JP2012244386A - Receiver - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a receiver which is suitable for executing two or more kinds of applications.SOLUTION: A receiver 4 comprises: an automatic application execution unit 181 which identifies an application to be executed on the basis of AIT life cycle control information stored in an AIT storage unit 24, acquires the identified application from a service server 3 on the basis of AIT location information corresponding thereto, and then executes the acquired application; a menu generation unit 182 which, in response to a prescribed operation accepted, creates a menu screen on the basis of the AIT life cycle control information stored in the AIT storage unit 24; and a manual application execution unit 183 which, in response to an application select operation accepted after the menu screen is combined with program contents, acquires and executes the selected application on the basis of AIT location information corresponding the selected application.

Description

  The present invention relates to a receiver that executes an application that can be linked to broadcasting.

In recent years, with the advancement of digital broadcasting and broadband communication, research and development for the realization of broadcasting / communication cooperation services is being conducted.
In such a broadcasting / communication cooperation service, contents are distributed using different transmission paths for broadcasting and communication, and a display screen of the distributed contents is displayed on a receiver such as a digital television, a personal computer, or a portable terminal. It is considered to display them simultaneously.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, an application program (hereinafter referred to as an application) such as a widget (or gadget) or a browser is used to distribute a communication on a display screen of a broadcast program that is a content distributed by broadcasting. It has been proposed to superimpose and display content such as text information, audio, and moving images.

JP 2010-4498 A

By the way, in order to reinforce the cooperation between broadcasting and communication, it is desired to notify executable application information from both the broadcasting station and the server.
On the other hand, it is desired that the application that the user wants to link with the broadcast is stored in advance in the receiver, or that the receiver manufacturer stores the application in advance in the receiver for the purpose of convenience and service enhancement. Yes.

  However, Patent Document 1 does not show a method for simply executing a plurality of types of applications such as notification of information on executable applications from different notification destinations or prestored applications. There is a need for a mechanism suitable for the execution of various types of applications.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a receiver suitable for executing a plurality of types of applications.

  The receiver according to the present invention is a receiver that is communicably connected to a server that stores a plurality of applications capable of acquiring content, and includes an operation receiving unit that receives an operation from a user, and one or a plurality of the applications, respectively. , Application management information storage means for storing application management information including life cycle control information for controlling the execution of the application and location information indicating the location of the application, program content and the application via broadcasting Receiving means for receiving a program content signal configured by multiplexing management information; and a first means for extracting the application management information multiplexed in the program content signal and storing it in the application management information storage means. application Stored in the application management information storage means, the second application management information acquisition means for storing the application management information received from the server in the application management information storage means based on a predetermined condition. An application to be executed based on the life cycle control information of the application management information is acquired, and the application is acquired from the server and executed based on the location information of the application management information corresponding to the application The life cycle of the application management information stored in the application management information storage unit in response to receiving a predetermined operation by the automatic execution unit and the operation receiving unit Based on the control information, a menu generation unit that generates a menu screen including information on an executable application, at least one of the content acquired by the application and the menu screen, and the program content are combined and displayed. And after the menu screen is synthesized with the program content by the synthesized display control means, the application receiving operation is accepted by the operation accepting means. Application manual execution means for acquiring and executing the application from the server based on the location information of the corresponding application management information.

  According to this configuration, the receiver collectively stores the application management information acquired through broadcasting and the application management information acquired through communication in the application management information storage unit. Since the receiver executes the application based on the application management information stored in the application management information storage unit, it is suitable for executing a plurality of types of applications.

  The receiver further includes an application storage unit that stores an application in advance, and the application management information storage unit corresponds to the application stored in the application storage unit and indicates the address of the application storage unit Application management information including information is stored, and the application manual execution unit has received an application selection operation by the operation reception unit after the menu screen is combined with the program content by the combination display control unit. Accordingly, the application may be acquired from the server or the application storage unit and executed based on the location information of the selected application.

  According to such a configuration, the receiver stores application management information corresponding to an application stored in advance in the application storage unit in the application management information storage unit. Here, the location information included in the application management information corresponding to the application stored in advance indicates the address (path) of the application storage means. Therefore, the user of the receiver can execute the application stored in advance from the menu screen in the same manner as when the application is acquired from the server and executed.

  In the receiver, the composite display control unit performs display control by combining a registration screen for receiving application registration with the program content, and receives the registration operation of the application by the operation reception unit. Accordingly, a plurality of application management information is acquired from the server, and the registration screen is generated by the registration screen generation means for generating the registration screen based on the acquired application management information, and the composite display control means. The application management information stored in the application management information storage unit corresponding to the selected application in response to receiving the application selection operation by the operation receiving unit. Application memorized in the means And the second application management information acquisition means excludes the application management information acquired from the server as a response to the registration screen generation means from the application management information received from the server. The application management information storage means may be stored.

  According to such a configuration, the receiver can acquire the application management information through a registration operation through a route different from the application management information multiplexed in the program content, and store it in the application management information storage unit. The application management information registered through the registration operation includes application management information of applications that are not linked to broadcasting. Therefore, the receiver displays both the information of the application linked to the broadcast and the information of the registered application (application not linked to the broadcast) on the menu screen based on the application management information stored in the application management information storage unit. Can be summarized. Therefore, the user of the receiver can execute an application linked to broadcasting and a registered application (an application not linked to broadcasting) with a simple operation.

  In the receiver, the application registration unit may acquire and execute the application from the server based on location information of the application management information corresponding to the application selected based on the registration screen. Good.

  According to this configuration, the user of the receiver can execute the application when registering the application.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the receiver suitable for execution of a multiple types of application can be provided.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a broadcasting / communication cooperation system. It is a figure which shows the stack | stuck of the transmission protocol of the broadcast signal which concerns on digital broadcasting. It is a block diagram which shows the function structure of a receiver. It is a figure which shows an example of AIT described in the XML format. It is a figure which shows the example by which the image | video of the program content was displayed on the display. It is a figure which shows the example by which the image | video of the application performed automatically and the image | video of the program content were synthesize | combined and displayed. It is a figure which shows the example by which the image | video of the application performed from the application performed automatically and the image | video of the program content were combined and displayed. It is a figure which shows the example by which the menu screen and the video of the program content were combined and displayed. It is a figure which shows the example by which the image | video of the application performed from the menu screen and the image | video of the program content were synthesize | combined and displayed. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process after an AIT is memorize | stored in an AIT memory | storage part until an application is automatically performed. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process after an AIT is memorize | stored in an AIT memory | storage part until an application is manually performed. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a process until an application is registered.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a broadcasting / communication cooperation system 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The broadcasting / communication cooperation system 100 includes a broadcasting station 1, a broadcasting antenna 2, a service server 3 (distribution server), and a receiver 4. In the broadcasting / communication cooperation system 100, a receiver 4 uses a broadcasting service provided from a broadcasting station 1 by an ISDB (Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting) system and a communication network N configured by the Internet or the like. The communication service provided from the service server 3 is linked to provide the user of the receiver 4 as a broadcasting / communication cooperation service.

The broadcasting station 1 includes a general digital broadcasting broadcasting facility (not shown) configured to include a program organization facility, a program transmission facility, and a transmission facility.
The broadcasting station 1 produces contents, event information (Event Information Table: EIT), application management information (Application Information Table: AIT), and the like, using broadcasting equipment. Then, the broadcasting station 1 multiplexes these contents, event information, AIT, and the like into a broadcast signal by using broadcasting equipment. The broadcast station 1 modulates the broadcast signal into a broadcast wave by the broadcast facility, and broadcasts the broadcast wave via the broadcast antenna 2.

  The content included in the broadcast wave broadcast from the broadcast station 1 includes program content that is broadcast according to the broadcast schedule and includes video and audio, and earthquake early warnings that occur asynchronously with the program content. This includes emergency content that is content.

The event information includes meta information about the content such as the name of the program content, the broadcast date and time of the program content, and the description of the program content. Hereinafter, the event information is referred to as EIT.
The AIT is management information for managing one or a plurality of application programs (hereinafter referred to as applications) that can provide the receiver 4 with content linked to program content. The AIT includes one or more pieces of individual management information corresponding to one or more applications and managing each of the one or more applications. The individual management information includes an application ID for identifying the application, life cycle control information for controlling the life cycle of the application, and location information indicating the location of the application (see FIG. 4).

  The content provided by the application includes content linked to the program content and content not linked to the program content. Hereinafter, content provided by an application is referred to as application content.

  The broadcast signal is the same as the broadcast signal of the conventional digital broadcast, and is defined by ARIB (registered trademark) (Association of Radio Industries and Broadcast) standard.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a stack of broadcast signal transmission protocols related to digital broadcasting. As shown in FIG. 2, various types of data such as video and audio provided by digital broadcasting are stored in TS packets (transport stream packets) defined by the international standard MPEG-2 Systems and multiplexed in a time division manner. Is transmitted.

  In the TS packet, as shown in FIG. 2, PSI (Program Specific Information) / SI (Service Information) is defined for the section. PSI / SI includes information indicating the type of data stored in the TS packet and information indicating the type of content. The above-mentioned EIT is included in SI.

  Data transmission using TS packets is classified into a method of transmitting data using sections and a method of transmitting data using PES (Packetized Elementary Stream) packets (data stream transmission method).

  Methods for transmitting data using sections include a data carousel transmission method and an event message transmission method.

  The data carousel transmission method is a transmission method in which one or a plurality of data is repeatedly transmitted at a fixed period. Each piece of data (module) transmitted by this transmission method has identification information for identifying individual data. It is attached. The data carousel transmission system is used for the purpose of causing the receiver 4 to acquire individual data at an arbitrary timing.

  The event message transmission method is a method for sending a trigger signal from the broadcast station 1 to the receiver 4. The event message transmission method is used when a message with a small amount of data is transmitted from the broadcasting station 1 to the receiver 4.

  The data stream transmission method is a transmission method in which data to be transmitted is accommodated in a PES packet and transmitted as a stream. The data stream transmission method is used for transmitting real-time data such as video, audio, and caption data, and data that needs to be synchronized with other streams.

Here, AIT can be transmitted by various methods using TS packets.
That is, the AIT can be transmitted by describing the EIT included in the SI of the TS packet.

  The AIT can be transmitted by a data carousel transmission system using sections. When the AIT is transmitted by the data carousel transmission method, identification information is attached to the module so that the receiver 4 can recognize the AIT.

  The AIT can be transmitted as PES multiplexed with content video and audio.

The AIT can be described in binary representation or text representation by XML (Extensible Markup Language) and stored in the TS packet.
In this embodiment, the AIT transmission method is defined in advance in at least one of the above transmission methods.

  Multimedia coding language (BML) is based on xHTML defined by W3C (Registered Trademark) (World Wide Web Consortium), and procedural language is ECMAScript based on JavaScript (Registered Trademark). It is a standard defined in consideration of consistency with international standards.

  Although not shown, the service server 3 is a content distribution server that distributes program content and content (application content) distributed to applications, and an application distribution server that distributes various applications that operate on the receiver 4. With.

The service server 3 is communicably connected to the equipment of the broadcast station 1 and receives program content and program content metadata from the broadcast station 1.
The service server 3 transmits the program content to the receiver 4 in response to receiving the program content acquisition request from the receiver 4.

  The service server 3 stores an application and transmits the application to the receiver 4 in response to receiving an application acquisition request from the receiver 4. Furthermore, the service server 3 transmits video data, audio data, and the like of application content to the receiver 4 when an application is being executed in the receiver 4.

  The service server 3 stores the AIT, multiplexes the AIT with the program content, and transmits it to the receiver 4. Further, the service server 3 transmits an AIT to the receiver 4 in response to receiving an AIT acquisition request from the receiver 4.

  The receiver 4 synchronizes and outputs the video data and audio data of the program content by performing predetermined processing on the program content received via the broadcast from the broadcast station 1. The receiver 4 performs predetermined processing on program content (program content received by VOD) received through communication with the service server 3 performed in cooperation with broadcasting from the broadcasting station 1. The video data and audio data of the program content are output in synchronization.

  The receiver 4 acquires an application based on the AIT, and executes the acquired application. Subsequently, the receiver 4 acquires the video data and audio data of the application content from the service server 3 by the application being executed, and outputs the video data and audio data of the program content in cooperation with each other. Hereinafter, functions of the receiver 4 will be described in detail.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the receiver 4 according to the present embodiment.
The receiver 4 includes a broadcast wave reception unit 11 as a reception unit, a first separation unit 12, a broadcast AIT acquisition unit 13 as a first application management information acquisition unit, a communication unit 14, and a second separation unit 15. The communication AIT acquisition unit 16 as the second application management information acquisition unit, the operation reception unit 17 as the operation reception unit, the application control unit 18, the voice control unit 19, and the display control unit 20 as the composite display control unit A speaker 21, a display 22, a memory 23, an AIT storage unit 24 as an application management information storage unit, and an application storage unit 25 as an application storage unit.

  The broadcast wave receiving unit 11 receives a broadcast wave broadcast from the broadcast station 1 via the broadcast antenna 2.

  The first separation unit 12 demodulates the broadcast wave received by the broadcast wave reception unit 11 and extracts a broadcast signal, that is, a TS packet from the broadcast wave. Then, the first separation unit 12 refers to the PSI / SI of the TS packet, determines the type of data included in the TS packet, and extracts various data such as video, audio, and EIT. In addition, the first separation unit 12 extracts the AIT by referring to the section and the PES according to a predetermined AIT transmission method.

  Subsequently, when the data included in the PES of the TS packet is audio data, the first separation unit 12 outputs the audio data to the audio control unit 19. In addition, when the data included in the PES of the TS packet is video data, the first separation unit 12 outputs the video data to the display control unit 20.

  Further, the first separation unit 12 stores the extracted EIT and other various data in the memory 23. Further, when the first separation unit 12 extracts the AIT, the first separation unit 12 outputs the extracted AIT to the broadcast AIT acquisition unit 13.

  The broadcast AIT acquisition unit 13 acquires the AIT output from the first separation unit 12 and stores it in the AIT storage unit 24.

  The communication unit 14 is a communication interface that transmits and receives data to and from the service server 3 via the communication network N.

The second separation unit 15 determines the type of data received by the communication unit 14. When the second separation unit 15 determines that the received data is an AIT, the second separation unit 15 outputs the AIT to the communication AIT acquisition unit 16. When the second separation unit 15 determines that the received data is an application, the second separation unit 15 outputs the application to the application control unit 18.
Note that the second separation unit 15 outputs the AIT to the registration screen generation unit 185 when the communication unit 14 receives the AIT in response to an AIT acquisition request from the registration screen generation unit 185 described later.

  For example, when the second separation unit 15 determines that the received data is a TS packet, the second separation unit 15 extracts various data such as video, audio, and AIT from the TS packet. The second separation unit 15 outputs the AIT to the communication AIT acquisition unit 16 when the AIT is extracted, and outputs the data to the application control unit 18 when data other than the AIT is extracted.

  The communication AIT acquisition unit 16 acquires the AIT output from the second separation unit 15 and stores it in the AIT storage unit 24.

  The operation accepting unit 17 accepts an operation from the user via the communication unit 14 via the remote controller R provided in the receiver 4. The remote control R is provided with a Hybridcast (registered trademark) button, and when this Hybridcast button is pressed, a menu screen is generated by a menu generation unit 182 described later. The operation accepting unit 17 may accept an operation from an external terminal such as a mobile phone via the communication unit 14.

  The application control unit 18 acquires an application based on a user's execution instruction via the AIT or the remote controller R, and controls execution of the acquired application. Then, the application control unit 18 outputs the audio data of the application content acquired from the service server 3 by executing the application to the audio control unit 19 and displays the video data of the application content acquired from the service server 3. Output to the control unit 20.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the AIT described in the XML format. As described above, the AIT includes one or more pieces of individual management information corresponding to one or more applications and managing each of the one or more applications.
Specifically, the codes described from the <mhp: Application> tag to the </ mhp: Application> tag shown in FIG. 4 correspond to the individual management information related to one application. In the AIT, a plurality of pieces of individual management information can be described by newly describing individual management information of other applications after the </ mhp: Application> tag.

  Of the codes corresponding to the individual management information, for example, the code corresponding to the <mhp: appId> tag indicates the application ID (identification information). The code corresponding to the <mhp: controlCode mhp: type = “ARIB-J”> tag indicates the life cycle control information of this application, and “AUTOSTART” shown in FIG. Is life cycle control information for automatically executing A code corresponding to the <mhp: location> tag indicates location information indicating the location of the application. As shown in FIG. 4, the location information describes the address of the service server 3 as the location of the application. In the location information, the address (path) of the application storage unit 25 of the receiver 4 can be specified as the location of the application.

  The application control unit 18 performs application execution control and application storage control in the application storage unit 25. The application control unit 18 includes an application automatic execution unit 181 as an application automatic execution unit, a menu generation unit 182 as a menu generation unit, an application manual execution unit 183 as an application manual execution unit, an application execution control unit 184, A registration screen generation unit 185 as a registration screen generation unit and an application registration unit 186 as an application registration unit are provided.

  The application automatic execution unit 181 monitors the AIT storage unit 24 and refers to life cycle control information described in the AIT when a new AIT is stored. Then, the application automatic execution unit 181 specifies an application to be automatically executed based on the life cycle control information of the individual management information included in the AIT stored in the AIT storage unit 24. Specifically, the application automatic execution unit 181 specifies an application corresponding to the individual management information in which “AUTOSTART” indicating “automatic execution” is described in the life cycle control information as an application to be automatically executed.

  Then, the application automatic execution unit 181 uses the location information described in the individual management information corresponding to the identified application as the application acquisition destination, and receives the application from the service server 3 via the communication unit 14 and the second separation unit 15. Acquire and execute the acquired application. In this case, the application is automatically executed without receiving an explicit operation instruction from the user of the receiver 4.

  As shown in FIG. 5, when the video of the program content is displayed on the display 22, it is assumed that an AIT including a plurality of individual management information is newly stored in the AIT storage unit 24. The AIT includes five pieces of individual management information, and the five pieces of individual management information correspond to a menu application, a recommendation application, a caption application, a voice adjustment application, and a comment application, respectively. Then, “AUTOSTART” is described in the life cycle control information of the individual management information corresponding to the menu application, and “PRESENT” is described in the life cycle control information of the individual management information corresponding to the application other than the menu application. Shall.

  In this case, the application automatic execution unit 181 identifies the menu application corresponding to the individual management information in which “AUTOSTART” is described in the lifecycle control information as an application to automatically execute, and acquires the menu application from the service server 3. And run. After that, as shown in FIG. 6, the display control unit 20 composites and displays the video A corresponding to the menu application and the video of the program content on the display 22.

  Furthermore, when a comment application corresponding to “comment” is selected from the video A shown in FIG. 6, the application automatic execution unit 181 determines from the service server 3 based on the location information of the individual management information corresponding to the comment application. Acquire and execute the comment application. Then, as shown in FIG. 7, the display control unit 20 composites and displays the video A1 corresponding to the comment application and the video of the program content on the display 22.

  The menu generating unit 182 receives the pressing operation of the Hybridcast button as a predetermined operation from the user of the receiver 4 via the remote control R of the receiver 4 by the operation receiving unit 17, and stores it in the AIT storage unit 24. Based on the life cycle control information of the individual management information included in the stored AIT, a menu screen including information on executable applications is generated. Specifically, the menu generation unit 182 identifies application information corresponding to the individual management information in which “PRESENT” indicating “executable” is described in the lifecycle control information as information on the application to be posted on the menu. To do. Here, the application information is an application name or an application icon, and is included in the individual management information or can be acquired based on the individual management information.

  Then, the menu generation unit 182 generates a menu screen on which the specified application information is displayed, and outputs the generated menu screen to the display control unit 20. Thereafter, the display control unit 20 generates a composite screen in which the menu screen and the video output from the first separation unit 12 (video of the program content) are combined, and this composite screen is displayed on the display 22.

  For example, the AIT acquired through the broadcast including three pieces of individual management information corresponding to the caption application, the audio adjustment application, and the comment application are preinstalled in the AIT storage unit 24 by the manufacturer of the receiver 4. Assume that an AIT corresponding to a recording application and an AIT corresponding to a sports news application registered by the user of the receiver 4 via an application registration screen described later are stored. It is assumed that “PRESENT” is described in the life cycle control information of the individual management information of these AITs.

  In this case, the menu generation unit 182 generates the menu screen by specifying the application information corresponding to the individual management information in which “PRESENT” is described in the life cycle control information as the application information to be posted on the menu, This menu screen is output to the display control unit 20. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 8, the display control unit 20 synthesizes and displays the video B corresponding to the menu screen and the video of the program content on the display 22. The video B corresponding to the menu screen shown in FIG. 8 includes the name of an application (caption application, audio adjustment application, comment application) corresponding to the AIT acquired through broadcasting, and a preinstalled application (recording application). ) And the name of the application (sports news application) registered by the user.

  The application manual execution unit 183 combines the menu screen with the program content by the display control unit 20 and displays it on the display 22. Then, the application manual execution unit 183 receives the application selection operation by the operation reception unit 17. The individual management information corresponding to the selected application is specified by referring to the AIT stored in the. Then, the application manual execution unit 183 acquires an application from the service server 3 or the application storage unit 25 based on the location information included in the specified individual management information, and executes the acquired application.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 8, when the video B corresponding to the menu screen and the video of the program content are combined and displayed on the display 22, the sports news application is selected based on the video B corresponding to the menu screen. Then, the application manual execution unit 183 acquires the sports news application from the service server 3 or the application storage unit 25 based on the location information included in the individual management information of the sports news application, and executes the acquired application. Then, as shown in FIG. 9, the display control unit 20 composites and displays the video B1 corresponding to the sports news application and the video of the program content on the display 22.

  The application causes the application control unit 18 to acquire video data and audio data of application content from the service server 3. Then, the application control unit 18 outputs the audio data of the application content acquired by the application to the audio control unit 19 and outputs the video data of the application content acquired by the application to the display control unit 20. Here, when the application is an application that provides application content linked to the program content, the video data and audio data of the application content are displayed on the display 22 in conjunction with the video data and audio data of the program content. .

  The application execution control unit 184 monitors the AIT storage unit 24, and when an AIT describing the individual management information corresponding to the application being executed is newly stored in the AIT storage unit 24, the life included in the individual management information Control the running application based on the cycle control information. For example, when “DESTROY” indicating “end” is described in the life cycle control information of the individual management information corresponding to the application being executed, the execution of the application is ended.

The registration screen generation unit 185 obtains a plurality of AITs for the service server 3 in response to receiving an application registration operation from the user of the receiver 4 via the remote control R of the receiver 4 by the operation reception unit 17. Make a request. Then, the registration screen generation unit 185 receives a plurality of AITs via the communication unit 14 and the second separation unit 15 and, based on the individual management information included in each of the plurality of AITs, A registration screen for receiving application registration is generated. Then, the registration screen generation unit 185 outputs the generated registration screen to the display control unit 20. Thereafter, the display control unit 20 generates a composite screen in which the registration screen and the video (video of the program content) output from the first separation unit 12 are combined, and this composite screen is displayed on the display 22.
Note that the registration screen generation unit 185 may be able to narrow down the AIT according to the type of application, for example, by accepting an operation from the user of the receiver 4 via the remote controller R.

  The application registration unit 186 receives the application selection operation by the operation reception unit 17 after the registration screen is combined with the program content by the display control unit 20 and displayed on the display 22. Then, the application registration unit 186 specifies an AIT corresponding to the selected application from the AIT acquired by the registration screen generation unit 185 in response to the operation selection unit 17 receiving an application selection operation. Then, the application registration unit 186 stores the specified AIT in the AIT storage unit 24.

  When the application registration unit 186 specifies an AIT corresponding to the selected application, the application registration unit 186 acquires the selected application from the service server 3 based on the location information included in the individual management information of the specified AIT, You may memorize | store in the application memory | storage part 25. FIG. Then, when the application registration unit 186 stores the selected application in the application storage unit 25, the application registration unit 186 changes the location of the application in the location information included in the individual management information of the identified AIT to the application storage unit 25, The AIT whose location information has been changed may be stored in the AIT storage unit 24.

  Further, the application registration unit 186 may execute the selected application acquired from the service server 3.

  The audio control unit 19 outputs the audio data output from the first separation unit 12 to the speaker 21 while synchronizing with the video data whose display is controlled by the display control unit 20. In addition, when the audio data output from the application control unit 18 can be synchronized with the video data whose display is controlled by the display control unit 20, the audio control unit 19 transmits the audio data to the speaker 21 while synchronizing with the video data. Output to.

The display control unit 20 displays the video data output from the first separation unit 12 on the display 22 in synchronization with the audio data output-controlled by the audio control unit 19. Further, when the video data output from the application control unit 18 can be synchronized with the audio data output-controlled by the audio control unit 19, the display control unit 20 displays the video data on the display 22 while synchronizing with the audio data. To display.
In addition, the display control unit 20 combines the menu screen output from the menu generation unit 182 and the registration screen output from the registration screen generation unit 185 with the video data output from the first separation unit 12, and the combined video Data is displayed on the display 22.

The memory 23 stores meta information of program content such as EIT and various other information.
The AIT storage unit 24 stores the AIT acquired by the broadcast AIT acquisition unit 13 and the communication AIT acquisition unit 16. The AIT storage unit 24 stores the AIT specified by the application registration unit 186.

  The application storage unit 25 stores applications preinstalled in the receiver 4 and applications registered by the application registration unit 186.

Subsequently, the flow of processing in the receiver 4 will be described.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing from when an AIT is stored in the AIT storage unit 24 according to the present embodiment to when an application is automatically executed.

  In step S1, the application automatic execution unit 181 monitors the AIT storage unit 24 and determines whether there is individual management information in which “AUTOSTART” is described. Specifically, the application automatic execution unit 181 monitors the AIT storage unit 24 and determines whether or not the newly stored AIT includes individual management information in which “AUTOSTART” indicating “automatic execution” is described. Determine whether. If this determination is YES, the application automatic execution unit 181 moves the process to step S2, and if this determination is NO, re-executes step S1.

  In step S2, the application automatic execution unit 181 acquires an application based on the location information included in the individual management information in which “AUTOSTART” indicating “automatic execution” is described. Here, the address of the service server 3 is described in the location information, and the application is acquired from the service server 3.

  In step S3, the application automatic execution unit 181 executes the application acquired in step S2.

  FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing a flow of processing from when an AIT is stored in the AIT storage unit 24 according to the present embodiment until the application is manually executed.

  In step S <b> 11, the menu generation unit 182 receives a predetermined operation (operation of pressing the hybridcast button) from the user of the receiver 4 via the remote controller R of the receiver 4 by the operation reception unit 17.

  In step S12, the menu generation unit 182 selects an application corresponding to the individual management information in which “PRESENT” indicating “executable” is described in the life cycle control information from the AIT stored in the AIT storage unit 24. Specify as an application to be posted on the menu.

  In step S <b> 13, the menu generation unit 182 generates a menu screen on which information on the application specified in step S <b> 12 is displayed, and outputs the generated menu screen to the display control unit 20.

  In step S <b> 14, the display control unit 20 generates a composite video by combining the menu screen and the video of the program content, and displays the composite video on the display 22.

  In step S <b> 15, the application manual execution unit 183 receives an application selection operation by the operation reception unit 17.

  In step S16, the application manual execution unit 183 refers to the AIT stored in the AIT storage unit 24, and acquires the application based on the location information included in the individual management information corresponding to the application selected in step S15. To do. In the acquisition destination, the address of the service server 3 or the path of the application storage unit 25 is described, and the application is acquired from the service server 3 or the application storage unit 25.

  In step S18, the application manual execution unit 183 executes the application acquired in step S16.

  FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing a processing flow until an application according to the present embodiment is registered.

  In step S <b> 21, the registration screen generation unit 185 receives an application registration operation from the user of the receiver 4 via the remote controller R of the receiver 4 by the operation reception unit 17.

  In step S22, the registration screen generation unit 185 requests the service server 3 to acquire a plurality of AITs in response to receiving the application registration operation in step S21, and acquires a plurality of AITs.

  In step S23, the registration screen generation unit 185 generates a registration screen based on the individual management information included in each of the plurality of AITs in response to the acquisition of the plurality of AITs in step S22. Output.

  In step S <b> 24, the display control unit 20 generates a composite video by combining the registration screen and the video of the program content, and displays the composite video on the display 22.

  In step S <b> 25, the application registration unit 186 receives an application selection operation by the operation reception unit 17.

  In step S26, the application registration unit 186 specifies the AIT corresponding to the selected application from the AIT acquired in step S22 in response to receiving the application selection operation in step S25, and the specified AIT is determined. The data is stored in the AIT storage unit 24.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the receiver 4 collectively stores the AIT acquired through broadcasting and the AIT acquired from the service server 3 in the AIT storage unit 24. Since the receiver 4 executes an application based on the AIT stored in the AIT storage unit 24, the receiver 4 is suitable for executing a plurality of types of applications.

  In addition, the receiver 4 causes the AIT storage unit 24 to store an AIT corresponding to an application (preinstalled application) stored in advance in the application storage unit 25. Here, the location information included in the AIT corresponding to the application stored in advance indicates the address (path) of the application storage unit 25. Therefore, the user of the receiver 4 can execute the application stored in the receiver 4 from the menu screen in the same manner as when the application is acquired from the service server 3 and executed.

  Further, the receiver 4 can acquire the AIT through a different route from the AIT multiplexed into the program content and store it in the AIT storage unit 24 through the registration operation. The AIT registered through the registration operation includes an AIT of an application not linked to broadcasting. Therefore, based on the AIT stored in the AIT storage unit 24, the receiver 4 collects both the information on the application linked to broadcasting and the information on the registered application (application not linked to broadcasting) on the menu screen. Can do. Therefore, the user of the receiver 4 can execute an application linked to broadcasting and a registered application (an application not linked to broadcasting) with a simple operation.

  Further, since the receiver 4 can execute the application at the time of registering the application, the user of the receiver 4 can simultaneously register the application and execute the application with a simple operation.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not restricted to embodiment mentioned above. The effects described in the embodiments of the present invention are only the most preferable effects resulting from the present invention, and the effects of the present invention are limited to those described in the embodiments of the present invention. is not.

  For example, in the present embodiment, the application control unit 18 stores the AIT in the AIT storage unit 24 when registering the application, but the present invention is not limited to this. The application control unit 18 may execute the application without registering the application, or may accept registration of the application being executed after the application is executed.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Broadcasting station 2 Broadcasting antenna 3 Service server 4 Receiver 11 Broadcast wave receiving unit 12 First separation unit 13 Broadcast AIT acquisition unit 14 Communication unit 15 Second separation unit 16 Communication AIT acquisition unit 17 Operation reception unit 18 Application control unit 19 Audio control unit 20 Display control unit 21 Speaker 22 Display 23 Memory 24 AIT storage unit 25 Application storage unit 100 Broadcast communication cooperation system 181 Application automatic execution unit 182 Menu generation unit 183 Application manual execution unit 184 Application execution control unit 185 Registration screen generation unit 186 Application Registration Department

Claims (4)

A receiver communicably connected to a server storing a plurality of applications capable of acquiring content,
Operation accepting means for accepting an operation from a user;
Application management information storage means for storing application management information corresponding to each of the one or a plurality of applications and including life cycle control information for controlling execution of the application and location information indicating the location of the application;
Receiving means for receiving a program content signal configured by multiplexing program content and the application management information via broadcasting;
First application management information acquisition means for extracting the application management information multiplexed in the program content signal and storing it in the application management information storage means;
Second application management information acquisition means for storing the application management information received from the server in the application management information storage means based on a predetermined condition;
An application to be executed is identified based on the life cycle control information of the application management information stored in the application management information storage unit, and from the server based on the location information of the application management information corresponding to the application Automatic application execution means for acquiring and executing the application;
A menu including information on applications that can be executed based on the life cycle control information of the application management information stored in the application management information storage means in response to receiving a predetermined operation by the operation receiving means. Menu generation means for generating a screen;
Combined display control means for performing display control by combining at least one of the content acquired by the application and the menu screen with the program content;
After the menu screen is synthesized with the program content by the synthesis display control means, the application management information of the application management information corresponding to the selected application in response to receiving an application selection operation by the operation accepting means. Application manual execution means for acquiring and executing the application from the server based on location information;
Comprising
Receiving machine. An application storage means for storing the application in advance;
The application management information storage means corresponds to the application stored in the application storage means, stores application management information including the location information indicating the address of the application storage means,
The application manual execution means is configured to select the application of the selected application in response to receiving an application selection operation by the operation receiving means after the menu screen is combined with the program content by the composite display control means. Based on the location information, the application is acquired from the server or the application storage means and executed.
The receiver according to claim 1. The composite display control means performs display control by combining a registration screen for receiving application registration with the program content,
A registration screen generating unit configured to acquire a plurality of pieces of application management information from the server in response to receiving the registration operation of the application by the operation receiving unit, and to generate the registration screen based on the acquired application management information; ,
After the registration screen is combined with the program content by the composite display control unit, the registration screen generation unit corresponds to the selected application in response to receiving an application selection operation by the operation reception unit. Application registration means for storing the application management information acquired by the application management information storage means;
Further comprising
The second application management information acquisition unit stores the application management information received from the server in the application management information storage unit, except for the application management information acquired from the server as a response to the registration screen generation unit. Let
The receiver according to claim 1 or 2. The application registration means acquires and executes the application from the server based on location information of the application management information corresponding to the application selected based on the registration screen.
The receiver according to claim 3.

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