive broadcasts from a broadcasting network, six communication channels being available: TF1i, FR2, FR3, C +, La5, M6. Figure 2a presents a chronogram of the audiovisual broadcasts broadcast on these six channels. There are broadcasts of different nature and themes: Film: BAMBI, Terminator, Leon, TV movie 10 Information: teleshop, newspaper Documentary: gardening, economy Sport: Wimbledon, Formula 1, Foot (OM PSG), skating Suppose that the criteria selection options are football, tennis, cartoons, music shows and news (newspaper, weather, etc.). The shows that match the user's criteria are highlighted in Figure 2a . At the moment Tl, among the six channels, only two programs a priori interest the user: WIMBLEDON and the cartoon BAMBI. At time T2, the football program OM - PSG is then broadcast and is integrated into the list. Then BAMBI ends (instant T3), only the two remain

  tennis and football shows in the preferences list. At the moment T4, the football program ends, there remains only the program on tennis. At time T5, WIMBLEDON ends and is replaced by an interesting program: the newspaper which becomes the only item on the list of preferences.

  A first improvement consists in integrating a priority in the preferences of the user and in inserting in the traditional navigation first of all the audio-visual documents which correspond to the preferences of the user having a higher priority. This improvement is implemented when there is a choice, that is to say

  when multiple preferred documents are available at the same time.

  In the example illustrated in FIG. 2a, between times T2 and T3, three documents correspond to user preferences. Suppose that the user selection criteria are in order: football (first preference), tennis (second preference), cartoons, 5 music shows and lastly news (newspaper, weather, etc.). ..). Then, at time T2, the football program is placed first in the list of preferences, which puts the tennis program WIMBLEDON second. Figure 2b shows the evolution of the list of

  preferences as a function of time and according to this improvement.

  A variant consists in fixing priorities in the choice of the inserted programs, that is to say that during the first insertion one can only insert a document corresponding to the first preference of the user (football). During the second insertion, a document corresponding to one of the first two user preferences may be inserted. This implies that if, at a certain time when the system provides for an insertion, no document corresponds to the criterion, there is no

will have no insertion.

  Another variant consists in calculating the relevance of each available document, that is to say its interest for the user, by taking into account all of the attributes of each document, and thus drawing up an ordered list of preferences for each instant. given. The same document can be preferred by a user for several reasons, for example its theme and its producer are part of the preference criteria defined by the user. The relevance calculation consists in assigning a score for each user preference criterion, and in

  add all the notes. Suppose that the user defines five criteria noted from 5 to 1 starting with the most interesting, a document whose attributes correspond to the first, third and fifth criteria, is assigned the value of relevance 9 (5 + 3 30 + 1).

  In the examples illustrated in FIGS. 2a and 2b, it can be seen that, as a function of time, the list of available and preferred events of the user changes, and therefore the list of services broadcasting a

  favorite show is evolving similarly.

  In traditional navigation, the user uses the P + and P- buttons on his remote control to switch from one service to another by incrementing or decrementing the channel number. The receiver then has no control over the scrolling of the documents appearing during navigation. It is generally the content providers who define an orderly sequence of documents. If, for example, the receiver has only the six channels shown in Figure 2 as the source of available programs, pressing the buttons scrolls: TF1, FR2, FR3, C +, La5, M6, then return to TF1 ( it is in reverse if you press the button P-). This example describes the main channels in 15 France, the channel numbers associated with each of these six channels follow one another in the order: 1,2,3,4 .... According to the present embodiment, the interface of navigation will break the predetermined sequence by adding to the navigation elements of the list of preferences

  (source identifiers or document identifiers).

  According to a first embodiment, the preference list is calculated during each navigation command. A variant consists in that this task is carried out permanently, independently of the commands of the user, by a background task running at regular time intervals. Another variant 25 consists in launching this task when introducing new service data, that is to say for example, upon receiving a new table describing the available programs or at the introduction of a DVD or again when connecting with a server via the communication network 6. In the same way as previously, the determination of the elements of the list of preferences is carried out by analyzing the service data associated with the available programs

  and comparing them with the user's profile.

  According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the characteristic

  particular to programs which allows the channels broadcasting them to be in the list of preferences, is not limited to a criterion depending on the user.

  This characteristic can depend on the nature of the audiovisual receiver, for example, if the receiver is a 16/9 television, channels broadcasting programs in 16/9 format can be inserted in the navigation. Or, channels broadcasting very important programs, such as io warning news flashes, can also be inserted in

  the standard course of navigation.

  FIG. 3 shows a flow diagram for the implementation in software form of the navigation interface. This does not preclude that the interface can be realized in the form of an electronic circuit

1 5 specialized.

  In step 3.1, a "watchdog" (electronic device allowing to generate an alarm - "watchdog" according to English terminology) is launched. When the user remains a certain time (3 20 seconds for example) on a selection without launching commands, it makes it possible to detect the end of the zapping sequence. In step 3.2, the program broadcast by the current service is displayed. Then, the navigation interface waits for a navigation command activated using the P + or P- keys (step 3.3). As soon as this command is received in step 3.4, the navigation interface updates the list of services or sources giving access to programs which correspond to the profile of the user, the "watchdog" is launched again. In step 3.5, the interface determines whether to insert an element preferred by the user in traditional navigation. The mechanism for triggering an insertion can be caused in different ways. A simple way is to insert a preferred item each time a specified number of navigation commands have been executed by the user. For example, every four activations of the "P +" or "P-" keys, the interface inserts a preferred element. A variant consists in inserting a preferred element after a determined navigation time. This variant requires another "watchdog" device which is initialized during insertion and then decremented. If its value is zero, a new insertion is triggered. Another variant consists in triggering the insertion when the user while browsing has just selected a determined number of elements which do not correspond to any criteria selected by the user. For example, after selecting three shows that do not match the profile, the interface will insert a preferred item. This variant requires testing whether the program associated with the current element corresponds to the user's profile and counting the number of uninteresting programs. If the counter reaches a determined value, the navigation interface triggers the insertion of an interesting program taken from the list of preferences. Another variant consists in inserting a randomly inserted element, that is after a randomly defined navigation time,

  either after a random number of navigation commands.

  If in step 3.5, the interface does not trigger an insertion, then the user navigates in the traditional way and switches to the service by incrementing or decrementing the service number (step 3.6). Then the program loops to step 3.2 of viewing the program broadcast by this service, and waits for a new command (step 3.3). If in step 25 3.5, the interface triggers an insertion, then the navigation interface searches for an element of the list of preferences (step 3.7), this element (a service for example) becomes the means of accessing the user's favorite program. This program is then displayed in step 3.2. After explaining how the elements cooperate, we will show an example of navigation. Figure 4 shows a timing diagram showing an example of the various selections when the

  this embodiment of the invention is used.

  Suppose for simplicity that the multimedia receiver only gives access to 6 documents, broadcast by the six channels referenced by their acronyms: TF1, FR2, FR3, C +, La5, M6, or their respective channel numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Traditional navigation consists in respecting this order each time you press the P + key, pressing i0 P + with the program broadcast on M6 selects the program broadcast on TF1. The succession of program selections thus loops itself in one direction (by "P +") or in the other (by "P-"). According to the present exemplary embodiment, the navigation interface will disturb

this succession of broadcasts.

  FIG. 4 shows the succession of channel and program selections when the "P +" key is pressed, for each of the four instants presented in FIG. 2. At time T1, there are two preferred programs of l 'user, the system decides to insert one at the first navigation command. So a command "P +" with the first channel (TF1) as current channel triggers the insertion of the third channel FR3 broadcasting a favorite program on tennis instead of channel 2. Then the following two navigation commands follow a normal course : first channel 2, then channel 3 having just been broadcast, we go to channel 4. According to the insertion strategy 25 used: after two non-preferred channels, the system inserts a preferred channel if the channel in normal order is not a preferred channel. However in the present example, the following chain in the normal order: the Fifth is precisely a preferred chain. The system therefore does not need to insert other strings. As the latter is a preferred channel, the system allows navigation on two non-preferred channels: the sixth, then the first before inserting a preferred channel extracted from the list: the third. By this example, we see that the system manages two circular lists of documents, the first containing all the documents in a logical order, the second contains the preferred elements. Each of the lists is managed by a circular pointer 5. At each navigation command, one of the pointers searches for the document to be selected and the other pointer is inactive and does not

change no value.

  Similarly, at time T2, three documents are also in the list of preferred documents. In this case, the interface does not need to insert documents because half of them correspond to the preferences of the user. The instant T2 is remarkable in that the order in the list of channels broadcasting favorite programs can change, as shown in Figure 2b. Indeed, at this moment a football program is broadcast, it is the preferred reference of the user, so this document is put at the top of the list and will appear as soon as

  the first navigation command. The instant T3 is nothing particular compared to the two previous instants described. At times T4 and T5, there is only one preferred document in the list of preferences, depending on the strategy used, this document is inserted every three navigation commands.

  An improvement consists in displaying an indicator when the navigation interface inserts a new element in the navigation. For example, the number of the service is generally displayed for a certain time on the screen, if the program broadcast by this service is inserted by the navigation interface, then the displayed number of the service flashes or is highlighted. . In this way, the user knows that the interface has not carried out a traditional navigation command, but has inserted an element which should correspond to its 30 tastes. A variant is that the indicator is an audible signal

  emitted by the speaker of the multimedia receiver 1.

  Although the present invention has been described with reference to

  particular illustrated embodiments, it is in no way limited by these embodiments, but is only limited by the appended claims.

  Note that changes or modifications may be made by those skilled in the art.

Claims (11)

claims   1. Method for selecting an audiovisual element in a terminal comprising a first selection step activated by a navigation command selecting the element close to the current element in a predetermined list of elements, characterized in that it comprises a second selection step   an element not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements and which has a characteristic equivalent to data specific to the terminal, said second step being activated by 1o a navigation command.   2. Selection method according to claim 1, characterized in that the element selected during the second step has at least one attribute equivalent to a criterion characterizing a preference of 1 5 the user.   3. Selection method according to claim 2, characterized in that the element selected during the second step is determined according to the number of times that an attribute of the element is equivalent to   a criterion characterizing a preference of the user.   4. Selection process according to any one of   Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the second selection step takes place each time a predetermined number of first steps have been performed.   5. Selection method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that two new seconds   selection steps are separated by a fixed duration.   6. Selection method according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that priorities are fixed and define the order of appearance of the elements selected during the second steps, and in that the second selection step does not intervene when nothing is available   corresponds to the current priority.   7. Selection method according to claim 1, characterized in   that the second selection step occurs randomly.   8. Method for selecting an element according to any one of   previous claims, characterized in that the audiovisual elements are received from a broadcasting network having several   channels, the order of the list being defined by the identification number of the channel broadcasting this item.   9. Navigation method according to any one of   previous claims, characterized in that it comprises a step 10 of transmitting a signal indicating that the current element is selected   during a second selection step.   10. Audiovisual receiver comprising a central unit (3), means for receiving audiovisual elements (4), means for entering a navigation control (7,8) activating a selection means (3,12 ) of an audiovisual element within a predetermined list of elements, characterized in that the selection means comprises means for inserting (3,12) an element not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements, this element 20 having a characteristic equivalent to data specific to the terminal (1).   1 1. Multimedia receiver according to claim 1 0, characterized in that the insertion means (3,12) comprises a means of comparison between at least one user preference and attributes linked to audiovisual elements, the means insert selecting an element having at least one attribute equivalent to a criterion. 1 2. Multimedia receiver according to claim 11, characterized in that the insertion means selects as a priority an element having the most attributes equivalent to the criteria defining the preferences of the user. 1 3. Multimedia receiver according to any one of the   Claims 10 to 12, characterized in that the insertion means comprises a counter counting the number of navigation commands, the insertion means inserting an element not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements when the   counter reaches a predetermined value.   1 4. Multimedia receiver according to any one of the   Claims 10 to 12, characterized in that the insertion means comprises a watchdog, the insertion means inserting an element 10 not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list   elements when the value of the watchdog reaches a predetermined value. 1 5. Multimedia receiver according to any one of the   claims 10 to 12, characterized in that the insertion means 1 5 comprises a random data generator, the insertion means   inserting an element not provided for in the appearance list defined in the predetermined list of elements when a predetermined datum is generated by this generator.   1 6. Multimedia receiver according to any one of claims 20 from 10 to 15, characterized in that it comprises a means of   management of a list of preferences identifying the elements having a characteristic equivalent to data specific to the terminal, said list of preferences being updated during each navigation command.   17. Multimedia receiver according to any one of claims from 10 to 1 6, characterized in that it comprises a means of   management of a list of preferences identifying the elements having a characteristic equivalent to a data specific to the terminal, said list of preferences being updated when a new element becomes available for the receiver.   1 8 Multimedia receiver according to any one of the   Claims from 1i0 to 1 7, characterized in that it comprises a means for emitting an audible or visual signal signaling that the insertion means has inserted an element not provided following a command from navigation.