JP2002152682A - Image transmitter - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To set an isochronous transfer band optimum for image reproduction when the plural types of videos are mixed and recorded on a hard disk. SOLUTION: When an IEEE1394 transmission/reception means 13 receives a reproduction command, a band control means 142 reads the header of a content from the hard disk 12, specifies a band, transmits band information 14b to a band adjusting means 143 and transmits a wait signal 14a to a hard disk control means 141. The hard disk control means 141 stops the reading of an MPEG transport stream 14f from the hard disk 12 before setting the band. The band adjusting means 143 sets the isochronous transfer band and transmits the signal in the optimum transmission band.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for transmitting MPEG images stored on a hard disk of a
The present invention relates to an image reproducing system for transmitting an image to a receiving device via a bidirectional network such as 94, and to an image transmitting device for performing communication between a transmitter and a receiver.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a system for storing digital images recorded by MPEG or the like on a hard disk and transmitting the digital images to a receiver via the network has been developed due to an increase in the speed of a network and an increase in the capacity of a hard disk. In this video network system, an IEEE 1394 high-speed network is used, and a storage device having a hard disk and a reproduction device for receiving and reproducing video are connected using the network.

[0003] IEEE 1394 has an isochronous transfer function that guarantees that video and audio data and the like are transferred within a certain period of time, so that it becomes a digital interface suitable for image and audio transmission. I have.

At present, IEEE 1394 is a digital VC
R Council DVB (European Digital Broadcasting) and IEEE13
94T. A. (Trade Association) and other detailed commands are negotiated. In particular, IEEE 1394
T. A. In the MPEG transport stream IE
A method for transmission on EE1394 and a command (disk command) for controlling a digital VCR using a hard disk have been formulated.

However, in IEEE 1394, there is no control system for controlling the transmission band of isochronous transmission. In IEEE 1394, packets of an MPEG transport stream are converted, and the
Only the method of transmission by the 394 isochronous transfer is determined. Further, only simple control commands such as a playback command and a recording command have been formulated for disc commands.

FIG. 2 shows a conventional image transmission apparatus. In the figure, 21 is a storage device, and 23 and 26 are IEs.
EE1394 transmitting / receiving means, 24 is a hard disk control means, 25 is a receiver, 27 is a command generating means, and 28 is an image reproducing means. Reference numeral 22 denotes a hard disk, on which an MPEG transport stream is recorded in an arbitrary format.

[0007] In FIG.
A PEG transport stream is recorded. M
In the data recorded by the PEG transport stream, a high-resolution image (hereinafter referred to as HD image) and an image having a smaller resolution than HD (hereinafter referred to as SD image) are recorded. The command generation means 27 of the receiver 25
A playback command 2a for playing back the MPEG transport stream stored in is transmitted to the network transmission / reception means 26.

The IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 26 converts the reproduction command into a transmission packet on the IEEE 1394, transmits the packet on the IEEE 1394 network 2b, and
EE1394 transmission / reception means 23. IEEE 1394
The transmission / reception means 23 extracts the reproduction command 2a from the transmitted transmission packet and sends it to the hard disk control means 24.

When the playback command 2a indicates playback, fast forward, or rewind, the hard disk control means 24 outputs the MPE recorded in the hard disk 22.
G transport stream is read out and IEEE139
4 Transmit to the transmission / reception means 23. When the playback command 2a indicates stop and pause, the MP
Stop reading the EG transport stream.

The IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 23 converts the MPEG transport stream read from the hard disk into isochronous packets, and
394 network 2b. The transmitted isochronous packet is converted into an MPEG transport stream by the IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving unit 26 and transmitted to the image reproducing unit 28.

FIG. 3 shows an IEEE 1394 transmitting and receiving means 2
3 and 26 are shown. The playback command 2a is converted into an asynchronous transfer packet by the asynchronous transfer means 31,
It is transmitted and received on the IEEE 1394 network 2b via the IEEE 1394 link layer 33 and the IEEE 1394 physical layer 34. MPEG transport stream 3a
Is an MPEG transport stream transmission / reception means.
It is converted to an EEE1394 isochronous packet,
It is transmitted and received on the IEEE 1394 network 2b via the IEEE 1394 link layer 33 and the IEEE 1394 physical layer 34.

The conversion method and the transmission / reception method of the MPEG transport stream transmission / reception means are described in IEEE1394.
T. A. Developed above. In addition, the IEEE 1394 link layer 33 and the IEEE 1394 physical layer 34 are
It is standardized on 1394.

FIG. 4 shows the structure of an MPEG transport stream. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 41 denotes a bit string called an elementary stream, in which information such as video and audio is described. In most cases, an image contains a bit string that has been compressed with MPEG video. The bit sequence complies with the method specified in ISO / IEC13818-2.

In the video elementary stream 41, Sequence_header is described in some cases, and includes an image compression method, identification and configuration of SD and HD images, output interval between pictures. Etc. are described.

[0015] ISO / IEC is used for the elementary stream.
A stream with a PES header defined by 13818-1 is called a PES stream. After dividing the PES stream into an arbitrary size, a header specified by ISO / IEC13818-1 is added, a fixed packet having a length of 188 bytes is added, and various information is added.
PEG transport stream.

In the conventional configuration shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4, when reproducing an image stored in the hard disk, a high band transfer rate is required for an HD image. For example, when transferring an image of MPEG2 MP @ HL, a transfer rate as high as about 20 to 30 Mbps is required.

On the other hand, in the case of SD images, MPEG2 MP
な ら ば ML images require a transfer rate of about 10 to 15 Mbps. Further, transfer of trick play such as fast forward of these images may require a larger transfer band. In the conventional configuration, the storage device 21 and the receiver 25 correspond one-to-one, and the image stored in the hard disk 22 is limited to only the SD image, so that the isochronous transfer band in the IEEE1394 network 2b is specified and fixed. We were able to.

[0018]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION However, the IEEE
As the types of devices using E1394 increase, the IE
Various devices are connected to the IEEE 1394 network, and more types of video are transmitted on the IEEE 1394 network. Therefore, the types of images stored on the hard disk increase. Accordingly, the hard disk is required to have a function of storing images having different transfer rates such as an SD image and an HD image on one hard disk.

In such a case, when the SD image and the HD image are mixed, if the isochronous transfer band of the IEEE 1394 is fixed at the set band of the HD image as in the conventional example, the transfer area wasted when the SD image is transferred. I have. Also, if the band is set to the SD image band, the HD image cannot be transferred.

As described above, in the conventional configuration, when a plurality of types of video are mixedly recorded on the hard disk, there is a problem that the image cannot be transferred in the optimal isochronous transfer band. Further, in this case, there is a problem that the receiver cannot recognize that the receiver tried to reproduce an image that cannot be reproduced by itself.

Further, as the types of receivers connected to the IEEE 1394 network increase, when a receiver for an SD image and a receiver for an HD image are simultaneously connected to a storage device having a hard disk, only the storage device has an SD image. In some cases, an HD image is sent to a receiver that cannot be reproduced. In that case, there is a problem that the receiver of the SD image cannot reproduce the HD image.

Further, even with the same HD image receiver,
When performing special reproduction, image reproduction means or IEEE1394
Since the capabilities of the transmission / reception means are different, there is a problem that the isochronous transfer band required for special reproduction is different for each receiver.

As described above, when different types of contents are transmitted on the IEEE 1394 network and receivers having different reproduction capabilities are connected, an optimum isochronous transfer band cannot be provided in the conventional configuration example. There was a problem.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and has as its object to provide an apparatus for setting an optimal isochronous transfer band according to the type of an image recorded on a hard disk.

Further, the present invention provides a method for transmitting information of a receiver to IEEE
It is an object of the present invention to provide a device that does not transmit an image that cannot be reproduced by obtaining it on 1394.

Also, according to the present invention, even if the image is the same, the processing capability of the special reproduction is different for each receiver. By changing the transmission method of the special reproduction, the isochronous transfer band adapted to the receiver is changed. It is an object of the present invention to provide a device for setting the parameter.

[0027]

An image transmission apparatus according to the present invention has a storage device having band analysis means and band adjustment means,
A reproduction command is input from the IEEE 1394 transmission / reception unit to the control unit and the band analysis unit. Upon receiving the reproduction command, the band analysis unit sends a wait signal to the control unit, and the control unit stops reading image data from the hard disk until the wait signal is released. After transmitting the weight signal, the bandwidth analysis unit reads the Sequence_header section of the MPEG transport stream from the hard disk, reads out the image size and the frame output interval, and transmits the readout to the bandwidth adjustment unit.

The band adjusting means creates an IEEE 1394 isochronous transfer band from the image size and the frame output interval, and sends it to the IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving means. IEEE
The E1394 transmission / reception unit sets the band set by the band adjustment unit to the band for isochronous transfer. The band analyzer cancels the wait signal when the band setting to the IEEE 1394 transmitter / receiver is completed. When the wait signal is released, the control means reads the MPEG transport stream from the hard disk and sends it to the IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving means. By providing the band analysis unit and the band adjustment unit in the conventional configuration, it becomes possible to set an appropriate isochronous transfer band according to the contents of the MPEG transport stream.

Further, receiver information transmission / transmission means is added to the receiver, and the obtained receiver information is transmitted to the storage device using the IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means in the same manner as the command issued by the command generation means. MPEG that the receiver cannot receive using the receiver information sent to the receiver
By performing the operation of not reading the transport stream from the hard disk, it is possible to solve the problem that the storage device sends out the content that cannot be reproduced by the receiver.

The receiver information includes the MPEG transport stream decoding capability of the reproducing means and IEEE 139.
(4) A means for adding the processing capability of the transmission / reception means and sending the data to the storage device is provided. The storage device has a transmission band required for special reproduction of the image stored on the hard disk and a transmission band calculated from the receiver information. Are compared, and according to the result, the output frame interval at the time of special reproduction or the number of thinned frames is changed, so that a special reproduction image suitable for the receiver can be reproduced.

[0031]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows an image transmission apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 11 is a storage device, 13 and 16 are IEEE13.
94 transmission / reception means, 141 is a hard disk control means, 1
42 is a band control unit, 143 is a band adjustment unit, 15 is a receiver, 17 is a command generation unit, and 18 is an image reproduction unit. Reference numeral 12 denotes a hard disk, and the hard disk has MPEG defined by ISO / IEC13818-1.
The transport stream is recorded in any format.

The operation of the present embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG. As in the conventional example, the HD image and the SD image are arbitrarily recorded on the hard disk 12 in FIG. The command generation means 17 of the receiver 15 generates a reproduction command 1a for reproducing the MPEG transport stream stored on the hard disk 12, and
The data is sent to the EEE1394 transmitting / receiving means 16. IEEE139
4 The transmission / reception means 16 transmits the reproduction command to the IEEE 1394
The transmission packet is converted into the above transmission packet, and transmitted over the IEEE 1394 network 1b.
Send to The IEEE 1394 transmission / reception unit 13 extracts the reproduction command 1a from the transmitted transmission packet and sends it to the hard disk control unit 141 and the band control unit 142.

When the playback command 1a is playback, fast-forward, reverse playback, or other special playback, when the playback command 1a is received from the band control means 142, a wait signal 14a is sent to the hard disk control means 141, and then the image data is sent from the hard disk. The information 14c is read and the band information 14b is read.
Is transmitted to the band adjusting means 143, and the weight signal 14a is released. The band adjusting unit 143 uses the band information 14b
It calculates the isochronous transfer band of the IEEE1394 transmitting / receiving means 13 and sends out the isochronous band 14e of the IEEE1394 transmitting / receiving means to the IEEE1394 transmitting / receiving means 13.

When the weight signal 14a is received, the hard disk control means 141 stops reading from the hard disk 12, and when the weight signal 14a is released, sends a control signal 14d to the hard disk and outputs the MPEG signal recorded on the hard disk. The transport stream 14f is read and transmitted to the IEEE1394 transmitting / receiving means 13.

When the reproduction command 1a indicates stop and pause, the band control means 142 does not operate. The hard disk control unit 141 sends out the control signal 14d to stop reading the MPEG transport stream 14f from the hard disk 12.

The IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 13 converts the MPEG transport stream read from the hard disk into isochronous packets, and
394 network 1b. The transmitted isochronous packet is converted into an MPEG transport stream by the IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving unit 16 and transmitted to the image reproducing unit 18. The image reproducing means 18
Play the sent image. The configuration of the IEEE1394 transmission / reception means 13, 16 is the same as that shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the configuration of the band control means 142. In the figure, the band control means 142 includes a look-up table 51 and a look-up table 52. The look-up table is a two-dimensional table centered on two variables of the size of the image stored on the hard disk and the frame output interval, and the value describes the band information 14b.

The look-up table describes band information 14b of a larger transmission band as the size of the image is larger. Similarly, the band information 14b of the larger transmission band is described as the frame output interval is shorter. The look-up table control means 52 controls the weight signal 14a and reads the look-up table 51, and sends out the band information 14b to the band adjusting means 143.

FIG. 6 shows the look-up table control means 52.
Is shown. Upon receiving the reproduction command 1a (step S1), the lookup table controller 52 determines the content of the reproduction command 1a (S2). If the reproduction command 1a is a stop / pause command, the lookup table controller 52 stops its operation.

If the reproduction command 1a is not in the stop or pause mode, the lookup table control means 52 sends the wait signal 14a to the hard disk control means 141 (S
3).

Next, the lookup table control means 52
Reads the image information 14c from the hard disk 12 (S4). The image information 14c is information described in Sequence_header in the MPEG transport stream.

The rup-up table control means 52 has a function of Se.
Two parameters of the size of the image included in the "quence_header" and the output interval of the frame are extracted (S5) and sent to the lookup table 51 (S5).
6).

The look-up table 51 extracts the band information 14b from the number of images and the frame output interval (S7), and sends it to the band adjusting unit 143 via the lookup table control unit 52 (S8). Next, the lookup table control means 52 releases the wait signal 14a (S9), and ends the operation (S10).

The band control means 143 receives the band information 14b, calculates an isochronous band necessary for transmitting an image having the band information 14b, and calculates the isochronous band 1
4e is transmitted to the IEEE1394 transmitting / receiving means 13.

The configuration shown in FIG.
uence_header is read and the band information 14 is read.
Although b has been created, if the size of the image and the frame output interval are recorded in a portion of the hard disk different from the recording region of the MPEG transport stream, the information recorded in that region may be used. If the image size and frame output interval are recorded on a hard disk other than the hard disk,
The size of the image or the frame output interval may be read.

The configuration shown in FIG. 5 enables fine control by using a two-dimensional lookup table, and absorbs changes in the contents of images stored in the hard disk 12 and changes in the overall system configuration. There is an advantage that can be.

In the case of the configuration shown in FIG. 1, the band control means 142 sets an optimum transmission band for the image recorded on the hard disk, so that the SD image is transmitted in the HD image band or the SD image band is transmitted. Problems related to band mismatch such as sending an HD image can be solved.

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 7 shows an image transmission apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 74 is a storage device, 13 and 16 are IEEE13
94 transmitting / receiving means, 141 a hard disk control means, 7
2 is a reproduction control unit, 142 is a band control unit, 143 is a band adjustment unit, 75 is a receiver, 76 is an error processing unit, 7
Reference numeral 3 denotes a memory connected to the reproduction control means 72;
Is a command generating means, 18 is an image reproducing means, and 71 is a receiver information generating means. 12 is a hard disk,
An MPEG transport stream is recorded on the hard disk 12 in an arbitrary format.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. Command generation means 17, image reproduction means 18, IEEE13
The 94 transmitting / receiving means 13 and 16 are the same as those of the first embodiment.

The receiver information generating means 71 is provided for receiving the receiver information 7
1a is generated and sent to the IEEE transmitting / receiving means 16. The receiver information 71a includes information of an MPEG transport stream that can be reproduced by the receiver 75 and IE information of the receiver 75.
4 shows a transfer band of the EE1394 transmitting / receiving means 16,
The information of the MPEG transport stream that can be reproduced by the receiver includes the image size, encoding method, copyright information, M
This is management information by the provider of the PEG transport stream.

The receiver information 71a is stored in the command generation unit 1
7 is generated before the reproduction command 1a is generated or simultaneously with the reproduction command 1a. The receiver information 71a is IEEE
IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 16
The data is transmitted over the network 1b and the IEEE1
394 to the transmission / reception means 13. The receiver information 71a transmitted to the IEEE 1394 transmission / reception unit 13 is transmitted to the reproduction control unit 73 and stored in the memory 73.

The reproduction command 1a generated by the command generation means 17 is input to the IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 13 via the IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 16, and the reproduction command 1a is input to the reproduction control means 72. Upon input of the reproduction command 1a, the reproduction control means 72 reads information 72a necessary for image reproduction obtained from the MPEG transport stream from the hard disk 12, and compares it with the receiver information 71a recorded in the memory 73.

When the necessary receiving capability described in the information 72 required for image reproduction is lower than the capability of the receiver described in the receiver information 71a, the reproduction command 1a is transmitted to the hard disk control unit 141 and the band control unit 141. To the means 142. Hard disk control means 141, bandwidth control means 1
42, the band adjusting means 143 is the same as in the first embodiment.

MP read from hard disk 12
The EG transport stream 14f is IEEE139
4 From the transmitting / receiving means 13 to the IEEE 1394 network 1
b and received by the IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving means 16. MPE received by IEEE1394 transmission / reception means
The G transport stream is transmitted to the image reproducing unit 18, and the image reproducing unit 18 reproduces the MPEG transport stream.

If the required receiving capability described in the information 72a necessary for image reproduction is higher than the capability of the receiver described in the receiver information 71a, the reproduction command 1a is:
The non-reproducible command 72b is not sent to the hard disk control means 141 and the band control means 142, and the
94 to the transmitting / receiving means 13. The IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 13 transmits the non-reproducible command 72b to the IEEE 1394
The IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 16 sends the unreproducible command 72b to the error processing means 76. When receiving the reproduction impossible command 72b, the error processing means 76 performs error processing.

FIG. 8 shows an example of the configuration of the error processing means. In the figure, 81 is an error display device, 82 is a monitor, and 83 is an image superimposing means. When the unreproducible command 72b is input, the error display device 81 creates an error display image 8a for displaying on the monitor 82 that the unreproducible image has been tried to be reproduced. It is sent to the superimposing means 83. The image superimposing means 83 creates an image in which the output image 8b of the image reproducing means 18 and the error display image 8a are superimposed, and sends the image to the monitor 82.

In the configuration shown in FIG. 7, when the receiver 75 attempts to reproduce an image that cannot be reproduced, the storage device 74 compares the reproduction capability of the receiver 75 with the reproduction capability of the reproduction required by the reproduced image, and If it is not possible, the storage device does not read out the hard disk 12 and sends a non-reproducible command 72b to the receiver 75. Therefore, according to the configuration of the present embodiment, an image that cannot be reproduced by the receiver 75 is not transmitted to the network bus 1b, and the receiver 75 recognizes that the image to be reproduced cannot be reproduced by the receiver 75 itself. It becomes possible to do.

(Third Embodiment) IEEE1394
It is possible to change the network configuration such as the number of nodes by connecting other receivers and storage devices even during image transfer on the network bus. In this case, if the network configuration changes while the image transfer is being performed, the configuration of the second embodiment has a problem that the band required for the image transfer may not be satisfied.

The third embodiment solves the problem by making the receiver information 71 of the second embodiment transmit the receiver information 71a every time an IEEE1394 bus reset occurs. .

FIG. 9 shows an example of the configuration of the receiver information generating means 71 according to the third embodiment. In the figure, reference numeral 91 denotes a bus band calculation unit, 92 denotes an image reproduction band calculation unit, 93
Is a multiplexing means. IEEE 1394 network 1
b) when another receiver is connected, such as when IEEE 1394
In the transmitting / receiving means 16, a bus reset occurs.

The IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving means 16 sends a bus reset notification signal 9 a to the bus band calculating means 91 and the multiplexing means 93 when a bus reset occurs. IEEE
The E1394 transmitting / receiving means 16 determines the number of nodes connected to the IEEE 1394 network 1b, the lowest transmission bandwidth among the connected nodes, and the transmission bandwidth that the IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving means 16 itself can transmit.
The data is transmitted to the bus band calculating means 91 as the IEEE 1394 network information 9b.

Upon receiving the bus reset notification signal 9 a, the bus band calculation means 91 creates a transmission band 9 c that can be transmitted by the IEEE 1394 transmission / reception means 16 from the IEEE 1394 network information 9 b and sends it to the multiplexing means 93.

The image reproduction band calculation means 92 generates information of an image which can be reproduced by the image reproduction means 18 and sends it to the multiplexing means 93 as image generation means information 9d. Upon receiving the bus reset notification signal 9a, the multiplexing means 93
Transmission band 9 that can be transmitted by EEE1394 transmission / reception means 16
c and the image generating means information 9d are multiplexed to obtain the receiver information 7
1a is generated and transmitted to the IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving means.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the IE
Each time a bus reset occurs in the EE1394 network 1b, receiver information is generated and an IE during image transfer is generated.
Even when the band of the EE1394 network 1b changes,
Optimal receiver information can be transmitted.

(Fourth Embodiment) By recording an MPEG transport stream on a hard disk, special reproduction such as fast forward and rewind utilizing the high speed of the hard disk becomes possible. In order to perform special reproduction of an image recorded in the MPEG transport stream, it is sufficient to output the image at an optimum frame interval after thinning out the image in an arbitrary form.

However, DVB and ARIB (radio industry)
Has only specifications for reproducing an MPEG transport stream by normal reproduction, and does not specify specifications for performing special reproduction such as fast forward and rewind. Therefore, as for the specifications of the receiver required for the special reproduction, different special reproduction specifications exist for each receiver.

That is, even if the receiver can normally reproduce the MPEG transport stream of the storage device, there is a problem that the special reproduction image created by the storage device cannot be reproduced. In the present embodiment, a control method of an image transmission device for generating a special reproduction image corresponding to the capability of a receiver will be described.

FIG. 10 shows the configuration of the storage device 1000 when the reproduction command 1a is trick play in the configuration of the third embodiment. Hereinafter, a control method of the storage device shown in FIG.

When the special reproduction control means 100a receives the reproduction command 1a, the special reproduction control means 100a determines whether or not the reproduction command 1a is special reproduction. If not, the special reproduction control means 100a is described in the third embodiment. Reproduction control means 72
The same operation as is performed. When the reproduction command 1a is the special reproduction, the special reproduction control unit 100a issues the reproduction impossible command 72b without verifying the processing band of the IEEE 1394 transmission / reception unit 16 and the image reproduction unit 18.

The special reproduction control means 100a converts the reproduction command 1a and the receiver information 71a into the special reproduction band control means 1a.
00b to the trick play hard disk control means 100c. When the reproduction command 1a is not the special reproduction, the special reproduction band control unit 100b performs the same operation as the band control unit 142 shown in the third embodiment.

If the reproduction command 1a is a special reproduction, the special reproduction band control means 100b outputs the image information 14c.
And sends the optimum thinning interval and frame output interval to the trick play hard disk control means 100c as trick play information 100ba.

Special reproduction hard disk control means 100c
Performs the same operation as the hard disk control unit 141 of the third embodiment when the reproduction command 1a is normal reproduction, and sends the output image 100ca to the IEEE1394 transmission / reception unit 13.

Special reproduction hard disk control means 100c
Is the special reproduction information 1 when the reproduction command 1a is the special reproduction.
On the basis of 00ba, the special reproduction image reproducible by the receiver 75 is transmitted as an output image 100ca to the IEEE1394 transmitting / receiving means.

As described above, according to this embodiment,
It is possible to generate a special reproduction image according to the capability of the receiver.

FIG. 11 shows that the special reproduction band control means 100b in FIG.
The method of generating 0ba is described.

In the figure, the special reproduction band control means 10
0b receives the receiver information 71 (S11), extracts information on the transmission capabilities of the IEEE transmitting and receiving means 13 and 16 and the processing band of the image reproducing means 18 (S12), and extracts the minimum value among these three values (S13). Is transmitted to the band adjusting unit 143 as band information 14b (S14).

The special reproduction band control means 100b receives the reproduction command 1a and extracts the double speed of the special reproduction therefrom (S21). Next, image information 1 from the hard disk 12
4c is taken out (S22), and the size of an image used for special reproduction and the number of frames for normal reproduction indicating how many images are transmitted per second during normal reproduction are obtained (S2).
3).

Next, the special reproduction band control means 100b
An initial value of the number of frames for special reproduction indicating the number of frames to be thinned and the number of frames to be transmitted per second during special reproduction is determined arbitrarily (S24).

Next, the value obtained by multiplying the size of the image used for the special reproduction by the number of frames for the special reproduction is compared with the band information (S25). If the value is larger than the band information 14b, the frame for the special reproduction is determined. The number is reduced (S26), and the size of the image used for special reproduction is multiplied by the number of frames for special reproduction again, and compared with the band information 14b (S25).

When the number obtained by multiplying the size of the image used for the special reproduction by the number of frames for the special reproduction is equal to or less than the band information 14b, the value obtained by multiplying the speed by the reciprocal of the number of frames for the normal reproduction and the number of frames for the special reproduction is used. Calculation is performed, and the calculated number is set as the number of frames to be culled during special reproduction (S27).

The reciprocal of the number of frames for special reproduction is the frame interval for special reproduction, and the frame interval for special reproduction and the number of thinned-out frames are sent to special reproduction hard disk control means 100c as special reproduction information 100b (S28).

[0083]

As described above, the present invention relates to IEEE 139.
(4) An apparatus for setting an optimal isochronous transfer band according to the type of an image recorded on a hard disk when a receiver that transmits different types of content and further has different reproduction capabilities over a network is connected. it can.

Further, according to the present invention, the information of the receiver is stored in the IEEE
By obtaining the data on the storage device using the E1394 network, a device that does not transmit an image that cannot be reproduced can be provided.

Furthermore, the present invention sets the isochronous transfer band according to the receiver and changes the transmission method of the special reproduction for the problem that the processing capability of the special reproduction differs for each receiver even for the same image. By doing so, it becomes possible to transmit a trick-play image even if the processing capability of trick-play differs for each receiver.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an image transmission device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a conventional image transmission device.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an IEEE 1394 transmission / reception unit.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the structure of an MPEG transport stream.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of a band control unit.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing control of a look-up table control means;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of an image transmission device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of an error processing unit.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a receiver information generating unit according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a storage device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating generation of band information and special reproduction information according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1a Reproduction command 1b IEEE1394 network 11 Storage device 12 Hard disk 13 IEEE1394 transmission / reception means 141 Hard disk control means 142 Band control means 143 Band adjustment means 14a Weight signal 14b Band information 14c Image information 14d Control signal 14e Isochronous band 14f MPEG transport stream Machine 16 IEEE1394 transmitting / receiving means 17 command generating means 18 image reproducing means 51 lookup table 52 lookup table control means 71 receiver information generating means 72 playback control means 73 memory 74 storage device 75 receiver 76 error processing means 71a receiver information 72a Information required for image reproduction 72b Non-reproducible command 81 Error display device 82 Monitor 83 Image superposition Means 8a Error display image 8b Output image of image reproducing means 18 91 Bus band calculating means 92 Image reproducing band calculating means 93 Multiplexing means 9a Bus reset notification signal 9b IEEE 1394 network information 9c Transmission band that can be transmitted by IEEE 1394 transmitting / receiving means 16 9d image Reproduction means information 100b Special reproduction band control means 100c Special reproduction hard disk control means 100ba Special reproduction information 100ca Output image

Continued on the front page F-term (reference) 5C053 FA23 FA29 GA11 GB37 HA21 JA24 LA06 LA15 5C059 KK01 PP04 RA01 RA08 RE00 SS06 SS11 TA71 TC43 TD18 UA02 UA31 5D044 AB07 BC01 CC04 FG30 GK08 HL11 5K033 AA01 BA15 DA01

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A receiver and a storage device are connected by a network bus. The storage device includes a network transmission / reception unit, a hard disk control unit, a band control unit, a band adjustment unit, and a hard disk. An MPEG transport stream is recorded in an arbitrary format on the hard disk, and the command generating unit reproduces the MPEG transport stream recorded on the hard disk. Is generated and transmitted to the network bus via the network transmission / reception means in the receiver, and the network transmission / reception means in the storage device is configured to generate the reproduction command from the reproduction command transmitted from the network bus. Take play command However, after sending to the hard disk control means and the band control means, the band control means calculates a transmission band required for transmission of the MPEG transport stream recorded on the hard disk, and after sending to the band adjustment means, Notifying the hard disk control unit that the band setting has been completed, the band adjusting unit sets a transmission band for reproduction of the network transmitting / receiving unit in the storage device, and the hard disk control unit determines that the band control unit After completing the setting,
The PEG transport stream is read and sent to the network transmitting / receiving means in the storage device. The network transmitting / receiving means in the storage device transmits the read MPEG transport stream via the network bus to An image transmission apparatus, wherein the MPEG transport stream transmitted to the network transmission / reception unit in the receiver is reproduced by the image reproduction unit from the network transmission / reception unit in the receiver. 2. The network bus according to claim 1, wherein said network bus is an IEEE 139.
2. The image transmission apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the network transmission / reception unit and the network transmission / reception unit in the receiver transmit / receive data on a network specified by IEEE 1394. 3. A two-dimensional table having two axes of an image size and an image output interval time, said band control means comprising:
When receiving a playback command, the table control unit issues a signal for temporarily stopping the hard disk control unit, and determines the image size of the image recorded on the hard disk and the image output interval time. 2. The image transmission apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the setting is set in the band adjusting unit, and the temporary stop of the hard disk control unit is released. 4. An image transmission apparatus according to claim 1, comprising both the network bus and network transmission / reception means according to claim 2 and the bandwidth control means according to claim 3. 5. The method of claim 1, claim 2, claim 3, or claim 4.
The image transmitting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the receiver includes a receiver information generating unit and an error processing unit, and the storage unit includes a reproduction control unit and a memory connected to the reproduction control unit. Is transmitted by the network transmitting / receiving means in the receiver as information of an image reproducible by the receiver as receiver information, and the network transmitting / receiving means is transmitted to the network transmitting / receiving means provided in the storage device. After that, the reproduction control means is sent to the reproduction control means, the reproduction control means stores the receiver information in the memory, and the network transmission / reception means in the storage means transmits the reproduction command output from the receiver to the The data is not sent to the hard disk control means and the band control means but is sent to the reproduction control means, and the reproduction control means Receiving the data, the receiver information stored in the memory is compared with the information of the receiver necessary for reproducing the image read from the hard disk, and if the image can be reproduced, the hard disk control means and the band The reproduction command is transmitted to the control means, and if the image cannot be reproduced, the reproduction command is not transmitted to the hard disk control means and the band control means, but the reproduction is not transmitted to the network transmission / reception means in the storage device. Sending an enable command, the network transmitting / receiving means in the storage device sends an unreproducible command to the network bus, and sending it to the network transmitting / receiving means in the receiver, wherein the network transmitting / receiving means in the receiver is ,
A non-reproducible command is sent to the error processing means,
An image transmission apparatus for performing error processing when an image cannot be reproduced. 6. The receiver information is one of a transmission capability of the network transmission / reception unit, a processing capability of the image reproduction unit, a type of image reproducible by the image generation unit, and copyright information. The image transmission device according to claim 5. 7. An image reproducing band calculating unit, a bus band calculating unit and a multiplexing unit, wherein the image reproducing band calculating unit determines a band of an image which can be reproduced by the image reproducing unit in the receiver. The band is transmitted to the multiplexing unit as an image reproducing unit processing band, and when a bus reset occurs in the network transmitting / receiving unit in the receiver, the bus band calculating unit transmits a signal indicating that a bus reset has occurred and a state of the network bus to the multiplexing unit. A band information that can be received from a network transmitting / receiving unit and transmitted by the receiver is sent to the multiplexing unit. When the multiplexing unit receives the signal in which the bus reset has occurred, the image reproduction band calculating unit And multiplexing the signals of the bus band calculation means and transmitting the multiplexed signals to the network bus as the receiver information. Placing the image transmission apparatus. 8. The reproduction control means determines whether or not the reproduction command is a special reproduction. If the reproduction command is not the special reproduction, the reproduction control means performs the same operation as in the fifth embodiment. The transmission capability of the transmission / reception unit and the processing capability of the image reproduction unit are not determined. If the reproduction command is not special reproduction, the band control unit performs the same operation as in claim 5, and the reproduction command is In the case of the special reproduction, the thinning-out interval and the frame output interval of the special reproduction are transmitted from the hard disk to the reproduction hard disk control unit as special reproduction information, and the band control unit transmits a transmission band necessary for the special reproduction to the storage device. The hard disk control means sends the same operation as in claim 5 when the reproduction command is normal reproduction. 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein when the reproduction command is a special reproduction, the receiver transmits a special reproduction image that can be reproduced by the receiver to the transmission / reception means in the storage device based on the special reproduction information. Image transmission device.