JP2008172530A - Communication terminal and channel switching method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To receive a receivable channel at a place away from home in a shorter period of time. <P>SOLUTION: A portable telephone 10 is provided with a main tuner 11 for receiving a broadcast wave corresponding to a designated channel, a detecting part 13 for a main tuner for detecting the receiving level of the broadcast wave, a sub tuner 16 for receiving a broadcast wave of a sequence corresponding to sequence information acquired from the broadcast wave, and a program output switching part 18 for outputting a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the sub tuner 16 instead of a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 when the receiving level detected by the detecting part 13 for main tuner becomes a prescribed value or below. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication terminal and a channel switching method.

When a device capable of receiving broadcast waves is moved to another location, the receivable channel may change. In this case, it is necessary to change the channel setting so that the device can receive a channel that can be received at the destination. A technique for performing such channel resetting is conventionally known. For example, in Patent Document 1 below, the second receiving unit scans broadcast signals at all frequencies to detect the reception intensity of each frequency, and the first receiving unit scans only receivable channels based on the detection result. A terrestrial digital broadcast receiver is described. Currently, one-segment broadcasting for broadcasting a program toward a mobile communication terminal such as a mobile phone is performed. However, the method of the terrestrial digital broadcast receiver can be implemented in a mobile communication terminal.
JP 2006-13945 A

  However, in the terrestrial digital broadcast receiver described in Patent Document 1, since it is necessary to scan the broadcast signal once at all frequencies, it takes a long time to extract receivable channels. When the above method is adopted for a mobile communication terminal, if the mobile communication terminal is moved to an area with a different channel system, the mobile communication terminal cannot immediately receive a channel that can be received at the destination, and the mobile communication terminal is used. There is a risk that the user may temporarily be unable to view the program.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a communication terminal and a channel switching method capable of receiving a channel receivable at a destination in a shorter time.

  The communication terminal of the present invention includes a first channel selection unit that receives a broadcast wave corresponding to a designated channel, and a first channel selection detection unit that detects a reception level of the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection unit. A second channel selection unit that receives a broadcast wave of a sequence corresponding to the sequence information acquired from the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection unit, and a reception level detected by the first channel detection unit is a predetermined level. And switching means for outputting a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the second channel selection means instead of the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means when the value is equal to or less than the value.

  The channel switching method of the present invention includes a first channel selection step in which a communication terminal receives a broadcast wave corresponding to a designated channel, and a broadcast wave received by the communication terminal in the first channel selection step. A first channel selection detecting step for detecting a reception level of the second channel, and a second selection for receiving a broadcast wave of a sequence corresponding to the sequence information acquired from the broadcast wave received by the communication terminal in the first channel selection step. And when the reception level detected in the first channel selection detection step is equal to or lower than a predetermined value, a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received in the first channel selection step is selected. Instead, a switching step of outputting a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received in the second channel selection step is provided.

  According to such a communication terminal and channel switching method, a broadcast wave of a sequence (broadcast sequence) corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection unit (in the first channel selection step) is transmitted by the second channel selection unit. Received (in the second tuning step). Then, when the reception level at the first channel selection means becomes a predetermined value or less, the broadcast wave received by the second channel selection means instead of the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means. A program corresponding to is output. In this way, before switching the output of a program, by selecting the channel after switching and receiving the broadcast wave corresponding to the channel in advance, the channel that can be received at the destination can be received in a shorter time. be able to. Further, since the channel is switched when the reception level at the first channel selection means becomes a predetermined value or less, the reception level after switching can be made higher than the reception level before switching. As a result, the program can be provided to the user of the communication terminal with a certain quality.

  In the communication terminal of the present invention, it is preferable that the second channel selection unit receives a series of broadcast waves when the reception level detected by the first channel selection detection unit is equal to or less than a threshold value greater than a predetermined value. .

  In this case, a broadcast wave is received by the second channel selection unit only when the reception level at the first channel selection unit is equal to or less than a threshold value greater than a predetermined value. In other words, when the broadcast wave corresponding to the channel after switching needs to be received in advance, the second channel selecting means receives the broadcast wave. Thereby, it becomes possible to set appropriately the time of receiving the broadcast wave by the second channel selection means, and the power consumption of the communication terminal can be reduced.

  In the communication terminal of the present invention, sequence information storage means for storing the region information corresponding to the sequence information and the adjacent region sequence information indicating a sequence receivable in the region adjacent to the region indicated by the region information in association with each other; An extraction means for acquiring the area information from the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means, and extracting adjacent area series information corresponding to the area information from the series information storage means; The station means preferably receives the broadcast wave of the sequence indicated by the adjacent area sequence information extracted by the extracting means.

  In this case, area information is acquired from the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means, and adjacent area series information corresponding to the area information is extracted. And the 2nd channel selection means receives the broadcast wave of the series which the adjacent area sequence information shows. As a result, the candidates for the sequence corresponding to the broadcast wave to be received by the second channel selection means can be narrowed down in advance to those that can be received in the adjacent area. It becomes possible to decide earlier. As a result, a channel that can be received at the destination can be received in a shorter time.

  The communication terminal according to the present invention further includes a second channel selection detecting unit that detects a reception level of the broadcast wave received by the second channel selection unit, and the predetermined value is detected by the second channel selection detection unit. The reception level is preferable.

  In this case, the output of the program is switched when the reception level at the first channel selection means becomes lower than the reception level at the second channel selection means. As a result, it is possible to dynamically select the channel having the higher reception level, that is, the channel having the better quality of the received broadcast wave, among the first channel selection unit and the second channel selection unit. Depending on the radio wave environment of the radio, a broadcast wave program can be provided to the user of the communication terminal with a certain quality.

  In the communication terminal of the present invention, it is preferable that the switching unit outputs a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the second channel selection unit and interrupts reception by the first channel selection unit.

  In this case, when the output of the program is switched, reception of the broadcast wave by the first channel selection means is interrupted. As a result, the power consumed by the first channel selection means for processing the broadcast wave is saved, so that the power consumption of the communication terminal can be reduced.

  In the communication terminal according to the present invention, one or a plurality of list storage means for storing one or a plurality of channel lists including channel information for identifying a channel, and one or a plurality stored by the list storage means when the channel is switched by the switching means. It is preferable to further include a list determination unit that extracts a channel list including channel information corresponding to the channel switched by the switching unit, and determines the channel list as a currently receivable channel list.

  In this case, based on the channel information corresponding to the determined channel, a channel list including the channel information is extracted from one or a plurality of channel lists, and the channel list is determined as a currently receivable channel list. As a result, the channel list corresponding to the destination can be set as a default, so that the user of the communication terminal can easily select a channel based on the destination channel list.

  According to such a communication terminal and channel switching method, a channel that can be received at the destination can be received in a shorter time.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description of the drawings, the same or equivalent elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted.

  First, the mobile phone 10 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a functional configuration of a mobile phone 10 according to the embodiment. The mobile phone 10 can receive broadcast waves of television programs transmitted from the broadcast facilities 31 and 32, respectively, and can display a television program corresponding to one of the received broadcast waves. Note that the form in which the mobile phone 10 receives a television program is not limited to this, and for example, the mobile phone 10 may receive a television program distributed via a communication line such as the Internet.

  The cellular phone 10 includes, as functional components, a main tuner (first channel selection means) 11, a display unit 12, a main tuner detection unit (first channel selection detection means) 13, a sequence information storage unit (sequence information storage unit). ) 14, adjacent region series information extraction unit (extraction unit) 15, sub-tuner (second channel selection unit) 16, sub-tuner detection unit (second channel selection detection unit) 17, program output switching unit (switching unit) 18, a channel list storage unit (list storage unit) 19 and a channel list determination unit (list determination unit) 20.

  The main tuner 11 selects a designated channel and receives a broadcast wave corresponding to the channel via the antenna ANT. The main tuner 11 decodes the received broadcast wave and outputs the decoded signal (television program data) to the display unit 12, the main tuner detection unit 13, and the adjacent region series information extraction unit 15. The main tuner 11 stops outputting the decoded signal to the display unit 12 when a stop instruction signal is input from the program output switching unit 18. The channel selected by the main tuner 11 is a channel designated by the user of the mobile phone 10 via an input unit (not shown) or a channel input from another functional component of the mobile phone 10. And so on. Hereinafter, each functional component of the mobile phone 10 will be described on the assumption that the main tuner 11 has selected a channel designated by the user of the mobile phone 10.

  The display unit 12 processes the data of the TV program input from the main tuner 11 or the sub tuner 16 and displays the TV program on the screen. Thereby, the user of the mobile phone 10 can view the television program.

  The main tuner detection unit 13 detects the reception level of the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 by analyzing the signal input from the main tuner 11. Then, the main tuner detection unit 13 outputs the detected reception level to the sub tuner 16 and the program output switching unit 18.

  The series information storage unit 14 includes area information indicating areas where broadcast waves can be received, adjacent area information indicating areas adjacent to the areas (hereinafter referred to as “adjacent areas”), and broadcast sequences receivable in the adjacent areas. Is stored in association with adjacent region series information indicating. For this purpose, the sequence information storage unit 14 includes an adjacent area table 14a and a sequence table 14b. In the adjacent area table 14a, area information and adjacent area information are stored in association with each other. On the other hand, in the sequence table 14b, region information, a sequence ID for identifying a broadcast sequence, a physical channel, and a service ID for identifying a service are stored in association with each other. In the present embodiment, the adjacent region sequence information includes a sequence ID, a physical channel, and a service ID.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the adjacent area table 14a. In the adjacent area table 14a, for example, area information “area A” and adjacent area information “area B” and “area C” are stored in association with each other. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the sequence table 14b. In the series table 14b, for example, the area information “area A”, the series ID “series a”, the physical channel “21ch”, and the service ID “0001” are stored in association with each other.

  The adjacent area series information extraction unit 15 acquires area information from the TV program data input from the main tuner 11 and extracts adjacent area series information corresponding to the area information. For this purpose, the adjacent area sequence information extraction unit 15 first acquires the physical channel, the sequence ID, and the service ID from the data of the television program, and stores the area information corresponding to the physical channel, the sequence ID, and the service ID in the sequence table 14b. Extract from Next, the adjacent area series information extraction unit 15 acquires adjacent area information corresponding to the extracted area information from the adjacent area table 14a. Then, the adjacent area sequence information extraction unit 15 acquires sequence information corresponding to both the acquired adjacent area information and the acquired sequence ID, that is, adjacent area sequence information from the sequence table 14b, and subtracts the adjacent area sequence information. Output to the tuner 16.

  For example, when the adjacent area sequence information extracting unit 15 acquires the sequence ID “series b”, the physical channel “25ch”, and the service ID “0005” from the data of the television program, the adjacent area sequence information extracting unit 15 includes the sequence table 14b. The area information “Area A” corresponding to the series ID, physical channel, and service ID is extracted. Next, the adjacent area series information extraction unit 15 acquires adjacent area information “area B” and “area C” corresponding to the area information “area A” from the adjacent area table 14 a.

  Then, the adjacent area sequence information extraction unit 15 includes adjacent area sequence information (sequence ID “sequence b” and physical channel corresponding to both the acquired adjacent area information “area B” and the acquired sequence ID “sequence b”. Adjacent area series information including “39ch” and service ID “0092”), and adjacent area series information corresponding to both the adjacent area information “area C” and the series ID “series b” (sequence ID “series b”) And adjacent area series information including the physical channel “32ch” and the service ID “2006” are acquired from the series table 14b. Finally, the adjacent area series information extraction unit 15 outputs these two adjacent area series information to the sub-tuner 16.

  The sub-tuner 16 selects a channel included in the adjacent area sequence information input from the adjacent area sequence information extraction unit 15 when the reception level input from the main tuner detection unit 13 is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold. The broadcast wave corresponding to the channel is received via the antenna ANT. Then, the sub-tuner 16 decodes the received broadcast wave and outputs the decoded signal (television program data) to the sub-tuner detection unit 17. The sub-tuner 16 outputs the decoded signal to the display unit 12 when the output instruction signal is input from the program output switching unit 18.

  Here, the predetermined threshold is the reception level of the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 at the time when it is predicted that the main tuner 11 will not be able to receive the broadcast wave well in the near future. Therefore, this threshold value is received by the main tuner 11 at the time when the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the sub tuner 16 is output to the display unit 12 instead of the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11. It is preferable to set it higher than the level. By setting the threshold value in this way, it is possible to receive broadcast waves in advance by the sub-tuner 16 before it is preferable to switch the program output.

  Adjacent area information “adjacent area series information including series ID“ series b ”, physical channel“ 39ch ”, and service ID“ 0092 ”) for adjacent area information“ area B ”, and adjacent area information“ area C ” The adjacent area series information (the adjacent area series information including the series ID “series b”, the physical channel “32ch”, and the service ID “2006”) from the adjacent area series information extraction unit 15 to the sub-tuner 16 The case where it is input will be described as an example. In this case, the sub-tuner 16 first selects the physical channel “39ch” and receives a broadcast wave corresponding to this channel. When the sub tuner 16 can receive the broadcast wave, the sub tuner 16 maintains the state where the physical channel “39ch” is selected. On the other hand, when the sub tuner 16 cannot receive the broadcast wave corresponding to the physical channel “39ch”, the sub tuner 16 can receive the broadcast wave corresponding to the physical channel “32ch” and receive the broadcast wave. In this case, the state where the physical channel “32ch” is selected is maintained.

  Thus, the sub-tuner 16 receives the broadcast wave of the sequence ID “sequence b” indicated by the adjacent region sequence information. Since the sequence ID included in the adjacent region sequence information input to the sub-tuner 16 is a sequence ID (sequence information) acquired from the broadcast wave received and decoded by the main tuner 11, the sub-tuner 16 is connected to the main tuner 11. It can be said that this is a part that receives a broadcast wave of a sequence corresponding to the sequence information acquired from the broadcast wave received by.

  The sub-tuner detection unit 17 detects the reception level of the broadcast wave received by the sub-tuner 16 by analyzing the signal input from the sub-tuner 16. Then, the sub tuner detection unit 17 outputs the detected reception level to the program output switching unit 18.

  The program output switching unit 18 receives the reception level input from the main tuner detection unit 13 (the reception level of the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11) and the reception level input from the sub tuner detection unit 17 (the sub tuner). The display unit displays a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the sub-tuner 16 instead of the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 based on the reception level of the broadcast wave received by the receiver 16. 12 is output. For this purpose, the program output switching unit 18 outputs an output instruction signal for instructing the output of the signal to the display unit 12 to the sub-tuner 16 and a stop instruction for stopping the output of the signal to the display unit 12. The signal is output to the main tuner 11. Further, after switching the output of the program, the program output switching unit 18 obtains information (adjacent area series information) regarding the channel currently selected by the sub tuner 16 from the sub tuner 16 and determines the information in the channel list. To the unit 20.

  When the program output switching unit 18 outputs the output instruction signal and the stop instruction signal, TV program data is input to the display unit 12 from the sub tuner 16 instead of the main tuner 11. This means that the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the sub tuner 16 is provided to the user of the mobile phone 10 and the provision of the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 is interrupted. means. For example, when the main tuner 11 receives a broadcast wave transmitted from the broadcast facility 31 and the sub-tuner 16 receives a broadcast wave transmitted from the broadcast facility 32, the main tuner 11 corresponds to the broadcast wave transmitted from the broadcast facility 31. Instead of the program to be played, a program corresponding to the broadcast wave transmitted from the broadcasting facility 32 is provided to the user of the mobile phone 10.

  The program output switching unit 18 compares the reception level input from the main tuner detection unit 13 with the reception level input from the sub tuner detection unit 17 in order to determine whether to switch the program output. . When the reception level input from the main tuner detection unit 13 is equal to or lower than the reception level input from the sub tuner detection unit 17, the program output is switched.

  The channel list storage unit 19 stores one or a plurality of channel lists including channel information for identifying channels. Here, the channel information is information in which a sequence ID, a physical channel, and a service ID are associated with each other.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a channel list. Here, channel lists A to C are shown, and each channel list includes two pieces of channel information. For example, the channel list A includes channel information associated with a sequence ID “sequence a”, a physical channel “21ch”, and a service ID “0001”, a sequence ID “sequence b”, a physical channel “25ch”, and a service ID “ "0005" is associated with the channel information.

  In the present embodiment, a channel list storage unit 19 and a sequence table 14b are provided, and the channel information included in the channel list and the adjacent region sequence information included in the sequence table 14b have the same configuration. Therefore, the channel list storage unit 19 and the sequence table 14b may be integrated into one. For example, by associating regional information with each of the channel lists stored in the channel list storage unit 19, the channel list storage unit 19 is set so as to also serve as the sequence table 14b, and the sequence table 14b is not provided. Also good.

  The channel list determination unit 20 uses the adjacent region series information (channel information) input from the program output switching unit 18 to extract a channel list including the channel information from the channel list stored in the channel list storage unit 19. To do. Then, the channel list determination unit 20 determines one channel list as a currently receivable channel list. Here, the currently receivable channel list is a channel list provided as an option when the user of the mobile phone 10 selects a television program (channel) to be viewed. For example, the currently receivable channel list is displayed on the display unit 12 so that the user of the mobile phone 10 can select a channel.

  For example, the channel list stored in the channel list storage unit 19 is as shown in FIG. 4, and the adjacent channel ID “sequence b”, physical channel “39ch”, and service ID “0092” are associated with each other. When the area series information is input from the program output switching unit 18, the channel list determination unit 20 extracts the channel list B including the adjacent area series information and determines the channel list B as a currently receivable channel list.

  However, when there are a plurality of extracted channel lists, it is necessary to determine one channel list. In order to determine one channel list, the following processing is repeatedly executed.

  When there are a plurality of extracted channel lists, the channel list determination unit 20 first compares a plurality of channel lists extracted by itself for each physical channel and derives a difference between these channel lists. Then, the channel list determination unit 20 outputs an instruction signal for selecting a physical channel corresponding to the derived difference to the main tuner 11 that has stopped providing the program. At this time, the main tuner 11 selects a channel according to the instruction signal, receives and decodes the broadcast wave, and outputs the decoded signal to the channel list determination unit 20. Thereafter, the channel list determination unit 20 extracts channel information from the signal input from the main tuner 11 and extracts a channel list including the channel information from the extracted channel list.

  Next, the operation of the mobile phone 10 shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 5 and the channel switching method according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the mobile phone 10 shown in FIG.

  First, a broadcast wave corresponding to a channel designated via an input unit (not shown) is received by the main tuner 11 (step S11, first channel selection step), and the reception level of the broadcast wave is detected for the main tuner. It is detected by the unit 13 (step S13, first tuning detection step). And when the detected reception level is below a threshold value (step S15; YES), the channel selection process by a sub tuner is performed (step S17, 2nd channel selection step).

  If the sub-tuner can hold the channel by this channel selection process, that is, if the broadcast wave can be received (step S19; YES), the main tuner detection unit 13 detects the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11. The reception level is detected, and the reception level of the broadcast wave received by the sub tuner 16 is detected by the sub tuner detection unit 17 (step S21). When the reception level at the main tuner 11 is equal to or lower than the reception level at the sub-tuner 16 (step S23; YES), the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 by the program output switching unit 18 Instead, a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the sub tuner 16 is output to the display unit 12 (step S25, switching step). It should be noted that while the reception level at the main tuner 11 is higher than the reception level at the sub-tuner 16 (step S23; NO), detection and comparison of the reception levels of both tuners are repeated.

  When the program output is switched, the main tuner 11 is stopped by a stop instruction signal output from the program output switching unit 18 to the main tuner 11 (step S27). That is, the provision of the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 is interrupted. Thereafter, a channel list switching process is performed (step S29).

  On the other hand, when the sub tuner 16 cannot hold the channel in the channel selection process by the sub tuner 16 (step S19; NO), the sub tuner 16 is stopped (step S31).

  After the signal (TV program data) from the sub tuner 16 is input to the display unit 12 instead of the signal from the main tuner 11 (TV program data) and the currently receivable channel list is determined, The sub tuner 16 functions as the main tuner 11, and the main tuner 11 functions as the sub tuner 16.

  Next, channel selection processing by the sub tuner will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing details of the channel selection processing by the sub-tuner shown in FIG.

  In the tuning process by the sub tuner, first, the sub tuner 16 is activated (step S171). Thereafter, the adjacent region sequence information extraction unit 15 acquires the sequence information from the TV program data (the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11) (step S172), and acquires the region information corresponding to the sequence information (step S173). ), Adjacent area series information corresponding to the area information is acquired (step S174). Then, the channel corresponding to the adjacent region series information is selected by the sub tuner 16 (step S175). Here, when the sub tuner 16 can receive the broadcast wave corresponding to the channel (step S176; YES), the channel is held by the sub tuner 16 (step S177).

  On the other hand, when the broadcast wave corresponding to the selected channel cannot be received (step S176; NO), it is determined whether or not an unconfirmed channel exists (step S178). Here, if there is an unconfirmed channel (step S178; YES), the channel is selected and received. If there is no such channel (step S178; NO), the tuning process by the sub-tuner is performed. Exit.

  Next, channel list switching processing will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing details of the channel list switching process shown in FIG.

  In the channel list switching process, first, the channel list determination unit 20 extracts a channel list using the adjacent region series information (step S291). If there is one channel list extracted here (step S292; YES), the channel list is determined as the current channel list (step S293).

  On the other hand, if the number of extracted channel lists is plural (step S292; NO), the channel list determination unit 20 derives a difference between the extracted channel lists (step S294), and the main tuner 11 A physical channel corresponding to the difference is selected (step S295). If the broadcast wave corresponding to the physical channel can be received (step S296; YES), channel information is acquired from the broadcast wave by the main tuner 11 (step S297), and the channel list determination unit 20 A channel list including channel information is extracted (step S298). If the number of extracted channel lists is one (step S299; YES), the channel list is determined as the current channel list (step S300).

  On the other hand, if the number of extracted channel lists is plural (step S299; NO), the process returns to the process of deriving a difference between the extracted channel lists (step S294). If the broadcast wave corresponding to the physical channel corresponding to the difference cannot be received (step S296; NO), it is determined whether there is an unselected physical channel included in the difference (step S296; NO). Step S281). If there is an unselected physical channel (step S281; YES), the main tuner 11 selects the physical channel (step S295), and the subsequent processing is repeated. On the other hand, if there is no unselected physical channel (step S301; NO), the channel list switching process ends.

  According to the mobile phone 10 according to the present embodiment, a broadcast wave of a broadcast series corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 is received by the sub tuner 16. When the reception level at the main tuner 11 becomes a predetermined value or less, a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the sub tuner 16 is output instead of the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11. Is done. In this way, before switching the output of a program, by selecting the channel after switching and receiving the broadcast wave corresponding to the channel in advance, the channel that can be received at the destination can be received in a shorter time. be able to.

  Further, according to the mobile phone 10 according to the present embodiment, a broadcast wave is received by the sub tuner 16 only when the reception level at the main tuner 11 becomes a predetermined threshold value or less. In other words, the broadcast wave is received by the sub tuner 16 when it becomes necessary to previously receive the broadcast wave corresponding to the channel after switching. As a result, it is possible to appropriately set the reception time of the broadcast wave by the sub-tuner 16, and the power consumption of the mobile phone 10 can be reduced.

  Moreover, according to the mobile phone 10 according to the present embodiment, the area information is acquired from the broadcast wave received by the main tuner 11 and the adjacent area series information corresponding to the area information is extracted. Then, the sub-tuner 16 receives a series of broadcast waves indicated by the adjacent region series information. As a result, candidates for sequences corresponding to broadcast waves to be received by the sub-tuner 16 can be narrowed down to those that can be received in the adjacent area in advance, so that the sequences to be received by the sub-tuner 16 can be determined earlier. Is possible. As a result, a channel that can be received at the destination can be received in a shorter time.

  Further, according to the mobile phone 10 according to the present embodiment, the program output is switched when the reception level at the main tuner 11 is equal to or lower than the reception level at the sub tuner 16. As a result, it is possible to dynamically select a channel having a higher reception level, that is, a channel having a higher quality of the broadcast wave to be received from the main tuner 11 and the sub tuner 16. The program can be provided to the user of the mobile phone 10 with a certain quality or higher.

  Moreover, according to the mobile phone 10 according to the present embodiment, when the output of the program is switched, reception of broadcast waves by the main tuner 11 is interrupted. As a result, the power consumed by the main tuner 11 for processing broadcast waves is saved, so that the power consumption of the mobile phone 10 can be reduced.

  Further, according to the mobile phone 10 according to the present embodiment, a channel list including the channel information is extracted from one or a plurality of channel lists based on channel information corresponding to the determined channel, and the channel list is currently It is determined as a receivable channel list. As a result, the channel list corresponding to the destination can be set as a default, so that the user of the mobile phone 10 can easily select a channel based on the destination channel list.

  The present invention has been described in detail based on the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. The present invention can be modified in various ways as described below without departing from the scope of the invention.

  In the above embodiment, the program output switching unit 18 switches the program output when the reception level at the main tuner 11 is equal to or lower than the reception level at the sub-tuner 16, but the timing of this switching is not limited. Absent. For example, the channel may be switched when the reception level at the main tuner 11 falls below a predetermined fixed value.

  In the above embodiment, the sub tuner 16 receives the broadcast wave when the reception level at the main tuner 11 is equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold. However, the time when the sub tuner 16 starts to receive the broadcast wave is limited to this. Not. For example, the sub-tuner 16 may always receive broadcast waves in preparation for switching the output of a program.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the sub tuner 16 selects a channel based on the adjacent area sequence information input from the adjacent area sequence information extraction unit 15, but the channel selection method by the sub tuner 16 is not limited to this. For example, the sub tuner 16 acquires a sequence ID from the signal decoded by the main tuner 11, extracts a physical channel corresponding to the sequence ID from the channel list storage unit 19, and selects the extracted physical channel. May be.

  In the above embodiment, the mobile phone 10 is used as a communication terminal. However, a simple mobile phone (PHS: Personal Handy-phone System) or a portable information terminal (PDA: Personal Digital Assistant) is used as a communication terminal. May be.

  In the above embodiment, the main tuner 11 and the sub-tuner 16 receive a broadcast wave of a television broadcast, but may receive a broadcast wave of a radio broadcast.

It is a figure which shows the function structure of the mobile telephone which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows an adjacent area table. It is a figure which shows a series table. It is a figure which shows the example of a channel list. 3 is a flowchart showing an operation of the mobile phone shown in FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing details of sub-tuner channel selection processing shown in FIG. 5. It is a flowchart which shows the detail of the channel list switching process shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Mobile telephone (communication terminal), 11 ... Main tuner (1st channel selection means), 13 ... Main tuner detection part (1st channel selection detection means), 14 ... Sequence information storage part (sequence information storage means) 15 ... Adjacent region series information extraction unit (extraction means), 16 ... sub-tuner (second channel selection unit), 17 ... sub-tuner detection unit (second channel selection detection unit), 18 ... program output switching unit ( Switching means), 19... Channel list storage section (list storage means), 20... Channel list determination section (list determination means).

Claims (7)

First channel selection means for receiving a broadcast wave corresponding to a designated channel;
First channel selection detection means for detecting a reception level of a broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means;
Second channel selection means for receiving a broadcast wave of a sequence corresponding to the sequence information acquired from the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means;
When the reception level detected by the first channel selection detection means becomes a predetermined value or less, the second channel selection means replaces the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means. A communication terminal comprising switching means for outputting a program corresponding to a received broadcast wave.   The said 2nd channel selection means receives the broadcast wave of the said series, when the reception level detected by the said 1st channel selection detection means becomes below a threshold value larger than the said predetermined value. Communication terminal. Sequence information storage means for storing the area information corresponding to the sequence information and the adjacent area series information indicating the series that can be received in the area adjacent to the area indicated by the area information in association with each other;
An extraction means for acquiring the area information from the broadcast wave received by the first channel selection means, and extracting adjacent area series information corresponding to the area information from the series information storage means;
3. The communication terminal according to claim 1, wherein the second channel selection unit receives a broadcast wave of a sequence indicated by adjacent area sequence information extracted by the extraction unit. A second channel selection detecting unit for detecting a reception level of a broadcast wave received by the second channel selection unit;
The communication terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the predetermined value is a reception level detected by the second tuning detection means.   The communication according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the switching unit outputs a program corresponding to a broadcast wave received by the second channel selection unit and interrupts reception by the first channel selection unit. Terminal. List storage means for storing one or a plurality of channel lists including channel information for identifying channels;
When a channel is switched by the switching unit, a channel list including channel information corresponding to the channel switched by the switching unit is extracted from one or a plurality of channel lists stored by the list storage unit, The communication terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising a list determination unit that determines a channel list that can currently receive the channel list. A first tuning step in which the communication terminal receives a broadcast wave corresponding to the designated channel;
The communication terminal detects a reception level of a broadcast wave received in the first channel selection step, a first channel selection detection step;
A second tuning step in which the communication terminal receives a broadcast wave of a sequence corresponding to the sequence information acquired from the broadcast wave received in the first tuning step;
The communication terminal replaces the program corresponding to the broadcast wave received in the first channel selection step when the reception level detected in the first channel selection detection step becomes a predetermined value or less. A channel switching method comprising: a switching step of outputting a program corresponding to the broadcast wave received in the two channel selection step.

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