JP4389103B2 - Pay broadcast viewing control device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a pay broadcast viewing control apparatus capable of appropriately controlling whether or not a pay broadcast television program can be viewed in a hotel, an inn or the like.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In accommodation facilities such as hotels and ryokan, it is widely practiced to use pay-per-view television programs to broadcast televised television programs and allow users to pay for viewing.
[0003]
For example, conventional pay broadcast viewing control methods allow users to view paid broadcasts that are being broadcast for a certain preview time for free, and then switch to a guidance notification screen that indicates that they will pay for the subsequent viewing. It is normal to make a decision. Paying billing methods include a coin timer method that inserts coins equivalent to the viewing fee at certain viewing times, a payment method that settles the viewing fee together with the accommodation fee at checkout, for example, a prepaid equivalent to the viewing fee for one night There is a card system in which paying viewing is allowed by purchasing a card (hereinafter referred to as a viewing card) and inserting an effective viewing card. In recent years, the card system is becoming mainstream.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
According to such a conventional technique, it is possible to view a pay broadcast for free for a certain preview time without inserting a viewing card. For example, an unexpected complaint may be generated from a customer with a child. There was a problem. Paid broadcasts often include TV programs for adults, and children may watch the TV programs for adults carelessly by operating the remote controller of the TV receiver. Because you get. In order to eliminate such a claim, if the availability of pay broadcasts is set for each guest room in accordance with the customer base of each guest room, the setting work becomes extremely complicated and impractical. .
[0005]
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide pay card viewing that allows easy and appropriate control of pay broadcast viewing by providing a card rack into which a viewing card is inserted. It is to provide a control device.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve such an object, the configuration of the present invention includes a reader / writer that inserts a rewritable contactless viewing card in a pay broadcast viewing control device that allows free viewing of a pay broadcast that is being broadcast for a predetermined preview time. Card and a control device main body with a built-in microcomputer, and the microcomputer pays a price equivalent to a certain viewing fee, and a valid viewing card as a prepaid card is inserted into the card rack. If a pay broadcast including broadcasting within the preview time is allowed and the viewing card is not inserted in the card rack, viewing of the pay broadcast including the preview time is prohibited and inserted in the card rack. If the viewing card is invalid and rewritten by the reader / writer, And the gist of the invention to permit the free viewing of the only pay-TV between.
[0007]
When the microcomputer detects the presence / absence of a viewing card in the card rack, the microcomputer can display whether the pay broadcast is prohibited from viewing or viewable by a display lamp on the card rack.
[0008]
[Action]
According to the configuration of the invention, the microcomputer permits viewing of the pay broadcast including broadcasting within the preview time on condition that a valid viewing card is inserted in the card rack. That is, a user who does not like to watch a pay broadcast can completely prohibit the pay broadcast including the preview time by removing the view card from the card rack. In addition, customers who wish to watch paid broadcasts use an automatic charging machine installed in hotels, etc., for example, paying a price equivalent to the viewing fee for one night and rewriting the viewing card effectively, A valid viewing card may be inserted into the card rack.
[0009]
By controlling the tuner, video output unit, and audio output unit in the control device main body, the microcomputer can watch not only pay broadcasts but also any channels of free broadcasts, and if necessary, Appropriate guidance notification screen can be displayed and the volume of the television receiver can be adjusted.
[0010]
The card rack can be conveniently used by installing a light receiving unit for a remote controller for turning on / off the power of the television receiver, selecting a channel, and adjusting the volume, and installing it on the television receiver. The TV receiver is installed on the upper surface of the thin control device body, and on the TV receiver, in addition to the card rack, an auxiliary rack for storing TV program guides and remote controllers is also installed. can do.
[0011]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0012]
The pay broadcast viewing control apparatus includes a control apparatus main body 10 combined with a television receiver TV and a card rack 20 into which a viewing card CD is inserted (FIGS. 1 and 2). However, the control device main body 10 and the television receiver TV are installed for each guest room as a terminal device of a network N for wired television in a hotel, for example.
[0013]
The control device main body 10 is configured by connecting a video output unit 12 and an audio output unit 13 to the output side of the tuner 11 and incorporating a control microcomputer 14 (FIG. 1). The input side of the tuner 11 is connected to the network N, and the outputs of the video output unit 12 and the audio output unit 13 are respectively sent to the display unit D and the audio unit A of the television receiver TV as a video signal Sv and an audio signal Sa. Have been entered. The tuner 11 receives a multi-channel television signal St transmitted via the network N, and the television signal St includes free broadcast and pay broadcast channels. The output of the microcomputer 14 is individually connected to the tuner 11, the video output unit 12, the audio output unit 13, and the television receiver TV.
[0014]
For example, an infrared remote controller RC is attached to the control device main body 10, and an optical signal Sr from the remote controller RC is input to the microcomputer 14 via a light receiving unit 21 incorporated in the card rack 20. The card rack 20 incorporates a reader / writer 22 for the viewing card CD, and the data of the viewing card CD inserted into the card rack 20 is read into the microcomputer 14 via the reader / writer 22 and is read by the microcomputer. It can be rewritten by the computer 14. However, the viewing card CD is a rewritable contactless IC card, and the reader / writer 22 is supplied with power to the IC chip in the viewing card CD to perform data communication with the IC chip. An antenna 22a for transmitting and receiving the radio signal Sw is attached.
[0015]
The television receiver TV is integrally installed on the upper surface of the thin control device main body 10 (FIG. 2). However, the control device body 10 may be installed separately from the television receiver TV. The card rack 20 is arranged side by side on the TV receiver TV together with the remote controller RC and the auxiliary rack LK for the TV program guide PB.
[0016]
An upward pocket 23 for holding the inserted viewing card CD obliquely is formed on the front surface of the card rack 20 (FIG. 3), and an antenna 22a is disposed on the back side of the pocket 23. However, FIG. 3B is an enlarged cross-sectional view corresponding to the line XX in FIG. In addition to the light receiving unit 21, for example, red and green display lamps 24a and 24b are attached to the lower portion of the pocket 23 toward the front surface. The display lamps 24a and 24b can be individually turned on and off by the microcomputer 14 (FIG. 1).
[0017]
When a power-on operation is performed via the remote controller RC, the microcomputer 14 sends a control signal Sp to the television receiver TV to turn on the television receiver TV. Further, when the power cut-off operation is performed via the remote controller RC, the microcomputer 14 cuts off the power supply of the television receiver TV.
[0018]
On the other hand, when a free broadcast channel or a pay broadcast channel is selected by the remote controller RC, the microcomputer 14 sends a control signal Scc to the tuner 11. Therefore, the tuner 11 selects a designated channel, sends the video signal Sv and the audio signal Sa of the channel to the television receiver TV via the video output unit 12 and the audio output unit 13, and via the television receiver TV. The TV program of the channel can be viewed. At this time, by operating the remote controller RC, the microcomputer 14 can send the control signal Sca to the audio output unit 13 and arbitrarily adjust the volume of the television receiver TV.
[0019]
Moreover, the microcomputer 14 can send arbitrary signals on the screen of the television receiver TV by sending a control signal Scv to the video output unit 12 as necessary. In other words, the microcomputer 14 sends a control signal Scv to an OSD (On Screen Display) circuit (not shown) incorporated in the video output unit 12, for example, and superimposes it on a free broadcast or pay broadcast video from the tuner 11 (superimpose). In this way, or in place of free broadcast or pay broadcast video, it is possible to display a screen of arbitrary characters, symbols, figures, etc. on the television receiver TV based on the data Dv included in the control signal Scv. is there. Further, the microcomputer 14 can output arbitrary audio information from the television receiver TV by including the data Da in the control signal Sca for the audio output unit 13 as necessary.
[0020]
When the power of the television receiver TV is turned on, the microcomputer 14 operates, for example, according to the program shown in FIG. For example, the microcomputer 14 waits after initializing the program shown in FIG. 4 at the check-in time of the next day.
[0021]
If the program is the first pass after initialization (program step (1) in FIG. 4, hereinafter referred to simply as (1)), a TV program of a preset channel is set on the television receiver TV. Broadcast and watch (2). However, the setting channel is a specific free broadcast channel set in advance, a guide broadcast channel in the hall, or the like. Thereafter, the program waits for a channel selection operation ((4), (5), (4)).
[0022]
When there is a channel selection operation (4), if the selected channel is not a pay broadcast channel (6), the selected free broadcast channel is broadcasted on the television receiver TV for viewing (7), Wait ((7), (4), (5), (4)). When a pay broadcast channel is selected ((4), (6)), it is checked whether or not a viewing card CD is inserted into the card rack 20 (8). The screen of (1) is displayed on the television receiver TV (9) and waits ((9), (4), (5), (8), (9)).
[0023]
Here, the guidance notification (1) screen is a display screen indicating that viewing of a pay broadcast is prohibited, for example, as shown in FIG. 5A. At this time, the channel of the free broadcast is selected again. ((4), (6)), it is possible to view only the free broadcast channel (7). In FIG. 5, the viewing card CD is described as “TV card”. The presence or absence of the viewing card CD in the card rack 20 can be detected by the microcomputer 14 via the reader / writer 22. In other words, a user who does not wish to watch a pay broadcast may turn on the television receiver TV after removing the viewing card CD from the card rack 20.
[0024]
The viewing card CD can be rewritten into an effective viewing card CD by inserting it into an automatic charging machine installed in the hall and paying a price equivalent to the viewing fee for one night of pay broadcasting. Therefore, when a pay broadcast channel is selected ((4), (6)) and a valid viewing card CD is inserted into the card rack 20 ((8), (10)), the program (1), (12), and (B) in FIG. 5 (B)) only on the first pass, and the selected pay broadcast channel is broadcast on the television receiver TV. However, it is possible to permit viewing of pay broadcasts (16). At this time, the microcomputer 14 stores, for example, in the program step (12) that the viewing card CD is valid, and invalidally writes the viewing card CD in the card rack 20 via the reader / writer 22. Instead, the subsequent program step (10) determines that the viewing card CD is valid based on this memory. However, the memory that the viewing card CD is valid is retained until the next day's initialization.
[0025]
When the viewing card CD inserted in the card rack 20 is not valid (10), the program confirms that there is a remaining time in the preset preview time (13), and previews only for the first pass. (3) is displayed ((14), (15), FIG. 5 (C)), and the pay broadcast channel can be viewed for free during the preview time while checking the remaining preview time. ((16), (4), (5), (8), (10), (13), (14), (16)). When all of the preview time is consumed (13), the guidance notification (4) screen is displayed ((17), FIG. 5 (D)), and the viewing card CD is rewritten to a valid one and the pay broadcast is performed. Invite to pay for regular viewing ((17), (4), (5), (8), (10), (13), (17)).
[0026]
When the microcomputer 14 detects the presence or absence of the viewing card CD in the card rack 20, the microcomputer 14 turns on one of the display lamps 24a and 24b to determine whether the pay broadcast is prohibited or viewable by an interrupt process. indicate. Also, the program of FIG. 4 can always respond to the latest channel selection operation (4), and can always respond to the insertion of a valid viewing card CD as long as the pay broadcast channel is selected. ((4), (6), (8), (10) or (4), (5), (8), (10)). In other words, a user who wishes to pay for a paid broadcast viewing the notice notice (4) removes the viewing card CD in the card rack 20 and brings it to the automatic charging machine, and pays the price equivalent to the viewing fee for one night. It is sufficient to rewrite the card into the card rack 20 after rewriting it to a valid viewing card CD.
[0027]
The program in FIG. 4 can be changed in various ways. For example, when a valid viewing card CD is inserted in the program step (10), this is immediately stored and the viewing card CD may be rewritten invalid (program step (10a) in FIG. 6). Hereinafter, it is simply written as (10a)). However, the memory that the viewing card CD is valid is retained until the next day's initialization, and the program step (10) after the second pass is based on whether or not the viewing card CD is valid. Judgment is made ((10), (10b)).
[0028]
Further, the microcomputer 14 can appropriately cope with, for example, a viewing card CD corresponding to a viewing fee for several hours instead of a viewing fee for one night. At this time, in the program step (10a) of FIG. 6, the microcomputer 14 rewrites the inserted effective viewing card CD so as to deduct the price corresponding to the predetermined viewing time, and pay TV viewing time. And the viewing card CD is rewritten every time, and when all of the price is consumed, the viewing card CD may be rewritten invalid to clear the memory that the viewing card CD is valid. Also, if there is remaining time for viewing the pay broadcast, it is cleared by initialization of the next day.
[0029]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, by providing a card rack with a reader / writer, the microcomputer permits viewing of pay broadcasts on the condition that a valid viewing card is inserted in the card rack. Therefore, it is possible to easily and reliably control whether or not the pay broadcast including the preview time can be viewed, thereby minimizing the occurrence of complaints.
[Brief description of the drawings]
[Fig. 1] Overall configuration block system diagram [Fig. 2] Usage state explanatory diagram [Fig. 3] Main part configuration explanatory diagram [Fig. 4] Program flow chart [Fig. 5] Screen display explanatory diagram [Fig. 6] Other embodiments Main part program flow chart [Explanation of symbols]
TV ... TV receiver RC ... Remote controller CD ... Viewing card 10 ... Control device body 11 ... Tuner 12 ... Video output unit 13 ... Audio output unit 14 ... Microcomputer 20 ... Card rack 21 ... Light receiving unit 22 ... Reader / writer

Claims (2)

In a pay broadcast viewing control device that allows free viewing of a paid broadcast that is being broadcast for a certain preview time, a card rack with a reader / writer that inserts a rewritable contactless viewing card, and a control device body that incorporates a microcomputer The microcomputer includes a broadcast within a preview time on condition that an effective viewing card as a prepaid card is inserted into the card rack by paying a price equivalent to a certain viewing fee. When pay broadcast viewing is permitted and the viewing card is not inserted in the card rack, viewing of the pay broadcast including the preview time is prohibited, and the viewing card inserted in the card rack is invalidated by the reader / writer. If it is not valid after being rewritten, it will be free to watch paid broadcasts for the preview time. Viewing control apparatus of the pay broadcasting, characterized in that to allow. The microcomputer detects the presence or absence of the viewing card in the card rack, pay television viewing prohibited by a display lamp on the card rack, according to claim 1, wherein the displaying which one of the viewable serial mounting of pay-TV viewing control device.

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