JP5398688B2 - Program guide display device and program guide display method - Google Patents

Description

  Embodiments of the present invention relate to a program guide display device and a program guide display method suitable for use in, for example, a digital television broadcast receiver.

  As is well known, in recent years, digitization of television broadcasting has been promoted. For example, in Japan, not only satellite digital broadcasting such as BS (Broadcasting Satellite) digital broadcasting and 110-degree CS (Communication Satellite) digital broadcasting but also terrestrial digital broadcasting has been started.

  In a digital broadcast receiving apparatus that receives such digital television broadcasts, an electronic program guide is created based on EPG (Electronic Program Guide) information acquired from broadcast signals and displayed on a screen. Then, the user can select a desired program from the electronic program guide displayed on the video, and perform viewing or recording reservation.

  By the way, in the electronic program guide, since listability is generally emphasized, there is a tendency to display many programs on one screen, and accordingly, the displayed character size is also reduced. For this reason, in the digital broadcast receiving apparatus, it is important to devise so that the electronic program guide can be efficiently displayed in an easy-to-view format for an unspecified number of users.

  In Patent Document 1, the size of the program window displayed on the screen and the data amount of the program information are measured, and the size of the font of the program information displayed in the program window is measured based on the measured data amount of the program information. Techniques for determining this are disclosed.

  Patent Document 2 discloses a technique for detecting the resolution that can be displayed on the monitor when the electronic program guide is displayed on the monitor, and changing the number of table items and the font size in accordance with the monitor resolution. It is disclosed.

  Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a technique that is effective for a small monitor or a user with low vision by displaying a predetermined portion of a program guide selected by the user in an enlarged manner. .

JP 2003-283947 A JP 2002-247474 A JP 2001-24961 A

  It is an object of the present invention to provide a program guide display device and a program guide display method capable of efficiently displaying an electronic program guide in an easily viewable manner for an unspecified number of users.

According to the embodiment, the program guide display device includes an acquisition unit, a creation unit, a display unit, a setting unit, and a control unit. The acquisition means acquires program information. The creating means creates an electronic program guide composed of a channel axis and a time axis based on the program information obtained by the obtaining means. The display means displays the electronic program guide created by the creating means. The setting means can change the character size of the electronic program guide displayed on the display means. The control means controls the display means so as to display the electronic program guide in a form corresponding to the character size set by the setting means. The electronic program displayed on the display means regardless of the set character size. The time axis of the table is controlled so that it is divided into an integer number of unit time intervals, and the space left in the time axis direction within the unit time is not displayed. When it becomes possible, control is performed to display that the program exists using the space .

The figure showing an embodiment of this invention, and is a figure shown in order to explain roughly an example of a digital television broadcast receiving device and a network system constituted centering on it. The block block diagram shown in order to demonstrate the main signal processing systems of the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The external view shown in order to demonstrate the remote controller of the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The flowchart shown in order to demonstrate the display operation of the electronic program guide of the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The figure shown in order to demonstrate an example of the electronic program guide displayed with the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The figure shown in order to demonstrate an example of the quick menu displayed with the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The figure shown in order to demonstrate an example of the character size setting screen displayed with the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The figure shown in order to demonstrate an example of the display form of the electronic program guide accompanying the character size change of the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The figure shown in order to demonstrate the other example of the display form of the electronic program guide accompanying the character size change of the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The figure shown in order to demonstrate the further another example of the display form of the electronic program guide accompanying the character size change of the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment. The flowchart shown in order to demonstrate the other example of the character size switching operation | movement of the digital television broadcast receiver in the embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 schematically shows an appearance of a digital television broadcast receiving apparatus 11 described in this embodiment and an example of a network system configured around the digital television broadcast receiving apparatus 11.

  That is, the digital television broadcast receiver 11 is mainly composed of a thin cabinet 12 and a support base 13 that supports the cabinet 12 upright. In the cabinet 12, for example, a flat panel video display 14 made of a liquid crystal display panel, a speaker 15, an operation unit 16, a light receiving unit 18 that receives operation information transmitted from the remote controller 17, and the like are installed. .

  In addition, a first memory card 19 such as an SD (Secure Digital) memory card, an MMC (Multimedia Card), and a memory stick can be attached to and detached from the digital television broadcast receiver 11. Information such as programs and photographs is recorded on and reproduced from the memory card 19.

  Further, for example, a second memory card (IC card) 20 in which contract information or the like is recorded can be attached to and detached from the digital television broadcast receiver 11, and information is stored in the second memory card 20. Recording / reproduction is performed.

  The digital television broadcast receiver 11 includes a first LAN (Local Area Network) terminal 21, a second LAN terminal 22, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) terminal 23, and an i. A Link terminal 24 is provided.

  Among these, the first LAN terminal 21 is used as a LAN-compatible HDD dedicated port, and information is transferred to the LAN-compatible HDD 25 which is a NAS (Network Attached Storage) by Ethernet (registered trademark). Used for recording and playback.

  In this way, by providing the first LAN terminal 21 as a LAN-compatible HDD dedicated port, program information can be recorded on the HDD 25 with high-definition image quality without being affected by other network environments or network usage conditions. It can be performed stably.

  The second LAN terminal 22 is used as a general LAN-compatible port using Ethernet (registered trademark). For example, the LAN-compatible HDD 27, PC (Personal Computer) 28, It is used to connect equipment such as a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) recorder 29 with a built-in HDD and to transmit information to and from these equipment.

  As for the DVD recorder 29, since the digital information communicated via the second LAN terminal 22 is information only for the control system, analog video and audio information is exchanged with the digital television broadcast receiver 11. In order to transmit, it is necessary to provide a dedicated analog transmission line 30.

  Further, the second LAN terminal 22 is connected to a network 32 such as the Internet via a broadband router 31 connected to the hub 26, and transmits information to and from the PC 33, the mobile phone 34, etc. via the network 32. Used to do.

  The USB terminal 23 is used as a general USB compatible port. For example, a mobile phone 36, a digital camera 37, a card reader / writer 38 for a memory card, an HDD 39, a keyboard 40, etc. via a hub 35. USB devices are connected to each other and used for information transmission with these USB devices.

  Further, i. The Link terminal 24 is used to serially connect, for example, an AV-HDD 41, a D (Digital) -VHS (Video Home System) 42, etc., and perform information transmission with these devices.

  FIG. 2 shows a main signal processing system of the digital television broadcast receiver 11 described above. That is, the satellite digital television broadcast signal received by the BS / CS digital broadcast receiving antenna 43 is supplied to the satellite digital broadcast tuner 45 via the input terminal 44, so that the broadcast signal of the desired channel is obtained. To be selected.

  The broadcast signal selected by the tuner 45 is supplied to a PSK (Phase Shift Keying) demodulator 46, demodulated into a digital video signal and audio signal, and then output to a signal processing unit 47.

  The terrestrial digital television broadcast signal received by the terrestrial broadcast receiving antenna 48 is supplied to the terrestrial digital broadcast tuner 50 via the input terminal 49, so that the broadcast signal of the desired channel is selected. Is done.

  The broadcast signal selected by the tuner 50 is supplied to an OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) demodulator 51, demodulated into a digital video signal and an audio signal, and then output to the signal processing unit 47. The

  The terrestrial analog television broadcast signal received by the terrestrial broadcast receiving antenna 48 is supplied to the terrestrial analog broadcast tuner 52 via the input terminal 49, so that the broadcast signal of the desired channel is selected. Bureau. The broadcast signal selected by the tuner 52 is supplied to the analog demodulator 53, demodulated into an analog video signal and audio signal, and then output to the signal processing unit 47.

  Here, the signal processing unit 47 selectively performs predetermined digital signal processing on the digital video signal and audio signal respectively supplied from the PSK demodulator 46 and the OFDM demodulator 51, and the graphic processing unit 54. And output to the audio processing unit 55.

  The signal processing unit 47 is connected to a plurality (four in the illustrated case) of input terminals 56a, 56b, 56c, and 56d. These input terminals 56 a to 56 d can input analog video signals and audio signals from the outside of the digital television broadcast receiver 11.

  The signal processing unit 47 selectively digitizes the analog video signal and audio signal supplied from the analog demodulator 53 and the input terminals 56a to 56d, respectively, and the digitized video signal and audio signal. Are subjected to predetermined digital signal processing and then output to the graphic processing unit 54 and the audio processing unit 55.

  Among these, the graphic processing unit 54 has a function of superimposing and outputting the OSD signal generated by the OSD (On Screen Display) signal generation unit 57 on the digital video signal supplied from the signal processing unit 47. The graphic processing unit 54 selectively outputs the output video signal of the signal processing unit 47 and the output OSD signal of the OSD signal generation unit 57, and combines both outputs so as to constitute half of the screen. Can be output.

  The digital video signal output from the graphic processing unit 54 is supplied to the video processing unit 58. The video processing unit 58 converts the input digital video signal into an analog video signal in a format that can be displayed on the video display 14, and then outputs the analog video signal to the video display 14 to display the video. It is derived to the outside through 59.

  The audio processing unit 55 converts the input digital audio signal into an analog audio signal in a format that can be reproduced by the speaker 15 and then outputs the analog audio signal to the speaker 15 to reproduce the audio. Through the outside.

  Here, in the digital television broadcast receiving apparatus 11, all operations including the above-described various reception operations are comprehensively controlled by the control unit 61. The control unit 61 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and the like, receives operation information from the operation unit 16, or receives operation information sent from the remote controller 17 via the light receiving unit 18. Each part is controlled so that the operation content is reflected.

  In this case, the control unit 61 mainly includes a ROM (Read Only Memory) 62 that stores a control program executed by the CPU, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 63 that provides a work area for the CPU, and various setting information. And a nonvolatile memory 64 in which control information and the like are stored.

  The control unit 61 is connected to a card holder 66 in which the first memory card 19 can be mounted via a card I / F (Interface) 65. Accordingly, the control unit 61 can perform information transmission via the card I / F 65 and the first memory card 19 mounted on the card holder 66.

  Further, the control unit 61 is connected to a card holder 68 in which the second memory card 20 can be mounted via a card I / F 67. Thus, the control unit 61 can perform information transmission via the card I / F 67 with the second memory card 20 mounted in the card holder 68.

  The control unit 61 is connected to the first LAN terminal 21 via the communication I / F 69. Thus, the control unit 61 can perform information transmission via the communication I / F 69 with the LAN-compatible HDD 25 connected to the first LAN terminal 21. In this case, the control unit 61 has a DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) server function, and assigns and controls an IP (Internet Protocol) address to the LAN-compatible HDD 25 connected to the first LAN terminal 21.

  Further, the control unit 61 is connected to the second LAN terminal 22 via the communication I / F 70. As a result, the control unit 61 can perform information transmission with each device (see FIG. 1) connected to the second LAN terminal 22 via the communication I / F 70.

  The control unit 61 is connected to the USB terminal 23 via the USB I / F 71. Thereby, the control unit 61 can perform information transmission with each device (see FIG. 1) connected to the USB terminal 23 via the USB I / F 71.

  Further, the control unit 61 is configured to i. I. Via Link I / F 72 It is connected to the Link terminal 24. Thereby, the control part 61 is i. Each device (see FIG. 1) connected to the Link terminal 24; i. Information transmission can be performed via the Link I / F 72.

  FIG. 3 shows the appearance of the remote controller 17. The remote controller 17 mainly includes a power key 17a, an input switching key 17b, a direct channel selection key 17c for a satellite digital broadcast channel, a direct channel selection key 17d for a terrestrial broadcast channel, a quick key 17e, a cursor key 17f, and an enter key. 17g, program guide key 17h, page switching key 17i, face net (navigation) key 17j, back key 17k, end key 17l, blue, red, green, yellow color key 17m, channel up / down key 17n, volume adjustment key 17o Menu key 17p and the like are provided.

  FIG. 4 shows a flowchart for explaining the operation of the digital television broadcast receiver 11 for displaying the electronic program guide. This operation is started (step S4a) when the user operates the program guide key 17h of the remote controller 17.

  Then, the control part 61 produces an electronic program guide based on EPG information which is program information previously acquired via a broadcast signal, a network, etc. by step S4b, and displays the one part on the video display 14. FIG. The portion of the electronic program guide displayed on the video display 14 is determined based on the last conditions such as the channel and date / time displayed previously.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of an electronic program guide displayed on the video display 14. In this electronic program guide, six broadcast stations (channels) are arranged in the horizontal direction, and time frames for five hours are arranged in the vertical direction to display programs.

  That is, this electronic program guide has display columns A to F corresponding to six broadcasting stations (channels), and each display column A to F includes channel number display areas A1 to F1 and a broadcasting station name display, respectively. It consists of areas A2 to F2 and program display areas A3 to F3.

  In this case, for example, as shown in the display columns D to F, when the same broadcasting station has a plurality of (three in the illustrated example) channel numbers, the three broadcasting station name display areas D2 to F2 are one. Used as a common broadcast station name display area.

  In addition, the same broadcast station broadcasts the same program with a plurality of channel numbers (three in the figure), so-called event sharing is performed, and three program display areas D3 to F3 are shared by one. Used as a program display area.

  Further, in this electronic program guide, a selected program display area G indicating the channel number, title, broadcast time, etc. of the program selected by the cursor key 17f of the remote controller 17 is provided below the six display fields A to F. Provided. In this case, the selected program is displayed in the display columns A to F with the display area of the program being changed in color from the display area of other programs. In FIG. doing.

  Further, in this electronic program guide, five time regions H1 to H5 indicating time frames for every hour are provided on the left and right from the top to the bottom. In FIG. 5, since the current time is 9:13 am, each time region H1 to H5 shows a state corresponding to 9 am to 1 pm, respectively. When the current time is 10:00 am, the time areas H1 to H5 are switched to correspond to 10:00 am to 2 pm, respectively.

  As described above, in a state where a part of the electronic program guide is displayed on the screen in step S4b, when the control unit 61 detects that the quick key 17e of the remote controller 17 is operated, in step S4c, as shown in FIG. Such a quick menu is displayed on the electronic program guide.

  In this quick menu, four types of items of “program guide symbol list”, “character size change”, “genre color classification setting”, and “program information update” are displayed. These items are selected by the user operating the cursor key 16f of the remote controller 17, and are set by operating the enter key 17g.

  When the control unit 61 detects that the “change character size” item has been selected and set from the quick menu, it displays a character size setting screen as shown in FIG. 7 in step S4d. In this character size setting screen, three types of items “Large”, “Medium”, and “Small” prepared in advance as font sizes of characters displayed on the electronic program guide are displayed.

  Thereafter, when the control unit 61 detects that the user selects any item by operating the cursor key 16f of the remote controller 17 in step S4e and is set by the operation of the enter key 17g, in step S4f, Display processing is performed so as to display the electronic program guide in a form suitable for the set character size, and the processing ends (step S4g).

  Here, an example of the display process in step S4f will be described. FIG. 8 shows a size corresponding to a set character size in a program frame formed in the program display areas A3 to F3 of the display columns A to F and divided by a predetermined channel and a predetermined time. In this example, the character spacing and the line spacing are automatically set to a distance suitable for the character size when the character is displayed.

  That is, FIG. 8A shows a display example when the item “Large” is set as the character size. In this case, a character interval K1 and a line interval L1 that are suitable for displaying the character with respect to the character display having a size corresponding to the item “large”, that is, that the character is easy to read. Automatically set to

  FIG. 8B shows a display example when the item “medium” is set as the character size. In this case, with respect to the character display of the size corresponding to the item “medium”, the character interval K2 and the line interval L2 that are suitable for displaying the character, that is, that the character is easy to read, Automatically set to

  Further, FIG. 8C shows a display example when the item “small” is set as the character size. In this case, the character spacing K3 and the line spacing L3, which are suitable for displaying the character with respect to the character display of the size corresponding to the item “small”, that is, that the character is easy to read, Automatically set to

  In FIG. 8, both the character spacing and the line spacing are changed according to the set character size. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and any one of the character spacing and the line spacing is necessary. One of them may be changed according to the character size.

  FIG. 9 shows an example in which the channel axis scale and the time axis scale are automatically set according to the set character size. FIG. 9A shows a display example when the item “Large” is set as the character size. In this case, the electronic program guide is automatically set to display a program by arranging five channels in the horizontal direction and arranging time frames for four hours in the vertical direction.

  Further, FIG. 9B shows a display example when the item “medium” is set as the character size. In this case, the electronic program guide is automatically set to display programs by arranging six channels in the horizontal direction and time frames for five hours in the vertical direction.

  FIG. 9C shows a display example when the item “small” is set as the character size. In this case, the electronic program guide is automatically set to display a program by arranging seven channels in the horizontal direction and arranging time frames for six hours in the vertical direction.

  Note that it is not necessary to change both the channel axis scale and the time axis scale, and if necessary, change either the channel axis scale or the time axis scale according to the character size. Anyway, it is good.

  Next, FIG. 10 shows an example in which the minimum unit of the program frame that can be formed in the program display areas A3 to F3 is automatically changed according to the character size. That is, it is assumed that there are a 50-minute program starting from 9:00 am and a 10-minute program starting from 9:50 am in a predetermined channel.

  In this case, on the program display areas A3 to F3, the time frame from 9 am to 10 am is fixed for the predetermined channel. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 10 (a), a space S1 that has a small number of characters for a 50-minute program and can display at least one line of characters in a fixed time frame (in this case, only in the time axis direction). ) Is left, it is possible to display characters for a 10-minute program.

  That is, a program frame 73 displaying characters for a 50-minute program and a program frame 74 displaying characters for a 10-minute program are formed within a fixed time frame for one hour from 9 am to 10 am. It becomes possible.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 10B, the number of characters for the 50-minute program is large, and there is no space for displaying one line of characters in the time frame from 9 am to 10 am. By displaying the 10-minute program with a line 75, only the presence of the program is indicated.

  In this case, the determination as to whether the 10-minute program can be displayed as characters or whether it is displayed as a line 75 is made by comparing the character size with the space left in the fixed time frame. Further, when the character size is changed, the changed character size is compared with the space left when the character size is displayed.

  That is, the minimum unit [minimum size, space S1 in the time axis direction in FIG. 10A] of the program frame that allows the program to be displayed in characters is changed according to the set character size. Yes.

  According to the above-described embodiment, the user can select and set the font size of characters displayed on the electronic program guide from among the three types prepared in advance, and in a form suitable for the set character size. Since the electronic program guide is displayed, the electronic program guide can be efficiently displayed in an easy-to-view format for an unspecified number of users.

  Further, the display processes described in FIGS. 8 to 10 for displaying the electronic program guide in a form suitable for the set character size may be arbitrarily combined.

  FIG. 11 shows a flowchart for explaining another operation in which the digital television broadcast receiving apparatus 11 changes the character size of the electronic program guide. This operation is started (step S11a) when the user operates the red color key 17m of the remote controller 17 in the display state of the electronic program guide shown in FIG.

  That is, when it is detected in step S11b that the red color key 17m of the remote controller 17 is operated, the control unit 61 confirms the currently set character size (for example, “medium”) in step S11c. In step S11d, the currently set character size is switched to the next character size (eg, “Large”) based on a preset order, and the process ends (step S11e).

  Here, as the preset order, for example, it is assumed that the character size is cyclically switched in the order of “medium” → “large” → “small” → “medium”.

  According to such an operation, the character size can be cyclically switched every time the red color key 17m of the remote controller 17 is operated, and the user's operation can be facilitated.

  In the above-described embodiment, the character size is selected from three types of “large”, “medium”, and “small” prepared in advance, but the user arbitrarily inputs and sets the font size of the character. It can also be possible. Also in this case, display processing is performed so that the electronic program guide is displayed in a form suitable for the set character size.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments as they are, and can be embodied by variously modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, constituent elements according to different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Digital television broadcast receiver, 12 ... Cabinet, 13 ... Support stand, 14 ... Video display, 15 ... Speaker, 16 ... Operation part, 17 ... Remote controller, 18 ... Light receiving part, 19 ... 1st memory card 20 ... second memory card, 21 ... first LAN terminal, 22 ... second LAN terminal, 23 ... USB terminal, 24 ... i. Link terminal, 25 ... HDD, 26 ... hub, 27 ... HDD, 28 ... PC, 29 ... DVD recorder, 30 ... analog transmission line, 31 ... broadband router, 32 ... network, 33 ... PC, 34 ... mobile phone, 35 ... Hub, 36 ... mobile phone, 37 ... digital camera, 38 ... card reader / writer, 39 ... HDD, 40 ... keyboard, 41 ... AV-HDD, 42 ... D-VHS, 43 ... antenna, 44 ... input terminal, 45 ... Tuner 46 ... PSK demodulator 47 ... Signal processor 48 ... Antenna 49 ... Input terminal 50 ... Tuner 51 ... OFDM demodulator 52 ... Tuner 53 ... Analog demodulator 54 ... Graphic processor 55 ... audio processing unit, 56a to 56d ... input terminal, 57 ... OSD signal generation unit, 58 ... video processing unit, 59 ... output terminal, 60 ... output terminal, 61 ... Control unit, 62 ... ROM, 63 ... RAM, 64 ... Non-volatile memory, 65 ... Card I / F, 66 ... Card holder, 67 ... Card I / F, 68 ... Card holder, 69 ... Communication I / F, 70 ... Communication I / F, 71 ... USB I / F, 72 ... i. Link I / F, 73, 74 ... program frame, 75 ... line.

Claims (4)

Obtaining means for obtaining program information;
Creating means for creating an electronic program guide composed of a channel axis and a time axis based on the program information obtained by the obtaining means;
Display means for displaying the electronic program guide created by the creating means;
Setting means for enabling change of the character size of the electronic program guide displayed on the display means;
The display unit is controlled to display the electronic program guide in a form corresponding to the character size set by the setting unit. The electronic program displayed on the display unit regardless of the set character size. The time axis of the table is controlled so that it is divided into an integer number of unit times that are equally spaced, and the space left in the time axis direction within the unit time is displayed as characters of the set character size. A program guide display device comprising: control means for controlling to display that a program exists using the space when it becomes impossible . Obtaining means for obtaining program information;
Creating means for creating an electronic program guide composed of a channel axis and a time axis based on the program information obtained by the obtaining means;
Display means for displaying the electronic program guide created by the creating means;
Setting means for enabling change of the character size of the electronic program guide displayed on the display means;
The display unit is controlled to display the electronic program guide in a form corresponding to the character size set by the setting unit. The electronic program displayed on the display unit regardless of the set character size. The time axis of the table is controlled so that it is divided into an integer number of unit times that are equally spaced , and the minimum space in the time axis direction within the unit time that allows the program to be displayed in characters is set. A program guide display device comprising control means for controlling to be changed according to the character size . A first step of acquiring program information;
A second step of creating an electronic program guide composed of a channel axis and a time axis based on the program information acquired in the first step;
A third step of displaying the electronic program guide created in the second step;
A fourth step enabling the character size of the electronic program guide displayed in the third step to be changed;
Controls display processing in the third step so that the electronic program guide is displayed in a form corresponding to the character size set in the fourth step, regardless of the set character size. The time axis of the electronic program guide displayed in the third step is controlled so as to be divided into an integer number of unit times that are equally spaced, and left in the time axis direction within the unit time. A program guide display method comprising: a fifth step of controlling to display that a space exists and a program indicating that a program exists when a character having a set character size cannot be displayed. A first step of acquiring program information;
A second step of creating an electronic program guide composed of a channel axis and a time axis based on the program information acquired in the first step;
A third step of displaying the electronic program guide created in the second step;
A fourth step enabling the character size of the electronic program guide displayed in the third step to be changed;
Controls display processing in the third step so that the electronic program guide is displayed in a form corresponding to the character size set in the fourth step, regardless of the set character size. The time axis of the electronic program guide displayed in the third step is controlled so as to be divided into an integer number of unit times that are equally spaced , and the program can be displayed in characters. And a fifth step of controlling the minimum space in the time axis direction to be changed according to the set character size .

Images