JP2003150412A - Receiver, server device, service charge calculation method, and file system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system capable of automatically moving, deleting, and compressing data and file based on operation information provided in the data and file even if there is no vacancy capacity in a recording medium of a receiver when recording the data and file in the recording medium provided in the receiver and accumulating desired data and file securely. SOLUTION: Data and file are provided with operation information which is the information concerning automatic operation of the data and file as attribute to manage the information of the data and file so that automatic operation such as deletion, compression, moving, and storage is performed for the data and file even if there is insufficiency of capacity in the recording medium and the data and file can be securely accumulated.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a receiving device for accumulating data received in a storage-type broadcasting service or the like in a recording medium, a server device, a service charge calculating method, and an automatic operation such as deleting or moving a file. The present invention relates to a file system having file operation information that can be performed.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, mobile terminals such as mobile phones and PHSs have been provided with new services added one after another as their functions have improved and infrastructures have been improved.

For example, in an e-mail service using a mobile phone, a file to be transmitted / received is initially only character data, but music or data with a still image can be transmitted / received, and further, a data size of moving image data or the like. Can send and receive large files.

On the other hand, a receiving device equipped with a recording medium such as an HDD is used to store the received digital TV broadcast or data broadcast content in the recording medium, and store and record data such as programs and information. A storage-type service is being considered, which allows users to view it later as needed.

According to such a storage-type service, the user can reserve data such as necessary video content when he / she wants, without watching the TV in real time, by making a recording reservation.

[0006]

However, if there is not enough free space in the recording medium for storing data or files, there is a problem that the data or files cannot be stored.

For example, when a receiving device such as a mobile phone receives a file including character data and image data, and the recording medium provided in the receiving device has insufficient free space, the file reception fails. There is a problem of doing.

Further, when recording a sports program etc. for night game relay, when the program is extended, the data size to be recorded becomes large. At this time, when the free space of the recording medium provided in the receiving device is insufficient, there may occur a problem that a part which is not recorded is formed.

Therefore, according to the present invention, when recording data or a file on a recording medium provided in the receiving device, even if there is no free space in the recording medium of the receiving device, the operation information provided in the data or the file is provided. Based on the above, it is an object of the invention to provide a system capable of surely accumulating desired data and files by automatically operating such as moving, deleting and compressing data and files.

[0010]

The receiving apparatus of the invention according to claim 1 of the present invention, which has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, stores data when recording data even if there is no free space in the recording medium. Acquire the data size before completely receiving it, predict the free space based on the acquired data size, and perform operations such as moving, deleting, or compressing the data already stored in the recording medium. It is the one.

This makes it possible to provide a system capable of accumulating desired data using the recording medium on the receiving device side very efficiently.

Further, the receiving device of the invention according to claim 4 of the present application checks whether or not recording can be performed on the recording medium based on the capacity information relating to the free space, and if recording is not possible, all the received data is received. Alternatively, some of them are sent to the server. By doing so, the server side complements the storage of desired data even if the receiving device has no free space, so that a system having an improved data storage function can be provided. .

Further, the receiving device of the invention according to claim 5 of the present application checks, based on the capacity information regarding the free space, whether or not recording can be performed on the recording medium of the receiving device. This is to notify the server of the capacity shortage information including. This is because the server can know the storage status of the receiving device.

Furthermore, the receiving device of the invention according to claim 7 of the present application checks whether or not recording can be performed on the recording medium of the receiving device based on the capacity information regarding the free space, and if it is not possible, the capacity becomes insufficient. The estimated time is to be notified to the server. By doing so, since the server starts the storage at the estimated time when the capacity of the server will be insufficient based on the information, it becomes possible to supply a system having a complete data storage function.

Furthermore, the service charge calculation method of the invention according to claim 12 of the present invention manages the number of data accumulations, the accumulated data size, the accumulated time, etc. for the data accumulation in the server device. By doing so, the service charge can be calculated as the data storage service charge by using these.

On the other hand, in the file system of the invention according to claim 13 of the present application, the file is provided with operation information, which is information about automatic operation regarding deletion, compression, movement, storage, etc. of the file, as an attribute. Even when the recording medium has a shortage of capacity, the file can be automatically managed based on the attribute so that the file can be efficiently stored.

Here, the "file system" is a concept that is directly under the control of the OS or the like and does not include a database system or a memory system.

In addition, it is preferable in the embodiment that a file system relating to a receiving device for receiving and accumulating data such as broadcast contents is installed.

More specifically, "data" means program contents of TV broadcasting or radio broadcasting having audio data and image data, which are broadcast by analog broadcasting, digital broadcasting, etc., as well as characters that are contents of data broadcasting. It indicates information and the like, and includes data such as character data, image data, and voice data transmitted and received by electronic mail.

Further, one or a plurality of "data" described above may exist in one file, or may exist across a plurality of files.

According to this structure, when a file is recorded on the recording medium, even if the recording medium has no free space, the file is automatically moved, deleted, or compressed. Therefore, it is possible to provide a file system capable of surely storing a desired file.

[0022]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an overall equipment configuration diagram showing an overall system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, P1 is a receiving device used by the user, and P2 is a storage management server as an information processing device.

The receiving device P1 receives, as a digital signal, a program (content) broadcast from a broadcasting station (content distributor) via a BS / CS satellite, a terrestrial wave, a cable or the like. At the same time, the receiving device P1 is connected to the storage management server P2 via a communication network such as the Internet so as to be capable of bidirectional communication.

As shown in FIG. 2, this is a CPU 10
1. Internal memory 102, external storage device 10 such as HDD
3. A program receiving device 10 for receiving a broadcast (including a data broadcast) via a satellite or a terrestrial wave via an antenna AT
4. An AV decoder 105 for outputting video and audio signals to the television receiver DP, a user interface 106 for communicating with the remote controller RC, a transmitting / receiving device 107 for connecting to the Internet via a telephone line, etc. as main constituent elements. To do.

The receiving device P1 is, for example, a kind of computer used by being attached to a television receiver, including a so-called set-top box, and of course a general-purpose computer. But it's okay.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the storage management server P2 has a database function and the like, and has a CPU.
201, internal memory 202, external storage device 2 such as HDD
03, a communication interface 204 such as a modem, an input / output interface 206 such as a mouse and a keyboard, and the like as main components.

In the system thus constructed,
A program broadcast from a broadcasting station (content distributor) is usually broadcast to a user via terrestrial waves, satellites, cables or the like.

The receiving device P1 connected to a device for receiving broadcasting such as a CS antenna, a BS antenna and a terrestrial antenna is connected to a television receiver so that a user can enjoy a television program. At this time, when the user cannot watch the program in real time for some reason, the external storage device 1 built in the receiving device P1 is used.
03 (the HDD in this embodiment) is recorded. There are various methods of recording, such as a method of setting by a user using a remote controller RC such as a VTR and a method of setting from the outside via the Internet. However, in the present embodiment, the user controls the remote controller via the user IF 106. It was decided to set using RC.

The program set to be recorded is broadcast at a predetermined time, received as a radio wave by the antenna AT and recorded in the HDD 103 of the receiving device P1. At this time, various circuit units are provided in the receiving device P1. Signal processing is performed. For example, since pay broadcasting is broadcast as scrambled broadcasting, descrambler processing for decoding the scrambled signal is performed, or a digital signal is converted into an analog signal by an AV decoder.

In the present embodiment, the receiving device P1 operates the CPU 101 and peripheral devices in accordance with a program stored in its internal memory 102 or the like, and as shown in FIG. Prediction unit 2,
The data operation unit 3, the capacity acquisition unit 4, the data transmission unit 5, the notification unit 6a, the second notification unit 6b, the recording reservation information reception unit 7, and the recording medium 8 are made to function.

Similarly, the storage management server P2 also operates the CPU 201 and peripheral devices according to a program stored in the internal memory 202 or the like, and as shown in FIG. The functions of the storage unit 12, the notification reception unit 13a, the second notification reception unit 13b, the storage status acquisition unit 14, and the service charge calculation unit 15 are exerted.

Concretely, each part of the receiving device P1 shown in FIG. 4 will be described in detail.

The data size acquisition unit 1 acquires the size of data of a program (content) broadcast from a broadcasting station via a communication network such as the Internet.
The size of the acquired data is stored in a predetermined area of the HDD 103. Here, "data" in the present embodiment
Is a broadcast content that is data having at least one of a moving image and audio. It should be noted that the size of this data may be acquired from not only the communication network but also radio waves during broadcasting.

Further, in the method of acquiring the size of data in the present embodiment, the program guide transmitted from the center computer installed in a TV station, a radio station or the like is previously received by the receiving device P1, and the TV program or the like is recorded. Although an EPG (electronic program guide) system for making reservations and viewing reservations was used, the present invention is not limited to this, and it may be acquired from an external machine having program information.

Based on the data size acquired by the data size acquisition unit 1, the recording medium state prediction unit 2 acquires the data and records the data in the recording medium 8, and as a result, the free space of the recording medium 8 is determined. It predicts whether it will be in such a state. For example, "There is enough free space",
The prediction result that "the free space is insufficient" is output. Here, “output” includes, for example, transmission to the storage management server P2, display on the television receiver DP, printing, and the like. Here, the acquired prediction result is sent to the data operation unit 3 and the notification unit 6. It means to output.

The data operating unit 3 has already been stored in the recording medium 8 when it is determined that the free space of the recording medium 8 is insufficient based on the output result of the recording medium state predicting unit 2. Data operations such as deletion, compression and movement are performed on the data.

The capacity acquisition unit 4 acquires capacity information including information about the free capacity from the recording medium 8, and the acquired capacity information is sent to the data transmission unit 5 and the notification unit 6.
a, the second notification unit 6b, and the recording reservation information reception unit 7.

The data transmission unit 5 has a function of transmitting all or part of the received data to the storage management server P2 via a communication network such as the Internet when the capacity information satisfies a certain condition. It is constructed by using the modem. Here, the “certain condition” is a condition mainly relating to the free space and the data size, and for example, “when the free space of the recording medium 8 of the receiving device P1 is larger than the program data to be recorded”. There is.

The notifying section 6a sends the free space information obtained by the capacity acquisition section 4 to the storage management server P2 via the Internet, such as the shortage capacity size and the terminal identifier, when the free space information satisfies certain conditions. To notify you,
It is configured by using the modem.

The second notification unit 6b stores the estimated time when the capacity information obtained by the capacity acquisition unit 4 is out of capacity, the terminal identifier, etc., when the available capacity information satisfies a certain condition, the storage management server P2. To the Internet via the Internet and is configured using the modem.

In the present embodiment, the information to be notified is the estimated time when the capacity will be insufficient, but the present invention is not limited to this, and any information relating to the insufficient capacity may be used, for example, "the capacity will soon be insufficient". It may be information that represents a specific state.

The recording reservation information accepting unit 7 accepts information on recording reservations made by the user using a remote controller, for example, starting recording of data from what hour, hour, and day of the month of the year, and compares it with the capacity information. It is to determine whether or not a certain condition is satisfied. The “fixed condition” is the same as the “fixed condition” described for the data transmission unit 5.

The recording medium 8 is a customer I as shown in FIG.
Customer DB file having attributes such as D number, name, terminal identifier, terminal specifications (hard disk total capacity, free capacity), program ID number, program name, provider, file size, etc.
A program DB file having attributes such as broadcast date and time, and a customer I
A terminal accumulated information file having attributes such as D number, program ID number, broadcast date / time, file size, priority, and program I
Terminal accumulated data file with D number / data attributes, and capacity management information file with attributes of total capacity size / accumulated number / accumulated capacity size / free capacity size / insufficient capacity size / estimated time of capacity shortage And the HDD1
Is stored in a predetermined storage area such as 03,
The customer DB file, the program DB file, the terminal storage information file, the terminal storage data file, and the capacity management information file each have a relational format associated with each other.

Each attribute will be described in detail.

The customer ID number is given by the receiving device P1 as a unique value. The name is the name of the user, and the terminal identifier can be identified from the outside via the Internet. In the present embodiment, a unique value that can support IPver 6 is used. The terminal specifications are specifications of the receiving device P1 such as total hard disk capacity and free capacity.

The program ID number is given by the receiving device P1 as a unique value. The program name, the provider, and the file size and the broadcast date and time are data related to the program, and were obtained from the EPG (electronic program guide) system.

Priority includes data protection, data movement,
A number defined based on operation information related to data operations such as data compression processing and data deletion.
As a result, the data already stored in the recording medium 8 can be smoothly deleted, compressed, or moved.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, when the priority is 1, the data is protected (protected), when the priority is 2, the data is moved (transfer to an external device),
When the priority is 3, the data is compressed (recompressed and stored locally), and when the priority is 4, the data is deleted.
The present invention is not limited to this, and the priority level may be appropriately set, such as being set more finely.

The total capacity size, the already-stored capacity size, the free capacity size, and the insufficient capacity size are sizes relating to the capacity of the recording medium in the receiving device P1, and are the total capacity of the recording medium and the total capacity of the already-stored data, respectively. It represents the total amount of free space, which is the shortage of the recording medium when newly recording additional data. The number of stored contents is the total number of already stored contents, and the estimated time of capacity shortage represents the time from the start of storage until the storage medium becomes short of capacity when new data is stored.

Next, each part of the storage management server P2 shown in FIG. 4 will be described in detail.

The second data receiving section 11 has a function of receiving data from the receiving device P1 or the broadcasting station, and is constructed by utilizing the communication interface 204.

The second data storage section 12 stores the data and program ID transmitted from the receiving device P1 and the data and program ID broadcast from the broadcasting station via satellite or the like. It is formed in a predetermined area.

The notification receiving unit 13a receives the insufficient capacity size, the terminal identifier, etc. transmitted from the notifying unit 6a of the receiving device P1 and outputs the program ID for identifying the insufficient capacity size to the second data receiving unit 11. The communication interface 206 is used.

The second notification receiving unit 13b receives the estimated time when the capacity becomes insufficient, the terminal identifier, etc. transmitted from the notification unit 6b of the receiving device P1 and identifies the insufficient capacity size to the second data receiving unit 11. It outputs the program ID number to be used, and is configured by using the communication interface 206.

The storage status acquisition unit 14 manages the free space information of the receiving device P1 output from the second notification reception unit 13b, and stores it as the storage management information shown in the storage management file as shown in FIG. It is output to the notification receiving unit 13b. The storage ID number is a unique value given by the storage management server P2. The storage address and the storage data are respectively stored in the HDD 2 of the storage management server P2.
03 shows the storage position and the stored content. Further, if the items in the figure are the same as the items in FIG. 5, they have the same meaning.

The attributes of FIG. 6 will be described in detail.

The service charge calculation unit 15 calculates the number of times data is stored in the second data storage unit 12, the size of the stored data,
The data storage service charge is calculated based on the accumulated time and the like. In the present embodiment, the calculation method is 100 yen for one data accumulation, 100 yen for the accumulated data size of 1 MB, and 100 yen for the data accumulation time of 24 hours. However, the calculation method is not limited to this. Any calculation method may be adopted, such as calculation with time (for example, 10 yen / minute).

Next, the operation of the system of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flow charts shown in FIGS.

7 to 10 show the receiving device P1.
A process from recording reservation of a program (content) to storage is shown in a flow chart.

First, when the user selects a program to be reserved for storage from the program guide or the like using the remote controller RC (step ST101), the data size (U) of the program is acquired from the EPG (electronic program guide) system via the Internet. (Step ST102), it is stored in the file size of the program DB. On the other hand, if the capacity acquisition unit 4 receives
The actual free capacity (V) of 1 is acquired (step ST10
3) Store in the free space size of the capacity management information file.

Then, the data size (U) of this program is compared with the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1 (step ST104), and the data size (U) of the program is the actual free space of the receiving device P1. If it is smaller than (V), the reservation is ended.

On the other hand, if the data size (U) of the program is larger than the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1, the priority of already stored contents already stored in the receiving device P1 is checked from the terminal storage information file. If the priorities of the already stored contents are all 1 (step ST105), that is, if all the already stored contents are protected, the television receiver DP to which the receiving device P1 is connected.
A message "Please set the priority of the already-stored program" is displayed on the screen (step ST106). Then, in response to the resetting of the priority by the user (step ST10
7) The terminal storage information files are sorted in ascending order of priority (step ST108), and further sorted in order of oldest accumulated time at each priority level (step ST109). By the above steps, the already-stored contents are sorted in ascending order of the priority and the accumulated time.

Next, the sorted already-stored contents are subjected to the following automatic operation one by one in the sorted order according to the priority. If the priority is 4 (step ST111), the content is deleted (step S111).
T112). If the priority is 3 (step ST11
3) Then, the content is recompressed and stored in the terminal (step ST114). If the priority is 2 (step ST1
15) Then, the content is moved to the server (step ST116). If the priority is 1 (step ST11
7) Protect the content (step ST11)
8).

Then, the free space (V) of the receiving device P1 is obtained for each process (step ST119), and if the free space (V) is larger than the program data size (U) (step ST120). ), The reservation is completed, and if not, the next stored content (step ST12
The automatic operation of 1) is continuously performed while checking whether the free space (V) becomes larger than the program data size (U) (step ST122).

If the free space (V) does not become larger than the program data size (U) even in the last stored content, the television receiver DP connected to the terminal will say "The free space cannot be increased. Do you want to make a reservation for storage? ”Is displayed (step ST123).

Then, the user waits for an instruction regarding the storage reservation in the server input by the user (step ST124), and if the storage reservation in the server is not desired, the process ends without reservation. On the other hand, if desired, the notification unit 6a transmits the capacity shortage information including the program request to the server (step ST125), waits for OK from the server (step ST126), and if no response is received from OK, Reservation becomes impossible, and reservation is completed when a response with OK is obtained.

In the present embodiment, the contents are arranged based on the priority at the same time as the reservation operation, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the contents are arranged at a fixed time every day or one hour before the next accumulation. May be performed at any timing.

Further, although the notification unit 6a performs the timing of transmitting the capacity shortage information including the request at the same time as the reservation operation, the present invention is not limited to this, and it is known that a response of approval from the server can be obtained in advance. Then, if it is transmitted before the scheduled accumulation time, it may be transmitted at any timing such as periodically transmitting.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the communication line network between the receiving device P1 and the storage management server P2 has been described as the case of the Internet, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a normal telephone line or a mobile phone may be used. Good.

FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing a program (content) storage process of the storage management server P2 which stores the program corresponding to the receiving device P1 described above.
First, when the notification receiving unit 13a of the storage management server P2 receives the capacity shortage information of the receiving device P1 (step ST2
01), and it is checked whether or not the user has made a contract to use the storage management server P2 (step ST20).
2) If there is no contract, a storage refusal is notified (step S).
T203). On the other hand, if there is a contract, the storage device is notified of the storage permission (step ST204), and the content to be received is identified by the data identifier included in the capacity shortage information received by the notification receiving unit 13a (step ST20).
5) The second data receiving unit 11 receives the content (step ST206). Further, the content is stored in the second data storage unit 12 (step ST2
07), a data storage service charge is calculated according to the number of times of content storage, storage time, etc. (step ST2).
08).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, when recording data, even if there is no free space in the recording medium, the data size is acquired and completely acquired before the data is completely received. Since the free space is predicted based on the data size and operations such as movement, deletion, and compression can be performed on the data already accumulated in the recording medium, the desired data can be stored in the recording medium of the receiving device side. A system can be provided that can be efficiently used and stored.

Further, based on the capacity information regarding the free space, it is checked whether or not the data can be recorded on the recording medium. If the data cannot be recorded, all or part of the received data is transmitted to the server, and the desired data is transmitted. Since the server side complements the storage of the data even if the receiving device has no free space, it is possible to provide a system having an improved data storage function.

Further, based on the capacity information regarding the free capacity, it is checked whether or not recording can be performed on the recording medium of the receiving device, and if the recording cannot be performed, the server is notified of insufficient capacity information including the fact that it cannot. , The server can know the storage status of the receiving device.

Since the server device manages the number of data accumulations, the accumulated data size, the accumulation time, etc. for the content accumulation in the server device, the service charge can be calculated as the data accumulation service charge.

Next, the operation of the other system of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flow charts shown in FIGS.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a process in the receiving device P1 up to accumulation when a recording operation is performed while viewing a program (content).

When receiving device P1 receives a recording operation by the user (step ST301), recording is started (step ST302). At this time, the receiving device P1 acquires the data size (U) of the program from the EPG (electronic program guide) system (step ST303).
Store in the file size of B. On the other hand, the capacity acquisition unit 4 of the reception device P1 acquires the actual free capacity (V) (step ST304) and stores it in the free capacity size of the capacity management information file.

Then, the data size (U) of this program is compared with the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1 (step ST305), and the program data size (U) is the actual free space of the receiving device P1. If it is smaller than (V), it is checked whether the recording is completed (step ST30).
6) If the recording is not completed, 10 minutes later, the data size (U) of the program is newly acquired (step ST303). Then, the free space of the terminal is obtained again (step ST304), the data size (U) of the program is compared with the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1 (step ST305), and the data size of the program (U). Is smaller than the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1, this operation is repeated until the recording is completed.

On the other hand, if the data size (U) of the program is larger than the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1, the receiving device P calculated based on the capacity shortage information of the capacity acquisition unit 4
The second notification unit 6b notifies the storage management server P2 of the capacity management information including the capacity shortage prediction time when the capacity of 1 becomes insufficient (step ST307).

In this embodiment, the data size (U) of the program is compared with the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1, and the data size (U) of the program is the actual free space of the receiving device P1. When it becomes larger than (V), the second notification unit 6b notifies the server, but not limited to this, the data size (U) of the program is larger than the actual free space (V) of the receiving device P1. Even if the capacity is small, the second notification unit 6b notifies the server of the capacity management information as the information including the capacity shortage by setting an arbitrary condition such as when the actual free capacity (V) of the receiving device P1 becomes small. I don't mind.

If the data size (U) of the program is unknown, such as when the game is extended by night game relay, the server may be notified of that fact.

The time for re-acquiring the data size (U) of the program is set to every 10 minutes, but the time interval is not limited to this, and the time interval may be shortened depending on the state of the recording medium.
It may be set at an arbitrary interval.

FIG. 13 is a flow chart showing the program (content) storage process of the storage management server P2 which stores the program corresponding to the receiving device P1 described above.

Second notification receiving unit 13 of storage management server P2
In b, the capacity shortage information of the receiving device P1 is received (step ST401), and the data to be received is identified by the data identifier included in the capacity shortage information received in the second notification receiving unit 13b (step ST402), and the second data is received. The reception section 11 receives the signal (step ST403).

Then, it is checked whether it is the predicted time (step ST404), and when the predicted time is reached, the second data storage section 12 starts the storage (step ST40).
5) A data storage service charge is calculated according to the number of times content is stored and the storage time (step ST40).
6).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the receiving device checks whether or not recording can be performed on the recording medium of the receiving device based on the capacity information regarding the free space, and if recording is not possible, the capacity is insufficient. Since the server is notified of the estimated time that will become, the server will start accumulating at the estimated time when the capacity will be insufficient based on that information, so even if the recording is suddenly started It is possible to supply a system that has been enhanced.

Next, the operation of another system of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flow chart shown in FIG.

FIG. 14 shows the storage management server P2.
It is a flowchart which shows the automatic reception of a program (content).

The storage management server P2 acquires the free space of the receiving device P1 via the capacity acquisition unit 4 and the notification unit 6a (step ST501). Further, the program information is acquired by using the EPG (electronic program guide) system (step ST502).

Then, it is checked whether or not the desired program (content) previously registered by the user is included in the program information (step ST503). If not included, the process ends.

If there is desired content, the receiving device P1
Of the desired content is checked (step ST504), and if there is available capacity, the desired content is stored in the receiving device P1 (step ST506). If not, the desired content is stored in the storage management server P2 (step ST5).
05).

As described above, according to this embodiment, the storage management server P2 manages the free space of the receiving device P1 to provide a system capable of automatically storing the content desired by the user.

FIG. 15 shows that the storage management server manages
FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a method of surely recording and accumulating even when a program is extended.

When the program is extended, the storage management server P2 receives a program time change notification from the broadcasting station via the EPG (electronic program guide) system or the like (step ST60).
1) Then, the user who reserved the program is specified (step ST602). Then, the changed time is compared with the original scheduled recording time (step ST603), and if the changed time is longer than the original scheduled recording time, it is determined whether or not there is an available storage capacity in the receiving device P1 of the specified user. Check (step ST604). Then, based on the presence / absence of the free space of the identified receiving device P1 (step ST6
05) If the free space is not insufficient, the start / end time of the program is transmitted to the receiving device P1 specified earlier (step ST606), and the reserved storage time is set in each receiving device P1. Will be fixed (step ST6)
07). On the other hand, when the storage capacity is insufficient, it is stored in the server.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the storage management server P2 manages the receiving device P1, the content can be stored even if the storage start time of the content is changed. A system that can withstand changes in storage conditions can be supplied.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described using an example applied to a file system.

The file system of the present invention is of a type that manages the attributes of each file using a file allocation table (FAT), for example.
In addition to the normally defined file attributes, the second file attribute is defined in the directory entry as shown in FIG. 2, and the second file attribute has the same file attributes as those used in the database system in the embodiment. An attribute value having file operation information of deletion, compression, movement, and protection for automatically performing the above is added to operate on the OS. By doing so, even when the recording medium has a shortage of capacity, etc., the OS automatically manages the file based on the file attribute, so that the file is efficiently accumulated.

Specifically, the operation of the system of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flow chart shown in FIG.

When a new file is to be stored (step ST701), if there is a free area in which it can be stored (step ST703), the new file is stored in that area (step ST722), and information indicating the storage state is stored. New directory entry (step S
T723). Then, the second file attribute of the stored new file is set (step ST724).

On the other hand, when there is no free space that can be stored (step ST703), the OS determines that the file 1 (aa
a. jpg), file 2 (bbb.mpg), and the like, for the already stored files already stored, the second file attribute shown in the directory entry is read in order from the first already stored file (step ST702) (ST706). ), Based on this, an automatic operation such as deletion of an already-stored file is performed (step ST707 to step ST714).

For example, since the file 1 has the second file attribute information indicating the protection of the stored data (step ST710), the file 1 is protected without being deleted (step ST714). Although it does not change, since the file 2 has the second file attribute information indicating data deletion (step ST707), the file is deleted (step ST711).

As shown in FIG. 18, the deletion of the file 2 deletes the data stored in one cluster that does not fit in one cluster. The address indicating the position of the beginning of the data is deleted. Information (starting cluster number), link pointer (cluster number) that indicates which cluster a part of the data is stored in, and file size are recorded in the directory entry. Without deleting the file, the area for storing the data is secured.

The second file attribute of the already stored file is compressed (step ST708) or moved (step ST7).
09), the already stored file is automatically operated by being compressed by the OS (step ST712) or being moved to another server or the like connected by a network not shown (step ST713). This is repeated until an area for storing a new file is secured (steps ST704 and ST705).

Then, when the empty area cannot be secured even when the last stored file is reached (step ST70)
4), a message is displayed on the display prompting you to run out of free space and reset the file attributes such as "Insufficient free space. Do you want to make settings such as deleting existing accumulated files?" (Step ST715) The user receives an instruction as to whether or not to reset the second file attribute of the file (step ST716). Further, at this time, if there is no instruction from the user within a fixed time, step ST717
It will be decided that it will not be reset.

If this instruction is not for resetting (step ST717), the process ends without accumulating a new file, and if it is for resetting (step ST717), it is the first file of the already stored files. From (step ST718), the user sets the second file attribute (step ST719), and repeats the process until the last stored file (step ST720) (step ST721). Then, again, the automatic operation of the already-stored files is sequentially performed until the area for storing the new file is secured (step ST707).
~ 714), if the storage area is secured (step S
T703), a new file is stored in the secured area (step ST722), and information indicating the storage state is newly added to the directory entry (step ST72).
3) is written. Then, the second file attribute of the stored new file is set (step ST
724).

In this way, the directory entry is given an attribute value having file operation information for automatic operation of files, such as deletion, compression, movement, and protection, and the desired data is operated by operating on the OS. Can be efficiently accumulated.

In this embodiment, the file system is of a type in which the attributes of each file are managed by using the file allocation table (FAT), but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the NTFS file system or UNF
It may be an IX (registered trademark) file system or the like.

The method of setting the second file attribute may be any method such as a method of using an OS command shell such as DOS-Shell or B-shell.

Further, in the present embodiment, when a new file is stored, the stored file is operated when the second file attribute of the stored file is read. It may be performed at any time, such as checking the accumulated file.

If the file system as described above is introduced into the receiving device P1, when a program is recorded in the recording medium provided in the receiving device P1, there is no free space in the recording medium of the receiving device P1. However, since automatic operations such as moving, deleting and compressing files are performed,
A system that can surely store desired data can be provided.

[0113]

According to the present invention described in detail above, the HDD
When recording data of received digital TV broadcast or data broadcast content on a recording medium provided in the receiving device by using the receiving device provided with the recording medium such as Even if there is no such data, it is possible to provide a system that can efficiently and reliably store the desired data, because the data is automatically moved, deleted, compressed, etc., and is stored using the server. Becomes

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall device configuration diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an internal device configuration diagram of a receiving device P1 in the same embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an internal device configuration diagram of a storage management server P2 in the same embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing operations of the receiving device P1 and the storage management server P2 in the same embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a storage mode in the receiving device P1 in the same embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a storage mode in the storage management server P2 in the same embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a process of accumulating data in the receiving device P1 in the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a process of accumulating data in the receiving device P1 in the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a process of accumulating data in the receiving device P1 in the embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a process of accumulating data in the receiving device P1 in the embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a process of accumulating data in the accumulation management server P2 in the same embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing another process of accumulating data in the receiving device P1 in the embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing another process of accumulating data in the accumulation management server P2 in the same embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing automatic reception of programs (contents) in the storage management server P2.

FIG. 15 is a flow chart showing a method of surely recording and accumulating even when a program is extended by the management of the accumulation management server.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing a directory entry when applied to a FAT file system.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing an automatic file operation in the system.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a storage mode of data associated with a directory entry in the system.

[Explanation of symbols]

P1 ... Receiving device P2 ... Storage management server (server device) 1 ... Data size acquisition unit 2 ... Recording medium state prediction unit 3 ... Data operation unit 4 ... Capacity acquisition unit 5 ... Data transmission unit 6a ... Notification section 6b ... Second notification section 7: Recording reservation information reception section 8 ... Recording medium 11 ... Second data receiving unit 12 ... Second data storage unit 13a ... Notification receiver 13b: second notification receiving unit 14 ... Accumulation status acquisition unit 15 ... Service charge calculation section

Front page continuation (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) G11B 27/00 G11B 27/00 D 5D110 H04M 11/08 H04M 11/08 5K101 H04N 5/76 H04N 5/76 Z 5 / 91 7/173 630 5/92 5/92 H 7/173 630 5/91 Z (72) Inventor Takumi Ikeda 1006 Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 5B082 CA04 CA13 GA01 5C052 AA01 AB09 CC01 DD10 5C053 FA23 FA30 GA11 GB21 LA06 LA07 LA15 5C064 BA01 BC16 BC25 BD02 BD08 BD13 5D044 AB05 AB07 BC01 CC04 DE14 DE25 DE49 DE54 DE96 GK12 5D110 AA13 AA27 AA29 BB20 BB27 KI00 BB01 DB02 DB02 DA02 DA04 DA11 DA02

Claims (15)

[Claims] 1. A receiving apparatus for receiving data and accumulating the data in a recording medium, the data size acquiring unit acquiring the size of the data, and the state of the recording medium based on the data size. A receiving apparatus comprising: a recording medium state predicting unit that predicts the above; and a data operating unit that operates data already stored in the recording medium based on the prediction in the recording medium state predicting unit. 2. The data operating unit operates the data already stored in the recording medium when the recording medium state predicting unit determines that the recording medium is out of capacity. The receiver described. 3. The reception according to claim 1, wherein the data operation in the data operation unit is data deletion or / and data compression processing and / or data movement. apparatus. 4. A receiving device for receiving data and accumulating the data in a recording medium, the capacity acquiring section acquiring capacity information, which is information about a free capacity of the recording medium,
A receiving device comprising: a data transmitting unit that transmits all or part of received data to the outside when the capacity information acquired by the capacity acquiring unit satisfies a certain condition. 5. A receiving device for receiving data and accumulating the data in a recording medium, the capacity acquiring section acquiring capacity information which is information about a free capacity of the recording medium,
A receiving device, comprising: a notification unit that notifies the server device of capacity shortage information, which is information including that the certain condition is satisfied, when the capacity information acquired by the capacity acquisition unit satisfies the certain condition. 6. A recording reservation information receiving unit, further comprising a recording reservation information receiving unit that receives information regarding a recording reservation of the data, and determines whether or not the capacity information acquired by the capacity acquiring unit satisfies a certain condition. 6. The receiving apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the determination is made when the information regarding the recording reservation of the data is received. 7. A receiving device for receiving data and accumulating the data in a recording medium, the capacity acquiring section acquiring capacity information which is information regarding a free capacity of the recording medium,
A second notification unit for notifying the server of the capacity management information including the estimated time when the capacity will be insufficient calculated based on the capacity information acquired by the capacity acquisition unit, and the reception device identifier for identifying the reception device. Receiver. 8. A server device comprising a second data receiving unit for receiving data from the receiving device according to claim 4, and a second data storing unit for storing the data received by the second data receiving unit. 9. A notification receiving unit that receives capacity shortage information including a data identifier for identifying data from a notification unit included in the receiving device according to claim 5, and data included in the capacity shortage information received by the notification receiving unit. A server device comprising: a second data receiving unit that receives data identified by an identifier; and a second data storage unit that stores the data received by the second data receiving unit. 10. A second notification receiving unit, which is included in the receiving device according to claim 7, receives capacity management information including a data identifier for identifying data from the second notification unit, and receives the second notification receiving unit. A server device comprising: a second data receiving unit that receives data identified by a data identifier included in the capacity management information, and a second data storage unit that stores the data received by the second data receiving unit. 11. A storage status acquisition unit for monitoring the storage status of the receiving device received by the second notification reception unit, wherein the monitoring information acquired by the storage status acquisition unit satisfies a certain condition. 11. The server device according to claim 10, wherein the storage status acquisition unit notifies the second notification reception unit of storage start information that is information including that the certain condition is satisfied. 12. Claim 8 or claim 9 or claim 1.
For the data storage in the server device according to claim 0 or claim 11, a service charge calculation for calculating a data storage service charge using one or more of the data storage count, the stored data size, and the storage time as a parameter. Method. 13. A file system having a file and file operation information, which is information about automatic operation of the file, as an attribute, and is indicated by the file operation information when it is determined that a certain condition is satisfied. A file system characterized by performing file operations on files. 14. The file operation information includes at least one of information indicating automatic file deletion, information indicating automatic file compression processing, and information indicating automatic file movement. The file system according to claim 13. 15. A receiving device for receiving data and accumulating the data, comprising the file system according to claim 13 or 14.