JP2009290334A - Broadcast receiver - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a broadcast receiver which reduces abnormal tone etc. giving a viewer unpleasant feeling, without troublesome operation of a user. <P>SOLUTION: The broadcast receiver 100 is provided with: a data acquisition unit 70 which takes out voice data and additional information from a television broadcast signal to which the additional information is attached for broadcast channels in respective time zones; a program table data producing unit 40 which produces program table data recording a broadcast start time of the respective channels from the taken out additional information; a control unit 30 which controls driving the broadcast receiver; and a time measuring means 34 which gives a timing function to the control unit 30. The control unit 30 compares the present time measured at a time of power-in of a power source with the broadcast start time referred to from the produced program table data, and if the present time is earlier than the broadcast start time, it does not output voice based on the voice data until it becomes the broadcast start time. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a broadcast receiving apparatus that outputs a television broadcast.

  Conventionally, a test broadcast may be broadcast just before the television broadcast is started. Test broadcasts are broadcasts for the purpose of adjusting broadcast equipment, and are also being implemented by broadcast stations that have already been established. This test broadcast is composed of a test pattern image composed of predetermined images and predetermined sound.

  However, the images and sounds broadcast by these test broadcasts have no meaning for viewers, and in particular, the sounds are often harsh to the viewers.

  When an unpleasant sound is output during the test broadcast, the viewer responds by adjusting the sound level of the broadcast receiving apparatus. Specifically, the viewer can operate the remote control device or the like to instruct the broadcast receiving device to mute the sound (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

In addition, an audio output device that silences audio when a broadcast receiving device records a program reserved for recording in advance has been disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 2).
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-65228 JP 2007-36616 A

  In the conventional technique described above, when the test broadcast is broadcast, the viewer needs to operate the remote control device or the like to lower the sound level of the broadcast receiving device. In addition, after the broadcast is started, the viewer has to operate the remote control device again to increase the sound level of the broadcast receiving device. For this reason, the viewer needs to adjust the sound level by operating the remote control device before and after the time when the test broadcast is broadcast, which sometimes necessitates a complicated operation.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. Even when a broadcast is viewed before the start of the broadcast, the viewer can mute an abnormal sound that makes the viewer feel uncomfortable without performing a complicated operation. Provided is a broadcast receiving apparatus that can be made to operate.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, in one aspect of the present invention, in a broadcast receiving apparatus that receives a television broadcast signal, audio data is generated from the television broadcast signal to which additional information for a channel broadcast in each time slot is given. A data acquisition unit that extracts the additional information, a program guide data generation unit that generates program guide data in which the broadcast start time of each channel is recorded from the extracted additional information, and driving of the broadcast receiving apparatus A control unit having a function of controlling the time, and a time measuring unit for providing a time measuring function to the control unit, the control unit is a current time measured when the power is turned on, and the generated Compared with the broadcast start time referenced from the program guide data, if the current time is earlier than the broadcast start time, it is based on the audio data until the broadcast start time is reached. There is a structure that does not output the voice.

In the invention configured as described above, the broadcast receiving apparatus includes: a data acquisition unit that extracts audio data and additional information from the television broadcast to which additional information for a channel that is broadcast in each time slot is added; A program guide data generating unit that generates program guide data in which the broadcast start time of each channel is recorded from the additional information, and a control unit having a function of controlling the driving of the broadcast receiving apparatus. Further, the control unit is given a function of measuring the current time by a clock means.
Then, the control unit compares the broadcast start time referenced from the generated program guide data with the current time measured by the time measuring means, and if the current time is earlier than the broadcast start time, the broadcast start time Since the sound based on the sound data is not output until the time becomes, the user can mute the sound output along with the test broadcast broadcast in a predetermined period before the broadcast start time without operating the remote control device or the like. . Furthermore, since the control unit cancels the mute state at the broadcast start time, the user does not need to adjust the sound of the broadcast receiving apparatus after the broadcast of the program is started.

Preferably, the program guide data is EPG information.
In the invention configured as described above, in order to determine the start time of television broadcast based on EPG (Electronic program guide) information multiplexed in the television broadcast, the broadcast start time is set on the user side. This is unnecessary, and the work burden on the user can be reduced.

  Preferably, the control unit calculates a difference between the broadcast start time referred to from the program guide data and the current time measured, and based on the value of the difference calculation, the current time is calculated from the broadcast start time. Judge whether it is early or not.

Preferably, when the current time is later than the broadcast start time, the control unit outputs a sound based on the sound data.
In the invention configured as described above, when the time when the power is turned on is later than the broadcast start time, since the broadcast is normally started, the program is broadcast without muting the sound.

  As another aspect of the present invention, an audio output unit having a function of outputting audio based on the audio data is provided, the program guide data is EPG information, and the audio output unit mutes the audio. A mute function, wherein the control unit calculates a difference between a broadcast start time referenced from the program guide data and the current time measured, and based on the value of the difference calculation, Is determined to be earlier than the broadcast start time, if the current time is later than the broadcast start time, the audio output unit to output the sound, if the current time is earlier than the broadcast start time, Do not output audio by executing the mute function in the audio output section

As described above, according to the first, third, and fourth aspects of the present invention, it is possible to mute the sound during the test broadcast without forcing the user to perform complicated operations.
Moreover, according to the invention concerning Claim 2, it is not necessary to set broadcast start time by the user side, and a user's work burden can be reduced.
And it cannot be overemphasized that there exists an effect | action similar to each invention of Claim 1-Claim 4 mentioned above in more concrete structure like Claim 5.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in the following order with reference to the drawings. Moreover, in the figure, the part which attached | subjected the same code | symbol shows the same or equivalent part, and the description is not repeated.
1. First embodiment:
(1) Summary of the present invention:
(2) Configuration of television receiver:
(3) Operation of the television receiver:
(4) Action of voice control module:
2. Second embodiment:

1. First embodiment:
(1) Summary of the present invention:
FIG. 1 is an image diagram illustrating the broadcast schedule of each program before and after the start of broadcasting. When the user turns on the power of the broadcast receiving apparatus at the time before the start of broadcasting (the time before AM3: 59 in the figure), the broadcast receiving apparatus broadcasts a test broadcast. In the test broadcast, a test pattern image is displayed on the screen and a specific sound is output. In the broadcast receiving apparatus according to the present invention, even when the user turns on the power of the broadcast receiving apparatus before the broadcast starts, the broadcast receiving apparatus can mute the sound output as the test broadcast so that the user can view the sound. It works so that there is no. In addition, since the broadcast receiving apparatus cancels the mute state when normal broadcast is started (after AM4: 00 in the figure), the viewer does not need to adjust the sound by himself / herself at the start of the broadcast.

(2) Configuration of television receiver:
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the broadcast receiving apparatus. In the first embodiment, a television receiver 100 will be described as an example of a broadcast receiving apparatus. The television receiver 100 is connected to an antenna 200 installed outdoors or the like, and has a function of broadcasting a television broadcast based on a television broadcast signal received by the antenna 200. Further, the user can operate the remote control device 90 to remotely operate the television receiver 100.

  The television receiver 100 includes a tuner unit 80 having a function of detecting a desired television broadcast signal from the television broadcast received by the antenna 200, and video data, audio data, and additional data from the detected television broadcast signal. A data acquisition unit 70 for extracting video, a video output unit 60 having a function of displaying video based on video data, an audio output unit 50 having a function of outputting audio based on audio data, and an EPG based on additional information An EPG information generation unit (program guide data generation unit) 40 that generates information and a control unit 30 that controls the above-described units are provided. Note that a bus 110 is interposed between the above-described units, and the units can communicate with each other via the bus 110. Furthermore, the television receiver 100 includes therein a power supply circuit unit 20 that supplies a power supply voltage to each of the above-described units. The power supply circuit unit 20 receives supply of power to each unit.

  The tuner unit 80 detects a signal corresponding to a desired channel from the television broadcast signal received by the antenna 200. The tuner unit 80 includes a line station unit that extracts a modulation signal corresponding to a channel selected by the remote control device 90 and the like, and a transmission path decoding unit that extracts digital data from the selected signal. In the digital data extracted by the transmission path decoding unit, video data, audio data, and EPG information as additional data of the selected channel are multiplexed.

  The data acquisition unit 70 has a function of extracting video data, audio data, and additional data from the detected television broadcast signal. When digital data is input to the data acquisition unit 70, first, the descrambling unit 71 releases the scrambling of the digital data. Next, the demultiplexing unit 72 separates the digital data into additional information and video / audio data. Thereafter, the video / audio decoding unit 73 decodes the video / audio data into video data and audio data, and outputs them to the video output unit 60.

  The video output unit 60 has a function of outputting video. When video data is input to the video output unit 60, the image processing unit 61 processes the video data. Next, the driver 62 generates a display voltage from the processed video data. Further, the generated display voltage is output to the display panel 63. The display panel 63 displays an image by driving the pixels constituting the screen based on the display voltage.

  The display panel 63 only needs to have a function of driving each pixel based on the display voltage generated by the driver unit 62 and displaying an image. Therefore, the type of the display panel 63 may be a liquid crystal panel, a plasma panel, or an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) panel.

  The audio output unit 50 has a function of outputting audio based on the acquired television broadcast. When the audio data decoded by the video / audio decoding unit 73 is input to the audio output unit 50, the audio processing unit 51 processes the audio data to amplify or edit the audio. Next, the driver unit 52 performs digital / analog conversion on the processed voice data. Thereafter, the analog voltage converted by the driver unit 52 is output to the speaker 53, and is converted into sound and output. Furthermore, the audio processing unit 51 has a mute function. When this mute function is executed, audio data is not output to the driver unit 52, and no audio is output.

  The EPG information generation unit 40 has a function of generating EPG information based on the extracted additional information. The EPG information generation unit 40 has a function of generating EPG information from the additional information separated by the demultiplexing unit 72 and storing it inside. The EPG information generation unit 40 includes a basic decoder unit that generates EPG information and a data storage unit that stores the generated EPG information.

  Here, the EPG information is data constituting an electronic program guide. In the data acquired as EPG information, the start / end time of the program broadcast on a specific date and time, the program content, and other information are recorded, and the control unit 30 records various information recorded in the EPG information generation unit 40. The broadcast start time can be determined with reference to the data.

  The control unit 30 has a function of controlling driving of the television receiver 100. The control unit 30 is configured by, for example, a microcomputer, and includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 31, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 32 that stores application programs for the CPU 31 to execute predetermined calculations, and the CPU 31. A RAM (Random Access Memory) 33 serving as a work area, a timer (timer means) 34 for providing a timekeeping function to the CPU 41, and an operation command transmitted from the remote controller 90 are received and the CPU 31 receives a command from the user. And a remote control receiving unit 35 having a function of transmitting the operation content.

  The ROM 32 stores application programs for the CPU 31 to control each part of the television receiver 100. The ROM 32 stores operating software (hereinafter referred to as an OS) 120 that functions so that the CPU 31 can provide a basic operating environment to the user using the remote control device 90 or the like, and the OS 31 together with the OS 120. An audio control module 300 that controls audio before the start of broadcasting according to the invention is stored. Hereinafter, unless otherwise noted, functions executed by the CPU 31 by the OS 120 and the voice control module 300 will be described as functions executed by the control unit 30.

(3) Operation of the television receiver:
FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining processing executed inside the television receiver 100 when the user turns on the power. When the user operates the remote control device 90 to turn on the main power supply to the television receiver 100, the control unit 30 develops the OS 120 in the RAM 32. Thereafter, until the power of the television receiver 100 is turned off, the control unit 30 executes control of each unit based on the function of the OS 120 developed in the RAM 32.

  Specifically, the control unit 30 controls each unit so as to obtain desired digital data from the television broadcast signal received by the antenna 200. Thereby, the data acquisition unit 70 acquires audio and video data corresponding to the program selected by the operation of the remote control device 90 from the television broadcast signal received by the antenna 200. Further, the EPG information generation unit 40 acquires additional data and generates EPG information based on the additional data (step S125).

  The control unit 30 determines whether automatic mute is on (step S130). As described above, the automatic mute functions so that the user does not listen to the sound by muting the sound even when the user turns on the power of the television receiver 100 before the broadcast starts. . The automatic mute is set when the control unit 30 receives a command transmitted by the user operating the remote control device 90. The control unit 30 stores the received command in the RAM 33 or the like, and instructs the audio output unit 50 to maintain the mute state for a predetermined period unless a command for canceling automatic mute is transmitted from the remote control device 90. To do. Therefore, when the command transmitted from remote control device 90 is stored, control unit 30 determines that automatic mute is on.

When it is determined that the automatic mute is on, the control unit 30 expands the voice control module 300 from the ROM 32 onto the RAM 33, and executes processing based on the voice control module 300 (step S135). The control unit 30 can realize the processing according to the present invention by the function of the voice control module 300.
In addition, after the control part 30 performs the function which concerns on this invention by the audio | voice control module 300, the normal process as the television receiver 100 is performed.

(4) Action of voice control module:
Below, the function of the control part 30 based on the audio | voice control module 300 is demonstrated. The audio control module 300 allows the control unit 30 to mute the audio broadcast by the test broadcast and automatically cancel the mute at the broadcast disclosure time even when the user turns on the power before the broadcast starts.

  FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the process executed by the control unit 30 in step 135 of FIG. First, the control unit 30 instructs the sound output unit 50 to mute (step S310). The control unit 30 transmits a control command accompanying mute execution to the audio output unit 50 via the bus 110. Thereafter, in the audio output unit 50, the audio processing unit 51 mutes the audio output from the speaker 53 by the mute function. If the audio output unit 50 is muted by the mute function, the voice can be muted instantaneously. At this time, the sound output from the speaker 53 may be muted by lowering the amplification value of the input sound data by the sound processing unit 51.

  The control unit 30 confirms the broadcast start time with reference to the EPG information (step S320). Since the EPG information is stored in the EPG information generation unit 40, the control unit 30 reads the EPG information from the EPG information generation unit 40 onto the RAM 33, and also stores the Chstart that is the broadcast start time stored in the EPG information on the RAM 33. Remember.

  The control unit 30 refers to the EPG information and determines the current time (step S330). The control unit 30 determines the current time from the time data added to the EPG information, and updates the current time NowTime by the function of the timer 34. Note that the NowTime is a time that advances based on the function of the timer 34.

  The control unit 30 determines whether or not broadcasting is currently started (step S340). Specifically, the control unit 30 performs a difference calculation between the broadcast start time Chstart stored in the RAM 33 and the current time NowTime. When the output value T of the difference calculation described above is 0 or less, the control unit 30 determines that the broadcast has already started, and instructs the audio output unit 50 to cancel the mute (step S380). By calculating the difference between the broadcast start time and the current time to determine whether the broadcast has started, it is possible to determine the start time based on the value obtained by the calculation, and to quickly determine the time Can do.

  When the output value T of the difference calculation described above is 0 or more, since there is still time until the broadcast start time, the control unit 30 counts the time until the broadcast start (steps S350 to S370). Specifically, the control unit 30 counts the output value T output by the difference calculation in step S340 using the function of the timer 34 until the value becomes zero. At this time, of course, the test broadcast is broadcast on the display, but the mute function is maintained by the mute function of the audio output unit 50.

  If the output value T becomes 0 in step S370, since the current time coincides with the broadcast start time, the control unit 30 causes the audio output unit 50 to cancel the mute state (step 380). Therefore, the audio output unit 50 outputs audio through the speaker 53, and the user can view a program including audio.

2. Second Embodiment FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a broadcast receiving apparatus according to a second embodiment. In the second embodiment, the broadcast receiving apparatus is realized by a recording / reproducing apparatus 400 having a function of detecting a television broadcast received by the antenna 200 and recording and outputting the detected video and audio data. Video and audio data output from the recording / reproducing apparatus 400 is received by the reproducing apparatus 500 and output as video and audio. As the recording / reproducing apparatus, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) recorder, a Blu-ray Disc (Blu-ray Disc) recorder or the like is used as a recording medium.

  The recording / reproducing apparatus 400 includes a tuner unit 80, a data acquisition unit 70, an EPG information generation unit 40, a control unit 30, and a power supply circuit unit 20. The functions of the respective units are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore the description will be omitted. Omitted. Further, the audio control module 300 is stored in the control unit 30 of the recording / reproducing apparatus 400, like the television receiver 100 in the first embodiment. Therefore, the control unit 30 can silence the sound output from the playback device 500 at a predetermined time by the function of the sound control module 300. Further, the recording / reproducing apparatus 400 has an interface 410 having a function of transmitting / receiving video and audio data to / from the reproducing apparatus 500, a memory 420 having a function of recording video and audio data, and a function of controlling access to the memory 420. And a controller 430 provided.

  The playback apparatus 500 includes a video output unit 60 and an audio output unit 50, and the functions thereof are the same as those in the first embodiment, and thus description thereof is omitted. Furthermore, the playback device 500 includes an interface 510 having a function of transmitting and receiving video and audio data with the recording / playback device 400. Therefore, the playback device 500 outputs the video and audio data transmitted from the recording / playback device 400 to the video output unit 60 and the audio output unit 50 via the interface 510.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the function of the voice control module in the second embodiment. The process according to this flowchart is also executed when the automatic mute of the recording / reproducing apparatus 400 is set, as in the first embodiment. In addition, since this flowchart is the same as the flowchart of FIG. 4 except for steps S1310 and S1380, the description will focus on steps S1310 and S1380.

  The control unit 30 instructs the audio output unit 50 to execute mute (step S1310). Specifically, the control unit 30 controls the interface 410 so that audio data is not output to the playback device 500. For this reason, no audio data is output to the playback apparatus 500, and no audio is output.

  The control unit 30 refers to the EPG information and confirms the broadcast start time (step S1320). The control unit 30 determines the current time with reference to the EPG information (step S1330). The control unit 30 determines whether or not broadcasting is currently started (step S1340). When determining that the broadcast has already started, the control unit 30 controls the interface 410 to cause the playback device 500 to output audio data (step S1380).

  If it is determined that there is still time until the broadcast start time, the control unit 30 counts the time until the broadcast starts (steps S1350 to S1370). Audio data is output (step 1380). Thereby, the playback device 500 outputs sound through the speaker 53, and the user can view a program including the sound.

Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. It goes without saying for those skilled in the art,
・ Applying mutually interchangeable members and configurations disclosed in the above embodiments by appropriately changing the combination thereof.− Although not disclosed in the above embodiments, it is a publicly known technique and the above embodiments. The members and configurations that can be mutually replaced with the members and configurations disclosed in the above are appropriately replaced, and the combination is changed and applied. It is an embodiment of the present invention that a person skilled in the art can appropriately replace the members and configurations that can be assumed as substitutes for the members and configurations disclosed in the above-described embodiments, and change the combinations and apply them. It is disclosed as.

It is an image figure explaining the broadcast schedule of each program before and after the broadcast start. It is a block block diagram explaining the structure of a broadcast receiver. 10 is a flowchart for explaining processing executed inside the television receiver 100 when the user turns on the power. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a process executed by a control unit 30 in step 135 in FIG. 3. It is a figure explaining the broadcast receiving apparatus in 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart explaining the function of the audio | voice control module in 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 20 ... Power supply circuit part, 30 ... Control part, 31 ... CPU, 32 ... ROM, 33 ... RAM, 34 ... Timer, 35 ... Remote control receiving part, 40 ... EPG information generation part, 50 ... Sound output part, 51 ... Sound processing Reference numeral 52: Driver unit 53: Speaker 60: Video output unit 61 Image processing unit 62 Driver unit 63 Display panel 70 Data acquisition unit 71 Descramble unit 72 Demultiplexing unit 73 ... Video / audio decoding unit, 80 ... Tuner unit, 90 ... Remote control device, 100 ... Television receiver, 110 ... Bus, 120 ... OS, 200 ... Antenna, 300 ... Audio control module, 400 ... Recording / playback device, 410 ... interface, 420 ... memory, 430 ... controller, 500 ... playback device, 510 ... interface

Claims (5)

In a broadcast receiving apparatus that receives a television broadcast signal,
A data acquisition unit for extracting audio data and the additional information from the television broadcast signal to which additional information for a channel to be broadcast in each time slot is given;
A program guide data generator for generating program guide data in which the broadcast start time of each channel is recorded from the extracted additional information;
A control unit having a function of controlling the driving of the broadcast receiving device;
And a time measuring means for providing a time measuring function to the control unit,
The control unit compares the current time measured when the power is turned on with the broadcast start time referenced from the generated program guide data, and the current time is earlier than the broadcast start time. In the case, the broadcast receiving apparatus is characterized in that the sound based on the sound data is not output until the broadcast start time is reached.   The broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the program guide data is EPG information.   The control unit performs a difference calculation between the broadcast start time referred to from the program guide data and the current time measured, and based on the value of the difference calculation, whether the current time is earlier than the broadcast start time. The broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein it is determined whether or not.   4. The broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the current time is later than the broadcast start time, the control unit outputs a sound based on the sound data. 5. . An audio output unit having a function of outputting audio based on the audio data;
The program guide data is EPG information,
The audio output unit has a mute function for muting sound,
The control unit performs a difference calculation between the broadcast start time referred to from the program guide data and the current time measured, and based on the value of the difference calculation, whether the current time is earlier than the broadcast start time. Determine whether or not
If the current time is later than the broadcast start time, let the audio output unit output audio,
2. The broadcast receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the current time is earlier than the broadcast start time, the sound is not output by causing the sound output unit to execute a mute function.

Images