JP2010140307A - Search system and content server - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To efficiently search content data by the number of times as small as possible of performing a search operation menu in a search terminal. <P>SOLUTION: A content server 103 optimizes keyword information KW of a hierarchical structure stored in a keyword database 203, and supplies a first hierarchical field 42 belonging to keyword kind information from the keyword information KW to a network television 102 on the basis of the keyword kind information designated by the network television 102. The network television 102 receives the first hierarchical field 42 and displays a first hierarchical keyword menu obtained by associating a hierarchical keyword 42b in the first hierarchical field 42 with an operation button in a displaying part 234. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a search system and a content server, and in particular, a search terminal designates basic keywords such as keyword types to the content server, and the content server optimizes keyword information belonging to the designated basic keywords. It relates to the technology to supply to.

  In recent years, a local area network (LAN) is laid in a home, and a number of network-compatible devices are connected to the home to construct a home network. For example, a home network system is known in which a network-compatible television (hereinafter referred to as a network television) and a content server storing a large amount of content data are connected via a network cable (see, for example, Patent Document 1). . In such a home network system, the network television downloads content data desired by the viewer from the content server and reproduces it. For this reason, many content servers search for content data using search keywords related to the title, genre, and recording date and time of the content specified by the network television.

  In a network television which is a home appliance, it is common to use a remote control device as its operation means. Since this generally used remote control device is a simple input device having numeric keys, direction instruction keys, determination keys, etc., it is not suitable for a free keyword search in which a keyword is input and searched. is there. Therefore, in a conventional network television, a keyword group is downloaded from a content server, a GUI (Graphical User Interface) menu is generated and displayed, and a desired keyword is selected according to the operation of the remote control device by the viewer.

  Further, based on the total number of content data stored in the content server, the number of titles that can be displayed in the display area for one page of the network television, and the number of content data corresponding to each keyword of the keyword group, the keyword A search guidance device that calculates a predicted value of the number of page feeds for each time and displays the predicted value is known (see, for example, Patent Document 2). According to this search guide device, by displaying the predicted value of the number of page feeds on the GUI menu screen, it is possible to support efficient search operation for the operator of the remote control device, and improve the content data search efficiency. Can be made.

JP 2008-198079 A JP 2007-272625 A

  However, since it is usually assumed that a viewer of a television apparatus including a network television is viewed several meters away, it is desirable that the characters displayed on the GUI menu screen be large. As a result, the number of keywords that can be displayed in the display area for one page and the number of search results displayed are reduced, and the number of page feeds is increased accordingly, which complicates the operation. In addition, if the content data stored in the content server has a bias in the classification according to the keyword type, the difference between the one with a large number of page feeds and the one with a small number of page feeds becomes large, resulting in variations in evaluation of operational feeling. End up.

  The search guidance device described in Patent Document 2 considers the number of titles that can be displayed in the display area for one page of the network television, but the numerical value is preset in the search guidance device provided on the content server side. This value is not determined for each network television that is the search request source. Further, this search guidance apparatus does not consider the number of keywords that can be displayed in the display area for one page.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problem, and when the search terminal specifies a search keyword and the content server searches for content data based on the specified search keyword, the search terminal can perform as much as possible. It is an object of the present invention to provide a search system and a content server that can efficiently search content data with a small number of operations.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides means [1]-[8] below.
[1] In a search system in which a search terminal supplies a search keyword to a content server, the content server searches a content database based on the search keyword, and supplies the search result to the search terminal.
The content server
Keyword information storage means for storing keyword information in which a plurality of keywords associated with each of a plurality of content data stored in the content database are hierarchically configured;
Request means for requesting the search terminal a maximum keyword display number per page of the display area in the search terminal;
Based on the basic keyword and the maximum keyword display number supplied from the search terminal, the keyword information stored in the keyword information storage means is displayed based on the number of keywords in the lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword. Optimized keyword information generating means for generating optimized keyword information by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number is less than or equal to,
Of the optimized keyword information, an optimized keyword supply means for supplying, as an optimized keyword, a lower-level keyword belonging to the basic keyword to the search terminal;
With
The search terminal
Basic keyword supply means for supplying basic keywords to the content server;
In response to a request from the content server, supply means for supplying the content server with a maximum keyword display number per page of a display area provided in advance,
Based on the optimized keyword supplied from the content server, a menu for generating a keyword selection menu in which the optimized keyword can be selected by setting the maximum keyword display number to the display number per page of the display area Generating means;
Menu display means for displaying the generated keyword selection menu;
Search keyword determination means for operating the displayed keyword selection menu to determine a search keyword;
A search system characterized by comprising:
[2] The content server
The request means requests the search terminal for a maximum keyword display number per display area page and a maximum search result display number per display area page in the search terminal;
Based on the basic keyword, the maximum keyword display number, and the maximum search result display number supplied from the search terminal, the optimized keyword information generation unit, the keyword information stored in the keyword information storage unit, The lower level keywords are merged so that the number of content data corresponding to each of the lower level keywords belonging to the basic keyword is less than or equal to the maximum search result display number, and the lower level belonging to the basic keyword after the merge processing The search system according to [1] above, wherein the optimized keyword information is generated by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number of keywords in the hierarchy is equal to or less than the maximum keyword display number.
[3] The content server
The optimization keyword information generation means selects a keyword having the maximum number of content data corresponding to each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the basic keyword, and corresponds to each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the keyword. Optimized keyword information is generated by changing the hierarchical structure so that the keyword, which is the maximum number of content data, and the keywords of all lower layers belonging to this keyword are moved to the upper layer one by one. The search system according to [1] or [2] above, characterized in that it is configured as described above.
[4] The content server
When the optimization keyword information generation unit changes the hierarchy configuration so that the number of keywords in the lower hierarchy is equal to or less than the maximum keyword display number, the grouping information in the hierarchy is associated with each keyword in the same hierarchy. Generate optimized keyword information,
The optimized keyword supply means supplies a keyword in a lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword and the grouping information in the hierarchy of the hierarchy to the search terminal as an optimized hierarchy field among the optimized keyword information. West,
The search terminal
Based on the post-optimization hierarchical field supplied from the content server, the menu generation means sets the maximum keyword display number as the display number per page of the display area, and the grouping information within the hierarchy of the post-optimization field 4. The method according to any one of the above [1] to [3], wherein a keyword selection menu is generated in a display mode based on the selection so that the keyword in the post-optimization field can be selected. Search system.
[5] A content server that searches a content database based on a search keyword supplied from a search terminal and supplies the search result to the search terminal.
Keyword information storage means for storing keyword information in which a plurality of keywords associated with each of a plurality of content data stored in the content database are hierarchically configured;
Based on the basic keyword supplied from the search terminal and the maximum number of keyword displays per page in the search terminal, the keyword information stored in the keyword information storage means is converted into a lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword. An optimized keyword information generating means for generating optimized keyword information by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number of keywords is less than or equal to the maximum keyword display number;
Of the optimized keyword information, an optimized keyword supply means for supplying, as an optimized keyword, a lower-level keyword belonging to the basic keyword to the search terminal;
A content server comprising:
[6] The optimization keyword information generation unit is configured to determine the basic keyword supplied from the search terminal, the maximum keyword display number, and the maximum search result display number per page in the search terminal. The keyword information stored in the keyword information storage means is merged with the lower-layer keywords so that the number of content data corresponding to each lower-layer keyword belonging to the basic keyword is less than or equal to the maximum search result display number. The optimized keyword information is generated by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number of lower-level keywords belonging to the basic keyword after the merging processing is less than or equal to the maximum keyword display number. [4] The content server according to [4].
[7] The optimized keyword information generation unit selects a keyword that is the maximum number of content data corresponding to each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the basic keyword, and each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the keyword Optimized keyword information by changing the hierarchical structure so that the keyword that is the maximum number of content data corresponding to and the keywords of all lower layers belonging to this keyword are moved to the upper layer one by one The content server according to [5] or [6], wherein the content server is generated.
[8] When the optimization keyword information generating means changes the hierarchy configuration so that the number of keywords in the lower hierarchy is equal to or less than the maximum keyword display number, the grouping information in the hierarchy is assigned to each keyword in the same hierarchy. To generate optimized keyword information,
The optimized keyword supply means supplies a keyword in a lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword and the grouping information in the hierarchy of the hierarchy to the search terminal as an optimized hierarchy field among the optimized keyword information. The content server according to any one of [5] to [7], wherein the content server is configured as described above.

  According to the present invention, when a search terminal specifies a search keyword and the content server searches for content data based on the specified search keyword, the content data is efficiently searched with a small number of operations of the search terminal. be able to.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a home network system to which the first embodiment of the present invention is applied. In FIG. 1, a home network system 1 is configured by connecting a network television 101, a network television 102, a home server 103, and a computer 104 via a LAN 105, respectively. In the home network system 1, the home server 103 is a content server, and the network television 101, the network television 102, and the computer 104 are search terminals.

  The network television 101 outputs content data reproduced by the home server 103 as an image and sound. Further, the network television 101 extracts the program content of a desired channel from the broadcast wave received by the antenna 108 and outputs it as an image and sound, or supplies it to the home server 103 for recording. The network television 102 also outputs the content data reproduced on the home server 103 as an image and sound. The network televisions 101 and 102 can use a remote control device as their operation means. FIG. 1 shows a remote control device 109 used for the network television 102. The remote control device 109 is a general device provided with operation keys such as numeric keys, direction instruction keys, determination keys, and cancel keys.

  The computer 104 can be operated like the network television 102 by installing a content search program for realizing various functions of the network television 102 in the present embodiment and executing the program by the CPU. Further, the computer 104 can download desired content data from the home server 103 and record it on the hard disk in its own device, and further, the content recorded on the hard disk by causing the CPU to execute a content reproduction program. Data can be played back.

  The home network system 1 can also be connected to an external network. In FIG. 1, a LAN 105 and an Internet 107 that is an external network are connected via a router 106. A computer 110 is further connected to the Internet 107.

  The home server 103 records the content data of the received program supplied from the network television 101 on the hard disk in its own device, downloads the content data from the computer 110 on the Internet 107 and records it on the hard disk, or the home network system. The content data is uploaded from the computer 104 in 1 and recorded on the hard disk. The home server 103 can also record content data on a hard disk using an external recording medium such as a DVD. The home server 103 searches for content data by communicating a search request and a search response with the network televisions 101 and 102 and the computer 104 which are search terminals. Then, the home server 103 supplies the search result to the search terminal or reproduces the content data searched by the communication control from the search terminal.

  FIG. 2 shows a functional configuration diagram of portions related to the content search function of the home server 103 and the network television 102. First, the configuration of the home server 103 will be described. In the figure, the home server 103 includes a transmission / reception unit 201, a search processing unit 202, a keyword database 203, and a content database 204. The transmission / reception unit 201 is an interface for connecting the LAN 105. Then, the transmission / reception unit 201 communicates IP (Internet Protocol) packetized data between the home server 103 and the network television 102 connected to the LAN 105 or other network compatible devices.

  The search processing unit 202 optimizes the keyword information stored in the keyword database 203 based on the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command supplied from the network television 102, or the designated keyword information and the search command supplied from the network television 102. The content data in the content database 204 is searched according to the above. The search processing unit 202 includes a pre-optimization processing unit 211, an optimization processing unit 212, and a search execution unit 213 in terms of its functions. The pre-optimization processing unit 211 requests and acquires the maximum number of keyword displays per page of the display area of the display screen from the network television 102. The optimization processing unit 212 obtains the keyword information stored in the keyword database 203 based on the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command supplied from the network television 102 and the maximum keyword display number acquired by the pre-optimization processing unit 211. Optimize. Then, the optimization processing unit 212 supplies the first level keyword of the optimized keyword information to the network television 102. The search execution unit 213 searches the content database 204 in accordance with the designated keyword information and the search command supplied from the network television 102 and supplies the search result to the network television 102.

  The keyword database 203 stores keyword information KW. The keyword information KW is information in which the keyword type information is at the highest level and the keywords belonging to the keyword type information are organized in a hierarchical structure. FIG. 3 shows an example of a hierarchical structure of the keyword information KW composed of the keyword type information “genre” and keywords belonging to the first to third hierarchies. In the figure, the numbers in parentheses attached to each keyword are the number of content data stored in the content database 204 and associated with the keyword.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of the data structure of the keyword information KW. As shown in the figure, the keyword information KW has a keyword type field 41 and one or a plurality of hierarchical fields 42. The keyword type field 41 includes a type identifier 41a for identifying this field and a keyword type 41b which is the main body of the keyword type information. The hierarchy field 42 includes a hierarchy identifier 42a for identifying the hierarchy field, a hierarchy keyword 42b that is a keyword body, and intra-group grouping data 42c for performing grouping settings in the hierarchy. By assigning the hierarchical identifier 42a so as to be associated with the type identifier 41a, the keyword type field 41 and the hierarchical field 42 can be associated with each other. FIG. 5 shows an example of keyword information KW stored in the keyword database 203. According to the figure, the keyword type information “genre” and the keywords from the first layer to the third layer belonging thereto, the keyword type information “recording start date and time” and the keywords of the first and second layers belonging thereto, Are hierarchically organized by the field data having the data structure shown in FIG.

  Returning to the description of the configuration of the home server 103 in FIG. The content database 204 stores content attribute information CA and content information CI. The content attribute information CA is information for managing various attributes of the content, and is associated with the content information CI on a one-to-one basis. FIG. 6 shows an example of the data structure of the content attribute information CA. As shown in the figure, the content attribute information CA includes a content identifier 61a for identifying content, a title 61b that is a content title name, supply source information 61c that is content supply source information, and a content genre. A genre code 61d indicating the recording start date and time of the content, a recording end date and time code 61f indicating the recording end date and time of the content, a supply count 61g that is the supply count of the content to the search terminal, and the content And a final supply date / time code 61h indicating the final supply date / time. The supply source information 61c can be, for example, a broadcast station identifier such as a broadcast station channel, or location information (URL: Uniform Resource Locator) of the content supply source. Further, in the example of the data structure of the keyword information KW shown in FIG. 4, the genre code 61d can be a hierarchy identifier 42a in the hierarchy field 42 of the lowest layer. The supply count 61g can be the number of times the content data is reproduced or downloaded to the search terminal. Furthermore, as the keyword type information, items other than the content identifier 61a of the content attribute information CA can be targeted. For example, as the keyword type information, “title”, “broadcast station channel”, “homepage URL”, “genre”, “recording start date”, “last supply date”, and the like can be used.

  FIG. 7 shows an example of the data structure of the content information CI. As shown in the figure, the content information CI has a content identifier 71a for identifying the content, and content data 71b that is a data body of the content. The content information CI and the content attribute information CA are associated by making the content identifier 71a of the content information CI and the content identifier 61a of the content attribute information CA the same identifier. The content data 71b can be various contents such as image / audio data, image data, audio data, text data, and the like. The image may be a moving image, a still image, or graphics. Further, the content data 71b may be subjected to compression processing or encryption processing.

  Next, the configuration of the network television 102 in FIG. 2 will be described. In the figure, the network television 102 includes a transmission / reception unit 231, an operation input unit 232, a search processing unit 233, and a display unit 234. The transmission / reception unit 231 is an interface for connecting the LAN 105. The transmission / reception unit 231 communicates IP packetized data between the network television 102 and the home server 103 connected to the LAN 105 or other network compatible devices. The operation input unit 232 receives a remote control transmission signal transmitted from the remote control device 109 by operating the operation key of the remote control device 109, extracts an operation key code for specifying the operated key, and sends it to the search processing unit 233. Supply. The search processing unit 233 performs a keyword information acquisition request and content data search request to the home server 103, and controls display of optimized keyword information and content data search results supplied from the home server 103. To do.

  The search processing unit 233 includes a search request processing unit 241 and a search result processing unit 242 in terms of its functions. The search request processing unit 241 supplies keyword type information and a keyword acquisition command to the home server 103, or displays a maximum keyword per page of the display area on the display screen of the display unit 234 in response to a request from the home server 103. The number is supplied, and the display of the optimized first hierarchy keyword supplied from the home server 103 on the display unit 234 is controlled. The search request processing unit 241 also executes processing for supplying designated keyword information and a search command to the home server 103. The search result processing unit 242 controls the display of the search result supplied from the home server 103 on the display unit 234.

  The display unit 234 displays a GUI menu screen and a content data playback screen under the display control of the search processing unit 233.

  Next, operations related to the content search function of the home server 103 and the network television 102 in the home network system 1 will be described. In the present embodiment, the home server 103 and the network television 102 perform processing described below by executing a control program installed in each device by a control unit such as a CPU.

  Processing relating to content search between the home server 103 and the network television 102 in the home network system 1 will be described with reference to the sequence diagram of FIG. As shown in the figure, the process between the home server 103 and the network television 102 can be divided into a keyword information optimization process and a search process. First, the keyword information optimization process will be described. The network television 102 connected to the home server 103 transmits the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command specified by the operation of the keyword type selection menu displayed on the display unit 234 to the home server 103, and the home server 103 This is received (S801). Next, the home server 103 transmits an acquisition request for the maximum number of keyword displays per page in the display area 234 of the network television 102 to the network television 102, and the network television 102 receives this request (S802). . The network television 102 transmits the preset maximum keyword display number to the home server 103, and the home server 103 receives this (S803). Next, the home server 103 optimizes the keyword information KW stored in the keyword database 203 based on the keyword type information acquired in step S801 and the maximum keyword display number received in step S803. Process. Then, the home server 103 transmits the first layer field 42, which is the highest layer belonging to the keyword type information, among the optimized keyword information KW to the network television 102, and the network television 102 receives these. (S804).

  Next, the search process will be described. The network television 102 connected to the home server 103 transmits designated keyword information indicating a keyword designated by the operation of the first hierarchical keyword menu displayed on the display unit 234 and a search command to the home server 103, The home server 103 receives these (S805). Next, the home server 103 searches for one or more pieces of content information CI based on the designated keyword information, and uses the content attribute information CA or the content information CI associated with the searched content information CI as a search result. The data is transmitted to the network television 102, and the network television 102 receives it (S806).

  Next, the details of the keyword information optimization processing will be described in particular for each processing of the home server 103 and the network television 102 in the home network system 1. First, the keyword information optimization process of the network television 102 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, the search request processing unit 241 of the network television 102 causes the display unit 234 to display a keyword type selection menu for selecting a keyword type used for searching content data (S901).

  FIG. 10 shows an example of a keyword type selection menu displayed on the display unit 234 by the search request processing unit 241 by the display control. As shown in the figure, the search request processing unit 241 generates a keyword type selection menu 1001 and displays it on the display unit 234. The keyword type selection menu 1001 includes a keyword type selection button 1010 for causing the operator to select a desired keyword type, a determination button 1020 for determining one selected keyword type selection button, and a keyword type selection menu 1001. Is canceled to end the menu display operation or return to the previous menu display, and a cursor 1040 for designating any button. The keyword type selection button 1010 in the figure includes a title selection button 1011, a broadcast station channel selection button 1012, a genre selection button 1013, and a recording start date / time selection button 1014.

  The search request processing unit 241 controls the selection operation of the keyword type selection menu 1001 based on the operation key code supplied from the operation input unit 232. That is, the search request processing unit 241 is displayed in a superimposed manner on any one button of the keyword type selection menu 1001 according to the operation key code supplied from the operation input unit 232 based on the operation of the direction instruction key of the remote control device 109. The cursor 1040 thus moved is sequentially moved to other buttons. In the keyword type selection menu 1001 of FIG. 10, the cursor 1040 shows a state where the genre selection button 1013 is selected. In this state, when the determination key of the remote control device 109 is pressed, the search request processing unit 241 receives the operation key code supplied from the operation input unit 232 based on the operation of the determination key of the remote control device 109, and the cursor 1040 is displayed. The designated genre selection button 1013 is confirmed. Then, the search request processing unit 241 designates the keyword type information “genre” held corresponding to the confirmed genre selection button 1013 (S902).

  Next, the search request processing unit 241 transmits the specified keyword type information “genre” and a keyword acquisition command to the home server 103 by the transmission / reception unit 231 (S903). Then, the search request processing unit 241 waits for the transmission / reception unit 231 to receive the acquisition request for the maximum number of keyword displays per page of the display area transmitted from the home server 103 (S904). When the search request processing unit 241 receives the acquisition request for the maximum keyword display number at the transmission / reception unit 231 (Yes in S904), the search request processing unit 241 transmits / receives the maximum keyword display number per page of the display area set in the search request processing unit 241 in advance. The unit 231 transmits to the home server 103 (S905). Next, the search request processing unit 241 waits for the transmission / reception unit 231 to receive the first layer field 42 in the keyword information KW transmitted from the home server 103 and optimized by the home server 103 (S906). . When the transmission / reception unit 231 receives the first hierarchy field 42 (Yes in S906), the search request processing unit 241 generates and displays a first hierarchy keyword menu based on the first hierarchy keyword 42b included in the first hierarchy field 42. This is displayed on the part 234 (S907). The processing in step S907 will be described in detail later.

  Next, the keyword information optimization process of the home server 103 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The optimization preprocessing unit 211 waits for the transmission / reception unit 201 to receive the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command transmitted from the network television 102 (S1101). When the pre-optimization processing unit 211 receives the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command by the transmission / reception unit 201 (S1101 Yes), the transmission / reception unit 201 sends an acquisition request for the maximum number of keyword displays per page of the display area to the network television 102. (S1102).

  Next, the pre-optimization processing unit 211 waits for the transmission / reception unit 201 to receive the maximum number of keyword displays per page of the display area transmitted from the network television 102 (S1103). When the transmission / reception unit 201 receives the maximum keyword display number (S1103 Yes), the pre-optimization processing unit 211 supplies the maximum keyword display number and the keyword type information received in the process of step S1102 to the optimization processing unit 212. To do. Then, the optimization processing unit 212 performs optimization processing on the keyword information KW stored in the keyword database 203 (S1104). The optimization processing by the optimization processing unit 212 will be described in detail later. Following this optimization processing, the optimization processing unit 212 transmits the first layer field 42 in the optimized keyword information KW to the network television 102 by the transmission / reception unit 201 (S1105).

  Next, a process in which the optimization processing unit 212 of the home server 103 optimizes the keyword information KW stored in the keyword database 203 based on the keyword type information and the maximum keyword display number per page of the display area. This will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In the present embodiment, a case will be described in which the keyword type information is “genre” and the maximum keyword display number per page of the display area is “8”. Further, the example shown in FIG. 3 is used for all keywords belonging to the keyword type information “genre” and the number of content data associated with each keyword stored in the keyword database 203. The keyword information KW corresponding to these is stored in the keyword database 203 by the data structure shown in FIG. 5 (upper part in the figure).

  The optimization processing unit 212 sets the number N of first-level keywords belonging to the specified keyword type information among the keyword information KW stored in the keyword database 203, that is, the keyword type 41 b in the keyword type field 41 is “genre”. The number of keywords in the first hierarchical field 42 belonging to the keyword type is counted and compared with the maximum keyword display number K (S1201). In the example of FIG. 3, the optimization processing unit 212 compares the number N of first-layer keywords N = 6 with the maximum keyword display number K = 8.

  When the number N of the first hierarchical keywords is smaller than the maximum keyword display number K (S1201 Yes), the optimization processing unit 212 determines that the number of content data associated with the keywords is the maximum from the N first hierarchical keywords. The keyword MAX that is is searched (S1202). The number of content data associated with each first hierarchy keyword can be obtained by the optimization processing unit 212 searching and counting the genre code 61d of the content attribute information CA stored in the content database 204. it can. In the case of the example in FIG. 3, the optimization processing unit 212 acquires “sports” in which the number of content data is 386 as the keyword MAX. Next, the optimization processing unit 212 searches for the keyword MAX2 having the maximum number of content data associated with the keyword from the second hierarchical keywords belonging to the keyword MAX in the same manner as the processing of step S1202 (S1203). ). In the case of the example in FIG. 3, the optimization processing unit 212 acquires “baseball” having 180 pieces of content data as the keyword MAX2.

  Next, the optimization processing unit 212 moves the keyword MAX2 in the second hierarchy keyword and all lower hierarchy keywords to the upper hierarchy one by one when there is a lower hierarchy belonging to the keyword MAX2 (S1204). The processing in step S1204 will be specifically described with reference to the hierarchical structure in FIG. 13 and the data structure of the keyword information KW in FIG. According to FIGS. 13 and 14, the optimization processing unit 212, “baseball” that is the keyword MAX2 shown in FIG. 13A, and “Nihon Professional Baseball” and “Major League” that are the third hierarchical keywords belonging to this keyword. Are moved to the first hierarchy and the second hierarchy as shown in FIG. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 14, the optimization processing unit 212 uses the seventh hierarchy field of the first hierarchy field, the hierarchy identifier 42a is “0, 6”, and the hierarchy keyword 42b is “baseball”. The hierarchical field 42 in which the intra-layer grouping data 42c is “0” is generated. The in-hierarchical grouping data 42c being “0” means that the keyword “baseball” is in the same group as the keyword “sports”. The optimization processing unit 212 then sets the hierarchy identifier 42a as “0, 6, 0”, the hierarchy keyword 42b as “Nippon Professional Baseball”, and the intra-tier grouping data 42c as “0” as the second hierarchy field. ”, A hierarchy field 42 is“ 0, 6, 1 ”, a hierarchy keyword 42 b is“ major league ”, and a group field 42 c is“ 1 ”. To do. Further, the optimization processing unit 212 updates the keyword information KW with the generated hierarchy field 42 and records it in the keyword database 203. Next, the optimization processing unit 212 uses the genre code 61d of the content attribute information CA associated with the content information CI corresponding to the keyword “Nippon Professional Baseball” or the keyword “Major League” as the hierarchical identifier 42a corresponding to each keyword. Update with data.

  Returning to the description of the flowchart of FIG. 12, the optimization processing unit 212 increments the number N of first-layer keywords by one, and proceeds to the processing of step S1201 (S1205). When the system is organized as shown in FIG. 13B, the optimization processing unit 212 sets the number N of first-layer keywords to N = 7, and proceeds to the process of step S1201.

  The process after the transition from the process of step S1205 to the process of step S1201 will be described with a specific example. The optimization processing unit 212 compares the number N of first-layer keywords N = 7 with the maximum keyword display number K = 8 in the state of FIG. 13B. Since it is determined by this comparison processing that the number N = 7 is smaller than the maximum keyword display number K = 8, the optimization processing unit 212 selects the content data associated with the keyword from the seven first level keywords. The keyword with the largest number of is retrieved, and “sports” with the number of content data of 206 is acquired as the keyword MAX. Next, the optimization processing unit 212 searches for a keyword having the maximum number of content data associated with the keyword from the second hierarchy keywords belonging to the keyword MAX, and the number of content data is 125 as the keyword MAX2. Get “Soccer”. Next, the optimization processing unit 212 moves “soccer”, which is the keyword MAX2 shown in FIG. 15A, to the first hierarchy as shown in FIG.

  That is, as illustrated in FIG. 16, the optimization processing unit 212 has the hierarchy identifier 42 a as “0, 7”, the hierarchy keyword 42 b as “soccer” as the eighth hierarchy field of the first hierarchy field, A hierarchical field 42 in which the intra-layer grouping data 42c is “0” is generated. The intra-tier grouping data 42c being “0” means that the keyword “soccer” is the same group as the keywords “sports” and “baseball”. Then, the optimization processing unit 212 updates the keyword information KW with the generated hierarchy field 42 and records it in the keyword database 203. Further, the optimization processing unit 212 updates the genre code 61d of the content attribute information CA associated with the content information CI corresponding to the keyword “soccer” with the data of the hierarchy identifier 42a. Next, the optimization processing unit 212 sets the number N of first hierarchy keywords to N = 8, and proceeds to the processing of step S1201.

  In the process of step S1201, when the number N of first-layer keywords is equal to or greater than the maximum keyword display number K (S1201 No), the first-layer field 42 is transmitted from the transmission / reception unit 201 to the network television 102 (S1206). . In the state of the hierarchical structure in FIG. 15B, since the number N of first-layer keyword information is the same as the maximum keyword display number K, the optimization processing unit 212 has the number N = 8 first numbers shown in FIG. The hierarchy field 42 is transmitted from the transmission / reception unit 201 to the network television 102.

  Next, the process of step S907 of the keyword information optimization process of the network television 102 illustrated in FIG. 9 will be described with reference to a specific display example. First, when the transmission / reception unit 231 of the network television 102 receives the first layer field 42 transmitted from the home server 103 by the processing in step S1206 described above, the transmission / reception unit 231 supplies this to the search request processing unit 241. Next, the search request processing unit 241 displays the hierarchical keyword 42 b on the display unit 234 based on the intra-layer grouping data 42 c in the first hierarchical field 42. That is, the search request processing unit 241 displays the display mode of the hierarchical keyword 42b of the field having the same in-layer grouping data 42c different from the display mode of the hierarchical keyword 42b of the other field. In this way, it becomes easy to visually recognize that the hierarchical keyword 42b of the field having the same grouped data 42c in the hierarchy is the keyword of the same group.

  Specifically, when the network television 102 receives the first hierarchical field 42 shown in FIG. 16, the search request processing unit 241 displays the keywords “sports”, “baseball”, and “soccer” in the display of the hierarchical keywords 42b. Is displayed on the display unit 234 in a manner different from that of the other five keywords. For example, as in the first hierarchy keyword menu 1701 shown in FIG. 17, the display colors and display patterns of the keyword selection buttons 1711 to 1713 for the keywords “sports”, “baseball”, and “soccer” are changed to other keyword selection buttons 1714. It is displayed differently from that of -1718. As another display mode, a background area 1820 in a range including keyword selection buttons 1811-1813 for the keywords “sports”, “baseball”, and “soccer” as in the first hierarchy keyword menu 1801 shown in FIG. May be provided to distinguish from other keyword selection buttons. Furthermore, various display distinctions can be applied, such as distinction by character font, distinction by the shape of the button itself, or distinction by changing the arrangement position in the button arrangement.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, based on the keyword type information specified by the network television 102, the content server 103 optimizes the keyword information of the hierarchical structure, and the first hierarchical keyword is extracted from the network information. Supplied to the television 102. Then, the network television 102 displays a first hierarchy keyword menu including operation buttons associated with the supplied first hierarchy keyword. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, the number of page turning operations by the operator can be reduced, and content data can be searched efficiently.

[Second Embodiment]
The home network system to which the second embodiment of the present invention is applied can be realized with a configuration similar to the configuration shown in FIG. The home server in this embodiment is different from the home server 103 in the first embodiment in the operations of the pre-optimization processing unit 211 and the optimization processing unit 212. And the network television in this embodiment differs in the operation | movement of the search request process part 241 in the network television 102 in 1st Embodiment. Hereinafter, in the description of the present embodiment, configurations and operations different from those of the first embodiment will be described in detail, and descriptions of the same parts will be omitted.

  FIG. 19 shows a schematic functional configuration diagram of the home server and the network television in the present embodiment. In the figure, the home server 103a includes a search processing unit 202a. The search processing unit 202a includes a pre-optimization processing unit 211a, an optimization processing unit 212a, and a search execution unit 213 in terms of its functions. The pre-optimization processing unit 211a requests and acquires the maximum number of keyword displays per page of the display area of the display screen and the maximum number of search result displays per page of the display area from the network television 102a. The optimization processing unit 212a stores the keyword type information and keyword acquisition command supplied from the network television 102a, the maximum keyword display number acquired by the pre-optimization processing unit 211a, and the maximum search result display number in the keyword database 203. Optimize stored keyword information. Then, the optimization processing unit 212a supplies the first-layer keyword among the optimized keyword information to the network television 102a. Since the search execution unit 213 is the same as that described in the first embodiment, a description thereof is omitted here.

  FIG. 20 shows an example of a hierarchical structure of the keyword information KW composed of the keyword type information “recording start date and time” and the first and second hierarchy keywords belonging to the keyword type information. Based on this example, as shown in FIG. 5, the keyword type information “recording start date and time” and the first and second hierarchy keywords belonging thereto are hierarchically represented by the field data of the data structure shown in FIG. And stored in the keyword database 203.

  In FIG. 19, the network television 102a includes a search processing unit 233a. The search processing unit 233a includes a search request processing unit 241a and a search result processing unit 242 in terms of its functions. The search request processing unit 241a supplies keyword type information and a keyword acquisition command to the home server 103a, or displays a maximum keyword per page of the display area on the display screen of the display unit 234 in response to a request from the home server 103a. The number and the maximum search result display number per page of the display area are supplied, or the display of the optimized first hierarchy keyword supplied from the home server 103a on the display unit 234 is controlled. In addition, the search request processing unit 241a also executes processing for supplying designated keyword information and a search command to the home server 103a. Since the search result processing unit 242 is the same as that described in the first embodiment, the description thereof is omitted here.

  Next, operations of the home server 103a and the network television 102a will be described. In the present embodiment, the home server 103a and the network television 102a perform processing described below by executing a control program installed in each device by a control unit such as a CPU.

  Processing relating to content search between the home server 103a and the network television 102a will be described with reference to the sequence diagram of FIG. As shown in the figure, the processing between the home server 103a and the network television 102a can be divided into keyword information optimization processing and search processing. The keyword information optimization process will be described. The network television 102a connected to the home server 103a transmits the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command specified by the operation of the keyword type selection menu displayed on the display unit 234 to the home server 103a, and the home server 103a This is received (S2101). Next, the home server 103a transmits to the network television 102a an acquisition request for the maximum keyword display number per page of the display area and the maximum search result display number per page of the display area on the display unit 234 of the network television 102a. The network television 102a receives this (S2102). The network television 102a transmits a preset maximum keyword display number and maximum search result display number to the home server 103a, and the home server 103a receives them (S2103). Next, the home server 103a is stored in the keyword database 203 based on the keyword type information acquired in step S2101, the maximum keyword display number received in step S2103, and the maximum search result display number. The keyword information KW is optimized. Then, the home server 103a transmits the first layer field 42, which is the highest layer belonging to the keyword type information, among the optimized keyword information KW to the network television 102a, and the network television 102a receives these. (S2104). The search process is the same as that described in the first embodiment, and a description thereof is omitted here.

  Next, the details of the keyword information optimization process will be described in particular for each process of the home server 103a and the network television 102a. First, the keyword information optimization process of the network television 102a will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. First, the search request processing unit 241a of the network television 102a displays on the display unit 234 a keyword type selection menu for selecting a keyword type used for searching content data (S2201).

  FIG. 23 shows an example of a keyword type selection menu displayed on the display unit 234 by the search request processing unit 241a by the display control. As shown in the figure, the search request processing unit 241 a generates a keyword type selection menu 2301 and displays it on the display unit 234. The keyword type selection menu 2301 is the same as the keyword type selection menu 1001 shown in FIG. 10 described in the first embodiment. However, in the keyword type selection menu 2301 shown in FIG. Shows the state of selecting. In this state, when the determination key of the remote control device 109 is pressed, the search request processing unit 241a receives the operation key code supplied from the operation input unit 232 based on the operation of the determination key of the remote control device 109, and the cursor 2340 is displayed. The designated recording start date / time selection button 2314 is confirmed. Then, the search request processing unit 241a designates the keyword type information “recording start date and time” held corresponding to the confirmed recording start date and time selection button 2314 (S2202).

  Next, the search request processing unit 241a transmits the specified keyword type information “recording start date and time” and a keyword acquisition command to the home server 103a by the transmission / reception unit 231 (S2203). Then, the search request processing unit 241a receives the acquisition request of the maximum keyword display number per display area page and the maximum search result display number per display area page transmitted from the home server 103a by the transmission / reception unit 231. (S2204). When the search request processing unit 241a receives an acquisition request for the maximum keyword display number and the maximum search result display number in the transmission / reception unit 231 (Yes in S2204), the search request processing unit 241a per display area per page set in the search request processing unit 241a in advance. The maximum keyword display count and the maximum search result display count per page in the display area are transmitted to the home server 103a by the transmission / reception unit 231 (S2305). Next, the search request processing unit 241a waits for the transmission / reception unit 231 to receive the first layer field 42 of the keyword information KW transmitted from the home server 103a and optimized by the home server 103a (S2206). . When the transmission / reception unit 231 receives the first hierarchy field 42 (S2206 Yes), the search request processing unit 241a generates and displays a first hierarchy keyword menu based on the first hierarchy keyword 42b included in the first hierarchy field 42. This is displayed on the part 234 (S2207).

  Next, the keyword information optimization process of the home server 103a will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The pre-optimization processing unit 211a waits for the transmission / reception unit 201 to receive the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command transmitted from the network television 102a (S2401). When the pre-optimization processing unit 211a receives the keyword type information and the keyword acquisition command by the transmission / reception unit 201 (Yes in S2401), the maximum keyword display number per display area page and the maximum search result display number per display area page And the transmission / reception unit 201 transmits the acquisition request to the network television 102a (S2402).

  Next, the pre-optimization processing unit 211a receives the maximum keyword display number per display area page and the maximum search result display number per display area page transmitted from the network television 102a by the transmission / reception unit 201. (S2403). When the pre-optimization processing unit 211a receives the maximum keyword display number and the maximum search result display number in the transmission / reception unit 201 (Yes in S2403), the maximum keyword display number, the maximum search result display number, and the process of step S2402 The received keyword type information is supplied to the optimization processing unit 212a. Then, the optimization processing unit 212a performs an optimization process on the keyword information KW stored in the keyword database 203 (S2404). The optimization processing by the optimization processing unit 212a will be described in detail later. Following this optimization processing, the optimization processing unit 212a transmits the first layer field 42 of the optimized keyword information KW to the network television 102a by the transmission / reception unit 201 (S2405).

  Next, the optimization processing unit 212a of the home server 103a stores the keyword database 203 based on the keyword type information, the maximum keyword display number per display area page, and the maximum search result display number per page display area. A process for optimizing the stored keyword information KW will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. In the present embodiment, the keyword type information is “recording start date / time”, the maximum keyword display number per page of the display area is “8”, and the maximum search result display number per page of the display area is “ The case of “40” will be described. Further, the example shown in FIG. 20 is used for all keywords belonging to the keyword type information “recording start date and time” stored in the keyword database 203 and the number of content data associated with each keyword. . It is assumed that the keyword information KW corresponding to these is stored in the keyword database 203 by the data structure shown in FIG. 5 (lower part in the figure).

  The optimization processing unit 212a sets the number N of the first hierarchy keywords belonging to the specified keyword type information among the keyword information KW stored in the keyword database 203, that is, the keyword type 41b of the keyword type field 41 is “recording start”. The number of keywords in the first layer field 42 belonging to the keyword type “date and time” is counted and compared with the maximum keyword display number K (S2501). In the case of the example of FIG. 20, the optimization processing unit 212a compares the number N of first-layer keywords N = 6 with the maximum keyword display number K = 8.

  When the number N of the first hierarchical keywords is smaller than the maximum keyword display number K (S2501 Yes), the optimization processing unit 212a has the smallest number of content data associated with the keywords from the N first hierarchical keywords. The keyword MIN is searched (S2502). The number of content data associated with each first hierarchical keyword is acquired by the optimization processing unit 212a searching and recording the recording start date / time code 61e of the content attribute information CA stored in the content database 204. be able to. In the case of the example in FIG. 20, the optimization processing unit 212a acquires “2004” in which the number of content data is 10, as the keyword MIN.

  Next, the optimization processing unit 212a searches for the keyword MG to be merged with the keyword MIN based on the maximum search result display number L (S2503). The process of step S2503 can be a process like the flowchart shown in FIG. For example, as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 10A, it is determined whether or not the number Mmin of content data associated with the keyword MIN is smaller than L / 2, which is half the maximum search result display number L ( S2601). If the determination result is true (S2601 Yes), the content data of the number Mi such that the sum of the content data number Mmin associated with the keyword MIN is equal to or less than the maximum search result display number L is associated. It is determined whether there is a specified keyword (S2602). If the determination result is true (S2602 Yes), the keyword is selected as the keyword MG (S2603). On the other hand, when the determination result is false in the process of step S2601 (S2601 No) or when the determination result is false in the process of step S2602 (S2602 No), the process proceeds to the process illustrated in the flowchart of FIG. In the case of the example of FIG. 20, since the number Mmin is 10, the optimization processing unit 212a sets the determination result of the process in step S2601 to be true, and the number Mi corresponds to 25 corresponding to the keyword “2003”. , “2003” is selected as the keyword MG.

  Further, another example of the process of step S2503 will be shown. As shown in the flowchart of FIG. 26B, the keyword MIN2 having the next smallest number of content data associated with the keyword Mmin is searched from the N first hierarchical keywords (S2611). Next, it is determined whether or not the sum of the number of content data Mmin associated with the keyword MIN and the number of content data Mmin2 associated with the keyword MIN2 is equal to or less than the maximum search result display number L (see FIG. S2612). If the determination result is true (S2612 Yes), the keyword MIN2 is selected as the keyword MG (S2613). On the other hand, when the determination result is false in the process of step S2612 (No in S2612), the process proceeds to the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. In the case of the example of FIG. 20, the optimization processing unit 212a acquires “2003” as the keyword MIN2, and the number Mmin is 10 and the number Mmin2 is 25. Therefore, the determination result of the process of step S2612 is true. Thus, “2003” of the keyword MIN2 is selected as the keyword MG.

  Returning to the flowchart of FIG. When the keyword MG to be merged with the keyword MIN is searched based on the maximum search result display number L in the process of step S2503 (S2503 Yes), the optimization processing unit 212a performs the merge process of the keyword MIN and the keyword MG. This is performed (S2504). With reference to the hierarchical structure in FIG. 27 and the data structure of the keyword information KW in FIG. 28, the processing in step S2504 will be specifically described. According to FIGS. 27 and 28, the optimization processing unit 212a changes the keyword MIN “2004” and the keyword MG “2003” shown in FIG. Merge process as shown. Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 28, the optimization processing unit 212a, as the fifth hierarchical field of the first hierarchical field, has a hierarchical identifier 42a of “1, 4” and a hierarchical keyword 42b of “2004. , 2003 ”, and the hierarchical field 42 in which the intra-layer grouping data 42c is“ 4 ”is generated. Then, the optimization processing unit 212a, as the sixth hierarchical field of the first hierarchical field, has the hierarchical identifier 42a of “1, 5”, the hierarchical keyword 42b of “2004, 2003”, A hierarchical field 42 having the digitized data 42c of “4” is generated. Further, the optimization processing unit 212 a updates the keyword information KW with the generated hierarchy field 42 and records it in the keyword database 203. In this manner, the keyword MIN and the keyword MG are merged by connecting words using symbols such as “,” and “+” and characters such as “to”.

  Returning to the description of the flowchart of FIG. 25, the optimization processing unit 212a decrements the number N of the first hierarchy keywords by 1, and proceeds to the processing of step S2502 (S2505). That is, according to the processing in step S2505, it means that the keyword obtained by merging the keyword MIN and the keyword MG is counted as one keyword. When systematized as shown in FIG. 27B, the optimization processing unit 212a sets the number N of the first hierarchy keyword information to N = 5, and proceeds to the process of step S2502.

  In the processing of step S2503, when the optimization processing unit 212a cannot search for the keyword MG to be merged with the keyword MIN based on the maximum search result display number L (No in S2503), the optimization processing unit 212a The process proceeds to the process of the flowchart of FIG. 12 described in the first embodiment, and the optimization process is executed.

  The process of FIG. 12 in the present embodiment will be described with a specific example. The optimization processing unit 212a compares the number N of first-layer keywords N = 5 with the maximum keyword display number K = 8 in the state of FIG. 27B. Since it is determined by this comparison processing that the number N = 5 is smaller than the maximum keyword display number K = 8, the optimization processing unit 212a selects the content data associated with the keyword from the five first hierarchical keywords. The keyword with the largest number of items is searched, and “2007” with the number of content data items of 326 is acquired as the keyword MAX. Next, the optimization processing unit 212a searches the second hierarchical keyword belonging to the keyword MAX for the keyword having the maximum number of content data associated with the keyword, and the number of content data is 128 as the keyword MAX2. “September to December” is acquired. Next, the optimization processing unit 212 moves “September to December”, which is the keyword MAX2 shown in FIG. 29A, to the first hierarchy as shown in FIG.

  That is, as illustrated in FIG. 30, the optimization processing unit 212a has a hierarchy identifier 42a of “1, 6” and a hierarchy keyword 42b of “9 to 12” as the sixth type of hierarchy field of the first hierarchy field. The hierarchy field 42 is generated, which is “month” and the grouping data 42c within the hierarchy is “1”. The intra-tier grouping data 42c being “1” means that the keyword “September to December” is the same group as the keyword “2007”. Then, the optimization processing unit 212 a updates the keyword information KW with the generated hierarchy field 42 and records it in the keyword database 203. Further, the optimization processing unit 212a updates the recording start date / time code 61e of the content attribute information CA associated with the content information CI corresponding to the keyword “September to December” with the data of the hierarchy identifier 42a. Next, the optimization processing unit 212 sets the number N of first hierarchy keywords to N = 6, and proceeds to the process of step S1201. Subsequent processing is the same as that described with reference to FIG. 12 in the first embodiment, and thus description thereof is omitted here.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, based on the keyword specified by the network television 102a, the content server 103a optimizes the keyword information of the hierarchical structure, and the first hierarchical keyword is selected from among the keyword information. To supply. Then, the network television 102a displays a first hierarchy keyword menu including operation buttons associated with the supplied first hierarchy keyword. Therefore, according to the second embodiment, the number of page turning operations by the operator can be reduced, and content data can be searched efficiently.

  In particular, according to the second embodiment, when there are a plurality of pieces of content data associated with keywords that are smaller than the maximum number of search results displayed in one page of the display area of the display unit 234, the content server 103a Can connect keywords corresponding to them. Therefore, according to the second embodiment, it is possible to provide an efficient first-level keyword menu that can reduce the number of page turning operations performed by the operator, thereby enabling more efficient retrieval of content data. Can be made.

  In the first and second embodiments, the network televisions 102 and 102a supply the keyword type information to the home servers 103 and 103a, and the home servers 103 and 103a optimize the keyword information belonging to the keyword type information. The example in which the first hierarchy field 42 is supplied to the network televisions 102 and 102a has been described. As another embodiment, the network television supplies a specific basic keyword to the home server, the home server optimizes lower layer keyword information belonging to the basic keyword, and supplies the lower layer field belonging to the basic keyword to the network television. You can also Therefore, the keyword type information that is the highest level of the keyword information may be regarded as the basic keyword of the highest hierarchy.

  In the first and second embodiments, the content data search process in the home server and the network television has been described as an example. For example, each embodiment is applied to the computer 110 connected to the Internet 107 in FIG. The home server function may be provided. Furthermore, the technical idea of the present invention can be applied to a system that searches content data stored in a content server on a network from a mobile terminal.

  The present invention is useful for a search system in which a content server and a search terminal are connected via a network and a content stored in the content server is searched by specifying a keyword from the search terminal.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a home network system to which a first embodiment of the present invention is applied. It is a function block diagram of the part which concerns on the content search function of the home server and network television in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is an example of the hierarchical structure of the keyword information comprised by keyword type information "genre" and the keyword from the 1st hierarchy to the 3rd hierarchy which belongs to this. It is an example of the data structure of keyword information. It is an example of the keyword information stored in a keyword database. It is an example of the data structure of content attribute information. It is an example of the data structure of content information. It is a sequence diagram for demonstrating the process which concerns on a content search between the home server and network television in the home network system to which the 1st Embodiment of this invention is applied. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the keyword information optimization process of the network television in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is an example of the keyword kind selection menu displayed on a display part in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the keyword information optimization process of the home server in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the keyword information optimization process of the home server in the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is an example of the hierarchical structure of the keyword which belongs to keyword kind information "genre". It is an example of the data structure of the keyword information corresponding to the hierarchical structure of FIG.13 (b). It is an example of the hierarchical structure of the keyword which belongs to keyword kind information "genre". It is an example of the data structure of the keyword information corresponding to the hierarchical structure of FIG.15 (b). It is an example of a 1st hierarchy keyword menu. It is another example of a 1st hierarchy keyword menu. It is a function block diagram of the outline of the home server and network television in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is an example of keyword information composed of keyword type information “recording start date and time” and keywords of the first and second layers belonging thereto. It is a sequence diagram for demonstrating the rough process between the home server and network television in the home network system to which the 2nd Embodiment of this invention is applied. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the keyword information optimization process of the network television in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is an example of the keyword kind selection menu displayed on a display part in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the keyword information optimization process of the home server in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the keyword information optimization process of the home server in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the merge process in the keyword information optimization process of the home server in the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is an example of the hierarchical structure of the keywords belonging to the keyword type information “recording start date and time”. It is an example of the data structure of the keyword information corresponding to the hierarchical structure of FIG.27 (b). It is an example of a hierarchical structure of keywords belonging to keyword type information “recording start date and time”. It is an example of the data structure of the keyword information corresponding to the hierarchical structure of FIG.29 (b).

Explanation of symbols

1 Home network 101, 102, 102a Network television 103, 103a Home server 104, 110 Computer 105 LAN
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 106 Router 107 Internet 108 Antenna 109 Remote control device 201,231 Transmission / reception unit 202,202a, 233,233a Search processing unit 211,211a Pre-optimization processing unit 212,212a Optimization processing unit 213 Search execution unit 203 Keyword database 204 Content database 232 Operation input unit 234 Display unit 241, 241a Search request processing unit 242 Search result processing unit

Claims (8)

In a search system in which a search terminal supplies a search keyword to a content server, the content server searches a content database based on the search keyword, and supplies a search result to the search terminal.
The content server
Keyword information storage means for storing keyword information in which a plurality of keywords associated with each of a plurality of content data stored in the content database are hierarchically configured;
Request means for requesting the search terminal a maximum keyword display number per page of the display area in the search terminal;
Based on the basic keyword and the maximum keyword display number supplied from the search terminal, the keyword information stored in the keyword information storage means is displayed based on the number of keywords in the lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword. Optimized keyword information generating means for generating optimized keyword information by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number is less than or equal to,
Of the optimized keyword information, an optimized keyword supply means for supplying, as an optimized keyword, a lower-level keyword belonging to the basic keyword to the search terminal;
With
The search terminal
Basic keyword supply means for supplying basic keywords to the content server;
In response to a request from the content server, supply means for supplying the content server with a maximum keyword display number per page of a display area provided in advance,
Based on the optimized keyword supplied from the content server, a menu for generating a keyword selection menu in which the optimized keyword can be selected by setting the maximum keyword display number to the display number per page of the display area Generating means;
Menu display means for displaying the generated keyword selection menu;
Search keyword determination means for operating the displayed keyword selection menu to determine a search keyword;
A search system characterized by comprising: The content server
The request means requests the search terminal for a maximum keyword display number per display area page and a maximum search result display number per display area page in the search terminal;
Based on the basic keyword, the maximum keyword display number, and the maximum search result display number supplied from the search terminal, the optimized keyword information generation unit, the keyword information stored in the keyword information storage unit, The lower level keywords are merged so that the number of content data corresponding to each of the lower level keywords belonging to the basic keyword is less than or equal to the maximum search result display number, and the lower level belonging to the basic keyword after the merge processing The search system according to claim 1, wherein the optimized keyword information is generated by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number of keywords in the hierarchy is equal to or less than the maximum keyword display number. The content server
The optimization keyword information generation means selects a keyword having the maximum number of content data corresponding to each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the basic keyword, and corresponds to each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the keyword. Optimized keyword information is generated by changing the hierarchical structure so that the keyword, which is the maximum number of content data, and the keywords of all lower layers belonging to this keyword are moved to the upper layer one by one. The search system according to claim 1, wherein the search system is configured as described above. The content server
When the optimization keyword information generation unit changes the hierarchy configuration so that the number of keywords in the lower hierarchy is equal to or less than the maximum keyword display number, the grouping information in the hierarchy is associated with each keyword in the same hierarchy. Generate optimized keyword information,
The optimized keyword supply means supplies a keyword in a lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword and the grouping information in the hierarchy of the hierarchy to the search terminal as an optimized hierarchy field among the optimized keyword information. West,
The search terminal
Based on the post-optimization hierarchical field supplied from the content server, the menu generation means sets the maximum keyword display number as the display number per page of the display area, and the grouping information within the hierarchy of the post-optimization field The search system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a keyword selection menu is generated in such a manner that a keyword in the post-optimization field can be selected in a display mode based on the method. In the content server that searches the content database based on the search keyword supplied from the search terminal and supplies the search result to the search terminal,
Keyword information storage means for storing keyword information in which a plurality of keywords associated with each of a plurality of content data stored in the content database are hierarchically configured;
Based on the basic keyword supplied from the search terminal and the maximum number of keyword displays per page in the search terminal, the keyword information stored in the keyword information storage means is converted into a lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword. An optimized keyword information generating means for generating optimized keyword information by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number of keywords is less than or equal to the maximum keyword display number;
Of the optimized keyword information, an optimized keyword supply means for supplying, as an optimized keyword, a lower-level keyword belonging to the basic keyword to the search terminal;
A content server comprising: The optimized keyword information generating means stores the keyword information based on the basic keyword supplied from the search terminal, the maximum keyword display number, and the maximum search result display number per page of the display area in the search terminal. The keyword information stored in the means is merged with the lower-layer keywords so that the number of content data corresponding to each of the lower-layer keywords belonging to the basic keyword is less than or equal to the maximum search result display number. 5. The optimized keyword information is generated by changing the hierarchical structure so that the number of lower-level keywords belonging to the basic keyword after processing is less than or equal to the maximum keyword display number. Content server. The optimization keyword information generation means selects a keyword having the maximum number of content data corresponding to each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the basic keyword, and corresponds to each of the lower-level keywords belonging to the keyword. Optimized keyword information is generated by changing the hierarchical structure so that the keyword, which is the maximum number of content data, and the keywords of all lower layers belonging to this keyword are moved to the upper layer one by one. The content server according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the content server is configured as described above. When the optimization keyword information generation unit changes the hierarchy configuration so that the number of keywords in the lower hierarchy is equal to or less than the maximum keyword display number, the grouping information in the hierarchy is associated with each keyword in the same hierarchy. Generate optimized keyword information,
The optimized keyword supply means supplies a keyword in a lower hierarchy belonging to the basic keyword and the grouping information in the hierarchy of the hierarchy to the search terminal as an optimized hierarchy field among the optimized keyword information. The content server according to any one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that:

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