JP2008060960A - Apparatus and method for creating program guide - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a program guide including contents more useful for a user than a conventional program guide. <P>SOLUTION: A television receiver 21 for creating and outputting an integrated program guide creates data of a basic integrated program guide on the basis of EPG data collected from another television broadcast receiver connected to an AV home network 10. Also, the television receiver 21 determines communication quality for each combination of devices for transmitting/receiving contents in the AV home network 10. Then, the television receiver 21 estimates reproduction quality for each device having a content reproducing function per channel unit or program unit to be displayed in the integrated program guide on the basis of results of determination of the communication quality. Then, the television receiver 21 creates the integrated program guide data so that the reproducing quality can be displayed on the integrated program guide, and enables to output the data by display or printing. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a program guide creation apparatus that creates information (program guide information) that is a source of a program guide to be output in a form visible to a user by using electronic program guide information, and a method thereof. is there.

In digital television broadcasting and terrestrial broadcasting, information on electronic program guides (EPG) is provided in recent television broadcasting. Such EPG information is provided by, for example, a method of superimposing data broadcasting or a video signal blanking period together with information as a program. Alternatively, a server for uploading EPG information is installed on the Internet, and downloading from the server to a broadcast receiving device or the like via the Internet is performed.
A broadcast receiving apparatus or the like that has acquired EPG information can use this to display and output a program guide. For example, the user performs an operation such as program selection while viewing the program guide.

  It is preferable that the program guide displayed based on such EPG information has a utility value as high as possible for the user. Therefore, a technique such as Patent Document 1 has been proposed. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-151561 describes a technique in which, from various types of additional information added to EPG information, information specified according to a user operation is output by display.

  In recent years, as a so-called home network, a network for video / audio has been constructed and has been proposed. Incidentally, DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) has been formulated as one of the standards corresponding to such video / audio home networks (AV home networks). By conforming to DLNA, for example, an AV home network can be constructed with high versatility without being restricted by the same vendor.

JP 2001-309323 A

  The invention of the present application is also intended to be able to present a program guide having contents that are considered to be as useful as possible for the user, and is constructed especially by network connection such as an AV home network. We propose what is useful when applied to AV systems.

In view of the above-described problems, the present invention is configured as follows as a program guide creation device.
That is, at least a network compatible device capable of transmitting content data obtained by receiving a broadcast via a communication network, and a network compatible device capable of executing a predetermined operation for content data received and acquired via the communication network. Among the connection means for connecting to the communication network of the broadcast content transmission / reception system, the electronic program guide information that can be acquired by itself, and the electronic program guide information that can be acquired by other network compatible devices The electronic program guide information collecting means for collecting at least one electronic program guide information from itself or from another network compatible device via a communication network, Of a given network compatible device that can send and receive data The program table is output in a predetermined manner visually recognizable by the user using the communication quality detecting means for detecting the communication quality of the electronic program guide and the electronic program guide information assumed to be collected by the electronic program guide information collecting means. Broadcast program as a program presented in the program guide by creating a network-compatible device capable of reproducing and outputting broadcast content based on the communication quality detected by the communication quality detecting means. It is configured to include a program guide creating means for estimating the playback quality when the content is reproduced and output, and creating the program guide information so that the estimated playback quality is reflected in the contents of the program guide. .

In the above configuration, the program guide creation device of the present invention is a device connected to the broadcast content transmission / reception system. This broadcast content transmission / reception system comprises a network compatible device that transmits content data obtained by receiving a broadcast via a communication network, and a network compatible device that performs a predetermined operation on the content data received and acquired via the communication network. It is said.
Then, the program guide creation apparatus of the present invention collects electronic program guide information that can be acquired by itself or other network-compatible devices from a network as a broadcast content transmission / reception system, and acquires program guide information (program guide data). Create At this time, the program guide creation device of the present invention detects the communication quality of a set of predetermined network-compatible devices that can transmit and receive content data. Here, if the communication quality between the network compatible device that receives a certain program and the network compatible device that can reproduce and output a certain broadcast content is specified, the network compatible device that can reproduce and output the broadcast content is It is also possible to unambiguously estimate the quality of images, sounds, etc. obtained by receiving, reproducing and outputting broadcast content data of a certain program. Therefore, in the present application, the reproduction quality when the network compatible device that receives and reproduces broadcast content data based on the communication quality detection result reproduces and outputs the broadcast content as the program presented in the program guide. And the program guide information reflecting the reproduction quality is created.

  As described above, by obtaining the program guide information reflecting the reproduction quality of the broadcast program, for example, a user who has viewed the program guide output based on the program guide information can view it. It is possible to recognize in advance how much quality a program that is scheduled to be played is played back by which network compatible device. That is, it is possible to provide a program table that is useful when a system capable of viewing broadcast programs is constructed by network connection.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter referred to as an embodiment) will be described below. As a broadcast content transmission / reception system to which the present embodiment is compatible, for example, a network (AV home network) constructed so that video / audio content data can be transmitted / received via a network in a home is taken as an example. In addition, in the present embodiment, the program guide creation apparatus according to the present invention is applied to a television receiver that is one of network devices (network-compatible devices) forming the AV home network. Is done.

FIG. 1 shows a configuration example of an AV home network as the present embodiment. In the example shown in this figure, in the two-story house 1, first, one AV home network 10 is constructed by connecting various devices installed in the rooms on the first and second floors via a network line. It is said.
In this case, as a specific network configuration as the AV home network 10, first, a network device (network compatible device) installed on the first floor is connected by the wired network line 11a and installed on the second floor. The existing network devices are connected by the wired network line 12 a, and the wired network lines 11 a and 12 a are connected by the wireless network line 13. With such a connection mode, a network communication network as the AV home network 10 is formed so that network devices can communicate with each other across the first floor and the second floor. Here, the network part formed by being interconnected by the wired network line 11a and the network part formed by being interconnected by the wired network line 12a are referred to as the first floor segment 11 and the second floor segment 12, respectively. To.

First, in the first floor segment 11, as a network device, a television receiver 21, a video device 22, a CATV tuner 23, a printer device 24, and a wireless bridge 25 are connected to the wired network line 11a.
The television receiver 21 is for a predetermined broadcast carrier (for example, a terrestrial wave, a BS broadcast, a CS broadcast, a CATV or another broadcast wave (broadcast signal), or a provider or a platform on the same broadcast wave). As a video content (broadcast content) obtained by receiving and demodulating with a tuner capable of receiving broadcasts, a video signal and an audio signal whose playback time is synchronized with the video signal are respectively converted into an image and a sound. Output. In addition to video content data transmitted via a network communication network, a video content signal supplied from an external video input terminal can be input and displayed. In addition, in response to a request from another network device, it is also possible to transmit and output video content obtained by itself via a network communication network.

In this case, the video device 22 takes in video content data transmitted from another device or device via a network communication network, stores it in a predetermined storage medium (for example, an HDD (hard disk)), and saves it. It is configured so as to have a function. That is, the video device 22 is a device that stores and saves video content data received and acquired by a device having a television broadcast receiving function on the AV home network 10. Note that the video device 22 may also be configured to include a tuner capable of receiving a television broadcast of a predetermined broadcast carrier, but here, it is assumed that a television broadcast receiving function is not provided.
The CATV tuner 23 transmits and outputs video content data obtained by receiving a predetermined cable television broadcast to a data requesting device via a network communication network.

  Further, the printer device 25 executes a printing operation in accordance with printing data transmitted together with a print request from another device via a network communication network. The printer device 25 in this network configuration can print a program guide or the like in accordance with an instruction from the television receiver 21, for example, as will be described later.

  The wireless bridge 25 is configured to execute wireless network communication with the wireless bridge 29 provided in the second-floor segment 12 described later. As a result, the first floor segment 11 and the second floor segment 12 are connected by the wireless network line 13, and communication as the AV home network 10 across the first floor and the second floor becomes possible.

Next, in the second floor segment 12, a satellite broadcast tuner 26, a television receiver 27, a television receiver 28, and a wireless bridge 29 are connected to the wired network line 12a as network devices.
The satellite broadcast tuner 26 receives and demodulates a satellite broadcast of a predetermined broadcast carrier to obtain video content data. The video content data is transmitted and output to the data requesting device via the network communication network.
As with the television receiver 21, the television receivers 27 and 28 receive a broadcast from a predetermined broadcast carrier and can output themselves as images and sounds. Alternatively, transmission to an external network device is possible. In addition to video content data transmitted via a network communication network, a video content signal supplied from an external video input terminal can be input and displayed.
Further, as described above, the wireless bridge 29 performs wireless network communication with the wireless bridge 25 of the first floor segment 11.

Here, for example, consider a case where video content obtained by receiving a broadcast by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 installed on the second floor is reproduced and output by the television receiver 21 on the first floor. In this case, the television receiver 21 requests the video content from the satellite broadcast tuner 26 by designating, for example, a program. This request is received by the wireless bridge 25 via the wired network line 11a, further transmitted wirelessly to the wireless bridge 29, and received by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 via the wired network line 12a.
In response to receiving this request, the satellite broadcast tuner 26 transmits the specified video content data to the television receiver 21. This video content data is transmitted through the reverse path to the request signal and is received by the television receiver 21. The television receiver 21 performs predetermined reproduction signal processing on the received video content data, and reproduces and outputs image and sound through its own display unit and speaker (or headphone output).

  As a standard for constructing a home network as shown in FIG. 1 above, for example, DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) can be cited in the present situation. DLNA is standardized based on existing standards such as IP networks for the purpose of providing as much versatility as possible for home networks that exchange video content and audio content data. It is. However, in this embodiment, standards other than DLNA may be adopted as a standard for constructing a home network, and should not be particularly limited. One AV home network 10 can also be formed by mixing a plurality of network standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark) and HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface).

  In the AV home network 10 shown in FIG. 1, devices that can receive television broadcasts (hereinafter also referred to as “television broadcast receiving devices”) are a television receiver 21, a CATV tuner 23, and a satellite broadcast tuner. 26, five television receivers 27 and 28. In this case, each of these television broadcast receiving devices can acquire information (EPG data) of EPG (Electronic Program Guide) related to broadcasting by a broadcast carrier that can be received by the television broadcast receiving device. Suppose that there is. As for the acquisition of EPG data, for example, it is conceivable to receive EPG data that is multiplexed and transmitted as an insertion signal for data broadcasting or a vertical blanking period together with video content as a program. Although not shown in FIG. 1, it is also conceivable that a television broadcast receiving device is connected to the Internet or the like so that EPG data can be downloaded and acquired from a server prepared on the Internet.

Of these television broadcast receivers, at least the television receiver 21 can display and output a program guide as an electronic program guide using the EPG data acquired by itself. Yes. In addition, the contents of the program table created using the EPG data can be printed by the printer device 24 and output. That is, the output of the program guide is performed in a form that can be visually recognized by the user by display or printing.
Further, the other CATV tuners 23 such as the CATV tuner 23, the satellite broadcast tuner 26, the television receivers 27 and 28, and the like are respectively acquired according to the request of the television receiver 21, for example. Data can be transmitted and output to the television receiver 21 via a network communication network. Then, the television receiver 21 receives EPG data transmitted from other television broadcast receivers, and outputs a program table for each received EPG data by display or printing executed by the printer device 24. be able to.

Here, according to the above description, the television receiver 21 of the present embodiment can collect EPG data from the television broadcast receiving devices existing on the AV home network 10 including itself. Will be.
Therefore, in the television receiver 21, a program table (integrated program table) in which broadcasts receivable by the AV home network 10 are integrated using the EPG data of the plurality of television broadcast receivers collected in this way. The program table having the contents based on the program table data is displayed, or can be output by printing by the printer device 24.

  For example, if the television broadcast receiving apparatus has only a function of creating a program guide based on EPG data individually acquired, if it is attempted to grasp a program that can be received and viewed by the entire AV home network 10, It is necessary to switch and output the corresponding program table for each EPG data acquired by the broadcast receiving device. On the other hand, if the integrated program guide is configured to be output as in the present embodiment, the user can list and understand broadcast channels and programs that can be received by the entire AV home network 10. That is, it is more efficient than before, and a program guide that is highly convenient and useful for the user can be presented.

However, in consideration of the fact that the AV home network 10 of the present embodiment is formed by network connection of television broadcast receiving devices and the like, the following problems may actually occur.
For example, not only a home network but also a communication network handled as a single network is often used in combination with a plurality of network communication standards. In the case of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the AV home network 10 includes a wired network line 11a that forms the first floor segment 11, a wired network line 12a that forms the second floor segment 12, It can be said that three network lines are mixed with the wireless network line 13 interconnecting these wired network lines 11a and 12a.
In this case, the wired network lines 11a and 12a and the wireless network line 13 are inevitably adopted different communication standards because their communication methods are distinguished from wired and wireless. Also, different communication standards may be adopted between the wired network lines 11a and 12a. That is, in the AV home network 10 of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1, there is a possibility that three different communication standards are adopted at the maximum.
In addition, in the network communication standard, for example, there is a relationship such as 100BASE-TX and 10BASE-T in Ethernet (registered trademark) if wired, or IEEE802.11b / g if wireless. In many cases, a plurality of standards are compatible, such as the wireless LAN standard. For this reason, for example, in the first floor segment 11, even if the wired network line 11 a corresponds to a higher standard, if some of the devices only support a lower standard compatible with the higher standard, Communication with this device is performed according to a lower standard.
In this way, one network may be built in an environment in which a plurality of network standards are mixed. According to the description so far, the AV home network 10 of the present embodiment may have an environment in which communications based on three or more network standards are mixed.

In particular, when transmitting / receiving video content data acquired by broadcast reception as in the AV home network 10 of the present embodiment, the communication quality due to the difference in network standards has a correspondingly important meaning. Will have.
That is, depending on the different network standards, the prescribed communication speed, maximum transmission distance, and the like differ. On the other hand, the AV home network 10 transmits and receives video data as video content by streaming. At present, the video data is required to have a relatively high data communication speed, and particularly in the case of streaming transmission, the video data is required to have high stability. That is, correspondingly high communication quality is required. Furthermore, as video data, in addition to what is called SD (Standard Definition) corresponding to the old television system, it has come to handle a higher quality system called HD (High Definition). In order to transmit such HD video data, higher communication quality is required.
Then, depending on the relationship between the transmission / reception path of the video content data in the AV home network 10 and the data rate necessary for transmission of the video content data, the communication quality required for transmitting the video content data may not be satisfied. It can happen.

As a specific example, let us assume a case where HD source video content acquired by receiving a broadcast by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 is transmitted to another device.
In this case, first, it is assumed that the communication between devices connected to the wired network line 12a of the second-floor segment 12 has sufficient communication quality for HD source transmission. In addition, if the television receivers 27 and 28 are compatible with HD source playback, these devices receive the HD source video content data transmitted from the satellite broadcast tuner 26 and receive the HD source image. It is possible to display and output depending on the quality.
On the other hand, for the wireless network line 13 connecting the wired network line 11a and the wired network line 12a, for example, the transmission speed is lower than the data rate required for HD source transmission, or the transmission distance is within an allowable range. It is assumed that the video content data of HD source does not have sufficient performance (communication quality) for reasons such as exceeding. Then, when the HD broadcast video content received and acquired by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 is received by the television broadcast receiver 21 connected to the first floor segment 11 for display output, for example, playback output is performed. It becomes easy to produce the state where the image to be interrupted or disturbed on the way. Therefore, for example, at the time of transmission / reception of the video content data, the data rate is reduced by converting the resolution of the video content data to a smaller one or by down-converting from the HD source to the SD source. . As a result, for example, although the image quality is inferior to that of HD or a smaller image size, it is expected to eliminate the image disturbance during the reproduction. However, in any case, the AV home network 10 may not be able to reproduce and output the video content with the original reproduction quality due to the network standard corresponding to the actual communication operation, physical factors such as the communication distance, and the like. It can be said that there is sex.

Assuming the above, it can be said that it is advantageous and preferable for the user if the user can grasp the information about the reproduction quality of the video content in advance. If the playback quality is known in advance, for example, the user can appropriately determine in advance which device is appropriate to play back and view the channel or program that he / she wants to view. Because.
For example, when the video content of the HD source obtained by receiving the broadcast by the satellite broadcast tuner 26, which is a specific example, is transmitted to another device, first, it is connected to the second floor segment 12. Depending on the television receivers 27 and 28, the video content data of the HD source transmitted from the satellite broadcast tuner 26 has a good reproduction quality sufficient for normal reproduction. On the other hand, the television receiver 21 connected to the first floor segment 11 is inferior in reproduction quality than the above, for example, it cannot be stably reproduced unless it is transmitted at a lower data rate. There will be.
If the user can grasp in advance such information regarding reproduction quality, the television receiver to be used for viewing can be determined in advance for the user, which is more convenient.
For example, suppose that a user wants to watch a certain program that can be received by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 with as high a quality as possible. In this case, if the reproduction quality is known in advance, it can be viewed by any of the television receivers 27 and 28 in the second-floor segment 12, that is, it is better to go up to the second floor for viewing. The user can judge. Alternatively, if it is only necessary to be able to view the video with an appropriate level of viewing, it can be determined that the video can be viewed with the television receiver 21 on the first floor without going up to the second floor.

  Therefore, as the television receiver 21 of the present embodiment, for each device capable of reproducing content in the AV home network 10 (content reproducing device, television receivers 21, 27, and 28 in the configuration of FIG. 1), Information indicating reproduction quality when video content received and acquired by broadcasting is reproduced is included in the integrated program table described above. As a result, the user can see the integrated program guide and grasp the broadcast schedule of programs that can be viewed by the AV home network 10 and can grasp, for example, the reproduction quality of each content reproduction device for the program that the user wants to view. Become.

FIG. 2 shows a basic content example of the integrated program table created by the television receiver 21 and output by display or printing in this way.
The integrated program table shown in this figure is first divided into a station display area Y1, a reproduction quality display area Y2, and a program schedule display area Y3 from the upper side to the lower side of the entire area. Further, from the left to the right of the entire area, the area is divided into a time zone area X0 and station unit areas X1 to Xn corresponding to each broadcasting station displayed in the station display area Y1.
For example, when the user wants to confirm and grasp the broadcast schedule of the program of the broadcasting station “AB TV”, it intersects with the station unit area X1 which is a column indicated as “AB TV” in the station display area Y1. The program shown in the program schedule display area Y3 to be viewed is compared with the time zone shown in the time zone area X0.

Information about the playback quality for each content playback device is indicated by the playback quality display area Y2.
As the playback quality display area Y2, first, the name of the content playback device in the AV home network 10 is shown at the column position corresponding to the time zone area X0. In this figure, names from the top to the bottom, such as “1st floor living room TV”, “2nd floor children's room TV”, and “2nd floor bedroom TV”, which are assigned to content playback devices are shown. For example, in the network standard corresponding to the AV home network 10 of the present embodiment, the network device forming the AV home network can be operated by the user within a predetermined range of characters and the number of characters that can be used. The name can be arbitrarily set and registered accordingly. The name of the content playback device shown in the playback quality display area Y2 as described above is set, for example, for each of the television receivers 21, 27, and 28 shown in FIG. It is assumed that it has been set.
In the reproduction quality display area Y2, the reproduction quality for each broadcasting station is shown corresponding to each of the names of the content reproduction devices. That is, for each station unit area X1 intersecting with the reproduction quality display area Y2, the reproduction quality is indicated corresponding to each name of the content reproduction apparatus.
As an example to the last, here, the reproduction quality is shown stepwise by symbols, such as ◎, ○, △. In this case, ◎ indicates the best reproduction quality that can be displayed well by the format quality of the original video source, for example, and ○ indicates that the format quality of the original video source is sufficiently good, for example. However, it indicates that the playback quality is such that there is no problem in viewing, and Δ indicates that the playback quality is such that some image disturbance may occur depending on the communication status of the network. It shall be shown.
For example, in the case of a program of a TV CD broadcasting station, the first floor living room TV can be viewed with a reproduction quality indicated by ○, the second floor child room TV ◎, and the second floor bedroom TV with a reproduction quality indicated by ○. You can grasp that.

By the way, the integrated program guide as in the present embodiment is created using EPG data collected from a plurality of television broadcast receiving devices in the AV home network 10, and is therefore presented as a list in the integrated program guide. Each broadcast station is not necessarily broadcast by the same broadcast carrier. That is, it is not necessarily received by the same television broadcast receiving device.
As a specific example, AB TV, which is a broadcasting station (channel) corresponding to the station unit area X1, can be received only by the CATV tuner 23 on the first floor, whereas broadcasting corresponding to the station unit area X2 is possible. The television CD as a station can be received only by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 on the second floor. This also indicates that there is a correspondence relationship between the broadcast station and the television broadcast receiving device that the television broadcast receiving device that receives the broadcast station is specified according to the specified broadcast station. .
Further, as described above, the main factors for determining the reproduction quality for each content reproduction device in the AV home network 10 are determined by the television broadcast receiving device as a server and the content reproduction device as a player. Communication speed, communication stability (communication quality), and the like. Based on this, in the integrated program guide, if the reproduction quality for each content reproduction device is shown for each broadcasting station, it is possible to present almost reliable reproduction quality information.
The inherent advantage of the integrated program guide is that a list of broadcast programs that can be received by the AV home network 10 as a whole can be listed without being constrained by individual television broadcast receivers connected to the AV home network 10. However, as described above, the reproduction quality is determined by the relationship between each television broadcast receiving device and the content reproduction device. I have to be conscious of whether it is received by John Broadcasting Receiver.
Therefore, if the playback quality for each content playback device is shown corresponding to each broadcast station as shown in FIG. 2 above, the playback quality is effectively presented while taking advantage of the original advantage as an integrated program guide. It will be possible.

However, even if the same broadcasting station is used, broadcasting is performed by changing the format of the video content data so that a certain program is transmitted in HD format and another program is transmitted in SD format. Is considered as a possibility.
As described above, it can be said strictly that the reproduction quality is determined by the relationship between the communication quality of the communication path and the data rate of the transmitted data. When broadcasting is performed by switching the quality format, the reproduction quality can be changed for each program even in the relationship between the same broadcast station and the same content reproduction device. In consideration of the above, it is also effective to be able to present the reproduction quality corresponding to each program as the display mode of the integrated program guide, which can be considered as a modification of the present embodiment. .

Further, as described above, the AV home network 10 according to the present embodiment includes the video device 22 so that the video device 22 can receive the data of the video content acquired by receiving the broadcast by the television broadcast receiving device. It can be transmitted and stored. In addition, it is assumed that the video device 22 of this embodiment is provided with a program reservation recording function. With this program reservation recording function, for example, the video device 22 performs recording reservation setting in response to a recording reservation setting operation for an integrated program guide or the like. Examples of the recording reservation setting information include, for example, a channel (broadcast station) that receives a program to be recorded, information that identifies a television broadcast receiving device that receives the broadcast station, a start time for the program to be recorded, and This is the end time. In addition, the data rate (image quality) when saving as a recording may be included.
Then, the video device 22 holds the recording reservation information set as described above, and on the television broadcast receiving device on the AV home network 10 based on the recording reservation information. The broadcast content acquired and received in this way is fetched as a recording source, stored and held, and an operation as a recording reservation is executed.

Here, in consideration of the normal termination of recording of a program reserved for recording (video content data), a television broadcast receiving device that is receiving the broadcast program may inadvertently switch channels. It will be necessary not to do it. In consideration of this, the AV home network 10 of the present embodiment, for a television broadcast receiving device designated to receive a scheduled recording program, while receiving the scheduled recording program, Restrictions are imposed on devices other than the video device 22 so as not to transmit the video content data. That is, when there is a television broadcast receiving device that receives a broadcast according to the reservation recording setting by the video device 22, the program received by this television broadcast receiving device is viewed by other content playback devices. You can't do that. In other words, when a recording reservation is made, a device (tuner) that receives the recorded program is occupied by the video device 22 within the time for executing the recording reservation.
However, there are cases where a broadcasting station that broadcasts a program reserved for recording can be received by a television broadcast receiving device other than that designated to receive the reserved recording program. Further, even a television broadcast receiving device designated to receive a reserved recording program has two or more tuner units, and other tuners other than those used at the time of receiving a reserved recording program are particularly different. If it is not occupied by other devices, this tuner can be used by other content playback devices.
In other words, in the AV home network 10, there are cases where a program that can be viewed by the content playback device is limited depending on the content of the recording reservation setting registered in the video device 22. For example, if information about the future of viewing the program from the present time is presented in the integrated program table, for example, the convenience for the user is increased and the added value is increased.

Therefore, in consideration of the above, as another example of the integrated program guide, the reproduction quality is presented corresponding to each program, and the program viewing restriction information according to the recording reservation status by the video device 22 is presented. FIG. 3 shows an example of the content in the case of presenting. In FIG. 3, parts that are the same as those in FIG.
First, in the integrated program guide of FIG. 3, the reproduction quality display area Y2 shown in FIG. 2 is omitted. Instead, the reproduction quality instruction area unit 100 is included for each program area in the program schedule display area Y3. For example, in the reproduction quality instruction area section 100 of the 11 o'clock program area in the station unit area X1 of AB TV in the figure, a symbol in which the letter “ri” in katakana is surrounded by a circle and the character “child” in kanji A symbol surrounded by a circle and a symbol surrounded by a triangle for the Japanese character “sleep” are shown. The katakana character “Li” indicates the living room TV on the first floor, the kanji character “child” indicates the second-floor child room TV, and the kanji character “sleep” indicates the second-floor bedroom. Indicates TV. If the character indicating the content playback device is circled, it indicates that the playback quality when the content playback device plays back the program is good enough to satisfy a certain condition. ing. In addition, the case surrounded by Δ indicates that the reproduction quality is in a certain level range which is inferior to the case surrounded by ○.

In FIG. 3, a recording status instruction area unit 101 includes a program area at 11 o'clock in the station unit area X1 corresponding to AB television and a program area at 11 o'clock in the station unit area X2 corresponding to television CD. Is shown to be included.
Since various examples of the visual presentation mode shown in the recording status instruction area 101 can be considered, the description here will be omitted, but as the contents, the recording reservation setting for the program is currently set. And the number of tuners that have not been reserved for the broadcast time of the program (that is, the content data of the program at the broadcast time of the program). Corresponding to the number of content playback devices that can be received and played back in real time).
For example, the recording status instruction area 101 in the station unit area X1 is indicated as “recording 0”, but this is because the program is set for reserved recording, and a tuner for reproducing the program in real time remains. It is not (it is 0). On the other hand, the recording status instruction area 101 in the station unit area X1 is indicated as “recording 1”, so that the program is set for reserved recording, and the tuner for reproducing this program in real time is 1 It means that one remains.

In the present embodiment, the program viewing restriction due to the occupied tuner is not limited to the time when the reserved recording is executed, but simply the video content received and acquired by a certain television broadcast receiving device. This is also performed when a content playback device receives and acquires the playback. For that reason, if a channel is unexpectedly switched by another content playback device while a program is being played back and output by a certain content playback device, for users who have been watching the program until then. This is because the channel is unexpectedly switched, which is not preferable.
Therefore, although not shown in FIG. 3, when the integrated program guide is displayed including the currently broadcast program, the current viewing status can be reflected in the integrated program guide in the same manner as the reserved recording status. Conceivable. That is, information such as the presence / absence and the number of content reproduction devices that are reproducing and outputting a program currently being broadcast, and the number of other content reproduction devices that are capable of reproducing and outputting the program are presented. It is also useful for the user to present such information so that the current program viewing status in the AV home network 10 can be grasped.

Hereinafter, a technical configuration example for enabling the television receiver 21 according to the present embodiment to output the program table as shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 will be described.
First, an internal configuration example of the television receiver 21 will be described with reference to FIG.
The interface 31 is an interface function unit for connecting to a network communication network corresponding to the AV home network 10, for example, a hardware device corresponding to a physical layer for connecting to the network communication network and performing communication, and a predetermined And a program corresponding to the software hierarchy.

The system from the antenna 32 to the display unit 37 is a part for receiving and selecting a television broadcast of a predetermined broadcast carrier and finally displaying and outputting it as an image.
A signal (received signal) obtained by receiving a broadcast wave of a predetermined broadcast carrier by the antenna 32 is input to the tuner unit 33. The tuner unit 33 obtains a received signal component corresponding to the designated broadcast station (channel) from the received signal by performing a channel selection process according to the channel selection control (channel designation) of the control unit 50, for example. . At this time, the control unit 50 performs control such that a channel designated according to a channel selection operation performed on the operation unit 51 is selected, for example. The received signal component of the designated channel obtained by the tuner unit 33 is input to the demodulation unit 34. In the demodulator 34, for example, the input signal is subjected to a demodulation process for the modulation performed at the time of transmission to obtain a baseband signal. In this case, the video data as the baseband signal is compressed and encoded. Therefore, the signal processing unit 35 first executes decoding (decompression) processing on the compression-encoded video data to obtain video data in a predetermined format. In addition, for example, various other required signal processing is performed as necessary. As such signal processing, for example, a so-called pixel number conversion process in which the number of horizontal / vertical pixels of video data is converted so as to be adapted to the number of horizontal / vertical pixels of the display device as the display unit 27, or scanning is performed. A so-called IP conversion process in which a method is converted between an interlace method and a progressive method can be exemplified. In addition, signal processing for image quality adjustment can be executed.
When the scramble process is performed on the broadcast signal, for example, a demodulation processing unit for the scramble process is provided at a predetermined stage in the system from the tuner unit 33 to the signal processing unit 35.

  The video data that has been decoded by the signal processing unit 35 is output to the display driving unit 36. The display drive unit 36 uses the input video data to generate a display device type as the display unit 37 and a display drive signal suitable for the drive system, and the display drive signal of the display unit 37 is generated by the display drive signal. A display device is driven. As a result, the television broadcast image of the selected channel is displayed. In addition, for the sake of confirmation, as an actual television broadcast, as video content of a broadcast program, audio data whose playback time is synchronized with this video data is sent out together with the video data. In response to this, the television receiver 21 is configured to output the video data image and the sound in synchronization with each other. However, for the sake of convenience and simplicity, for example, the system for reproducing and outputting sound in synchronization with the image is not shown here.

  The display device employed as the display unit 37 is not particularly limited. However, in the present situation, for example, a cathode ray tube, a liquid crystal display, a plasma display, an FED (Field Emission Display), an organic EL ( Electro Luminescence) display.

In addition, the television receiver 21 of the present embodiment takes in video content data transferred from another video device connected via a network communication network through the interface 21, and takes an image of this video content data. It can be displayed on the display unit 27 (sound can be output at the same time).
For this purpose, first, the television receiver 21 as a player designates video content to another video device as a server connected via a network communication network, and requests transmission thereof. To be done. In correspondence with FIG. 1, as a device that can be a target (server) to which the television receiver 21 requests transmission of video content, a video device 22, a CATV tuner 23, a satellite broadcast tuner 26, and a television receiver are provided. 27 or 28.

When the CATV tuner 23, the satellite broadcast tuner 26, the television receivers 27, 28, and the like serve as servers, the television receiver 21 as a player designates a reception channel when requesting video content. Become. For this request, the television receiver 21 causes the interface 31 to transmit a request for video content together with channel designation from the interface 31 to the server under the control of the control unit 50. The CATV tuner 23, the satellite broadcast tuner 26, or the television receivers 27 and 28 that have received this request conforms to the standard of the network communication network for the video data obtained by receiving and selecting the channel designated by the player. The packet is converted into a transmission signal format suitable for transmission by the network communication network and transmitted to the requesting player.
In the case where the video device 22 is a server, the television receiver 21 as a player includes a recorded video content (recorded content) stored and managed in the video device 22 as a video content request. One thing is specified. In response to this designation, the video device 22 reads data of the designated recorded content from a storage unit (for example, an HDD (hard disk)) that stores and manages the recorded content, performs processing such as packetization, and performs network communication. Transmission is output to the television receiver 21 via the network. The video content transmitted / received via the network communication network here should be reproduced and output in a streaming format.

  The television receiver 21 which is a player takes out time-series data as video content by sequentially executing unpacket processing on the transmitted packets. Then, in accordance with the data format of the video content, if necessary, the signal processing unit 35 executes a decoding process for compression encoding, and the video data of the video content is output to the display driving unit 36. Is done. Then, the display driving unit 36 drives the display unit 37 with the input video data, so that the screen of the display unit 37 includes servers (CATV tuner 23, satellite broadcast tuner 26, television receivers 27, 28, An image of a broadcast program transmitted from the video device 22 or the like or an image of recorded content is displayed.

In the AV home network 10, the television receiver 21 may operate as a server.
As one of cases where the television receiver 21 operates as a server, there is a case where the video device 22 receives and acquires the video content of the broadcast program received by the television receiver 21 and stores and saves (records) it. Can do. That is, the video device 22 in this case can receive and record video content transmitted and output from other video equipment connected via the network communication network. Then, as in the network configuration of FIG. 1, the video equipment as the server other than the video device 22 is the CATV tuner 23, the satellite broadcast tuner 26, the television receivers 27 and 28, etc. In response to a request for video content for recording, the server receives and tunes a channel for broadcasting a program as the requested video content. The video content data thus obtained is transmitted to the video device 22 which is a player. When the television receiver 21 is used as a server and video content is requested, for example, the control unit 50 broadcasts the video content based on information such as a content ID for specifying the designated video content. Is selected by the tuner unit 33. The video content data thus obtained is transmitted and output from the interface 31 to the video device 22 as a player via the network communication network.

The control unit 50 includes a microcomputer formed by combining a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, for example, and executes various control processes. Note that the internal bus 52 is used when the control unit 50 communicates with each unit in the television receiver 21.
Further, in this case, the operation unit 51 generates various operation elements provided in the main body of the television receiver 21 and operation signals corresponding to operations performed on the operation elements to generate a control unit 50 (CPU). The operation signal output unit to be output is collectively shown. When the television receiver 21 is configured to be operated by a remote controller, the remote controller and an operation code signal transmitted from the remote controller on the main body side are received and controlled as an operation signal. The receiving unit that outputs to the unit 50 is also included in the operation unit 51.

  In addition, the television receiver 21 of the present embodiment has an EPG data collection / storage unit 41, an EPG data integration processing unit 42, an integrated EPG data storage unit 43, a program guide, in order to create integrated program guide data. A data preparation unit 44, a program guide data storage unit 45, a communication quality determination unit 46, a communication quality information storage unit 47, a recording reservation status recognition unit 48, and a recording reservation status information storage unit 49 are provided.

As described above, in the AV home network 10 according to the present embodiment, at least a device capable of receiving a television broadcast receives and acquires EPG data provided corresponding to a broadcast carrier that can be received by itself. It is possible to do. In the AV home network 10, the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 collects EPG data by making a request for EPG data to a device that acquires and holds EPG data as described above. . In this case, the television receiver 21 itself is also capable of receiving broadcasts, and it is assumed that EPG data corresponding to broadcast carriers that can also be received is acquired and held. Therefore, when the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 collects the EPG data, the EPG data of the own device is collected together with the EPG data of the other device.
Then, the EPG data integration processing unit 42 executes processing for integrating the EPG data collected as described above according to a predetermined data format and structure to obtain information of one integrated EPG data. The integrated EPG data is stored and held in the EPG data storage unit 43.

In addition, the communication quality determination unit 46 receives all television broadcasts existing on the AV home network 10 by executing communication with other devices connected to the AV home network 10, for example, by a predetermined protocol and command. The communication quality for a one-to-one combination of a device and a content playback device is determined.
There are several possible ways to determine this communication quality. First, one is to actually execute data transmission / reception for each combination of a television broadcast receiving device and a content reproduction device. Specific values that can be used to indicate the communication speed, communication stability, etc., such as the data rate and error rate, are detected, and the communication quality is determined based on these detected values. .
In addition, as a simpler method, a network configuration called a so-called network topology is detected in what form, and a television broadcast receiving device and a content playback device are detected from the detected network configuration. The communication quality for each combination is estimated.
For example, in the case of FIG. 1, as a matter of the network configuration of the AV home network 10 to be detected, the wired network line 11a of the first floor segment 11 and the wired network line 12a of the second floor segment 12 are connected to the wireless network line 13. And detecting what is the wired LAN standard forming the wired network lines 11a and 12a and what is the wireless LAN standard forming the wireless network line 13 and so on. To be done. For example, since the maximum communication speed is determined according to the LAN standard, the standard communication speed in each network line is estimated by detecting the standard forming the network line as described above. Is possible. For example, based on such a communication speed, it is possible to estimate and set the communication quality for each combination of the television broadcast receiving device and the content reproduction device.
For the detection of the network configuration as described above, for example, what is the LAN standard corresponding to each device connected to each of the wired network lines 11a and 12a using a command or the like defined by a predetermined protocol? It can be realized by acquiring information indicating whether or not the user's profile corresponding to the wireless LAN standard provided from the wireless bridges 25 and 29 is obtained.
The communication quality information determined by the communication quality determination unit 46 as described above is stored and held in the communication quality information storage unit 47.

  Further, the recording reservation status recognition unit 48 is held in a device capable of performing reservation recording of broadcast program content data received by a television broadcast receiving device in the AV home network 10 as in the video device 22 of FIG. Recording reservation setting information is collected, and the recording reservation status of the broadcast program in the AV home network 10 at the present time is recognized from the contents of the collected recording reservation setting information. That is, as the recording reservation information that is held by the device capable of reserved recording, the information indicating the program (channel) to be reserved recording, the television broadcast receiving device that receives the program, the recording start time, It is assumed that the recording end time information and the like are included. However, with these information elements, in the AV home network 10, which program is set as a recording reservation target after the present time, and also set as a recording reservation target. It is possible to recognize the status of the recording reservation, such as which television broadcast receiving device receives the program. In this way, the recording reservation status recognition unit 48 recognizes the recording reservation status, and holds the recording reservation information, which is information indicating the recognized recording reservation status, in the recording reservation status information storage unit 49. Like that.

As described so far, in the television receiver 21 of the present embodiment, the integrated EPG data, communication quality information, and recording reservation status information are acquired and stored. Then, the integrated program guide data is created by the program guide data creation unit 44 using these pieces of information.
That is, first, the program guide data creation unit 44 uses the integrated EPG data stored in the integrated EPG data storage unit 43 to select according to a predetermined selection criterion that is the basic content of the integrated program guide. The contents of the integrated program guide data for presenting the program schedule of the broadcast station assumed to be prepared are created.
In addition, the program guide data creation unit 44 further takes in the communication quality information held in the communication quality information storage unit 47 and uses this to generate reproduction quality information. For example, when the integrated program guide in FIG. 2 is created, playback quality information is generated by correspondence between the channel units presented in the integrated program guide and each content playback device. Then, by using the generated reproduction quality information, the contents of the program guide data for the portion corresponding to the reproduction quality display area Y2 in the integrated program guide of FIG. 2 are created. Alternatively, if the integrated program guide of FIG. 3 is to be created, playback quality information is generated according to the correspondence between the program units presented in the integrated program guide and each content playback device, and the playback quality instruction area unit 100 The contents of the integrated program guide data for making a presentation as is created.
Further, when the recording status is to be presented corresponding to each program as in the recording status instruction area 101 shown in the integrated program guide of FIG. 3, the program guide data creation unit 44 records the recording reservation status information. By using the recording reservation information fetched from the storage unit 49, for example, the contents of the integrated program guide data for making the contents as the recording status instruction area 101 be presented in the integrated program guide are created. The
In this way, the program guide data creation unit 44 creates the integrated program guide data, which is the data that serves as the basis for presenting the integrated program guide in the form illustrated in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, for example. Will be. The integrated program guide data is held in the program guide data storage unit 45.

  The television receiver 21 uses the program guide data stored and held in the program guide data storage unit 45 so that the integrated program guide can be visually recognized, Alternatively, it can be output by display or printing by another machine. Note that such an output of the integrated program guide is performed by another device in accordance with, for example, an output instruction of the integrated program guide based on a predetermined operation on the television receiver 21 by the user or an operation on another device. It is performed in response to a request for integrated program guide data.

First, in order for the television receiver 21 to display and output the integrated program guide on its own display unit 37, for example, the control unit 50 reads the integrated program guide data stored in the program guide data storage unit 45. The image data is converted into display image data in a format suitable for image display, and then transmitted to, for example, the signal processing unit 35 to instruct display output. In response to this, the signal processing unit 35 performs a predetermined process on the input display image data of the integrated program guide and transfers it to the display driving unit 36. As a result, the image of the integrated program guide is displayed on the display unit 37.
In addition, in order to display and output the integrated program guide by other content reproduction devices such as other television receivers 27 and 28, for example, the control unit 50 may include an integrated program stored in the program guide data storage unit 45. The content reproduction device which reads the table data, generates the image data for displaying the integrated program guide suitable for transmission on the AV home network 10, and uses this as the request source of the integrated program guide data via the interface 31. To send output. Then, the content reproduction device that has received the integrated program guide data displays and outputs the integrated program guide.

When the integrated program guide is to be output by printing, the television receiver 21 reads the integrated program guide data stored in the program guide data storage unit 45 by the control unit 50 and conforms to the print output. The integrated program guide data is created.
For example, in the network print system via the network communication network in the AV home network 10 according to the present embodiment, when printing (printing) is executed by the printer device 24, the image data corresponding to the image of the print image is given to the printer device 24. In addition to transferring the image data, prepare the print data with the link destination image data added together with a language description file that specifies the print contents in a markup language such as XHTML (Extensible Hyper Text Markup Language). To be transferred, this. Therefore, when the television receiver 21 also instructs the printer device 24 to execute printing in order to print out the integrated program guide data, it creates print data based on such a language description file, The data is transmitted to the printer device 24.
The printer device 24 has a function of analyzing and reproducing the markup language of the language description file. For example, the printer device 24 analyzes the language description file of the print data, pastes a link image, Printing is performed by generating image data for printing by selecting and using fonts or arranging images and characters according to a specified layout. As a result, the image content as the integrated program guide is output by printing.
The link image or the like can be acquired by accessing a URL (Uniform Resource Identifiers) described in the language description file via the Internet or the like.

Further, the EPG data collection / storage unit 41, the EPG data integration processing unit 42, the integrated EPG data storage unit 43, the program guide data creation unit 44, which are functional units for creating the integrated program guide data shown in FIG. Among the program guide data storage unit 45, the communication quality determination unit 46, the communication quality information storage unit 47, the recording reservation status recognition unit 48, and the recording reservation status information storage unit 49, an EPG data collection / storage unit 41, an integrated EPG data storage unit 43, the program guide data storage unit 45, the communication quality information storage unit 47, the recording reservation status information storage unit 49, and the like, for example, a storage device such as a RAM that is actually provided in the control unit 29, for example. What is necessary is just to have it. The RAM becomes a volatile storage area, but most of the information stored and held in these storage units may be updated as time passes. Therefore, it can be said that it is appropriate to acquire these pieces of information again when the power is turned on and the apparatus is started up. Therefore, it can be said that there is no necessity to store the information in the nonvolatile storage area. Of course, as long as there is no particular inconvenience, it may be held in a nonvolatile storage area.
Similarly, an EPG data collection / storage unit 41, an EPG data integration processing unit 42, an integrated EPG data storage unit 43, a program guide data creation unit 44, a program guide data storage unit 45, a communication quality determination unit 46, and a communication quality information storage Unit 47, recording reservation status recognition unit 48, recording reservation status information storage unit 49, EPG data collection function in EPG data collection / storage unit 41, EPG data integration processing unit 42, program guide data creation unit 44, communication quality The determination unit 46, the recording reservation status recognition unit 48, and the like may also be functions realized by the CPU in the control unit 50 executing a program, for example.

Next, a configuration example of the satellite broadcast tuner 26 will be described with reference to FIG. 5 as a representative example of another television broadcast receiving device that is a collection destination of EPG data for the television receiver 21.
In the satellite broadcast tuner 26 shown in FIG. 5, first, the interface 61 is configured as an interface function unit for connecting to a network communication network corresponding to the AV home network 10, for example, like the interface 31 of the television receiver 21. It is a part.

Depending on the antenna 62, the satellite broadcast tuner 26 receives a broadcast wave of a predetermined satellite broadcast carrier, and the tuner unit 63 inputs the received signal. Depending on the tuner 43 and the demodulator 64 at the subsequent stage, for example, a channel selection operation is performed in accordance with the control of the control unit 68 and, for example, a demodulation process corresponding to carrier modulation is performed, and the program of the designated channel is executed. As the video data, the stream data is extracted and output to the signal processing unit 65.
In the signal processing unit 65, for example, in addition to demodulation processing (decompression processing) for compression coding of the video data (stream data), necessary signal processing is executed to obtain a digital or analog video signal in a predetermined format. To be done.
Of the video signals obtained as described above, those of a predetermined format can be output from the external output terminal 66. For example, by connecting the external output terminal 67 to a video input terminal provided in an external monitor device (not shown) or the like, the video of the channel program received by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 by the external monitor device (and Audio) can be output.
The digital video signal data in a predetermined format obtained by the signal processing unit 65 can be transmitted from the interface 61 to a device having a video display function on the AV home network 10 via a network communication network. That is, the satellite broadcast tuner 26 serves as a server to transmit the video data of the requested channel program to other devices on the network serving as a player.

The control unit 68 includes a microcomputer formed by combining a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like, for example, and executes various control processes in the satellite broadcast tuner 26. When the control unit 68 communicates with each part in the satellite broadcast tuner 26, the internal bus 70 is used as a communication path.
The operation unit 69 generates various operation elements provided in the main body of the satellite broadcast tuner and an operation signal output unit that generates an operation signal corresponding to an operation performed on the operation element and outputs the operation signal to the control unit 68 (CPU). Are shown together. Further, a remote controller for operating the satellite broadcast tuner 26 and a main body side receiving unit that receives an operation code signal transmitted from the remote controller and outputs the operation signal to the control unit 68 may be included.

Further, the satellite broadcast tuner 26 includes an EPG data storage unit 67. The EPG data storage unit 67 is also formed in a storage device such as a RAM provided in the control unit 68 in practice.
Also for the satellite broadcast tuner 26, for example, the control unit 68 extracts and acquires EPG data that is superimposed on the broadcast signal, for example, from the signal received by the tuner unit 63. Alternatively, it is possible to obtain the EPG data by downloading it from a server that supplies EPG data on the Internet using an Internet connection function not shown here. Then, the EPG data corresponding to the broadcast carrier that can be received by itself is stored and held in the EPG data storage unit 67.

In the present embodiment, as described above, the television receiver 21 has a function of creating integrated program guide data, and for that purpose, EPG data is collected from devices connected to the AV home network 10. In order to collect EPG data, the television receiver 21 requests EPG data from other television broadcast receiving devices. For example, if the satellite broadcast tuner 26 shown in FIG. 5 receives this EPG data request, the EPG data stored in the EPG data storage unit 67 is read at that time as a response to the request. Thus, the data is transmitted to the television receiver 21 via the interface 61.
Although not shown, the CATV tuner 23 and the television receivers 27 and 28, which are television broadcast receivers from which other EPG data is collected, also have an interface for connecting to a network communication network, and a predetermined number. Receiving channel selection processing system for receiving video broadcast signals and acquiring video signals (the television receivers 27 and 28 further include a display output system for displaying video signals) and EPG data corresponding to the broadcast carriers of itself. A storage area is provided for acquiring and holding. In response to a request from the television receiver 21, for example, EPG data stored and held by itself is returned.
In this way, the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 of the television receiver 21 is configured to transmit and collect EPG data from each television broadcast receiving device.

Next, FIG. 6 shows a configuration example of the video apparatus 22 that is a collection destination of the scheduled recording information for the television receiver 21 to obtain the scheduled recording status information.
Also in the video apparatus 22 shown in this figure, by providing the interface 71, it is possible to connect to a network communication network corresponding to the AV home network 10.

At present, the storage unit 72 is configured by a storage medium such as a hard disk that can be relatively easily increased in capacity and cost. In this storage medium 72, for example, at least video content data of a broadcast program received and acquired by a television broadcast receiving device connected to the AV home network 10 is stored and saved. That is, the recording data of the program is stored.
The control unit 75 includes a computer system including, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM, a RAM, and the like, and executes various control processes in the video device 22.
The operation unit 76 generates various operation signals provided in the main body of the satellite broadcast tuner, and an operation signal output unit that generates an operation signal corresponding to an operation performed on the operation unit and outputs the operation signal to the control unit 75 (CPU). Furthermore, a remote controller and a receiving unit provided on the apparatus side corresponding to the remote controller are collectively shown.

In the video apparatus 22, a recording reservation setting unit 73 is provided.
For example, the video device 22 is configured to perform processing for setting scheduled recording in accordance with the scheduled recording operation performed on the operation unit 76. Alternatively, processing for setting scheduled recording is performed in response to reception of a scheduled recording request transmitted in response to a scheduled recording operation performed on another network device via a network communication network. Is done. As such reservation recording setting processing, for example, a channel for broadcasting a recording reservation target program, a recording start time / recording end time, a television broadcast receiving device for receiving and acquiring content data of the recording reservation target program, and the like are designated. Recording reservation information, which is information to be generated, is generated. The recording reservation information is stored and held in the recording reservation information storage unit 74.
The recording reservation information storage unit 74 is actually a volatile or non-volatile storage area such as a RAM or a flash memory provided in the control unit 75, for example. However, it is preferable that the scheduled recording information is stored and retained even after the main power supply of the video device 22 is turned off. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the scheduled recording information is retained in a nonvolatile storage area. Further, the actual recording reservation setting unit 73 may be realized by the CPU of the control unit 75 executing the program.

Then, the video device 22 controls the television broadcast receiving device via the network communication network based on the recording reservation information stored and held in the recording reservation information storage unit 74, and executes a data storage operation as a recording reservation. It is possible to do. In other words, in the recording reservation information stored and held in the recording reservation information storage unit 74, when the timing corresponding to the recording start time indicated by the certain recording reservation information is reached, the television broadcast designated by the recording reservation information is designated. The receiving device is instructed to select a channel designated by the recording reservation information. Then, a request is made so that the video content data received and acquired by the selected channel is transferred to the video device 22. The video device 22 receives the video content data transferred in response to this request via the interface 71, writes it in the storage unit 72, and saves it. In this way, depending on the video device 22, reserved recording is performed for a program that can be received by a television broadcast receiving device connected to the AV home network 10.
In addition, when the video receiver 22 requests the recording reservation information for the television receiver 21 to create the integrated program guide data, the video device 22 records the recording reservation information stored in the recording reservation information storage unit 74 at that time. Is transmitted to the television receiver 21. In this way, reservation recording information is acquired by the recording reservation state recognition unit 48 of the television receiver 21.

Next, with reference to the flowcharts of FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the flow of processing procedures executed by devices connected to the AV home network 10 in relation to the output (display or print) of the integrated program guide will be described.
As described above, when the television receiver 21 creates the integrated program guide, EPG data is collected and acquired from each of the television broadcast receiving devices on the AV home network 10. Accordingly, as described above, the television broadcast receiving device on the AV home network 10 acquires and holds EPG data corresponding to a broadcast carrier that can be received by itself, for example, In response to a request from the television receiver 21, the stored EPG data is returned. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for EPG data management, which is executed by such a television broadcast receiver. In the description of FIG. 7 here, it is assumed that the procedure is executed by the satellite broadcast tuner 26 shown in FIG.

  The processing procedure shown in this figure is realized by the CPU in the control unit 68 provided in the television broadcast receiving device (satellite broadcast tuner 26) executing a program stored in a storage device such as a ROM. It can be seen that this is a processing operation. As described above, such a program is written and stored in, for example, a ROM at the time of manufacture or the like, and is stored in a removable storage medium and then installed from the storage medium. It is conceivable to store the data in an appropriate storage device or storage medium in the John broadcast receiving apparatus. In addition, the satellite broadcast tuner 26 is provided with a network function after being stored in a storage device such as a server on a network, and is downloaded and acquired from the server and installed in a predetermined storage device or storage medium. It is also possible. The same applies to the flowchart of FIG. 8 described later.

  Here, the satellite broadcast tuner 26 which is a television broadcast receiving device, for example, acquires the EPG data of the updated content when the content of the EPG data superimposed on the broadcast program data is updated. The acquired EPG data is used to update the content of the EPG data that has been stored in the EPG data storage unit 67 until then. Alternatively, the satellite broadcast tuner 26 has a function of connecting to the Internet, and then accesses the EPG data supply server on the Internet at regular intervals. If the EPG data provided at that time has been updated on the server side, after downloading the updated EPG data, the EPG data storage unit 67 itself until then is downloaded. The contents of the stored EPG data are updated. In step S101 in FIG. 7, it is determined whether or not such an update process for the EPG data that should be held is executed. This is a determination as to whether or not the content of the EPG data held by itself has been changed to the latest content.

If an affirmative determination result is obtained in step S101 that the EPG data has been updated, the process proceeds to step S102, and the update of the EPG data is notified by broadcast, for example. As will be described below with reference to FIG. 8, the television receiver 21 which is a device that outputs an integrated program table receives the update notification of the EPG data, and then notifies the television broadcast receiving device that is the notification source. To request EPG data.
Here, the notification of the EPG data update should be performed in correspondence with the creation of the integrated program guide of the television receiver 21. From this point, for example, the EPG data update notification may be sent only to the television receiver 21 by unicast. However, in reality, there is a possibility that a device having an integrated program table creation function may be connected to the AV home network 10 in addition to the television receiver 21. It is also considered that a device on a certain network may require EPG data acquired by a device other than itself for a predetermined purpose other than the creation of an integrated program guide. In the present embodiment, the EPG data update notification is broadcasted in consideration of the existence of uncertain elements associated with such a network configuration.

On the other hand, if a negative determination result is obtained in step S101 that the EPG data has not been updated, the process proceeds to step S103.
In step S103, it waits for a request for EPG data transmitted from another device to be received via the network communication network of the AV home network 10. The case where EPG data is received corresponding to step S103 corresponds to, for example, the case where the television receiver 21 transmits an EPG data request in response to the reception of the above-described EPG data update notification.
If the EPG data request is not received in step S103, the process returns to the procedure of step S101. If the EPG data request is received, the procedure of step S104 is executed.
In step S104, as a response to the EPG data request, the EPG data that is stored in the EPG data storage unit 67 at that time is transmitted to the EPG data request source.

Next, an example of a processing procedure that the television receiver 21 should execute in relation to creation and output of the integrated program guide will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.
First, in step S201, the television receiver 21 obtains EPG data corresponding to the own device (corresponding to a broadcast carrier that can be received by the own device, and stores and holds the EPG data in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41). It is determined whether or not valid data is present in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41. If a negative determination result is obtained, the process proceeds to step S203.
Step S203 is a step of executing management processing for the EPG data corresponding to the own device stored and held in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41. In this case, the own device is started from broadcasting or from a server on the Internet. Corresponding EPG data is received and acquired, and this is stored in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41.
If an affirmative determination result is obtained in step S201, determination is made as to whether or not the own EPG data stored in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 is the latest. Do. For example, in the case of EPG data superimposed on a broadcast, the version of the EPG data currently superimposed on the broadcast and the EPG data corresponding to the own device held in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 Compare with the version. As a result, if it is determined that the own EPG data stored in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 is not the latest, the own EPG data management in step S203 is performed. The latest EPG data (which may be difference data between the latest EPG data and the currently held EPG data) is acquired by the above procedure, and the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 is obtained using the acquired EPG data. The update is performed so that the EPG data corresponding to the own device held in step S1 has the latest contents.
After executing step S203, the procedure of steps S206 to S209 is executed, which will be described later.

In step S204, the process waits for reception of an EPG data update notification from another device. If it is determined that an EPG data update notification has been received, the process proceeds to step S205.
In step S205, first, an EPG data transmission request is executed to the device that is the transmission source of the EPG data update notification. In response to the EPG data transmission request, the device that is the transmission source of the EPG data update notification returns EPG data that is held by itself. Therefore, in step S205, the returned EPG data is received and stored in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 so as to be acquired. Here, when the received EPG data is held in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41, the EPG data for the device that is the transmission source of the current EPG data update notification has not been held before this. For example, the contents of the EPG data received this time are held as they are. On the other hand, if the EPG data for the device that is the transmission source of the current EPG data update notification is held before this, the update content of the EPG data corresponding to the current update notification is reflected. In this manner, the contents of the EPG data held in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 are also updated.
After the procedure of step S205 is completed, the procedure after step S206 is executed.

  Having reached step 206 means that the procedure of step S203 or step S205 has been performed. Therefore, at the stage of reaching step S206, at least one of the EPG data corresponding to the own device stored in the EPG data collection / storage unit 41 or the EPG data of the other device is changed to the latest one. Will be. Therefore, in step S206, the EPG data integration processing unit 42 executes the EPG data integration process again so as to match the contents of the latest EPG data, and thereby the integrated EPG data having the latest contents is obtained. Is stored in the integrated EPG data storage unit 43.

Assuming that the procedure of step S206 is completed as described above, depending on the next step S207, a determination process for the current communication quality is executed by the function as the communication quality determination unit 46, and this determination is performed. The latest communication quality information obtained as a result is stored in the communication quality information storage unit 47.
Further, depending on the next step S208, the function as the recording reservation status recognition unit 48 executes the recognition processing for the recording reservation status at the current time as described with reference to FIG. The reservation status information is stored in the recording reservation status information storage unit 49.

  Each of the integrated EPG data, communication quality information, and recording reservation status information, which is assumed to have the latest contents at the present time in accordance with the update of the contents of the EPG data by the procedure from step S206 to S208 above. Generation and holding are performed. Therefore, in step S209, the integrated program guide data is created by the function as the program guide data creation unit 44 using these data and information. That is, the integrated program table data reflecting the contents of the integrated EPG data, the communication quality information, and the recording reservation status information that are the latest at the present time is created. Then, the integrated program guide data that has been held in the program guide data storage unit 45 so far is updated by the integrated program guide data. After executing the procedure of step S209, the process returns to step S201.

In step S210, it is determined whether or not the EPG data corresponding to the own device has been updated. For example, when a positive determination result is obtained in step S202 described above and the procedure for updating the own EPG data in step S203 is executed, the procedure in step S210 is executed for the first time. A positive determination result is obtained.
When a positive determination result is obtained in step S210, a notification that the EPG data corresponding to the own device has been updated is transmitted via the network communication network of the AV home network 10, for example, by broadcast. The This is the same as the procedure of step S104 shown in FIG. That is, according to the present embodiment, the update notification of the EPG data corresponding to the own device is defined as a standard that should be executed by a television broadcast receiving device having a function of receiving and acquiring EPG data.

Next, in step S212, the process waits for a request to display the integrated program guide. Then, if an integrated program guide display request is obtained according to an operation performed by the user for displaying the integrated program guide, the procedures of steps S213 and S214 are executed.
First, in step S213, using the program guide data currently stored in the program guide data storage unit 45, for example, integrated program guide data (integrated program for display) having a format suitable for display output by the display unit 37, for example. Table data). Then, in the next step S214, image display by the display unit 37 is performed using the integrated program guide data for display, and control on the signal processing unit 35 and the like is executed. Thereby, the display output of the integrated program guide by the television receiver 21 itself is realized.

In step S215, the process waits for a request to print the integrated program guide. For example, if an integrated program guide print request is obtained in response to an operation for instructing print output of the integrated program guide, the procedures of steps S216 and S217 are executed.
In step S216, integrated program guide data (printed integrated program guide data) suitable for print output using program guide data held in the program guide data storage unit 45, for example, in accordance with the procedure of step S213. To be created. As described above, in the print system in the AV home network 10 according to the present embodiment, the language description file that specifies the print contents using a markup language such as XHTML (Extensible Hyper Text Markup Language) is used. Based on this, the printing data is transferred. In response to the fact that the printing mechanism in the AV home network 10 is as described above, the print integrated program guide data in the format as the print data is also generated in step S216. In step S217, together with the print integrated program guide data, a print request to the printer device 24 is transmitted via the network communication network. In response to the reception of the print request, the printer device 24 prints out the integrated program guide.
The details of the procedure shown in FIG. 8 may be changed as appropriate.

In addition, the layout of the integrated program table output by display or printing is not limited to that shown in FIG. 2 or FIG.
In the above-described embodiment, the case of creating an integrated program guide has been described. For example, the television receiver 21 which is a program guide creation device of the present embodiment is based on only EPG data acquired by itself. Or a program table (individual program table) corresponding to only one specific broadcast carrier, such as a program table based only on individual EPG data acquired from other television broadcast receivers. It is also possible to create data.
And it is possible to reflect the reproduction quality and the reserved recording status on the individual program table created in this way, and the user can set the reproduction quality and the reserved recording status for each channel or program in advance. The advantage of being able to grasp is also obtained as in the case of the integrated program guide.
In the above embodiment, the program guide creation device according to the present invention is applied to a television receiver. However, the present invention may be applied to other devices. For example, even in the configuration of the AV home network 10 shown in FIG. 1, the CATV tuner 23, the satellite broadcast tuner 26, and the like do not have a display unit, but the video signal is transmitted via, for example, a network communication network or By outputting via an external video signal output terminal, it is possible to display and output by other devices capable of displaying images. Therefore, it is possible to provide a program guide output function also for these tuner devices. In addition, for confirmation, under the present invention, the program table may be output by at least one of display output and printing. Therefore, for example, for the above-mentioned tuner device, etc. It is also conceivable to configure such that only the print output function is provided. On the contrary, it is also conceivable that the television receiver 21 is given only the display output function as the program table output function.

It is a figure which shows the structural example of AV home network with which embodiment of this invention respond | corresponds. It is a figure which shows the example of the content of the integrated program schedule output by the television receiver of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the other example of the content of the integrated program schedule output by the television receiver of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the television receiver of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structural example of a satellite broadcast tuner. It is a figure which shows the structural example of a video apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a procedure for EPG data management to be performed by a satellite broadcast tuner. It is a flowchart which shows the example of a process sequence which the television receiver of embodiment performs in relation to an integrated program schedule.

Explanation of symbols

  10 AV home network, 11 First floor segment, 11a / 12a Wired network line, 12 Second floor segment, 21/27/28 Television receiver, 22 Video device, 23 CATV tuner, 24 Printer device, 25/29 Wireless bridge, 26 Satellite broadcasting tuner, 31 interface, 32 antenna, 33 tuner unit, 34 demodulating unit, 35 signal processing unit, 36 display driving unit, 37 display unit, 41 EPG data collection / storage unit, 42 EPG data integration processing unit, 43 integrated EPG Data storage unit, 44 program guide data creation unit, 45 program guide data storage unit, 46 communication quality determination unit, 47 communication quality information storage unit, 48 recording reservation status recognition unit, 49 recording reservation status information storage unit, 50 control unit, 51 Operation unit

Claims (3)

At least a network compatible device capable of transmitting content data obtained by receiving a broadcast via a communication network, and a network compatible device capable of executing a predetermined operation for content data received and acquired via the communication network. Connecting means for connecting to the communication network of the broadcast content transmission / reception system comprising:
Among the electronic program guide information that can be acquired by itself and the electronic program guide information that can be acquired by another network compatible device, at least one electronic program guide information is acquired from itself, or the above Electronic program guide information collecting means for collecting by collecting from other network compatible devices via a communication network,
In the broadcast content transmission / reception system, communication quality detection means for detecting the communication quality of a set of predetermined network compatible devices capable of transmitting / receiving content data;
Using the electronic program guide information collected by the electronic program guide information collecting means, the program guide information is generated so that the program guide is output in a predetermined manner visually recognizable by the user. Therefore, based on the communication quality detected by the communication quality detecting means, the reproduction quality when the network compatible device capable of reproducing and outputting the broadcast content reproduces and outputs the broadcast content as the program presented in the program table. A program guide creation means for creating the program guide information so that the estimated reproduction quality is reflected in the contents of the program guide;
A program guide creation device comprising: Reservation setting information, which is information having a specified content for causing the network device capable of receiving a television broadcast to receive a broadcast program after the present, is fetched from another network compatible device via the communication network. Or the program reservation status recognition means for collecting the program reservation status information in the broadcast content transmission / reception system based on the collected reservation setting information.
The above program guide creation device
Creating the program guide information so that the program reservation status recognized by the program reservation status recognition means is reflected in the contents of the program guide;
The program guide creation device according to claim 1. At least a network compatible device capable of transmitting content data obtained by receiving a broadcast via a communication network, and a network compatible device capable of executing a predetermined operation for content data received and acquired via the communication network. A connection processing procedure for connecting to the communication network of the broadcast content transmission / reception system comprising:
Among the electronic program guide information that can be acquired by itself and the electronic program guide information that can be acquired by another network compatible device, at least one electronic program guide information is acquired from itself, or the above Electronic program guide information collection procedure for collecting by collecting from other network compatible devices via a communication network,
In the broadcast content transmission / reception system, a communication quality detection procedure for detecting a communication quality of a set of predetermined network compatible devices capable of transmitting / receiving content data;
Using the electronic program guide information collected by the electronic program guide information collecting procedure, program guide information is generated so that the program guide is output in a predetermined manner visually recognizable by the user. Therefore, based on the communication quality detected by the communication quality detection procedure, the reproduction quality when the network compatible device capable of reproducing and outputting the broadcast content reproduces and outputs the broadcast content as the program presented in the program table. A program guide creation procedure for creating the program guide information so that the estimated reproduction quality is reflected in the contents of the program guide,
A program guide creation method characterized by executing

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