JP2001309266A - Display device of electronic program guidance - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow selecting a program cell composing a program list of a broadcasting schedule by simple operation. SOLUTION: A display of electronic program guidance comprises a program list storage 101 storing program information and dating data pairing up with the program information, a program list data selecting part 102 retrieving the program information responding to the specified data, a cell position calculating part 104 calculating a size of the program cell and a drawing position, a program list drawing part 105 drawing the program list according to the size of the program cell and the drawing position, a data checking part 103 searching the program cell responding to the dating data, a dating cell drawing part 111 drawing the dating cell, an input keys group 110 processing an input to move a cursor specifying the program cell, a cursor processor 109 changing the cursor position on the program list according to instructions from the input keys group and a current cell decision part 108 deciding the program cell specified by the cursor as the current cell.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electronic program guide display device, and more particularly to an electronic program guide display device for creating and displaying a program table composed of program cells displaying character strings representing programs to be broadcast. is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the spread of digital broadcasting, a great deal of information can be transmitted, and the number of channels of programs has been increased. Therefore, an electronic program guide (EP) which is a system for displaying a program guide on a screen
G: Electronic Program Guide
The need for e) is increasing. Program information of a general electronic program guide is transmitted together with a broadcast program by a cable from a cable television broadcasting station or by radio waves from a broadcasting satellite. The receiver that receives the program information stores the received program information in the storage device, and when all the information related to the program broadcast during a certain period has been received, creates a program guide and displays the program guide on the display device. In addition to the program information obtained from the above-mentioned broadcast signal, the program information is obtained from a network such as the Internet or a CD-ROM.
It can also be obtained from a storage medium such as. Further, such an electronic program guide assigns a category (for example, a quiz program, a variety program, a historical drama program, etc.) to which the program belongs for each program in advance, so that only programs belonging to a category desired by the user are assigned. It is also possible to search and display. As described above, the electronic program guide is the most effective means for improving the operability of the receiver as the number of programs increases due to the increase in the number of channels. As the above-described electronic program guide display device, for example, JP-A-1-209399 and JP-A-1-3
No. 07944 discloses an apparatus.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a display example of a conventional electronic program guide. From FIG. 9, the horizontal axis is time, the vertical axis is a channel number indicating a broadcasting station that broadcasts each program, and a rectangular range (hereinafter referred to as a program cell) corresponding to one program is provided on a two-dimensional screen. Each program cell describes a program title. The viewer can use the operation switches (not shown) provided on the remote controller or the like to scroll and view the program guide in a desired direction. To select a program to be viewed, a cursor indicating an input position of each program cell is provided, and the cursor position is moved by an operation switch to select a program cell. It is also possible to make a reservation setting for recording the selected program. Although the program table shown in FIG. 9 displays the time on the horizontal axis and the channel number on the vertical axis, the channel number may be displayed on the horizontal axis and the time may be displayed on the vertical axis.

[0004] In FIG. 9, when the time and channel number constituting the program guide are displayed on a two-dimensional screen,
Further, it is necessary to set the program table corresponding to the date to be displayed by some operation. Next, a method of switching dates will be described. The first way to set the date is
For example, when a program table of a certain day is displayed, the time of the program table is increased (to the right in FIG. 9).
Scroll to show the late-night program listings for that day,
Furthermore, there is a method of scrolling in the same direction to display a program table of the early morning of the next day. As a second method of setting a date, there is a method of providing a date setting command for setting a date on a remote controller and scrolling the program guide several days later at a time.

According to the techniques disclosed in the above-mentioned JP-A-1-209399 and JP-A-1-307944,
The means for inputting a command for scrolling the program guide is provided with only buttons for scrolling the program guide in the up, down, left, and right directions, and there is no description of a method of switching dates. It is believed that only the first method can be applied. According to the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 6-504165, a day setting key (also used as a numeric keypad) is provided on the remote controller shown in the figure. It has not been.

[0006]

However, the configuration of the above-mentioned conventional electronic program guide display device has the following problems. In order to switch the date of the above-mentioned program guide, it is conceivable to scroll the program guide sequentially as a first method, or to separately provide a date switch button on a remote controller or the like as a second method. However, both methods are cumbersome and impractical. The present invention has been made in order to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide an electronic program guide display device capable of switching a date of a program guide by a simple operation.

[0007]

In order to solve this problem, an electronic program guide display device according to a first aspect of the present invention relates to a program cell which displays a character string representing a program to be broadcasted. An electronic program guide display device for creating a program table consisting of: and displaying the program table, wherein the program cell includes character string information representing program information, and the program information and a date paired with the program information. A program table data storage unit for storing data; a program table data selection unit for extracting program information corresponding to a specified date from the program table data storage unit;
A cell position calculator for calculating the size and the drawing position of the program cell; a program table drawing unit for drawing a program table from the size and the drawing position of the program cell obtained by the cell position calculator; A data checker that outputs a search result as to whether or not a program cell corresponding to the data exists in the program guide data storage; and a character string representing a date in response to the search result obtained from the data checker. A date cell drawing unit that draws a date cell that displays, an input key group that performs input for moving a cursor that specifies the program cell, and a decision key that performs input for determining the cursor selected by the input key group. A cursor processing unit that changes a position of a cursor on a program table according to an input from the input key group;
A current cell determination unit that determines a program cell designated by a cursor on the program table as a current cell.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the electronic program guide display device according to the first aspect, in the electronic program guide display device, the program table data selecting section has a current cell on a date cell. When the enter key is input, program information corresponding to the date cell in which the enter key is input is extracted from the program table data storage unit, and the program table drawing unit outputs the program table data. The program table is redrawn based on the program information newly extracted from the selection unit.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electronic program guide display device according to the first aspect, wherein the input keys are arranged in up, down, left, and right directions. It is characterized by including four keys for moving the cursor to.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic program guide display device according to the first aspect, wherein the program cells are arranged in the order of channel numbers indicating broadcast stations that broadcast programs. And the date cell is displayed adjacent to a program cell corresponding to a program having the smallest channel number among the channel numbers.
Alternatively, display is performed adjacent to a program cell corresponding to a program having the largest channel number among the channel numbers.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic program guide display device according to the first aspect, wherein the program cells display the program cells in the order of broadcast time at which the program is broadcast. , The date cell displays adjacent to the program cell corresponding to the program broadcast at the earliest time in the broadcast time, or the program corresponding to the program broadcast at the latest time in the broadcast time. The display is performed adjacent to the cell.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. Embodiment 1 FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an electronic program guide display device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 101 denotes a program guide data storage unit for storing program guide data of a program guide describing broadcast schedule information of a television program. Here, the program guide data includes date data and program data including a character string of a program title of each broadcasting station and a character string of supplementary information of the program. 10
2 extracts program table data from the program table data storage unit 101 to display the program table on the display 106,
Further, it is a program table data selection unit that outputs date data in the program table data to the date cell drawing unit 111. Reference numeral 104 denotes a cell position calculation unit for calculating the size and drawing position of each program cell constituting the program table. 105 is a cell position calculation unit 1
The program table drawing unit draws each program cell according to the drawing position of each program cell obtained in step 04 to form a program table.
Reference numeral 106 denotes a display for outputting the program guide drawn by the program guide drawing unit 105 as visible information. Reference numeral 107 denotes a date setting unit that sets the date of the program data to be displayed in the program guide and outputs the set date to the program guide data selection unit 102. Reference numeral 110 denotes a remote controller (input key group) for obtaining an input from a viewer. Reference numeral 109 denotes a cursor processing unit that changes a cursor position on a program table in accordance with an input from the remote controller 110. Reference numeral 108 denotes a current cell determination unit that determines a cell in which the cursor designated by the cursor processing unit 109 exists (hereinafter, referred to as a current cell). Reference numeral 103 denotes a data confirmation unit that determines whether date data to be displayed on the display 106 exists in the program guide data storage unit 101. A date cell drawing unit 111 draws a date cell on the display 106 together with the program table.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a remote controller for giving an input instruction to the electronic program guide display device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 8, reference numeral 801 denotes a housing. A power switch 802 controls ON / OFF of the power of the television receiver. A volume up button 803 increases the volume of the television receiver, and a volume down button 804 reduces the volume of the television receiver. These buttons adjust the volume of the television receiver. 8
05 is a channel selection ascending button for setting a channel number being displayed to increase in order to select a channel, and 806 is a channel selection descending button for setting a channel number being displayed is decreasing in order to select a channel. Button. Reference numeral 807 denotes a program guide button for controlling display switching between displaying a program video on the display 106 of the television receiver or displaying a program guide. Reference numeral 808 denotes an upward cursor move button for moving the cursor on the program guide upward, 809 denotes a left cursor move button for moving the cursor on the program guide left, and 810 denotes a right direction for moving the cursor on the program guide right. A cursor movement button 811 is a downward cursor movement button for moving the cursor on the program guide downward. 81
Reference numeral 2 denotes a determination button for determining the cursor selected by the cursor movement buttons 808 to 811.

Next, the operation of the electronic program guide display device according to the first embodiment will be described. In the electronic program guide display device according to the first embodiment, the date data is displayed on the display 106 together with the program data, and the date is set on the display 106.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the electronic program guide display device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. First, when it is determined that the program guide button 807 of the remote controller 110 has been turned ON (that is, a program guide is displayed) (step S201), the program guide data selection unit 102 extracts program guide data from the program guide data storage unit 101. (Step S202). Here, the cursor processing unit 109 sets the coordinate position of the cursor to the upper left (1,
Initialized to 1) and sent to the current cell determination unit 108,
The current cell determination unit 108 determines the program cell of the program indicating the set time in the broadcasting station having the smallest channel number as the current cell.

In step S203, the cell position calculator 1
At 04, the size and drawing position of the program cell of each program are calculated. Then, based on the calculated value, a character string of the program data is drawn by the program table drawing unit 105 and displayed on the display 106 (step S204). FIG. 3 shows a display example at this time.

Subsequently, it is determined whether or not the current cell in the program table is set to the program cell with the highest channel number (step S205). In step S205, the current cell is set to the program cell with the highest channel number. If it is determined that the setting has been made, the channel selection up button 80
It is determined whether or not 5 has been pressed (step S206).
If it is determined in step S206 that the channel selection up button 805 has been pressed, the date cell drawing unit 11
In step 1, the date data output from the program guide data selection unit 102 is drawn on a date cell (step S207) and displayed on the display 106 (step S208). On the other hand, if it is determined in step S205 that the current cell is not the program with the largest channel number, the operation ends. If it is determined in step S206 that the channel selection up button 805 has not been pressed, the operation ends.

Next, FIG. 4 shows a display example of the program guide created by the above-described operation. Here, the current time is set to 199
It is assumed that it is 21:00 on July 31, 1997, and the program guide is set to display the current time and thereafter. At this time, the program table data storage unit 101 stores 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 1
It is assumed that program data of channels 0 and 12 are stored.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 418 denotes a channel axis;
17 is a time axis. Reference numerals 401 to 408 denote program cells drawn by the program guide drawing unit 105, reference numeral 409 denotes a date axis for displaying dates, and reference numerals 410 to 416 denote date cells drawn by the date cell drawing unit 111. From FIG. 4, date cell 410
(Wednesday, July 31) is designated as the current cell, and is indicated by a bold line to indicate that it is the current cell. Further, the background color of the date cell 412 is different from that of the other date cells, which indicates that the program table displayed on the display 106 is the program data of August 2 (Fri). The date cell 415 (Monday, August 5) and the date cell 416 (Tuesday, August 6)
Although it is drawn in a character size different from that of the other date cells, this means that the program guide data of the corresponding date does not exist in the program guide data storage unit 101. That is, the data check unit 103 stores the program data corresponding to the date data displayed on the program guide in the program guide data storage unit 1.
01 is output to the date cell drawing unit 111, and the date cell drawing unit 111 changes the character size on the date cell according to the search result obtained from the data check unit 103 and draws the data. You are going to.

Next, the operation of displaying date data based on the above display example will be described with reference to FIGS. First, in a state where the current cell is present on the program cell 407 (“Kabuki Theater”) (FIG. 3), when the downward cursor movement button 811 is further pressed, the program cell 407 has the largest channel number. The date cells 410 to 416 are subsequently displayed without displaying the program cells (FIG. 4). At this time, the current cell is a date cell 410
(July 31 (Wed)). Then, the date can be arbitrarily set by moving the cursor movement button to the right. However, it is set so that the cursor cannot be moved leftward when the cursor is located in the date cell 410, and similarly, the cursor cannot be moved downward. Alternatively, when the cursor is moved downward, the program cell of the broadcast station having the smallest channel number (not shown in FIG. 4 but corresponding to two channels) is scrolled to the program cell of the program from 21:00. You may. When the cursor is moved upward, the display of the date cell is stopped and only the program cell is displayed.
7 (FIG. 3).

Next, FIG. 5 shows another display example of the date data display example shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, when the program cell having the largest channel number exists as the current cell, the downward cursor movement button 8
When 11 is pressed, the date cells 501 to 507 are displayed side by side so as to be parallel to the channel axis direction. At this time, the current cell moves to the date cell 501 (Wednesday, July 31). Then, the date can be arbitrarily set by moving the cursor movement button downward. However, it is set so that the cursor cannot be moved upward when the cursor is located in the date cell 501. Similarly, the cursor cannot be moved rightward. Alternatively, when the cursor is moved to the right, the program may be scrolled to the program cell of the program of the broadcast station having the smallest channel number. When the cursor is moved to the left, the display of the date cell is stopped and only the program cell is displayed.

As described above, according to the electronic program guide display device of the first embodiment, the program table displayed on the display displays not only the program cells but also the date cells for displaying the dates. Therefore, the date can be easily selected. In order to display the date cell in the program guide, the current cell is scrolled to the program cell of the first or last channel number, and the date cell is displayed by further scrolling in the same direction. The display of the date cell can be switched between display and non-display by an operation. Further, it is not necessary to separately provide a date switching button or the like on the remote controller to switch the date.

Note that the program guide displayed on the display 106 does not indicate the number of all channels.
Alternatively, only one channel may be displayed as shown in FIG. By displaying only one channel in this way, a program guide can be displayed without impairing visibility even with a small-sized display or a display device with a small displayable character size. The display 106 not only displays the program guide, but also displays a broadcast program display screen 601 as shown in FIG.
May be displayed together, and the program cells in the program guide may be displayed as an overlay (reference numeral 603). If the configuration for displaying the broadcast program and the program guide together as shown in FIG. 6 is performed, the lower side of the current cell 603 is the display 106.
, And the time axis 602 is moved up and down in accordance with the size of the current cell 603 for drawing. In this way, when the display screen 601 of the broadcast program is difficult to see due to the program table, the time axis 602 can be moved up and down to minimize the invisible part constantly.

In FIG. 6, the current cell 603 is scrolled in the direction of increasing the channel number,
FIG. 7 shows a display example when the data reaches the date cell.
7, reference numeral 701 denotes a display screen of a broadcast program; 702, a date axis; and 703 to 709, date cells. As shown in FIG. 7, when the display is switched from the program cell display to the date cell display as shown in FIG. 7, the current cell moves to the date cell 703 indicating the earliest date.

The program guide is displayed not only in accordance with the lower end of the display 106 but also in the display 106.
May be displayed so as to match the upper end of. Further, in FIG. 6, the time is displayed on the horizontal axis and the channel number is displayed on the vertical axis. However, the channel number may be displayed on the horizontal axis and the time may be displayed on the vertical axis.

Although not shown, the electronic program guide display device according to the first embodiment obtains the current date and time using a clock, and displays the current program date and time using the clock. It is also possible to limit the display to a later time, or to allow the user to enter a broadcast station (channel number) and display the program guide after the current date and time and to limit the display to the entered broadcast station. It is. In controlling the cursor, in the above embodiment, the upward cursor move button 808, the left cursor move button 809, the right cursor move button 810, the down cursor move button 8
Although the remote controller 110 provided with 11 is used, the same can be realized by using a coordinate input device such as a trackball. Also, the method of distinguishing and displaying the current cell and other cells is not limited to the method of distinguishing by the thickness of the outline described above, and the form and color of the outline, the size and color of the character in the cell, Various display methods such as distinction based on cell color and the like are possible, and a method that allows the viewer to visually distinguish the cell type may be used.

[0027]

As described above, according to the electronic program guide display device according to the first aspect of the present invention, for a program to be broadcast, a program table composed of program cells displaying character strings representing the program is created. An electronic program guide display device for displaying the program guide, wherein the program cell includes character string information representing program information, and stores the program information and date data paired with the program information. A data storage unit, a program table data selection unit for extracting program information corresponding to a specified date from the program table data storage unit, a cell position calculation unit for calculating the size and drawing position of the program cell, A program table drawing unit that draws a program table based on the program cell size and the drawing position obtained by the calculation unit, and whether a program cell corresponding to the date data exists in the program table data storage unit And data confirmation unit for outputting the result was,
A date cell drawing unit that receives a search result obtained from the data confirmation unit and draws a date cell displaying a character string representing a date; and an input key group that performs input for moving a cursor that specifies the program cell. A determination key for performing an input for determining a cursor selected by the input key group; a cursor processing unit for changing a position of the cursor on the program table in accordance with an input from the input key group; A current cell determination unit that determines the designated program cell as the current cell is provided, so that it is not necessary to separately provide a date switching button or the like on the remote controller to switch the date cell of the program table, which is simple. Display and non-display of the date cell can be switched by a simple operation.

Further, according to the electronic program guide display device of the present invention, in the electronic program guide display device of the first aspect, the program table data selecting section may be arranged such that the current cell is located on a date cell. When the enter key is input, the program information corresponding to the date cell in which the enter key is input is extracted from the program table data storage unit, and the program table drawing unit outputs the program table. Since the program table is redrawn based on the program information newly extracted from the data selection unit, it is not necessary to separately provide a date switching button or the like on the remote controller to switch the date cell of the program table. The display and non-display of the date cell can be switched by a simple operation.

According to the electronic program guide display device of the third aspect of the present invention, in the electronic program guide display device of the first aspect, the input key group includes up, down, left,
Since four keys for moving the cursor in the respective right directions are included, a program cell on the program guide can be selected by a simple operation.

According to the electronic program guide display device of the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the electronic program guide display device of the first aspect, the program cell has a channel number indicating a broadcast station that broadcasts the program. The display is performed in order, and the date cell is displayed adjacent to the program cell corresponding to the program having the smallest channel number among the channel numbers, or corresponds to the program having the largest channel number among the channel numbers. Since the display is performed adjacent to the program cell, the date cell can be displayed without impairing the visibility of the program table.

According to the electronic program guide display device of the present invention, in the electronic program guide display device of the first aspect, the program cells display the program cells in the order of the broadcast time of broadcasting the program. The date cell performs display adjacent to a program cell corresponding to a program broadcast at the earliest time among the broadcast times, or corresponds to a program broadcast at the latest time among the broadcast times. Since the display is performed adjacent to the program cell, the date cell can be displayed without impairing the visibility of the program table.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an electronic program guide display device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the electronic program guide display device according to the embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a display example of a program guide according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example in which date cells according to the embodiment are displayed in parallel with a time axis direction.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example in which date cells according to the embodiment are displayed in parallel with the channel axis direction.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example in which a program guide is displayed together with a display screen of a broadcast program according to the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example in which a date cell is displayed together with a display screen of a broadcast program according to the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a remote controller according to the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a display example of a conventional electronic program guide.

[Explanation of symbols]

101 program table data storage unit 102 program table data selection unit 103 data confirmation unit 104 cell position calculation unit 105 program table drawing unit 106 display 107 date setting unit 108 current cell determination unit 109 cursor processing unit 110 remote controller 111 date cell drawing unit 401 408,603,604 Program cell 409,702 Date axis 410-416,501-507,703-709
Date cell 417, 602 Time axis 418 Channel axis 601, 701 Broadcast program display screen 801 Remote controller housing 802 Power switch 803 Volume up button 804 Volume down button 805 Channel selection up button 806 Channel selection down button 807 Program table button 808 Up cursor move button 809 Left cursor move button 810 Right cursor move button 811 Down cursor move button 812 Enter button

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H04N 7/035 (72) Inventor Kazuhiro Kuroyama 1006 Odakadoma, Kadoma, Osaka Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (72 ) Inventor Kazuaki Ohara 1006 Kazuma Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka F-term (reference) 5C025 BA30 CA10 CA11 CB06 CB10 DA01 5C056 AA05 BA01 CA20 DA20 EA06 5C063 AA20 AB03 CA23 CA29 DA07

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An electronic program guide display device for creating a program table composed of program cells displaying a character string representing the program for a broadcast-scheduled program, and displaying the program table. A program table data storage unit including character string information representing program information and storing the program information and date data paired with the program information; and extracting program information corresponding to a specified date from the program table data storage unit A program table data selector, a cell position calculator for calculating the size and drawing position of the program cell, and a program table for drawing a program table from the program cell size and drawing position obtained by the cell position calculator A drawing unit; a data check unit that outputs a result of searching whether a program cell corresponding to the date data exists in the program table data storage unit; and a search result obtained from the data check unit. , A date cell drawing unit for drawing a date cell displaying a character string representing a date, an input key group for performing an input for moving a cursor for specifying the program cell, and a cursor selected by the input key group A decision key for making an input to determine the position; a cursor processing unit for changing the position of the cursor on the program guide in accordance with the input from the input key group; and a program cell designated by the cursor on the program guide as the current cell An electronic program guide display device, comprising: 2. The electronic program guide display device according to claim 1, wherein the program table data selecting section is configured to execute the program if the enter key is input when the current cell is on a date cell. The program information corresponding to the date cell in which the enter key has been input is extracted from the table data storage unit, and the program table drawing unit regenerates the program table based on the program information newly extracted from the program table data selection unit. An electronic program guide display device for drawing. 3. The electronic program guide display device according to claim 1, wherein the input key group includes four keys for moving a cursor in respective directions of up, down, left, and right. Electronic program guide display device. 4. The electronic program guide display device according to claim 1, wherein the program cells display in the order of channel numbers indicating broadcast stations that broadcast the program, and the date cells indicate a channel among the channel numbers. An electronic program for displaying adjacent to a program cell corresponding to a program having the smallest number, or displaying adjacent to a program cell corresponding to a program having the highest channel number among the channel numbers. Guide display device. 5. The electronic program guide display device according to claim 1, wherein the program cells display in the order of the broadcast time at which the program is broadcast, and the date cells are broadcast at the earliest time of the broadcast times. An electronic program which is displayed adjacent to a program cell corresponding to a program to be broadcast, or is displayed adjacent to a program cell corresponding to a program broadcast at the latest broadcast time among the broadcast times. Guide display device.