JPH0465572B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Technical field to which the invention pertains] The present invention provides a system for broadcasting a mixture of paid independent broadcasting and free commercial broadcasting relay broadcasts at the same time, and charging only for reception of independent broadcasting. In particular, the present invention relates to a cable broadcasting system suitable for in-house cable TV broadcasting in hotels, inns, etc.

[Prior art and its problems]

Generally, in hotels, inns, etc., in order to provide services to guests, a broadcast line for transmitting broadcast waves is wired to each guest room within the hotel, and commercial television broadcasts are relayed and transmitted to each room via this broadcast line. In addition, a cable broadcasting device is installed that transmits independent broadcasts such as independently produced video broadcasts, and allows receivers in each guest room to selectively receive either commercial broadcasts or independent broadcasts. In this case, since the independent broadcasts are produced by the venue itself, they are generally broadcast for a fee.

Conventionally, a coin timer has been used to charge and collect fees for receiving such paid independent broadcasting.

In other words, a converter is installed between the receiving device such as a television receiver installed in each guest room and the broadcast line to control the passage or blocking of specific broadcast signals, and the converter is operated for a certain period of time by inserting coins and tokens. A coin timer is provided for controlling the converter, and the converter is controlled by the coin timer so that while the coin timer is injected with coins and the coin timer is operating, the converter passes the self-broadcasting signal from the broadcasting line to the receiving device. It was made possible to receive paid independent broadcasts on the receiving device.

However, such conventional methods have the following drawbacks.

It cannot be used unless the user inserts coins into the coin timer, so it cannot be used unless the user has the coins to insert into the coin timer.

Since the usage fee must be collected from the coin timer in each room in the building, it takes a lot of time and effort for the administrator to collect the fee.

The coin timer operates independently of the operation of the receiving device, so if the independent broadcast is enabled to be received by the operation of the coin timer, the fee will be collected regardless of whether the independent broadcast is actually received by the receiving device. be done.

Since the coin timer is easily tampered with, there are many opportunities for failure to pay for the reception of independent broadcasts.

[Purpose of the invention]

An object of the present invention is to eliminate the drawbacks of the conventional system described above, and to provide a wired broadcasting system including paid broadcasting that is reliable for the reception of paid independent broadcasting and is convenient for both users and administrators. That is.

[Key points of the invention]

The present invention relays and transmits a mixture of free broadcasting and paid broadcasting from the center to a plurality of terminals via a broadcast line, and each terminal selects reception of both broadcasts, and each terminal A central management device and a terminal control device are provided that are connected to the center and each terminal via control lines, respectively, and the central management device charges a fee for receiving paid broadcasting at only when each terminal is permitted to receive paid broadcasting during broadcasting, a pay broadcast reception permission signal is given to each terminal control device, and billing processing is performed based on a billing signal from each terminal control device; When each of the terminal control devices receives the reception permission signal from the central management device, it enables the reception of paid broadcasts that had been previously disabled at the terminals, and allows each terminal to receive the pay broadcasts. By sending the billing signal to the central management device while the terminal is actually receiving paid broadcasting, billing processing is performed centrally only while the terminal is actually receiving paid broadcasting, and the billing signal is sent to the central management device while the terminal is in the hotel room. To make it possible to receive paid broadcasting without using a special service.

[Embodiments of the invention]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the entire cable television broadcast system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In this figure, 1 is a central management device installed in the center for performing billing processing, etc., and 2 is a control device between the central management device 1 and terminal control devices 71 installed in each terminal 7-1, 7-2. A control line for transmitting signals; 4 is a commercial TV broadcast relay receiver installed in the center that receives commercial TV broadcasts and transmits them into the building; 5 is a commercial TV broadcast relay receiver that receives independently produced video programs for a fee; An independent broadcast transmitter 6 for broadcasting is a mixer that mixes the commercial broadcast signal from the receiver 4 and the independent broadcast signal from the independent broadcast transmitter 5 and transmits the mixture to the broadcast line 3 for broadcast signal transmission. . The broadcasting line 3 has a plurality of terminal devices 7- installed in each hotel guest room, etc.
Television receivers 73 in 1 and 7-2 are connected via converters 72, respectively. Converter 72 is also connected to terminal control device 71 and controlled thereby.

In such a configuration, when the present invention is applied to a broadcasting device of a hotel, inn, etc., the central management device 1 is placed at the front desk where it deals with customers for check-in and check-out. Then, from the central management device 1, when the independent broadcast transmitter 5 is in broadcast operation, a broadcasting signal indicating that the independent broadcast is being broadcast is sent to the terminal control device 71 of each terminal device 7 via the control line 2. . In addition, when a check-in is performed and a guest room is used, an independent broadcast reception permission signal is sent to the terminal device 7 of the guest room via the control line 2 in order to allow the reception of independent broadcasts. send. The terminal control device 71 in each terminal device 7 receives the broadcasting signal and reception permission signal from the central management device 1 via the control line 2, thereby converting the converter 72 into the receiver 73.
is controlled so that it can receive independent broadcast signals from the broadcast line 3. Therefore, details of the configuration and operation of converter 72 will be described later. Thereby, the receiver 73 can receive the independent broadcast signal from the broadcast line 3 by selecting the selecting device for the independent broadcast band. When the receiver 73 selects the independent broadcast band and starts receiving the independent broadcast, the converter 72 detects this and sends a receiving signal from the converter 72 to the terminal control device 71 indicating that the independent broadcast is being received. will be sent. The terminal control device 71 that has received the receiving signal operates to send a billing signal to the central management device 1 via the control line 2. The central management device 1 counts billing signals from the terminal control device 71 for each terminal device, and executes billing processing to obtain usage fees.

Note that the converter 72 has a control function that blocks or cancels passage of only paid independent broadcasting signals to the receiver 73, but it blocks free commercial broadcasting signals while allowing them to pass. The receiver 73 can freely receive free commercial broadcast signals.

Although the configuration and operation of the present invention are outlined above, the present invention can be better understood by explaining detailed embodiments of the terminal device 7. Next, we will explain the embodiments of the terminal device 7 according to the present invention. explain.

FIG. 2 shows one embodiment of the terminal device 7 according to the present invention, and in this figure, 71 is a terminal control device with a function of communicating with the central management device 1 and a converter 72, as in the case of FIG. It has the function to control. The converter 72 includes an AND gate A ₁ , an OR gate O ₁ , a NOT gate N ₁ , N ₂ ,
N ₃ , switch SW ₁ , SW ₂ , LED indicator light 721,
It is composed of a flip-flop 722, an active filter F, and the like. Furthermore, 11 is a broadcasting signal given from the terminal control device 71 to AND gate A ₁ , 12 is a reception permission signal similarly given to AND gate A ₁ , and 723 is a flip-flop 7
22 to active filter F and terminal control device 71
725 is a broadcast wave given from the active filter F, and 731 is a selection signal generated when the receiver 73 selects to receive an independent broadcast.

In the above configuration, the central control device 1 installed at the front desk of a hotel, inn, etc. detects that the independent broadcast transmitter 5 is operating (broadcasting), and the check-in is completed. A broadcasting signal indicating that an independent broadcast is being broadcast and a reception permission signal indicating that reception of the independent broadcast is permitted are transmitted via the control line 2 to the terminal device 7 of the guest room where the check-in has been completed. do. (See Figure 1).

In the terminal device 7 (Fig. 2) of the guest room,
When the terminal control device 71 receives the on-air signal and reception permission signal and determines that it is addressed to itself, it provides the on-air signal 11 and reception permission signal 12 to the converter 72 . This makes AND gate A ₁ conductive, so LED indicator light 721
is driven through the not gate (driver) _N1 and lights up, indicating that the receiving terminal device is ready to receive independent broadcasting.

Here, when the user selects the independent broadcasting band using the selection device of the receiver 73 and turns on the reception start switch _SW1 , the flip-flop 722 is set and the Q output indicates that reception is in progress. A medium signal 723 is generated and applied to active filter F and terminal controller 71. When the active filter F receives the receiving signal 723, it previously passed only the free commercial broadcasting signal sent via the broadcasting line 3 and blocked the passage of the paid independent broadcasting signal. Signals are also allowed to pass, and both commercial broadcasting and independent broadcasting signals are guided to the receiver 73. As a result, the independent broadcast is received by the receiver 73 whose reception band is selected as the independent broadcast band.

On the other hand, while receiving the receiving signal 723, the terminal control device 71 transmits a billing signal along with a code indicating its own terminal to the central management device 1 (FIG. 1) via the control line 2. The central management device 1 counts the charging signals and performs charging processing such as determining the fee for receiving independent broadcasting on the terminal device, and prepares for collection of fees at the time of checkout. The terminal control device 71 may transmit the billing signal by transmitting it every time the usage time reaches a unit charge, by transmitting it at fixed intervals, or by transmitting it at the start and end of reception, etc. Any method may be adopted in the present invention.

If a user wants to stop receiving independent broadcasts,
All you have to do is operate the selection device of the receiver 73 to a location other than the independent broadcast band, or operate the reception end switch _SW2 . When any of these operations is performed, a signal is applied to the reset terminal R of the flip-flop 722, and this is reset, so that the receiving signal 723 generated from the Q output of the flip-flop 722 is stopped. As a result, the active filter F becomes in a state where it once again blocks the passage of the independent broadcast signal, and the receiver 73 becomes in a state in which it is unable to receive the independent broadcast signal. At the same time, the terminal control device 71
Stop sending billing signals to. As a result, the central management device 1 stops billing processing and holds the usage fee calculated up to that point until the fee is collected.

The reception of independent broadcasting can also be stopped by the central control device 1 stopping the broadcasting signal when the independent broadcasting has ended, or by stopping the receiving permission signal after the checkout is completed. .
That is, in such a state, the terminal control device 71 transmits the broadcasting signal 11 and reception permission signal 12.
Since at least one of the and gates stops, the and gate
Conduction of A ₁ is prevented, which causes the not gate to
N ₂ , flip-flop 7 through or gate O ₁
22 is reset.

Although the intended purpose of the present invention can be achieved with such a device, another embodiment of the present invention which is designed to further improve the convenience of the user is shown in FIG. 3, which will be explained next. do.

In FIG. 3, the same reference numerals as in FIGS. 1 and 2 indicate the same or equivalent components.

The embodiment shown in FIG. 3 differs greatly from the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 by adding new timers 726 and 727.
Since the other configurations are almost the same except for the provision of timers, the functions of these timers will be explained.

Timer 726 sends an input to flip-flop 722.
is connected to the Q output terminal which generates the receiving signal 723. This timer 726 has a set time, for example.
This is set to a relatively short time of about 30 seconds, and the reception confirmation signal 724 is generated and sent to the terminal control device 71 after this set time has elapsed since the receiving signal 723 was added. After receiving this reception confirmation signal 724, the terminal control device 71 transmits the information to the central management device 1.
(Fig. 1). The receiver 73 is the second
As in the case of the embodiment shown in the figure, reception of paid independent broadcasting starts at the same time as the receiving signal 723 is generated.
The billing signal is transmitted to the central management device 1 after a delay of the time set in the timer 726 (30 seconds). Therefore, you will not be charged for 30 seconds from the start of reception.

The reason for delaying the charging time in this way is to allow the user to confirm the content of the independent broadcast and then decide whether or not they wish to continue receiving it, or to allow the user to select the broadcast program. This is to give Therefore, while the user selects a broadcast program, the user will not be charged even if he or she is receiving paid independent broadcasting.

The timer 727 is a timer whose set time is set to a relatively long time, for example, about 30 minutes. Similarly, the input is connected to the Q output terminal of the flip-flop 722, and the output is connected to the reset terminal R of the flip-flop 722 via an OR gate _O1 . is connected to.

Receiving signal 7 generated at the start of reception
23 continues until the set time of the timer 727 reaches 30 minutes, the timer 727 issues a reception stop signal 728.
Since the flip-flop 722 is reset via the OR gate _O1 , the receiving signal 723
stops. As a result, the active filter F becomes in a state of blocking the passage of the independent broadcasting signal, and the receiver 73
becomes unable to receive independent broadcasts and stops receiving independent broadcasts. When flip-flop 722 is reset, the output signal is output to timers 726 and 727.
timers 726 and 727 are reset and stop their respective output signals. As a result, the terminal control device 71 stops transmitting the charging signal to the central management device 1.

After that, when the user operates the reception start switch SW ₁ again, the flip-flop 722 is set again and the reception signal 723 is generated, and the receiver 73
will resume receiving independent broadcasts. Then, the terminal control device 71 receives the reception confirmation signal 724 from the timer 726.
Then, the charging signal is sent to the central management device 1 again.

In this way, the timer 727 has the function of temporarily stopping the reception of independent broadcasting after a predetermined period of time has elapsed. For example, if a user at a hotel or inn forgets to turn off the receiver and falls asleep, if billing is not stopped, unexpected and excessive usage fees will be incurred. This is effective in preventing excessive charges due to forgetting to turn off the switch, etc., and is extremely convenient for users.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, a central management device is provided in the center, a terminal control device is provided in the terminal where the receiver is placed, and the terminal that allows reception of paid independent broadcasting from the central management device The receiver has been selected to receive independent broadcasts on the condition that reception permission has been granted and the terminal control device has received reception permission, and the receiver has been enabled to receive independent broadcasts and reception is being performed on the receiver. For the time being, a billing signal was sent to the central management device, and this billing signal was counted by the central management device to perform the billing process, so terminals had to prepare a countermeasure in order to receive paid independent broadcasting. This also ensures that billing is done without omission for the amount of time that is actually being received. Therefore, since usage fees can be collected at a central management office such as the front desk of hotels, inns, etc., the trouble of collecting fees can be saved, and benefits such as being able to prevent billing omissions can be obtained. , all the drawbacks of the conventional method can be eliminated.

Furthermore, in the present invention, reception permission can be selectively given to a plurality of terminals, so for example, a hotel,
When installed in a hotel, etc., it has the effect of enabling or disabling the reception of independent broadcasts depending on the user of each guest room.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are block diagrams showing different embodiments of a terminal device according to the present invention. 1...Central management device, 2...Control line, 3...Broadcast line, 4...Commercial broadcast receiver, 5...Independent broadcast transmitter, 6...Mixed transmitter, 7, 7-1, 7- 2...
...Terminal device, 71...Terminal control device, 72...Converter, 73...Terminal receiver.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. Free broadcasts and paid broadcasts are mixed and transmitted from the center to a plurality of terminals via broadcast lines, each terminal selects reception of both broadcasts, and each terminal selects to receive both broadcasts. A central management device and a terminal control device are provided which are connected to the center and each terminal via a control line, respectively, and the central management device is connected to each terminal. a broadcasting signal to the control device indicating that the pay television is being broadcast;
A pay broadcast reception permission signal is given to each of the terminals to allow the reception of the pay broadcast, and a billing process is performed based on a billing signal from each terminal control device, a first timer that delays billing processing for a predetermined period of time after a received signal indicating that the pay broadcast has been received; and a second timer that temporarily stops receiving the pay broadcast when a predetermined time has elapsed since the pay broadcast was received; When the broadcasting signal and the reception permission signal are received from the management device, the terminals are enabled to receive the pay broadcasts that had been disabled until then, and the pay broadcasts are received by each terminal, and the After the set time of the first timer elapses, a billing signal is sent to the central management device, and after the set time of the second timer elapses,
A cable broadcasting system characterized by stopping the transmission of billing signals to a central management device.