JP2007116229A - Television receiver - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a television receiver whereby a target broadcast program can be selected or particularized depending on a broadcast group name when a program to be viewed is selected or its video recording is reserved. <P>SOLUTION: The television receiver stores channel information d1 including: a broadcast channel number d11; and the broadcast group name d14 associated therewith, and displays a video image in combination with, e.g. a program video image g10 (an example of a video image associated with a broadcast program) during broadcasting by a particular broadcast station (a broadcast station of a selected channel at present) selected among a plurality of broadcast stations and a video image g13 of the broadcast group name d14 corresponding to the present selected channel in the channel information d1 (an example of broadcast station/broadcast group cross-reference information) on a monitor screen 21 on the basis of the stored channel information d1. Further, the television receiver particularizes a broadcast program corresponding to keyword information on the basis of the keyword information including the broadcast group name and EPG information and extracts the signal of the broadcast program from a television broadcast signal. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a television receiver that receives a television broadcast signal and displays a video related to a broadcast program on a predetermined display means.

In a television receiver that receives television broadcast signals such as terrestrial broadcasts, CS broadcasts, and cable broadcasts and displays images related to broadcast programs on a monitor screen (display means) such as a built-in or externally connected liquid crystal display device For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, there is one having a function of displaying a video of EPG information (electronic program guide information) on a monitor screen.
In general, EPG information includes information in which broadcast channel numbers, broadcast station names, and broadcast program content information (program names, broadcast time zones, genres, performers, etc.) are associated. In addition, the television receiver acquires such EPG information by extracting it from a television broadcast signal, or when receiving a communication interface for a network such as the Internet from an external device through the network. To do.
JP-A-1-307944

By the way, as described above, the EPG information includes the broadcast station name, but this broadcast station name differs depending on the region even if the broadcast series is the same. For example, the name of the broadcasting station of the “Nippon TV” series is “Sapporo TV” in Hokkaido, “Chukyo TV” in Aichi Prefecture, and “Nankai Broadcasting” in Ehime Prefecture. The series cannot be judged. Similarly, even for the same broadcast series, the broadcast channel to which the broadcast station is assigned varies depending on the region, and if there is no prior knowledge, the broadcast series cannot be determined by the broadcast channel.
On the other hand, TV viewers often store interesting broadcast programs together with their broadcast series names. For example, a drama broadcast from 9 pm on Monday in the Fuji TV series (so-called “Month 9”), a drama broadcast from 9 pm on Tuesday in the Japanese TV series (Tuesday Suspense Theater), and the like.
However, for users who know the broadcast program that they want to watch by the broadcast series name, the monitor screen is automatically started and the video is displayed when the program to be viewed is selected, the recording is reserved, or the broadcast of the designated broadcast program is started. Even if the channel number or broadcasting station name is displayed on the monitor screen during automatic start-up reservation, the target broadcast program is selected by channel switching operation or specified by keyword search in the recording reservation function. There was a problem that it was not easy to do. In particular, when a user moves an address to an area where the correspondence relationship between the broadcast series and the broadcast channel or broadcast station is different, the user will be confused about channel selection (broadcast station selection) until he / she gets used to the new channel system. Very inconvenient.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and the object of the present invention is to select or specify the target broadcast program by the broadcast series name when selecting a program to watch or recording reservation. It is to provide a television receiver.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention is applied to a television receiver that receives a television broadcast signal and displays a video related to the broadcast program on a predetermined display means. Storage means (hereinafter referred to as broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information storage means) for storing information (hereinafter referred to as broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information) including the identification information of the broadcast and the broadcast sequence name information associated therewith; , Means for causing the display means to display the video relating to the broadcast program (for example, program video, EPG information, etc.) and the video of the broadcast series name information corresponding to the broadcast station that broadcasts the broadcast program (hereinafter referred to as the display means) And a television series name information output means).
Thus, the user can select or specify the target broadcast program by using the broadcast sequence name displayed on the display means when selecting a program to be viewed or recording reservation, so that the broadcast of the broadcast program can be specified. The convenience of the user who knows the origin by the broadcast series name increases.

Here, since the broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information differs depending on the reception area (viewing area) of the broadcast signal, the following can be considered as a configuration in which this information is appropriate according to the reception area. .
For example, in the broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information storage means, a plurality of the broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information corresponding to each reception area is stored in advance for each area identification information for identifying a broadcast reception area, A means for selecting one area identification information from the plurality of area identification information (hereinafter referred to as area selection means), and a plurality of the broadcasting stations / broadcast sequences based on the area identification information selected thereby Means for identifying the broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information (hereinafter referred to as broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information identifying means) referred to (used) in the broadcast sequence name information output means from the correspondence information; What is provided can be considered.
In addition, the same area selection means as described above (means for selecting one area identification information from among a plurality of area identification information for identifying broadcast reception areas) and the area identification information selected thereby Broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information is acquired from an external device such as a server device on the Internet through a communication medium (network) and stored in the broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information storage means (hereinafter referred to as broadcast station). A broadcast series correspondence information storage means) is also conceivable.
According to the former configuration, communication means with an external device is not required. On the other hand, according to the latter configuration, it is not necessary to store a plurality of pieces of broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information, so that the storage capacity of the broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information storage means can be reduced.
The area selecting means is usually provided as a means for a general television receiver to selectively input an area code for identifying a receiving area in order to realize an automatic channel setting function. do it.

Here, as an output form of the broadcast series name, the following can be considered.
For example, the broadcast sequence name information output means may output the broadcast video to a program video (a video of the broadcast program itself, an example of a video related to the broadcast program) being broadcast by a specific broadcast station selected from a plurality of broadcast stations. Means (hereinafter referred to as first broadcast sequence name information output means) for displaying on the display means a video on which the video of the broadcast series name information corresponding to the specific broadcast station in the station / broadcast sequence correspondence information is superimposed Things can be considered.
As a result, the user can grasp at a glance from which broadcast series the currently displayed broadcast program is broadcast, and can easily find the channel (broadcast station) corresponding to the target broadcast program while watching this. Can be selected.

In addition, there is provided means for acquiring EPG information (hereinafter referred to as EPG information acquisition means) including at least the broadcast station identification information and the content information (program name, performer information, etc.) of the broadcast program associated therewith. In such a case, the following configuration may be considered.
For example, the broadcast sequence name information output means is an image of a program guide in which the content information of the broadcast program included in the EPG information acquired by the EPG information acquisition means (an example of an image related to the broadcast program, for example, Corresponding to the broadcast station identification information included in the EPG information in the broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information). It is conceivable to have means (hereinafter referred to as second broadcast series name information output means) for causing the display means to display a video on which the video of the broadcast series name information is superimposed.
Thereby, when searching for the content information of the target broadcast program from the video of the program guide, it is possible to easily search for the broadcast series name.
In addition, the broadcast sequence name information output means outputs the video of the broadcast station name information included in the EPG information corresponding to the broadcast sequence name information together with the video of the broadcast program and the video of the broadcast sequence name information. A display configured to be displayed on the display means is also conceivable. This is suitable when it is desired to know the correspondence between broadcast series names and broadcast station names.
This configuration can be applied to both the first and second broadcast series name information display means.

Further, based on the means for inputting keyword information including the broadcast series name information in the broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information (hereinafter referred to as keyword information input means), and the keyword information and the EPG information inputted thereby. Means for specifying a specific broadcast program (hereinafter referred to as broadcast program specifying means) and means for extracting a program video of the broadcast program specified by the broadcast program specifying means from the television broadcast signal (hereinafter referred to as specific program) (Referred to as video extracting means).
As a result, even if you do not know the correspondence between channel numbers, broadcast station names, and broadcast series names, for example, when recording reservations or automatic start-up reservations, By inputting keyword information such as “drama” starting from “9 o'clock”, the target broadcast program can be specified, and the video is automatically extracted from the television broadcast signal.
As the broadcast station identification information, for example, a broadcast channel number, a broadcast station name, a broadcast station code that is a code uniquely assigned in advance for each broadcast station, and the like can be considered.

According to the present invention, the user can select or specify the target broadcast program by using the broadcast series name displayed on the display means when selecting the program to be viewed or recording reservation, etc. The convenience of the user who knows the broadcast source of the program by the broadcast series name is increased.
In addition to the video relating to the broadcast program and the video of the broadcast sequence name information, the video of the broadcast station name information included in the EPG information corresponding to the broadcast sequence name information can be displayed on the display means. It is preferable in that useful information can be provided to a user who wants to know the correspondence between broadcast series names and broadcast station names.
Further, it is possible to input keyword information including the broadcast series name information, and to provide a function of specifying a specific broadcast program based on the keyword information and EPG information and extracting the specific broadcast program from the television broadcast signal. For example, when recording reservations or automatic start-up reservations, etc., it is easy to enter keyword information including broadcast series names, even if you do not know the correspondence between channel numbers or broadcast station names and broadcast series names. The target broadcast program can be specified.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings for understanding of the present invention. In addition, the following embodiment is an example which actualized this invention, Comprising: It is not the thing of the character which limits the technical scope of this invention.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a television receiver X which is an example of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a configuration example of channel information stored in the television receiver X. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the procedure of program video display processing in the television receiver X, FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a program video display screen displayed on the monitor screen by the television receiver X, and FIG. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a program guide display screen displayed on the monitor screen by the television receiver X, and FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a keyword input screen displayed on the monitor screen by the television receiver X.

First, the configuration of a television receiver X, which is an example of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention, will be described using the block diagram shown in FIG.
The television receiver X displays a video related to a broadcast program on a monitor screen based on the received television broadcast signal. Here, an example in which the television receiver X itself includes a monitor screen is shown, but the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a video signal is output to an externally connected display device such as a recording device. Depending on the situation, the monitor screen may be output.
As shown in FIG. 1, the television receiver X includes a plurality of tuners 1a, 1b, 1c, an external input unit 2, a video switching circuit 3, a video processing circuit 4, an OSD processing circuit 5, and a remote controller 7. A control circuit 8, a remote control interface (I / F) circuit 9, an external output circuit 12, a monitor screen 21, an audio switching circuit 10, an audio processing circuit 11, an amplifier 22, and a speaker 23. is doing.
The tuners 1a, 1b and 1c are respectively a terrestrial tuner 1a to which a terrestrial broadcast signal (television broadcast signal) is input, a BS tuner 1b to which a BS satellite broadcast signal is input, and a CATV tuner to which a CATV broadcast signal is input. 1c, which extracts (selects) a broadcast channel signal designated by the control circuit 8 from each input broadcast signal, extracts a video signal and an audio signal by detection of the extracted signal, and outputs the video signal. And the audio signal are transmitted to the video switching circuit 3 and the audio switching circuit 10, respectively. Note that a video signal for a plurality of channels and an audio signal synchronized with the video are superimposed on each broadcast signal.
The external input unit 2 receives externally input video signals and audio signals such as composite video signals and audio signals, and separate video signals and audio signals (so-called S terminal signals). , An interface for transmitting them to the video switching circuit 3 and the audio switching circuit 10 respectively.
The video switching circuit 3 inputs video signals from each of the tuners 1a, 1b, and 1c and a video signal from the external input unit 2, and selects any one of the video signals from the control circuit. 8 is selected and output in accordance with the instruction from FIG.

The video processing circuit 4 performs various signal processing on the video signal output from the video switching circuit 3. For example, separation of horizontal and vertical synchronization signals from the video signal, generation of a clock signal phase-synchronized with the synchronization signal, separation of luminance and color signals from the video signal, predetermined image quality improvement processing, etc. A signal is output to the OSD processing circuit 5.
Whether the OSD processing circuit 5 outputs the video signal transmitted from the video processing circuit 4 to the monitor screen 21 so that the video signal processed by the video processing circuit 4 is displayed on the monitor screen 21 as it is. Then, a video signal (hereinafter referred to as an OSD video signal) is generated by superimposing (combining) a video for displaying information instructed by the control circuit 8 on the video signal, and the OSD video signal is generated by the monitor. The display is switched to display on the screen 21.

The monitor screen 21 is a display means composed of, for example, a liquid crystal panel and its peripheral devices, and displays a video signal output from the OSD processing circuit 5.
The control circuit 8 has an MPU 8a which is an arithmetic means, a ROM 8b (EPROM) which is a storage means in which a control program executed by the MPU 8a is stored in advance, and a setting which is read / written (referenced or written) in processing executed by the MPU 8b. An EEPROM 8c or the like for storing information is provided, and the entire television receiver X is controlled.
The remote control interface circuit 9 obtains operation input information for the remote control 7 by wireless transmission such as infrared transmission from the remote control 7 (remote operation device) for operation of the television receiver X, and the operation input information is obtained as described above. This is output to the control circuit 8.
For example, when channel selection is performed, operation input information for the channel selection key of the remote controller 7 is input to the control circuit 8 through the remote control interface circuit 9, and the control circuit 8 performs the operation according to the operation input information. The video switching circuit 3 and the OSD processing circuit 5 are controlled so that a channel to be selected for any of the tuners 1a, 1b, and 1c is designated and the video of the channel is displayed on the monitor screen 21. Is done.
Similarly, when volume adjustment is performed, an output volume adjustment command is sent from the control circuit 8 to the amplifier 22 in accordance with operation input information for a volume volume adjustment key (volume up key and down key) of the remote controller 7. In accordance with the command, the output volume for the speaker 23 is adjusted by the amplifier 22.

The audio switching circuit 10 receives an audio signal from each of the tuners 1a, 1b, and 1c and an audio signal from the external input unit 2, and controls any one of the audio signals as the control signal. According to an instruction from the circuit 8, the sound is output to the sound processing circuit 11.
The audio processing circuit 11 performs various signal processing on the audio signal output from the audio switching circuit 10 in accordance with instructions from the control circuit 8. For example, equalization processing, surround processing, or the like that matches the characteristics of the speaker 23 is performed.
The amplifier 22 performs a process of amplifying or attenuating the audio signal processed by the audio processing circuit 11 in accordance with an instruction from the control circuit 8 and outputs the amplified signal to the amplifier 23.

The external output circuit 12 is an interface circuit for an external device such as an externally connected recording device (DVD recording device or the like), and is a television broadcast video signal output from the video processing circuit 4 and an audio processing circuit. 11 outputs a television broadcast audio signal output from the control circuit 8 to an external device in response to an output command from the control circuit 8, and outputs a control signal output from the control circuit 8 to the external device in a predetermined format. It is converted into a relay transmission.
For example, the control circuit 8 executes a keyword recording process, which will be described later, to specify a broadcast program to be recorded based on the input keyword information and EPG information, and at the broadcast start time of the specified broadcast program. Then, the video signal and audio signal of the broadcast program are output to the connected external device through the external output circuit 12, and the recording start command signal is transmitted as a control signal. Further, when the end time of the broadcast program is reached, the output of the video signal and the audio signal is stopped and a recording end command signal is transmitted as a control signal.
Thereby, the broadcast program specified by the keyword information and the EPG information is recorded on the recording device which is an external device.

In the EEPROM 8c, channel information d1 is stored in advance as one piece of setting information referred to by the MPU 8a.
FIG. 2 shows a configuration example of the channel information d1 stored in the EEPROM 8c.
The channel information d1 shown in FIG. 2 is information including a broadcast channel number d11 which is broadcast channel identification information in a television broadcast signal, a channel key number d12, a display channel number d13 and a broadcast sequence name d14 associated therewith. It is. Here, the broadcast channel number d11 is an example of broadcast station identification information, and channel information d1 including a broadcast sequence name d14 (an example of broadcast sequence name information) associated therewith, and an EEPROM 8c storing the channel information d1 It is an example of each broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information and broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information storage means.
The channel information d1 is information that is referred to by the control circuit 8 during channel selection processing performed in response to an operation input to the remote controller 7.
That is, when an operation input to the channel selection key of the remote controller 7 is performed, the control circuit 8 specifies the broadcast channel number d10 corresponding to the channel key number d12 (usually 1 to 12) indicating the key number. Then, a broadcast channel signal (video signal and audio signal) corresponding to the specified broadcast channel number d10 is extracted from the received television broadcast signal by any of the tuners 1a to 1c, and the video switching circuit. 3 is output. As a result, the program video being broadcast on the channel selected by the user and its audio are displayed on the monitor screen 21.
Further, the channel information d1 is also used for program information display processing described later.

Here, the content of the channel information d1 varies depending on the reception area of the television broadcast (the installation area of the television receiver X). For this reason, in the present embodiment, by including the area code d10 for identifying the reception area in the channel information d1, a plurality of pieces of channel information d1 are stored in advance in the EEPROM 8c for each area code d10 (for each broadcast reception area). is doing.
When any one of the area codes d10 is designated (selected) by a predetermined operation input through the remote controller 7 by the control circuit 8 (an example of an area selecting unit), the control circuit 8 further provides a plurality of channel information. One piece of channel information d1 corresponding to the designated area code d10 is selected from d1, and the selection information is stored in the EEPROM 8c. Thereby, one channel information d1 corresponding to the installation area (reception area) of the television receiver X is selected (an example of a broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information specifying unit). For example, the designated area code d10 (designated area code) is stored in the EEPROM 8c as the selection information, and thereafter, the channel information corresponding to the storage area code at the time of the above-described channel selection processing or program information display processing described later. Reference is made to d1. Alternatively, a copy of the channel information d1 corresponding to the designated area code is created in a specific area of the EEPROM 8c, and thereafter, the copy of the channel information d1 is referred to in the above-described channel selection process or program information display process described later. . Hereinafter, for convenience, the channel information d1 (selected channel information d1) corresponding to the designated area code is referred to as designated channel information d1.
The designation (selection) of the area code d10 is performed at the time of initial setting of the television receiver X or the like.

Next, a procedure of program video display processing realized by the MPU 8c of the control circuit 8 executing a predetermined control program will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. Note that the processing shown in FIG. 3 is performed when the television receiver X is activated (powered on) by a user's operation on the remote control 7 or at a time preset by a timer activation setting or the like. It is started when the machine X is automatically started. Further, S1, S2,... Shown below represent identification codes of processing procedures (steps).
First, the control circuit 8 determines whether or not the current time measured by a clock timer (not shown) is an EPG acquisition time set in advance and stored in the EEPROM 8c (S1). Here, if it is determined that it is the EPG acquisition time, the process proceeds to step S3 after the EPG information acquisition process (S2) is executed. If not, the process proceeds to step S3 as it is. The control circuit 8 and the tuners 1a to 1c that execute step S2 are examples of the EPG information acquisition unit.
Here, the acquisition of the EPG information is performed by the control circuit 8 controlling one of the tuners 1a to 1c to extract the EPG information signal superimposed on a predetermined broadcast channel of the television broadcast signal. Done. In addition, when a network interface (communication means) (not shown) that can communicate via a network such as the Internet is provided, EPG information is downloaded and acquired from an external device (such as a server device on the Internet) via the network interface. The structure etc. to perform are also considered.
The EPG information acquired here is general, and is associated with, for example, a broadcast channel number, a broadcast station name, and broadcast program content information (program name, broadcast time zone, genre, performer, etc.). Information. The broadcast channel number functions as broadcast station identification information in the received television broadcast signal.

Next, in step S3, the display channel number d13, broadcast station name, program corresponding to the broadcast channel currently selected by the operation of the remote controller 7 by the user by the control circuit 8 (hereinafter referred to as the currently selected channel). A process of specifying the name and the broadcast series name d14 is executed (S3).
Specifically, the control circuit 8 specifies the broadcast station name and program name corresponding to the currently selected channel by referring to the EPG information acquired in step S2. Further, the control circuit 8 refers to the designated channel information d1 stored in the EEPROM 8c, thereby displaying the display channel number d13 corresponding to the currently selected channel (corresponding to the broadcast channel number d11 matching the currently selected channel). And the broadcast series name d14.

Next, display mode information that is variable information stored in the main storage area or the EEPROM 8c by the control circuit 8 and is classified according to the content of the information displayed together with the program video of the currently selected channel is displayed. It is referred to and it is determined which display mode is set (S4), and program information display processing (S5.1 to S5.4) for displaying the video according to the determination result on the monitor screen 21 is executed. The Here, it is determined which of the following modes 0 to 3 is set. 4A to 4C show screen display examples when the display mode information is mode 1 to mode 3. FIG.
Mode 0 is a mode in which only the program video of the currently selected channel is displayed on the monitor screen 21 (S5.1). This mode 0 is an initial value of display mode information.
In mode 1, as shown in FIG. 4A, the program video g10 of the currently selected channel is added to the video g11 of the display channel number d13 (CH number) specified in step S3, the video g13 of the broadcast series name d14, and the program. In this mode, the video image g1 with the name video image g14 superimposed thereon is displayed on the monitor screen 21 (S5.2).
In mode 2, as shown in FIG. 4B, the program video g10 of the currently selected channel is added to the video g11 of the display channel number d13 (CH number) specified in step S3, the video g12 of the broadcast station name, the broadcast series. In this mode, a video g2 in which the video g13 having the name d14 and the video g14 having the program name are superimposed is displayed on the monitor screen 21 (S5.3).
In mode 3, as shown in FIG. 4C, the program video g10 of the currently selected channel is added to the video g11 of the display channel number d13 (CH number) specified in step S3, the video g12 of the broadcast station name, and the program name. In this mode, the video g3 on which the video g14 is superimposed is displayed on the monitor screen 21 (S5.4).
As described above, the process of superimposing the video images g11 to g14 of each information on the program video image g10 is executed by the OSD processing circuit 5 controlled by the control circuit 8.
The control circuit 8 and the OSD processing circuit 5 that execute the processes of steps S5.2 and 5.3 are currently being broadcast by a specific broadcast station (broadcast station of the currently selected channel) selected from a plurality of broadcast stations. Together with the video g13 of the broadcast series name d14 corresponding to the currently selected channel in the designated channel information d1 (example of broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information). This is an example of the first broadcast series name information output means for displaying the video images g1 and g2 on the monitor screen 21.

Next, the control circuit 8 determines whether or not the display mode switching operation has been performed through the remote controller 7 based on the transmission signal from the remote control interface circuit 9 (S6), and the time of a predetermined display mode timer is counted. Whether or not a channel change operation (change operation of the currently selected channel) has been performed through the remote controller 7 based on a process (S9) for determining whether or not the process has been completed (time up) and a transmission signal from the remote controller interface circuit 9 The process (S11) which discriminates is performed.
If it is determined in step S6 that the display mode switching operation has been performed, the control circuit 8 causes the contents of the display mode information (modes 0 to 0) stored in the main storage area, the EEPROM 8c, or the like according to the operation contents. The mode 3) is updated (S7), and the timing of the display mode timer that measures a preset time (for example, several seconds to several tens of seconds) is started (S8). The display mode timer is realized by, for example, a clock circuit (not shown) included in the control circuit 8.
If it is determined in step S9 that the display mode timer started in step S8 has ended (time-up), the control circuit 8 sets the content of the display mode information as an initial value “mode”. It is set (updated) to “0” (S10).
If it is determined in step S11 that a channel change operation has been performed, the control circuit 8 performs a process for changing the currently selected channel (S12) according to the operation content.
Then, based on the transmission signal from the remote control interface circuit 9, the control circuit 8 determines whether or not a predetermined end operation (power OFF operation or the like) has been performed through the remote controller 7 (S13), and the end operation is detected. Up to this point, the processes of steps S1 to S13 described above are repeated. If an end operation is detected in step S13, the program video display process ends.

By repeating the processes of steps S1 to S13 described above, every time a display mode switching operation is performed, display of videos g11 to g14 of information related to the program or broadcast station displayed on the monitor screen 21 together with the program video g10. The state (see FIG. 4) is switched.
Further, when the display mode switching operation is not detected until the set time of the display mode timer elapses, a display state of mode 0 which is an initial display mode (a state where only the program video g10 is displayed) is set. .
Each time a channel change operation is performed, the video displayed on the monitor screen 21 is a program video g11 being broadcast on the newly selected broadcast channel (broadcast station) and a video of information relating to the program or broadcast station. The video is switched to a video on which g11 to g14 are superimposed.
Here, in steps S5.1 and S5.2, as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the video g13 of the broadcast series name d14 is displayed, so that the broadcast source of the broadcast program is represented by the broadcast series name. For the grasping user, when selecting a program to be viewed, the user can select a target broadcast program based on the broadcast series name d14 displayed on the monitor screen 21, which increases convenience.
In step S5.1, together with the program video g10 and the video g13 of the broadcast series name d14, the video g12 corresponding to the broadcast series name d14 and included in the EPG information is also displayed on the monitor screen 21. Therefore, it is suitable when it is desired to know the correspondence between the broadcast series name d14 and the broadcast station name.

In the embodiment described above, the example in which the video g13 of the broadcast series name d14 is superimposed and displayed on the program video g10 being broadcast on the currently selected channel is not limited to this, but as shown in FIG. It is also conceivable that the video g4 of the program guide includes the video of the broadcast series name d14 and is displayed on the monitor screen 21.
For example, the control circuit 8 refers to the designated channel information d1 (an example of broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information) to thereby determine the broadcast channel number (broadcast station identification information) included in the EPG information acquired in step S2. Example) The broadcast series name d14 corresponding to each is specified, and further, the control circuit 8 and the OSD processing circuit 5 superimpose the video g43 of the specified broadcast series name d14 on the video g4 of the program guide as shown in FIG. It is also conceivable to display it on the monitor screen 21 (an example of second broadcast sequence name information output means). Here, the program guide video g4 (an example of a video related to a broadcast program) is broadcast program content information (program name and performer) included in the EPG information acquired in step S2 (see FIG. 3) by the control circuit 8. Etc. g45, broadcast time zone g44, etc.).
In the example shown in FIG. 5, the video g41 of the display channel number d13 corresponding to the broadcast channel, the video g42 of the broadcast station corresponding to the video g41, and the video g43 of the broadcast series name d14 corresponding to the video g41 are displayed together. ) Is displayed.
In addition, in the same manner as the processing of steps S4 to S8 in the above-described program video display processing (FIG. 3), information indicating the broadcast source of the broadcast program is displayed on the video g4 of the program guide in accordance with a predetermined display mode switching operation. It is also conceivable that the display channel number d13, the broadcast series name d14, and any one or more of the broadcast station names extracted from the EPG information can be switched.

Further, it is conceivable that the designated channel information d1 (see FIG. 2) including the broadcast series name d14 is used for the keyword recording process described above.
For example, the control circuit 8 and the OSD processing circuit 5 generate an image of a predetermined keyword recording reservation screen and display it on the monitor screen 21, thereby inputting the keyword information including the broadcast series name d14 in the designated channel information d1. Is executed (an example of keyword information input means).
FIG. 6 shows an example of the keyword recording reservation screen g5.
As shown in FIG. 6, a broadcast series menu image for displaying a list of broadcast series names d14 included in the designated channel information d1 as a keyword information option for designating a broadcast channel by the control circuit 8 and the OSD processing circuit 5, for example. g51 is displayed on the monitor screen 21. Furthermore, when the control circuit 8 designates (selects) the broadcast series name d14 through the remote controller 7 based on the transmission signal from the remote control interface circuit 9, the broadcast series name d14 can be included in the keyword information. As shown in FIG. 6, information that can be input as keyword information includes program content information such as broadcast date (day of the week), broadcast start time, broadcast program genre, etc., in addition to broadcast series name d14.

When the control circuit 8 detects that the reservation registration button g52 on the keyword recording reservation screen g5 is operated based on the transmission signal from the remote control interface circuit 9, the control circuit 8 further inputs the operation. Based on the keyword information and the EPG information acquired in step S2 (see FIG. 3), a specific broadcast program corresponding to the keyword information is specified (an example of a broadcast program specifying unit). At this time, the broadcast start time and broadcast end time of the broadcast program are also identified from the content information of the broadcast program included in the EPG information. Hereinafter, a broadcast program specified based on keyword information is referred to as a keyword specifying program.
Further, the control circuit 8 monitors whether the broadcast start time of the keyword specific program is reached. When the broadcast start time is reached, the tuners 1a to 1c are controlled, and the program of the keyword specific program is received from a television broadcast signal. Video and audio signals are extracted (an example of specific program video extraction means). At the same time, the video switching circuit 3 and the audio switching circuit 10 are controlled by the control circuit 8 so that the video and audio of the keyword specific program are output by the video processing circuit 4 and the audio processing circuit 11.

Further, the control circuit 8 outputs the video signal and audio signal of the keyword specific program to the connected external recording device through the external output circuit 12, and transmits a recording start command signal as a control signal. Is done. Thereafter, when the end time of the keyword specific program is reached, the output of the video signal and the audio signal through the external output circuit 12 is stopped, and the recording end command signal is transmitted from the control circuit 8 through the external output circuit 12 as a control signal. Is done.
Thereby, the broadcast program specified by the keyword information including the broadcast series name d14 and the EPG information is recorded on the externally connected recording device.
Such an embodiment is also an application example of the present invention. Of course, the present invention is applied to a recording device as a television receiver, and the keyword-specific program is stored in a storage device such as a hard disk drive provided in the device itself or a storage medium (DVD disc or the like) attached to a predetermined interface. An embodiment for recording video is also conceivable.

In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the broadcast station identification information stored in association with the broadcast series name d14 is the broadcast channel number d11 has been described. However, other examples are also conceivable.
For example, it is conceivable that a broadcast station name or a broadcast station code is captured as broadcast station identification information. In this case, correspondence information (hereinafter referred to as broadcast station name-sequence name correspondence information) between broadcast station names or broadcast station codes and their respective broadcast series names nationwide is stored in the EEPROM 8c in advance, based on the EPG information. When the broadcasting station name or broadcasting station code included in the broadcasting station name is specified, the control circuit 8 converts the broadcasting station name or broadcasting station code corresponding to the broadcasting station name or broadcasting station code into the broadcasting station name-sequencing name correspondence information. It is conceivable that the broadcast series name d14 is specified with reference to the monitor screen 21.

In the above-described embodiment, an example in which a plurality of channel information d1 is stored in advance in the EEPROM 8c for each area code d10 has been described. However, other examples may be considered.
For example, when a network interface (communication means) capable of communicating via a network such as the Internet is provided, at the time of initial setting as described above, one area code from among a plurality of area codes d10 (an example of area identification information) Is selected (specified), the control circuit 8c communicates with an external device (such as a server device on the Internet) via the network interface, and corresponds to the selected area code d10 (the specified area code). It is also conceivable that the channel information d1 to be acquired is obtained from an external device through a network and stored in the EEPROM 8c (an example of a broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information storage unit).
Thereby, since it is not necessary to store channel information d1 of a plurality of regions, the storage capacity of the EEPROM 8c can be reduced. Further, it is possible to flexibly cope with the correspondence between the broadcast station name and the broadcast series name and the change of the name.

  The present invention can be used for a television receiver.

1 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a television receiver X that is an example of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. The figure showing the structural example of the channel information memorize | stored in the television receiver X. 6 is a flowchart showing a procedure of program video display processing in the television receiver X. The figure showing the example of the program video display screen displayed on a monitor screen by the television receiver. The figure showing the example of the program guide display screen displayed on a monitor screen by the television receiver. The figure showing the example of the keyword input screen displayed on a monitor screen by the television receiver.

Explanation of symbols

X ... Television receivers 1a, 1b, 1c ... Tuner 2 ... External input unit 3 ... Video switching circuit 4 ... Video processing circuit 5 ... OSD processing circuit 7 ... Remote control 8 ... Control circuit 9 ... Remote control interface circuit 10 ... Audio switching circuit DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Audio processing circuit 12 ... External output circuit 21 ... Monitor screen d1 ... Channel information d10 ... Area code d11 ... Broadcast channel number d14 ... Broadcast series name S1, S2, ... Step (processing procedure)

Claims (9)

A television receiver that receives a television broadcast signal and displays a video related to a broadcast program on a predetermined display means,
Broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information storage means for storing broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information including broadcast station identification information and broadcast series name information associated therewith,
Broadcast sequence name information output means for causing the display means to display together the video relating to the broadcast program and the video of the broadcast sequence name information corresponding to the broadcast station that broadcasts the broadcast program;
A television receiver, comprising: The broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information storage means stores in advance a plurality of the broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information for each area identification information for identifying a broadcast reception area,
A region selection means for selecting one region identification information from the plurality of region identification information;
The broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information referred to by the broadcast sequence name information output unit from the plurality of broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information based on the region identification information selected by the region selection unit. Broadcast station / broadcast line correspondence information identification means to be identified;
The television receiver according to claim 1, comprising: An area selecting means for selecting one area identification information from among a plurality of area identification information for identifying broadcast receiving areas;
Broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information corresponding to the region identification information selected by the region selection means is acquired from an external device through a communication medium and stored in the broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information storage means. Series correspondence information storage means;
The television receiver according to claim 1, comprising:   The broadcast sequence name information output means adds the specific information in the broadcast station / broadcast sequence correspondence information to a video related to the broadcast program that is a program video being broadcast by a specific broadcast station selected from a plurality of broadcast stations. The television according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising first broadcast sequence name information output means for causing the display means to display a video on which the video of the broadcast sequence name information corresponding to a broadcast station is superimposed. Receiver.   5. The television receiver according to claim 1, further comprising EPG information acquisition means for acquiring EPG information including at least identification information of the broadcast station and content information of a broadcast program associated with the broadcast station identification information. Machine.   The broadcast series name information output means adds the broadcast station to a video related to the broadcast program, which is a video of a program guide in which the content information of the broadcast program included in the EPG information acquired by the EPG information acquisition means is organized. In the broadcast sequence correspondence information, there is provided second broadcast sequence name information output means for displaying on the display means a video on which the video of the broadcast sequence name information corresponding to the identification information of the broadcast station included in the EPG information is superimposed. The television receiver according to claim 5.   The broadcast sequence name information output means, together with the video related to the broadcast program and the video of the broadcast sequence name information, displays the video of the broadcast station name information corresponding to the broadcast sequence name information and included in the EPG information. The television receiver according to claim 5, wherein the television receiver is configured to be capable of being displayed. Keyword information input means for inputting keyword information including the broadcast series name information in the broadcast station / broadcast series correspondence information;
Broadcast program specifying means for specifying a specific broadcast program based on the keyword information and the EPG information input by the keyword information input means;
Specific program video extracting means for extracting a program video of the broadcast program specified by the broadcast program specifying means from the television broadcast signal;
The television receiver according to any one of claims 5 to 7.   The television receiver according to claim 1, wherein the broadcast station identification information is a broadcast channel number, a broadcast station name, or a broadcast station code.

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