JP2009247002A - Video information transmitting/receiving system and video information transmitting/receiving method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that disadvantage to a user may occur occasionally due to a function provided in a receiver for the purpose of copyright protection. <P>SOLUTION: A video information transmitting/receiving system includes: an I/F information management section for recognizing a copyright protection function, that a receiver has, and the same function of a connected device; an information analysis section for analyzing information about copyright protection from received information; and a program replication management processing section for giving restrictions to contents, wherein a method of restricting contents is changed in accordance with information items. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for displaying a program transmitted through broadcasting or the like, and more particularly to a system and apparatus for processing and applying information for the purpose of copyright protection.

  Digital broadcasting is expected to start rapidly with services using communication satellites (CS), and will spread steadily to broadcasting satellites (BS) and terrestrial waves in the future. In digital broadcasting, since high-quality video can be received and played back and recorded, interest in copyright protection is increasing. In particular, a management method for storing high-quality video and audio in a recording device becomes a problem. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-146378 presents a technique for this problem. The outline of the known example will be described with reference to FIG.

  In FIG. 2, 201 is a viewable condition adding means for adding a viewable condition to data to be transmitted, 202 is an uplink facility, 203 is a satellite repeater, 204 is a receiving antenna, 205 is a digital broadcast receiver, 206, 207, 208 is a component of the digital broadcast receiver, 206 is data storage means, 207 is deterioration processing means for performing data deterioration processing, and 208 is viewing condition judgment means. Further, the receiving side has 209 received data viewing means as its constituent elements.

  Data such as video and audio to which viewing conditions are added is received by the digital broadcast receiver 205 via the uplink equipment 202 and the satellite 203. In addition to outputting to the viewing means 209, the digital broadcast receiver 205 directly records the data in the data recording means 206, and then causes the deterioration processing means 207 to deteriorate the image quality or sound quality and output it to an external storage device. Further, depending on the conditions, after passing through the deterioration processing means 207, it can be stored in the storage means. The viewable condition determination unit 208 determines the viewing condition in the data storage unit 206 and controls whether to output the deteriorated data to the viewing unit 209 or to output it without performing the deterioration process.

  In this known example, the degradation processing means 207 reduces the image and sound quality to a level at which copyright protection is possible.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-146378

  In the above known example, in order to protect the copyright, means for reducing the quality of the content is taken, and the problem is solved in that illegal copying is meaningless. However, a legitimate user has a request to store the content in a recording device without degrading the value of the content, and it cannot be said that this is a method that satisfies both the content holder and the user.

  It is an object of the present invention to provide a system and apparatus that guarantees the benefits of both a content holder and a user, which prevents illegal copying and enables a legitimate user to store high-quality content.

  In the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, information acquisition processing means for extracting necessary information packets from the received digital broadcast stream, content decoding means for decoding video and audio, and information on program duplication are provided. Program copy management processing means for processing content originally, an information analysis section for analyzing at least the contents of various information packets, and an I / F information management section for managing the level of the copyright protection function of the connected device through an external interface A control means, a decrypted content output means, and a stream input / output means, and the level of the copyright protection function of the device connected by the I / F information analysis unit in the control means is confirmed. Above, the information analysis unit in the control means analyzes the information relating to copyright protection contained in the input stream, Change the contents of processing in the program replication management process unit, the level of copyright protection function of the connection device, it is made possible to obtain an output that ensures the quality of the broadcast.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a system and apparatus that guarantees the benefit of both a content holder and a user, which prevents illegal copying and enables a legitimate user to store high-quality content.

The block diagram which shows one Example of this invention. The block diagram which shows the prior art example with respect to this invention. The block diagram which shows the partial structure in the program replication management process part of this invention. The block diagram which shows the specific example of the output part and connection apparatus of this invention. The block diagram which shows the specific example of the connection apparatus of this invention. The block diagram which shows one Example of this invention.

  FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, 101 is an input terminal for a digital broadcast signal, 102 is a reception processing unit that receives a broadcast signal and obtains a digital stream, 103 is an information acquisition processing unit that extracts various information from the received digital stream, and 104 is the information acquisition unit A content decoding unit that decodes video and audio signals obtained from the processing unit 104, 105 is a program duplication management processing unit that performs specific processing on the decoded content, and 106 is an output that outputs analog baseband content Portions A and 107 are output portions B and 108 that output digital baseband content, 108 is an input / output portion of a digital stream converted into a packet configuration required by the information acquisition processing portion, and 109, 110, and 111 are output portions A106. , The output unit B107, the output or input / output terminal of the input / output unit 108, 2 is a control unit for controlling the entire apparatus of the present embodiment, 113 to 117 are components included in the control unit 112, 113 is a CPU, 114 is a work memory for processing, 115 is a program storage memory, 116 Is an information analysis unit that analyzes information transferred from the information acquisition processing unit 103, 117 is a function determination of the output unit A106, the output unit B107, the input / output unit 108, and a function determination of the connected device This is an I / F information management unit to be performed.

  In this embodiment, three interfaces are assumed as output of the apparatus. The output unit A106 is a normal analog output, and has a signal insertion function that inhibits reproduction of an analog VTR as a content protection function. The output unit B107 is a digital output and has a function of preventing illegal duplication by performing content encryption in conjunction with a connected display device or the like. On the other hand, the input / output unit 108 is assumed to be, for example, an IEEE 1394 interface, which is interfaced in the form of a digital stream before content decryption, and is an interface in which a content protection function works by authentication between devices. The digital broadcast signal received by the reception processing unit 102 is subjected to processing such as channel selection and demodulation, and converted into a packetized bit stream format called a transport stream. The information acquisition processing unit 103 selects necessary information from the transport stream and transfers it to the content decryption unit 104 and the control unit 112. The content decoding unit 104 decodes digitally compressed video and audio.

  The control unit 112 extracts and analyzes an information packet related to a program from the transport stream selected by the information acquisition processing unit 103, and controls each block. Here, information on copyright protection of the program is also analyzed to determine the processing contents of the program duplication management processing unit 105. The information related to copyright protection is, for example, information such as copy prohibition, copy permission, and one copy permitted. Furthermore, depending on the broadcasting system, it may be possible to determine whether or not copying is possible based on the quality of the content. On the other hand, the I / F information analysis unit recognizes I / F specifications of the output unit A106, the output unit B107, and the input / output unit 108, respectively. For example, when the output unit A106 is an output terminal of an analog baseband signal for connection to a normal TV, the copyright protection function level of this I / F is of a kind that degrades the synchronization performance. judge. If the output unit B107 authenticates with the display device side and transmits an encrypted digital baseband signal, it recognizes that the copyright protection function is established. Further, if the input / output unit 108 is, for example, an IEEE1394 specification terminal, it can be determined that a copyright protection function has been established.

  When the information related to the copyright of the received program or the content input from the input / output terminal 108 is copy-inhibited, the control unit 112 outputs the video from the output unit A106 having a low level of copyright protection function. Stop. Alternatively, depending on the system conditions, the program duplication management processing unit 105 performs a filtering process for reducing the resolution of the content, sets the quality to match the duplication conditions, and then outputs from the output terminal 109. Further, when the output unit B107 is connected to a display device, the content protection function can be confirmed by authentication with the display device, etc., so that the content protection function of the connected device can be recognized as valid. The output unit B107 performs encryption processing and the like, and then outputs it to the display device. If it is determined that the copyright protection function is insufficient, even if the connected device is merely a presentation device, the output is performed after the resolution restriction or the like is performed in the program copy management processing unit 105. Similarly, since the input / output unit 108 is an interface in which the content protection function is guaranteed, it is possible to output high-quality content after confirming the function of the connected device.

  In the present embodiment, content duplication is prohibited by the information analysis unit 116 that analyzes the protection information of the content, the I / F information management unit 117 that detects and manages the content protection function of each interface portion of the apparatus, and the like. Even in this case, it is possible to display and display while maintaining the quality of the transmitted content.

  FIG. 3 shows some of the components of the program copy management processing unit 105. In FIG. 3, 301 is an input terminal for the video signal from the content decoding unit 104, 302 is an output terminal to each of the output units 106 and 107, 303 is a vertical filter, 304 is a horizontal filter, and 305 is a control from the control unit 112. Signal input terminal. In FIG. 3, the vertical filter 303 and the horizontal filter 304 basically reduce the vertical resolution and horizontal resolution of the video, and are analyzed by the information analysis unit 115, the I / F information management unit 117, and the like. This is used to limit the resolution of an output video signal for the purpose of copyright protection. The limit of the resolution is determined as a predetermined value of the system, but can be determined in units of programs by transmission information. Further, it is possible to limit only the vertical resolution or only the horizontal resolution. In this embodiment, the output terminal of the video with reduced resolution is described as one, but it has a plurality of output units like the components in FIG. 1, and one of them is due to the difference in copyright management level. There is a case where there is no resolution limitation and the other is resolution limitation. This case can be dealt with by providing two systems of the filter of FIG. 3 and providing a through process path.

  FIG. 4 shows a specific configuration of the output part A106 and the output part B107 in this embodiment. In FIG. 4, 401 is a receiving apparatus shown in the present embodiment, 402 is a program copy management processing unit, 403 is a system control unit, 404 is an output unit, 405 is an encryption unit, 405 is an authentication processing unit, and 407 is video / audio data. 408 is an information input / output terminal for authentication, 409 is a recording device for video and audio, 410 is an input terminal for video / audio data, 411 is an input / output terminal for data for authentication processing, Reference numeral 412 denotes a decryption unit, 413 denotes an information compression unit such as video and audio, 414 denotes a recording unit, and 415 denotes an authentication processing unit. The receiving device 401 and the recording device 409 in FIG. 4 mainly show only functional blocks related to this embodiment, and other components as a receiver or a recording device are omitted. When the receiving device 401 is connected to another device, the system control unit 403 performs an authentication operation for confirming the validity of the device connected through the authentication processing unit 406 and the device. When it is confirmed that the device is valid, the authentication processing units 406 and 415 exchange keys for encryption. The receiving device 401 outputs the data after encryption by the encryption unit 405 if encryption is necessary based on the transmitted program information or the like. The recording device 409 side decodes the received data such as video and audio based on the exchanged key, compresses the information for recording, and then records it in the recording unit 414. In FIG. 4, the playback mechanism of the recording device 409 is not described because it is not particularly related to the present invention. As described above, when it can be confirmed that unauthorized duplication or the like is not executed by the device connected by the authentication work, a signal that is disadvantageous to the viewer such as reducing the video resolution in the program duplication management processing unit 402. Recording and playback of high-quality and high-quality content can be performed without processing.

  FIG. 5 shows another device connected to the receiving device 401 shown in FIG. 4, in which 501 is a display device, 502 is a data input unit for video and audio, and 503 is an input / output terminal for authentication data. , 504 is a decryption unit for data such as encrypted video and audio, 505 is a display unit such as a display, and 506 is an authentication processing unit. The display device 501 is confirmed to be a device having only a display unit with respect to the receiving device 401 by an authentication operation and a device that does not illegally transfer data to other devices, and obtains a key. It is possible to receive and display high-quality and high-quality content.

  The authentication data paths shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 include a method using the same bus such as the IEEE1394 standard, and are not particularly specified as separate terminals.

  Authentication, encryption, etc. with the connection device described in the present embodiment are not particularly new technologies, but are combined with copy management information of the program to be transmitted after confirming the legitimacy of the connected device by an authentication unit or the like. By controlling the processing of the video and audio information to be output, it is possible to expect the effect of supplying high-quality and high-quality content to the owner of a legitimate device.

  FIG. 6 shows another embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 6, reference numeral 601 denotes a presentation unit for video and audio, and the others are the same as in the embodiment of FIG. In the present embodiment, the presenting unit 601 is composed of a display, a speaker, and the like, and differs from the embodiment of FIG. The control unit 112 outputs the presentation unit 601 without processing by the program copy management processing unit 105 regardless of the transmitted copy information. That is, even if it is necessary to reduce the resolution of a high-quality video for recording, it is output to the presentation unit 601 without reducing the resolution. On the other hand, the output unit B107 and the like are connected to the information relating to the copy of the transmitted program, the copyright protection management level of the output unit B107, and the output terminal 110, as in the embodiment of FIG. Based on the device information, the program information management unit 105 performs a predetermined process on the output information data and outputs the data.

  According to the present embodiment, at least a program can be presented with high quality regardless of the level of duplicate information.

  Although not shown, when the recording device is built in the receiving apparatus, the control unit 112 also manages the time recorded in the recording device, and when the predetermined time has passed, the program duplication management process is performed. In the unit 105, it is necessary to perform predetermined processing for the built-in presentation unit 601 and present video and audio with reduced quality.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Input terminal, 102 ... Reception processing part, 103 ... Information acquisition processing part, 104 ... Content decoding part, 105 ... Program duplication management processing part, 106 ... Information output part, 107 ... Information output part, 108 ... Information input / output part 112, control unit, 113, CPU, 114, memory, 116, information analysis unit, 117, I / F information management unit.

Claims (7)

  A receiving device that receives a signal including video and audio information and program duplication information related to program duplication, and outputs the signal to an external device, an acquisition unit that obtains the program duplication information from the received signal; Information output means for outputting audio information and / or information input / output means, and information analysis means for analyzing the program duplication information and analyzing the information output means and / or information input / output means or both. A digital broadcast receiving apparatus comprising program copy management processing means for performing different copy management restriction processing depending on the result analyzed by the information analysis means.   2. The digital broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the program copy management processing means includes a filter means for limiting the resolution of the video.   3. The digital broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the filter unit limits only vertical resolution.   3. The digital broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the filter unit limits only horizontal resolution.   The program copy management processing means detects the copy management capability of the external device connected by the information analysis means, and as a result, if the external device is capable of copy management, the analysis result is not copy prohibition. Output without restriction by the program duplication management processing means, and when the external device is not capable of duplication management, the program duplication management processing means performs the restriction regardless of the analyzed result, and outputs. The digital broadcast receiver according to claim 1.   When it is confirmed that the external device connected by the information analysis means is an apparatus limited to program presentation, the program duplication management processing means can display program information regardless of the result analyzed by the information analysis means. The digital broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the digital broadcast receiving apparatus is directly supplied to an external apparatus.   7. The program duplication management processing means presents the input program information as it is with respect to the information presentation means when the information output means is an internal information presentation means. The digital broadcast receiver according to any one of the above.

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