JP2011160120A - Television receiving device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a television receiving device, capable of achieving a listener-friendly sound by a simple operation. <P>SOLUTION: A television receiving device 100 includes a speaker 13 for output of sound, a sound setting memory 15 which stores a plurality of sound settings, a sound setting selection unit 20 which selects a single sound setting from among a plurality of sound settings, a sound control unit 14 which applies a sound setting to the sound output from the speaker 13, and a sound setting change part 21 for reflecting such sound setting as upon completion of viewing with the selected sound setting on a sound setting of the sound setting memory 15. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a television apparatus, and more particularly to a television apparatus provided with a storage medium for storing setting values related to sound.

  In Patent Document 1, a volume setting table created for each user in association with surrounding sound pressure levels and volumes is stored in a memory, and the volume at power-on is determined based on the volume setting table. Is described.

  In Patent Document 2, the settings (screen settings, audio settings, etc.) made when the user starts use are transferred and stored in the storage unit at the time of setting or at the end of use of the device, and then the user uses the device. It is described that when resuming, a user is identified and a setting corresponding to the user is read from the storage unit and applied.

  In Patent Document 3, a set value group of each of a plurality of users is registered in advance in a register, and when an operator presses any control key, the quality of output content such as volume, It describes the adjustment of image quality and sound quality.

  In Patent Document 4, when the user turns on the power, the sound signal processing circuit is set according to the setting in the standard state and the power is turned on, and then the user operates the operator for his / her own two digits. It is described that when a number is input, the state at the time of program viewing using the two-digit number is reproduced from the contents of the corresponding state recording memory.

JP 2009-118033 A JP 2007-312055 A JP 2005-252577 A JP 2002-345073 A

  In the technology described above, if the user registers in advance an appropriate sound setting that suits his / her preference, the sound setting can be called and applied to the apparatus. However, the sound that is easy to hear for the user changes depending on various factors such as the user's feelings and environment, physical condition, viewing time zone, type of program being watched, etc. The volume is changed relatively frequently. In addition, the user may turn off the power while leaving the seat for commercials or for some reason, and may return in a short time to resume watching the program. Such a situation has not been sufficiently solved by the above-described invention, and further ingenuity has been awaited.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a television device capable of realizing a user-friendly sound with a simple operation.

  In order to solve the above problems, a television device according to the present invention includes a speaker that outputs sound, a sound setting storage unit that stores a plurality of sound settings, and a sound that selects one sound setting from the plurality of sound settings. A setting selection unit; a sound control unit that applies the sound setting to the sound output from the speaker; and a sound setting at the end of viewing performed by selecting the sound setting is set in the sound setting storage unit. And a sound setting change unit to be reflected in the configuration. According to this configuration, since the sound setting when each user has recently viewed can be reproduced, there is a high possibility that the sound will be most easily heard by the user.

  In addition, as a selective aspect of the present invention, a history storage unit that stores usage history of each user is further provided, and the sound control unit is configured to output sound settings to the speaker according to the user usage history. You may make it apply. According to this configuration, since sound setting is performed based on past user usage history, sound setting that statistically appropriately reflects the user's preference is performed.

  Further, as a selective aspect of the present invention, a timer unit that outputs time information is further provided, the history storage unit stores a use history in each time zone, and the sound control unit includes the timer unit. The sound setting corresponding to the use history corresponding to the time zone to which the time information to be output belongs may be applied to the sound output to the speaker. According to this configuration, the optimum sound setting can be applied for each time zone.

  Further, as a selective aspect of the present invention, when the time zone to which the time information output from the timer unit belongs changes during viewing, the sound control unit sets the sound according to the use history of the previous time zone. Alternatively, the sound setting may be gradually changed to the sound setting corresponding to the use history in the current time zone. According to this configuration, when the surrounding environment changes due to long-time viewing or the like, the optimum sound setting is automatically applied for that time zone. At this time, by gradually changing the sound setting, it is possible to avoid giving a sense of incongruity to the viewing user or the surrounding people.

  Further, as an optional aspect of the present invention, an EPG acquisition unit that acquires an EPG (Electronic Program Guide) is further provided, and the history storage unit specifies the type of the viewed program based on the EPG, and the program The use history for each type is stored, and the sound control unit specifies the type of the program being viewed based on the EPG, and sets the sound setting corresponding to the use history of the specified program type to the speaker. You may make it apply to the sound output of. According to this configuration, the optimum sound setting that reflects the user's preference according to the program type is applied.

  Further, as a selective aspect of the present invention, when the sound setting is selected by the sound setting selection unit, the sound control unit gradually changes the sound setting from the current sound setting to the selected sound setting. You may make it let me. According to this configuration, it is not necessary to give a sense of incongruity to the user or the surrounding people.

  Further, as a selective aspect of the present invention, the sound setting change unit gradually sets the sound from the current sound setting to the selected sound setting when the sound setting is selected by the sound setting selection unit. It may be possible to set whether or not to change. Some users may not like the setting to be changed gradually, so that such users can be handled.

  Further, as a selective aspect of the present invention, the sound setting change unit reflects the sound setting at the end of viewing performed by selecting the sound setting in the sound setting of the sound setting storage unit, It may be possible to select whether to apply sound settings according to the usage history to sound output to the speaker. According to this configuration, usability is improved because the user can select how to apply the sound settings.

  Further, as a selective aspect of the present invention, a video display specifying unit that specifies the type of video display is further provided, and the history storage unit stores a use history for each type of video display specified by the video display specifying unit. The sound control unit may store the sound setting corresponding to the usage history corresponding to the type of video display of the program being viewed for sound output to the speaker. According to this configuration, optimal sound setting is performed according to the video display mode.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to reproduce a sound setting when each user has recently viewed, and thus to provide a television device capable of realizing a user-friendly sound with a simple operation. Can do.
According to the invention of claim 2, it is possible to perform sound setting that appropriately reflects the user's preference statistically.
According to the invention of claim 3, it is possible to apply an optimum sound setting for each time zone.
According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when the surrounding environment changes due to long-time viewing or the like, the optimum sound setting is automatically applied for that time zone. At this time, by gradually changing the sound setting, it is possible to avoid giving a sense of incongruity to the viewing user or the surrounding people.
According to the fifth aspect of the invention, the optimum sound setting reflecting the user's preference according to the program type is applied.
According to the invention of claim 6, it is not necessary to give a sense of incongruity to the user or surrounding people.
Moreover, according to the invention concerning Claim 7, it can respond also to the user who does not like a setting being changed gradually.
According to the invention of claim 8, usability is improved because the user can select how to apply the sound setting.
According to the ninth aspect of the invention, optimal sound setting is performed according to the video display mode.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a television apparatus. It is an example of a remote control. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a sound control process. It is an example of a user selection screen. It is a figure which shows an example of log | history information.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order.
(1) Configuration of the present embodiment:
(2) Sound control processing:
(3) Summary:

(1) Configuration of the present embodiment:
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a television apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the television device 100 includes an operation unit 11 including a remote control and a remote control reception unit that receives a remote control signal of the remote control and converts it into a control signal, and an image based on the input video signal. A sound setting memory composed of a non-volatile storage medium, a display unit 12 for displaying sound, a speaker 13 for outputting sound based on the input audio signal, a sound control unit 14 for controlling sound output to the speaker Unit 15, history storage unit 16 composed of a non-volatile storage medium, timer unit 17 that outputs current time information, EPG acquisition unit 18 that acquires an EPG (Electronic Program Guide) from the Internet, A video display specifying unit 19 that specifies the type of video display from the aspect ratio and the like, and any one of the sound settings stored in the sound setting storage unit 15 are selected and stored in the sound control unit. A sound setting selection unit 20 to be used, a sound setting change unit 21 that changes a setting related to sound settings stored in a non-volatile storage medium, and a history information creation unit 22 that creates a viewing history related to a user's viewing status. It has a corresponding function.

  The operation unit may be configured with an operation panel or the like. The video displayed on the display unit 12 may be based on a television broadcast signal received via an antenna or a tuner, or may be based on a video signal input from an external input terminal. However, it may be based on various content data acquired from the Internet. Also, the sound output to the speaker 13 may be based on a television broadcast signal received via an antenna or a tuner, or may be based on an audio signal input from an external input terminal. It may be based on various content data acquired from the Internet. That is, the source of video and audio can be changed variously. In addition, the sound setting storage unit 15 and the history storage unit 16 may be configured with the same storage medium or different storage media.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of a remote controller as the operation unit 11. The remote control shown in the figure has a general remote control button configuration, and mainly includes a power button 11a, a plurality of channel buttons 11b, an EPG button 11c, a channel up button 11d, a channel down button 11e, a volume up button 11f, A volume down button 11g, a sound setting button 11h, a cursor movement button 11j, an enter button 11k, and the like are provided.

(2) Sound control processing:
Next, the sound control process executed by the above configuration will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the flow of the sound control process. The process shown in the figure starts when the power of the television apparatus 100 is turned on, and ends when the power of the television apparatus 100 is turned off.

  When the power of the television apparatus 100 is turned on, for example, when the power button 11a of the operation unit 11 is pushed down, the processing is started. For example, an image is displayed on the display unit 12 based on television broadcasting or the like, and the speaker 13 Since the sound is output from the user, the user starts viewing video and audio (step S100). Here, when the user is confirmed by performing user confirmation (step S105), sound settings that are easy to hear for the user are applied (steps S110, S125, and S115).

  For example, in step S105, the screen of FIG. 4 is displayed. FIG. 4 is an example of a user selection screen, in which a list of user names registered for the television apparatus 100 is displayed. The user specifies the user by operating the cursor movement button 11j of the operation unit 11 to select his / her user name and pressing the enter button 11k. In step S110, it is determined whether the user has selected the sound setting based on the last information or the sound setting based on the history information.

  In the sound setting storage unit 15, a setting value indicating which of these setting methods is desired is set and stored in advance by the user, and the determination in step S110 can be made by referring to this setting value. Of course, a selection screen for selecting a setting method may be displayed in step S110 to allow the user to make a selection.

  When the last information is selected in step S110, the sound control unit 14 acquires and selects the sound setting associated with the user from the plurality of sound settings stored in the sound setting storage unit 15. The set sound is applied to the sound output to the speaker 13 (step S115). The sound control unit 14 amplifies a sound signal output to the speaker 13 or creates a plurality of sound signals to be output to a plurality of speakers such as left and right speakers and front and rear speakers based on the sound signal. The sound control unit 14 can also perform tone adjustment by changing the amplification factor for each frequency of the audio signal.

  When history information is selected in step S110, the sound control unit 14 refers to the history information of the user specified in step S105 and determines the current user status and the like, and selects the optimal sound setting for the user. This is applied (step S125). In addition, when applying sound settings in the above steps S115 and S125, it is desirable to gradually change the sound settings between before and after application. For example, the set value is gradually changed between the set values of the sound setting so as to linearly change from the value before application to the value after application. By doing so, it is possible to prevent a sudden change in volume, and to prevent the user from feeling uncomfortable or inconvenience other people around.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of history information. As shown in the figure, the history information indicates the usage history of the user of the television device 100, and includes, for example, the user name, video type, volume, sound quality, surround, viewing time zone, video display type. ing. That is, the usage situation when the user has viewed in the past is recorded. Of course, the history information may be created for each user. The history information is created by the history information creation unit 22 in step S140, which will be described later, and stored in the history storage unit 16.

  The sound control unit 14 is set in the same situation (user, video type, viewing time zone, video display type, etc.) as the current user situation from the history information stored in the history storage unit 16. A sound setting (volume, sound quality, surround, etc.) is specified, and a sound setting obtained by weighting and averaging the specified sound setting by viewing time or the like can be applied.

  When the sound setting based on the history information is selected, after the sound setting is completed in step S125, the time zone is confirmed every predetermined time (step S130). That is, the sound control unit 14 acquires time information output from the timer unit 17 during viewing, and when the time zone to which the time information belongs changes, the sound control unit 14 returns to step S125 to redo the sound setting based on the history information. . On the other hand, when the time zone has not changed, the process proceeds to step S135.

  When the sound setting based on the history information is reset from step S130 to step S125, the sound setting corresponding to the usage history in the current time zone is changed from the sound setting corresponding to the usage history in the previous time zone. Gradually change the sound setting. For example, the change at this time may be changed linearly. By gradually changing in this way, it is possible to prevent the user from being confused or feeling uncomfortable by suddenly changing the sound setting.

  In step S120 and step S135, it is determined whether or not the viewing user has been changed. This determination can be made based on whether or not another user has been selected by calling the user setting screen shown in FIG. When it is changed to another user, the process proceeds to step S140. When there is no user change, the process returns to step S130 in step S135, and the process of step S120 is repeated in step S120.

In step S <b> 140, history information about the user before the change is created, and this history information is added to the history storage unit 16. This history information is collected by the history information creation unit 22 after the user is selected and before the user changes.
For example, the history information creation unit 22 acquires the EPG of the program being watched from the EPG acquisition unit, identifies the type of video, acquires video display information based on the aspect ratio of the video signal, and receives the video display information from the timer unit 17. Time information is obtained, and sound settings such as volume, sound quality, and surround are obtained from a register for storing the sound settings that are currently applied. The history information creation unit 22 collectively stores these pieces of information in the history storage unit 16. Of course, the history information individually listed is an example, and various other information can be used as the history information. The viewing time zone is divided into, for example, morning, noon, evening, night, and midnight. The viewing time zone may be determined by the user.

  In step S145, the sound setting change unit 21 inquires of the user whether or not to reflect the last information by displaying an inquiry UI or the like. Of course, if it is previously set on the setting screen whether or not the last information is reflected, the determination of this step may be performed based on this setting value. When reflecting the last information, the process proceeds to step S150, and the sound setting changing unit 21 uses the sound setting actually set in step S120 or step S135 at the end of the user's viewing as the last information for each user. Save to the set value. When the last information is stored, the process returns to step S110. On the other hand, also when not reflecting last information, it returns to step S110.

  Note that the user sets whether or not to gradually change the volume when returning from step S115, S125 or step S130 to step S125, by the sound setting UI displayed by the sound setting changing unit 21 or the like. It is possible to change arbitrarily.

(3) Summary:
The television device 100 according to the embodiment described above includes a speaker 13 that outputs sound, a sound setting storage unit 15 that stores a plurality of sound settings, and a sound setting selection that selects one sound setting from the plurality of sound settings. Unit 20, sound control unit 14 for applying sound settings to sound output from speaker 13, and sound setting at the end of viewing performed by selecting sound settings reflected in sound settings in sound setting storage unit 15 And a sound setting changing unit 21 to be operated. By configuring in this way, it is possible to reproduce the sound setting when each user has recently viewed, so that it is possible to realize a sound that is easy for the user to hear with a simple operation.

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.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Operation part, 11a ... Power button, 11b ... Channel button, 11c ... EPG button, 11d ... Channel up button, 11e ... Channel down button, 11f ... Volume up button, 11g ... Volume down button, 11h ... Sound setting button, 11j ... Cursor move button, 11k ... Enter button, 12 ... Display unit, 13 ... Speaker, 14 ... Sound control unit, 15 ... Sound setting storage unit, 16 ... History storage unit, 17 ... Timer unit, 18 ... EPG acquisition unit, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 19 ... Image | video display specific part, 20 ... Sound setting selection part, 21 ... Sound setting change part, 22 ... History information creation part, 100 ... Television apparatus

Claims (9)

A speaker that outputs sound;
A sound setting storage unit for storing a plurality of sound settings;
A sound setting selection section for selecting one sound setting from a plurality of sound settings;
A sound control unit for applying the sound setting to the sound output from the speaker;
A sound setting changing unit for reflecting the sound setting at the end of viewing performed by selecting the sound setting to the sound setting of the sound setting storage unit;
A television device comprising: It further includes a history storage unit that stores usage history of each user,
The television apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sound control unit applies sound settings according to a user's usage history to sound output to the speaker. A timer unit for outputting time information;
The history storage unit stores a use history in each time zone,
The television according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the sound control unit applies sound setting corresponding to the use history corresponding to a time zone to which the time information output from the timer unit belongs to sound output to the speaker. John equipment.   When the time zone to which the time information output from the timer unit belongs changes during viewing, the sound control unit responds to the usage history of the current time zone from the sound setting corresponding to the usage history of the previous time zone. The television apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the sound setting is gradually changed to the set sound setting. An EPG acquisition unit for acquiring an EPG (Electronic Program Guide) is further provided,
The history storage unit identifies the type of program viewed based on the EPG, and stores a usage history for each program type,
The sound control unit identifies the type of program being viewed based on the EPG, and applies sound settings corresponding to the use history of the identified program type to sound output to the speaker. Item 5. The television device according to any one of items 4 to 6.   6. The sound control unit according to claim 1, wherein when the sound setting is selected by the sound setting selection unit, the sound control unit gradually changes the sound setting from the current sound setting to the selected sound setting. A television device according to claim 1.   The sound setting change unit can set whether or not to gradually change the sound setting from the current sound setting to the selected sound setting when the sound setting is selected by the sound setting selection unit. The television apparatus according to claim 6.   The sound setting change unit reflects the sound setting at the end of viewing performed by selecting the sound setting in the sound setting of the sound setting storage unit, or sets the sound setting corresponding to the use history to the speaker. The television apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein selection of whether to apply to sound output is possible. A video display specifying unit for specifying the type of video display;
The history storage unit stores a use history for each type of video display specified by the video display specifying unit,
The sound control unit according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the sound control unit applies sound setting corresponding to a use history corresponding to a video display type of a program being viewed to sound output to the speaker. Television equipment.

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