JP4597005B2 - Electronic program guide display device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention creates a program guide such as a program guide from program information of a plurality of broadcast programs obtained through a wireless or wired communication line or from a storage medium, and the created program guide is displayed on a display unit. The present invention relates to an electronic program guide display device for display.

  In television broadcasting, a broadcast schedule of a program to be broadcast (referred to as “broadcast program”) is determined in advance, and in recent years, the broadcast schedule is an electronic program guide (which is also referred to as “electronic program guide” because it is a table format). It is distributed in various forms by various information media.

A display example of the electronic program guide is shown in FIG.
In the example of FIG. 6, the electronic program guide is equivalent to each channel number or broadcasting station name 65 (“AA broadcast” to “TV FF”, etc.) and time axis 64 (“18: 0 to 20:00” in the figure). Program information of a broadcast program is displayed on a display area (hereinafter referred to as “two-dimensional matrix”) 66 of a two-dimensional matrix divided into two.
FIG. 6 shows an example in which program information such as a program name (“AA Special”, etc.) is displayed on the two-dimensional matrix 66 in a omitted form.

  Here, when the user selects a broadcast program 67 ("Sunday night ..." in the figure), the program information of the channel selected by the user in an area 61 different from the two-dimensional matrix 66 of the electronic program guide (example) : 103 channel TV CC), and the program information of the broadcast program not omitted in another area 62 (e.g., Sunday night to "until next Christmas", August 31, 20: 00-21: 00).

  Therefore, program information of various broadcast programs can be obtained by the user changing the selection of the broadcast program.

  Also, the broadcast time of the broadcast program varies, and since a certain amount of program information is displayed on the matrix if it is a broadcast program that is broadcast for a long time, the divided two-dimensional data can be obtained without selecting the broadcast program. Program information in the matrix 66 can be read.

  However, in a broadcast program with a short broadcast time, the program information does not fit in the divided two-dimensional matrix 66, and depending on the broadcast time, characters cannot be displayed, and so-called mass state 68 of only a frame in which characters are not displayed. May only be displayed.

  In order to avoid such problems, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-363744 (Patent Document 1) describes a technique such as changing the display form of program information of the program or changing the font of characters. ing.

  As another electronic program guide display method, a method of displaying a list of broadcast programs included in a certain channel or genre in order of broadcast may be used.

  However, even if the program information for all broadcast programs is displayed equally using this method, the time zone of all the program titles being displayed and the broadcast time of one broadcast program in this time zone. It is difficult to visually grasp which time zone it is located by length.

In order to avoid the above problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-298697 (Patent Document 2) discloses a technique for displaying a bar indicating the time occupied by all the broadcast programs being displayed or the time occupied by one specific broadcast program. Is described.
JP 2004-363744 A JP-A-9-298697

  However, there is a limit even if the display form is changed or the font is reduced as described in Patent Document 1, and if the broadcast time is extremely short, the font becomes too small to be read or displayed. The number of characters that can be recorded is reduced, and it can be detected that there is a broadcast program, but the program information cannot be obtained only by the information displayed on the matrix. Have the problem of having to choose.

  Further, as described in Patent Document 2, the method of displaying broadcast programs as a list and displaying the bar of the occupied time of all broadcast programs or the time of one specific broadcast program can determine only an approximate time. However, there is a problem that it is difficult to correlate the broadcast time of each broadcast program being displayed.

  Furthermore, since the area where the program information is displayed is different from the area where the time bar is displayed, it is necessary to move the line of sight and there is a problem that the listability is poor.

  The present invention has been made in view of such a situation, and even if a broadcast program has a short broadcast time, while displaying program information, the user can easily understand the broadcast time of each broadcast program visually. It is an object to provide an electronic program guide display device that can be used.

  The present invention is an electronic program guide display device that solves the above-described problems by the following configuration.

The present invention creates a program guide from program information of a plurality of broadcast programs obtained via a wireless or wired communication line, or obtained from a storage medium, and the created program guide is displayed on a display unit screen. In the display apparatus, a program information search means for searching for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from among a plurality of broadcast programs, a program axis for arranging the program information, and a time axis indicating a broadcast time On the display screen matrix having two axes, the program information of the specific broadcast program as a result of the search by the program information search means has a length that does not correspond to the broadcast time in the time axis direction, and follows the program axis. Program information display means arranged and displayed on the matrix of the display section screen, and an index for distinguishing between the time when the specific broadcast program is broadcast and the time when the specific broadcast program is not broadcast An indicator display means for displaying the program information and the program guide including the indicator on the display unit screen, and the program information display means is adapted to display the specific broadcast program detected by the program information search means. The program information is displayed by describing a character string related to each program information in a band-like small display area with a certain length in the time axis direction, and the index display means includes at least one width direction of the small display area. The electronic program guide display device is characterized in that an indicator is displayed at a position corresponding to a time axis of a time at which a specific broadcast program is broadcast .

  In the present invention, the program information search means preferably searches for a specific broadcast program having program information of a genre or keyword desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs.

  In the present invention, the program information search means preferably searches for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs in a plurality of channels.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that the program information search means searches for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from among a plurality of broadcast programs in the channel that the user wants to check and the surrounding channels. .

  The electronic program guide display device of the present invention has the following effects.

  In the electronic program guide display device according to the present invention, the program information display means has the program information search means on a matrix of a display unit screen having two axes of a program axis for arranging program information and a time axis for showing broadcast time. The program information of the specific broadcast program detected by the above is displayed in a time axis direction having a length that does not correspond to the broadcast time and arranged along the program axis. In addition, an index for distinguishing between the time when the specific broadcast program is broadcast and the time when the specific broadcast program is not broadcast is displayed corresponding to the time axis, and the program guide including the program information and the index is displayed on the display unit screen. ing.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, since the program information of a specific broadcast program has a length that does not correspond to the broadcast time in the time axis direction and is arranged and displayed along the program axis, the program with a short broadcast time is displayed. However, it is possible to read the program information as it is without the act of the user selecting the program information, and for the program broadcast on the channel, the time when the specific broadcast program is broadcast and the time when it is not broadcast are distinguished from each other Since the index for the display is displayed in correspondence with the time axis, it becomes easy to grasp the broadcast start time and the broadcast time, respectively, and it is possible to make it easy to imagine the broadcast schedule of the program.

Therefore, in the present invention, even for a program having a short broadcast time, the program information can be displayed reliably, and the user can intuitively grasp the time when the program starts and the length of the broadcast. A program guide such as a program guide can be displayed.
In the present invention, the program information display means displays the program information of the specific broadcast program detected by the program information search means on the display area in a band-like small display area with a certain length in the time axis direction. This is performed by describing a character string related to each program information in an array arranged in the program axis direction, and the index display means is at least one side in the width direction of the small display area and is a time for broadcasting a specific broadcast program Since the index is displayed at the position corresponding to the axis, the relationship between the small display area and the index becomes clear, so the user can easily see the individual times of multiple broadcast programs in the program guide and their relationship with each other at a glance. This makes it easier to make a program viewing plan .

In the electronic program guide display device according to the present invention, the program information search means can detect a specific broadcast program having program information of a genre or keyword desired by the user from among a plurality of broadcast programs, and the following effects Play.
In other words, unlike a channel unit in which programs are broadcast continuously and each program does not overlap, programs extracted by genre or keyword may be broadcast simultaneously on other channels, so they are extracted. However, it is easy to grasp intuitively, and it is possible to make it easy to imagine the broadcast schedule of the program.

  Further, in the electronic program guide display device according to the present invention, the program information search means detects one specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs in a plurality of channels. For programs that are broadcast not only on channels but also on other channels, it is easier to grasp the broadcast times such as the broadcast start time and end time, and it is easy to imagine the broadcast schedule of the desired broadcast program including multiple channels. It becomes possible to do.

  Further, in the electronic program guide display device according to the present invention, the program information search means includes a specific broadcast having program information having an attribute desired by the user from among a plurality of broadcast programs in the channel that the user wants to check and the surrounding channels. If a program is detected, a specific program having program information having an attribute desired by the user can be detected not only for the channel that the user wants to check but also for a plurality of programs for the surrounding channels. It is possible to make it easier to imagine the broadcast program of

  One embodiment which is the best mode for carrying out an electronic program guide display device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of an electronic program guide display device incorporated in a digital broadcast receiver as an embodiment of the electronic program guide display device according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a view showing a screen display example of program information in the electronic program guide display device according to the embodiment of FIG.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an operation mode in the screen display of program information in the electronic program guide display device according to the embodiment.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing another screen display example (modification 1) of the program information in the electronic program guide display device according to the embodiment, and FIG. 5 is still another screen display example (modification) of the program information. It is a figure which shows Example 2).

  As shown in FIG. 1, the electronic program guide display device of the embodiment is a digital television broadcast obtained by a digital broadcast receiver via a wireless or wired communication line (or obtained from a storage medium). Is a device that creates a program guide (also referred to as a “program guide”) from program information of a plurality of broadcast programs and displays the created program guide on the display unit screen.

[Video information display device]
The video information display device (denoted by reference symbol “A”) of the digital broadcast receiver according to the embodiment includes a tuner unit 10, a demultiplexing unit 11, a video decoding unit 12, and a display unit 13. Information is displayed on the display unit 13 screen.

  The tuner unit 10 demodulates a digital multi-channel broadcast signal received via a communication line (not shown) to generate a baseband bit stream signal. The bit stream signal output from the tuner unit 10 is input to the demultiplexing unit 11.

  The demultiplexing unit 11 separates a video information stream and a program information stream for a specific program from video information (including audio information) of a plurality of programs and a bit stream signal in which the program information is multiplexed. In the case of a pay program, since the scramble processing is generally performed on the bit stream signal, the scrambled state is released from the bit stream signal so that video information and program information can be extracted. The separation unit 11 also performs descramble processing.

  The video information stream (video / audio stream) separated and output by the demultiplexing unit 11 is input to the video decoding unit 12. The program information stream separated and output by the demultiplexing unit 11 is input to the program information storage unit 14 and stored.

  The video decoding unit 12 processes the input video information stream and generates a video signal / audio signal corresponding to the display format.

The video signal output from the video decoding unit 12 is supplied to the display unit 13.
The display unit 13 performs various processes for displaying the video signal on the display screen.
Various means or devices such as a liquid crystal display device (TFT), a CRT screen display device, a plasma display device, and a projector display device can be used for the display unit 13, and details thereof are omitted.
The audio signal is input from the video decoding unit 12 to the audio generation means 13a and uttered in response to the video signal.

[Electronic program guide display device]
As shown in FIG. 1, an electronic program guide display device (indicated by reference symbol “B”) provided in a digital broadcast receiver includes an input unit 17, a microcomputer unit 18, program information search in addition to the program information storage unit 14. A section 15, a program guide creation section 16, and a display section 13.

  An electronic program guide display request is input to the microcomputer unit 18 in accordance with a user instruction from the input unit 17, and the microcomputer unit 18 is necessary to display the program guide from the program information input to the program information storage unit 14. Data is input to the program information search unit 15.

  The program information search unit 15 processes the program information so that the program can be easily searched based on the program information input in accordance with the instruction of the microcomputer unit 18, calculates the time sequence according to the display size, and displays the program information. Create program guide data to be used. Then, the output of the program information search unit 15 is input to the program guide creation unit 16 so that the program information retrieved by the program guide creation unit 16 can be displayed on the display unit 13 and sent to the display unit 13.

  The microcomputer unit 18 includes a central processing unit (CPU), a microcomputer having a nonvolatile memory (ROM) for storing a program, and a volatile memory (RAM).

  The electronic program guide display device according to the embodiment includes a program information search function for searching for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from among a plurality of broadcast programs, a program axis for arranging the program information, and a broadcast time. The program information of a specific broadcast program as a search result by the program information search function has a length that does not correspond to the broadcast time in the time axis direction on a matrix of a display unit screen having two axes of time axis indicating And a program information display function for arranging and displaying the program information along the program axis, and an index for distinguishing the time when the specific broadcast program is broadcast and the time when the specific broadcast program is not broadcast on the matrix of the display unit screen. The CPU and RAM are operated by a program stored in the ROM with an index display function for displaying the program guide including program information and indices on the display unit screen. It is realized to be.

  Each function is achieved by the following specific means.

The program information search means 18a searches for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from among a plurality of broadcast programs.
Specifically, based on the attribute of the desired program information input by the user through the input unit 17, the program information stored in the program information storage unit 14 is read out by the program information search unit 15 as a search target.

  In the embodiment, program information is displayed in a display area of the display unit 13 screen, and program information (channel, broadcast time, program title (including program comments), etc.) of each program is displayed in the indication area. Each area (smallly labeled small marking area) ("areas 21 to 27" in FIG. 2, "area 49" in FIG. 4, and "areas 51 to 58" in FIG. 5) is included.

  Further, the user-desired attribute searched by the program information search means 18a from a plurality of broadcast programs is a genre or keyword desired by the user. Thus, the user can search for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs in a plurality of channels for program information according to the desired genre and keyword. This will be described with reference to Modification 1 shown in FIG.

  Further, the program information search means 18a can search for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from among a plurality of broadcast programs in the channel that the user wants to check and the surrounding channels. This point will be described with reference to Modification 2 shown in FIG.

  The program information display means 18b displays the program information of a specific broadcast program as a search result by the program information search means on a matrix of a display screen having two axes, a program axis for arranging program information and a time axis indicating broadcast time. Are displayed in a time axis direction having a length not corresponding to the broadcast time and arranged along the program axis.

  In the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, for example, the program information display means 18b includes a broadcast time (area 24) indicated by text in the program information, a program axis (area 25) for arranging program titles, and the length of the broadcast time. The program title of the program information of the specific broadcast program searched by the program information search unit 15 on the matrix of the screen of the display unit 13 having two axes of the time axis (see area 23) indicating the time axis direction Are given a length that does not correspond to the broadcast time and are arranged and displayed along the program axis (area 25).

  Further, the program information display means 18b displays the program information of the specific broadcast program detected by the program information search means in a small band-like display area (area 21 in the case of FIG. 2) with a certain length in the time axis direction. ˜25 etc.) by describing a character string related to each program information. Specifically, the small display area of the area 25 in FIG. 2 has a length corresponding to the time axis range of 16:00 to 18:00.

  The index display means 18c displays on the matrix of the display unit 13 screen an index for distinguishing between the time when the specific broadcast program is broadcast and the time when the specific broadcast program is not broadcast, corresponding to the time axis, thereby displaying program information. And a program guide including an index are displayed on the display unit screen.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the index display means 18c distinguishes between the time when the specific broadcast program is broadcast and the time when it is not broadcast on the matrix (areas 21 to 25) of the display unit screen. A trapezoidal index (also referred to as an ear) is displayed in association with the time axis (area 23).

  In FIG. 2, the correspondence of the index is shown by extending the area 27 of the selected program in the small display area in the range of 16:00 to 18:00 along the left and right according to the time axis. is there. Then, the display mode of the index is a rising slope corresponding to the time display of the time axis on the upper and lower sides, which is an example of both sides in the width direction of the area 27, and a falling slope corresponding to the time display of the time axis. An indicator 28 having a trapezoidal shape is shown.

  In the present invention, the index is not limited to display on both sides in the width direction of the small display area, and can be displayed only on one side.

  A screen display example of the electronic program guide according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

  The electronic program guide shown in FIG. 2 is a program guide (program guide) of a broadcast program from 16:00 to 19:00 on March 21 on the channel number “CH103”. Information is displayed.

  In the upper part of the program guide, there is an area 21 for displaying the number of the 103 channel that is the channel displaying the program guide. Further, the date being displayed in the program guide is displayed in the area 22 so that the date can be understood.

  In the area 23, the scale of the time axis being displayed on the program guide is displayed. In addition, the broadcast times of programs broadcast as program axes in which program information is arranged in the area 24 are displayed side by side as program information. In addition, the program information is displayed for the program title broadcast in the area 25 following the broadcasting time arranged in the area 24. In this embodiment, an area for displaying the broadcast time is provided in the area 24. However, the area 25 may be displayed as program information.

  Next, as an example of an individual program, “Today's News” scheduled to be broadcast from 16:30 to 16:55 will be described. This program displays in the area 26 16:30 to 16:55, which is the broadcast time of this program. In the area 27, program information of the program title is displayed. The area 26 and the area 27 are changed in color so that it can be understood that the user has selected (indicated by shading in FIG. 2).

  Then, in order to be able to discriminate between 16:30 to 16:55, which is the time when this program is broadcast, only the corresponding time portion on the time axis above and below the displayed program information is an ear-shaped index (area 28). ) Is displayed. In this example, the corresponding part on the time axis is shown by attaching ear-shaped indexes on the top and bottom, but if you want to know the broadcast range along with the program information, you can add color to the range or program information It may be displayed in a block. The index is preferably a trapezoidal ear, but may take various forms such as other shapes such as a rectangular shape or a repeated display of figures / symbols.

  FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of processing for displaying the program guide. In the figure, each processing step is indicated as S30 to etc.

  As shown in FIG. 3, first, when a program guide display request is generated by a user's input or the like (S30), a channel and time that need to be displayed are searched and the screen of the display unit 13 (areas 21, 22, 23). ) Is drawn (displayed) (S31).

  Next, the first program broadcast at the time displayed on the program guide (the first one of the specific broadcast program) is searched (S32).

  The program information of the program as a search result is drawn at the head on the program axis (S33).

  The drawing range of the index corresponding to the time axis is calculated from the broadcast time of the program as a search result (S34), and the index is drawn above and below the program information area (S35).

  Next, it is determined whether or not the end time of the search result program is within the display range of the time axis being displayed (S36).

  If the end time of the search result program exceeds the time axis being displayed (S36: No), the program that needs to be displayed in the program guide is the last, so the program guide display processing is performed. The process ends (S39).

  On the other hand, if the end time of the search result program does not exceed the displayed time axis (S36: Yes), does the search result program exceed the number of programs (displayable in area 25) in the display area? It is determined whether or not (S37). If the number of programs is exceeded (S37: Yes), the program guide display process is terminated (S39). On the other hand, if the number of programs is not exceeded (S37: No), it is necessary to search for the next program, so the start time for searching for the next program is changed to the end time of the previous program (S38). .

  Then, the process returns to the program information search process to search for a program to be displayed again (S32), and the processes of S32 to S38 are repeated until there is no program to be displayed.

  In addition, the process of S37 is performed by determining whether or not the search result program is the last program in the display area (displayable in the area 25), and if it is the last (S37: Yes), The program guide display process is terminated (S39). On the other hand, if it is not the last program, the next program is retrieved, so that the start time for retrieving the next program is changed to the end time of the previous program (S38). Can be processed.

  The above-described processing flow shown in FIG. 3 is described as being executed by the program information search unit 15 and the program guide creation unit 16 shown in FIG.

However, the processing flow of FIG. 3 is executed by the program information search unit 15 and the program guide creation unit 16 in accordance with instructions from the program information search unit 18a, program information display unit 18b, and index display unit 18c of the microcomputer unit 16. Thus, the function sharing may be changed so that only the program information search unit 15 executes.
In short, any function may be used as long as it obtains necessary information from the program information storage unit 14 and functions to process and process the information so that the program guide of FIG. 2, 4 or 5 can be displayed on the display unit 13.

  FIG. 4 shows another screen display example (Modification 1) of the electronic program guide according to the embodiment.

  The electronic program guide shown in FIG. 4 is a program guide that extracts and displays only programs of the genre requested by the user from the genre information included in the program information, and starts from 16:00 on March 21 in the “news / report” genre. Information on programs broadcast by 19:00 is displayed.

  In the example of FIG. 4, a program guide that extracts programs having program information of a specific genre is used. However, a specific guide such as a program extracted by a genre or a keyword from a program of a plurality of channels is used instead of a channel unit where the programs do not overlap. It may be a program guide that displays programs that may be broadcast simultaneously on other channels as well as channels.

  As shown in FIG. 4, there is an area 41 for displaying “news / report”, which is a genre displaying the program guide, in the upper part of the program guide.

  Further, the date being displayed in the program guide is displayed in the area 42 so that the date can be understood.

  Then, the scale of the time axis being displayed on the program guide is displayed in the area 43.

  In addition, as a program axis in which program titles are arranged in the area 44, broadcast channels and broadcast times of programs to be broadcast are displayed side by side.

  In addition, program information of a program that is broadcast following the broadcast time arranged in the area 44 is displayed in the area 45.

  In the example of FIG. 4, an area for displaying the broadcast channel and broadcast time is provided in the area 44, but the broadcast channel and broadcast time may be included in the area 45 and displayed as program information.

  Next, as an example of an individual program, “Today's News” scheduled to be broadcast on the channel 103 from 16:30 to 16:55 will be described.

  This program displays in the area 46 103ch, which is the channel on which this program is broadcast.

  Also, 16:30 to 16:55, which is the time broadcasted in the area 47, is displayed.

  In the area 48, program information is displayed. The area 46, the area 47, and the area 48 are changed in color so that the user can see that they are selected.

  Then, in order to be able to discriminate between 16:30 to 16:55, which is the time when this program is broadcast, only the corresponding time portion on the time axis is displayed (ears) (area 49) above and below the displayed program information. ) Is displayed.

  In this example, the corresponding part on the time axis is shown by attaching an index up and down, but if it is possible to understand the broadcast range together with the program information, the range is colored or the block is included in the program information It may be displayed.

  FIG. 5 shows another screen display example (Modification 2) of the electronic program guide according to the embodiment.

  The electronic program guide shown in FIG. 5 indicates that the program information broadcast from 16:00 to 19:00 on March 21 with channel numbers 103ch, 240ch, and 333ch is displayed.

  In the upper part of the program guide, there is an area 51 for displaying the channel number 103ch currently selected in the program guide, and there is an area 52 for displaying program information of the currently selected program that is not omitted. Further, the date being displayed on the program guide is displayed in the area 53 so that the date of the displayed program guide can be known.

  Then, the scale of the time axis being displayed on the program guide is displayed in the area 54.

  Also, the channel number displayed in the program guide is displayed in area 55. Each program is displayed in area 56.

  Here, an actual program is taken up and a method of displaying the program will be described.

  When the program selected by the user is the area 57, the program information not omitted of the program is displayed in the area 52.

Next, since there are three programs to be broadcast at 17:00 on channel 103ch where this program is broadcast, it is displayed in area 25 of FIG. 2 in a block (area 58) at 17:00 on channel 103ch. Similarly, program information for three programs is displayed.
Then, the program information can be displayed with a width of one hour on the time axis, instead of adjusting the area for displaying the program information on the matrix to the broadcasting time as in the conventional program guide. Of course, the details of the program information are displayed in another area 52 for the convenience of the user.

  Here, the program information display area is set to one hour on the time axis. However, for example, a broadcast time fixed to three programs may be set as the size of the area for displaying the program information.

  The electronic program guide display device of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  For example, as shown in the screen display in FIG. 2, the display area for displaying the program information is arranged in the vertical direction along the time axis in the horizontal direction of the area 23 and in the horizontal direction of the screen as in the areas 24 and 25. In addition to the arrangement on the program axis, the direction of each axis can be variously modified such that the time axis is in the vertical direction and the program axis is in the horizontal direction.

It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of the electronic program guide display apparatus incorporated in the digital broadcast receiver as an example of embodiment of the electronic program guide display apparatus by this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of a screen display of the program information in the electronic program guide display apparatus of FIG. It is a flowchart of the operation | movement aspect in the screen display of the program information in the electronic program guide display apparatus which concerns on the embodiment. It is a figure which shows the other example of a screen display (modification 1) of the program information in the electronic program guide display apparatus which concerns on the embodiment. It is a figure which shows the other example of a screen display (modification 2) of the program information. It is a figure which shows the example of a display of the conventional program guide display apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Tuner part 11 Demultiplexing part 12 Video decoding part 13 Display part 14 Program information storage part 15 Program information search part 16 Program guide preparation part 17 Input part 18 Microcomputer part 18a Program information search means 18b Program information display means 18c Index display means 21 , 51 Display channel number display area 22, 42, 53 Display start date display area 23, 43, 54 Display time axis display area 24, 44 Display program axis display area 25, 45, 56 Program information display area 26, 47 Selected program broadcast time display area 27, 48, 57 Selected program information display area 28, 49 Selected program broadcast time display area 41 Genre type display area 46 Selected program broadcast channel number display area 52 Selected program detailed information Area of 示用

Claims (4)

In an apparatus for creating a program guide from program information of a plurality of broadcast programs obtained via a wireless or wired communication line or obtained from a storage medium, and displaying the created program guide on a display unit screen ,
A program information search means for searching for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs;
Broadcast program information of a specific broadcast program as a search result by the program information search means on the display screen matrix having two axes, a program axis for arranging program information and a time axis indicating broadcast time, in the time axis direction. Program information display means for providing a length that does not correspond to the time and displaying the information arranged along the program axis;
On the matrix of the display unit screen, provided with indicator display means for displaying an indicator for distinguishing between the time when the specific broadcast program is broadcast and the time when the specific broadcast program is not broadcast, corresponding to the time axis,
A program guide including program information and indicators is displayed on the display screen ,
The program information display means describes the display of the program information of the specific broadcast program as a result of detection by the program information search means, and describes a character string related to each program information in a band-like small display area with a certain length in the time axis direction. Done by
An electronic program guide display device , wherein the indicator display means displays an indicator at a position corresponding to a time axis of a time at which a specific broadcast program is broadcast, at least on one side in the width direction of the small display area .   2. The electronic program guide display device according to claim 1, wherein the program information search means searches for a specific broadcast program having program information of a genre or keyword desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs.   2. The electronic program guide display device according to claim 1, wherein the program information search means searches for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs in a plurality of channels.   4. The program information search means searches for a specific broadcast program having program information having an attribute desired by the user from a plurality of broadcast programs in a channel that the user wants to check and a channel around the channel. The electronic program guide display device described.

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