JP2007267093A - Information processing apparatus, method, and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve operability of operations using an electronic program guide. <P>SOLUTION: In a display control terminal 21, an acquisition unit 91 acquires one or more kinds of information of information about the reservation of a program, information about a video recording result of video recording of the program, and information about a preference representing the preference of a user and a selection unit 92 selects a program of which a broadcasting time is closest to the present time from programs specified by the acquired information as an initial program to pay attention thereon when starting displaying a program guide. When starting the display of the program guide, a display control unit 84 then brings the initial program in the program guide into a concerned state and displays the program guide. The present invention may be applicable to a video recording device such as an HD recorder, for example, a remote commander for remotely controlling a video recording device, or the like. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, method, and program, and more particularly, to an information processing apparatus, method, and program capable of improving the operability of an operation using an electronic program guide, for example. .

  As a recording device for recording a program broadcast by a broadcast wave such as a TV (Television) broadcast on a recording medium such as a video tape, a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), or an HD (Hard Disk), for example, a program of a broadcast program Information (EPG (Electronic Program Guide) data, etc.) is received via a communication path such as a broadcast wave or a network, and an electronic program guide is displayed on a monitor such as a TV receiver based on the program information. Things are prevalent.

  According to such a recording apparatus, for example, by operating a button, a dial, or the like, the user places a desired program in the program guide displayed on the monitor into a state of interest, and further performs a predetermined operation. It is possible to make a recording reservation for a program in the attention state.

  Here, the attention state means a state in which the program is focused or a state in which the cursor is positioned in the program column. When the user performs a confirmation operation to confirm the selection of a program while the program is focused or the cursor is positioned in the program column, for example, the focused program or the cursor is positioned If the screen display transitions to a screen for making a recording reservation for a program, or if a program with a focus or a cursor has already been recorded, playback of the program is started.

  With the enhancement of the functionality of the recording device, for example, based on a keyword input by the user, an automatic recording function for recording a program corresponding to program information having a strong correlation with the keyword, program information, for example, A recording apparatus having a function of automatically changing a recorded program, a recorded time, etc. by following the change of the contents of the broadcasted program, the broadcast time, etc. by receiving at a predetermined cycle Has appeared.

  Also, any one of receiving means for receiving a broadcast signal including broadcast content and program information, program information extracting means for extracting program information from the broadcast signal, at least a past viewing history, a preset program genre, and a keyword Storage means for storing selection information including a selection means for selecting a specific program from the program information extracted by the program information extraction means using the selection information, and at least a channel unit, a time unit and a genre from the program information First display means for displaying a program guide in any one of the units, second display means for displaying a specific program selected by the selection means as a program guide, first display means, and the second display There is a digital broadcast receiving apparatus including display switching means for switching between the display means (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2005-277536 A

  The user uses the program guide displayed on the monitor, for example, confirms the recording result of the program recorded by the recording device, confirms or changes the recording reservation or viewing reservation that has already been performed, and makes a new recording reservation. Or a viewing reservation may be made.

  However, conventionally, at the start of the display of the program guide, a program that has been recorded, a program that has already been reserved for recording or viewing, or a program that suits the user's preference is placed in a state of interest. It wasn't.

  For this reason, the user visually finds a desired program from a number of programs displayed in the program guide, and further operates the buttons, dials, etc. to place the desired program in a state of interest. It was necessary to move the position and the focused position.

  In addition, when the user starts recording reservation or change of recording reservation immediately before the start time of the program, the program schedule is displayed on the monitor, and then the recording reservation or program to be changed is focused Because of the time required for the operation, recording of the beginning of the program may fail.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and is intended to improve the operability of an operation using an electronic program guide.

  An information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing apparatus that performs display control for displaying a program guide. Information on program reservation, information on a recording result of recording of a program, or preference information that represents a user's preference. Among the acquisition means for acquiring one or more information and the program specified by the information acquired by the acquisition means, the program whose program broadcast time is closest to the current time is noted at the start of display of the program guide. Selection means for selecting as an initial program to be selected, and display control means for displaying the program guide with the initial program in the program guide being noticed at the start of display of the program guide.

  The information processing apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention further includes program information acquisition means for acquiring program information related to the program, and the display control means is based on the program information acquired by the program information acquisition means. The program guide can be displayed.

  The information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention further includes setting means for setting a target program to be selected as the initial program based on a user instruction, and the acquisition means includes a setting result by the setting means. Accordingly, one or more of program reservation information, program recording information, or preference information representing user preferences can be acquired.

  An information processing method or program according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing method or program for performing display control for displaying a program guide. In the information processing method or program for displaying a program guide, program reservation information, program recording information, or user preference One or more pieces of preference information representing the information is acquired, and from among the programs specified by the acquired information, the program whose broadcast time is closest to the current time should be noted at the start of display of the program guide Selecting the initial program, and displaying the program guide with the initial program in the program guide being noticed at the start of display of the program guide.

  In one aspect of the present invention, one or more pieces of information of program reservation information, recording result information of program recording, or preference information representing user preferences are acquired, and the program specified by the acquired information The program whose broadcast time is closest to the current time is selected as an initial program to be noticed at the start of display of the program guide, and attention is paid to the initial program in the program guide at the start of display of the program guide. The program guide is displayed in the state.

  According to one aspect of the present invention, the operability of an operation using an electronic program guide can be improved.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. Correspondences between the constituent elements of the present invention and the embodiments described in the specification or the drawings are exemplified as follows. This description is intended to confirm that the embodiments supporting the present invention are described in the specification or the drawings. Therefore, even if there is an embodiment which is described in the specification or the drawings but is not described here as an embodiment corresponding to the constituent elements of the present invention, that is not the case. It does not mean that the form does not correspond to the constituent requirements. Conversely, even if an embodiment is described here as corresponding to a configuration requirement, that means that the embodiment does not correspond to a configuration requirement other than the configuration requirement. It's not something to do.

  An information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing apparatus that performs display control for displaying a program guide. Information on program reservation, information on a recording result of recording of a program, or preference information that represents a user's preference. Of the programs specified by the acquisition means (for example, the acquisition unit 91 in FIG. 3) for acquiring one or more pieces of information and the information acquired by the acquisition means, the program whose broadcast time is closest to the current time is selected. Selection means (for example, the selection unit 92 in FIG. 3) for selecting as an initial program to be noted at the start of display of the program guide; and at the start of display of the program guide, the initial program in the program guide is set to the attention state. And display control means (for example, the display control unit 84 in FIG. 3) for displaying the program guide.

  The information processing apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention further includes program information acquisition means (for example, the program information acquisition unit 62 in FIG. 3) for acquiring program information related to the program, and the display control means includes the program information The program guide can be displayed based on the program information acquired by the acquisition means.

  The information processing apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention further includes setting means (for example, an initial display setting instruction unit 79 in FIG. 3) that sets a target program to be selected as the initial program based on a user instruction. The acquisition unit can acquire one or more of program reservation information, program recording information, or preference information representing user preferences according to the setting result of the setting unit. .

  An information processing method or program according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing method or program for performing display control for displaying a program guide. In the information processing method or program for displaying a program guide, program reservation information, program recording information, or user preference One or more pieces of preference information representing the information is acquired (for example, step S43, step S45, or step S47 in FIG. 5), and the broadcast time of the program is selected from the programs specified by the acquired information. Is selected as an initial program to be noted at the start of display of the program guide (for example, step S54 in FIG. 5), and at the start of display of the program guide, the initial program in the program guide is set to the attention state. And displaying the program guide (for example, step S5 in FIG. 4).

  Embodiments to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an embodiment of a recording / viewing reservation system to which the present invention is applied.

  The recording / viewing reservation system shown in FIG. 1 includes a program information server 11, the Internet 12, and a home LAN 13.

  The program information server 11 stores program information such as EPG data and is connected to the Internet 12. For example, when there is a request for program information from the home LAN 13 via the Internet 12, the program information server 11 transmits the program information to the home LAN 13 via the Internet 12.

  The home LAN 13 is constructed at, for example, the user's home. In the home LAN 13, the display control terminal 21, the access point 22, the router 23, and the recording device 24 are connected by wire or wirelessly.

  The display control terminal 21 has a function as a remote commander for remotely controlling the recording device 24 and the video display / audio reproduction device 25 in accordance with a user operation, for example, a mobile phone, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistants), or the like. It is a portable terminal, and performs two-way communication with the recording device 24 and the like via the access point 22 to control the recording device 24 and the like. Such a display control terminal 21 is also called an IP remote controller (remote commander) or the like when using IP (Internet Protocol) as a communication protocol.

  The access point 22 is an access point between a device connected by a wireless LAN in the home LAN 13 and a wired LAN, and communicates with the display control terminal 21 by transmitting and receiving signals of a predetermined frequency.

  In FIG. 1, in consideration of the convenience of the user who operates the display control terminal 21, it is assumed that the display control terminal 21 is used in an arbitrary place in the user's home, for example. The home LAN 13 is constructed so that the recording device 24 can communicate wirelessly via the access point 22.

  In FIG. 1, the display control terminal 21 has a wireless LAN function, and the display control terminal 21 and the access point 22 constitute a wireless LAN network called a so-called infrastructure mode. In this case, the display control terminal 21 communicates with the recording device 24 and the like via the access point 22. However, for example, when the recording device 24 that communicates with the display control terminal 21 has a wireless LAN function and the display control terminal 21 and the recording device 24 support so-called ad hoc mode communication, Wireless communication can be performed with the device 24 without using the access point 22 by ad hoc mode communication.

  The router 23 is connected to the Internet 12 and relays packets exchanged by devices in the Internet 12 and the home LAN 13.

  The recording device 24 is, for example, a video tape recorder, a DVD recorder, an HD recorder, or the like, and has a broadcast wave receiving device 24A that receives broadcast waves such as TV broadcasts via an antenna. The recording device 24 records (records) a program such as a TV broadcast received by the broadcast wave receiving device 24A on a recording medium such as a video tape, a DVD, or an HD based on a user instruction.

  The recording device 24 plays back the recorded program. Further, the recording device 24 supplies an image or audio signal corresponding to the reproduced program or the program received by the broadcast wave receiving device 24 </ b> A to the video display audio reproducing device 25.

  The video display audio reproduction device 25 is, for example, a TV receiver or the like, displays a program image corresponding to a signal supplied from the recording device 24, and outputs audio.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the internal configuration of the display control terminal 21 of FIG.

  In FIG. 2, a display control terminal 21 includes a network I / F (Interface) 41, an LCD 42, a GDP (Graphic Display Processor) 43, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 44, a ROM (Read Only Memory) / RAM (Random Access Memory). ) 45, a data storage unit 46, an input unit 47, and a bus 48. The network I / F 41 to the data storage unit 46 are connected to each other via the bus 48, and the input unit 47 is connected to the CPU 44. Has been.

  The network I / F 41 is configured with a wireless LAN adapter or the like, and performs communication with the access point 22, for example. That is, the network I / F 41 transmits data supplied via the bus 48 to the access point 22, receives data transmitted from the access point 22, and outputs the data on the bus 48.

  The LCD 42 displays various information such as images and text. The GDP 43 performs data processing for displaying on the LCD 42 and driving and control of the LCD 42. The CPU 44 executes a program stored in the ROM / RAM 45, and performs various processes based on instructions from the user via the input unit 47, for example.

  The ROM / RAM 45 stores a program executed by the CPU 44. The ROM / RAM 45 stores data necessary for the operation of the CPU 44. The data storage unit 46 is composed of, for example, an HD or a flash memory, and stores program information, recording reservations, viewing reservation information, and the like. The input unit 47 includes, for example, buttons and dials, and is operated by the user in order to use a GUI or the like displayed on the LCD 42.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of the display control terminal 21, the recording device 24, and the program information server 11 of FIG.

  The functional configuration of the display control terminal 21 in FIG. 3 is realized by the CPU 44 in FIG. 2 executing a program.

  In the display control terminal 21, the program information request unit 61 transmits a program information acquisition request to the program information providing unit 121 of the program information server 11 via the communication unit 85 at a predetermined cycle, for example.

  In response to the program information acquisition request transmitted by the program information request unit 61, the program information server 11 transmits the latest program information to the program information acquisition unit 62 via the communication unit 85.

  The program information acquisition unit 62 receives (acquires) the latest program information to be transmitted via the communication unit 85 and supplies it to the program information storage unit 63. The program information storage unit 63 stores program information supplied from the program information acquisition unit 62. For example, the program guide creation unit 64 reads program information from the program information storage unit 63 in response to an instruction to start display of the program guide by the user, and creates a program guide (display data) based on the program information. To the synthesis unit 83.

  The device information acquisition unit 65 acquires device information from the recording device 24 and other recording devices that can communicate with the display control terminal 21. That is, the device information acquisition unit 65 receives, via the communication unit 85, device information specifying the recording device 24 transmitted from the device information providing unit 102, which will be described later, of the recording device 24, for example. The information is supplied to the information storage unit 66.

  The device information storage unit 66 stores device information supplied from the device information acquisition unit 65.

  The recording device designating unit 67 reads out device information for specifying a device to which the communication unit 85 transmits data (including requests and other commands) from the device information stored in the device information storage unit 66, and transmits the communication unit. 85. Here, the communication unit 85 transmits data to the device specified by the device information from the recording device designating unit 67.

  The recording result information acquisition unit 68 transmits, for example, a recording result information acquisition request to the recording device 24 via the communication unit 85, and the recording result transmitted from the recording device 24 in response to the acquisition request. Is received (acquired) via the communication unit 85. That is, the recording result information acquisition unit 68 supplies an acquisition request for recording result information to the communication unit 85, and the communication unit 85 supplies an acquisition request from the recording result information acquisition unit 68 from the recording device designation unit 67. Is transmitted to the recording device 24 specified by the device information to be recorded, and further, in response to the acquisition request, information on the result of recording transmitted from the recording device 24 is received, and the recording result information acquisition unit 68 is received. To supply. The recording result information acquisition unit 68 receives the recording result information supplied from the communication unit 85 and supplies it to the recording result information storage unit 69 as described above.

  The recording result information storage unit 69 stores recording result information supplied from the recording result information acquisition unit 68.

  The recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70 transmits, for example, a recording reservation or viewing reservation information acquisition request to the recording device 24 via the communication unit 85, and is transmitted from the recording device 24 in response to the acquisition request. The information of the recording reservation or viewing reservation coming is received (acquired) via the communication unit 85. That is, the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70 supplies an acquisition request for recording reservation or viewing reservation information to the communication unit 85, and the communication unit 85 sends the acquisition request from the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70 to the recording device. The information is transmitted to the recording device 24 specified by the device information supplied from the designation unit 67. Further, in response to the acquisition request, the recording reservation or viewing reservation information transmitted from the recording device 24 is received. And supplied to the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70. As described above, the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70 receives the recording reservation or viewing reservation information supplied from the communication unit 85 and supplies it to the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 71.

  The recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 71 stores recording reservation or viewing reservation information supplied from the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70.

  The preference information acquisition unit 72 transmits, for example, a request for acquisition of preference information representing the user's preference to the recording device 24 via the communication unit 85, and is transmitted from the recording device 24 in response to the acquisition request. Information on the preference to come is received (acquired) via the communication unit 85. That is, the preference information acquisition unit 72 supplies a preference information acquisition request to the communication unit 85, and the communication unit 85 sends a preference information acquisition request from the preference information acquisition unit 72 from the recording device designation unit 67. The information is transmitted to the recording device 24 specified by the supplied device information, and the preference information transmitted from the recording device 24 is received and supplied to the preference information acquisition unit 72 in response to the acquisition request. To do. The preference information acquisition unit 72 receives the preference information supplied from the communication unit 85 and supplies it to the preference information storage unit 73 as described above.

  The preference information storage unit 73 stores preference information supplied from the preference information acquisition unit 72.

  The preference information may be input from the recording device 24 or input by the user via the input unit 47. In that case, the input preference information is stored in the preference information storage unit 73.

  The recording / viewing reservation setting instructing unit 74 operates the input unit 47 to send a recording reservation or viewing reservation setting request via the communication unit 85 based on an operation signal supplied from the input unit 47. Transmit to the recording device 24. That is, the recording / viewing reservation setting instruction unit 74 supplies a recording reservation or viewing reservation setting request to the communication unit 85, and the communication unit 85 receives a recording reservation or viewing reservation setting request from the recording / viewing reservation setting instruction unit 74. Is transmitted to the recording device 24 specified by the device information supplied from the recording device designating unit 67.

  The preference information setting instruction unit 75 sends a setting request for preference information representing the user's preference to the communication unit 85 based on the operation signal supplied from the input unit 47 when the user operates the input unit 47. To the recording device 24. That is, the preference information setting instruction unit 75 supplies a preference information setting request to the communication unit 85, and the communication unit 85 sends a preference information setting request from the preference information setting instruction unit 75 to the recording device designation unit. 67 to the recording device 24 specified by the device information supplied from 67.

  The recording result display creation unit 76 reads the recording result information stored in the recording result information storage unit 69, and attaches it to the recorded program column in the program table, for example, a mark indicating that the recording has been performed. Display data is generated and supplied to the synthesis unit 83.

  The recording / viewing reservation display creating unit 77 reads the recording reservation or viewing reservation information stored in the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 71 and adds the information to, for example, the column of the program that is reserved for recording or viewing in the program guide. Display data such as a mark indicating that a recording reservation or a viewing reservation has been made is generated and supplied to the combining unit 83.

  The current time acquisition unit 78 keeps time, and supplies the current time data to the initial display setting extraction unit 81 and the synthesis unit 83.

  When the user operates the input unit 47, the initial display setting instructing unit 79 is focused on the program table at the start of display of the program table based on the operation signal supplied from the input unit 47 (focus). A target program (hereinafter referred to as an initial display target program as appropriate) is set, and initial display setting information, which is information representing the initial display target program, is supplied to the initial display setting storage unit 80.

  The initial display setting storage unit 80 stores initial display setting information supplied from the initial display setting instruction unit 79.

  The initial display setting extraction unit 81 includes an acquisition unit 91 and a selection unit 92, and selects an initial program to be focused upon from the initial display target program at the start of displaying the program guide.

  That is, the acquisition unit 91 reads the initial display setting information from the initial display setting storage unit 80, and acquires recording reservation or viewing reservation information, recording result information, or preference information based on the initial display setting information. .

  Specifically, the initial display setting information represents one or more of a reserved program (recording reservation or viewing reservation), a recorded program, or a program that matches the user's preference, and is acquired. When the initial display setting information represents a reserved program, the unit 91 acquires the recording reservation or viewing reservation information from the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 71.

  Further, when the initial display setting information represents a recorded program, the acquisition unit 91 acquires the recording result information by reading out the recording result information from the recording result information storage unit 69. In the case of representing a program that matches the preference, it is acquired by reading preference information from the preference information storage unit 73.

  The selection unit 92 selects a program as an initial program from the programs specified by the information acquired by the acquisition unit 91, and supplies information representing the program to the control display creation unit 82.

  That is, the selection unit 92 initially selects a program having a minimum difference between the broadcast time of the program and the current time supplied from the current time acquisition unit 78 from among the programs specified by the information acquired by the acquisition unit 91. The program is selected as a program, and information on the initial program is supplied to the control display creation unit 82. Here, the information acquired by the acquisition unit 91 includes information on a program specified by the information, for example, a title, a start time, an end time, a channel, and the like.

  Based on the operation signal supplied from the input unit 47 and the information of the initial program supplied from the initial display setting extraction unit 81, the control display creating unit 82 sets the program displayed in a certain column of the program table as the attention state. Display data to be generated is generated and supplied to the synthesis unit 83.

  In other words, the control display creation unit 82 creates display data that sets other programs as attention states from the program that is currently in attention state based on the operation signal from the input unit 47, and supplies the display data to the synthesis unit 83. . Thereby, the program to be noticed is changed according to the operation of the input unit 47 by the user. Further, the control display creation unit 82 creates display data that sets the initial program as an attention state based on the information of the initial program supplied from the initial display setting extraction unit 81 at the start of display of the program guide. 83.

  The synthesizing unit 83 displays the program guide display data supplied from the program guide creating unit 64, the display data of the recording result information supplied from the recording result display creating unit 76, and the recording supplied from the recording viewing reservation display creating unit 77. The display data of the reservation or viewing reservation information, the display data of the current time supplied from the current time acquisition unit 78, and the display data supplied from the control display creation unit 82 are combined to display the final program guide. Create data. Then, the synthesizing unit 83 supplies the display data of the final program guide to the display control unit 84.

  The display control unit 84 displays the program guide on the LCD 42 in FIG. 2 based on the display data of the program guide supplied from the combining unit 83.

  The communication unit 85 requests the program information request unit 61, the recording result information acquisition unit 68, the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70, the preference information acquisition unit 72, the recording / viewing reservation setting instruction unit 74, the preference information setting instruction unit 75, and the like. Accordingly, the program information server 11 and the recording device 24 are communicated.

  Here, the input unit 47, the program information request unit 61 through the program table creation unit 64, the recording result information storage unit 69, the recording viewing reservation information storage unit 71, the preference information storage unit 73, and the recording result display creation unit 76 through display. The control unit 84 configures the initial display control unit 100 that puts a predetermined program in the program guide into an attention state as an initial program at the start of display of the program guide.

  In FIG. 3, the recording device 24 includes a communication unit 101, a device information providing unit 102, a recording / viewing reservation setting unit 103, a recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104, a recording result determination unit 105, a recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106, and a moving image storage. Unit 107, preference information setting unit 108, preference information storage unit 109, and preference program extraction unit 110.

  The communication unit 101 communicates with the display control terminal 21 with the communication unit 85 or the like of the display control terminal 21.

  In response to a device information acquisition request from the display control terminal 21, the device information providing unit 102 transmits device information for specifying the recording device 24 to the display control terminal 21. That is, when a device information acquisition request is transmitted from the display control terminal 21, the communication unit 101 receives the acquisition request and supplies it to the device information providing unit 102. The device information providing unit 102 stores device information for specifying the recording device 24. When a device information acquisition request is transmitted from the communication unit 101, the device information providing unit 102 stores the device information for specifying the recording device 24 in the communication unit 101. Supply. The communication unit 101 transmits device information supplied from the device information providing unit 102 to the display control terminal 21.

  In response to a recording reservation or viewing reservation setting request from the display control terminal 21, the recording / viewing reservation setting unit 103 supplies the recording / viewing reservation information to the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104. That is, when a recording reservation or viewing reservation setting request is transmitted from the display control terminal 21, the communication unit 101 receives the setting request and supplies it to the recording / viewing reservation setting unit 103. The recording / viewing reservation setting unit 103 generates information on the recording reservation or viewing reservation based on the recording reservation or viewing reservation setting request supplied from the communication unit 101, and supplies the information to the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104.

  In response to a preference information setting request from the display control terminal 21, the preference information setting unit 108 supplies the preference information to the preference information storage unit 109. That is, when a preference information setting request is transmitted from the display control terminal 21, the communication unit 101 receives the setting request and supplies the preference information included in the setting request to the preference information setting unit 108. To do. The preference information setting unit 108 generates preference information based on the preference information setting request supplied from the communication unit 101, and supplies the preference information to the preference information storage unit 109.

  The preference information storage unit 109 stores preference information supplied from the preference information setting unit 108. In addition, the preference information storage unit 109 stores preference information input by the user operating the recording device 24.

  The preference program extraction unit 110 reads preference information from the preference information storage unit 109 and selects (extracts) a program specified by the preference information as a preference program. Then, the favorite program extracting unit 110 supplies the recording reservation or viewing reservation information of the favorite program to the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104 as necessary. That is, for example, the preference program extraction unit 110 acquires program information from the program information server 11 and selects program information having a strong correlation with preference information read from the preference information storage unit 109 from the program information. (Extract. Then, the favorite program extraction unit 110 generates recording reservation or viewing reservation information of the favorite program specified by the program information and supplies the information to the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104.

  The recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104 stores recording reservation or viewing reservation information supplied from the recording / viewing reservation setting unit 103 and the favorite program extraction unit 110.

  In addition, the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104 transmits the recording reservation or viewing reservation information to the display control terminal 21 in response to an acquisition request for recording reservation or viewing reservation information from the display control terminal 21. That is, when an acquisition request for recording reservation or viewing reservation information is transmitted from the display control terminal 21, the communication unit 101 receives the acquisition request and supplies it to the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104. The recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104 stores recording reservation or viewing reservation information. When a request for acquisition of recording reservation or viewing reservation information is supplied from the communication unit 101, the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104 stores the recording reservation or viewing reservation information. To the communication unit 101. The communication unit 101 transmits the recording reservation or viewing reservation information supplied from the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104 to the display control terminal 21.

  The recording result determination unit 105 determines the recording result executed by the recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106 in response to a request for acquiring the recording result information from the display control terminal 21, and records the recording result information obtained as a result thereof. It transmits to the display control terminal 21. That is, when an acquisition request for recording result information is transmitted from the display control terminal 21, the communication unit 101 receives the acquisition request and supplies it to the recording result determination unit 105. The recording result determination unit 105 determines whether the recording performed by the recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106 has succeeded or failed based on the acquisition request for the recording result information supplied from the communication unit 101, and determines the determination result. Information on the recording result is supplied to the communication unit 101. The communication unit 101 transmits the recording result information supplied from the recording result determination unit 105 to the display control terminal 21.

  The recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106 executes reserved recording or reservation viewing based on the recording reservation or viewing reservation information stored in the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 104. That is, the recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106 supplies the moving image storage unit 107 with the image and audio signals of the program received by the broadcast wave receiving device 24A (FIG. 1) based on the recording reservation information. Record the program. Furthermore, the recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106 displays video and audio signals of a program received by the broadcast wave receiving device 24A (FIG. 1) based on the viewing reservation information. It is supplied to the playback device 25 (FIG. 1).

  In addition, the recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106 records the program in the moving image storage unit 107 in accordance with the instruction when the user performs an operation to instruct recording.

  The moving image storage unit 107 records (stores) an image or audio signal supplied from the recording / viewing reservation execution unit 106.

  In FIG. 3, the program information server 11 includes a program information providing unit 121.

  The program information providing unit 121 receives a program information acquisition request from the display control terminal 21 or the like, and transmits the program information to the display control terminal 21 or the like based on the program information acquisition request.

  Next, the initial display control process by the initial display control unit 100 of the display control terminal 21 in FIG. 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG.

  The recording result information acquisition unit 68 requests and acquires the recording result information from the recording device 24 regularly or irregularly, whereby the recording result information storage unit 69 stores the latest recording result information. Is stored. Further, the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70 requests and acquires the recording reservation or viewing reservation information from the recording device 24 at regular or irregular intervals, whereby the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 71 stores the latest information. The recording reservation or viewing reservation information is stored. Furthermore, the preference information acquisition unit 72 requests and acquires the preference information from the recording device 24 regularly or irregularly, whereby the preference information storage unit 73 stores the latest preference information. Suppose that

  The initial display control process is started, for example, when the user operates the input unit 47 so as to display the program guide.

  In step S <b> 1, the program information request unit 61 transmits a program information acquisition request to the program information server 11 via the communication unit 85. Further, in step S 1, the program information acquisition unit 62 transmits the latest program information transmitted from the program information providing unit 121 of the program information server 11 in response to the acquisition request transmitted by the program information request unit 61 to the communication unit 85. Is supplied to and stored in the program information storage unit 63, and the process proceeds to step S2.

  Here, if the user requests the program information server 11 for program information after operating the input unit 47 so that the user displays the program guide, it takes time until the program guide is displayed. Therefore, the display control terminal 21 requests program information from the program information server 11 periodically or irregularly, thereby acquiring the latest program information and storing it in the program information storage unit 63. be able to. In this case, in the initial display control process, the process of step S1 can be skipped.

  In step S2, the program guide creation unit 64 creates program guide display data based on the program information stored in the program information storage unit 63, supplies it to the synthesis unit 83, and proceeds to step S3.

  In step S3, the initial display setting extraction unit 81 stores information stored in the recording result information storage unit 69, the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 71, or the preference information storage unit 73, and the initial display setting storage unit 80. Based on the initial display setting information, an initial program selection process for selecting an initial program is performed, and information on the initial program (eg, title, start time, end time, channel, etc.) is supplied to the control display creation unit 82, Proceed to step S4.

  In step S4, the control display creation unit 82 creates display data that sets the initial program (column) of the program guide as a state of interest based on the information of the initial program supplied from the initial display setting extraction unit 81. The data is supplied to the synthesis unit 83 and the process proceeds to step S5.

  In step S5, the synthesizing unit 83 displays the program guide display data supplied from the program guide generating unit 64, the display data supplied from the control display generating unit 82, and, if necessary, the recording result display generation. The display data created by the section 76 and the recording / viewing reservation display creation section 77 are combined to create the display data of the program guide with the initial program as the attention state as the final display data of the program guide, and the display control section 84. To supply. Then, the display control unit 84 displays the program guide on the LCD 42 based on the final program guide display data supplied from the combining unit 83, and ends the initial display control process.

  Accordingly, the LCD 42 displays a program table in which the initial program selected in the initial program selection process in step S3 is in a state of interest.

  The initial program selection process performed by the initial display setting extraction unit 81 in step S3 of FIG. 4 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  In step S41, the acquisition unit 91 of the initial display setting extraction unit 81 acquires initial display setting information from the initial display setting storage unit 80, and the process proceeds to step S42.

  In step S42, the acquisition unit 91 determines whether or not a program already recorded is included in the program represented by the initial display setting information acquired in step S41 (the already recorded program is set as the initial display target program). Whether or not). When it is determined in step S42 that the program represented by the initial display setting information includes a program that has already been recorded, the process proceeds to step S43, and the acquisition unit 91 has already recorded from the recording result information storage unit 69. The information of the recording result which is the information of the above is acquired, and the process proceeds to step S44.

  If it is determined in step S42 that the program represented by the initial display setting information does not include a program that has already been recorded, step S43 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S44.

  In step S44, the acquisition unit 91 determines whether or not the program represented by the initial display setting information acquired in step S41 includes a program that is reserved for recording or viewing (the program for which recording or viewing reservation is reserved). It is determined whether or not the initial display target program is set. When it is determined in step S44 that the program represented by the initial display setting information includes a program that is reserved for recording or viewing, the process proceeds to step S45, and the acquisition unit 91 records from the recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 71. Information on recording reservation or viewing reservation, which is information of a program that has been reserved or viewed, is acquired, and the process proceeds to step S46.

  If it is determined in step S44 that the program represented by the initial display setting information does not include a program reserved for recording or viewing, step S45 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S46.

  In step S46, the acquisition unit 91 determines whether or not the program represented by the initial display setting information acquired in step S41 includes a program that matches the user's preference (the program that matches the user's preference is set as the initial display target program). Whether or not). If it is determined in step S46 that the program represented by the initial display setting information includes a program that matches the user's preference, the process proceeds to step S47, and the acquisition unit 91 stores a program that matches the user's preference from the preference information storage unit 73. The preference information which is information is acquired, and the process proceeds to step S48.

  If it is determined in step S46 that the program indicated by the initial display setting information acquired in step S41 does not include a program that matches the user's preference, step S47 and step S48 are skipped, and the process proceeds to step S49.

  In step S48, the acquisition unit 91 acquires program information of the program specified by the preference information based on the preference information acquired in step S47, for example, from the program information storage unit 63, and proceeds to step S49. . That is, for example, the acquisition unit 91 reads program information from the program information storage unit 63, reads preference information from the preference information storage unit 73, and selects program information having a strong correlation with preference information from the program information. Then, it is acquired as program information of a favorite program that matches the user's preference. For example, when the preference information is a keyword, program information including the keyword is acquired from the program information.

  Here, in step S48, the algorithm (method) by which the acquisition unit 91 selects program information of a favorite program and the algorithm (method) by which the preference program extraction unit 110 of the recording device 24 selects program information of a favorite program are: They may be the same or different.

  In step S49, the selection unit 92 acquires (receives) the current time from the current time acquisition unit 78, and proceeds to step S50.

  In step S50, the selection unit 92 uses the information acquired in step S43, step S44, or step S48 (recording result information, recording reservation or viewing reservation information, or program information of a program specified by preference information). It is determined whether there are two or more specified programs.

  If it is determined in step S50 that there are two or more programs specified by the information acquired in step S43, step S44, or step S48, the process proceeds to step S51, and the selection unit 92 acquires the recording acquired in step S43. Based on the result information and the current time obtained in step S49, a time difference (size) between the broadcast time of the program specified by the recording result information and the current time is calculated, and the process proceeds to step S52.

  Here, the start time or end time of the program can be adopted as the broadcast time of the program. That is, for example, the end time of the program is adopted as the broadcast time of the already recorded program. Can do. In this case, the program that has been recorded most recently can be the initial program. In addition, the start time of a program that has been reserved (recording reservation or viewing reservation) or a program that meets the user's preference can be used. In this case, a reserved program or a program that suits the user's preference, which has started recording recently or has just started recording, can be the initial program.

  If the recorded program is not included in the program represented by the initial display setting information, step S51 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S52.

  In step S52, the selection unit 92 determines the broadcast time of the program specified by the recording reservation or viewing reservation information based on the recording reservation or viewing reservation information acquired in step S45 and the current time obtained in step S49. A time difference (size) from the current time is calculated, and the process proceeds to step S53.

  If the program represented by the initial display setting information does not include a program that is reserved for recording or viewing, step S52 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S53.

  In step S53, the selection unit 92 is specified by the preference information based on the program information of the program (preference program) specified by the preference information acquired in step S48 and the current time obtained in step S49. The time difference (size) between the broadcast time of the program and the current time is calculated, and the process proceeds to step S54.

  If the program indicated by the initial display setting information does not include a program that matches the user's preference, step S53 is skipped and the process proceeds to step S54.

  In step S54, the selection unit 92 selects, as an initial program, a program having the smallest time difference among the programs for which the time difference has been calculated in steps S51, S52, and S53. Then, the selection unit 92 supplies the initial program information to the control display creation unit 82, ends the initial program selection process, and returns.

  On the other hand, in step S50, it is specified by information acquired in step S43, step S44 or step S48 (program information of a program specified by information on recording results, information on recording reservation or viewing reservation, or preference information). If it is determined that there are not two or more programs, the process proceeds to step S61.

  In step S61, the selection unit 92 determines whether there is one program specified by the information acquired in step S43, step S44, or step S48.

  In step S61, when it is determined that there is one program specified by the information acquired in step S43, step S44, or step S48, the selection unit 92 selects the program as an initial program. Then, the selection unit 92 supplies the initial program information to the control display creation unit 82, ends the initial program selection process, and returns.

  On the other hand, if it is determined in step S61 that there is no program specified by the information acquired in step S43, step S44, or step S48, the process proceeds to step S64, and the selection unit 92 includes, for example, a program information storage unit The program information is acquired from 63, and based on the acquired program information and the current time obtained in step S49, for example, a program whose start time is closest to the current time and has already started broadcasting is set as the initial program. select. Then, the selection unit 92 supplies the information of the initial program to the control display creation unit 82, ends the initial program selection process, and returns.

  Next, an example of the display of the program guide displayed on the LCD 42 in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 6 shows an example of display on the LCD 42 when the program table display starts when a program that has already been recorded is set as an initial display target program.

  In the LCD 42 of FIG. 6, clock information 151 representing the current time and calendar information 152 representing the current date are displayed on the upper right of the display area.

  A program table 154 is displayed at the center of the display area of the LCD 42. The program table 154 is divided into columns of a program broadcast time and a program specified by the broadcast station, where the vertical direction is time and the horizontal direction is a channel (broadcast station). Program information such as information indicating the title and start time of the program is arranged. Furthermore, a recording result (partial failure) icon 164, a recording result (success) icon 165, a recording reservation icon 166, and a viewing reservation icon 167 are arranged in each column of the program guide 154 as necessary.

  In FIG. 6, the columns of programs broadcasted between the PM 0 o'clock and the PM 2 o'clock for each of the four channels “Japan General”, “Japan Education”, “JTV”, and “TBC” are displayed. .

  Here, the program table 154 displayed on the LCD 42 can be scrolled in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction by the user operating the input unit 47 (FIG. 2). On the LCD 42, the program table 154 is scrolled in the vertical direction to display the program column of the program broadcast (broadcast) at another time, and the program table 154 is scrolled in the horizontal direction to The program column of the program broadcast on the channel is displayed.

  At the start of displaying the program guide 154, the program guide 154 is displayed such that the broadcast time zone of the currently broadcast program is located on the top row, for example. In FIG. 6, the PM 0 hour zone is located in the top row, and therefore the current time is the PM 0 hour zone time.

  The recording result (partial failure) icon 164 is a triangular icon indicating that a part of the recording of the program has failed, and in FIG. 6, broadcasting starts from 00 minutes at 00:00 PM on the channel “Japan General”. Are arranged in the column of the program “News” (the program whose title is “News”). According to the recording result (partially failed) icon 164, the user immediately recognizes that the recording of the program “News”, which started broadcasting from 00 o'clock in the PM 0 o'clock range, on the channel “Japan General” has failed. be able to.

  The recording result (success) icon 165 is a circular icon indicating that the recording of the program has been successful. In FIG. 6, the program “1” that has been broadcast on the channel “Japan Education” from 10 o'clock in the PM 0:00 range. "Month English Conversation" (the program whose title is "1 Month English Conversation") is arranged. According to the recording result (success) icon 165, the user immediately recognizes that the program “1 month English conversation”, which started broadcasting from 10 minutes at PM 0 o'clock in the channel “Japan Education”, has been successfully recorded. be able to.

  Here, in FIG. 6, the program “News”, which started broadcasting from 00 minutes at 00:00 PM on the channel “Nippon Sogo”, and the program “News”, which started broadcasting from 10 minutes at 00:00 PM on the channel “Japan Education”. Part of the broadcast time of “One Month English Conversation” is duplicated. For this reason, for example, recording of the program “News” in the program “News” and the program “One Month English Conversation” partially fails.

  The recording reservation icon 166 is an icon of a character string “recording preparation” indicating that the recording recording of the program is reserved, and in FIG. 6, broadcasting starts at 00 PM at 2 PM on the channel “Japan General”. It is arranged in the column of the program “News” (the program whose title is “News”). According to the recording reservation icon 166, the user can immediately recognize that the recording reservation of the program “News”, which starts broadcasting from 00 o'clock in the PM 2 o'clock range, is made on the channel “Japan General”.

  The viewing reservation icon 167 is an icon of the character string “viewing” indicating that the viewing reservation of the program is reserved. In FIG. 6, the program whose broadcast starts from 00 minutes at 2 PM on the channel “TBC”. It is arranged in the column of “Third year eight teachers” (titled “Third year eight teachers” program). According to the recording reservation icon 166, the user immediately recognizes that the viewing reservation of the program “3 years 8 teachers” that starts broadcasting from 00 o'clock in the PM 2 o'clock on channel “TBC” is made. be able to.

  Here, the recording result (partial failure) icon 164 and the recording result (success) icon 165 are displayed according to the display data created by the recording result display creation unit 76 (FIG. 3), and the recording reservation icon 166 and the viewing reservation are displayed. The icon 167 is displayed according to the display data created by the recording / viewing reservation display creating unit 77 (FIG. 3).

  In FIG. 6, as described above, the already recorded program is set as the initial display target program, and the broadcast time (end time) is the closest to the current time among the already recorded programs. The program is drawing attention.

  In other words, in FIG. 6, the program “One Month English Conversation”, which has been broadcast on the channel “Japan Education” from 10 o'clock in the PM range, has the broadcast time (end time) among the already recorded programs. Since the program is closest to the time, the program “One Month English Conversation” is in a state of being in focus (one of the attention states) as the initial program.

  In the program table 154, when the user operates the input unit 47 so as to confirm the selection (confirmation operation) while the already recorded program is in focus, the display control terminal 21 has the focus. A command for requesting playback of the program being hit is transmitted to the recording device 24. As a result, the recording device 24 starts playing the focused program.

  Therefore, in this case, after displaying the program guide 154, the user does not perform an operation of changing the focused program, and the broadcast time (end time) of the already recorded programs is the current time. It is possible to start playback of the program closest to, that is, the program that has been recorded most recently.

  In the program table 154, the focused program column is displayed in a color, brightness, or contrast that is different from the display in the other columns. Thus, the user can easily recognize the focused program.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of the display on the LCD 42 at the start of the display of the program guide when a program that has been reserved for recording or viewing is set as an initial display target program.

  In FIG. 7, parts corresponding to those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

  In FIG. 7, as described above, the program reserved for recording or viewing is set as the initial display target program, and the broadcast time (start) is set among the programs reserved for recording or viewing. The program whose time is closest to the current time is in the attention state.

  That is, in FIG. 7, the program “Halo-Studio Plaza”, which starts broadcasting on the channel “Nippon Sogo” from 05 o'clock in the PM 1 o'clock, is the broadcast time ( The program “start time” is the program closest to the current time. Therefore, the program “Halo to Studio Square” is in a state of being in focus (one of the attention states) as the initial program.

  In the program table 154, when the user operates the input unit 47 so as to confirm the selection (confirmation operation) in a state where a program reserved for recording or viewing is focused, the display control terminal 21 Causes the LCD 42 to display a setting screen for confirming, correcting, and deleting the contents of the recording reservation or viewing reservation of the focused program.

  Therefore, in this case, after displaying the program table 154, the user does not perform an operation of changing the focused program, and the broadcast time (start time) of the programs reserved for recording or viewing is reserved. ) Can confirm, modify, and delete the contents of the recording reservation or viewing reservation of the program closest to the current time.

  FIG. 8 shows the program table 154 displayed on the LCD 42 when the user confirms the input unit 47 when the program reserved for recording is focused (the program is focused). It is an example of a display of a setting screen for confirmation of recording reservation.

  In FIG. 8, parts corresponding to those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

  In the middle of the display area of the LCD 42, as program information 181 of the program reserved for recording, the broadcast date “July 13 (Wednesday)”, the channel “Japan General”, the broadcast frame “1:05 PM-2” : 00PM "and the title" Halo-Studio Square "are displayed. Further, on the upper side of the program information 181, a message “Please correct the content of the recording reservation” is displayed as a message 183 indicating the content of the setting performed on the setting screen. That is, since the setting screen of FIG. 8 is a setting screen for a program that has already been reserved for recording, the user checks and corrects the recording reservation using this screen.

  In the middle of the display area of the LCD 42, a detailed setting list 182 consisting of setting items of detailed settings related to recording reservation and their setting values is displayed. According to the detailed setting list 182, the user can confirm the contents of the recording reservation.

  In addition, the setting screen of FIG. 8 includes a reservation confirmation button 184, a cancel button 185, a reservation deletion button 186, and a detailed setting button 187.

  The reservation confirmation button 184 is operated when confirming or revising the reservation contents of a program that has already been reserved for recording specified by the program information 181, and the stop button 185 is specified by the program information 181. It is operated when canceling the operation of confirming or correcting the reservation contents of a program that has already been reserved for recording. The reservation deletion button 186 is operated when deleting the reservation of a program that has already been reserved for recording specified by the program information 181, and the detailed setting button 187 is a program that has already been reserved for recording specified by the program information 181. It is operated when making detailed settings for reservations.

  FIG. 9 is an example of display on the LCD 42 when starting display of the program guide when a program that matches the user's preference is set as an initial display target program.

  9, parts corresponding to those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

  In FIG. 9, the keyword “cooking” is set in the preference information indicating the user's preference.

  In FIG. 9, as described above, the program that matches the user's preference is set as the initial display target program, and the program that matches the user's preference (the program that includes the keyword “dishes” in the program information) is broadcast. The program whose time (start time) is closest to the current time is in a state of interest.

  That is, in FIG. 9, the program “Today's dish” that starts broadcasting from 00 minutes at 2 PM on the channel “Japan Education” has a broadcasting time (starting time) among the programs that match the user's preference. The program is closest to the current time, and therefore, the program “Today's dish” is in the state of focus (168) as the initial program.

  In the program table 154, when the user operates the input unit 47 so as to confirm the selection (confirmation operation) with the focus on the program that matches the user's preference, the display control terminal 21 has the focus. A setting screen for making a recording reservation or viewing reservation of the program being hit is displayed on the LCD 42.

  Therefore, in this case, after displaying the program guide 154, the user does not perform an operation of changing the focused program, and the broadcast time (start time) of the programs that match the user's preference is currently It is possible to make a recording reservation or viewing reservation for the program closest to the time.

  FIG. 10 shows an example of display of a setting screen such as a recording reservation displayed on the LCD 42 when the user confirms the input unit 47 when a program that matches the user's preference is focused in the program table 154. It is.

  10, parts corresponding to those in FIG. 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

  In the center of the display area of the LCD 42, as program information 181 of a program that suits the user's preference, the broadcast date “July 13 (Wednesday)”, the channel “Japan Education”, the broadcast frame “2:00 PM-2: 25PM "and the title" Today's dish "are displayed. Further, on the upper side of the program information 181, a message “This program will be reserved for recording” is displayed as a message 183 representing the contents of the setting performed on the setting screen. That is, the setting screen of FIG. 10 is a setting screen for a program that has not yet been scheduled for recording, and the user makes a recording reservation using this screen.

  As described above, at the start of display of the program guide, the program guide is focused on a recorded program, a program that has already been reserved for recording or viewing, or a program that suits the user's preference. Since the focus is on a position (program) that is convenient for the user at the start of display, the user can immediately access the desired program. That is, the operability of the operation using the program guide can be significantly improved.

  Furthermore, depending on the setting of the initial display target program, a recorded program, a reserved program, or a program that suits the user's preference is selected, and only the program is targeted at the start of program table display. You can focus.

  Next, the display control of the program guide as described above is performed by the display control terminal 21 as a control device for remotely controlling the recording device 24 and the like, and as a receiving device for receiving a program, for example, STB (Set Top Box) Alternatively, it can be performed by, for example, an HD recorder or the like as a display device that receives and displays a program, for example, a TV receiver or a recording device 24 that records a program.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of a TV receiver that performs display control of a program guide similar to that of the display control terminal 21.

  In FIG. 11, the same reference numerals are given to the corresponding parts in FIG. 3, and description thereof is omitted.

  In the TV receiver 1000 of FIG. 11, the input unit 1047, the program information request unit 1061 to the communication unit 1085, the acquisition unit 1091 or the selection unit 1092 are respectively the input unit 47 and the program information request unit of the display control terminal 21 in FIG. 61 to the communication unit 85, the acquisition unit 91, or the selection unit 92. Accordingly, the TV receiver 1000 performs display control of the program guide similar to that of the display control terminal 21.

  FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of an STB that performs display control of a program guide similar to that of the display control terminal 21.

  In FIG. 12, the same reference numerals are given to the corresponding parts in FIG. 3, and description thereof will be omitted.

  In the STB 2000 of FIG. 12, the input unit 2047, the program information request unit 2061 to the communication unit 2085, the acquisition unit 2091, or the selection unit 2092 are the input unit 47, the program information request unit 61 to the communication of the display control terminal 21 in FIG. The configuration is the same as that of the unit 85, the acquisition unit 91, or the selection unit 92.

  The STB 2000 displays the program guide on an external video display / audio reproduction device 2200 such as a TV receiver connected to the STB 2000.

  FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of a recording apparatus that performs display control of a program guide similar to that of the display control terminal 21.

  In FIG. 13, the same reference numerals are given to the corresponding parts in FIG.

  In the recording apparatus 3000 of FIG. 13, an input unit 3047, a program information request unit 3061 to a program table creation unit 3064, a recording viewing reservation information storage unit 3069, a recording result information storage unit 3071, a preference information storage unit 3073, and a recording result display creation unit. 3076 to communication unit 3085, acquisition unit 3091, or selection unit 3092 are input unit 47, program information request unit 61 to program guide creation unit 64, recording / viewing reservation information storage unit 69, and recording unit 69 of display control terminal 21 in FIG. The result information storage unit 71, the preference information storage unit 73, the recording result display creation unit 76 to the communication unit 85, the acquisition unit 91, or the selection unit 92 are configured in the same manner. The same program table display control is performed.

  The recording device 3000 displays the program guide on an external video display / audio reproduction device 3200 such as a TV receiver connected to the recording device 3000.

  Further, in the recording device 3000, the functions of both the display control terminal 21 and the recording device 24 in FIG. 3 are integrated, and the recording device 3000 in FIG. 13 is necessary for communication between the display control terminal 21 and the recording device 24. It does not have a special function.

  That is, in the recording device 3000 of FIG. 13, the device information acquisition unit 65, the device information storage unit 66, the recording device designation unit 67, the recording result information acquisition unit 68, and the recording / viewing reservation information acquisition unit 70 of the display control terminal 21 of FIG. The blocks corresponding to the preference information acquisition unit 72, the device information providing unit 102, the recording / viewing reservation setting unit 103, and the preference information setting unit 108 of the recording device 24 are deleted. Further, the communication unit 3085 of the recording device 3000 in FIG. 13 communicates with the program information server 11.

  In the present embodiment, the display control terminal 21 acquires program information from the program information server 11 (FIG. 1) via the Internet 12 (FIG. 1). The program information included in the TV broadcast wave may be received, and the display control terminal 21 may acquire the program information from the recording device 24 by communication.

  Further, the display control terminal 21 acquires preference information from the recording device 24 to be controlled and uses it for selecting an initial program. However, the input unit 47 of the display control terminal 21 is used for selecting an initial program. The preference information input by operating can be used.

  For example, when each of a plurality of users uses their own display control terminal 21 and the recording device 24 is shared by the plurality of users, the recording device 24 has other user preferences that are unnecessary for each user. Since the information is stored, if the initial program is selected using the preference information acquired from the recording device 24, there is an inconvenience that a program that matches the preference of only another user is selected as the initial program. Such an inconvenience can be avoided by using the preference information input by operating the input unit 47 of the display control terminal 21 for the selection of the initial program.

  In the present specification, the steps for describing a program are not only processes performed in time series in the order described, but also processes that are executed in parallel or individually even if they are not necessarily processed in time series. Is also included.

It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of one Embodiment of the video recording viewing reservation system to which this invention is applied. It is a block diagram which shows the example of an internal structure of the display control terminal 21 of FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration example of a display control terminal 21, a recording device 24, and a program information server 11 of FIG. It is a flowchart explaining an initial display control process. It is a flowchart explaining an initial program selection process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of LCD42 at the time of the display start of a program schedule in case the program already recorded is set to the initial display object program. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of LCD42 at the time of the display start of a program schedule in case the program by which recording reservation or viewing reservation is set to the initial display object program. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the setting screen for confirmation of a video recording reservation. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of LCD42 at the time of the display start of a program schedule in case the program which suits a user preference is set to the initial display object program. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of setting screens, such as recording reservation. It is a block diagram which shows the functional structural example of TV receiver which performs display control of a program schedule. It is a block diagram which shows the functional structural example of STB which performs display control of a program schedule. It is a block diagram which shows the functional structural example of the video recording apparatus which performs display control of a program schedule.

Explanation of symbols

  11 program information server, 12 internet, 13 home LAN, 21 display control terminal, 22 access point, 23 router, 24 recording device, 24A broadcast wave receiving device, 25 video display audio reproduction device, 41 network I / F, 42 LCD , 43 GDP, 44 CPU, 45 ROM / RAM, 46 data storage unit, 47 input unit, 48 bus, 61 program information request unit, 62 program information acquisition unit, 63 program information storage unit, 64 program table creation unit, 65 equipment Information acquisition unit, 66 device information storage unit, 67 recording device designation unit, 68 recording result information acquisition unit, 69 recording result information storage unit, 70 recording viewing reservation information acquisition unit, 71 recording viewing reservation information storage unit, 72 preference information acquisition Section, 73 preference information storage section, 74 recording viewing reservation setting instruction section, 75 preference information setting finger , 76 Recording result display creation unit, 77 Recording viewing reservation display creation unit, 78 Current time acquisition unit, 79 Initial display setting instruction unit, 80 Initial display setting storage unit, 81 Initial display setting extraction unit, 82 Control display creation unit , 83 Compositing unit, 84 Display control unit, 85 Communication unit, 91 Acquisition unit, 92 Selection unit, 101 Communication unit, 102 Device information providing unit, 103 Recording / viewing reservation setting unit, 104 Recording / viewing reservation information storage unit, 105 Recording result Judgment unit 106 Recording / viewing reservation execution unit 107 Moving image storage unit 108 Preference information setting unit 109 Preference information storage unit 110 Preference program extraction unit 121 Program information provision unit 151 Clock information 152 Calendar information 154 Program Table, 164 Recording result (partial failure) icon, 165 Recording result (success) icon 166 Recording reservation icon, 167 Viewing reservation icon, 168 Focus, 181 Program information, 182 Detailed setting list, 183 Message, 184 Reservation confirmation button, 185 Cancel button, 186 Reservation deletion button, 187 Detailed setting button, 1000 TV receiver , 1047 input unit, 1061 program information request unit, 1062 program information acquisition unit, 1063 program information storage unit, 1064 program table creation unit, 1065 device information acquisition unit, 1066 device information storage unit, 1067 recording device designation unit, 1068 recording result Information acquisition unit, 1069 Recording result information storage unit, 1070 Recording viewing reservation information acquisition unit, 1071 Recording viewing reservation information storage unit, 1072 Preference information acquisition unit, 1073 Preference information storage unit, 1074 Recording viewing reservation setting instruction Unit, 1075 preference information setting instruction unit, 1076 recording result display creation unit, 1077 recording viewing reservation display creation unit, 1078 current time acquisition unit, 1079 initial display setting instruction unit, 1080 initial display setting storage unit, 1081 initial display setting extraction unit , 1082 Control display creation unit, 1083 composition unit, 1084 display control unit, 1085 communication unit, 1091 acquisition unit, 1092 selection unit, 2000 STB, 2047 input unit, 2061 program information request unit, 2062 program information acquisition unit, 2063 program Information storage unit, 2064 Program guide creation unit, 2065 Device information acquisition unit, 2066 Device information storage unit, 2067 Recording device designation unit, 2068 Recording result information acquisition unit, 2069 Recording result information storage unit, 2070 Recording viewing reservation information acquisition unit, 2071 recordings Listening reservation information storage unit, 2072 Preference information acquisition unit, 2073 Preference information storage unit, 2074 Recording viewing reservation setting instruction unit, 2075 Preference information setting instruction unit, 2076 Recording result display creation unit, 2077 Recording viewing reservation display creation unit, 2078 Current Time acquisition unit, 2079 initial display setting instruction unit, 2080 initial display setting storage unit, 2081 initial display setting extraction unit, 2082 control display creation unit, 2083 composition unit, 2084 display control unit, 2085 communication unit, 2091 acquisition unit, 2092 Selection unit, 2200 video display audio reproduction device, 3000 recording device, 3047 input unit, 3061 program information request unit, 3062 program information acquisition unit, 3063 program information storage unit, 3064 program table creation unit, 3069 recording result information storage unit, 3071 Scheduled viewing About information storage unit, 3073 Preference information storage unit, 3074 Recording / viewing reservation setting instruction unit, 3075 Preference information setting instruction unit, 3076 Recording result display creation unit, 3077 Recording / viewing reservation display creation unit, 3078 Current time acquisition unit, 3079 Initial display Setting instruction unit, 3080 initial display setting storage unit, 3081 initial display setting extraction unit, 3082 control display creation unit, 3083 compositing unit, 3084 display control unit, 3085 communication unit, 3091 acquisition unit, 3092 selection unit, 3105 recording result determination Unit, 3106 recording / viewing reservation execution unit, 3107 moving image storage unit, 3110 preference program extraction unit, 3200 video display audio reproduction device

Claims (7)

In an information processing apparatus that performs display control for displaying a program guide,
Acquisition means for acquiring one or more pieces of information of program reservation information, recording result information of program recording, or preference information indicating user preference;
Selecting means for selecting, from among the programs specified by the information acquired by the acquiring means, a program whose program broadcast time is closest to the current time as an initial program to be noted at the start of display of the program guide;
An information processing apparatus comprising: a display control unit configured to display the program guide with the initial program in the program guide being noticed at the start of display of the program guide. Further comprising program information acquisition means for acquiring program information relating to the program,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit displays a program guide based on the program information acquired by the program information acquisition unit. A setting unit for setting a target program to be selected as the initial program based on a user instruction;
The acquisition unit acquires one or more of program reservation information, program recording information, or preference information representing user preferences according to a setting result by the setting unit. Information processing device. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus is a receiving apparatus that receives a program, a display apparatus that receives and displays the program, or a recording apparatus that records the program. A receiving device for receiving a program;
A display device for receiving and displaying programs,
The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information processing apparatus is a control apparatus that remotely controls a recording apparatus that records a program. In an information processing method for performing display control for displaying a program guide,
Obtaining one or more pieces of information of program reservation information, recording result information of program recording, or preference information indicating user's preference;
From among the programs specified by the acquired information, select a program whose program broadcast time is closest to the current time as an initial program to be noted at the start of display of the program guide,
An information processing method including a step of displaying the program guide by setting the initial program of the program guide to an attention state at the start of display of the program guide. In a program for causing a computer to execute information processing for performing display control for displaying a program guide,
Obtaining one or more pieces of information of program reservation information, recording result information of program recording, or preference information indicating user's preference;
From among the programs specified by the acquired information, select a program whose program broadcast time is closest to the current time as an initial program to be noted at the start of display of the program guide,
A program including a step of displaying the program guide with the initial program in the program guide being in a focused state at the start of display of the program guide.

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